02 U.S. Politics

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The United States Supreme Court handed down two opinions which continue its precedent of protecting women and girls from the ongoing incursion of “trans women” into their athletic endeavors. NBC’s coverage of those rulings can best be described as mournful.

Watch the report in its entirety, as aired on NBC Nightly News on Tuesday, June 30th, 2026 (click “expand” to view transcript):

HALLIE JACKSON: To that other landmark ruling now, this one a win for President Trump- with the conservative majority ruling states can ban transgender women and girls from playing on female sports teams. Here’s Stephanie Gosk.

STEPHANIE GOSK: Tonight, President Trump calling it a “big win” while civil rights advocates slam it as a blow to transgender rights. The Supreme Court’s conservative majority upholding state laws banning transgender girls and women from playing on female sports teams in public schools. Justice Brett Kavanaugh writing: “allowing only biological females to play on women’s and girls’ teams can reduce the risk of physical injury and ensure fair competition.” But the ACLU representing the two transgender athletes in the case calling it “devastating.”

JOSHUA BLOCK: It’s not just about winning trophies; it’s about learning life lessons.

GOSK: 27 states currently ban transgender women and girls from participating in female sports, with an NBC News poll last year showing over 75% of Americans support those bans.

Macy Petty Charles celebrating today’s decision. She competed against a transgender athlete and hopes more states would pass bans.

MACY PETTY CHARLES: I would hope that it would embolden every state to protect those female athletes and I hope that they themselves are emboldened today to take action- to speak up for what they know is right.

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The Supreme Court’s Birthright Citizenship ruling today was a full-throated constitutional endorsement that the children of mothers here illegally or temporarily are “citizens at birth.”

No doubts there.

It was conventional wisdom that birthright citizenship would be upheld, but what was so shocking is that it was done on the backs of the three liberal members of the court who stuck together while the so-called conservatives splintered in numerous directions. So on the core constitutional endorsement, it was 5-4 with the majority being the three liberals (Sotomayor, Kagan, KBJ) plus CJ Roberts and Barrett. (Kavanaugh would have found the Trump EO invalid because it conflicted with an immigration statute, but he rejected the constitutional holding.)

Think about it. The three liberals prevailed on ideological core of the single biggest case of this term, one that defines who were are as a nation and whether we have sovereignty or are at the mercy of people who sneak across the border, overstay visas, or are here as birthright tourists.

“Disheartening” and “demoralizing” is how I described it in an appearance on the Tony Katz live stream today, but perhaps “infuriating” would be a better term.

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There’s no longer much foreign reporting on television with the exception of natural disasters, or countries where Americans are engaged in military action. That’s certainly true of Europe – except for Britain. The networks, surely focused on ratings, display a fascination with the Royal Family.

On Monday, NBC’s Today featured a four-minute report from London-based Molly Hunter obsessing over Prince Harry’s planned visit to his home country to promote the Invictus Games for veterans that he founded. ABC and CBS also offered full reports speculating on Prince Harry’s visit and whether Meghan Markle and their children will also attend.

On June 17, NBC’s Hunter performed a four-minute Today report (complete with “In Depth” graphic) on the Earth-shaking story that 12-year-old Prince George will attend the Eton College private boys’ school in the fall, just as his father and Prince Harry did. To pad the report, she also touted how Princess Kate did a 24-hour mountain climb for charity after her recovery from cancer.

ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, NPR, CNN, and MS NOW cannot be bothered for much more substantive British matters, like a recent report on the rape of young girls that came from Member of Parliament Rupert Lowe. The report estimates rape gangs victimized at least 250,000 girls across 149 local British authorities since the 1990s. It says many victims were young teenagers. Some were as young as four years old.

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Audrey Pulvar, the deputy mayor of Paris responsible for international relations, stated in an Instagram post that the United States bears significant responsibility for the extreme heat affecting France due to its greenhouse gas emissions and widespread reliance on air conditioning.

The comments came amid a heat wave that brought temperatures above 40°C (104°F) in parts of the country and led to reports of excess deaths.

Culver made the bizarre suggestion in a post responding to criticism from American tourists and social media users about the limited availability of air conditioning in Paris buildings. “Dear American journalists and social media ‘influencers’: for days, some of you have been

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A Democratic representative from Oregon, backed by numerous fellow lawmakers in the House, has filed articles of impeachment against Education Department Secretary Linda McMahon, alleging she is illegally dismantling the U.S. Department of Education.

Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici introduced the resolution last Thursday, arguing “I introduced an impeachment resolution because Secretary McMahon has made it her mission to close down the Department of Education, something she does not have the right to do.”

The legislation is cosponsored by 16 fellow Democrats, according to a news release from Bonamici’s office.

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A Fox News poll published Tuesday shows the 2026 Maine Senate race remains tight, with incumbent Republican Sen. Susan Collins holding a narrow lead over Democrat Graham Platner.

The poll shows that among registered voters, Collins receives 50 percent support to Platner’s 47 percent. The race shifts among the most engaged voters. Platner leads Collins 53 percent to 44 percent among those who say they are extremely motivated to vote, fueled by higher enthusiasm among Democrats.

About 76 percent of Democrats say they are highly motivated to vote, compared to 61 percent of Republicans. The poll also found voters have concerns about both candidates, but worries about Platner run deeper. Roughly one-third of independents said they are extremely concerned about Platner’s judgment, while 30 percent said the same about Collins having served too long.

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Washington — Republican hardliners continue to hold up most legislation on the House floor as they dig in on their demands for the Senate to pass President Trump’s voting regulations bill, the SAVE America Act.

On Tuesday, the holdouts blocked Speaker Mike Johnson’s plan to merge the SAVE America Act with the annual defense policy bill, known as the National Defense Authorization Act, before sending it over to the Senate. The conservative members sank a party-line procedural vote that would have set up final votes for the defense bill and other legislation.

Fourteen Republicans, including House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, voted against moving forward. Scalise, from Louisiana, switched his vote in a procedural move so that leadership can bring up the measure again.

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The U.S. Supreme Court declined to stop a lower court’s order blocking President Trump from removing a leading Library of Congress official on Tuesday.

The announcement came in the high court’s latest order list, in which the justices denied the Trump administration’s application to stay (“pause”) a September ruling by a three-judge panel on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. That decision sought to block the government from firing Shira Perlmutter, who led the U.S. Copyright Office in the Library of Congress until her termination in May.

As The Federalist previously reported, “Perlmutter’s dismissal came shortly after Trump removed Obama-appointed Carla Hayden as Librarian of Congress. Hayden has been replaced by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who is filling the position on an ‘acting’ basis.”

The justices did not provide a reason for the decision. They did, however, note that the denial of the administration’s request “is not a ruling on the merits of the legal issues presented in the litigation.”

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The House approved a measure Tuesday compelling the public release of records showing which House members have used taxpayer dollars to settle sexual misconduct charges levied against them and how much money was spent.

The resolution, offered by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), directs the House Ethics Committee and the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights — which also handles claims of misconduct — to produce such information within 60 days. It passed nearly unanimously, 420-0, with only Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) — an outspoken advocate for victims of sexual harassment and assault — voting present.

“We need to know what’s been going on here in the House of Representatives in order to convince the people and assure the people that we are conducting the people’s business with the utmost integrity and treating the officers and employees of this institution with the respect that they deserve,” said Massie, in remarks on the chamber floor imploring his colleagues to support the measure.

Massie’s effort comes after Reps. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) and Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) were, earlier this year, forced to resign under the cloud of serious sexual misconduct allegations. The incidents forced a reckoning in the House, where members have historically struggled to show they take sexual assault allegations within their ranks seriously and to show they are prepared to root out bad behavior when necessary.

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BOGOTA, Colombia — A Colombian senator, who recently lost the nation’s presidential election, said Tuesday he will not recognize his opponent, Abelardo de la Espriella, as the nation’s new head of state, if he does not comply with several demands, including renouncing his U.S. citizenship.

In a statement issued Tuesday, progressive senator Iván Cepeda urged de la Espriella, the winner of June’s presidential runoff, to renounce his U.S. citizenship, arguing that holding it while being Colombia’s president could generate conflicts of interest.

The senator also said that de la Espriella should clarify whether he is an “agent” of the United States, because as a criminal defense lawyer he defended a former paramilitary leader who was an informant for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

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The US government has lifted restrictions on powerful AI models, such as Fable 5 and Mythos 5, according to Anthropic, the AI firm behind

The company will soon begin restoring global access to its most powerful AI models, it said on Tuesday.

