“Sweden’s political parties have launched coalition negotiations as the Social Democrats leader, Magdalena Andersson, started the long and difficult process of trying to form a new government. Full results from Sunday’s election are not expected until after overseas votes are counted on Wednesday, but with 95% of the votes counted, the Social Democrats and the centre-left bloc had a narrow but growing lead of 176 seats to the right-leaning parties’ 173. After losing support for the first time since they were founded, the far-right Sweden Democrats, who were hoping to enter government for the first time, appear to be out of the picture. But many of its policy ideas – on immigration laws, integration and crime – have become mainstream, including in the centre-left.” (09/14/26)
“Macklemore has been kicked off the rest of Ed Sheeran’s stadium tour after several venues said they would refuse to let the rapper perform after his anti-Israel rants on stage. ‘We have been notified by venues on the upcoming U.S. tour dates that they will not allow a concert to take place with Macklemore on the lineup, which would result in the cancellation of the tour and impact hundreds of thousands of fans,’ Messina Touring Group, which is promoting the US leg of Sheeran’s Loop Tour, told Rolling Stone magazine. ‘After discussions with stakeholders, Macklemore will not be performing on the remaining support dates,’ the company added. The lefty rapper was scheduled to play at eight of the 10 remaining shows, scheduled to resume on Saturday.” (09/14/26)
“Officials at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts have warned that the institution is nearing bankruptcy and could be forced to close as early as Tuesday, Sept. 15, according to multiple reports. In documents obtained by The Washington Post and The New York Times, the Kennedy Center’s current leadership — which was installed by President Donald Trump — argued that the institution faces ‘certain fiscal collapse’ unless the president’s name is added back to its facade. … The draft resolution claims that within a few weeks the institution will not be able to pay employees or meet maintenance costs, according to the Post. … ‘The board understands that without such appropriate recognition it is unlikely that President Trump will provide the fundamental oversight of the renovation of the main building and lead the fiscal rescue of the center,’ the draft resolution states, the Times reported.” (09/14/26)
“Beijing rejects ‘groundless’ reports that Chinese entities supplied Tehran with satellite images of a military base housing US troops in Jordan, before and after an Iranian strike killed three American soldiers. The reports by the Wall Street Journal over the weekend related to July 17 missile strikes launched by Iran on the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan. Unnamed American officials cited in the Journal’s reporting did not name the Chinese entities involved, and did not suggest that Beijing was directly to blame.” (09/14/26)
“Former CIA Director John Brennan has been subpoenaed to testify next month before a Florida grand jury as part of a Justice Department investigation into whether former law enforcement and intelligence officials conspired against President Donald Trump, one of his lawyers said Monday. Ken Wainstein, an attorney for Brennan, disclosed in a court filing that prosecutors last Thursday presented him with a subpoena for Brennan to appear Oct. 15 before a grand jury in Fort Pierce, Florida. He said he was told that the subpoena relates to a “far-reaching” criminal probe examining a loosely defined theory that the government officials who have investigated Trump over the last decade, including over Russia election interference in 2016 and his more recent retention of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate, conspired to deprive Trump of his civil rights. The subpoena to Brennan is among a flurry that have been issued in recent weeks.” (09/14/26)
“Polls closed on Monday across an autonomous Muslim region of the Philippines that waited decades to choose its own leaders, with officials praising a successful election despite sporadic violence. The parliamentary election was the culmination of a sometimes-bumpy peace process that began in the late 1990s and established the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) in the country’s far south. More than two million voters were eligible to vote for 80 parliament seats that had previously been filled by appointees. … Gunfire erupted outside a polling station at a Cotabato school before polls opened, killing three people and wounding 15 others.” (09/14/26)
“New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is suing President Donald Trump’s administration over plans to expand federal authority to deny visa and green card applications based on welfare status. The lawsuit, filed jointly with NY Attorney General Letitia James, targets the Trump administration’s plan to expand the ‘public charge’ rule, which allows the federal government to deny visa applications based on the likelihood that the applicant will receive public benefits. Trump’s administration seeks to expand the list of benefits that apply under the rule, with the change taking effect Sept. 18. ‘If you are a citizen, or an individual seeking humanitarian relief like asylum, these changes will not affect you,’ Mamdani said at a press conference Monday. ‘The new public charge rule not only sweeps aside more than a century of established law, it is intentionally vague as a means of creating uncertainty and fear to isolate immigrant New Yorkers.'” (09/14/26)
“Artificial intelligence stocks dropped on Monday after Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei called for a slowdown of the development of AI capabilities, and other major tech figures backed the proposal. Investors are concerned that an industry-wide slowdown in AI development could have ripple effects for companies across the sector and curb adoption. Chipmaking and hardware stock heavily tied to the AI buildout dropped on Monday. … The sell-off comes amid the growing debate over the risks posed by rapidly improving AI model capabilities that hit a crescendo last week after Jacob Coxon, a researcher at Anthropic who also previously worked at OpenAI, said he resigned out of concern that Anthropic and OpenAI are ‘gambling with our lives.'” (09/14/26)
“Landowners, ranchers and business owners in the Big Bend region of Texas along with a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting the region’s landscape and heritage are suing to stop the Trump administration’s plans to build a wall and other border infrastructure through the remote section of the state. The lawsuit, filed by Conserve Big Bend and with the support of dozens of landowners, comes as the administration is ramping up a $46 billion effort to line the roughly 2,000-mile southern border with a collection of 30-foot (9-meter) steel bollard walls, vehicle barriers, and technology intended to keep out smugglers and migrants. In Texas, the effort has run up against numerous lawsuits and bipartisan opposition from sheriffs, elected officials, tour guides, environmental groups and landowners.” (09/14/26)
“A Brazilian Supreme Court justice on Sunday unsealed an investigation into the production of a film about former President Jair Bolsonaro, pointing in his decision to suspicions the movie’s financing had ties to a criminal network. The suspicions laid out in Justice Flávio Dino’s decision may complicate matters further for Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro, only weeks before October’s national elections in which he will challenge President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Sen. Bolsonaro, the ex-leader’s eldest son, is under investigation for corruption, money laundering and tax evasion for receiving millions of dollars from a disgraced banker to finance the biopic about his father, titled ‘Dark Horse.'” (09/14/26)
