The textbooks cover the same sweepingstory, from the brutality of slavery to thestruggle for civil rights. The self-evidenttruths of the founding documents to thewaves of immigration that reshaped the na-tion.

The books have the same publisher. Theycredit the same authors. But they are cus-tomized for students in different states, andtheir contents sometimes diverge in waysthat reflect the nation’s deepest partisan di-vides.

Hundreds of differences — some subtle,others extensive — emerged in a New YorkTimes analysis of eight commonly used

American history textbooks in Californiaand Texas, two of the nation’s largest mar-kets.

In a country that cannot come to a con-sensus on fundamental questions — how re-stricted capitalism should be, whether im-migrants are a burden or a boon, to what ex-tent the legacy of slavery continues toshape American life — textbook publishersare caught in the middle. On these ques-tions and others, classroom materials arenot only shaded by politics, but are alsohelping to shape a generation of future vot-ers.

Conservatives have fought for schools to

American history textbooks in different states diverge in ways that reflect the nation’s deepest partisan divides.

TWO STATES. EIGHT TEXTBOOKS.TWO AMERICAN STORIES.

On an annotated Bill of Rights,the California edition of thistextbook explains that rulingson the Second Amendmenthave allowed for some gunregulations. The Texas editionshows only a blank space.

By DANA GOLDSTEIN

Continued on Page A14

McGraw-Hill, “United StatesHistory Since 1877,” Texas, P. 282-283; inset: McGraw-Hill,“United States History &Geography: Continuity andChange,” California, P. 248

TONY CENICOLA / THE NEW YORK TIMES

C M Y K Nxxx,2020-01-13,A,001,Bs-4C,E2

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Ashley Judd was one of the firstwomen to attach her name to ac-cusations of sexual misconductagainst Harvey Weinstein, butlike many of the claims that fol-lowed, her account of intimidatingsexual advances was too old tobring Mr. Weinstein to court over.

Then a legal window opened toher. After reading about a direc-tor’s claim that Mr. Weinstein’sstudio, Miramax, had describedMs. Judd as a “nightmare to workwith,” she sued the producer for

defamation in 2018.Mr. Weinstein’s rape trial in

Manhattan, which began with juryselection last week, is a spectaclenot only because he is the avatarof the #MeToo era, but also be-cause it is one of the few sexual as-sault cases to surface with allega-tions recent enough to result incriminal charges.

So, unable to pursue justice di-rectly, women and men on bothsides of #MeToo are embracingthe centuries-old tool of defama-tion lawsuits, opening an alterna-tive legal battleground for accusa-tions of sexual misconduct.

While the facts of the casesvary, the plaintiffs are generallyusing defamation law not just forits usual purpose — to dissuadedamaging speech about them —but also as a tool to enlist thecourts to endorse their version ofdisputed events.

This year, key verdicts are ex-

New Arena for #MeToo Cases: Defamation SuitsBy JULIA JACOBS

Continued on Page A12

A Legal Method to TryOld Abuse Claims

EZRA ACAYAN/GETTY IMAGES

Taal, a volcano about 40 miles south of Manila, forced thousands to evacuate on Sunday. Page A6.Eruption Rattles Philippines

Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr. pro-posed a compromise.

It was the fall of 2002 and theBush administration was pushingfor sweeping authority to actagainst Saddam Hussein, claim-ing he possessed weapons of massdestruction. Some Democratsquestioned the stated threat andbristled at President George W.Bush’s broad request.

Mr. Biden, the Senate ForeignRelations Committee chairman,had been scrambling to draft a bi-partisan resolution that wouldgrant Mr. Bush the authority touse military force against Iraq,but was more restrictive than thewar authorization that the presi-dent had sought.

As he often had in his long ca-reer, Mr. Biden sought bipartisanmiddle ground — this time, be-tween those opposed to potentialwar and the White House desirefor more open-ended power. Someantiwar members of his commit-tee resisted this effort, worriedthat it would still pave the way toconflict. “We disagreed verystrenuously,” said former SenatorBarbara Boxer, Democrat of Cali-fornia.

Mr. Biden’s plan ultimately didnot succeed, and he chose to focuson Mr. Bush’s reassurances of a di-plomacy-first approach.

“At each pivotal moment,” Mr.Biden said of Mr. Bush, “he haschosen a course of moderationand deliberation, and I believe he

Biden HauntedBy 2002 Vote

For Iraq WarBy KATIE GLUECK

and THOMAS KAPLAN

Continued on Page A17

MELVILLE, N.Y. — Chris Levi’sfellow soldiers were sure he wasdead. The Humvee he com-manded in Baghdad had been tornapart by a projectile, and so hadhis body. When he awoke severalminutes later, he followed histraining, trying to assess his inju-ries.

“I tried to wiggle my toes, and Icouldn’t move them,” he recalled.Fearing he had been paralyzed, hereached down to feel his lowerbody. “It’s kind of hard to de-scribe,” he said. “You could feelwet meat, and I knew I lost mylegs.”

The device that nearly killed

Mr. Levi in 2008 was an impro-vised bomb called an explosivelyformed penetrator, or E.F.P. — aweapon that blasted a teardrop-shaped slug of molten copperthrough the passenger door of hisarmored Humvee.

Though it was fired by Shiitemilitia members in Iraq, Mr. Levihas sought for years to hold an-other party responsible: Iran.

