tennessee's elected officials carefully considered the evidence and passed a law to protect tennessee kids. the constitution allows this. we look forward to a decision from the court. i am glad to take your questions. >> i think the question was does tennessee law set a standard for the united states? in the united states each state makes its own decisions. different states reached different conclusions. different states elect different people. that's the way the country works. tennessee's standard is constitutional but we have 50 separate laboratories for democracy. each state is allowed to make its own decisions. >> should scrutiny be applied in this case? >> so the question is about whether heightened degree of scrutiny should apply. i think -- i think we made a good argument. the way that you categorize the classifications in the law are going to be driving that. this is a different situation than the court has considered before. we think rational basis applies. we think chief judge sutton got it right at the sixth circuit and we'll see if the court agrees. >> how many kids in the

tennessee's elected officials carefully consider the evidence and passed a law to protect tennessee kids. the constitution allows this. we look forward to a decision from the court. i'm glad to take your questions. >> i think the question was do tennessee laws set a standard for the united states? in the u.s., each state makes its own decisions. different states mean different conclusions, different states elect different people. tennessee's standard is constitutional but we have separate laboratories for democracy. each state is allowed to make its own decisions. >> [indiscernible] >> the question is about whether a heightened degree of scrutiny should apply. i think we made a good argument. the way you categorize the classifications and the law are going to be driving that. this is a different situation than the court has considered before. we think rational basis applies. we think chief justice sutton got it right in the sixth circuit and we will see if the court agrees. >> how do you think kids into the sea are actually impacted by this and if the court rules in your favor, what shou

the gentleman from tennessee. mr. green: mr. speaker, i yield as much time he may consume to the gentleman from louisiana, the sponsor and author of the house version of this bill, mr. graves. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from louisiana is recognized. mr. graves: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, this legislation is common sense. why does a patient not go through the same open heart surgery twice? because you fixed it. you addressed the problem. in this case if you have someone that's a truck driver, someone that's a port worker, and they have to get a twic card, they have to go through a background check. if they also have to get a hazardous materials endorsement, they have to go through a background check. these same background checks. einstein's often quoted with a definition of insanity of expecting a different outcome from the same process. i know lot of people said he didn't really say that but that's never, ever stopped anyone on the house floor -- accuracy has prevented anyone from the house floor from sayin

tennessee did not meet their burden. this law we believe is unconstitutional and perhaps the scariest thing for all of us is that tennessee's arguments would apply if congress tomorrow band -- they claim there are no protections based on sex for the transgender people who like myself rely on this medical care. so i'm just humbled and honored to be before this court to make the simple case that the constitution protects us too. thank you. i think the argument went as arguments go where you are being tested on the limits of your position, but the statue from top to bottom says you can't do something if it is inconsistent with your sex and we the government of tennessee want you to appreciate your sex. if that's not about sex i don't know what is. we help at the end of the day, no matter what happens, we will keep fighting. >> i'm the chief legal officer for lambda legal, where cocounsel with our dear friends at the aclu on behalf of the private plaintiffs, i'm going to read a short statement on behalf of sasha booker, one

in 1834, tennessee has a constitutional convention and the state capital had floated all tennessee had been in knoxville, it had been in murfreesboro, it had been in, of course. and finally, part of that constitutional convention says we have to build ourselves a permanent capital. we have to name ourselves a capital public or a capital city in in the state. general assembly gives gives the gives itself years. it says by 1843, we've got to name name a capital. so 1843, here we are in this election process up for james k polk, 1843, the general assembly selects nashville and it selects it because it was very stiff competition between two cities, murfreesboro and nashville gets this gets the state capital for largely two reasons. one, the cumberland river runs through nashville is very convenient for travel. the second is the hilltop, which our building now sits and. as you leave here today, walk our beautiful bison mall and look back up at that capitol hill sitting there. such a great thing that the nashville city planners to do this but they selected that site because it was offered th

