Catherine Lucey, Associated Press
Published 6:14 p.m. ET Sept. 3, 2018 | Updated 7:37 p.m. ET Sept. 3, 2018

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump escalated his attacks on Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Monday, suggesting the Department of Justice put Republicans in midterm jeopardy with recent indictments of two GOP congressmen.

In his latest broadside against the Justice Department’s traditional independence, Trump tweeted that “Obama era investigations, of two very popular Republican Congressmen were brought to a well publicized charge, just ahead of the Mid-Terms, by the Jeff Sessions Justice Department.”

He added: “Two easy wins now in doubt because there is not enough time. Good job Jeff……”

Justice Department investigators are never supposed to take into account the political affiliations of the people they investigate.

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Trump, who did not address the specifics of the charges, did not name the Republicans. But he was apparently referring to the first two Republicans to endorse him in the GOP presidential primaries. Both were indicted on separate charges last month: Rep. Duncan Hunter of California on charges that included spending campaign funds for personal expenses and Rep. Chris Collins of New York on insider trading. Both have proclaimed their innocence.

The Hunter investigation began in June 2016, according to the indictment. The indictment into Collins lays out behavior from 2017. He was also under investigation by congressional ethics officials.

Hunter has not exited his race, while Collins ended his re-election bid days after his indictment. Both seats appear likely to remain in GOP hands, but the charges have raised Democratic hopes.

A spokeswoman for Sessions declined comment, and the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Trump did not have any public events Monday. He briefly exited the White House to a waiting motorcade, but then went back inside without going anywhere.

Trump’s tweet drew a scolding from Sen. Ben Sasse, a Nebraska Republican who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee.

“The United States is not some banana republic with a two-tiered system of justice – one for the majority party and one for the minority party,” Sasse said in a statement. “These two men have been charged with crimes because of evidence, not because of who the President was when the investigations began. Instead of commenting on ongoing investigations and prosecutions, the job of the President of the United States is to defend the Constitution and protect the impartial administration of justice.”

‘Double Standard’: Trump fires back at Attorney General Jeff Sessions, pleads for investigations into ‘other side’

Trump has previously pressed Sessions to investigate his perceived enemies and has accused Sessions of failing to take control of the Justice Department. Trump has also repeatedly complained publicly and privately over Sessions’ decision to recuse himself from the federal investigation into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia because he’d worked on Trump’s campaign.

Some of the issues Trump has raised have either already been examined or are being investigated.

The tension between Trump and Sessions boiled over recently with Sessions punching back, saying that he and his department “will not be improperly influenced by political considerations.” Still, Sessions has made clear to associates that he has no intention of leaving his job voluntarily despite Trump’s constant criticism.

Allies, including Republican members of Congress, have long advised Trump that firing Sessions – especially before the November midterm elections – would be deeply damaging to the party. But some have indicated that Trump may make a change after the elections.

“I think there will come a time, sooner rather than later, where it will be time to have a new face and a fresh voice at the Department of Justice,” Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina told reporters recently.

Eric Tucker contributed from Washington and Mike Balsamo contributed from New York City.

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England’s highest Test run-scorer Alastair Cook will retire from the international game as a “beacon for his sport”, says ex-captain Graham Gooch.

Cook, 33, announced on Monday that this week’s final Test against India will be his last appearance for his country.

The opening batsman has scored 12,254 runs and made 32 centuries in 160 Tests – all England records.

“We should laud Alastair Cook as a person as well as a player,” Gooch told BBC Radio 5 live’s Tuffers and Vaughan.

“Forget his achievements, he is a super man, an icon in our sport and a beacon for his sport.”

Gooch, one of Cook’s boyhood heroes and his former mentor, was one of many coaches, friends and former team-mates to pay tribute to the Essex batsman.

But what are the factors that have made Cook a “icon” who will receive an emotional send-off at The Oval this week – and where do England go from here?

Cook the role model

Gooch: “If you’re looking for a role model, if you’re looking for an icon in sport, let alone cricket, you couldn’t get a more upstanding person and lovely guy than Alastair Cook. He’s everything you want in a sportsperson.”

Ex-England captain Michael Vaughan: “I’m delighted he’s playing this week because if there is one England cricketer that deserves a whole week about him, it’s Cook. He is not the person to go searching for that, he’ll probably be a bit embarrassed, but he deserves it.”

