Donald Trump has sweeping plans for a second administration. Here’s what he’s proposed

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Supreme Court lets Trump administration cut $783 million of research funding in anti-DEI push August 21, 2025 The Trump administration can slash $783 million worth of research funding in its push to cut federal diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, the Supreme Court decided Thursday.

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? Trump's pay-me capitalism

Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photo: Samuel Corum/Politico/Bloomberg via Getty Images

The era of pay-me capitalism has arrived: Companies are quickly learning lessons about what happens if they don't comply, Axios managing editor for business Ben Berkowitz writes. Why it matters: Just seven months into his second presidency, Trump has broken with more than a century of conservative orthodoxy and taken a maximalist view of presidential intervention in the economy. ? The big picture: Businesses wanted a pro-management, low-regulation, bigger-is-better administration. By and large, they're getting that. The price? Adhering to Trump's priorities, paying whatever tariffs and cuts off the top he dictates, moving their operations where he wants them to, and toeing the line on his social priorities. The list of examples grows by the day. Most recently, it was the administration seeking to convert grants to Intel into partial government ownership. But beyond that: Companies are being scored on their loyalty to Trump's platform. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says it's appropriate for corporate margins to come down (in other words, they should absorb more tariff costs, even if that means making less money). The government is taking a cut of Nvidia's and AMD's foreign sales. The administration is demanding drugmakers change the way they sell products, and telling automakers to move plants back to America.

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Satellites

The Trump administration has decided to narrow the capabilities and cut the number of next-generation weather and climate satellites it will build and launch in the coming decades, two people familiar with the plans told CNN. Two planned instruments — one that would measure air quality, including pollution and wildfire smoke, and another that would observe ocean conditions in unprecedented detail — are no longer part of the project, the sources said. The moves, which are aimed at curtailing costs, are due in part to the perception that some of the instruments were going to be focused on gathering data to study climate change. Critics said this is a short-sighted attempt to save money at the expense of a better understanding of the oceans and atmosphere. Congress is also considering a proposal by the Trump administration to close NOAA’s extensive research facilities and shut down its greenhouse gas monitoring network.

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Trump administration is reviewing all 55 million foreigners with US visas for any violations The Trump administration said Thursday it is reviewing more than 55 million people who have valid U.S. visas for any violations that could lead to deportation, part of a growing crackdown on foreigners who are permitted to be in the United States. Read more.

What to know: In a written answer to a question from The Associated Press, the State Department said all U.S. visa holders, which can include tourists from many countries, are subject to “continuous vetting,” with an eye toward any indication they could be ineligible for permission to enter or stay in the United States. Should such information be found, the visa will be revoked, and if the visa holder is in the United States, he or she would be subject to deportation.   There were 12.8 million green-card holders and 3.6 million people in the U.S. on temporary visas last year, according to the Department of Homeland Security.   The U.S. also will stop issuing worker visas for commercial truck drivers, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday on X. He said the change was effective immediately.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Supreme Court lets Trump administration cut $783 million of research funding in anti-DEI push    Federal investigators demanded details on transgender patients from at least 1 hospital   Proposal could lead to sanctions against Alaska medical professionals for gender-affirming care   Florida must stop expanding ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ immigration center, judge says   Inside the facility where ICE is training recruits to take on Trump’s deportation goals   Wisconsin court commissioner resigns after dispute over immigration warrant   Judge says former Trump lawyer Alina Habba has been unlawfully serving as US attorney in New Jersey   Major Russian attack on western Ukraine hits an American factory during US-led push for peace   The US and EU release a bare-bones account of their trade deal   German economy shrank 0.3% in second quarter as tensions over U.S. tariffs simmered   Tariffs aren’t keeping Walmart from attracting shoppers and outpacing Target   Trump’s crackdown in D.C. leaves residents on edge as federal agents set up checkpoints   Trump embraces tough-on-crime mantra amid DC takeover as he and Democrats claim political wins   West Virginia governor sued over National Guard deployment to DC   WATCH: DC Mayor questions use of masked federal officers in Trump's immigration crackdown   Orlando officials denounce removal of rainbow crosswalk near Pulse nightclub mass shooting site   FACT FOCUS: A look at RFK Jr.'s misleading claims on US dietary guidelines and Froot Loops   Defamation case against Fox News highlights role of its hosts in promoting 2020 election falsehoods   Trump signs order creating national chief design officer   Kamala Harris announces book tour stops for ‘107 Days’ memoir

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Vance Leads MAGA Victory Dance After FBI Raid on Trump Foe John Bolton

The president’s supporters celebrated the investigation into the former national security advisor.

Vice President J.D. Vance appeared to back FBI Director Kash Patel’s raid on the home and office of Donald Trump’s former national security advisor, John Bolton.

Hours after the shocking new development, Vance reposted a message from Patel, who wrote on X: “NO ONE is above the law” and that FBI agents were “on mission.”

Patel posted as law enforcement was carrying out a search of John Bolton’s home and office. Bolton, who served as Trump’s national security adviser during his first term before being fired, has become one of Trump’s harshest critics.

“We’re in the very early stages of an ongoing investigation into John Bolton,” Vance said in a pre-taped interview with NBC News’ Meet the Press. “We’re going to let that investigation proceed.”

“If we think that Ambassador Bolton has committed a crime of course eventually prosecutions will come,” Vance added. “There’s a broad concern about Ambassador Bolton they’re going to look into.”

Others in MAGA world also took Patel’s post to be about Bolton and were giddy that one of Trump’s loudest foes was under federal investigation, as top Trump officials promoted it.

“Public corruption will not be tolerated,” wrote Deputy Director Dan Bongino when he shared Patel’s post.

“America’s safety isn’t negotiable. Justice will be pursued. Always,” Attorney General Pam Bondi wrote while also sharing Patel’s X post.

