News from around the nation.

Expert warns of upcoming threats to democracy across the nation; Judge in Trump documents case rejects suggestions to step aside; North Carolina businesses fear effects of 'bathroom bill'; Report says restaurants allow abuse, disease risk at Maryland animal farms.

TRANSCRIPT

The Public News Service Daily Newscast, June the 21st, 2024.

I'm Mike Clifford.

First, Arizona, where the State Court of Appeals recently dismissed a case brought by the Republican Attorney General candidate Abraham Havada, a Republican County Supervisor Tom Crosby, and an independent voter who wanted to decertify the results of the 2022 general election.

Experts are now warning that with this year's highly contested presidential election, challenges to the results are likely to continue.

Harvard University Government Professor Stephen Levitsky says the dysfunction in American democracy and erosion of civil discourse are cause for serious concern.

There are a lot of sources of dysfunction in U.S. democracy, but I think the principal threat right now is that one of our two major parties has turned away from democratic rules of the game.

Levitsky says democracy can survive if only one party is committed to abiding by democratic ideals.

I'm Alex Gonzalez reporting.

More than 80 percent of Americans feel elected officials are out of touch with their needs and wants.

That's according to the Pew Research Center.

Only four percent of Americans think the country's political system is working extremely or very well.

And as it turns out, two federal judges in South Florida privately urged the judge Eileen Cannon to decline the Trump documents case when it was assigned to her last year, according to two people briefed on the matter.

That from the New York Times.

Shortly after Judge Cannon drew the assignment in June 2023 to oversee former President Donald J.

Trump's classified documents case, two more experienced colleagues on the federal bench in Florida urged her to pass it up and hand it off to another jurist.

That's according to two people briefed on conversations.

Meantime, North Carolina's business community is alarmed after Lieutenant Governor Mark Richardson praised a controversial House bill, too, known as the bathroom bill, at a private lunch.

The 2016 law required individuals to use bathrooms matching their gender at birth and prevented local non-discrimination ordinances.

Raleigh business owner David Meeker, whose livelihood depends on tourism, recalls the economic damage HB2 caused.

Now, Meeker and others worry a resurgence of similar policies could cause North Carolina economic harm by driving away potential businesses.

My development company sort of relies on people and businesses continuing to move to Raleigh and North Carolina and it being a good place to do business.

And House bill two negatively impacted that, too.

And I think we're still feeling some of that impact even now, eight years later.

During its implementation, the bill led to several major businesses, including PayPal, to cancel expansions, costing the state nearly four billion dollars in lost investments and about 3000 jobs.

Shantia Hudson reporting.

This is Public News Service.

A new report from animal welfare activists says since 2008, many food producers have made progress toward ending the use of gestation crates for pregnant pigs, but there's more to be done.

Group Animal Equality says while some restaurant chains have committed to not purchase meat products from companies that use gestation crates, the practice remains legal in most states, including Maryland.

Devon Deere with Animal Equality cites polling data that found 80 percent of American consumers object to animals being raised in inhumane conditions.

Our best estimate from industry is that about 40 percent of mother pigs in the commercial breeding herd in the U.S. are not in gestation crates for their whole pregnancies.

These are companies that are really falling behind national standards.

The report says a small number of national restaurant chains, including McDonald's, Burger King and Wendy's, have reduced the practice.

Deere adds a dozen or more others have either not committed or backed out of promises to only use meat products that are produced humanely.

The Maryland Farm Bureau opposes eliminating the use of gestation crates, citing the cost and the likelihood that a change would drive some producers out of business.

I'm Mark Richardson.

And an interim North Dakota legislative committee this week got an update from state leaders on potential moves to reconnect kids in foster care with their biological parents if a court order is in play.

The North Dakota Department of Human Services presented findings to the interim Juvenile Justice Committee about this option based on the views of legal minds around the state, including the North Dakota Supreme Court.

The department's Corey Peterson notes that about one in four kids in the foster care system has no legal connection to their biological parents because a court determined it wasn't in the child's best interest to be in their custody.

These are children that their parent rights are terminated.

There's no adoption pending.

There's no family that has come forward and said we would like to adopt this child. 22 other states have laws that create pathways to restore these rights.

I'm Mike Moen.

Finally from our Nadia Ramlegon, two new solar farms will soon be under construction in the Lexington and Lebanon areas that will bring affordable and clean energy to Eastern Kentuckians.

Local community members, including an ecumenical monastic community of women in Floyd County, say the move is a step in the right direction.

Plans include a 96-megawatt solar farm on 635 acres in Marion County and a 40-megawatt solar farm on 387 acres in Fayette County, says Nick Comer, EKPC's external affairs manager.

These will certainly be among the largest solar farms in Kentucky that I'm aware of.

They will provide enough electricity for about 15,500 homes.

This is a move forward for renewable energy in Kentucky.

This is Mike Clifford for Public News Service, member and listener supported.

Hear us on interesting radio stations, your favorite podcast platform.

Find our trust indicators at publicnewsservice.org.