“Indigenous leaders from across the Amazon are urging South American presidents meeting in Bogota this week to turn promises to protect the region’s rainforest into concrete action, and to give indigenous groups more say in the region’s future. The Fifth Presidential Summit of the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization, opening Tuesday in the Colombian capital, brings together leaders alongside scientists and Indigenous representatives. The agenda includes public forums, cultural events and high-level meetings, culminating Friday with a joint declaration setting regional priorities on environmental protection and climate policy. Indigenous leaders hope to meet with national leaders face-to-face for the first time at such a summit. Indigenous groups from all eight Amazonian nations issued a statement Monday evening, calling the rainforest a global lifeline that provides about one-fifth of the world’s freshwater and acts as one of the planet’s largest carbon sinks, absorbing vast amounts of heat-trapping carbon dioxide.” (08/19/25)
“Gen. David Allvin has announced he is retiring early as the U.S. Air Force chief of staff, making him the latest high-ranking military member to leave the armed services amid the second Trump administration. Allvin announced his plans to retire, effective Nov. 1, in a statement Monday. … Allvin is two years into his four-year term, which began on Nov. 2, 2023. He was appointed by former President Joe Biden. He is the fourth chief military officer to leave the military since Trump’s inauguration in January.” (08/19/25)
“Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Tuesday that the Trump administration is weighing plans to apply part of the tariff revenue toward lowering the national debt. ‘I think at a point we’re going to be able to do it,’ Bessent said during an interview with CNBC, adding that he and President Donald Trump were ‘laser-focused on paying down the debt.’ ‘I think that we’re going to bring down the deficit-to-GDP, we will start paying down debt, and then at a point that can be used as an offset for the American people,’ he said. The nation’s debt, which is the amount of money the U.S. [regime] owes its creditors, is nearing $37.2 trillion as of Aug. 18, according to the Treasury Department. The staggering figure has intensified the long-standing debate in Washington over government spending, taxation and efforts to rein in the ballooning deficit.” (08/19/25)
“U.S. veterans of the war in Afghanistan are telling a commission reviewing decisions on the 20-year conflict that their experience was not only hell, but also confounding, demoralizing and at times humiliating. The bipartisan Afghanistan War Commission aims to reflect such veterans’ experiences in a report due to Congress next year, which will analyze key strategic, diplomatic, military and operational decisions made between June 2001 and the chaotic withdrawal in August 2021. The group released its second interim report on Tuesday, drawing no conclusions yet but identifying themes emerging from thousands of pages of government documents; some 160 interviews with cabinet-level officials, military commanders, diplomats, Afghan and Pakistani leaders and others; and forums with veterans like one recently held at a national Veterans of Foreign Wars convention in Columbus, Ohio. ‘What can we learn from the Afghanistan War?’ asked an Aug. 12 discussion session with four of the commission’s 16 members.” (08/19/25)
“Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey will serve as the FBI’s co-deputy director, alongside the law enforcement agency’s current second-in-command, Dan Bongino. … Bailey has served as Missouri’s attorney general since 2023. He’s known for asking the Supreme Court to intervene on Missouri’s behalf in a criminal case against Mr. Trump brought by New York prosecutors — a longshot request that was rejected by the high court. He’s also defended his state’s restrictions on abortion and gender-affirming care for minors, and sued Starbucks over its diversity, equity and inclusion policies.” [editor’s note: Missourians will probably be relieved that the Missouri AG office is no longer the HQ of “Bailey for Governor” – TLK] (08/18/25)
“Boston Mayor Michelle Wu held a raucous press conference in Beantown on Tuesday, daring Attorney General Pam Bondi to follow through on her letters to blue-city leaders threatening federal action over sanctuary city policies. Wu, a Democrat, accused the Trump administration of being a party that ‘doesn’t follow the law.’ … The remarks came after the Trump administration warned it could sue or cut federal funds if cities refused to cooperate on immigration enforcement. Wu noted Bondi demanded all recipients respond by Tuesday and offered her formal response verbally: ‘Stop attacking our cities to hide your administration’s failures.’ …. Wu then referenced Boston’s role in the Revolution, addressing Bondi once more and knocking her home state of Florida as late to the constitutional party.” (08/19/25)
“The union that represents about 10,000 striking Air Canada flight attendants said in a message to its members early Tuesday morning that it had reached a tentative contract deal with the airline, raising hopes for a swift end to the walkout that has disrupted air travel across Canada and stranded thousands of travelers. The agreement, while a significant step, must still be approved by the flight attendants, who overwhelmingly supported the strike that began on Saturday and defied a back-to-work order from the government, risking fines and even jail time. Air Canada, the nation’s biggest carrier, said the walkout had upended about half a million travelers’ plans, leaving some marooned overseas or in remote parts of Canada.” (08/19/25)
“The Webb Space Telescope has spotted a new tiny moon orbiting Uranus. The new member of the lunar gang, announced Tuesday by NASA, appears to be just six miles (10 kilometers) wide. It was spotted by the telescope’s near-infrared camera during observations in February. Scientists think it hid for so long — even eluding the Voyager 2 spacecraft during its flyby about 40 years ago — because of its faintness and small size. Uranus has 28 known moons that are named after characters from Shakespeare and Alexander Pope. About half are smaller and orbit the planet at closer range. This newest addition, still nameless, ups the planet’s total moon count to 29.” (08/19/25)
“A quick-thinking mother hid her baby in a closet on realizing someone was breaking into her home … then shot and killed the intruder. The unnamed mom sprung into action after hearing the stranger enter her property in a peaceful suburb of Joliet, Illinois, around 10:30pm Friday night. She rushed her baby into a closet on the second floor of the property and hid the youngster there. Seconds later, the burglar – who was wearing gloves and wielding a screwdriver – burst into the same bedroom, ABC7 reported. The mother opened fire with a handgun she owned and shot the burglar in the head. He was pronounced dead at the scene and has since been named as serial criminal Shelby Hurd, 36. Police rushed to the scene and found the mother and her baby sheltering in an adjacent bedroom.” (08/18/25)
“United States President Donald Trump has announced plans to convene a face-to-face summit between Russian leader Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in his latest bid to end Moscow’s war in Ukraine. Trump’s proposal on Monday came as he hosted Zelenskyy and top European leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron and United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer, at the White House for high-stakes talks on ending the conflict, which has raged since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. … German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte separately confirmed that Putin had agreed to the bilateral meeting, but did not specify a date or location. Zelenskyy, who described his meeting with Trump as a ‘very good conversation,’ told reporters that he was ‘ready’ to meet the Russian leader one-on-one.” (08/19/25)
