Week 95 — The Return – The Weekly List

This was one of the longest lists of broken norms during Trump’s second regime, despite it being late August, with Congress still out of session. I encourage you all to read through the list in its entirety, because there are so many important, shocking, and disturbing subplots all at once — the U.S. is at great risk both internally and externally.

After another senior military departure, the U.S. Army finds itself without a single Senate-confirmed civilian or military leader, at a time when the country is stuck in an endless war with Iran. Reporting indicates a mix of poor planning and mismanagement has left the U.S. homeland and our forces abroad at risk, with munition stockpiles low. Trump continued his strange bromance with Russia, even as Russia directly aided Iran, and Russian President Vladimir Putin openly encouraged other countries to challenge the U.S. — it is simply inexplicable.

As midterms approach, Trump continued his efforts to impact voting. A whistleblower report suggested the U.S. Postal Service was moving ahead with Trump’s executive order on mail-in voting, despite it being blocked by the courts. Trump also continued to push ahead on his pet projects, with a win on his White House ballroom from the Supreme Court, and despite widespread disapproval from the American people.

Trump seized control of Venezuelan oil through a questionable joint venture, as U.S. oil reserves hit a 44 year-low. Again, Congress has completely abdicated their role, and Trump seemed pressed to act while Republicans were still in control of both chambers. It is a perilous time for Americans, who in poll after poll expressed their dismay on everything from AI data centers to beef imports, and Trump ignored them and focused solely on his desires, his pet projects, his legacy.

On Wednesday, a federal judge lifted all blocks on Trump’s mail-in ballots executive order, following the Supreme Court decision in Week 94 that legal challenges were premature.
On Wednesday, attorneys general in 25 Democratically-controlled states filed a new lawsuit, saying, “the federal government is attempting to meddle…and potentially threaten” Americans’ right to vote, adding, “USPS has no authority to decide who can and cannot vote by mail.”
On Thursday, the federal judge temporarily blocked the USPS from enacting its new requirements, finding the states “face irreparable harm where they are required to comply with a likely unconstitutional regulation,” and Congress had not given USPS the authority to set rules.
The judge also found that enacting the changes with 70 days until midterms could cause chaos. Already, the USPS was undergoing an upheaval amid a budget crisis, resulting in widespread complaints about delivery delays.
On Monday, an NYT analysis found that more mail-in ballots had arrived late for 2026 primaries and were rejected than in 2024, including in several battleground states. In Michigan, nearly twice as many were rejected. In Wisconsin, rejections more than doubled compared to 2023.
On Tuesday, a whistleblower report said the USPS was moving forward with a “secretive, rushed” effort to carry out Trump’s mail-in ballot executive order before midterms, even though a court had blocked it, with an effort to complete a new digital system by Sept. 1.
The report warned that the “risky and haphazard” implementation of Trump’s order could lead to a “catastrophic failure,” including the possibility that “millions of American voters may not receive their mail-in ballot this election cycle in a timely manner, or at all.”
On Wednesday, Wyoming Republican Gov. Mark Gordon expressed concern about how DOJ election monitors observed the state’s primary, saying, “It sounded like the behavior of the observers was a bit aggressive” and “irregular,” and added that he asked the state AG to look into it.
Gordon also said the monitors exceeded “the authority that Congress had given them.” Laramie County Clerk Debra Lee, also a Republican, called the monitors “poorly managed” and showing a “complete disregard for our state laws and administration of our elections.”
The Dallas Morning News reported that 1.2 million Texans, or 6% of voters, were put on the state’s Voter Suspense list ahead of midterms. Voters were not notified if they were on the list, but had until Oct. 5 to update their registration.
On Monday, in response to a letter from Democratic Sen. Elissa Slotkin who asked about the role of the armed forces in midterms, Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine wrote the Joint Force had “no plans” to send the military or National Guard to polling places during midterms.
