Judge orders edited Mar-a-Lago affidavit, abortion trigger laws take effect: 5 Things podcast
On today's episode of the 5 Things podcast: DOJ lawyers must provide edited version of Mar-a-Lago warrant affidavit
A judge has set a deadline for today. Plus, senior tech and economic opportunity reporter Jessica Guynn explains how Asian Americans are fighting back against anti Asian hate, new abortion bans take effect in several states, national housing and economy correspondent Swapna Venugopal looks at whether you should buy or rent and California paves the way for a move away from gas-powered cars.
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Hit play on the player above to hear the podcast and follow along with the transcript below. This transcript was automatically generated, and then edited for clarity in its current form. There may be some differences between the audio and the text.
Taylor Wilson:
Good morning. I'm Taylor Wilson and this is 5 Things you need to know Thursday, the 25th of August 2022. Today, a deadline for DOJ lawyers to submit an edited Mar-a-Lago warrant affidavit. Plus, more Asian Americans are calling out the racism they experience at work and more.
Here are some of the top headlines:
President Joe Biden, yesterday, confirmed a plan to forgive or reduce student loan debt for millions of Americans. Those earning less than $125,000 a year are eligible to receive cancellations of up to $10,000 in federal student loans.
The Uvalde school board, yesterday, fired School District Police Chief Pete Arredondo. His response to the elementary school massacre there has been heavily criticized as officers waited more than an hour before confronting a gunman who killed 19 children and two teachers in May.
And a federal jury has awarded Vanessa Bryant $16 million after she filed a lawsuit, accusing officials of taking and sharing pictures from the crash scene where her late husband, Kobe Bryant, and daughter, Gianna, died in 2020. Chris Chester, who lost his wife and daughter in the same helicopter crash, was separately awarded $15 million by the same jury.
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US Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart has ordered Justice Department lawyers to give an edited version of the Mar-a-Lago search warrant affidavit by today. He'll then decide whether any of the document could be released. A group of media companies are pushing for its public release, though government lawyers have opposed it, even in an edited state, arguing it would provide a roadmap to the ongoing investigation. AP Justice Department reporter Eric Tucker explained earlier this week.
Eric Tucker:
Former President Donald Trump and representatives for media organizations, including the AP, have asked for the unsealing of the affidavit. That seems unlikely to happen. I think it's clear based on the hearing last week that the judge is sensitive to concerns from the Justice Department that a document like this should probably not be disclosed in its entirety in full.
And the Justice Department says, "We don't think any of it can be released because it's an ongoing investigation and disclosure of any part of it could affect witnesses, could tip off the investigative techniques and tactics we're still using, could shed more light than we want on this investigation."
And they say to the judge, "If we were to redact what we think should not be released, the document would be rendered basically meaningless because we would be redacting so much." And the magistrate, today, in his 13-page order, effectively said, "I'll be the judge of that. That might in fact be the case, but let me first review the proposed redactions."
Taylor Wilson:
Trump lawyers are looking to hold the continued review of classified documents seized from his Florida estate, until a special master or third party can be appointed to make sure that possibly privileged material is shielded from scrutiny. For more, including the judge's decision, stay with USATODAY.com.
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More Asian Americans are responding to the rising tide of anti-Asian hate and violence by calling out workplace bias on social media, in lawsuits and through advocacy work. Senior Tech and Economic Opportunity reporter Jessica Guynn has more.
Jessica Guynn:
So Asian Americans, especially East Asians, are being more public about what's happening to them at work, some of them, for the first time. I interviewed Michelle Lee, who was an attorney with a private equity firm in Connecticut, who recently filed a lawsuit. And that's how she's chosen to speak out. And she talked about how she was subjected to a lot of anti-Asian remarks at the office, as well as some other issues. Especially, during COVID, Asian American employees say that they've had to endure a lot of slurs. One employee had their desk roped off with hazard tape and also was subjected to a lot of anti-Asian comments and jokes on the Slack channels.
And these kinds of things, people tended to be more private about, didn't really talk publicly about. But as they watched really incredibly brutal images of Asian Americans, especially elder Asian Americans, who look like their parents or their grandparents being attacked on the streets, they felt a growing sense of responsibility to speak out about what was happening to them at work.
