The New York Times’ 1619 Project founder Nikole Hannah-Jones said wealthy White people on the Supreme Court overturned affirmative action, adding that Justice Clarence Thomas is ‘irrelevant here.’

‘An elite, white majority determining after just 50 years of weak, half-hearted affirmative action efforts, that they are the ones to decide that enough has been done to address centuries of explicit racial exclusion against Black people is the most American ruling ever,’ Hannah-Jones tweeted following the historic Supreme Court ruling against affirmative action. ‘Let me make it simpler: Rich white people thinking THEY are the ones who get to say that society has done enough to mitigate that devastation of 350 years of explicit discrimination against Black people is the most American thing of all.’

‘Was going to write an essay about it, but why even bother. (Also, Clarence Thomas is actually irrelevant here. So thanks but no thanks),’ the ‘1619 Project’ creator said.

In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that the use of race as a factor in collegiate admissions is a violation of the  14th Amendment’s equal protection clause.

Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the majority opinion, stating that ‘A benefit to a student who overcame racial discrim­ination, for example, must be tied to that student’s courage and determination.’

‘Or a benefit to a student whose herit­age or culture motivated him or her to assume a leadership role or attain a particular goal must be tied to that student’s unique ability to contribute to the university. In other words, the student must be treated based on his or her ex­periences as an individual—not on the basis of race,’ reads the opinion.

READ THE SUPREME COURT AFFIRMATIVE ACTION OPINION – APP USERS, CLICK HERE:

Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett joined Justice in the majority opinion.

Hunter Biden’s ex-business associate Tony Bobulinski and his lawyers contacted the U.S. attorney leading the investigation into President Biden’s son, offering to testify before the federal grand jury, but ‘never heard back’ from prosecutors, Fox News Digital has learned.

Bobulinski, who worked with Hunter Biden to create the joint-venture SinoHawk Holdings with Chinese energy company CEFC, was interested in providing testimony to the federal grand jury collecting evidence as part of the years-long investigation into the president’s son, a source familiar with the matter told Fox News Digital. 

But Bobulinski never got that chance. 

The source told Fox News that Bobulinski’s lawyers ‘reached out’ to U.S. Attorney for Delaware David Weiss, and said Bobulinski ‘was available.’ The source told Fox News Digital that Bobulinski and his lawyers ‘never heard back from them.’

The source said the lawyers were baffled by the fact that prosecutors never sought Bobulinski’s testimony. 

Bobulinski would have been able to provide information about Hunter Biden’s business dealings — specifically related to the joint-venture with CEFC, and whether President Biden, himself, was involved. 

The information comes after IRS whistleblowers testified that the federal investigation into Hunter Biden was ‘influenced by politics,’ and that prosecutorial decisions were made that would benefit the subject — the president’s son. 

IRS whistleblowers alleged that federal prosecutors avoided questioning certain witnesses, and even sought to limit questioning related to President Biden.

Fox News Digital exclusively reported on text messages dating back to May 2017, showing Bobulinski, a retired lieutenant in the U.S. Navy and the former CEO of SinoHawk Holdings, discussing a meeting with Joe Biden.

The messages seem to indicate that a meeting took place. 

‘Mrng plse let me knw if we will do early dinner w your Uncle & dad and where, also for document translation do you want it simple Chinese or traditional?’ Bobulinski texted Hunter Biden on May 2, 2017.

Hunter replied: ‘Dad not in now until 11- let’s me I and Jim meet at 10 at Beverly Hilton where he’s staying.’

Later, Bobulinski sent a text to Jim Biden, Joe Biden’s brother, on the same day, May 2, 2017, saying: ‘Great to meet u and spend some time together, please thank Joe for his time, was great to talk thx Tony b.’

The following day, May 3, 2017, Bobulinski sent another text to Jim Biden, saying: ‘Morning, please let me know all set for things this mrng. I don’t have credentials to get into Milken so just want to make sure not an issue to get me in, where should we meet this mrng?’ 

‘Milken’ was in reference to the 2017 Global Conference, which, in part, was held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, according to the program directory. 

