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Puerto Rico to begin water rationing due to intense drought

2026-08-06 6:43 PM UTC / Reuters

By Brad Brooks

August 6, 2026 6:43 PM UTC Updated 1 hour ago

Puerto Rico Governor Jenniffer Gonzalez-Colon testifies at a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing “to Examine the State of the U.S. Territories” on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 17, 2026. REUTERS/Annabelle Gordon/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

Aug 6 (Reuters) – Puerto Rico will begin a rotating water rationing program on Friday across the island in response to intense drought, authorities said, in a ​plan that forces tens of thousands of people to go without water ‌for 48 hours at a time.

The rationing will last at least through the end of August, according to details posted on the U.S. territory’s Aqueduct and Sewer Authority website. Puerto Rico ​Governor Jenniffer Gonzalez said at a press conference late on Wednesday that ​she does not know how long the rationing will be ⁠required.

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“This situation is out of our hands,” Gonzalez said in a press release ​earlier on Wednesday. “It is the result of the climate conditions we’ve been facing.”

Puerto ​Rico’s capital, San Juan, experienced its driest July on record, according to the National Weather Service. Nearly 68% of the island is experiencing drought conditions, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.

Little ​relief is in sight. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration outlook puts ​the odds of below-normal rainfall and above-normal heat at greater than 70% for Puerto Rico from ‌August ⁠through October, as a strengthening El Nino pattern suppresses the tropical waves that typically bring the island’s late-summer rain.

Seven municipalities, including San Juan, will see rationing in the current phase of cuts, according to the government. They are all areas ​served by the Carraizo ​reservoir, which authorities ⁠say is at critically low levels. Affected areas have been split into two zones that will alternate with and ​without service on 48-hour cycles.

The Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer ​Authority said ⁠it would deploy water trucks to affected communities, with priority given to hospitals and long-term care facilities, and urged residents to boil water for at least three ⁠minutes once ​service resumes as a precaution against possible contamination.

It ​also asked customers to conserve during service periods and avoid non-essential use of water such as ​washing cars or watering lawns.

Reporting by Brad Brooks in Colorado; Editing by Paul Simao

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Socialist victories show Dems’ descent down ‘deadly path of communism,’ Johnson warns

August 6, 2026 12:41pm EDT / Fox News

Republicans are hoping for more far-left socialist victories in Democratic primaries as they fight to keep the House

By Elizabeth Elkind Fox News

Published August 6, 2026 12:41pm EDT

Rising socialist momentum in the Democratic primaries threatens party unity as far-left candidate Abdul El-Sayed narrowly wins 48.5% of the vote to defeat moderate Haley Stevens in Michigan.

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House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is arguing that Democrats are descending a dark path as a socialist insurgency on the left continues to notch victories against the party’s establishment.

Republicans on the campaign trail have seized on the raging civil war within the Democratic Party, warning that a recent slate of wins by candidates linked to the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is pushing one of the United States’ two main political parties much further left than the vast majority of Americans are comfortable with.

“Right now, it’s a contrast election for everybody,” Johnson said during a campaign stop in Arizona. “They’ve got to make a decision that they want to continue with common sense, growth and opportunity, or they want to go to this dark down, dangerous, deadly road of communism.”

DEMOCRATS TARGET MORE GOP HOUSE SEATS AFTER SOCIALIST VICTORIES ROCK LEFT-WING PRIMARIES

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., from left, Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., speak during the “The People v. The Powerful” campaign event at the Detroit Opera House in Detroit on July 18, 2026.(Nic Antaya/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

He said it was a choice “between common sense and crazy.”

Johnson and other House GOP leaders are crisscrossing the country visiting districts represented by vulnerable Republican lawmakers and other areas where the GOP believes it has a shot of winning in November.

The Louisiana Republican made a similar pitch earlier this week during a town hall for Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., who is facing a well-connected and well-funded primary opponent on Thursday night.

