(  )  A victory for Republicans in the California Assembly.  That body has passed a bill that would increase the penalties for sex trafficking 16 and 17-year-olds.  Young people ages 16 or 17 were not included in bipartisan legislation on sex trafficking passed last year and the GOP wanted to fix that oversight.  However, some Democrats fought the new legislation, saying that it could somehow be used by parents who wanted to break-up interracial or gay relationships amongst their children.  Even California Governor Gavin Newsom rejected that argument.

(  )  Gary Lineker (LIN-uh-ker), the England soccer great-turned-media celebrity, has lost his job at the BBC after an offensive Instagram post.  Lineker, who is the British national broadcaster’s highest-paid presenter, shared a post from the group, Palestine Lobby, showing a picture of a rat with the words “Zionism explained.” Lineker’s tendency to reflect his political views on social media have caused growing friction with the BBC regarding its impartiality guidelines.  Britain has been divided by a growing anti-Semitism that has afflicted Europe generally.

(  )  President Trump has done a lot to put faith at the center of his administration.  In February, Mr. Trump established the White House Faith Office, led by evangelist Paula White-Cain.  Also in February, he established a task force to eradicate anti-Christian bias, led by Attorney General Pam Bondi.  The latest entity to be created, the Religious Liberty Commission, has a mandate to recommend policies to protect and “celebrate America’s peaceful religious pluralism.”  Among the commissioners are Catholic bishops, Protestant evangelists, a rabbi and attorneys.