The County Press Digital Daily

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Suspected U.S. air strikes in Yemen kill 14 militants: residents, medics Air raids killed 14 men suspected of belonging to al Qaeda in southern Yemen on Sunday, medics and local residents said, in one of the largest U.S.-led assaults on the group since a civil war broke out a year ago. The air strikes took place as fresh signs emerged that tensions were easing between the Iran-allied Houthis who control most of northern Yemen and Saudi-led forces after a year of fighting that has killed more than 6,200 people. Residents in southern Yemen said an aircraft bombed buildings used by al Qaeda in the southern coastal Abyan province and destroyed a government intelligence headquarters in the provincial capital Zinjibar that the militants had captured and were using as a base. Medics said six people were killed. Earlier on Sunday a suspected U.S. drone attack killed eight militants gathered in courtyards in the villages of al-Hudhn and Naqeel al-Hayala in Abyan, residents told Reuters by phone. Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) has taken advantage of a war pitting the Houthis against forces loyal to exiled President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to seize territory and operate more openly. The group has carried out attacks against the Yemeni state for years, plotted to blow up U.S.- bound airliners and claimed responsibility for the January 2015 attack in Paris on the French magazine Charlie Hebdo that killed 12 people. $100 million from World Bank to create 100,000 Jordan jobs By KARIN LAUB Mar. 27, 2016 4:35 PM EDT AMMAN, Jordan (AP) Jordan will get a cheap $100 million loan to help create 100,000 jobs for Syrian refugees and its own citizens, the World Bank president said Sunday. The long-term loan, almost interest free, is part of an attempt by the international community to improve conditions for refugees in overburdened regional host countries, including Jordan and Lebanon. More than 4.8 million Syrians have fled their country since the start of the Syria conflict in 2011. Jordan hosts about 640,000 registered Syrian refugees and Lebanon more than 1 million. Cheap loans by the World Bank and other donors are among the new tools meant to help finance education and job creation for refugees in the region. Such support is also meant to slow the migration of refugees to Europe. Get rich or die trying. Find the hottest new stocks with Yahoo Search! Yahoo Melania Trump, On The Road To The White House In A Little Black DressStyleBistro World Bank President Jim Yong Kim and U.N Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon have been visiting the region since last week, first stopping in Lebanon. Kim announced the $100 million loan for job creation in Jordan on Sunday, after Lebanon was also awarded $100 million to ensure universal school enrolment for Lebanese and Syrian refugee children by 2017. The bank president said the money for Jordan and Lebanon both middle income countries is from a special fund normally reserved for the poorest countries. "We are taking money from that fund and giving it to a middle income country because Jordan has taken such extraordinary measures" in hosting refugees, he said. Kim did not say how soon the 100,000 jobs could be created and how many of them would go to refugees. Jordan has set aside special economic zones where it hopes improved trade arrangements with Europe will lead to greater investment and eventually more jobs. However, the trade arrangements have not yet been worked out, and the entire job creation scheme is expected to take several years. ROAD WORKS BAY COUNTY Drivers are reminded to practice caution while traveling in and around the work zones in Northwest Florida, the week of Sunday, March 27 to Saturday, April 2.: Bay County: • State Road (S.R.) 30 (U.S. 98) at S.R. 368 (23rd Street), 23rd Street Flyover- Construction workers are clearing and grading on the south side of U.S. 98 between Port Panama City and Liddon Avenue. Access to Collegiate Drive at the intersection of U.S. 98 in Bay County will close beginning Wednesday, April 6 until June 2016. • S.R. 77 between County Road (C.R.) 388 and C.R. 2300 Watch for workers as crews construct the weigh in motion bypass detection pull-off area. A barrier wall is erected parallel to the southbound lanes to secure the work zone. • S.R. 30A (U.S. 98/15th Street) from west of Jenks Avenue to east of East Avenue Workers will be performing driveway and sidewalk work. • S.R. 22 from U.S. 98 to Star Avenue Construction activities will resume along the corridor. • C.R. 390 Public Workshop – Meeting to be held Tuesday, April 5 from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at Lynn Haven Sports Complex, Community Room, 2201 Recreation Drive, Lynn Haven. • U.S. 98 Tyndall Parkway Public Hearing Hearing to be held Thursday, April 7 from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the Springfield Community Center, 3728 East Third Street, Springfield. Presentation at 6 p.m. The Florida Department of Transportation proposes to construct an overpass on U.S. 98/Tyndall Parkway at Tyndall Drive and Airey Avenue.