court -- not the tennessee this court is just qualified as tennessee to make the decisions here. and it's not rely so much a question of qualifications, it's more questions of constitutional authorit we might think that we can do just as good a job respect to the evidence here as tennessee or anybody else, my understanding is that cotitution leaves that question to the people's representatives rather an denying people, none of whom is a doctor, and particularly -- maybe i'm just repeatinmyself, but you can look -- should we ow the united kingdom position from three years ago? should we follow the united kingdom's position now? it seems tome that it is something where enter exaordinarily berift in expertise. >> mr. chief justice, if i could respond the first half of your question about whether or not this is comparable in terms of the underlying science with respect to covid-19, and i think it is not. i used that example to say the court has hesitated to say thheightened scrutiny apply. with respect to what is the role ofthe courts, i continue to think it is to whether or not a la

so tennessee valley authority somewhat. it was kind of a miracle at the time we kind of forget this now because it's in my view, it's it's strayed so much from its original mission and it has it needs is in need of serious serious reform. it's was absolutely unquestionably a miracle and a godsend for people of this region. it was created. so just a little history. fdr got polio as a young man. and when he did. he started it, started traveling from new york through the tennessee valley to warm springs, georgia, for polio treatments and when he did, he saw that people here had nothing absolutely, nothing. in 1933, the year that he was elected president, created tva here, became president the average person. the tennessee valley made 40% of the u.s. national median income. it worked out to about $6,000 in today's money when adjusted for people were living on $6,000 a year. i mean, it's is hard to imagine if people lived in shacks. they lived. multiple family members to a bed baby. the infant mortality rate was just obscene, an

i want to make sure tennessee is t gulating based on off label use. common in pediatrics.emely >> we've pointed to a number of uses of these onag40 of our brief. if there are problems wi safety and effectiveness, then that wouldecome the standard of care and there are self-regulatory measo address that issue. might be a space where eachthis state can make its own choice t i think it's important to recognat this would be a nationwide ban if this were enacted in congress. the should keep that in there were a lot of questions about how to take account of disputed medical evidence when thert be some uncertainty and i want to make a few points. as my friend acknowledged, that does not go to the level of scrutiny. that 't go to the level of scrutiny so that doesn'an you should ignore a sex in the statute but at the point the court can take context into accounts. we're not ayou to say we want you to figure out what exactly the right ch is. you can ask you judicial questions like does the state actually have evidence to support its claims that there's a harm

as qualified as the -- as tennessee to make cisions here. and it's not really so mu question of qualifications. it's more questions o constitutional allegation of authority. and, you know, we might think that we'reu know, we can do just as good a job with respect to the -- the evidence here as -- as, you know, tennes anybody else, but mystanding is that the titution leaves that question to the people' representatives rather than to nine people, none of w a doctor. and particularly in -- maybe i'm just repeating myself, but you can lookould we follow the united kingdom position from three years ago? ld we follow the united it seems to me that it is something where we are extraordinarreft of expertise. mr. strangio: well -- chief justice roberts: anyway, what do you think? mr. strangio: -- mef justice, if i could first spond to the -- to the first half of your -- your question comparable in terms of theis underlying sciencerespect to covid-19, and i think absolutely it is not. i merely used thmple to say that the court has not hesitated to s t

i mean, you said at some point that thee tennessee court or -- or not the tennessee court -- that this court is just as qualified as the -- as tennessee to make the decisions here. and it's not really so much a it's more questions of constitutional allegation of authority. and, you know, we might think that we're -- you know, we can do jusood a job with respect to the -- the evidence he a-- as, you know, tennessee or anybody else, but my understanding is that the question to the people's representatives rathn to nine people, none of whom is a doctor. and particularly in -- maybe i' just repeating myself, but you can look -- should we follow the united kingdom position fr three years ago? should we follow the united kingdom's position now? it seems to me that it is something where we are extraordinarily bereft of expertise. mr. strangio: well -- chief justice roberts: anyway, what do you in mr. strangio: -- mr. chief justice, if i could fi respond to the -- to the first half of your -- your question about whether orhis is comparable in terms of the underlying science with respect to cov

