Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 17h

These Activists Want to Dismantle Public Schools. Now They Run the Education Department.

www.propublica.org/article/educ...

These Activists Want to Dismantle Public Schools. Now They Run the Education Department.

Under Trump, the Department of Education has been bringing in activists hostile to public schools. It could mean a new era of private and religious schools boosted by tax dollars — and the end of publ...

www.propublica.org

1 7

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 1d

When a health insurer refuses to pay for your treatment, you may have the right to have the denial reviewed — and potentially overturned — by an independent provider. Here are six steps experts suggest to help you through the external appeal process.

www.propublica.org/article/heal...

This Little-Known Appeal Could Force Your Insurer to Pay for Lifesaving Care. Here’s How to File It.

When a health insurer refuses to pay for your treatment, you may have the right to have the denial reviewed — and potentially overturned — by an independent provider. Here are six steps experts sugges...

www.propublica.org

2 9

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 2d

North Carolina students face reduced access to fresh, local meals amid federal funding cuts #nced

www.ednc.org/north-caroli...

North Carolina students face reduced access to fresh, local meals amid federal funding cuts

A program that delivered fresh, local produce for school meals is gone, and rural North Carolina districts are scrambling to fill the gap.

www.ednc.org

7 8

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 2d

A Trump-picked judge just ruled against him in Oregon

A conservative judge blocks the needless militarization of Portland on federalism grounds.

www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...

Opinion | A Trump-picked judge just ruled against him in Oregon

A conservative judge blocks the needless militarization of Portland on federalism grounds.

www.washingtonpost.com

1 5

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 4d

A federal judge says he believes the immigrant defendant Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whom the administration wrongly sent to El Salvador, may have been targeted with a criminal charge by the Justice Department this year out of vindictiveness.

www.cnn.com/2025/10/03/p...

Kilmar Abrego Garcia may have been charged because of Trump administration’s vindictiveness, judge finds | CNN Politics

A federal judge says he believes the immigrant defendant Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whom the administration wrongly sent to El Salvador, may have been targeted with a criminal charge by the Justice Departm...

www.cnn.com

1 1 4

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 5d

Trump Canceled 94 Million Pounds of Food Aid. Here’s What Never Arrived.

ProPublica obtained records from the Dept of Agriculture that detail the millions of pounds of food that never reached food banks because of the administration’s cuts.

projects.propublica.org/trump-food-c...

Trump Canceled 94 Million Pounds of Food Aid. Here’s What Never Arrived.

ProPublica obtained records from the Department of Agriculture that detail the millions of pounds of food, down to the number of eggs, that never reached food banks because of the administration’s cut...

projects.propublica.org

4 4

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 6d

Education Department employees furloughed this week discovered their email accounts had been manipulated while they were out of office to include partisan talking points that blamed the government shutdown on Democrats.

www.nbcnews.com/politics/tru...

Education Department employees surprised to find their email automatically changed to blame Democrats for shutdown

Five furloughed employees told NBC News they had put up nonpartisan out-of-office messages, only to see they were changed — without their permission — to partisan ones.

www.nbcnews.com

1 3

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 6d

Trading on Tom Homan: Inside the Push to Cash in on the Trump Administration’s Deportation Campaign

www.propublica.org/article/tom-...

Trading on Tom Homan: Inside the Push to Cash in on the Trump Administration’s Deportation Campaign

A Pennsylvania businessman who had Tom Homan on his payroll led companies to believe his connections to the future border czar could help advance their bids for government work, industry executives sa...

www.propublica.org

2 4

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 7d

Judge issues blistering opinion against Trump policy to deport pro-Palestinian students

Judge rules non-citizens have the same free speech rights as US citizens under the first amendment

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Judge issues blistering opinion against Trump policy to deport pro-Palestinian students

Judge rules non-citizens have the same free speech rights as US citizens under the first amendment

www.theguardian.com

3 12

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 10d

Settled legal precedent in the US is not “gospel” and in some instances may have been “something somebody dreamt up and others went along with”, the US supreme court justice Clarence Thomas recently said ahead of a new court term beginning next month.

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Clarence Thomas says precedence might not determine cases on upcoming supreme court docket

The court is expected to weigh in on same-sex marriage next session, which it legalized in 2015

www.theguardian.com

2 2 2

Reposted by Justin Parmenter

Retired Navy Chief @boxkicker13.bsky.social · 11d

Live webcam of #WarRavagedPortland

www.camscape.com/webcam/pione...

Pioneer Square Webcam in Portland

www.camscape.com

35 260 1.2K

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 11d

The Supreme Court Just Rewrote the Constitution to Give Trump Terrifying New Powers

The conservative supermajority’s lawless shadow docket decision let the president unilaterally cancel $4 billion in foreign aid.

slate.com/news-and-pol...