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March, 27th 2016 Digital Daily News from Bay County, Florida, the United States, and the World.

Transcript of The County Press Digital Daily

Page 1: The County Press Digital Daily

Suspected U.S.

air strikes in

Yemen kill 14

militants:

residents, medics

Air raids killed 14 men

suspected of belonging to al Qaeda

in southern Yemen on Sunday,

medics and local residents said, in

one of the largest U.S.-led assaults

on the group since a civil war

broke out a year ago.

The air strikes took place as

fresh signs emerged that tensions

were easing between the Iran-allied

Houthis who control most of

northern Yemen and Saudi-led

forces after a year of fighting that

has killed more than 6,200 people.

Residents in southern Yemen

said an aircraft bombed buildings

used by al Qaeda in the southern

coastal Abyan province and

d e s t r o y e d a g o v e r n m e n t

intelligence headquarters in the

provincial capital Zinjibar that the

militants had captured and were

using as a base. Medics said six

people were killed.

Earlier on Sunday a suspected

U.S. drone attack killed eight

militants gathered in courtyards in

the villages of al-Hudhn and

Naqeel al-Hayala in Abyan,

residents told Reuters by phone.

Al Qaeda in the Arabian

Peninsula (AQAP) has taken

advantage of a war pitting the

Houthis against forces loyal to

exiled President Abd-Rabbu

Mansour Hadi to seize territory

and operate more openly.

The group has carried out

attacks against the Yemeni state

for years, plotted to blow up U.S.-

bound airliners and claimed

responsibility for the January 2015

attack in Paris on the French

magazine Charlie Hebdo that

killed 12 people.

$100 million from World

Bank to create

100,000 Jordan jobs

By KARIN LAUB

Mar. 27, 2016 4:35 PM EDT

AMMAN, Jordan (AP) — Jordan

will get a cheap $100 million loan to

help create 100,000 jobs for Syrian

refugees and its own citizens, the

World Bank president said Sunday.

The long-term loan, almost interest

free, is part of an attempt by the

international community to improve

c o n d i t i o n s f o r r e f u g e e s i n

overburdened regional host countries,

including Jordan and Lebanon.

More than 4.8 million Syrians have

fled their country since the start of the

Syria conflict in 2011. Jordan hosts

about 640,000 registered Syrian

refugees and Lebanon more than 1

million.

Cheap loans by the World Bank

and other donors are among the new

tools meant to help finance education

and job creation for refugees in the

region. Such support is also meant to

slow the migration of refugees to

Europe.

Get rich or die trying. Find the

hottest new stocks with Yahoo Search!

Yahoo

Melania Trump, On The Road To

The White House In A Little Black

DressStyleBistro

World Bank President Jim Yong

Kim and U.N Secretary-General Ban

Ki-moon have been visiting the region

since last week, first stopping in

Lebanon.

Kim announced the $100 million

loan for job creation in Jordan on

Sunday, after Lebanon was also

awarded $100 million to ensure

universal school enrolment for

Lebanese and Syrian refugee children

by 2017.

The bank president said the money

for Jordan and Lebanon — both

middle income countries — is from a

special fund normally reserved for the

poorest countries.

"We are taking money from that

fund and giving it to a middle income

country because Jordan has taken

such extraordinary measures" in

hosting refugees, he said.

Kim did not say how soon the

100,000 jobs could be created and how

many of them would go to refugees.

