Category: Uncategorized

From the desk of Rich Stephens

News for the week ending 7-18-26

Below find the expanded text from tonight’s broadcast. For corrections or additions, contact Rich directly.

Politics

Lindsey Graham Dies at 71 After More Than Three Decades in Congress

United States Senator Lindsey Graham died suddenly on Sunday, July 12, after more than three decades in Congress and more than 40 years of public service.

Graham was born in Central, South Carolina, on July 9, 1955. His parents owned the Sanitary Café, a restaurant and pool hall where the family also lived. He became the first member of his family to attend college, earning undergraduate and law degrees from the University of South Carolina.

Both of Graham’s parents died while he was a young adult. He assumed responsibility for his younger sister, Darline, and later became her legal guardian while completing his education and beginning his military career.

Graham joined the United States Air Force in 1982 and served as a military lawyer. He later continued his service through the Air Force Reserve and South Carolina Air National Guard, retiring with the rank of colonel after more than three decades in uniform.

His elected career began in the South Carolina House of Representatives in 1993. Graham was elected to the United States House two years later and represented South Carolina’s Third Congressional District for four terms.

In 2002, Graham won the Senate seat previously held by Strom Thurmond. He was reelected four times and served South Carolina in the Senate for more than 23 years.

Graham became one of Washington’s most recognizable voices on national security, foreign policy, military affairs and the federal courts. He served on the Senate Armed Services, Judiciary, Appropriations and Budget committees and held leadership positions including chairman of the Judiciary and Budget committees.

As Judiciary Committee chairman, Graham oversaw hearings and confirmation proceedings for federal judges, including Supreme Court nominees. His broader legislative work included national defense, veterans, immigration, criminal justice, government spending and international affairs.

Graham was a persistent advocate for a strong American military and an active United States role overseas. He regularly visited American troops and foreign leaders and became closely associated with congressional support for Israel, Ukraine and other American allies.

He also built relationships across party lines and was known for maintaining personal friendships with lawmakers he frequently opposed in public. Colleagues remembered his humor, energy, command of foreign-policy issues and willingness to take politically difficult positions.

Graham never married and had no children. His closest immediate family relationship remained the bond with the younger sister he helped raise after their parents died.

Lindsey Graham was 71 years old.

Biographical Directory of the United States Congress: Lindsey Graham

Senator Jack Reed statement on the death of Lindsey Graham

New Jersey Creates Framework for New Nuclear Power

On Monday, July 13, Governor Mikie Sherrill signed the Power NJ Act, directing the state to seek proposals for at least 1,100 megawatts of new nuclear generation.

The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities and New Jersey Economic Development Authority will create a competitive procurement process to evaluate proposed reactor designs, construction costs, federal licensing, financing, electricity prices, workforce commitments, environmental impacts and community benefits.

The Board of Public Utilities must request expressions of interest by January 9, 2027. Developers will then have 60 days to submit proposals. The state could issue a final project approval by July 2028, although federal licensing and construction would continue beyond that decision.

A developer must secure federal financing before receiving final state approval. The project must also pass reviews by the Board of Public Utilities and Economic Development Authority and demonstrate a net benefit to New Jersey ratepayers.

The law requires at least two public-comment periods and a hearing in any municipality proposed to host a project. The New Jersey Division of Rate Counsel will participate in the review and independently evaluate the proposed costs and ratepayer impact.

Customers would not begin paying until an approved plant starts producing electricity, and construction overruns could not be passed on to them. Once operating, the plant would receive payments through Reliable Capacity Certificates purchased by electricity suppliers serving New Jersey customers.

The plant could also earn revenue from electricity, capacity and other market sales. Some of that revenue could be returned to customers to offset the certificate payments.

Sherrill described the program as a purchase of nuclear energy at a negotiated price rather than a construction subsidy. The Legislature’s nonpartisan fiscal office said the effect on customer bills cannot be calculated until the state selects a project and establishes the certificate price, contract length and revenue-sharing terms.

Before the bill was amended, the Division of Rate Counsel warned that the proposal could place decades of financial risk on ordinary customers. Rate Counsel argued that data centers and other large users driving electricity demand should contract directly with new generators instead of spreading the cost across all ratepayers.

The final legislation added federal-financing requirements, Rate Counsel review, public participation, a net-benefit test and protections against construction costs and overruns. The remaining customer cost will depend on the price negotiated with a developer and the future value of the electricity and capacity produced by the plant.

The Salem nuclear complex appears to be the most advanced potential site for a large reactor. The United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued an early site permit for property near the existing Salem and Hope Creek reactors in 2016, completing several site-related reviews before any reactor design or construction application is submitted.

Sherrill also identified the former Oyster Creek site as a possible location for small modular reactors. The state procurement process will determine which developers, technologies and locations move forward.

Governor Sherrill signs the Power NJ Act

New Jersey Office of Legislative Services fiscal estimate

Division of Rate Counsel letter on the Power NJ Act

Executive Order creating New Jersey’s Nuclear Power Task Force

Nuclear Regulatory Commission record for the Salem early site permit

White House Releases Election-Security Files and Orders New Reviews Before Midterms

On Thursday, July 16, President Donald Trump released four collections of government records concerning election-system vulnerabilities, Chinese acquisition of voter information, a Michigan voter-registration investigation, and noncitizens identified on state voter rolls.

The files were published through a new White House election-integrity page. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin followed Friday with plans to review voter registrations, tighten cybersecurity requirements, investigate suspected illegal voting, and condition some federal election funding on state compliance with new security standards.

The White House says China acquired approximately 220 million American voter files through purchases, theft, or computer intrusions beginning around the 2020 election cycle. The information included names, addresses, telephone numbers, party affiliations, and other personal data from voter systems in at least 18 states.

The records document a large breach of voter information. They do not establish that China altered voter registrations, ballots, vote totals, or an American election result.

Trump also accused intelligence officials of withholding reporting about China from him, Congress, and the public. He directed the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, Central Intelligence Agency, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Department of Justice to identify those responsible and determine whether firings or criminal charges are warranted.

The released documents include assessments warning that Russia, China, Iran, North Korea, and private groups possess the ability to compromise voter-registration databases, electronic poll books, election websites, and other election infrastructure.

The records identify technical vulnerabilities and foreign capabilities. They do not establish that an adversary altered American vote totals or changed a certified election result.

The White House also released Federal Bureau of Investigation records from a 2020 voter-registration investigation in Muskegon, Michigan. Canvassers reportedly admitted signing applications in other people’s names, submitting registrations for nonexistent people, and receiving gift cards based on the number of forms submitted.

The records do not establish how many applications were accepted, whether fraudulent registrations remained active, or whether any produced a ballot that was cast or counted.

On Friday, Mullin said the Department of Homeland Security identified approximately 278,000 possible noncitizens on voter rolls. More than 250,000 came from public voter files in just four states: California, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Nevada.

Roughly 28,000 additional matches were identified through checks conducted with 23 states participating in the department’s citizenship-verification program. Mullin also said those cooperating states identified approximately 400,000 deceased people who remained registered.

The department is reviewing the records individually to confirm each person’s identity, citizenship, registration status, and whether a ballot was cast. It has not released a final count of confirmed illegal registrations or votes.

Mullin said the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency will publish an updated election-infrastructure plan within 30 days. States will also be offered citizenship-verification tools, cybersecurity assistance, training, and information about known vulnerabilities.

The administration plans to require states receiving certain federal election funds to implement security improvements. Mullin did not identify the specific grants, mandatory standards, or legal mechanism during the briefing.

Trump also urged Congress to pass the SAVE America Act, which would require documentary proof of citizenship and photo identification for federal voting.

White House election-integrity documents

Intelligence Community assessment of foreign threats to the 2020 election

Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency statement on the 2020 election

New York Tattoo Company Challenges South Carolina Restrictions

A New York City tattoo company and two South Carolina residents filed a federal lawsuit Friday, July 17, challenging state laws that restrict where tattoo businesses may operate and prohibit artists from tattooing a consenting adult’s head, face, or neck.

South Carolina bars the Department of Public Health from licensing a tattoo facility within 1,000 feet of a church, school, or playground. State law also makes it a misdemeanor to tattoo another person’s head, face, or neck, punishable by up to a $2,500 fine, one year in jail, or both.

Tiny Zaps operates tattoo studios in New York City and offers custom tattoos through artist collaborations and pop-up events. The company planned to open a location inside a boutique hotel in Charleston’s historic district and identified a licensed South Carolina tattoo artist to operate it.

According to the complaint, the proposed hotel is within 1,000 feet of at least four churches and one school, preventing the location from receiving a tattoo-facility license.

The lawsuit argues that tattoos and the process of creating them are artistic expression protected by the First Amendment. The plaintiffs describe the 1,000-foot rule as a restriction on where tattoo artists may create their work and the head, face, and neck prohibition as a ban based on where that artwork appears on an adult’s body.

South Carolina enacted the restrictions in 2004 when it legalized and regulated commercial tattooing. The same chapter established licensing, sanitation, sterilization, training, age-verification, and inspection requirements.

South Carolina previously prohibited nearly all tattooing outside a medical setting. In 2002, the South Carolina Supreme Court upheld that prohibition and ruled that the act of tattooing was not sufficiently communicative to receive First Amendment protection.

The federal complaint challenges that conclusion, arguing that the creation of a tattoo cannot be separated from the finished artwork.

The plaintiffs are asking the court to declare both restrictions unconstitutional and permanently block Public Health Director Brannon Traxler and Attorney General Alan Wilson from enforcing them. The complaint also requests attorney fees and litigation costs.

South Carolina lawmakers have previously considered changing the restrictions. House Bill 3099 would remove the head, face, and neck prohibition and allow tattoo facilities within 1,000 feet when each affected church, school, or playground agrees. The bill was referred to a House committee in January 2025 and has not advanced.

Tiny Zaps v. Traxler federal complaint

South Carolina tattoo law

South Carolina Supreme Court decision in State v. White

South Carolina House Bill 3099

Current Events

Sam Neill, ‘Jurassic Park’ Star, Dies at 78

Actor Sam Neill died Monday, July 13, in Sydney, Australia. His family said he was surrounded by loved ones and described his death as sudden and unexpected.

Neill’s representative later said the actor died from pneumonia. His family emphasized that he remained cancer-free after undergoing treatment for angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma, a rare form of blood cancer.

Born Nigel John Dermot Neill in Omagh, Northern Ireland, Neill moved with his family to New Zealand as a child. He began his screen career in New Zealand and gained international attention through roles in Sleeping Dogs and My Brilliant Career.

Neill appeared in more than five decades of film and television. His credits included Dead Calm, The Hunt for Red October, A Cry in the Dark, The Piano, Event Horizon, Peaky Blinders and Hunt for the Wilderpeople.

He became known worldwide for playing paleontologist Dr. Alan Grant in Steven Spielberg’s 1993 film Jurassic Park. Neill returned to the role in Jurassic Park III and, nearly three decades after the original film, Jurassic World Dominion.

Outside acting, Neill established the Two Paddocks winery in New Zealand’s Central Otago region in 1993. He spent much of his later life working at the vineyard and surrounding farm.

Neill discussed his cancer diagnosis in his 2023 memoir, Did I Ever Tell You This?. After several years of treatment, he announced earlier this year that he was cancer-free.

Sam Neill was 78 years old.

Statement from Sam Neill’s family

Two Paddocks official website

Body-Camera Footage Released in Fatal Wilmington Police Shooting

On June 24, a Wilmington, Delaware, police officer shot and killed 19-year-old Kadir Skinner during a foot pursuit near 24th and Carter streets.

Police said Skinner left a residence carrying a handgun and pointed it toward a large crowd. Officers approached, Skinner ran, and an officer shot him during the pursuit.

Body-camera footage released Thursday, July 16, shows Skinner running as an officer follows with his handgun drawn and fires while Skinner is moving away. The footage does not clearly show Skinner leaving a residence, pointing a gun toward a crowd, or threatening the pursuing officer.

The Delaware Division of Forensic Sciences determined that Skinner was struck once in the upper-left buttock. After he fell, officers handcuffed him as he repeatedly said he could not breathe.

Police recovered a loaded .45-caliber handgun with an extended magazine from nearby grass. Fingerprint, DNA, and firearm-testing results have not been released.

The Delaware Department of Justice released body-camera recordings from three officers. The recordings begin shortly before the officers arrive and continue through the immediate aftermath of the shooting.

The Division of Civil Rights and Public Trust is investigating whether the officer’s use of deadly force was legally justified. The officer’s identity, forensic evidence, witness accounts, and final legal analysis will be released after the investigation is complete.

Skinner’s family says the footage conflicts with the police description of the encounter and is demanding that the officer face criminal charges.

The family’s attorneys also served Wilmington with a $25 million notice of claim, preserving their ability to file a wrongful-death lawsuit. No civil complaint had been filed at the time of the announcement.

Delaware Department of Justice release and body-camera footage

Wilmington statement on the shooting investigation

Skinner family attorneys’ press conference

Philadelphia Ship Order Becomes First Major Test of Trump’s Maritime Plan

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought announced Friday, July 17, that two new military tracking ships will be built at Hanwha Philly Shipyard under a $2 billion federal investment.

The Missile Range Instrumentation Vessels will replace two approximately 50-year-old ships used by the Missile Defense Agency. The vessels will monitor missile-interception tests over the Pacific Ocean, collect test data and support range-safety operations.

TOTE Services will manage construction through a commercial vessel-construction model previously used by the Transportation Department for a fleet of maritime training ships. Both vessels will be built in Philadelphia, with the first scheduled for delivery by June 2030.

The announcement came during the christening of the Lone Star State, the fourth of five National Security Multi-Mission Vessels built at the same shipyard. Those ships are designed primarily to train merchant mariners but can also carry emergency personnel and supplies during natural disasters.

The new order is part of a broader administration effort to rebuild American shipbuilding rather than a standalone Philadelphia project.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order in April 2025 directing agencies to develop a national maritime strategy covering federal ship orders, commercial shipping, domestic shipyards, suppliers, ports and maritime workers. The order also called for private investment, partnerships with allied shipbuilders and changes intended to reduce federal shipbuilding delays and cost overruns.

The resulting America’s Maritime Action Plan was released in February. It says the United States builds less than 1% of the world’s commercial ships and has only eight shipyards capable of constructing vessels longer than 400 feet.

The plan calls for more predictable federal ship orders, shipyard modernization, expanded worker training, supply-chain investment and greater use of commercial construction practices. It also encourages shipbuilders from allied countries to invest in American facilities.

That strategy is already visible in Philadelphia. Hanwha, a South Korean company, purchased the shipyard and is now positioned to build American commercial and government vessels with Korean capital and shipbuilding expertise.

The United States and South Korea announced a broader agreement last year that included $150 billion in Korean shipbuilding investment. The countries also established a working group focused on American shipyard modernization, workforce development, supply chains and military-vessel production.

Friday’s announcement connects that international agreement to an actual federal ship order.

It also expands the Transportation Department’s role in military ship construction. TOTE Services will oversee the project using the same commercial management model employed for the National Security Multi-Mission Vessel program. Under that arrangement, the Maritime Administration hires a private construction manager that selects and supervises the shipyard.

The Transportation Department says TOTE delivered the first four training vessels on time and within budget. The fifth is scheduled for delivery in 2027.

The two Missile Range Instrumentation Vessels will now serve as a larger test of that approach. Unlike the training ships, they will carry specialized equipment used during missile-defense testing.

The administration has announced the shipyard, construction manager, overall funding and first delivery target. It has not released a signed contract, detailed specifications, individual ship costs or a delivery schedule for the second vessel.

The Philadelphia order is therefore both an early product of the national maritime strategy and a measurable test of it. The first result is scheduled to reach the government by June 2030.

U.S. Department of Transportation announcement on the Philadelphia shipbuilding investment

Executive Order 14269 — Restoring America’s Maritime Dominance

America’s Maritime Action Plan

White House fact sheet on the United States–South Korea investment agreement

Maritime Administration explanation of the commercial vessel-construction model

Finance

Markets

Markets were down across the board this week. The Dow Jones lost nearly a point, closing 491 points from last week and finishing at 52,146.

NASDAQ suffered a 761 point loss, representing nearly 3% and closed at 25,520.

The S&P500 closed at 7,457, a lost of 118 points, just over 1.5%.

Gold futures shrunk to $4018 per ounce after losing $95, a 2.3% drop.

Sports

Jannik Sinner Defends Wimbledon Title in Four-Set Final

Jannik Sinner successfully defended his Wimbledon championship Sunday, July 12, defeating Alexander Zverev 6-7(7), 7-6(2), 6-3, 6-4 in the men’s singles final.

The match opened with 31 consecutive service holds. Neither player broke serve through the first two sets or the first seven games of the third before Sinner finally broke Zverev in the match’s 32nd game.

Zverev won the opening-set tiebreak after saving a set point. Sinner answered by taking the second-set tiebreak 7-2, then produced the match’s only two service breaks to take control.

Sinner saved the only break point he faced, hit 58 winners and completed the victory on his first championship point after three hours and 46 minutes.

The victory gave Sinner his second consecutive Wimbledon title, fifth Grand Slam championship and 100th Grand Slam match win. He became the 10th man to successfully defend the Wimbledon men’s singles championship.

Zverev reached his first Wimbledon final one month after winning his first Grand Slam title at the French Open. After the match, he called Sinner “the best player in the world.”

Official Wimbledon men’s singles draw and results

Official Wimbledon men’s final report

ATP final report and match statistics

ATP post-match comments from Alexander Zverev

Automated Challenges Expose Repeated Problems for MLB Umpire Jen Pawol

Umpire Jen Pawol angered both teams during the San Diego Padres’ 5-4 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday, July 12.

Pawol called a 3-0 pitch to Sung-Mun Song a strike. Song immediately tapped his helmet for an automated challenge, but Pawol was looking away, missed the signal and rejected the request as late. San Diego’s dugout protested, and hitting coach Steven Souza Jr. was ejected during the argument.

Later in the inning, Jackson Merrill pointed out a possible balk by Toronto pitcher Kevin Gausman. Pawol crouched and called the pitch a strike before the umpires met and ruled a balk, allowing a run to score.

The July 12 game was not Pawol’s first difficult plate assignment. On June 14, players challenged nine of her calls during a Cardinals-Twins game, and the automated system overturned six. Pawol finished that game with 90.9% accuracy, more than three percentage points below the expected accuracy for the pitches she saw.

On June 9, Pawol worked a Nationals-Giants game in which four of five challenges against her were successful. She finished with 91.9% accuracy, compared with an expected rate of nearly 95%.

UmpScorecards lists Pawol at approximately 91.9% accuracy for the 2026 season. Her July 12 performance was lower at 89.9%, with her correct-call total more than three and a half calls below expectations.

Those numbers are slightly worse than the late-career accuracy figures recorded for Ángel Hernández and Joe West. The comparison has limits: Pawol has worked far fewer major-league games, and neither Hernández nor West worked under the current regular-season challenge system.

There is not enough data to conclude that Pawol is a worse career umpire than Hernández or West. Her early major-league record does show repeated below-expected plate performances, high challenge-overturn totals and a valid July 12 challenge she rejected because she was not watching the batter.

UmpScorecards season data for Jen Pawol

UmpScorecards individual game data

Major League Baseball official umpire biographies

Jordan Walker Wins Home Run Derby; American League Takes All-Star Game

Jordan Walker won the Home Run Derby Monday, July 13, defeating Philadelphia Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber 12-11 in the final at Citizens Bank Park.

Schwarber hit 11 home runs, while Walker still needed four when he reached his final scheduled swing. Under the Derby’s do-or-die format, Walker could continue as long as each swing produced another home run.

Walker homered on six consecutive swings, including four straight do-or-die attempts, to pass Schwarber and win the title. He hit 31 total home runs over three rounds and became the first St. Louis Cardinals player to win the event.

The following night, the American League defeated the National League 4-0 in the Major League Baseball All-Star Game.

Cody Bellinger drove in two runs during a three-run first inning, and Miguel Vargas added a 433-foot home run in the eighth. Bellinger was named the game’s Most Valuable Player.

American League pitchers held the National League to three singles, struck out 15 and did not allow a runner to reach second base. It was the first All-Star Game shutout since 2013.

Major League Baseball Home Run Derby recap

Major League Baseball Home Run Derby results and statistics

Major League Baseball All-Star Game recap

Major League Baseball report on Cody Bellinger’s MVP performance

Spain and Argentina Advance to the World Cup Final

Spain advanced to the World Cup final Tuesday, July 14, with a 2-0 semifinal win over France at Dallas Stadium.

Mikel Oyarzabal converted a penalty in the 22nd minute, and Pedro Porro added the second goal after halftime to send Spain to its first World Cup final since winning the tournament in 2010.

Argentina followed Wednesday, July 15, with a 2-1 comeback win over England in Atlanta.

Anthony Gordon put England ahead in the 55th minute, but Enzo Fernández tied the match with five minutes remaining. Lautaro Martínez scored the winner in stoppage time, with Lionel Messi assisting both Argentine goals.

Spain and defending champion Argentina will play for the World Cup Sunday, July 19, at 3 p.m. Eastern at New York New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Spain is seeking its second World Cup championship. Argentina is trying to become the first nation since Brazil in 1962 to win consecutive titles.

FIFA report on Spain’s semifinal win over France

FIFA report on Argentina’s semifinal win over England

FIFA information on the 2026 World Cup final venue

Josh Kerr Breaks 27-Year-Old Mile World Record in London

Josh Kerr broke the men’s outdoor mile world record Saturday, July 18, running 3 minutes, 42.66 seconds at the London Diamond League.

The British runner lowered Hicham El Guerrouj’s previous record of 3:43.13, set in 1999, by 0.47 seconds. Kerr became the first man to complete an outdoor mile in under 3 minutes, 43 seconds.

The attempt had been planned for months under the name Project 222, referring to the 222 seconds Kerr needed to reach the 3:42 range.

Pacemakers Brannon Kidder and Žan Rudolf kept Kerr near record pace through the opening half. Kerr passed 1,200 meters in 2:46.39 and completed the final lap alone in front of approximately 60,000 people at London Stadium.

“I knew I had a 3:42 in me,” Kerr said. “I nearly lost it there at the end, but I got over the line.”

American Yared Nuguse finished second in 3:45.69. Britain’s Jake Heyward placed third in 3:46.73, while Robert Farken finished fourth in a German-record 3:46.82.

Kerr’s time remains subject to World Athletics’ standard record-ratification process.

World Athletics announcement of Josh Kerr’s mile world record

Diamond League race report, splits and results

London Diamond League report and Josh Kerr comments

Rich Stephens

The Cold Take

From the desk of Rich Stephens

News for the week ending 7-11-26

Below find the expanded text from tonight’s broadcast. For corrections or additions, contact Rich directly.

Politics

Questions Grow Over Mitch McConnell’s Health After Weeks Without Direct Public Update

Questions are growing over Senator Mitch McConnell’s health after weeks without a direct public update from the Kentucky Republican.

McConnell’s office has acknowledged through spokesperson statements that he was hospitalized on June 14. Since then, the office has said he is improving and working with staff on Kentucky and Senate matters, but it has not publicly explained why he was hospitalized, where he is being treated, or when he is expected to return.

McConnell has not appeared publicly or issued a direct public statement since that reported hospitalization. Republican allies say they have spoken with him, but the public has not heard from McConnell himself.

While that was happening, his wife, former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, was in China. The Chinese Embassy says Chao met Chinese Vice President Han Zheng in Beijing on June 17, three days after McConnell’s reported hospitalization. A Chao spokesperson later said the trip was long-planned, tied to family philanthropic work, and that McConnell’s health did not require an immediate return to the United States.

On July 8, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear sent McConnell a public letter asking for more information. Beshear wrote that Kentuckians had grown concerned about McConnell’s health, wellbeing, and ability to hold office. He asked McConnell to fully update Kentuckians on the current status of his health.

The law adds another clock. Kentucky no longer allows the governor to simply appoint a temporary U.S. senator. If McConnell’s seat becomes vacant, it has to be filled by special election, and the winner serves the rest of the unexpired term.

For that race to fit onto Kentucky’s November 3 ballot, the vacancy would likely need to occur by August 3. Kentucky’s 2026 election calendar gives candidates an August 11 filing deadline when a vacancy occurs after the regular filing deadline but not less than three months before the election. Because the general election is November 3, that three-month mark falls on August 3.

There is no confirmed vacancy and no official statement that McConnell is unable to serve. The verified record is narrower: he was hospitalized June 14, his office says he is improving, Republican allies say they have spoken with him, his wife was in China days after the hospitalization, and Kentucky’s governor has asked for a public update directly from the senator.

Senator Mitch McConnell official press releases

Governor Andy Beshear letter to Senator Mitch McConnell

Chinese Embassy item on Elaine Chao meeting Chinese Vice President Han Zheng

WAVE report including Elaine Chao spokesperson statement

Spectrum News report including McConnell office and Senate Republican spokesperson statements

Kentucky law on special elections for U.S. Senate vacancies

Kentucky law on proclamation timing for special elections

Kentucky law on special-election candidate filing deadline

Kentucky 2026 election calendar

Supreme Court Expands Presidential Removal Power But Leaves Federal Reserve Protected

On Monday, June 29, the Supreme Court issued two rulings on the President’s power to remove federal officials.

In Trump v. Slaughter, the Court ruled that President Trump could remove Federal Trade Commission Commissioner Rebecca Kelly Slaughter, even though federal law had protected FTC commissioners from removal except for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office.

Chief Justice John Roberts wrote that the Federal Trade Commission exercises executive power, and that officers who exercise the President’s power must be removable by the President.

The Court overruled what remained of Humphrey’s Executor, the 1935 case that protected some independent-agency officials from removal except for cause.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor dissented, joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson. She wrote that Congress and the President have long created bipartisan, multimember agencies with removal protections to keep some government functions at a distance from direct partisan control.

In Trump v. Cook, the Court drew a line around the Federal Reserve.

President Trump attempted to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook after allegations that she claimed two different properties as her primary residence in mortgage agreements signed 14 days apart.

The Court did not decide whether those allegations were cause for removal. It refused to let the removal take effect while litigation continues.

Roberts wrote that the Federal Reserve follows the historical tradition of the First and Second Banks of the United States, and that monetary policy should not be subject to political interference.

The Court held that Federal Reserve governors still have for-cause removal protection, and that Cook must receive at least some explanation of the evidence and a chance to respond before a final removal decision.

The result is a split rule: most independent agencies exercising executive power are now subject to presidential removal, but the Federal Reserve remains protected.

Supreme Court Opinion – Trump v. Slaughter

Supreme Court Docket – Trump v. Slaughter

Supreme Court Order – Trump v. Cook

Supreme Court Docket – Trump v. Cook

Andrew Gillum Arrested In Alabama On Drug Charges

Andrew Gillum, the former Tallahassee mayor who narrowly lost Florida’s 2018 governor race, was arrested in Alabama this week on drug-related charges.

Records cited from the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office jail roster list Gillum’s full name as Andrew Demetric Gillum and show an arrest time of July 2 at 10:44 p.m. The listed charges are possession of dangerous drugs, drug paraphernalia, and second-degree marijuana possession.

The original jail record and original Daphne Police Department release were not found in this review. Local reports quoting Daphne Police say officers stopped Gillum on U.S. 98 near North Main Street after observing erratic driving. Police reportedly said an officer saw a glass pipe on the center console, searched the vehicle, and recovered rolled marijuana cigarettes and three packages of a substance that tested positive for methamphetamine.

Gillum was the Democratic nominee for Florida governor in 2018. Official state results show Ron DeSantis and Jeanette Nuñez received 4,076,186 votes, while Gillum and Chris King received 4,043,723. The margin was 32,463 votes.

The Alabama arrest follows other legal and personal issues after Gillum’s 2018 campaign. In 2022, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida announced that Gillum and Sharon Lettman-Hicks had been indicted on federal conspiracy and wire-fraud charges. Gillum was also charged with making false statements to FBI agents.

DOJ said the indictment alleged that funds were solicited through false promises and representations, then diverted through third parties and disguised as payroll payments to Gillum for personal use. DOJ also said an indictment is only an allegation and not evidence of guilt.

Gillum had also previously said he was entering treatment after a 2020 Miami Beach incident, saying after his governor race that he had fallen into depression that led to alcohol abuse. A direct Gillum-owned source for that statement was not found in this review, so the current source spine is strongest on the 2018 election results, the 2022 federal indictment, and the reported Alabama booking information.

As of this review, no direct public statement from Gillum about the Alabama arrest was found.

WCTV report citing Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office jail roster

Florida Department of State 2018 general election results

U.S. Attorney’s Office announcement of federal indictment against Andrew Gillum and Sharon Lettman-Hicks

Graham Platner Suspends Maine Senate Campaign After Rape Allegation

Graham Platner has suspended his U.S. Senate campaign in Maine after a woman publicly accused him of raping her in 2021.

Jenny Racicot said she and Platner met on Bumble in 2019 and had a casual dating relationship. She said the alleged assault happened near the end of 2021, after Platner came into her home despite her telling him not to come over.

In Racicot’s account, Platner was heavily intoxicated, ignored her saying no, and forced himself on her. She said she initially fought him off, then decided complying was the safest option because she did not know how much worse the situation could get. She said compliance was not consent.

Platner denied the allegation. In an 11-minute video statement, he said the claims were false and that the things alleged did not happen. He said suspending campaign operations was not an admission of guilt.

“We believe that for the movement to continue, it can’t be me. And for that reason, we are suspending campaign operations. This is incredibly difficult because I know that some will think it’s an admission of guilt, and it most certainly is not. We’re not doing it because of the allegations. We’re doing it because of the structures that are being taken away from us by those in power.”

Platner argued that the timing was political. He said the allegation came in the final week before he would become the official nominee, and said the political establishment was using it to strip away the basic tools his campaign needed to operate. He said larger organizations, the national party, and bigger donor networks had committed to spending no money in the race if he stayed in.

His public support collapsed quickly. Senator Bernie Sanders said he had spoken with Platner and recommended that he step aside. Representative Ro Khanna said sexual assault or violence against women was a red line, called the allegations serious and credible, and withdrew his endorsement.

The Maine Democratic Party also moved against him. Party leadership said multiple women had made serious, credible allegations against Platner. Executive Director Devon Murphy-Anderson later said the party remained focused on a representative, transparent, and inclusive process to choose a new nominee, and accused the Platner campaign of trying to manipulate the process.

Platner had already faced controversy before Racicot’s interview. The Maine Monitor published a searchable archive of comments it attributed to Platner’s deleted Reddit account, including posts about sexual assault and alcohol, race, police, political violence, and guns. Because that archive is not the original Reddit source, it should be treated as an attributed archive rather than a direct primary-source record.

Platner had also faced criticism over a chest tattoo described by critics as a Nazi-era Totenkopf symbol. The Anti-Defamation League says the Totenkopf was adopted by Hitler’s Schutzstaffel during the Nazi era. A direct Platner statement about the tattoo was not included in this source review.

On July 8, Platner suspended campaign operations and said he intended to file paperwork to withdraw. The Maine Democratic Party says he won the Democratic primary on June 9 and withdrew from the race on July 8.

The party says state committee members voted to use a nominating convention to choose a replacement nominee. Maine law gives the party until 5 p.m. on the fourth Monday in July to make a replacement nomination.

Jenny Racicot interview video

Graham Platner withdrawal video

Maine Democratic Party Senate nomination process

Maine Democratic Party leadership statement on allegations against Graham Platner

Maine Democratic Party statement from Devon Murphy-Anderson

Maine Democratic Party statement on U.S. Senate nomination process

Maine Democratic Party update on U.S. Senate nomination process

Maine law on replacement nominations

Bernie Sanders statement on Graham Platner

Ro Khanna statement on Graham Platner

Movement Voter Project statement on Graham Platner exiting the race

The Maine Monitor archive of comments attributed to Graham Platner’s deleted Reddit account

Anti-Defamation League entry on the Totenkopf symbol

Current Events

Buckled Columns Force Evacuations Around Midtown Manhattan High-Rise

New York City officials evacuated a Midtown Manhattan construction site and several surrounding buildings Tuesday after two structural columns buckled inside a 37-story high-rise undergoing conversion from offices into residences.

The Fire Department received a 911 call at 7:57 a.m. reporting bricks falling from the upper floors of 235 East 42nd Street, between Second and Third avenues.

Firefighters entered the construction site, accounted for every worker and found no injuries.

Department of Buildings inspectors and engineers later identified two buckled structural columns on the 21st floor, along with multiple cracks and sagging sections of floor.

Fire Department Chief John Esposito said steel box beams inside the building had begun bending and deflecting under the weight above them.

The structure continued moving after emergency crews arrived.

Firefighters installed specialized monitoring equipment capable of detecting movement in fractions of an inch. Esposito said the continued movement meant the building remained unstable and presented a serious danger.

Because the building uses a steel structural frame, officials did not expect the entire tower to collapse at once. A localized collapse involving part of the building remained possible.

The city initially deployed approximately 150 fire and emergency medical personnel and more than 50 units. Police established a frozen zone from East 40th to East 45th Streets between First and Third avenues while firefighters evacuated the construction site and seven nearby buildings.

A nearby school with approximately 400 students was also evacuated.

The building was undergoing a substantial office-to-residential conversion. Department of Buildings Commissioner Ahmed Tigani said the property consists of a 37-story section and a lower 22-story section where contractors had added 11 floors.

That expansion had already topped out by the time of the emergency.

Tigani said the conversion and its structural changes had undergone approximately two years of review by the Department of Buildings. Investigators are now examining why the structure failed and whether the conditions inside the building matched its approved plans.

The city has not determined whether the vertical addition contributed to the buckled columns.

The immediate challenge was stabilizing the 21st floor without placing engineers or construction workers inside an unsafe structure.

Fire Department drones monitored the exterior while city inspectors, the building’s engineers and contractors developed a shoring plan.

Tigani said emergency struts, beams and temporary columns would be installed to take pressure off the damaged load-bearing members and redistribute the weight across the floor. Additional supports could also be added beneath cracked or weakened areas.