Joe Biden, on May 3, 2017, spoke at the conference, hosting ‘A Conversation with the 47th Vice President of the United States Joe Biden.’ 

The alleged meeting between Biden and Bobulinski on May 2, 2017, would have taken place 11 days before a May 13, 2017, email, obtained by Fox News Digital in 2020 and referenced by Shapley in testimony, which included a discussion of ‘remuneration packages’ for six people in a business deal with CEFC. The email appeared to identify Hunter Biden as ‘Chair / Vice Chair depending on agreement with CEFC,’ in an apparent reference to now-bankrupt CEFC China Energy Co.

The email includes a note that ‘Hunter [Biden] has some office expectations he will elaborate.’ A proposed equity split references ’20’ for ‘H’ and ’10 held by H for the big guy?’ with no further details. Bobulinski has repeatedly said ‘the big guy’ was Joe.

IRS whistleblower Gary Shapley testified before the House Ways and Means Committee and referred to that email in testimony. Fox News Digital had first reported on the email in October 2020. 

Shapley, during that point in his testimony, noted that in December 2020, investigators were preparing to interview Hunter Biden business associate Rob Walker.

‘Among other things, we wanted to question Walker about an email that said: ‘Ten held by H for the big guy,’’ Shapley said. ‘We had obvious questions like who was H, who the big guy was, and why this percentage was to be held separately with the association hidden.’

But Shapley said Assistant U.S. Attorney Lesley Wolf ‘interjected and said she did not want to ask about the big guy and stated she did not want to ask questions about ‘dad.’’

It has been reported that Joe Biden was ‘the big guy’ — a term that popped up repeatedly in the context of Hunter’s business dealings and the ensuing investigation. 

‘When multiple people in the room spoke up and objected that we had to ask, she responded, there’s no specific criminality to that line of questioning,’ Shapley said. ‘This upset the FBI, too.’

Shapley said that ‘basically everyone in the room except for the prosecutors had a big problem with’ not asking questions about President Biden. Shapley said Justice Department investigators were ‘trying to limit’ any questions related to President Biden. 

The White House says Biden was ‘never in business’ with his son. 

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

A recent major hail storm in western Nebraska took an entire solar farm out of commission, forcing the local community to turn back to traditional power sources, local officials said.

The so-called Community Solar Project – a 4.4 megawatt solar field comprised of 14,000 solar panels and located in Scottsbluff, Nebraska – is not currently operating and will remain offline until repairs are completed, the Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD) confirmed to Fox News Digital. NPPD, the state-owned public utility, and energy firm GenPro Energy Solutions developed the project in 2020.

‘The solar complex was destroyed by hail,’ Scottsbluff City Manager Kevin Spencer said in an interview. ‘They’re assessing the damage, but it certainly looks destroyed to me.’

‘I don’t think we’re ready to give up on solar power,’ Spencer added. ‘It was our understanding that these solar panels were at least hail resistant. This hail was extreme, you know, the size and probably the speed of it. So, I don’t know that we would give up on it just yet.’

Last week, a tornado and storm with baseball-size hail hit the region, causing widespread damage, regional Emergency Management Director Tim Newman told the Scottsbluff Star-Herald on Saturday. Newman reportedly toured the damage with a meteorologist from the National Weather Service and estimated damage to be worth as much as $1 million.

GenPro Energy Solutions CEO Dwight Patterson said leaders from his company were planning to meet with the owners and insurance adjusters of the solar farm later Thursday to assess the extent of the damage the storm had on the project.

‘Severe weather, like the storm that struck Scottsbluff, is a good example of why renewable energy providers and local electric utilities benefit from strong partnerships,’ Patterson told Fox News Digital. ‘Forces that are sometimes out of our control could impact critical electric power delivery to homes, hospitals and critical infrastructure.’

‘We believe in an all-of-the-above approach to energy production in the U.S. as the best path forward, with smart collaboration with all energy providers and an eye on emerging technologies that will lead to resilient, secure and efficient electricity for everyone,’ he said.

Patterson added that the Scottsbluff Community Solar Project used top-tier solar panels that are able to withstand most hail storms. However, he said, while it is unlikely that hail storms will damage the panels, it always remains possible.

