Good morning. I hope you all had a restful weekend.
The news cycle is back in full swing this morning—but before we dive in, I want to take a moment to say thank you.
Over the weekend, I shared the threats made against my life and my family. The outpouring of support I received overnight—your messages, your encouragement, your solidarity—means more than I can express. I’m taking the necessary steps to protect myself and my loved ones, and your support helps make that possible.
Your subscriptions, your words, and your presence give me the strength to keep going, even in the face of intimidation. I will not be silenced. I will not back down. Now more than ever, I need your support. If you value this work—if you believe in standing up to threats and speaking truth to power—please consider subscribing today. Your support ensures I can keep doing this work, with integrity and without fear.
Let’s keep going—together.
The Trump administration is preparing to cancel around $100 million in federal contracts with Harvard University, as part of an ongoing political clash over the school’s refusal to comply with various White House demands. A letter going out Tuesday will instruct federal agencies to find new vendors and assess whether existing contracts with Harvard can be cut or redirected. This move follows $2.65 billion in earlier federal funding cuts and reflects the administration’s broader campaign against what it sees as liberal bias in higher education.
Donald Trump is threatening to cut federal funding to California if the state allows trans girls to compete in sports aligned with their gender identity. He also claims he will direct local authorities to prevent their participation—moves that could violate the 10th Amendment, which protects state powers from federal overreach.
White House adviser David Sacks, who serves as President Trump’s AI and crypto czar, admitted on the All-In podcast that the GOP’s tax bill includes $880 billion in Medicaid cuts over the next decade. This statement directly contradicts public claims by Trump and other MAGA allies who insisted the bill would not reduce Medicaid funding.
The White House has lost trust in a Pentagon leak investigation after discovering that Pete Hegseth fired three top aides based on a false claim that they were identified through an illegal NSA wiretap. Advisers were alarmed by the serious constitutional implications of the claim, which turned out to be untrue, and they criticized Hegseth’s lawyer, Tim Parlatore, for spreading misleading information, according to The Guardian.
NPR and several public radio stations are suing Trump, claiming that his decision to cut their funding is an unconstitutional act of retaliation driven by his dislike of their coverage.
A federal judge has accused the Trump administration of wrongly blaming him for a crisis it caused by rushing the deportation of seven men to South Sudan, violating court orders and due process. Judge Brian Murphy said the deportations defied his earlier directive requiring proper notice before sending people to countries where they could face torture or death. Despite the breach, he chose not to compel the government to return the deported men.
A powerful explosion shook a chemical plant in Gaomi, eastern China, on Tuesday, sending a massive gray and orange smoke plume into the sky and shattering windows in nearby buildings. The blast occurred just before noon at a Shandong Youdao Chemical workshop, prompting an ongoing rescue operation, according to state broadcaster CCTV. No cause for the explosion has been reported, and there are no confirmed casualties so far.
Over a week after ten inmates escaped through a bathroom wall in a New Orleans jail, two are still at large, sparking a wider search across state lines. On Monday, authorities captured three of the escapees—Lenton Vanburen, Leo Tate, and Jermaine Donald. Tate and Donald were caught in Texas after a high-speed chase involving multiple law enforcement agencies.
A mass shooting in Philadelphia’s Fairmount Park on Monday night left two people dead and nine others injured, according to police. The shooting occurred around 10:27 p.m., with the victims including an adult man and woman who were killed, and three teenagers—ages 15, 16, and 17—among the wounded. Authorities are continuing to investigate the incident.
The search continues for Grant Hardin, a former police chief serving a 30-year sentence for murder and an additional sentence for rape, who escaped from the North Central Unit prison in Calico Rock on Sunday. Authorities say Hardin was dressed in a makeshift outfit resembling law enforcement attire during his escape. He was not wearing a Department of Corrections uniform, and all DOC-issued equipment remains accounted for.
See you this evening.
— Aaron
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