Good evening, everyone. I hope you’re having a strong Tuesday. Today was intense and consequential. President Trump held his first-year press conference, as his now-former press secretary publicly urged Congress to examine his mental fitness, fueling growing questions on Capitol Hill about whether the 25th Amendment should be considered.
At the same time, ICE is escalating so-called “show me your papers” enforcement in Minnesota, including an incident in which a police officer, an American citizen, was stopped and ordered to prove her citizenship. Civil rights alarms are being raised across the state.
This is shaping up to be a pivotal week. Trump is in Switzerland, Jack Smith testifies Thursday, and I have several important interviews ahead that will shed more light on what’s unfolding.
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Trump One-Year Press conference:
Donald Trump gave his one-year press conference today at the White House. I am not going to share clips from the entire press conference, but here is what you missed from the press conference. Donald Trump’s former Press Secretary said Congress should look into his mental fitness following the press conference:
Overall, many online are now saying that this was one of the most “unhinged” press conferences of the Trump era, with him speaking for more than two hours about everything from his personal baseball career to ICE to the United Nations and more:
- Trump acknowledged that ICE agents “are going to make mistakes sometimes” while defending the agency’s actions after an ICE officer fatally shot a woman in Minneapolis, calling the incident a tragedy and expressing sympathy for the victim’s family even as his broader immigration enforcement surge sparks protests and controversy.
- This was Trump discussing his baseball career:
- Trump: "To me a town looks better when you have military people" patrolling.
- Trump said he would pursue alternative ways to raise revenue if the Supreme Court strikes down his tariffs imposed under emergency powers, as the ruling could trigger hundreds of billions of dollars in refunds to companies.
- Trump said his proposed “Board of Peace” is not meant to replace the United Nations, though he criticized the U.N. as ineffective and defended the new body amid global skepticism over its vague mandate and role in his Gaza plan.
- Trump again falsely claimed that Norway controls the Nobel Peace Prize, despite officials and former U.S. diplomats reiterating that the award is decided independently by a committee appointed by Norway’s parliament, not the Norwegian government.
- Trump urged Italian Americans to support him at the ballot box, saying they should remember he “reinstated” Columbus Day after signing an executive order reclaiming the holiday’s legacy.
- Trump declined to explain how far he would go to acquire Greenland, telling reporters only “you’ll find out” when pressed at a White House briefing.
- Trump lashed out at prosecutors who pursued criminal cases against him, claiming he ended “weaponization” of government while personally attacking Jack Smith, Alvin Bragg, Fani Willis and Letitia James, despite having been convicted in the New York hush money case.
- Trump publicly criticized conservative power broker and GOP donor Leonard Leo as a “bad guy,” accusing him of backing a lawsuit against Trump’s tariffs, marking a further break from an ally who once helped shape his judicial picks.
All other news:
- Global markets tumbled sharply after President Trump threatened new tariffs on multiple E.U. countries and the U.K. unless they back U.S. control of Greenland, erasing more than $1 trillion in U.S. stock market value as investors dumped stocks and bonds, pushed Treasury yields higher, sent gold and silver to record highs, and revived fears of a destabilizing U.S.–EU trade war that European leaders are now weighing retaliatory tariffs to counter.
- Minnesota police officials say federal immigration agents have been stopping and confronting off-duty officers and civilians—including pointing weapons at a Minnesota police officer who tried to film the encounter and knocking her phone from her hand—raising widespread civil rights complaints and allegations of unconstitutional stops and racial profiling by ICE during the state’s immigration enforcement surge.
- A Trump-appointed federal judge sharply rebuked Lindsey Halligan, Trump’s handpicked interim U.S. attorney in Virginia, accusing her of defying court rulings, using “vitriolic” rhetoric, and falsely holding herself out as U.S. attorney after her appointment was ruled invalid, while warning she could face discipline as judges move to replace her.
- The Justice Department issued subpoenas to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, and other state and local officials, expanding a federal investigation into whether they obstructed immigration enforcement during the Trump administration amid fallout from a fatal ICE shooting that sparked protests.
- The Trump administration acknowledged in court filings that members of Elon Musk’s DOGE team may have improperly accessed and shared sensitive Social Security data, including possible political misuse tied to voter roll efforts, prompting referrals for potential Hatch Act violations and raising questions about data security and oversight at the SSA.
- Public polling shows President Trump’s approval rating has fallen to around 40% in his first year of a second term, with declining support on the economy and immigration despite continued relative strength on border security, creating a tougher outlook for Republicans ahead of the midterms.
- DHS officials are pushing to build a high-level classified intelligence facility (SCIF) at a South Dakota university linked to Secretary Kristi Noem, puzzling career staff who say there is no clear national security need, raising concerns about favoritism, costs, and pressure on agencies to justify a project seen as a “secretary-level priority.”
- NBC News has confirmed that U.S.-backed Kurdish forces abandoned the massive al-Hol ISIS camp and other detention sites in northeastern Syria amid intensified fighting with the Syrian government, leading to reported prison breaks and the escape of ISIS militants as control of the region shifts to Damascus and raises fears of an ISIS resurgence.
- Israel began demolishing the UNRWA headquarters in East Jerusalem after passing laws banning the agency’s activities, prompting sharp condemnation from the U.N. and Palestinians as a violation of international law, while Israel argues the property lacks immunity and accuses UNRWA of aiding terrorism.
- CBS News has confirmed that Mexico transferred 37 high-profile cartel figures to the United States—the third such handover in under a year—as it seeks to ease mounting pressure from the Trump administration to crack down on drug trafficking, bringing the total extradited to 92 under an agreement barring the death penalty.
- According to The Hill, more than 40 retired military leaders filed a brief backing Sen. Mark Kelly’s lawsuit against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, arguing efforts to discipline Kelly over political speech violate the First Amendment and could chill veterans nationwide from speaking out on national security issues.
- Rep. LaMonica McIver said she will appeal all charges stemming from a clash outside an ICE detention facility, arguing the Constitution’s “speech or debate” clause shields her actions as part of congressional oversight, in a case that could test the limits of lawmakers’ immunity under the Trump administration.
- Mikie Sherrill was sworn in as New Jersey’s 57th governor, immediately signing executive orders to curb rising utility costs and pledging to make affordability her top priority while positioning the state as a check on the Trump administration’s policies, particularly on tariffs and immigration enforcement.
See you soon.
— Aaron