Transcript

8.5.25 · Washington Post

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Speaker 1: Welcome to the reading of the Washington Post for Tuesday,
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August fifth, twenty twenty five. As a reminder, RADIOI is
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a reading service intended for people who are blind or
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have other disabilities that make it difficult to read printed material.
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Your reader for to day is Cindy Fraser. To day's
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from page headlines from the Washington Post are net Yahoo
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dismisses Attorney General leader under increasing domestic US pressure to
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resolve war in Gaza. Next destination unknown man who fled
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or On forty years ago may be deported to Romania
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or Australia, where he has no ties. Next Texas go
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O P seeks arrests fleeing Democrats remain resolute. Special session
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grinds to halt without quorum. Next in gene clues to
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human success over Neanderthals. Our next headline, ordered to pay
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twenty seven thousand dollars to a school her child never attended.
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Behind the polished images of the d C area's private
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institutions is a side not often seen the lawsuits. And
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the final headline from to day's front page, spending on
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a I is starting to rewire the U S economy. Now,
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let's turn to our first item entitled net Nyahu dismisses
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Attorney General leader under increasing domestic U S pressure to
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resolve war in Gaza by Shi Reuben and Leor Soroka
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from Tel Aviv, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netnyahu's far right
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government voted unanimously Monday to dismiss his Attorney General, Gali
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Bahara Miyara, the chief prosecutor in his ongoing corruption case,
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as he faces growing criticism inside Israel and US impatience
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over his government's management of the word war in Gaza.
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The vote to remove Bahara Miyada, a frequent critic of
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the government's policies, marks one of the more significant steps
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in Netnyahu's year's long effort to exert political influence over
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the country's legal system. It is also expected to lead
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to a confrontation between the elected government and the appointed
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justices on Israel's Supreme Court, who will review and rule
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on the legality of Baharas Miyada's removal. Immediately after the vote,
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opposition party Yeshatid filed a petition to block the move,
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as did the Movement for Quality Government in Israel, a
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watchstag group that said the vote would politicize the office
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of the Attorney General. In response, Supreme Court Deputy President
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Noam Salberg issued a temporary order freezing the decision. In
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a letter to her staff, Mahara Miyara wrote that the
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government's decision was unlawful. Political pressure will not deter us
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from continuing to perform our duties with statesmanship, professionalism, and integrity,
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she wrote. According to a draft resolution released last week,
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Cabinet ministers said the move was necessary because the government
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had no confidence whatsoever in Bhatavmyara. Net Yahu's supporters say
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she routinely overstepped, including in March when she blocked the
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Prime Minister's move to fire the head of the Israel's
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Internal Security Service, runnin Barbahara. Miyara said the dismissal was
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improper because net Nyahu and some of his closest aids
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were facing several criminal investigations. The political turmoil Monday unfolded
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as net Nyaho faced renewed pressure to end the war.
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On Sunday nineteen, former Israeli military, security and intelligence chiefs
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released a video criticizing the government for prolonging the conflict
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and failing to plan for the day after together, they
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warned Israel that the government was harming the country's security
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and urged the Prime Minister to stop military operations in
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Gaza and secure a deal to release the remaining hostages.
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There are situations where a black flag must be raised,
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and we must say this ends here, said Mushiyaalan, a
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former chief of staff for the Israeli military. Right now,
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we have a government that has been dragged by messianics
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into an irrational direction, he added, referring to the far
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right members of Netanyahu's coalition. Those members, including several cabinet ministers,
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opposed negotiating with Hamas, and have called on the Prime
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Minister to reoccupy Gaza and allow them to rebuild Jewish
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settlements there. You S Special Envoy Steve Wikoff was also
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in Israel over the weekend to discuss efforts to pressure Hamas.
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On Saturday, he met with the families of hostages in
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Hostages Square, the central Tel Aviv plaza, where tens of
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thousands have gathered for weekly protests, to relay a message
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that the United States was now pursuing a more inclusive
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hostage release agreement, one that would require Hamas to free
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all those still in captivity in exchange for a formal
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end to the conflict. In recent days, Ramas and Palestinian
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Islamic Jihad, a smaller militant group in Gaza, triggered mass
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street protests in Tel Aviv after they released video showing
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two male hostages emaciated and begging to be saved. Israelis
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were horrified by the footage of the two hostages, twenty
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four year old Ivatar da Vid, who was shown shirtless,
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his bones protruding as he was forced to dig what
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he said could be his own grave, and rom Breslovski
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twenty two, who was seen lying on a mattress and
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pleading for food. Monday's Cabinet vote took place as our
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hostages are dying in tunnels, as Israeli society is tearing
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itself apart. Yair Golan, an Israeli opposition politician, said, had
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a demonstration near the Knesset on Monday afternoon. Israel's government,
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Golan said, is not dealing with freeing the hostages ending
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the war. It is not bothered with Israel's safety. During
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almost two years of war, military and security officials, as
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well as the families of hostages, have warned that Israel's
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ground invasion in dangers those still held in Gaza, and
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that a negotiated agreement is the only way to bring
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the majority of the hostages home. An Israeli military investigation
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last year found that operations, although gradual and cautious, had
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a circumstantial influence on the Hamas militants, who killed six
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hostages in a tunnel where they were being held in
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Rafa in southern Gaza. But on Monday, net Yahoo projected
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an image of defiance, praising Israelis who fight together and
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win together. In a post on x he vowed to
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continue until the enemy is defeated, all the hostages are released,
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and security is guaranteed for all the residents of Israel.
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Israeli news media reported late Monday that net Yahoo would
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convene his security cabinet this week to discuss plans for Gaza.
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A person familiar with decision making in the Prime Minister's office,
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who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were
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not authorized to speak with the news media, said that
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net Nyaho had decided to occupy the Gaza Strip, meaning
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that military operations will also take place in areas where
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hostages are being held in pursuing moves against the Attorney
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General and leaning toward more military action than Gaza Net.
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Yahoo is acting against the will of the Israeli majority,
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who want a comprehensive deal today to bring the hostages
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home and end the war. The gay Il Tasher, a
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senior lecturer on political science at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Today,
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the Prime Minister and his government see themselves as above
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the law. Alon Rome in Tel Aviv contributed to this report.
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Our next item is entitled destination unknown man who fled
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her on forty years ago may be deported to Romania
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or Australia, where he has no ties. By Aaron Cox.