“Could we’ve imagined even 10 years ago, if somebody told us that on the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the greatest nation in the history of the world, in the midterm, in the fall of 2026, we’d be in a contest to determine whether we’re going to maintain our constitutional republic — the greatest nation in history — or go down this dark, dangerous, deadly road to communism?” Johnson said.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, Republican of Louisiana, speaks to members of the media after a meeting with House Republicans at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on July 15, 2026.(Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

2026 MIDTERMS STATE OF PLAY: KEY RACES UNFOLD AS STEVENS, EL-SAYED BATTLE IN MICHIGAN

It’s likely going to be a line the speaker often uses during his appearances ahead of the midterms, with Republicans writ large seeing a boon in the far-left candidates toppling establishment Democrats.

The left’s socialist insurgency scored significant wins earlier this week when Dr. Abdul El-Sayed beat out establishment-backed Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., for the Democratic nomination for Michigan’s open Senate seat.

Elsewhere in the state, Sunrise Movement co-founder William Lawrence defeated former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink for the Democratic nomination to face Rep. Tom Barrett, R-Mich., in what will be one of the most closely watched battleground races of November.

Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, left, Sen. Bernie Sanders, center, and House candidate William Lawrence, right, at a rally in Lansing, Mich., on July 19, 2026.(Andrew Roth/Sipa USA via Reuters)

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Among the DSA’s policy positions is a call for eliminating the U.S. Senate and extending voting rights to noncitizens and felons on a national level.

Republicans are fighting an uphill battle to defy decades of political convention to keep and even expand their razor-thin majority in the House, but GOP leaders are betting on more far-left victories to give their party a better shot.

Elizabeth Elkind is a politics reporter for Fox News Digital leading coverage of the House of Representatives. Previous digital bylines seen at Daily Mail and CBS News.

Follow on Twitter at @liz_elkind and send tips to elizabeth.elkind@fox.com

Trump to sign orders on birthright citizenship, Axios reports

2026-08-06 19:50 UTC / Reuters

U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks at Red Rock Casino Resort Spa in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S., August 5, 2026. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein Purchase Licensing Rights

Aug 6 (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump plans to sign two executive orders on Thursday aimed at denying citizenship to ​children born in the United States because of commercial “birth tourism”, ‌Axios reported.

Trump is also seeking to deny birthright citizenship for children born of some foreign diplomatic staff in the U.S. and, potentially, U.S. territories in ​the future, according to Axios.

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Trump’s itinerary shows he has a “signing ​time” event at the Oval Office on Thursday, which had ⁠not begun as of 4:05 pm (2005 GMT), about an hour and five minutes past ​the time slot in the official schedule released by the White ​House.

Limiting birthright citizenship has been one of the top priorities in the Republican president’s crackdown on immigration.

An earlier effort by Trump was rejected by the Supreme Court ​in June, prompting him to call upon Congress to act.

No U.S. ​law outright bars birth tourism, but a federal regulation implemented in 2020 during ‌Trump’s ⁠first term prohibits using temporary tourist and business visas for the primary purpose of obtaining U.S. citizenship for a newborn. People who engage in birth tourism schemes could be prosecuted for fraud or other related ​crimes.

There are no ​official figures ⁠tallying the number of foreigners who come to the U.S. for the explicit purpose of giving birth ​and obtaining citizenship for their children, or the cost ​to taxpayers.

The ⁠Center for Immigration Studies, which supports lower levels of immigration, estimated in an analysis in 2020 that between 20,000-25,000 mothers came to the ⁠U.S. for ​birth tourism in a year-long period between ​2016-2017.

There were 3.6 million births in the U.S. in 2025.