Jordan has set aside special

economic zones where it hopes

improved trade arrangements with

Europe will lead to greater investment

and eventually more jobs. However,

the trade arrangements have not yet

been worked out, and the entire job

creation scheme is expected to take

several years.

ROAD

WORKS

BAY

COUNTY

Drivers are reminded to practice

caution while traveling in and around

the work zones in Northwest Florida,

the week of Sunday, March 27 to

Saturday, April 2.:

Bay County: • State Road (S.R.) 30 (U.S. 98) at

S.R. 368 (23rd Street), 23rd Street

Flyover- Construction workers are

clearing and grading on the south side

of U.S. 98 between Port Panama City

and Liddon Avenue. Access to

Collegiate Drive at the intersection of

U.S. 98 in Bay County will close

beginning Wednesday, April 6 until

June 2016.

• S.R. 77 between County Road

(C.R.) 388 and C.R. 2300 – Watch for

workers as crews construct the weigh

in motion bypass detection pull-off

area. A barrier wall is erected parallel

to the southbound lanes to secure the

work zone.

• S.R. 30A (U.S. 98/15th Street)

from west of Jenks Avenue to east of

East Avenue – Workers will be

performing driveway and sidewalk

work.

• S.R. 22 from U.S. 98 to Star

Avenue – Construction activities will

resume along the corridor.

• C.R. 390 Public Workshop –

Meeting to be held Tuesday, April 5

from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at Lynn

Haven Sports Complex, Community

Room, 2201 Recreation Drive, Lynn

Haven.

• U.S. 98 Tyndall Parkway Public

Hearing – Hearing to be held

Thursday, April 7 from 5:30 p.m. to

6:30 p.m. at the Springfield

Community Center, 3728 East Third

Street, Springfield. Presentation at 6

p.m. The Florida Department of

Transportation proposes to construct

an overpass on U.S. 98/Tyndall

Parkway at Tyndall Drive and Airey

Avenue.

Page 2: The County Press Digital Daily

Survey Shows Veterans Are Desirable

Candidates For Civilian Workforce

(NAPSI)—As U.S. companies continue to find new and innovative ways

to conduct business, produce better products, offer the most efficient

customer service, or unveil the latest gadget, one skill set employers look

for is experience, or, more specifically, readiness.

The U.S. military is a tremendous example of a ―readiness incubator,‖

instilling within its members leadership, problem-solving and technical

skills that translate well into private-sector employment. And the word is

out among corporate America that hiring a military veteran is a good

strategic move.

An online survey conducted by Harris Poll on behalf of University of

Phoenix® in fall 2015 of more than 500 hiring managers found that 80

percent of those hiring managers have employed a military veteran, and

approximately 82 percent recognize the ways in which the skills of

employees or applicants with military experience are superior to those

who have never served. Approximately two-thirds of hiring managers

cited teamwork (69 percent) and responsibility (65 percent) among the

top military skills that would contribute to the leadership of their

organizations.

―Military veterans are well disciplined and possess an incredibly strong

work ethic,‖ said Adam Such, University of Phoenix Military Relations

vice president and retired Army lieutenant colonel. ―Hiring managers

have definitely taken notice of the skills that military members bring to

the civilian workplace as a result of their service, which is critical now

that many of our nation’s service members are returning home from

overseas.‖

This is good news for the 24,000 to 360,000 men and women who are

transitioning out of the U.S. military each year. The reason is simple:

Corporate America is not only looking, but hiring more than just a few

good men and women. The same University of Phoenix survey found that

when compared with civilian counterparts, hiring managers noted that

discipline and the ability to work both under pressure (47 percent) and

as part of a team (43 percent) set veteran candidates apart.

