“The Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether a watchdog group seeking information about President Donald Trump’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency is entitled to records showing how much control the budget-slashing endeavor wielded over federal agencies. The justices on Tuesday granted the Trump administration’s request to review lower-court rulings concluding that Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington can force DOGE to turn over records shedding light on its interactions with agencies across the government. The Trump administration maintains that DOGE made no decisions about cuts to programs or firing personnel at federal agencies and simply offered recommendations to agency leaders. But critics have alleged that DOGE personnel were, at least in some instances, dictating agency actions.” (10/13/26)
“The leader of Sweden’s left-wing Social Democratic Party, Magdalena Andersson, has said her efforts to form a government have failed, prolonging a political deadlock a month after parliamentary elections. Speaking at a news conference Tuesday, Andersson said talks with the three other parties in the country’s left-wing bloc had hit an impasse. Despite progress, she said she did not believe conditions were in place to ‘form a government that can be tolerated by parliament’. It is her second time failing to form a government after Sweden’s parliamentary vote on September 13. … The speaker of parliament has four attempts at proposing a prime minister for parliament to vote on. If the fourth attempt fails, a snap election must be called.” (10/13/26)
“A Chinese court sentenced three members of a criminal gang to death on Tuesday for operating a network of brutal scam centers in Myanmar’s Kokang region on the border with China, while jailing dozens more. … Quanzhou Intermediate People’s Court said in a statement on Tuesday that it had sentenced Wei Huairen, Chen Dawei, and Liao Jingfang to death for their involvement in the ‘Wei family criminal gang.’ The gang was involved in crimes including drug trafficking, organizing prostitution, operating illegal casinos, telecommunications fraud, and the murder of at least two Chinese citizens, the court said. … Another three gang members were handed life sentences, while 55 more were given prison terms ranging from 24 years to three years and three months, the court said.” (10/13/260
“It’s a long way from Washington, has a small population and hasn’t backed a Democrat for Senate in nearly 20 years. Yet President Donald Trump on Tuesday will devote a big chunk of his dwindling time ahead of crucial midterm elections to head all the way to Alaska — attempting to bolster a Republican incumbent senator in another sign of GOP fears about retaining control of Congress after Election Day on Nov. 3. Trump is headlining a rally for Sen. Dan Sullivan in Wasilla, about 45 miles (72 kilometers) north of Anchorage — famous for being the hometown of former Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin and the headquarters of the Iditarod sled dog race across the state. … Seeking his third Senate term, Sullivan faces Democrat Mary Peltola, a former congresswoman running to put ‘Alaska First,’ emphasizing cost-of-living issues.” (10/13/26)
“Cornell University is suspending parties and other social events at fraternity houses for the rest of the academic year and will give the New York State Police a role in investigating sex crimes on campus, university officials announced Tuesday, amid mounting outrage over its handling of allegations that a female student was sexually assaulted at a fraternity house in 2024. The measures announced by Cornell President Michael Kotlikoff include a suspension of all parties and social events at Interfraternity Council houses through the end of the 2026-27 academic year and a new ‘zero tolerance’ policy for violations that would result in the immediate emergency suspension of a chapter.” [editor’s note: The majority of Cornell frat houses are privately owned and not on university property — but the school administration has waved a magic wand and declared them to be “campus housing” – TLK] (10/13/26)
“Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton attended a 2025 New Year’s party in Dubai with two fugitives who did not return to the United States, according to a new report from the Wall Street Journal. The revelation comes as the Trump-backed Republican challenges Texas Democrat James Talarico in the final weeks of the Senate race. Paxton was seen in a short video celebrating the start of New Year’s Day atop a high-rise building with Anosh Ahmed and Sameer Suhail, two U.S. citizens who had been indicted on federal charges related to healthcare fraud in 2024. The two men were accused of embezzling more than $15 million in funds from a Chicago hospital into bank accounts they owned, the Department of Justice said in July 2024. Ahmed, a former healthcare executive, had donated $190,000 to Paxton, according to campaign finance records reported by the Wall Street Journal.” (10/13/260
“Poland is blaming Russia for an arson attack on a Starlink satellite station in September and two Turkish citizens have been arrested in connection with the suspected act of sabotage, authorities said. The suspects, whose names were not released in line with Polish privacy rules, were arrested in Germany, Polish officials said Monday. They are accused of deliberately setting fire to Starlink infrastructure on Sept. 23 in Wola Krobowska, Poland, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) south of Warsaw. ‘We have no doubt that Russian intelligence services are behind this act of sabotage,’ Tomasz Siemoniak, Poland’s minister overseeing intelligence services, said in a news release, noting that Russian intelligence services are increasingly turning to people with ties to the criminal underworld.” (10/13/26)
“Pope Leo XIV underwent surgery Tuesday to remove a lung nodule and the Vatican said the operation was completed ‘successfully, on schedule and as planned.’ The 71-year-old Leo returned to his room after the surgery at Rome’s Gemelli hospital, according to a statement from the Vatican spokesman, who promised further information at a later time. Leo had walked into Rome’s Gemelli hospital through the main entrance earlier in the day and waved to dozens of well-wishers who had gathered to greet him.” (10/13/26)
“The Philippine Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, approved the prosecution’s withdrawal of most of the charges against Vice-President Sara Duterte on Tuesday, in a trial that could kill her hopes to run for president in 2028. Prosecutors have been presenting evidence against Duterte since July on charges that she betrayed public trust, amassed unexplained wealth, violated the constitution and committed corruption, bribery and other high crimes. Lead prosecutor Gerville Luistro told the court on Tuesday that they sought to withdraw three of the four charges and leave the allegations of unexplained wealth as the sole remaining issue for senators to rule on. … Focusing on a single charge would substantially narrow the issues before the court, offering practical benefits for the Senate, the respondent and the public, Luistro said.” (10/13/26)
“Former gang boss Duane ‘Keffe D’ Davis has been sentenced to 40 years in prison for orchestrating the murder of Tupac Shakur. A jury found Davis guilty in September of one count of murder with a deadly weapon for the rap superstar’s death in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas on 7 September 1996. He has said he will appeal the verdict. The 63-year-old gang boss'[s] conviction was the first in a cold case that has intrigued hip-hop fans for nearly 30 years. Prosecutors argued that although Davis did not fire the gun himself, he was the ringleader of the group that committed the murder. He admitted in his memoir that he had provided the gun used in the crime. … the book and interviews he offered elaborating on his role in Shakur’s killing voided a protective agreement he had established with authorities that had blocked any criminal charges from being filed.” (10/13/26)