Before that work could begin, engineers had to determine that crews could safely enter the building.

Officials initially believed bricks had fallen from the upper floors, based on the emergency call. Tigani later said inspectors did not see evidence of building materials continuing to fall after they arrived.

A reporter asked city officials about claims from a construction union representative that corners had been cut and that the contractor performing the work was nonunion.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani did not confirm those claims.

He said the city’s immediate priority was stabilizing the building and protecting the surrounding neighborhood, while the Department of Buildings continued investigating what caused the failure and how to prevent it from happening again.

No official finding has established that contractors deviated from the approved plans, used improper materials or caused the structural damage through deficient work.

The emergency perimeter has since been reduced, but several neighboring buildings remain under evacuation orders.

The city’s current advisory lists 815 Second Avenue, 235 East 43rd Street, 231 East 43rd Street and 225 East 43rd Street as closed to occupants. The ground-floor restaurant at 217 East 43rd Street also remains evacuated.

East 43rd Street between Second and Third avenues remains closed, along with part of the sidewalk on the west side of East 42nd Street.

Other residents and workers in the area may enter buildings that are not covered by the evacuation orders.

The city has not provided a timetable for reopening the remaining properties.

No injuries were reported, but the incident prompted one of the largest recent emergency responses to an active Manhattan construction site.

The cause of the buckled columns and sagging floors remains under investigation.

New York City mayoral press conference transcript

New York City emergency advisory

Fire Department statement

Mayor’s evacuation update

Twenty-Four Arrested in International Crackdown on India-Based Crime Organizations

Federal authorities arrested 24 people across the United States, Canada and Europe in a coordinated operation targeting three India-based criminal organizations accused of assassination, kidnapping, extortion and international drug trafficking.

On Tuesday, July 7, the United States Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles unsealed three indictments charging 37 defendants.

The investigation, called Operation Hard Ball, involved law enforcement agencies in the United States, Canada, Spain, India and several other countries.

Eleven defendants were arrested in California, one in Indiana, one in Georgia, three in Canada and one in Spain. Seven defendants were already in custody before the operation.

Authorities were still searching for ten fugitives.

First Assistant United States Attorney Bill Essayli said 15 defendants operating in the United States were in the country illegally.

The investigation produced the seizure of approximately 1,000 kilograms of cocaine, one kilogram of heroin, about $40,000 and a dozen firearms. Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said the weapons included fully automatic machine guns.

The first indictment targets the Lawrence Bishnoi organization.

Lawrence Bishnoi, 33, allegedly runs the international organization while imprisoned in India.

According to the indictment, contraband phones and internet-based communication allowed Bishnoi to direct political assassinations, murders, shootings, extortion, kidnapping, drug trafficking and human smuggling from inside his jail cell.

The organization included thousands of members and associates around the world.

Satinderjeet Singh, known as Goldy Brar, allegedly served as its North American leader. Rohit Godara allegedly directed its European operations.

Bishnoi and Brar are accused of ordering the June 18, 2023 assassination of a prominent Sikh political and religious figure in Surrey, British Columbia.

The victim was identified in the indictment only as “H.S.N.” Two gunmen shot him as he left a Sikh temple.

Prosecutors said the organization used prominent murders and shootings to create fear within Indian communities and strengthen its extortion operations.

Members allegedly contacted victims through WhatsApp and other encrypted services, demanded money and threatened to kill victims or their relatives.

One attempted extortion demanded $5 million from a victim in Thousand Oaks, California.

The organization also allegedly financed itself by trafficking narcotics and stealing shipments from rival gangs.

Between March 2024 and July 2025, the group allegedly stole approximately 520 kilograms—or 1,146 pounds—of cocaine from other trafficking organizations in the Los Angeles area.

In November 2024, authorities intercepted another 49 kilograms of cocaine that was being prepared for transportation by semi-truck from the United States into Canada.

Goldy Brar remained at large after the arrests. The FBI offered a reward of up to $50,000 for information leading to his arrest and extradition.

The second indictment charges 17 defendants connected to the Jaggu Bhagwanpuria organization.

Bhagwanpuria, 38, is also imprisoned in India but allegedly continued directing an organization with more than 1,000 members worldwide and more than 100 members in the United States.

The organization is accused of murder-for-hire, drug trafficking, kidnapping, extortion, weapons trafficking and corruption.

Prosecutors said members sometimes worked with corrupt police and government officials in India to fabricate criminal accusations against enemies and extortion victims.

One alleged scheme began when Gurlal Singh, an illegal immigrant living in Stockton, threatened a victim and passed the victim’s information to a corrupt law enforcement official in India.

The victim, the victim’s father and the victim’s sister were later falsely accused of involvement in a January murder in India.

During the press conference, prosecutors said the official involved was an Indian police chief who demanded approximately $400,000 and threatened to prosecute the family for murder if the payment was not made.

The police chief had been charged but remained outside the United States. Prosecutors said they intended to seek his extradition.

A separate defendant, 26-year-old Gurdev Singh, allegedly attempted to extort a family while being held in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody.

The Justice Department said he threatened to “put [] bullets in your kids” if the family did not pay.

Investigators had not determined whether Singh communicated through a phone smuggled into the detention facility or used other people and outside telephone lines.

The Bhagwanpuria organization also allegedly financed its operations through drug and weapons trafficking.

In June 2025, law enforcement intercepted a shipment of 99.2 kilograms of cocaine and one kilogram of heroin intended for movement from Southern California to the eastern United States.

The third indictment targets a separate drug-trafficking network allegedly led by Ravinder Singh Dhanda.

Dhanda, 57, is also known as “Randy,” “Rolex” and “John Wick.”

Prosecutors said his organization transported bulk cocaine and methamphetamine for trafficking organizations operating in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

The drugs were stored and loaded in the greater Los Angeles area before being concealed inside commercial semi-trucks and driven north.

Some shipments were hidden aboard trucks connected to working farms.

The indictment identifies 430.1 kilograms—or approximately 948 pounds—of cocaine transported between July 2023 and November 2024.

Dhanda and two other defendants were arrested in the greater Vancouver area. A fourth Canadian defendant was still being sought in Europe.

Dhanda faces a mandatory minimum sentence of life imprisonment if convicted of operating a continuing criminal enterprise.

Authorities said the three organizations used California as a hub for violence, extortion and international narcotics transportation.

Most of the drugs originated in Mexico, but officials said California was often a transit point rather than the final market. Commercial trucks carried the shipments to other parts of the United States or into Canada.

The organizations also allegedly targeted members of Indian communities living in the United States and Canada.

Investigators said gang members collected information about victims and their relatives, threatened family members in India and sometimes enlisted corrupt Indian officials to file false charges or increase the pressure.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation said the groups also recruited disadvantaged young people in India. Minors were allegedly selected in some cases to reduce prison exposure and the cost of carrying out shootings and other violent crimes.

Operation Hard Ball was conducted through a federal Homeland Security Task Force and included the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Los Angeles Police Department, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations, Customs and Border Protection, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and several state, local and foreign agencies.

Canadian investigators were embedded with the FBI, and evidence was collected in the United States, Canada, Mexico, France and Spain.

Officials said the Indian government cooperated with the investigation, despite allegations that individual corrupt Indian officers participated in some extortion schemes.

The investigation did not begin in response to an imminent attack. Prosecutors said the arrests followed years of evidence collection, recent grand-jury indictments and the coordination required to make arrests in several countries at the same time.

The precise number of search warrants remains unclear.

The Justice Department’s written release lists 23 warrants in the Sacramento area and 11 in the Los Angeles area.

During the press conference, officials separately referred to totals of 42 and 50 warrants, including warrants executed in Canada.

The operation nevertheless represents one of the largest coordinated American actions against India-based organized crime networks.

“This isn’t a matter of just simply arresting a street dealer here or a gang member there,” Essayli said. “This is doing what the Department of Justice does best: dismantling organized criminal organizations.”

The 37 defendants face charges including racketeering conspiracy, attempted extortion, drug-trafficking conspiracy, firearms offenses, possession of a machine gun and operating a continuing criminal enterprise.

Operation Hard Ball press conference

Justice Department announcement on Operation Hard Ball

Trump Seeks Supreme Court Rehearing After Texas Birth-Package Advertising

President Donald Trump says he will ask the Supreme Court to reconsider its birthright-citizenship ruling after a Texas hospital was accused of marketing childbirth packages to foreign nationals.

On Tuesday, July 7, Governor Greg Abbott directed the Texas Health and Human Services Commission to investigate Mission Regional Medical Center, located near the Mexican border in Mission.

Abbott said reports showed the hospital targeting foreign nationals with “birth packages in South Texas” in an apparent effort to profit from parents securing American citizenship for children born in the United States.

The advertisements promoted South Texas deliveries beginning at approximately $4,000. The documented advertising offered maternity services but did not expressly promise citizenship or identify the customers as illegal immigrants.

Abbott nevertheless characterized the program as potential birth tourism.

“Birth tourism is an illegal practice that exploits the extraordinary hospitality that the United States and Texas offer to millions of foreign travelers each year,” Abbott said. “Thousands of foreign travelers come to the United States under false pretenses to give birth and secure citizenship for their children.”

Abbott ordered the commission to investigate possible violations of state law and the hospital’s contractual obligations. Any violations are to be referred to the Texas attorney general for civil enforcement and the appropriate district or county attorney for possible criminal prosecution.

The commission may also impose administrative sanctions and penalties against the hospital.

“American citizenship is not for sale and Texas will not permit our healthcare system to be used as a magnet for birth tourism,” Abbott wrote in his directive.

No violation has been established. Abbott’s order opened an investigation but did not identify a specific law the hospital had already been proven to have violated.

Texas Representative Brian Harrison called for the Legislature to go further. Harrison said Texas should prohibit the issuance of birth certificates when neither parent is an American citizen.

A birth certificate is a state record documenting a birth, while American citizenship is governed by federal law and the Constitution. Withholding a state birth certificate would therefore create a separate legal fight without necessarily changing the child’s federal citizenship status.

On Wednesday, July 8, Trump connected the Texas advertising directly to the Supreme Court’s recent birthright-citizenship decision.

“Signs and Billboards are being put up all over our Southern Border, and Mexico, advertising BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP, with ‘Deliveries starting at $4000,’” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

“Billions of Dollars will be illegally made by this SCAM, with Citizenship going to anyone willing to pay,” he continued.

Trump then announced that he would ask the Supreme Court to reopen the case.

“I will be asking for a Rehearing by the United States Supreme Court, IMMEDIATELY,” Trump wrote.

The official Texas material identifies advertising connected to one hospital. It does not establish that billboards are appearing throughout Mexico or along the entire southern border, and it does not say the advertisements themselves used the words “birthright citizenship.”

The investigation followed the Supreme Court’s June 30 decision addressing Trump’s effort to restrict automatic citizenship.

Trump’s executive order sought to deny citizenship to certain children born in the United States when their mothers were unlawfully or temporarily present and their fathers were neither citizens nor lawful permanent residents.

The Supreme Court held that children born in the United States to parents who are unlawfully or temporarily present are subject to American jurisdiction and are citizens at birth under the Fourteenth Amendment.

The ruling expressly covered children born to parents who are temporarily present. Evidence that some foreign nationals intentionally travel to the United States to give birth may therefore strengthen Trump’s policy argument without changing the constitutional analysis adopted by the Court.

Immigration violations committed by a parent are also legally separate from the citizenship status of a child born in the United States. A parent could potentially violate immigration law by lying about the purpose of a trip while the child still receives citizenship under the Supreme Court’s interpretation.

Supreme Court rules allow a party to seek rehearing after a decision on the merits. The petition must generally be filed within 25 days and must identify substantial grounds not previously presented or circumstances with a substantial or controlling effect.

Trump’s Truth Social post is not itself a court filing. A formal request would ordinarily be submitted by the solicitor general and entered on the Supreme Court docket.

The Texas investigation will separately determine whether Mission Regional Medical Center violated state law, its contractual obligations or any administrative requirements.

For now, the hospital advertising is documented, Abbott has ordered an investigation, Harrison is calling for state legislation and Trump has promised to ask the Supreme Court to reconsider its birthright-citizenship decision.

Governor Abbott orders investigation into birth-tourism packages

Governor Abbott’s directive to the Texas Health and Human Services Commission

President Trump’s Truth Social statement

Representative Brian Harrison’s statement

Supreme Court birthright-citizenship decision

Rules of the Supreme Court

Five-Day Hearing Details Evidence Against Accused Killer of Charlie Kirk

A five-day preliminary hearing for the accused killer of Charlie Kirk ended without an immediate decision on whether the case will proceed to trial.

The state must file its written bind-over argument by July 28. The defense will respond by August 11, followed by a state reply on August 18. Both sides will return to court Tuesday, September 1, at 10:00 a.m. for up to four hours of oral argument before the judge considers whether the prosecution established probable cause.

The hearing included campus surveillance, physical evidence, DNA testing, firearm examinations, messages attributed to the accused and a recorded interview with his roommate and romantic partner.

Utah Valley University surveillance showed a man investigators identified as the accused visiting campus several times on September 10. He first arrived in a silver Dodge Challenger around 8:30 a.m., walked through the campus and left about an hour later.

He returned shortly after 10 a.m. wearing the same clothing and carrying a blue backpack. He walked through campus, entered a wooded area and later returned without the backpack. Investigators said he also visited the access point leading to the roof of the Losi Center before leaving campus again.

The man returned around 12:15 p.m. in different clothing but wearing the same shoes. Surveillance showed him moving toward the Losi Center, climbing over a railing and entering the roof.

The shooting was reported at 12:23 p.m. The rooftop subject moved into a prone position near the southwest corner before standing and running toward the northeast side of the building immediately after the shot.

The subject lowered himself from the roof, landed beside the building and crossed Campus Drive into a wooded area.

A Utah Valley University officer reached the rooftop about 20 minutes after the shooting. He found disturbed gravel resembling a prone shooting position and a red-and-black screwdriver. The position had a direct line of sight to the tent where Kirk had been seated approximately 415 feet away and 68 feet below the roof.

Investigators found no fired cartridge case or bullet on the rooftop. Because the recovered weapon was a bolt-action rifle, however, a fired casing would have remained inside the rifle unless the shooter manually operated the bolt.

Shortly before 6 p.m., officers searching the wooded area found a rifle wrapped in a dark towel. The weapon was identified as a Mauser 98 bolt-action rifle chambered in .30-06.

One fired cartridge case remained inside the chamber. Three unfired cartridges were also inside the rifle.

All four carried engraved messages. The fired casing contained the phrase, “Notices bulges OwO what’s this?” The unfired cartridges included “Hey fascist! Catch!”; “O Bella Ciao, Bella Ciao, Bella Ciao Ciao Ciao”; and “If you read this, you are gay LMAO.”

A firearm examiner with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives test-fired the rifle and concluded that the casing recovered from its chamber had been fired in that weapon.

The examiner also compared the rifle with the damaged bullet jacket and four lead fragments recovered during Kirk’s autopsy. The fragment shared the rifle’s general class characteristics, including caliber range and rifling direction, but the examiner found insufficient individual markings to identify or exclude the rifle as its source.

The result was inconclusive.

The examiner testified that the fragment may or may not have been fired from the recovered rifle. She said no additional conventional comparison could resolve the question, although three-dimensional imaging available at another laboratory could potentially provide additional information.

Investigators searched the accused’s home in St. George after his surrender. They recovered a Dremel tool and bits, boxes of .30-06 ammunition, five fired .30-06 casings, shooting targets and a partially burned piece of paper.

One casing found on top of a safe was engraved “test shot.”

A toolmark examiner concluded that the five casings recovered from the residence had been fired from the same Mauser rifle found near the campus. The examiner also concluded that one of the recovered Dremel bits made the engravings found on the fired casing and cartridges inside the rifle, as well as the “test shot” casing recovered from the home.

Investigators did not find another .30-06 rifle inside the residence.

DNA testing produced several statistical results supporting the accused’s inclusion as a possible contributor to evidence recovered during the investigation.

Testing on the rifle included the stock, grips, butt plate, trigger and trigger guard, bolt, fore-end, barrel, scope and the protected underside of the receiver. Ammunition from the rifle was also tested.

Several calculations reached the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives laboratory’s reporting cap. The profiles were reported as at least one trillion times more likely under a proposition that included the accused than under a proposition involving only unrelated unknown contributors.

The probability of an unrelated person who had not contributed DNA producing the same level of statistical support was reported as less than one in one trillion for several samples.

The DNA examiner emphasized that the laboratory does not make absolute identifications. She described the accused only as a possible contributor whose inclusion was supported by the results.

The DNA could not establish when it was deposited, how it reached the evidence or what activity caused it to be transferred.

The samples were also mixtures involving multiple people. Some contained DNA from at least four or five contributors, and several showed degradation.

The examiner said DNA can remain on an object for extended periods and can be transferred indirectly. She gave the example of one person shaking another person’s hand before the second person touched an object, potentially transferring the first person’s DNA without the first person ever handling the object.

The trigger and trigger guard were swabbed together. The examiner could not determine which part contained the accused’s possible DNA contribution or when it was deposited.

DNA associated with other people was also detected. Testing supported inclusion of the accused’s father on portions of the rifle and supported inclusion of roommate Lance Twigs on parts of the Dremel tool. Both were treated as elimination samples because of their associations with the rifle or residence, not as suspects.

Separate FBI testing examined the towel wrapped around the rifle and the screwdriver found on the Losi Center roof.

Both samples contained mixtures attributed to two people. Twigs was treated as an assumed contributor because he shared the residence with the accused.

The towel result was reported as 1.7 octillion times more likely if Twigs and the accused were contributors than if Twigs and an unrelated unknown person were contributors. The screwdriver result was reported as 30 quintillion times more likely under the same comparison.

The FBI examiner acknowledged that DNA could not establish who used either item, when the DNA was deposited or what action produced it.

Three latent fingerprints recovered from a glass window near the rooftop landing excluded the accused. Other prints lacked sufficient detail for comparison, and subsequent FBI examinations were inconclusive.

Enhanced surveillance later showed that the rooftop subject did not touch the window when dropping from the roof.

The central evidence presented on the fourth day came from Twigs, who lived with and dated the accused.

Twigs said the accused left their St. George apartment early on September 10 after saying he had a long drive to work. Twigs did not hear from him directly again until 11 p.m.

The message instructed Twigs to stop what he was doing and look beneath the accused’s keyboard.

Twigs found a handwritten note under the keyboard, photographed it and returned it to the desk. The public broadcast did not display the complete note.

The admitted text-message thread began with Twigs asking whether the message was a joke. A response attributed to the accused stated:

“Fuck, I tried to delete that.”

The accused allegedly wrote that he remained in Orem and needed to retrieve his rifle.

“To be honest, I had hoped to keep this secret till I died of old age,” the message stated. “I am sorry to involve you.”

Twigs responded:

“You weren’t the one who did it right.”

The response attributed to the accused stated:

“I am, I’m sorry.”

The messages continued as the accused allegedly waited near the wooded area and watched police activity.

“I had enough of his hatred,” one message stated. “Some hate can’t be negotiated out.”

When asked how long the attack had been planned, the accused allegedly answered:

“A bit over a week.”

The messages said the rifle had been left in a bush where the accused changed clothing. The accused expressed concern about fingerprints and the weapon’s serial number while repeatedly checking whether officers had found it.

“Only thing I left was the rifle wrapped in a towel,” one message stated.

The accused also allegedly referred to the messages engraved into the ammunition:

“Remember how I was engraving bullets? The fucking messages are mostly a big meme.”

After deciding the rifle could not be safely recovered, the accused allegedly told Twigs he was driving home and instructed him to delete the exchange.

A later message stated:

“I’m going to turn myself in willingly.”

Twigs testified that he saw the accused at the apartment the following day. He asked whether the messages were true.

Twigs said the accused confirmed they were, began crying and said he wished he had not done it. The accused later said he would speak with his parents or turn himself in.

The accused arrived at the Washington County Sheriff’s Office around 9 p.m. on September 11 with his parents and a family friend. Investigators formally arrested him several hours later and transported him to the Utah County jail.

The hearing also included extensive arguments over which evidence could be shown publicly.

The court admitted Twigs’s full recorded interview for its own consideration but withheld substantial portions from public playback. The admitted text messages were broadcast, while the Discord messages and handwritten note were shown only inside the courtroom.

On the final morning, the defense reported that a restricted exhibit had appeared briefly on the livestream the previous day.

The court reviewed the recording and found that the image had appeared for approximately three and a half seconds before the camera operator moved away. The court determined that its order had been violated.

The defense asked the judge to prohibit electronic media coverage from all future proceedings. The court denied that request but barred the media from capturing or broadcasting any exhibits displayed during the remainder of the day.

After the evidence concluded, the court allowed those physically present to watch the enhanced campus-surveillance compilation. The livestream was temporarily switched to audio-only, and still photographs were prohibited.

The enhanced video lasted approximately ten minutes and was not made available to the public through the hearing broadcast.

The prosecution rested after presenting its exhibits. The defense called government forensic witnesses to explain the limitations of the DNA, firearm and toolmark evidence.

The accused did not testify. His attorney told the judge he had been advised of his right to testify and had chosen not to do so.

The court will next hear the parties’ bind-over arguments on September 1 before deciding whether the evidence establishes probable cause for the charges to proceed.

Day 1 preliminary hearing video

Day 2 preliminary hearing video

Day 3 preliminary hearing video

Day 4 preliminary hearing video

Day 5 preliminary hearing video

World

U.S. and Iran Resume Major Strikes as Strait of Hormuz Ceasefire Unravels

The United States and Iran returned to sustained military exchanges this week after another breakdown in the agreements intended to end the war and restore commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.

U.S. Central Command said American forces struck more than 80 targets inside Iran on Tuesday, July 7. The targets included air-defense systems, command-and-control networks, coastal radar, anti-ship missile capabilities and more than 60 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps small boats in and around the strait.

CENTCOM said the operation responded to Iranian attacks against three commercial vessels: the Marshall Islands-flagged Al Rekayyat, the Saudi-flagged Wedyan and the Liberian-flagged Cyprus Prosperity. The command called the attacks a clear violation of the ceasefire and said the strikes were intended to reduce Iran’s ability to interfere with international shipping.

A second wave followed on Wednesday. CENTCOM said American forces struck approximately 90 additional targets, including coastal surveillance equipment, missile and drone storage sites, naval capabilities and military logistics infrastructure along Iran’s coastline.

The two announcements account for approximately 170 targets over two days, making the operation one of the largest American attacks against Iran since the initial phase of Operation Epic Fury.

Iran disputes the American justification. The Iranian Foreign Ministry rejected Qatar’s allegations involving one of the vessels and referred to the maritime incidents as alleged encounters involving “non-compliant vessels.”

On Thursday, Iran said U.S. attacks had struck locations in its southern coastal provinces and two bridges along the railway route to Mashhad. Its Foreign Ministry reported that Iranian naval personnel were killed but did not provide a complete casualty count. CENTCOM’s releases described attacks against coastal military and logistics targets but did not acknowledge striking railway bridges.

The International Maritime Organization confirmed that the maritime crisis remains unresolved. As of July 8, the organization had recorded 52 confirmed incidents connected to the conflict and 14 seafarer deaths since fighting began February 28.

Approximately 20,000 seafarers, port workers and offshore personnel remain affected. A previous evacuation program moved 136 vessels and an estimated 2,900 seafarers before renewed attacks disrupted the operation.

The latest fighting follows several attempts to halt the war. Iran refers to a June 18 Memorandum of Understanding on the Termination of the War. Both governments accuse the other of violating it, and the full document has not been publicly released.

Neither side has formally declared the agreement terminated. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Friday that practical adherence to earlier obligations remained necessary for a successful diplomatic agreement. He accused the United States and Israel of undermining those commitments.

The United States is also increasing financial pressure. On Friday, the Treasury Department sanctioned an Iranian financier and exchange-house network it said moved billions of dollars for sanctioned Iranian banks through shell companies and front businesses.

Iran entered the latest fighting while completing funeral ceremonies for former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Iran’s official leadership website identifies Seyed Mojtaba Khamenei as the country’s current Supreme Leader and commander of the armed forces.

The current conflict remains concentrated around Iran’s coastline and the Strait of Hormuz. The United States says its attacks are intended to protect commercial shipping and enforce the ceasefire. Iran calls the strikes unlawful aggression and says it intends to retaliate.

Diplomatic channels remain open, but no new negotiating date or replacement agreement has been announced.

U.S. Central Command — July 7 retaliatory strikes against Iran

U.S. Central Command — July 8 strikes against Iran

International Maritime Organization — Strait of Hormuz conflict update

Iranian Foreign Ministry — Response to maritime allegations

Iranian Foreign Ministry — Statement on U.S. strikes

Iranian Presidency — President Pezeshkian statement

U.S. Treasury — Sanctions against Iranian financial network

Office of the Supreme Leader of Iran

Finance

Markets

Markets were mixed this week. The Dow Jones closed at 52,637, a 263 point loss, right at half a percent.

NASDAQ however gained 1.75%, adding 449 points and closing at 26,281.

The S&P500 added 92 points, closed at 7,575, a gain of 1.25%.

Gold slipped, losing $38 and closing trading at $4113, down nearly 1%.

Sports

F1 Silverstone

Formula 1 was at Silverstone last weekend for the 2026 British Grand Prix. Kimi Antonelli won the sprint race on Saturday July 4 ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris. He looked positioned to extend his championship lead again after qualifying on pole for the main event. He suffered mechanical issues and came home in 8th. Verstappen crashed out with 4 laps to go and the stewards ended the race under a safety car. Leclerc got the win for Ferrari, with George Russel and Lewis Hamilton rounding out the podium. Anyone who tells you it was dramatic or thrilling wasn’t watching. Antonelli’s lead is now just 25 points over his teammate George Russel.

World Cup

The World Cup is down to 6 teams as of Saturday July 11.  By the time this video airs, England will have faced Norway and Argentina will have squared off against Switzerland.  Those winners will play on July 15 with the winner of that match facing the winner of the France Spain game on July 14.  The final is July 19 at 3 PM eastern.

Wimbledon

At Wimbledon, Coco Gauff narrowly missed out on the finals, falling in a tie break in the third set of the semi finals to Karolina Muchova.  Muchova faced fellow Czech Linda Noskova in the final, but was ultimately defeated.  It’s the first Major win for Noskova who is just 21 years old and currently ranked 9th in the world.  On the Men’s side, Sinner took out Djokovic in straight sets to advance to the finals. Novak said afterwards that he hopes to play in one more Wimbledon tournament.  Sinner will look to secure back to back Wimbledon titles Sunday, July 12 at 11 am Eastern against Alexander Zverev.

MLB

Finally, in MLB, we are heading into the all star break this week.  We won’t see Ohtani or Misiorowski, as Shohei skipped a start and is opting out of the all star game to rest his knee and the Miz is protecting his starting schedule.  The Dodgers seem ok though.  They sit 13.5 games ahead in the NL West.  The Brewers now hold a 7 game advantage over the Cubs in the NL Central, and in the East, the Phillies are within 3 games of the Braves.  In the American League, New York sits 4 games behind Tampa, the White Sox are tied with Cleveland in the Central division, with a 3 game lead on the Twins.  In the West, 1.5 games separates the Rangers from the Mariners.  

Rich Stephens

The Cold Take

From the desk of Rich Stephens

News for the week ending 6-26-26

Below find the expanded text from tonight’s broadcast. For corrections or additions, contact Rich directly.

Politics

Supreme Court Upholds Birthright Citizenship

On Tuesday, June 30, the Supreme Court ruled in Trump v. Barbara that children born in the United States to parents who are unlawfully or temporarily present in the country are citizens at birth under the Fourteenth Amendment.

The case challenged President Donald Trump’s Executive Order 14160, “Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship.” The order directed federal agencies not to recognize birthright citizenship for certain children born in the United States if the mother was unlawfully present or temporarily in the country and the father was neither a United States citizen nor a lawful permanent resident.

The administration argued that the Citizenship Clause applies only to people who are fully subject to the political jurisdiction and allegiance of the United States, not to the children of illegal aliens or temporary visitors. The government also argued that the Supreme Court’s 1898 decision in United States v. Wong Kim Ark involved a child born to parents who were lawfully domiciled in the United States, not parents who were unlawfully or temporarily present.

The historical dispute centered on the phrase “subject to the jurisdiction thereof.” The Civil Rights Act of 1866 declared that “all persons born in the United States and not subject to any foreign power, excluding Indians not taxed,” were citizens. In the Senate debate over the Fourteenth Amendment, Senator Jacob Howard said the Citizenship Clause would not include “persons born in the United States who are foreigners, aliens, who belong to the families of ambassadors or foreign ministers,” but would include “every other class of persons.”

The challengers argued that Wong Kim Ark settled the issue and that the Fourteenth Amendment guarantees citizenship to nearly everyone born in the United States. During oral argument, Cecillia Wang said the amendment put that rule “out of the reach of any government official to destroy.”

Writing for the majority, Chief Justice John Roberts said Wong Kim Ark controls the case and that children born in the United States to parents who are unlawfully or temporarily present are citizens at birth under the Fourteenth Amendment.

Justice Clarence Thomas dissented, joined by Justice Neil Gorsuch. Thomas argued that the majority’s interpretation departs from the original public meaning of the Citizenship Clause and that being “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States requires complete political allegiance, not simply birth within the country’s borders.

Justice Samuel Alito also dissented. He argued that the majority’s interpretation grants citizenship to virtually everyone born in the United States, including children born to people who entered the country unlawfully or temporarily for the purpose of giving birth.

Supreme Court opinion in Trump v. Barbara

Executive Order 14160: Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship

Petition for writ of certiorari in Trump v. Barbara

Supreme Court oral argument transcript in Trump v. Barbara

Congressional Globe, 39th Congress, 1st Session, May 30, 1866, page 2890

Civil Rights Act of 1866, 14 Stat. 27

United States v. Wong Kim Ark, 169 U.S. 649

Supreme Court Upholds Late-Arriving Mississippi Absentee Ballots

On Monday, June 29, the Supreme Court ruled that Mississippi may count absentee ballots postmarked by Election Day and received up to five business days later.

The case was Watson v. Republican National Committee. Mississippi law allows certain voters, including college students away from home and senior citizens, to vote absentee. Those ballots must be postmarked on or before Election Day and received by the registrar no more than five business days after the election.

The Republican National Committee, the Mississippi Republican Party, the Libertarian Party of Mississippi, and individual plaintiffs challenged the rule. They argued that federal law setting Election Day for congressional and presidential elections requires ballots to be received by Election Day.

The District Court ruled for Mississippi. The Fifth Circuit reversed, holding that Mississippi’s law was preempted by federal election-day statutes.

Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote for the Court that the question was narrow: whether federal law bars a state from counting ballots postmarked by Election Day but received later. The Court said it does not.

Barrett wrote that the defining element of an election is the electorate’s choice of candidate. The Court held that federal law sets the day by which ballots must be cast, but does not set a nationwide deadline for when those ballots must be received.

The Court also pointed to the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, which refers to state-law ballot-receipt deadlines. Barrett wrote that those references would make little sense if federal election-day statutes already created a single national receipt deadline.

Justice Samuel Alito dissented, joined by Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch. Alito argued that the electorate’s choice is not complete until the ballots are received by election officials.

Alito wrote that if ballots received after Election Day are added to the total, the electorate’s choice does not occur on Election Day, and federal election-day statutes are violated.

Supreme Court Opinion – Watson v. Republican National Committee

Supreme Court Docket – Watson v. Republican National Committee

3 U.S.C. § 1 – Time of appointing electors

2 U.S.C. § 7 – Time of election

52 U.S.C. § 20303 – Federal write-in absentee ballots

Supreme Court Rules Geofence Warrants Are Fourth Amendment Searches

On Monday, June 29, the Supreme Court ruled that police conducted a Fourth Amendment search when they used a geofence warrant to obtain Google Location History data from phones near a bank robbery.

The case was Chatrie v. United States. Police investigating a bank robbery in Virginia obtained a geofence warrant directed to Google. The warrant required Google to search Location History data and identify devices that were near the bank around the time of the robbery.

Google eventually gave police three names. One of them was Okello Chatrie, who was later charged in federal court.

The District Court said the warrant violated the Fourth Amendment, but refused to suppress the evidence under the good-faith exception. A divided Fourth Circuit panel affirmed on different grounds, holding that no search had occurred because Chatrie did not have a reasonable expectation of privacy in two hours of Location History data voluntarily exposed to Google.

Justice Elena Kagan wrote for the Supreme Court that the Fourth Circuit was wrong on that point. The Court held that police conducted a search when they acquired Chatrie’s Location History data from Google.

Kagan wrote that an individual has a reasonable expectation of privacy in records about his cell phone’s location, even when the information is held by a third-party technology company. The Court relied on Carpenter v. United States, the 2018 case holding that accessing cell-site location information is a Fourth Amendment search.

The Court did not decide whether the geofence warrant was valid. It sent the case back to the Fourth Circuit to decide whether each step of the warrant process satisfied the Fourth Amendment’s requirements for probable cause and particularity, and whether the good-faith exception still allows the evidence to be used.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson concurred, joined by Justice Sonia Sotomayor. Jackson agreed that the police conducted a search, but wrote that she would go further and hold that parts of the search violated the Fourth Amendment.

Justice Neil Gorsuch concurred in the judgment. He agreed that the government’s access to Chatrie’s Location History data was a search, but said the Court should analyze the issue through the Fourth Amendment’s text protecting “persons, houses, papers, and effects,” rather than the modern reasonable-expectation-of-privacy test.

Justice Samuel Alito dissented. He argued that the Court should not have taken the case and that the majority improperly used it to expand Carpenter into another area of digital privacy law.

Supreme Court Opinion – Chatrie v. United States

Supreme Court Docket – Chatrie v. United States

Oral Argument Transcript – Chatrie v. United States

Question Presented – Chatrie v. United States

Supreme Court Upholds State Limits On Transgender Athletes In Girls’ Sports

On Tuesday, June 30, the Supreme Court ruled that states may limit girls’ and women’s school sports teams to biological females without violating Title IX or the Equal Protection Clause.

