Politics and views in the United States

Court challenges start over EPA's move to roll back the climate endangerment finding, Congress advances a proof-of-citizenship voting bill, New Mexico moves to blunt immigration enforcement and a Texas man sues a California doctor over abortion medicine.

TRANSCRIPT

Welcome to 2026 Talks, where we're following our democracy in historic times.

This obviously is going to be litigated.

It's important to understand that this action will have real world consequences.

What will happen is greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles will go up.

Philip Duffy is a former White House science advisor now with Spark Climate Solutions.

He says last week's White House repeal of the EPA's endangerment finding ignores proven science.

The 2009 finding concluded greenhouse gases endanger public health and gave the federal government authority to regulate emissions from vehicles and power plants.

Environmental groups say they'll base legal challenges to the deregulation in part on the increasingly visible long-term health and economic costs from pollution and extreme weather.

The administration argues the Clean Air Act doesn't authorize climate regulations and says deregulation restores proper limits on federal authority.

But Congress may increase a different federal power by getting into the constitutionally granted right of states to set election rules.

The SAVE Act just passed the House and is now in the Senate.

It would require voters to provide proof of citizenship, a passport or a birth certificate in their current name to register.

Tony Ivey with Washington Conservation Action says affect millions, particularly women, who changed their names when they married.

1.5 million women in the state of Washington have a name that does not match their birth certificate.

2.7 million Washingtonians do not have a passport.

It puts our vote-by-mail system completely in a mess.

Automatic voter registration is no longer going to be possible.

Supporters say it'll prevent non-citizen voting, but non-citizen voting in federal elections is already illegal and all but never happens.

New Mexico is now the ninth state to blunt federal authority by ending participation in immigration detention.

The just signed Immigration Safety Act bans local governments from contracting with ICE and limits use of public resources for the enforcement.

Carla Law with the ACLU of New Mexico says it'll build trust and make people more likely to cooperate with police.

We're really ensuring public safety is higher than ever amongst our most vulnerable communities and that they feel safe enough to approach local law enforcement without fear of them acting as deportation agents.

In Texas, a lawsuit is using a state law to try to influence another state's handling of abortion medication.

House Bill 7 lets private citizens sue doctors and drug makers if abortion-inducing pills are distributed into Texas.

A Galveston man is suing a California doctor for helping his partner get the drugs.

Republican State Senator Brian Hughes supports the approach.

If you're going to manufacture these drugs and inject them in the stream of commerce and point them at Texas, you're going to be held accountable.

I'm Farah Siddiqui for Pacifica Network and Public News Service.

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