―These are individuals who served their country honorably. The

discipline and hands-on experience they’ve learned in the military are

qualities that are very much sought after and translate to civilian life,‖

said Such. ―What’s more, hiring a veteran carries an intrinsic value to a

company—former service members have faced and met challenges that

few others have; they perform well under pressure, and their sense of

purpose can serve as examples to others in the workplace.‖

Learn More

For employers interested in learning more about hiring veterans, The

U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation launched Hiring Our Heroes, a

program that brings together hiring employers with military job seekers

through its Hiring Fairs held at more than 200 cities nationwide. Learn

more at www.uschamberfoundation.org/hiring-our-heroes.

Page 3: The County Press Digital Daily

ARIES March 21-April 19

When stress and anxiety govern your thinking, you tend to run away from things or run out of

time, resources, or options. Try to find the positives in your life when you’re feeling most vulner-

able, Aries. You’re likely to be feeling all the feels with the Lunar Eclipse in your opposite sign

on the 23rd. Don’t take your emotions at face value because you’re likely to be dealing with some

deep themes. Be kind when you aren’t clear this week.

TAURUS April 20-May 20

Stick your flag in the sweet, sweet ground, Taurus. This week is all about staking your claim, and

if you are willing to work hard on not only what you do but also how you do it, you’re likely to be

thrilled with the results. Approach your life with diligence and kindness; when you look for the

best in people and situations, you’ll find it’s easier to find solutions that work. Forgiveness and

compassion will improve every aspect of your life if you let them, lover.

GEMINI May 21-June 21

Dig deep, Twinny. The Lunar Eclipse on the 23rd is here to dredge up some stuff from your past,

and it’s on you to not repeat the mistakes you made there. It’s time to show up for reals, not dis-

tracted, not faking it, not with a script. Just be here, now, and be honest about whatever that

means for you. You’re changing and so is the world, your community, and your relationships.

You can’t stop the tides; you can only rise to meet them.

CANCER June 22-July 22

The Lunar Eclipse on the 23rd may unhinge you, but that isn’t such a bad thing, Moonchild.

You’ve been holding onto crap that you’re hella identified with but that you know you’ve out-

grown. Let it go; I mean it literally: put it down. Forgive your grudges, drop your expectations,

and release your fears. If life is gonna kick you in the ass, there’s no good that will come from

stressing about it in advance; and if things aren’t as awful as you fear, then you’ve wasted all that

precious stress on nothing.

LEO July 23-Aug. 22

This is the week to take big-hearted, life-affirming actions, Leo. If you allow your fear of being

alone, or being wrong to direct you, you’ll end up in a cage of what ifs, and that will lead to all

kinds of resentments and problems. Own your heart’s truth, even if it’s scary. You’ve got so much

available to you. It’s time to stop fixating on what you don’t or can’t have. Make peace with your

inner demons, so you can gently coax them out the door, pal.

VIRGO Aug. 23-Sept. 22

There’s analyzing, discerning, and figuring things out; and then there’s just grasping at straws. If

you don’t like the answer, that doesn’t mean that you haven’t understood it correctly; sometimes

things just suck. Honor your feels this week, even if it gives you a heavy case of the sads. Your

integrity is based in the truth, and that truth might be different than what you’d prefer. Step up to

what’s real so that it can change you or be changed by you, my friend.

LIBRA Sept. 23-Oct. 22

You deserve to be big, Libra. Take up space, have your own perspective, and do your own thing.

How have you been keeping yourself small? Where have you been going through the motions

instead of showing up for reals? The Lunar Eclipse in your sign will bring up themes of authentic-

ity for you, and that’s a good thing. You can’t have peace if you’re not whole. Show up for your-

self so that you can truly show up in the rest of your life, lover.

SCORPIO Oct. 23-Nov. 21

The path is rough sometimes to be sure, but you’ve got the tools to cope if only you remember to

use them, Scorpio. This week is set to be helly intense as it starts off with a Lunar Eclipse on the

23rd that will kick your feels up in a deep way. Use your body as the tool it’s meant to be; refer to

it to check in with where you’re at and to help you get grounded when you need it. You’re capa-

ble, strong, and ready; do what you’ve gotta do, my friend.