Multiple Trump supporters were quick to share quotes on social media from Bolton when FBI agents raided Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home searching for classified documents in 2022.

Agents wearing FBI jackets could be seen entering both Bolton’s home and office early Friday morning. Sources told NBC and CNN that it was a national security investigation.

The FBI declined to comment to The Daily Beast.

Trump has been highly critical of Bolton ever since their relationship turned sour and the president fired him in 2019.

Trump officials also tried to stop Bolton from publishing his 2020 book despite information included that had been cleared for publication by career officials.

“Good morning. John Bolton. How does it feel to have your home raided at 6 o’clock in the morning?” wrote conservative activist Roger Stone on X Friday.

Stone himself had been convicted of obstruction before Trump commuted his sentence and later pardoned him in 2020.

“Patiently waiting for John Bolton’s arrest photos from 6 am this morning,” Stone added in a separate post.

Right-wing commentator Benny Johnson argued they would never forget the early morning raids of the homes of Trump and his ally Stone. He claimed Trump was conducting his own raids on the “deep state” on Friday.

Johnson called Bolton “one of the deepest of the deep state” and an “absolute traitor” of the president after also retweeting Patel.

Bolton’s name happens to be on Patel’s list of former officials that he claimed were members of the “deep state” in his 2023 book “Government Gangsters.” However, the FBI director insisted during his confirmation process earlier this year that the list which showed up in the book’s appendix was not a “enemies list.”

“This is a GREAT Friday morning so far Deep state,” wrote right-winger Nick Sorter. “John Bolton could be facing 10-20 YEARS in prison in this national security probe. MUCH deserved!”

“Yes. We did, indeed, vote for this,” wrote another pro-MAGA X user of the Bolton search.

Conservative podcaster Steve Bannon’s War Room reacted to the search by blasting Bolton as the “NeoCon’s NeoCon, Zelensky and Netanyahu’s Biggest Cheerleader” and more.

Speaking to reporters on Friday, Trump insisted he did not know about it in advance but saw the raid was happening on TV.

However, he also rejected the independence of the Justice Department when he claimed he could be the one launching the investigation.

“I’m actually the chief law enforcement officer,” Trump declared.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/vance-leads-maga-victory-dance-after-fbi-raid-on-trump-foe-john-bolton/?

ps:So here's another Republican who stood up to the criminal-in-chief, and for doing so we'll just give him a hard time!!!!! And than he claims he didn't know about it? Nothing happens unless he tells his people, that's why he placed them in those positions, period!!!!!

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Russian Official Throws Cold Water on Trump’s Nobel Peace Prize Aspirations

The president’s pageantry in Alaska did not move the needle on peace discussions between Ukraine and Russia.

Russia’s top diplomat said Friday his country is “not ready at all” to discuss a peace deal with Ukraine—a blow to President Donald Trump, whose flashy meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin appears to have been a flop.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said there is no meeting planned to discuss peace between Putin and Ukraine’s Volodmyr Zelensky. He added that the two sides remain far apart in their discussions.

“Putin is ready to meet with Zelensky when the agenda is ready for a summit,” he told NBC News. “And this agenda is not ready at all.”

Specifically, Lavrov said that Moscow signaled to Trump after the Alaska summit—in which the U.S. president controversially rolled out a red carpet for Putin, greeted him with applause, and welcomed him inside a presidential limo—that it can be “flexible” in peace talks with Ukraine. Lavrov claimed Kyiv has refused to do the same.

“President Trump suggested, after Anchorage, several points which we share, and on some of them, we agreed to show some flexibility,” he said.

Lavrov claimed that—when presented with Russia’s asks during his trip to the White House on Monday with European leaders—Zelensky “said no to everything.”

Reached for comment, the White House referred the Daily Beast to the president’s comments on the conflict. Trump maintained Friday that Zelensky and Putin need to meet and agree to peace on their own terms. On Thursday, Zelensky accused Russia of trying to “wriggle out” of holding a summit to discuss peace, accusing it of continuing “massive attacks” on Ukraine. The same day, Russia launched one of its most comprehensive aerial attacks of the war, forcing millions of Ukrainians to take shelter. An American-owned factory was among the targets, and at least 15 workers were injured there, NBC reported.

Ukrainian officials have long stressed they are ready for hostilities to end but are adamant that they will not part with any of their eastern territories—some of which are currently occupied by Russian forces—to reach a peace agreement. They have also refused to end their pursuit of NATO membership, which Russia maintains is a non-starter for peace discussions.

Trump, 79, has been promoting himself as the should-be winner of a Nobel Peace Prize. As such, ending the war between Ukraine and Russia, something he once declared he would do on day one of his presidency, has been among the president’s top priorities—but also is among his biggest flops, at least to date.

Still, Trump has claimed wins elsewhere in foreign affairs. He personally brokered peace agreements between Armenia and Azerbaijan as well as between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Trump claims those conflicts are among seven that he has solved as president, but experts say that claim is dubious.

Asked about Russia and Ukraine on Thursday, he told the Todd Starnes Show that he will know more in “two weeks” about whether a peace deal will come or not. Claiming that something is coming in “two weeks” has been one of Trump’s go-to lines this term when he does not have an established timeline.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/russian-foreign-minister-sergey-lavrov-has-bad-news-for-trumps-nobel-prize-dream/?

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Giddy MAGA Rep Cheers Trump Retribution Against Bolton on Fox News

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer reveled in news of the FBI’s raid on the former national security adviser.

Kentucky Rep. James Comer cheered the raid on former Trump National Security Adviser John Bolton’s home Friday morning.

On America’s Newsroom, co-anchor Dana Perino brought in Comer, chair of the House Oversight Committee.