Jeremy Anderson, the chief construction officer of GenPro Energy Solutions, said the hail storm did considerable damage to the solar panels but that other components of the system ‘may be only superficially damaged or not damaged at all.’

In addition, a spokesperson for NPPD said the region hasn’t experienced any issues with power supplies.

‘NPPD is currently working with the solar developer that owns and operates the project,’ NPPD spokesperson Grant Otten told Fox News Digital. ‘The developer is assessing the damage and determining next steps and a timeline for equipment repairs or replacement.’

‘The Scottsbluff Community Solar facility is relatively small compared to the rest of NPPD’s generation resources,’ he wrote. ‘Our largest generation resource is Gerald Gentleman Station in Sutherland, NE, which is a 1,365 MW coal plant. Our second largest resource is Cooper Nuclear Station in Brownville, NE which is an 800 MW Nuclear plant.’

Otten noted that the project is part of the statewide community solar program, which are built in partnership with communities and provide solar energy for that specific community.

President Biden on Thursday warned that progressive efforts to expand the size of the Supreme Court would ‘politicize it maybe forever in a way that is not healthy.’

Biden was asked during an MSNBC interview if he was worried that ‘without court reform, this conservative majority is too young and too conservative, that they might do too much harm?’

‘Well, I think they may do too much harm, but I think if we start the process of trying to expand the court, we’re going to politicize it maybe forever in a way that is not healthy, that you can’t get back,’ the president replied.

‘And I think, look, I think maybe it’s just the optimist in me. I think that some of the court are beginning to realize their legitimacy is being questioned in ways that had not been questioned in the past,’ he said.

The interview came just hours after the Supreme Court issued a 6-3 decision that outlawed affirmative action policies in college admissions programs because those policies violate the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause.

Biden commented on the ruling prior to the interview, saying that the Supreme Court is ‘not a normal court.’

He clarified his comments on MSNBC, saying, ‘What I meant by that is, it’s done more to unravel basic rights and basic decisions than any court in recent history.’

‘And that’s what I meant by not normal. It has gone out of its way to, for example, take a look at overruling Roe v. Wade. Take a look at the decision today. Take a look at how it’s ruled on a number of issues that are, have been precedent for 50, 60 years sometimes. And that’s what I meant by not normal,’ he said.

BIden was asked if he agreed with some Senate Democrats that the Supreme Court is ‘anti-democratic,’ but he declined to go that far.

‘Well, you know, if I say it’s not a Democratic, it gets…’ Biden started.

‘But… its value system is different. And its respect for institutions is different. And in that sense, it is… not as embracing of all what I think the Constitution says: we hold these truths to be so that all men and women are created equal, endowed by their creator,’ he said, quoting from the Declaration of Independence, and not the U.S. Constitution.

The New York Times was widely criticized by conservatives on social media Thursday over a tweet that said the Supreme Court’s decision rejecting affirmative action would make colleges ‘whiter and more Asian.’

‘Breaking News: The Supreme Court rejected affirmative action at Harvard and UNC,’ the newspaper tweeted Thursday following the Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision striking down affirmative action. 

‘The major ruling curtails race-conscious college admissions in the U.S., all but ensuring that elite institutions become whiter and more Asian and less Black and Latino.’

The tweet immediately drew criticism from conservatives, who called the tweet racist due to the implication that minority students won’t be able to compete with White students.

‘The New York Times appears to be inferring that black and brown people are too stupid to get into a colleges on their own merit,’ Timcast’s Josie Glabach tweeted.

‘Show us on the doll where equal protection under the law touched you, NYT,’ Federalist CEO Sean Davis tweeted.

The New York Times did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. 

The nation’s highest court handed down the historic ruling on affirmative action Thursday and rejected the use of race as a factor in college admissions as a violation of the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause.

Chief Justice John Roberts said for too long universities have ‘concluded, wrongly, that the touchstone of an individual’s identity is not challenges bested, skills built, or lessons learned but the color of their skin. Our constitutional history does not tolerate that choice.’

