Top Items:
Constant Méheut / New York Times:
Zelensky Rejects Ceding Land to Russia After Trump Suggests a Land Swap — The Ukrainian leader's blunt comments risk angering President Trump, who has made a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia one of his signature foreign policy goals. — President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, Reuters, The Hill, Associated Press, Responsible Statecraft, The Parnas Perspective, GB News and Joe.My.God.
RELATED:
Heather Cox Richardson / Letters from an American:
August 8, 2025 (Friday) — During the 2024 presidential campaign, Donald Trump vowed he could stop Russia's war on Ukraine with a single phone call. Instead, Matt Murphy and Ned Davies of the BBC report that Russian attacks on Ukraine have doubled since Trump took office.
Discussion:
The Guardian
Associated Press:
Zelenskyy rejects formally ceding Ukrainian territory, says Kyiv must be part of any negotiations
Zelenskyy rejects formally ceding Ukrainian territory, says Kyiv must be part of any negotiations
Discussion:
The Hill, Agence France-Presse, Los Angeles Times, CBS News, Metro.co.uk, New York Post, The Times of Israel, RTÉ, New York Times, Al Jazeera, NBC News, NewsMax.com, Fox News, ABC News and Axios
Washington Post:
Trump, Putin meeting set for next week in Alaska
Trump, Putin meeting set for next week in Alaska
Discussion:
UPI, CNN, Sputnik News, CBS News, Mediaite, Lev Remembers, The Hill, NewsMax.com, Raw Story, PBS NewsHour, Joe.My.God., Reuters, Must Read Alaska, Honolulu Star-Advertiser, The Japan Times, The Post Millennial, Grabien, ABC News and Bloomberg
Washington Post:
IRS, White House clashed over immigrants' data before tax chief was ousted — The Trump administration's move to push out IRS Commissioner Billy Long came after the agency said it couldn't release some information on taxpayers suspected of being here illegally.
RELATED:
New York Times:
Trump Is Removing I.R.S. Chief 2 Months After He Was Confirmed
Discussion:
CNN, Townhall, Mediaite, Raw Story, NBC News, HotAir, Business Insider, Crooks and Liars, The Daily Caller, MSNBC, RedState, Newsweek, Honolulu Star-Advertiser, The Guardian, UPI, Washington Examiner, Wall Street Journal, The Hill, New Republic, GovExec.com, Semafor, CBS News, Advocate, Politico and IJR
Susan Tompor / Detroit Free Press:
When will the IRS kick off tax season? IRS walks back its commissioner's dire prediction
When will the IRS kick off tax season? IRS walks back its commissioner's dire prediction
Discussion:
Mediaite
Eleanor Klibanoff / The Texas Tribune:
Judge blocks Beto O'Rourke from financially supporting Texas Democrats who left the state — The order came at the request of Attorney General Ken Paxton, who O'Rourke accused in a separate lawsuit of going on a “fishing expedition, constitutional rights be damned.”
Discussion:
NBC News, twitchy.com, Washington Examiner, CBS News, Fox News, Blaze Media, Texas Attorney General, The Gateway Pundit and Washington Times
RELATED:
Michael Dorgan / Fox News:
California launches redistricting fight to ‘nullify’ Texas GOP plan, with Dems poised to gain 5 seats
Texas Attorney General:
Attorney General Ken Paxton Sues Robert Francis O'Rourke for “Beto Bribes” to Democrat Runaways to Impede the Texas Legislature
Attorney General Ken Paxton Sues Robert Francis O'Rourke for “Beto Bribes” to Democrat Runaways to Impede the Texas Legislature
Caroline Vakil / The Hill:
Newsom says special election on California redistricting planned for November
Newsom says special election on California redistricting planned for November
Discussion:
Honolulu Star-Advertiser, Straight Arrow News, CalMatters, WFAA-TV, CBS News and NewsNation
Washington Post:
Trump expands use of tariffs to reach national security goals — Officials wanted to press countries near China for closer defense ties, documents show. — President Donald Trump's freewheeling use of tariffs as a tool of American power may have been more extensive than was publicly known …
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Politico:
Foreign governments bet big to lobby Trump on tariffs. Most came up empty. … At least 30 nations hired new lobbyists with connections to Trump since the election. They include major trading partners like South Korea and Japan as well as smaller countries like Bosnia and Ecuador.