“Well, I appreciate Kash Patel’s tweet that no one’s above the law,” Comer said, referring to Trump’s FBI director. “I don’t know what John Bolton did, but obviously he deserves due process.”

It comes after the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) swooped in on Bolton’s Bethesda, Maryland, home, as part of a “national security investigation in search of classified records,” a source told NBC News.

Comer, a self-described “Trump man,” told viewers that the investigation was long overdue.

“I do believe that Kash Patel and Pam Bondi and John Ratcliffe and Tulsi Gabbard are serious about holding the deep state accountable for all the mistakes and all the abuses of power that we’ve witnessed over the past decade,” he said. “So I think today is a positive day.”

Bolton, who became one of Trump’s fiercest critics after leaving the White House in 2019, has long drawn Trumpworld’s ire. Comer suggested that Bolton, like other “deep state” figures, was aligned with defense contractors pushing for foreign interventions.

“I’m glad the Trump administration is empowered,” he said. “I’m glad these people are finally being at the very least investigated.”

Perino pressed Comer on whether the raid amounted to retribution. He waved it off.

“That’s what the liberal media’s going to say … I don’t think this is retribution, I think this is accountability,” Comer said. “I have confidence in Kash Patel, and I don’t believe he would do anything without having ample evidence to move forward.”

Trump considered Bolton, a hardline neoconservative known for advocating for military interventions abroad, for several roles in his administration after the 2016 election, including secretary of State. However, Trump initially passed on him, saying he did not like Bolton’s trademark mustache.

Trump appointed Bolton as national security adviser in April 2018, with their relationship souring because of Trump’s summit with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un. Bolton had pushed for an aggressive stance against North Korea and Iran while Trump favored negotiations.

In September 2019, Trump announced Bolton had been fired; Bolton insisted he resigned first. Trump later mocked Bolton on Twitter as “crazy” and a “warmonger.”

In June 2020, Bolton published The Room Where It Happened, a scathing memoir about his time with Trump. In it, he alleged Trump asked Chinese President Xi Jinping to help him win reelection, said Finland was “part of Russia,” and that Trump’s decisions were often guided by personal or political interests rather than U.S. strategy.

Trump sued to block the book’s release, calling it “highly classified,” but the effort failed. Trump then publicly trashed Bolton, saying he was “one of the dumbest people in Washington.”

Since then, Bolton has morphed into one of Trump’s fiercest conservative critics.

The Daily Beast has reached out to Bolton for comment on Comer’s remarks.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/giddy-maga-rep-james-comer-cheers-trump-retribution-against-bolton-on-fox-news/?

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Patel Ordered Bolton FBI ‘Distraction’ Raid on Epstein Files Release Day

Agents raided the home of the vocal Trump critic the same day first Epstein files were to be turned over to Congress.

As the FBI swarmed the home of former Donald Trump adviser turned fierce critic John Bolton on Friday, the Justice Department was preparing to turn over the first Jeffrey Epstein files.

The Trump administration had been dragging its feet on releasing files on the convicted sex offender for months despite MAGA outrage.

But according to House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, the department was to begin turning over documents to the committee on Friday after receiving a subpoena from Congress.

It is expected that the committee will release the files to the public but only after reviewing them to make redactions.

Some members of Congress from both parties have been pushing for the Epstein files repeatedly. The motion for the subpoena to obtain the files passed in an oversight subcommittee with bipartisan support at the last minute before the House left on August recess amid mounting pressure on GOP leadership for more information.

“It looks political,” said Democratic Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, reacting to the Bolton raid on CNN Friday. “It looks like it’s also an attempt to distract from the other big news of the day, which is the first production of the Epstein files that’s required by subpoena from the oversight committee on which I sit.

“They want to change the conversation repeatedly,” Krishnamoorthi claimed. “This is going to happen every day because they don’t want people talking about the Epstein files or about their mismanagement of the economy.”

The same day those first files were set to be delivered on Capitol Hill, the FBI carried out the search of Bolton’s Maryland home as part of a national security investigation.

“NO ONE is above the law…@FBI agents on mission," FBI Director Kash Patel, a longtime close Trump ally, wrote on X Friday morning. He did not specify what he was referring to.

Patel himself once floated conspiracy theories about the Epstein case and questioned the narrative about the convicted sex offender’s death after Epstein died by suicide in a New York jail in 2019.

But the Justice Department and FBI under him revealed in a memo last month that there was no client list, reiterated the findings that Epstein killed himself and said they did not plan to release further information. Since then, Patel has been notably quiet about the case.

Democrats had criticized the Justice Department for handing files over in tranches despite officials publicly stating the documents had all been turned over to Attorney General Pam Bondi for review before their release in February, before the Trump administration backtracked.

“Today is the first day that the DOJ has been required to comply with the subpoena,” Krishnamoorthi said.

Krishnamoorthi was not the only one suggesting the timing of the Bolton raid was suspect. Trump critics across social media claimed it was a distraction.

Bolton last served in government in 2019 when he worked for the first Trump administration as the president’s National Security Adviser before Trump fired him.

The president has since repeatedly attacked Bolton, who has become a fierce critic of Trump during numerous TV appearances.

During the first Trump administration, the president threatened to lock Bolton up after he published a book in 2020. The book included information that was initially cleared for publication by career White House officials, but the president has attempted to overturn it.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/kash-patel-ordered-bolton-fbi-raid-on-epstein-files-release-day/?

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Justice Dept. declines to defend grants for Hispanic-serving colleges, calling them unconstitutional

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration said Friday it will not defend a decades-old grant program for colleges with large numbers of Hispanic students that is being challenged in court, declaring the government believes the funding is unconstitutional.

https://apnews.com/article/hispanic-colleges-trump-a795fc966590681f41410c2b3e268ac0?

ps:Thank you for voting for me, but no thank you your on your own!! Next time you want any help vote for the democrats they care about you!!!!!

