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Aug 13, 2026

Warren and Garcia Demand Trump Name the Managers Behind 21,000 Stock Trades and Explain Purchases That Preceded His Own Policy Announcements

On August 12, 2026, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) sent President Trump a 17-page letter — first reported by CNBC on August 13 — demanding he identify the money managers he says control his investment accounts and explain dozens of stock trades that lined up with official government actions or market-moving presidential statements. The letter covers more than 21,000 trades reported in 2025 and roughly 3,500 more in the first quarter of 2026 alone, an average of about 50 trades every day markets were open. Warren and Garcia asked Trump to list "all third-party institutions and managers that direct your trades," explain how they were selected, what mandate they were given, and what investment processes they follow. They flagged 15 instances they characterized as Trump buying into a company shortly before an official announcement favorable to it — including purchases of Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices on January 6, a week before the administration loosened chip export controls affecting sales to China, and a February 10 purchase of between $1 million and $5 million in Axon Enterprises, the Taser manufacturer, two weeks before ICE announced a $220 million Taser contract. The New York Times has reported there is no indication Trump holds a true blind trust; the lawmakers pressed that point, noting Trump personally signed a financial disclosure certifying his awareness of thousands of individual stock transactions. The White House dismissed the inquiry. Eric Trump said the president's holdings are held in fully discretionary accounts run by independent third-party institutions using automated, model-based portfolios, and the Trump Organization called the letter "just another baseless political stunt." Warren and Garcia set an August 28 deadline for a response.

“the same, tired narrative that Democrats have pushed against President Trump, his family, and his administration for a decade”
Anna Kelly (R) · Aug 13, 2026

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Aug 13, 2026· Updated

The House Votes 308-117 to Stop Changing the Clocks — and the Fight Moves to a Senate Where the Opposition Is Republicans From States That Would Not See Sunrise Until After 9 A.M.

On July 14, 2026, the House passed the Sunshine Protection Act 308-117, sending President Trump's long-standing demand for permanent, year-round daylight saving time to the Senate. The bill is sponsored by Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL). Rep. Scott DesJarlais (R-TN), presiding over the vote, played the Beatles' "Here Comes the Sun" from his phone as he read the tally. The split does not run cleanly along party lines. The bill's loudest champions are Florida Republicans; its Republican opponents are from northern and Mountain West states — Reps. Bryan Steil (R-WI), Rick Crawford (R-AR), Ryan Zinke (R-MT) and Harriet Hageman (R-WY) all voted no — where year-round daylight saving would push winter sunrise past 8:30 or 9 a.m. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries opposed the measure, while Democrats including Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA) argued the sleep-medicine evidence favors permanent standard time instead. Trump renewed his pressure on the Senate on August 13, 2026. Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) has publicly objected, invoking the failed 1974 experiment with year-round daylight saving, and Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) has said it does not work for his state. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has said it remains to be seen whether the bill can reach 60 votes. The Senate returns from recess September 14.

“People are sick and tired of having to change their clocks twice a year. It is foolish, inconvenient and, in some cases, very costly.”
Donald Trump (R-FL) · Aug 13, 2026

Two More Deaths Tied to Newark's Delaney Hall ICE Jail; Senate Republicans Block Booker's Bid to Close It as ICE Stops Reporting Deaths That Happen After Release

Delaney Hall, the 1,000-bed private ICE detention facility in Newark operated by GEO Group, recorded two more detainee deaths in the space of two weeks in the summer of 2026 — the second and third connected to the facility in less than a year. Edwin Jovanny Lopez Cornejo, a 41-year-old Salvadoran national from Plainfield, died in ICE custody at Delaney Hall on the first weekend of August. His family said he had been denied medication. New Jersey's Democratic officials — Gov. Mikie Sherrill, Sen. Cory Booker, Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, and Rep. Analilia Mejia — demanded answers and renewed calls to close the facility. On August 6, Booker went to the Senate floor to seek unanimous consent for a measure forcing Delaney Hall's closure. Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) objected, blocking it, and argued that the Democrats' diagnosis of the detention system was "ideological." A third death surfaced separately, and only because a member of Congress disclosed it. Jose Chajon-Raxon, a Guatemalan man arrested by ICE on July 18, was treated for "seizure-like activity" a day later, taken to a hospital, and released from ICE custody on July 22 before dying. ICE had recently dropped a Biden-era rule requiring it to review and report detainee deaths occurring within 30 days after release, and DHS did not disclose the death until confirming it on August 12 after Rep. Rob Menendez (D-N.J.) revealed it. DHS said that "per ICE policy, when an individual is no longer in ICE custody then ICE will no longer be responsible for monitoring or reviewing deaths." Menendez and Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.) called the policy change a deliberate accountability loophole. All nine Democrats in New Jersey's House delegation signed a letter to DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin and Acting ICE Director David J. Venturella demanding answers. Delaney Hall was already the subject of an existing oversight fight: in May 2026, Sen. Andy Kim was pepper-sprayed outside the facility and Sherrill was denied entry during a detainee hunger strike. More than 50 immigrants have died in ICE custody since the start of the administration.

