Week 90 — The Return – The Weekly List

This was a disastrous week for Trump. Little is going his way, and the American people are increasingly turning against him. Trump continued to focus on his personal priorities, not issues that his party wants 100 days away from midterm elections, and not on what the American people want either. Nearly three-quarters of Americans said Trump was not paying attention to the country’s important issues, like the economy and affordability. Although Trump had promised his Iran “excursion” would last mere weeks, months later he is caught in an increasingly unpopular quagmire of a war.

Trump suffered setbacks in a number of legal battles this week, including being forced to withdraw subpoenas of NYT reporters; losing an appeal on his efforts to thwart mail-in voting; a judge requiring significant financial disclosures in his BBC lawsuit; a long pause on Paramount’s proposed takeover of Warner Bros., parent company of CNN; and more.

At a rescheduled White House Correspondents Dinner, Trump gave a rambling, insult-laden keynote, which fell flat. The irony of the mission of the association being to defend the First Amendment, while Trump continued to use the levers of his regime to attack both journalists and media outlets, left some attendees wondering if at long last it was time to “rethink” the dinner, or consider other alternatives while an autocrat was in office.

A CNN/SSRS poll found Trump’s approval had dropped to 34%, matching his low point after the Jan. 6 insurrection, with 66% disapproving and half strongly disapproving. His approval with Republicans fell to a low of 78%, with just 19% enthusiastic.
A record 73% said Trump was not paying attention to the country’s important issues, 58% were dissatisfied with or angry about his DC construction projects, and just 26% said he had a clear plan for the Iran War. His approval on all economic and affordability issues was in the 20s.
Gallup polling found Supreme Court approval at 33%, a record low since the poll began in 2000; 62% approved. The recent fall came among Republicans whose approval fell from 79% last September to 58%. Just 35% of Independents and 12% of Democrats approved of the court.
NYT reported that in a court document filed on July 15, the Trump regime admitted that it had terminated grants for education, energy, health, housing, and infrastructure aid “based solely” on whether the state had voted for Trump or Kamala Harris in the 2024 election.
In the fall of 2025, the Energy Department compiled a list of more than 600 grants awarded by the Biden administration. Russell Vought’s Office of Management and Budget terminated only 284 of those grants, all except one of which was in states that voted for Harris.
On Wednesday, during the dignified transfer of U.S. troops killed in the Iran War at Dover Air Force Base, Trump baselessly claimed of the fallen soldiers, “All of them said very strongly, ‘We cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon,’” seeming to use their deaths to make a case for his war.
Later Wednesday, speaking at a policy speech in Georgia meant to focus on Trump Accounts, he did not mention the accounts until 30 minutes in. Many Republicans had worried that Trump would use the speech to advance his baseless claims he won the state in 2020, but he did not.
Trump continued to baselessly claim that Democrats made up “affordability,” and again tied Democrats to communism, saying, “The blue states are all going bad. They’re all going bad because communism is a loser,” adding, “With communism, everything turns to shit.”
Trump referred to the Iran War as a “skirmish” not a war, saying, “This skirmish we have going on, I call it a skirmish. This skirmish we have with the Islamic Republic of Iran, and I call it that because let me tell you, they’re getting hit so hard, they want to make a deal.”
Trump also plugged products made by Dell, the company whose owner had donated $6 billion to Trump Accounts, saying, “Go out and buy a Dell computer.” Shortly after his remarks, the stock soared by more than 7%.
On Wednesday, WAPO reported the Trump regime was considering military action in Mali to target JNIM, an al-Qaeda-affiliated group; although there is disagreement among the regime. If Trump ordered a strike, it would be the eighth country struck during his second regime.
On Thursday, the House voted 214–208 to halt the war with Iran, with four Republicans joining Democrats. The measure failed in the Senate, 49–47, later that day. A recent WAPO poll found 70% of respondents said the war was not “worth fighting.”
On Thursday, NYT reported that Iran rejected a U.S. cease-fire proposal presented to them by Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi, who had recently met with Trump at the White House. After the information was made public, the Iraqi government denied the report.
On Thursday, the Defense Department quietly lowered the number of American troops killed in the Iran War from 18 to 14. One reason given was that 4 service members were killed after the ceasefire was declared in April; a Pentagon spokesperson blamed “temporary data disruptions.”