Caine highlighted it being unlawful, adding, “I have neither received nor anticipate receiving any unlawful order concerning the role of the Joint Force in the upcoming November 2026 midterm elections.” Sec. of Defense Pete Hegseth, who received a similar letter, from Slotkin did not respond.
On Thursday, three Stars and Stripes journalists who were fired in Week 94 sued Hegseth and two top Pentagon officials, seeking to block the Pentagon from firing them, saying the firings were illegal, and part of its “extraordinary censorship efforts” against the newspaper.
On Thursday, a federal judge blocked the Pentagon’s blacklisting of Anthropic, finding that Hegseth overstepped his authority, writing, “The empty invocation of national security is not a blank check to punish and retaliate against government critics.”
On Friday, the Treasury Department refused to provide press credentials for reporters from the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and Bloomberg News to cover the G20 in Asheville, NC. The Times reporter had been attending G7 and G20 meetings since 2017.
On Monday, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov attended the summit, Russia’s first physical attendance at a G20 since their 2022 invasion of Ukraine, at Trump’s invitation. Siluanov also separately met with Treasury Department Sec. Scott Bessent.
German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil told reporters, “I find the signal sent by receiving the ⁠Russian finance minister here quite troubling.” European representatives unanimously demanded that Siluanov not be included in a traditional group photo from the summit.
WSJ reported that squabbling had overshadowed the G20, amid the Trump regime’s acrimony with Canada and Bessent mocking its military, the inclusion of Russia, and Bessent’s tone of U.S. superiority despite Trump’s tariffs, the Iran war, and U.S. sales of European bonds.
For the first time at a G20, corporate chief executives from U.S. companies were invited by the Trump regime to attend, speak, and meet with foreign finance ministers, as Bessent bragged about U.S. world economic leadership under Trump.
On Tuesday, Bessent was interviewed at the summit by Fox Business host, and former Trump regime member, Larry Kudlow, and said that the U.S. would “economically asphyxiate Iran and force them to the bargaining table.”
Bessent baselessly claimed the U.S. was in control of the Strait of Hormuz, saying, “Iran does not have control of the strait and they are in a death spiral,” adding, “Everyone in this audience and every news outlet should be ashamed for taking a lying regime at face value.”
After ABC News reported the U.S. was ramping up economic pressure to force Iran back to the negotiating table, Trump responded, posting, “I’m not trying to force Iran to the bargaining table, as ABC Fake News reported,” asking when the Iranian people would “rise up and fight.”
On Wednesday, Bessent blamed Ukraine for higher gas prices, telling Fox & Friends, “we are going through an energy shock right now due to both the war in Ukraine” and “Ukraine has decided that they want to blow up Russian energy assets and refined properties.”
On Monday, FT reported that Elon Musk told Ukrainian officials that he would be open to allowing Ukraine to use Starlink-equipped drones beyond their border over Russia, but that Trump’s White House was blocking it.
On Tuesday, in a joint appearance with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Russian President Putin pledged ongoing support to Iran despite Bessent’s Operation Economic Outcast. Putin also rallied leaders at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization to challenge the U.S.
On Tuesday, FT reported Russia was secretly helping Iran develop advanced supersonic cruise missiles in a multiyear covert program, codenamed C430L. The new class of weapons would be capable of threatening U.S. aircraft carriers and other warships in the Middle East.
On Friday, Trump announced that the U.S. had reached a deal to take control of 65 billion barrels of Venezuela’s proven oil reserves, in a partnership with a private company affiliated with Venezuelan businessman Alejandro Betancourt López, a highly unusual deal.
WSJ reported that Trump came up with the plan after months of U.S. oil companies resisting investing in drilling there. Under his plan, the U.S., through the Pentagon, would take a 35% passive stake in North American Blue Energy Partners, a private company.
The U.S. government’s partner in the venture, Betancourt, was under investigation in Spain and Switzerland for money laundering and tax fraud, and was barred from foreign travel by the British government due to outstanding extradition.
