Saturday, May 16, 2026

The News Roundup – Domestic and International (The 1A) 2026-05-15

Domestic

Despite assertions by President Donald Trump to the contrary, reporting from The New York Times indicates that Iran’s military is still in fighting shape, regaining access to 30 of its 33 missile sites near the Strait of Hormuz.

The Supreme Court’s decision to strike down a key provision of the Voting Rights Act has paved the way for Alabama to use a controversial GOP-drawn electoral map in the upcoming midterms.

And FBI Director Kash Patel appeared on Capitol Hill this week to give testimony before Congress. He clashed with Democrats over reporting from The Atlantic that indicated that the Trump official’s alcohol use was impeding him from completing his duties.
Interview: 
https://the1a.org/segments/kash-patel-drinking/

International

President Donald Trump traveled to China this week to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Taiwan, the war in Iran, and trade are all up for discussion between the two leaders of the world’s largest economies.

The price tag of the war with Iran has now topped $29 billion.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said this week that he believes his country’s invasion of Ukraine is “coming to an end.”
Interview: 



‘$30 for a hamburger’: Trump’s facing no good options on beef prices - POLITICO

This could be a political lose-lose where ranchers who supported Trump are furious and public opinion stays sour because consumer prices don’t go down,” said Lori Wallach, the director of Rethink Trade, an offshoot of the left-leaning American Economic Liberties Project...

 https://www.politico.com/news/2026/05/15/steaks-high-beef-prices-become-trumps-latest-midterms-headache-00924405


US judge blocks DoJ’s demand for Rhode Island hospital’s records of trans patients

Subpoenas demanded birthdates, social security numbers and addresses of patients who got gender-affirming care…

 https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/14/judge-block-doj-trans-patient-records-rhode-island


 

Pentagon quietly shut legally required program to prevent civilian deaths by military

The Pentagon has quietly dismantled a program it is legally required to operate to prevent and respond to civilian deaths in US military operations, according to its internal watchdog...

 https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/15/pentagon-civilian-death-program


 

Sen. King: We're cutting research so that we can fund the ballroom. I just want to be clear.

 https://www.youtube.com/shorts/GsaBuIz7NWs

 

‘Slap in the face': Republicans skewer Pentagon over Poland move - POLITICO

The decision, House Armed Service Committee members said, amounted to a gut punch to the NATO ally and to a Congress that has sought to beef up the U.S. presence in Europe. They made those frustrations clear at a hearing with Army officials, where the service’s top civilian and uniform leaders had few answers about the rationale for the move and confirmed its last-minute timing...

 https://www.politico.com/news/2026/05/15/poland-troops-congress-driscoll-00923303


 

Why the Next President Could Finally Be Elected by the Popular Vote

 https://www.youtube.com/shorts/jx0ZnrOrQeU

Trump’s White House Is Hosting a Christian Nationalist Rally

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNXXH-OBu3E 

 

Big promises, thin results from Trump’s China trip - POLITICO

President Donald Trump returns from his two-day summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping with hints of deals but no progress on key issues that vex the U.S.-China relationship.

 https://www.politico.com/news/2026/05/15/big-promises-thin-results-from-trumps-china-trip-00924309


 

Detroit's population grows for third consecutive year

"For decades the story told about Detroit was always one of decline," Sheffield said. "Year after year, families left, population shrank, and too many people counted Detroit out. But today the numbers tell a different story, they tell the real story of what is happening in our city. Long term Detroiters are choosing to stay and new residents are choosing to call Detroit home."

 https://www.michiganpublic.org/community/2026-05-14/detroits-population-grows-for-third-consecutive-year


 

Minnesota Democratic lawmakers begin sit-in over gun violence protection bill

“What is speaker Lisa Demuth so afraid of? The very fact that she’s breaking her promise to Annunciation families to not block the bill from coming to the floor, tells me that she’s afraid it will pass,” Sencer-Mura said in a statement. “She’s afraid that her members are hearing their constituents, and are going to choose to be on the right side of history. “This is a serious action to fight for serious solutions. Minnesotans deserve to be safe.”…

 https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/15/minnesota-house-of-representatives-sit-in-gun-violence


 

Tennessee school district bans Alex Haley’s Roots under 2022 state law

With third-highest number of books banned, state removes renowned work about slave trade from library shelves…

 https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/15/tennessee-book-ban-alex-haley-roots


 

Trump-Xi accord on Iran elusive as US president’s China trip winds down

China calls for ceasefire and opening of seaway, while Donald Trump says Xi feels ‘very similar’ about ending the war in Iran…

 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/15/trump-china-visit-iran-agreement-xi-jinping-elusive


Colorado Gov. Polis commutes ex-election clerk Tina Peters' sentence after Trump pressure | PBS News

DENVER (AP) — Colorado Gov. Jared Polis on Friday commuted the sentence of election conspiracy theorist Tina Peters following pressure from President Donald Trump, the latest instance of the president using his powers to reward those who echoed his baseless claims of mass fraud as the cause of his 2020 loss...

 https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/colorado-gov-polis-commutes-ex-election-clerk-tina-peters-sentence-after-trump-pressure