Justice Clarence Thomas, the nation’s second Black justice, who had long called for an end to affirmative action, wrote separately that the decision ‘sees the universities’ admissions policies for what they are: rudderless, race-based preferences designed to ensure a particular racial mix in their entering classes.’

Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote in dissent that the decision ‘rolls back decades of precedent and momentous progress.’

In a separate dissent, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, the court’s first Black female justice, called the decision ‘truly a tragedy for us all.’

Associated Press contributed to this report

As 2024 election coverage intensifies, the latest Fox News Poll finds voting in elections remains the top act American voters consider patriotic.

The survey, released Thursday, asks voters whether they consider several individual actions as patriotic. ‘Voting in elections’ keeps the title of most patriotic, as nine in 10 say so (91%).

Second is ‘flying the flag’ at 83%, followed closely by ‘joining the military’ at 82%. Three-quarters say ‘volunteering time to community service’ (77%) and ‘serving on a jury’ (76%) are acts of patriotism, while almost seven in 10 say ‘paying taxes’ (68%) and ‘staying informed on the news’ (66%) show loyalty. ‘Participating in political protests’ comes in at 57% patriotic.

Nearly all Democrats and Republicans think voting is an act of faithfulness, but it lands in a different order for each. For Republicans, the top acts are flying the Star-Spangled Banner (94%), voting (93%) and joining the military (88%), while for Democrats, it’s voting (91%), joining the military (78%) and volunteering (77%).

The degree to which voters view each act of patriotism has declined over the last decade. Staying informed on the news has experienced the biggest drop (-13 percentage points).

In 2014, 79% felt keeping up on the news was an act of patriotism. That number fell to 67% in 2019 and decreased another point to 66% in 2023.

The next largest decline in loyalty is flying the flag (-11 points), then paying taxes (-10), enlisting (-8), serving on a jury (-7), and political protests (-4).

‘It’s clear that increasingly negative attitudes toward the news media are taking a toll,’ says Republican pollster Daron Shaw, who helps conduct the Fox News Poll along with Democrat Chris Anderson. ‘When voters are suspicious of the veracity of information, it’s no surprise they don’t see it as essential for Americans to follow the sources.’

Some of the main shifts on being up on the news come from voters under age 30 (-21 points), Republicans (-20), women (-20), Black voters (-14), independents (-13) and White voters (-12).

Since 2019, the first time it was asked, volunteering in the community is down 3 points from 80% saying it was patriotic to 77% today.

Voting has held relatively steady in recent years: 93% in 2014, 90% in 2019 to 91% today, far more than the 80% who felt that way in 2002 when the question was first asked.

CLICK HERE FOR TOPLINE AND CROSSTABS

Conducted June 23-26, under the joint direction of Beacon Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R), this Fox News Poll includes interviews with 1,005 registered voters nationwide randomly selected from a voter file who spoke with live interviewers on landlines and cellphones. The total sample has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

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Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., faced an onslaught of criticism Thursday after she provided her take on the Supreme Court’s affirmative action ruling and suggested the high court isn’t serious about its ‘ludicrous ‘colorblindness’ claims’ or else it would have ‘abolished’ legacy admissions.

‘If SCOTUS was serious about their ludicrous ‘colorblindness’ claims, they would have abolished legacy admissions, aka affirmative action for the privileged,’ Ocasio-Cortez wrote in a tweet. 

The ‘Squad’ Democrat went on to note ‘70% of Harvard’s legacy applicants are white’ and that the Supreme Court ‘didn’t touch that – which would have impacted them and their patrons.’

Ocasio-Cortez’s remarks came shortly after it was announced that the court rejected the use of race as a factor in college admissions as a violation of the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause.

Responding to Ocasio-Cortez, several social media users who took issue with the lawmaker’s remarks were quick to point out that the Supreme Court did not hear a case about college and university legacy admissions — the practice of giving preference to the children of alumni.

‘Absolute gibberish. There is no case before SCOTUS that is related to legacy admissions,’ one user explained in a tweet. ‘Also, the Constitution specifically disallows racial discrimination, not [privileges] for relatives of alumni. That’s what makes this a legal issue, instead of just a policy preference.’