He and dozens of other soldiersinjured during the Iraq war, aswell as the families of hundreds ofdead service members, have pur-sued justice in federal court. Theysued Iran’s government in an ef-

Lost Lives and Limbs in Iraq,And Justice in a Missile Strike

By RICHARD A. OPPEL Jr. and NICHOLAS BOGEL-BURROUGHS

Chris Levi, left, lost his legs in an attack linked to Iran. Kelli Hakeand her son, Gage, lost their husband and father to a bomb in Iraq.

PHOTOGRAPHS BY CELESTE SLOMAN FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Continued on Page A8

WASHINGTON — They had tokill him because he was planningan “imminent” attack. But howimminent they could not say.Where they could not say. Whenthey could not say. And really, itwas more about what he had al-ready done. Or actually it was tostop him from hitting an Americanembassy. Or four embassies. Ornot.

For 10 days, President Trumpand his team have struggled to de-scribe the reasoning behind thedecision to launch a drone strikeagainst Maj. Gen. Qassim Sulei-mani, the commander of Iran’selite security forces, propellingthe two nations to the brink of war.Officials agree they had intelli-gence indicating danger, but thepublic explanations have shiftedby the day and sometimes by thehour.

On Sunday came the latesttwist. Defense Secretary Mark T.Esper said he was never shownany specific piece of evidence thatIran was planning an attack onfour American embassies, as Mr.Trump had claimed just two daysearlier.

“I didn’t see one with regard tofour embassies,” Mr. Esper said onCBS’s “Face the Nation.” But headded: “I share the president’sview that probably — my expecta-tion was they were going to go af-ter our embassies. The embassiesare the most prominent display ofAmerican presence in a country.”

The sharp disparity betweenthe president and his defense sec-

ESPER DIDN’T SEEEVIDENCE OF PLOTTO HIT EMBASSIES

NARRATIVE SHIFTS AGAIN

Defense Secretary Failsto Back Trump Claim

Against Iran

By PETER BAKERand THOMAS GIBBONS-NEFF

Continued on Page A8

A top Iranian military com-mander made a rare public appealfor forgiveness on Sunday as se-curity forces fired on protestersand outrage over the mistakendowning of a jetliner reignited op-position on the streets and stirreddissent within the government’sconservative base.

It was the second day of pro-tests after the military acknowl-edged early on Saturday that ithad launched the missiles thatbrought down a Ukraine Interna-tional Airlines jet near the Iraniancapital on Wednesday, killing all176 people on board. The disasterunfolded amid escalating tensionswith the United States over thekilling of a revered Iranian com-mander, Maj. Gen. Qassim Sulei-mani.

For the first three days after thecrash, Iran denied growing inter-national accusations that it hadshot the plane down, and lookedas if it was engaged in a cover-up.The Iranian authorities, insistingthat the jetliner had gone down formechanical reasons, refused to co-operate with investigators. Theyalso began to remove some evi-dence from the scene.

But then, as the uproarmounted, Iranian leaders admit-ted that the military had shot theaircraft down, citing human error.

That admission limited theblowback from abroad — butthrew a match on the volatile situ-ation at home. Anti-governmentprotests that had quieted whenGeneral Suleimani was killed in adrone strike in Iraq rekindledacross the country.

Still, analysts argued that thislatest wave of internal unrestcould ultimately strengthen thosein Iran who are pressing to con-front the United States. Already,

A Crackdown,And Apology,

From Tehran

Military Official AsksForgiveness Over Jet

By FARNAZ FASSIHIand DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK

Continued on Page A9

Diego, a giant tortoise, helped save hisspecies by fathering 40 percent of theoffspring in a breeding program. PAGE A6

INTERNATIONAL A4-9

The Tortoise and the HeirsLawmakers from both parties blamecompanies like Facebook and Google forthe struggles of local papers. PAGE B1

BUSINESS B1-8

Bipartisan About NewspapersPolish museums are believed to still holditems left behind by the Nazis. Above,van Goyen’s “Huts on a Canal.” PAGE C1

ARTS C1-8

Looking for Looted Treasures

Short of cash and influence, France’sSocialist Party moved its base to aformer factory in the suburbs. PAGE A4

They No Longer Have Paris

Senator Chuck Schumer knows theSenate is unlikely to convict PresidentTrump. So he is focusing on what con-stitutes a fair trial. PAGE A10

NATIONAL A10-19

Minority Leader’s Challenge

Judith Sheindlin, the no-nonsense TVstar, is entering politics by campaigningfor Michael R. Bloomberg. PAGE A18

Judge Judy Picks Bloomberg

With the quest to build new tunnelsstalled, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo madeanother proposal. PAGE A20

NEW YORK A20, 22

A Plan for Penn StationIn Florida, where law enforcement haslong used the technology, an inside lookat its risks and rewards. PAGE B1

Spotty Facial Recognition

The Texans surged to a 24-0 lead in anA.F.C. divisional-round playoff game.Then the Chiefs started scoring. Andscoring. And scoring. In the N.F.C., thePackers held off the Seahawks. PAGE D4

SPORTSMONDAY D1-6

Big Start, Bigger Comeback

David Leonhardt PAGE A27

EDITORIAL, OP-ED A26-27

Serena Williams beat Jessica Pegula onSunday in the ASB Classic in NewZealand for her first singles tournamenttitle since giving birth to her daughter,Olympia, in 2017. PAGE D6

A Tennis Mom’s Milestone

VOL. CLXIX . . . No. 58,571 © 2020 The New York Times Company NEW YORK, MONDAY, JANUARY 13, 2020

Late EditionToday, mostly cloudy, not as warm,high 46. Tonight, cloudy, low 40. To-morrow, mostly cloudy, an after-noon shower, rather mild, high 48.Weather map appears on Page A16.

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