** News Roundup:
Eastman Disciplinary Trial, Missouri Health Resources, and Virginia Tip Line Records
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This week, as former President Trump ([link removed]) and several of his 18 co-defendants ([link removed]) in the Georgia election case surrendered to authorities in Atlanta, the disciplinary trial for one of those co-defendants — attorney John Eastman — resumed in California.

Eastman, an architect of the fake-electors plot that sought to disrupt the certification of the 2020 election, faces potential disbarment for his role in the plot to keep Trump in power, including his authorship of a memo proposing that the vice president could unilaterally reject electoral votes from certain states.
* On Thursday, prosecutors reportedly read ([link removed]) through that memo, asking a legal and election expert whether there was “historical precedent” where the vice president could postpone the certification. (The answer was no.)
* According to ABC News ([link removed]) , prosecutors also presented a letter Eastman had sent to former Wisconsin Rep. Timothy Ramthun in which he wrote that “state legislatures … do have the authority to de-certify the election of presidential electors.”
* We obtained that letter ([link removed]) . It’s dated Dec. 30, 2021, when Ramthun was calling ([link removed]) for the state legislature to overturn the results from the election that had occurred more than a year before.


The potential list of witnesses lined up to testify for Eastman include a number of names familiar to those who have followed the post-2020 efforts to undermine democracy through partisan election investigations, attacks on voting rights, and challenges to election administration.
* The potential witnesses include Michael Gableman, Kurt Olsen, and others. We put together a compilation of records we’ve obtained ([link removed]) detailing the communications and activities of a number of these potential witnesses — as well as witnesses who have since been excluded from testifying, such as former Rep. Mark Finchem.


Here are some recent headlines related to the election denial movement and other threats to democracy:
* A right-wing sheriffs group that challenges federal law is gaining acceptance around the country (Associated Press ([link removed]) )
* God-given rights: The nationwide spread of the ‘constitutional sheriff’ (Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting ([link removed]) )
* Arizona features prominently at Lindell’s election conspiracy forum (Arizona Mirror ([link removed]) )
* My Pillow conspiracy theorist plans drone surveillance of Louisiana voting sites, report says (Louisiana Illuminator ([link removed]) )
* 255 days after Arizona 2022 election certification, new fringe lawsuit seeks to decertify results (Democracy Docket ([link removed]) )
* Arizona pilot for secure ballot paper won’t move forward as planned (Votebeat ([link removed]) )
* Louisiana first in the nation to vote on banning private elections funding (Bolts ([link removed]) )


Virginia Lawsuit Update
Despite the tip line having beenclosed ([link removed].) for nearly a year without any clear resulting actions, the office of Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin continues to fight against the release of public information related to its controversial“inherently divisive concepts” tip line ([link removed]) .
* We sued ([link removed]) Youngkin’s office for records related to the tip line in August 2022. The office has appealed a courtorder to release records ([link removed]) and continues to argue that the records are “correspondence and working papers of the Governor’s office” and are therefore exempt from disclosure.

On Aug. 7, the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press and nine other media and transparency organizations — including the Virginia Coalition for Open Government, the National Freedom of Information Coalition, and the Society of Professional Journalists — submitted anamicus brief ([link removed]) , urging the appellate court to uphold the ruling that the records are subject to release. Read more about the brief here. ([link removed])

On the Records

Missouri Health Dept. Removed Youth Sexual Health, LGBTQ Resources from Website
Records we obtained, reported on by the Kansas City Star ([link removed]) , reveal that the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services removed links to resources about youth and LGBTQ sexual health from its website early this year.
* In January, Lisa Cox, the health department’s communications director, instructed employees to remove certain links to sexual education and LGBTQ resources from the department’s adolescent health information page ([link removed]) . The links are no longer available on the website.
* Other emails we obtained suggest a pattern of Missouri DHSS officials seeking to avoid sharing resources deemed to be politically charged, pointing to things like the use of gender-inclusive language.

The records illustrate the chilling effect of the wave of attacks on LGBTQ ([link removed]) and reproductive rights — including Missouri’s ban on gender-affirming care for minors ([link removed]) , trans student sports restrictions ([link removed]) , and near-total ban on abortion ([link removed]) .
* The Washington Post ([link removed]) reported earlier this year that Virginia Gov. Youngkin’s administration had also quietly removed public health resources related to LGBTQ issues, abortion, sexual health, and pregnancy from a state website.
* “With attacks on reproductive freedom and LGBTQ rights on the rise, political concerns, including whether information about contraceptive methods and resources for transgender Missourians are too ‘controversial,’ are overriding the need to ensure that all Missourians have access to critical health care information,” said American Oversight’s Executive Director Heather Sawyer.