Reporting by Kristina Cooke, Ryan ​Patrick Jones and Ismail Shakil; editing by Michelle Nichols and David Ljunggren

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

‘Fake’ moderate Talarico’s Texas surge tests Paxton in fight to hold crucial GOP Senate seat

Paxton accused Talarico of masking a ‘socialist’ agenda while running as a moderate in the 2026 election

By Peter Pinedo Fox News

Published August 6, 2026 1:25pm EDT

Ken Paxton addresses James Talarico’s lead in critical Texas Senate race

Republican Senate candidate and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton addresses his Democratic opponent’s current lead in the race and his plan to get his message to voters.

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EXCLUSIVE: As Democrats salivate over an elusive statewide victory in Texas, Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton says he is undeterred by recent polling showing his Democratic opponent James Talarico holding a slim lead.

Democrats believe this is their moment to finally flip Texas blue after decades of frustrated efforts. Such an upset would be devastating for the GOP’s chances of retaining a Senate majority. Speaking with Fox News Digital after a rally in Houston, Paxton said Talarico’s current lead is “not surprising” given “we were three months behind” after his primary runoff with incumbent Sen. John Cornyn.

“He had three months to fundraise. So, he’s been spending $2 million a week to gain that advance,” Paxton said. Despite this, Paxton, who currently serves as Texas’ attorney general, said that, come Election Day, he is confident Texans will reject the “real James Talarico” when they hear about his record. Talarico, a state Democratic lawmaker, has a history of controversial statements, including previously asserting that “God is nonbinary,” that there are six sexes, and calling it “existential” to reduce meat consumption to fight climate change.

“I do not believe a poll that tells me that, ‘We don’t care what he believes. We don’t care that he voted for a state income tax. We don’t care that he wanted to trans children. We don’t care that he’s against the oil and gas industry. We don’t care that he voted against every border security bill,’” Paxton continued. “I don’t believe a poll that says Texans don’t care about those issues. I’ve done enough polling; I’ve been in this long enough that that’s just not true.”

JAMES TALARICO ADMITS PAST COMMENTS ‘MISSED THE MARK’ WHEN CONFRONTED ON CLAIMS LIKE GOD IS ‘NON-BINARY’

Left: Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico speaks during a press conference on July 22, 2026, in Austin, Texas. Right: Attorney General Ken Paxton at a campaign event on Aug. 4, 2026, in Allen, Texas.(Brandon Bell/Getty Images; Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

This comes as both candidates continue to crisscross the Lone Star State to get their message out to voters.

A recent Fox News poll of Texas voters showed Talarico with a within-margin-of-error lead in the race, 51% to 48%. Talarico held a slightly wider lead among extremely motivated and extremely interested voters, 53% to 47%, according to the poll. Critically, the Fox News poll found that 59% of Texas voters indicated they are concerned about Paxton’s character while just 47% indicated they are concerned about Talarico being “too extreme” for Texas.

Paxton accused Talarico of “trying to mislead people about who he is” by masking a far-left “socialist” agenda while running as a moderate. He said Talarico has “changed all his positions on pick an issue, whether it’s boys in girls’ sports, or meat, or trans-ing kids.”

“All of his positions suddenly changed for the general election [but] we have his votes, and we have his words, and those will be out,” he said.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Talarico campaign for comment and did not receive a response before publication.

JOE ROGAN WARNS LIBERALS AGAINST TRYING TO TURN TEXAS BLUE, SAYS IT WOULD WRECK THE STATE’S ‘DELICATE BALANCE’

Talarico held a general election kick-off event in Houston the day after Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton won the GOP’s Senate nomination.(Peter Pinedo/Fox News Digital)

While he acknowledged that many Texas voters have not heard his messaging on Talarico’s controversial views, he pointed out during his rally that Talarico has been aided by an influx of cash from out of state, particularly California.

Fox News Digital reported in June that donors from outside Texas accounted for roughly 50% of the funds Talarico received during the final stretch of the first quarter of 2026. During the same time period, Paxton, meanwhile, received about 25% of his cash from outside the state.

Still, the fundraising difference is stark. The Texas Tribune reported in late July that the latest quarterly Federal Election Commission filings show Talarico outraised Paxton by a more than three-to-one margin, $31.6 million to $9.3 million.