 

Judge weighs effort to block new Florida congressional map - POLITICO

“The evidence here is staggering,” asserted Christina Ford, a lawyer with the Elias Law Group. “This case is simple because the violations of the Fair Districts amendment were announced in a live legislative session for everyone to see. This case is simple because defendants do not attempt to justify the lines and districts that they drew.”…

 https://www.politico.com/news/2026/05/15/florida-redistricting-2026-court-case-00923923 


Texas Supreme Court rejects bid to oust House Democrats who fled state over redistricting - POLITICO

“Abbott sent us threats. He sent lawyers. He sicced his lapdog, Ken Paxton, on us,” Texas House Democratic Caucus Chair Gene Wu said in a statement. “He asked the highest court in Texas to remove elected Democrats from office because we refused to be bullied into helping him pass a rigged map for Donald Trump. Today, the Republican-controlled Supreme Court said: no. The Constitution does not let a Governor erase voters’ choices when their choices are inconvenient to him.”…

 https://www.politico.com/news/2026/05/15/texas-supreme-court-democrats-redistricting-00923616


 

Fact-checking JD Vance on Maine Democrats, Medicaid fraud and autism coverage PolitiFact

“ We fact-checked some of Vance’s comments. ”

 https://www.politifact.com/article/2026/may/14/vice-president-JD-Vance-Maine-fraud-Janet-Mills/


 

Supreme Court rejects bid to restore Virginia congressional map favoring Democrats | PBS News

The Supreme Court typically doesn't intervene in state court proceedings unless they present an issue of federal law. Virginia Democrats had hoped to persuade the justices that the Virginia court misread federal law and Supreme Court precedent that hold that, even if early voting is underway, an election does not happen until Election Day itself...

 https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/supreme-court-rejects-bid-to-restore-virginia-congressional-map-favoring-democrats


 

Auchter's Art: Saying the quiet part out loud

The current Secretary of State (SOS) in Michigan, Jocelyn Benson, is also a candidate for governor in the upcoming election here in Michigan. Of course, one of the duties of the SOS is managing elections, and this raises some questions...

 https://www.michiganpublic.org/opinion/2026-05-15/auchters-art-saying-the-quiet-part-out-loud


 

Report: Trump poised to drop IRS suit, launch $1.7B fund for 'weaponization fund “

 https://www.youtube.com/shorts/AXGCAoAcnhc

 

Supreme court allows abortion pill mifepristone to continue to be available by mail

Earlier on Thursday, the entire Senate Democratic caucus reintroduced a resolution “affirming that the abortion medication mifepristone is safe and effective”, and underscoring that law and policy related to the medication must be equitable, transparent, and based on the best available peer-reviewed evidence-based science. While not binding, the formal expression of all 45 Democratic senators’ opinion is “notable”. 

“Healthcare providers have safely prescribed mifepristone for decades – limiting access to this medication would be another blow to our hard-earned reproductive freedoms. Extremists should never dictate a woman’s right to reproductive care,” wrote Jeanne Shaheen, a New Hampshire senator, on Xabout the resolution...

 https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/14/supreme-court-mifepristone-abortion-pill-upheld


 

Israeli nationalists chant ‘death to Arabs’ in violent Jerusalem Day march

Far-right Jewish marchers call for Palestinian villages to ‘burn’ as they storm through Muslim quarter of Old City…

 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/14/israel-nationalists-jerusalem-day-march-anniversary-protest


 

You don't get to just pull money from anywhere.

 https://www.youtube.com/shorts/LVvSC_lMdq0

 

Trump's 'elaborate' praise of Xi at China summit made U.S. look weak, ex-ambassador says | PBS News

For perspective on the summit between President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Amna Nawaz spoke with Nicholas Burns. He served as U.S. ambassador to China during the Biden administration and is now at Harvard University.

 https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/trumps-elaborate-praise-of-xi-at-china-summit-made-u-s-look-weak-ex-ambassador-says

The Trump administration is planning a prayer event on the National Mall. All but one of the speakers is Christian : NPR

Americans United for Separation of Church and State said the event will advance Christian nationalism rather than religious freedom, and on Friday, a group of progressive faith leaders will host a virtual press briefing that argues Rededicate 250 misrepresents how America's founders approached religious tolerance. 

As a counterpoint to the Rededicate event, Interfaith Alliance said it will team up with protest artist Robin Bell to project pro-religious freedom messages, including "Democracy NOT Theocracy" and "Reject Christian Nationalism," on the walls of the National Gallery of Art on Thursday evening…

 https://www.npr.org/2026/05/15/g-s1-122276/the-trump-administration-is-planning-a-prayer-event-on-the-national-mall-all-but-one-of-the-speakers-is-christian 


US border patrol chief resigns abruptly amid string of exits by Trump immigration officials

The resignation comes weeks after the Washington Examiner reported that six current and former border patrol employees had accused Banks of regularly paying for sex with prostitutes during trips to Colombia and Thailand over more than a decade, and bragging about it to colleagues...

 https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/14/us-border-patrol-chief-resigns  









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