Presumption of Regularity (Andrew McCabe and Allison Gill; Unjustified podcast)

The Department of Justice ratchets up Trump's revenge tour by launching investigations into Leticia James, Adam Schiff, Jack Smith, and the 2016 Russia investigation.

Several former justice department attorneys are seeking elected office.

CIA officials worried that the release of a House report on 2016 Russian election meddling could reveal top-secret spying techniques and sources, but the Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard authorized a lightly redacted version with President Trump’s blessing.

The political purge of FBI personnel continues with the ouster of Steven Jensen and Brian Driscoll.

Plus listener questions…
Interview: 

https://www.podbean.com/ew/dir-3z7uy-26f08768

Scopes Trial Centennial: Ed Larson

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6e7wvy3Pv0

 

Federal judge blocks Arkansas law forcing the Ten Commandments in schools from talking full effect

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BiBYdRohHlE

 

What to know about Trump’s new tariffs | Vox

Trump finally imposed his new tariffs. Here's what to know.

https://www.vox.com/the-logoff-newsletter-trump/448947/trumps-tariffs-tax-economy-prices-inflation 

 

The obscure reason it’s hard for Congress to save lives | Vox

When curing disease is bad for the federal budget...

https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/422598/congress-budget-dynamic-scoring-longevity 

 

Zuckerberg’s boring, bleak AI bet | Vox

The promise of AI, to Zuckerberg, is that it can help him sell you more ads and convince you to spend more time watching Instagram brainrot. My reaction to that pitch was the same as AI writer Zvi Mowshowitz's: "It was like if you took a left wing caricature of why Zuckerberg is evil, combined it with a left wing caricature about why AI is evil, and then fused them into their final form. Except it's coming directly from Zuckerberg, as explicit text, on purpose." …

https://www.vox.com/technology/438384/mark-zuckerberg-meta-ai-hiring-vision-personal-superintelligence 

 

MAGA Pastor Jackson Lahmeyer Wants To See Obama Imprisoned For Life

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xPPccGcPYRo

 

Joel Webbon Wants The Christian State To Shut Down Unvirtuous Businesses

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fk-Sq7y3n9M 

Floyd Brown Admits Christian Nationalist Only Like The Constitution When Democrats are in charge

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkH4yRsBz7w

Anti-Choice Activist Bradley Pierce Is Fine With Causing A Civil War To abolish abortion

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8XQeSzeFXw

🚨 Texas Republicans get BAD NEWS as PANIC sets in

INTERVIEW: Beto O’Rourke reveals Republican panic over quorum break

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQB7ZF3EwNk

Scopes Trial Centennial: Richard Katskee

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nzJE6qSgt54

 

Mohsen Mahdawi Fought ICE and Won His Freedom. For Now. (Reveal/More to the Story podcast)

On this week’s “More To The Story,” Columbia University student activist Mohsen Mahdawi discusses being arrested at his US citizenship hearing—and how he convinced a judge to release him.

Just a few months ago, pro-Palestinian college students around the country were getting arrested and detained by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement. But some are now challenging their detentions in court—and getting released.

Last week, Columbia University student activist Mahmoud Khalil, the first known pro-Palestinian activist arrested by ICE under the Trump administration, was let out of a Louisiana prison on bail by a federal judge who called his detainment unconstitutional. That decision followed the release of another previously detained student activist from Columbia: Mohsen Mahdawi.

In April, Mahdawi was scheduled for an immigration interview to obtain US citizenship. But after watching what happened to Khalil, Mahdawi knew he could be handing himself over to federal agents just by showing up. “I had conflicted feelings,” he says of appearing at the immigration office. “Is this an actual interview for my citizenship that I’d been waiting for for over a year? Or is it a trap?”

Soon after Mahdawi took an oath of allegiance to the US, ICE officers surrounded and arrested him, and the Department of Homeland Security accused him of jeopardizing the country’s foreign policy interests. But Mahdawi was prepared. Through his lawyers, he quickly sued the administration over his detainment and was released on bail a couple of weeks later. He says he believes he was detained “to intimidate other students, to make an example of me.”