“The pattern of abuse is plain as day. The fact that ICE is creating a loophole to avoid having to investigate or take accountability for this loss is disgusting.”
LaMonica McIver (D-NJ) · Aug 12, 2026

Karoline Leavitt, the Youngest White House Press Secretary in History, Will Leave at the End of August

On Wednesday, August 12, 2026, President Trump announced on Truth Social that White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt will depart the administration at the end of the month. Leavitt, 28, was the youngest person ever to hold the job and the first to be pregnant in the role, having returned to the podium after the birth of her second child. Leavitt said in a post on X that she could not be the mother her two young children deserve while giving the press secretary's job the time it demands, calling the decision "bittersweet." Trump said he understood and respected the decision and that Leavitt would stay on as one of his top outside advisers and "an influential voice within the Republican Party" heading into the midterm elections. The announcement drew immediate praise from senior administration figures, including Vice President JD Vance and White House communications director Steven Cheung. NBC News reported the White House might not name a successor until after the November midterms — leaving the most visible communications post in the administration in flux during the closing stretch of the campaign, and during an August dominated by the Iran war, the Kennedy Center fight, and the SAVE America Act standoff.

“Karoline Leavitt has one of the hardest jobs in the Administration — dealing with the relentless attacks from the fake news media. She did the job with grace, wit and a smile on her face. She's been one of the most effective voices in articulating and defending the President's agenda, and I know how difficult yet rewarding a constant job like this can be for a young parent.”
JD Vance (R-OH) · Aug 12, 2026

Trump Refuses to Say He Backs Thune for Another Term as Senate GOP Leader — and Republican Senators Close Ranks Around Thune

In a Punchbowl News interview published Friday, August 7, 2026, President Trump pointedly declined to say whether he would support Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) for another term leading Senate Republicans, telling Jake Sherman "I don't want to get into that necessarily." Trump said he gets along with Thune personally but called it "unfortunate that he doesn't have the votes," referring to the two demands that have driven months of friction between them: passing the SAVE America Act and abolishing the legislative filibuster. Thune has repeatedly told Trump the Senate has neither 60 votes for the SAVE America Act nor 50 votes to end the filibuster — a position vindicated on August 8, when the voter ID component of the bill failed 52-46 on the Senate floor for the sixth time. The non-endorsement was widely read as an opening for a Trump-backed challenge to Thune's leadership. Instead, when senators were asked about it in the days after, Republicans closed ranks. Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS) said there is "a lot of respect for John Thune" in the conference and drew an explicit line: senators may defer to the president on policy, but the choice of their leader "belongs to us." Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) — who challenged Mitch McConnell for the leadership twice and who had sided with Trump on cancelling the August recess — offered only that leading the conference is "a hard job." Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) framed the rift as a policy disagreement between two men who "like each other." Thune himself declined to escalate, pointing to what he called "a really productive run" and noting he had warned from the outset that some of Trump's asks were closer to impossible than merely difficult. The episode marks a rare instance of Senate Republicans publicly declining to follow Trump's lead, and it sets up the question of whether Trump will recruit a challenger before the conference votes on leadership after the November 2026 midterms.

“I think we've had a really productive run. There are a couple things I said right from the very beginning are going to be difficult if not impossible—frankly more impossible—to do.”
John Thune (R-SD) · Aug 11, 2026

Senate Leaders Strike a Bipartisan Stopgap to Fund the Government Through December 11, Sidestepping Trump and House Republicans

Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-ME) and Vice Chair Patty Murray (D-WA) released the text of a continuing resolution on August 2, 2026 that would hold federal funding at current levels through December 11 — pushing the next shutdown deadline past the November midterm elections. The Senate voted 89-4 on Monday, August 3 to limit debate on the measure, an unusually early move given that the fiscal year does not end until September 30 and Congress normally waits until the final hours of a funding deadline. Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said the predictability was worth it after two lengthy shutdowns, and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said the bill preserved room to keep negotiating a budget. The measure includes adjustments for WIC, shipbuilding and the Disaster Relief Fund, and both Collins and Murray highlighted a provision blocking a proposed OMB rule on federal grants for the duration of the CR. The bipartisan deal cut against demands from President Trump and House Republicans, whose own CR had taken a different approach; the House was on recess and not scheduled to return until August 31. Murray, while backing the bill, criticized fellow senators for not doing more to check the administration.

