President-elect Donald Trump will attend the upcoming reopening ceremony for Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, he said Dec. 2. The trip will mark his first foreign trip since his election to a second term.
Biden’s controversial pardon of son Hunter brings mixed reaction, potential consequences
President Joe Biden’s expansive pardon for his son Hunter Biden Dec. 1 brought strong reaction from Catholic political observers and lawmakers alike, including criticism from Republicans and some members of Biden’s own Democratic Party.
Supreme Court gets set for oral arguments over state’s gender transition ban for minors
The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear Dec. 4 a challenge to a Tennessee state law banning certain types of medical or surgical gender reassignment procedures for minors who identify as transgender, the high court’s first major step toward weighing in on the controversial issue.
Biden awards former Planned Parenthood president the Presidential Medal of Freedom
President Joe Biden awarded Cecile Richards, former Planned Parenthood president, the Presidential Medal of Freedom Nov. 20 in a private ceremony, the White House said.
Judge strikes down Wyoming abortion laws, including abortion pill ban
A Wyoming judge ruled Nov. 18 that two state laws restricting abortion — including one banning chemical or medication abortions — violated the state’s constitution and could not be enforced.
Report examines ‘persistent racial disparities’ in federal death penalty use
As activists push President Joe Biden to commute existing federal death sentences during his final months in office, a new report by the Death Penalty Information Center examined what it called persistent racial disparities in federal death penalty prosecutions.
Catholic groups reiterate ‘solidarity with immigrants’ amid a new administration, Congress
Catholic organizations have reiterated their “solidarity with immigrants” and shared what the first 100 days of a second Trump administration may bring on immigration policy.
Texas high court rejects execution delay for man convicted of ‘shaken baby’ murder
The Texas Supreme Court Nov. 15 denied a state House committee’s attempt to delay the execution of a man convicted of murder in the 2002 death of his 2-year-old daughter, after lawmakers questioned the evidence behind his conviction.
Trump’s cabinet picks; RFK Jr.’s pro-abortion record; abortion ballots examined
President-elect Donald Trump named his nominees for several key roles in his second term, including the controversial selection of Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., who was recently under investigation by the House Ethics Committee, for attorney general.
Biden meets with Trump, his predecessor and successor, at White House
President Joe Biden welcomed President-elect Donald Trump to the White House Nov. 13 for an Oval Office visit, a ritual part of the U.S. tradition of a peaceful transfer of power between presidents, and one that Trump declined four years earlier.
Republicans secure majority of U.S. House seats and expected to control U.S. Senate
Republicans secured a majority of the U.S. House of Representatives, according to a Nov. 12 projection by data provider Decision Desk HQ, giving President-elect Donald Trump GOP majorities in both chambers of Congress as he begins his second term in January.
Federal judge blocks Louisiana law requiring public schools to post Ten Commandments
Louisiana’s law requiring public schools to display the Ten Commandments is unconstitutional, a federal judge ruled Nov. 12.