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Maxwell transcripts bring some respite for Trump, but fail to quell Maga uproar

For weeks, Donald Trump has been on the defensive over his handling of the Jeffrey Epstein investigative files and the extent of his own personal links to the late sex trafficker.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/22/maxwell-transcripts-trump-epstein-maga?

ps:I'm still wondering what they are after? I have an idea, but trump only has himself to blame!!!!!

Trump again mulls Russia sanctions as Ukraine peace remains elusive one week after Alaska summit

Donald Trump renewed a threat to impose sanctions on Russia if there was no progress toward a peaceful settlement in Ukraine, as Moscow said there remained “no meeting planned” between Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/aug/23/trump-again-mulls-russia-sanctions-as-ukraine-peace-remains-elusive-one-week-after-alaska-summit?

ps:How long is he going to procrastinate?????

Most refugees and asylees will be denied food stamps under Trump’s new law

B. said he left Cameroon nine years ago because he was scared for his life. Authorities in the West African nation threw him in prison because of his sexual orientation, he said. After his release, he feared that if he stayed in the country, he would be killed.

https://floridaphoenix.com/2025/08/23/most-refugees-and-asylees-will-be-denied-food-stamps-under-trumps-new-law/?

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Trump's new "Apple Store"

Joe Gebbia — a co-founder of Airbnb who was named by President Trump this week to be the first U.S. chief design officer — tells Mike that he wants to update federal websites to an "Apple Store-like experience."

• "That means it's beautifully designed," Gebbia told us, "has great user experience, and it runs on modern software" — three strikes when it comes to dealing with today's government.

Why it matters: Airbnb — which over 17 years has become a ubiquitous verb for what used to be a classified-ad section at the back of the newspaper — applied those same three principles to renting a vacation home. "There's no reason why the government can't have that, too," Gebbia said.

• And Trump is making it a legacy project.

? Gebbia points out that mobile apps and websites are the "front door to the government" for most Americans. It's "an injustice that our interfaces are horribly out of date," he said. "There's no reason why our government can't be a standard for great design."

• He's determined to bring Airbnb's simplicity ethos to making government websites more usable. "I'm in the camp of: The best part is no part," he said in the interview. "The exercise of designers is: You delete unnecessary parts."

Gebbia, who turned 44 on Thursday, said "spending an hour with POTUS talking about design was probably the greatest birthday present I've ever gotten." He said he and Trump — who's stamping his showy Mar-a-Lago vibe on the White House by gilding the Oval Office, paving the Rose Garden and building a sprawling ballroom — "both care about details at a pretty intense level."

• "It's the same way a hotelier anticipates the needs of their guests," Gebbia added. "As two hospitality guys, we have a mindset for that. ... This is like hospitality design for our nation."

Gebbia's post on X when he joined DOGE in February.

? The backstory: Gebbia, based in Austin, is a billionaire entrepreneur who's one of three Airbnb co-founders — he and Brian Chesky hosted the first guests in 2007. Gebbia is also on Tesla's board. But he started as an artist, including studying at the storied Rhode Island School of Design (RISD).

• He joined DOGE in February to simplify and modernize the archaic, paper-intensive process for federal retirement. (Gebbia hasn't been involved in Airbnb operations since 2022, and his administration role is unconnected to Airbnb.)
• Gebbia told Axios he has "very successfully solved" the retirement mess, with an announcement soon. He's moving full-time into design, although he echoed his friend Elon Musk's assertion that DOGE "is a way of life, like Buddhism."

The bottom line: Heads of agencies are supposed to produce their initial design revamps by July 4, 2026 — America's 250th birthday, which Trump the showman is leaning into with grand festivities.

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? Immigrant detentions soar 50%

Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photos: Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto and Carlos Moreno/Anadolu via Getty Images

The number of people in immigrant detention has jumped more than 50% — to a record — since President Trump took office, Axios' Brittany Gibson and Russell Contreras report. 60,000 immigrants are now officially in long-term detention, according to the latest government data, up from 39,000 or so who were behind bars at the end of the Biden administration. ? The tally doesn't include thousands more detainees who aren't in the administration's official count. That includes people in new facilities such Florida's "Alligator Alcatraz," spaces designated as short-term "holding rooms," and military bases. About 700 people were at the Everglades facility after it opened in July, according to news reports. The latest: A federal judge ruled Thursday that "Alligator Alcatraz" could no longer accept migrants and should close. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) told Fox News he plans to appeal the decision, which came after activists claimed the facility's environmental impacts weren't studied properly. DHS is charging forward with plans for more state-run facilities nationwide. Read on.

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? Trump: "They said yes"

Chipmaker Intel has agreed to sell around a 10% equity stake to the U.S. government, President Trump told reporters yesterday. Intel confirmed the deal after market close.

• Why it matters: This is part of Trump's new era of pay-me capitalism, Axios' Dan Primack reports.

Trump said in the Oval Office yesterday of his Intel conversations: "I said, 'I think you should pay us 10% of the company,' and they said yes." (WSJ)

⚙️ Zoom in: The U.S. government will invest a total of $11.1 billion into Intel for a 9.9% stake.

• That includes $5.7 billion of CHIPS Act grants that had been awarded but not yet paid to the company, $2.2 billion of grants that Intel already received, plus $3.2 billion previously awarded through another program.
• The government will have no board representation with Intel, or other governance or information rights. It also agreed to vote with the company's board on most matters requiring shareholder approval.

? What to watch: If the White House puts any pressure on Big Tech to utilize Intel's floundering foundry business. Trump didn't comment on that, nor was he asked, although it's something that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently poured cold water on.

• Share this story.

