“European Union officials met Thursday to strengthen border controls and curb migration as activists presented new evidence they say shows the bloc’s border agency provides surveillance data to Libya’s coast guard to intercept migrants at sea. Home affairs ministers from the EU’s 27 countries gathered in Luxembourg to discuss border surveillance and other policies, including setting up ‘return hubs’ in third countries and efforts to increase deportations across the bloc. Ahead of the meeting, European Commissioner for Migration Magnus Brunner said he would call for a vast expansion of Frontex, including new powers, more funding and a larger workforce. The EU has hardened its migration policy over the past decade, with most member countries supporting more deportations and stricter border controls.” (10/01/26)
“Bolivian police arrested Attorney General Roger Mariaca on Wednesday, two days after the United States revoked his visa over alleged links to drug trafficking, a government source told AFP. ‘The arrest of Prosecutor Mariaca has been confirmed,’ said a source from the Ministry of Government, who requested anonymity. Santa Cruz prosecutor Alberto Zeballos, who has likewise been sanctioned by Washington, was also arrested, according to local media. Both were among the nearly 20 people from Bolivia, Colombia and Ecuador whom the U.S. State Department accused this week of corruption, links to drug trafficking, or conspiring against their respective governments.” (10/01/26)
“The Trump administration has told Germany and France to draw down emergency diesel inventories to help to ease global fuel prices or face a potential US diesel export ban, said three people close to the discussions. The warning marks an escalation of pressure on Europe as US President Donald Trump considers a potential diesel export ban to bring down US fuel prices ahead of November’s midterm elections.” (10/01/26)
“The Trump administration is issuing refund checks to about 1 million Americans, accompanied by a personal letter from President Donald Trump, to people the administration says were overcharged for Obamacare. An administration official told Fox News Digital that the U.S. Treasury began issuing $500 refund checks to more than 950,000 Americans across 30 states. Each refund comes with a letter from Trump himself, a copy of which was obtained by Fox News Digital. ‘For years, the Biden administration overcharged you to fund the operation of HealthCare.gov,’ the letter says. ‘That money belongs to hard-working Americans, not the Government, and now I’m returning it to you!'” (10/01/26)
“The Trump administration is excluding several major allies from a gathering of NATO members next month — after previous threats to deploy a ‘naughty and nice list’ against governments that have run afoul of the president’s priorities. The planned meeting in Poland, which Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby has spearheaded, is essentially a working group focused on NATO’s future, according to six diplomats familiar with the planning. But many of the countries who didn’t receive an invite — such as the United Kingdom, France and the Baltic countries — are big defense spenders and play key roles in the alliance, leaving their diplomats wondering why they’re being frozen out.” (09/30/26)
“U.S. Treasury yields hit their highest level in more than two decades on Thursday as a global bond sell-off deepened. The 10-year Treasury yield breached a level last seen in April 2002, rising 4 basis points to 5.3338%, according to LSEG data. The figure is key to rates for mortgage borrowing, auto loans and credit card debt. … Government borrowing costs rose around the world on Thursday, continuing a months-long trend as investors express concerns over a lack of political action to tackle fiscal deficits, while inflation remains sticky and interest rates rise.” (10/01/26)
“The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected an eleventh-hour bid by the state of Arizona to block the upcoming start of a court-ordered takeover of healthcare operations in its prisons after the state was found to have provided constitutionally inadequate care to incarcerated people and dragged its feet for over a decade in making required improvements. The state’s request to delay the start date was denied Thursday by Justice Elena Kagan, leaving an outside corrections professional to take over healthcare management for 25,000 incarcerated people on Oct. 19. Arizona had asked the courts to delay the start date while it appealed both the takeover decision and the appointment of former Ohio corrections director Annette Chambers-Smith as the leader of the effort.” (10/01/26)
“OpenAI has confirmed that it is reviewing a report of a failed hacking attempt against a Canadian government body in the latest incident to highlight cybersecurity concerns about artificial intelligence. The AI giant said on Wednesday that it was reviewing the alleged cyberattack against Canada’s national archives agency and had provided an initial briefing to Canadian officials. … The attempted hacking, if confirmed, would be the first publicly known case of an AI-led cyberattack against Canada’s government, following a series of incidents of rogue agents targeting agencies in the United States and Australia.” (10/01/26)
“A federal judge approved a Paramount Skydance antitrust settlement with California and other states Wednesday, allowing the company’s merger with Warner Bros. Discovery to move forward. The settlement, reached last week, resolves a lawsuit that 12 states’ attorneys general brought against the company. The lawsuit argued that the acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery would give the company too much control of the market.” (09/30/26)
Yes, it’s “year-end fundraiser” time again. We keep our appeals limited to the occasional “we’re reader-supported” reminder nine months out of the year, but starting each October 1 we set a goal and hammer you every dang day with that goal until we make it.
The bare bones:
1) You can, and should, support the freedom movement’s daily newspaper at:
2) Our goal this year is $5,503, and reader GL has pledged to “match funds” for half of that, meaning we only need to raise $2,751.50 from the rest of our readers!
3) Once we’ve reached the goal, we’ll stop talking about money ENTIRELY for the rest of the year, and MOSTLY for the first nine months of NEXT year.
As for trivial asides:
Why $5,503? Well, last year it was $5,501. I didn’t want to raise the goal TOO much because I know inflation hits you as hard as it hits us, so I just escalated to the next prime number (I have a thing about prime numbers).
How long have we been doing this? As Rational Review News Digest, for 24 years as of this coming December 23. As Freedom News Daily, since 1994. And before that was Libernet, dating to 1991, making us the libertarian movement’s oldest and longest-surviving daily Internet news and commentary roundup.
So, again: Please support us, based on your assessment of how much value you find in our work, at …