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Sharp knocks on the front door interrupted feruse Firouzabadi's Saturday
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morning coffee on the porch of our suburban Maryland home.
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Were two law enforcement agents and a very familiar pit
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bull mix named Duke. Can you take this dog? Puuzabadi
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recalled one of the men, saying, I said this is
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my son's dog. Where is he? They wouldn't say at
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that moment. Her adult son, Raiza Zavar, was handcuffed in
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the back of an suv parked two houses down in
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the Gaithersburg neighborhood, where the Ironing born family has lived
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since two thousand and nine. Apprehended, he later said that
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late June day by at least five federal emigration agents
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in tactical gear, who told Zavar they had been waiting
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for him to take Duke out for his regular morning walk.
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More than a month later, Zavar, fifty two, remains in
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US Immigration and Customs enforcement custody, part of a surge
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of arrests of immigrants with standing court orders barring their
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deportation to their native countries. The Trump administration has increasingly
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turned to sending people to third countries. In court papers,
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I said it plans to send Zavar to Australia or Romania.
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He has no ties to either place. Zavar left Taran
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alone when he he was twelve, arriving in Virginia in
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nineteen eighty five on a student visa secured by his
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parents as a way to escape conscription into the Iranian army.
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He eventually received US asylum and then a green card.
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His family joined him and they settled in Maryland, But
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in his twenties, Zavar's guilty please in two misdemeanor marijuana
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possession cases jeopardize his immigration status. In two thousand and seven,
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an immigration judge issued a withholding of removal order, determining
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it was unsaved for Zavar to return to Iran. He
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built a life, went to college, and has been working
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as a white collar recruiter for a consulting firm. But
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now President Donald Trump's ramped up immigration enforcement has left
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families like Savars with what feels like a random and
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sudden disappearance, facing an unpredictable road ahead as the administration
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deploys tactics in ways immigration lawyers say they haven't seen before.
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Vanessa Dejakastaures Council at the nonprofit American Immigration Lawyers Association,
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said the organization's eighteen thousand members have reported a rapid
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expansion of clients being similarly detained, shifting the role of
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such withholding of removal orders from a protection against deportation
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into a tool for delivering one. The federal statute that
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created those withholding orders, passed by Congress in the nineteen
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nineties under the International Convention against Torture, allows deportation to
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a third country, but it has rarely happened on paper.
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It had always been a possibility that the government could
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use such orders to deport someone to a third country,
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the Hakkastaures said, but this is the first time it's
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happened on such a large scale. Shortly after the US
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bomb Aranian nuclear facilities on June twenty second, the Trump
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administration began publicizing enforcement against Iranian nationals people with and
12:04
without criminal convictions. The Department of Homeland Security highlighted the
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arrests of eleven Iranian nationals whose records included drug chargers,
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convictions of child abuse, or gun crimes, along with allegations
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that one was a former Iranian Army sniper and that
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another had ties to the terrorist group HSBOLA. The agency
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also detained a married Iranian couple who are Louisiana State
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University students with penning US asylum applications, arrested in June
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after a ruse led them to waiting ICE agents. An
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Iranian father in Oregon accused of overstaying his visa was
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detained outside his son's preschool in July. In response to
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questions about Zavar's case, DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin described him
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as quote a criminal, illegal alien from Iran and offered
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no explanation for his detainment beyond on enforcing the two
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thousand seven order. The agency did not respond when asked
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whether Zavar fit the characterization it used for other Iranian
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nationals detained under an effort of quote keeping known and
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suspected terrorists out of American communities. In the Habeas Corpus
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case filed in Maryland's U. S. District Court by Zavar's
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lawyer to seek his release, the U. S Government has
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not made any allegations against him, besides the marijuana possession
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charges under President Trump and Secretary Christy L. Noum. If
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you break the law, you will face the consequences, McLaughlin
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said in a statement. Criminal illegal aliens are not welcome
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in the U S. An up ended life. Everyone else
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in the family besides Zavar, became US citizens three decades ago.
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His mother said, Ferruzabadhi, seventy three, stays at home most days,
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strategizing how to deal with an upended life. Just why,
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she asked from her living room. Recently duke at her feet.
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I just hope no mother experiences this. The unknown is
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killing me. In a plain Manila folder, she keeps everything
14:12
Zavar's family and friends gathered as her evidence he belongs
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in the United States. She flips through photos as if
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auditioning which best demonstrates his worthiness to strangers. A smiling
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boy in Tehran, or on the high school football team
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one town over from where they now live, maybe with
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her pinning something to his chest at the eighth grade
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graduation from the military boarding school in Virginia that sponsored
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his first visa back in nineteen eighty five. Puduza Body
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said her son's sudden absence awoke a grief she hadn't
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known since her husband, Zavarre's father died of an aggressive
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pancreatic cancer in nineteen ninety seven. Zavar was twenty four.
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He became the man of the house. She said, I
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don't want to compare that situation to this, but I
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am going through the same thing, devastation, she said. She
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shuffled through letters that supporters dropped off to help his case.
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One neighbor explains Zavar was kind to animals. Another points
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out he brings a newspaper to the porch of a
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woman unable to leave her house. In May, Zavar and
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Duke left behind a nearby apartment and moved into the
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family home to help his mom and uncle care for
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his grandmother, who, at ninety four, has dementia. Zavar insisted
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on the move, his mother says, after she called him
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to quickly come over and lift up the older woman
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after a fall. Fuduzabadi smiled as she said he also
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calms her down when the frustrations of dealing with dementia
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boil over. That's why he's my backbone, she said. When
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Israel launch strikes on her on on June twelfth, and
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then the U S bombed her home country's nuclear facilities
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ten days later, Fuduzabadhi braced herself for the impact on
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extended family in or On. We were worried about them,
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mostly not about us, she said. There were he shifted
16:09
to Zavar as his friends and extended family reached for
16:13
anything that could help. Some one hired a dog walker
16:17
to handle all sixty pounds of duke a few times
16:19
a day. An uncle drove an hour each way to
16:22
the ice holding facility in Baltimore to deliver warmer clothes
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which were turned away. A family friend arranged an interview
16:31
with a local television station. Food keeps coming. We need
16:35
to convince the authorities that, hey, he's a pure American boy,
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said his older sister, Mariam Zavar, who spells her Americanized
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last name differently than her brother. He's been here since
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he was twelve, the past forty years, his sister continued.
