*By Carlo Versano*
When asked by Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) what she most remembers from Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh's alleged sexual assault, Prof. Christine Blasey Ford drew on her training as a psychologist.
"Indelible in the hippocampus is the laughter, the uproarious laughter between the two ー and them having fun at my expense," Ford said, alluding to both Brett Kavanaugh and his friend Mark Judge, the other boy who she said was in the room at the time of the alleged assault. "I was underneath one of them while the two laughed."
Ford said she first spoke about the alleged assault to a therapist as part of a couple's therapy session with her husband. It was triggered, she said, by a discussion she and her husband had about adding a second front door to their home. Ford said later that she had wanted the second door because of claustrophobia she believes was caused by Kavanaugh's attack.
“For me personally, anxiety, phobia and PTSD-like symptoms are the types of things I’ve been coping with," she said.
More than $200 billion may have been stolen from two large COVID-19 relief initiatives, according to new estimates from a federal watchdog investigating federally funded programs that helped small businesses survive the worst public health crisis in more than a hundred years.
Using chainsaws, heavy machinery and controlled burns, the Biden administration is trying to turn the tide on worsening wildfires in the U.S. West through a multi-billion dollar cleanup of forests choked with dead trees and undergrowth.
The Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that state courts can act as a check on their legislatures in redistricting and other issues affecting federal elections, rejecting arguments by North Carolina Republicans that could have transformed contests for Congress and president.
Ron DeSantis asked a federal judge to throw out a lawsuit from Walt Disney Co. that accused the Florida governor of violating its contract with the state for his recent actions against the company.
Florida Gov. and 2024 presidential candidate Ron DeSantis outlined key immigration policies in Texas on Monday, vowing to end birthright citizenship along with mass detention and deportations.
New Zealand acknowledged it has an aging Boeing 757 so prone to breakdowns they had sent an empty backup to ensure Prime Minister Chris Hipkins didn't get stranded in China, where he is leading a trade delegation.
Delaware state Sen. Sarah McBride announced Monday she's running for the U.S. House of Representatives. Already the first openly transgender state senator elected in the country, she'd be the first transgender member of Congress if she wins in November.