The decision came in West Virginia v. B.P.J., decided together with Little v. Hecox. West Virginia’s Save Women’s Sports Act bars male students from female teams and defines sex based on biology. Idaho’s Fairness in Women’s Sports Act follows the same general approach.

B.P.J. is a biological male who identifies as female and sought to compete on girls’ cross-country and track-and-field teams in West Virginia. Lindsay Hecox, a biological male who identifies as female, challenged Idaho’s law after seeking to compete on women’s college sports teams.

Writing for the Court, Justice Brett Kavanaugh said Title IX was enacted to promote equal athletic opportunity for women and girls. The Court held that schools may maintain separate girls’ and boys’ sports teams based on biological sex and that doing so does not violate Title IX.

The Court also held that the state laws do not violate the Equal Protection Clause. Kavanaugh wrote that protecting competitive fairness and safety are important governmental interests and that limiting girls’ and women’s teams to biological females is substantially related to achieving those interests.

The Court rejected the argument that states must make individual exceptions for biological males who identify as female and have taken puberty blockers or hormone therapy. Kavanaugh wrote that legislatures and schools, rather than judges, are better suited to establish eligibility rules for athletic competition.

Justice Clarence Thomas filed a concurring opinion. He wrote that a man does not have a legal right to compete against women because he believes he is a woman and concluded that transgender status is not a suspect class requiring heightened constitutional scrutiny.

Justice Neil Gorsuch also filed a concurring opinion, focusing on Title IX as legislation enacted under Congress’s Spending Clause authority. He wrote that Congress must clearly state any conditions it places on recipients of federal education funding.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor dissented in part, joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson. Sotomayor argued that the Court approved categorical bans even where an individual athlete may not possess a competitive advantage and wrote that B.P.J. had not experienced male puberty and was receiving gender-related medical treatment.

Justice Jackson also wrote separately, stating that the Court did not need to decide that Title IX protects only biological sex in the context of school athletics in order to resolve the case.

Supreme Court Opinion – West Virginia v. B.P.J. and Little v. Hecox

Supreme Court Docket – West Virginia v. B.P.J.

Oral Argument Transcript – West Virginia v. B.P.J.

Title IX (20 U.S.C. § 1681)

Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution

Supreme Court Strikes Down Limits On Party Spending With Candidates

On Tuesday, June 30, the Supreme Court struck down federal limits on how much political parties may spend in coordination with their own candidates.

The case was National Republican Senatorial Committee v. Federal Election Commission. Federal law limited coordinated expenditures by party committees, including spending on campaign activities discussed with or requested by a candidate’s campaign.

The challengers included the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the National Republican Congressional Committee, JD Vance, and Steve Chabot. They argued that political parties have a First Amendment right to spend money supporting their own candidates, including in coordination with those campaigns.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote for the Court that the limits violate the First Amendment. He said political spending is political speech, and that federal law cannot restrict campaign spending simply to reduce the amount of money in politics or level influence among speakers.

The Court overruled its 2001 decision in Federal Election Commission v. Colorado Republican Federal Campaign Committee, known as Colorado II, which had upheld the coordinated-spending limits.

Kavanaugh wrote that later campaign-finance decisions, including McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission and Federal Election Commission v. Ted Cruz for Senate, had undermined Colorado II. He wrote that the Court now recognizes only quid pro quo corruption or its appearance as a valid reason for restricting campaign finance.

The majority said existing base contribution limits, earmarking rules, disclosure requirements, and bribery laws are enough to address circumvention and corruption concerns.

The outcome is direct: political parties may now spend unlimited amounts in coordination with their own federal candidates. That means a party can consult with a campaign on advertising, timing, placement, and other campaign activity without hitting the old federal coordinated-spending cap.

Justice Elena Kagan dissented, joined by Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson. Kagan wrote that the decision allows political parties to serve as “an alternative checking account for a campaign.”

Kagan said the ruling weakens candidate contribution limits by letting large donors route money through party structures. Under the Federal Election Commission’s 2025–2026 limits, an individual may give $3,500 per election directly to a candidate, $44,300 per year to a national party committee, and $132,900 per year to each of a national party’s special accounts. Kagan wrote that a donor limited to $7,000 in direct candidate contributions could give more than $550,000 through a joint fundraising committee, with the party then able to use the money to pay campaign bills.

Kagan concluded that the ruling brings back the same opportunities for quid pro quo corruption that contribution limits were designed to prevent.

Supreme Court Opinion – National Republican Senatorial Committee v. Federal Election Commission

Supreme Court Docket – National Republican Senatorial Committee v. Federal Election Commission

Federal Election Commission Case Page – National Republican Senatorial Committee v. FEC

Federal Election Commission Contribution Limits Chart for 2025–2026

House Votes To Release Taxpayer-Funded Sexual Misconduct Settlement Records

On June 30, the House passed H. Res. 1399 by a vote of 420–0, with 1 member voting present and 10 not voting.

The resolution directs the House Committee on Ethics and the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights to publicly release records relating to taxpayer-funded monetary settlements involving sexual harassment, sexual abuse, or sexual misconduct.

The resolution gives those offices 60 days to publish a single consolidated list naming each House member, delegate, or resident commissioner who was the subject of a covered review or investigation if taxpayer funds were paid. The list must include the total taxpayer amount paid next to each name.

The disclosure applies if sexual harassment, sexual abuse, or sexual misconduct was any component of the matter, even if it was classified or resolved under another claim or category.

The resolution also requires aggregate taxpayer totals for other settlement categories, including non-sexual-misconduct matters involving members, sexual-misconduct matters involving House employees, and non-sexual-misconduct matters involving House employees.

The resolution does not immediately release the names. It orders the Ethics Committee and Office of Congressional Workplace Rights to make the records public within 60 days of adoption.

House Clerk Roll Call 233 On H. Res. 1399

Text Of H. Res. 1399

House Ethics Committee Code Of Official Conduct

DHS Says Minnesota Pardon Could Interfere With Deportation

On June 10, the Minnesota Board of Pardons voted to pardon Tou Lue Vang, a Laotian national convicted in Minnesota of first-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a child, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

DHS says Vang entered the United States in 1994, lost legal status after the conviction, and received a final order of removal from an immigration judge in 2006. ICE says the pardon came one week before Vang was set to be removed from the United States.

The Minnesota Board of Pardons consists of Governor Tim Walz, Attorney General Keith Ellison, and Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Natalie Hudson. Under Minnesota’s clemency process, the governor and at least one other board member must vote in favor for a pardon to be granted.

Minnesota says a pardon sets aside a criminal conviction, restores rights, and removes many consequences of that conviction.

DHS says the pardon could interfere with Vang’s removal from the United States by affecting the conviction that made him deportable.

Department of Homeland Security Statement On Minnesota Pardon

ICE Statement On Tou Lue Vang Pardon

Minnesota Board Of Pardons

Minnesota Clemency Review Commission: Pardon

Current Events

ICE Says More Than 10,000 Foreign Students Linked To Suspect OPT Employers

On Tuesday, May 12, Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said Homeland Security Investigations identified more than 10,000 foreign students claiming to work for highly suspect employers through Optional Practical Training.

OPT allows eligible F-1 foreign students to work temporarily in jobs related to their field of study. USCIS says standard OPT can last up to 12 months, and certain STEM graduates may apply for a 24-month extension.

Lyons said the 10,000 students were found among only the top 25 OPT employers reviewed. He called that “only the tip of the iceberg” and said HSI found fraud nationwide.

According to Lyons, investigators visited problematic OPT worksites in Virginia, Texas, Georgia, Illinois, New York, New Jersey, North Carolina, and Florida. He said agents found empty buildings, locked doors, residential addresses listed as worksites for hundreds of students, and multiple employers claiming to operate from the same address without leasing the facility.

An acting Homeland Security Investigations official said HSI investigators and compliance officials visited 18 OPT worksites in North Texas in one week. He said one employer claimed to have only three foreign students working through OPT, while DHS records showed more than 500 foreign students claiming to work there.

ICE officials also described suspected shell companies, shared websites, shared job postings, overseas management, missing employment records, phantom employees, and financial transactions moving across multiple countries.

The concerns are not new. In 2014, GAO reported that ICE had not identified and assessed OPT fraud and noncompliance risks and did not have complete information on which OPT students were actually working or whether their jobs were related to their studies. In 2022, GAO again reported that ICE had incomplete employment data in SEVIS for foreign students participating in OPT.

Lyons said the fraud is deliberate, coordinated, and criminal, and said DHS will investigate, disrupt, and refer cases for prosecution.

ICE/HSI video statement on OPT fraud

USCIS: Optional Practical Training for F-1 Students

GAO: Student and Exchange Visitor Program — DHS Needs to Assess Risks and Strengthen Oversight of Foreign Students with Employment Authorization

GAO: Export Controls — State and Commerce Should Improve Guidance and Outreach to Address University-Specific Compliance Issues

8 CFR § 214.2 — Special requirements for admission, extension, and maintenance of status

Eight Alleged Tren de Aragua Members Charged In Texas And Illinois Kidnapping Death Cases

On Wednesday, July 1, the Department of Justice announced federal charges against eight alleged members of Tren de Aragua in separate kidnapping death cases out of Texas and Illinois.

DOJ says all eight defendants are illegal aliens believed to be from Venezuela who illegally entered the United States between December 2021 and April 2024.

In Illinois, three alleged Tren de Aragua members were charged with kidnapping conspiracy and committing a kidnapping that resulted in death. The criminal complaint says the victim was kidnapped near Meyering Park on the South Side of Chicago on May 18, forced into a vehicle, taken to an apartment, and later moved to an abandoned building with his hands bound behind his back. Chicago Police found him dead the next night in a bathroom, shot multiple times and with blunt force injuries to his head, arms, neck, hands, and torso.

In Texas, a federal grand jury charged five alleged Tren de Aragua members with racketeering offenses involving murder, kidnapping, robbery, bank fraud, and firearms offenses. DOJ says each defendant is charged with kidnapping three people on or about August 24, 2024. Three defendants are also charged with murder in aid of racketeering, and one is charged with causing death through the use of a firearm.

DOJ says Tren de Aragua is a designated foreign terrorist organization that originated as a Venezuelan prison gang and has expanded across the Western Hemisphere, including inside the United States.

The cases are part of the Homeland Security Task Force initiative and Joint Task Force Vulcan. DOJ says all eight defendants face up to life in prison if convicted, and five face the possibility of the death penalty.

Department of Justice: Eight Illegal Alien Tren de Aragua Members Charged In Kidnappings That Resulted In Death

Northern District Of Illinois Criminal Complaint

Two Russian Nationals Charged After Empire State Building Climb

On Wednesday, July 1, two Russian nationals allegedly entered restricted areas of the Empire State Building, climbed onto its 1,454-foot antenna and forced an NYPD Emergency Service Unit response.

The pair were arrested without injury after officers reached them on the spire. The building’s observation deck was cleared during the response and later reopened.

According to the criminal complaint cited in court reporting, a lock on the security door to the 104th floor was broken. That door leads to the building’s broadcast antenna, which emits high-frequency radio signals powerful enough to harm the human body. NYPD Emergency Service officers had to wait about 30 minutes while the antenna was powered down before approaching the climbers.

Both defendants were charged with felony burglary, felony reckless endangerment and felony criminal mischief, along with criminal trespass, criminal tampering, possession of burglar’s tools, disorderly conduct and violating a local law.

They were arraigned Thursday in Manhattan Criminal Court, released under supervised release, and are due back in court August 24.

No official public source reviewed states their immigration status beyond identifying them as Russian nationals with an address in East Orange, New Jersey.

Associated Press: Couple charged with felonies for Empire State Building climb

ABC News: Empire State Building climbers expected in court

ABC News: Daredevils reach top of Empire State Building with banner

New York Post: How climbers allegedly accessed the Empire State Building

Finance

Markets

Markets rebounded across the board this week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at a record high 52,900 after gaining 1024 points, nearly a 2% increase.

NASDAQ recouped almost half of last week’s loss, picking up 535 points, a 2% gain with a close of 25,832.

The S&P 500 saw a 1.75% gain, 129 points saw the index finish out the week at 7,483.

Even gold stopped the skid, picking up $69, following the market trends with a 1.7% increase. Futures trading closed at $4,151 per ounce.

Sports

F1 Austria

Last weekend, Formula One returned to Austria, where George Russell converted pole position into his second win of the season, holding off Max Verstappen and teammate Kimi Antonelli at the Red Bull Ring. Verstappen finished second after a late charge, while Antonelli rounded out the podium to keep his championship lead intact.  

Eight races into the season, Antonelli leads the Drivers’ Championship with 171 points. Russell’s victory moves him into second with 131, followed by Lewis Hamilton on 125. Oscar Piastri sits fourth, just ahead of Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc. Defending champion Max Verstappen sits in 7th.  The series now heads to Silverstone this weekend for the British Grand Prix on July 5.

World Cup

The World Cup has reached the Round of 16, and the United States is still alive after a 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina. Folarin Balogun scored his third goal of the tournament before being handed a red card for stepping on a Bosnian defender’s ankle. Playing with 10 men, the U.S. held on before Malik Tillman added a late free kick to seal the win. Balogun will miss Monday night’s Round of 16 match against Belgium because of the automatic red card suspension. Elsewhere, Paraguay produced one of the tournament’s biggest upsets by eliminating Germany in a penalty shootout. Brazil, France, England, Spain, Portugal, Mexico, and Canada also advanced as the Round of 16 gets underway.

Wimbledon

Wimbledon is through the first two rounds, and several big names are already out. Seven-time champion Serena Williams returned to singles at Wimbledon for the first time in nearly four years but lost in the opening round. American Ben Shelton was also upset in his first match.

Meanwhile, defending champion Jannik Sinner, seven-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic, and former champion Carlos Alcaraz remain in contention as third-round play gets underway. The Round of 16 begins this weekend as the field narrows toward the July 11 and 12 finals.

MLB

Finally, in Major League Baseball, the Yankees have lost 7 in a row while the rays have won 8 straight. The Bronx bombers now sit 4 games back in the AL east. In the central division, the white Sox are tied with Cleveland and sit 4 games ahead of the twins. Similarly in the west, the rangers and Seahawks are tied with a 2.5 game advantage on the Astros. In the national league, the Braves are just 2-8 over their last 10 and their advantage in the east is now only 2.5 games over the Phillies. In the west though, the dodgers have a 13 game lead on the Padres. In the central division, Jacob Misiorowski and the brewers still hold a 5 game advantage over the Cubs. It also looks like scheduling will keep Miz from pitching in the all star game. Disappointing, but understandable.

Rich Stephens

The Cold Take

From the desk of Rich Stephens

News for the week ending 6-26-26

Below find the expanded text from tonight’s broadcast. For corrections or additions, contact Rich directly.

Current Events

Federal Officials Announce 2026 National Health Care Fraud Takedown

Federal officials announced the 2026 National Health Care Fraud Takedown this week, charging 455 defendants in schemes involving more than $6.5 billion in alleged false claims.

The Justice Department said the defendants include 90 doctors and other licensed medical professionals. The cases involve alleged fraud against Medicare, Medicaid, and other health care programs.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said the charges were brought or unsealed over a 14-day nationwide operation involving 57 U.S. Attorney’s Offices, 41 state attorneys general, nine health care fraud strike forces, and multiple federal agencies.

Officials highlighted wound graft schemes, Medicaid fraud, hospice fraud, cardiovascular testing schemes, controlled-substance diversion, and transnational fraud networks.

Blanche said one Arizona case involved more than $1 billion in alleged fraud tied to unnecessary wound grafts. Across wound care cases, officials said 11 defendants were charged in connection with more than $2 billion in alleged fraudulent claims.

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the department is moving away from what he called a “pay and chase” model and toward a system designed to detect suspicious claims before taxpayer money leaves the Treasury.

DEA Administrator Terry Cole said the takedown included 18 criminal and civil cases and 928 administrative actions tied to controlled substances.

DOJ press conference on 2026 National Health Care Fraud Takedown

Justice Department: National Health Care Fraud Takedown

NYPD Detective Shot During Brooklyn Barricade

On Friday morning, June 19, an NYPD Emergency Service Unit detective was shot while responding to a barricaded gunman in Brooklyn.

Police said officers first responded around 5:45 a.m. after a neighbor reported hearing about seven shots fired inside a two-story brownstone on Kosciuszko Street in Bedford-Stuyvesant. Officers heard additional gunfire after arriving, entered the home, saw an armed man, and withdrew while specialized units responded.

The man’s wife and son escaped safely, but an elderly couple remained trapped upstairs. After more than two hours of failed negotiations, Emergency Service Unit officers entered the building.

Police said 48-year-old Lammen Simmons refused repeated commands to drop his weapon and shot Detective Matthew Gail in the leg. At least four officers returned fire, striking Simmons. He was taken to Woodhull Hospital and pronounced dead.

Police said Simmons fired about 20 rounds during the incident. Two handguns were recovered, including a Beretta handgun with an extended magazine and a Jimenez Arms .380-caliber handgun. Police said the incident was captured on body-worn cameras and multiple drones.

Detective Gail, a 15-year veteran of the Emergency Service Unit, was treated for a gunshot wound that caused a tibial fracture in his left leg and was reported in stable condition.

NYPD press conference on Brooklyn barricade shooting

Judge Issues New Rulings In Charlie Kirk Murder Case

The accused killer of Charlie Kirk was back in court twice this week as the judge issued several major rulings ahead of next month’s preliminary hearing.

The judge denied the defense request to block prosecutors from using reliable hearsay evidence to establish probable cause. The court said Utah law allows reliable hearsay during a preliminary hearing because the hearing determines probable cause, not guilt or innocence.

The judge also denied a defense request to force live testimony from an out-of-state witness who allegedly lived with the accused and was in a romantic relationship with him. According to the court, prosecutors plan to rely on the witness’s recorded interview, electronic messages, a handwritten note, and other evidence.

The court said the witness allegedly told investigators the accused confessed, concealed the weapon, disposed of clothing, and instructed him not to contact law enforcement.

In a separate hearing, the judge found Deputy Utah County Attorney Christopher Ballard in civil contempt for public comments about the strength of the state’s evidence.

The judge declined to remove the death penalty as a sanction, but ordered attorney’s fees for the defense and said additional jury safeguards may be used to address any potential prejudice.

The preliminary hearing remains scheduled to begin July 6 at 9 a.m.

Utah court hearing on hearsay and witness subpoena issues

Utah court hearing on contempt ruling and preliminary hearing procedures

World

European Parliament Approves Faster Return Rules For Illegal Stays

On June 17, the European Parliament approved new European Union return rules for third-country nationals staying illegally in the bloc.

The measure passed 418 to 218, with 30 abstentions. Parliament said the rules are meant to simplify and speed up return procedures while respecting fundamental rights, international law, non-refoulement, and the ban on collective expulsions.

Under the text, a return decision issued by national authorities will require the person to leave immediately or within a set time. People subject to return decisions must cooperate with authorities.

The regulation also allows detention after an individual assessment, including when a person refuses to cooperate, presents an absconding risk, or poses a security risk. Parliament said detention may last up to 24 months, with possible extensions in some cases.

The law also allows removal to non-European Union territory, including “return hubs,” if a third country agrees to accept the person. Unaccompanied minors are excluded from those arrangements.

Rapporteur Malik Azmani said, “People rightly expect that those with no right to stay return to their countries of origin.”

The text still needs formal Council adoption and publication in the Official Journal before it enters into force.

European Parliament: New EU system for return of illegally staying third-country nationals

Council of the EU: Council and Parliament reach deal on returns

Three Dead After Montreal Shooting Near Décarie Boulevard

On June 22, a shooting in Montreal left three people dead.

Montreal police identified the officer killed as 34-year-old Mohamed Lamine Benredouane. The Service de police de la Ville de Montréal said Benredouane died in the line of duty during an intervention in Côte-des-Neiges and had served with the department since 2021.

The civilian victim was identified by Jewish community organizations as Michael, also known as Moshe, Mizrahi.

Quebec’s Bureau of Independent Investigations opened case BEI-260622-001 the same day. The case page lists the civilian-involved death as a police intervention involving a firearm used by a police officer. The investigation remains open, with the Sûreté du Québec listed as the support police force.

Video circulating online appears to show a responding officer firing shots that killed both the suspect and Mizrahi. Canadian authorities have not publicly identified either the suspect or the officer involved.

The shooting happened in Côte-des-Neiges near Décarie Boulevard. Aylo, the parent company of Pornhub, lists its Montréal office at 6975 Décarie Boulevard, Suite 601.

SPVM: Officer Mohamed Lamine Benredouane killed in the line of duty

Quebec Bureau of Independent Investigations: BEI-260622-001

Aylo: Montréal office address

Israel Outlines Position On Iran And Lebanon As U.S., Israel And Lebanon Sign Framework Agreement

Israeli government spokesman David Mencer spent much of the week outlining Israel’s position on Iran and Lebanon during a series of government press briefings. By week’s end, the United States, Israel, and Lebanon had signed what Secretary of State Marco Rubio described as the first step toward a broader peace process.

Mencer said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had directed the Israel Defense Forces to maintain full freedom of action against threats in southern Lebanon and would keep a security zone there for as long as necessary to protect northern Israel.

He said Hezbollah had recently launched more than 50 rockets, drones, and anti-tank missiles at Israeli forces. Israel’s stated position throughout the week was that it would not fully withdraw from southern Lebanon until Hezbollah is disarmed and the area is demilitarized.

Mencer also confirmed that Israel was participating in direct U.S.-mediated talks with Lebanon concerning a future redeployment of Israeli forces, but said any redeployment depended on Hezbollah first being disarmed.

On Friday, June 26, Secretary of State Marco Rubio hosted Israeli and Lebanese officials in Washington, where the United States, Israel, and Lebanon signed what all three governments described as a trilateral framework agreement.

Rubio called the agreement “the beginning of the beginning,” saying it was the first step toward a broader effort to restore stability along the Israel-Lebanon border.

Lebanon’s ambassador said the framework seeks to restore Lebanese sovereignty and territorial integrity, secure a permanent cessation of hostilities, allow displaced residents to return home, and create conditions for long-term peace and prosperity.

Israeli Ambassador Yechiel Leiter described the document as a “performance-based trilateral framework agreement,” saying its ultimate goal is peace between Israel and Lebanon while respecting the sovereignty and security of both countries. He also declared, “Iran is out, Hezbollah is out, and the road to peace between Israel and Lebanon is in.”

The framework does not constitute a final peace agreement or require an immediate Israeli withdrawal. Instead, it establishes a process that largely reflects the positions Israel outlined publicly throughout the week, including continued security operations until conditions on the ground change.

On Iran, Netanyahu also reiterated this week that Israel remains committed to preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and will continue military action when necessary to defend Israel.

Israeli Government Press Briefing on Iran and Lebanon

Israeli Government Press Briefing – June 25

U.S. State Department Trilateral Framework Signing Ceremony

Politics

Supreme Court Allows Haiti TPS Termination To Proceed

The Supreme Court ruled this week that the Trump administration may proceed with ending Temporary Protected Status for Haiti and Syria while legal challenges continue.

Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, allows eligible nationals of designated countries to remain in the United States and receive work authorization during the designation period. DHS says TPS is temporary and does not lead to permanent residence or any other immigration status.

Haiti was first granted TPS on January 21, 2010, after the January 12 earthquake. The original eligibility required Haitian nationals to have continuously resided in the United States since January 12, 2010, and be continuously present since January 21, 2010.

DHS later redesignated Haiti in 2021, 2023, and 2024, allowing newer arrivals to qualify.

DHS terminated Haiti’s TPS designation after reviewing country conditions and consulting with U.S. agencies. The department said Haiti no longer met the conditions for TPS and estimated that 353,000 Haitian nationals held TPS.

Five Haitian TPS holders sued in Washington, D.C., and lower courts temporarily blocked the termination during the case.

However, the Supreme Court said the TPS statute bars judicial review of non-constitutional claims about TPS decisions, and said the Haiti equal-protection claim was unlikely to succeed.

The ruling does not decide whether TPS is good immigration policy. It decides whether lower courts could keep the terminations postponed during litigation. The Supreme Court said they could not.

Supreme Court opinion in Mullin v. Doe

DHS: 2010 designation of Haiti for Temporary Protected Status

DHS: Termination of Haiti TPS designation

Supreme Court Rules On Border Asylum Processing

The Supreme Court also ruled this week that Mexico is not, in fact, part of the United States.

More specifically, the Court held that migrants waiting on the Mexican side of the border have not legally arrived in the United States and cannot require the government to begin the asylum process before they enter the country.

The case involved the Trump administration’s “metering” policy, which limited how many asylum seekers could enter through ports of entry.

A federal district court in California, later affirmed by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, ruled that migrants waiting in Mexico could still invoke U.S. asylum law.

The Supreme Court disagreed, holding that Congress tied asylum eligibility to physically arriving in the United States, not waiting across the border in Mexico.

The ruling does not eliminate asylum. It clarifies when the legal right to seek asylum begins.

Supreme Court opinion in Mullin v. Al Otro Lado

Other Supreme Court Rulings This Week

In addition to its rulings on Temporary Protected Status and asylum eligibility, the Supreme Court handed down several other significant decisions this week covering the Second Amendment, parental rights, online age verification, nationwide injunctions, and environmental permitting.

Hawaii Gun Rights

The Court struck down portions of Hawaii’s law that generally prohibited licensed concealed-carry holders from bringing firearms onto private property open to the public unless the owner gave express permission. The Court held that the restriction conflicted with the Second Amendment because it effectively treated nearly all private businesses as gun-free zones by default. Property owners may still prohibit firearms on their premises if they choose.

Texas Age Verification Law

The Court upheld Texas’ law requiring websites that primarily distribute pornography to verify that users are at least 18 years old. The majority concluded that the law serves the state’s legitimate interest in protecting minors from sexually explicit material and does not violate the First Amendment under the applicable constitutional standard.

Parents’ Rights in Maryland Schools

The Court ruled that parents challenging a Maryland school district’s policy are entitled to seek an exemption allowing their children to opt out of classroom instruction involving LGBTQ-themed storybooks when participation conflicts with their sincerely held religious beliefs. The Court concluded that forcing families to choose between their religious convictions and participation in public education likely violates protections for the free exercise of religion.

Nationwide Injunctions

The Court also limited the use of nationwide injunctions issued by federal district courts. The decision held that district judges generally may grant relief only to the parties before the court unless broader relief is authorized by Congress. The ruling does not eliminate nationwide injunctions entirely, but significantly narrows when they may be used.

Utah Railway Environmental Review

The Court unanimously ruled that federal agencies conducting environmental reviews are not required to analyze every downstream environmental consequence that could result from an approved project. The case involved a proposed railway in Utah intended to transport crude oil. The decision narrows the scope of review required under the National Environmental Policy Act and is expected to affect future infrastructure and energy projects.

Each decision addresses a different area of federal law, but together they represent one of the Court’s busiest opinion weeks of the term.

Wolford v. Lopez (Hawaii firearms decision)

Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton (Texas age verification)

Mahmoud v. Taylor (Maryland parental rights)

Trump v. CASA, Inc. (Nationwide injunctions)

Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County (NEPA environmental review)

Antifa Cell Leader Sentenced To 100 Years In Texas ICE Facility Attack

On Tuesday, June 23, Benjamin Hanil Song was sentenced to 100 years in prison for the July 4, 2025 attack at the Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado, Texas.

Song was convicted in March of attempted murder after opening fire on an Alvarado police officer during the attack.

He led members of the North Texas Antifa Cell.

The attack resulted in charges including rioting, weapons and explosives offenses, material support to terrorists, obstruction, and attempted murder.

Seven other defendants tied to the same case were also sentenced, with prison terms ranging from 30 to 70 years.

Across the eight defendants, the sentences totaled 450 years.

DOJ: Leader of Antifa Cell Members in North Texas Sentenced to 100 Years in Prison for Terrorist Attack at ICE Facility

DOJ: Antifa Cell Members Indicted in Prairieland Shooting

DeSantis Says Alligator Alcatraz Completed Temporary Mission

On Thursday, June 25, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis held a press conference announcing that Alligator Alcatraz now has zero detainees and is being demobilized.

DeSantis said the facility was built as a temporary emergency solution after DHS asked Florida for help with detention space, and was used for almost 21,000 deportations.

Critics have called the facility a failure and pointed to its cost, legal challenges, detention conditions, and environmental concerns.

Florida contract records show tens of millions of dollars in active emergency immigration contracts, including more than $73 million for operational management staffing and more than $20 million for site feeding.

DeSantis said Florida has already received part of its federal reimbursement and expects the rest. He also said Florida has a large budget surplus and rainy day fund.

DeSantis framed the closure differently. He said the state expected the facility to operate for six to 12 months, and that is what happened.

He said the former detainees remain in federal custody, Florida’s Baker County facility remains active, and the state’s immigration enforcement work continues through 287(g) agreements.

Governor Ron DeSantis press conference on Alligator Alcatraz demobilization

Florida contract record: Critical Response Strategies operational management staffing

Florida contract record: Granny’s Alliance Holdings site feeding

John Bolton Pleads Guilty To Retaining National Defense Information

On Friday, June 26, former National Security Advisor John Bolton pleaded guilty in federal court to willfully retaining national defense information.

Under the plea agreement, Bolton agreed to pay a $2.25 million fine and faces up to five years in federal prison when he is sentenced on October 28.

Bolton served as National Security Advisor from April 2018 to September 2019.

Prosecutors said he copied highly sensitive classified information into personal “diary” entries about his official duties, including material classified up to Top Secret and Sensitive Compartmented Information.

He admitted sending the documents to two family members through non-government email and messaging accounts and keeping copies at his home in Bethesda, Maryland.

One of his personal email accounts was later hacked by a cyber actor believed to be associated with Iran, but Bolton did not tell investigators the account contained national defense information.

The guilty plea resolves all 18 counts from his October indictment.

DOJ: John Bolton pleads guilty to violating the Espionage Act

Finance

Alan Greenspan Passes Away at 100

On Monday, June 22, the 13th Chair of the Federal Reserve, Alan Greenspan passed away. He served on the board of governors from 1987 until 2006. Greenspan studied Clarinet at Juilliard before getting his BA, MA and PHD in economics from NYU. He was bestowed the title of Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2002 and in 2005, awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by George W Bush. Alan Greenspan was 100 years old.

Markets

Markets were mixed this week. The Dow Jones picked up 312 points, closing at 51,876, a .6% bump from last week.

NASDAQ fell 4.6%, a 1,120 point loss that saw a closing value of 25,297 and erased gains all the way back to the first of May.

The S&P 500 lost nearly 2%, dropping 146 points and closing at 7354.

Gold continued a 4 week slide, losing $90 in value, a 2% drop that saw futures close trading at $4,082 on Friday.

Sports

4th of July Sports

And in Sports, I’ve got a few stories from this week, but buckle up because the 4th of July is going to be busy for America’s 250th birthday. F1 will kick off the morning with the British Grand Prix sprint race at 7am eastern followed by main event qualifying at 11. Wimbeldon will likely be going all day, but it’s too early to say who’ll be playing. MLB has the Twins at the Yankees at 1:35, the Mets visit the Braves at 8:05 and the Brewers at Arizona at 9:40.  You can also watch Men’s World Cup soccer.  Two of the round of 16 games will be on at 1 and 5 eastern.  And don’t forget the 2026 Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest. Tune in at 12:30 eastern to watch Joey Chestnut unhinge his jaw and eat around 70 hot dogs in 10 minutes. I like to have a few on the grill just to feel like I’m part of it.

2026 World Cup

The 2026 World Cup group stage is almost complete, with just three groups still finishing play this weekend before the knockout round begins. The United States finished atop Group D despite a 3-2 loss to Turkey in its final match. The Americans opened with wins over Paraguay and Australia, giving them six points and first place on goal difference. Several Round of 32 matchups are already set, including Brazil against Japan, Germany against Paraguay, and  South Africa against Canada. The United States will face Bosnia on Wednesday, July 1, with a place in the Round of 16 on the line. That game will be broadcast at 8PM eastern from Levi’s stadium in San Francisco.

MLB

Finally, In Major League Baseball, one name just keeps coming up. Jacob Misiorowski. Friday night against the Cubs, Miz tossed a 105.5 mile per hour fastball, breaking his own record…again, for the fastest pitch ever thrown by a starter. It was the third fastest since statcast began tracking. Following Friday night’s win, the 24 year old rookie has an era of 1.45 through 16 games. That’s third in the last FIFTY years, behind Tevor Rogers 1.43 from last year and NOLAN RYAN’s 1.29 in 1981. 

The Brewers won that contest 6-2 and sit 7.5 games atop the NL central. Elsewhere, the Dodgers have an 8 game lead in the NL West and the Braves have lost some ground but hold a 4 game lead in the NL East. In the American league, the Mariners are 1.5 games up on the A’s in the West, the White Sox have a game on Cleveland in the central and the Yankees are just one game up on the Rays in the East.

Rich Stephens

The Cold Take

From the desk of Rich Stephens

News for the week ending 6-21-26

Below find the expanded text from tonight’s broadcast. For corrections or additions, contact Rich directly.

Top Story

ODNI Releases Declassified Records on U.S.-Funded Biological Research

This week, outgoing Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard released several tranches of declassified records challenging years of official statements about U.S.-funded biological research, Ukraine laboratories, COVID origins, Anthony Fauci, and the Wuhan Institute of Virology.

In 2021, the intelligence community said it remained divided on the origin of COVID-19 and considered both natural exposure and a laboratory-associated incident plausible.

In March 2022, the Department of Defense said its Biological Threat Reduction Program had invested about $200 million in Ukraine since 2005, supporting 46 Ukrainian laboratories, health facilities, and diagnostic sites. DOD said the facilities were owned and operated by Ukraine, supported disease detection and biosafety programs, and were not part of a biological weapons program.