Paxton, however, appeared unbothered by all of this, pointing to how Talarico has had the advantage of several months to focus his attacks. While polling suggests the Texas GOP remains divided after the particularly messy Senate primary, Paxton said, “Primaries are like that for Democrats and Republicans” and “we are coming together.”

TALARICO TOUTS TEXAS ROOTS AS OUT-OF-STATE CASH POWERS SENATE CAMPAIGN

Attorney General Ken Paxton during the Texas GOP convention in the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, June 12, 2026.(Melissa Phillip/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)

As he travels the state, he said he will continue highlighting the “stark difference” between him and Talarico. Meanwhile, the attorney general said he will be keeping his pitch focused on affordability and cutting regulations.

“We know that Texans need help; we know that Americans need help. That’s why I’m suggesting, and what I’m proposing is a first-time homebuyers’ $50,000 tax deduction, I’m proposing a $25,000 a year deduction for medical expenses including insurance premiums for everyone in the family. The child tax credit being doubled, the Trump accounts being continued. And then a $5,000 healthy living deduction so that you can pay for gym expenses and nutrition programs, sports activities, and even doctor-prescribed GLP-1,” he said.

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“We’re still three months out,” Paxton continued. “And I know that when we put our resources together, when we get there, we will be able to highlight things and once the voters know the real James Talarico, not the fake one that’s running right now… people will get to decide for themselves.”

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“Do we want a socialist Democrat in Texas?” he asked. “I think the answer is going to be absolutely not.”

Peter Pinedo is a politics writer for Fox News Digital.

Trump grows angry over reports on depleted munitions — believing it weakens him in Iran negotiations

2026-08-06T17:32:12.288Z / https://www.cnn.com/2026/08/06/politics/trump-munitions-cabinet-meeting

President Donald Trump has privately complained in recent days that disclosures on the dwindling US munitions stockpile make the United States look weak at a critical juncture, senior US officials said, as he repeatedly threatens additional military action to try and motivate Iran to agree to a deal.

The topic was front and center during last week’s Cabinet meeting at Camp David, when a frustrated Trump raised media coverage of the low munitions stocks, according to six sources familiar with the meeting. Many of those people said Trump has been well aware of any potential problems regarding munitions for months and was not blindsided by the reports.

But he was angry that the information had been exposed at an inflection point in the conflict and that it continues to be an increasingly public issue at a time when he wants to project a position of strength, they said.

“The U.S. has massive amounts of ‘munitions,’ especially of certain types,” Trump wrote on Truth Social just after midnight on Thursday. “Additionally, large amounts are being manufactured and shipped to the U.S. as needed. Defense companies are building the largest number of plants and factories in our country’s history.”

Still, Trump appeared to acknowledge that at least some of the information circulating about the stockpiles was accurate. He said his administration would seek “long term jail sentences” for those found to have made the information public.

So far, his ire has not been directed specifically at Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, White House officials insist. In another Truth Social post on Thursday, Trump said he was “extremely happy with the job that Pete Hegseth is doing.”

“He has never blamed Pete. This is all about the leakers,” one official said.

Trump has tasked the Justice Department with finding what he calls “treasonous” individuals within the administration who are disclosing the information, according to officials.

His anger came to a head over the last several weeks, after a number of news stories described the US military being low on munitions.

CNN reported this week the military has burned through nearly four-fifths of its THAAD missile inventory compared to pre-war numbers and roughly half of its Patriot interceptors since the start of the war, according to two sources familiar with the latest inventory report.

The Center for Strategic and International Studies estimates the United States had around 2,200 Patriots (of the platform’s two most-modernized variants) and 452 THAAD missiles in its stockpile before the Iran war started.

The numbers worry not only American officials, but also leaders in the Gulf, who have raised fresh concerns about how a shortage of air defense systems could impact their ability to ward off potential Iranian retaliation if Trump decides to escalate the ongoing conflict.