On this week’s More To The Story, Mahdawi sits down with host Al Letson to discuss his arrest, the accusations that Columbia’s pro-Palestinian protests made Jewish students feel unsafe on campus, and the troubling images that linger from his time growing up in a refugee camp in the West Bank.
Interview: 

https://revealnews.org/podcast/mohsen-mahdawi-columbia-protests-ice-arrest-release-mahmoud-khalil/

IRS commissioner’s removal reportedly over clash on undocumented immigrant data

Trump removed Billy Long from post months after agency said it couldn't release information on some taxpayers…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/09/billy-long-irs-removal-immigrant-data-trump

 

MUST-WATCH: Lifelong Republican SLAMS his OWN party over Texas map scheme

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2IX9Flw1d94

‘We are at war – bring it on’: Democrats ready to fight dirty to stop Trump

The trigger for this scorched-earth approach is Trump's push to find more Republican seats in the House of Representatives ahead of next year's crucial midterm elections through gerrymandering, a process of manipulating electoral maps to benefit one party over another…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/09/democrats-fight-back-republicans-trump

Trump administration threatens to strip Harvard University of lucrative patents

White House escalates offensive on Ivy League university by calling for review of federally funded research…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/09/trump-administration-harvard-patent-review

 

EXPOSING The Billion Dollar SECRET VPN Companies Are Hiding

If you're using a VPN to stay safe, this will anger you. You were told a VPN would shield you. Protect your data. Keep you anonymous. But what if the tool you downloaded for privacy was literally designed to watch you?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1opKW6X88og  

Dave Warnock, Where Have You Been?

Dave Warnock was diagnosed with ALS in 2019 and became a common face on the convention and YouTube circuit. 

Then...he disappeared. In a rare interview, he joined Seth Andrews to talk about his absence.

• GOFUNDME: https://bit.ly/4lgehp2

Interview: 

https://youtu.be/DubLoA_VSno?si=ayNfrZqcfdtxVYiP

Southern Baptist Ethics Leader Resigns (Hemant Mehta and Jessica Bluemke, The Friendly Atheist podast #595)

— Ryan Walters may not have watched nude women at work. But he still slandered his colleagues. (0:40)

— Southern Baptist ethics leader resigns, likely due to pressure from MAGA extremists. (27:55)

— Arizona Appeals Court reopens case against Mormon Church involving child abuse cover-up. (47:32)

— Federal judge blocks Arkansas law forcing the Ten Commandments in schools from taking full effect. (1:06:28)

— Bowing to religious pressure, West Point will rebrand bibles with academy’s crest. (1:22:00)
Interview: 

https://friendlyatheistpodcast.com/2025/08/07/southern-baptist-ethics-leader-resigns/

Will Democrats Be Arrested? On the Ground Reporting from the Texas Capitol (Bradley Onishi and Daniel Miller; Straight White American Jesus podcast) Special Episode

Redistricting and Political Turmoil in Texas... In this special edition of Straight White American Jesus, host Brad Onishi interviews Forrest Wilder from Texas Monthly to discuss the ongoing political upheaval in Texas. The conversation focuses on the Democrats’ strategic exodus to break quorum in response to the Texas GOP’s redistricting efforts, driven by Trump’s demand for a more favorable playing field for Republicans. The episode delves into the humanitarian crisis ignored by the legislature, the potential consequences on both state and national politics, and the broader implications for democracy.

Interview: 

https://www.straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/episodes/special-episode-will-democrats-be-arrested-on-the-ground-reporting-from-the-texas-capitol/

Churches Can Now Endorse Political Candidates – It’s a Dark Money Nightmare (Bradley Onishi and Daniel Miller; Straight White American Jesus podcast)

Brad sits down with David Corn, Washington Bureau Chief at Mother Jones, to unpack the IRS’s quiet but monumental decision to gut the Johnson Amendment—effectively giving churches and religious organizations the green light to endorse political candidates for the first time in nearly 70 years.

They explore how this shift could turn churches into political machines fueled by dark money, spark “pay to play” dynamics among pastors, and deepen polarization within congregations. From mega-churches pushing campaign ads to local races influenced by pulpit power, the episode dives into the far-reaching consequences for democracy, transparency, and the already fragile wall between church and state.
Interview: 

https://www.straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/episodes/churches-can-now-endorse-political-candidates-its-a-dark-money-nightmare/

 

We decide if homosexuality is a sin

Interview: 

https://youtu.be/CUD7Fhvb7Ec?si=Hkl9qU5ZJ-hFEa2d

Pete Hegseth reposts video that says women shouldn’t be allowed to vote | Trump administration | The Guardian