The agreement drew backlash from critics who said Venezuela’s unelected government did not have the right to sell the oil rights, which were viewed by Venezuelans as a birthright and a cornerstone of their national identity. Some called it a new U.S. colonialism.
On Saturday, Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement, the office “does not take equity stakes in private companies.” Terms of the deal released Monday contradicted that, with the Pentagon’s Office of Strategic Capital receiving warrants from the deal.
On Sunday, Trump posted on Truth Social that he would use the oil to refill the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve, calling it a “Gift from Venezuela to the People of the United States.”
NYT reported that normally, any decision to purchase oil to refill U.S. government stockpiles would be done through the Energy Department, and would require authorization, including Congressional approval.
U.S. oil reserves had hit a 44 year-low, according to Energy Department data. Reserves shrank by more than 3 million barrels over the week ending on Aug. 28, revealing a continued drawdown by the Trump regime amid the Iran war to manage gas prices.
On Wednesday, CNN reported that three Secret Service officials, including comms chief Anthony Guglielmi, were placed on leave and lost their security clearances, amid an investigation into potential misconduct. The subject of the investigation was unclear.
On Wednesday, Trump posted an AI generated image on Truth Social featuring himself and George W. Bush with signs saying, “Mission Not Accomplished in 2001–2021” and “Mission Accomplished 2026.” Trump faced widespread criticism over his claim.
On Friday, the White House issued a press release and posted on social media that “President Trump Was Right: America Controls the Strait of Hormuz,” even as the claim was demonstratively false. Some journalists compared the statement to propaganda.
On Wednesday, WSJ reported that the CIA director’s secret trip to Russia in Week 94 was to warn Russia not to attack a NATO country, after U.S. intelligence assessed that Putin could test NATO’s resolve through a limited assault on an allied country.
U.S. intelligence assessed that depleted U.S. munitions stockpiles, due to the Iran war and weapons sent to Ukraine, could be motivating Putin. The Trump regime did not confirm the reason for the visit, with Trump claiming to reporters that the trip was “sort of semi-routine.”
AP reported the U.S. military also faced a “beyond critical” shortage of U.S. Patriot and ATACMS surface-to-surface missiles in Europe, raising concerns about the vulnerability of NATO to an attack by Russia.
WSJ reported the low munitions levels had forced U.S. European Command to adjust its operational plans, and for regime officials to increasingly assess that the U.S. military could not fully execute contingency plans to protect Taiwan from a Chinese invasion.
NBC News reported that Iranian air attacks had inflicted damage on U.S. intelligence posts and surveillance hardware in the Middle East that were much more extensive than previously disclosed, and that would cost billions to repair.
The damage raised questions of why the Defense Department, State Department, and U.S. intelligence were not better prepared to defend U.S. government facilities from Iranian drone and missile strikes ahead of launching the war on Iran.
The Guardian reported that according to a leaked Pentagon memo, Trump’s Iran war had driven the military into a severe financial crisis, with the U.S. Navy forced to transfer money out of payroll and other sources, and defer payouts, to cover the costs of combat.
MS NOW reported that the number of troops seeking a formal discharge from the military had skyrocketed over the past six months, over concerns with targets in Iran, and the indiscriminate strikes on alleged drug vessels.
On Sunday, WAPO reported that in an August 14 assessment, military leaders, including heads of the Army, Navy, and Air Force and commanders overseeing operations in Europe, Asia, and Latin America, advised Hegseth that an extended Iran war was not sustainable.
The Secretary of Defense Orders Book warned a prolonged engagement in Iran risked weakening the U.S. military’s ability to confront threats elsewhere. Top officials in European and Southern Command said lending their ships has degraded their ability to defend the homeland.
The four-star generals also lodged a formal “non-concurs” against a plan by Hegseth to keep more than 50,000 U.S. troops in the Middle East through September, with some deployments potentially running into 2027, saying it was unsustainable.
Shortly after, Chief Pentagon Spokesperson Parnell posted on X, “Publishing highly classified assessments from the Secretary’s orders book is a crime.” A community note put on his post cited “the First Amendment protects the press’s right to publish classified information.”
