
Supreme Court rejects Texas's bid to axe nuclear waste storage site
The Supreme Court rejected Texas's bid to axe federal approval of a nuclear waste storage facility, arguing the state did not have the right to bring its challenge in the first place.
© AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File
In a 6-3 decision, the court in effect upheld the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's decision to issue a license to a company that wanted to store nuclear waste off site from a power plant.
The opinion, authored by Justice Brett Kavanaugh, said that Texas, as well as private company Fasken Land and Minerals, did not have the right to sue over the license.
'Under the Hobbs Act, only an aggrieved 'party' may obtain judicial review of a Commission licensing decision,' Kavanaugh wrote. 'Texas and Fasken are not license applicants, and they did not successfully intervene in the licensing proceeding. So neither was a party eligible to obtain judicial review.'
The opinion did not address the question in the underlying case, which was about whether the Nuclear Regulatory Commission should be allowed to license private off-site nuclear waste storage sites.
Kavanaugh was joined by justices John Roberts, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Amy Coney Barrett and Ketanji Brown Jackson.
Justices Neil Gorsuch, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented.
The dissent, authored by Gorsuch, argued that Texas and Fasken should be allowed to sue.
'Radioactive waste poses risks to the State, its citizens, its lands, air, and waters, and it poses dangers as well to a neighbor and its employees,' he wrote.
'Both Texas and Fasken participated actively in other aspects of the NRC's licensing proceeding,' he added. 'Both are entitled to their day in court — and both are entitled to prevail.'
Read more at TheHill.com.
Welcome to The Hill's Energy & Environment newsletter, I'm Rachel Frazin — keeping you up to speed on the policies impacting everything from oil and gas to new supply chains.
Did someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here.
Essential Reads
How policy will affect the energy and environment sectors now and in the future:
Court blocks EPA from axing environmental justice grants
A federal judge this week barred the Trump administration from axing grants that were part of a $600 million program that aimed to tackle pollution in underserved communities.
Wildfires may be accelerating the spread of infectious disease by keeping US West residents indoors: Study
As climate-driven weather extremes fuel fires across the U.S. West, the tendency of residents to spend more time indoors may be accelerating the spread of infectious diseases, a new study has found.
Trump cuts to NOAA, NASA 'blinding' farmers to risks, scientists warn
The Trump administration's cuts to climate research and federal weather forecasting agencies are 'blinding' the U.S. to oncoming threats to its food supply — and kneecapping efforts to protect it.
What We're Reading
News we've flagged from other outlets touching on energy issues, the environment and other topics:
'Abolishing FEMA' Memo Outlines Ways for Trump to Scrap Agency (Bloomberg)
What Others are Reading
Two key stories on The Hill right now:
Senate GOP leader faces pushback after members blindsided by Trump bill
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) is facing strong pushback from members of the GOP conference over the Finance Committee's piece of President Trump's tax and spending bill, which largely ignores GOP senators' concerns about Medicaid cuts and the quick phaseout of clean-energy tax credits. Read more
5 takeaways from Tucker Carlson's interview with Ted Cruz
Pundit Tucker Carlson published a nearly two-hour interview with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) on Wednesday, during which the two conservative firebrands debated President Trump's foreign policy, the future of the Middle East and America's place in the world. Read more
You're all caught up. See you tomorrow!
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Chicago Tribune
17 minutes ago
- Chicago Tribune
Official fired during President Donald Trump's first term appointed president of embattled US Institute of Peace
A senior State Department official who was fired as a speechwriter during President Donald Trump's first term and has a history of incendiary statements has been appointed to lead the embattled U.S. Institute of Peace. The move to install Darren Beattie as the institute's new acting president is seen as the latest step in the administration's efforts to dismantle the embattled organization, which was founded as an independent, non-profit think tank. It is funded by Congress to promote peace and prevent and end conflicts across the globe. The battle is currently being played out in court. Beattie, who currently serves as the under secretary for public diplomacy at the State Department and will continue on in that role, was fired during Trump's first term after CNN reported that he had spoken at a 2016 conference attended by white nationalists. He defended the speech he delivered as containing nothing objectionable. A former academic who taught at Duke University, Beattie also founded a right-wing website that shared conspiracies about the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, and has a long history of posting inflammatory statements on social media. 'Competent white men must be in charge if you want things to work,' he wrote on October 2024. 'Unfortunately, our entire national ideology is predicated on coddling the feelings of women and minorities, and demoralizing competent white men.' A State Department official confirmed Beattie's appointment by the USIP board of directors, which currently includes Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. '(W)e look forward to seeing him advance President Trump's America First agenda in this new role,' they said. The USIP has been embroiled in turmoil since Trump moved to dismantle it shortly after taking office as part of his broader effort to shrink the size of the federal government and eliminate independent agencies. Trump issued an executive order in February that targeted the organization and three other agencies for closure. The first attempt by the Department of Government Efficiency, formerly under the command of tech billionaire Elon Musk, to take over its headquarters led to a dramatic standoff. Members of Musk's group returned days later with the FBI and Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Police to help them gain entry. The administration fired most of the institute's board, followed by the mass firing of nearly all of its 300 employees in what they called 'the Friday night massacre.' The institute and many of its board members sued the Trump administration in March, seeking to prevent their removal and to prevent DOGE from taking over the institute's operations. DOGE transferred administrative oversight of the organization's headquarters and assets to the General Services Administration that weekend. District Court Judge Beryl A. Howell overturned those actions in May, concluding that Trump was outside his authority in firing the board and its acting president and that, therefore, all subsequent actions were also moot. Her ruling allowed the institute to regain control of its headquarters in a rare victory for the agencies and organizations that have been caught up in the Trump administration's downsizing. The employees were rehired, although many did not return to work because of the complexity of restarting operations. They received termination orders — for the second time, however, — after an appeals court stayed Howell's order. Most recently, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit denied the U.S. Institute of Peace's request for a hearing of the full court to lift the stay of a three-judge panel in June. That stay led to the organization turning its headquarters back over to the Trump Administration. In a statement, George Foote, former counsel for the institute, said Beattie's appointment 'flies in the face of the values at the core of USIP's work and America's commitment to working respectfully with international partners' and also called it 'illegal under Judge Howell's May 19 decision.' 'We are committed to defending that decision against the government's appeal. We are confident that we will succeed on the merits of our case, and we look forward to USIP resuming its essential work in Washington, D.C. and in conflict zones around the world,' he said.