On Thursday, Trump told Axios, “I am considering a massive attack. Bigger than ever before. I am close to making a decision. We are all set for it.” The Pentagon had rushed forces, weaponry, and supplies to the Middle East.
On Friday, WSJ reported that Trump was losing patience with the Iran War, and was in “revenge mode,” believing that negotiating would not work, and that the only thing Iran understood was military force. Oil had topped $100 a barrel on Thursday.
The war had reportedly taken a personal toll on Trump and senior regime officials. Trump was informed of a plot to kill him, and senior officials were told by intelligence agencies that Iranians were seeking to kill them, and they should stop taking car services.
On Saturday, singer Katy Perry posted on X that she was “deeply appalled” that the Trump regime was using her song “Firework” in an Iran War video, saying she never approved the use of her music: “My music is for bringing people together, not celebrating warfare.”
On Thursday, Trump posted on Truth Social that his nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia was subject to them joining the Abraham Accords, normalizing relations with Israel. Critics noted Trump’s Energy Department secretary had already signed the agreement on Wednesday.
A Fox News poll found Trump’s approval fell to 39%, a low for the pollster, with one-third saying inflation had caused them serious hardship. Voters also preferred Democrats on almost all major issues, including inflation D+10, and economy D+9, both new highs.
Later Thursday, Trump’s DOJ withdrew its subpoenas of NYT journalists over the Qatari-gifted Air Force One story, after a federal judge grilled the DOJ attorneys for nearly an hour on whether they had followed appropriate procedures.
The judge scolded DOJ lawyers, saying subpoenas to reporters “are not the first thing you do — they are the last thing you do,” adding, “It’s a matter of basic compliance with the law.” The DOJ said, “Make no mistake, this investigation remains ongoing,” adding, “we will pursue justice.”
The hearing cast a shadow not only on the SDNY attorneys, but also Jay Clayton and Todd Blanche, who testified at their Senate confirmation hearings that the subpoenas were in keeping with laws and regulations. Blanche told Senators the DOJ was “not targeting reporters.”
Sen. John Cornyn said on Monday that he would not support Blanche’s confirmation until the IRS settlement agreement was rewritten, including rescinding the so-called “anti-weaponization fund” and removing restrictions on the scope of tax audit immunity.
On Friday, NYT reported that Trump had switched to the old AF1 leaving the NATO summit in Turkey, after the U.S. government picked up on a credible threat that Iranian proxy forces were targeting him and whichever AF1 plane he was on.
NYT also reported that Trump personally rushed efforts to get his new Qatari-gifted AF1 in service, compressing retrofits that experts said should have taken years into eight months. Because of the accelerated timeline, experts said it should only be used domestically.
In addition to the Pentagon using $400 million of funds meant for nuclear modernization to retrofit the plane, the regime also spent hundreds of millions on equipment to train pilots on flying it. Additionally, because of the rushed nature, costs were also higher.
On Wednesday, Trump ally, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, referred Jack Smith to the DOJ over alleged false statements during a December deposition before his committee, claiming he gave the impression he did not have access to members of Congress’s texts.
CNN reported that a Secret Service agent who had leaked to a reporter about the overuse of protections by Vice President JD Vance, including details of his and his family’s travel, was put on leave amid an internal investigation.
On Thursday, White House Press Sec. Karoline Leavitt said the regime would not intervene in the Tate brothers’ extradition to the U.K. to face charges. Andrew Tate claimed on X that Trump had intervened to stall sex trafficking charges against them in 2025, and expected the same.
On Thursday, the Trump regime dropped its subpoena to the University of Pennsylvania, demanding a list of Jewish people on campus as part of its investigation of antisemitism on campus. The regime did not explain its decision in this rare pullback.
On Thursday, a federal judge, who was appointed by Trump, dismissed the DOJ’s lawsuit over Kentucky’s unwillingness to turn over its voter rolls, the Trump regime’s 17th consecutive defeat on its attempts.
On Thursday, at a discussion on the theme of ratepayer protection, Trump mused, “all I know is I’d like to be the next president,” adding, “because I’m going to make somebody look very good.”
On Friday, Trump imposed new tariffs of 10% to 12.5% on over 80 countries, using Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, and citing laws that banned importing goods made using forced labor, Trump’s latest effort to keep tariffs in place.
NYT reported that since the Supreme Court ruling allowing Trump to deport immigrants here on temporary status, the elder care industry lost a big part of its work force, as immigrants had taken jobs that were otherwise hard to fill, and the U.S. population needing care continued to grow.
