Top Items:
Associated Press:
Appeals court rules Trump must get approval from Congress on ballroom, ordering halt to construction — An appeals court has ruled that President Donald Trump must seek approval from Congress to build his proposed White House ballroom, saying construction must stop.
Discussion:
The Preamble and The Wrap, more at Techmeme »
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Politico:
Appeals court blocks Trump's White House ballroom renovation — A federal appeals court panel has ruled against President Donald Trump's attempt to unilaterally demolish portions of the White House to build a massive ballroom, saying the unprecedented project requires congressional approval.
Discussion:
Deseret News, Roll Call, RedState, MS NOW, The Daily Caller, The Independent, CBS News, NPR, New Republic and NOTUS
Washington Post:
Trump says he'll bring ballroom fight to Supreme Court after lower court halts work — An appeals court ruled earlier Friday that construction must stop until Congress authorizes the project. The ballroom is among the president's top priorities for this term. — Just now — Summary
Discussion:
Salon, SCOTUSblog, Staff Stories, Blaze Media and The Guardian
NBC News:
Appeals court blocks Trump's White House ballroom construction
Discussion:
Associated Press and MS NOW
Jeff Mason / Bloomberg:
Trump Vows Supreme Court Appeal of White House Ballroom Defeat
Trump Vows Supreme Court Appeal of White House Ballroom Defeat
Discussion:
Axios, CNN, Deadline, PoliticusUSA, Associated Press, HotAir, Washington Times, Wall Street Journal, Al Jazeera, New York Sun, MPR News, One America News Network, RedState, France 24, UPI, Courthouse News Service, Breitbart, Legal Insurrection, Forbes, RTÉ, The Daily Wire, Washington Examiner, Fox News, E&E News, PBS NewsHour, ProtoThema English, CBS News and FOX 13 Seattle
ABC News:
Trump moving forward with attempt to fire Lisa Cook after Supreme Court setback: Sources — The White House demanded she respond to allegations within three weeks. — Katherine Faulders, Peter Charalambous, Alexander Mallin, and Steven Portnoy — Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa Cook participates …
Discussion:
Reuters, The Hill, Al Jazeera, NOTUS, UPI, Politico, NewsMax.com, Staff Stories, CBS News, The Gateway Pundit, Fox Business, Bloomberg, The Guardian, KIFI-TV, CNBC, NPR, SCOTUSblog and Washington Examiner
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New York Times:
Trump Restarts Battle to Fire Sitting Fed Governor — The Trump administration, rebuffed by the Supreme Court in its first attempt to fire Lisa D. Cook, sent the Federal Reserve governor a letter saying it was “considering” removing her from the job. — President Trump opened a new front …
Discussion:
Associated Press, TheGrio, MS NOW, Axios, NOTUS, Joe.My.God., New Republic and Law.com
James Taranto / Wall Street Journal:
Justice Samuel Alito: ‘Practical Originalism’ and Its Facile Critics — He explains his interpretive method and defends it against a hostile biographer—and his high-school English teacher. — Washington — Reports of his end have been greatly exaggerated: “Justice Samuel Alito …
Discussion:
Bloomberg, Associated Press, Washington Examiner, The Hill, Breitbart, Newsweek, RedState, The Gateway Pundit, MS NOW, KIFI-TV, Lawyers, Guns & Money and Political Wire
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Emilio Perez Ibarguen / Politico:
Alito bats down retirement rumors: 'Obviously I'm here for another term'
Associated Press:
US employers unexpectedly cut 23,000 jobs amid strain from the Iran war, unemployment dips to 4.1% — The U.S. job market stalled unexpectedly last month, delivering a political blow to President Donald Trump three months ahead of midterm elections and complicating decision-making for the inflation fighters at the Federal Reserve.
