From the death of a music icon to court rulings on mail-in ballots and a massive settlement over child social media addiction, here are stories that made headlines this past week. Or skip to the bottom and take a quiz to test your news savvy.
Judge blocks parts of mail ballots rule
BOSTON — A federal judge on Thursday blocked the U.S. Postal Service from implementing core parts of a new rule it adopted at President Donald Trump’s direction that would tighten mail-in voting requirements ahead of congressional elections.
U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston issued a temporary restraining order at the behest of Democratic- led states and voting rights groups after the U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling Monday that lifted earlier injunctions blocking Trump’s plans.
In Thursday’s ruling, Talwani said the rule risked preventing citizens from casting ballots by mail and likely violated the U.S. Constitution, which gives states the authority to administer elections.
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Trump administration makes visa changes
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s administration released a proposed regulation Monday to codify an unprecedented fee of more than $100,000 on new H-1B visas for highly skilled foreign workers that courts blocked.
The fee, temporarily imposed last year, dramatically raises the cost of visas the tech, education and research sectors heavily relied on. The administration said Monday it also planned to revoke the non-immigrant visas of foreigners who applied for or seek asylum status in the U.S.
The administration also paused visa appointments for applicants around the world, as a U.S. State Department spokesperson said Tuesday it launched a global training initiative at U.S. embassies and consulates.
Mourners pay their respects to Dolly Parton on Wednesday, a day after the announcement of her death, at the statue of her in downtown Sevierville, Tenn.
Country music queen Dolly Parton dies
Dolly Parton, the “Queen of Country Music,” actress, renowned philanthropist and activist died at age 80 after a brief battle with cancer, her family announced Tuesday on her social media pages. With a successful career spanning almost 60 years, she was a legend in the music industry, known for hits-turned-classics such as “Jolene,” “I Will Always Love You,” “9 to 5” and “Coat of Many Colors.”
In other news
Agent freed: U.S. immigration agent Christian Castro was freed from a Texas jail Thursday after a federal judge refused to order his extradition to Minnesota to face assault charges for shooting an unarmed Venezuelan man during last winter’s deportation surge in Minneapolis.
Kennedy Center: In a filing Monday, President Donald Trump’s administration argued the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts could face demolition if major repairs are not undertaken, as it defended a renewed effort to restore Trump’s name to the landmark’s facade.
Maxwell: In a decision made public Tuesday, a U.S. judge rejected Ghislaine Maxwell’s bid to throw out her conviction and 20-year prison sentence for helping the late financier Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse teenage girls.
Trade: Canada set retaliatory tariffs on about $20 billion worth of U.S. annual imports, matching Washington’s latest duties dollar-for-dollar, and rolled out aid for businesses and workers. President Donald Trump responded by signing an order Thursday to rename Lake Ontario as Lake America.
Floods: Rescuers searched Thursday in Nepal as more than 1,000 people remained missing there and in China after a wall of ice, mud and rock collapsed into a mountain river, triggering a flash flood. Police said 359 died.
Russia: Sergei Naryshkin, head of Russia’s foreign intelligence service, said Thursday that he held a “working-level meeting” with CIA director John Ratcliffe in Moscow earlier in the week on unspecified and sensitive matters.
The water cooler — trending news
Tim Curry (1946-2026): British actor Tim Curry — who pranced to movie fame as a singing, lingerie-clad “sweet transvestite” in the 1975 cult classic “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” — died peacefully Tuesday at his Los Angeles home at age 80, his manager said. Curry appeared in movies and Broadway roles, and performed voice work in many animated films and TV shows.
DC Prix: President Donald Trump capped celebrations of the U.S. 250th anniversary last Sunday afternoon with IndyCar’s Freedom 250 Grand Prix, a first-of-its-kind auto race through the streets of Washington, closing a summer of sports and spectacle.
Measles: Two Pennsylvania residents died after contracting measles, health officials said Tuesday, the first such deaths this year in the U.S., which is contending with the highest number of cases of the highly infectious disease in more than three decades as vaccination rates drop. Both people were unvaccinated, according to the state Department of Health.
Cancer treatment: The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday approved Rasonque, Revolution Medicines’ groundbreaking once-daily pancreatic cancer drug, after it was shown to double the survival rate of patients with advanced disease in a large trial.
Big number
Up to $18 billion: The amount Meta Platforms will pay over the next decade under a deal with almost all U.S. states to resolve claims it designed social media platforms to addict children.
U.S. Sen. Darline Graham, R-S.C., speaks to supporters Tuesday night in Columbia, S.C., after winning her Republican primary runoff.
Quote of the week
“South Carolina is truly Trump country,” Sen. Darline Graham, R-S.C., said after defeating U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman in the Republican Senate runoff Tuesday to seek the seat of her late brother, Lindsey Graham; President Donald Trump had endorsed her.