On Monday, Trump sought to counter, claiming the war was won, posting, “Iran is officially a Failed Nation. IT IS DEAD!” baselessly claiming, “They have no Navy, they have no Air Force, they have no currency,” and “their leadership is in total disarray.”
Trump also mocked critics of AI data centers, posting, “The only reason that communities” should not want data centers was if they wanted to be “backwards and poor,” adding to be “successful and rich” then “let Data Reign.” Polls showed 7 in 10 Americans opposed data centers.
Later Monday, WSJ reported that Army Secretary Dan Driscoll had resigned to Trump, after months of friction with Hegseth, leaving the Army without any Senate-confirmed civilian or military leaders. Dave Fitzgerald, the deputy undersecretary, was also expected to resign.
According to a source familiar with Driscoll’s resignation, he had “brought up concerns with the administration surrounding Army transformation and readiness and Hegseth’s blocking those efforts specifically by firing the Generals who were responsible.”
The Atlantic reported that Driscoll had raised his concerns about the future of the Army to Trump in a meeting last week, and Trump was surprised by how many generals and other top officers had been fired, pushed out, or passed over for promotion by Hegseth.
NBC News reported Hegseth had removed at least six Army officers from a list to receive promotions to two-star general last week. Several of those removed were logisticians, which were the most diverse in the Army, including Black, Hispanic, and female soldiers.
Propublica reported that shortly after taking office Hegseth had polled top military commanders on cutting a program that protected civilians from being targeted, and every commander wanted to keep it. Hegseth cut it any way, calling it “woke.”
NYT reported the problems getting supplies to the USS Abraham Lincoln resulted from an inability to use the U.S. base in Bahrain that was attacked by Iran as a logistics hub, and instead needing to use a tiny island under British command, Diego Garcia, that was 2,200 miles away.
On Sunday, WAPO reported that the Pentagon secretly installed social media influencers with large followings into civilian roles, in an effort to shape public opinion, including amplifying Hegseth’s culture-war fights.
The effort was run out of the office of Anthony Tata, the undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, and included Rob Maness, a retired Air Force colonel; Kurt Schlichter, a retired Army colonel; and Thomas Anderson, a retired Army colonel and influencer.
As part of the project, an anonymous Pentagon employee, thought to be Jennica Pounds, launched a public tool called DSA explorer, which she described as an “interactive map of the Democratic Socialists of America.” Pounds was listed as a “special government employee.”
On Monday, Trump posted an AI video of the U.S. bombing Kharg Island, with oil storage tanks and refineries erupting in flames. The Pentagon was forced to explain that the U.S. had not in fact struck the island, which is Iran’s main petroleum export facility.
WAPO reported that the military had yet to pay severance to at least a dozen former transgender service members, months after the payments were due, leaving at least one veteran homeless while they awaited their payment.
Libby Klinner, the wife of Maj. Alex Klinner who was killed in March during Operation Epic Fury, posted on Instagram on being denied some benefits, “The Air Force recently told me that because we haven’t officially declared war, my kids and I aren’t eligible for some benefits.”
On Wednesday, the State Department temporarily paused worldwide immigration visa appointments, citing a “global training initiative” launched in August to retrain consular staff on screening applicants to identify those who might become reliant on public benefits.
Economists said that pause, along with the cancellation of business and tourism visas in Week 94, could put further strains on the economy, by limiting labor and tourism.
NYT reported that ICE arrests rose to record highs of 43,000 in June and 49,000 in July, as the Trump regime increasingly focused on people accused of violating civil immigration laws, but with the share of those with a past violent criminal conviction falling to 4%.
ICE achieved the higher arrests by growing the number of ICE agents to 29,000 in June, up from 21,000 when Trump took office, and by deputizing local police to make arrests, which now accounted for 14% of all arrests.