SAGITTARIUS Nov. 22-Dec. 21

Being vulnerable isn’t the greatest feeling in the world, but if you try to avoid it, you’ll end up

missing out on some really awesome experiences in life, ‘Tarius. Having healthy boundaries re-

quires that you know what you need before you tell everyone what you’re thinking. Mean what

you say and say what you mean this week, even when it’s complicated. The heart doesn’t move in

a straight line, so be open to some emo twists and turns, pal.

CAPRICORN Dec. 22-Jan. 19

When you’re overwhelmed, it’s time to say no, Cappy. There’s a whole lot of stress in this world,

and it’s getting to you. How you handle feeling overwhelmed and scared will determine whether

you can trust yourself or not. The Lunar Eclipse on the 23rd may unsettle you in a serious way;

and if you can carve out some space to take care of your self, it will allow you to stay functional

in the whole of your life. If you try to power through, you’re likely to feel helly anxious. Choose

wisely, my friend.

AQUARIUS Jan. 20-Feb. 18

You’re moving through some deep feels, and it’s not likely to be particularly fun; but it can

hugely improve your life. The Eclipse on the 23rd offers you a chance to jumpstart some deep

emo healing. Look to the big patterns playing themselves out in your personal life, Aquarius. You

can act the way you always do and expect the same general outcomes, or you can take some real

risks. Show up truly openhearted, and stop hiding behind your ideas this week.

PISCES Feb. 19-March 20

True growth doesn’t mean everything right away; it means the right things in their perfect time.

Be a friend, Pisces, and know your limits. if you’re not ready, don’t assume that there’s a problem

with that! Trust in the flow of your life, even when the next phase isn’t clear to you. You don’t

need to apologize for where you’re at or what you need. Just be honest and clear, and let your life

unfold this week.

Page 4: The County Press Digital Daily

HEALTH AWARENESS

Know Your Risk

For Prediabetes

(NAPSI)—While many people are familiar

with type 2 diabetes, fewer are aware of

prediabetes, a serious health condition that

affects 86 million Americans—

more than one in three—

and can often lead to type 2 diabetes.

The Problem

Nearly 90 percent of those with prediabetes don’t know they have it.

People with prediabetes have higher than normal blood glucose

(sugar), but not at levels

high enough to be

considered type 2 diabetes.

When you have

prediabetes, you’re at

increased risk for other

serious health problems

such as type 2 diabetes,

stroke and heart disease. If

left untreated, current

research estimates that 15

to 30 percent of people

with prediabetes will

develop type 2 diabetes

within five years.

The Good News

Fortunately, prediabetes

can often be reversed

through weight loss, diet changes and increased physical activity. The

key is to find out early whether you’re at risk. That’s why the

American Diabetes Association, the American Medical Association

and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have partnered

with the Ad Council to launch a public service campaign to raise

awareness of prediabetes and help those who have the condition take

steps to reverse it.

Learn The Risk Factors

There are a number of risk factors that increase the likelihood of

prediabetes. These include race and ethnicity (African Americans,

Hispanic/Latino Americans, American Indians, Pacific Islanders and

some Asian Americans are at higher risk); being overweight; not

being physically active; having a parent, brother or sister with type 2

diabetes; having high blood pressure; and being over the age of 40.

Know Where You Stand

Find out if you may have prediabetes by taking the short online test

at www.DoIHavePrediabetes.org. You can also text RISKTEST to

97779 to take the test through your phone or mobile device.

Take Steps To Reverse The Condition

You can take steps to reduce your risk by managing your weight,

getting active, eating healthier and quitting smoking.

Here are hints that can help:

1. Losing just 5 to 7 percent of your body weight can slow or even

reverse prediabetes. For a person who weighs 200 pounds, that’s only

10 to 15 pounds.

2. Set realistic goals. Start with one change in your diet and build

from there.