Go deeper ... "Corporate America's Newest Activist Investor: Donald Trump" (NYT gift link).

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Trump's identity project

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

Through immigration crackdowns and cultural purges, President Trump is wielding government power to enforce a more rigid, exclusionary definition of what it means to be American. Why it matters: The MAGA movement's focus on American identity and Western civilization is shaping federal policy far more than during Trump's first term — fueling a reckoning over who belongs and what history should be remembered, Axios' Tal Axelrod and Zachary Basu report. In MAGA's telling, America is the heir to ancient European civilizations, built on a Judeo-Christian foundation of white identity, meritocracy and traditional gender roles. These tenets are cast as universal truths. "America is an idea" or "diversity is our strength" are dismissed as liberal fictions. That worldview is increasingly driving government policy: 1. ?️ Museums: In an extension of his sprawling DEI crackdown, Trump has ordered the Smithsonian Institution to revise exhibits the administration deems problematic in "tone, historical framing and alignment with American ideals." A White House official said Trump intends to expand the review of "woke" ideology to other museums. 2. ? Visa screenings: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced this past week it'll screen legal immigration applicants for "anti-American ideologies," including views expressed on social media. All 55 million current visa holders will face "continuous vetting" for "any indications of hostility toward the citizens, culture, government, institutions, or founding principles of the United States." 3. ?? Citizenship criteria: USCIS is also expanding the "good moral character" requirement for citizenship applicants, tying the vague standard to an individual's "behavior, adherence to societal norms, and positive contributions." ? Between the lines: Trump also has leaned into lower-hanging symbolic fights that reinforce MAGA's identity project. History: He restored Confederate names to U.S. military bases and ordered the return of certain Confederate monuments, condemning their removal as erasures of "heritage." Military: He reimposed the ban on transgender troops, aligning service with traditional gender norms. Refugees: He carved out exceptions for white South African farmers even as he slashed refugee admissions from elsewhere. Architecture: He ordered new federal buildings to adhere to "classical" styles, tying civic identity to Greco-Roman and European tradition. Keep reading.

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?️ MAHA is key '26 bloc

Illustration: Lindsey Bailey/Axios

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is working to rally his MAHA (Make America Healthy Again) movement as a critical constituency for keeping GOP control of Congress in next year's midterms, Axios' Alex Isenstadt reports. Why it matters: The RFK Jr. coalition draws several slices of voters who otherwise might shun MAGA, including some traditionally Democratic- and independent-leaning suburbanites, women and younger voters. ? Reality check: Mustering President Trump's MAHA support for House, Senate, and governor races could be tough, since voter turnout in midterms is typically light. A further impediment to a "MAHA bounce": Some activists who bought into Trump's campaign because of Kennedy's eat-healthy, question-vaccines mantra aren't totally happy with how things are going. ? Zoom in: Kennedy has been praised by many in the movement for his push against synthetic food dyes. They like his vaccine stiff-arming, despite fears of lost medical breakthroughs. But many of MAHA's most vocal activists are disappointed the Trump administration isn't following through on its campaign promise to crack down on pesticides. Kennedy's allies are preparing an aggressive, three-part strategy to try to turn out MAHA voters. The blueprint: ? Put RFK Jr. on the road: Kennedy has visited more than a dozen states since Trump took office — including 2026 battlegrounds North Carolina, Texas and Arizona. ? Launch an air war: "We will bring out every last MAHA mom, every health-conscious voter," says Tony Lyons, president of MAHA Action, an RFK-aligned advocacy group that recently launched a seven-figure TV buy. ? Go local: RFK allies are pushing state legislatures to pass MAHA-friendly bills, from restricting food dyes and additives to expanding nutrition labels. Nearly three dozen states have passed such bills this year.

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?️ Megabill forces tough calls for states

Illustration: Natalie Peeples/Axios

After years of feeling flush, states are facing budget shortfalls — and that's before the megabill cuts kick in, Axios' Emily Peck reports. Why it matters: The blowback will be on everyday Americans. To make up for lost revenue, states can either raise taxes or cut services — on things like public education, healthcare and food assistance. ? How it works: Unlike the federal government, states must balance their budgets. For the past several years, a hot economy drove bigger tax receipts. Federal money flowed in from Biden-era legislation. Where it stands: The Biden money tap has run dry. And the Trump administration is pulling back, or holding, funding for education, state health departments and climate projects. The larger economic picture is also working against states — the slumping job market, as well as tariffs, are expected to curb revenue growth. ? What's next: "Some state legislators have proposed higher taxes in response to projected shortfalls in federal funding related to President Trump's new tax law," The Wall Street Journal reports. "The law also makes deep cuts to funding for such programs as Medicaid, pressuring states to make up some or all of the shortfall.

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Trump turns $11.1B in US government funds into a 10% stake in downtrodden Intel

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Friday announced the U.S. government has secured a 10% stake in struggling Silicon Valley pioneer Intel in a deal that was completed just a couple weeks after he was depicting the company’s CEO as a conflicted leader unfit for the job.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-intel-us-equity-stake-b538526b6698f7ebd31e99effd727693?