Several of those countries rely on US air defense systems. Gulf leaders have acknowledged the stockpile shortage could hinder their own ability to intercept incoming Iranian missile and drone attacks, multiple officials said.

Iran has conveyed to Gulf nations that renewed American attacks would result in retaliation on energy sites or desalination facilities across the region, according to a regional official familiar with the conversations. Trump has spoken to the leaders of Qatar and Saudi Arabia over the past week about the war.

As Trump grows angry at the narrative emerging on the stockpiles, officials in the White House have speculated the leaks come from anti-war officials within the administration who are determined to push Trump to extricate the United States from the conflict, the senior White House official said.

The stockpile issue was raised again prior to the president’s decision last weekend to cancel new strikes on Iran, CNN has previously reported. It marked at least the second time in recent weeks that Trump’s senior military advisers have specifically voiced concerns about the dwindling number of key US munitions during discussions about potentially escalating the conflict with Iran.

Questions about the munitions stockpiles date back to the early days of the conflict. In meetings then, Trump raised the issue with Hegseth after news outlets reported on the concerns. At that time, Hegseth assured the president that the Pentagon was working to address the issue.

And before the war began, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine and other military leaders warned Trump that a protracted military campaign could impact US weapons stockpiles — particularly those that support Israel and Ukraine, multiple sources familiar with the matter previously told CNN.

Since then, Trump has blamed the previous administration for allowing the stockpiles to be depleted, including through weapons shipments to Ukraine.

“We have a lot. I’d like to have more, to be honest, but so much was given to Ukraine by Biden,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on July 27.

The Pentagon has long had concerns about the defense industry’s ability to produce weapons quickly enough. Those concerns were only exacerbated by the US war with Iran, after conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine both saw the US contribute weapons to Israel and Kyiv.

In July, Trump met with the CEOs of top defense contractors at the White House as his administration presses the firms to ramp up production of critical weapons. The participants included Lockheed Martin, which produces both the THAAD and Patriot interceptors. A similar meeting took place in March, at the onset of the war.

Also last month, Trump invoked the Defense Production Act to force defense companies to manufacture more weapons. In a document, he wrote that he finds “that conditions exist which may pose a direct threat to the national defense or its preparedness programs.”

But those steps could take years and are not likely to immediately boost production.

Sen. Bernie Moreno tells CNN he sent daughter and granddaughter ‘out of state to a secure place’ amid Max Miller allegations

Aug 6, 2026, 12:46 PM ET / CNN

By Jake Tapper

US Sen. Bernie Moreno on August 6, in Washington, DC.

Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Sen. Bernie Moreno told CNN that he sent his daughter, Emily Moreno, his granddaughter and his wife “out of state to a secure place” as GOP Rep. Max Miller, Emily’s ex-husband, faces heightened scrutiny over abuse allegations, which he denies.

“I sent my daughter, granddaughter, and wife out of state to a secure place until such time as they feel safe,” Moreno told CNN on Thursday.

Miller told CNN this wasn’t true and showed CNN emails showing his ex- wife communicating flight information to him and allowing a video visit with their daughter.

A spokesperson for Miller said, “Congressmen Miller knows exactly where his daughter is. Emily asked to take the child to see family in Florida. They were not wisked away to some bunker. This is getting sad.”

CNN has reached out to a representative for Emily Moreno for comment.

Miller denied any wrongdoing in an interview with CNN on Tuesday and vowed to stay in his reelection race.

Sen. Bernie Moreno over the weekend said that Miller, his former-son-in-law, “should not serve” in Congress, calling him “a danger to my daughter.”

In June, CNN obtained police videos in which Emily Moreno emotionally describes abuse allegations against Miller, including an incident in which she says he held a gun to her. Miller, in separate police interviews, denies he ever abused her, calls his ex-wife “manipulative” and alleges she struggles with mental illness.

