New This Week: Arkansas A.G. Battles Big Tech (and More!)

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Here’s a quick recap of the week’s top stories from Family Council and our friends:

From Family Council

Arkansas Judge Denies Temu’s Motion to Dismiss A.G. Griffin’s Lawsuit. An Arkansas judge recently denied a motion by Temu seeking to dismiss Attorney General Tim Griffin’s lawsuit against the online company. Attorneys representing Temu reportedly have until August 28 to respond to the A.G.’s allegations that Temu violated the Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. Keep Reading.

Arkansas A.G. Leads Coalition Against Dangerous Drugs Made from Hemp. In a letter released Tuesday, Attorney General Tim Griffin and 34 other attorneys general called on federal lawmakers to preserve the hemp reforms enacted in 2025 and reject any effort to reopen the loopholes that allowed intoxicating hemp products to flood the market in states like Arkansas. Keep Reading.

Arkansas State Police Make Major Drug Seizure, Arrest in Pope County. Troopers found 24 pounds of “individually packaged illegal marijuana,” a handgun, and 120 marijuana plants during a traffic stop. The driver reportedly told law enforcement he was traveling from Tulsa to Tennessee. Keep Reading.

Lee County Another Step Closer to Being 100% Pro-Life. In 2021, the Lee County Quorum Court declared itself a Pro-Life County, and since then nearly every incorporated city and town in the county has passed Pro-Life resolutions as well. In June, the City of Rondo became the latest community in Lee County to pass a resolution affirming that it is Pro-Life. Keep Reading.

New Report Confirms What We’ve Been Saying About Sports Betting. A recent report from the Ethics and Public Policy Center (EPPC) examines the explosion of online and app-based sports betting since the U.S. Supreme Court lifted the federal sports betting ban in 2018. The numbers are staggering. Keep Reading.

Federal Government Strengthens Religious Liberty Protections. The U.S. Department of Justice has issued updated guidance directing every federal agency to protect the free exercise of religion. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche announced the updated guidance on July 23. It is the first change to the DOJ’s religious liberty guidelines since 2017, and it reflects nearly a decade of important U.S. Supreme Court decisions that have expanded protections for people of faith. Keep Reading.

Business and the Christian Life: Guest Column. President Calvin Coolidge once said that “the business of America is business.” Too many Christians think of business as either inherently bad, immoral, or perhaps amoral, something set apart from their faith. At best, it pays the bills and support the missionaries, but many fail to see it as also under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Keep Reading.

Return to What Built the West. C.S. Lewis, when writing the final book of his interplanetary science fiction series, decided on a name for his climax book based on a poem by sixteenth century Scottish poet David Lyndsay. In this poem, Lindsey referenced the shade of the biblical Tower of Babel as “the shadow of that hideous strength.” Keep Reading.

From Our Friends

Todd Blanche Says Trump Admin Will Stop Mail-Order Abortions. From LifeNews.

Court Upholds Florida Law Protecting Children From ‘Adult’ Performances — Including Drag. From Daily Citizen.

Connecticut Children’s Hospital to Cancel Trans Procedures after DOJ Pressure. From The Washington Stand.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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Arkansas Judge Denies Temu’s Motion to Dismiss A.G. Griffin’s Lawsuit

Technology,

An Arkansas judge recently denied a motion by Temu seeking to dismiss Attorney General Tim Griffin’s lawsuit against the online company. Attorneys representing Temu reportedly have until August 28 to respond to the A.G.’s allegations that Temu violated the Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act.

Temu is an online shopping platform similar to Amazon or Walmart.com. In 2023, Temu was reported to be the most widely downloaded app in the U.S., and its multibillion-dollar marketing campaign — which included a Super Bowl ad in 2024 — contributed to its success.

But as a Chinese-based tech company, security and privacy experts have raised concerns about Temu.

Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin sued Temu in 2024, alleging Temu uses bargain pricing as a lure so the company can secretly harvest users’ private information — including precise location, installed apps, online accounts, microphones, and cameras — and then funnel that sensitive information to servers subject to Chinese laws.

The A.G.’s team has also alleged that the Temu app is able to bypass phone security systems, potentially granting Temu access to a user’s private messages.

The Arkansas Attorney General’s office says all of this is unconscionable under the Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, which carries a penalty of $10,000 per violation.

In response, Temu’s attorneys asked the judge presiding over the case to dismiss the A.G.’s lawsuit. On July 15, Judge Meyer in Little Rock denied that motion to dismiss.

The judge’s order notes that the Attorney General has made specific, factual allegations that Temu’s app is intentionally designed to hide its data collection and that Temu has unjustly enriched itself at the expense of Arkansans.

The judge’s order does not mean Attorney General’s team will win the lawsuit, but it does mean their case is clear to proceed. In a separate order, the judge agreed to give Temu’s attorneys until August 28 to respond to the A.G.’s allegations.

It’s worth pointing out the A.G.’s allegations against Temu are very similar to points the A.G.’s office has made in its lawsuits against TikTok — another widely popular internet platform owned by a Chinese company.

Family Council is not aware of any attorney general in America who is doing more to hold tech companies accountable than Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin.

As we always say, tech companies are more than just phone apps and websites. These are multibillion-dollar businesses, and the people who operate them must be held accountable to be sure they do not harm their users.

We appreciate Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin’s office for continuing to pursue these cases so seriously in court.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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