The Hill
17 minutes ago
- The Hill
Sunday shows preview: Trump remains embroiled in Epstein drama as tariff deadline looms
The Trump administration and Cabinet members remain entangled in a saga entrenched in controversy over files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, which is likely to be a focus of this week's Sunday shows. Members of Congress and the public are continuing to call on leaders to release the names of past clients, associates and businessmen linked to Epstein's dealings, urging President Trump to make good on his campaign promise to provide transparency on the deceased criminal's actions. Their push for more information follows a July joint memo from the FBI and Justice Department (DOJ) that confirmed Epstein kept no 'client list' and said no further files tied to the late financier would be released by the federal government. Epstein's longtime partner, Ghislaine Maxwell, agreed to speak with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche this week about the international sex trafficking ring run by the two. 'This was a thorough, comprehensive interview by the Deputy Attorney General. No person and no topic were off-limits. We are very grateful. The truth will come out,' Maxwell's attorney David Oscar Markus said in a statement to NewsNation, the sister network of The Hill. Maxwell was granted limited immunity amid her push to appeal her conviction before the Supreme Court. DOJ officials have opposed the effort but continue to applaud her cooperation while the president has not completely ruled out the possibility of pardoning Epstein's accomplice, who's now serving a 20-year sentence behind bars. Lawmakers disgruntled by the lengthy delay to unveil new evidence voted Tuesday to subpoena Maxwell to testify before the House Oversight Committee. A House Oversight subpanel on Wednesday approved several subpoenas including one directing the DOJ to turn over materials relating to the Epstein files. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) and Rep. Riley Moore ( will likely discuss the huddle amongst their GOP colleagues this week on Sunday shows, addressing their party's strategy to investigate Epstein's criminal dealings without stepping on the Trump administration's toes. McCaul is set to appear on CBS's 'Face the Nation' and Moore is slated to appear on CNN's 'State of the Union.' Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) is set to address the Democratic push to force transparency on the president's ties to Epstein's illegal actions on his Sunday appearance on ABC's 'This Week.' Amidst the legislative drama, the White House is courting foreign nations to coax mutually beneficial trade deals between the U.S. and its international partners. Officials sent out the first batch of letters earlier this month to other nations informing them of new tariff rates, but those tariffs won't go into effect until Aug. 1, White House officials said. Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.), who sits on the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Committee, may address the impact set to strike the country's business through the onset of levies during Sunday appearances on Fox News's 'Fox News Sunday' and NBC's 'Meet the Press.' This week, markets surged as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell waved off criticism from the president on Thursday and corrected his projected costs for projects undertaken by the entity. The S&P 500 finished 0.4 percent up, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 208 points or 0.47 percent. Many await further direction from the Fed Chair on inflation as more permanent tariffs take effect and Americans begin to feel the jolt from its repercussions. Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.) of the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Development could address how different business ventures may thrive or decline due to newer trade policies. All this and more will be discussed on this week's Sunday shows. Please see the full list of appearances below: NewsNation's 'The Hill Sunday:' Former Amb. John Bolton, Rep. Sean Casten (D-Ill.) and Former Gov. Chris Sununu (R-N.H.) ABC's 'This Week:' Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.); Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) CNN's 'State of the Union:' Sens. Katie Britt (R-Ala.) and Mark Warner, (D-Va.); Rep. Riley Moore ( CBS' 'Face the Nation:' Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.); Rep. Michael McCaul, (R-Texas); International Atomic Energy Agency Director-General Rafael Mariano Grossi; former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb NBC's 'Meet the Press:' Sens. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.); Zohran Mamdani, Democratic candidate for New York mayor


San Francisco Chronicle
17 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Photos: Hundreds in S.F. form human banner during ‘Families First' protest of Trump
