By ISABELLA VOLMERT

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit from the Department of Justice that sought to obtain Michigan’s voter rolls, marking the latest judicial rejection in President Donald Trump’s wide-ranging attempts to gain access to voter data from states.

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The Justice Department has sued at least 23 states and the District of Columbia in its effort to obtain detailed voter information. In an opinion issued Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Hala Y. Jarbou, a Trump nominee, said the laws cited by the Justice Department in its complaint, including the Civil Rights Act of 1960, do not require the disclosure of the records it sought.

The Justice Department has said it is seeking the data as part of an effort to ensure election security, but Democratic officials, including Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, say the demand violates state and federal privacy laws. Election officials have raised concerns that federal officials are trying to use the sensitive data for other purposes, such as searching for potential noncitizens on the rolls.

Elections in the United States are administered at the state and local level, where individual voter information is kept.

Natalie Baldassarre, a spokesperson for the Justice Department, declined to comment when reached by email and did not say whether the department will appeal the decision.

In July, the Justice Department requested voter records from the state of Michigan, including a copy of Michigan’s unredacted voter registration list. In September, Michigan officials said the state would only share public voter registration information, which does not include identifying information such as birth dates, addresses and partial Social Security numbers, prompting the federal lawsuit.

FILE – People wait to cast their ballot at the Horatio Williams Foundation in downtown Detroit, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun,File)

“Today’s decision affirms that the law is on our side,” Benson said in a statement Tuesday.

The Justice Department argued in court documents that the information was necessary to ensure Michigan was properly maintaining voter registrations, and cited three federal laws: the Civil Rights Act of 1960, National Voter Registration Act of 1993 and the Help America Vote act of 2022.

The three laws, “do not allow the United States to obtain the records at issue in this case,” Jarbou wrote in her opinion.

Federal judges have also dismissed similar lawsuits in Oregon and California. A federal judge in Georgia recently dismissed a similar suit after ruling the federal government had sued in the wrong city.

By JOSHUA GOODMAN and JIM MUSTIAN

MIAMI (AP) — Less than three years after President Joe Biden pardoned a close ally of Nicolás Maduro, the Justice Department is once again targeting the businessman, The Associated Press has learned, an investigation that could bolster the U.S. prosecution of the deposed Venezuelan leader.

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Federal prosecutors for months have been digging into Alex Saab’s role in an alleged bribery conspiracy involving Venezuelan government contracts to import food, according to two former law enforcement officials who spoke to AP about the ongoing probe on the condition of anonymity.

Saab, 54, amassed a fortune through Venezuelan government contracts. But the Colombian-born businessman, long described by U.S. officials as Maduro’s “bag man,” fell out of favor with the country’s new leadership that took power following the U.S. ouster of the Venezuelan president last month.

The Justice Department’s newfound interest in Saab is taking place against the backdrop of the Trump administration’s efforts to stabilize relations with the oil-rich nation. The investigation stems from a 2021 case the Justice Department brought against Saab’s longtime partner, Alvaro Pulido, the former law enforcement officials said. That prosecution, out of Miami, centers around the so-called CLAP program set up by Maduro to provide staples — rice, corn flour, cooking oil — to poor Venezuelans struggling to feed themselves at a time of rampant hyperinflation and a crumbling currency.

The renewed scrutiny marks a reversal of fortunes for Saab, who escaped an earlier U.S. prosecution for an unrelated bribery scheme after Biden pardoned him as part of a prisoner swap for several Americans jailed in Venezuela.

His whereabouts remained unknown Tuesday, days after conflicting news accounts suggested he had been detained or brought in for questioning – at least temporarily – by officials in Venezuela at the request of the Trump administration.

FILE – Pedestrians walk near a poster asking for the freedom of Colombian businessman and Venezuelan special envoy Alex Saab, in Caracas, Venezuela, Sept. 9, 2021. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos, File)

Neither U.S. officials nor acting President Delcy Rodriguez’s government has commented. Luigi Giuliano, an Italian attorney, said he met Saab last week in the Venezuelan capital and denied he was detained but declined further comment. Saab’s U.S. attorney, Neil Schuster, also didn’t comment.

Since taking over from Maduro on Jan. 3, Rodríguez has demoted Saab, firing him from her cabinet and stripping him of his role as the main conduit for foreign companies looking to invest in Venezuela.

Biden pardons Saab over objections by law enforcement

Over the objections of law enforcement, Biden in 2023 agreed to free Saab in exchange for the release of several imprisoned Americans and Venezuela’s return of a fugitive foreign defense contractor known as “Fat Leonard.” The deal came as part of an effort by the Biden White House to roll back sanctions and lure Maduro into holding a free and fair presidential election.

Fresh charges against individuals previously granted clemency are rare and can only be secured for crimes committed outside the defined scope of the pardon, said Frank Bowman, a professor emeritus at the University of Missouri School of Law who is writing a book on pardons.

