10 things you need to know today: September 3, 2021

Biden orders federal effort to counter Texas abortion law, Ida's flooding kills dozens on East Coast, and more

Biden talks to press
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1. Biden orders federal effort to counter Texas abortion law

President Biden on Thursday slammed the Supreme Court for declining to block Texas' new law banning abortion after six weeks of pregnancy, saying the court's conservative majority's ruling "unleashes unconstitutional chaos" by defying long-established precedent guaranteeing broader abortion rights. Biden said he had directed a gender-focused White House policy council, the Office of the White House Counsel, and both the Health and Human Services and the Justice departments to "launch of a whole-of-government effort" to see how the administration could respond to the decision and protect existing constitutional abortion rights. The Texas law gives individuals the right to sue anyone involved in an abortion after a fetal heartbeat can be detected, typically around six weeks. The landmark Roe v. Wade decision established the right to abortion until fetal viability at 22 to 24 weeks.

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Harold Maass, The Week US

Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.