NBC News reported on growing tension between DHS Sec. Markwayne Mullin and the White House over his decision to pause traffic stop arrests without consulting Trump first, and for a misstatement about Haitian and Syrian migrants being eligible to apply for legal status.
NYT reported that ICE had begun arresting foreign citizens with expired U.S. visas at airports, including spouses of Americans, at check-in counters and arrival gates. Often the ICE officers were wearing street clothes. Enforcement actions occurred at at least 15 airports.
The arrests marked a new front in the Trump regime’s deportation drive. Hundreds of thousands of immigrants and visitors overstay visas, and many are awaiting an extension or a green card. Many of the arrests were recorded by fellow passengers and shared on social media.
WAPO reported two dozen experts in preservation, materials, and heritage filed an injunction to stop Trump from painting the Eisenhower Building white, saying the regime needed to go through rules and procedures, and that paint would damage the stone.
Typically, the General Services Administration would need to follow protocol and seek input from experts and the public, but Trump’s lawyers claimed the GSA had ceded those responsibilities and requirements to the White House. Work appeared to be starting.
On Friday, in a court filing, Paramount agreed to freeze its merger with Warner Bros. until June 2027, while a pending lawsuit filed by state attorneys general played out. The freeze also had ramifications for the independence of CNN.
On Friday, at a White House press conference, when asked about the cyclosporiasis outbreak, Trump joked, “I think we’ll put a major tariff…on Mexico because of the lettuce. And we’ll put a big tariff on Canada because of the smoke.”
Trump also baselessly claimed, “Venezuela is not ready for elections yet,” even as the opposition leader María Corina Machado said the people had been calling for elections. Trump added, “Delcy has been doing a fantastic job,” and “I’m very popular there.”
Trump explained why he knew Venezuela so well, saying, “For a long time I’ve known that country, and you know, I owned the Miss Universe pageant, and Miss Venezuela always did very well in that pageant, so I know something about the country,”
Shortly after, Trump signed an executive order requiring warning signage to be placed at the Smithsonian History Museum to alert the public that in Trump’s view, the exhibits did not accurately reflect American history, citing the recent White House report.
Later Friday, at the rescheduled White House Correspondents Dinner, Wolf Blitzer presented an award to the WSJ for their story on Trump’s birthday card to Jeffrey Epstein, noting Trump sued them, and one reporter had to move her family after Trump doxed her in a court filing.
Trump spoke for 65 minutes, in a rambling, insult-laden keynote speech, attacking many of the journalists in the room for an event that was meant to celebrate the First Amendment, amid Trump’s aggressive tactics towards numerous media outlets and journalists.
Trump attacked CNN reporter Kaitlan Collins, whom he said “never smiles,” and compared her looks to a transgender social media personality. He called Chris Christie “one of the sloppiest human beings,” and Sen. Adam Schiff a “liar’ with a “watermelon head.”
Trump closed with joking about serving a third term, saying of his presidency, “the second time is always better, and the third time will be better yet,” pulling out a hat that said, “Trump 2028.”
The speech was awkward, with few in the room laughing at several jokes Trump tried to make. At one point Trump called it a “fricking stupid speech.” The environment highlighted the bad relationship Trump had with the media, with some questioning after why they went.
On Saturday, WAPO reported that Brazil denied visas to a U.S. State Department delegation of Trump appointees, after Brazilian officials said the visit was a “ploy” to cast doubt on the fairness and integrity of the country’s election system ahead of its Oct. 4 election.
On Saturday, Trump amplified his criticism of Canada’s handling of its wild fires, posting an AI-generated image on Truth Social of a giant “Air Filter Barrier” between the U.S. and Canada.
On Saturday, a federal appeals court upheld a lower court ruling, 2–1, blocking the Trump regime from implementing his executive order requiring federal agencies to verify voter eligibility before mail-in ballots are delivered, citing “unprecedented levels” of federal involvement.”
On Monday, the Trump regime’s DOJ asked the Supreme Court to overrule the lower court and allow his executive order telling the USPS to only deliver mail in ballots to people on a federal list compiled by U.S. Immigration and the Social Security Administration.
On Sunday, NYT reported that Trump had decided to hold off on a threatened major escalation of the Iran War after almost two weeks of strikes, citing a Friday meeting with top advisors and senior members of his cabinet, with few if any saying that an escalation was wise.
Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine said an escalation would dangerously deplete interceptors available for operations in the Middle East. A heavy attack would result in the need to defend U.S. bases in Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain, and the U.A.E., and alienate allies.
CNN reported that Vance also raised concerns about escalating the war. Among the issues was if Trump followed through with his threats to bomb Iranian infrastructure, it could result in killing of civilians, leaving Iranians without power or food, or a humanitarian crisis.
On Sunday, U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz told “Meet the Press” that the U.S. has “everything it needs” in its weapons stockpile, saying, “a lot of our stockpiles were depleted because of Biden,” and adding, “the people leaking this nonsense deserve to be in jail.”
On Sunday, a CBS News/YouGov poll found 37% said the Iran War was going well or somewhat well, 60% said Trump was making the war sound better than how it was actually going, and 76% said the conflict had been harder than Trump expected.
The poll also found that 58% said Trump’s policies were making them worse off, 13% said better off. Just 25% said their income was keeping up with inflation, 75% said it was not. Also 78% said Trump was not focused enough on lowering prices, and 60% said too focused on tariffs.
On Sunday, Trump sent 43 Truth Social posts in six hours, including while he was golfing. The posts included AI slop, including derogatory AI images of Bruce Springsteen, Chris Christie, Collins, Rosie O’Donnell, and late night hosts Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel, and Stephen Colbert.
Trump also posted multiple AI images of him taking over Iranian oil tankers and Kharg Island. He posted an AI image of himself and JFK, himself and George Washington and multiple posts relating to Trump 2028. He posted an image critical of Senate Majority Leader John Thune.
Trump also shared a video of a purported 655-mile expressway linking the city of Tiznit to Dakhla in Morocco, which he claimed “is now the “Donald J. Trump Highway.”” Officials in Morocco did not confirm the change.
On Sunday, the White House account shared an AI slop video on X featuring a robot version of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer chasing a cartoon version of Trump and Vance, cutting to a border arrest, using space and galaxy imagery, and ending with MAGA.
On Sunday, former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández returned home, after being pardoned by Trump who baselessly claimed his 45 year prison sentence for drug trafficking was orchestrated by the Biden administration, and that Hernández did not get a fair trial.
WAPO reported that the Trump regime’s Operation Southern Spear, under which the regime struck at least 67 alleged drug vessels, and killed at least 221 people, had not slowed cocaine entering the U.S., and had resulted in criminal organizations developing new strategies.
NYT reported Adm. Daryl Caudle, the Chief of Naval Operations picked by Defense Sec. Pete Hegseth, lobbied for the job repeatedly, a breach of military protocol, in ways that Hegseth would know the two were aligned on removing “woke barriers.” Hegseth fired Lisa Franchetti as commander.
After Franchetti was fired, senior Navy officials put together a list of three officers to replace her. When Caudle was not on the list, Hegseth told his chief of staff to discuss the matter with Timothy Parlatore, a lawyer that had represented Hegseth and Trump, Hegseth in a rape case.
CNN reported that the Trump regime’s Consumer Product Safety Commission had demanded hospitals share emergency room records, with at least 100 hospitals needing to comply by the end of the year. The unprecedented request alarmed some hospital executives.
NYT reported that as cases of measles hit a new record, the CDC had made no national effort to promote the highly effective M.M.R. vaccination, even as children and adolescents had 70% of the cases and 80 had been hospitalized in the past year with severe complications.
WSJ reported Trump was pushing HHS Sec. Robert Kennedy Jr. to prioritize probing for a possible link between vaccines and autism, months after senior White House officials told Kennedy to pull back on vaccine efforts ahead of midterms.
Trump also wanted Kennedy to push to reduce the number of shots that federal guidelines recommended for children, telling Kennedy he was not doing enough, and telling aides that Kennedy had had more than a year to make it happen, and if he does not, he will have been a failure.
WSJ reported that after midterms, in 2027, the Trump regime planned to eliminate $3.6 billion in subsidies given to insurance companies for Medicare subscription plans, known as Part D, that offset costs to consumers. Roughly 25 million seniors had Part D plans.
WAPO reported that data shared with Congress revealed that the Office of the Director of National Intelligence had quietly fired or reassigned roughly 200 more people since Bill Pulte took over, leaving staffing at a little more than half the 2,000 employees when Trump took office.
