“Atlanta’s airport has forfeited at least $37.5 million because city leaders have refused to disavow diversity, equity and inclusion programs as mandated by President Donald Trump’s administration. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, the world’s busiest airport by passenger traffic, declined on July 29 to agree to terms set out by the Federal Aviation Administration. Those terms certify that the airport doesn’t ‘operate any programs promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives that violate any applicable Federal anti-discrimination laws.’ That language mirrors a January executive order signed by Trump banning DEI programs operated by anyone doing business with or receiving money from the federal government.” (09/26/25)
“President Trump on Thursday announced a slew of product-specific tariffs [on American consumers] set to take effect on Oct. 1, including duties on [American buyers of] any pharmaceuticals whose manufacturers don’t have plants in the U.S. The tariffs, which are on top of sweeping reciprocal duties Trump has imposed on [American buyers of goods from] countries worldwide, are likely to spur criticism, particularly when it comes to pharmaceutical imports. Experts have raised concerns that those tariffs could cause supply chain issues and make certain drugs more difficult and expensive to acquire. … Trump separately announced the administration would impose a 50 percent tariff on [American buyers of] all kitchen cabinets, bathroom vanities and associated products starting on Oct. 1, as well as a 30 percent tariff on upholstered furniture. … The president also said there would be a 25 percent tariff beginning Oct. 1 on [American buyers of] ‘Heavy (Big!) Trucks’ made outside the United States.” (09/25/25)
“Russia on Thursday introduced a partial ban on diesel exports and extended an existing ban on gasoline exports until the end of the year after a series of Ukrainian drone attacks on its refineries. Ukraine’s drone attacks have drastically brought down Russian oil refining, which fell by almost a fifth on certain days. It also cut fuel exports from key ports, Reuters reported. Russia’s deputy prime minister Alexander Novak announced the decision and said there was a small deficit of oil products. However, he said that oil stockpiles were covering the shortfall. … The fuel shortage across Russia is reportedly widening. According to a local newspaper, the country’s No.2 oil producer, Lukoil, had banned the sale of gasoline in jerry cans at certain filling stations in Moscow.” (09/26/25)
“A federal grand jury in Virginia has indicted James B. Comey, the former F.B.I. director, a culmination of President Trump’s relentless effort to exact retribution for investigating his 2016 presidential campaign over possible ties to Russia, according to people familiar with the decision. While the charges have yet to be unsealed, the people familiar with the decision said the grand jury had indicted Mr. Comey on Thursday on one count of making a false statement and one count of obstruction. The move came after Mr. Trump intensified his pressure campaign on the Justice Department in recent days, publicly demanding that top officials prosecute Mr. Comey and Letitia James, the New York attorney general who sued Mr. Trump for inflating the value of his assets while out of office.” (09/25/25)
“Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday outlining the terms of a deal to transfer TikTok to a US owner. Trump said he and China’s president Xi Jinping had come to an agreement to allow TikTok to continue operating in the US, separating the social media platform from its Chinese owner ByteDance. Trump said the deal complies with a law that would have forced the shutdown of the app for American users had it not been divested and sold to a US owner. … Under the plan, US investors will take over the majority of TikTok’s operations and take charge of a licensed copy of the app’s powerful recommendation algorithm. American companies are expected to own about 80% of the US version of the spun off company, while ByteDance and Chinese investors will own less than 20%.” (09/25/25)
“The European Broadcasting Union has confirmed it will hold an online vote in November that could see the Israeli broadcaster Kan expelled from next year’s Eurovision song contest. In a letter sent to participating broadcasters on Thursday, the EBU president, Delphine Ernotte Cunci, wrote there was an ‘unprecedented diversity of views’ on Israel’s participation in Eurovision, and the issue required ‘a broader democratic basis.’ … The decision comes after several European broadcasters, including those from Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Iceland and Slovenia, threatened to boycott the next edition of the world’s largest live music event if Israel was allowed to take part.” (09/25/25)
“Robert Kraft, who paid $172 million for the New England Patriots in 1994, has agreed to sell 8% of the NFL team to two groups in a deal that values the franchise at $9 billion, according to two sources who have first-hand knowledge of the deal but are not authorized to speak about it publicly. The money the team will get from selling the 8% stake is going to stay on the Patriots’ balance sheet, according to one person close to the situation, meaning the post-money valuation of the Patriots is greater than $9 billion. The sale does not include the New England Revolution, the Major League Soccer team also owned by the Kraft family, according to one source close to the deal.” (09/25/25)
“US stocks fell on Thursday as Wall Street digested an unexpected decline in jobless claims, and gross domestic product (GDP) data. The US economy grew more rapidly than expected in the second quarter of the year, expanding at an annual rate of 3.8%, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) said. This was up from a previous estimate of 3.3% and equates to quarterly growth of around 0.95%. It follows a contraction of 0.6% (annualised) in January to March. … Jobless claims in the US unexpectedly fell to 218,000 in the week to 20 September, down from 232,000 the previous week, according to data from the Department of Labour released Thursday morning. The 218,000 initial unemployment insurance claims were also lower than the 221,000 claims in the same week last year.” (09/25/25)
“The Department of Justice is suing six additional states to compel them to share their statewide voter registration lists with the federal government, an unusual request that has drawn pushback from election officials in both parties in the past. DOJ’s Civil Rights Division filed federal lawsuits Thursday against election officials in California, New York, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Minnesota and New Hampshire claiming the states violated federal law by refusing to share voter rolls with the Trump administration. Access to voting rolls varies state by state, but the rolls are generally released to the public and government agencies with voters’ private data — like driver’s license numbers or the last four digits of Social Security numbers — redacted. The DOJ’s lawsuits demand the rolls with that data included.” (09/25/25)
“Bitcoin (BTC) fell to a two-week low of $108,865 on Thursday, and while an assortment of entities have shown interest in buying the range lows this week, selling during the Asia trading session has chipped away at the gains accrued through each rebound rally in the US session.” (09/25/25)