Other Stories We're Following

Voting Rights
* Virginia in talks with Ohio, Florida, Texas in new voter fraud initiative (Virginia Public Media ([link removed]) )
* Federal judges rule against provisions of GOP-backed voting laws in Georgia and Texas (Associated Press ([link removed]) )
* Biennial state-by-state elections and voter survey details the 1.5% of mail-in ballots rejected in 2022 (Democracy Docket ([link removed]) )
* Federal judges rule against provisions of GOP-backed voting laws in Georgia and Texas (Associated Press ([link removed]) )
* Texas Supreme Court lets state law eliminating Harris County elections chief stand, for now (Texas Tribune ([link removed]) )
* Alabama defies the Voting Rights Act (Brennan Center ([link removed]) )
* Ohio AG rejects anti-gerrymandering ballot effort that would create citizen redistricting commission (Ohio Capital Journal ([link removed]) )


State and National News
* Inside a ‘nightmare’ lockdown at a Wisconsin prison (New York Times ([link removed]) )
* As the death toll in stifling Texas prisons climbs, congressional Democrats ask for investigation (Texas Tribune ([link removed]) )
* ‘I could sell golf’: How DeSantis and aides courted lobbyists for campaign cash (Washington Post ([link removed]) )
* Nebraska AG questioned over hiring of ex-lawmaker who lacks legal background (Associated Press ([link removed]) )
* In deadly Maui fires, many had no warning and no way out. Those who dodged barricades survived (Associated Press ([link removed]) )

* D.C. attorney general is probing Leonard Leo’s network (Politico ([link removed]) )
* Conservative activist sues 2 major law firms over diversity fellowships (Washington Post ([link removed]) )
* Supreme Court is asked to hear a new admissions case on race (New York Times ([link removed]) )
* In states with few legal protections, students say they’ve been unfairly punished at school (NBC News ([link removed]) )


LGBTQ Rights
* Transgender care ban allowed to take effect in Alabama, appeals panel says (New York Times ([link removed]) )
* In St. Joseph, local GOP pressured lawmakers to block approval of gay library board member (KCUR Kansas City ([link removed]) )
* Court battle begins over Missouri’s ban on gender-affirming health care for minors (Associated Press ([link removed]) )
* Judge allows hormone therapy to resume for transgender kids in Georgia (Atlanta Journal-Constitution ([link removed]) )
* Harsh penalties approved for Florida state college employees who use restrooms that don’t correspond with gender assigned at birth (CNN ([link removed]) )
* A sex educator in Michigan refused to be shamed. Then came the backlash. (Washington Post ([link removed]) )


Abortion and Reproductive Rights
* South Carolina’s new all-male highest court reverses course on abortion, upholding strict 6-week ban (Associated Press ([link removed]) )
* Abortion-ban states pour millions into pregnancy centers with little medical care (Louisiana Illuminator ([link removed]) )
* West Virginia can restrict abortion pill sales, judge rules, despite FDA approval that it’s safe (Associated Press ([link removed]) )
* Indiana’s near-total abortion ban set to take effect as state Supreme Court denies rehearing (Associated Press ([link removed]) )
* State Supreme Court to reconsider 1864 law ordering prison time for abortion providers (Arizona Republic ([link removed]) )
* No OB-GYNs left in town: What came after Idaho’s assault on abortion (Guardian ([link removed]) )
* Split ballot board approves reproductive rights amendment summary written by Ohio Sec. of State (Ohio Capital Journal ([link removed]) )


Threats to Education
* Black history is under attack across U.S. from AP African American Studies to ‘Ruby Bridges’ (USA Today ([link removed]) )
* As Va. school districts split on transgender policies, state enforcement tools appear limited (Virginia Mercury ([link removed]) )
* University of Houston students brace for LGBTQ Resource Center closure in response to Texas’ DEI ban (Texas Tribune ([link removed]) )
* Unelected education boards set rules that reach beyond Florida law (Tampa Bay Times ([link removed]) )
* Florida quietly added more secrecy to university president searches (Tampa Bay Times ([link removed]) )
* Rockin' and rollin' with book challenges: Internal emails show Moms for Liberty plans (Tallahassee Democrat ([link removed]) )
* Moms for Liberty is growing in Wisconsin as critics call them extremists (Wisconsin Watch ([link removed]) )


Immigration
* A 'shocking' 911 call and other key takeaways from NPR's ICE detention investigation (NPR ([link removed]) )
* Texas sent more asylum seekers to L.A. even as Hilary raged, immigrant rights group says (Los Angeles Times ([link removed]) )
* Texas imprisoned migrants after they should have been released, lawsuit claims (Texas Tribune ([link removed]) )
* At Texas border, some support for Abbott’s crackdown is waning (New York Times ([link removed]) )
* Asylum-seekers are being set up for rejection at a New Mexico detention facility, rights groups say (Associated Press ([link removed]) )
* Before child died in custody, CBP tried to replace medical contractor (Washington Post ([link removed]) )


Trump Administration Accountability
* Special counsel investigating false statements made by Trump employees in classified documents case (CNN ([link removed]) )
* Special counsel says D.C. grand jury on Trump documents case has ended (Washington Post ([link removed]) )
* Jared Kushner's massive Saudi earnings for few investments raise questions (Newsweek ([link removed]) )
* Justice Dept. pushes back against Trump’s bid for a 2026 trial in D.C. (Washington Post ([link removed]) )



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