Today’s edition of quick hits.
* Just when it seemed our retirement accounts had recovered, this happened: “Fears of a global government borrowing glut — likely to be compounded by the GOP’s spending and tax-cuts bill — helped fuel an unusually weak auction for U.S. government bonds that sent markets into a tailspin Wednesday. The broad S&P 500 fell 1.6%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined more than 800 points, or 2%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq was off 1.4%.”
* Given a series of events such as these, won’t judges eventually have to start holding some officials in contempt? “After a deportation flight with eight migrants left Texas reportedly intended for South Sudan this week, a federal judge on Wednesday ruled that the Trump administration had violated a previous order.”
* Another rough day in court for the White House: “A federal judge ruled on Wednesday that President Trump broke the law when he fired members of an independent civil liberties watchdog without cause in January, ordering the reinstatement of those challenging their removals in court. In a 71-page opinion, Judge Reggie B. Walton of the Federal District Court for the District of Columbia said that Mr. Trump’s dismissal of Democratic-selected members to the five-person Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board was illegal.”
* The sanctions Trump keeps threatening, without any follow-through: “Without waiting for Washington, the European Union and the U.K. announced a new raft of sanctions against Russia on today, less than 24 hours after Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin exchanged a friendly, if fruitless, phone call about ending the war in Ukraine.”
* The judge in the Baraka case sure did seem displeased: “A federal judge on Wednesday scolded federal prosecutors and announced he will dismiss trespassing charges against Newark Mayor Ras Baraka related to a standoff at a migrant detention center. Interim U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Alina Habba announced earlier this week she would drop charges against Baraka (but at the same time announced new charges against Rep. LaMonica McIver stemming from a scuffle during Baraka’s arrest). Federal magistrate judge Andre Espinosa reprimanded the federal prosecutors for more than five minutes, calling the retraction of the charges ‘embarrassing.’”
* Remember when the United States used to help lead efforts like these? “After three years of intensive negotiations, the World Health Organization on Tuesday adopted the world’s first agreement on how to cooperate and respond to future pandemics — without the support of the United States.”
* Five years after George Floyd’s murder: “The Justice Department moved Wednesday to drop police-accountability agreements with Minneapolis and Louisville, abandoning the Biden administration’s attempt to reshape law enforcement in cities where high-profile killings by officers ignited widespread outrage.”
* On Capitol Hill, surprises like these are uncommon: “In a surprise move, the Republican-led Senate quickly passed the No Tax on Tips Act on Tuesday, giving its official stamp of approval to an idea that has gained traction since President Donald Trump campaigned on it last year.”
* Speaking of developments in the Senate: “Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., a member of the Environment and Public Works Committee, has put a hold on four nominees for the Environmental Protection Agency.”
* It might be a while before the Sun-Times lives this one down: “The Chicago Sun-Times newspaper is receiving major backlash after it printed an AI-generated ‘summer reading list for 2025’ Sunday that promoted several nonexistent book titles.”
See you tomorrow.