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Texas Judge Revives Effort to Ban Abortion Pill
Last week, U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk issued an order [ [link removed] ] allowing a state lawsuit to continue against Danco Laboratories, the pharmaceutical company which produces Mifeprex (mifepristone). As a Trump appointee and member of the Federalist Society, Judge Kacsmaryk has also issued decisions restricting LGBTQ rights [ [link removed] ] and preventing Texas teens from accessing birth control [ [link removed] ] without their parents’ permission. In an article [ [link removed] ] written several years prior to his confirmation, Kacsmaryk laid out his opposition [ [link removed] ] to marriage equality, which he described as a form of “elitist postmodern philosophy.” Now, he is allowing Idaho, Kansas, and Missouri to proceed with their cases against Danco—even though his court is located in Texas.
Kacsmaryk’s courtroom is often sought out [ [link removed] ] by conservative parties due to his habit of issuing sweeping injunctions. While the Judicial Conference announced a new policy to combat [ [link removed] ] this form of venue shopping in March 2024, Kacsmaryk’s district decided to simply ignore [ [link removed] ] the rules, meaning litigants are free to seek out specific judges. If the states win their case, the FDA will be forced [ [link removed] ] to restrict mifepristone prescriptions to the first seven weeks of pregnancy, and only allow patients to access the drug in-person.
Trump Administration Guts Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board
This week, the Trump Administration informed Democrat-selected members of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB) that they could either submit their resignations by January 23rd or be forced to step down, according to anonymous sources [ [link removed] ] familiar with the situation. Though the Board has only issued eight [ [link removed] ] reports since its creation, it had recently began to hold public hearings on important issues like the use of AI in counterterrorism and national security programs [ [link removed] ]. PCLOB is also responsible for certifying the Data Protection Review Court [ [link removed] ], which is a critical part of an agreement between Europe and the United States that allows American tech companies to handle the personal data of users in the EU. The administration’s decision to hamstring PCLOB could create problems for US tech giants, David Meyer explained [ [link removed] ] in Fortune, and disturb an already-delicate regulatory arrangement. Trump, for his part, has begun attacking [ [link removed] ] the EU for issuing fines to American tech companies, describing it as a “form of taxation.”
New Data Center Funding for Texas, with Support from UAE
On Tuesday, the CEOs of OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle appeared [ [link removed] ] at a press conference with President Trump to announce an initiative called “Stargate,” which promises to eventually invest $500 billion in AI infrastructure. Absent from the proceedings was Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, whose Abu Dhabi-based firm MGX [ [link removed] ] is also providing a significant portion of the funding. As a member of the UAE’s royal family, Sheikh Tahnoon is the steward of $1.5 trillion [ [link removed] ] in private and state-owned funds, and also serves as the country’s national security advisor. Both Republican and Democratic lawmakers have expressed concern [ [link removed] ] about a separate artificial intelligence company within his portfolio, which had allegedly worked extensively [ [link removed] ] with China’s “military, intelligence services and state-owned entities.”
The first Stargate-funded data centers are already being built [ [link removed] ] in Abilene, Texas, according to Oracle chairman Larry Ellison. Texas is already home to a data center boom, driven by tax breaks [ [link removed] ], low energy prices, and a “demand response [ [link removed] ]” program that allows facilities to sell energy back to the grid during periods of high demand. Some data centers have made hundreds of millions of dollars through the initiative, as TTP reported [ [link removed] ] in 2022. Their earnings came at the expense of regular consumers, who were saddled with massive energy bills [ [link removed] ] in the aftermath of winter storms.
What We’re Reading
Instagram and Facebook Blocked and Hid Abortion Pill Providers’ Posts [ [link removed] ]
As Trump returns, state lawmakers pursue bills that would treat abortion as homicide [ [link removed] ]
'Unthinkable': Trump FTC Chair Shuts Down Public Comments on Corporate Pricing Tactics [ [link removed] ]
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