Another pastor interview by CNN for its segment, Toby Sumpter, said: "In my ideal society, we would vote as households. I would ordinarily be the one to cast the vote, but I would cast the vote having discussed it with my household."…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/09/pete-hegseth-video-pastors-women-voting

He thinks America should adopt a Christian theocracy. And he's finding a new audience under Trump

Self-described Christian nationalist pastor Douglas Wilson is part of an ascendent group of Christian religious leaders finding influence among MAGA conservatives. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is Wilson’s most prominent and public follower in the Trump administration. CNN's Pamela Brown reports from Moscow, Idaho where Wilson's Christ Church is based. #CNN #News

Interview: 

https://youtu.be/NqzSxd6sS1s?si=KjrzeCUNplHpSdru

US court tosses judge’s contempt order over Trump’s El Salvador deportations

Decision from divided three-judge panel vacates a district judge's finding of contempt against Trump administration…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/08/court-contempt-order-trump-el-salvador-deportations?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Trump administration demands $1bn from UCLA to restore federal funding

"In another mob boss fascist move, Trump is now trying to extort UCLA for $1B, force it to adopt his racist, transphobic, xenophobic policies & accept a monitor to control the university. Hard no. UCLA is a California public university subject to California law & built on California values. The answer is no."…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/08/trump-ucla-settlement?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

‘Come and get it’: Texas Democrats hold the line against gerrymandering despite GOP threats

Texas Democrats are facing a full-blown retaliation campaign after fleeing the state to block a Trump-backed redistricting plan including lawsuits, potential arrests, and even calls for the FBI to track them down. Texas State Rep. Ron Reynolds joins The Weekend from Illinois to discuss how Texas Democrats are remaining strong in their quorum break.

Interview: 

https://youtu.be/rTQZydDdYDI?si=DtOVvsfFSEw_J84y

MAGA world swallows a difficult truth: Arresting Trump’s opponents is easier said than done - POLITICO

From the Epstein saga to Texas redistricting, the far right's bluster about criminal consequences often leads to disappointment...

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/08/08/trump-maga-world-arrest-opponents-00499426

 

The Value of Religious Freedom: An Interview with Roger Finke (Warren Throckmorton; Telling Jefferson Lies podcast)

Roger Finke is distinguished professor emeritus of sociology and international affairs at Penn State University. Roger is also the founder of the Association of Religion Data Archives, which is an online archive of the best religion data available, a standard research tool for social scientists. He is the author of several books including the subject of today's interview: The Price of Freedom Denied: Religious Persecution and Conflict in the 21st Century (2011) co-authored with Brian Grim.

In this book, Grim and Finke found that as religious freedoms are denied in a society, both by government and by social groups within a society, religious persecution increases. Given the quasi-establishments of evangelical Christianity developing throughout the land, it is important to be aware of the potential consequences of these church-state alliances.

The Association of Religion Data Archives (ARDA) - www.thearda.com. The co-directors are Andrew Whitehead and Christopher Bader. Regular listeners will recall my interview with Andrew in episode 5.
Interview: 

https://www.podbean.com/ew/dir-waiag-26e6eced

The Trial of the Century (Dan Barker and Annie Laurie Gaylor, Freethought Radio podcast)

We announce a great victory from the Arkansas courts blocking the state from displaying the Ten Commandments in every public school classroom. 

After reporting state/church news in California, West Virginia, Iowa and West Point Military Academy, we hear the Tom Lehrer song “I Got it from Agnes” and the “1919 Influenza Blues” by Essie Ray Jenkins. 

Then, we listen to the talk given at the Scopes Trial Centennial last month by Brenda Wineapple, author of Keeping the Faith: God, Democracy, and The Trial that Riveted a Nation.

Interview: 

https://ffrf.org/news/freethought-radio/freethought-today-august-7-2025/

"Love Is Love, Pt.3" (Bradley Onishi and Daniel Miller; Straight White American Jesus podcast) It’s in the Code ep 157

Does Allie Beth Stuckey struggle with the temptation to exercise “toxic empathy?” 

In this episode, considering her opposition to marriage equality, Dan suggests that she does. How does she respond to this temptation? 

What does this response show us not only about her, but about high-control American Christianity? How does it illustrate the ways in which high-control religion invariably masks exercises of power and authority as “love”? Check out this week’s episode to find out.

