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July 16, 2025
Trump Admin will be setting fire to enough food to feed 1.5 million children for a week (500 tons)
(Rolling Stone) Enough food to feed about 1.5 million children for a week — equal to nearly 500 metric tons of emergency food — is set to expire today, The Atlantic reports. Despite Secretary of State Marco Rubio ensuring representatives on the House Appropriations Committee in May that food aid would reach its intended recipients, the Trump administration reportedly plans to spend $130,000 to burn the biscuits instead of sending them to children in need.
Trump's Disapproval Rating Just Hit a Record for His Second Term
(Daily Beast) President Donald Trump’s disapproval rating has hit a new high for his second term as those outside his MAGA base steadily desert him, according to a new poll. A survey conducted over the weekend by the Economist/YouGov shows that Trump’s overall disapproval rating has climbed to the dizzying new height of 55 percent. Forty-one percent of the 1,680 U.S. adults who responded still approve of the job Trump is doing, down from 42 percent in the same poll a week earlier, when Trump’s disapproval rating sat at 53 percent.
Go to discussionDemocrats demand accountability over the Jeffrey Epstein case
(AP) Democrats are latching on to the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, demanding records be released and trolling Republicans on social media, news shows and in the U.S. House as they revel in a rare fissure between President Donald Trump and his fiercely loyal base. Conspiracy theories over Epstein’s death in prison and potential evidence in his sex trafficking case, including an alleged “client list,” have largely been a fixation for the right, one egged on by Trump himself.
Go to discussionJohnson breaks with Trump, calls for DOJ to release Epstein files
(Politico) Speaker Mike Johnson is calling for the Department of Justice to release all of its information on Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced financier who died in jail after being charged with sex trafficking, and wants Attorney General Pam Bondi to explain previous statements on the matter. In an interview published shortly after the vote, Johnson told conservative commentator Benny Johnson that he is "for transparency."
Go to discussionNew labor-backed PAC pledges $50M in battleground House races
(Politico) A new labor-backed coalition is pledging $50 million to help Democrats take back the House in next year’s midterm elections. Battleground Alliance PAC, which shared its plans first with POLITICO, said it is building a registration and turnout operation in 37 Republican-held districts across the country. Though Democrats only need to flip three seats in the House to win control of the chamber, provided they hold all their seats, the group said it is looking to expand the party’s footprint and position Democrats to ride a potential wave election.
Go to discussionSenate votes to move ahead with Trump's request for $9 billion in spending cuts
(AP) Senate Republicans on Tuesday advanced President Donald Trump's request to cancel some $9 billion in previously approved spending, overcoming concerns from some lawmakers about what the rescissions could mean for impoverished people around the globe and for public radio and television stations in their home states. The Senate vote was 50-50, with Vice President JD Vance breaking the tie.
Go to discussionRussia calls Trump's demand for Ukraine ceasefire in 50 days unacceptable
(CBS News) Russia has rejected President Trump's "ultimatum" for Moscow to sign a ceasefire deal to end the war in Ukraine within 50 days on Tuesday as "unacceptable," calling for continued negotiations and insisting that the invasion ordered by President Vladimir Putin would continue until its goals are achieved.
Go to discussion'Egregious': Over 75 ex judges slam Trump's 'deeply inappropriate' judicial pick
(Raw Story) With two days to go until the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee is set to vote on advancing the judicial nomination of President Donald Trump's former personal attorney, Emil Bove, more than 75 former federal and state judges wrote to lawmakers to demand they reject the "deeply inappropriate" appointment.
Go to discussionHegseth lashed out at DOGE official in tense Pentagon confrontation
(Washington Post) Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth lashed out at the Pentagon’s top representative from Elon Musk’s U.S. DOGE Service weeks ago in an angry confrontation arising from claims the DOGE official had summoned law enforcement to remove a subordinate from the building, according to three people familiar with the matter. The tense encounter in early April occurred with Yinon Weiss, a tech entrepreneur and military veteran like the secretary who had just become Musk’s team lead at the Defense Department.
Go to discussionWhite House National Security Council hit by more departures, sources say
(Reuters) Two senior officials at the White House National Security Council have left their roles in recent days, according to two sources familiar with the moves, the latest departures for a body that has been cut sharply in recent months. Ian Bennitt, the senior director for maritime and industrial capacity, and Brian McCormack, the NSC's chief of staff, both departed last week, said the sources, who requested anonymity to discuss sensitive personnel moves.
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