I think one of the really important things to note with this coverage is that it came about as a result of our corporate diversity project in the beat reporting that we did. We wrote about the barriers to corporate leadership that Asian American women face in the spring.
And as a result of that piece, I heard from a lot of folks that the article made them feel seen for the first time because this was an issue that didn't really get any coverage. And then, many of those folks who contacted me at the time, came back to me a few weeks ago and asked me if I would be interested in covering this story.
And with the story being published, I'm hearing from Asian Americans that they again feel seen, and most importantly, they feel heard today. And that's particularly important at a time when the violence is continuing. I mean, just a couple of days ago, a 60-year-old Asian woman, a dentist, was killed during an attempted robbery in Oakland, California's Little Saigon. And this is ongoing trauma to this community. And making sure that we cover these stories helps us meet our goal of surfacing untold stories from, historically, overlooked communities.
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Taylor Wilson:
New laws banning abortion are scheduled to take effect today in Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas. That's two months after the US Supreme Court overturned Roe versus Wade, the landmark ruling that established a constitutional right to the procedure. In Texas, the law bans abortion after fertilization, except in cases of life-threatening or severe health conditions. In Tennessee, the law is similar, banning all abortions with health exceptions. And in Oklahoma, the ban calls for up to 10 years in prison for performing an abortion.
Meanwhile, in Idaho, yesterday, a federal judge barred the state from enforcing a strict abortion ban in medical emergencies. Much of the state's law will still go into effect today. But the judge ruled the state cannot prosecute anyone who is performing an abortion in an emergency.
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It's been a nerve-racking time for home-buyers dealing with still soaring prices. That's despite rising inventory, falling sales and volatile interest rates. Producer, PJ Elliott, spoke with National Housing and Economy Correspondent Swapna Venugopal to find out if now is a good time to buy or to keep renting.
Swapna Venugopal:
So most experts will tell you that it's a very personal decision. If it's the right time for you, and you're financially qualified to buy a house in the neighborhood that you desire, then it's a good time to buy. Because you generally have to take the long view and consider the equity that you can build over the years.
PJ Elliott:
So what are some other considerations people should make before they decide on whether they buy or continue renting?
Swapna Venugopal:
So one thing to consider is how long you're planning to stay in the house. If it is five years or more, then it's an easy decision to make. But if it's two years or under, you should probably be renting because of the associated closing and moving costs. The gray area I would say is about three to four years when you can make a decision based on your personal situation. But most people will tell you that if you plan to be in a place for five years, buying a house is a good idea. The other thing experts advise is not to base your decision entirely on mortgage rates, because you can always refinance a couple of years down the road. And hopefully, you would've built up some equity by then, which you cannot do by renting.
PJ Elliott:
You wrote about housing recession. What does that term mean? And are we in one right now?
Swapna Venugopal:
Broadly speaking, it means a decline in economic activity associated with the housing sector. So you might look at new housing stats and new home sales. Housing stats were down 10%, month-over-month, from June to July this year. So these are new homes that have the permits and are about to be built. And then you have newly constructed home sales that people look at, and that was down 30% last month, compared to the same time last year, that is last July. So in one year, it was down 30%. And if you look at existing home sales, again, it was down by 20%, year-over-year, in July. So the builder confidence has been generally pretty low right now. And it's all because of the rising mortgage rates.
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Taylor Wilson:
California is expected to set a 2035 deadline for all new cars, trucks, and SUVs sold in the state to be powered by electricity or hydrogen. The state's Air Resources Board will vote on the move today, setting the most aggressive roadmap forward in the country for moving away from gas-powered cars. The measure would still allow people in the state to drive and buy used gas-powered cars after 2035. And the plan allows for one fifth of sales, after the date, to be plug-in hybrids that can run on batteries and gas.
Thanks for listening to 5 Things. You can find us every morning right here, wherever you're listening right now. Thanks to PJ Elliott for his great work on the show, and I'm back tomorrow with more of 5 Things from USA TODAY.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Judge to get edited Mar-a-Lago affidavit, new abortion bans: 5 Things podcast