Former England captain Alec Stewart: “He’s almost flown under the radar in breaking all these records and he is the heartbeat of that team in such a quiet, unassuming way.”

England assistant coach Paul Farbrace: “He’s just such a fantastic bloke to have in your team. When he’s had tough periods and when he was under pressure as captain, everyone was saying: ‘We want him, we need him, he’s our man.’ It was genuine. He’s a caring bloke, he’s not selfish in any way and he has just run out of steam.”

Ex-England spinner Graeme Swann: “He is one of the nicest men alive. He has lasted so long because he does have a sunny disposition and a way of thinking that cricket is not life and death. He always put in 100% but would appreciate the other side of life.”

Former England coach Peter Moores: “To be England’s most successful batsman ever but still be humble and have time for everybody is a great thing.”

All-time leading Test run-scorer Sachin Tendulkar: “Alastair Cook has been one of the finest batsmen to have represented England and his conduct on-field and off it has been impeccable.”

Cook the strong-minded grafter

Former England team-mate Paul Collingwood: “It was very evident straight away that he was an unflappable character. He looked cool, he was relaxed, and it was obvious he was going to take to international cricket like no-one else.”

Stewart: “There is a little bit of madness in opening the batting but he’s done it so well. He’s probably not the most naturally gifted cricketer but others have not his mental strength, and their natural talent hasn’t seen them through. The combination of talent and mental strength Cook has means he’s played such a long time and broken all the records he has.”

Moores: “A lot of his traits are the best of English people – he keeps his counsel, he gets stuck in, he’s tough, and he’s resolute under pressure.”

Gooch: “Often we see players who have physical talent – Alastair Cook is talented between the ears. He’s got a lot of skills with the bat and has enhanced those as his career has gone on but he’s very strong of mind. From the word go he had the ability to get the best out of himself, he knew exactly what he could and couldn’t do, and that’s a priceless skill. The mental side of his game never needed any coaching.”

Vaughan: “Cook has had to eke out every run through hard work and preparation. That’s why it’s remarkable he’s played for 12 years.”

Cook the competitor

Former England coach and Essex team-mate Andy Flower: “From the start, he was great playing off his hips and had a brilliant pull shot to fast bowlers but it was his stubbornness, his determination, that really came through in his batting. You can’t coach that into someone, it comes from deep within, that hunger that great competitors have. He’ll want to beat you, whether it’s squash, table tennis or cricket.”

Collingwood: “Everyone doubts whether he’s got a good technique or not but never his steeliness, his resilience.”

Stewart: “He left nothing to chance, he worked hard and made sure he always topped the fitness tests.”

Cook the man for all conditions

Cook scored 18 of his 32 Test centuries abroad, including five in both Australia and India.

Gooch: “His performances in India in 2012-13, when he captained England to a 2-1 Test victory, stand out for me. It was an exhibition in how to play the turning ball. His runs in that series helped us beat India in their own conditions.”

Swann: “Without his runs, we wouldn’t have won that 2010-11 Ashes series quite as convincingly, if not at all.”

Cook the last of a dying breed

Ex-England spinner Phil Tufnell: “I’m not sure we will see his like again. He is one of the old-school openers. But there is still room in a Test team of mine for an Alastair Cook.”

Gooch: “Apart from him and Jimmy Anderson, most of the current players have been brought up in the Twenty20 era. So Cook is a dying breed, that Test player who can occupy the crease and graft for his runs – it’s a priceless commodity. I’d like to think there’ll be someone else but I don’t see anyone on the horizon.”

Vaughan: “I hope the send-off Cook will get this week is a real lesson to everyone in cricket that if you play for a long time in Test cricket, that’s the send-off you get. If you’re a real legend – and Alastair Cook is – you get a week like this that you absolutely deserve.”

But is he irreplaceable?

Gooch: “It will be very strange to see someone else walking out to open the batting for England in Test cricket.”

Moores: “Maybe a completely new partnership will make it easier for somebody. It’s not always easy someone coming in with such a great record. It’s a fresh start and a chance for two new blokes to get in there and form a partnership that will hopefully be successful for the next few years.”

Collingwood: “They’re going to be difficult shoes to fill. Hopefully someone can put their hand up, come in and become a mainstay in the team.”

