• Remembering 13 dead Americans: Yesterday, President Donald Trump proclaimed that today, August 26, will be commemorated in remembrance of 13 U.S. military personnel who were killed in the terror attack at Abbey Gate during Joe Biden’s disastrous surrender and retreat from Afghanistan four years ago. Surrounded by Gold Star family members of the killed service members, Trump issued his proclamation, which stated in part, “I encourage all Americans to remember the heroism of the brave men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country, and the Gold Star Families who carry on their proud legacy.” This was a stark contrast to Biden’s behavior during the dignified transfer of these fallen Americans at Dover Air Force Base, where he was infamously caught checking his watch.

• Obama judge says MS-13 deportation “absolutely forbidden”: U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis is again pulling out all the stops to keep wife-beater and alleged MS-13 member Kilmar Abrego Garcia in the United States. Garcia’s lawyer arranged for him to sign documents stating that he fears deportation to Uganda. Xinis agreed with Garcia’s lawyer that the man who has received more due process than anyone else in recent memory is now due a “reasonable fear” interview and an evidentiary hearing. Garcia reappeared in the news after being released from custody in Tennessee, where he is charged with human trafficking. He then turned himself over to ICE in Maryland. The Justice Department had initially offered to deport Garcia to Costa Rica if he pleaded guilty to human trafficking and served his time in the U.S.

• Trump fires a Fed governor: Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook was fired on Monday by Donald Trump. The president fired her for cause after Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte asked the Justice Department to prosecute Cook for mortgage fraud. Pulte revealed that Cook had listed two homes — one in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and one in Atlanta, Georgia — as her primary residence to acquire more favorable loan terms. Cook made a statement that she would not “resign,” that no cause for firing exists, and that Trump has no authority to terminate her. Earlier this year, the Supreme Court ruled that the president can remove independent agency members, although Federal Reserve board members require cause. Investors value the independence of the Fed and showed their displeasure with Trump’s actions when the value of the dollar dropped following the announcement.

• Trump targets cashless bail: In a move to address the high crime plaguing many of America’s largest cities, Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order directing the withholding of federal funding and services to these cities if local leaders don’t end their cashless bail policies. Trump argued that cashless bail “was when the big crime in this country started.” He added, “Somebody kills somebody, they go and [say,] ‘Don’t worry about it. Come back in a couple of months, we’ll give you a trial.’ You never see the person again. And I mean, they kill people and they get out [with] cashless bail.” DC eliminated cashless bail back in the early 1990s, putting the onus on judges to decide when and if a defendant should be held pending a trial. Other cities and states have adopted cashless bail policies, including Illinois, which Trump noted was “a great state, but it’s run so badly” by Democrat Gov. JB Pritzker.

• Coming full circle on the Department of War? The Department of Defense is looking at a possible name change under Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth. The Department of War existed from America’s founding until just after World War II, when it was split into the Department of the Army and Air Force. Then, in 1949, they were unified along with the Department of the Navy into the Department of Defense. Trump has expressed concern that only having “defense” in the name sends the wrong message: “We want defense, but we want offense, too, if that’s OK. As the Department of War, we won everything.” Secretary Hegseth responded that the “Department of War” rebrand was coming soon, and Trump commented that he expected Congress would go along with it.

• House Republicans subpoena Epstein’s estate for documents: In its ongoing review of the federal government’s investigation of Jeffrey Epstein and his crimes, House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer issued a subpoena on Monday for documents from Epstein’s estate. Comer explained that the committee was looking into “possible mismanagement of the federal government’s investigation” into Epstein and his accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell, and specified “subsequent investigations of Mr. Epstein’s death, the operation of sex-trafficking rings and ways for the federal government to effectively combat them, and potential violations of ethics rules related to elected officials.” He noted that the committee believes the Epstein estate “is in custody and control of documents that may further the Committee’s investigation and legislative goals.” He also noted that former U.S. Attorney for South Florida Alex Acosta has agreed to testify before the committee in September.

• Trump threatens tariffs in answer to foreign digital taxes: President Trump took to Truth Social yesterday to alert foreign powers, especially the EU, that they will need to drop costly digital taxes, rules, and regulations on U.S. tech companies or face substantial tariff increases. Trump explained that the rules are not applied fairly, giving a pass to the largest Chinese tech companies. EU tech regulations are estimated to have cost American companies between $38.9 billion and $97.6 billion annually in recent years. The EU has increasingly imposed onerous rules on tech companies, particularly social media, regarding content moderation (read: lack of censorship). Trump administration pressure recently caused the United Kingdom to drop a requirement that attempted to force Apple to build a backdoor into its products that would have allowed it access to the cloud data of Apple users worldwide.

• Judge rules Utah’s redistricting maps redrawn: District Judge Dianna Gibson ruled that Utah’s redistricting map, which the Republican-controlled legislature created, must be redrawn, and that it must be done before the 2026 elections. According to Gibson, “The Legislature’s refusal to respect the people’s exercise of their constitutional lawmaking power and to honor the people’s right to reform their government.” That’s a reference to a 2018 referendum known as “Better Boundaries,” which created an independent commission to oversee the state’s redistricting process. However, two years later, the state legislature passed a bill limiting the commission’s power to that of simply an advisory body. Following the release of the new redistricting map, leftist groups sued. Ahead of Gibson’s decision, Sen. Mike Lee argued, “Almost anything promoted as an ‘independent commission’ is often a strategy to give Democrats an edge they can’t win through fair elections.” Republicans will likely appeal the ruling.

Headlines

• Miller warns DC crime manipulation is worse than previously known (Townhall)

• MAGA rages over Trump’s Chinese student numbers (Newsweek)

• Trump wants to meet North Korea’s Kim Jong Un this year (Daily Wire)

• Cracker Barrel responds to backlash over new logo and rebranding (CNBC)

• Parents blast Illinois governor for extending student financial aid to illegal aliens (Fox News)

• More than two million petition for clemency for illegal alien trucker in fatal Florida crash (Newsweek)

• Man triggers active-shooter warning at University of South Carolina with … umbrella (Not the Bee)

• Humor: Mayorship of New York to be awarded to first candidate who can bench press the bar (Babylon Bee)

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