3. Get at least 2½ hours of light aerobic activity per week. This could

be as simple as going for a brisk 30-minute walk five days a week.

Even 10 minutes at a time adds up.

4. Find simple ways to

be more active

throughout the day.

Take the stairs instead

of the elevator. Park

farther away from the

entrance of a storefront

when you shop.

5. Try to cut down on

foods with saturated fat

or trans fat, and

hydrogenated fat or

partially hydrogenated

fat. Check labels to

help you make healthy

choices. Just

remember, low-fat

doesn’t have to be low

on flavor. Roast, broil,

grill, steam or bake instead of fry.

6. If you smoke, talk with your doctor about treatments or programs

that can help you quit.

Free Help, Facts And Stats

Visit www.DoIHavePrediabetes.org for more tips

and information about CDC-recognized diabetes

prevention programs.

Page 5: The County Press Digital Daily

High Court Appears

Divided on

Contraception-

Mandate Reboot By TIM RYAN

WASHINGTON (CN) - Without a ninth justice

to break the tie, the Supreme Court appeared

deadlocked Wednesday on the latest challenge to

President Barack Obama's health care law.

Nearly two years since its 5-4 split on curbing

Obamacare's so-called contraception mandate for

closely held companies, the court looked today at

a similar challenge by religious nonprofits. The

lead plaintiff in the appeal, Rev. David Zubik, is a

Catholic bishop in Pittsburgh.

While the Patient Protection and Affordable

Care Act lets religious organizations opt out of

the contraception mandate, Zubik and fellow

opponents of the law claim that the framework

still makes them complicit in contraception use

since individual insurers or third-party

administrators take up that mantle for their

employees.

Zubik's is one of eight cases the Supreme

Court took up from the Third, Fifth, 10th and

D.C. Circuits, all of which found that the

contraception mandate serves a compelling

government interest, while giving religious groups

an acceptable way out.

It didn't take long at today's hearing for the

delineations between the eight justices on the

bench to show, as the four more liberal justices

grilled the attorneys for the nonprofits, while the

conservative justices returned the favor to the

government.

Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan

compared the nonprofits' desire not to fill out a

form to conscientious objectors during the

Vietnam War, with Sotomayor wondering how

the government could exempt an organization

from an activity without knowing if that

organization wanted to opt out.

Paul Clement, who argued for the Little Sisters

of the Poor as well as three Christian colleges,

said the government is demanding more than just

an objection, because the opt-out form is actually

an authorization to provide contraception. He

later referred to the form as a "permission slip."

"There is the fact that the government

demands more than an objection, the fact that it

enforces it with massive penalties, and the realty

that if that happens, then they are going to hijack

our health plans and provide the coverage against

our will," Clement said.

In closing the arguments, Clement called

Sotomayor and Kagan's comparisons wishful

thinking.

"Just in closing, my clients would love to be a

conscientious objector, but the government insists

that they be a conscientious collaborator,"

Clement said. "There is no such thing."

Clement claimed the intangible nature of

health plans was stopping the justices from seeing

how the nonprofits could think they are complicit

in providing contraception under the current

arrangement.

The attorney painted a hypothetical where the

insurers - instead of giving a nonprofit's workers

contraception separate of their employers' plan -

showed up at the Little Sisters' home, paid rent

for a room and set up a clinic handing out

contraception.

It would be clear then why Little Sisters would

see itself as helping to violate a core religious

tenant, Clement said.

But Justice Stephen Breyer countered that

religious objection is not a catch-all for people to

avoid complying with laws they oppose.

"Sometimes when a religious person who isn't

a hermit or a monk is a member of society, he

does have to accept all kinds of things that are

just terrible for him," Breyer said.

To Clement, however, there is a line that

reasonable people can try to find between

religious people accepting some infringement on

their faith and what the government is doing with

the contraceptive mandate.

