WTF Just Happened Today

Monday, July 17, 2023

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1/ An Iowa judge temporarily blocked the state’s new six-week abortion ban. For now, abortion is legal again in Iowa up to 20 weeks of pregnancy while the legal challenge plays out in the court system. On Friday, Gov. Kim Reynolds signed the “fetal heartbeat” law. It took effect immediately and banned nearly all abortions after cardiac activity in the embryo is detected, which can occur about six weeks into a pregnancy – before most women know they are pregnant. (NBC News / Des Moines Register / Associated Press / The Hill)

2/ House Republicans narrowly approved a must-pass defense policy bill, which restricts Pentagon policies that reimburse travel costs for troops seeking abortions and medical care for transgender troops. The $886 billion defense package authorizes funding and sets the policy for the Defense Department, and includes a 5.2% pay raise for service members. All but four Democrats voted against the package. The National Defense Authorization Act, however, expected to go nowhere in the Democratic-majority Senate, which will begin debate on its own defense legislation this month. (Associated Press / Politico / Vox / NPR / CNN / CBS News)

3/ A Republican from Arizona referred to Black people as “colored people” during a floor debate over his proposed amendment to the annual defense policy bill. Eli Crane’s amendment would prohibit the Pentagon from considering race, gender, religion, political affiliations or “any other ideological concepts” in training, promotion or retention decisions. “My amendment has nothing to do with whether or not colored people or Black people or anybody can serve,” said Crane. “The military was never intended to be, you know, inclusive. Its strength is not its diversity. Its strength is its standards.” Crane later claimed he “misspoke.” (Washington Post / NBC News / CBS News)

4/ The Biden administration eliminated $39 billion in student debt for more than 800,000 borrowers. The relief is part of an effort to fix what the administration calls “administrative failures” that denied student loan borrowers relief they were eligible. Under those repayment plans, borrowers could get any remaining debt canceled by the government after having made qualifying payments for 20 years or 25 years. However, “inaccurate payment counts” an...

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