By Mark Sherman
The Supreme Court announced Monday that it is postponing arguments for late March and early April because of the coronavirus, including fights over subpoenas for President Donald Trump’s financial records.
Other business will go on as planned, including the justices' private conference on Friday and the release of orders in a week's time. Some justices may participate by telephone, the court said in a statement.
Six of the nine justices are 65 and older, at higher risk of getting very sick from the illness, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 87, and Stephen Breyer, 81, are the oldest members of the court.
There is no new date set for the postponed arguments. the building has been closed to the public since last week.
The only other time the 85-year-old court building was closed for arguments was in October 2001, when anthrax was detected in the court mailroom. That led the justices to hold arguments in the federal courthouse about a half mile from the Supreme Court,
Within a week and after a thorough cleaning, the court reopened.
In 1918, when the court still met inside the Capitol, arguments were postponed for a month because of the flu pandemic. In the nation's early years, in August 1793 and August 1798, adjustments were made because of yellow fever outbreaks, the court said.
Congress has passed a bill to fund the government for another week, giving lawmakers time to reach an agreement on a new coronavirus relief bill.
The final vote was 84-13, mirroring a similarly overwhelming margin in the House that, if maintained in both chambers, would be enough to override a potential veto.
Gun and ammunition sales have surged this year in the U.S. Michelle Castillo investigates.
Several states along with the Federal Trade Commission have launched lawsuits against Facebook for snuffing out competition through acquisitions. Cheddar's Michelle Castillo reports.
Stockton, California Mayor Michael Tubbs, started a pilot UBI program in 2019 that just got a big boost in funding from Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey.
The number of people applying for unemployment aid jumped last week to 853,000, the most since September, evidence that some companies are cutting more jobs as new virus cases spiral higher.
Lawmakers are embracing a one-week extension of government funding to buy time for more COVID-19 relief talks.
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong joined Cheddar to discuss the multi-state antitrust lawsuit against the social media giant Facebook even as the FTC filed its own legal action.
Rep. Jim Clyburn, the Democratic congressman from South Carolina, stood up for President-elect Joe Biden's Cabinet selections so far.
Deaths from the coronavirus in the U.S. have soared to more than 2,200 a day on average.