“After three unnecessary lapses in funding during the fiscal year 2026 cycle, putting the possibility of yet another harmful shutdown off the table should be a priority for each and every one of us.”
Susan Collins (R-ME) · Aug 8, 2026

Trump Nominates Acting AG Todd Blanche for Permanent Attorney General

President Trump announced on June 3-4, 2026 his intent to permanently nominate Todd Blanche as Attorney General. Blanche, Trump's former personal criminal defense attorney, has been serving as acting AG since Pam Bondi was fired in April. His tenure as acting AG has been marked by controversy: pursuing indictments against Trump critics, rolling back gun control enforcement, and most recently announcing the DOJ would not move forward with the $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund — the same day Trump said he'd "have to ask the lawyers" about its status. Critics say Blanche continues to act as Trump's personal lawyer rather than the nation's chief law enforcement officer. The confirmation battle stalled in late July 2026. Blanche testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee on July 15, and Ranking Member Dick Durbin spoke against the nomination at a July 23 markup, citing more than 1,200 former career DOJ employees who opposed him. On the night of Wednesday, July 29, the committee postponed the vote scheduled for Thursday, July 30, after Republican Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) said they were not prepared to vote yes. Both wanted written assurances from the Justice Department about the settlement of Trump's lawsuit against the IRS, which Blanche oversaw as acting AG. That settlement created the now-canceled $1.8 billion fund that could have compensated Trump allies, and barred the IRS from audits or other enforcement actions on tax returns filed by the president, his family, or his business entities before the May settlement. The standoff broke over the following weekend. Blanche said on Sunday, August 2 that he had reached a deal to amend the settlement, and Cornyn and Tillis said the agreement satisfied their concerns. The Judiciary Committee advanced the nomination 12-10 on a party-line vote on Tuesday, August 4, sending it to the full Senate. Hours later, Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) announced she would vote against confirmation, saying Blanche had taken actions that further eroded the Justice Department's independence. With all 45 Democrats and both independents expected to oppose him, Blanche can afford to lose only one more Republican.

“What I'm worried about is that there is statutory authority to do this kind of garbage, and I'd like to figure out a way to nuke it before I get out of here.”
Thom Tillis (R-NC) · Aug 8, 2026

CBO Puts Trump’s "Golden Fleet" of Trump-Class Battleships at $275 Billion — $23.4 Billion for the First Ship Alone — and the Senate’s Top Budget Democrat Says Congress Should Refuse to Fund It

On August 5, 2026, the Congressional Budget Office released an estimate, requested by Senate Budget Committee Ranking Member Jeff Merkley, of what President Trump's proposed new class of nuclear-powered battleships would cost. CBO put the 15-ship program at about $275 billion through 2056: roughly $23.4 billion for the lead ship, the future USS Defiant, and about $18 billion each for the 14 that would follow. If the design grows to 41,000 tons, CBO put the worst case at $528 billion. The Senate Budget Committee separately estimated that the 20-to-25-ship fleet Trump has described would run about $455 billion. Trump announced the "Golden Fleet" at Mar-a-Lago on December 22, 2025, alongside Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Navy Secretary John Phelan, describing a battleship armed with hypersonic missiles, nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missiles, an electromagnetic railgun and high-powered lasers — several of which remain undeveloped. It would be the largest U.S. surface combatant since World War II. CBO cautioned that its numbers are "highly uncertain," resting on assessments of a design that does not yet exist, and questioned whether American shipyards have the capacity to build nuclear-powered vessels of this size at all. The Navy has asked for roughly $1 billion in advance procurement and about $837 million in research and development in fiscal 2027, with a planned $17 billion request for the first ship's procurement in fiscal 2028 — which is where the fight over whether the fleet gets built will land.

“While American families can’t even keep their heads above water, Donald Trump is spending his time building himself a “Golden Fleet” of battleships the Navy doesn’t want.”
Chuck Schumer (D-NY) · Aug 6, 2026

Senate Agriculture Committee Deadlocks 10-11 on the Agricultural Act of 2026, Stalling "Farm Bill 2.0" Over SNAP Error-Rate Cost Shifting