Interview: 

https://www.straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/episodes/its-in-the-code-ep-157-love-is-love-pt-3/

The News Roundup – Domestic and International (The 1A) 2025-08-08

Domestic

After months of delays, President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs went into effect on Thursday. A majority of U.S. imports will now come with a baseline 10 percent duty. The overall average tariff rate is 17 percent — the highest since during the Great Depression in 1935.

President Trump claims the Bureau of Labor Statistics had issued “phony” jobs numbers during the Biden administration to help Democrats hold the White House, only to revise them downward after Trump won the 2024 election. He fired Erika McEntarfer, the commissioner of the BLS last week.

A planned strategy meeting among top Trump administration officials whether to release the transcript from the Department of Justice interview with Ghislaine Maxwell was cancelled.
Interview: 

https://the1a.org/segments/trump-epstein-coverup/

International

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government considers a total takeover of the Gaza strip. The UN warns the move could risk “catastrophic consequences.”

Trump administration special envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin ahead of Donald Trump’s Friday deadline for peace in Ukraine.

Rwanda has agreed to accept 250 migrants from the United States becoming the latest nation to strike a deal to take in Trump administration deportees.

Interview: 
https://the1a.org/segments/the-news-roundup-international-39/

Christian nationalist pastor says 'women are the kind of people that people come out of'

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/JGoymv33ZWc?feature=share

Pennsylvania shooting: man kills neighbour, ambushes and wounds two state troopers

Police say 61-year-old man attacked his neighbour and then fired dozens of rounds at emergency workers responding to the attack…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/08/pennsylvania-shooting-susquehanna-county?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Neo-Nazi leader sentenced to 20 years for plot to attack Maryland’s power grid

Brandon Russell, founder of neo-Nazi group Atomwaffen Division, was convicted of plotting to blow up Baltimore power grid…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/08/neo-nazi-leader-sentenced-to-20-years-for-plot-to-attack-marylands-power-grid?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Trump dealt BAD NEWS after illegal announcement

Democracy Watch episode 353: Marc Elias discusses Trump seeking to violate the Constitution with a new census.

Interview: 

https://youtu.be/YKXZ77X95Ts?si=3y_L9D0aa0rj4r4o

Texas Democrats fight back in court against Abbott’s bid to remove them - POLITICO

In court papers filed Friday, the Democrats argued that their quorum-breaking tactic is an affirmation of their legislative duties, not an abdication of it...

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/08/08/texas-democrats-redistricting-court-00500649

Air Force revokes approved retirement for trans service members: 'Complete and utter betrayal'

"Being told that I would be discharged for a decision on somebody's part was hard, but then being offered the retirement that I feel I'm owed, that my service is owed, that helped, and then having that yanked away for no reason, with no recourse ... that is complete and utter betrayal," said Alyx, who is based in Virginia and asked to only use her first name due to fear that she and her family could face harassment…

https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-politics-and-policy/air-force-revokes-approved-retirement-trans-service-members-complete-u-rcna223876

 

'This is hell': Critics pounce on White House's 'preferred alternative' to PBS in schools - Raw Story

"Since its founding in 2009, PragerU has become a juggernaut in the conservative educational media space, with their videos reaching millions of followers across social media," the website reported. "The organization has helped launch the media careers of right-wing figures like Candace Owens. Their popular videos elevate narratives that have been sharply criticized as climate denialist, Islamophobic, and 'misleading' about slavery."…

"Parents should be storming their kids' schools and school board meetings," added Bluesky user Beth Jackson. "I have seen the prager ads on YouTube and it's glossy, well packaged white supremacy."…
https://www.rawstory.com/prageru-in-schools-critics-hell/ 

 

Opinion | The American economy has thrived under free trade - The Washington Post

America has flourished under free trade. Don’t upend the world based on exaggerations and lies...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2025/08/08/trade-america-success-maga-narrative/

He built Michigan’s Medicaid work requirement system. Now he’s warning other states : Shots - Health News : NPR

Michigan's health director spent a year and $30 million building a work requirements system for Medicaid. The problems he encountered have him worried now that 40 states must do the same by 2027...

Interview: 

https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2025/08/08/nx-s1-5493417/michigan-robert-gordon-medicaid-work-requirements

Pete Hegseth's Alarming Ties Get WORSE As Christian Nationalist Leader Truth surfaces

Donald Trump's Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gets exposed for his alarming ties to disturbing Christian Nationalist pastor Douglas Wilson, who has repeatedly torn down women and claimed they should have less rights, to add to Hegseth's list of extremist affiliations. John Iadarola and Brett Erlich break it down on The Damage Report. Leave a comment with your thoughts below!