Gabbard’s new releases challenge those earlier public statements.

On June 12, ODNI released documents it says show past U.S. government funding for more than 120 biolabs in more than 30 countries, including Ukraine.

The ODNI slide deck says Ukraine had more than 40 labs built and supported with U.S. assistance. Repositories there contain disease-causing pathogens including anthrax, tuberculosis, MERS, SARS, Ebola, plague, and others, and U.S.-funded training for Ukrainian scientists in biocontainment procedures.

Another slide lists four Ukraine labs with U.S. government investments ranging from about $1.7 million to $3.5 million per facility. A third slide says the U.S. paid a Ukrainian scientist to study highly pathogenic avian flu and other infectious viruses in U.S.-funded biocontainment laboratories.

On June 18, ODNI released a second package focused on COVID origins, Anthony Fauci, and the Wuhan Institute of Virology.

The release includes emails, reports, scientific publications, intelligence records, and Fauci-related materials.

ODNI alleges Fauci funded risky coronavirus research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, influenced intelligence assessments related to COVID origins, and misled Congress about contacts with intelligence officials. ODNI also says whistleblower material has been referred to the intelligence community’s inspector general.

The intelligence community has never reached a single conclusion on the origin of COVID-19. In 2023, ODNI said the Department of Energy and FBI assessed a laboratory-associated incident was most likely, while other agencies either favored natural origin or said the available evidence was insufficient to reach a conclusion.

DNI Tulsi Gabbard statement on U.S.-funded foreign biolabs

ODNI press release on U.S.-funded foreign biolabs

ODNI biolabs slide deck

Department of Defense 2022 Ukraine Biological Threat Reduction Program fact sheet

ODNI press release on Fauci, Wuhan, and COVID origins

ODNI June 18 COVID-19 document index

ODNI June 18 COVID-19 release, Part 1

ODNI June 18 COVID-19 release, Part 2

ODNI June 18 COVID-19 release, Part 3

ODNI 2021 unclassified summary on COVID-19 origins

ODNI 2023 report on potential links between the Wuhan Institute of Virology and COVID-19 origins

Current Events

12 Killed in Missouri Skydiving Plane Crash

On Sunday, June 14, twelve people were killed when a skydiving plane crashed shortly after takeoff from Butler Memorial Airport in Butler, Missouri.

The Pacific Aerospace P750XL was carrying a pilot and 11 skydivers. Bates County officials said the aircraft took off around 11:20 in the morning, failed to gain altitude, made a sharp left turn, and crashed about 300 yards from the runway.

Skydive Kansas City confirmed that all 12 people aboard were killed.

The National Transportation Safety Board is leading the investigation with assistance from the Federal Aviation Administration. As of this recording, investigators have not released a cause for the crash.

FAA accident and incident statements

NTSB aviation investigation search

Federal Prosecutors Charge 15 in Minnesota Antifa-Linked Case

On Tuesday, June 16, federal prosecutors in Minnesota unsealed an indictment charging 15 members and associates of Direct Action Minnesota.

U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen said the group conspired to disrupt Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations during Operation Metro Surge. Prosecutors allege members used vehicles, RV trailers, road obstacles, homemade shields, surveillance teams, and stalking tactics to block law enforcement activity around the Whipple Federal Building near Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport.

The indictment includes charges ranging from conspiracy to impede federal officers to assault, interstate stalking, interstate threats, solicitation of violence, and destruction of government property.

Rosen identified the Black Hat Workers Collective as an Antifa affinity group connected to the investigation and said one of the organization’s leaders, Kyle Wagner, publicly identified himself as Antifa.

Federal agents arrested 12 defendants Tuesday morning. One was already in custody and two remained at large when the indictment was announced.

DOJ press conference video

Rex Heuermann Sentenced in Gilgo Beach Serial Killings

On Wednesday, June 17, Rex Heuermann was sentenced in Suffolk County to three consecutive life sentences without parole, plus 100 years.

Heuermann pleaded guilty in April to seven charged murders and admitted in court to killing an eighth victim.

Heuermann is responsible for the deaths of Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman, Amber Costello, Maureen Brainard-Barnes, Jessica Taylor, Valerie Mack, Sandra Costilla, and Karen Vergata.

The murders spanned from 1993 to 2010 and involved victims whose remains were found across Long Island, including Gilgo Beach, Ocean Parkway, Fire Island, Manorville, and North Sea.

Suffolk County DA sentencing release

Suffolk County DA plea release

Federal Prosecutors Charge 14 in D.C. Drug Case Near Elementary School

On Wednesday, June 17, federal prosecutors in Washington, D.C., announced a 21-count indictment charging 14 defendants in an alleged crack and cocaine trafficking conspiracy near Hendley Elementary School.

The operation ran around 4th Street Southeast and Chesapeake Street Southeast in Washington Highlands, within 1,000 feet of a school serving pre-kindergarten through sixth grade.

The defendants are charged with conspiracy to distribute cocaine base and powder cocaine near a protected location. Investigators recovered 2.4 kilos of crack, 1 kilo of powder cocaine, 29 grams of fentanyl, 12 pounds of marijuana, and 28 firearms.

MPD began the investigation in late 2024 after reviewing violent crime and narcotics activity in the area.

U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro also said she will ask the D.C. Council to add a child-endangerment statute after showing surveillance images of an alleged cocaine sale near a five-year-old child.

DOJ press conference video

DOJ release on D.C. drug trafficking indictment

World

Toronto Police Arrest Suspect in U.S. Consulate Shooting Investigation

On Thursday, June 18, Toronto Police announced the arrest of 19-year-old Zara Jabbi in connection with the March shooting at the U.S. Consulate in Toronto.

Police say two suspects fired multiple rounds at the consulate on March 10 before fleeing. People were inside the building, but no injuries were reported.

Toronto Police, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and Canada’s Integrated National Security Enforcement Team treated the shooting as a national security incident.

Jabbi’s arrest follows the June 11 arrest of Sheldon Tracey-Stewart, who was also charged in the consulate shooting investigation.

During search warrants tied to the broader investigation, Constable Marc Pinizzotto was shot and killed. Toronto Police say Nicholas Bennett was arrested and is expected to face a first-degree murder charge in the officer’s death.

Toronto Police release on firearm-discharge investigations

Toronto Police release on Zara Jabbi arrest

U.S. federal complaint referencing Canada attacks

Finance

Kevin Warsh Holds First Press Conference as Federal Reserve Chair

On Wednesday, June 17, Kevin Warsh held his first press conference as Federal Reserve Chair after the Federal Open Market Committee left interest rates unchanged at 3.50% to 3.75%.

Warsh announced five task forces to review Fed communications, balance sheet policy, economic data, productivity and jobs, and inflation frameworks.

The Federal Reserve also removed forward guidance from its statement. Warsh said the statement now “just gives you the facts as best we can judge it.”

The inflation framework review will examine inflation drivers and policy ideas for delivering price stability, but Warsh said the Fed’s 2% inflation goal is outside the review for now.

Warsh also declined to submit his own economic projections, saying he remains skeptical of the current forecasting process.

Federal Reserve press conference video

Federal Reserve monetary policy statement

Federal Reserve economic projections release

SpaceX Files to Acquire Cursor

On June 16, SpaceX filed paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission to acquire Anysphere, the company behind Cursor.

The all-stock deal values Cursor at $60 billion.

The filing says Cursor granted SpaceX an exclusive option to buy the company in April, and SpaceX exercised that option before signing the merger agreement.

SpaceX expects the acquisition to close during the third quarter of 2026, subject to regulatory approval.

The agreement includes termination fees of up to $10 billion if the deal fails under certain conditions.

SpaceX SEC 8-K filing

SpaceX and Anysphere merger agreement

SpaceX statement on Cursor acquisition

Cursor statement on SpaceX acquisition

Markets

Markets continued last week’s trend, with the Dow Jones picking up .71%, a 362 point gain, closing at 51,564.

NASDAQ saw a 629 point bump, representing a 2.4% climb to close at 26,517.

The S&P500 closed at 7500 on the button, almost a 1% gain after adding 69 points.

And gold continued to fall, losing 1.6% and closing at $7172 per ounce, a lost off $67.

Sports

F1 Spain

And in Sports, On Sunday, June 14, Lewis Hamilton won the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix for Ferrari. Hamilton finished 19.561 seconds ahead of Mercedes driver George Russell. Lando Norris finished third for McLaren, making it the first all-British Formula 1 podium since 1968. Ferrari used a three-stop strategy, and Hamilton gained his final stop under a Virtual Safety Car after Fernando Alonso retired. The win ended Mercedes’ perfect start to the season. Kimi Antonelli had won five straight races before Barcelona, but retired on Lap 62 with a car issue. Charles Leclerc, Fernando Alonso, Nico Hulkenberg, Valtteri Bottas and Lance Stroll also failed to finish.

Stanley Cup Finals

The Carolina Hurricanes won the Stanley Cup on Sunday, June 14, beating the Vegas Golden Knights 3-0 in Game 6. Carolina went 53-22-7 in the regular season, finished first in the Metropolitan Division and the Eastern Conference, then went 16-3 in the playoffs. The Hurricanes swept Ottawa in the first round and Philadelphia in the second, becoming the first team in NHL history to sweep each of their first two best-of-seven series on the way to a conference final. They beat Montreal in five games, then Vegas in six. Jordan Staal won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. In Game 3 of the Final, Carolina also scored three goals in 39 seconds, the fastest three-goal stretch in Stanley Cup Final history.

On Sunday, June 14, UFC Freedom 250 was held on the South Lawn of the White House. The event opened with a Super Delta flyover featuring both the U.S. Navy Blue Angels and U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds over the White House. In the main event, American fighter Justin Gaethje defeated Georgian-Spanish fighter Ilia Topuria by fourth-round TKO after Topuria’s corner stopped the fight between rounds. Topuria entered the fight as roughly a 5-to-1 betting favorite and was undefeated in his UFC career. The win made Gaethje the undisputed UFC lightweight champion. President Trump attended the event alongside UFC President Dana White as the promotion staged the fight card at the White House.

UFC Freedom 250

The 2026 World Cup is two rounds into group play, and the United States is in a strong spot. The U.S. opened with a 4-1 win over Paraguay, then followed it with a 2-0 win over Australia, giving the Americans six points and the top spot in Group D through two matches. Elsewhere, Mexico and Canada are off to strong starts, Brazil and Morocco are level at the top of Group C, and several of the European favorites are just now getting into the heart of group play. The U.S. can lock down the group with one more result when it faces Turkey on Thursday, June 25 at 10 p.m. Eastern in Los Angeles.

MLB

In Major League Baseball, Jacob Misiorowski continues to break his own records. He threw 47 pitches over 101mph in Friday night’s loss to the Braves. Even so, the Brewers sit 5.5 games atop the NL Central. Atlanta has lost some ground but has a 7.5 game lead on the Phillies in the NL East and Dodgers command the NL West by 9.5 games. In the American league, Seattle is just a half game up on the A’s in the West and in the Central division the White Sox are even with Cleveland, 4.5 games ahead of the Twins. The Yankees have a 3 game advantage over the Rays in the East and are the only AL team with a win percentage over 600.

College World Series

The Men’s College World Series is down to two teams. The championship series begins Saturday in Omaha with the University of North Carolina facing the University of Oklahoma in a best-of-three series for the national title. North Carolina reached the finals by winning its bracket without a loss, including two victories over West Virginia. Oklahoma advanced through the other side of the bracket with wins over Alabama and two wins over Georgia.  The tournament field included five Southeastern Conference teams, along with North Carolina, West Virginia, and Troy. By the final week, only North Carolina and Oklahoma remained. One of the most memorable moments came Wednesday during Georgia’s elimination game against Oklahoma. Georgia shortstop Kolby Branch and Oklahoma second baseman Kyle Branch became the first brothers to start against each other in a College World Series game. In the ninth inning, with Georgia trailing, Kolby hit a home run in the final at-bat of his college career. As he rounded the bases, he exchanged a high five with his brother standing at second base. After the game, Kolby said, “It’s a good moment, high-fived him, which is kinda cool, and then I wished him luck in the National Championship.”   Now Kyle Branch and Oklahoma move on to face North Carolina for the national championship. That best of 3 series kicked off last night, June 20 and I’ll bring you updates next weekend.

Rich Stephens

The Cold Take

From the desk of Rich Stephens

News for the week ending 6-14-26

Below find the expanded text from tonight’s broadcast. For corrections or additions, contact Rich directly.

Current Events

Karmelo Anthony Convicted of Murder, Sentenced to 35 Years

A Collin County jury convicted Karmelo Sincere Anthony of murder on June 9 and sentenced him to 35 years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

The case began April 2, 2025, at a high school track meet in Frisco. Frisco Police said officers and fire personnel responded around 10:00 a.m. to the 6900 block of Stadium Lane after an altercation between two students ended with one student stabbing another. Police later identified the victim as 17-year-old Austin Metcalf of Frisco Memorial High School and said Anthony, a 17-year-old student at Frisco Centennial High School, was charged with first-degree felony murder.

On June 24, the Collin County District Attorney announced that a grand jury had indicted Anthony for First-Degree Murder. District Attorney Greg Willis said prosecutors had presented evidence to the grand jury and asked for that indictment. “Today, I summarized that evidence, and I asked the Grand Jury to return a first degree murder indictment against Karmelo Anthony — which they did,” Willis said.

The case then moved through the 296th District Court under tight public-access restrictions. Collin County created a dedicated trial-information page for State of Texas v. Karmelo Sincere Anthony, Cause No. 296-83565-2025. The court barred courtroom photography, video, recordings, livestreaming, cell phones, and most electronic devices, and a gag order remained in place.

The Collin County Register of Actions shows jury selection and testimony began during the first week of June. On June 4, Anthony pleaded not guilty, the jury was sworn, opening statements began, and state witness testimony started. The state continued presenting witnesses on June 5 and June 6. After the state rested, the defense asked for a directed verdict, and the court denied that request. Defense testimony began June 6 and continued June 8. The defense rested later that day.

On June 9, the court read the guilt-or-innocence jury charge, closing arguments began, and the jury was sent to deliberate. The Register of Actions states: “Jury verdict: Guilty of murder.”

The punishment phase began the same day. The state rested its punishment case, the defense presented witness testimony, and the court read the punishment jury charge. After closing statements, the jury returned a punishment verdict of 35 years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. The court sentenced Anthony to 35 years in TDCJ and gave him 12 days of back-time credit.

The signed judgment and full trial transcript have not been publicly posted, but the court’s Register of Actions now confirms the conviction and sentence.

Frisco Police update identifying Austin Metcalf and Karmelo Anthony

Collin County District Attorney indictment announcement

Collin County trial information page

Collin County order regulating trial proceedings

Collin County Register of Actions court record

Federal Officials Announce New Cases Tied To Unaccompanied Children And Sponsor Fraud

Federal officials announced new criminal cases tied to unaccompanied children, sponsor fraud, and human smuggling during a joint press conference with the Department of Justice, Department of Homeland Security, and Health and Human Services.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said more than 475,000 unaccompanied children entered the United States during the Biden administration. DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the administration has found 146,000 children so far, but there are still nearly 300,000 missing.

The Department of Justice also announced indictments against three Guatemalan nationals in the Northern District of Ohio. Blanche identified them as Marissa Kawi Ko, Carlos Augustine Kawi Ko, and Glattis Marina Kch Chen. He said they allegedly took part in a conspiracy to smuggle more than a dozen children into the United States.

Assistant Attorney General Tyson Duva said Marita Ko allegedly submitted fraudulent sponsorship applications using other people’s identities, falsely claimed children were close relatives, and used other people’s birth certificates and Guatemalan consular ID cards. Duva said several applications were successful and caused the Office of Refugee Resettlement to release children into her care.

A search of her Cleveland residence two weeks ago found Marita, eight other adults, and four minor children living there. Duva said nearly all of the adults were illegal aliens, and four had themselves been unaccompanied children.

Officials also discussed the case of Juan Tiul Xi, a Guatemalan national previously indicted in Cleveland. DOJ previously said Tiul Xi helped a 14-year-old Guatemalan girl enter the United States illegally, then falsely claimed she was his sister in an Office of Refugee Resettlement sponsorship application.

DOJ said Tiul Xi pleaded guilty in December 2025 to encouraging and inducing an unaccompanied child to illegally enter the United States, making false statements, and aggravated identity theft. At the press conference, Duva said Tiul Xi sexually assaulted the child multiple times and will serve 10 years based on state and federal convictions.

Office of Refugee Resettlement Acting Director Angie Salazar said her agency has identified more than 81,000 addresses used repeatedly to take children, more than 76,000 missing safety checks, and more than 97,000 cases that lacked background checks.

Salazar said ORR now requires valid identity documents, fingerprint background checks, DNA testing when a family relationship is claimed, income verification, physical home checks, and in-person meetings with sponsors.

Blanche said DOJ has directed every U.S. attorney’s office to pursue viable charges related to sponsor fraud involving unaccompanied children, immigration violations, labor or sex trafficking, aggravated identity theft, and alien smuggling. He said every U.S. attorney’s office now has a designated coordinator for cases involving unaccompanied children.

The background number cited by officials appears to track a 2024 DHS Office of Inspector General report. That report said ICE had not served Notices to Appear on more than 291,000 unaccompanied children as of May 2024. It also said more than 32,000 unaccompanied children failed to appear for immigration court hearings from fiscal years 2019 to 2023.

DOJ / DHS / HHS Press Conference Video

DOJ: Guatemalan Man Unlawfully Residing In United States And Convicted Of Sexual Battery Indicted

DOJ: Guatemalan Man Unlawfully In U.S. And Previously Convicted Of Sexual Battery Pleads Guilty

DHS Office of Inspector General: ICE Cannot Monitor All Unaccompanied Migrant Children Released From DHS And U.S. Department Of Health And Human Services’ Custody

Pasadena Police Release Video After Officer Shoots Officer In Department Parking Structure

Pasadena Police released critical incident video this week from an officer-involved shooting inside the department’s own parking structure.

The incident happened September 7, 2025. Pasadena Police said it involved department personnel and injured one officer, who has since recovered.

Dash video shows an officer drawing his pistol and pointing it toward the driver before holstering the firearm. Moments later, a shot is heard and the officer grabs his shoulder.

Both the shooter and the victim were Pasadena police officers. In the critical incident video, Pasadena Police Chief Gene Harris called it unsafe, out-of-policy horseplay involving loaded firearms.

Pasadena Police released the video on its official critical incident page under California’s police-video disclosure law. The department said the video includes mobile video footage, a statement from Chief Harris, and additional information about the incident.

The department said release of the video was delayed so investigators could complete essential steps and protect the ongoing investigation. Pasadena Police said the case remains under investigation and review by the department and the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.

The incident happened in California, a state Everytown for Gun Safety says “continues to lead the nation with the strongest gun laws.” Everytown’s 2026 state rankings put California first in the country for gun-law strength, with a composite score of 91.

Everytown’s California page says the state has the strongest gun laws in the country, including background checks for all firearms, concealed-carry permit requirements, secure-storage rules, training requirements for certain gun buyers, and laws meant to hold police accountable.

California’s gun laws may rank first in the country, but in this case, the people enforcing the law were shooting each other while playing with loaded firearms in a police parking garage.

Pasadena Police Department: Critical Incident Information Video PA2025-70379

Police Incidents: Pasadena Police Critical Incident Video Clip

Everytown: California Continues To Lead The Nation With The Strongest Gun Laws

Everytown Research: Gun Laws In California

Marion County Sheriff Announces 58 Arrests In Six-Day Child Predator Operation

Marion County Sheriff Billy Woods announced 58 arrests after a six-day undercover child predator operation in Florida.

Detectives posed online as children or as parents trafficking their children. The suspects found the profiles, started the conversations, and arranged to meet what they believed were minors.

Woods said the crime is not limited to Marion County or Florida, then made his approach clear: “I want to find every one of these pieces of shits and get them out of my county.”

The operation involved the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, Ocala Police Department, Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Florida Highway Patrol, the U.S. Marshals Task Force, Homeland Security, the FBI, the Florida Sheriffs Association, the Fifth Judicial Circuit State Attorney’s Office, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida, and the Florida Attorney General’s Office.

The arrests included people in the country legally and illegally, fathers, coaches, husbands, immigrants, and a student. One suspect took a bus from Atlanta after talking with detectives for nine months. Another arranged to meet a 14-year-old girl in a Walmart bathroom. A Little League football coach allegedly tried to meet a 15-year-old boy.

Another suspect agreed to meet a 14-year-old girl at the Marion County Jail and actually showed up there.

A second-grade teacher at Fessenden Elementary, who was in the United States from Jamaica on a work visa, was accused of trying to meet a little boy. During questions, Woods said the teacher had been terminated.

Woods also highlighted several other arrests. He said one suspect was already a registered sex offender, another was accused of trying to meet a 7-year-old child, and another told detectives he fantasized about randomly groping children in a store.

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said the operation brings Florida to nearly 1,700 child predator arrests since he took office. He said statewide prosecutions are up more than 50 percent, and human trafficking convictions are up more than 30 percent.

During questions, Sergeant John Liddell said the suspects generally face charges like traveling to meet a minor and soliciting a child, with additional internet, sex trafficking, or human trafficking charges in some cases.

Marion County Sheriff’s Office Press Conference Video

Marion County Sheriff’s Office Public Information Office

Judge Denies Stay, Takes Prosecutor Contempt Issue Under Advisement in Charlie Kirk Murder Case

On Friday, June 12, Tyler James Robinson was back in court in Utah in the aggravated murder case tied to Charlie Kirk’s death.

The court first denied Robinson’s request to stay all proceedings while the Utah Supreme Court considers whether to review the court’s earlier ruling on cameras in the courtroom. Robinson had asked the court to pause the case, including the preliminary hearing scheduled for the week of July 6, while that petition remains pending.

The judge said Robinson had not shown that a stay was necessary now. The court said any future request for electronic media coverage of the preliminary hearing would still be reviewed proceeding by proceeding, and that no request for coverage of that hearing had yet been ruled on. The judge said the defense could renew its request if later developments materially changed the circumstances, but ordered that the motion to stay was “respectfully denied.”

The defense then raised concerns about the timing of any future camera ruling. Defense attorney Richard Novak said media outlets had requested electronic coverage at every hearing so far, and argued that if the court waits until the morning of the preliminary hearing to rule on objections, the defense would have no meaningful opportunity to seek appellate review. The court did not issue an immediate change to the schedule at that point.

The court also received a discovery update from the state. Prosecutor Ryan McBride said that as of June 9, the state had sent 11 additional items to the defense. He said 10 were notebooks requested by the defense during discovery review, and one was an 11:02 statement prepared for the preliminary hearing. McBride said the state had provided “essentially everything” it had from investigative agencies to date, putting discovery at approximately 100%.

The main hearing focused on Robinson’s motion to hold two prosecutors in contempt: Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray and prosecutor Christopher Ballard, who also serves as the office’s public information officer.

The defense argued that Ballard violated the court’s pretrial publicity order through public statements to media outlets about bullet-fragment analysis. The dispute came after media reports said the bullet recovered in the case did not match the rifle allegedly tied to Robinson. Ballard testified that the coverage created concern inside the Utah County Attorney’s Office, and that he responded to several media inquiries after discussing the issue with Gray.

Ballard testified that he spoke by phone with TMZ, exchanged emails with USA Today and PolitiFact, did a Zoom interview used by Fox and Friends, and responded to other media requests. He said there were around eight or nine requests in total.

Defense attorneys pressed Ballard on whether his statements discussed specific forensic evidence in this case. Ballard said he was trying to speak generally about what an inconclusive bullet-fragment analysis means. The defense argued that the context made clear he was talking about the bullet evidence in Robinson’s case, and that the prosecutors were trying to influence public perception before a jury is selected.

Novak argued that Ballard’s explanation was not credible, saying Ballard referred to “the bullet” and “this bullet” while responding to media coverage of the actual evidence in the case. He also argued that Ballard made public statements about what future FBI and ATF reports were expected to show.

The defense asked the court to find a violation of the publicity order. As a remedy, Novak said the court should bar the state from seeking the death penalty against Robinson. He argued that lesser penalties, such as continuing education or referral to the state bar, would not protect Robinson’s constitutional rights.

The state argued that Ballard and Gray did not violate the court’s order. McBride said the prosecutors were responding to inaccurate reporting about a public court record, and that Rule 3.6 allows lawyers to discuss information contained in public records and to respond to recent publicity that may unfairly prejudice a client.

The state said Ballard did not tell the public that Robinson was guilty and did not claim personal knowledge beyond the evidence. McBride argued that Ballard’s statements were measured, tied to the public record, and intended to correct what the state viewed as a false narrative that the bullet evidence destroyed the prosecution’s case.

The judge did not rule immediately on the contempt issue.

The court also heard argument on Robinson’s motion to exclude hearsay evidence from the preliminary hearing. The defense argued that in a death penalty case, the federal Constitution should not allow the state to rely almost entirely on hearsay to establish probable cause. Defense counsel argued that Robinson should be able to confront and cross-examine the witnesses whose statements are used to bind him over for trial.

The state argued that Utah law allows reliable hearsay at preliminary hearings, and that the hearing only determines whether probable cause exists to proceed to trial. The state compared the preliminary hearing to the federal grand jury process and argued that Utah’s process already gives defendants more protection than a grand jury. The state said it expected to call four witnesses, and Robinson would be able to cross-examine those witnesses.

The judge took both the contempt motion and the hearsay motion under advisement.

The defense also asked the court to adjust the schedule for electronic media coverage requests before the July 6 preliminary hearing. Novak proposed requiring media requests by June 17, with briefing completed by June 24, so the court could rule with enough time for review before the hearing begins. The state opposed changing the court’s existing schedule.

The judge declined to adopt the defense proposal and said the court would rely on the schedule already in place.

The court set June 22 at 9:30 a.m. for rulings on the contempt issue and the hearsay motion. Robinson’s attorneys asked that he appear by WebEx audio from the jail.

June 12 court hearing video

DPS Identifies Suspect After Midland Shooting Leaves One Victim Dead, 10 Injured

On Friday morning, authorities responded to an active shooter in Midland, Texas.

In an initial city briefing, officials said a perimeter had been established and the immediate area was secured, but residents were asked to stay away from the scene. City officials said there were 11 known victims at that time, including at least one person dead at the scene. They said there was one known suspect, described as contained, with SWAT on scene near the 4600 block of West Wall.

The Texas Department of Public Safety later identified the suspect as 45-year-old Victor Mata Villarreal.

DPS said that at about 8:00 a.m., DPS, Midland Police, and other local, state, and federal law enforcement partners responded to reports of an active shooter in the 4600 block of West Wall Street. According to DPS, Villarreal began firing at officers and bystanders, then barricaded himself inside an abandoned veterinary clinic.

Responding officers established a perimeter around the building. After a standoff, DPS said Villarreal was found dead inside the building around 12:30 p.m.

DPS confirmed one victim was dead and 10 others were injured. No law enforcement officers were injured.

DPS also said Villarreal had already been wanted for attempted capital murder of a peace officer. According to DPS, that charge came after Villarreal fired multiple shots at a Midland police officer during a vehicle pursuit on Wednesday, June 10.

The Texas Rangers are investigating the active shooter incident at the request of Midland Police. DPS said the investigation remains active and no additional information is being released.

Officials have not released the identity of the victim who died. They also have not released a motive or an official cause of Villarreal’s death.

FBI Director Kash Patel said the FBI was on scene with special agents and victim specialists assisting Midland Police.

DPS asked drivers to avoid the area while authorities remain on scene. West Wall Street, also known as Business 20, is expected to remain closed from Fasken Road to Loop 250 for 24 to 48 hours.

Midland active shooter briefing video

Texas Department of Public Safety release on Midland shooting

FBI Director Kash Patel statement

Politics

The JAIL Act Would Let Victims Sue Judges And Government Entities After Repeat Violent Offenders Are Released Pending Trial

A pair of identical bills in Congress would create a federal civil cause of action against judges and other government entities when a repeat violent offender is released pending trial and later harms someone.

The bills are called the Judicial Accountability for Irresponsible Leniency Act, or JAIL Act. The House version, H.R. 5312, was introduced by Congressman Randy Fine on September 11 and referred to the House Judiciary Committee. The Senate version, S. 3239, was introduced by Senator Tim Sheehy on November 20 and referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee. Congress.gov lists H.R. 5312 as an identical bill to S. 3239.

The bill text is short. It says if a judge or government entity issues an order releasing a covered defendant on bail pending trial, and that defendant harms another person during release, the victim — or an immediate family member if the victim is deceased — may sue the judge or government entity in federal district court for damages.

The bill also says judicial immunity would not be a defense in that civil action.

A covered defendant is defined as a person charged with a crime of violence who has previously been convicted of a crime of violence. The bill uses the definition of “crime of violence” in 18 U.S.C. § 16, which covers offenses involving the use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force against a person or property, and certain felonies involving a substantial risk that physical force may be used.

Fine’s office said the House bill came after the murder of Iryna Zarutzka in Charlotte, North Carolina. Fine’s office said Decarlos Brown Jr. had 14 prior arrests and had been released without bail. Fine said, “If a bartender could be held accountable for serving too many drinks to someone caught driving with a DWI, a judge who released a murderer with 14 prior arrests should be held to the same standards.”

Sheehy’s office made a similar argument when the Senate version was introduced. Sheehy said, “It’s time to end the revolving door of the criminal justice system and hold accountable the government officials who refuse to uphold the law and keep American families safe.”

The bill has not advanced beyond introduction and committee referral. Congress.gov lists no CBO cost estimate, no amendments, and no completed CRS summary. Both versions remain in Judiciary committees.

Congress.gov: S. 3239 Text

Congress.gov: H.R. 5312 Text

Congress.gov: H.R. 5312 Cosponsors

Congress.gov: S. 3239 Related Bills

U.S. Code: 18 U.S.C. § 16 — Crime of Violence

Senator Tim Sheehy: Sheehy Introduces Bill to Hold Soft-on-Crime Judges Accountable

Congressman Randy Fine: Fine Introduces Bill to Hold Soft-on-Crime Judges Accountable

Senator Tim Sheehy: ICYMI — Soft-on-Crime Judges Need Consequences

House Judiciary Hearing Presses SPLC Over DOJ Fraud Allegations And Paid Informants

The House Judiciary Committee held a hearing this week with representatives from the Southern Poverty Law Center, after the Justice Department charged the organization with wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured bank, and conspiracy to commit concealment money laundering.

The hearing was titled “The Southern Poverty Law Center: Manufacturing Hate, Part II.” Republicans alleged that SPLC engaged in bank fraud and donor fraud while paying people tied to the same racist groups it claims to fight. The Justice Department says SPLC secretly funneled donated money to people associated with extremist groups, including groups tied to the Ku Klux Klan, the National Alliance, the National Socialist Movement, Aryan Nations, Unite the Right, and American Front.

DOJ alleges the scheme involved donor money, fictitious bank accounts, and concealment of the true nature, source, ownership, and control of the payments. Republicans on the committee said the alleged payments were not just ordinary informant payments, but donor-funded support to people who remained active inside extremist groups.

Chairman Jim Jordan focused on the 2017 Charlottesville violence. Jordan said one SPLC-paid field source helped coordinate transportation and attended the Unite the Right rally, where Heather Heyer was killed. Jordan said SPLC paid that field source $300,000 and said SPLC fundraising increased from $51 million to $133 million afterward.

Jordan also cited other field-source allegations from the indictment. He said Field Source 9 was tied to the National Alliance, was paid $1.2 million, and had a romantic relationship and joint bank account with an SPLC employee. He said another field source wanted to leave a racist group, but SPLC allegedly told him to stay and paid him a monthly salary.

Republicans also pressed SPLC interim president Bryan Fair on whether donors were told their money could be used to pay informants tied to extremist groups. Congressman Barry Moore asked whether SPLC told Alabama donors that donated funds could be used to pay informants tied to groups like the Ku Klux Klan, Aryan Nations, or the National Socialist Movement. Fair said allegations in the indictment would be addressed by counsel in the pending criminal case.

Several Republicans focused on alleged fictitious entities and bank accounts. Jordan listed names including Center Investigative Agency, Fox Photography, Northwest Technologies, Tech Writers Group, Rare Books Warehouse, Imagery Link, J&J Electronics, and Kelly’s Marine, and asked whether those were intermediary shell companies used to pay field sources. Fair again said those allegations would be addressed in court.

SPLC defended its informant program. Fair said SPLC paid confidential informants to infiltrate extremist organizations and said the program helped protect the public and SPLC staff. SPLC has also said it shared intelligence with law enforcement, including before Charlottesville and in a 2019 Atomwaffen Division case in Las Vegas.

Democrats argued that paid informants are a normal investigative tool. Ranking Member Jamie Raskin said the claim against SPLC treats undercover informants as support for extremist groups, even though law enforcement uses informants against organized crime, drug trafficking, human trafficking, and extremist violence. Democrats also said SPLC’s informants helped generate warnings to law enforcement before Charlottesville.

Democrats also framed the prosecution as political. Raskin said the Trump administration was attacking SPLC because of its civil rights work. Professor Mary McCord, a former Justice Department official, warned that prosecutors can abuse their power by selecting unpopular people or organizations and then looking for an offense. She argued that targeting organizations because of their views threatens First Amendment rights.

Fair denied the allegations in broad terms. He said SPLC “strongly” denies the indictment allegations and said the organization does not fund hate groups. But he repeatedly declined to answer indictment-specific questions, saying they would be handled by counsel in the pending criminal case.

House Judiciary Committee: The Southern Poverty Law Center: Manufacturing Hate, Part II

House Judiciary Committee Hearing Video

Justice Department: Federal Grand Jury Charges Southern Poverty Law Center

Bryan Fair Written Testimony

Dr. Alveda King Written Testimony

Ryan Bangert Written Testimony

Mary McCord Written Testimony

Southern Poverty Law Center: SPLC Motions On Grand Jury And Informant Program

World

Sudanese Immigrant Charged After Belfast Knife Attack

On Monday night, a Sudanese immigrant attacked a local Belfast man with a kitchen knife.

