No Iran deal yet; Hezbollah agrees to ceasefire
Peace deal negotiations with Tehran are continuing at a “rapid pace,” President Donald Trump stated on Monday. Trump’s comment came hours after a report claimed that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had suspended talks and was opening “other fronts.” Meanwhile, Hezbollah has agreed to a ceasefire in Lebanon after Israel’s success in its military actions against the Iranian proxy. Israel has also agreed not to move any deeper into Lebanon.

Californians, Angelenos vote today
California will hold primary elections today, and the highly contested gubernatorial and Los Angeles mayoral races are on the ballot. Early in the gubernatorial race, in which the top two candidates advance, Republicans Steve Hilton and Chad Bianco led the field. As of today, however, Democrat Xavier Becerra is in the lead, while Hilton is battling with billionaire Tom Steyer for the second spot. Bianco has refused calls from Hilton to drop out and endorse him, saying Hilton’s supporters should instead unite behind him. Meanwhile, incumbent LA Mayor Karen Bass is trying to fend off challenges from former ally Nithya Raman and upstart TV personality and memetic campaigner Spencer Pratt. Hilton has been endorsed by President Donald Trump, while the technically nonpartisan Pratt has enjoyed tacit support. Given the disgraceful state of the California election system, results are unlikely to come in quickly.

Court orders military to accept the gender-confused
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit ruled 2-1 in favor of “transgender” plaintiffs seeking to continue serving in the Armed Forces. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has made it clear that “diversity is not our greatest strength” and that “dudes in dresses” have no place in the U.S. military, but two liberal judges in DC say they know better. Obama appointee Judge Robert Wilkins wrote the majority opinion, pausing the ban on gender-confused service members while leaving the ban on enlistment in place. Clinton appointee Judge Judith Rogers joined Wilkins while writing in a concurrence that she would have lifted the enlistment ban also. Only Trump appointee Judge Justin Walker dissented, correctly arguing, “Only the Executive and Congress are responsible for system-wide military judgments.” The decision will be appealed.

Gabbard’s replacement
President Trump announced his replacement pick for Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard today: Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte. Trump posted on Truth Social that “William has deep experience managing the most sensitive matters in America, the safety and soundness of the Markets, and over 10 Trillion Dollars at Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac, a substantial increase from where it was just 12 months ago.” Pulte will continue as director of the FHFA until Gabbard, who announced her departure last month due to her husband’s diagnosis of an “extremely rare form of bone cancer,” officially vacates her position on June 30.

Zeldin’s EPA makes criminal referrals
EPA Director Lee Zeldin has made several criminal referrals to the Justice Department that are tied to billions in taxpayer funding to dubious environmental groups that are connected to Democrat politicians. “As you look through all of these pass-through entities, you’re seeing so many connections to former Obama and Biden administration officials and Democratic donors, people who were former Cabinet members, other high-ranking administration officials,” Zeldin explained. Thus far, Zeldin has canceled some $29 billion in EPA grants to these green groups that effectively serve as a slush fund for Democrats. One example was $2 billion given to a nonprofit founded by Stacy Abrams, a twice-failed Georgia gubernatorial candidate.

Violent protests/riots aren’t going viral
Leftist activists have grown frustrated that their protests for radical policies have failed to attract broad support across the country. A recent panel in Berkeley, California, featuring a number of leftist radicals bemoaned that, while they’ve been able to organize numerous well-attended protests, their activism has not produced any political change. Furthermore, they note that leftist activism is viewed more negatively than positively by the broad public. The moderator of the panel, leftist podcaster Jason Myles, observed that leftist activism has increasingly become “monetized, branded, algorithm-driven.” He complained, “In this new political environment, anti-fascism, socialism and even basic dissent are increasingly portrayed as existential threats.” Maybe that’s because leftist revolutionaries do indeed represent an existential threat to America.

Colorado defies SCOTUS, passes law allowing damages for conversion therapy
The Centennial State has passed a law allowing lawsuits to be brought against therapists who encourage patients experiencing gender dysphoria to align with the reality of their biology. Therapists who offer “neutral therapy” with no predetermined outcome would appear to be safe from the law. Openly gay Gov. Jared Polis signed the law on June 1, the first day of “Pride Month,” while announcing, “People shouldn’t be ripped off by those falsely claiming that they can change who you are attracted to.” Polis is eliding the connection between childhood sexual abuse and adult LGBT identification. Colorado’s actions come after an 8-1 Supreme Court decision earlier this year striking down its ban on conversion therapy.

“Trans Period Pride”
Backlash is growing over Boston Mayor Michelle Wu’s recent promotion of a “Trans Period Pride” event scheduled at a public library and promoted as advancing “menstrual equity.” A graphic advertising the event read, “Join MASS NOW and the MA Trans Political Coalition for a consciousness-raising discussion on menstrual equity and the experiences of trans menstruators.” The Democrat mayor’s office has been a big proponent of the LGBTQ agenda with its Office of LGBTQ Advancement. This event further advertises a catered dinner and “free period underwear provided to all attendees.” Wu denied reports that taxpayer funding had been used for a program that gave $500 in “wellness” perks to LGBTQ migrants. Many online responses to this latest event questioned if it was real or a joke, with one commenter writing, “Y'all have lost your minds.”

Jill Biden’s book excerpts
Now that Joe has left public office and the Biden Crime Family syndicate is winding down, new breadwinners are needed to keep the coffers full, and Doctor Jill is stepping into the gap. Jill’s new memoir, View From The East Wing, offers her version of events in the White House during her husband’s time in office. Excerpts so far focus on the last days of Joe’s campaign and the handover to the triumphant Trump. Jill takes the opportunity to attack her personal enemies, including failed candidate Kamala Harris, going all the way back to the 2019 primary debate to accuse Harris of “hypocritical point-scoring.” Jill also exposes Harris’s opportunism, explaining that she asked for Joe’s endorsement moments after hearing he was ending his 2024 campaign. When he told her he would give it the next day, she pushed for “20 minutes.”

Headlines

• U.S. in talks to expand nuclear weapons deployments in Europe (Reuters)

• Trump administration proposes 25% tariff on Brazilian goods over unfair trade practices (CNBC)

• Anthropic confidentially files IPO prospectus with SEC, prepping Wall Street for landmark AI deal (CNBC)

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