AP reported ICE officer Christian Castro was released from a detention center in Texas, after Republican Gov. Greg Abbott declined to sign his extradition warrant to Minnesota, where he faced charges for shooting a man in Minneapolis and lying about it.
The move by Abbott, which he justified by the ongoing investigation into fraud in social service programs in Minnesota, was highly unusual and set a troubling precedent. Federal law gave little discretion to reject extradition requests from fellow states.
NYT reported that according to internal documents, the Trump regime planned to expand deportation flights to Haiti from once a month to once a week, despite widespread violence there, and the Haitian migration agency and the U.N. agency’s inability to receive them.
The Bulwark reported in Springfield, Ohio, many Haitians are afraid to go outside. One said when seven reported for ICE check-ins last week, one who had given birth to a stillborn twenty days before, and could barely walk, was nonetheless put in shackles by ICE.
The Tampa Bay Times reported Cubans living in Florida were being deported to Central African Republic, one of the poorest countries in Africa, where they had no ties.
NYT reported that based on interviews of 10 people who were deported on a 14 hour flight to Liberia, ICE treated them with brutality, including being shackled and some violently beaten, with some crying for medical care, after months of detention. None had ties to Liberia.
While detained, three said they suffered “psychological torture,” detained for as long as 15 months. They were routinely beaten, denied medical care including for pregnant women, their hands and ankles were tied, 50 people shared one toilet, and they spent days in a frigid room with no beds.
DHS denied the Times’ reports of abuse, posting on X, “Another day and another hoax about ICE detention from the @nytimes…The media is clearly desperate for these false allegations to be true.” The NYT stood by its reporting, citing four journalists had interviewed the 10 people.
Mohammad Nazeer Paktiawal, 41, an Afghan national who fought alongside U.S. forces in Afghanistan, died of an allergic reaction less than 24 hours after being taken into ICE custody. His death certificate ruled his death as an “accident.”
The Guardian reported DHS was using an arcane provision of federal law, 19 USC 1509, meant to deal with customs imports, to secretly obtain private information from journalists, non-profits, and unions, instead of using subpoenas, in one case in direct conflict of a judge’s order.
Reuters reported the State Department had proposed requiring parents applying for passports for their children to prove their citizenship, the Trump regime’s latest effort to limit birthright citizenship.
On Wednesday, a federal judge declined a DOJ request to dismiss the contempt of Congress conviction against Trump ally Steve Bannon, finding the regime had failed to comply with the requirement to explain their motivations for dismissing the indictment.
On Friday, a federal judge rejected Trump’s third attempt to move his hush money conviction to federal court, where Trump believed he would have broader protection from prosecution, finding that he had waited too long to try to move the case.
A federal judge ruled the Trump regime had violated the constitutional rights of Stanford University students, when it tried to deport them for criticizing Israel’s war in Gaza, saying free speech is hurt when people “must self-censor and ‘behave’ or suffer the government’s retaliation.”
CNN reported six former U.S. archivists, who served under Republican and Democratic presidents, urged a federal appeals court in an amicus brief to reject the Trump regime’s efforts to ignore the public records law, saying it jeopardized national security and government continuity.
WAPO reported part of Trump’s deal to pay German energy giant RWE $1.2 billion in federal funds to cancel a wind deal was that the company purchase a $900 million stake in a liquefied natural gas project owned by Michael Dorrell, a Trump donor and Mar-a-Lago neighbor.
WSJ reported investor Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed al Nahyan of Abu Dhabi held a 49% stake in the Trump family’s venture to create a new cryptocurrency bank through World Liberty Financial. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency granted preliminary conditional approval.
NOTUS reported that Trump was quietly working to give private developer Kingsbarn Realty Capital a parcel of land in Yosemite National Park. The National Park Service is under pressure to find a way to make it happen, breaking 150 years of precedent of not giving land.
On Friday, the National Park Service issued a report backing Trump’s proposed 250-foot tall arch, despite finding that the arch would disturb the sightline between more iconic Washington landmarks than anticipated. Typically such monuments had been planned over decades.
