Venezuelans living in the U.S organize donation drives in response to the devastating earthquakes.
Rescuers are searching for thousands of people missing after two earthquakes struck Venezuela on Wednesday. And, the Supreme Court says the U.S. can turn away asylum seekers at the border.
The earthquakes that struck Venezuela Wednesday have become the first major political test for acting President Delcy Rodríguez, with the disaster quickly evolving into a contest over competence.
A Slate legal analyst said Thursday the Supreme Court's conservative majority delivered a seismic blow to multiple areas of American law in a single morning, expanding President Donald Trump's power in the process.Appearing on a panel Thursday, Mark Joseph Stern, co-host of Slate's Amicus podcast, walked through three 6-3 rulings the court handed down, all authored by Justice Samuel Alito and all splitting along ideological lines."They did quite a bit," Stern said. He explained that the justices allowed Trump to cancel Temporary Protected Status for hundreds of thousands of Haitians and Syrians without judicial review, permitted the administration to physically turn away asylum seekers at the border, and struck down a Hawaii law that made it illegal to carry a gun onto private property without the owner's consent."This is very much an earthquake in several different realms of the law," Stern said, adding that the decisions award Trump "even more power, specifically over immigration, than he already held, and he already held a lot of it."The TPS ruling alone could strip work authorization and deportation protections from about 350,000 Haitians and 6,000 Syrians. Writing for the majority, Alito held that the TPS statute bars courts from considering the challengers' non-constitutional claims. Also on the panel, Vanderbilt law professor Brian Fitzpatrick, a former clerk for the late Justice Antonin Scalia, framed the day differently. He called the outcome a victory for "conservative judicial philosophy more than anyone," noting the justices were fighting on the originalist and textualist terrain Scalia laid out years ago.The three liberal justices dissented in each immigration case. Justice Sonia Sotomayor read her asylum dissent from the bench, an unusual move that drew a pointed response from Alito, eliciting audible gasps. She warned that the consequences of the decision were predictable, writing, "More people will die."
Establishment Democrats are on the back foot after candidates backed by Democratic Socialists of America swept races.
Thousands are feared dead in Venezuela after back-to-back powerful earthquakes struck the country Wednesday evening, collapsing buildings in the capital Caracas and surrounding areas. Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodríguez has declared a state of emergency as rescue workers frantically search for survivors in the rubble of “dozens” of collapsed buildings. Historian Alejandro Velasco, who has family in Venezuela, reports that “many Venezuelans abroad are trying to get in touch with their loved ones in Venezuela and are having a hard time doing so.” The current death toll is at 164, with 1,000 people injured, but the U.S. Geological Survey warns there’s a high chance the death toll could rise into the tens of thousands — or even top 100,000.
In January, Trump said “we’re in charge” of Venezuela. Amid a humanitarian crisis, they’re merely “our new and great friends.” The post Trump Claimed to Run Venezuela. After Earthquakes, He’s Walking That Back. appeared first on The Intercept.
Two powerful earthquakes struck Venezuela about 100 miles west of Caracas on Wednesday, killing dozens of people, injuring hundreds and causing widespread damage.The big picture: The U.S. Geological Survey issued its highest-level alert, signaling the back-to-back magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 earthquakes were expected to cause extensive casualties and severe economic damage.The first earthquake struck near Morón on Venezuela's Caribbean coast at a depth of 13.6 miles. The second quake struck seconds later in the same area at a depth of 6.2 miles.Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodríguez thanked President Trump after he offered assistance in a Truth Social post. Screenshot: President Trump/Truth SocialState of play: Rodríguez said in a video address late Wednesday that at least 32 people had been killed and another 700 were injured in the quakes. Officials said they expected the death toll to rise.Officials reported buildings were destroyed or extensively damaged across Caracas and in several Venezuelan states.Rodríguez said on social media that a state of emergency had been declared and she urged "all citizens to remain alert, safe, and as calm as possible."What we're watching: As search and rescue efforts continued into Thursday, U.S. officials had already "mobilized a disaster assistance team and task force to deliver and coordinate critical assistance to the Venezuelan people," according to Jeremy Lewin, under secretary for foreign assistance at the State Department."Working with our partners in the interim Venezuelan government, the U.S. will be sending search and rescue teams, medical and humanitarian supplies and other resources in the crucial first days after this tragic natural disaster," Lewin said on X.Editor's note: This story has been updated with additional details throughout.
A state of emergency has been declared across Venezuela after successive quakes with magnitudes above 7 struck the country on Wednesday evening, causing widespread damage and triggering tsunami warnings.