Posting on X, Anthropic said: “We’ve received notice that the Department of Commerce has lifted export controls on Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5,” adding, “We’ll begin restoring access tomorrow.”

Earlier this month, US authorities blocked access to the models on national security grounds.

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HAVANA — Talks between Cuba and the U.S. are at a standstill, despite the island recently approving a series of free-market reforms, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez announced Tuesday.

He noted that the newly unveiled reforms were neither mentioned nor discussed in earlier talks between the two nations.

“The recently announced (measures) are a matter of total and absolute sovereignty,” Rodriguez said. “We have neither listened to nor are we interested in the U.S. government’s opinion on them.”

But he said it was striking that they “were met with a new package of unilateral coercive measures … against Cuba.”

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The Alaska Supreme Court has delivered the final blow to Republicans’ efforts to keep a Senate challenger by the same name as incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan (R) off the ballot.

In a short order handed down Monday, the court affirmed a ruling from a superior court that Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. must appear on the Aug. 18 primary ballot for U.S. Senate.

‘The only reason he is running is to deceive voters and manipulate Alaska’s election system.’

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President Vladimir Putin has signaled Russia’s disinterest in new peace negotiations with Ukraine. Instead, he is recharacterizing his war on Ukraine as an imperial restoration project. While he has always viewed Ukraine as a Russian limb, Putin’s rhetoric reflects his need to consolidate Russians amid a failing war effort.

Putin’s latest comments came in an interview with Kremlin propagandist Pavel Zarubin on Sunday. While Putin admitted that escalating Ukrainian strikes on Russia’s energy infrastructure were causing fuel shortages, he insisted that these problems were limited. More air defense systems were being rapidly produced to deal with this challenge, Putin said.

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US envoys met with Qatari mediators on Tuesday in Doha to discuss negotiations with Iran, the Gulf state said, after Tehran and Washington agreed a memorandum of understanding this month to halt the Middle East war.

Iran said a team would go to Doha but contradicted US President Donald Trump‘s claim that direct talks would take place.

Qatar also said no high-level meetings or direct talks between the longtime foes were planned.

Here is what we know about the discussions.

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Far-left Texas Democrat James Talarico is tied with Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in a shocking new Senate poll, raising alarms that Democrats may have a path to threaten a reliable GOP stronghold.

Democrats have not won a U.S. Senate race in Texas in nearly four decades.

However, a New York Times/Siena survey released Tuesday found Talarico and Paxton tied at 47 percent support among likely Texas voters.

The race is one of a handful that could determine whether Republicans keep control of the Senate.

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Oil tankers and cargo vessels are anchored off the coast of Oman after being stranded for days as congestion at Port Sultan Qaboos has prevented them from docking on June 23, 2026 in Muscat, Oman.

Elke Scholiers | Getty Images News | Getty Images

Iran has exported more than 40 million barrels of crude oil since the U.S. removed its naval blockade of Iranian ports, and is now selling oil at prices roughly 20% higher than before the war, parliament speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said Tuesday.

The U.S. and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding on June 17 to end nearly four months of war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, and set ​up 60 days of negotiations to work out a permanent peace deal. The two sides briefly traded strikes over the weekend after Iran attacked two transiting vessels.

The ceasefire prompted a surge in crude shipments through the vital waterway where traffic had largely ground to a halt during the conflict, sending oil prices sharply lower.

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Often untethered to unfair foreign trade practices, President Donald Trump’s fetish for tariffs is foolish. Tariffs reduce prosperity and opportunity for the vast majority of the public in order to benefit far smaller numbers of Americans in specific industries. Still, tariffs have value when it comes to penalizing unfair economic activity by U.S. trade partners. Trump is thus right to now threaten new tariffs on the European Union and European nations over their threat to American technology companies.

In a social media post last Friday, Trump warned that European countries were discussing the “imminent” introduction of digital services taxes on U.S. technology giants. He added that any “country that imposes such a Tax will immediately be met with a 100% TARIFF on any and all Goods sent to the [U.S.].” While Trump’s 100% tariff rate is arbitrary, he is right to warn of robust action. Contrary to their claims of justified regulation, the European digital taxes in question serve a simple and wholly unjustified purpose: extorting American companies.