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All his families here, We're all here. We're not going anywhere.
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They were trying to save him. Ze Var was the
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first person in his immediate family to move to the
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United States. In nineteen eighty five, his parents secured a
17:07
student visa and enrolled him at Linton Hall Military School
17:11
in northern Virginia. The family said had paid twenty eight
17:14
thousand dollars for Zavar's seventh and eighth grade schooling a
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way to spare him from being inscripted into the Iranian
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army during the height of the conservative Islamic regime's eight
17:25
year war with Iraq. They were trying to save him,
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his sister said. Zavar spoke only Farsi, but he knew
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the English word karr and already had a love of
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the Washington Areas football team. His father had fallen for
17:40
the team now called the Commanders when he was a
17:42
student in the U S and the late nineteen sixties,
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and he exported the fandom to Tahan when he returned there.
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Mariam Zavar said Puder Zabadi emigrated from Iran two years
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after Zavar, leaving her daughter and husband behind. For a
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few years. She enrolled her son at Walter Johnson High
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School in Bethesda, Maryland, and applied for his green card.
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She got her first job ever in a department store,
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learned English, and became a U. S citizen in the
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mid nineteen nineties after graduation. In his twenties, Savar faced
18:17
legal trouble a few times. In nineteen ninety four, he
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pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance in Maryland,
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paid a one hundred dollar fine for the marijuana related charge,
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and served a year's probation, according to court records. In
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nineteen ninety eight, he pleaded guilty to attempted possession of
18:34
marijuana in d c and paid a fifty dollar fine. Separately.
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In nineteen ninety six, a female acquaintance asked a judge
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for a civil protective order against him. The court, which
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classified the request as a domestic violence dispute, denied it.
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No criminal charges were filed in two thousand four. Zavar
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spent five months in Iran trying to sell the Tehran
18:57
home in which he grew up, His family said. When
19:00
he returned to the U S, immigration agents at Dulles
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International Airport noticed that the FBI had flagged the cannabis charges,
19:09
which ultimately triggered deportation proceedings that stretched for three years,
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according to court records, Unlike now, Zavarre during that time
19:18
had been read in bail and was free to live
19:20
and work in the U S until the case was
19:23
resolved in two thousand seven, with a judge issuing an
19:26
order barring his removal to Iran. Now that same order
19:31
is the basis of the Trump administration's claim that Zavar
19:35
should be deported just not to Iran, and its argument
19:39
that he should have chosen to settle in another country.
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Zavarre had almost twenty years to self deport and leave
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the U S, said McLaughlin, the DHS spokeswoman. Until recently,
19:50
the U S government rarely tried to deport people to
19:53
countries where they were not citizens or recent residents. An
19:57
American Immigration Council analysis of data for the twenty seventeen
20:01
fiscal year, for example, found that one point six percent
20:04
of the one thousand, two hundred seventy four people granted
20:08
withholding of removal orders that year were deported to third countries.
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They weren't going to just roll up on some guy
20:15
walking his dog in the suburbs, Zavar's lawyer, Aba Banoch
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said about how ICE previously treated such orders. In this case,
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the agency used the order to detain Zavar in the
20:26
Texas facility for more than a month. The idea that
20:31
I may have to go to Texas about the deportation
20:34
of an Iranian man to Romania is something I have
20:37
never contemplated in thirty years of immigration law, she said,
20:42
is just so far outside the bounds of anticipated reality
20:46
that it's hard to get your head around. On Sunday,
20:50
after this story published online, Banok was notified that Zavar
20:54
was moved to an Ohio jail. No explanation was given
20:57
for his transfer. The embassies of Romania and Australia did
21:02
not respond to requests for comment on whether they have
21:05
agreed to accept zavar I miss silence. Peteruzabody has tried
21:11
to visualize her son's experience, but all the images she
21:14
conjured were just scenes from The Orange Is, a new
21:17
Black TV show he used to tease her for watching,
21:20
she said. Every day of his detention in Texas, Zavar
21:25
calls briefly from the dorms. He brushes off his mom's
21:28
questions about conditions there. She hasn't mentioned she's lost ten pounds.
21:34
She conjoles him to meditate, warns him to conduct himself safely,
21:38
and threatens to put Duke up for adoption if he
21:41
doesn't listen to her advice. I keep telling Reza that
21:45
maybe something good comes out of it, and you use
21:47
this quiet time for you, she said. He and his
21:51
sister didn't tell their mother. He once abruptly ended a
21:54
call when a fight broke out, telling his sister, I
21:57
have to go sit in a corner and not get
21:59
caught up in it. He urges his mom to rejoin
22:02
the Persian singing group she's been skipping. He tells her
22:06
to find a way to have fun. Pitersabody's been turning
22:10
down her friend's offers to get out of the house.
22:12
She said, I feel like if I leave home, I'm
22:15
losing control. She said, what if he calls as she spoke,
22:21
a robotic voice on her cell phone announced unknown collar,
22:25
that's him. She said. Duke perked up when she Putsavar
22:29
on speakerphone. My only fear is that they will wrongfully
22:33
deport me at any second without letting my lawyer know
22:36
or anybody else, and send me to a third country
22:39
that I don't know, Zavar said in a pay by
22:42
the minute call from Texas. He said he noticed a
22:46
Bai sedan with tinted windows parked on his block that
22:48
June morning. A few seconds before, a man wearing Ice
22:52
police body armor stepped out of it, asking if his
22:55
dog was friendly. As more agents surrounded him, He said,
22:59
I kept asking him, why are you guys doing this?
23:02
And they wouldn't answer me. He said he wished he'd
23:05
applied for citizenship when he was younger, but it seemed
23:08
like something he would get to eventually. He said he
23:12
didn't know twenty seven years ago that pleading guilty to
23:15
cannabis charges could trigger a deportation and make him ineligible
23:19
for citizenship. The judge didn't tell him, and he didn't
23:23
have a lawyer then, he said. In the detention dorm,
23:26
he plays cards or chests with a handful of other
23:29
Iranian men. He tries to walk around and watches the news.
23:33
He said. He talks with as many people as possible
23:36
about the circumstances, taking notes and writing about his experiences.