Stephen Ogilvie suffered serious slash wounds to his back and face, and police said he also had significant injuries to his eyes. Bystanders ran toward the attack and stopped it before officers arrived. Police said their quick action saved Ogilvie’s life.

Police have not publicly named the attacker in the official statements reviewed, but said he was charged with attempted murder, possession of an article with blade or point in a public place, and threats to kill.

Chief Constable Jon Boutcher said the suspect traveled from Sudan to Paris, then flew to Dublin, then took a bus to Belfast on February 10, 2023, and claimed asylum that day. He was later granted leave to remain in the United Kingdom.

Boutcher said the suspect was not known to the Police Service of Northern Ireland and was not listed on national security databases. Police also said there was no information at that stage suggesting the attack was terrorism-related.

Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly said officials understood the suspect was in Northern Ireland on a five-year visa and entered through Dublin. She said people’s concerns had to be taken seriously, and that after conviction, “this dangerous man must be deported immediately.”

In the Northern Ireland Assembly, Brian Kingston of the Democratic Unionist Party said the video showed a man pinned to the ground while another man slashed at his face and throat. Timothy Gaston of Traditional Unionist Voice said, “It is time to close our borders,” before the Speaker cut him off.

The response then moved from politics to the street. Police said addresses were being shared online, putting people at risk, and protests gave way to disorder in several areas. By the next night, police were dealing with violence in Glengormley, Newtownabbey, Portadown, Belfast, and Derry/Londonderry.

Across the second night of disorder, police said 16 people were arrested and 12 officers were injured. In Glengormley, a bin lorry, car, and vacant building were set on fire, and a hijacked van was pushed toward police.

Ogilvie’s family rejected the violence. In a statement released through police, they said he was stable, thanked the people who saved his life, and said peaceful protest is the only way forward.

Police Service of Northern Ireland: Assistant Chief Constable Ryan Henderson Update

Northern Ireland Leaders Press Conference On North Belfast Attack

UK Parliament Session Referencing The Belfast Attack And Related Immigration Questions

Police Service of Northern Ireland: Man Arrested On Suspicion Of Attempted Murder Following Serious Assault In North Belfast

Police Service of Northern Ireland: Detectives Charge Man To Court Following North Belfast Knife Attack

Police Service of Northern Ireland: Family Of Stephen Ogilvie Issue Statement

Police Service of Northern Ireland: Social Media Posts With Addresses May Be Criminal Offence

Police Service of Northern Ireland: Missiles Thrown At Police In Glengormley

Police Service of Northern Ireland: Appeal For Calm After Second Night Of Disorder

Northern Ireland Assembly Official Report: Serious Stabbing In North Belfast

CBS News: Video From North Belfast Knife Attack

Joey Mannarino: Video From North Belfast Knife Attack

Breaking911: Video From Belfast Disorder

Finance

May Jobs Report Shows 172,000 Jobs Added As Unemployment Holds At 4.3 Percent

The Bureau of Labor Statistics released the May jobs report on June 5, showing total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 172,000.

The unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.3 percent. BLS said the rate has remained in a narrow range between 4.3 percent and 4.5 percent since July 2025. The number of unemployed people was 7.3 million.

The labor force participation rate held at 61.8 percent, and the employment-population ratio was 59.2 percent. BLS said both measures showed little change over the year after accounting for annual population control adjustments.

The job gains were led by leisure and hospitality, local government, and health care. Leisure and hospitality added 70,000 jobs in May, including 48,000 in food services and drinking places. Local government added 55,000 jobs, largely from local government excluding education, which added 44,000. Health care added 35,000 jobs, including 26,000 in ambulatory health care services.

Other areas were mixed. Social assistance continued to trend up by 12,000 jobs. Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction added 5,000 jobs. Financial activities declined by 22,000 jobs and is down 107,000 from a recent peak in May 2025.

Transportation and warehousing was essentially unchanged in May, adding 1,000 jobs, but BLS said the sector is down 92,000 jobs since reaching a peak in February 2025. Air transportation lost 9,000 jobs in May, largely reflecting a business closure.

Private payrolls increased by 120,000. Goods-producing industries added 28,000 jobs, including 17,000 in construction and 7,000 in manufacturing. Private service-providing industries added 92,000 jobs.

Average hourly earnings for private nonfarm employees rose 12 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $37.53. Over the year, average hourly earnings were up 3.4 percent. Average hourly earnings for production and nonsupervisory employees rose 8 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $32.31.

The report also revised prior months upward. March was revised from 185,000 jobs added to 214,000. April was revised from 115,000 to 179,000. Together, March and April were revised up by 93,000 jobs.

The White House posted a video on the May jobs report and later said the economy added 172,000 jobs in May, calling the report one that “crushed expectations.” The Bureau of Labor Statistics release itself did not compare the May number to economist forecasts.

The next Employment Situation report, covering June, is scheduled for July 2.

Bureau of Labor Statistics: Employment Situation — May 2026

Bureau of Labor Statistics: Employment Situation Release Schedule

White House: May Jobs Report Video

White House: President Trump Is Restoring American Greatness One Win At A Time

Markets

Markets recovered a bit this week. The Dow Jones closed at a record high 51,202 after picking up 336 points, more than erasing last week’s loss, but still only a .66% gain.

NASDAQ picked up 179 points, a .7% gain and closed at 25,888.

The S&P500 saw a .65% gain, picking up 48 points to finish the week at 7431.

Gold continued to recede, dropping $114 and closing futures trading at $4,239.

Sports

World Cup

The World Cup has come to the United States. The first round is a series of 4 team round robin matches where the top two teams from each group, plus the 8 best third place teams will advance to the 32 team bracket. The USA won their first match against Paraguay on Saturday June 13 and now sit on top of group D with a win and +3 goals advantage. They will play Australia on June 19 at 3pm eastern.

NBA Finals

The NBA Finals came to a close Saturday night, June 13 in San Antonio. After trailing by as much as 15 in the 3rd, the Knicks outscored the Spurs 29-18 in the 4th quarter to win game 5 and take the championship series 4-1. The final of that game was 94-90.

Stanley Cup Playoffs

The Caronlina Avalanche lead the Las Vegas Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup playoffs. The east coast squad has a 3 games to 2 advantage. Game 6 is Sunday night, June 14 at 8 eastern. That game will be played in Las Vegas and I’ll bring you updates next week.

MLB Weekly Update

In Major League Baseball, I’m telling you, if you aren’t watching the Brewers, you’re missing some good baseball. Jacob Misiorowsky struck out 15 in a 95 pitch, 1 hit, complete game shutout against the Phillies on Friday June 12. He once again broke his own record with the fastest pitch ever recorded by a starter at 104.5 mph. The New York Yankees have slipped to the top of the AL East with a 1 game edge on the Tampa Bay Rays. Just a half game separates Cleveland from the White Sox in the AL Central and Seattle has a one game advantage over the Athletics in the AL West. Atlanta still controls the NL East by 8 games and the dodgers have the same 8 game advantage over the padres in the West. In the NL Central, the Brewers are still 4 games ahead of the Cardinals.

Rich Stephens

The Cold Take

From the desk of Rich Stephens

News for the week ending 6-7-26

Below find the expanded text from tonight’s broadcast. For corrections or additions, contact Rich directly.

The Story Not Told

I want to start with a story I can’t tell. In Texas, 19 year old Karmelo Anthony is on trial for the stabbing murder of then 17 year old Austin Metcalf. The Cold Take is based on primary sources. But this judge has closed the courtroom to any form of video or audio recording and limited physical access. It is my very strong opinion that this should not be allowed in an age where we can live stream legal proceedings for full transparency. Especially in cases that are politically or racially charged, blocking access fuels fire of speculation and conspiracy. And that’s all I have to say about that.

Politics

Army Veteran Running for Sheriff After Murder Charge Dismissed in Daughter’s Abuse Case

Aaron Spencer, an Army veteran in Arkansas, is running for Lonoke County sheriff after his arrest in the 2024 fatal shooting of the man charged with sexually abusing his daughter.

The case began before the shooting. According to a June 4 dismissal order in Lonoke County Circuit Court, Michael Fosler had been charged on September 4, 2024, with 43 sexual-related offenses involving Spencer’s minor daughter. Two of the counts were Class Y felonies. Fosler was released on a $50,000 bond with no-contact conditions.

On October 8, Spencer woke up and found his daughter missing. The court order says Spencer told investigators he realized what he thought was his daughter in bed was actually a stuffed animal with her hoodie on it. His wife called 911 while Spencer left to look for Fosler and his daughter.

Spencer found Fosler’s truck, pursued it, and hit the back of the vehicle. According to the order, Spencer said he saw his daughter trying to get out of the passenger side, believed Fosler grabbed her, and opened fire after Fosler lunged toward him.

Spencer was later charged with second-degree murder.

The case was dismissed because of missing dash-camera evidence. Judge Ralph Wilson Jr. found the dash camera and internal memory card had potential exculpatory value and would have been the only objective evidence of the encounter. The judge wrote that the loss or destruction of the evidence impaired Spencer’s ability to defend himself and his right to a fair trial.

Wilson said dismissal is “an extraordinary and extreme remedy,” but found law enforcement conduct was “so egregious” that dismissal was warranted.

Spencer’s campaign is built directly around those failures. His campaign site describes him as an Airborne veteran, husband, and father, and says his family’s experience with “a broken justice system” showed him how vulnerable families can be when the system fails to protect them.

Voters have already responded. In the March 3 Republican primary for Lonoke County sheriff, Spencer received 5,400 votes. Incumbent Sheriff John Staley received 2,676. David Bufford received 2,012.

That gave Spencer 53.5% of the vote in a three-way race. He beat the sitting sheriff by 2,724 votes and received more votes than both of his opponents combined.

Lonoke County Circuit Court dismissal order in State of Arkansas v. Aaron Spencer

Lonoke County Clerk unofficial 2026 primary election results

Aaron Spencer campaign website

Florida Property Tax Amendment Heads to Voters

Florida lawmakers passed a proposed constitutional amendment Tuesday that would sharply expand the state’s homestead property tax exemption and send the issue to voters.

The measure, CS/HJR 1-F, is titled “Save our Homes from Excessive Property Taxes.” The House passed it 75–26, and the Senate passed it 30–9. Because it is a constitutional amendment, it still needs voter approval. Florida constitutional amendments require at least 60% support to pass.

Governor Ron DeSantis called the special session on property tax relief and announced the proposal on May 27. His office said the plan would create immediate homestead relief and a schedule for full elimination through general law.

“Today in Tampa, I outlined the Save Our Homes from Excessive Property Taxes plan that will eliminate taxes on homesteads,” DeSantis said. “Property tax revenue collected by local governments has nearly doubled in the past seven years and is expected to reach an astounding $83 billion by 2032.”

Under the enrolled amendment, the non-school homestead exemption would increase to $150,000 beginning January 1, 2027, and $250,000 beginning January 1, 2028. The increase would not apply to school district levies.

New Florida residents would be treated differently. Anyone who establishes a new Florida homestead on or after January 1, 2027, and had not maintained permanent residence in Florida by December 31, 2026, would receive a $50,000 non-school exemption at first. Beginning with the fifth year, that homeowner would become eligible for the larger exemption.

The measure also lowers the annual assessment increase cap for certain non-homestead residential and other real property from 10% to 5% beginning January 1, 2027, for levies other than school district levies.

The amendment creates a framework for additional reductions. Counties and municipalities would be able, through a uniform procedure set by the Legislature, to increase the exempt amount up to all remaining assessed value. Special districts could do the same only by voter referendum.

Senate President Ben Albritton said the Senate wanted “an amendment that is significant and straightforward.” Senator Bryan Avila said the amendment provides relief for Florida families while protecting businesses and safeguarding local funding for education, law enforcement, infrastructure, and other essential government functions.

The opposition was also documented in the legislative record. Representative Robin Bartleman offered an amendment to protect voter-approved children’s services levies from the exemption structure. Representative Anna Eskamani offered an amendment requiring the Legislature to fund public safety services if local governments could not fully fund them because of the amendment. Representative Ashley Gantt offered a similar amendment for veterans-related services. All three amendments failed.

The final House vote was 75–26. The final Senate vote was 30–9. The question now goes to Florida voters.

Governor DeSantis Property Tax Proposal
CS/HJR 1-F Bill Page
CS/HJR 1-F Enrolled Text
Florida Senate Press Release
House Final Vote
Senate Final Vote
Florida Constitutional Amendment Rules

Supreme Court Lets Alabama Use 2023 Congressional Map for Now

The Supreme Court on Tuesday let Alabama move forward, for now, with the congressional map enacted by the Legislature in 2023.

The order came in three related redistricting cases: Allen v. Milligan, Allen v. Singleton, and Allen v. Caster. The Court granted Alabama’s emergency applications and stayed a May 26 order from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama.

The district court had blocked Alabama from using the 2023 congressional districting plan in the 2026 elections. In that order, the three-judge court said the 2023 plan intentionally discriminated against Black voters based on race in violation of the Constitution.

The district court said it could not require Alabamians to cast ballots under a plan “tainted by intentional race-based discrimination.” It ordered the state to continue using the race-blind map used for Alabama’s 2024 elections and May 19, 2026, primary elections.

The Supreme Court disagreed, at least for now. In an unsigned order, the Court said Alabama was likely to succeed on the merits. The Court said the district court did not apply the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Louisiana v. Callais and did not give enough weight to the state’s lawful districting criteria, including keeping the Gulf Coast community together and avoiding the pairing of incumbents.

The Court also said Alabama had shown irreparable harm and that the equities and public interest favored the state. It cited the rule that lower federal courts should not alter election rules on the eve of an election.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor dissented, joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson. Sotomayor said the Court had two paths: one using a tested map that protected Black Alabamians’ right to vote, and another using what she called a “never-before-used congressional map” that “intentionally discriminates against Black Alabamians.” She wrote that the majority chose the second path.

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall called the order “a major victory for Alabama and for the principle of self-governance.” Marshall said the Supreme Court confirmed Alabama’s congressional maps are “constitutional and lawful under the Voting Rights Act.”

The Legal Defense Fund, which represents plaintiffs in the Milligan case, said the order allows Alabama to use its 2023 map and pauses the district court ruling for now. LDF said the district court has set the case to be ready for retrial no later than January 2027.

This is not a final merits ruling. It is an emergency stay that lets Alabama use the 2023 congressional map while the case continues.

Supreme Court Order
May 26 District Court Order
Alabama Attorney General Statement
Alabama Emergency Stay Announcement
Legal Defense Fund Statement

New York Bill Would Replace “Paternity” and “Filiation” With “Parentage”

New York lawmakers passed a bill that would replace several legal terms tied to mothers and fathers with gender-neutral language across state law.

The bill is A8382A in the Assembly and S9316 in the Senate. The official summary says it “replaces the terms father, mother, and filiation to gender neutral language.” The bill passed the Assembly on March 19 and passed the Senate on June 2 by a vote of 38 to 23, with one senator absent and one excused.

The official status lists the bill as “Passed Senate & Assembly.” It has not been marked as delivered to the governor or signed by the governor.

The bill changes language across the Family Court Act, Civil Practice Law and Rules, Domestic Relations Law, Executive Law, Judiciary Law, Social Services Law, General Obligations Law, Vehicle and Traffic Law, Alcoholic Beverage Control Law, and Education Law.

The sponsor memo says the purpose is “to adjust language in the law to a more inclusive and gender-neutral form, substituting ‘parentage’ for ‘paternity’ and ‘filiation.’” The memo says “paternity” is “strictly gender-related” and refers to the male parent of a child, while “parentage” focuses on the legal parent-child relationship.

The bill text makes that change repeatedly. In one Family Court Act section, existing definitions of “mother” and “father” are removed and replaced with definitions for “parentage,” “parent,” and “alleged parent.” “Parentage” is defined as a determination that a person is the legal parent of the child. “Parent” means an individual who has established a parent-child relationship created or recognized under the act or other law.

Other sections replace “paternity” with “parentage,” “putative father” with “alleged parent,” and “mother and putative father” with “parties.” In pregnancy-related support language, the bill changes “mother” to “gestating parent” and “father” to “non-gestating parent.”

The bill also changes the legal language around orders of filiation. Under the current text, if a court finds that “the male party is the father,” it makes an order of filiation declaring paternity. The bill would instead say that if the court finds the alleged parent is the parent of the child, it shall make an order of parentage.

The bill is not signed yet. If signed by Governor Kathy Hochul, it would take effect on the first day of November after becoming law.

New York State Senate: A8382A official bill page

New York State Assembly: A8382A bill text

New York State Senate: S9316 official bill page

Current Events

Four Charged After Federal Agents Find Cross-Border Cocaine Tunnel in San Diego

Federal prosecutors in San Diego announced Monday, June 1, that four people were charged after investigators uncovered a cross-border tunnel from Tijuana, Mexico, to a retail storefront in Otay Mesa.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California said the Homeland Security Task Force investigation centered on a store near the Otay Mesa Port of Entry called Buy 4 Less. Prosecutors said the tunnel was about 1,933 feet long, 55 feet deep, and 4.5 feet high, with reinforced walls, electricity, ventilation, and a rail system.

The defendants are Gregorio Epifanio Hernandez Lopez and Jose Jimenez of San Diego, and Antonio Cortez and Brandon Escalante Sandoval of Mexico. Hernandez Lopez is charged with conspiracy to use a cross-border tunnel and conspiracy to import controlled substances. All four are charged with conspiracy to distribute controlled substances.

According to prosecutors, HSI Tunnel Task Force investigators watched the Buy 4 Less location from December 2025 to May after suspicious activity. The U.S. Attorney’s Office said the location had little customer traffic, and apparent employees were seen moving suitcases and other items in ways that did not match a normal retail operation.

On May 29, agents observed activity involving vans, trucks, deep freezers, and suspected counter-surveillance near Buy 4 Less and a mechanic shop on Coolidge Avenue. San Diego County sheriff’s deputies stopped three vehicles. Federal agents later reported finding 851 packages weighing about 1,029.60 kilograms, or 2,269.87 pounds. Samples field-tested positive for cocaine.

After the seizure, agents searched Buy 4 Less and found the U.S. exit point of the tunnel concealed under the floor of a storage room. Prosecutors said the tunnel was accessed by a hydraulic lift and ran roughly 1,064 feet from the store to the U.S.-Mexico border before continuing toward its entry point in Mexico.

U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon said, “For these defendants, it wasn’t a light at the end of the tunnel. It was lights and sirens.”

HSI San Diego’s acting special agent in charge said the investigation and seizure were “a significant blow to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.” Border Patrol San Diego Sector Chief Patrol Agent Justin De La Torre said, “Criminal organizations continue to look for ways to exploit our border, but they underestimate the determination of the men and women protecting it.”

Prosecutors said 99 subterranean passages have been found in the Southern District of California since 1993. Of those, 28 were considered sophisticated. The last operational tunnel discovered in the district was in 2022.

U.S. Attorney’s Office: Four Charged with Trafficking More Than $45 Million Worth of Cocaine through Sophisticated Cross-Border Tunnel

ICE: Homeland Security Task Force uncovers sophisticated cross-border tunnel, seizes $45 million worth of cocaine

Judge Orders Contempt Hearing, Keeps Preliminary Hearing Open in Tyler Robinson Case

On Monday, June 1, Judge Tony Graf held a virtual hearing in the case against Tyler James Robinson.

The court first addressed Robinson’s motion for an order to show cause. The defense asked the court to require Utah County Attorney Jeff S. Gray and Deputy Utah County Attorney Chris Ballard to appear and show cause why they should not be held in contempt for alleged violations of the court’s pre-trial and trial publicity order.

Judge Graf said the defense had made a sufficient preliminary showing under Utah law to justify further proceedings. He said that ruling does not constitute a finding of contempt.

An evidentiary hearing will now take place during the previously scheduled June 12 proceeding. The judge said the hearing will determine whether the evidence establishes the elements of contempt, including whether the Utah County Attorney’s Office and its representatives knew what the publicity order required, had the ability to comply, and intentionally failed or refused to comply by making specific statements to media outlets.

The court declined to order the Utah County Attorney’s Office to produce the discovery requested by the defense. Each side will have one hour and thirty minutes to present evidence, and the court will issue a ruling later.

Judge Graf then addressed Robinson’s request to close portions, if not all, of the preliminary hearing and seal preliminary hearing exhibits. The parties agreed that the public and media should not be allowed to inspect or copy exhibits except as they are published in court during the hearing.

The court denied the request to close the preliminary hearing itself. Judge Graf said the public and media have a presumptive right to access court proceedings, including preliminary hearings. He said Robinson’s motion did not identify specific evidence that would create a realistic likelihood of prejudice to his right to a fair trial.

The judge also said other tools remain available to protect the defendant’s rights, including a larger jury pool, detailed juror questionnaires, and thorough voir dire.

The next hearing is scheduled for Friday, June 12, at 9:00 a.m. It will be held in person, and the judge said he anticipates Robinson will be present. The court said the order-to-show-cause evidentiary hearing will be heard first, followed by argument on the remaining motion.

June 1 Virtual Hearing

FBI Kills Suspect After Bakersfield Hostage Standoff

A hostage standoff in Bakersfield ended Wednesday morning after FBI personnel killed the suspect and rescued the remaining hostages from the Chase Bank building at 1515 17th Street.

Bakersfield Police Department Assistant Chief Jeremy Blakemore said police began receiving calls at about 12:59 p.m. Tuesday involving a suspect with an explosive device who had entered the building. Police said the suspect barricaded himself on the second floor and took several hostages.

The hostages were employees of the Kern County Superintendent of Schools. Police said other employees and patrons fled the building, and officers began evacuating surrounding businesses while negotiators communicated with the suspect.

Police said the suspect claimed he had explosives attached to himself and said additional explosives were attached to some hostages. Blakemore said law enforcement confirmed that based on their own observations.

During negotiations, police secured the release of two hostages. The first was released at 3:59 p.m. The second was released at 8:24 p.m.

Blakemore said negotiations later stalled, and the suspect refused to release any more victims. Bakersfield Police requested FBI assistance, and the FBI assumed operational control at about 9:02 p.m.

FBI Sacramento Special Agent in Charge Sid Patel identified the suspect as Anthony Scott Searles-Harris, 41. Patel said Searles-Harris served in the U.S. Army from 2006 to 2007 and was dishonorably discharged for going AWOL. He also said Searles-Harris had a criminal history involving weapons and was a registered sex offender.

Patel said Searles-Harris tied up five hostages on the second floor, but there were 10 hostages total. Two were released during negotiations, and all 10 were physically unharmed.

The FBI said SWAT teams, crisis negotiators, bomb technicians, victim specialists, and the FBI Hostage Rescue Team responded. Patel said the Hostage Rescue Team deployed from Quantico and took over the scene around 2:00 a.m.

At about 4:30 a.m. Wednesday, Patel said the Hostage Rescue Team “neutralized” Searles-Harris.

Officials said one hostage was diabetic and had been communicating with authorities by phone until the phone died. Patel said law enforcement had been able to get medicine to her, but officials believed the situation had become a potential loss-of-life issue if they did not act.

Officials said multiple IEDs presented a concern, but testing continued after the rescue. Patel said law enforcement had concluded “at this point in time” that the devices were not a concern.

Police said it did not appear that Kern County Superintendent of Schools employees were specifically targeted. The reason the building was targeted remains under investigation.

Officials also said they were aware of at least one YouTube video allegedly made by the suspect. Police said it was part of the broader investigation into motive.

YouTube Video: Bakersfield hostage standoff press briefing

NIH Researchers Charged With Smuggling Monkeypox Into the United States

Two researchers with the National Institutes of Health were charged Tuesday in federal court with conspiracy to smuggle monkeypox into the United States and giving false statements to federal law enforcement.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan identified the defendants as Vincent Munster and Claude Kwe, both researchers at NIH’s Rocky Mountain Laboratory in Hamilton, Montana. Prosecutors said Munster, 53, is a citizen of the Netherlands and Chief of the Virus Ecology Section, Laboratory of Virology. Kwe, 38, is a citizen of Cameroon and a research fellow in Munster’s section.

According to the Justice Department, both men worked on “emerging viral pathogens” and how those pathogens “cross the species barrier.” Prosecutors said they worked at a Biosafety Level 4 laboratory, the highest level of biosafety precautions for research on known and potential human pathogens.

The charges stem from a January 25 arrival at Detroit Metropolitan Airport’s McNamara Terminal. Prosecutors said Munster and Kwe had traveled from Brazzaville, Republic of Congo, where a monkeypox outbreak was occurring.

Customs and Border Protection officers inspected and interviewed the two researchers after seeing them traveling with a large black plastic case. Prosecutors said Munster and Kwe falsely told CBP officers that the case contained diagnostics and testing equipment.

According to the DOJ, a later investigation by CBP and FBI agents found 113 vials in Styrofoam coolers inside the case. As of the complaint date, the FBI had tested 20 of the 113 vials. Seventeen contained deactivated monkeypox virus, one contained chickenpox virus, and two contained only human DNA.

“These NIH experts apparently broke our laws by smuggling viral pathogens on a packed commercial airplane from an outbreak in the Republic of Congo. Let that sink in,” U.S. Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon Jr. said.

FBI Detroit Special Agent in Charge Jennifer Runyan said the allegations were serious and involved “the dangerous and unlawful smuggling of deactivated Mpox virus into the United States and alleged efforts to mislead our federal agents.”

HHS-OIG Special Agent in Charge Marcus L. Sykes said any deliberate effort to conceal and smuggle biological materials without authorization “is a breach of the public’s trust and could have placed the public at risk.”

CBP Director of Field Operations Marty C. Raybon said the agency has “zero tolerance” for anyone who attempts to exploit research frameworks, circumvent border enforcement, or deceive investigators.

Munster and Kwe face a maximum sentence of five years in prison. Prosecutors noted that a complaint is only a charge and not evidence of guilt, and that both defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

DOJ Press Release
HHS-OIG Enforcement Action
FBI Statement
FBI Detroit Statement

Justice Department Announces Ohio Fraud Charges and New FBI Fraudster List

The Justice Department announced Thursday, June 4, a new federal-state fraud enforcement partnership in Ohio, new fraud charges, and the launch of an FBI list focused on wanted fraud defendants.

DOJ said the announcement included federal and state charges against 9 defendants for alleged participation in more than $42 million in fraud, detention orders for three defendants in a separate $15 million romance-fraud case, two more defendants awaiting extradition, and the creation of the FBI’s Most Wanted Fraudsters list.

The announcement was made in Columbus, Ohio, with Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, FBI Director Kash Patel, CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz, federal prosecutors, and Ohio officials. In the press conference, Blanche said federal and state partners were announcing charges “against 14 defendants allegedly involved in fraud schemes targeting over $50 million here in Ohio.”

The largest case described by DOJ was an alleged behavioral-health fraud scheme in the Southern District of Ohio. Four defendants were charged in connection with an alleged over $30 million scheme involving therapeutic behavioral services and psychotherapy for children and young adults attending summer camps, church groups, and recreational programs.

DOJ said the defendants allegedly conspired to submit false and fraudulent claims for services that were medically unnecessary and not provided as represented. After one company failed to renew its credentialing with the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services and could no longer submit Medicaid claims for mental-health services, DOJ said the defendants allegedly conspired with another co-defendant to continue the billing through a different entity.

In that case, DOJ said investigators seized three bank accounts with $469,000 and 14 vehicles worth $800,000, including six Mercedes Benz vehicles, a Bentley, a BMW, a Jaguar, a Maserati, two Land Rovers, a GMC, and a McLaren.

DOJ also said Ohio’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit charged Robert Haley, 63, of Cincinnati, in Butler County Common Pleas Court in an alleged over $12 million scheme to fraudulently bill Medicaid for therapeutic behavioral services that were not provided to children in Butler County after-school programs.

In a separate Southern District of Ohio case, four defendants were charged in an alleged scheme to defraud the government of more than $1.4 million in COVID-relief funds. DOJ said the defendants allegedly submitted fraudulent PPP loan applications and forgiveness applications on behalf of businesses, including healthcare providers.

The Northern District of Ohio also announced a separate alleged romance-fraud case. DOJ said Jamal Abubakari, Kamal Abubakari, and Amanda Joy Opoku-Boachie were ordered detained this week in connection with an alleged over $15 million romance scam. Frederick Kumi and Daniel Yussif are awaiting extradition.

According to DOJ, the indictments allege the defendants targeted older Americans from about July 2024 to April 2026 through dating websites and social media. Prosecutors said the defendants used AI-driven video platforms and fictitious female personas, then persuaded victims to send money through false stories about inheritances involving money, gold, or diamonds. DOJ said more than 130 victims were defrauded, and seized assets in Ghana are estimated at more than $3 million.

The Ohio announcement also included a data-sharing agreement between DOJ’s Fraud Division and the Ohio Secretary of State. DOJ said the agreement gives the Fraud Division access to Ohio corporate registrant data to help identify ownership links between clinics, labs, billing entities, and other structures used to obscure control in healthcare and other fraud schemes.

FBI Director Kash Patel announced the FBI’s new Most Wanted Fraudsters list. The FBI said the list is intended to publicly identify people charged with defrauding the American people. Patel said, “Today we are launching the vice president’s historic initiative of the ‘Most Wanted Fraudsters’ list.”

In a written statement, Patel said the Ohio healthcare-fraud takedown involved multiple healthcare companies and four individuals who allegedly robbed taxpayer-funded Medicaid. He said investigators seized seven bank accounts worth $600,000 and 14 vehicles worth millions.

The Justice Department said the work supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance.

Justice Department: Fraud Division Announces Federal–State Partnership in Ohio to Prosecute Fraud

Justice Department Video: Fraud Division Announces Federal–State Partnership in Ohio to Prosecute Fraud

YouTube Video: Ohio Fraud Enforcement Press Conference

FBI: FBI Announces New Wanted List Dedicated to Fraudsters

FBI: Statement from Director Kash Patel on Most Wanted Fraudsters List and Ohio Healthcare Fraud Announcement

Rapid Response 47 X Post

World News

French Interior Minister Says More Than 890 Arrested After PSG Celebrations

Paris Saint-Germain defeated Arsenal on Saturday, May 30, to win the Champions League final on penalties. UEFA’s official match record lists the final as 1–1 after extra time, with PSG winning the shootout 4–3.

After the match, celebrations in Paris and other French cities were followed by violence, looting, and attacks on police, according to French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez.

In a May 31 press conference, Nuñez said authorities had made 780 arrests nationwide, including 480 in Paris. He also said 57 police officers and gendarmes were injured.

On Monday, June 1, Nuñez updated the numbers during an interview on France Inter. He said there had been more than 890 arrests, up more than 45% from the previous year, and 178 injured members of the internal security forces.

Nuñez described the incidents as urban violence, attempted looting, store looting, and attacks against law enforcement. He said the government had expected disorder and had deployed an exceptional security operation with orders for firm intervention.

Paris-specific judicial numbers were harder to confirm from primary sources. Reports citing the Paris prosecutor’s office said 277 people were placed in police custody after the night of May 30–31, including 195 adults and 82 minors. I did not find the original prosecutor communiqué.

The viral X videos can be treated only as leads. I could not verify the two specific posts from a primary source, and I did not find an official police or prosecutor statement tying those exact clips to a time, place, or case.

The narrow verified story is this: after PSG’s Champions League win, the French interior minister said unrest led to more than 890 arrests nationwide and 178 injured law enforcement personnel.

UEFA Match Report
PSG Match Report
Nuñez May 31 Press Conference Clip
Nuñez June 1 France Inter Interview

California CEO Arrested in Iran Sanctions Case

A California CEO was arrested Wednesday on a federal criminal complaint accusing him of violating U.S. sanctions against Iran.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California identified the defendant as Jamshid Ghomi, 63, of Newport Coast. Prosecutors described him as a dual U.S.-Iranian national and the founder, owner, and CEO of Faraz Pardaz Rayaneh Co. Ltd., or FPR, a Tehran-based computer networking company.

Ghomi is charged with conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. He was expected to make his initial appearance Wednesday afternoon in federal court in Santa Ana.

Prosecutors say Ghomi used FPR for more than a decade to procure U.S.-origin networking equipment for customers in Iran without a license from the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.

According to the affidavit cited by the DOJ, Ghomi used his own eBay and PayPal accounts from 2011 to 2023 to make hundreds of purchases of computer-networking equipment and directed the goods to intermediaries in the United Arab Emirates. In 2023, prosecutors say he personally negotiated the purchase of U.S.-origin networking equipment from suppliers in Minnesota and Nebraska, routing it through a UAE front company and on to FPR in Iran.

The DOJ says that from 2014 to 2018, Ghomi arranged the smuggling of more than 250 metric tons of networking equipment into Iran through freight forwarders and intermediaries in Dubai. Prosecutors say the shipments were designed to disguise Iran as the true destination.

Prosecutors allege Ghomi and his co-conspirators tried to conceal the conduct by keeping his name off shipping paperwork, omitting invoices from shipments bound for Iran, hiding U.S.-origin equipment inside larger shipments, and using UAE front companies.

The DOJ says FPR’s customers included hundreds of Iranian companies and government entities. Prosecutors say the company supplied U.S.-origin networking, security, and encryption equipment to the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran from 2017 to 2023, and to Iran’s Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics and affiliated military and defense-electronics entities from 2014 to 2022.

The DOJ also alleges Ghomi laundered proceeds from the business into the United States. Prosecutors say that from 2011 to 2024, he moved more than $15 million from Iran into U.S. bank accounts and a construction escrow account, while falsely reporting the funds to the IRS as foreign inheritance.

Prosecutors say Ghomi’s federal tax returns reported almost no income, with his highest reported income in any year listed as $20,684. The DOJ also says he claimed the Earned Income Tax Credit in seven tax years.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said Ghomi is accused of aiding “our declared enemies” by selling U.S.-origin computer networking parts to Iran and earning millions of dollars in violation of sanctions law. Essayli said prosecutors would seek an appropriate prison sentence and seizure of Ghomi’s assets, including what he called a $35 million Newport Beach mansion.