‘This is how AOC thinks the court operates,’ Washington Free Beacon investigative reporter Joe Gabriel Simonson wrote in a tweet.

Another user wrote, ‘But the point of legacy admissions isn’t to admit students based on race. It’s just an outcome you don’t like. As opposed to affirmative action, which uses race as a criteria for selection.’

‘There’s bad politics, and then there’s ‘the court should have abolished a thing that’s never been brought before the court,” another said in a tweet.

Others, like attorney and conservative commentator Viva Frei, drew parallels between the percentage of white Harvard legacy applicants and the total population of white people in America as they took aim at Ocasio-Cortez.

‘According to @AOC, Harvard is racist because 70% of legacy applicants are white. Just ignore the fact that 71% of America is white,’ Frei wrote in a tweet.

Highlighting the population total of white Americans, Shri Thakur, head of political affairs for the Notre Dame College Republicans, suggested that Harvard’s legacy admissions program ‘suggests legacy helps minorities.’

‘Furthermore, can any of these people discuss affirmative action without whataboutism? AOC is not very smart,’ Thakur added in the tweet.

During a Thursday evening interview with MSNBC’s Katy Tur, Education Secretary Miquel Cardona suggested that legacy admission programs offered by Harvard and other institutions should be looked into, saying they ‘expand privilege, not opportunity.’

‘We need to recognize that if we’re gonna look at the tools that are being used for college admissions, we have to look at all of them,’ said Cardona, who previously served as the commissioner of education in Connecticut. ‘So, right now, our focus is on providing information to colleges around the SCOTUS decision and what tools they still have available.’

South Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott, a 2024 presidential candidate, called for colleges to end legacy-based admissions.

‘I think the question is how do you continue to create a culture where education is the goal for every single part of our community? One of the things that Harvard could do to make that even better is to eliminate any legacy programs where they have preferential treatment for legacy kids, not allow for the professors — their kids to come to Harvard as well,’ Scott said during an appearance on Fox News Channel’s ‘The Faulkner Focus.’

In February, Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., and Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., introduced the Fair College Admissions for Students Act in an effort to ‘reform the legacy and donor admissions practices at universities across the country and ensure equity in the admissions process.’

The Chinese spy balloon that flew across the U.S. earlier this year did not collect and transmit data back to Beijing, Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said Thursday. 

‘We were aware that it had intelligence collection capabilities,’ Ryder said, hours after reports saying that the Chinese spy balloon used American equipment to take photos and videos intended to be sent back to Beijing.

‘It has been our assessment now that [the balloon] did not collect while it was transiting the United States… And as we said at the time, we also took steps to mitigate the potential efforts of that balloon,’ Ryder said. 

Intelligence agencies have concluded that the spy balloon was used for spying, not weather-related issues as China had claimed. 

Information captured by the spy balloon is not believed to have been successfully sent back to Beijing. It is unclear why the spy mission seemed to fail, but officials said intelligence agencies used countermeasures to prevent data collection. 

The Chinse spy balloon flew from Alaska to the East Coast, where it was shot down by the military over the Atlantic Ocean on Feb. 4. 

President Biden claimed Saturday that the balloon was ‘more embarrassing that it was intentional’ by the communist regime. 

Fox News’ Patrick Hauf contributed to this report. 

A man is behind bars after allegedly assaulting a state representative in Hartford, Connecticut, Wednesday afternoon during a religious holiday celebration, officials announced.

Andrey Desmond, 30, of New Britain, was arrested by Hartford police after he allegedly assaulted Rep. Maryam Khan, a Democrat, when she and her family were observing Eid al-Adha, one of Islam’s holiest days, at the city’s XL Center, WTNH reported. Muslims across the state were gathered at the convention center for the event.

Desmond attempted to flee the scene but was apprehended by a fellow worshiper, who restrained him until authorities arrived, per the report.

He is charged with second-degree unlawful restraint, third-degree assault, second-degree breach of peace and interfering with police.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations’ Connecticut chapter (CAIR-CT) said Khan, her three children – 10, 12 and 15 years old – a friend and her sister were approached by Desmond, who ‘made vulgar and obscene remarks’ before striking her.