Discussion:
Canadian Press, Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, NPR, Washington Post, PBS NewsHour, Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Christian Science Monitor, Deseret News, Platypus Economics, One America News Network, Newsbusters, Townhall, Courthouse News Service, HotAir, NOTUS, Breitbart, RTÉ, The Hill, Washington Examiner, ZipRecruiter Economic Research, Semafor, Joe.My.God. and Toledo Blade
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Jeff Cox / CNBC:
U.S. economy unexpectedly lost 23,000 jobs in July — The U.S. economy saw an unexpected declined in jobs during July while the unemployment rate edged lower, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday in a snapshot that showed a slowing employment picture.
Sam Sutton / Politico:
‘Weaker than we thought’: Jobs surprise deals setback for GOP in elections
‘Weaker than we thought’: Jobs surprise deals setback for GOP in elections
Discussion:
Staff Stories, Courthouse News Service, NewsMax.com, Scripps News, CoinDesk, KIFI-TV and New Republic
David Rothkopf / The Daily Beast:
I've Got The Proof. This Is The Worst Member of Trump's Cabinet — SUPERBAD — The Secretary of Defense has managed to do so much damage to American strength in so little time. — OPINION — Hegseth must go. — Every era has its great conundrums that great minds struggle with.
Discussion:
Bloomberg
Kevin Breuninger / CNBC:
Trump teased an Iran deal that didn't come, but markets soared. Here's why it keeps happening … The Trump administration this week sparked enthusiasm that the U.S. and Iran could soon strike a deal on the Strait of Hormuz, driving down oil prices and sending stocks soaring — only for no deal to emerge.
Discussion:
Breitbart, 19FortyFive, Al Jazeera and Military.com
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FiftyPlusOne:
Affordability concerns are even more important to voters than in 2024 — Inflation continues to dominate the issue landscape, and drag down the president — FiftyPlusOne, Cooper Burton, and Mary Radcliffe … In May, the average price of gas nationwide hit $4.48.
Discussion:
New York Times
Gregory Svirnovskiy / Politico:
Trump says voters are mad at other Republicans, not him, as midterms approach — President Donald Trump said voters may seek to punish Republicans — but not him — in the November midterm elections, as GOP lawmakers sweat that affordability concerns and the war in Iran could mean Democrats flip the House and perhaps even the Senate.
Discussion:
CNN, NewsMax.com, Staff Stories, The Hill, Mock Paper Scissors, Lawyers, Guns & Money, MS NOW, Washington Examiner, The Independent, New Republic, Bloomberg and KIFI-TV
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Zachary Cohen / CNN:
Trump's top general is ‘looking for an off-ramp’ from Iran war as US military options remain limited, sources say — Over the last few weeks, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Dan Caine has privately made clear to other top Trump advisers that the US needs to find an off-ramp from the war with Iran …
Discussion:
The Times of Israel
Politico:
Jeanine Pirro berated Doug Burgum. But Interior staffers have been angry at him for months. — Interior Department staffers were optimistic after Doug Burgum was confirmed to lead the agency in 2025, believing he had strong executive experience as governor of energy-rich North Dakota who led successful tech startups and businesses.
Discussion:
Washington Examiner and New Republic
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Rachel Frazin / The Hill:
Ex-White House official nominated as DOI watchdog
Ex-White House official nominated as DOI watchdog
Discussion:
The Independent and Truthout
ABC News:
A top US general in Europe abruptly removed from command — The circumstances surrounding his removal remain unclear. — Lt. Gen. Charles Costanza, commanding general of V Corps presents a coin to U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Jesus Arce Calderon during V Corps' Best Squad Competition awards ceremony at Grafenwohr, Germany, June 11, 2026.
Discussion:
The Hill and Joe.My.God.
Tim Balk / New York Times:
Abdul El-Sayed Talks About His Victory, Chuck Schumer and His Mom … Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, who won a divisive Democratic Senate primary this week in the crucial swing state of Michigan with an unabashedly progressive message, has been flooded with calls from leaders of the party establishment he challenged during his campaign.