Darren Lian, Acting Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation’s Los Angeles Field Office, said the arrest reflects a commitment to disrupt the illegal flow of American technology to foreign nations.

A complaint is only an allegation, not evidence of guilt. If convicted, Ghomi faces up to 20 years in federal prison.

DOJ Press Release

Finance

Markets

Markets retreated across the board this week. The Dow had the least dramatic change, a drop of 166 points and closed at 50,866.

The S&P 500 lost 2.6%, falling 197 points to close at 7383.

NASDAQ lost 1263 points, representing a 4.7% loss. That index closed at 25,709 on Friday.

Gold lost 5.23%, a $240 loss and futures trading closed at $4353 / ounce.

Sports

Chicago Bears Advance Stadium Plan in Hammond, Indiana

The Chicago Bears have taken their clearest step yet toward leaving Chicago.

On June 5, Bears Chairman George McCaskey and President Kevin Warren said the team’s board voted to advance a stadium project in Hammond, Indiana.

The Bears said the exact site has not been selected, but Indiana has already created the legal framework for the project.

Senate Bill 27 created the Northwest Indiana Stadium Authority to acquire and finance facilities. It also allows Hammond to impose an admissions tax and create a stadium development district.

Indiana Governor Mike Braun welcomed the Bears, saying the state looks forward to building a partnership “as strong as the ’85 Bears defense.”

The move is already drawing national pushback.

In March, Congressman Greg Casar and Senator Bernie Sanders introduced the Home Team Act. The bill would require professional sports owners to give local communities a chance to buy a team before it moves across state lines or into a new metropolitan area.

Casar’s office specifically named the Bears, saying the team was threatening to leave Chicago after more than 100 years because of Indiana subsidies.

The Bears have not finalized a relocation. But their own board has voted to move the stadium plan forward in Hammond, and Indiana is already treating it like a real pursuit.

Chicago Bears statement from George H. McCaskey and Kevin Warren

Indiana Senate Bill 27

Indiana Governor Mike Braun statement

Rep. Greg Casar press release on the Home Team Act

Rep. Greg Casar statement on X

ESPN post on X

F1 Monaco Grand Prix Weekend

The 2026 Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix is going on this weekend, but I record on Sunday morning, so the race is happening while I’m recording. Kimi Antonelli will start on pole, followed by Max Vertappen, and then the two Ferraris. There’s hope with the new regulations that this year won’t just be another Monaco parade, but we will see. If Antonelli hangs on, his first 5 wins will have come sequentially, something that’s never been done in Formula 1.

NBA Finals

The NBA Finals head back to New York where the Knicks have a chance to take the championship on their home court. The Knicks won the first two games in San Antonio with game 3 Monday night at 8:30 on ABC.

Stanley Cup Playoffs

In the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Las Vegas Golden Knights lead the Hurricanes 2 games to one with game 3 coming in Las Vegas Tuesday June 9 at 8pm.

MLB Updates

In the MLB, the Yankees sit just one game behind Tampa Bay for control of the AL East but starting catcher Austin Wells joined sluggers Stanton and Judge on the IL. Atlanta still has a 9.5 game lead in the NL East, and the Brewers sit 5 games on top of the NL Central. But in the NL West, after going 2-8 in their last 10, the Padres are now 8 games ahead of the division leading Dodgers.

Rich Stephens

The Cold Take

From the desk of Rich Stephens

News for the week ending 5-31-26

Below find the expanded text from tonight’s broadcast. For corrections or additions, contact Rich directly.

Top Story

Trump Misses Son’s Wedding Weekend as Iran Talks Continue

President Trump missed Donald Trump Jr.’s wedding weekend after saying government responsibilities required him to remain at the White House.

In a Truth Social post, Trump wrote that he “very much wanted” to be with Don Jr. and Bettina Anderson, but that “circumstances pertaining to Government” and his “love for the United States of America” did not allow it. He said it was important for him to remain in Washington, D.C., at the White House during “this important period of time.”

The available primary-source record does not name a single government matter as the reason. But the official record from the same window points directly to Iran.

The White House says Operation Epic Fury began March 1 as a military campaign against Iran’s nuclear threat, ballistic missile arsenal, proxy networks, and naval forces. The White House later said Iran agreed to a ceasefire and to reopen the Strait of Hormuz while the Trump administration negotiated a broader peace agreement.

But the issue was not finished.

Two days after Trump said he had to remain at the White House, he posted from the Oval Office that he had spoken with leaders from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, and Bahrain. He said Iran talks were “proceeding nicely,” but added that it would be “a Great Deal” or “no Deal at all” — followed by “Back to the Battlefront and shooting, but bigger and stronger than ever before.”

On May 27, the White House posted video of Trump saying Iran was “negotiating on fumes.”

The story is not just that Trump missed a family event. It is that he publicly said he stayed at the White House during his son’s wedding weekend while Iran talks were still sitting between a broader peace agreement and a possible return to fighting.

Trump Truth Social Post on Remaining at the White House

Trump Truth Social Post on Iran Talks

White House Operation Epic Fury Release

White House Ceasefire and Strait of Hormuz Release

White House Video: Trump on Iran

World

Trump Lays Out Terms for Iran Deal After Cabinet Meeting

On May 29, President Trump laid out the terms he said Iran must accept as the White House moved toward a final decision on a broader agreement.

The post followed a May 27 Cabinet meeting where Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth described Iran talks as active but unresolved. Trump said Iran wanted to make a deal, but the U.S. was not satisfied yet. He said Iran was “negotiating on fumes,” and said the U.S. might have to “go back and finish it.”

Rubio said diplomacy remained the first option, but the bottom line was simple: Iran could never have a nuclear weapon. He said there had been “some progress and some interest,” and that the administration would see over the next hours and days whether more progress could be made.

The main unresolved issues were the same ones Trump later listed publicly. During the Cabinet meeting, Trump said the Strait of Hormuz would be open to everybody, called it international waters, and said nobody would control it. He said the U.S. would watch over it, but that Iran and Oman would not control it.

Trump also rejected the idea of Russia or China taking Iran’s highly enriched uranium, saying he would not be comfortable with that. He said the U.S. was not discussing sanctions relief or money for Iran, and would keep control of frozen money until Iran “behave[s] properly.”

On May 29, Trump put those terms into a public Truth Social post. He said Iran must agree that it will never have a nuclear weapon or bomb, and that the Strait of Hormuz must open immediately with no tolls and unrestricted shipping in both directions. He said remaining water mines must be removed or detonated, and that ships caught in the strait because of the U.S. naval blockade could begin heading home.

Trump said no money would be exchanged until further notice, said other less important items had been agreed to, and said he was going to the Situation Room to make a final determination.

The broader conflict began with Operation Epic Fury. The White House said the operation was launched to destroy Iran’s missile capability, destroy its navy, cut off support for terrorist proxies, and ensure Iran never obtains a nuclear weapon. On April 8, the White House said Iran had agreed to a ceasefire and to reopen the Strait of Hormuz while negotiations continued toward a broader peace agreement.

The current state is not a final signed deal. The official record shows a ceasefire, active negotiations, stated U.S. demands, and a possible decision point. Trump’s latest terms require no Iranian nuclear weapon, immediate unrestricted shipping through Hormuz, removal of remaining mines, no immediate money transfer, and a final White House review before approval.

Trump Truth Social Post on Iran Terms

White House Cabinet Meeting Video

White House Operation Epic Fury Ceasefire Release

White House Operation Epic Fury Objectives Release

Politics

Texas Republican Runoffs Push Out Cornyn, Roy, and a Railroad Commissioner Incumbent

Texas Republicans used Tuesday’s primary runoffs to reject several familiar names and move major statewide races toward a more insurgent Republican slate for November.

The biggest result came in the U.S. Senate race, where Attorney General Ken Paxton defeated incumbent Senator John Cornyn. Unofficial results from the Texas Secretary of State show Paxton with 885,949 votes to Cornyn’s 501,725, giving Paxton about 64 percent of the vote.

In his victory speech, Paxton credited President Trump’s endorsement, calling it “the most powerful force in politics.” He said Texas had sent “a Texas-sized message to Washington,” and framed the result as a rejection of Washington ownership of the seat. He also thanked Cornyn for his service and said Republicans now had to come together for November.

Cornyn conceded after more than four decades in public service and 18 consecutive campaign wins. He said he trusted Texas voters, respected their decision, and would support the Republican ticket in the general election.

The attorney general race produced another major Republican result. State Senator Mayes Middleton defeated Congressman Chip Roy, 755,593 votes to 612,171. Middleton now becomes the Republican nominee to succeed Paxton as Texas attorney general.

Roy conceded on X, saying he had called Middleton to congratulate him on the victory and would have a fuller statement later.

The Railroad Commissioner runoff was much closer, but it produced another incumbent loss. Bo French defeated incumbent Jim Wright by fewer than 15,000 votes statewide, 663,679 to 648,978.

Republican congressional runoffs also filled out several November races. Alex Mealer won District 9, Tom Sell won District 19, Carlos De La Cruz won District 35, and Jon Bonck won District 38.

The broader Texas story is not just one race. Paxton beat a sitting U.S. senator. Middleton beat a sitting congressman. French beat a statewide incumbent. Those results show Republican runoff voters moving away from established officeholders and toward candidates running as more aggressive conservative outsiders.

There was also a major Democratic upset in Houston. Christian Menefee defeated incumbent Al Green in the 18th Congressional District runoff, 33,957 votes to 15,001. That race was not Republican, but it fits the same larger election-night pattern: long-serving officeholders did not survive several key Texas runoffs.

The current state is that Paxton advances to the general election for U.S. Senate, Middleton advances for attorney general, French advances for Railroad Commissioner, and several congressional nominees are now set. The Texas GOP story coming out of the runoff is a party moving hard against its old guard.

Texas Secretary of State Runoff Results

Paxton and Cornyn Runoff Speeches Transcript

Chip Roy Concession Post

Trump Truth Social Endorsement of Ken Paxton

Alabama Redistricting Fight Returns to Supreme Court After Federal Court Blocks 2023 Map Again

Alabama’s congressional redistricting fight is back at the U.S. Supreme Court after a three-judge federal court again blocked the state from using its 2023 congressional map in the 2026 elections.

On May 11, the Supreme Court vacated earlier judgments in Allen v. Caster, Allen v. Singleton, and Allen v. Milligan, and sent the cases back for reconsideration in light of Louisiana v. Callais.

Justice Sotomayor dissented, joined by Justices Kagan and Jackson. She wrote that the district court’s finding of intentional discrimination under the Fourteenth Amendment was separate from the Voting Rights Act issue and was not affected by Callais.

On May 26, the district court again blocked Alabama from using the 2023 plan. The court said it could either allow Alabama to use a legislative map it had found, after trial, intentionally discriminated against Black voters, or require the state to use the race-blind special master map that had already been used for the 2024 elections and the May 19, 2026 primaries.

The court chose the special master map. It wrote that it could not require Alabamians to vote in 2026 under a districting plan “tainted by intentional race-based discrimination.” The court said its review under Callais reached the same conclusion it had reached before: Alabama’s 2023 plan intentionally discriminated based on race.

The order also affects the current election calendar. The district court said the May 19 primaries for Districts 1, 2, 6, and 7 became ineffective on May 12, when Governor Kay Ivey set special primaries for those districts for August 11. The court ordered the Secretary of State to administer the remaining 2026 congressional election events under the Special Master Plan.

Alabama immediately went back to the Supreme Court. On May 27, Attorney General Steve Marshall filed emergency stay applications in the three cases, challenging the May 26 injunction and asking the Court to act before June 1. Marshall said the district court’s order blocks Alabama from using its 2023 congressional plan and “once again replaced Alabama’s map with one that sorts voters based on race.” He said he believes Alabama should have a 7-0 Republican congressional delegation that reflects Alabama voters and complies with Callais.

The United States is supporting Alabama’s request. In an amicus brief, the Solicitor General argued that the district court reinstated its injunction despite Callais and said the federal government has an interest in protecting citizens from court-ordered racial gerrymanders and preventing federal courts from interfering with state control over congressional districts.

The current state is unsettled. The Supreme Court docket shows Alabama’s stay application was submitted to Justice Thomas on May 27, and Justice Thomas requested a response by 4 p.m. Eastern on June 1. Unless the Supreme Court intervenes, the district court’s May 26 order keeps Alabama on the Special Master Plan for the remaining 2026 congressional election events.

Supreme Court May 11 Order in Allen v. Caster / Singleton / Milligan

District Court May 26 Order Appendix

Alabama Attorney General May 27 Stay Application Release

Supreme Court Docket 25A1314

United States Amicus Brief Supporting Alabama Stay

AFT President Proposes Screen Limits, AI Guardrails, and Tech Tax for Schools

On Wednesday, May 27, American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten proposed a 10-point education plan focused on limiting screens, restricting student-facing AI, expanding hands-on learning, and taxing Big Tech to address the effects of technology and artificial intelligence.

Weingarten delivered the speech at the National Press Club in Washington under the title “Devices down, eyes up, hands-on: 10 points to boost teaching and learning in the AI era.” She said artificial intelligence, addictive technology, social media, and economic disruption are reshaping students’ lives and that schools need a national response.

The plan starts with younger students. Weingarten called for no screens, including online assessments, for students in pre-K through second grade, unless there is a compelling reason, such as supporting a student with special needs. She also called for no student-facing AI in elementary schools, educator supervision for other student-facing AI, and a ban until at least age 16 on social companion chatbots that simulate human relationships.

Weingarten said the goal is not to ban all technology. In the speech, she said she was not calling for “an AI ban or a Chromebook bonfire,” but for a better balance that uses technology while limiting harm. She said educators need enforceable guardrails and a direct voice in how AI is used in schools.

The plan also calls for schools to redesign learning around active, hands-on work. Weingarten said project-based, experiential, and career-connected learning should become the norm across grade levels. She paired that with a call for students to have a strong foundation in literacy, numeracy, and civic engagement.

The speech also tied technology policy to student well-being. Weingarten called for schools to focus on students’ basic needs, safe and welcoming classrooms, mental health, and community-school models that connect families to services.

Several parts of the plan focus on who controls education technology. Weingarten called for protections for intellectual property and academic freedom, support for educators to make classroom-based decisions about technology, and a new safety and privacy standard for AI in schools. She said providers that cannot meet those requirements should not be eligible to serve K-12 education.

She also proposed an independent research consortium to study effective education practices, including the effects of AI, screens, and technology on students. She said that research should not be paid for by the industries whose products are being studied.

The final two points turn the speech toward money and politics. Weingarten called for adequate state and federal funding for public education and said AI and vouchers should not further defund public schools. She also called for a tech tax on Big Tech earnings and some business operations to make technology companies pay for what she described as the adverse and disruptive consequences of AI and technology on families, workers, communities, and the environment.

The proposal is not law. It is a union-backed education platform aimed at shaping how schools respond to AI, screens, vouchers, student well-being, and classroom technology. The clearest immediate policy pieces are the proposed screen ban for pre-K through second grade, the ban on student-facing AI in elementary schools, the ban on social companion chatbots for students under 16, and the proposed tech tax on Big Tech.

Full Speech Video

AFT Full Speech Text

AFT Press Release

DeSantis Calls Special Session for Florida Property Tax Reform Plan

On Wednesday, May 27, Governor Ron DeSantis announced a special session for the week of June 1 to consider a constitutional amendment aimed at reducing, and eventually eliminating, property taxes on Florida homesteads.

The proposal is called “Save Our Homes from Excessive Property Taxes.” DeSantis said the plan would eliminate taxes on homesteads and said property tax revenue collected by local governments has nearly doubled over seven years, from $32 billion to $60 billion, with projections reaching $83 billion by 2032.

The filed Senate resolution, SJR 2-F, proposes amendments to Florida’s constitution covering homestead exemptions, assessment limits, county and municipal tax revenue, and a new trust fund. The ballot language says the plan would exempt the first $250,000 of a homestead’s value from taxation and require, through general law, a schedule for full elimination.

The actual phase-in starts earlier. The filed text would exempt up to $150,000 of homestead assessed value beginning January 1, 2027, and up to $250,000 beginning January 1, 2028. People who establish Florida residency after January 1, 2027, would start with a $50,000 exemption and would have to maintain Florida residency for five years before receiving the increased homestead exemption.

The proposal also limits what counties and municipalities can do with remaining ad valorem tax revenue. The filed text says those taxes could only be used for public safety, education and public schools, infrastructure, natural resource projects, certain local bonds and debt service, and retirement obligations for local government employees.

The plan also reaches beyond homesteads. For non-school levies on residential real property with nine units or fewer, annual assessment increases would drop from 10 percent to 5 percent beginning January 1, 2027. The ballot summary also says the amendment would limit future property tax assessments on businesses.

To offset local impacts, the amendment would create a state trust fund to assist local governments with core services, including education, law enforcement, and infrastructure.

The current state is that the proposal has not passed. The Senate says lawmakers will take up the measure next week, and DeSantis’ stated goal is to place the amendment on the ballot this fall. If it reaches the ballot, Florida constitutional amendments require at least 60 percent voter approval to pass.

Governor DeSantis X Post on Property Tax Plan

Governor DeSantis Property Tax Special Session Release

Florida Senate SJR 2-F Bill Page

Florida Senate SJR 2-F Filed Text

Florida Senate Tax Relief Release

Florida Division of Elections Constitutional Amendment Rules

Current Events

Garden Grove Chemical Tank Emergency Ends After Evacuations, State and Federal Declarations

A hazardous materials emergency in Garden Grove, California, forced evacuations across parts of Orange County after officials warned of the expected failure of chemical tanks at 12122 Western Avenue.

Garden Grove’s city staff report says the local emergency began Friday, May 22, when the city manager, acting as director of emergency services, issued a local emergency proclamation at 9:30 a.m. The report says one of three chemical tanks with approximately 34,000 gallons of methyl methacrylate showed evidence of failure, including vapor releases and the possibility of an explosion, major damage to surrounding properties, and local air contamination at levels hazardous to humans and animals.

Methyl methacrylate, or MMA, was the chemical involved. Cal OES describes MMA as a highly flammable and potentially toxic chemical used in plastics, coatings, and manufacturing. Cal OES says mandatory evacuation orders were issued because of the potential release of MMA.

The initial evacuation order covered the area bounded by Garden Grove Boulevard to the south, Springdale Street to the west, Orangewood Avenue to the north, and Dale Street to the east. Garden Grove’s staff report says the evacuation affected Stanton in addition to Garden Grove. The area was later expanded to Valley View Street, Trask Avenue, and Ball Road, affecting Anaheim, Buena Park, Cypress, Seal Beach, Westminster, Garden Grove, and Stanton, with approximately 40,000 residents in the expanded area.

On Saturday, May 23, Governor Gavin Newsom proclaimed a state of emergency for Orange County. His office said the proclamation directed Cal OES and state agencies to support Orange County and impacted local jurisdictions, and made state-owned properties and fairgrounds available for sheltering evacuees if needed.

By Sunday, May 24, Newsom’s office said California had mobilized more than 785 state and local emergency personnel, including firefighters, law enforcement, hazardous-materials experts, public health officials, transportation crews, environmental scientists, and emergency coordinators. The governor’s office said state operations included support for public safety, evacuations, traffic management, sheltering, environmental monitoring, and community assistance.

On Monday, May 25, Newsom’s office said President Trump approved California’s request for a Presidential Emergency Declaration. The governor’s office said the declaration allowed FEMA to provide direct federal assistance, including personnel, equipment, and specialized resources for life-saving response.

That same day, OCFA said the threat of a BLEVE — a Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapor Explosion — had been eliminated, but that evacuation orders remained in place while officials re-evaluated the zones. OCFA also said there was still an ongoing public-safety threat and that continuous atmospheric monitoring had verified no chemical leak.

Garden Grove later reduced the evacuation zone to the area between Orangewood, Dale, Garden Grove Boulevard, and Knott. The city also held a special City Council meeting on Tuesday, May 26, focused on the incident, the city’s response, and the latest information available.

By May 27 and May 28, the written official status had changed. Cal OES said all evacuation orders had been lifted, residents could return, and emergency shelters closed Wednesday, May 27. OCFA said there was no chemical leak, no threat of explosion, no threat of fire, and no risk to the public. OCFA also said a remaining exclusion zone would allow hazardous materials teams to continue monitoring the tanks, with no residents affected. The Orange County Sheriff’s Department said all care and shelter locations had closed and all road closures had been lifted.

Garden Grove is now moving into recovery. The city says it is collecting information from residents, businesses, and community members affected by the chemical emergency and evacuation orders. The city also says homes and businesses inside the evacuation zone should receive letters verifying impacted locations for insurance claims, reimbursement requests, and related recovery efforts. Garden Grove is also seeking SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loan assistance for impacted businesses.

Garden Grove Staff Report

California State Emergency Proclamation Release

Presidential Emergency Declaration Approval

Cal OES Community Resources

OCFA Incident Updates

Garden Grove Hazmat Incident Page

Orange County Sheriff Disaster Resources

Garden Grove Recovery Feedback Release

Garden Grove SBA Assistance Release

Matthew Perry’s Former Assistant Sentenced in Federal Ketamine Case

On Wednesday, May 27, Kenneth Iwamasa was sentenced to 41 months in federal prison for his role in the death of actor Matthew Perry.

Federal prosecutors say the live-in assistant obtained and repeatedly injected Perry with ketamine, including the fatal dose in October 2023.

He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute ketamine resulting in death.

Iwamasa had no medical training, was aware of Perry’s addiction history, and still gave the injections.

DOJ Sentencing Release

New York Authorizes Speed Limiters for Repeat Speed-Camera Offenders

On Wednesday, May 27, Governor Kathy Hochul signed budget legislation authorizing New York City to put speed-limiting devices in vehicles tied to repeat speed-camera violations.

The program targets owners who receive final decisions on 16 speed-camera tickets in 12 months.

The device is called Intelligent Speed Assistance. Under the law, it restricts a vehicle’s speed based on the posted speed limit, while still allowing a manual override when necessary for traffic conditions.

The order can apply to the vehicle tied to the tickets and, with exceptions, other vehicles owned by the same person.

The first installation period is 12 months, but repeat orders can stretch to 24 months, 36 months, or until the city approves removal.

Drivers who fail to install the device or tamper with it can face fines from $1,500 to $2,500 and registration suspension.

Vehicle owners generally pay for installation and maintenance, though the law allows payment plans and waives the cost for owners found financially unable to pay.

New York City already uses this technology in municipal vehicles, and city officials say a pilot program reduced speeding by 65 percent.

The signed law now gives New York City a path to move speed-limiters from government fleets to private vehicles owned by repeat speed-camera offenders.

Governor Hochul FY27 Public Safety Budget Release

NY State Budget Bill A10008C

NYC DCAS Intelligent Speed Assistance Program

NYC DCAS / U.S. DOT Volpe ISA Evaluation Release

Trump Says TrumpRx Added Low-Cost Generics as White House Expands Drug-Pricing Push

At Wednesday’s Cabinet meeting, President Trump said his administration is expanding its prescription-drug pricing push through Most Favored Nation agreements and TrumpRx.gov.

Trump said the administration is delivering “record setting discounts on prescription drugs” and said TrumpRx.gov had recently added nearly 1,000 low-cost generics. He described the program as an effort to end the gap between what Americans pay for prescription drugs and what patients pay in other developed countries.

The White House’s May 18 fact sheet says TrumpRx.gov was expanded to feature more than 600 generic medications. The site is designed to let patients compare cash prices for common medications without insurance middlemen, including prices at local pharmacies and delivery options through private pharmacy programs. The White House says discounts from Amazon Pharmacy, Cost Plus Drugs, and GoodRx will be integrated into TrumpRx.gov.

The generic-drug listings are separate from the administration’s Most Favored Nation agreements for high-cost branded drugs. The White House says the site includes common medications such as atorvastatin for cholesterol, clopidogrel as a blood thinner, lisinopril for high blood pressure, and metformin for diabetes. The site does not include controlled substances, drugs with FDA-mandated risk evaluation and mitigation strategies, or drugs not commonly offered through direct-to-consumer channels.

TrumpRx was first launched in February with price reductions on 40 popular and expensive branded medicines. The White House listed examples including Ozempic and injectable Wegovy falling to an average price of $350 and as low as $199 depending on dosage, Zepbound falling to an average of $346 and as low as $299, and Insulin Lispro being available for as low as $25 per month.

HHS says the direct-to-consumer model is supported by guidance from the Office of Inspector General. That guidance says manufacturers can offer lower-cost drugs directly to patients, including Medicare and Medicaid enrollees, when safeguards are met. Those safeguards include that the drug is not billed to Medicare, Medicaid, or other federal programs, is not used to market other federally reimbursable products, and is not tied to future purchases or referrals.

The broader policy comes from Trump’s May 2025 executive order on Most Favored Nation prescription drug pricing. The order says Americans should have access to the lowest price offered in other developed nations and should not subsidize cheaper prices abroad.

The White House says the voluntary MFN framework would also apply to state Medicaid programs. A White House research page estimates that making existing drugs available to state Medicaid programs at MFN prices would generate $64.3 billion in federal and state savings over 10 years. It also says direct-to-consumer TrumpRx discounts are expected to create major patient savings for GLP-1 weight-loss drugs and fertility medications.

The administration has also tied the drug-pricing push to pharmaceutical tariffs and domestic production. An April proclamation says patented pharmaceuticals and ingredients generally face a 100 percent tariff, but companies with MFN pricing and onshoring agreements can receive zero tariff treatment until January 20, 2029. Generic pharmaceuticals and biosimilars are not subject to those tariffs at this time.

The current state is that TrumpRx.gov has expanded from high-cost branded drugs into common generics, while the administration continues using Most Favored Nation agreements, direct-to-consumer sales, Medicaid pricing, and tariff pressure to push U.S. prescription prices closer to prices paid in other developed countries.

White House Cabinet Meeting Video

White House TrumpRx Generics Expansion Fact Sheet

White House TrumpRx Launch Fact Sheet

HHS Direct-to-Consumer Drug Sales Guidance Release

Most Favored Nation Drug Pricing Executive Order

White House MFN Savings Research Page

Pharmaceutical Import Tariff Proclamation

Blue Origin’s New Glenn Rocket Explodes During Cape Canaveral Test

On Thursday, May 28, Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket exploded during a hot-fire test at Cape Canaveral.

The company said all personnel were accounted for following what it categorized as an anomaly. Emergency crews responded and reported no injuries, but officials warned that launch-vehicle debris could wash ashore in public areas over the coming days or weeks.

New Glenn is Blue Origin’s heavy-lift reusable rocket, standing more than 320 feet tall and built to carry 45 metric tons to low Earth orbit.

The explosion threatens plans for major commercial and government missions, including a planned launch of 48 Amazon Leo satellites and NASA’s Blue Moon lunar lander.

Video of the explosion shows the vehicle destroyed and the launch structure left standing but badly damaged.

Blue Origin Statement on Hot-Fire Anomaly

Space Launch Delta 45 Public Advisory

Space Launch Delta 45 Eastern Range Update

NASA Administrator Statement

Blue Origin New Glenn Vehicle Page

Blue Origin Amazon Leo Launch Alert

NASA Blue Moon / New Glenn Artemis Page

Finance

Bessent Says Treasury Prepared for Trump $250 Bill, Launches Trump Accounts App

On Thursday, May 28, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Treasury has prepared for a possible $250 bill featuring President Trump if Congress changes federal law.

Bessent said current law bars living people from appearing on U.S. currency, but proposed legislation would allow Trump to appear on a $250 anniversary bill. He said Treasury has prepared in advance, but would follow the law if Congress acts.

Bessent also announced that the Trump Accounts app is now available on major platforms ahead of the program’s July 4 launch.

Nearly 6 million children have been signed up, and Bessent said children born during Trump’s administration will receive a $1,000 seed investment from Treasury.

He described the program as a financial-literacy push meant to create “a generation of shareholders.”

Bessent also said TrumpRx has already saved Americans more than $600 million, tying the briefing back to the administration’s broader push on prescription-drug prices.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent White House Briefing

Treasury Trump Accounts App Release

Markets

Markets rose across the board this week. The Dow Jones picked up 453 points and closed at 51,032.

NASDAQ jumped 2.4%, closing at 26,972 after a gain of 629 points.

The S&P 500 added 107 points, closing at 7580.

And Gold regained some of the last couple of week’s losses. Futures trading closed up $70 at $4593 per ounce.

Sports

Bears Say Chicago Stadium Options Are Exhausted

The Chicago Bears say they have exhausted every opportunity to stay inside Chicago and are now considering stadium sites in Arlington Heights, Illinois, and Hammond, Indiana.

The team’s official stadium site says Soldier Field no longer has the infrastructure, accessibility, or amenities needed for a modern NFL stadium, and that the Bears have evaluated Chicago sites, including the Museum Campus, without finding a financially workable plan.

Arlington Heights is still in Illinois. If the Bears move there, they would leave Chicago but remain in-state. The Bears already own the 326-acre Arlington Heights property and say they plan a fixed-roof stadium and mixed-use district at the site.

The team says it has committed more than $2 billion toward the project. It also says the Arlington Heights development would create 56,500 construction job years and 9,000 permanent jobs.

The Bears have not announced a final stadium site or a date to leave Soldier Field. Their own stadium FAQ says no plans have been made to play home games outside Soldier Field at this time.

The current state is that the Bears are no longer presenting Chicago as a viable stadium option, while Arlington Heights and Hammond remain the two sites publicly tied to the team’s next stadium decision.

Chicago Bears Stadium Site

NFL Report on Bears Statement

Formula 1

Sunday, May 24, Formula 1 was in Canada, and for the first time this year, it had some interesting moments. Kimi Antonelli won the race, becoming the first F1 driver who’s first 4 wins came consecutively. Lewis Hamilton passed Verstappen late after a battle both drivers seemed to enjoy. Hamilton finished second with Max getting his first podium of the year, bringing the car home in third. Russel didn’t finish the race and now sits 43 points behind his teammate for the driver’s championship. The next race is Monaco on June 7.

NHL

In the NHL, the Las Vegas Golden Knights swept the Colorado Avalanche in 4 games to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals. In the East, the Hurricanes needed 5 games to defeat the Canadiens. Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals is June 2 at 8 pm eastern.

NBA

In the NBA, the Knicks swept the Cavs in the Eastern Conference Championship, but in the West, the Spurs needed all 7 games to get past the Oklahoma City Thunder. Game 1 of the NBA finals is June 3 at 8:30 pm eastern.

MLB

Finally, in the MLB, the New York Yankees have reeled the Rays back in and sit just 1 and a half games back from the lead in the AL East. Atlanta still has a 9.5 game lead over the Phillies in the NL East. The Dodgers are now 4.5 games up on the Padres in the NL West. In the NL Central, the Brewers have a 4 game lead over the cubs. Jacob Misiourowski is setting records every time he takes the mound for the Brewers. In Monday’s 5-1 win over the Cardinals, he recorded 57 pitches over 100 miles per hour. That’s the most by any starter since statcast began tracking in 2008. 9 of those topped 103 and he struck out 12 and leads the majors with 100 strikeouts in the first 55 games of the season.

Rich Stephens

The Cold Take

11-9-25

From the desk of Rich Stephens

News for the week ending 5-23-25

Below find the expanded text from tonight’s broadcast. For corrections or additions, contact Rich directly.

Three Killed in Shooting at Islamic Center of San Diego

On Monday, May 18, three people were killed in a shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego in Clairemont.

San Diego Police say calls of shots fired came in at about 11:42 a.m. The first officers arrived four minutes later and entered the Islamic Center and adjacent school to look for the shooters.

The victims were 51-year-old Amin Abdullah, also known as Brian Climax; 78-year-old Mansour Kaziha, also known as AbulEzz; and 57-year-old Nadir Awad.

Abdullah was a security guard at the Islamic Center. Kaziha was a caretaker and founding member. Awad lived across the street and was the husband of a teacher at the Islamic Center.

SDPD says the suspects parked in the Islamic Center lot, ran past Abdullah, and exchanged gunfire with him. Abdullah used his radio to start lockdown protocols before he was killed. Police say his actions delayed and deterred the suspects from reaching larger areas of the facility.

The suspects then entered the building, moved through empty areas, and went back outside. There, police say they encountered Kaziha and Awad and killed them.

No children from the school and no officers were injured.

San Diego identified the suspects as 18-year-old Caleb Liam Vazquez and 17-year-old Cain Lee Clark. Both were later found dead in Clark’s vehicle.

According to SDPD’s preliminary timeline, Clark’s mother first called police at 9:42 a.m. to report her son missing. At 10:41 a.m., she called again and reported that additional weapons were missing, that she believed her son had taken them, and that she had found a possible suicide note and threatening, hate-filled writings on his computer.

At 10:50 a.m., the call was upgraded because of the potential for violence. Police shared information with dispatch centers countywide, notified San Diego Unified School District Police, and used license plate reader technology to search for Clark’s vehicle.

The FBI says the suspects appear to have been radicalized online. Investigators executed three search warrants at residences associated with them and seized more than 30 guns and a crossbow, along with ammunition, tactical gear, and electronics.

The FBI says writings recovered in the investigation described religious and racial beliefs about the world the suspects envisioned. SDPD says writings found in the vehicle described hatred toward various religions and races.

The guns used in the shooting were not registered to the suspects. SDPD says how they obtained them remains under investigation.

The incident is being investigated as a hate crime.

The FBI and SDPD said they will not release photos of the suspects. FBI San Diego also said one photo circulating online and identifying Vazquez was incorrect.

Mayor Todd Gloria called the shooting “a violent act of hate” and said no one in San Diego should have to fear for safety in a house of faith or place of learning.

Community leaders described Abdullah, Kaziha, and Awad as heroes who saved lives inside the Islamic Center.

