THE
ACADIANA
ADVOCATE
T H E A C A D I A N A A D V O C AT E.C O M
|
S at u r d ay, J u n e 28, 2025
$2.00X
Court limits nationwide injunctions Fate of Trump birthright citizenship order unclear
BY MARK SHERMAN Associated Press
WASHINGTON — A united conservative majority of the Supreme Court ruled Friday that federal judges lack the authority to grant nationwide injunctions, but the decision left unclear whether President Donald Trump’s restrictions on birthright citizenship could soon take effect in parts of the country.
The outcome represented a victory for Trump, who has complained about judges throwing up obstacles to his agenda. Nationwide, or universal, injunctions had emerged as an important check on the Republican president’s executive power and efforts to remake the government and a source of mounting frustration to him and his allies. But the court left open the pos-
sibility that the birthright citizenship changes could remain blocked nationwide. Trump’s order would deny citizenship to U.S.-born children of people who are in the country illegally or temporarily. The cases now return to lower courts, where judges will have to decide how to tailor their orders to comply with the high court ruling, which was written by Justice Amy Coney Barrett. Enforcement of the
INSIDE
ä High court rules for parents in
LGBTQ+ books case. Page 3A
ä Justices uphold Texas age
verification law for adult websites. Page 3A ä Decision delayed on Louisiana’s congressional districts. Page 1B policy can’t take place for another 30 days, Barrett wrote. Even then it’s unclear whether
the court’s decision could produce a patchwork of rules that might differ in the 22 states that sued over the Trump order and the rest of the country. The justices agreed with the Trump administration, as well as President Joe Biden’s Democratic administration before it, that judges are overreaching by issuing orders that apply to everyone instead of just the parties before the court. Judges have issued
ä See COURT, page 5A
“People who live in rural communities tend to be older, poorer and sicker.” MIKE WHITTINGTON, CEO of Hood Memorial Hospital in Amite
Federal cuts could devastate rural hospitals in Louisiana PROVIDED PHOTO By SLU
University of Louisiana system President Rick Gallot speaks at Southeastern Louisiana University winter 2024 commencement ceremonies.
UL system chief to get pay raise Contract extension includes new goals
BY MEGAN WYATT
Staff writer
STAFF PHOTO By DAVID GRUNFELD
As possible federal budget cuts loom, rural health care facilities like Hood Memorial Hospital in Amite face growing uncertainty.
Medicaid changes mean deep uncertainty BY EMILY WOODRUFF Staff writer
Tucked behind a circular drive lined with crepe myrtles and oak trees, Hood Memorial is a two-story brick hospital built in 1971 that anchors a stretch of Amite lined with typical small-town businesses: a local pharmacy, an accountant’s office and a combination chimney sweep, locksmith and nursery. Inside, the 25-bed hospital offers the only emergency room and inpatient care
for northern Tangipahoa Parish. A block away, its rural health clinic is the first stop for many low-income residents seeking help for infections or chronic conditions before they spiral into emergencies. Hospitals like Hood Memorial are facing deep uncertainty. A massive federal tax and spending bill — dubbed the “Big Beautiful Bill” by the Trump administration — is racing toward a July 4 deadline in the Senate, with Medicaid provisions changing by the hour. Both the House and Senate reconciliation bills aim to cut hundreds of billions from Medicaid, mainly through work requirements, reduced provider payments and stricter eligibility checks. But the
Senate version proposes deeper cuts and is still being revised. In a blow Thursday to negotiators, the nonpartisan Senate parliamentarian ruled that a key Medicaid provider tax overhaul violated budget reconciliation rules. That means one of the methods they were considering to cut Medicaid spending can’t be used, forcing Republicans to reconsider their strategy. While it’s still unclear what will make it into the final package, cuts appear all but certain. In Louisiana, where about onethird of the population relies on Medicaid, the impact could be devastating for rural
ä See HOSPITALS, page 5A
After a year and a half on the job, University of Louisiana system President Rick Gallot will get a salary increase and new benchmarks under a new contract extension through June 2028. The amended contract comes after an evaluation Thursday by the system’s board of supervisors, who met for more than an hour in executive session to discuss the president’s performance. Board members did not share specifics after returning to the public meeting, but voted unanimously to amend Gallot’s contract with a salary increase, new performance goals and a one-year extension. The Advocate requested a copy of the new contract, but staff for the UL system said Friday it’s still being revised.
ä See RAISE, page 4A
Real estate powerhouse Nancy Van Eaton Prince dies at 86 BY KRISTIN ASKELSON
decades. As a young woman, Prince began a career in real estate when her faLafayette real estate executive ther offered to pay for her license. Nancy Van Eaton Broussard Prince She went on to become a real estate died at home Thursday at age 86, ac- broker and started her own firm, hiring her best friend Gail Romero, as cording to family and friends. Prince, who was born in Houston, an agent. In 1972, Prince was named Realtor was a trailblazer in Lafayette’s real estate market and was a fixture in of the Year, and in 1974, president of its philanthropic community for male-dominated Realtor Association Staff writer
Nancy Van Eaton Broussard Prince was a successful real estate executive and philanthropist.
WEATHER HIGH 90 LOW 74 PAGE 6A
of Acadiana. After encouraging Romero to also become a broker, the duo of single moms joined forces to establish Van Eaton & Romero Realtors in 1977. When they were named two of the most powerful women in the nation in real estate by Real Estate Marketing & Relocation Magazine in the mid-1990s, Prince and Romero had long established themselves as lead-
Business ......................3B Deaths .........................2B Nation-World ................2A Classified .....................6A Living............................5C Opinion ........................4B Comics-Puzzles .....7C-9C Metro ...........................1B Sports ..........................1C
ers in Acadiana. By the late 1990s the company was consistently named to the top 500 real estate firms in the nation by RealTrends Magazine while they dominated the local market, growing to more than 300 agents and staff in five locations. In 2012, Van Eaton & Romero merged with
ä See PRINCE, page 4A
100TH yEAR, NO. 363