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Federal Judge Frees Immigrant Activist, Slams ICE

Federal judge blasts ICE for ‘cruel’ tactics, frees immigrant rights activist Ravi Ragbir. WaPo: "Comparing the Trump administration’s immigration practices to those of an authoritarian regime, a federal judge in Manhattan on Monday ordered the immediate release of a detained immigrant rights activist. U.S. District Judge Katherine B. Forrest said it was unconstitutional and cruel for authorities to 'pluck him out of his life without a moment’s notice... It ought not to be — and it has never before been — that those who have lived without incident in this country for years are subjected to treatment we associate with regimes we revile as unjust, regimes where those who have long lived in a country may be taken without notice from streets, home, and work. And sent away,' said Forrest, who read her seven-page opinion aloud in court."

ICE Detains 2 NJ Fathers At School; 3rd Seeks Sanctuary

New Jersey governor races to sanctuary church after ICE detains 2 fathers at school. Newsweek: "New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy rushed to a sanctuary church for immigrants in New Jersey on Thursday after two Indonesians were arrested by the U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement, while a third sought refuge in the church. 'We came right over here when we could. We have to find a way to respond to this because this will not stand,' said Murphy. 'It's not our country, it's not our values, it's not the country you came to escape persecution.' New Jersey residents Gunawan Liem and Roby Sanger were both detained while they dropped their children off at school on Thursday morning, Rev. Seth Kaper-Dale of the Reformed Church of Highland Park, New Jersey told NJ.com. The third man, Harry Pangerman, was able to escape ICE agents and seek sanctuary in the church."

Pruitt Moved Fast To Remove EPA Mentions Of Climate Change

Trump administration, Pruitt focused on EPA website immediately, documents show. CNN: "The Trump administration took an interest in the content of the Environmental Protection Agency's website in its first week in office, with Administrator Scott Pruitt eventually directing edits, according to internal documents made public Monday. Pruitt, who took office last February, was personally interested in changes related to the Clean Power Plan, a sweeping greenhouse gas regulation that was a priority of the Obama administration but that Pruitt would eventually announce plans to withdraw. 'How close are we to launching this on the website? The Administrator would like it to go up ASAP,' Lincoln Ferguson, an adviser to Pruitt, wrote in early April. 'He also has several other changes that need to take place.'"

Insurers Increasingly Deny Emergency-Room Claims

An ER visit, a $12,000 bill — and a health insurer that wouldn’t pay. Vox: "Brittany Cloyd was doubled over in pain when she arrived at Frankfort Regional Medical Center’s emergency room... Cloyd came in after a night of worsening fever and a increasing pain on the right side of her stomach. She called her mother, a former nurse, who thought it sounded like appendicitis and told Cloyd to go to the hospital immediately. The doctors in the emergency room did multiple tests including a CT scan and ultrasound. They determined that Cloyd had ovarian cysts, not appendicitis. They gave her pain medications that helped her feel better, and an order to follow up with a gynecologist. A few weeks later, Cloyd received something else: a $12,596 hospital bill her insurance denied — leaving her on the hook for all of it. The problem: These denials are made after patients visit the ER, sometimes based on the diagnosis after seeing a doctor, not on the symptoms that sent them, like in Cloyd’s case... The policy has so far rolled out in four states: Georgia, Indiana, Missouri, and Kentucky.... All of these policies suggest a new and controversial strategy for reining in health care costs: asking patients to play a larger role in assessing their own medical condition — or pay a steep price."

More from OurFuture.org:

The Pentagon’s Plan for Never-Ending War. Robert Borosage: "Did the Pentagon just officially declare a new Cold War with both China and Russia while also committing to wage endless wars around the globe? Apparently, yes — that was the central message of the Trump administration’s newly released National Defense Strategy, which offers no strategy and isn’t about defense. More than anything else, the document is another salvo in the push for a massive and costly military buildup."

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