Marriage bill passes the House

A bill that protects same-sex and interracial marriages passed the House of Representatives on Thursday and is headed to President Joe Biden’s desk for his signature.

The bill was approved on a 258-169 vote, with all Democrats in favor, joined by 39 Republicans. It has already passed the Senate and Biden said he would quickly sign the measure, according to the Associated Press.

The bill was prompted by the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade which had created a national right to abortion.

With a conservative majority on the high court, there was concern that it might overturn earlier court decisions on same-sex and interracial unions.

Prisoner swap frees basketball star

A prisoner exchange between the U.S. and Russia is bringing basketball star Brittney Griner home and sent convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout back to his country.

The swap ended a long period of uncertainty in which Griner, a Black gay woman, was convicted of drug possession and hit with a long sentence in a penal colony.

The U.S. was unable to negotiate the release of Paul Whelan, a corporate security executive who has been imprisoned in Russia for four years on an espionage charge.

Sports: Rams pull off a stunner

Trailing 16-3 in the fourth quarter, the Los Angeles Rams rallied with two scores – one with nine seconds left to play – and upset the Las Vegas Raiders 17-16 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood Thursday night.

Baker Mayfield, who just joined the team two days ago, threw a 23-yard scoring pass to Van Jefferson. and PAT gave the Rams the win, snapping a six-game losing streak.

The team is now 4-9, while the Raiders are 5-8.

Weather: Sunny and then rain

The West Orange County area is in for a sunny Friday, but a rainy Saturday and Sunday, according to the National Weather Service.  The forecast Friday is for sun with a daytime high of 62 and an overnight low of 47. The predicted rain should start after 4 p.m. on Saturday and could become heavy after 10 p.m. The daytime high should be 62, with an overnight low of 53. Sunday should be rainy all day, with a high of 60 (44).