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This afternoon, I sat down with Senator Adam Schiff of California for a wide-ranging and pointed conversation on several pressing issues. We began with the Trump administration’s aggressive tariff policy—most notably, Donald Trump’s 50% tariffs on Brazil, which Senator Schiff condemned as a retaliatory move intended to punish Brazil for prosecuting its former president, Jair Bolsonaro.
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Turning to domestic matters, we discussed the looming redistricting battles, where Senator Schiff firmly stated that if Texas proceeds with partisan redistricting, California should not hesitate to follow suit.
Finally, the senator raised serious concerns about the Senate’s recent confirmation of Emil Bove to a lifetime federal judgeship, calling it dangerous given Bove’s ideological extremism, and denounced the inflammatory remarks made by acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essalyi in the Central District of California as a threat to the integrity of the Justice Department.
With that, here’s the rest of the news you missed today:
Procter & Gamble announced it will raise prices on approximately 25% of its products in the U.S. starting next month, citing rising costs from tariffs imposed by President Trump as a key factor.
The company, which makes brands like Tide, Charmin, Pampers, and Crest, said the price hikes—expected to be in the mid-single digits—will be paired with product upgrades. P&G estimates that Trump’s tariffs will add around $1 billion to its costs in fiscal year 2026, despite earlier efforts to mitigate the impact through sourcing and formulation changes.
White House officials say Trump is feeling emboldened to push ahead with his Friday tariff deadline, citing momentum from recent trade deals.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer will brief Trump today on recent negotiations with Chinese officials aimed at extending the pause on high tariffs past the August 12 deadline.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said countries that have not yet secured a deal should expect a letter from the administration soon, though it remains unclear what tariff rates will apply.
With the 1 August tariff deadline approaching, Trump granted Mexico a 90-day extension to negotiate a deal, avoiding the 35% tariffs that would have taken effect tomorrow; Mexico’s president Claudia Sheinbaum described her call with Trump as “very good.”
Leavitt confirmed that reciprocal tariffs will take effect at midnight tonight, though she noted that last-minute deals are still possible.
Democrats criticised Trump’s latest trade measures, including a 15% tariff on South Korean imports, with Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer warning that “15% is far from a victory, because it is American families who are going to have to pay for it in the end.”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s aides conducted polygraph tests on Pentagon colleagues—sometimes without his knowledge—in an effort to identify media leakers and sideline rivals, sparking internal backlash, a Trump adviser’s intervention, and further concerns about Hegseth’s leadership amid an ongoing inspector general investigation.
The Trump administration has referred Harvard University to the Department of Justice over antisemitism allegations, citing the university’s “scorched-earth litigation” in response to a federal attempt to freeze over $2 billion in research funding, according to a letter from OCR Director Paula Stannard.
President Trump has sent letters to 17 pharmaceutical executives, including those at AstraZeneca, Eli Lilly, and Johnson & Johnson, giving them 60 days to lower drug prices or face aggressive action, following his “most favoured nation” executive order that ties U.S. drug costs to the lowest prices in other developed countries.
Trump announced plans to reinstate the Presidential Fitness Test for American schoolchildren, originally launched in 1966, as part of a broader effort to promote healthy, active lifestyles and “a culture of strength and excellence.” The initiative includes reviving the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition—now under Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.—which will develop a new Presidential Fitness Award.
During the announcement, Lawrence Taylor, a former football player was asked to speak by Trump and said: "I don't know why. I don't know what we're supposed to be doing, but I'm here to serve, and I'm here to serve you."
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed that Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and Ambassador Mike Huckabee had a “very productive” meeting with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and the pair will travel to Gaza tomorrow to assess the worsening humanitarian and starvation crisis.
The White House will begin construction in September on a $200 million, 90,000-square-foot ballroom—personally funded by Donald Trump and private donors—on the East Wing, which will also be modernized during the project; the new space will accommodate 650 guests and reflect Trump’s aesthetic vision, with completion expected before the end of his term in 2029.
Just days after Trump denounced wind energy during a visit to Scotland—calling wind turbines “ugly,” dangerous to wildlife, and even falsely linking them to cancer—the Scottish government approved one of the world’s largest offshore wind farms, the Berwick Bank project, which will include up to 307 turbines and could generate enough electricity to power the country’s homes twice over. The move, seen by some as a pointed rebuke, has drawn both praise for its climate ambitions and backlash from conservation groups concerned about seabird populations.
A new report by Physicians for Human Rights and OJAH documents widespread sexual violence in Tigray by Ethiopian and Eritrean forces—including mass rape, forced pregnancy, and sexual torture—amounting to crimes against humanity, with attacks aimed at destroying Tigrayan women’s fertility and identity, often involving extreme brutality, foreign object insertion, and targeting children as young as infants.
William B. Thomas, Kerr County’s emergency management coordinator, testified that he was home sick and asleep on 3 July, missing key emergency coordination calls ahead of the catastrophic Texas Hill Country floods that killed at least 138 people, including 27 at Camp Mystic.
The White House, through Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, stated that President Trump opposes UK, France, and Canada's plans to recognize Palestinian statehood without a ceasefire agreement, arguing it would "reward Hamas," which he sees as the main obstacle to peace and hostage releases.
See you in the morning.
— Aaron
