• CBS edits out the facts: Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem went on CBS’s “Face the Nation” Sunday for an interview where the network edited her statements to protect The Narrative. Noem was discussing the facts of the case of the “Maryland Man,” Kilmar Abrego Garcia, but CBS cut her answer when it turned to Garcia’s many despicable behaviors. “This individual was a known human smuggler, a MS-13 gang member, an individual who was a wife beater,” Noem explained about Garcia. After the edited interview aired, Secretary Noem took to X to set the record straight, sharing a video of the edited interview versus her actual answer. Noem called the deceptive editing shameful and a whitewash, and it seems CBS should review the tape — and lawsuit — of that infamous Kamala Harris interview.

• Trump circumventing Congress to cut foreign aid: In an effort to claw back nearly $5 billion in congressionally approved foreign aid spending (much of it tied to USAID programs), Donald Trump has invoked the rarely used Impoundment Control Act, giving his administration power to temporarily pause spending in certain limited circumstances. With Congress needing to reach a bipartisan budget deal by the end of the month to avoid a government shutdown, Trump’s move has raised objections from both sides of the political aisle. He’s invoking a rarely used loophole known as a “pocket-rescission” to effectively skirt Congress to avoid spending the $4.9 billion. According to the Government Accountability Office, this loophole was closed by Congress in 2018. However, the White House Office of Management and Budget believes that is not the case. It would appear this issue is likely headed for the courts.

• Ilhan Omar challenges followers to examine her financial records, regrets it: Back in February, infamous Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar challenged the idea that she was worth millions, suggesting a cursory examination of her public financial statements would disprove the claim. Well, The Washington Free Beacon has taken her up on the challenge and found that Omar, via her husband Tim Mynett, is worth between $6 million and $30 million. It may be true that Omar herself takes home “only” $174,000 annually, but her husband’s consulting firm was paid $2.9 million by her campaign in 2020. At the end of 2023, Mynett’s public records claimed he was only worth $51,000 before his stake in his two companies skyrocketed to over $6 million by the end of 2024.

• Senator Ernst retiring: Iowa Republican Senator Joni Ernst recently announced she will not seek reelection next year for a third term. The 55-year-old served in the U.S. Army National Guard for over two decades before entering politics, retiring as a lieutenant colonel. She was the first woman to represent Iowa in Congress and rose to the position of No. 4 Senate Republican. She also served as chair of the Senate Republican Policy Committee. Ernst’s departure will likely not be terribly problematic for Republicans’ aims of holding onto their majority control of the Senate, as her seat is in an increasingly red-leaning state.

• No more Secret Service for Harris: Kamala Harris is not special. President Joe “Autopen” Biden attempted to give Harris an additional year of Secret Service protection not typically given to vice presidents after they leave office, but the Trump administration countermanded that order. The decision was made on Thursday to end Harris’s Secret Service protection on September 1, after the typical six-month window of protection granted to vice presidents. The California Highway Patrol has offered to take up Harris’s security detail, although Governor Gavin Newsom must give his approval for that to take place. Perhaps Harris will need to spend some of her own “hard-earned” money to ensure her own protection.

• Nation of Islam at the Smithsonian: A recent review of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History demonstrates why Donald Trump has ordered the review of the Smithsonian’s museums. In one exhibit, the violent radical group the Nation of Islam (NOI) is glorified for promoting “Black unity, pride, and moral discipline and helped its members overcome poverty and other social ills.” The NOI was the parent organization of the so-called Fruit of Islam (FOI), its “self-defense security force.” It was the FOI who assassinated Malcolm X back in 1965 after he broke away from and began speaking out against the NOI. The FOI was also involved in a litany of other murderous actions in support of NOI. Furthermore, the NOI and its current leader, Louis Farrakhan, are notorious for their anti-Semitism, with Farrakhan referring to Jews as “termites” and followers of the “synagogue of Satan.”

