Plus: Low snowpack in West; enjoy the company at national parks
| | | | Top headlines Lead story For months now, I've been reading headlines – and I'm sure you have, too – which have begun to sound more like the Abbott and Costello baseball comedy routine "Who's on First?" than about something coherent and weighty. Here's what I've been seeing: The Department of Justice was demanding voter data, including personal information, from states. States X, Y and Z said, "Nope, you can't have all that stuff." One state official literally told the DOJ to "pound sand." Others gave the information willingly. The DOJ sued some states. What was going on? This is why it's great to work at The Conversation. It was my job to find a scholar to figure this out, on the assumption that I was not the only confused news consumer. Today, election law scholar John J. Martin, who teaches at Quinnipiac University, untangles the whole situation for you – and me. "This battle over voter data has raised numerous questions about the Trump administration's motives, the legality of its actions and, more generally, the role of the federal government in election administration," writes Martin. He also explains why the DOJ will face many challenges making the case that all its demands are "constitutionally legitimate." One last note: We are very grateful to all of our readers who helped make our spring fundraising campaign a success. Your support helps sustain our work and increase our impact. It's a key factor in how we've become, according to a recent article from Harvard's Nieman Journalism Lab, the most-read nonprofit news outlet in the United States for the eight straight month. Thank you. |  | Naomi Schalit Senior Editor, Politics + Democracy | |  The Trump administration wants a lot of voter information from states. smartboy10/DigitalVision Vectors via Getty Images John J. Martin, Quinnipiac University The DOJ wants states to send it copies of voters' names and addresses as well as sensitive information such as driver's license and Social Security numbers. Here's why many states have refused. | Environment + Energy | -
Imtiaz Rangwala, University of Colorado Boulder Streamflows the West relies on for drinking water and farms used to follow a fairly predictable arc as winter snow melted. Rising temperatures are changing that. -
Will Rice, University of Montana; Bing Pan, Penn State Being in public parks and natural environments with other visitors is a powerful opportunity to enhance enjoyment rather than detract from it. | | Economy + Business | -
Reid Kress Weisbord, Rutgers University - Newark; Naomi Cahn, University of Virginia Even after death, managing wealth can be complicated, slow and deeply contested. -
Adam Annaccone, University of Texas at Arlington Significant public resources are spent on staffing, overtime, EMS staging, traffic control and interagency coordination that are integral to a successful event. | | Politics + Society | -
Allison Mashell Mitchell, University of Notre Dame After the Voting Rights Act, federal election observers helped ensure fair voting, but that oversight has increasingly shifted focus − to monitor what Washington says is voter fraud and accusations of cheating. -
Celina Su, CUNY Graduate Center Participatory budgeting makes the people involved more likely to vote – an important consideration in a city like Detroit where many don't. | | Science + Technology | -
Dennis Murphy, Georgia Institute of Technology Commercial data centers have become critical infrastructure, supporting everything from financial transactions to government services. And critical infrastructure is often targeted in war. -
Craig Fehrman, Indiana University Victor Glover will become the first Black astronaut to orbit the Moon – but he is part of a long line of Black explorers, many forgotten through history. New research is giving York his due. | | Health + Medicine | -
Rhonda Winegar, University of Texas at Arlington; Tara Martin, University of Texas at Arlington; Zhaoli Liu, University of Texas at Arlington Whether a young person has public or private insurance – or is uninsured or underinsured – significantly influences their risk of death across many cancer types. | | Education | -
Jane Charlton, Penn State With college students less likely to read through a full textbook than they once were, video games can help keep them engaged. | | Ethics + Religion | -
Mary Foskett, Wake Forest University Women's preaching is controversial in some Christian denominations – but key to the biblical story of Jesus' resurrection. | | | | Today's graphic 📈 |
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