The Supreme Court Just Rewrote the Constitution to Give Trump Terrifying New Powers

The conservative supermajority's lawless shadow docket decision let the president unilaterally cancel $4 billion in foreign aid.

slate.com

3 5

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 11d

Arduous and Unequal: The Fight to Get FEMA Housing Assistance After Helene

An analysis by ProPublica and The Assembly of the more rural counties in NC hardest hit by Helene shows that the households that got the most aid tended to have the highest incomes. #ncpol

www.propublica.org/article/fema...

Arduous and Unequal: The Fight to Get FEMA Housing Assistance After Helene

An analysis by ProPublica and The Assembly of the more rural counties in North Carolina hardest hit by Helene shows that the households that got the most aid tended to have the highest incomes.

www.propublica.org

5 12

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 11d

Fun fact, Voluble Vitriol was also the name of a failed hair metal band I founded in the 80s

3

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 11d

Trump’s Repeated Attacks May Undercut Case Against Comey

The president’s voluble vitriol could provide defense lawyers with an avenue to protect the very people he most wants to punish.

www.nytimes.com/2025/09/27/u...

Trump’s Repeated Attacks May Undercut Case Against Comey

www.nytimes.com

2 3 5

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 13d

Berger threatens to redraw congressional districts, but denies talking to Trump about it #ncpol

www.wral.com/story/berger...

Berger threatens to redraw congressional districts, but denies talking to Trump about it

North Carolina Senate leader Phil Berger says he hasn't spoken with President Donald Trump about redrawing the state's congressional districts to help Republicans keep control of the U.S. House. He al...

www.wral.com

3 3 3

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 13d

Former FBI Director James Comey indicted days after Trump demanded his DOJ move 'now' to prosecute enemies

abcnews.go.com/US/former-fb...

Former FBI Director James Comey indicted days after Trump demanded his DOJ move 'now' to prosecute enemies

Former FBI Director James Comey has been indicted just days after President Trump issued a public demand for the DOJ to act "now" to prosecute him, sources say.

abcnews.go.com

1

Reposted by Justin Parmenter

NPR @npr.org · 13d

In his first public remarks since leaving the Justice Department, Smith said he's sad and angry about the dismissals of career public servants and the loss of credibility the DOJ has suffered.

Former special counsel Jack Smith warns that rule of law is 'under attack'

In his first public remarks since leaving the Justice Department, Smith said he's sad and angry about the dismissals of career public servants and the loss of credibility the DOJ has suffered.

n.pr

97 840 2.5K

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 13d

Public schools have fewer vacancies this fall, but it's because many districts cut positions #nced

www.wunc.org/education/20...

Public schools have fewer vacancies this fall, but it's because many districts cut positions

An annual survey of North Carolina superintendents found K-12 school vacancies were down by a third this fall, but it's in part because districts cut positions due to funding losses.

www.wunc.org

1

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 13d

Arizona Democrat’s Win Clinches Bid to Force Epstein Files Vote

Adelita Grijalva’s victory in a special election for a House seat in Arizona appears to give backers of a so-called discharge petition enough signatures to compel action.

www.nytimes.com/2025/09/24/u...

Arizona Democrat’s Win Clinches Bid to Force Epstein Files Vote

www.nytimes.com

3 8

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 13d

Democrats seize on Tom Homan bribery probe, seek access to FBI recording

Democrats have initiated “a robust oversight inquiry” into the White House border czar’s controversy, but will Team Trump choose silence over transparency?

www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

Democrats seize on Tom Homan bribery probe, seek access to FBI recording

Democrats have initiated “a robust oversight inquiry” into the White House border czar’s controversy, but will Team Trump choose silence over transparency?

www.msnbc.com

1

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 14d

A statue of President Trump holding hands with Jeffrey Epstein appeared briefly on DC’s National Mall this week.

The bronze-painted installation, titled Best Friends Forever, depicts the two men smiling at each other, each with an arm and leg raised as if in mid-frolic.

www.npr.org/2025/09/24/n...

A statue of Trump and Epstein holding hands in D.C. is removed as fast as it appeared

The statue of Trump and Epstein holding hands mid-frolic wasn't the first anti-Trump artwork on the National Mall in recent months. But it was the first to be removed, despite having a permit.

www.npr.org

1 5

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 15d

The theme of the evening was that we are a long way off from delivering on what our state constitution guarantees our children. And our power to do so will come through the same way necessary changes always have: through collective action, through educating each other and turning out to vote.

6

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 15d

Very much appreciated participating in this Indivisible Guilford County NC panel last night with Supreme Court Justice Anita Earls, Joanna Likness Pendleton, Monica Walker and Belle Boggs discussing the current state of our courts and educational system and the path forward. #nced

1 1 5

Justin Parmenter @justinparmenter.bsky.social · 15d

Arizona public schools remain ranked last in the US as voucher spending hits $1 billion

The analysis cites crowded classrooms, low graduation rates and inadequate funding

azmirror.com/2025/09/22/a...

Arizona public schools remain ranked last in the US as voucher spending hits $1 billion

Arizona public schools ranked dead last nationally for second year amid $1B voucher program and underfunding issues

azmirror.com

2 4