• Russia and Ukraine hold first direct peace talks: On Friday, Russia and Ukraine engaged in direct peace talks for the first time since the war started. Officials from the two warring nations gathered in Istanbul, Turkey, in what is seen as an initial step toward negotiating a peace deal. However, a face-to-face meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin, which Zelensky had offered, seems unlikely. Donald Trump, who has grown increasingly frustrated with both sides in his efforts to end the war, noted that he would meet with Putin “as soon as we can set it up.” Meanwhile, Russian forces are said to be preparing another military offensive. A Ukrainian soldier expressed little hope in seeing a peace deal soon, observing, “I don’t think they will agree on anything concrete, because summer is the best time for war.”

• Illegal alien youths slay mother of two: Larisha Thompson, 40, was driving to a friend’s house on May 12 when a car of six illegal aliens pulled up and shot her to death for no known reason. Thompson was the mother of two girls. Her car and body were not found by police until after her family initiated a search for her. Local authorities arrested the illegals, ages 13-21. The names of the adults have been released: Asael Torres-Chirinos, Jarby Ramos-Ardon, and Jeyson Salgado-Pineda. Torres-Chino was arrested but not deported for domestic violence in 2023. Local police retain custody of the alleged murderers, but ICE has put detainers on them for deportation.

• FBI director ditches Hoover Building: FBI Director Kash Patel announced today that the FBI will leave its longtime headquarters at the J. Edgar Hoover building and transfer 1,500 DC-area employees nationwide. “This building is unsafe for our workforce,” Patel said, though he did not elaborate on why it is unsafe. Patel explained that when fully manned, the FBI has 38,000 employees, with 11,000, almost a third, in the DC area. As Patel put it, “A third of the crime doesn’t happen here.”

• Wholesale prices drop: To the surprise of many economists, the Producer Price Index saw a 0.5% drop in April, the biggest decrease in five years. The PPI measures the average change in selling prices of domestic producers for their output. Economists were predicting the exact opposite given Donald Trump’s tariffs. In fact, Walmart says prices there are going up, citing tariffs. However, what has happened thus far is a drop in prices, with wholesale costs dropping 1% last month. This is the second point of good economic news for the Trump administration following inflation hitting its lowest point in four years.

• House unblocks 2A for cops, not the rest of us: House Republicans are finally getting something done! If only they didn’t ruin it by compromising on essentials. The Law Enforcement Officer Safety Act (LEOSA) Reform Act was passed in the House on Wednesday, 229-193. The reform act makes it easier for police to know when they are allowed to conceal carry without worrying about varying state and local laws. The problem is that House Republicans are limiting these protections to police when they should be extended to all law-abiding citizens. Republicans also have a golden opportunity to simply strike suppressors and short-barreled firearms from the National Firearms Act (NFA) and reduce the NFA tax to $0. Still, the Ways and Means Committee seems not to have the will to fulfill its mandate. A pressure campaign on the committee is underway. Maybe it will be successful.

• Military to screen medical records for gender dysphoria: Pursuant to Donald Trump’s order banning gender-confused individuals from the U.S. military, the Department of Defense on Thursday announced that it “is moving forward with implementing the guidance to separate individuals impacted by this policy, either through a voluntary or involuntary separation process.” The Pentagon noted that it has thus far identified 4,200 troops across all services with gender dysphoria, 1,000 of whom have already self-identified. The DOD will screen service members’ medical files as part of its efforts to identify those with gender dysphoria. Those who are identified will be removed and receive separation pay. Those who voluntarily identify themselves as gender dysphoric will receive double separation pay. Rep. Berry Moore (R-AL) introduced the Readiness Over Wokeness Act on Wednesday to codify Trump’s executive order and prevent future presidents from reversing it.

• Insurance insanity in CA: In the wake of devastating wildfires, particularly the Palisades fire in Los Angeles County, that have caused hundreds of billions of dollars in damages, California has approved a massive property insurance rate hike for those with State Farm, the largest property insurer in the state. The highest rate hike of 38% will apply to owners of rental properties, a 15% rate hike will apply to condominium owners, and a 22% rate hike will apply to homeowners. State Farm blames this sudden hike on Prop 103, passed in 1988, which prevents insurance companies from raising rates without state regulators’ approval. What resulted was artificially lower rates that prevented State Farm from being able to keep up with claims payouts. Over the last nine years, State Farm lost $5 billion as it paid out $1.26 in claims for every dollar it collected in premiums.

• Trans activist arrested after threatening to assassinate Nancy Mace: Nineteen-year-old Samuel Cain, who is deluded enough to believe he is a woman, threatened Rep. Nancy Mace’s life on social media and is paying the price. “I’M GOING TO ASSASSINATE REPRESENTATIVE NANCY MACE WITH A GUN AND I’M BEING 100% DEAD ASS,” he said on X. That’s a pretty declarative statement with no room for ambiguity. Cain wrote this post on April 26, and on May 12, a warrant for his arrest was signed by a judge. Cain told the FBI he didn’t mean the threat, and the U.S. attorney’s office for South Carolina has declined to prosecute. Cain is being charged by the 13th Circuit Solicitor’s Office with threatening the life of a public official, a charge that carries the relatively light sentence of no more than five years in prison and a fine of no more than $5,000.

• DeSantis bans fluoride: Under the leadership of Republican Governor Ron DeSantis, Florida has become the second state, after Utah, to ban the routine addition of fluoride to the water supply. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. launched a campaign against fluoride, which he argues poses health risks even as it strengthens dental health; his concerns include calcification of the pineal gland in the brain. DeSantis argues that there are many other ways to access fluoride to improve dental health. For example, most toothpaste now includes fluoride. But adding the chemical to the water supply removes citizens’ choice of not being overexposed to it.

Headlines

• Republicans could secure about $1.4 billion in savings by defunding child transitions (Daily Signal)

• Publicly defiant, elite universities privately line up to hire lobbyists close to Trump (Washington Examiner)

• DHS exploring reality TV show where migrants compete for citizenship (Newsweek)

• Oklahoma governor signs bill banning trans-identifying male inmates from female spaces (National Review)

• Donald Trump’s approval rating ticks up with Millennials (Newsweek)

• One of Trump’s most important executive orders went entirely unnoticed (Issues & Insights)

• Humor: Ten shocking signs of Biden’s decline everyone missed (Babylon Bee)

For the Executive Summary archive, click here.

Follow Thomas Gallatin, Sterling Henry, and Jordan Candler on X/Twitter.