WAPO reported although the Trump regime said in court filings with the Supreme Court that the White House ballroom was 65% complete, as part of their argument, documents reviewed by the Post showed it was between 24% and 33% complete, based on budget estimates.
On Thursday, a report from the National Transportation Safety Board found that construction of Trump’s White House ballroom may have contributed to a close call earlier in the month of Trump’s helicopter coming dangerously close to a commercial jet over Washington.
On Monday, the Supreme Court ruled 5–4 that Trump could continue with his ballroom construction, overruling two lower court rulings, citing the historic preservation group that sued likely lacked legal standing.
Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in his dissent that the “construction is likely unlawful” as Congress has explicitly prohibited the construction of any “building or structure” without their approval, and that the “aesthetic injury” claimed by challengers was sufficient.
WAPO reported Trump had begun removing dozens of trees as part of his redo of the East Potomac golf course, including cutting down cherry trees which were gifted to the U.S. by Japan in 1912. A judge in May said she wanted to be notified before 10 or more trees were removed.
NYT reported the Kennedy Center began removing a major outdoor sculpture from the center’s grounds, known as the “Blue,” which was installed in 2019. No advance announcement was made by the center or the Trump regime.
Politico reported that the General Services Administration, under instruction by Trump, awarded a $253,000 contract for lighting work on the White House bowling alley. A similar project was shut down by Republicans in 2014 when Barack Obama’s GSA made a similar request.
Trump continued to push his pet projects, with Congress the only way to stop him. The public remained vastly against it: a WAPO/Ipsos poll found that 32% of Americans were “enthusiastic” or “satisfied” with Trump’s construction projects, while 65% were “dissatisfied” or “upset.”
Politico reported a lawsuit filed by Mansfield Oil claimed that KRSM, an entity owned by Trump donors, was able to sell gas at below market prices at its Freedom Fuel gas station, to the praise of Trump, because they had acquired fuel from a Sunoco terminal and never paid for it.
WSJ reported companies that had established close ties to and made donations to Trump were taking steps to win favor with Democrats, including making large donations and hiring former Democratic officials, fearing investigation if they take control of Congress.
On Thursday, Trump signed an executive order renaming Lake Ontario to “Lake America,” citing his trade war with the country. The name change, similar to what Trump did with the Gulf of Mexico in 2025, changed the name for U.S. federal government use.
Trump told reporters, “The Canadian officials have treated us very badly. They’re nasty people,” adding, “People oftentimes they’ll ask me who’s the worst to deal with on trade, and I said that’s easy, Canada. They are the worst to trade, and they feel entitled.”
On Thursday, twenty-one universities in Canada announced that they had poached 48 scholars away from top U.S. universities, including Harvard, Yale, and M.I.T., amid Trump’s crackdown on major universities and attacks on scientific research groups.
On Saturday, Trump posted an AI slop video clip on Truth Social of armed ducks marching in unison and firing on “Lake America.” Trump also posted an AI clip of himself changing a sign that said “Lake Ontario” to one that said “Lake America.”
On Sunday, Google Maps changed the name of the lake to Lake America, similar to what it did for changing Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America. Trump reached out to Apple directly to ask for the change at Apple Maps, and that was made on Monday.
MapQuest, which announced it would not make the change to Lake America, surged in app downloads. On Tuesday, MapQuest was the top free app in both Apple’s U.S. and Canadian App Stores, its highest ranking in its 30-year history.
On Monday, Hegseth posted on X a Canadian flag emoji and the words “(this is real)” above a photo of a female cadet receiving a medal at the Vernon Cadet Training Center, a center for Canadian youths, from a female instructor, whom Hegseth was body-shaming.
On Tuesday, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 20% of Americans supported Trump’s tariffs on Canada, 57% opposed. On Trump’s renaming Lake Ontario to Lake America, 14% supported it, while 63% opposed it.
On Tuesday, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney blasted Trump and his regime for “doing memes” and “throwing shade” against his nation, saying when they are done, the two can “start being serious about having those discussions” on trade and tariffs.
