A Justice Department attorney has urged an appeals court to suspend judicial orders favoring two board members who were fired by President Donald Trump from their respective posts in the federal government.

A federal appeals court has upheld sweeping asylum restrictions to prevent spread of COVID-19 but restored protections to keep migrant families from being expelled to their home countries without a chance to plead their cases.

FILE - In this May 6, 2020 file photo, nominee Justin Walker to be U.S. District Judge for the District of Columbia Circuit testifies during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington. Following the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, judges and their perceived ideological purity are facing even greater scrutiny. The declaration dropped as lower-court judges, like Richardson, face greater scrutiny over their perceived ideological purity. And one of Richardson's colleagues in Nashville, another Trump appointee, took a political pounding from conservatives over an abortion ruling in July. U.S. District Judge William “Chip” Campbell blocked an effort by Tennessee Republicans to bar abortions as early as six weeks into pregnancy.

(Jonathan Ernst/Pool Photo via AP)WASHINGTON A divided Senate has approved the nomination of a 38-year-old judge and ally of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to serve on a top federal appeals court, despite Democrats objections that hes inexperienced and biased against the Obama-era health care law. Walker, a protege of both McConnell and Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, will join the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in September. In the middle of a national public health crisis, the Republican Senate majority is poised to confirm a judge who opposes our countrys health care law.'' Walker, who was confirmed as a federal judge last fall, declined a request by Senate Democrats to recuse himself on matters related to the health care law if confirmed to the appeals court. McConnell, a longtime family friend who employed Walker as an intern in his Senate office, said that in his short time as a federal judge, Walker has shown his intelligence and legal acumen.

The court is widely considered the second-most powerful in the nation and frequently serves as a launching pad for a seat on the Supreme Court. 2 Senate Democrat, called Walker's nomination a travesty and an affront to other, more qualified conservative judges. Democrats also complained that the committee was advancing Walkers nomination during the coronavirus crisis and nationwide upheaval over the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Walker clerked for Kavanaugh when he was on the D.C. appeals court. The group changed its rating just before the May 6 hearing, calling Walker "Well Qualified to serve on the appeals court.

Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., speaks during a Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing on the nomination of Judge Justin Walker to be a U.S. Circuit Court judge for the District of Columbia Circuit on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, May 6, 2020. So if youre a circuit judge in your mid-60s, late 60s, you can take senior status. If confirmed, Walker would take an appeals court seat being vacated by Judge Thomas Griffith, who intends to retire in September. The vacancy creates an election-year slot on the influential appeals court, where four of the nine current Supreme Court justices served, including Roberts and Brett Kavanaugh.

A massive search is underway for two firefighters who vanished during a Florida boating trip. McCluneys fishing bag was found 50 miles from St. Augustine Monday, but there was no sign of the boat they left in, authorities said. On Tuesday, helicopters were added to the search, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. Weve finally started zeroing a little bit today, Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department Chief Keith Powers said in an update on Monday. I still could see that my messages hadnt even been delivered yet, Stephanie told the station.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - A Florida fire official says his department is ramping up its search for two firefighters who've been missing since going boating in the Atlantic Ocean last week. The U.S. Coast Guard and other agencies have been searching a wide area of ocean between Cape Canaveral and Jacksonville. The Coast Guard said when they arrived to the search area, the debris found was not related to the boaters. Following the discovery of McCluney's tackle bag by a Good Samaritan, the Coast Guard said it will be focusing on the area where that bag was found. Anyone with information is asked to contact the United States Coast Guard Sector Jacksonville Command Center at 904-714-7558.

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images(CNN) - Authorities say they have searched almost 5,000 square miles of ocean for two firefighters who disappeared after setting out from Port Canaveral, Florida, on a fishing trip. Their destination was 8A Reef, an offshore fishing spot, the Coast Guard said. The Coast Guard, along with multiple local and county agencies, started searching by boat and air on Friday night. "I hoped that by daylight it would bring us something," McCluney's wife, Stephanie, told CNN affiliate WFTV on Saturday. As the search continues, the Coast Guard is asking for anyone with information to call 904-714-7558.