On August 6, 2026, the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry failed to advance the Agricultural Act of 2026 — the five-year farm bill reauthorization branded "Farm Bill 2.0" — on a 10-11 party-line vote, leaving the package stranded in committee. The bill collapsed over a single unresolved fight: how quickly states would be forced to pick up a share of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefit costs based on their payment error rates. Chairman John Boozman (R-Ark.) had negotiated directly with the White House to soften the nutrition title, agreeing to delay the state cost-sharing requirement by one year and to let states use whichever of their fiscal 2026 or 2027 error rates was lower. Ranking Member Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) pushed for a two-year delay, arguing the one-year window let the highest-error-rate states escape cost-sharing entirely while states that had already cleaned up their numbers were penalized. Luján's amendment to extend the delay — scored by CBO at roughly $19 billion — failed, and with it the bill. Most of the farm title enjoyed bipartisan support, and a mandatory country-of-origin labeling amendment drew Majority Leader John Thune along with Sens. Deb Fischer, John Hoeven, Cindy Hyde-Smith, Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst. But the SNAP impasse held, Democratic amendments were defeated along party lines, and the final vote failed. Boozman pointedly recessed rather than adjourned the committee, signaling he intends to bring the bill back after the August break. House Agriculture Chairman Glenn "GT" Thompson (R-Pa.) blamed Senate Democrats. Agriculture groups including the National Corn Growers Association, the American Soybean Association and the Farm Credit Council all voiced disappointment, warning the delay pushes a five-year farm bill further out of reach.

“I remain committed to working with those who put our farmers and rural communities first on advancing solutions that strengthen agriculture.”
John Boozman (R-AR) · Aug 6, 2026

Senate Confirms Jay Clayton as Director of National Intelligence on a Party-Line 51-47 Vote

The Senate confirmed Walter "Jay" Clayton III as Director of National Intelligence on the evening of Tuesday, July 28, 2026, by a party-line vote of 51-47 with no Democrats voting in favor. The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence had advanced the nomination 9-8 on July 21. Clayton, a former SEC chairman and U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, replaces Bill Pulte, whose temporary appointment following Tulsi Gabbard's resignation had drawn sharp Democratic criticism. Majority Leader John Thune and Intelligence Committee Chairman Tom Cotton pointed to Clayton's prosecutorial record, including terrorism cases and the indictment of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. Democrats objected to his committee testimony, particularly his answers about subpoenas issued in connection with New York Times reporting and about the 2020 election; Sen. Ron Wyden said there were credible allegations Clayton had provided false testimony. Vice Chairman Mark Warner, who had worked with Clayton at the SEC, said he came away from the process with serious reservations about whether Clayton would resist political pressure.

“Jay Clayton’s record inspires confidence in the type of DNI that he will be.”
John Thune (R-SD) · Jul 28, 2026

Administration Admits in Court It Canceled $7.6 Billion in Clean Energy Grants Based Solely on Recipients’ States Voting for Harris

In a July 15, 2026 filing in a class action lawsuit, the Trump administration acknowledged that the Department of Energy sent the Office of Management and Budget a list of more than 600 grants recommended for cancellation drawn from recipients in states that Kamala Harris won in 2024 and that are represented by two senators who caucus with Democrats. OMB terminated 284 of those grants in October 2025, totaling roughly $7.6 billion across hundreds of clean energy projects. The filing stated the terminations were made "based solely on the political identity of the grant recipient's state." Affected projects were located in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont and Washington. The admission contradicted repeated public assertions by Energy Secretary Chris Wright that the cuts were routine "business decisions" about whether projects were a good use of taxpayer money. Democrats seized on the filing when it was reported on July 25, accusing the administration of weaponizing federal spending to punish voters in states that opposed the president.

“Money "to fuel the Left’s climate agenda is being cancelled."”
Russell Vought (R-VA) · Jul 25, 2026

Trump Orders "Warning Signs" Outside the Smithsonian's American History Museum

On July 24-25, 2026, President Trump signed an executive order, "Restoring Trust in the Smithsonian Institution," directing the National Park Service to install temporary signage on public sidewalks outside the National Museum of American History warning visitors about what the order calls the "ideological capture" of the museum. The order cites a Domestic Policy Council report asserting that Smithsonian leadership "does not present American history as a shared national inheritance to be taught and celebrated, but instead views American history as a 'prime tool' to advance ideas of social justice and the radical transformation of our society." Museum director Anthea Hartig and Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch rejected the report's characterization at a July 21 congressional hearing. House Administration Committee Democrats, led by ranking member Joseph Morelle (D-NY), issued a 16-page counter-report titled "The White House Campaign to Seize Control of the Smithsonian and Rewrite American History." Republicans on the panel backed the order, with Rep. Brandon Gill (R-TX) calling for Hartig to be fired.

“This EO is a clear political overreach, driven by an ideological agenda to rewrite American history.”
Melanie Stansbury (D-NM) · Jul 25, 2026

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