The Patriot Post® · Monday Executive News Summary
Trump ends war in Iran again
President Donald Trump announced another ceasefire with Iran over the weekend, saying that he will resume negotiations. “[Iran] knew the extent of the attack because they saw it forming,” he said on Sunday. “We’re talking to them in the form of a negotiation. It begins tomorrow afternoon.” While that remains to be seen, this continues a concerning trend. The president has continued to give Iran every chance to end this war through diplomacy; at what point will he make good on his threats to eliminate the Iranian regime’s capacity to fight and rule? It’s well known at this point that Iran’s leaders only “negotiate” so they can build back their capabilities unimpeded. Why is the president playing into their hands?
Senators reach funding deal
The Senate will take a test vote today on a continuing resolution (CR) to fund the government 10 weeks into fiscal year 2027, avoiding a shutdown fight ahead of the midterm elections. The House has already passed a similar bill that will fund the government at current levels through December 11. Republicans secured some wins in the CR while giving some ground on less pressing administrative goals. It doesn’t include $1 billion for new Trump-class battleships, but it replenishes FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund. Similarly, the result was mixed regarding the White House Office of Management and Budget, which unsuccessfully proposed a rule allowing grants to come more directly under scrutiny, but “pocket rescission” — a tool the administration has used to stop funding it disapproves of — was protected through December.
Newsom’s tax returns
California Governor Gavin Newsom has released his joint tax returns with California “First Partner” Jennifer Siebel Newsom for the four-year period between 2021 and 2025. The couple earned $1.7 million to $2 million annually, with only $200,000 coming from Gavin’s position as governor and the rest from various businesses that have been placed into a blind trust during his time in office. Jennifer Newsom’s business is regularly in the red; in 2022, Girls Club Entertainment lost $37,000. The couple paid $3.3 million in federal and state taxes over the four-year period. Charitable giving represented at most 3.9% of their income, with $40,000 to $67,000 going to charity annually. Democrats are always far more “generous” with taxpayer money than they are with their own.
RFK vs. CNN
In an interview on Sunday, CNN host Dana Bash and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. argued about pandemic policies. RFK claimed that the U.S. had the highest death rate from COVID-19, that constitutional rights were violated during the pandemic, and that the media censored anyone who opposed the policies. People who refused or raised questions about vaccines got canceled and even fired from their jobs. Bash argued in favor of the lockdowns and vaccines, saying that vaccine misinformation led to more deaths. When Bash tried to move on to a new topic, RFK accused her of being part of the problem: “There was absolute press malpractice.” Bash admitted that the reaction to COVID wasn’t entirely devoid of mistakes. CNN later absolved itself of doing anything wrong during the pandemic.
Rubio moves to dismantle the ICC
The Trump administration has launched an effort to dismantle the International Criminal Court (ICC), arguing that it “is an illegitimate international organization … because they claim that even if you’re not a member of that court, they can come after you.” Five countries — Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Niger, and Venezuela — have quit the ICC. Secretary of State Marco Rubio noted, “We’ve had dozens of countries already join us in this effort since we started two weeks ago.” He also warned that the ICC remains a danger to Americans, especially servicemen and people in uniform, noting that the ICC is targeting not only world leaders like Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu but also those Americans who have fought in recent wars. “Imagine you’re a soldier, you fought in a war, and 20 years later, they try to come grab you,” Rubio warned.
ICE detentions set record
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has widened its crackdown by making arrests at airports — a strategy that broke the Trump administration’s previous record. In July, ICE took in more than 46,000 individuals — roughly 1,500 per day — who either entered the country illegally or overstayed their visas. June held the previous record at 43,000. When Kristi Noem oversaw ICE, she pushed for detentions to be done in public. But after federal agents killed two American citizens earlier this year, ICE backed off on arrests and large-scale immigration operations in Democrat cities. Recently, however, the White House has pressured ICE to make 2,000 arrests every day. DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said, “We’re out there working harder than we’ve ever had because we’ve empowered our law enforcement to do their job.”
Nigerian fraudsters scam U.S. Fish and Wildlife out of $300k
Nigeria is so infamous for scammers that one wonders how people continue to fall for their scams. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania recently announced a case against one Okeoghene Patrick Udugha, a Nigerian who ran a scam wherein he bilked the Fish and Wildlife Service out of over $300,000 in taxpayer dollars. “Udugba and others utilized social media and dating websites to meet and establish purported romantic relationships with persons in multiple states,” the attorney’s office explained. “Those persons were groomed and ultimately used by Udugba and others as money mules to receive and cash fraudulently obtained checks.” Udugba impersonated FWS employees who deceived the Wildlife for Everyone Endowment Foundation into directing the nonprofit to reimburse individuals who were falsely identified as consultants. It’s no Somalian daycare, but still.
DOJ drops reflecting pool charges
The Department of Justice has concluded that former Olympic canoeist David Hearn was innocent after previously being charged with vandalism of the Reflecting Pool. Instead, the DOJ blamed the contractor for incorrectly installing the pool’s sealant when the Reflecting Pool was renovated a few weeks ago. It’s hard to believe that the people trusted to renovate a major national landmark would do such a bad job that the seal failed within two weeks. President Trump angrily took to Truth Social, saying, “To me, it was a pure case of VANDALISM, that included the grass, which had a big 86 47 emblazoned in giant letters on it, and other elements of the surrounding area. There may have been some contractor difficulty, but the major damage was caused by VANDALS!”
Headlines
Mamdani blocked from speaking at fallen NYC soldier’s funeral (NY Post)
Congressman Max Miller pushes back against abuse allegations (Fox News)
Hegseth struggles to sell Senate on Iran war funding (The Hill)
When gunshots rang out at a Twin Falls In-N-Out, this Idaho man shot back (Idaho Statesman)
The Executive News Summary is compiled daily by Jordan Candler, Thomas Gallatin, Sterling Henry, Jacob Geoffrey, and Sophie Starkova. For the archive, click here.