23:41
I give a little bit of what they're trying to do,
23:43
he said of the Trump administration. But I think how
23:46
they're going about it is wrong. It's kind of like
23:49
going out to sea and trying to fish for a
23:51
certain type of fish and throwing a wide net into
23:54
it and just gathering up every kind of fish and
23:58
then in time sweating through them to see what fish
24:00
they can find. He said. He sleeps during the early
24:04
half of the day when it's slightly quieter. I miss silence.
24:08
I haven't had any silence in three weeks. It's constant
24:12
noise in this place, he said. After he hung up,
24:16
Kuduzabadi cried. She said she tries to visualize his return.
24:21
She sees him dropping to the living room carpet to
24:24
play with Duke. The hug shall give him, the party
24:27
shall throw in the driveway. The slap shall deliver for
24:30
all the trouble, he caused. His bare bone studio apartment
24:34
in the basement is how we left it. Every night
24:38
Duke sleeps on his bed. Every morning, she goes down
24:42
and remakes it, just in case. Juan Ben Junior contributed
24:47
to this report. Our next item for today's front page
24:51
is entitled Texas go O p seeks arrests fleeing Democrats
24:57
remain resolute. Special session gri to halt without quarum by
25:02
Patrick Marley, Yvonne Wingott Sanchez, and Molly Hennessy Fisk from Chicago.
25:09
Texas Republicans on Monday sought to retaliate against Democrats who
25:13
fled the state, voting to issue civil arrest warrants for
25:17
dozens of lawmakers who left in an attempt to sty
25:20
me a GOP effort to redraw the congressional map. Democrats
25:24
said they were undeterred by the move and officials will
25:27
have difficulty arresting them because most are in suburban Chicago
25:31
and beyond the jurisdiction of Texas authorities. But the warrants
25:35
demonstrate the seriousness of republicans desire to add congressional seats
25:40
in what is quickly shaping up as a gerrymandering battle
25:43
between red and blue states. In response to Texas Republicans,
25:48
democratic governors in New York and California are preparing to
25:52
try to reshape congressional boundaries in their favor. We are
25:57
at war, New York Governor Kathy Hockel, a Democrat, said
26:01
Monday at a news conference with some of the Texas Democrats,
26:04
where she affirmed that she supported changing or disbanding the
26:08
independent commission that draws congressional lines. And that's why the
26:12
gloves are off, and I say bringing on. Addressing a
26:16
partly empty chamber Monday afternoon, Texas House Speaker Dustin Borough's Republican,
26:22
said he was prepared to sign the warrants as he
26:24
accused Democrats of shirking their responsibilities to those who are
26:29
absent return now, he said. After the lawmakers voted, they
26:33
quickly adjourned until Tuesday. Most of the Democrats in the
26:37
Texas House exited the state Sunday to prevent Republicans from
26:42
overhauling the state's map to give themselves five more safe
26:46
up seats at President Donald Trump's urging. Their move was
26:50
met with immediate criticism from Republicans, including Governor Greg Abbott,
26:54
who threatened to try to expel absent Democrats from their posts.
26:59
Some legal scholars question whether courts would go along with
27:02
any attempt to eject the absent lawmakers from office. Democrats
27:06
hatched a deliberate plan not to show up for work
27:09
for the specific purpose of abdicating the duties of their
27:12
office and thwarting the Chamber's business, Abbott wrote in a
27:15
letter to Democrats released late Sunday. On Monday, he said
27:20
in his statement that he was ordering the Texas Rangers
27:23
to immediately investigate fleeing Texas House democrats for potential bribery
27:28
and other potential legal violations connected to their refusal to
27:31
appear for a quorum. Each absent Democrat faces a five
27:35
hundred dollars daily fine, an amount that in two weeks
27:39
would nearly match the annual seven thousand, two hundred dollars
27:42
salary that Texas lawmakers are paid. Abbott contended Democrats would
27:46
violate a bribery law if they raised funds to pay
27:49
those fines. State Representative Gene Wu, the chairman of the
27:53
Democratic caucus in the Texas House, said Democrats were using
27:57
legal ways to defray their costs while they are away,
28:00
but did not provide details of what they are doing.
28:04
In the state House, Republicans convened briefly to take Democrats
28:08
to task. Burroughs called the roll. He tugged his beard
28:12
and clutched his hands as he waited for legislators to
28:14
register their presence. Have all members registered? He asked twice.
28:19
After a moment, he slammed down his oversize gavel and
28:22
declared members a quorum is not present. From there, he
28:27
praised those who showed up, condemned those who did not,
28:31
and presided over the vote to issue warrants. Democrats said
28:35
the moves by Abbot and GOP lawmakers were bluster and
28:38
emphasized their commitment to staying away for two weeks when
28:42
the thirty day special session is slated to end fines
28:45
and threats of arrests won't deter them, They said, do
28:49
you really think we would be willing to sit there
28:51
and stay quiet while you stole the voice of our voters?
28:55
You didn't know, US State Representative Anne Johnson, Democrat said,
29:01
But Republicans hold the upper hand because Abbot could call
29:05
more special sessions. Democrats have not said whether they have
29:09
the wherewithal to repeatedly leave the state for months. From
29:13
New York, Texas state represented the Vicki Goodwin, Democrat, watched
29:17
Monday's floor session from her phone as Republicans voted to
29:21
arrest her and other Democrats. These are people that we
29:25
work with in the legislature, so it's hard to see
29:27
them vote to put out arrest wars for us. Goodwin said,
29:31
it is a little bit nerve wracking, but it is
29:33
also such an important issue that I'm willing to take
29:36
some risks. In his letter to lawmakers, Abbot cited a
29:40
twenty twenty one opinion from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton,
29:44
a Republican, to contend that courts could determine that Democrats
29:48
had abandoned their duties and given up their jobs that
29:52
would allow Abbot to call special elections to replace them.
29:55
He said, Abbot could not remove lawmakers on his own,
30:00
then would need the courts to go along with his plan,
30:02
said University of Notre Dame law professor Derrick Muller. While
30:06
Abbot and other Republicans could argue that the Democrats had
30:09
abandoned their duties, those lawmakers would have a chance to
30:12
make the case that they were representing their constituents by
30:16
denying the majority the quorum and needs to operate. He added,
30:20
this is not a unilateral action of the governor. Mother said,
30:24
even if you go to a court, you're going to
30:26
have to make a showing that I think is going
30:29
to be tough to make. The escalating dispute kicked off
30:33
last month when Abbot called a special session at the
30:35
urging of Trump to redraw the state's map, just four
30:39
years after lawmakers adopted it. Ordinarily, states adopt maps once
30:44
a decade after the census details populationships around the country.