Farbrace: “There is a new selection group in place and it’ll be their job to make sure England have two good opening batsmen. When Cook finishes and we’re looking round at the experience you’re missing and the runs he scored, that is a massive hole for anybody to fill.”

Flower: “The game moves on and teams move on from great players. He will be missed, but there will be other hungry, strong, young Englishmen that will step in and step up. We all look forward to seeing that and Cook will look forward to seeing other young men developing themselves and challenging themselves in the international set-up.”

And is he England’s greatest Test batsman?

Stewart: “If someone breaks his record of Test runs then they’ll be a very, very good player and it will take a long, long time to get there.”

Gooch: “He’s right up there. You could say there are more exciting and entertaining players to watch, but he would have to be ranked in the top two or three.”

Associated Press
Published 5:29 p.m. ET Sept. 3, 2018 | Updated 5:44 p.m. ET Sept. 3, 2018

Is it always unfair to say a side is a “one-man team”? Perhaps not.

Crystal Palace desperately need their star man, Tottenham boast the league’s best runner and Jose Mourinho needs to stop being so picky.

BBC Sport takes a look at the key stats from the Premier League weekend…

Palace REALLY need Zaha

To the detriment of fantasy football managers across the country, Wilfried Zaha was a surprise omission for Crystal Palace on Saturday as Roy Hodgson’s side lost a third consecutive Premier League game.

The Ivory Coast international picked up a groin strain in training, and to say Palace miss him when he’s unavailable is a little bit of an understatement.

The south London side have now lost all 10 Premier League games without Zaha since the start of last season, and the stats suggest they really cannot do without him.

Here’s the startling effect the 25-year-old has had on Palace’s Premier League record since the start of last season:

Milner matches Beckham

Liverpool’s unsung hero James Milner covered an exhausting 12.39km against Leicester on Saturday, at an average speed of 7.69 km/h – meaning he ran further and, on average, faster than anyone else on the pitch as Jurgen Klopp’s men maintained their winning start.

In fact, only Bournemouth’s Dan Gosling could match Milner’s legs this weekend, the Cherries midfielder covering 12.57km as his side chased a result against Chelsea – though without any reward.

And Milner now ranks fourth among Premier League players for total distance covered so far this season, but would you have guessed who comes in at number one?

Tottenham’s Christian Eriksen – running 49.56 km in all – lays claim to being the Premier League’s very own Mo Farah after four games, ahead of Gosling, Chelsea’s summer signing Jorginho, Milner and N’Golo Kante.

Not just an engine in Liverpool’s midfield, however, Milner has now registered 80 Premier League assists after his corner was converted by Roberto Firmino – taking him level with Manchester United legend David Beckham.

Only six players have bettered that tally, but can you name the top 20 assist makers in the competition?

Stop being so choosey, Jose!

Manchester United returned to winning ways against Burnley on Sunday, so did Jose Mourinho finally stumble across his strongest starting XI?

The United boss has used 22 different players during their stuttering start to the Premier League – that’s a league-high figure matched only by Huddersfield.

Most players used:

• 22 – Huddersfield, Manchester United
• 21 – Tottenham
• 20 – Newcastle, West Ham

This could also be where Newcastle and West Ham have gone wrong so far this season – though fourth-place Tottenham appear an anomaly here despite their defeat by Watford.

Fewest players used:

• 15 – Wolves
• 16 – Chelsea, Liverpool, Watford

Interestingly, Chelsea, Liverpool and Watford – the only sides to record four straight victories in the competition – have called upon just 16 individuals.

Only promoted side Wolves, who have enjoyed a steady start, have used fewer than this.

0% and 100% records – what do they actually mean?

West Ham’s miserable start to the campaign continued as Wolves inflicted a fourth consecutive league defeat on Manuel Pellegrini’s men.

It’s only the second time in Hammers history this has happened and, on the other occasion, they were relegated in 2010-11 after manager Avram Grant endured the same opening run.

But they still have a bit to go before it becomes the worst ever start to a Premier League season…

But are they doomed? Not necessarily.

Of the 10 teams to lose their first four games, four have gone on to be relegated – though that does include West Ham.

