Nominated

President Donald Trump on July 27 announced the nomination of Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback to be the next ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom. Brownback, who spent 15 years in the U.S. Senate, helped pass the International Religious Freedom Act that created the ambassador-at-large position in 1998. He said he wants to use the position to coordinate efforts across the U.S. government and make international religious freedom into a key security, economic, and diplomatic concern to create “dynamic action in this field.” Religious freedom advocates, such as human rights lawyer Nina Shea and former Ambassador-at-Large David Saperstein, applauded the nomination.

Won

The United States men’s soccer team won the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup title on July 26. Jordan Morris, a 22-year-old forward, hit in the winning goal late in the game to give the Americans a 2-1 win over Jamaica. The battle was close. The U.S. team had 73 percent possession, according to ESPN, but only scored at the 45th minute with a free kick, and Jamaica equalized soon after. The American victory continues a 14-game winning streak under manager Bruce Arena. The team will go into qualifying rounds for the 2018 World Cup in the fall.

Settled

A Pennsylvania school district on July 14 settled a freedom of speech case out of court and clarified administrative policies to support two teens bullied for their pro-life views. Students Connor and Lauren Haines were standing on a public sidewalk in front of Downingtown STEM Academy in Downingtown, Pa., in April, holding signs and talking to passersby about abortion. Zach Ruff, a 40-year-old school administrator, approached and physically intimidated the teenagers, cursing and telling them they would go to hell, just like the aborted babies. Later, public school students and parents sent the two teenagers hundreds of threatening messages. Alliance Defending Freedom came to their defense, promising to sue the school if it did not clarify to school officials and to the Haineses that what Ruff had done was wrong. The school agreed to do so.

Died

Baby Charlie Gard died on July 28. The 11-month-old Charlie was the victim of a rare genetic condition. His parents, Connie Yates and Chris Gard, had fought for months to be able to take their baby to America for an experimental treatment, but British courts refused, and by late July the American specialist who had offered to treat Charlie told the two that it had become too late to help him. The parents gave up the court battle, only asking the courts to allow them to take their baby home for a week. Again they were denied as the court ordered hospice care. There, Charlie Gard died. Charlie had been a “warrior,” his parents told the press.

Arrested

Authorities arrested Imran Awan, a Pakistani-born American, on July 24 at Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C., as he was attempting to leave the country. Awan, an IT specialist for U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., was arrested on charges of bank fraud, but he also reportedly may have stolen computer equipment and files that included sensitive intelligence information, leading some analysts to conclude that the case also has national security and political implications.