NEWS OF THE DAY
From Across the Nation
Alabama race: President Trump on Friday called on Republican Roy Moore to concede after he lost the Alabama Senate race. Trump endorsed Moore in the contentious race despite the allegations of sexual misconduct that shadowed Moore’s campaign. The White House said Thursday that Trump had called Democrat Doug Jones to congratulate him on his win. Moore has been discussing a possible recount. In a video released Wednesday, Moore said the race was close and some military and provisional ballots had yet to be counted.
Concealed weapons: Arkansas lawmakers on Friday approved rules expanding where concealed handguns are allowed, rejecting concerns that the measure would allow students to keep guns in dorms. The Legislative Council approved rules for carrying out the law, which allows people with concealed handgun licenses to carry at college campuses, government buildings and some bars if they undergo additional training. Some lawmakers said the rules allowing guns in dorm rooms conflict with the law’s intent. But some GOP lawmakers complained that any limits on gun rights at all are not constitutional.
Birth control: A federal judge in Philadelphia on Friday ordered the Trump administration not to enforce new rules that could significantly reduce women’s access to free birth control. Judge Wendy Beetlestone issued a preliminary injunction, temporarily stopping the government from enforcing the policy change. Existing law requires most companies to cover birth control at no additional cost, though it included exemptions for religious organizations. The new policy would allow more categories of employers to opt out of providing free contraception to women by claiming religious objections. California, Washington and Massachusetts have also sued the Trump administration over the change in rules.
Hurricane outages: Union leaders representing Puerto Rico power company workers slammed local and federal officials on Friday as the U.S. territory missed a deadline to restore 95 percent of power as promised by the island’s governor. Puerto Rico is currently at 64 percent power generation nearly three months after Hurricane Maria hit, and the situation has sparked a growing number of protests. UTIER union president Angel Figueroa said one of the biggest problems is that workers with Puerto Rico’s Electric Power Authority still don’t have the equipment or material to meet the governor’s goal.
Homeless deaths: Eighty homeless people died on the streets in the Portland, Ore., metropolitan area last year, adding to a tally of more than 350 people who have perished while homeless in the past six years, local authorities reported this week. The number marks a 70 percent increase in homeless deaths in since officials first began tracking them in 2011. Portland uses the annual report to track its progress addressing a crisis that has also overwhelmed cities from Seattle to San Diego.