On Wednesday, the Department of Education posted on X, and then deleted, a video clip that appeared to show Trump with a tiger, that drew a community note saying the clip was from a scene from “Darkest Hour,” and referred to Adolph Hitler.
On Thursday, Trump posted a meme ranking various presidents as “Great,” “Near Great,” “Average,” “Below Average,” “Failures,” and himself as “The Greatest.” Among the failures were recent Democratic presidents Joe Biden, Barack Obama, and Jimmy Carter.
WSJ reported that while Trump aides said that he was focused largely on “his legacy,” and on not being remembered as weak, or leaving a legacy that could be easily erased, Republicans were concerned that his sagging poll numbers and focus on himself would hurt in midterms.
The Centers for Disease Control, under the direction of its new director Erica Schwartz, removed two deaths from measles that were reported in Pennsylvania during the week from its database update, a highly unusual departure from past practice.
A federal judge rebuked the Department of Health and Human Services for citing nonexistent scientific evidence or potentially AI-generated citations to cut tens of millions in grants for teen pregnancy prevention programs.
Reuters reported the number of U.S. parents and caregivers who refused a standard vitamin K shot for infants at birth rose by 57% from January to June in 2026, putting newborns at risk for catastrophic bleeding, part of a growing wave of mistrust toward vaccines.
On Friday, Trump’s DOJ pushed back on requests made in a lawsuit filed by Trump critics for information on how the $10 billion IRS lawsuit deal was finalized, saying the lawsuit was being used to get information that the challengers were not entitled to receive.
The federal magistrate judge said the DOJ had to either produce the information or explain why it was shielded by attorney-client privilege or other protections, ordering the release of certain information, and giving the parties one more week to reach an agreement.
On Friday, Trump announced on Truth Social, amid a backlash from farmers over his pausing tariffs on beef, that he would authorize “Farmers and Ranchers…the right to PROCESS THEIR OWN FOOD.” The move also came amid multiple food-borne illness outbreaks.
On Friday, NYT reported Trump would not attend the ceremony to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Sept. 11 at ground zero, after his team expressed interest in him having a speaking spot, but event organizers saying they had not allowed politicians to speak since 2012.
Shortly after, Trump attacked NYT reported Maggie Haberman on Truth Social, calling her “Maggot Haberman,” a “Fake Reporter” and “an unattractive person both inside and out,” and “a stalker” who should be “forced to turn over any and all money” she made reporting on him.
On Sunday, Trump lashed out at NBC’s Kristen Welker after a segment citing the mixed results of his endorsements, posting, “How can anyone be allowed to say this, working for freely given Public Airwaves?” adding, “she will be reported to the FCC for rebuke or punishment.”
Trump also baselessly posted, “THE FAKE POLLS USED BY OUR CROOKED MEDIA ARE OUT OF CONTROL,” and again called for his FCC Chair Brendan Carr to take action, posting, “SOMETHING MUST BE DONE ABOUT IT. FCC TO THE RESCUE!”
CBS News reported amid the exodus of FBI staffers to firings, retirements, and resignations, the bureau lowered its standards for background checks, allowing people with a history of hiring prostitutes, stealing from an employer, or bestiality to be considered.
A report by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration found that IRS audit revenue was $6.5 billion in fiscal year 2025, a 35% decrease from $10 billion the prior year, as staffing cuts resulted in the IRS losing roughly 30% of its audit staffers.
On Tuesday, the White House announced it would hold a press briefing on Thursday, the first in over 40 days. The White House did not confirm who would be briefing the press.
On Tuesday, the DOJ filed a federal lawsuit against the school system in Kansas City, Kansas over their transgender policies, saying the schools’ policies prevented the disclosure of a student’s “transgender status” to parents, if the student did not give consent.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks at a fireside chat event with Fox Business host Larry Kudlow at a contentious G20 Finance Ministerial in Asheville, N.C., Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)