President Donald Trump said Monday that he wants the Senate to prioritize confirming Dr. Heidi Overton, his nominee to lead the Food and Drug Administration, before the 2026 midterm elections, in which Republicans are defending a slim…
Page A13From§Eachthe supper edition — 31 August 2026
Federal judge delays mifepristone lawsuit until after midterms as Trump pushes FDA nominee
A federal judge postpones the mifepristone lawsuit until after the midterm elections, while the President asks the Senate to confirm his FDA nominee before ballots are cast. The sequence is precise: the medicine waits, the nominee advances. The ledger records the pause and the push, measuring out the space between prescription and confirmation. Born in the era of expedient governance, survived by the calendar, and preceded in death by timely access. In lieu of flowers, request an expedited hearing for reproductive health.
“A judge holds the mifepristone case until after midterms, and Trump wants his FDA pick confirmed fast. That's how you keep the medicine locked up until the votes are counted. They don’t want the pills or the receipts moving before November.”
“The timing of the lawsuit is purely procedural, and the President’s request for confirmation is about keeping the agency fully staffed. If anything, these are unrelated—did I say they’re unrelated? Maybe there’s a little overlap. The important thing is, the system works, sometimes.”
The receipts
A federal judge on Sunday paused a lawsuit seeking to revoke the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval of the abortion pill mifepristone until after the midterm elections. Judge Reed O’Connor, of the U.S. District Court for the…
This page is a back-issue: the story as it ran, receipts as they were. The current edition is at the front.