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Trump's D.C. utopia

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

President Trump is molding D.C. into his own personal Epcot — a political theme park where troops keep the peace, the White House glitters like Mar-a-Lago and museums answer to MAGA. Why it matters: No president has asserted such direct and sweeping control over the nation's capital. With America's 250th anniversary coming next year, Trump has claimed dominion over D.C.'s crime, culture, cleanliness — even its rats, Axios D.C.'s Cuneyt Dil reports. ⚡ State of play: Trump's pressure campaign against D.C. leadership culminated this month in the declaration of a crime emergency and the deployment of over 2,000 National Guard troops, some of whom were seen carrying firearms this weekend. Up next: Trump plans to ask Congress for $2 billion to "beautify" D.C. — eyeing a massive facelift for the city's parks, fountains, streetlights, roads and more. Even the White House itself is being remade: Trump's gold-drenched renovations and plans for a $200 million ballroom mark the biggest changes to 1600 Penn in generations. "I know more about grass than any human being anywhere in the world," Trump told reporters Thursday. "We're going to be re-grassing all your parks, all brand-new sprinkler systems." "It'll look like Augusta. It'll look like, more importantly, Trump National Golf Club," he added. The big picture: A creature of New York's business and political world, Trump knows how power works in a big city. Over seven months, he has stacked boards and installed loyalists across the capital's cultural crown jewels: ? Kennedy Center: Trump allies now run the nation's performing arts hub, with the president himself — who has floated renaming it the Trump Kennedy Center — serving as chair. ?️ Smithsonian: The White House is seeking to purge "woke" exhibits from D.C.'s iconic museums, ordering a review of all content to ensure its "alignment with American ideals." ? National Capital Planning Commission: White House aides lead this powerful D.C. agency, which has targeted Fed chair Jay Powell over the central bank's costly renovations. The panel can make or break major projects — including the proposed $3.7 billion Washington Commanders stadium, which Trump has threatened to derail over the team's name change. New photos: Scenes from D.C. as National Guard patrols start carrying weapons.

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Trump to push D.C. ban on cashless bail

Officers respond to a report of a stolen vehicle near the Capitol last week. Photo: Kayla Bartkowski/Bloomberg via Getty Images President Trump plans to sign an executive order on Monday that aims to eliminate "cashless bail" for arrested suspects in Washington, D.C., Axios' Alex Isenstadt and Cuneyt Dil report. Why it matters: It's the latest step in the Trump-driven federal takeover of the capital city's law enforcement, which has put thousands of federal agents and National Guard troops on the city's streets. ? Under cashless bail, a suspect doesn't need to pay money to be released from custody before trial. Trump previewed his support for ending cashless bail in D.C. earlier this month. When he announced his decision to federalize the D.C. police force, he called the policy a "disaster." Analysts say such claims aren't supported by crime statistics, which show an exceedingly small percentage of defendants are arrested for violent crimes while awaiting trial. State of play: A White House official said the executive order could threaten to withhold federal funding or government-backed project approvals from the D.C. if it doesn't end its cashless-bail policy. Trump wants Congress to ban cashless bail nationwide. Critics say Congress has no authority to decide how states handle bail. But lawmakers could tie it to federal funding. Read on.

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Widening war on trans health care

Illustration: Allie Carl/Axios

The Trump administration's crackdown on gender-affirming care is expanding rapidly as officials investigate hospitals, cut off benefits for federal workers and their dependents, and pick new fights with states. Why it matters: The latest moves could put hospitals and other providers in the middle of a showdown between federal power and patient privacy protections — or even force health providers to break their own state laws, Axios' Maya Goldman reports. ? Driving the news: Federal court filings made public last week revealed the Justice Department has subpoenaed hospitals for extensive data surrounding transition-related care for individuals under 19 provided since the beginning of 2020. The demands included the Social Security numbers of patients who were prescribed puberty blockers or hormone therapy. Also last week, the Office of Personnel Management stripped coverage of gender-affirming care from federal workers beginning next year. That exempts mental health treatment and certain ongoing hormonal treatment. Last Monday, the FBI announced that Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey would come on as co-deputy director. Bailey launched several initiatives, with varying success, in Missouri to limit gender-affirming care for kids and adults. The other side: "Putting an end to child mutilation, protecting girls' sports, and reasserting the reality of biology have been Day One priorities for the Trump administration," White House deputy press secretary Kush Desai told us. Keep reading.

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? Trump's quiet progress in Syria, Lebanon

While the Trump administration has failed so far to end the war in Gaza, it has found slow but steady success in two other war-ravaged Middle Eastern countries.

• Why it matters: The administration's diplomatic efforts in Syria and Lebanon have generated scant attention in Washington and in the news cycle. But they hold the potential for truly historic developments, Axios' Barak Ravid reports.

?️ The big picture: They're part of a string of low-profile diplomatic breakthroughs, including the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace deal signed in Washington three weeks ago, even as Trump struggles to get a deal in Ukraine and Gaza.

• A U.S. official noted a pattern: The progress was made without much personal intervention by Trump, but by envoys invoking his name and convincing countries they'll improve their standing by making a deal.

Trump's team decided to give strong backing to two new leaders — Syria's militant-turned-president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, and Lebanon's president and former army chief, Joseph Aoun.

?? Trump made a surprise announcement in May that he'd lift U.S. sanctions on Syria, then appointed U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack — Trump's close friend for 40 years — as envoy to Syria.

• Barrack was given the thorny tasks of rebuilding U.S.-Syria relations, stabilizing the situation in the country, and working on a potential peace deal between Syria and Israel. This summer, he convened the first high-level diplomatic meeting between the countries since Bill Clinton oversaw peace talks in 2000.

?? Barrack was also handed the Lebanon file two months ago. Three weeks ago, the Lebanese government launched a process to address the key U.S. demand: disarming Hezbollah.

• Keep reading.

