“Oklahoma voters have rejected raising the state’s nation-lowest minimum wage as several states held primaries on Tuesday. The Sooner State sets its minimum at $7.25, the federal minimum wage floor, tying it with 19 other mostly Republican-led or -leaning states for the nation’s lowest. Oklahoma raised its minimum wage to $7.25 in 2009 to comply with federal law. Voters were asked in State Question 832 whether Oklahoma employers must pay employees at least $15 per hour by 2029, putting the state above the median of $11.63 an hour but still below the highest-wage states. However, voters rejected the move. … Oklahoma voters also heavily backed Rep. Kevin Hern for the Republican nomination for the Senate seat held by Markwayne Mullin until March, when he was sworn in as secretary of Homeland Security, replacing Kristi Noem. … Meanwhile, the GOP gubernatorial primary appears to be heading to a runoff.” (06/17/26)
“Crimea, the peninsula annexed by Russia from Ukraine in 2014, has banned riding moped scooters, quad bikes and motorcycles at night-time, saying they sound like drone attacks and suggesting children are doing it deliberately at Kyiv’s behest. Sergei Aksyonov, the Russian-installed governor of the … peninsula, said the ban would be in place between 8pm and 6am from Wednesday onwards. Oleg Kryuchkov, Aksyonov’s adviser, claimed separately on Telegram: ‘The enemy is recruiting your children for night-time rides … The moped noise hampers the work of defence systems. Their engines sound similar [to drones].’ … A Ukrainian drone attack started a fire at the refinery that is the largest fuel supplier to the Moscow region, and two industry sources told Reuters that it had halted operations. … Russian strikes on Ukraine killed at least eight people on Tuesday, officials said.” (06/17/26)
“Georgia Republicans have delivered mixed results for United States President Donald Trump in the state’s primary elections, opting for the president’s preferred US Senate candidate but rejecting his choice for governor. Trump’s influence is being put to the test in this year’s midterm elections as four states and the District of Columbia held primaries on Tuesday. In the Senate race, Republican Mike Collins, 58, topped former football coach Derek Dooley and advanced to face Senator Jon Ossoff, the only Senate Democrat running for re-election in a state that Trump won two years ago. … In the race for Georgia governor, healthcare tycoon Rick Jackson, 71, outpaced Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones after spending about $100m of his own money on the campaign and surpassing Jones’s backing from the president. Jackson will face Democratic nominee and former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms in November.” (06/17/26)
“The Federal Reserve will enter the Kevin Warsh era Wednesday, as President Trump’s pick to lead the central bank oversees his first policy meeting and holds his first news conference. Yet Warsh isn’t expected to immediately usher in significant policy changes. The Fed is likely to keep its key rate unchanged Wednesday at about 3.6% for the fourth straight meeting, economists say. Fed policymakers could change their post-meeting statement so that it no longer signals the central bank’s next move will be to reduce interest rates. Such a change would suggest it could keep rates unchanged for an extended period — or even raise them if inflation stays elevated. … since the Iran war began Feb. 28, inflation has accelerated to a three-year high of 4.2%, lifted mostly by costlier gas stemming from the Iran war. The Fed typically fights higher inflation by raising its key interest rate to cool spending and growth.” (06/17/26)
“The coach of the Iranian soccer team said that his team had to leave the U.S. shortly after its 2-2 draw against New Zealand to open the FIFA World Cup. Amir Ghalenoei said that officials did not give his team time to ‘recover’ from the match before ordering them to return to Tijuana, Mexico. The Iranians are staying in Tijuana, which is a short flight from southern California — where the team played on Monday and will compete in its second game against Belgium on Sunday. … Ghalenoei did not say who ordered his team to depart the U.S. back to Mexico. While all 31 Iranian players and their coaches received visas, multiple members of the team’s traveling party did not.” (06/16/26)
“Secret Service officials are reportedly angry with FBI Director Kash Patel for announcing Tuesday the FBI had intercepted an alleged plot targeting President Donald Trump’s UFC Freedom 250 event before many arrests had been made in the case. Officials ‘woke up’ Tuesday morning to find Patel had posted on X, boasting about the FBI’s work to thwart the planned attack and arrest several individuals accused of conspiring in the plot. … However, not all suspects had been arrested and the case was sealed in court at the time, angering Secret Service officials who led the investigation, sources told MSNOW. … Federal law enforcement had five people in custody Monday but identified 23 others as part of a ‘network of plotters’ who allegedly planned to use a drone equipped with an explosive to hit buildings near the event, force a mass evacuation and steer crowds toward a sniper team, officials told Fox News Digital.” [editor’s note: A 19-year-old is identified as the alleged mastermind/leader of what would have been a large operation, so I suspect the whole thing is more law enforcement hype than reality – TLK] (06/16/26)
“The global outlook for electric vehicle demand has been cut for a second year in a row, with policy shifts in the United States driving a significant downgrade to long-term expectations, according to BloombergNEF. The latest forecast points to a slower pace of electrification across major automotive markets, even as overall adoption continues to rise. … EV sales are now expected to account for just 17% of [US] passenger vehicle sales by 2030, down sharply from 27% in last year’s forecast and far below earlier expectations of 48%. The revision reflects a cumulative loss of around 14 million EV sales through 2030 compared with previous projections, highlighting how quickly policy changes are reshaping the market outlook. Several policy adjustments are behind the slowdown. The $7,500 federal tax credit for EV buyers has expired, fuel economy standards have been eased, and efforts to limit California’s ability to set its own emissions rules are adding further uncertainty.” (06/16/26)
“A Russian artist critical of Vladimir Putin and the Chechen leader, Ramzan Kadyrov, has been shot and killed in the eastern Polish town of Biała Podlaska, a prosecutor has said. Five shots were fired at the victim, including one to the head, in the attack on Monday, said Marcin Kozak, a spokesperson for the district prosecutor in Lublin. Two Belarusians have been detained but not charged in connection with the case, he added. Local media identified the victim as Robert Kuzovkov, who was also known by his artistic pseudonym Semyon Skrepetsky, a Russian artist and performer known for his criticism of the Russian leader.” (06/16/26)
“Yum Brands on Tuesday announced it is selling Pizza Hut to private equity firm LongRange Capital for roughly $1.5 billion. The deal excludes the pizza chain’s locations in mainland China; Yum China will acquire those in a separate transaction for about $1.2 billion. The deals cap off years of struggles for Pizza Hut, which has weighed on Yum’s overall financial performance. In the U.S., the pizza chain has transitioned from the sit-down format and salad bars of yore to focus on delivery and carryout — far behind the curve. … The deal severs Pizza Hut’s decades-long ties to Taco Bell and KFC, its sister brands in Yum’s portfolio.” (06/16/26)
“Ukraine and Moldova took a major step towards joining the European Union on Monday as the bloc formally launched the accession process for both countries, opening negotiations that will require years of political and institutional reforms. For Kyiv, the move comes as it continues to fight Russia’s invasion and pursues EU membership as both a security guarantee and a pathway towards deeper integration with the West. The launch of the process was marked by an intergovernmental conference in Luxembourg attended by Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Taras Kachka.” (06/16/26)