On Monday, Trump posted that Thune should cancel August recess and keep the Senate in session and pass his SAVE America Act, or, “far better still, TERMINATES THE FILIBUSTER, where Republicans can then quickly pass everything they ever dreamed of.””
On Monday, while traveling to Michigan, reporters asked Trump about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s claim that Russia was giving Iran satellite imagery of U.S. bases in the regions. Trump said, “I’ll ask Putin about it. I don’t think they’ve been doing it.”
Trump also blamed Biden for the low weapons stockpile, telling reporters, “We’re in very good shape,” but adding, “We’d certainly like to have more. Biden gave a lot of it away” in “numbers that nobody’s ever seen before.”
Trump also insulted another female reporter, CBS News’ Jennifer Jacobs, for asking about his effort to make Senators stay in session to work on his SAVE America Act rather than campaigning, scolding her, “What a stupid question!” and when she asked again, repeating it.
On Monday, Trump delivered a speech from a General Motors plant in Michigan, with 99 days until midterms. He lied that under him, the U.S. trade deficit had declined by 71% (actual was 0.2%) and that Democrats wanted to raise taxes to 80% and abolish the police.
Trump baselessly blamed Biden for the current affordability issues, even as Michigan had been severely impacted by his tariffs, and claimed, “We had the single greatest year we’ve ever had as a country,” adding, “We’re not going to let these people [Democrats] destroy it.”
Trump baselessly took credit for bringing back the auto industry, saying, “I’ve done more for you than your parents,” while attacking the former president who rescued the auto industry, saying, “Barack Hussein Obama? Obuma,” and the “Dumocrats” were bad for the industry.
Trump also spoke about the Reflecting Pool, mislabeling it as “the beautiful reflecting pond,” and adding, “Somebody comes along and starts cutting it with a knife, these sick — they’re sick!” He also said, “It’s — but it’s — it’s in the hospital now, but it’s going to get better very soon.”
On Monday, a key grand jury witness against David Hearn said in a court filing that the pool was already damaged when Hearn touched it, and would have required repairs regardless. The witness also questioned whether the grand jury had been properly instructed.
Singer Noah Kahan commented on a video posted by the White House of Trump’s Michigan visit using his song, that he “Would never approve of my music being used in support of you or this administration.” His co-writer, Noah Levine, wrote, “You fat f — — this song isn’t for you.”
On Monday, attorneys for James Comey asked a federal judge to dismiss the seashells cases by the Trump regime, saying that no reasonable person would think the phrase ‘8647’ was an actual call for violence, citing “dictionaries, context, precedent, and common sense.”
The filing noted that the Secret Service “knowingly conducted illegal electronic surveillance of Mr. Comey at the request of a high-level official,” even while a supervisor called it a “bad idea,” and that the service was sending “frequent updates to Air Force One” from the onset.
Later Monday, a federal magistrate judge overseeing Trump’s lawsuit against BBC said Trump claimed all his “brands, properties and businesses are impugned,” and he must therefore turn over financial records for more than 400 companies owned by a Trump family trust.
On Tuesday, Trump asked the Supreme Court to overturn a $83.3 million defamation judgement he was ordered to pay E. Jean Carroll, claiming he was entitled to presidential immunity, because the comments were made while he was president.
On Tuesday, a bipartisan group of former FCC officials wrote in a filing with the FCC that they opposed the agency’s proposed early review of broadcast license for eight ABC stations, saying the review was “an assault on free speech disguised as regulatory process.”
On Wednesday, the day after Iran sent strikes at U.S. targets in the region, and U.S. and Saudi Arabia struck Iran-backed militant groups in Iraq, Trump told Fox News, “We’re going to beat the fucking shit out of them. We’ll be hitting them hard. They’re going to get a beating.”
On Wednesday, Dr. Anthony Fauci was subpoenaed to testify before the Senate committee investigating the origins of Covid-19, led by Sen. Rand Paul, who Fauci said had an “unhinged obsession with me.” Fauci invoked the Fifth Amendment. Paul warned of “repercussions.”
Ahead of the hearing, Paul released 1,100 pages from Fauci’s diary, which was turned over by Sec. Kennedy. More than 155 physicians, scientists, and public health advocates issued a letter defending Fauci, and called out Trump’s attacks on science and scientists.

President Donald Trump speaks at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner at the Waldorf Astoria Washington DC, Friday, July 24, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)