so that's what you have in tennessee. you have people who have lived together for years and they have created pretty much a village. and one of the things we have tried to do is to participate in that village, a visitation on death row program. we match people, like some of you with people on death row who want a visitor. and we do an orientation. stephen has spoken one of our orientations so people know what they're getting into when visit death row, match them one on one and the visits are all for running this program started 1975 so unbelievable we're going to have our 50th anniversary airing next year. i'm still trying to comprehend that. so for for visitors going riverbend maybe i'll be stephen you could take us inside. what's it like for for a visitor to to go to riverbend? yeah, i appreciate it. i should first say it's very humbling to do this with joe, because if you read my book, you actually i had to cite one of joe's previous books and also interviewed joe for my book. so it's i'm cheating a bit here actually b

senator bill hagerty of tennessee joins me now. republican member of that republican conference that some of them have been meeting, including you, i believe, sir with pete hegseth weighing where this is going to go. senator, i want to start with something that my colleague manu raju reporting that he just sent in from josh hawley, your colleague from missouri, who said he's not 100% sure that it's not 100% clear who trump wants as secretary of defense right now. that was striking to me. hawley made very clear he would support who the president wants to be. the secretary of defense the president has made a nominee or has told you who he's going to nominate. do you think it's not clear who he wants to be? secdef. uh no. >> i think it's very clear. phil and pete spoke with president trump this morning and president trump again indicated his support. i've been behind pete from the very beginning. he's actually been using my office as a base as he meets with other senators, and he's done a very good job. it's a process of advice and co

i want to make sure tennessee is not regulating based on off label use.ff label use is erely common in pediatrics. >> we've pointed to a number of uses oe on page 40 of our brief. if there are ps with safety and effectiveness, then ould not become the standard of care and there are self-regulmeasures to address that issue. justice kavanaugh you said might be a space where each state can make its own choic but i think it's important to cognize that this would be a nationwide ban if this wer enacted in congress. the court should keep that in mind. there were a lot of questions about how to take account of disputed medical evidence when there might be some uncertainty and i want to make a few points. as my friend acknowledged, that does not g to the level of scrutiny. at doesn't go to the level of scrutiny so thatoe't mean you should ignore a sex classification when one in the statute but at the point of applying heightened scrin the court can take context into accounts. we'ot asking you to say we want you to figure out what exactly ght approach is. you can

what do you think of that defense from the state of tennessee? it make a lot more sense for doctors and families and patients to be making these decisions, or justices and lawyers and legislators? we don't do that for any other aspect of medical care. we shouldn't be doing it for especially this critical issue. the inability to access these medications at a young age put the individuals at risk for psychosocial problems. potential suicidality, that sort of thing. so it really is devastating. the effects of puberty, allowing them to take hold rather than being blocked or delayed, which is all we are doing. we are not doing anything affirmative with these medications. that has devastating effects for these people because they cannot be reversed in the future. >> could i come back and follow up on the point that was made in the statement, that tennessee wants to wait until it can fully understand the lifelong consequences and science behind this therapy. what do you think of that? >> there is lots of talk about the science not being good, or the cas

so if tennessee is successful, if the supreme court in essence, sides with the government of tennesseeat will open the door to the types of federal bans on this care not only for minors, but for adults, too, for adults, do you think? i do i do, and i think that's one of the things we should be really concerned about. we're hearing a lot about young people can't consent to this care, but it is their parents consenting to this care. and at the end of the day, we have adults who live as transgender people people like myself, who have families who are part of communities, who are part of this society. and if the if the incoming administration bans our health care, that is essentially excising us from this country. >> chase strangio thank you so much and i appreciate you being here. >> thanks for having me. >> coming up next, i'm going to talk to the first democrat to join doge. that's trump's new department of government efficiency. plus, a dramatic update on a woman thought to be missing the odd text she sent friends and how she ended up walking across the border into mexico. stay with us