30:49
House states draw districts helps determine which party has an advantage,
30:54
and now Texas Republicans want five more seats to bolster
30:57
the twenty five they have. Replicans hope a new map
31:01
could protect their narrow two hundred nineteen to two hundred
31:05
twelve House majority next year in the midterm elections, which
31:08
typically are tough for the president's party. Trump's agenda is
31:12
at stake by leaving Texas. Democrats have forwarded the plan
31:17
for now, at least two thirds of the members of
31:20
the Texas House one hundred out of one hundred fifty
31:24
must be present for lawmakers to take action. That means
31:28
fifty one of the sixty two Democrats can block the
31:31
Republicans from advancing their plans, and fifty seven had left
31:35
the state, Democrats initially said. Monday's subsequent roll call votes
31:39
showed six Democrats were on hand at the state House,
31:42
meaning fifty six in fact left. Mischa leslie Berkins of
31:48
Houston said she was offended by the Republican's redistricting plan
31:52
and supported the Democrat's decision to leave. We are in
31:56
a crisis for our democratic norms, said leslie Berkins, who
32:01
testified against the redistricting plan twice in recent weeks. This
32:05
is not about a party. This is about doing what
32:08
is right and the state of Texas and the governor
32:11
specifically not cow telling to the administration in Washington. At
32:16
a busy mall on Houston's Oil and Gas Energy Corridor,
32:20
an area in one of the congressional districts that would
32:22
be reshaped by the proposed boundaries, Conservative retiree John Menzie
32:27
said he supported the Republican's efforts. If it empowers Republicans
32:31
to have a say, I have no problem with it.
32:34
Menzie said Republicans in Ohio planned to redraw their map soon,
32:39
and other states could join the fray. Democrats are threatening
32:43
to retaliate in states they control by drawing new maps
32:46
of their own if Texas Republicans carry out their plan.
32:50
On Monday, the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee called on Democratic
32:55
state lawmakers to prepare for carving up their states. Democrats
32:59
and have said they could hold a special election in
33:03
November to ask voters to adopt a ballot measure that
33:06
would give their party more favorable districts next year. California
33:10
Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, said the measure would include
33:14
a trigger mechanism, saying new maps in his state would
33:17
go into effect only if Texas approves its new map.
33:22
We're not drawing lines to draw lines, he said at
33:24
a news conference in Sacramento. We're holding the line on democracy,
33:29
on the rule of law, co egal, branches of government,
33:33
popular sovereignty. Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker, a Democrat who
33:38
is hosting some of the Texas Democrats, said at a
33:41
Sunday news conference that he's considering all options in his state,
33:45
but he did not offer any concrete steps he would
33:48
take to establish new maps before the twenty twenty six elections.
33:53
Dilon Wells and Nave Reston contributed to this report. Next
33:59
an item entitled in gene clues to human success over
34:03
Neanderthal's by Carolyn Y. Johnson. Scientists have a new clue
34:09
in the long quest to decipher what makes us uniquely human,
34:13
tiny changes in brain chemistry that set us apart from
34:17
our closest hominine cousins. In a study published Monday in
34:21
the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, an international
34:25
team of researchers scrutinized a version of a gene ubiquitous
34:29
in humans to day that is not present in Neanderthals
34:33
or Denosovan's, the hominins that lived alongside our ancestors. In
34:39
a lab dish, the modern form of the gene in
34:41
humans to day made an enzyme less stable than the
34:44
one found in hominine relatives. When researchers introduced that version
34:49
into mice, they found that in females it triggered a
34:52
behavioral change. The mice were more adept at seeking water.
34:58
It's an intriguing clue, not an answer to the question
35:02
of how subtle changes to brain biochemistry may have meant
35:06
The difference between hominins that when extinct and those that
35:10
persisted and thrived in humans to day rare mutations to
35:15
this gene, called ad s L, can cause brain dysfunction,
35:19
including symptoms similar to autism and seizures. That led the
35:24
research team to wonder whether a less severe change to
35:27
ads L deep in our evolutionary history may have conferred
35:32
a cognitive or behavioral advantage. I am quite convinced that
35:36
there is some fundamental difference between modern humans and other
35:40
earlier forms of humans, said Savante Paubo, a geneticist at
35:45
a Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany,
35:50
and one of the leaders of the study. The fact
35:52
that Neanderthals and Anosovan's never became more than a few
35:57
hundred thousand people at any one time, thereto technology over
36:01
hundreds of thousands of years hardly changed, and that modern
36:05
humans in just one hundred thousand years, spread all over
36:08
the planet, became millions of people and developed technology and
36:13
culture that changed rapidly neander Tal cousins. In twenty twenty two,
36:19
Pawbo won the Nobel Prize for his pioneering work on
36:23
ancient DNA, deciphering the genetic blueprints of ancient hominins. While
36:29
our extinct relatives are often characterized as primitive cavemen. This
36:34
work revealed that they were not very different from us
36:36
at the genetic level. They interbred with our ancestors. Much
36:41
of the human population still has a vestige of Neanderthal
36:45
or Denisovan ancestry in them, two species of humans that
36:49
vanish from the planet about twenty thousand to forty thousand
36:52
years ago. In many ways, this deepened the mystery of
36:56
why we survived and they didn't. Scientists began to look
37:01
for clues in DNA. Out of twenty thousand genes, a
37:05
code for protein, there were only about one hundred changes
37:09
to the building blocks of proteins between extinct hominins and
37:12
modern humans. In twenty twenty two, scientists intriguingly reported that
37:18
a version of a gene called t KTL, one found
37:21
in modern humans and not Neanderthals, helped spur the generation
37:26
new brain cells and could be responsible for differences in
37:29
cognitive capacities. In the new paper, scientists examined ADSL, one
37:35
building block of the ADSL enzyme found in nearly every
37:39
human today, was different in chimpanzees, Neanderthals, and Anosovans. The
37:44
scientists set out to understand how the function of the
37:47
gene compared deciphering the function of a gene in mice.
37:53
Since scientists can't study a living Neanderthal, they use the
37:56
powerful gene editing technique Crisper to insert the modern human
38:01
version of the gene into living mice. They were intrigued
38:04
to find that the behavior of female mice distinctly changed.
