All Catholic priests and nuns worldwide are now required to report clergy sexual abuse and cover-up by their superiors as part of a sweeping new law implemented Thursday by Pope Francis. The law also includes whistle-blower protections for reporters.

Additionally, the law outlines procedures for launching preliminary investigations when the accused is a bishop, cardinal or religious superior, and every diocese around the globe has been ordered to develop a system to process confidential claims.

“We have said for years that priests must conform to certain strict rules, so why shouldn’t bishops and others in the hierarchy do the same?” Cardinal Marc Ouellet, head of the Vatican office for bishops, said. “It’s not just a law, but a profound responsibility.”

The new rules come as the Roman Catholic Church deals with global sex abuse scandals in which the Catholic hierarchy has come under fire for failing to protect members and, in some instances, nuns.

Essentially, the law makes the world’s 415,000 Catholic priests and 660,000 religious sisters mandated reporters within the church, although they are not required to report abuses to law enforcement. The church has been reticent to require criminal reporting, citing fears it would endanger the church in places where Catholics are a persecuted minority. While criminal reporting is not required, clergy must obey civil…

The House Judiciary Committee voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress.

Previously, the committee had threatened to hold Barr in contempt if he did not release an unredacted copy of the report on possible collusion between Russia and the U.S. during the 2016 election.

Barr is facing a contempt citation after refusing to release special counsel Robert Mueller’s full report by Monday. Barr has offered a less redacted version but has also said he cannot release the full report.

“As we have repeatedly explained, the attorney general could not comply with your subpoena in its current form without violating the law, court rules and court orders, and without threatening the independence of the Department of Justice’s prosecutorial functions,” Assistant Attorney General Stephen Boyd wrote in a letter.

“Accordingly, this is to advise you that the president has asserted executive privilege over the entirety of the subpoenaed materials.”

The judiciary committee voted 24-16 along party lines to refer a contempt citation to the full House for a vote. According to the BBC, no date has been set for that vote.

“The Attorney General’s failure to comply with our subpoena, after extensive accommodation efforts, leaves us no choice but to initiate contempt proceedings in order to enforce the subpoena and…

A Democrat and CNN political analyst sparked pushback on social media this week when she claimed the unborn baby growing inside a pregnant woman’s body is not a human being.

Christine Quinn made the comments during a debate over state abortion restrictions with former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum and host Chris Cuomo. Quinn was the first female speaker of the New York City Council.  

“When a woman gets pregnant, that is not a human being inside of her. It’s part of her body,” Quinn said, adding that legalized abortion “is about a woman having full agency and control of her body and making decisions about her body and what is part of her body with medical professionals. Those are the facts and that is the law of the land.” 

Santorum challenged her logic. By her worldview, he said, the baby is considered “chattel.”

“They can do whatever they want. They can torture the baby,” Santorum said.

Earlier, Santorum had asked Quinn and Cuomo, who is pro-choice, “A baby dies in an abortion — do you realize that? Are you ignoring that fact? That’s a reality.” 

“It is biologically a human life?” Santorum asked.

“No,” Quinn answered. 

Surprised by her answer, Santorum responded, “It’s in every biological textbook in the world — at conception that is a human life. … You guys talk about being the party of science. This is so…

Following the deadly STEM school shooting in Colorado on Tuesday, Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis (R) signed a measure into law that will allow Florida teachers to carry guns in classrooms. 

According to the Associated Press, DeSantis quietly signed the bill on Wednesday, and it will immediately go into effect. 

Reportedly, the law will put into practice recommendations made by a commission formed after the Parkland Shooting last year. The law’s goal is to expand the preexisting “guardian” program – which already allows school employees to carry a gun outside of the classroom – to allow teachers can carry guns inside of the classroom.

All teachers and staff members who are a part of this program must be approved by the school district and are required to undergo police-like training with the sheriff’s office, mental health screenings and background checks, the AP reports. 

According to U.S. News, 25 of 67 school districts in Florida are already enrolled in the “guardian program.” 

The Broward County school district, where the Parkland shooting took place, is currently enrolled in the program, but according to Fox News, the district has both rejected and protested the expansion of the program which allows teachers to be armed. 

According to the AP, the new measure was the center of contention last week between the state’s legislators….

Last month, pro-choice students danced in the middle of a pro-life display and chanted their support for abortion while holding Planned Parenthood signs. 

According to CBN News, Students for Life set up a “Cemetery of the Innocents” display at the University of Texas San Antonio to memorialize children who had died because of an abortion.

The pro-choice students ran out onto the display once it had been set up and started chanting “Stop, hey, hey, what’s that sound, all the fetuses are in the ground.” One of the students led another chant, yelling, “When I say aborted, you say fetuses.”

Another student ran out into the display, pointed at one of the crosses and exclaimed, “Oh look, there’s mine!” She then yelled, “I’m just so slutty, I got pregnant, so I had to get an abortion.” Another protester yelled, “I got an abortion” and someone off-camera asked, “And you’re proud of it?” The protester responded, “Yes, I’m super proud of it.”

Sarah Zarr, the Texas Coordinator for Students for Life, reported what else took place in a press release by Students for Life. She said, “At University of Texas-San Antonio, there was a protest formed against us as soon as we set up. The students who protested us are in a campus group called Students United for Planned Parenthood. Some of the members approached us but…