Recent Headlines: Abortion Access on Ballot in 3 States, Biden Vows to Stay in Race, Trump Seeks Delay of Classified Documents Case, and more

Organizers say abortion access is headed to the ballot in 3 more states

Abortions-rights supporters in three states this week said they had secured enough signatures to put measures on the November ballot that would enshrine some abortion access in their state constitutions. Organizers in Arkansas on Friday became the final group this election year to say they had submitted enough signatures to put the question to voters, just days after groups in Arizona and Nebraska said they met their own deadlines. In all three states — as in Missouri and Montana, where groups recently said they had collected enough signatures for such measures — officials still have to verify the signatures and certify the ballot initiatives.

Biden says people are trying to ‘push’ him out the race

President Joe Biden vowed Friday to stay in the race for president, telling an audience in Wisconsin that he would not bow to people clamoring for him to step aside. “Some folks don’t seem to care who you voted for,” he said. “Well, guess what? They’re trying to push me out of the race. Well, let me say this as clear as I can. I’m staying in the race!” Biden started the speech speaking rapidly and looked more ruddy than he had in the disastrous debate that called into question whether he was too old to remain in the contest against former President Donald Trump.

After immunity ruling, Trump seeks delay of classified documents case

Lawyers for former President Donald Trump on Friday asked the judge overseeing his classified-documents case to put that proceeding almost entirely on hold as they sort through whether Trump enjoys immunity from the charges based on a landmark Supreme Court ruling this week. On Monday, the Supreme Court granted Trump broad immunity against criminal prosecution for his official acts as president. The ruling came after months of legal wrangling arising from his other federal case — the one in Washington in which he stands accused of plotting to overturn the 2020 election. His lawyers are now trying to apply that ruling to the documents case.

Judge rules against release of Covenant School shooter’s writings

A Nashville, Tennessee, judge Thursday refused to allow the publication of writings left behind by the assailant who killed six at a Christian school in the city last year, warning that their content could have inspired copycat violence elsewhere. In a ruling that could have far-reaching implications, the judge also sided with a more novel argument from the parents of the surviving Covenant School students: that they had obtained copyright ownership of the writings and works left behind by the assailant. The ruling came after a monthslong legal dispute over whether officials were compelled to release the journals and other documents.

Wisconsin Supreme Court says ballot drop boxes can again be used

The Wisconsin Supreme Court’s new liberal majority said Friday that ballot drop boxes can once again be used widely in the state, reversing a ruling issued two years ago when the court had a conservative majority. On a practical level, the ruling changes how Wisconsin, a closely divided state that could tip the Electoral College, will carry out an election that is just four months away. On a symbolic level, the judicial U-turn is likely to fuel Republican claims that the court has become a nakedly partisan force — claims that Democrats made themselves not long ago, when most of the justices were conservatives.

Talks on Gaza cease-fire revive after weeks of deadlock

Israeli negotiators traveled to the Gulf nation of Qatar on Friday for the first time in weeks to restart talks over a cease-fire deal that would end the war in the Gaza Strip and free the hostages held there. David Barnea, head of Israel’s Mossad foreign intelligence service, led the Israeli delegation to Doha, the Qatari capital, and met with Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, the Qatari prime minister, according to an official familiar with the visit. Cease-fire negotiations had been stalled for weeks until Wednesday, when Hamas announced that it had exchanged some ideas with mediators on a new way forward.

Brazil police accuse Bolsonaro of embezzling Saudi jewels

Brazil’s federal police recommended that former President Jair Bolsonaro be criminally charged in a scheme to embezzle jewelry he received from foreign leaders while president, according to two people close to the investigation, adding another major legal challenge for Bolsonaro. The federal police accused Bolsonaro and 10 of his allies of trying to keep and sell expensive gifts that he received from foreign governments, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe sealed case files. The police are seeking money laundering and criminal association charges against Bolsonaro and some of his allies, including former aides.

Viktor Orban meets Vladimir Putin, dismaying EU

Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary met with President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin on Friday, a rare trip to Russia by a Western leader and one that quickly stirred consternation in the European Union. Orban made the trip three days after visiting President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine. And it was the same week that Hungary took over the EU’s rotating presidency, prompting other European leaders to declare that Orban was not representing them in Moscow. A spokesperson for Orban said the Hungarian leader was in Moscow “as part of his peace mission.” Orban has made vague calls for a cease-fire…

Kazakh journalist’s killing sends chill through exiles in Ukraine

A small crowd of mourners gathered Friday for the funeral of Kazakh opposition activist and YouTuber Aidos Sadykov, who was assassinated in Kyiv, Ukraine — a killing that cast a chill over journalists and exiles in Ukraine and the wider region. A former politician and trade unionist, Sadykov, 55, lived in Ukraine after fleeing Kazakhstan with his family. He was granted political asylum in Ukraine and, with his wife, ran a widely followed YouTube channel covering events in Kazakhstan. He was shot last month outside their home and died of his injuries this week. Natalia Sadykova, his widow, has laid the blame on President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan.

Vatican excommunicates former ambassador to the US

The Vatican said Friday that it had excommunicated Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, the church’s former ambassador to the United States, after finding him guilty of schism for refusing to recognize the authority of Pope Francis and the liberal reforms enacted after the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s. Viganò has emerged as one of the most unbridled conservative critics of Francis, calling him in public statements a “false prophet” and a “servant of Satan,” while embracing right-wing conspiracy theories. Viganò will be able to keep his title, but he will not be allowed to celebrate Mass, receive or administer sacraments, or hold official positions within the church’s hierarchy.