38:08
Mice were put in cages where they learned to drink
38:10
water by poking their noses into devices in the corners
38:13
of the cage. When the researchers started restricting water, they
38:18
found that female mice with a human ADSL gene were
38:21
much more efficient at accessing water. It is still too
38:25
early to directly translate the behavioral findings in mice to humans,
38:30
as the neural circuits underlying even similar behaviors may still
38:33
differ between the two species. However, it is possible that
38:38
this change may have given some evolutionary advantage in particular
38:43
tasks relative to ancestral humans. Xing Chunju, a study author
38:48
and researcher in the Human Evolutionary Genomics Unit at Okinawa
38:51
Institute of Science and Technology, wrote in an e mail
38:56
the researchers also found other genetic changes common among humans
39:00
today that cause reduced ADSL activity, along with evidence that
39:05
those changes had been favored by evolution, suggesting that it
39:09
gave an advantage to the organism. Brigitte Mulgrange, a neurobiologist
39:14
at the University of Lige who was not involved in
39:17
the work, said the behavioral change was modest and suggested
39:21
that additional genomic changes would be needed to see larger effects.
39:26
I can also mention the inherent limitations of the mouse model,
39:29
particularly the reduced cortical complexity relative to primates, which may
39:34
constrain the detection of human like behavioral phenotypes, Malgrange said
39:38
in an email. Wendy hannah Rose, a professor of biochemistry
39:43
and molecular biology at Pennsylvania State University who was not
39:47
involved in the study, studies human ADSL deficiencies in part
39:51
by modeling them in microscopic roundworms. These simple model organisms
39:56
allow researchers to probe how genetic changes can affect unction.
40:00
Genetic mutations that cause autism like features, compulsive biting or
40:05
repetitive motions in human parasites can cause profound changes in
40:09
how worms learn. Hannah Rose is not an evolutionary biologist,
40:15
but said she found the paper fascinating, underscoring what her
40:18
own research also shows that the links between the metabolic
40:22
pathway affected by the adsl GE and behavior are evolutionarily deep.
40:29
We see it in worms, Hannah Rose said, it is
40:32
not surprising to see in humans some kind of tweak
40:36
on that in our lineage. The next item from today's
40:41
front page is entitled ordered to pay twenty seven thousand
40:45
dollars to a school her child never attended. Behind the
40:49
polished images of the DC area's private institutions is a
40:53
side not often seen. The lawsuits by Brittany Shamas. The
40:59
single mother stood alone before the judge, trying to convince
41:03
him she shouldn't have to pay for an education her
41:06
child never received. Money was tight from Bianca Johnson, who
41:10
was balancing a full time job as an after school
41:13
care director with a full load of college classes in
41:16
pursuit of a teaching career, and she had been counting
41:19
on financial aid when she signed a contract to enroll
41:22
her daughter at Sandy Spring Friends School. The private Quaker
41:26
school on a leafy campus in suburban Maryland, seemed like
41:30
a perfect fit for her daughter, Teagan, a bubbly preschooler
41:33
who was already starting to send out words, but when
41:37
no aid became available by last August, Johnson reluctantly chose
41:41
to keep her daughter in a y m C, A
41:42
program covered by a voucher. She was disappointed, but thought
41:46
the educational opportunity was all her family would lose. Then
41:51
came the bill. Sandy Spring Friends told her she owed
41:55
twenty one thousand, three hundred two dollars and fifty three
41:58
cents intuition and fees. Citing the agreement she'd signed. When
42:02
she said she couldn't pay, the school sued, tacking on
42:06
eighteen percent interest, which is how the thirty seven year
42:10
old mom of one ended up in a Montgomery County
42:12
court house on a Wednesday in April, missing a day
42:15
of work and classes to make an argument she carefully
42:18
rehearsed at home. Sandy Spring Friends was accusing her of
42:22
failing to pay for her child's education. Johnson told the judge,
42:26
but there was never an education or benefit conferred to
42:29
my child. She pointed out that she had never paid
42:32
the deposit the school said was required to confirm enrollment,
42:36
emphasizing that she could never have afforded tuition without help.
42:40
With her she carried a print out showing her bank
42:42
account balance on the date of her court appearance negative
42:46
one hundred forty dollars. Towards the end of the thirty
42:49
eight minute hearing on April sixteenth, District Judge John Moffatt
42:53
praised Johnson for all the efforts she had poured into
42:56
her daughter's education, telling her, kudos to you, I tried,
43:01
She responded quietly. In the Washington region, private school enrollment
43:05
rates are among the highest in the nation, with a
43:08
long list of highly ranked and highly sought after schools.
43:12
But behind the polished images of those institutions is aside
43:16
not often seen, the lawsuits. Some schools have pursued high
43:20
stakes legal battles in search of lost tuition dollars, with
43:24
cases at times leaving to garnished wages and life altering debt.
43:29
Many are fairly straightforward cases of a family not paying
43:32
after their child attended classes, but others are against parents
43:36
who withdrew their children or never sent them for reasons
43:39
that include bullying and out of state moves. In some cases,
43:43
court records show schools have gone after families who are
43:46
granted financial assistance for attendance. In others, they have targeted
43:51
parents who had not joined their expouses in signing an
43:54
enrollment contract. In a search of court databases in d
43:58
C and its Maryland and Virginia suburbs, the Washington Posts
44:02
found private schools have filed at least one hundred forty
44:05
cases in the past decade, seeking more than one point
44:08
six million dollars in debt. In Roman, contracts generally lock
44:12
in between May and July, according to copies from multiple
44:15
area schools that were included in court documents, and if
44:19
families don't cancel in time, they're usually on the hook
44:22
for an entire year's worth of tuition. Some contracts state
44:26
that they are binding regardless of the circumstances and regardless
44:30
of whether the school finds a replacement student. That means
44:34
families have spent recent months signing these contracts for the
44:37
upcoming school year, a decision made fraud for some, as
44:40
the Trump administration has moved to shrink the federal workforce,
44:44
the backbone of the local economy. On an online forum
44:48
for DC parents, one worried poster asked whether the schools
44:52
might be slightly more flexible with federal employees, saying the
44:55
family had budgeted based on both parents working. Others responded
45:00
that they had gone to administrators with the same question
45:03
and came away expecting to pay the full amount. Multiple
45:07
posts described bracing for an economic recession in the area,
45:11
while also, as one person put it, trying to give
45:14
our kids the best education we can with what we have.