Meanwhile, at the other end of the spectrum, just three sides still boast perfect starts after four games – a feat that has been achieved on 18 occasions across the Premier League’s 26 editions.

And, crucially, on seven of those occasions that side has gone on to claim the all-important title.

Arsenal’s Invincibles managed it in 2003, Manchester United in 2006 and Manchester City in 2011 – but Chelsea trump them all, succeeding in 2004, 2005, 2009 and 2014.

This is actually the sixth time Chelsea have won their first four games of a Premier League season, and the first time since 2014-15 under Mourinho.

Could they be about to do it again? Only 34 matches to go.

A long, long wait for Ward

A week is a long time in football – never mind nine years.

But against Arsenal on Sunday, Cardiff striker Danny Ward made his first Premier League start – 3,305 days after making his debut in the competition.

Remarkably, despite making his first appearance for Bolton Wanderers back in August 2009, two other players have endured longer waits between their first Premier League appearance and first start than Ward…

And finally, on the matter of long waits, in a week that saw Saido Berahino end his two-and-a-half-year goal drought, Crystal Palace forward Christian Benteke extended his wait for a top-flight goal from open play – last doing so on January 30, 214 days ago.

Since the start of last season, Benteke has played 2,564 minutes but, with three goals from 73 shots in that period, the Belgian currently has a measly conversion rate of just 4%.

As the NFL continues to defend itself in an ongoing collusion grievance filed by Colin Kaepernick, its official apparel partner unveiled a new advertisement featuring the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback himself.

“Believe in something,” the advertisement reads in white letters in front of a black-and-white portrait of Kaepernick. “Even if it means sacrificing everything.”

Kaepernick remains a free agent after last playing in the NFL in 2016.

He and his lawyers contend that NFL owners have purposefully denied the former quarterback employment in the league due to his protests of police brutality and social inequality during the pre-game playing of the national anthem. Kaepernick first sat and then kneeled during the anthem in the 2016 preseason, and continued his protest through the rest of the season.

Other players followed his lead, as several began to protest last year and helped create a number of programs.

Kaepernick will be one of the faces of Nike’s 30th anniversary of the “Just Do It” campaign.

“We believe Colin is one of the most inspirational athletes of this generation, who has leveraged the power of sport to help move the world forward,” Gino Fisanotti, Nike’s vice president of brand for North America, told ESPN.

“We wanted to energize its meaning and introduce ‘Just Do It’ to a new generation of athletes,” Fisanotti said.

Nike is the NFL’s official apparel sponsor and manufactures the jerseys and game day apparel worn by all 32 franchises. Nike signed Kaepernick in 2011 to endorse its products.

Arbitrator Stephen Burbank ruled against the NFL last week in the league’s bid for a summary judgment, as he determined there was enough evidence for the case to go to trial.

Follow Lorenzo Reyes on Twitter @LorenzoGReyes.

 

BAYFIELD – A father and three children died during a kayak trip Thursday on Lake Superior, leaving only the mother alive from a Loyal family of five, according to police.

A news release from the Ashland County Sheriff’s Office says the father and all three children died, and only the mother, Cari Mews, 29, survived when the family’s kayak capsized in Lake Superior. Mews told police that when attempting to swim to Michigan Island, she became separated from her husband, Erik Fryman, 39, and their children, ages 9, 6 and 3, according to the news release. 

At 8:29 p.m. Thursday, the Ashland County Communications Center received a call from Mews’ sister saying she sent an alarming text message saying “911 Michigan Island.” Police determined the family, which was vacationing at Madeline Island, left Michigan Island with the intention of touring the Apostle Islands on kayak. Mews was found on the west side of Michigan Island at about 10 p.m., the news release said.

The Coast Guard, DNR, Bayfield Fire and Rescue, the National Park Service and USGS vessel KIYI aided in the water and air search. 

The bodies of Fryman and two of the children were found just after midnight. Strong thunderstorms hampered search efforts, according to the news release, and the body of the third child was found at about 10 a.m. Friday on the Michigan Island shore. All of the family members were wearing life jackets, according to the news release. 

Autopsies are being conducted and the incident is under investigation, according to the new release.

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It has been the fate of many promising British racing drivers in the last 10 years to be dubbed “the next Lewis Hamilton”.

The difference with Lando Norris, who has been signed to race for McLaren next year, is that he looks like he might just be one who can justify the hype.

