Hello readers! Kathryn Palmer here. Welcome to today's On Politics. This week is a busy one for the Supreme Court, with decisions expected on several blockbuster cases with wide-reaching implications. Here's what to know today. |
Supreme Court decision a blow to LGBTQ+ minors |
In the week's first major decision, the Supreme Court today said Colorado's ban on LGBTQ+ "conversion therapy" for young people infringes on the free speech rights of a Christian counselor. The ruling reverses a lower court's decision that had upheld the law, and it has implications for more than a dozen states with similar bans. Enacted in 2019, Colorado's Minor Conversion Therapy Law prohibits licensed mental health workers from providing conversion therapy to minors. |
Major medical groups have repudiated conversion therapy as ineffective and harmful, and Colorado officials argued that the law regulates professional conduct, not speech. But the Supreme Court sided 8-1 with the counselor, agreeing that the Denver-based 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals should have applied a stricter constitutional test to evaluate the law. Maureen Groppe, USA TODAY's Supreme Court correspondent, has a full breakdown of the court's decision. | Demonstrators protest against conversion therapy outside the Supreme Court as the Court hears oral arguments in Chiles v. Salazar, a landmark case on conversion therapy, on Oct. 7, 2025, in Washington, DC. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds, AFP via Getty Images Andrew Caballero-Reynolds, AFP via Getty Images |
Hegseth warns of 'decisive' action in Iran war |
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said the coming days in the Iran war will be "decisive," as President Donald Trump demanded allies reopen the Strait of Hormuz themselves. Speaking to reporters at the Pentagon today, Hegseth said the "primary effort" is diplomacy, but the U.S. military will "negotiate with bombs" if necessary. He refused to rule out a potential ground operation, as tensions mount in the region following the arrival of thousands of additional U.S. troops to support the war. As Tehran maintains its iron grip over the strait, which had ferried about one-fifth of the world's oil exports before the war, average gasoline prices in the U.S. rose above $4 a gallon for the first time since 2022. |
Fighting continued today, with airstrikes hitting Tehran and an Iranian drone setting a Kuwaiti oil tanker ablaze. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps also threatened to attack U.S. companies in the region, Iranian state media reported, following the group's recent threats to strike area U.S. university campuses. |
Supreme Court to debate birthright citizenship tomorrow |
The Supreme Court begins debates tomorrow on the legality of Trump's executive order that attempted to limit birthright citizenship, and there are some major consequences at stake. The 14th Amendment grants automatic citizenship to "all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof," but Trump argues that children of people who are in the country illegally or temporarily should also be exempt. |
That would include babies born to parents who are in the United States on student or work visas, or who were granted temporary permission to stay through humanitarian programs. The decision could affect the legal status of as many as 255,000 babies born in the United States each year, according to some estimates. Millions of parents, too, could be touched by the ruling, if they have to prove the citizenship status of their newborns. | | Just as an end to the nearly seven-week-long shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security appeared, it quickly vanished. Then lawmakers left DC. | | Ryan Ramos, a 5-year-old from New Jersey who became obsessed with Jimmy Carter visited the Carter Center in Atlanta for spring break. | | | | The accusation stems from reports that FBI Director Kash Patel is pushing to release an old investigation into the Democratic gubernatorial candidate. | | | | The decision to rename the airport follows Florida's approval of a plan to donate a Miami property for the site of Trump's presidential library. | | | | Pope Leo said God rejects the prayers of leaders who start wars and have "hands full of blood," in unusually forceful remarks as the Iran war entered its second month. | | | | | Sign up for the news you want | Exclusive newsletters are part of your subscription, don't miss out! We're always working to add benefits for subscribers like you. | | | | | |
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