Discussion:
Raw Story and Responsible Statecraft
Wall Street Journal:
Trump Administration Threatens to Take Over Harvard's Patents — Move is latest escalation in White House's battle with Ivy League school — The Trump administration is warning Harvard University that it could take over its patents, worth hundreds of millions of dollars …
Discussion:
Politico, New York Times, Reuters, Lawyers, Guns & Money, CBS News, New York Post and STAT
RELATED:
New York Times:
Suspect and Officer Are Dead After Shooting Outside C.D.C. in Atlanta — The gunman fired at the headquarters of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention because he blamed the Covid vaccine for his maladies, an official said. — A gunman who believed the coronavirus vaccine was to blame …
Discussion:
New York Post, Politico, STAT, NewsNation, TMZ.com, New York Sun, Georgia Bureau …, Townhall, Fox News, WXIA-TV, Honolulu Star-Advertiser, CBS News, Deseret News and WAGA-TV
RELATED:
Alix Martichoux / The Hill:
Officer injured responding to active shooter at Emory University, near CDC headquarters in Atlanta
Officer injured responding to active shooter at Emory University, near CDC headquarters in Atlanta
Discussion:
WXIA-TV, CBS News, Associated Press, WAGA-TV, NBC News, The US Sun, TheGrio, UPI, WCNC-TV, NewsNation, New York Daily News, HotAir, One America News Network, Crime Prevention …, Washington Examiner, The Daily Caller, RedState, TMZ.com, Fox News, Straight Arrow News and The Gateway Pundit
Lizzy Lawrence / STAT:
STAT+: Vinay Prasad returns to the FDA, weeks after his ouster — WASHINGTON — Vinay Prasad is returning to the Food and Drug Administration to resume his role overseeing vaccine, gene therapy, and blood product regulation. — “At the FDA's request, Dr. Vinay Prasad is resuming leadership …
Discussion:
Bloomberg
Luis Ferré-Sadurní / New York Times:
ICE Is Holding Migrants in Crowded and Unsanitary Cells, Suit Claims — The Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities in New York have been used to detain migrants for days. U.S. officials have denied that the conditions are poor. — A recently detained immigrant filed …
Discussion:
Mission Local, Gothamist and Truthout
New York Times:
Flattery, Lobbyists and a Business Deal: Crypto's Richest Man Campaigns for a Pardon — A sophisticated operation is pushing President Trump to forgive Changpeng Zhao, which would boost the chances for his company, Binance, to break into the U.S. market. — In 2023, as Changpeng Zhao …
Discussion:
Joe.My.God.
Claire Rush / Associated Press:
Some Democrats want new leadership. Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden says he has what it takes to resist Trump — Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden is in his fifth decade in Congress and showing no inclination to step aside even as pressure builds on aging Democratic officeholders to give way to a new generation.
Discussion:
Democrats
Washington Post:
DHS is delaying millions in already approved North Carolina recovery funds, documents show — Communities across the region still need to be reimbursed for about a hundred projects including debris removal, waste water treatment repairs, roads and bridges, damaged buildings and parks, as well as for emergency protective measures.
Discussion:
Joe.My.God.
Konstantin Toropin / Associated Press:
Hegseth reposts video on social media featuring pastors saying women shouldn't be allowed to vote — The man who oversees the nation's military reposted a video about a Christian nationalist church that included various pastors saying women should no longer be allowed to vote.
Discussion:
New Jersey Online, Friendly Atheist, People For, The Hill, New Republic and Raw Story
Brendan Rascius / Miami Herald:
Supreme Court approval rating sinks to a new low, poll finds. What caused shift? — The U.S. Supreme Court's approval rating has sunk to an all-time low, dropping below 40% for the first time ever, according to a new Gallup poll. — The decline was driven by record-low shares of Democrats …
Public Notice:
The sordid origin of ‘America First,’ explained by a historian — “They were not keen on fighting Nazis.” — ∙ Paid … 👇 — “America First” was problematic long before Donald Trump was on the scene. — In the 1930s, as fascism was on the rise abroad …
Helen Catt / BBC:
Vance and Lammy to host meeting on Ukraine, as Zelensky says Kyiv will not give up land to Russia — Summary — US Vice President JD Vance and UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy will host a meeting of national security advisers on the war in Ukraine — This comes after President Zelensky …
Discussion:
Politico, Breitbart, Al Jazeera, The US Sun, New York Post, Reuters, UPI, The Independent, Associated Press and GB News
Aaron Pellish / Politico:
Kelly Ayotte rules out redistricting for New Hampshire … The White House has been urging Republican governors around the country to take up redistricting to increase the party's chances of retaining the House majority. Texas called a special legislative session to redraw district lines …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, Ballotpedia News, The Hill and Raw Story
New York Times:
Trump Is a ‘Totem for Wealth.’ What Happens if the Economy Crashes? — Three Opinion writers on Trump's most recent power grabs. — President Trump is destroying trust in public institutions, and there's a reason for that, the Opinion columnist Jamelle Bouie tells the Opinion national …
Discussion:
Lawyers, Guns & Money
Adithi Ramakrishnan / Associated Press:
Trump executive order gives politicians control over all federal grants, alarming researchers — An executive order signed by President Donald Trump late Thursday aims to give political appointees power over the billions of dollars in grants awarded by federal agencies.
Discussion:
USA Today, Forbes, The College Fix, Reuters, GovExec.com, Axios, Washington Examiner, Must Read Alaska and Honolulu Star-Advertiser