Hamilton is a tough act to follow – as was demonstrated by his superlative drive to victory in Italy on Sunday. And Norris has a long way to go before he can be considered anywhere near him.

But in his short career, the indications so far are that he has a considerable natural talent.

Still only 18, Norris has been quick pretty much straight away in virtually every car he has driven. That’s always a good sign. As is pace in the wet, which Norris has also demonstrated in abundance.

McLaren’s reserve driver this year, he drove the car in Friday practice at last weekend’s Italian Grand Prix.

In the rain, he was matching team-mate Fernando Alonso’s pace. And although he ended up considerably slower than the Spaniard, he had been on course to set the same sort of time had he not encountered traffic on his fastest lap.

A meteoric rise

Norris might not be 19 until November, but he is already a veteran of seven different junior motorsport categories and a champion in three, including the prestigious Formula Three Euroseries last year.

How is that possible? Well, it helps to come from a very wealthy family – his father is an investment banker. They recognised his talent and had the multi-million pound fortune to back it – and felt in a position to allow him to give up school to pursue it.

“I left school to concentrate on racing,” Norris says. “It was a family decision between my mum, dad and myself.

“I feel it has paid off because I have definitely improved with not feeling tired all the time from travelling, getting home and then going to school the next day.”

But no amount of money can compensate for a lack of talent, and Norris has demonstrated that he has plenty.

Quick but raw

Monza on Friday was the sort of performance that has convinced McLaren they should take the risk of promoting the lad from Glastonbury in Somerset into a full-time race seat in Formula 1 in 2019.

But a risk it is, however talented Norris is.

If they’re quick enough, they’re old enough, is an F1 adage. Norris is certainly quick, but whether he is ready is a question that will only be answered with time.

McLaren always had an eye on promoting Norris to F1 in 2019 when he embarked on his maiden Formula Two season this year.

He had already impressed at the Daytona 24 Hours sports car race in January, where he shared one of the cars run by McLaren boss Zak Brown’s United Autosports team with Alonso and British driver Phil Hanson.

Alonso was using the event to gain experience of night-time sportscar driving ahead of his ultimately victorious visit to Le Mans with Toyota this year. Norris, a source close to the situation says, was determined to set a quicker lap time than the great man.

He managed it, too, although the source says that to do so he treated one particularly nasty kerb with a fair bit more aggression than might have been ideal in a 24-hour endurance race.

“The things he did were very impressive,” Alonso said after the race. “The team work, the preparation, the focus.

“When we switched to wet tyres for one stint, we were fifth, one minute behind the leader. Then we switched to slick tyres again in damp conditions – all this with Lando driving – and we were 27 seconds behind the leaders. He is 18 years old, so that is quite impressive.”

Daytona demonstrated Norris’ pace, and his determination and drive. And when he began the F2 season impressively, with a win in the first race and an early championship lead, the decision was pretty much made to promote him.

Norris also attracted the attention of Red Bull, whose motorsport boss Helmut Marko made a pitch for him to replace New Zealander Brendon Hartley in the early summer. This was resolutely rejected by McLaren, who were determined to hold on to him.

But then Norris had what can only be described as a mid-season wobble, and he has looked less convincing in recent races. In fact, he has been outshone by another British talent, George Russell, a protege of Mercedes.

McLaren began to wonder whether Norris might be better off doing another year of F2, or something else to gain experience, before his promotion to the big time.

When Alonso decided to retire from F1 at the end of the season, McLaren signed Carlos Sainz to replace him. Their choice as his team-mate was effectively between Norris, and the two Force India drivers, Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez.

Ocon seemed the most logical choice – he’s young, quick and proven. But McLaren were unwilling to take a driver who had contractual links with Mercedes, for all sorts of reasons tied up with the wider political climate in F1 at the moment.

Perez is effectively tied to Force India, and with no will to change their minds on Ocon, the seat was Norris’. Meanwhile, he is still very much in contention for the F2 title – 12 points behind Russell with two rounds to go.

A chance to prove what he’s made of

Norris is one of the most promising talents to come along for a while and he has earned his F1 break on merit.

But he only has to look at his current team-mate Stoffel Vandoorne to see that what you achieve on the way up is no guarantee of a successful F1 career. The Belgian’s junior career was at least as impressive as Norris’ – and he is being pitched after two seasons of unconvincing performances alongside Alonso.