The Columbian Trump, Abelardo de la Espriella, has won a close election against his leftist opponent, Senator Ivan Cepeda. The victory was by less than 1%. The election is being contested, but the U.S. has already thrown its support behind the pro-U.S. de la Espriella.

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Haitians and Syrians with Temporary Protection Status had been prevented from being deported by a lower Federal court ruling. That ruling was overturned by SCOTUS in a 6-3 decision. Justice Samuel Alito wrote in the decision, “The TPS statute plainly bars consideration of respondents’ nonconstitutional claims.”

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Representatives from the two sides met in Switzerland last weekend for talks to end the war, which resulted in the US partially lifting sanctions on Iranian oil exports.

The number of vessels crossing the Strait of Hormuz has risen significantly since the MOU was signed, according to maritime intelligence firm Kpler.

Its latest data suggests 284 vessels have made the transit from 18 June, the day after the deal was signed, although that is is still well below the pre-conflict average of some 138 crossings each day.

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Felix Jeronimo-Rojas is a criminal illegal alien from Mexico who entered our nation illegally five times. If that wasn’t bad enough, Jeronimo-Rojas was recently sentenced to five years in prison for a heinous act on New York City’s subway system. He pleaded guilty to all charges.

Jeronimo-Rojas was arrested after he raped and robbed the body of a man who died on the subway system. Now the state of New York is possibly going ot release this monster from jail.

Here’s more:

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) blasted New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani over “sanctuary” policies, demanding the two honor an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainer for an illegal migrant convicted of raping a corpse.

Felix Jeronimo-Rojas, 44, was sentenced to five years in prison on Wednesday for sexually assaulting and raiding the pockets of 37-year-old Jorge Gonzalez while he sat dead on the R train near Lower Manhattan’s Whitehall Street station, according to the New York Post.

The Mexican national pled guilty to the charges.

“This sicko robbed and raped the corpse of a dead man on a New York City subway,” said Lauren Bis, acting assistant secretary for public affairs at the DHS. “ICE lodged a detainer asking Gov. Kathy Hochul and New York sanctuary politicians to commit to not releasing this criminal illegal alien after his prison sentence. We need cooperation from sanctuary politicians to ensure depraved criminals like this are not released into our communities.”

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A wealthy homosexual couple who have been charged with rape and modern slavery trafficking, one of whom is known as Britain’s “first gay surrogate dad,” face 18 new charges, including sexual activity with a child.

Barrie Drewitt-Barlow, 57, and Scott Drewitt-Barlow, 32, both of Danbury, England, had already had multiple charges lodged against them related to the sexual exploitation of young males. 

Barrie, who is reported to have obtained a total of eight children via surrogacy, had previously been charged with three counts of sexual assault on a male, four counts of rape of a man 16 or over, and two counts of arranging or facilitating travel of another person with a view to exploitation.

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The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has hit an impressive milestone for arrested gang members under the Trump administration.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt highlighted the milestone in a post that included an article with more details from Fox News.

If the feds were able to arrest over 10,000 suspected gang members in just about a year and a half, how many tens of thousands of gang members are operating in the United States altogether? This is the horrible reality of the open borders crisis. Politicians who welcome illegal aliens are deliberately ignoring the fact that an unknown number of violent criminals are always mixed in.

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Last summer, Congress passed the Working Families Tax Cuts Act (WFTCA), which was a massive budget reconciliation package that combined permanent tax relief with much-needed changes to the federal student loan program.

The higher education reforms passed in the WFTCA represent one of the most significant overhauls of federal student lending. These reforms helped to right-size borrowing and repayment options for millions of students, borrowers, and families, shifts that some have described as “some of the most consequential changes to federal higher education policy in years.”

Unfortunately, a group of Senate leftists were seeking to unravel the progress that’s been made.

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The U.S. Supreme Court upheld President Donald Trump’s efforts to revoke temporary status for foreign nationals in the United States on Thursday. The decision was 6-3, with Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson in the dissent.

The ruling in the consolidated cases Mullin v. Doe and Trump v. Miot dates back to Trump’s bid to revoke Temporary Protected Status (TPS) from large swaths of Syrian and Haitian nationals residing in America under the program. As The Federalist previously reported, the challengers contesting the president’s decision argued that the statutory provisions governing TPS “do not bar courts from reviewing an administration’s actions on the program and that the government is required to undertake certain steps (ex. consultation and assessment of a country’s conditions) before implementing such policies.”