Furious pace of AI investment on some Fed officials’ radar now

2026-08-06T17:41:22.338Z / Reuters

Summary

Fed officials are beginning to talk about AI financial stability risks

• NY Fed’s Williams does not see a bubble in AI
• Others on Fed watching with concern finance driving AI investment

Aug 6 (Reuters) – Federal Reserve officials are beginning to mull whether the frenzied investment driving the ​buildout of the artificial intelligence sector is getting out of hand and creating risks for the financial sector.

For now, some ‌of the officials who have tackled the subject call for vigilance, dashed with a sense that a financial crisis mirroring what happened 20 years ago with housing, and to a lesser degree, the dot-com shakeout before that, is probably not in the offing. Still, the scale of investment, the uncertain returns for an unproven technology, the ​rise of tricky financing structures and increased use of debt have moved AI finance onto central bankers’ radar.

“I don’t see ​this as a bubble kind of situation,” Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams said in ⁠an interview with Reuters conducted on Friday.

“What we’re seeing is a very high level of excitement, enthusiasm around new technology, around AI,” Williams said. “Investors ​are trying in real time to solve an almost intractable problem, and that is how big are the benefits of AI going to prove ​to be,” and trying to answer these questions will lead to volatility.

Williams said that while there’s been an increase in borrowing to support the AI investment it is being managed by companies with high earnings, noting, “I’m not as worried about the financial stability from the leverage right now.”

Torsten Slok, chief economist at money manager ​Apollo, said in a research note, “The data-center buildout is still less than half the size of the housing boom, which peaked at 6.6% ​of GDP in 2005,” while at the same time the investment pace relative to GDP has been growing faster than housing did in the run up ‌to the ⁠global financial crisis.

MONITORING TIME

Others on the Fed appear less sanguine about AI risk relative to Williams.

Given how the industry is financing itself “I would argue that, that there’s some signs that we have to really start to talk about that on a macro level, is this industry becoming another too big to fail?” asked Kansas City Fed President Jeff Schmid in a speech on Tuesday.

In particular, he’s worried about the flow of ​financing and how the linkages could ​be a vector where a problem ⁠starts at one stage and then propagates.

Schmid asked, “Does the does the circular motion of a commitment, let’s say a contractual commitment to a data center to an energy provider … to a community that it serves, ​is that, is that circle getting too leveraged? And if you get a spark that starts a ​flame, what happens?”

San ⁠Francisco Fed chief Mary Daly said on Wednesday, “If you just looked at the growth rate and the amount” of investment in the AI space, you could easily say this is “very worrisome.”

Offsetting that anxiety, Daly noted that it’s key that many commitments being made in the AI space are currently announcements ⁠that haven’t ​turned into physical realities, reducing the risk of so-called “stranded assets” that are hard to ​deal with after a shakeout.

That said, the increased rise of borrowing to fuel growth might be an issue, Daly said. For the Fed, “It’s really about putting a dashboard together, ​not of the things that happened in the financial crisis, but what could go wrong that would tip this over.”

Reporting by Michael S. Derby;

Trump allies push to arm president with new tariff weapon to punish countries ‘ripping off’ America

August 6, 2026 2:47pm EDT / Fox News

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FIRST ON FOX: Just as the Trump administration has refunded billions in tariffs to companies in the U.S., a push is growing in the Senate to give the president sharper, more focused tariff powers across the globe.

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., is leading the charge to give President Donald Trump congressional approval for his tariffs, specifically against countries that have longstanding trade deficits with the U.S. after his universal duties were nixed by the Supreme Court.

“Previous generations of Americans gave us an economic superpower; it’s our job to preserve what they built and to leave America better than we found it for our children and grandchildren,” Scott told Fox News Digital in a statement.

“That means we can’t let other countries rip us off.”