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Crime crackdown

In the first week after the White House effectively seized control of Washington, DC’s police force and deployed thousands of federal agents and troops in the district, the city saw a moderate drop in reported crime and a huge spike in immigration arrests. Now, President Donald Trump is vowing to conduct similar crackdowns in cities located in blue states — against the will of Democratic leaders. GOP governors from six states have also announced that they’re sending troops to the nation’s capital to assist in the crackdown, although 10 other cities in those states had higher rates of violent crime or homicide than DC last year. In a statement, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker said the president “is attempting to manufacture a crisis, politicize Americans who serve in uniform, and continue abusing his power to distract from the pain he is causing working families.”   Immigration The Trump administration suffered a legal and political setback late last week when a judge ruled the federal government could not deny funding to Boston, Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles and 30 other cities and counties because of policies that limit cooperation with federal immigration efforts. US District Judge William Orrick extended a preliminary injunction blocking the administration from cutting off or conditioning the use of federal funds for so-called “sanctuary” jurisdictions. Orrick also blocked the federal government from imposing immigration-related conditions on two grant programs. The cities and counties that sued said billions of dollars were at risk.

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Trump and RFK Jr. to Ban COVID-19 Vaccine ‘Within Months’

A close associate of the HHS secretary claims the U.S. government will soon pull COVID-19 mRNA jabs from the market.

The Trump administration will move to pull the COVID vaccine off the U.S. market “within months,” one of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s closest associates has told the Daily Beast.

Dr. Aseem Malhotra, a British cardiologist who has repeatedly claimed in the face of scientific consensus that the vaccines are more dangerous than the virus, told the Daily Beast that Kennedy’s stance is shared by “influential” members of President Donald Trump’s family. Like Kennedy himself, no Trumps hold any scientific qualifications.

Malhotra is a leading adviser to the controversial lobby group Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Action, which is seen as an external arm of Kennedy’s agenda as Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary.

He told the Beast that many of those closest to RFK Jr. have told him they “cannot understand” why the vaccine continues to be prescribed, and that a decision to remove the vaccine from the U.S. market pending further research will come “within months,” even if it is likely to cause “fear of chaos” and bring with it major legal ramifications.

“It could [happen] in a number of stages, including learning more about the data,” said Malhotra, who said there was an ongoing review into so-called “vaccine injuries” by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). “But given the increased talk of vaccine injuries in the past few weeks among the administration, it could also come with one clean decision.”

Malhotra said skepticism among Kennedy’s circle of the COVID-19 jab is driven by a 2022 paper by a group of physicians and university professors and researchers, which appeared in the journal Vaccine.

The peer-reviewed paper examined secondary analysis of “serious adverse events reported in… clinical trials of Pfizer and Moderna mRNA COVID-19 vaccines in adults,” and said that those given the mRNA vaccines had a 16 percent higher risk of “excess serious adverse events” than those in the placebo group.

However, the study has been dismissed by large parts of the medical community, who say it underestimates the benefits of COVID-19 vaccines and overstates risks due to methodological flaws, biased data selection, and ignoring broader public health impacts.

Malhotra was not among the authors of the study, but said that he presented its findings during a MAHA Action team video meeting on July 9 which was attended by senior aides to Kennedy. He claimed it caused a “holy s--t” moment among many of those present.

Malhotra is known to have the ear of RFK Jr., having first drawn his attention in September 2022, when he published a paper in the Journal of Insulin Resistance on what he described as “misinformation about the COVID mRNA vaccine,” which led to a television interview.

After he walked out of the studio, Malhotra said the first person to call was RFK Jr. “He said, ‘I want to thank you for your courage,’” Malhotra said. The pair have since become close.

Malhotra helped fundraise for Kennedy’s doomed presidential campaign, and the two hiked together in the Los Angeles hills close to Kennedy’s home that he shares with his actress wife, Cheryl Hines, in October 2023.

Malhotra is now expected to meet Trump himself in September to push his anti-COVID-19 mRNA vax views, during a trip to meet Kennedy and other HHS aides.

“I think [Trump will] get it, because it’s in his interest to,” Malhotra said. “This information is only going in one direction, and there’s something really terribly wrong with the system. I think once [he] understands the situation… that will encourage him to act to change the system. He’s in a position to fix it. He can create a lasting legacy by doing so.”

The prediction of a drastic move against the COVID vaccine comes after Kennedy canceled $500 million in funding for the development of mRNA vaccines. Such vaccines use a copy of a molecule called messenger RNA (mRNA) to provoke an immune response against certain diseases. They have received much attention since the COVID-19 pandemic, where they served as the basis of the most widely used SARS-CoV-2 vaccines.

Days after canceling the funding, the HHS secretary—criticized for describing the COVID shot as “the deadliest vaccine ever made”—stated during a press conference his belief that the mRNA COVID-19 vaccine was dangerous and can cause “injuries” including myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart that can lead to health issues ranging from fatigue to cardiac arrest.

At the same time the scientifically unqualified Kennedy scion wrongly claimed there is no evidence football leads to brain damage.

Vaccine skepticism took a sinister turn earlier this month when an anti-vaxxer opened fire on the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), killing a police officer. Investigators believe the man targeted the CDC over his hatred of the COVID-19 vaccine, apparently convinced he was sick—or would become sick—because of it.On Wednesday, more than 750 current and former staff members from the CDC, HHS and National Institutes of Health (NIH) accused Kennedy of spreading dangerous misinformation that fueled mistrust and contributed to the CDC HQ shooting, demanding by Sept. 2 that he stop, affirm CDC scientific integrity, and guarantee workforce safety.

They also argued Kennedy had jeopardized Americans’ health and undermined the nation’s readiness for public-health crises.

In a letter to Congress and Kennedy, which was posted on the Save HHS site, they wrote: “Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., is complicit in dismantling America’s public health infrastructure and endangering the nation’s health by repeatedly spreading inaccurate health information.”

HHS, in response, said Kennedy was “standing firmly with CDC employees” to ensure their safety and well-being, adding: “In the wake of this heartbreaking shooting, he traveled to Atlanta to offer his support and reaffirm his deep respect. Any attempt to conflate widely supported public health reforms with the violence of a suicidal mass shooter is an attempt to politicize a tragedy.”