Interview: 

https://youtu.be/7otZPFtJdmo?si=-cuQrADO6mrTJfHv

Obamacare sticker shock could jolt Republicans

Pressure on Congress to renew Affordable Care Act subsidies is likely to ramp up this fall as notices of 2026 premium increases go out and consumers get their first warnings that huge rate hikes could be coming...

https://www.axios.com/2025/08/08/obamacare-premium-increases-republicans

Donald Trump Is Attacking Access to IVF and Backtracking on Campaign Promises to Make Fertility Treatment Free for Everyone | Common Dreams

WASHINGTON - Over the weekend, Donald Trump signaled that he does not plan to require health insurers to provide coverage for in vitro fertilization (IVF) services, backtracking on his campaign promises to make IVF free. One in three Americans has used, or personally knows someone who has used, IVF to try and conceive. Americans across party lines say access to fertility planning like IVF should be easier to access.

On the campaign trail, Trump promised the government "will pay for, or your insurance company will be mandated to pay for all costs associated with IVF treatment." He even dubbed himself the "Father of IVF," but now – to no one's surprise – he is backtracking on these promises...
https://www.commondreams.org/newswire/icymi-donald-trump-is-attacking-access-to-ivf-and-backtracking-on-campaign-promises-to-make-fertility-treatment-free-for-everyone

Donald Trump Creates More Roadblocks for Cheap, Reliable, Renewable Energy | Common Dreams

WASHINGTON - Donald Trump's Department of the Interior has effectively cut off federal land leases for renewable energy. The new rules require that leases can only be made if the renewable energy project can produce the same amount of energy as that of coal, gas, or nuclear per acre. 

Because solar and wind farms use more acreage than coal or gas plants, DOE's new limitation creates an effective ban on new solar and wind projects on public lands. This rule does not account for the acreage used for coal mining and gas drilling or fracking, and also does not account for the significant, long-term environmental impacts from fossil production and burning...

https://www.commondreams.org/newswire/donald-trump-creates-more-roadblocks-for-cheap-reliable-renewable-energy

Introducing the Director of Homeland Security | South Park

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kD4EE6qVIBI

 

US air force denies early retirement for transgender service members

Move targets trans air force members with 15-18 years of service and forces them out of US military with no benefits…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/07/air-force-transgender-retirement-military

 

Trump administration ousts FBI official who refused to name agents who investigated January 6

The Trump administration is forcing out a senior FBI official who resisted demands made earlier this year for the names of agents who investigated the January 6 insurrection, two people familiar with the matter said on Thursday...

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/07/trump-fbi-brian-driscoll-january-6

 

Canadian cities cancel US Christian nationalist’s performances

Eight cities have revoked permits for Sean Feucht, a pro-Trump preacher and singer, sparking free speech debate

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/aug/08/sean-feucht-canada-tour-cancellation

Matt Powell: The Final Nail

‪@MattPowellOFFICIAL‬ is here with the Number 1 reason Atheism is false! But things aren't always what they appear to be and as far as I'm concerned, this video presents the only evidence necessary to be considered the final nail in the Matt Powell coffin.

Interview: 

https://youtu.be/z6nx07mbl5U?si=mbK7J7HFvfycSWCl

Top U.S. & World Headlines — August 8, 2025

Interview: 

https://youtu.be/JUH9Cjihnjk?si=T2Q1llPLkdoaXcDK

From puppy murder to racist podcasts: South Park’s anti-deportation episode is utterly ruthless TV

Rightwing media mouthpieces and ICE get both barrels in South Park's latest zeitgeist-capturing satire. You can feel Matt Stone and Trey Parker's disdain in every frame…

https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/aug/07/south-park-anti-deportation-episode-ice?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Vance's Epstein Dinner | ICE's Age Cap | RFK Jr. Attacks Vaccines | Trump burns our tax dollars

Trump Administration officials are gathering to create a strategy for putting the Jeffrey Epstein scandal to rest, ICE is relaxing its recruiting standards, RFK Jr. is cutting funding for mRNA vaccine research, and the president wants to eliminate two satellites responsible for measuring carbon dioxide emissions.