45:18
Mara McGovern, spokeswoman for the National Association of Independent Schools,
45:23
said school administrators may choose to enforce financial commitments because
45:27
losing and expected tuition can throw planning into disarray. They
45:32
budget and hire based on the number of families that
45:34
commit to enrolling, she said. If families leave, it's not
45:39
like you can just spread the costs among the remaining students.
45:42
She said, so it puts both the school and I
45:45
think other families in a predicament. Court records show that
45:49
some well known institutions, including London School and Washington International School,
45:55
have pursued multiple claims. Sandy Spring Friends School, which was
45:59
on the verge of shutting down this spring before alumni
46:02
raised millions of dollars over several days, has filed at
46:06
least eleven such suits in Maryland courts. Mary Ellen Flynn,
46:11
the attorney who represented the school, said most of the
46:14
lawsuits involved parents failing to pay tuition after their children
46:18
have attended classes, but in Johnson's case, she said, Sandy
46:22
Spring Friends wasn't given enough notice. The parent had sufficient
46:26
time and notice to cancel the contract, she said, but
46:29
instead this parent decided to just not have their child
46:33
attend the school and didn't give any prior notice. During
46:37
the April hearing, she laid out a simple argument, Johnson
46:41
signed the document and it was binding. The judge agreed,
46:44
saying it does not appear to be of defense that
46:47
the child did not go there. Then he moved on
46:50
to the math the total loade with interest and attorney fees,
46:53
according to court documents, twenty six thousand, nine hundred and
46:57
ninety nine dollars. But after an initial version of this
47:00
article was published online, the head of Sandy Spring Friends
47:04
released his statement saying the school had decided not to
47:07
seek payment from Johnson. Sean Hamer, who began his tenure
47:10
in July, also called her to apologize. Though financial stewardship
47:15
is a priority for our school, the approach taken to
47:18
resolve this matter at the time by the prior administration
47:21
was misguided and does not reflect the community values of SSFs.
47:26
He wrote in the message email to parents and staff
47:28
members and posted on the school's website. Hamer said he
47:32
would spend the coming weeks studying and revising in missions,
47:35
contract procedures, and business office practices, and reviewing how and
47:40
why the decision was made to pursue litigation against Johnson.
47:45
It was not immediately clear whether other lawsuits would be
47:47
part of that review. For Johnson, Hamer's decision was a
47:51
welcome surprise. Still, it came only after she was forced
47:56
to defend herself in a hearing that ended with a
47:58
judgment that hung over her for months, making her question
48:02
herself as a mother and feared that the fragile financial
48:05
security she had built would in hold. After leaving the
48:09
court house at April Day, she sat in her car
48:12
for a while. Then she drove home and cried the contract.
48:18
Johnson grew up far outside the sprawling green campuses and
48:21
stately red brick buildings of the private school world. Born
48:25
in southeast Washington, she lived with her mother in what
48:28
she called straight up poverty, and during bouts of evictions
48:32
and stints crashing with friends and family. When she had
48:35
a daughter in twenty twenty, she was determined to give
48:39
her the kind of stability she hadn't known. It was
48:42
her goal, she said, to get to a point in
48:45
my life where I could be financially stable, be a
48:48
good mom. For a long time, Johnson felt like she
48:52
was on her way. She was getting closer to her
48:55
goal of becoming an elementary school teacher, with a student
48:58
teaching position lined up for her last year at Bowie
49:01
State University. She had a car and an apartment where
49:04
her daughter had her own room with a closet full
49:07
of princess dresses. She was raising a smart and spirited
49:11
little girl who broke into the splits in her preschool hallway,
49:15
struggled to pick just one book at the Scholastic book fair,
49:19
and dreamed of growing up to be both a doctor
49:22
and a firefighter. Teagan had always been her cochies, and
49:27
when she started acting out at preschool last year, Johnson
49:30
wondered if she might need someplace more challenging, with more
49:33
structure and one on one attention. The parents of a
49:36
student who attended the child care program she directs suggested
49:40
Sandy Spring Friends, which on his website describes a mission
49:44
of nurturing each child's unique strengths. What Quakers believed to
49:48
be the light within. Initially, Johnson dismissed the idea how
49:53
would she afford private school tuition, But when the couple
49:57
mentioned that even they received financial aid descent their child there,
50:01
she decided to apply. There was a meeting with the
50:04
head of the school, an interview with Tigan, and a
50:07
request for records from the program she was attending. Then
50:10
in April twenty twenty four, came the news that she
50:13
had been accepted. Thrilled, Johnson signed the contract the school
50:17
emailed her. Without reading it closely, she assumed it was
50:21
like the paperwork she dealt with on a regular basis
50:24
at work and at the why, which she said, holds
50:27
parents to a month's worth of tuition at most after
50:30
they give notice that they planned to withdraw. But private
50:33
school and Roman contracts do not work that way when
50:36
it comes to tuition. Local school contracts reviewed by the
50:39
Post say in varying language that after a certain deadline,
50:44
families are obligated to pay for the entire year up
50:47
to about fifty five thousand dollars in the Washington area,
50:51
regardless of whether their children are withdrawn or dismissed. Some
50:55
use the term unconditional others warn of the possibility of
50:59
legal action or a student being barred from attending classes
51:02
or receiving a diploma while an account is past due.
51:07
The Association of Independent Schools of Greater Washington advises schools
51:11
to set a tuition binding date of May first, for
51:14
the protection of both individuals and institution. The contracts provide
51:19
for the ability for a parent to unenroll their child,
51:22
but the parents need to honor the dead line set
51:24
forth in the contracts, said Flynn, the attorney, And if
51:28
they don't honor the dead lines or pay the tuition
51:30
as set forth in the contracts, then the law provides
51:33
the ability for the school to recover their losses as
51:36
per the contracts. Alexander's Bishop Ireton High School, which has
51:40
filed eleven suits over the past ten years, appears to
51:44
be unusual in holding parents to two months of tuition
51:47
at most after a student is withdrawn. Contracts for Sandy Spring, Friends,
51:52
Landon and Washington International Schools contain near identical passages declaring
51:58
that when a student withdraws, it is difficult, if not impossible,
52:02
to find a suitable replacement without altering the student environment,
52:06
which the school carefully constructs to be dynamic and engaging.