Hundreds of people gathered at San Francisco's Ocean Beach to form a human banner Saturday morning as part of a nationwide 'Families First' day of action against the Trump administration. As an upside-down American flag flapped in the misty San Francisco summer air, the protesters stood in straight single-file lines near the Cliff House, forming 'FAMILIA!' below letters spelling 'WE ARE.' Children, parents and grandparents, many accompanied by dogs, protested what organizers from Indivisible SF called 'cruel cuts and attacks on our families' by President Donald Trump, including changes to social programs, food stamps and school lunches, 'all so a handful of billionaires can get tax giveaways.' The protest took particular aim at Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the budget he recently signed into law, which cuts nearly $1 trillion from Medicaid over the next decade and is expected to mean millions of Americans will lose health coverage. Protesters also decried recent raids in the Bay Area and nationwide by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. As a ukulele band played Woody Guthrie's 'This Land is Your Land' over speakers, Peter Hosey, 40, stood in a line of people forming the letter 'A' in 'FAMILIA.' 'The message today is 'We are familia,'' Hosey said. 'That certainly resonates for a lot of us when you see what ICE has been doing, deporting children, deporting mothers, putting people in camps.' 'This is not what our country should be,' added Hosey, who works in the tech industry. The crowd, which organizers estimated as 600, then headed to the ocean, raising hands and waving to the water. Protesters then walked back and formed a circle around a large American flag as Sister Sledge's 1979 hit 'We Are Family' played over the speakers. Micki Morales, a retired schoolteacher who lives in Cupertino, was standing in one of the human letter lines when a call went out over the speakers. They needed someone who could sing 'This Land is Your Land.' Morales didn't come to the beach expecting to sing Saturday, but has experience in choruses and decided to offer up her voice. The song took on special meaning for her in the age of Trump. 'It's almost a prayer versus a statement,' said Morales, 88. 'I don't know how we got to this position, how people could be so fooled. But here we are, and hopefully we will dig our ways out.' Several related events were held around the Bay Area, including an afternoon rally at Snow Park in Oakland commemorating the anniversaries of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Medicaid program and the Social Security Administration. The event featured speeches from Medi-Cal recipients, health care workers, caregivers and community members. One of the featured speakers in Oakland, Jazmine Arreola of the grassroots group Parent Voices Los Angeles, said she has fibromyalgia and is severely impacted by the federal cuts. 'How is it fair that families like mine up and down the state of California have lived our whole lives trying to move up and move forward for our kids, and we just can't?' Arreola, the mother of three children, said in a news release before the protest. 'My closest family members are on Medi-Cal: my dad and my grandparents. My daughter needs eye surgery. These cuts put our lives at risk.' In San Jose, health care workers, patients, community leaders and educators gathered Saturday afternoon at Discovery Meadow to highlight the effect of immigration raids and corporate tax breaks on working families. The Bay Area protests were organized by a coalition of unions, advocacy groups, faith leaders, and families. Events were also planned in San Mateo, Colma and Novato. The 'Families First' day of action included hundreds of rallies in all 50 states, highlighted by a livestreamed mobilization in Washington, D.C. The Washington demonstration included a 60-hour vigil at the National Mall to protest cuts to federal programs benefiting families. The events follow anti-Trump rallies that drew tens of thousands of people around the Bay Area and nationwide, including No Kings Day in June and 'Hands Off' in April. The San Francisco protest was organized by the same people who spelled out 'No King' on Ocean Beach during the nationwide No Kings protests this year. Several drones hovered overhead to capture their latest message. When it came to keeping the participants in orderly lines to spell their message clearly for the drones overhead, the job largely fell on Brad Newsham, 73. Newsham, a writer and former longtime cabdriver in the city, has been organizing protests like this one since 2007. Their causes have spanned the eras, from calls to impeach President George W. Bush, to support for Occupy Wall Street and now opposition to Trump. 'This is No. 28,' Newsham said. 'This has been incredible.' Newsham walked around the sand in a bright yellow jacket Saturday, delivering orders to the crowd via bullhorn. His injured ankle didn't hold him back. 'It's cool when you get a shot from the sky of all these people,' he said. When a group of protesters wearing purple union shirts bunched up in a line that was supposed to be single file, Newsham whipped them into shape. 'Hey SEIU, squeeze in!' he shouted into the bullhorn. 'It makes a better picture, you can do it.' Newsham seemed to get a kick out of it. 'It's an awesome responsibility,' he said. The demonstrators spelled out 'FAMILIA' to protest what Newsham's co-organizer, Travis Van Brasch, called ICE's 'completely illegal, cruel, stupid, unnecessary' raids. 'We are saying it in Spanish because that's where most of the trouble is,' said Van Brasch, 72. Warren Pederson contributed to this report.