“Patagonia, the outdoor clothing and gear company, has joined a lawsuit challenging Donald Trump’s decision to significantly reduce the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments in Utah, removing protections from nearly 3m acres. In July, the president approved the reduction of the sites by 90%, clearing the way to open the land to oil and gas companies. … The retailer announced on Wednesday it was joining a lawsuit to put a stop to what it described as illegal orders that ‘betray Tribal sovereignty’. … The Natural Resources Defense Council, which filed the federal lawsuit on Wednesday along with several other conservation groups, described Trump’s proclamations as ‘one of the largest rollbacks of public land protections in US history’.” (09/02/26)
“The United States Mint released 250,000 $1 coins Wednesday featuring President Trump’s likeness to commemorate the nation’s 250th anniversary. … The coin was greenlighted in March after controversy arose stemming from a federal law that previously prohibited living people from being depicted on U.S. currency. But a law Trump signed during his first term — called the Circulating Collectible Coin Redesign Act of 2020 — included new language regarding the semiquincentennial commemoration coins. The Trump administration also told Newsweek it does not need congressional approval for the coin — citing a history of coins with the likeness of the sitting president such as a 150th anniversary coin with former President Calvin Coolidge as one example in a legal filing.” (09/02/26)
“Prominent Hong Kong democracy activist Joshua Wong pleaded guilty on Wednesday to a charge of collusion with foreign entities, a national security [sic] crime [sic] that carries a maximum sentence of life in prison. Wong, 29, rose to international prominence as a teenage democracy activist in Hong Kong, one of a group of youngsters whose protest efforts have now effectively been outlawed by a sweeping National Security [sic] Law that Beijing imposed on the Asian financial hub in 2020. … Wong is already in jail serving an existing sentence on an earlier national security [sic] charge of conspiracy to commit subversion after he was among a group of democratic activists who participated in an unofficial primary election in 2020. His current sentence is scheduled to end in January next year.” (09/02/26)
“Uber is cutting more than 3,000 jobs worldwide as part of a major overhaul designed to shrink management layers and refocus spending on its core business. The cuts amount to roughly 10% of its global workforce, bringing staffing back to levels last seen in 2021. Chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi told staff in a company email that the taxi and delivery firm had expanded quickly but accumulated too many layers and small teams that slowed decision‑making. He said the reductions would put Uber, which has its global head office in San Francisco, US, in a better position for its ‘biggest opportunities ahead of us’. The move marks one of Uber’s largest restructurings in years and signals a shift towards a leaner operating model. ” (09/02/26)
“Marlboro-maker Altria on Wednesday sued the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, seeking to force the agency to overhaul a product review process that tobacco companies say has stifled their growth in the key U.S. market, a legal filing showed. Under U.S. law, the FDA must review new tobacco products before they can be sold, assessing whether they provide a net public health benefit, such as helping smokers quit. But the system has been plagued by a huge backlog of applications and a booming illegal market of products sold without FDA authorisation. Altria’s lawsuit marks the latest industry challenge to a regime that has become one of the biggest obstacles facing tobacco companies in the $22 billion U.S. market. It follows an extensive lobbying campaign targeting President Donald Trump.” (09/02/26)
“Nearly 600,000 New York City public school students will be barred from using artificial intelligence in the classroom and face strict new limits on screen time under a sweeping technology policy Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels are expected to unveil Wednesday. The policy, believed to be the most restrictive of its kind in the nation, would prohibit generative AI tools, including chatbots, AI tutors and instructional programs, for all students through eighth grade. Only high school students would be permitted to use AI, and even then under what officials describe as ‘restricted’ access rules.” (09/02/26)
“The Dutch central bank (DNB) has confirmed that billions of dollars in gold has been taken out of north America and relocated to London, citing ‘increasing geopolitical unrest’. DNB said on Wednesday that 86 tonnes of gold had been removed from the US and Canada in a complex operation that took several months. It is now being held by the Bank of England, where the precious metal can be traded more easily ‘in a crisis situation’. Bank president Olaf Sleijpen said the move was ‘necessary to strengthen our resilience and preparedness’. The decision comes amid an ongoing trade dispute between the US and Canada, with both countries announcing fresh tariffs on each other after failed trade talks.” (09/02/26)
“An explosion near a German train station followed by the discovery of a suspicious object caused police to temporarily close the transport hub in the southern city of Augsburg on Wednesday morning. Later in the morning, police said the suspicious object had been identified as harmless and that the train station was reopened again at 10 a.m. and trains starting running again. … An unidentified object exploded in a passageway near the station at around 3:15 a.m. local time, according to officials, causing minor injuries to two people. The people injured were a 17-year-old girl and an 18-year-old man, both of whom are Ukrainian citizens, the German news agency dpa reported.” (09/02/26)
“Oil giant Chevron confirmed that it will expand its operations in Venezuela, just days after President Donald Trump announced an ambitious deal to develop the nation’s oil reserves and give the Pentagon a stake in the profits. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney told the Trump administration Tuesday to ‘stop doing memes, stop throwing shade and stop trying to be tough,’ as he pushed back against a fresh wave of taunts from Washington. Carney said U.S.-Canada trade talks could resume if Washington becomes serious about negotiations. And a record percentage of Americans — about 9 in 10 — 89% — believe there’s widespread corruption in the U.S. government, according to a new Gallup poll released Wednesday. That’s up 10 percentage points from last year.” (09/02/26)
“Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth spiked the names of at least six Army officers from a list for promotions to two-star generals, a person familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told The Hill Tuesday. The removals come just days after the Pentagon chief blocked promotions of four Army officers selected to ascend to one-star rank …. Earlier this year, the defense secretary similarly pulled four Army officers, two women and two [b]lack men, from a one-star general promotion list — to the displeasure of Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and other top officials. Driscoll handed his resignation to the White House on Monday and is set to depart the Trump administration after a months-long turf war with Hegseth, a move that further signals the defense secretary’s aim to impose his will on the service branch.” (09/02/26)
