American lawyer and Republican official
A US federal judge has dismissed the Trump administration's March lawsuit accusing Harvard of ongoing Title VI civil rights violations, finding the cited incidents were "too isolated and episodic" to show institutional noncompliance. The government is assessing next steps; Harvard has not immediately commented. The suit had sought to reclaim billions in federal research funding.
The Department of Justice and Education Department have opened a joint investigation into the University of California, Berkeley School of Law, alleging that the admissions process discriminates on race and uses essay prompts to group applicants by identity. Berkeley says it complies with Prop. 209 and federal law, and will provide evidence of compliance. The probe follows a Supreme Court decision on race-conscious admissions and may impact future diversity policies in higher education.
The Supreme Court is weighing the administration’s appeal after lower courts blocked Trump’s mail-voting rule. Courts have halted enforcement ahead of midterms as ballots go out in several states; the White House argues for a streamlined process while critics warn of disenfranchisement.
Federal investigators have found that several U.S. medical schools discriminate in admissions by race, with Black and Hispanic applicants having higher acceptance odds than white and Asian applicants despite similar credentials. The findings cover UCLA, UC San Diego, and UCSF for classes from 2023–2025, and flag allegedly two-tier admissions that shift based on race. The case could lead to voluntary resolutions or legal action.
A series of politically charged prosecutions around the 2026 midterms has seen grand juries in Washington reject indictments tied to Cassidy Hutchinson and to two former FBI officials tied to Hunter Biden’s laptop. The latest: Hutchinson’s bid for an indictment has been rejected; Floris and Benavides are facing charges filed by a criminal complaint, with court proceedings continuing.
The Southern District of Florida’s U.S. attorney has resigned, along with the head of the Justice Department’s National Security Division and the head of the Civil Rights Division. The departures come amid a broad exodus in the department as investigators carry on with a long-running probe into whether former officials conspired against a Trump-era presidency. The resignations come as oversight is expected to intensify in Congress.