Interview: 

https://youtu.be/hQbf9KX2fVU?si=qyZjR5VZeD7vQ6aH

‘A million calls an hour’: Israel relying on Microsoft cloud for expansive surveillance of Palestinians

In May, an employee disrupted a keynote speech by Nadella in an act of protest, at one point yelling: "How about you show how Israeli war crimes are powered by Azure?"…

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/aug/06/microsoft-israeli-military-palestinian-phone-calls-cloud?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Trump NEW SCHEME Revealed as he COLLAPSES IT ALL

The summer economic data releases have been a disaster under Trump. 

• Downward revisions on prior jobs reports on top of soft hiring for July. 
• Inflation is rearing its ugly head in various parts of the economy. 
• A growing housing affordability crisis. Loss of confidence in long-term treasuries. 
• The only reason the stock market continues to perform is because foreign investors and U.S. corporations are propping up share prices because there are fewer and fewer places to find a return on investment. 

All the while, the GOP continues forward with plans to hurt the impoverished and middle class citizens of the United States. Today’s video explains why this isn’t an accident. Trump and the GOP are killing the economy and government institutions on purpose because they ultimately want to privatize every layer of the economy. Max from ‪@UNFTR‬ reports.

Interview: 

https://youtu.be/YviiBQ15IwU?si=W0cri1ZfHuvBZxzQ

Texas Democrats receive bomb threat in escalating standoff over redistricting

"Let me be unequivocal about my actions and my duty. When a governor conspires with a disgraced president to ram through a racist gerrymandered map, my constitutional duty is to not be a willing participant."…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/06/greg-abbott-lawsuit-texas-democrats-redistricting?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

‘Horrific’: report reveals abuse of pregnant women and children at US Ice facilities

The alleged abuses uncovered include deaths in custody, physical and sexual abuse of detainees, mistreatment of pregnant women and children, inadequate medical care, overcrowding and unsanitary living conditions, inadequate food and water, exposure to extreme temperatures, denial of access to attorneys, and child separation…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/06/physical-sexual-abuse-pregnant-women-children-immigration-centers?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

GLOVES OFF: Governor SHOCKS Republicans who THREATENED Texas Dems

INTERVIEW: Gov. Pritzker discusses threats against Texas Democrats.

Interview: 

https://youtu.be/mXwQ3V77T5I?si=j0rSNdSaUvwqfUrW

All HELL BREAKS LOOSE as Trump TARGETS LA STREETS

MeidasTouch host Ben Meiselas reports on Donald Trump’s latest attack on Los Angeles called Operation Trojan Horse as Trump directs Ice Agents to invade worksites in Los Angeles once again.

Interview: 

https://youtu.be/IqtbAUSEK24?si=gbDt7NOo4HwYqp3X

U.S. unemployment claims rise to pandemic high - The Washington Post

Continuing claims for unemployment benefits jumped to 1.97 million in late July, according to a Labor Department report, highlighting a weakening labor market...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/08/07/unemployment-claims-rise/

Cuts to humanities grants were 'unlawful,' federal judge rules : NPR

The ruling deems the government's termination of grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities "unlawful" and allows a lawsuit brought by humanities groups to move forward...

https://www.npr.org/2025/08/07/nx-s1-5495365/neh-national-endowment-for-the-humanities-lawsuit

 

Opinion | The housing market is depressing America’s young men - The Washington Post

The U.S. has two overlapping problems: the housing crisis and despondency in young men...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2025/08/07/housing-costs-young-men-democrats/

Things Aren’t Going Donald Trump’s Way - The Atlantic

He hasn't ended the wars in Ukraine and Gaza. His economy looks shaky. And then there's Jeffrey Epstein...

When it comes to his own political standing, Trump is also trying to create his own reality, seeming to will away the challenges he faces. In an interview with CNBC on Tuesday, he insisted that he has "the best poll numbers I've ever had," claiming that his approval was north of 70 percent. But that number represented his approval among Republicans, the interviewer told him. In fact, his overall approval rating is hovering at just about 40 percent. When corrected, all Trump could do was call the whole thing "fake."…
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2025/08/trump-ukraine-gaza-economy/683786/

Millions of women could lose birth control due to Trump cuts : NPR

Now, a group of 15 public health organizations is suing the Trump administration, arguing that the federal government jeopardized access to services including birth control for more than 800,000 people due to illegal withholding of Title X dollars.…

https://www.npr.org/2025/08/07/nx-s1-5494710/trump-birth-control-contraception

FEMA failed to staff disaster hotline after Texas floods : NPR

Funding for FEMA's disaster survivor hotline lapsed the day after the Texas floods, federal records show. It took DHS Secretary Kristi Noem five days to approve more money...

