Source: New York Times
“Todd Blanche, the acting attorney general, confirmed in writing on Sunday night that the Justice Department would abandon elements of the deal it struck with President Trump to resolve his lawsuit against the I.R.S., conceding to demands from Republican senators who had threatened to block his nomination as attorney general. The Republican holdouts, Senators John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina, had vowed that they would not confirm Mr. Blanche for the role unless he provided written assurances that the Justice Department had formally killed a planned $1.8 billion fund to pay those who claim they were unfairly persecuted by the government. The senators also insisted that Mr. Blanche narrow the scope of the sweeping immunity from I.R.S. scrutiny that was granted to Mr. Trump, his family and their businesses under the same agreement.” (08/03/26)
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/03/us/politics/todd-blanche-trump-irs-fund-order.html
Source: Garrison Center
by Thomas L Knapp
“The ‘school choice’ movement in the US supports tax-funded ‘vouchers,’ targeted tax credits, and ‘charter’ schools, on the theory that giving parents more options on where, how, and by whom their children are taught isn’t just a good thing, but a thing that government ought to be, and can legitimately be, involved in. Unfortunately, the real effect of that kind of ‘school choice’ is to turn all the available options into carbon copies of the ‘public’ school system it supposedly helps parents and students escape.” (08/02/26)
https://thegarrisoncenter.org/archives/20781
Source: Pink Flame of Liberty
“PART FOUR: Let’s Examine JC Filings of Appeal of the Disaffiliation of the Libertarian Party of NH.” (08/01/26)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBjrewU39KE
Source: NDTV [India]
“At least 14 people, including five police personnel, were killed and over 15 others injured in a suspected suicide attack outside a police station during a peace rally in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Sunday, officials said. The blast occurred in Kabal town in the Swat district while the Swat Peace Rally was underway opposite the Kabal Police Station. The rally, organised by the Swat Aman Jirga, saw participants carrying placards and raising slogans demanding peace in the region. Protesters alleged that police inaction had contributed to the deteriorating security situation in recent months. According to the Swat District Police Officer, the suspected suicide bomber attempted to enter the Kabal Police Station and Police Lines compound but was stopped by security personnel at the main gate. The attacker then detonated the explosives, damaging the entrance but failing to breach the heavily guarded compound.” (08/02/26)
https://www.ndtvprofit.com/world/14-dead-in-explosion-during-peace-rally-in-nw-pakistan-11856795
Source: Adam Smith Institute
by Madsen Pirie
“Stasis is a state in which opposing forces balance so precisely that nothing moves. It is a useful word because it names something real, and something increasingly common in political and social argument. There are people, and indeed whole movements, who want the world to stop where it is now, as though the present moment were a plateau to be defended rather than a point passed through on the way to somewhere else. This yearning deserves examination, because it is often mistaken for Conservatism, and the mistake matters.” (07/31/26)
https://www.adamsmith.org/blog/the-yearning-for-stasis
Source: NBC News
“The U.S. has agreed to pause attacks on Iran, President Donald Trump said Saturday, amid what he said were the ‘perimeters of a deal’ that would include the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. … The president said the U.S. was ‘locked and loaded and ready to go’ but that he agreed to cancel attacks ‘subject to being able to rapidly make a DEAL.’ … The statement came after the State Department on Saturday urged Americans across the Middle East to consider leaving the region or be prepared to depart on short notice. It also warned of flight disruptions and security risks as the conflict with Iran appeared to be escalating.” (08/02/26)
https://www.nbcnews.com/world/middle-east/state-department-urges-americans-consider-leaving-middle-east-region-rcna590396
Source: Washington Post
by Fareed Zakaria
“The administration has declared that countries ranging from Cambodia and China to Norway, Japan and Australia have failed to keep products made with forced labor out of their markets, and that this failure burdens American commerce. The charge is so obviously spurious and sweeping (Sweden is as bad as Cambodia?) that it gives away the game. It was almost certainly devised because the White House needed a legal pretext to subvert the spirit of the Supreme Court ruling against Trump. This is more than ordinary political spin. The president appears to be ordering the United States government to formally certify as fact something it knows is not true. Agencies must publish findings, construct legal arguments and affix the authority of the American state to a falsehood manufactured for the apparent purpose of evading the nation’s highest court.” (07/31/26)
https://archive.is/KMrLr
Source: Associated Press
“Ukrainian drone strikes killed at least five people across Russia, also hitting industrial sites and a further warehouse belonging to Russia’s e-commerce giant Wildberries, local officials said. Wildberries, Russia’s largest online marketplace, is sometimes described as the country’s answer to Amazon. In under two weeks, Ukraine has struck over a dozen of the retailer’s depots, part of Kyiv’s aerial campaign aimed at undermining Moscow’s war effort, hurting its economy and making people feel the consequences of the Kremlin’s all-out invasion of Ukraine. … Meanwhile, Russia attacked Ukraine with 133 drones during the night, 24 of which hit targets, according to the Ukrainian air force. Later on Sunday, separate Russian attacks on the Ukrainian cities of Zaporizhzhia and Kharkiv killed at least two people, according to local officials.” (08/02/26)
https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-war-wildberries-warehouses-drones-d2c705445dad07fced4fb8c1e3d314c5
Source: Karl Dickey’s Freedom Vanguard
by Karl Dickey
“The federal government is spending $7 trillion, yet only collects $5 trillion. This $2 trillion annual deficit destroys the purchasing power of every dollar in your bank account. What is even clearer is that Washington politicians know no other way to get your vote than to buy it through reckless spending. This constant theft of your wealth is a major frustration of mine, and sadly, most Americans are too busy to take the time to understand the destructive effect on our nation’s future.” (08/02/26)
https://palmbeachexaminer.substack.com/p/how-federal-overspending-causes-your
Source: The Guardian [UK]
“The family of a Haitian immigrant who froze to death in early March at a bus shelter in Pittsburgh after she was dropped off in the city by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is poised to file a lawsuit this month against the United States and ‘multiple other governmental and non-governmental entities’, the Guardian has learned. Daphy Michel, 31, had been in county jail for six months after a reported mental health crisis and street incident, and then was [abducted] by ICE before being released with a ankle monitor. She was left to make her way home to Charleroi, a small community on the outskirts of Pittsburgh about 20 miles (32km) away, but was found dead three days later. In June, Pennsylvania officials said she died from hypothermia and ruled her death a homicide.” (08/02/26)
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/aug/02/ice-death-pittsburgh-daphy-michel-haiti