52:11
The River School in d C says that tuition payment
52:14
is due regardless of whether a replacement student is found,
52:17
and is not transferable to another student's account. Washington International
52:22
School subjects slight payments to a twenty four percent yearly
52:25
interest rate. Raquel Yerbury, a spokeswoman for the Washington International School,
52:31
noted that litigation against parents over tuition issues is rare
52:35
for us, representing fewer than a tenth of one percent
52:38
of contracts over the past ten years. Washington International School
52:43
works diligently and compassionately with families to resolve financial issues,
52:48
she said in an email. We also make every effort
52:51
to provide financial aid to families, indeed, most recently five
52:55
point two million dollars in twenty twenty four through twenty
52:58
twenty five. As a last resort only and in fairness
53:02
to all of our families, we may pursue legal action
53:05
to uphold by new contracts. Declining further comment, a Landon
53:10
School spokesperson said in an email to the Post. Out
53:13
of respect for our families, we do not discuss the
53:15
details of our enrollment contract. Most schools offer parents the
53:20
option to buy tuition insurance, which can provide coverage when
53:23
a student withdraws during the year. Dear, a Massachusetts company
53:27
that works with some local schools, says on its website
53:31
that when a student departs, the family and the school
53:33
can find themselves in an uncomfortable position, with many families
53:38
expecting the school to let them out of tuition because
53:40
of their individual circumstances. Johnson learned only after adding her
53:45
electronics signature to the Sandy spring Friends contract that the
53:49
school didn't offer financial aid for preschool. A confirmation email
53:53
said that enrollment is not considered complete until you pay
53:56
the deposit, and she said she didn't understand that she
54:00
had a June first deadline to pull out. She spent
54:03
the summer applying for bouchers, ultimately getting one from the
54:06
Montgomery County Working Parents Assistance Program, but it didn't cover
54:10
private schools, so she signed Teagan up for another year
54:13
at the y MCA. In late August, the Sandy Springs
54:16
controller sent Johnson an email, as you know the contract
54:20
you signed is a binding legal document. However, we have
54:23
yet to receive any payments. Johnson wrote back less than
54:26
an hour later, saying she could not afford the school
54:28
there was a back and forth. The controller said the
54:31
head of school had to approve any withdrawals. Johnson responded
54:35
that she hoped the school would see fit to withdraw
54:37
our inquiry into this school. If I could afford the tuition,
54:41
she added, I would surely send Teagan there. Therefore, I
54:44
certainly cannot afford to be held responsible for the full year,
54:47
and she not attend. The interim head of school responded
54:51
the first week of September with the decision. Teagan could
54:54
withdraw from the school, but because of the contract, her
54:57
mother would remain liable for tuition. At the the end
55:00
of the email before the headmaster's name was a sign
55:02
off in light the lawsuit. When her boss told her
55:07
a lawyer had called looking for her, Johnson was shocked
55:10
that the issue had escalated to the legal system. Even
55:14
months later, she said, I honestly can't believe it. But
55:17
she wasn't the only one. The scores of civil suits
55:21
against local families have been filed by religious institutions, small
55:24
alternative programs, and elite preparatory schools, with many cases ending
55:29
in a default judgment against the parents. Dollar amounts have
55:33
ranged from about seven hundred dollars to seventy four thousand dollars,
55:37
and most schools add interest and attorney fees if the
55:40
case is decided in their favor. Some local law firms
55:44
count multiple private schools as clients. The one that represented
55:47
Sandy's Spring Friends, Endelman and Flynn, where Flynn was a principal,
55:52
has also sued parents on behalf of at least four
55:55
other local schools. On his website, the firm, which Flynn
55:59
said shut its doores in May because she wanted to
56:01
focus on being a trial lawyer, listed private schools as
56:04
one of the industries it served, alongside banks and credit unions,
56:08
utility companies, and healthcare. It made this pitch to schools,
56:13
educating young minds should be your top priority, not chasing
56:16
after past tuition. It also said the firm understands the
56:21
delicate legal and public relations nature of debt collection in
56:25
the private school environment, and get your receivables flowing while
56:29
keeping your school's elite reputation intact. Flynn, who no longer
56:34
represents private schools after closing the firm, said handling overdue
56:38
accounts and contract litigation once made up a quarter of
56:42
her practice. She said she always sought to resolve debts
56:46
without going to court, and found in fewer than twenty
56:49
percent of accounts she received from schools. Court documents reviewed
56:53
by The Post showed that one school dismissed a kindergartener
56:57
a week into the academic year over what it described
57:00
as extreme incidents, saying his mother had not disclosed his
57:04
behavioral issues, then had sued her for the year of tuition.
57:08
Another father lawsuit against parents who chose not to send
57:11
their child back to school after alleged bullying that they
57:14
said had destroyed him. The parents made their decision before
57:18
classes started, but after the contract became binding. Some cases
57:23
show the length school were willing to go to collect
57:26
payment from families, even those who had been part of
57:29
their institutions for years. Mark Belivo's son attended Landon School,
57:34
an all boys institution in Bethesda, from third through eighth grade.
57:39
Then in twenty sixteen, the sports focused IMG Academy in
57:43
Florida recruited him for baseball. He wanted to go for
57:46
freshman year and then returned to London as a sophomore,
57:49
but an injury soon threw his plans in the question.
57:53
Belivo said the admissions director suggested he signed London's enrollman
57:57
contract in case his son needed a spot, even when
58:00
told the outlook would not be clear until after the
58:02
June first deadline to cancel. Twelve days pass the deadline,
58:06
Bellevoux got back to the school with a decision his
58:09
son would attend i MG Academy as planned. Landon respond
58:14
with the decision of its own it would hold Belivoux
58:17
and his wife to the contract and the remaining thirty
58:20
six thousand, two hundred twenty five dollars intuition. Before the
58:24
court battle, his son's being a Landon guy, was appointed
58:28
pride for the family. Due to time constraints, we will
58:31
be unable to complete this item. This concludes the reading
58:34
of the Washington Post for today, Tuesday, August fifth, twenty
58:38
twenty five. Your reader has been Cindy Fraser. If you
58:42
have any questions, comments, or suggestions concerning this program, please
58:46
feel free to call us at eight five nine four
58:49
two two six three nine zero. Thank you for listening,
58:52
and now please stay tuned for continued programming on readio
58:55
Y