https://www.npr.org/2025/08/07/nx-s1-5489682/fema-call-center-dhs-funding-texas-floods

ICE detainee found hanging by neck in detention facility, agency says - ABC News

Ge's death was determined to be a suicide after investigators discovered a handwritten note and no foul play was found, according to Pennsylvania State Police…

https://abcnews.go.com/US/ice-detainee-found-hanging-neck-detention-facility-agency/story?id=124445669

Rep. Nancy Mace said she'd 'debate anyone' at a town hall where opponents were asked to leave

The Republican, who is running for governor of South Carolina, said everyone is welcome at her events unless they intimidate her supporters or call them "really horrific names."…

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/rep-nancy-mace-says-debate-anyone-town-hall-opponents-asked-leave-rcna223496

Judge orders temporary halt to new construction at Alligator Alcatraz - The Washington Post

Florida State Rep. Anna Eskamani (D), who testified at the hearing in support of the conservation groups, called the order "a necessary and welcome step in stopping a project that never should have been approved in the first place."

"This facility is not only a threat to one of the most environmentally sensitive regions in the country. It is also a glaring example of how far the State of Florida will go to criminalize immigrants and ignore the long-term health of our natural resources," Eskamani said in a statement.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/08/07/alligator-alcatraz-judge-halts-consruction/

The hidden consequences of Trump’s trade policy #tariffs #economy #trade

Interview: 

https://youtube.com/shorts/gS5Oh_75fGo

EPA kills Biden-era grant program to boost solar energy for lower-income households | PBS News

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday terminated a $7 billion grant program that was intended to help pay for residential solar projects for more than 900,000 lower-income U.S. households.

It's the latest Trump administration move hindering the nation's shift to cleaner energy…

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/epa-kills-biden-era-grant-program-to-boost-solar-energy-for-lower-income-households

Trump moves to end NASA missions measuring carbon dioxide and plant health | PBS News

The Trump administration is moving to shut down two NASA missions that monitor a potent greenhouse gas and plant health, potentially shutting off an important source of data for scientists, policymakers and farmers...

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/trump-moves-to-end-nasa-missions-measuring-carbon-dioxide-and-plant-health

Federal mRNA funding cut is ‘most dangerous public health decision’ ever, expert says | PBS News

Dr. Michael Osterholm: Well, first of all, we have all just been through a pandemic, and we did see what, in fact, the COVID vaccine could do to reduce serious illness, hospitalizations, and deaths.

But the other kind of pandemic that we're very concerned about and you noted in the lead-in with regard to bird flu and the possibility that it could be the next influenza pandemic virus. Right now, globally, we have the ability to make enough vaccine in about 15 months after an influenza pandemic started to actually vaccinate only about one-fourth of the entire world.

We're still using the 1950s process using embryonated chicken eggs to grow the virus in. That would be an utter failure. Now, with the mRNA technology, we believe we could probably have enough vaccine for the whole world within a year, and it would make a big difference.

This is a vaccine that would surely be every bit as equivalent of what we currently have, if not better. So, there's just one example of where mRNA technology can be helpful. We have a number of other infectious diseases right now, including some cancer vaccine work that is being done within the scientific community…
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/federal-mrna-funding-cut-is-most-dangerous-public-health-decision-ever-expert-says

ICE Is Extremely Desperate for You to Work for Them – Mother Jones

But reports suggest the sky-high deportation quota, coupled with the administration's general inhumanity when it comes to the treatment of immigrants, has left morale within the agency plummeting. 

And while DHS Secretary Kristi Noem boasts about a recent surge in applications, related moves within ICE, including the agency reportedly forcibly poaching employees from across the federal government and other law enforcement agencies, appear to contradict those claims. 

The American Prospect reported on Wednesday, for example, that probationary Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) employees—those with under a year of service—were being reassigned to ICE or threatened with losing their jobs if they did not accept. A DHS spokesperson told the Prospect that the FEMA employees were being temporarily moved to work with ICE for 90 days, "to assist with hiring and vetting," and claimed that the moves "will NOT disrupt FEMA's critical operations."…

https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2025/08/ice-is-extremely-desperate-for-you-to-work-for-them/