TRUMP JUST EXPANDED HIS TARIFF PLAYBOOK WITH A POWERFUL TRADE WEAPON NO PRESIDENT HAS EVER USED

President Donald Trump speaks during a “Make America Wealthy Again” trade announcement event in the Rose Garden at the White House April 2, 2025, in Washington, D.C.(Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images)

Scott’s bill, the Trade Deficit Elimination Act, would effectively create a congressional framework that allows Trump to authorize tariffs where there are trade deficits with the nation’s trade partners that are a detriment to America’s national security, foreign policy interests and economic interests.

It would require the creation of an annual watch list for countries with trade deficits that are identified and compiled by U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. That list would deem each country identified as having “trade deficit economies.”

From there, Scott’s bill would allow Trump to impose, increase, decrease, suspend or modify tariffs on imports from the listed countries in a bid to eliminate bilateral goods trade deficits.

TRUMP BET TARIFFS WOULD BRING BACK AMERICAN FACTORY JOBS; NEW REPORT SAYS IT DIDN’T WORK

https://www..com/video/6402398222112

Trump says tariffs revived manufacturing as factories expand across the US

Trump and Greer would still need to seek consultation from Congress, specifically from the House Ways and Means and Senate Finance committees, but aren’t required to get congressional approval for applying duties to listed countries.

It also exempts certain products considered critical to U.S. supply chains, U.S. supply chains, national security or where alternative sources are unavailable.

“In recent years, our trading partners have taken advantage of access to American markets while unfairly crowding American products out of their own countries,” Scott said. “Decline is a choice, and President Trump is taking action to restore American prosperity.”

DEMOCRATS CHEER SUPREME COURT MOVE BLOCKING TRUMP TARIFFS — DESPITE PAST SUPPORT FOR TRADE DUTIES

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., in the Senate Subway during a vote at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., March 14, 2025.(Allison Robbert/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Scott’s announcement of the bill comes just a day after the Trump administration refunded $100 billion in tariff revenue collected during the president’s “liberation day” explosion of duties across the globe.

Trump issued those tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). But the Supreme Court ruled earlier this year that he didn’t have the authority to do so.

Scott’s bill has so far picked up senators Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., and Tim Sheehy, R-Mont., as co-sponsors, and is a separate authority entirely from the IEEPA. It creates a new power, with congressional teeth, under Article 1, Section 8 directly targeting foreign commerce.

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“Trade should be fair, not one-sided, and it’s refreshing to have a president who isn’t afraid to hold our trading partners accountable,” Cramer said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “This bill gives President Trump and Ambassador Greer tools to address trade deficits, keep critical supply chains intact, and achieve better trade agreements for American farmers, ranchers, manufacturers and workers.”

Alex Miller is a writer for Fox News Digital covering the U.S. Senate.

Trump claims he’s presiding over the ‘greatest economy we’ve ever had by far.’ Most Americans disagree.

1:56 PM EDT, Thu August 6, 2026 / CNN

By Manu Raju, CNN

https://www.cnn.com/2026/08/06/politics/video/inside-politics-trump-economy-pitch-las-vegas-greatest-ever

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Trump claims he’s presiding over the ‘greatest economy we’ve ever had by far.’ Most Americans disagree.

Inside Politics

At a campaign stop in Las Vegas, President Trump pitched his economy to a room full of supporters. The Inside Politics panel breaks down why Americans keep telling pollsters and journalists that the economy isn’t working for them—and why Trump claiming that it is could spell doom for the GOP in November.

2:52 • Source: CNN

Jailed ex-US Marine may be near death in Russia, sister, advocacy groups say

2026-08-06T18:49:37.724Z / Reuters

WASHINGTON, Aug 6 (Reuters) – A former U.S. Marine jailed in Russia since 2022 and allegedly tortured and injected with mind-altering drugs, slipped into a stupor in June and may be close to death, according to two hostage advocacy groups and his sister.

The White House and the State Department have urged Moscow to release Robert Gilman, 32, so he can receive urgent medical treatment in the U.S., said Eric Lebson, chief strategy officer of Global Reach, an advocacy group representing his family. Gilman is being fed through a tube, he said.