Saab’s pardon was narrowly tailored to a 2019 indictment — the case number is cited in the pardon itself — related to a contract he and Pulido allegedly won through bribes to build low-income housing units in Venezuela that were never built.

Saab’s pardon came with a number of conditions, Bowman noted, including that he remain outside the United States and not commit any further crimes against it. “This is a voidable pardon,” he said.

Insider connections fuel Saab’s rise

In Venezuela’s graft-ridden patronage system, where loyalty and insider connections are paramount, few insiders prospered like Saab. He first came onto the radar of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration more than a decade ago, after amassing a large number of contracts with Maduro’s socialist administration.

In 2016, a pro-Maduro governor allegedly hired a company controlled by Pulido to import from Mexico 10 million food boxes at $34 per box. He allegedly did so knowing that the real cost of purchasing and sending the boxes to Venezuela was far less and demanded kickbacks. One of those who allegedly signed off on the deal and helped set up a web of companies to hide the bribe payments was Saab, who is identified in the indictment as “Co-Conspirator 1.”

Saab was arrested in 2020 after his private jet made a refueling stop in Cape Verde en route to Iran on what the Venezuelan government described as a humanitarian mission to circumvent U.S. sanctions.

Maduro celebrated Saab’s return in 2023 as a “triumph for truth” over what he called a U.S.-led campaign of lies, threats and torture against someone he considered a Venezuelan diplomat. But several Republicans criticized the deal, including Sen. Chuck Grassley, of Iowa, who wrote a letter to then-Attorney General Merrick Garland saying history “should remember (Saab) as a predator of vulnerable people.”

The White House did not respond to requests for comment on the federal investigation of Saab. The Justice Department and FBI declined to comment.

Witness against Maduro?

Should he be returned to U.S. custody, Saab could become a valuable witness against Maduro, the former law enforcement officials said. Saab secretly met with the DEA before his first arrest and, in a closed-door court hearing in 2022, his lawyers revealed that the businessman, for years, helped the DEA untangle corruption in Maduro’s inner circle. As part of that cooperation, he forfeited more than $12 million in illegal proceeds from dirty business dealings.

David Weinstein, a former federal prosecutor in Miami, said Saab could be a valuable character witness against Maduro even if he himself has not been charged with drug trafficking like the former Venezuelan leader.

“The indictment against Maduro contained a lot of salacious allegations, but there was little in the way of corroboration,” said Weinstein. “Saab, if the reports about his own criminal activity and closeness to Maduro are true, can describe for jurors a range of criminal activity that is alleged to have taken place across Maduro’s government.”

Saab also has ties to Rodríguez, the Trump administration’s preferred partner to succeed Maduro. The AP reported last month that the DEA has examined Rodríguez’s involvement in government contracts awarded to Saab. The U.S. government has never publicly accused Rodríguez of any criminal wrongdoing.

This story is part of an investigation that includes the FRONTLINE documentary “Crisis in Venezuela,” premiering Feb. 10, 2026, on PBS. Watch the documentary at pbs.org/frontline, in the PBS App, on PBS stations and on FRONTLINE’s YouTube channel.

Mustian reported from New York. Associated Press reporter Eric Tucker contributed reporting from Washington.

For the Hill-Murray girls, it’s starting to become a habit. For the Pioneers boys, it was new terrain.

Either way, it was a thrilling afternoon for all involved as Hill-Murray swept the team titles at the state Alpine ski meet Tuesday at Giants Ridge in Biwabik.

In the girls competition, the Pioneers finished with a team score of 173 — 36 points ahead of second-place Prior Lake. The Hill-Murray boys, meanwhile, finished with 169, outpacing second-place Minnetonka’s 158.

“A lot of hard work went into making this happen,” Pioneers boys and girls coach Mark Lindemer said. “Both teams worked at this all year and gelled as a group as we went along. It was really the sum of all parts that came together, and we ended up as champions.”

Senior Taylor Voigt — who entered the meet as the defending champion — finished second in the girls race with a combined time of 1:15.77 over two runs to lead the Hill-Murray girls, who also captured state titles in 2023 and 2024. Her sister Hailey, a junior, finished in sixth place with a time of 1:17.78. Sophomore Shea Reardon finished eighth in 1:18.00.

“That was my whole focus today, to lay it down for the team and do my part,” Taylor Voigt said. “I had a ton of fun, and we finished great as a group. You can’t ask for any more than that.”

The Provencher sisters from Visitation, sophomore Claire and eighth-grader Marlo, joined the Voigts to make the top six places a sister act. Claire won the girls race in a time of 1:15.01. Marlo finished fifth with a time of 1:17.76.

The Blazers finished third as a team with a score of 129, not bad for a group that graduates just one senior.