Specifically mentioning the Little Sisters,

Clement told the court he would like his clients to

receive the same exemption given to churches,

which do not have to cover contraception for their

employees or go through the work-around

created for the nonprofits.

But as Kagan pointed out, this could

incentivize Congress to stop writing religious

exemptions into laws, opening the floodgates of

groups asking to skip out on complying with new

laws.

"And if you're saying that every time Congress

gives an exemption to churches and synagogues

and mosques, that they have to open that up to all

religious people, then the effect of that is that

Congress just decides not to give an exemption at

all," Kagan said.

Noel Francisco, who argued for the Rev. Zubik

and the Catholic dioceses, said the government

has show it does not have a substantial interest in

providing contraception by allowing a wide swath

of exemptions, including allowing employers to

keep old health plans that did not include

coverage of contraception.

When Kagan pressed him on what his clients

would prefer, Francisco said they would accept an

arrangement where employees could purchase a

separate health plan for contraception, further

separating them and the group providing the

contraception.

"I think the more distance you put between the

petitioners on the one hand and the provision of

the objectionable coverage to their employees on

the other, the less problematic it is from their

particular perspective," Francisco said.

Solicitor General Donald Verrilli Jr. warned

that Francisco's idea contravenes the intent of the

contraception mandate, which is to make women

more likely to use contraception by making it

easier to get.

He called Francisco's proposal "jerry-rigged"

and warned that a woman's regular doctor might

not be able to help her get access to contraception,

because she would have to maintain two plans.

That "defeats the very purpose" of the

contraception mandate, Verrilli said.

But Justice Samuel Alito challenged Verrilli's

claim that a woman's primary doctor wouldn't

also accept her contraception plan, and suggested

the government could help ensure women get

access to these supplemental plans.

"Could the executive say, as a matter of our

enforcement discretion, we are not going to take

any action against insurers who offer

contraception-only policies, and in fact, we are

going to subsidize those insurers at 115 percent,

just as we do in the situation of self-insured

plans?" Alito asked.

Chief Justice John Roberts agreed with

Clement's contention the government would be

"hijacking" the employers' health plans and said

the arrangement would force the employers to be

complicit in "sinful" behavior.

Verrilli later told Roberts forcing people to

seek a second health care policy just for

contraception would itself be a substantial

burden.

"What type of burden does that impose?"

Roberts shot back. "Is it because those exchanges

are so unworkable, even with the help of a

navigator, that a woman who wants to get free

contraceptive coverage simply has to sign up for

that on one of the exchanges?"

If the arguments inside were lively by Supreme

Court standards, the demonstrations outside were

raucous.

By 8:30 Wednesday morning, a large group of

roughly 20 students from Oklahoma Wesleyan

University, one of the schools involved in the case,

stood outside the courthouse wearing bright

orange shirts and forming a wide semicircle

around a podium that read "let them serve."

Two sisters from the Dominican Sisters of

Hawthorne order in Philadelphia stood near the

students, waiting for more of their religious

sisters to arrive.

"We're here to support the Little Sisters of the

Poor in their cause, which is really out cause also,

to be able to live our faith, to give witness to

values of morality and being fully human to the

height that we can be," Sister Mary DuPaul said.

As the students gathered, speakers near the

podium played a slow, hymnlike arrangement of

"America the Beautiful," featuring a male voice

and piano.

Outside the semicircle of students, a sparse

group of women's health advocates began to

gather. When the students began playing

"America the Beautiful," their opponents

countered by blaring Ariana Grande's "Break

Free."

By the time arguments ended, however, the

demonstrations had ramped up significantly, with

groups for both sides crowding the plaza at the

bottom of the Supreme Court steps holding

brightly colored signs and wearing slogan-clad T-

shirts. Nuns in full habits stood out among their

fellow demonstrators.

The students sang songs while the women's

health advocates blasted pop music and cheered

for lawyers coming down the steps. Those on the

side of the religious groups shouted "let them

serve," while the other side chanted "pro-birth

control, pro-family."

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