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A source familiar with the matter told Reuters they had learned through State Department contacts that Secretary of State Marco Rubio raised the case with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during a meeting in Manila on July 23.

The source, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, said they did not know Lavrov’s response.

Gilman is one of at least 10 Americans known to be imprisoned in Russia. His death would complicate Washington’s ties with Moscow, already strained by the Iran and Ukraine wars and other issues.

“I am more afraid for my brother than I have been since this horrible nightmare started,” Lexie Hudson, Gilman’s sister, said in a statement. “I’m worried that I may never see him again if the Russians don’t release him. I’m worried that he could die.”

A senior Trump administration official, who was also granted anonymity, said the administration “is closely tracking Mr. Gilman’s case and has made repeated, concerted outreach to the Russians calling for his return to the United States.”

“We are deeply concerned about Robert Gilman’s health and continued detention,” the State Department said in a statement.

The Russian embassy did not respond to requests for comment.

MOTHER BARRED FROM VISITING

The Russian hospital has barred Gilman’s mother from visiting him even though she has a judicial order that she be permitted to see her son, Lebson said.

U.S. consular officials were occasionally allowed to visit Gilman in prison, but neither they nor his Russian lawyer have been permitted into the hospital, he added.

Gilman was being held in a prison in Voronezh, about 340 miles (547 kilometers) south of Moscow. He was moved in late June from the prison hospital to the psychiatric ward of a civilian emergency hospital in a catatonic-like state assessed as a “dissociative stupor,” said Lebson.

The World Health Organization’s ICD-10, an internationally used diagnostic classification system, describes a dissociative stupor as “a profound diminution or absence of voluntary movement and normal responsiveness to external stimuli.”

Gilman has been unable to communicate, must receive food and fluids through a tube and his eyes remain shut, Lebson said. The condition has prevented him from attending court hearings.

“It doesn’t seem like he’s getting the care he needs, and we are very concerned for his life and safety,” said Elizabeth Richards, director of hostage advocacy and research at the Foley Foundation, a group that has tracked the case.

A Russian newspaper on July 9 reported Gilman had been moved to a hospital in Voronezh, and quoted his lawyer as saying it was too early for a diagnosis.

FORMER MARINE

Gilman, who served in the U.S. Marines from August 2019 until August 2020, was traveling by train when he was arrested on January 17, 2022, in Voronezh, Lebson said.

He was detained for allegedly kicking a police officer while drunk, according to Russian state media.

However, his father, Vladimir Gilman, who immigrated to Massachusetts from Russia, wrote in an October 11, 2024, Boston Globe op-ed that the charges were false.

His son, he said, had fallen ill when the incident occurred and accidentally kicked the officer. The officer was uninjured, dropped the charges, and did not present evidence in Robert Gilman’s trial, he wrote.

Robert Gilman was sentenced to 4-1/2 years in jail.

Vladimir Gilman wrote that the family had asked the State Department in March 2023 to designate his son as wrongfully detained, a designation that would make winning his release a top U.S. government priority.

Reuters could not learn why the State Department has not made that designation. Lebson said Rubio has not designated any American being held in Russia since Trump began his second term.

Russian state media reported that Robert Gilman’s sentence was extended in 2024 to 10 years for allegedly assaulting prison staff.

Lebson and Richards denied that allegation, saying that Robert Gilman was held in extremely harsh conditions, tortured and injected with mind-altering drugs by guards, treatment that led to his transfer to the civilian hospital.

“We are seriously worried that we could see another situation like Otto Warmbier,” Lebson said.

He was referring to a U.S. college student who was comatose when he was freed in June 2017 by North Korea after 17 months in prison. Warmbier died the same month in a U.S. hospital from severe brain damage of an unknown cause without regaining consciousness.

Reporting by Jonathan Landay, Editing by Don Durfee and Rod Nickel