City of San Diego active shooter updates

SDPD preliminary timeline

FBI San Diego remarks on Islamic Center shooting investigation

FBI San Diego statement on suspect photos

Mayor Todd Gloria statement

Long Island Rail Road Strike Ends After Three-Day Shutdown

The Long Island Rail Road strike began just after midnight on Saturday, May 16, after a coalition of five unions and the LIRR failed to reach a new contract agreement.

The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen said the coalition represented about 3,500 workers, including 500 BLET locomotive engineers. The coalition included BLET, the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, and the Transportation Communications Union.

The fight was mainly over wages. The unions said LIRR workers had gone more than three years without raises. The MTA said the union demands would hit riders and taxpayers and could force fare hikes or higher taxes.

Before the strike, Governor Kathy Hochul said the LIRR carries nearly 300,000 riders every day and called it “the lifeblood” of Long Island. She said nobody wins in a strike because riders are hurt and workers lose wages.

Hochul said she had directed the MTA to bargain, but would not ask Long Islanders to pay unnecessary fare hikes or higher taxes. She said the MTA had put different proposals on the table and that the unions needed to work toward a compromise.

Once the strike began, New York moved to a backup plan. Hochul said MTA shuttle buses would carry essential workers from Long Island to subway stations in Queens, with return buses at the end of the day. Nassau County riders who could not work from home were told to use NICE bus connections to Queens subway stations. Citi Field parking was made available for access to the 7 train, and the MTA said extra subway trains were on standby.

Hochul also asked commuters who could work from home to do so and said affected state agencies had been directed to implement telecommuting plans while maintaining essential services. She said the buses could not replace full LIRR service.

The strike ended Monday, May 18, after the unions and MTA reached a tentative agreement.

After the deal, Hochul said the agreement protected affordability for Long Islanders while giving fair wages to LIRR employees. She said the contract would not require additional fare increases or tax increases.

MTA said LIRR service resumed at noon on Tuesday, May 19, in time for the evening rush. On May 20, the MTA Board approved refunds for May monthly ticket holders covering the suspended service.

Governor Hochul briefing before the LIRR strike

Governor Hochul briefing during the LIRR strike

Governor Hochul briefing after the LIRR strike ended

BLET statement announcing LIRR strike

BLET statement announcing tentative agreement

MTA LIRR strike information and refund update

Two Navy EA-18G Growlers Collide During Idaho Air Show; Four Aircrew Eject Safely

On Sunday, May 17, two U.S. Navy EA-18G aircraft collided during their performance at the Gunfighter Skies Air Show at Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho.

The 366th Fighter Wing said the aircraft crashed on Grand View Highway after the mid-air collision. All four aircrew successfully ejected.

Emergency responders from Mountain Home Air Force Base, Elmore County, and the city of Mountain Home secured the scene. The wing said Highway 167 would be closed from the Simco Road and Highway 167 junction to the Airbase Road and Highway 167 junction during the investigation phase.

“First and foremost, we are incredibly thankful that everyone involved in today’s incident is safe,” said Col. David Gunter, commander of the 366th Fighter Wing.

The EA-18G Growler is the Navy’s electronic warfare aircraft. According to the Navy, VAQ-129, the “Vikings,” is the Fleet Replacement Squadron for the EA-18G Growler and is based at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island in Washington. The Navy says the EA-18G is derived from the two-seat F/A-18F Super Hornet airframe and the EA-6B ICAP III electronic warfare suite.

The official release did not identify the aircrew or state a cause. It also did not formally say the aircraft were destroyed, only that they crashed after the collision.

Press Release
EA-18 Details
History of the Squadron

Judge Allows Gun and Notebook in Luigi Mangione Case

Luigi Mangione was back in court Monday, May 18, as a New York judge ruled what evidence prosecutors can use in the state murder case involving the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

Mangione is charged after Thompson was shot and killed outside the Hilton Hotel in Midtown Manhattan on December 4, 2024. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg announced the indictment later that month, charging Mangione with murder, weapons charges, and criminal possession of a forged instrument.

Mangione was arrested on December 9, 2024, at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, after employees recognized him from images connected to the Thompson killing.

The new ruling focused on what police could and could not use from Mangione’s backpack.

Justice Gregory Carro ruled that items found during the initial McDonald’s search must be suppressed. The court said the backpack had already been moved away from Mangione, he was surrounded by officers, and he was handcuffed. The court said the backpack was under police control and was not within Mangione’s reach.

The court also rejected the prosecution’s argument that officers were conducting a valid safety search for explosives or a gun. Justice Carro said the officers’ actions were inconsistent with a bomb search, including searching in an area open to customers and employees, stopping after finding a loaded magazine, and examining small items like a wallet and cardboard sleeve.

Because of that, the court suppressed the evidence found during the McDonald’s backpack search, including the loaded magazine, cellphone, passport, wallet, and computer chip.

But the ruling did not suppress the gun or the red notebook.

The court said the red notebook was not opened or searched at the McDonald’s. The gun was found later at the police station, during what the court ruled was a valid inventory search under Altoona Police Department procedures.

Justice Carro said the stationhouse search followed an established inventory process. After the gun was found, officers moved the backpack away from the detainee’s presence, separated personal items from evidence or contraband, documented the items, labeled envelopes, kept written lists, and photographed the contents, including the notebook.

The court ruled that the stationhouse inventory search was valid, and that photographing and cataloguing the notebook was part of the inventory process, not an unlawful investigative search.

The court also rejected the prosecution’s argument that a Pennsylvania search warrant later obtained for the backpack independently cured the problem. Justice Carro said the warrant relied partly on evidence already recovered from the backpack and information received after the searches had occurred.

The state terrorism counts against Mangione were already dismissed in September 2025. The court ruled then that prosecutors had not shown the killing met New York’s terrorism statute. But the remaining counts, including intentional second-degree murder, remain legally sufficient.

Mangione also faces federal charges. DOJ says the federal case includes charges for using a firearm to commit murder, interstate stalking resulting in death, stalking through use of interstate facilities resulting in death, and discharging a firearm equipped with a silencer in furtherance of a crime of violence.

New York Supreme Court suppression ruling in People v. Luigi Mangione

Manhattan DA indictment announcement

New York Supreme Court decision dismissing terrorism counts

DOJ federal charges announcement

Election Error in Maryland, Voter Registration Fraud Case in California

Two election-related stories surfaced this week: one involving a Maryland mail-in ballot error and the other a federal voter-registration fraud case in California.

In Maryland, the State Board of Elections says a printing-process error caused some voters to receive the incorrect party ballot for the 2026 gubernatorial primary.

The error affects voters who were mailed a ballot before May 14. SBE says all affected voters will receive a replacement ballot.

The replacement ballots were scheduled to be mailed starting the week of May 18, with mailing completed by May 29. The replacement ballot envelopes are marked “REPLACEMENT BALLOT,” and voters are being told to destroy the first ballot packet.

SBE says ballots from the first mailing have been voided in the voter registration system. If a voter already returned the first ballot, the local election office can identify and secure it.

SBE also says there is no risk of duplicate voting from the error. According to the board, every return envelope has a unique identifier, and safeguards are in place so only one ballot can be accepted per voter.

The Maryland case is officially described as an election error. The state has not described it as fraud, and no criminal charge was found tied to the ballot mistake.

The California case is different.

On Monday, May 18, the Justice Department announced that Brenda Lee Brown Armstrong, 64, of Marina del Rey, was charged with one felony count of paying another person to register to vote.

DOJ says Armstrong, also known as “Anika,” worked for about 20 years as a petition circulator. In that role, she was paid by coordinators to collect signatures from registered voters on petitions to qualify initiatives, referendums, and recalls for California state ballots.

Because coordinators paid for signatures tied to registered voters, DOJ says Armstrong tried to make sure the people signing her petitions were registered to vote.

Prosecutors say Armstrong solicited signatures in Skid Row because of the high concentration of people in a small area who were willing to sign petitions for payment. DOJ says she regularly paid people $2 to $3 to sign petitions.

Starting no later than 2025, prosecutors say Armstrong began offering payment not only for petition signatures, but also for people to complete voter registration forms.

DOJ says that before going to Skid Row, Armstrong gathered voter registration forms from the Los Angeles County Registrar of Voters. Prosecutors say some homeless people did not have an address to list, so Armstrong gave some of them her own former Los Angeles address.

DOJ says the forms registered individuals to vote in both California and federal elections. Because California automatically sends a vote-by-mail ballot to every registered voter, DOJ says ballots in some homeless individuals’ names could potentially have been sent to Armstrong’s former address, where those individuals did not live or collect mail.

DOJ says that on January 30, Armstrong knowingly and willfully paid another person to register to vote for the purpose of causing that person to register in federal elections.

Armstrong has agreed to plead guilty. The charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison.

Maryland State Board of Elections replacement mail-in ballot notice

DOJ announcement charging Brenda Lee Brown Armstrong

Tyler Robinson Hearing Focuses on Prosecutor Statements and Public Access

Tyler Robinson was back in court Tuesday, May 19, in Utah in the Charlie Kirk murder case.

Robinson’s defense argued prosecutors violated the court’s media rules by discussing an ATF firearms report outside court. The defense said prosecutors should have corrected any dispute over that report in court filings, not through media emails or television interviews.

The dispute centers on the bullet recovered at autopsy and the rifle tied to Robinson. The defense says ATF could not identify the bullet as coming from that rifle.

Prosecutors argued they were responding to misleading coverage after the defense filing was reported as meaning the bullet did not match the gun. The State says the ATF report was inconclusive, meaning ATF could not identify the rifle, but also could not exclude it.

The defense also asked to close parts of the upcoming preliminary hearing if the State presents evidence that may not be admissible at trial.

The State and media organizations objected, saying preliminary hearings are generally public. Prosecutors said the public and media should not be allowed to physically inspect or copy trial exhibits, but argued that does not mean the hearing itself should be closed.

The judge did not rule from the bench. He set a WebEx ruling hearing for June 1 at 10 a.m.

A separate in-person hearing on Utah’s reliable-hearsay rule is set for June 12.

May 19 Tyler Robinson court hearing

Criminal Case Against Ebony Parker Dismissed

On Thursday, May 21, a Newport News judge dismissed the criminal case against former Richneck Elementary assistant principal Ebony Parker.

Parker had been charged with eight felony counts after a 6-year-old student shot teacher Abby Zwerner at Richneck Elementary School on January 6, 2023.

We previously reported that Zwerner was awarded $10 million in her civil lawsuit against the Newport News School Board. Students had warned staff that the boy had a gun in his backpack, and the school failed to search the boy or his backpack.

The student obtained the 9mm firearm from his mother, who possessed it illegally and did not store it securely. She later pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of a firearm.

Parker’s criminal charges were separate from Zwerner’s civil case. The charges were not based on Zwerner as the victim. Prosecutors charged Parker with felony child neglect tied to the students in Zwerner’s classroom, one count for each bullet in the gun.

The indictments alleged Parker committed a willful act or omission in the care of those students in a manner so gross, wanton, and culpable as to show reckless disregard for human life.

Prosecutors argued Parker failed to act after repeated warnings that the child may have had a gun at school. The case followed a special grand jury report that examined security and administrative failures before the shooting.

After the prosecution rested, Parker’s defense moved to strike the charges. Her attorney argued the evidence did not prove a criminal offense under Virginia law.

Judge Rebecca Robinson agreed and dismissed the case before it went to the jury.

The court said the prosecution had presented legal theories, but not a crime under current law. The judge said if this conduct is going to be criminal, the General Assembly has to write that into the statute.

That ends the criminal case against Parker.

Zwerner’s civil case remains separate. The $10 million verdict against Parker was not erased by the dismissal of the criminal charges.

Ebony Parker criminal trial and dismissal

Previous Cold Take report on Abby Zwerner civil verdict

Richneck Elementary special grand jury report

Federal guilty plea by mother of 6-year-old who shot Abby Zwerner

Ebony Parker felony indictments

DOJ Charges 15 Defendants in Minnesota Fraud Takedown

The Justice Department announced Thursday that 15 defendants have been charged in a Minnesota Medicaid and benefits fraud takedown involving more than $90 million in alleged intended loss.

DOJ says the cases include the two largest Medicaid fraud cases ever charged in Minnesota, along with first-of-their-kind charges involving several state Medicaid programs. The defendants include owners of child care centers and Medicaid providers.

The largest new case involves Minnesota’s Early Intensive Developmental and Behavioral Intervention program, which covers medically necessary autism services for people under 21. Shamso Ahmed Hassan and Hanaan Mursal Yusuf were charged in an alleged $46.6 million scheme. DOJ says about $21.2 million was paid. Prosecutors allege Hassan and Yusuf paid kickbacks to families to send children to Smart Therapy Center and Star Autism Center, then billed Medicaid for services that were not provided or not reimbursable.

DOJ says EIDBI claims in Minnesota grew from more than $600,000 in 2018 to more than $400 million by 2025.

Charles Healey and Katherin Larsen-Guthmiller were charged in a separate alleged Medicaid scheme involving Individualized Home Supports. DOJ says they operated Healey Homes and received $22.7 million in Medicaid reimbursements. Prosecutors allege they owned and controlled the homes where the services were supposedly provided, even though Medicaid rules prohibit providers from having a direct or indirect financial interest in the recipients’ housing.

Ahmed Othman Kadar was charged in the first criminal case involving Minnesota’s Integrated Community Supports program. DOJ says Kadar operated Ultimate Home Health LLC and submitted about $1.4 million in claims for services that were not provided or were inflated. Prosecutors allege Kadar failed to respond to complaints from Medicaid recipients who were living without heat after power was shut off. DOJ also says Kadar billed for services supposedly provided to a recipient who required 24-hour care the day before that recipient was found deceased.

Several cases involve Housing Stabilization Services. Deborah Hodges was charged in an alleged $5.3 million scheme. Sharmaine Meadows was charged in a case involving more than $4.3 million in alleged fraudulent claims. Muhammad Omar and Ibrahim Abdi were charged in an alleged $3.3 million scheme. Cynthia Allen and Candice Langley, both from Philadelphia, were charged in separate informations involving companies that together billed about $3.5 million. Abdulbasit Ibrahim and Mustafa Dayib were charged in an alleged HSS scheme that paid about $975,000.

DOJ says Minnesota became the first state to offer Medicaid coverage for Housing Stabilization Services in July 2020. The state expected the program to cost about $2.6 million annually. DOJ says the program paid more than $26 million in 2021, more than $104 million in 2024, and was shut down by Minnesota on October 31, 2025, because of fraud.

The takedown also included child care and food program cases. Jillaine Ann Mertens was charged by information with wire fraud involving about $425,000 from the Great Start Compensation Support Payment Program. Fahima Mahamud was charged by information in two alleged schemes totaling about $5.48 million. DOJ says Mahamud submitted inflated Feeding Our Future meal claims and separately received Child Care Assistance Program money by falsely certifying that required co-payments were being collected.

The same week, DOJ announced that Aimee Bock, founder and executive director of Feeding Our Future, was sentenced to 500 months in prison for her role in a $250 million fraud scheme involving the Federal Child Nutrition Program. DOJ says Feeding Our Future opened more than 250 sites across Minnesota and went from receiving and disbursing about $3.4 million in federal funds in 2019 to nearly $200 million in 2021.

DOJ says it is adding 15 new prosecutors to target Medicaid fraud nationwide and expanding the Midwest Strike Force to include Minnesota.

The charges are allegations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

DOJ announcement of Minnesota health care fraud takedown

DOJ Minnesota health care fraud case summaries

DOJ Minnesota health care fraud court documents

DOJ announcement of Feeding Our Future ringleader sentencing

Feeding Our Future Founder Sentenced to 500 Months

Aimee Bock, the founder and executive director of Feeding Our Future, was sentenced Friday to 500 months in federal prison for her role in the $250 million child nutrition fraud scheme.

DOJ says Bock exploited the Federal Child Nutrition Program during COVID, when federal money was supposed to feed children. Bock and Salim Said were convicted by a federal jury in March 2025. DOJ says they falsely claimed to have served 91 million meals and fraudulently received nearly $250 million in federal funds.

Federal prosecutors described Bock as the central figure in the scheme. In the government’s sentencing filing, prosecutors said Bock used Feeding Our Future to enrich herself, the nonprofit, its employees, and co-conspirators. Prosecutors said the organization’s board existed “in name only,” and that Feeding Our Future was a façade used to carry out fraud.

The government said Bock kept the money flowing even after the Minnesota Department of Education raised concerns. Prosecutors said she pushed for restaurants to participate in the program, threatened and sued MDE when it refused to approve new sites, and worked around state efforts to tighten program rules.

The Minnesota Legislative Auditor’s 2024 review also found state oversight failures. The review said MDE found Feeding Our Future seriously deficient twice but deferred those findings. It said MDE should have pursued termination months earlier and failed to investigate indicators of the alleged fraud that were evident in documentation it already had.

The auditor’s timeline says the FBI notified MDE in February 2021 of allegations involving Feeding Our Future. Those allegations included kickbacks, reimbursement claims without proper paperwork, and claims for meals that were not provided. MDE terminated Feeding Our Future on January 20, 2022, the same day federal authorities executed search warrants.

Bock also tried to shift blame to state officials. In the government’s sentencing filing, prosecutors said Bock directed one of her sons to send anonymous emails to Minnesota legislators and media outlets claiming “Tim Walz, Keith Ellison, and the Minnesota Department of Education intentionally set Feeding Our Future and Aimee Bock up as a scapegoat.”

Prosecutors presented that as part of Bock’s post-conviction conduct and lack of remorse, not as proof that Walz or Ellison committed wrongdoing.

Rep. Ilhan Omar has also faced questions connected to the case. The Minnesota House Fraud Prevention Committee attempted to subpoena Omar for documents related to Feeding Our Future, but the motion failed. Committee Chair Kristin Robbins said Omar’s MEALS Act took guardrails off the federal school nutrition program and created the conditions for Feeding Our Future.

The sentencing record is clear on Bock: she was convicted, and she is going to federal prison for 500 months. Oversight failures and political accusations are documented, but no primary-source finding was found that Walz, Ellison, or Omar knowingly participated in the fraud.

DOJ announcement of Aimee Bock sentencing

DOJ announcement of Bock and Said convictions

Federal prosecutors’ sentencing position for Aimee Bock

Minnesota Legislative Auditor special review of Feeding Our Future oversight

Minnesota House Fraud Prevention Committee discussion of Omar subpoena motion

Two Attorneys Shot Outside Wake County Courthouse

On Friday, May 22, two attorneys were shot outside the Wake County Courthouse in Raleigh.

Police identified the suspect as 57-year-old Gwendolyn White, who is charged with two counts of attempted first-degree murder.

The victims were Mary Harris and Jeffrey Whitley, attorneys with Fox Rothschild. The Town of Rolesville said Harris and Whitley were representing the town in a civil matter. Rolesville said Fox Rothschild has represented the town for decades, but the attorneys are not town employees.

Raleigh Police Chief Rico Boyce said White and the two attorneys had been in the same courtroom earlier that morning. Boyce said White became belligerent in court, left the courthouse, returned to her car, got a handgun, and shot Harris and Whitley as they exited the building.

White was taken into custody at the scene.

Fox Rothschild Firmwide Managing Partner Todd A. Rodriguez said the firm’s thoughts are with Harris, Whitley, and their loved ones, and said the firm is supporting them and their families.

Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said the charges are the beginning of the judicial process and that her office is working to seek justice.

Police have not released an official motive.

Raleigh Police Chief Rico Boyce update on courthouse shooting

WRAL report with statements from Town of Rolesville, Fox Rothschild, and Wake County District Attorney

Politics

Tulsi Gabbard Resigns as Director of National Intelligence

Tulsi Gabbard announced Friday that she is resigning as Director of National Intelligence, effective June 30.

In a post on X, Gabbard said she was “deeply grateful for the trust President Trump placed in me” and for the opportunity to lead ODNI for the last year and a half. Her post says her husband, Abraham, was recently diagnosed with an extremely rare form of bone cancer.

President Trump said Gabbard would leave the administration on June 30 and that “Tulsi has done an incredible job, and we will miss her.” Trump said Aaron Lukas, Gabbard’s Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence, will serve as Acting Director.

ODNI currently lists Gabbard as Director of National Intelligence and Lukas as Principal Deputy Director. In July 2025, ODNI said Lukas was confirmed by the Senate as Principal Deputy DNI. Gabbard said then that Lukas had more than 20 years in the Intelligence Community, including work as a CIA analyst, covert operations officer, ODNI chief of staff, and National Security Council official.

ODNI’s current biography describes Lukas as a former CIA Chief of Station with more than two decades of intelligence experience.

Tulsi Gabbard statement on resigning as Director of National Intelligence

President Trump Truth Social account

ODNI leadership page

ODNI biography of Principal Deputy DNI Aaron Lukas

ODNI announcement of Aaron Lukas confirmation as Principal Deputy DNI

Massie Loses Kentucky Primary; Barr Wins Race to Replace McConnell

On Tuesday, May 19, Republican primary voters in Kentucky rejected incumbent Congressman Thomas Massie.

Unofficial results show Ed Gallrein defeated Massie in Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District Republican primary. Gallrein received 57,822 votes, or 55%, while Massie received 47,539 votes, or 45%.

Kentucky Republicans also voted in the race to replace Sen. Mitch McConnell. McConnell was not voted out. He is retiring, and the primary was for his open Senate seat.

Unofficial results show Rep. Andy Barr won the Republican Senate primary with 258,839 votes. Former Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron finished second with 128,246 votes.

In Alabama, Sen. Tommy Tuberville won the Republican primary for governor. Unofficial results show Tuberville received more than 421,000 votes, or about 85%.

The Republican primary for Tuberville’s open Senate seat did not produce an outright winner. Rep. Barry Moore led the field with just over 39%, followed by Jared Hudson and Steve Marshall.

In Georgia, the Republican Senate primary also appeared headed to a runoff. The state’s official election results page showed Rep. Mike Collins leading, with Rep. Buddy Carter and Derek Dooley behind him.

The clearest incumbent loss came in Kentucky, where Massie lost his House primary. Carter also lost ground in Georgia while trying to move from the House to the Senate. McConnell did not lose; Republicans were voting on the race to replace him.

Kentucky Secretary of State live election results

Alabama Votes election results

Georgia Secretary of State

Markets

The Dow Jones closed at a record high of 50,579. This eclipsed the February 6 close by more than 400 points and comes after a 1053 point gain in the index this week. That’s 2.13% and significantly stronger than the other indexes this week.

Nasdaq gained 118 points, less than have a percent up, and closed at 26,343.

The S&P 500 picked up 65 points, a .88% gain, closing at 7,473.

Gold finished the week at $4,523, a $38 loss on the week.

Sports

Kyle Bush Dead at 41

On Thursday, May 21, NASCAR announced that Kyle Busch died after being hospitalized with a severe illness earlier in the week. Busch was one of the most accomplished drivers in NASCAR history. He won two Cup Series championships, in 2015 and 2019, and finished his career with 63 Cup Series wins. But Busch was not just a Cup driver. Across NASCAR’s three national series, he won 234 races: 63 in Cup, 102 in what is now the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, and 69 in the Craftsman Truck Series, making him the winningest active driver in the sport when he died. He drove for Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing, and Richard Childress Racing. He was known as “Rowdy,” and he earned it. He was aggressive, emotional, polarizing, and almost always fast. Busch is also the first active NASCAR Cup Series driver to die since Dale Earnhardt in 2001. He and Dale Earnhardt Jr. once had a strained relationship. Earnhardt Jr. said they had a challenging existence for many years, but eventually took the time to work through it. By the end, he said Busch had become a friend. NASCAR called him a future Hall of Famer and a rare talent who comes along once in a generation. Kyle Bush was 41 years old.

Nürburgring

Elsewhere in Racing, On Sunday, May 17, Maro Engel, Luca Stolz, Fabian Schiller and Maxime Martin won the ADAC RAVENOL 24h Nürburgring in the #80 RAVENOL Mercedes-AMG GT3. Mercedes-AMG said it was the brand’s first overall Nürburgring 24 win in ten years. Max Verstappen looked set to win his first 24h Nürburgring start in the sister #3 Verstappen Mercedes-AMG, shared with Lucas Auer, Jules Gounon and Dani Juncadella. The car had led the race and was still in front with just under three and a half hours left when a driveshaft failure ended its run for the win. The #80 Mercedes inherited control and finished the job.

F1

The 2026 Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix is this weekend. The race itself will be underway when this video goes live, but it’s a sprint weekend so there’s plenty to talk about. George Russel qualified on pole for the sprint race with his teammate Antonelli beside him on the front row. The Mclarens locked out the second row followed by the Ferraris and then the Red Bulls. Russel ran Antonelli off the road…twice. But he wasn’t penalized because the FIA is doing all it can to completely ruin the sport. He went on to finish in first, ahead of Lando Norris and then Antonelli. Qualifying for the main race was nearly identical except Charles Leclerc wound up behind the red bull cars.

Stanley Cup Playoffs

In the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Vegas Golden Knights lead the Colorado Avalanche 2 game to none in the western conference finals. In the east, the Hurricanes and Canadiens are tied 1-1.

NBA Playoffs

In the NBA Playoffs, OKC has a 2 games to 1 lead over the Spurs in the west while the Nicks are up 3 to nothing on the Cavs.

MLB

The Yankees have slipped 5.5 games behind the Rays in the AL East. They’ve lost 10 of their last 14 including series losses to the Orioles and Mets and split a 4 game set against the Bluejays. Atlanta controls the NL East with a 9.5 game lead over the Phillies. And the Dodgers hold a half game lead in the NL West over the Padres.

Rich Stephens

The Cold Take

From the desk of Rich Stephens

News for the week ending 5-2-26

Below find the expanded text from tonight’s broadcast. For corrections or additions, contact Rich directly.

World News

Trump Meets Xi In Beijing, Says China Agreed To Boeing And Soybean Purchases

President Trump met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing from May 13 through May 15, the first U.S. presidential visit to China in nine years.

In a formal meeting Thursday at the Great Hall of the People, China says the two leaders agreed to pursue what it called “a constructive China-U.S. relationship of strategic stability,” with cooperation as the main focus, competition kept within limits, and differences managed.

The official Chinese readout says the two sides discussed trade, military communication, agriculture, tourism, law enforcement, Ukraine, the Middle East, and the Korean Peninsula.

Trump gave his version after leaving China. In an Air Force One press gaggle, he said China agreed to buy more than 200 Boeing planes, with a promise of up to 750 if Boeing performs well. Trump said General Electric would also be part of the deal through aircraft engines.

Trump also said China would buy “billions of dollars of soybeans,” but said tariff reductions were not discussed. Asked whether the two sides agreed to extend a tariff truce, Trump said, “We didn’t discuss tariffs.”

On Taiwan, China’s readout says Xi told Trump that Taiwan is the most important issue in U.S.-China relations and warned that mishandling it could lead to “clashes and even conflicts.”

Trump said that warning was not communicated as a threat behind closed doors. In an interview with Bret Baier, Trump said Xi does not want to see Taiwan move toward independence, and said U.S. policy had not changed.

Trump also said he has not approved arms sales to Taiwan. He told Baier he is holding the package “in abeyance,” called it “a very good negotiating chip,” and said, “It depends on China.”

Trump said Xi asked whether the United States would defend Taiwan. Trump said he told Xi, “I don’t talk about those,” and later told reporters, “There’s only one person that knows that. You know who it is? Me.”

The two leaders also discussed Iran and the Strait of Hormuz. Trump said Xi wants the Strait reopened and agrees that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. But Trump said he is not asking Xi for favors because “when you ask for favors, you have to do favors in return.”

On artificial intelligence, Trump said the United States is “leading by a lot,” with China second. He said the two sides discussed possible AI guardrails, including biological, nuclear and cyber risks.

Trump also said he discussed Chinese nuclear expansion, political prisoners, Jimmy Lai, fentanyl, North Korea and Ukraine.

Trump said Xi may come to the White House in late September, and that the two could meet again at the G20 in Miami and in China later this year.

No formal joint statement or written White House summit readout was found.

China Foreign Ministry Readout
White House Air Force One Press Gaggle
Air Force One Gaggle Video
Bret Baier Interview With President Trump

Politics

Arcadia Mayor Charged With Acting As Illegal Agent Of China

The Justice Department announced Monday, May 11, that Eileen Wang, the mayor of Arcadia, California, had been charged in federal court with acting as an illegal agent of the People’s Republic of China.

Wang, 58, of Arcadia, was charged by information with one count of acting in the United States as an illegal agent of a foreign government. DOJ said that in a related filing, Wang agreed to plead guilty to the felony count, which carries a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison.

Wang was elected to the Arcadia City Council in November 2022. Arcadia’s city website says Wang resigned from the City Council on May 11, vacating her position as mayor.

According to DOJ, from late 2020 through 2022, Wang and Yaoning “Mike” Sun, 65, of Chino Hills, worked at the direction and control of PRC government officials and coordinated with U.S.-based individuals to promote the PRC’s interests.

DOJ said that included promoting pro-PRC propaganda in the United States.

Wang and Sun operated U.S. News Center, a website that purported to be a news source for the local Chinese American community. DOJ said Wang and Sun received and executed directives from PRC government officials to post pro-PRC content on the site.

In June 2021, according to DOJ, a PRC official contacted Wang and others through WeChat with pre-written news articles, including a PRC official-written article stating, “There is no genocide in Xinjiang; there is no such thing as ‘forced labor’ in any production activity, including cotton production.”

Minutes later, DOJ said Wang posted the article on her own website and responded to the PRC official with a link to the article. Others in the group chat did the same. The PRC official responded, “So fast, thank you everyone.”

DOJ said that in August 2021, Wang and three other members of the same group chat shared links to the same article on their respective websites. After the PRC official thanked them for their “reporting,” Wang made edits to the article at the official’s request, sent the official a link to the revised article, then sent a screenshot showing the article had been viewed 15,128 times.

The official responded, “Great!” Wang replied, “Thank you leader.”

DOJ said Wang also communicated in November 2021 with John Chen, described in court documents as a high-level member of the PRC intelligence apparatus who regularly attended elite Chinese Communist Party functions and met personally with PRC President Xi Jinping.

According to DOJ, Wang asked Chen to post a news article from her website and wrote, “This is what the Ministry of Foreign Affairs wants to send.”

Chen was sentenced in November 2024 to 20 months in federal prison after pleading guilty in the Southern District of New York to acting as an illegal agent of the PRC and conspiracy to bribe a public official.

DOJ said Wang admitted in her plea agreement that she did not notify the Attorney General that she was acting in the United States as an agent of the PRC. DOJ also said Wang admitted she did not disclose on her website that some of its content had been posted at the direction of PRC government officials.

Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg said, “Individuals elected to public office in the United States should act only for the people of the United States that they represent.”

Eisenberg said, “It is deeply concerning that someone who previously received and executed directives from PRC government officials is now in a position of public trust at all, but particularly so because that relationship with that foreign government had never been disclosed.”

Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI’s Counterintelligence and Espionage Division said, “By her own admission, Eileen Wang secretly served the interests of the Chinese government.”

Patrick Grandy, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office, said, “All Americans should be alarmed to learn an elected official was brazenly spreading propaganda on behalf of the Chinese government.”

Sun, who worked with Wang, is serving a four-year federal prison sentence after pleading guilty in October 2025 to acting as an illegal agent of a foreign government. DOJ said Sun acted at the direction of PRC officials, promoted pro-PRC propaganda, helped elect a political candidate identified in court documents as “Individual 1,” and closely monitored Taiwan’s then-president during an April 2023 visit to Southern California.

The FBI is investigating Wang’s case. Assistant United States Attorney Amanda B. Elbogen of the National Security Division is prosecuting it, with assistance from Trial Attorney Garrett Coyle of DOJ’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.

DOJ Press Release

City of Arcadia Mayor Page

DOJ Release on Yaoning “Mike” Sun Sentencing

Supreme Court Says Trucking Brokers Can Face State Negligent-Hiring Claims In Some Crash Cases

On Thursday, May 14, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that federal law does not bar a state-law negligent-hiring claim against a freight broker accused of arranging truck transportation with an unsafe motor carrier.

The case is Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II, LLC, No. 24-1238. Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote the opinion for the Court. Justice Brett Kavanaugh filed a concurring opinion joined by Justice Samuel Alito.

The case turns on the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act, or FAAAA. The law generally preempts state laws related to the prices, routes, and services of the trucking industry. But it also contains a safety exception, which says the preemption rule does not restrict a state’s safety regulatory authority “with respect to motor vehicles.”

The Court said the question was whether a claim that one company negligently hired another to transport goods falls within that exception. The Court held that it does.

The case began after Shawn Montgomery was injured in a crash in Illinois. According to the Court, Montgomery was driving a load of plastic pots when Yosniel Varela-Mojena veered off course and struck Montgomery’s tractor-trailer, which was stopped on the side of the road. Montgomery’s leg had to be amputated, and he sustained other severe and permanent injuries.

Varela-Mojena was driving for Caribe Transport II, LLC, a motor carrier. C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc., a freight broker, had coordinated the shipment.

Montgomery sued Varela-Mojena, Caribe Transport, C.H. Robinson, and related corporate entities. He alleged, among other claims, that C.H. Robinson was liable because it negligently hired Varela-Mojena and Caribe Transport.

Montgomery claimed Caribe Transport had a “conditional” safety rating from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration when C.H. Robinson hired it. According to the Court, Montgomery alleged the agency had found Caribe Transport deficient in areas including driver qualification, hours of service, inspection, repair and maintenance, and crash rate.

The District Court held that the FAAAA preempted Montgomery’s negligent-hiring claim against C.H. Robinson and that the claim did not fall within the safety exception. The Seventh Circuit affirmed.

The Supreme Court reversed.

Justice Barrett wrote that all parties agreed that common-law duties and standards of care are part of a state’s authority to regulate safety. The Court then said the question was whether Montgomery’s negligent-hiring claim was “with respect to motor vehicles.”

The Court concluded it was. Barrett wrote that Montgomery alleged C.H. Robinson failed to exercise reasonable care when it hired Caribe Transport, which allegedly had a subpar federal safety rating, to transport goods by truck. The Court said requiring C.H. Robinson to exercise ordinary care in selecting a carrier “concerns” motor vehicles, especially the trucks that would transport the goods.