the state of tennessee is on the other side. there's still a fight here, a controversy for the court to resolve. i expect that it will yeah. >> and james, just just to note for everyone arguing the case before the court today as your co-director at the aclu lgbtq and hiv project, chase strangio he's will be the first known transgender lawyer to argue before the supreme court. this is very big day for you on many levels. all of you at the aclu. thanks for coming on. we'll see what happens today john thank you very much. >> all right. the latest in the search for a grandmother believed to have fallen into a deep sinkhole. and elon musk may have some competition for the role of first best friend slash billionaire. new reporting that mark zuckerberg wants an active role in crafting policy for president elect trump and just close the doors and you're in a world of your own travel is not just about a destination. >> it's also about how you get there fly emirates fly better when i was younger, my calling was to play football. >> but as

tennessee lawmakers enacted sb1 to protect minors from risky unproven medical interventions. entirely on medical purpose, not a patient's sex. that is not sex discrimination. >> we do not think that giving puberty blockers to a six-year- old who has started precocious puberty is is the same as giving it to a minor who wants to transition. those are not the same medical treatment. >> what you are saying is, you are still depending on sex to identify who can get it and who can't. >> today, the tennessee solicitor general defended his state's anti-trans law before the supreme court arguing that the denial of gender affirming care is not a form of sex based discrimination. it eroded the equal protections clause ruling that ending abortion access at the federal level does not constitute sex discrimination despite the fact that abortion care directly affects the health of one sex and not the other. in other words, dobbs opened the flood gates for the rollback of anti-discrimination protections across the board. joining me now to break down the avalanche effect this ruling might hav

tennessee. as you yourself have already acknowledged. take a listen i think it's important to recognize that my friends arguments would equally apply to a nationwide ban if this were enacted by congress. >> and so i think that the court should keep that in mind when thinking about the level of scrutiny here is that the goal here, or do you think that california should be able to do whatever california wants to do? >> yeah. i mean, the beauty of our federal system is we have 50 states. >> the people of each state govern themselves and they're able to make their own decisions. now in tennessee, we tend to think california is wrong about a lot of things, but they're free to be wrong. they are able to do that. i think a federal ban is a much different issue. there are other constitutional issues involved in that. limits on the federal power. this is all about the states ability to make its decisions for itself. >> the the law, i have to say i understand when people who oppose the law say this is an

the gentleman from tennessee. mr.reen: i yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman from arizona, mr. gosar. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. gosar: i thank chairman green for yielding. mr. speaker, my great state of arizona is home to over 450,000 veterans and nearly 30% of those veterans live with a disability. my legislation, h.r. 7365, the vets safe travel act will provide optimized security screenings to veterans with catastrophic service connected disability frays of charge, connect veterans to the v.a. for expanded access to benefits they deserve and restore veterans' dignity and independence while traveling. traveling thru standard airport check points with severe injuries can present significant challenges for disabled veterans. they must wait in long, winding line, remove their shoes and maintain balance to stand in a security scanner. for many disabled veterans these can be difficult tasks and can present a fall hazard or require special assistance. providing t.s.a. prech

so put an ad in a couple of tennessee papers and what happened was in dayton, tennessee, a kind of local impresario, saw the ad and got together with a group of people in a drugstore where they used to hang out, mostly men, as a matter of fact, seemed to me, and what they did was ask a young biology teacher who happened to also be the football coach, which is sort interesting and they asked him if he would volunteer and he said, yeah, he would. you can't teach the theory. you can't teach biology without the theory of evolution. what was interesting to to a lot of these people was that darwin's of species had been published a long time ago, 1859, and theory of evolution was by this time and as accepted as, say, the theory of gravity. so it was kind of astonishing. the aclu at, that particular point to, very famous men at the time got involved in the trial. there was group of christian fundamentalist who asked william jennings bryan, who had been the three time presidential nominee on the democratic ticket if he would serve as lead in the prosecution of the case. and he who had been progre

