The Supreme Court struck down a key provision of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that determines which state and local government have to seek federal permission to change their voting laws, NBC News and Fox News reported on Tuesday. The 5-4 majority decision leaves the future of the law deeply uncertain because it will be up to Congress to redraw the map.
The Supreme Court sidestepped a sweeping decision on the use of race-conscious school admission policies, ruling Monday on the criteria at the University of Texas and whether it violates the equal protection rights of some white applicants.
American Chip Starnes, a co-owner of the Coral Springs, Florida-based Specialty Medical Supplies, said on Monday that he has been held hostage for four days at his supply plant in Beijing, China by workers who have demanded severance packages like those given to 30 co-workers in a phased-out department.
Edward Snowden, the 29-year-old former government contractor who leaked sensitive information on the National Security Agency surveillance programs, says he sought the job with Booz Hallen Hamilton to gather evidence on the agency's data collection networks.