Like Hamilton, Norris is making his debut with McLaren, but this is a very different McLaren from the one Hamilton graduated with in 2007.

Then, they were at the front of the grid; now they’re at the back. Hamilton had a known quantity in Alonso as a team-mate and benchmark; Norris has someone who, while clearly quick and talented, is still proving his level – and was not going to be retained by Renault at the end of this season, whether McLaren wanted him or not.

McLaren in 2007 were the factory Mercedes team and knew exactly where they were going. McLaren in 2019 have a customer Renault engine and are starting what will clearly be a long and difficult rebuilding process.

Norris has absolutely earned his chance. But if he wants to emulate Hamilton, the real work starts now.

Additional reporting Gary Rose

US Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh is expected to face tough questions during four days of hearings this week over his stance on controversial issues, including women’s rights and corporate power.

Democrats will grill President Donald Trump‘s pick for the Supreme Court on his endorsement of presidential immunity and his opposition to abortion.

Kavanaugh is nominated to replace Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy who retired at the end of July. 

About two dozen witnesses will be summoned in front of Congress to argue for and against confirming Kavanaugh, who could swing the nine-member high court decidedly in conservatives’ favour for years to come. 

“Brett Kavanaugh praised the dissent in Roe v Wade. He called Justice Rehnquist, who authored the dissent in Roe, his ‘judicial hero’,” California Senator Dianne Feinstein said on Twitter.

“There’s no mystery as to where he stands on Roe v Wade,” she added, referring to the landmark 1973 Supreme Court case that granted women the right to an abortion.

In a later tweet, Feinstein highlighted a different case in which Kavanaugh, 53, also ruled in favour of restricting women’s choice regarding reproductive rights.

In 2017, Kavanaugh mischaracterized and failed to follow Supreme Court precedent in Planned Parenthood v. Casey. We’ve already seen him discard precedent on women’s reproductive freedom.

— Sen Dianne Feinstein (@SenFeinstein) September 2, 2018

The conservative Catholic Kavanaugh, who hails from a wealthy Washington, DC suburb, has the backing of powerful right-wing judicial groups and deeply religious evangelical Christians.

Both groups are pro-gun and anti-abortion and form a key part of the Republican voter base.

Trump’s alleged wrongdoings

Other issues to come into play during the hearings are his support for corporations against regulation, and the judge’s belief that a sitting president should not be distracted by legal proceedings against him.

Kavanaugh’s thoughts on the last issue are especially important as Trump was alleged to have taken part in late 2016 in making payments to an adult film star and a Playboy model in possible violations of election laws.

Those allegations, recorded in a recent plea deal by Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen, implicated then-candidate Trump directly in the payment. 

“The elephant in the room Tuesday is going to be the president’s implication as an unindicted co-conspirator in very, very serious criminal wrongdoing,” said Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal.

Democrats are also angry the Trump administration has not released all the records of Kavanaugh’s work while he was in the White House.

Republicans argue Kavanaugh’s judicial history shows he is well-suited for the job.

The American Bar Association “has determined by a unanimous vote that Judge Kavanaugh is ‘Well Qualified’ for the position of Associate Justice of the Supreme Court” – its highest possible rating. Leading Democrats’ have called this the Gold Standard.

— Leader McConnell (@SenateMajLdr) August 31, 2018

Kavanaugh needs 50 votes for confirmation, but according to US media currently only 47 Republicans have said they will vote in favour of him, with 41 Democrats in opposition.

The Supreme Court nominee started his career as a clerk in Kennedy’s office.

In the 1990s, Kavanaugh worked with special prosecutor Kenneth Starr in his probe of Democratic president Bill Clinton’s affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky, which led to Clinton’s impeachment trial.

In 2001, he joined former president George W Bush‘s White House legal team, where his role in key terrorism-related decisions, such as permitting the torture of detainees, remains unclear.

As a US Court of Appeals judge in Washington, DC for the past 11 years, Kavanaugh has ruled and written on some of the nation’s most sensitive cases, including when he opposed the Affordable Care Act – the signature health reform of ex-president Barack Obama that Trump has sought to dismantle.

SOURCE: Al Jazeera and news agencies