• State of the Union preview: Donald Trump will give his first State of the Union Address of his second term tonight at 9:00 p.m. Eastern. (The speech the newly inaugurated president gave at this time last year was a “Joint Address to Congress.”) Trump has promised that the speech will be a long one because “we have so much to talk about.” Many Democrat members of congress will not attend or plan to walk out during the speech to stage counterprogramming. The president invited the triumphant men’s and women’s hockey teams to celebrate their Olympic victories. The men’s team told the president “We’re in,” while the women’s team respectfully declined due supposedly to scheduling conflicts.

• First tariff refund lawsuit: As anticipated, following the Supreme Court’s ruling that President Trump exceeded his authority to levy tariffs via the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, the first of what is sure to be a litany of lawsuits was raised on Monday. FedEx is suing the Trump administration for a “full refund” of the tariffs it paid over the past year, plus interest, though it did not specify an amount. Trump responded to the Court’s decision with his intention to impose 15% global tariffs under the Trade Act of 1974, which would be a temporary measure to maintain the tariffs, but it does not address the restitution that companies will pursue from the tariffs they paid thus far. Meanwhile, Senate Democrats introduced legislation requiring the Trump administration to refund $175 billion in tariffs collected within 180 days of the law’s enactment, should it be passed.

• SCOTUS takes up Colorado climate change law: The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear Suncor Energy v. County Commissioners of Boulder County, a case that challenges holding oil companies liable for climate change. Boulder County, Colorado, raised a case against fossil fuel companies, claiming they were responsible for causing damaging climate change. Colorado’s Supreme Court upheld the lower courts’ rejection of the fossil fuel companies’ attempts to dismiss, on the grounds that the Clean Air Act regulates interstate air pollution. The Justice Department is siding with the oil companies. This is now the second case the Court has taken up involving claims that blame fossil fuel companies for climate change.

• Gavin Newsom’s implied racism: Which party is the party with a long, notorious history of racism? It’s not the Republicans, no matter how incessantly Leftmedia outlets and Democrats claim otherwise. Democrats have long plied identity politics as their primary electoral strategy, relying on stereotyping to sell their brand. This political dynamic was blatantly displayed when California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat presidential hopeful, recently told a crowd of mostly blacks in Georgia the following: “I’m not trying to impress you, I’m just trying to impress upon you [that] I’m like you. I’m no better than you. You know? I’m a 960 SAT guy. … I cannot — you’ve never seen me read a speech. Because I cannot read a speech.” Does Newsom believe blacks are dumb and near-illiterate? Recall that Joe Biden appeared to hold a similar view when he opined, “Poor kids are just as bright and just as talented as white kids.”

• Jack Smith’s report blocked: Former legal hitman special prosecutor Jack Smith is desperate to fulfill his mandate to smear Donald Trump, but U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon has seemingly put an end to his attempts once and for all. In July 2024, Cannon ruled that Smith had been unlawfully appointed as special counsel and dismissed the charges against President Trump. Smith was undeterred and compiled a report intended for circulation among members of congress. That final report was sent to then-Attorney General Merrick Garland and was set to become public on Tuesday, except for Cannon’s action. “The Court strains to find a situation in which a former special counsel has released a report after initiating criminal charges that did not result in a finding of guilt,” said Judge Cannon.

• Biden did have prior knowledge of the Mar-a-Lago raid: Former White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre lied. That’s not news. What is news is that there is now proof that she was specifically lying when she told the press that President Joe Biden was not briefed about the 2022 FBI raid on Mar-a-Lago and learned about it “just like the American people did.” FBI communications from August 3, 2022 — days before the raid — say the “event is dependent upon the timeline of President Biden’s brief, decision, and coordination between [White House] Counsel and DOJ.” It sure seems that if the timing of the raid was dependent on Biden’s decision, he must’ve been aware it was going to happen. Biden may have protested innocence, but he was the one weaponizing the government against his political opponent, and now we have the receipts.

• Newsom pardons a savage illegal alien convict: In 1996, Somboon Phaymany, then a green-card holder, was a member of the Oriental Boy Soldiers gang. He was in deep enough to participate in a drive-by shooting, even bringing along a weapon as he sat in the passenger seat. He was convicted of 10 counts of attempted murder and 18 counts of assault with a firearm, among other charges. He was sentenced to two life sentences. California Gov. Gavin Newsom now says that Somboon has “demonstrated his fitness for restoration of civic rights and responsibilities,” and he granted this illegal immigrant gang member a full pardon, which removes the criminal offense for which he would be immediately subject to deportation. Newsom’s office insists that the pardon “does not minimize or forgive his conduct or the harm it caused,” except, of course, it does exactly that.

• GOP infighting may squander any chance for a Republican victory in California: Thanks to California’s ridiculous jungle primary system and a crowded field of Democrat candidates, voters in the deep-blue state could find themselves choosing between two Republican candidates for governor. Thus far, two Republicans, former Fox News host Steve Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, have risen to the top in recent polling, setting up the possibility of just such a scenario. In order for a Republican to have any real shot at winning the gubernatorial election, both of them must end up being the top two in a runoff election. In large part, they have avoided attacking each other. Unfortunately, though, they have begun to do just that as they vie for the top Republican spot. They may want to rethink that strategy.

• Anniversary of Russia’s Ukraine invasion: Ukraine is entering its fifth year of defending itself from the predations of Russia. Volodymyr Zelensky is frustrated, and Vladimir Putin is obstinate. No progress toward peace has been made after months of U.S.-led negotiations. Following four war-torn years, Russia now occupies 20% of Ukrainian territory, but Putin does not view this as the completion of his goal and will press on with his historical justification for the war. Zelensky continues to reject Putin’s assertion that all of Ukraine belongs to Russia — even just the Donbas — saying, “He has not broken Ukrainians.” The war has taken its toll on both countries, with nearly half a million dead and 1.5 million either wounded or missing. Civilian casualties increased in Ukraine last year, which was the deadliest for civilians since the invasion. Six million Ukrainians are living outside the country as refugees.

Headlines

• Millions dig out from deadly blizzard (Fox Weather)

• Adam Schiff says he’ll skip the State of the Union (Fox News)

• Maryland sues Trump administration to stop construction of ICE detention facility (Washington Examiner)

• Ex-British Ambassador to U.S. Peter Mandelson arrested in Epstein probe (NY Post)

The Executive News Summary is compiled daily by Jordan Candler, Thomas Gallatin, Sterling Henry, and Sophie Starkova. For the archive, click here.