Discussion:
Washington Examiner and Wall Street Journal
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Politico:
Lisa Murkowski says she will oppose Blanche, endangering his confirmation — Todd Blanche's attorney general nomination is on the brink after Sen. Lisa Murkowski announced Friday that she would oppose confirming him. The Alaska Republican said in a statement that she did not believe Blanche …
Discussion:
CNN, New York Times, NBC News, Wall Street Journal, ABC News, CBS News, CNBC, NOTUS, Slate, The Hill, The Federalist, Courthouse News Service, New York Sun, RedState, One America News Network, The Fucking News, The Daily Wire, The Independent, NPR, UPI, The Gateway Pundit, The Daily Caller, Axios, MS NOW, The Bulwark, Bloomberg, Fox News, The Guardian, Scripps News, NewsMax.com, Breitbart, Straight Arrow, Scott MacFarlane Reports, Washington Examiner, Associated Press, MeidasTouch and Political Wire
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Associated Press:
Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski says she will oppose Todd Blanche's nomination as attorney general
Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski says she will oppose Todd Blanche's nomination as attorney general
Discussion:
Axios, CBS News, New Yorker, Washington Post, The Contrarian, Politico, The Independent, The Hill, The Gateway Pundit, RedState, Washington Examiner, Above the Law, MS NOW, Fox News, Townhall, The Status Kuo, The Daily Caller, Blaze Media, Courthouse News Service, New York Post, NOTUS, New York Sun, HotAir, New York Magazine, Associated Press, KIFI-TV, HuffPost, Bloomberg, The Preamble and New Republic
Robert Jimison / New York Times:
Senate Passes Sanctions Bill Targeting Russia and Iran — The legislation was championed by Senator Lindsey Graham, the South Carolina Republican whose sudden death last month helped spur quick action on it. — The Senate passed a sweeping new package of sanctions targeting Russia and Iran on Friday …
Discussion:
CNN, Associated Press, The Hill, Washington Examiner, Deseret News, Washington Times and The Guardian
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Alan Feuer / New York Times:
Prosecutor Sues Justice Dept. Over Dismissal After Right-Wing Influencer's Claim — Will Rosenzweig joins a growing list of former prosecutors and federal agents who have gone to court to contest the purge of law enforcement deemed disloyal. — One day last September …
Discussion:
Associated Press and KIFI-TV
Politico:
How the solar industry helped take down Ogles — With help from Daniel Barnes and Daniel Lippman — An aggressive new PAC backed by renewable energy supporters notched a major win last night by helping unseat Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) despite President Donald Trump's vocal support, our colleague Timothy Cama reports.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Breitbart, E&E News, The Daily Wire and The Gateway Pundit
Aleena Fayaz / CNN:
Pentagon revokes access to classified information for former Air Force secretary — Federal agencies US military National security Donald Trump — The Pentagon on Friday revoked former Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall's access to classified information following an “unauthorized disclosure” …
Discussion:
Associated Press, New York Post, The Hill, Fox News, RedState, The Gateway Pundit and Newsweek
Wall Street Journal:
U.S. Intel Links Russia to Explosive Drone at German Airport — American intelligence had already suggested Putin could test NATO's resolve with a limited incursion in the coming years — An explosive-laden drone discovered at an airport in Germany this week likely belongs to the Russian government …
Discussion:
HotAir, CNN, CBS News, Reuters, Fox News, NewsMax.com, Washington Post and Straight Arrow
Hamed Aleaziz / New York Times:
Trump Officials Deport Group of Mexicans Despite Torture Risk — Immigration authorities used a rare authority to deport them, even though their removal was blocked over concerns they would be tortured if returned. — The Trump administration in recent days deported a group of Mexican nationals …
Ted Johnson / Deadline:
Judge Clarifies That Reporter Catherine Herridge Doesn't Have To Pay $800-Per-Day Contempt Fines As She Pursues Supreme Court Appeal — A federal judge clarified that reporter Catherine Herridge doesn't have to pay an $800-per-day contempt fine as she appeals to the Supreme Court.
Amrith Ramkumar / Wall Street Journal:
Trump Administration to Award $2 Billion to Battery, Materials Companies — Deals add to Pentagon funding spree to reduce U.S. dependence on China — WASHINGTON—The Trump administration has agreed to provide more than $2 billion in funding for companies producing batteries and critical minerals …