• Deadly Labor Day weekend in Chicago draws Trump’s attention: Chicago continues to live down to its reputation for violence with five — no, six — no, eight people killed over the weekend and more than 50 people shot. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, both Democrats, continue to treat the idea of federal assistance with crime in Chicago as the worst possible outcome, despite rampant crime. Between 10 p.m. Friday and 3 a.m. Sunday, a 17-year-old girl was shot in her own home, a 31-year-old man was caught in the crossfire of two shooters and hit in the leg, and a 25-year-old woman was shot while driving down the street. Donald Trump is taking to Truth Social today to promise change, “and soon.”

• Cracker Barrel scrubs DEI, pride: In an effort to prevent further brand degradation after the disastrous $700 million rebranding rollout by Cracker Barrel CEO Julie Masino, the company quickly reversed course on at least its logo, bringing back Uncle Herschel. That created a temporary bounce in CBRL stock value, but that seems to be dissipating today. Moreover, Masino, who was paid $7 million last year to make such brilliant decisions that have enormous consequences for the livelihoods of more than 70,000 employees and their families, is now pulling a Hillary Clinton. In this case, as noted by Mark Alexander, “Cracker Barrel has quietly scrubbed the DEI and so-called ‘Pride’ references from its official company website.” (More on that from Alexander in his column on Wednesday.)

• Climate activists sue Trump admin: Two climate activist groups, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) and the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), have raised a lawsuit against the Trump administration over the EPA’s plan to revoke the Obama-era classification of greenhouse gases as pollutants via the Endangerment Finding policy. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin argued that the policy change would “end $1 trillion or more in hidden taxes on American businesses and families.” UCS and EDF allege that climate change is “the most important scientific issue that federal policymakers have ever confronted” and claim that the Trump administration used a “secretively convened group of climate skeptics to prepare a now widely disparaged report in its attempt to undo the Endangerment Finding.” UCS has a history of working to eliminate the fossil fuel industry and has modeled its efforts after the largely successful campaign against tobacco.

• Putin, Xi, and Modi meet: The leaders of Russia, China, and India met on Monday in China, showing no sign that Russia’s position on the war in Ukraine is softening. India has earned President Trump’s ire in recent months for its continued purchase and resale of Russian gas, funding its war machine. President Putin and Prime Minister Modi embraced and shared a limo ride, after which Modi commented that “conversations with [Putin] are always insightful.” Xi Jinping decried “Cold War mentality … and bullying.” Putin called for a replacement of the “Eurocentric and Euro-Atlantic models.” This meeting comes a couple of weeks after Trump and Putin’s Alaska summit, which left Trump hopeful for a face-to-face meeting between Putin and Zelensky.

• Atlanta Journal-Constitution ending printed paper edition: It’s a sign of the times. Beginning next year, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution will no longer issue print editions of its paper and will only offer a digital product. “The entire news industry is being upended by rapidly evolving technology and consumer behavior. We knew this day would come and have been planning for it,” said the news outlet’s president and publisher, Andrew Morse. “Fully embracing our digital future will ensure our investment in distinctive journalism will have the greatest impact for years to come.” The AJC first began distributing its paper back in 1868. This decision will result in the elimination of 30 full-time and part-time jobs. It may not be long before the iconic paperboys and their neighborhood routes will be a thing of the past.

Headlines

• Trump administration approves $825 million weapons sale to Ukraine (Washington Examiner)

• Abbott signs Texas redistricting map into law, securing major GOP victory ahead of midterms (Fox News)

• DOE’s Office for Civil Rights finds Denver Public Schools violated Title IX (Ed.gov)

• Land acknowledgements in California schools: “All of California is Indian land” (Daily Wire)

• Imane Khelif appeals World Boxing ban over mandatory sex testing rule (OutKick)

• Afghanistan hit with 6.0 magnitude near eastern border with Pakistan, hundreds killed (Fox News)

• Humor: Newsom announces he is anti-crime until next election (Babylon Bee)

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