‘The attacker grabbed and hit her, and threw her to the ground,’ the Connecticut chapter continued. ‘Another worshipper intervened, chased and held the suspect until police arrived.’

The organization’s chair called on law enforcement to investigate the alleged physical attack.

‘We urge local, state and federal law enforcement authorities to investigate a possible bias motive for this attack and to ensure the safety of the Connecticut Muslim community during the ongoing Eid al-Adha celebrations,’ CAIR-CT Chair Farhan Memon said in a statement. ‘All too often we have seen American Muslims, or those perceived to be Muslim, targeted by hate because of their attire, race or ethnicity.’  

CAIR-CT also urged Hartford police to treat the attack as a hate crime.

CAIR-CT said Eid al-Adha, which is commonly referred to as just ‘Eid,’ is usually celebrated with prayers, small gifts for children, distribution of meat to the needy, and social gatherings. It commemorates Abraham’s loyalty to God’s command.

Connecticut’s Speaker of the House Matt Ritter and Majority Leader Jason Rojas, both Democrats, condemned the attack and said it was ‘especially painful’ that it took place during a religious ceremony.

‘It is especially painful that Rep. Khan was attacked on a holy night of peace and prayer,’ the two lawmakers said in a joint statement. ‘On a night she should be spending with her friends and family. Rep. Khan is an amazing leader and person who is committed to faith, love and service – we are sending our well-wishes and support tonight to Maryam and her family.’

Fox News Digital reached out to Khan and the Connecticut police for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

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A federal judge blocked a Kentucky law that restricted individuals under the age of 18 from accessing transgender medical treatments, saying Wednesday that it violates the U.S. Constitution.

U.S. District Judge David Hale ruled Kentucky Senate Bill 150, which prohibits cross-sex hormone therapies and sex-reassignment surgeries for minors as well as restricts bathroom use by biological sex, was illegal as ‘regardless of its stated purpose’ the law ‘would have the effect of enforcing gender conformity.’

The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky ruled medical drugs and treatments that are prohibited by SB 150 are widely used by transitioning children and are accepted by ‘all major medical organizations’ in the country. Every major medical group including the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Psychiatric Association, supports transgender medical treatments for minors.

‘These drugs have a long history of safe use in minors for various conditions. It is undisputed that puberty-blockers and hormones are not given to prepubertal children with gender dysphoria,’ Hale ruled.

SB 150 also bans instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity in schools.

Republican super-majorities in both chambers passed the legislation into law in March after they overrode Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky and other LGBTQ+ advocacy groups joined several minors and their parents to challenge the law in court, arguing that denying transgender medical treatments to trans teens negatively impacts them and increases their risk of suicide.

The court sided with the plaintiffs and said the elimination of sex-reassignment surgeries would result in serious consequences such as ‘severe psychological distress and the need to move out of state.’

The court clarified its decision ‘will not result in any child being forced to take puberty-blockers or hormones; rather, the treatments will continue to be limited to those patients whose parents and healthcare providers decide, in accordance with the applicable standard of care, that such treatment is appropriate.’

Corey Shapiro, ACLU-KY’s legal director, applauded the decision but said it was only a ‘first step’ in securing transitioning medical treatments in the Republican-controlled legislature.

‘This is a win, but it is only the first step. We’re prepared to fight for families’ right to make their own private medical decisions in court, and to continue doing everything in our power to ensure access to medical care is permanently secured in Kentucky,’ Shapiro said.

Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron criticized the District Court’s ruling.

‘Senate Bill 150 is a commonsense law that protects Kentucky children from unnecessary medical experimentation with powerful drugs and hormone treatments,’ Cameron said, according to CBS News. ‘There is nothing ‘affirming’ about this dangerous approach to mental health, and my office will continue to do everything in our power to defend this law passed by our elected representatives.’

At least 11 states have enacted laws restricting or banning transgender medical treatments for minors, including Arkansas, Arizona, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee, Utah, South Dakota and West Virginia.

Fox News’ Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.

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