The Daily Beast contacted the White House, the HHS, Pfizer, and Moderna for comment.

Only the White House responded. Its spokesman, Kush Desai, said: “The Administration is relying on Gold Standard Science and is committed to radical transparency to make decisions that affect all Americans. Unless announced by the Administration, however, any discussion about HHS policy should be dismissed as baseless speculation.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/donald-trump-and-robert-f-kennedy-junior-to-ban-covid-19-vaccine-within-months/?

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Washington’s Bible Calls B.S. on Trump’s Epstein Files Probe

Politico’s Playbook skewers the DOJ’s “closure” attempt as performative and effectively meaningless.

The Department of Justice’s investigation into Jeffrey Epstein — one of the most prolific sex offenders in U.S. history — appears to serve just one purpose: protecting President Donald Trump.

That’s the read from Politico Playbook, Washington’s insider political cheat sheet, which slammed the DOJ’s ongoing “bizarro investigations” into Epstein as little more than political theater.

Playbook offered a breakdown of the government’s investigation efforts that aim to silence the more than two-thirds of the country that believes the Trump administration is hiding information about Epstein — and why they’re meaningless.

There are two central questions in the Epstein matter that the public seems to want answered, wrote Playbook contributor Ankush Khardori: Is Trump named in the sealed documents? And what did the DOJ and FBI actually do in recent months to meaningfully review the Epstein case?

“Thus far,” Khardori added, “the Trump DOJ has failed to answer these in any meaningful way.”

The DOJ’s release of transcripts from July’s interview with Epstein co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell only raised more eyebrows, according to Khardori. In the interview, Maxwell denies witnessing the president in “any inappropriate setting in any way.”

“The President was never inappropriate with anybody. In the times that I was with him, he was a gentleman in all respects,” she said.

Since Maxwell’s deposition, she has been transferred to a more cushy, minimum-security prison in Bryan, Texas, leading some to speculate she may be receiving special treatment from the Trump administration.

There are two possibilities, Khardori writes: “The first possibility is that Maxwell was indeed innocent all along — that the first Trump DOJ falsely accused Maxwell when they charged her, that she was wrongfully convicted at trial by a unanimous jury, that most if not all of the overwhelming evidence against Maxwell at the trial was false or fabricated and, in addition, that for some reason she did not testify in her own defense despite watching all of this false evidence come in."

He continued: “The second possibility is that she is a serial liar who committed terrible crimes and whose self-serving interview with Blanche should be dismissed out of hand — whether it helps or hurts Trump or anyone else.”

Khardori also skewered House Oversight Chair James Comer’s new wave of subpoenas and depositions related to Epstein. Former attorneys general Bill Barr, Jeff Sessions, Alberto Gonzales, Loretta Lynch, Eric Holder, and Merrick Garland have all been tapped to testify — but, Khardori argued, few of them are likely to offer anything meaningful.

“None of these people would seem to have much useful information to offer,” he wrote. Instead, Khardori emphasized that Trump and allies should be included in questioning.

A string of high-profile individuals — including Bill and Hillary Clinton — were recently subpoenaed by the House Oversight Committee as part of its ongoing investigation into Epstein’s network, with depositions scheduled for October.

Notably, the demands stopped short of Trump, despite his close friendship with Epstein. “If you put it all together, an unfortunate verdict emerges: The public has learned pretty much nothing new from the government about the Epstein investigation since this controversy kicked off,” wrote Khardori.

“What they have learned, perhaps, is that the Trump White House, the Trump DOJ and House Republicans have provided the appearance of investigative activity and of forward momentum — but that that appearance is, in fact, an illusion.”

The Daily Beast has reached out to the White House for comment.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/washingtons-bible-calls-bs-on-donald-trumps-epstein-files-probe/?

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Polling Guru Reveals How Key Voters Have Turned ‘Substantially’ Against Trump

Polling shows that the president’s standing with independents has cratered.

America’s key swing voters are moving away from President Trump and his policies, according to veteran pollster Larry Sabato.Appearing on CNN Newsroom, Sabato highlighted that just over six months into Trump’s second term, his approval among independents has cratered, pulling his overall job rating deep underwater.“But if you’ve noticed the pattern in public opinion polls, and you have to look across all the polls, not just focus on one or two or three that please you, you can see that independents have actually broken pretty substantially against Trump,” the media regular, who runs Sabato’s Crystal Ball, an online newsletter and website that gives electoral projections, told host Jessica Dean.

“They‘re the main reason why his job approval is now in the low to mid-40s. He hasn‘t been over 50 really since the very beginning of his presidency. That is the best signal of what is likely to happen in the midterm elections—job approval for the incumbent president.”

The numbers back him up. A Gallup poll from July shows Trump’s approval among independents at just 29 percent, a 17-point fall since January. Overall, his job rating sits at 37 percent, the lowest of his term so far.

Another poll, by The Independent Center in June, finds just 37 percent of independents approve of Trump’s performance. On his marquee economic legislation—the “Big, Beautiful Bill”—support slips further: just 26 percent back it, while 52 percent say they’re less likely to support it if it increases the deficit.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll released on August 18, 2025, found that President Trump’s approval rating matched the lowest point of his current term, at 40 percent.

“They tend to be even more focused on the economy than party registrants for Democrats and Republicans,” Sabato said. “So, they‘re looking for economic improvements. They want the prices brought down, as they were promised, and other pieces of the economy to get better. That’s good news, potentially, for Democrats, depending on what happens between now and the midterms.”

Still, he struck a cautious note. “Things aren’t as bad for Democrats as some are portraying. They’re not good either,” Sabato said. “As I said, they‘ve got a lot of work to do, but you can focus too much on the bad.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/polling-guru-reveals-how-key-voters-have-turned-substantially-against-trump/?