now, this case was sparked by a tennessee law, but it could have far reaching effects on transgender rights across the nation. natalie brand has more >>>>after supreme. demonstrators representing both sides of the issue gathered outside the supreme court wednesday as justices listened to arguments in a landmark case centered on medical care for transgender youth. the case challenges the constitutionality of a tennessee law that bans gender affirming care, such as puberty blockers or hormone therapy, for transgender adolescents. some tennessee lawmakers argue the state is trying to protect children from life altering risks of what's known as gender affirming care, which they call risky and unproven. i think this is ultimately about putting biological truth and science over ideology, and that's what tennessee is trying to do. the biden administration is asking the justices to reverse a lower court's ruling that upheld state bans like tennessee's. the problem with tennessee's law here is not that it's just a little bit overinclusive or a little bit underinclusive, but that it's a sweet

. >> suprema escucha argumentos a favor y en contra de una ley en tennessee que restringe el acceso ade transicion de genero a los menores. >> afuera de la corte hay o protestas. >> con julio vaqueiro. >> este es el momento en el que un hombre le apunta y le dispara por la espalda a brian thompson, el director ejecutivo de united healthcare, la principal aseguradora de salud en estados unidos. >> buenas tardes. >> este homicidio ocurrio en nueva york. >> a esta hora buscan todavia al asesino. >> el ataque ocurrio frente al hotel l hilton, pleno corazon de manhattan. >> ahi el ejecutivo iba a dar una conferencia a inve inversionistas. >> el asesino lo espero y le disparo. >> su arma tenia silenciador. >> la policia ya establecio, se trato de un ataque dirigido y premeditado. >> pero ¿cuales son los motivos detras del crimen? >> karla amezola nos dice lo que sabemos hasta este momento. >> las imagenes, le advertimos, son fuertes. >> a las 6.45 de la manana, este hombre encapuchado, cubierto del rostro y con mochila gris, d dispara por la espalda a brian thompson afuera del hotel hilton

the gentleman from tennessee is recognized. mr. green: mr. speaker, i yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman from new york, mr. lalota. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. lalota: i want to thank the gentleman for yielding, been anxious about him yielding, his alma mater west point lost to my alma mater annapolis, 31-13, so i appreciate the chairman for yielding. mr. speaker, the fight against fentanyl is a bat well cannot afford to lose. right now the united states is at a crossroads. our communities are grappling with a crisis as lethal drugs continue to wreak havoc across our country. today, we have a chance to deliver solutions. the amended version of my detect act is back before us, it's a stronger, more comprehensive tool to tack until epidemic. every year over 100,000 precious american lives are lost to drug everdoses. in 2023 alone, opioids were responsible for more than 81,000 deaths. fentanyl accounting for nearly 90% of synthetic opioid fatalities claimed tens of thousands of lives, shattering f

ohio state hosting tennessee. what an atmosphere. temps around 25 at kickoff in columbus ohio state starting hot. first drive of the game. will howard finds freshman jeremiah smith for a 37 yard score. buckeyes up seven. nothing. tennessee punted. buckeyes go down the field again. howard 40 yards and a great catch by emeka egbuka. a short td run makes it 14. nothing. and after a tennessee turnover kevin henderson 29 yards to the end zone. it's 21. nothing after a quarter. tennessee fans thinking we made this trip for this. vols tried to make it a game. the freshman smith he wasn't having none of it. his second td catch of the day in the third quarter essentially seals the deal. ohio state wins 4217 and will play top ranked oregon in the rose bowl quarterfinal on new year's day. remember, oregon won the first meeting earlier this season. and that leads us to today's toyota. let's go places. player of the day. it's ohio state freshman receiver jeremiah smith. smith opened the scoring with this great catch in the first quarter, and late