“This is really exciting because we have such a young team,” Visitation coach Ellie Frischmon said. “We’ll get almost everybody back next year. So, hopefully we can come back and do this again.”

They certainly will have a strong base to build on, including a state champion.

“This definitely was not the plan for today,” said Claire Provencher, who finished seventh a year ago. “I’ve had a lot of trial and error this season. It’s been kind of a roller coaster ride. But that’s made me a better skier overall.”

“It’s pretty awesome to know we both got this far and did this well,” added her sister Marlo. “It’s a really friendly competition we have with each other. Knowing she was just ahead of me today made me try even harder to finish right there with her.”

In the boys competition, sophomore Luke Mjanger finished second overall with a combined two-run time of 1:11.85 to lead Hill-Murray, which captured the program’s first state title after third-place finishes in each of the past two seasons. Mjanger finished just behind boys champion Oscar Anderson, a senior from Minnetonka who recorded a time of 1:11.22.

Junior Luke Lobanoff finished ninth overall in a time of 1:12.89 to bolster the Hill-Murray cause.

Sophomore Cole Peltz of Lakeville South also had a big day, finishing in third place in a time of 1:12.15. The third-place finish came on the same day that Paula Moltzan — who also attended Lakeville South — brought home a bronze medal in the women’s team combined (downhill and slalom) event at the Winter Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.

The Cougars finished sixth as a team in the boys competition.

“I felt like I skied OK,” Peltz said. “I could have gone a little faster. But all in all, I did well enough to get on the podium, and that was pretty cool.”

Pretty cool also described the feeling for the Hill-Murray boys after winning their first state title.

“It’s nice to see them finally get over the finish line after finishing third the past two years,” Lindemer said.

That accomplishment just added to the smiles on the faces of everyone involved with the Pioneers program.

“Every year, we want to win,” Hailey Voigt said. “So there’s just as much pressure as there was the first time we did, and it feels just as satisfying. But to have both the boys and girls win made today extremely special.”

“The mood right now is brilliant,” Lindemer added. “The sun is out. Everyone is on cloud nine. Some of the kids thought this day might never happen, but all their hard work is finally paying off. It’s so great to see that happen.”

The Forest Lake girls finished fifth with a score of 114. St. Paul Academy and Summit School freshman Sophia Wenberg finished ninth individually with a time of 1:18.29.

By LAURAN NEERGAARD and MATTHEW PERRONE

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is refusing to consider Moderna’s application for a new flu vaccine made with Nobel Prize-winning mRNA technology, the company announced Tuesday.

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The news is the latest sign of the FDA’s heightened scrutiny of vaccines under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., particularly those using mRNA technology, which he has criticized before and after becoming the nation’s top health official.

Moderna received what’s called a “refusal-to-file” letter from the FDA that objected to how it conducted a 40,000-person clinical trial comparing its new vaccine to one of the standard flu shots used today. That trial concluded the new vaccine was somewhat more effective in adults 50 and older than that standard shot.

The letter from FDA vaccine director Dr. Vinay Prasad said the agency doesn’t consider the application to contain an “adequate and well-controlled trial” because it didn’t compare the new shot to “the best-available standard of care in the United States at the time of the study.” Prasad’s letter pointed to some advice FDA officials gave Moderna in 2024, under the Biden administration, which Moderna didn’t follow.

According to Moderna, that feedback said it was acceptable to use the standard-dose flu shot the company had chosen — but that another brand specifically recommended for seniors would be preferred for anyone 65 and older in the study. Still, Moderna said, the FDA did agree to let the study proceed as originally planned.

The company said it also had shared with FDA additional data from a separate trial comparing the new vaccine against a licensed high-dose shot used for seniors.

The FDA “did not identify any safety or efficacy concerns with our product” and “does not further our shared goal of enhancing America’s leadership in developing innovative medicines,” Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel said in a statement.

It’s rare that FDA refuses to file an application, particularly for a new vaccine, which requires companies and FDA staff to engage in months or years of discussions.

Moderna has requested an urgent meeting with FDA, and noted that it has applied for the vaccine’s approval in Europe, Canada and Australia.

In the last year, FDA officials working under Kennedy have rolled back recommendations around COVID-19 shots, added extra warnings to the two leading COVID vaccines — which are made with mRNA technology — and removed critics of the administration’s approach from an FDA advisory panel.

Kennedy announced last year that his department would cancel more than $500 million in contracts and funding for the development of vaccines using mRNA.

FDA for decades has allowed vaccine makers to quickly update their annual flu shots to target the latest strains by showing that they trigger an immune response in patients. That’s a far more efficient approach than running long-term studies tracking whether patients get the flu and how they fare. In an internal memo last year, Prasad wrote that the streamlined method would no longer be permitted – leading more than a dozen former FDA commissioners to pen an editorial condemning the statements.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.