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U.S. NEWS Tuesday 11 July 2023

Biden administration asks appeals court to block order limiting its

contacts with social media

By KEVIN McGILL important matters. And
Associated Press they said Doughty failed
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The to point to any evidence
Biden administration asked that the administration had
a federal appeals court made threats against so-
Monday to temporarily cial media companies to
block a lower court’s order coerce them to take down
limiting executive branch posts.
officials’ discussions with “The district court identified
social media companies no evidence suggesting
about controversial online that a threat accompa-
posts. nied any request for the re-
The request for an emer- moval of content. Indeed,
gency stay was filed at the the order denying the stay
5th U.S. District Court of Ap- presumably highlighting
peals shortly after U.S. Dis- the ostensibly strongest
trict Judge Terry Doughty evidence referred to ‘a se-
rejected an administration ries of public media state-
motion that he put his own ments,’” the administration
July 4 order on hold. The or- said.
der came in a lawsuit filed U.S. President Joe Biden walks back dropped by Marine One upon arriving at Stansted airport, in They asked that the 5th Cir-
by Republican attorneys London, Monday, July 10, 2023. cuit block Doughty’s order
general in Louisiana and Associated Press while the case is pursued at
Missouri, as well as a con- what it deemed misinfor- ald Trump. His injunction manner the removal, dele- the appeals court in New
servative website owner mation. COVID-19 vac- blocked the Department tion, suppression, or reduc- Orleans or, at minimum,
and four individual critics cines, legal issues involving of Health and Human Ser- tion of content containing grant a 10-day block of the
of government COVID-19 President Joe Biden’s son vices, the FBI and multiple protected free speech.” order so the administration
policies. Hunter and election fraud other government agen- Administration attorneys could prepare to go to the
The lawsuit claimed the ad- allegations were among cies and administration of- said in the motion filed at Supreme Court to seek a
ministration, in effect, cen- the topics spotlighted in ficials from meeting with or the 5th Circuit that Dough- longer stay.
sored free speech by using the lawsuit. contacting social media ty’s ruling was too broad Earlier Monday, Doughty
threats of regulatory action Doughty was nominated companies for the purpose and vague, and had the rejected administration re-
or protection while pressur- to the federal bench by of “encouraging, pres- potential to chill govern- quests that he stay his own
ing companies to remove former President Don- suring, or inducing in any ment officials’ speech on order pending appeal.q

U.S. intelligence assessment says Iran not currently developing

nuclear weapons

By MATTHEW LEE sire to return to the 2015 complicated in recent into claims he mishandled agreement in 2018.
AP Diplomatic Writer nuclear deal with Iran, months by the suspension classified information. “Iran continues to increase
WASHINGTON (AP) — A U.S. known as the Joint Com- of its chief negotiator, Rob “Iran is not currently un- the size and enrichment
intelligence assessment prehensive Plan of Action Malley, who was placed dertaking the key nuclear level of its uranium stock-
says Iran is not pursuing nu- or JCPOA, since it first took on unpaid leave last month weapons-development pile beyond JCPOA limits,”
clear weapons at the mo- office. That effort has been pending an investigation activities that would be the report said, adding
ment but has ramped up necessary to produce a that it also continues to ex-
activities that could help it testable nuclear device,” ceed JCPOA restrictions on
develop them. according to the two-page advanced centrifuge re-
The assessment from the unclassified synopsis of the search and development.
Office of the Director of report. These findings have been
National Intelligence re- However, Iran is also pursu- generally supported by
leased Monday says Iran ing “research and develop- inspections from the UN’s
has moved to increase its ment activities that would nuclear watchdog, the In-
capacity to produce an bring it closer to producing ternational Atomic Energy
atomic bomb since 2020 the fissile material needed Agency.
but has stopped short of for completing a nuclear In addition to the nucle-
that so far. device following a decision ar findings, the U.S. intel-
The findings corresponded to do so,” the report said. ligence report said that
with previous U.S. assess- In that regard, Iran con- Iranian ballistic missile pro-
ments about Iran’s nuclear tinues to violate the terms grams continue to pose a
program, although many of the 2015 nuclear deal significant threat to coun-
in Congress and elsewhere regarding uranium enrich- tries around the Middle
have been skeptical of In this photo released by the office of the Iranian supreme ment that it agreed to with East. “Iran has emphasized
those. leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, visits an world powers, the report improving the accuracy,
exhibition of the country’s nuclear achievements, at his office
The Biden administration compound in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, June 11, 2023. said. The Trump adminis- lethality, and reliability of its
has been defending its de- Associated Press tration withdrew from that missiles,” it said.q