the aclu is also challenging tennessee's law arguing that it discriminates on the basis of sex.servative leaning justices seem inclined to leave the ban in place. >> my understanding is that the constitution leaves that question to the people's representatives rather than to nine people, none of whom is a doctor. >> it strikes me as, you know, pretty heavy yellow light if not red light for this court to come in, the nine of us, and to constitutionalize the whole area when the rest of the world are, you know, pumping the brakes on this kind of treatment because of concerns about the risks. >> the justices are expected to release their ruling sometime this summer. if the justices do decide to uphold the ban in tennessee, it will prevent minors there from receiving gender-affirming care. it will also entrench other existing bans across the country and embolden other states to adopt similar restrictions. in her closing argument, the solicitor general outlined what it means to restrict medically necessary care for children. >> finally, i think the court should think about the real wo

the justices are way if a tennessee law barring gender affirming care for minors violates the peoplerotection clause of the u.s. constitution. amna: roughly 300,000 young people identify as transgender in this country, and a decision in this case would have major implications for them, their families, and medical providers. laura: eli givens has been camping outside the supreme court since late last night. >> hi, y'all. it's eli reporting in from the supreme court. laura: givens is urging the conservative-dominated court to protect the rights of transgender youth like themself. >> many kids just like me have had such a difficult time making it to 18. many of us will not make it to 18. laura: inside the court, justices heard arguments in the most significant trends rights case to ever reach the bench. the question at the heart of today's argument is if a tennessee law banning gender affirming care for transgender people younger than 18 like puberty blockers, hormone treatments, and surgery, violates the equal protection clause under the 14th amendment. the law also allows people to ta

the tennessee law also allows people to take legal action against medical providers. 2021, 26 states, including tennessee, have banned or restricted access to gender affirming health care for minors. a wave of laws enacted by republicans that affect roughly 40% of the nation's trans youth. >> the only gender is recognized by the united states government are male and female and they are assigned at birth. >> n ow, after an election in which donald trump and republicans promised to roll back protections for transgender americans, the supreme court is waiting into -- -- wading into the issue. it could dramatically alter the lives of youth like givens who underwent chest reconstruction, also known as top surgery. >> for me, it was a very slow process. of making sure that this is what i want to do and this is who i am. >> surgeries among transgender youth are very rare. and breast reduction among minors is more frequent among non-transgender males. but if givens had waited just one more year, they would have been blocked by tennessee. >> surgery has saved my life. being a

but tennessee attorney general jonathan scrum, eddie defended his state's law. the evidence shows that large majority of kids dealing with gender dysphoria. >> we'll grow out of it unless they're put on these medications. many could not say, though, how many tennessee kids would be i-pacted by the in washington. i'm jessi >> and attorney who supports trends rights. listen in to the arguments in court today and came away, encourage that it would be a positive result for that community. when you focus on what the justices are actually decided. >> i think people don't even understand what is the issue here. i think people somehow think that this court's this is about the court expressing its opinion or approval or disapproval of the underlying health care for transgender kids. that is not what this case is about. this case is about a very narrow legal issue. does this law, the tennessee past, does it treat individual people differently depending on their birth. and if realize that that was the question that really matters. i believe from based on the argument today

how the case dealing with a tennessee law could impact families nationwide. plus many in president biden's own party have condemned his pardon of his son. but one ally in congress says he urged the president to do it. weeks ago i don't know how many people urged him to do so but i did. >> i emphasized the fact that we, as fathers have obligations to our children an alternative to pills. >> voltaren is a clinically proven arthritis pain relief gel which penetrates deep to target the source of pain with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medicine directly at the source voltaren the joy of movement still have moderate to severe ulcerative colitis or crohn's disease symptoms after taking a medication like humira or remicade, put them in check with rinvoq, a once daily pill. >> when symptoms try to take control. i got rapid relief with rinvoq. >> check when flares try to slow me down. i got lasting remission with rinvoq check and many were in remission. even at nearly two years, and rinvoq helped visibly reduce damage of the intestinal lining check rapid symptom reli