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Trump administration abruptly cancels grants for teen pregnancy prevention

NPR – Politics

2h ago

Trump administration abruptly cancels grants for teen pregnancy prevention

Summary

A LiFT workshop in the Navaho Nation in Arizona. The evidence-based course has teens bring a trusted adult with them to learn about relationships, safe sex and preventing pregnancy. Hózhǫ́ Horizons hide caption For stories of life in our changing world, subscribe here to the global health newsletter. Last July, the Trump administration issued a notice to the dozens of organizations receiving Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program grants. "Program materials are expected [to] reflect the immutable biological reality of sex, not radical gender ideology, and may not promote anti-American ideologies such as discriminatory equity ideology," the document reads, listing five executive orders organizations needed to comply with to keep their grants. "Programs with such unauthorized content are not eligible for federal funding." Grantees scrambled to adapt to the new requirements. Before the Teen Pregnancy Prevention funding stream was established in 2010, a series of programs were "evaluated using randomized controlled trials, which are really the gold standard for understanding the effectiveness of public policy," explains Nicholas Mark , a sociologist at the University of Wisconsin Madison. Congress then established the funding stream "to put in place the programs that had been shown to be effective in reducing teen pregnancy, increasing healthy behaviors, decreasing unhealthy sexual behaviors among teens," he says. However, Trump also signed $101 million in funding for the program into law earlier this year, a point raised by Senate and House Democrats in a pair of letters sent to Health Secretary Robert F. Nationally, American Indian and Alaska Natives have the highest teen pregnancy rate among racial and ethnic groups."I know in my community it is a big problem," she says.

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Health departments, universities and nonprofit grantees had spent months adapting to President Trump's executive orders. They say the funding cut was completely unexpected. (Image credit: Hózhǫ́ Horizons )

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Marine Le Pen launches France presidential campaign after court decision to shorten ban

Far-right leader plans to take part in 2027 vote despite court of appeal upholding her conviction for embezzlement The French far-right leader Marine Le Pen launched her presidential campaign on Wednesday, after a decision by a court of appeal shortened her ban on running for office, allowing her to take part in the 2027 vote. Le Pen said voters would decide her future. “I’m a citizen like anyone else, who is using their rights,” Le Pen said, attempting to brush aside the legal woes which her political opponents said would now plague her campaign for next spring’s presidential election. On Tuesday, a court of appeal upheld Le Pen’s conviction for playing a key role in orchestrating a fake-jobs scam of unprecedented size and duration. Le Pen, the figurehead of the far-right, anti-immigration National Rally party (RN), was found guilty of being at the centre of the embezzlement of more than €2.8m (£2.4m) in European parliament funds and funnelling the money into her party in Paris between 2004 and 2016. Although her ban on running for office was shortened, opening the possibility of a presidential campaign, she was also handed a form of one-year custodial sentence in which she would have to wear an electronic ankle tag restricting her movements to and from her home. This sentence would have complicated her ability to campaign, and she had previously said she would not run for president under such restrictions. But Le Pen confirmed on Wednesday that she would appeal to France’s highest court, the Court of Cassation, on a point of law. While she lodges that appeal, her sentence will be put on hold. This meant she could run without wearing an electronic tag, she said. In La Flèche, a town in La Sarthe, Le Pen arrived for a market walkabout while some leftwing protesters shouted “thief”, “criminal” and “prison”.

Democrats accuse Graham Platner of trying to put ‘thumb on the scale’ of process to replace him

Maine’s embattled US Senate nominee has faced calls to withdraw after a sexual assault allegation he denies Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Graham Platner, the embattled Democratic nominee for US Senate in Maine, has been accused of trying to influence the process of picking his replacement amid a chorus of calls for him to withdraw from the race. Platner has publicly said he is “taking the time to reflect on the best path forward” after an allegation of sexual assault, which he denied, was published on Monday . A wave of prominent Democrats, from the progressive senator Bernie Sanders to the Senate minority leader, Chuck Schumer, urged him to stand aside. The Maine election is seen as a key component of the party’s effort to regain control of the US Senate in November’s midterm elections. Platner remains in the race, for now. A senior state Democrat declared on Tuesday evening that Platner’s campaign would have “no role” in selecting his replacement, claiming that his team had tried to sway the process. We have repeatedly reiterated to Graham Platner’s team that they have no role in determining our next Democratic nominee for the US Senate, nor in determining what this process looks like. “We have also reiterated that Graham Platner must drop out of this race, so that Democrats in Maine can focus on defeating Susan Collins this November. Among them are several figures who ran in last month’s gubernatorial primary: former deputy director of the Maine Center for Disease Control & Prevention, Nirav Shah; secretary of state, Shenna Bellows; and former state senate president, Troy Jackson. Wood has reportedly been fielding calls about entering the Senate race. In order for Democrats to finalize an alternative Senate nominee in Maine, Platner needs to end his campaign by 13 July at 5pm ET, according to state law.

General U.S. News47m ago

Johnson eyes vote on bill to end ‘birth tourism' to satisfy right flank

Speaker Mike Johnson is exploring whether to put legislation on the House floor that would end the ability of pregnant women to enter the United States legally to gain citizenship for their children. The possible vote, described by four people granted anonymity to share details of private conversations, would be a way for Johnson to appease hard-liners who are demanding a vote to end birthright citizenship after the Supreme Court ruled against Trump administration efforts to undermine it. House passage of a measure to crack down the practice would be largely symbolic, as it stands no chance of overcoming the Senate filibuster. But Johnson's most conservative members are also continuing to agitate for the chance to vote on legislation to crack down on legal immigration in the U.S., and Johnson needs a way to respond to those demands quickly. “If there’s some legislative fix, we’ll advance that immediately,” Johnson said in an interview on Fox News Sunday over the weekend. While he warned that enacting a constitutional amendment would take “a little more time,” he added, “we’ve got to address this. It really is a serious, serious issue.” A spokesperson for Johnson did not immediately respond to a request for comment on his possible plan to target what critics call “birth tourism.” Further complicating matters, the speaker promised hard-liners last month that he would hold a vote before July 4 on legislation that would codify President Donald Trump’s border security priorities — in exchange for their support on a more narrow bill funding federal immigration enforcement activities. Those members now say Johnson has gone back on his word and, in revolt, they ground legislative business to a halt, forcing GOP leaders to send the House home early for the holiday recess. It could still be a problem when the chamber reconvenes next week, and Johnson needs to come up with a solution quickly. But the dynamics are deeply tricky for Johnson, who must grapple with intraparty factions divided over the party’s approach to the immigration issue broadly. A handful of moderate Republicans do not want to vote on immigration matters so close to the midterms, while a swath of Republicans in agriculture-heavy districts have warned Johnson he needs to address an overhaul of the visa process for seasonal immigrant farm workers as part of any immigration package that comes to the floor.

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Trump administration abruptly cancels grants for teen pregnancy prevention

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More in General U.S. News

Marine Le Pen launches France presidential campaign after court decision to shorten ban

Democrats accuse Graham Platner of trying to put ‘thumb on the scale’ of process to replace him

Johnson eyes vote on bill to end ‘birth tourism' to satisfy right flank