Because of that, the Court held that Montgomery’s claim falls within the FAAAA’s safety exception and is not preempted.

C.H. Robinson and the United States argued that reading the safety exception that way would swallow the FAAAA’s preemption rule. The Court rejected that argument, saying the safety exception does not save every preempted claim. It saves only claims involving regulations concerning motor vehicle safety.

The Court also rejected C.H. Robinson’s argument that the ruling creates a statutory anomaly involving another section of the law. Barrett wrote that it would be “even odder” to say that an alleged tort involving the negligent hiring of an unsafe motor carrier whose truck caused injury is not an exercise of state safety authority with respect to motor vehicles. The Court said, “Better to live with the mystery than to rewrite the statute.”

Justice Kavanaugh agreed with the ruling but wrote separately to say the case was closer than the Court’s opinion might suggest. He said brokers are intermediaries between shippers and trucking companies: shippers contract with brokers, and brokers select motor carriers to move the goods.

Kavanaugh wrote that brokers do not own or lease the trucks and do not hire the drivers. But he said the FAAAA was aimed at economic deregulation, not safety deregulation, and that it would be hard to read the statute as leaving trucking companies subject to state tort suits while giving brokers categorical immunity from tort liability for negligently selecting an unsafe trucking company.

Kavanaugh also noted that federal law does not require brokers to take substantial steps to ensure they select safe trucking companies. He wrote that brokers may sometimes become aware that a particular carrier operates unsafe trucks or hires unfit drivers.

At the same time, Kavanaugh said the decision should not be read to mean brokers will routinely face state tort liability after truck accidents. He wrote that brokers should be able to defend against state tort suits if they acted reasonably and arranged transportation with reputable trucking companies.

Kavanaugh also acknowledged the brokers’ concerns that litigation and insurance costs could be significant and could affect consumers through higher prices. But he said those concerns did not carry the day under the text of the statute, and that brokers and their supporters may ask Congress and the President to change federal law.

The case now returns for further proceedings. The Supreme Court did not rule that C.H. Robinson is liable. It ruled that Montgomery’s negligent-hiring claim is not barred by federal preemption.

Supreme Court Opinion

Supreme Court Docket

Supreme Court Oral Argument Audio and Transcript

Current Events

Oneida Police Say Four Adults Arrested After 14-Year-Old Girl Was Found Weighing 35 Pounds

The Oneida Police Department says four adults were arrested after an extensive child neglect investigation in the Town of Oneida, Wisconsin.

In a November 12 press release, Oneida Police Chief Eric H. Boulanger said the department concluded the investigation on November 10 and executed a search warrant at a residence in the Green Earth Trailer Court with assistance from the Outagamie County Sheriff’s Office.

Police said Walter S. Goodman III, Melissa S. Goodman, Savanna L. Lefever, and Kayla R. Stemler were taken into custody without incident.

According to the police release, Walter Goodman, Savannah Lefever, and Kayla Stemler were charged through the Outagamie County District Attorney’s Office with three counts of chronic neglect of a child where the consequence is great bodily harm and two counts of chronic neglect of a child where the consequence is emotional damage.

The police release said Melissa Goodman was in custody and expected to be charged later that week. No official charging document for Melissa Goodman was located in the primary-source material reviewed.

A Wisconsin criminal complaint dated November 11 charges Walter S. Goodman III with five counts of chronic neglect of a child, as party to a crime. The complaint says law enforcement began investigating after learning that on August 21, 2025, a 14-year-old girl identified as MJG was gravely ill and weighed only 35 pounds.

The complaint says MJG lived with her father Walter Goodman, her stepmother Melissa Goodman, her adult stepsister Savanna Lefever, Savanna’s partner Kayla Stemler, and a stepbrother in a trailer in the Town of Oneida.

The complaint says MJG began living with Walter, Melissa, Savanna, and her stepbrother in spring 2020. Kayla Stemler moved into the residence in August 2021.

According to the complaint, as of August 2025, Walter had been diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver and was on the transplant list. The complaint says Melissa and Savanna were “extremely obese, to the point of being nearly bed-bound,” and rarely left the residence. Kayla was the only one who worked outside the home.

The complaint says that when Walter and Melissa both left the house, including when the stepbrother was receiving treatment at Children’s Wisconsin in Milwaukee, Savanna and Kayla were left responsible for MJG’s care.

The complaint also says neither MJG nor her stepbrother had attended in-person school since school went virtual during the COVID-19 pandemic. MJG had previously attended school in person in Oneida and then virtually for the 2020–2021 school year. The complaint says she was reportedly homeschooled from the 2021–2022 school year through the 2024–2025 school year.

On August 21, Walter Goodman called 911 and said his 14-year-old daughter barely ate, looked “really skinny,” had been sick and vomiting for several days, was lethargic, appeared almost comatose, and was moaning.

The first responding officer saw Walter carrying MJG down the driveway. According to the complaint, the officer observed that MJG appeared severely underweight and malnourished, with her collar bone, rib cage, hip, and cheek bones very prominent. The officer said she looked to be the size of a 6- to 8-year-old child.

MJG was taken to St. Vincent Hospital in Green Bay. The complaint says a nurse reported that MJG weighed 35 pounds, had a large bruise on her forehead, had a blood sugar level of 24, was intubated, and was being transported by helicopter to Children’s Hospital in Milwaukee.

Medical records from Children’s Wisconsin cited in the complaint say MJG was diagnosed with severe malnutrition and signs of multiorgan dysfunction, including acute respiratory failure, cardiac dysfunction, severe acute hepatitis, pancreatitis, coagulopathy, hypothermia, hypoglycemia, and electrolyte derangements.

The complaint says MJG had little to no fat stores, visible ribs and spine, protruding hip bones, sparse and patchy hair, pallor, dry flaky skin, and multiple sores on bony prominences.

Medical records cited in the complaint say MJG later tolerated an age-appropriate diet and fluid intake, and that her improvement with nutrition was consistent with severe malnutrition rather than an organic medical cause. The complaint also says the lack of height gain since her last known data point indicated significant malnutrition over an extended period, likely years.

The complaint cites a witness who said Walter told him, “If she misbehaves, I’m not going to feed her today.” The same witness said Walter told him, “Well I keep her locked up in her bedroom with a camera on her, and that’s where she stays.” The witness also said Walter told MJG, “I wish I could kill you.”

The complaint also cites messages that appeared to discuss MJG being accompanied to the bathroom and then locked in her room afterward. Other messages cited in the complaint refer to MJG as “dummy” and “stupid,” and one message from Melissa says, “Go slap her ass again.”

The complaint says messages from August 20 and August 21 show Melissa and Savanna discussing MJG being sick, throwing up, acting “weird,” possibly having seizures, and not getting up before Walter called 911.

The primary-source record reviewed supports that four adults were arrested, that three were charged as of the Oneida Police release, and that Walter Goodman’s criminal complaint alleges years of chronic neglect, confinement, lack of medical care, and severe malnutrition involving a 14-year-old girl found weighing 35 pounds.

Oneida Police Department Press Release

State of Wisconsin Criminal Complaint

Mother Charged After Erie Apartment Fire Killed Three Children

The Erie County District Attorney’s Office says Danozjna Shalita Marjie Williams was arrested after a March 29 apartment fire killed three of her children in Erie, Pennsylvania.

Williams is charged with third-degree murder, endangering the welfare of children, aggravated assault, and recklessly endangering another person.

According to the District Attorney’s Office, search warrants revealed evidence that Williams left the children home unsupervised when the fire broke out.

Police allege Williams was gone for approximately 50 minutes to facilitate a drug transaction.

Erie County District Attorney Elizabeth Hirz said, “This is a heartbreaking, but completely preventable tragedy.”

Hirz also said, “The evidence shows these young children were left without supervision in a situation where they needed their mother to protect them and keep them safe. That duty was abandoned, with devastating consequences.”

The District Attorney’s Office says Williams had a preliminary arraignment on May 8, and bail was denied.

No official criminal complaint, search warrant affidavit, fire marshal report, or official cause-of-fire report was located in the primary-source material reviewed. The publicly available primary-source statement does not confirm claims that the children were barricaded in a room, that a landlord called Williams during the fire, or that Williams hung up on anyone during the incident.

Erie County District Attorney Statement

Santa Clara County Sues Meta Over Scam Advertisements

On May 11, Santa Clara County Counsel Tony LoPresti filed a civil prosecution against Meta Platforms, Inc. and Instagram, LLC, alleging the companies knowingly facilitated and profited from scam advertisements on Facebook and Instagram.

The case was filed in Santa Clara County Superior Court by the People of the State of California, acting by and through Santa Clara County Counsel Tony LoPresti. The complaint alleges violations of California’s False Advertising Law and Unfair Competition Law.

Santa Clara County says the case is the first of its kind brought in California and the first brought by a local civil prosecutor in the nation.

The County says the lawsuit alleges Meta knowingly facilitates and profits from billions of scam advertisements that defraud seniors and families and squeeze legitimate small businesses out of fair access to consumers.

The complaint alleges Meta platforms are involved in one third of Internet scams in the United States and that consumers around the world are exposed to 15 billion scam ads on Meta platforms each day.

The complaint also alleges scam ads bring Meta about $7 billion in revenue each year.

According to the complaint, since 2024, Meta has charged advertisers it identifies as likely engaged in fraud at higher rates than other advertisers. The complaint calls this a “penalty bid” for those advertisers to participate in the ad-placement process.

The complaint alleges Meta’s own systems flag ads that are likely scams, but instead of stopping them, Meta charges scam advertisers a premium price to run them. Santa Clara County says that practice both facilitates and monetizes deception.

The complaint also alleges Meta has set “revenue guardrails” on scam-prevention efforts. According to the complaint, in the first half of 2025, the team responsible for vetting questionable advertisers was not allowed to take actions that could cost Meta more than 0.15% of the company’s total revenue.

The County alleges Meta’s tools help scammers create and refine ads. The complaint points to Advantage+ creative, a suite of Meta-designed tools that uses artificial intelligence to generate alternate text and images for ads.

The complaint also alleges Meta promotes supposedly vetted “Business Partners” that help advertisers place ads. According to the complaint, some of those partners advertised services including “black hat” services, ad account rentals, high-limit pre-approved accounts, and whitelisted ad accounts.

The County says the scams include fraudulent financial products, cryptocurrency schemes, purported cures for incurable diseases, ineffective nutritional supplements, and impersonations of celebrities asking for monetary contributions.

LoPresti said, “Meta’s platforms have become a preferred hunting ground for scammers, and our lawsuit alleges that Meta not only knows it but has put in place systems and tools to ensure it profits from it.”

He continued, “No corporation is above the law. As civil prosecutors in Silicon Valley, we cannot allow a tech company as powerful as Meta to continue perpetrating a worldwide scheme to deceive consumers.”

The complaint also alleges Meta publicly claims it is fighting scams while internally prioritizing revenue. The complaint cites Meta’s public statements that it “aggressively” fights fraud and scams, that scam prevention is a “top priority,” and that it is constantly working to detect and block accounts that deceive, misrepresent, defraud, and exploit people for money or property.

Meta’s own Transparency Center says that in 2025, Meta removed more than 159 million scam ads, with 92% removed before anyone reported them. Meta also says it took down 10.9 million accounts associated with scam centers in Southeast Asia and the Middle East.

Santa Clara County is asking the court to declare Meta’s alleged conduct unlawful, issue an injunction, require restitution, impose civil penalties, impose enhanced penalties for conduct affecting senior citizens or disabled persons, award treble relief, and award attorneys’ fees and costs.

The complaint has not been proven in court. No final ruling has been issued.

Santa Clara County Press Release

Santa Clara County Complaint

Santa Clara County Counsel Case Page

Santa Clara County Press Conference

Meta Transparency Center Integrity Report

Officials Say Cambridge Gunman Fired More Than 60 Rounds At Traffic Before Trooper And Armed Civilian Shot Him

On Monday, May 11, officials in Massachusetts said a man opened fire on vehicles along Memorial Drive in Cambridge during the early afternoon.

Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan, Massachusetts State Police Colonel Geoffrey Noble, and Cambridge Acting Police Commissioner Pauline Wells said the shooting happened on Memorial Drive between River Street and Pleasant Street Extension.

Shortly after 1:00 p.m., Cambridge Police received a call from Boston Police reporting that a person later connected to the shooting might be in Cambridge, had been acting erratically, and was believed to be in possession of a rifle.

Cambridge Police and Massachusetts State Police responded to the area. Officials said Massachusetts State Police arrived and saw an active shooter situation.

According to the official statement, the suspect was on foot, walking east in the roadway, allegedly armed with an assault-style rifle, and was “actively firing in an erratic fashion at vehicles in the roadway.”

Officials said the suspect allegedly shot two male victims who were inside separate cars. Both victims were hospitalized with life-threatening injuries. Officials said the victims were not known to the suspect.

The suspect was confronted by a Massachusetts State Police trooper and a civilian who was legally in possession of a firearm. Officials said that after being confronted, the suspect continued firing and struck a State Police cruiser.

Both the trooper and the civilian fired their weapons. The suspect was struck multiple times in the extremities, treated at the scene by police officers, and transported to a Boston hospital.

Officials identified the suspect as Tyler Brown, 46, of Boston. The official statement said Brown was in custody at the hospital and was expected to be charged with two counts of armed assault with intent to murder and firearms offenses.

The preliminary investigation found that upwards of 60 rounds were fired within a very short period of time. Officials said the suspect created “a extraordinarily dangerous situation” during a busy part of the afternoon, while people were driving, walking, biking, and rowing on the river.

The investigation remains active and is being conducted by the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office, Massachusetts State Police, and Cambridge Police.

Cambridge Police Statement

Official Press Conference Replay

DOJ Announces Criminal Charges Against Dali Operators In Key Bridge Collapse

The Justice Department announced Tuesday, May 12, that a federal court unsealed an indictment against two corporate entities and a company official tied to the March 26, 2024 collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.

The indictment charges Synergy Marine Pte Ltd, based in Singapore; Synergy Maritime Pte Ltd, based in Chennai, India; and Radhakrishnan Karthik Nair, 47, an Indian national who worked for both companies as the Technical Superintendent for the M/V Dali.

The Dali was a 900-foot foreign-flag container vessel registered in Singapore. On March 26, 2024, the ship crashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge as it was leaving the Port of Baltimore. DOJ says the indictment alleges economic loss of at least $5 billion.

The defendants are charged with conspiracy, willfully failing to immediately inform the U.S. Coast Guard of a known hazardous condition, obstruction of an agency proceeding, and false statements. The two Synergy corporations are also charged with misdemeanor violations of the Clean Water Act, Oil Pollution Act, and Refuse Act for the discharge of pollutants into the Patapsco River, including shipping containers and their contents, oil, and the bridge itself.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said, “The collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge was a preventable tragedy of enormous consequence. This indictment is a critical step toward holding accountable those whose reckless disregard for maritime safety regulations caused this disaster. Six construction workers lost their lives, critical infrastructure was destroyed, pollutants were released into the Patapsco River and Chesapeake Bay, and the economic damage now exceeds five billion dollars.”

U.S. Attorney Kelly O. Hayes for the District of Maryland said, “This indictment is the first step in our efforts to hold those accountable who caused the tragic deaths of six people and catastrophic damage to our region.”

According to DOJ, the indictment alleges that the Dali lost power twice in a four-minute span as it navigated out to sea from the Port of Baltimore. DOJ says a loose wire in a high-voltage switchboard likely caused the first power loss.

The ship was originally designed with redundancies and automatic restart capabilities so it could quickly regain power after a blackout. DOJ says the Dali regained power after the first blackout, but then lost power again.

According to DOJ, the indictment alleges the defendants altered the ship and relied on a flushing pump to supply fuel to two of the Dali’s four generators. The flushing pump was not designed to automatically restart after a blackout. Because the generators could not operate without fuel, the Dali experienced a second blackout.

DOJ says the indictment alleges that if the Dali had used the proper fuel supply pumps, the vessel would have regained power in time to safely navigate under the Key Bridge.

Synergy and Nair are also charged with obstruction of an agency proceeding and providing false statements and documents to the National Transportation Safety Board. DOJ says the obstruction charges relate in part to Nair’s statements to the NTSB that he did not know the Dali was using the flushing pump to provide fuel to two of the generators.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson said in prepared remarks that the indictment alleges criminal conduct that led to six deaths, the destruction of the Key Bridge, the discharge of pollution into the Patapsco River, and the closure of the Port of Baltimore. He also said prosecutors allege the Dali experienced two blackouts at port the day before the allision, and that Synergy employees did not investigate or report those blackouts as required.

The NTSB said in November 2025 that a single loose wire on the 984-foot-long Dali caused an electrical blackout that led the vessel to contact the Francis Scott Key Bridge. NTSB investigators said the sequence led to two vessel blackouts and the loss of both propulsion and steering near the bridge. Six highway workers died.

The Maryland Attorney General’s Office also announced Tuesday that Maryland reached a final $2.25 billion settlement with Grace Ocean Private Limited and Synergy Marine Pte Ltd, the owner and operator of the Dali, resolving the state’s claims against those parties. The settlement does not resolve Maryland’s claims against Hyundai Heavy Industries, the shipbuilder. Maryland says it intends to pursue those claims.

DOJ says the FBI, Coast Guard Investigative Service, and EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division investigated the case.

An indictment is not a finding of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.

DOJ Press Release

U.S. Attorney’s Office Press Release

DOJ Press Conference Video Page

DOJ Press Conference Replay

DOJ Prepared Remarks

NTSB Release

NTSB Final Report PDF

Maryland Attorney General Settlement Release

Coast Guard And Air Force Rescue 11 After Plane Goes Down Off Florida Coast

The U.S. Coast Guard says 11 Bahamian adults were rescued Tuesday, May 12, after a civilian aircraft went down approximately 80 miles off Melbourne, Florida.

According to the Coast Guard, an emergency locator transmitter from a twin-engine turboprop airplane alerted Southeast District watchstanders to a potential distress situation at approximately 11:00 a.m.

The Coast Guard says a Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater C-27 aircrew was launched to search. A Patrick Space Force Base HC-130J Combat King II aircrew was already airborne on a training mission and also assisted in locating the downed aircraft and nearby life raft.

The Air Force Reserve Command says a 920th Rescue Wing HH-60W Jolly Green II helicopter crew was also already airborne on a routine training mission when the alert came in. The crew was redirected to assist in the search and rescue effort.

Working with the Coast Guard and other Air Force rescue assets, the 920th Rescue Wing helped locate and recover 11 Bahamian adults from a life raft near the downed aircraft.

The Air Force says the HH-60W crew hoisted all 11 survivors and transported them to awaiting emergency medical services at Melbourne Orlando International Airport. All survivors were reported in stable condition.

The Coast Guard says the airplane reportedly left Marsh Harbor, Bahamas, and was headed for Freeport. The Air Force says the aircraft reportedly experienced engine failure and that Bahamian authorities will investigate the cause of the incident.

Coast Guard Master Chief Petty Officer Omar Colon, a command duty officer for the Southeast Coast Guard District, said the support from Patrick Space Force Base and coordination among responding agencies “directly contributed to the successful rescue of 11 survivors from the downed aircraft.”

Colon said the agencies’ rapid response, professionalism, and commitment to saving lives were instrumental in bringing everyone home safely.

Col. Chadd Bloomstine, commander of the 920th Operations Group, said the rescue showed the readiness and interoperability the Airmen train for every day.

“Our crews were already airborne conducting training when the call came in, and they immediately transitioned from training to real-world rescue operations alongside our Coast Guard and interagency partners,” Bloomstine said. “We are proud to have played a role in bringing 11 people home safely.”

No official final cause has been released. The Air Force says Bahamian authorities will investigate the incident.

U.S. Coast Guard Statement

Air Force Reserve Command Statement

Air Force Article With Rescue Video

South Carolina Supreme Court Overturns Alex Murdaugh Murder Convictions And Orders New Trial

On Wednesday, May 13, the South Carolina Supreme Court overturned Alex Murdaugh’s murder convictions and ordered a new trial.

Murdaugh was convicted on March 2, 2023, of murdering his wife, Margaret Murdaugh, and his son, Paul Murdaugh. He was also convicted of two counts of possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime. The trial court sentenced him to life in prison.

The Supreme Court reversed the denial of Murdaugh’s motion for a new trial because of former Colleton County Clerk of Court Rebecca Hill’s improper contact with jurors.

The court wrote that Hill “placed her fingers on the scales of justice,” denying Murdaugh his right to a fair trial by an impartial jury. The court said every person is entitled to a fair trial before an impartial jury, untainted by outside forces pushing the jury toward a biased verdict.

Murdaugh moved for a new trial on October 27, 2023. He argued that Hill tampered with the jury by advising jurors not to believe his testimony and defense evidence, pressuring the jury to reach a quick guilty verdict, and misrepresenting information to the trial court in an attempt to remove a juror she believed favored the defense.

According to the opinion, one juror testified that before Murdaugh testified, Hill said to “watch his actions” and “watch him closely.” The juror said Hill’s comments made it feel like Murdaugh was already guilty.

The opinion also quotes the juror’s affidavit saying Hill told the jury “not to be fooled” by the evidence presented by Murdaugh’s attorneys, which the juror understood to mean that Murdaugh would lie when he testified. The affidavit also said Hill instructed jurors to “watch him closely,” including to “look at his actions” and “look at his movements,” which the juror understood to mean he was guilty.

The juror also testified that when deliberations began, Hill told the jury, “This shouldn’t take us long.”

The Supreme Court held that Hill’s comments triggered the presumption of prejudice and that the state failed to rebut it. The court said Hill’s position as clerk of court and primary caretaker of the jury amplified the effect of her comments.

The court rejected the idea that the comments were harmless because only a limited number of jurors heard them or because the state’s evidence was strong. The opinion says a defendant is entitled to be tried by twelve impartial jurors, not nine or ten.

The court wrote that the state’s case rested largely on circumstantial evidence and that Murdaugh’s credibility was a key part of his defense. The court said Hill’s repeated comments challenging Murdaugh’s credibility directly undermined that defense.

The court said Hill’s “egregious, improper jury interference went to the heart of the case and unquestionably was intended to push the jury to a guilty verdict.”

The Supreme Court also gave guidance for the retrial on the use of Murdaugh’s financial-crimes evidence. At the time of the murder trial, Murdaugh had been accused of and indicted for numerous financial crimes. During his testimony, he admitted committing financial crimes, though he had not yet been convicted. After trial, he pleaded guilty in state and federal court and was sentenced to concurrent terms of 27 years in state prison and 40 years in federal prison.

The court said the prosecution may again seek to use financial-crimes evidence to argue motive, but warned that if the trial court admits that evidence on retrial, the state must present it efficiently and avoid lengthy inflammatory details with little or no probative value.

South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson said his office disagrees with the decision and will retry the case.

Wilson said, “While we respectfully disagree with the Court’s decision, my Office will aggressively seek to retry Alex Murdaugh for the murders of Maggie and Paul as soon as possible. Let me be clear—this decision does not mean Murdaugh will be released. He will remain in prison for his financial crimes. No one is above the law and, as always, we will continue to fight for justice.”

The case now returns for a new trial. The Supreme Court’s ruling does not acquit Murdaugh. It overturns the murder convictions because the court found he was denied his right to a fair trial before an impartial jury.

South Carolina Supreme Court Opinion

South Carolina Attorney General Statement

Grenade-Type IED Found Underwater At Alabama Reservoir Dam

The Mobile Area Water and Sewer System says divers found a grenade-type improvised explosive device underwater at the Converse Reservoir dam in Mobile, Alabama.

MAWSS said the device was discovered while divers were performing routine repair and maintenance work on the dam. After the device was found, MAWSS alerted the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office.

According to MAWSS, the Sheriff’s Office coordinated a multi-agency response that included the Gulf Coast Regional Maritime Response and Render-Safe Team, FBI Bomb Squad, Mobile Police Department Explosive Ordinance Detail, ALEA Bomb Squad, Daphne Search and Rescue Team, and other local, state, and federal partners.

MAWSS said the device was retrieved and safely detonated by the Gulf Coast Regional Maritime Response and Render-Safe Team.

MAWSS said the Converse Reservoir and dam are federally designated critical infrastructure, and the Department of Homeland Security was made aware of the incident.

MAWSS Director Bud McCrory said, “Our top priority is keeping your drinking water safe. This unprecedented threat was met with a coordinated and professional response, and we’re fortunate it was discovered before it could damage our water supply or harm anyone.”

McCrory said MAWSS is continuously reviewing and updating its security protocols to protect essential infrastructure.

No suspect, arrest, motive, or timeline for when the device was placed has been announced in the primary-source material reviewed.

Mobile Area Water and Sewer System Statement

Harvey Weinstein Case Ends In Mistrial After Third Trial On Jessica Mann Charge

On Friday, May 15, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said Harvey Weinstein’s latest New York trial ended in a mistrial.

The trial centered on the unresolved third-degree rape charge involving Jessica Mann. Bragg said Mann has now testified “during three separate trials,” and said his office will consider its next steps after consulting with Mann and weighing Weinstein’s pending sentencing from last year’s New York conviction involving Miriam Haley.

Weinstein’s original New York conviction came in 2020, when a jury convicted him of first-degree criminal sexual act and third-degree rape. The New York Court of Appeals later overturned that conviction in 2024, ruling that the trial court improperly allowed testimony about uncharged alleged prior sexual acts and other alleged misconduct. The court said the combined effect of those rulings was not harmless and ordered a new trial.

That retrial produced a split result in June 2025. Bragg said a New York jury convicted Weinstein of Criminal Sexual Act in the First Degree for sexually assaulting Miriam Haley. The jury could not reach a verdict on the third-degree rape charge involving Mann, and Weinstein was acquitted of Criminal Sexual Act in the First Degree on the charge involving Kaja Sokola.

This week’s mistrial means the Mann count remains unresolved. Bragg said, “While we are disappointed that the proceedings ended with a mistrial, we deeply respect the jury system and sincerely thank all of the jurors for their time and dedication.”

Bragg also said, “For nearly a decade, Jessica Mann has fought for justice. Over the course of many weeks during three separate trials, she relived unthinkably painful experiences in front of complete strangers.”

Weinstein has still been convicted in other proceedings. In New York, he is awaiting sentencing on the 2025 conviction involving Miriam Haley. In California, Los Angeles County said a jury convicted Weinstein in 2022 of one count of forcible rape, one count of forced oral copulation, and one count of sexual penetration by a foreign object, all tied to an assault of a woman in February 2013.

No primary-source defense statement from this week’s mistrial was found.

Manhattan DA Statement On Mistrial
Manhattan DA Statement After 2025 Conviction
New York Court of Appeals Decision
Los Angeles County Conviction Statement

Chinese-American SMU Professor Sues University, Alleging Discrimination Favoring Indian-Origin Faculty

A Chinese-American accounting professor at Southern Methodist University is suing the school in federal court, alleging SMU’s Cox School of Business discriminated against non-Indian faculty in tenure decisions.

The case is Sean Wang v. Southern Methodist University, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas. The docket lists the case as a civil rights employment case under 42 U.S.C. § 1981, the federal law covering race discrimination in contracts and employment.

Wang is listed by SMU as an assistant professor of accounting at the Edwin L. Cox School of Business. SMU’s own faculty page says his research has been published in top academic journals including the Journal of Financial Economics, Journal of Accounting and Economics, Journal of Accounting Research, The Accounting Review, and Management Science.

In his original complaint, Wang says he is Chinese-American and alleges SMU discriminated against him based on race, ethnicity, ancestry, and national origin. He also alleges SMU retaliated against him after he opposed the alleged discrimination.

The central allegation is that SMU’s Accounting Department favored Indian-origin candidates for tenure while rejecting non-Indian candidates who met the same publication standard.

Wang’s complaint says the Cox School Promotion and Tenure Manual used a productivity standard of “at least four (4) top-tier publications within the six (6) year probationary period.” The current Cox tenure policy posted by SMU says a “reasonable productivity range” is four to six top-tier publications, while also saying tenure review is based on the overall significance of the candidate’s research portfolio and that no single criterion is enough by itself.

Wang alleges that since Hemang Desai, an Indian-origin faculty member, became a full professor at SMU in 2006, the Accounting Department granted tenure to “100 percent of Indian-origin candidates” who met the four-publication standard, while denying tenure to “100 percent of non-Indian candidates” who met the same standard. The complaint identifies the Indian-origin candidates as Neil Bhattacharya and Gauri Bhat, and the non-Indian candidates as Mina Pizzini, Chris Hogan, Jing Pan, Jeff Yu, and Wang.

Wang says his own record exceeded the school’s stated benchmark. The complaint alleges he had ten articles in top-tier journals, “more than double any other Cox School faculty member in the department’s history at the time of their tenure application.”

The complaint says Wang was still told he needed “more citations” and “more visibility,” and later was described as a “bad fit” for the department. Wang alleges that “bad fit” was a pretext for discrimination.

The complaint also cites internal and outside faculty assessments supporting Wang. It says SMU professor Robin Pinkley wrote that reliance on “fit” was “self-serving” and that Wang’s case “was not treated in an unbiased manner consistent with the P&T document and our commitment to equity.” It says SMU finance professor Pab Jotikashtira found Wang “very significantly more productive than Gauri Bhat” and said “any reasonable person would deem Sean’s citation count as more than sufficient for tenure.” It says University of Texas professor Jeff Hales described Wang as “an outstanding researcher with few comparable peers.”

Wang also alleges discriminatory office assignments. The complaint says that when offices were reassigned in spring 2024, SMU assigned Indian male faculty to prime offices overlooking Bishop Boulevard and the quad, while East Asian faculty were assigned offices on the opposite end of the hallway.

The complaint further alleges SMU recorded Wang as “White” in HR and EEO records despite his self-identification as Chinese/East Asian. Wang says the entry was not a simple mistaken checkbox because “white” was typed into the form. He alleges the classification created false records that removed recognition of his minority status.

According to the complaint, the tenure vote at the department level came on November 19, 2024. Wang says Desai informed him of a negative vote of 3-1, with all three Indian faculty voting against tenure and one non-Indian faculty member voting in favor.

Wang says he appealed internally, filed grievances, and filed a discrimination charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. He alleges SMU then retaliated against him by maintaining the tenure denial, issuing a terminal-year notice, conducting sham investigations and appeals, and ending his employment.

Wang is asking the court to require SMU to grant him tenure and promotion to associate professor, give him an expedited conflict-free review for promotion to full professor, stop discriminatory practices in tenure and promotion decisions, and implement written policies prohibiting subjective “fit” criteria in tenure decisions. He also seeks compensatory damages, punitive damages, back pay, front pay, benefits, attorneys’ fees, and costs.

SMU filed an answer to Wang’s amended complaint on January 16, 2026. The docket and filing snippets show SMU denies the allegations and denies that Wang is entitled to relief.

The case remains pending. The docket lists trial for the one-week docket beginning February 1, 2027, before Senior Judge David C. Godbey.

Federal Court Docket
Original Complaint
SMU Faculty Page For Sean Wang

Finance

Foreclosures Jumped in Q1, But Delinquencies Are the Bigger Warning Sign

Foreclosures rose sharply in the first quarter of 2026, but the financial pressure underneath the housing market may be the bigger story.

Property-data firm ATTOM reported 118,727 U.S. properties with foreclosure filings in Q1. That was up 6% from the previous quarter and up 26% from the first quarter of 2025. Foreclosure filings include default notices, scheduled auctions, and bank repossessions.

The national foreclosure rate was one filing for every 1,211 housing units. The worst state rates were in Indiana, South Carolina, Florida, Delaware, and Illinois.

Foreclosure starts also rose sharply. ATTOM says 82,631 properties started the foreclosure process in Q1, up 20% from last year. Completed foreclosures rose even faster, with lenders repossessing 14,020 properties, up 45% from one year earlier.

For context, this is still nowhere near 2007 foreclosure levels. RealtyTrac reported more than 2.2 million foreclosure filings on nearly 1.3 million properties in 2007, with more than 1% of U.S. households entering some stage of foreclosure that year. ATTOM’s Q1 2026 rate of one filing for every 1,211 housing units is less than one-tenth of that annual 2007 household foreclosure rate.

But the delinquency numbers are much closer. The Mortgage Bankers Association says the mortgage delinquency rate was 4.44% in Q1 2026. In Q4 2007, MBA reported a delinquency rate of 5.82%. That means the current delinquency rate is more than 75% of the 2007 rate, even though foreclosure activity itself remains far lower.

MBA also says 0.64% of mortgage loans were in the foreclosure process at the end of Q1 2026, up 11 basis points from the previous quarter and up 15 basis points from one year earlier. In Q4 2007, MBA reported foreclosure inventory at 2.04%.

The New York Fed’s Q1 household debt report also showed mortgage stress moving higher. Mortgage balances reached $13.19 trillion at the end of March. Mortgage transitions into early delinquency ticked down from 3.9% to 3.8%, but transitions into serious delinquency increased from 1.4% to 1.5%.

The story is not that the country is suddenly back in 2007. The foreclosure rate is still much lower. But delinquencies are already more than three-quarters of the 2007 level, and foreclosures, foreclosure starts, and completed repossessions are all rising fast from last year.

ATTOM Q1 2026 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report

MBA Q1 2026 Mortgage Delinquency Survey Release

MBA Q4 2007 National Delinquency Survey

RealtyTrac 2007 Foreclosure Market Report Summary

New York Fed Q1 2026 Household Debt and Credit Report

New York Fed Q1 2026 Household Debt and Credit PDF

Markets

Markets were flat this week. Gold was the biggest loser, dropping 3.4% and closing trading at $4561 / ounce.

The Dow Jones lost 83 points, a .17% drop, closing at 49,526.

The NASDAQ fell 22 points, a .08% move with a close of 26,225.

The S&P 500 picked up a whopping 10 points, gaining .14% and closing at 7408.

Rich Stephens

The Cold Take