Senator Susan Collins helped a Hawaiian defense contractor, Navatek, land multimillion-dollar government contracts in Maine in exchange for hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations and was being investigated by the FBI, until the Trump “eviscerated” the anti-corruption squads within the FBI.

Trump’s FBI Scrapped Bribery Investigation Linked to Sen. Susan Collins

A top donor told agents his company won millions in federal contracts by bankrolling campaigns of powerful politicians.

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Gov. Andy Beshear said that he still has concerns about Sen. Mitch McConnell’s ability to serve in Congress. “I think anybody who actually watches the video has concerns, both for him and for the position.” “This is what’s broken about the current Senate: they don’t think they work for anybody.”

Beshear Expresses Concerns About McConnell, Says His Return Shows Senate Is “Broken”

“I still have concerns, and I think anybody who actually watches the video [of McConnell] has concerns,” Beshear said.

truthout.org

The legal system that the Trump administration has been weaponizing against immigrants and the left is not something of its own creation. They inherited this legal machinery from the war on terror, and until we dismantle it, all of us are at risk. Please, please read this.

Truthout@truthout.org · 21h ago

After 9/11, the US built a separate system of justice — a national security exception to the Constitution — that largely targeted Muslims. While non-Muslims were assured it would never apply to them, that assurance has expired. It is now being used to take aim at immigrants and the left.

Twelve Democratic-led states settled their challenge to Paramount’s Warner Bros. merger, clearing a key hurdle. The deal creates CNN and CBS editorial boards, but Paramount’s directors will appoint all five members.

Democratic States Cave on Paramount Merger Lawsuit in Win for Billionaire Owners

The settlement will place CNN and CBS News under control of a group chosen by the conglomerate’s board of directors.

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Germany’s Die Linke won Berlin’s state election with 25.7% of the vote, its first victory there, as the far-right AfD won Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania with about 38.2%, underscoring the country’s widening political divide.

This Rising Leftist Party Hopes to Turn Back Germany’s Fascist Wave

The leftist Die Linke party won the most votes in Berlin, even as the far right AfD won a state election in the north.

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People deported by the U.S. to Equatorial Guinea under third-country agreements report indefinite confinement, violence, poor food and medical care, and cut-off contact with families and lawyers. Two men were reportedly beaten and detained after speaking out.

US Deportees Sent to Equatorial Guinea Decry Inhumane Conditions, Imprisonment

Individuals deported there under “third-country agreements” have been denied the ability to contact their families.

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After 9/11, the US built a separate system of justice — a national security exception to the Constitution — that largely targeted Muslims. While non-Muslims were assured it would never apply to them, that assurance has expired. It is now being used to take aim at immigrants and the left.

The National Security Exception Was Never Going to Stop at Prosecuting Muslims

For 25 years, the US ran a parallel legal system targeting Muslims. It now reaches activists, immigrants, and the left.

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Scott Bessent said that the U.S. will unleash new sanctions aimed at cutting off Iranian airlines from global travel, “If they land, you cannot provide them with fuel. You cannot provide them with landing services, you cannot sell them tickets, or you will be knocked out of the dollar system.”

Bessent Says New US Sanctions Will “Shut Down” All Iranian Airlines Worldwide

The announcement comes after Trump made his latest genocidal threat to “blow the entire nation up.”…

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The major U.S. television networks launched what was described as a boycott against TV pool coverage of President Donald Trump on Monday after the White House dropped CNN from the network’s scheduled pool assignment.

TV Networks Decline Pool Coverage After Trump Bans News Outlets from White House

CNN, MS NOW, and Politico are suing the Trump administration for banning their networks from the White House.

truthout.org

Democrats in the Senate Agriculture Committee have refused to support a farm bill that doesn’t restore SNAP funding; they have also pushed for a delay in a crucial change to SNAP that would increase states’ administrative costs for running the food assistance program. Via @grist.org

Congress Has Not Passed a Farm Bill Since 2018. This Year May Be No Different.

Democrats in the Senate Agriculture Committee have refused to support a farm bill that doesn’t restore SNAP funding.

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A UN report has concluded that the U.S.’s boat strike campaign in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean has violated international law and “plausibly” amounts to crimes against humanity, a label reserved for the worst human rights violations in global conflicts.

UN Report Finds US Boat Strikes Violate International Law, Are “Plausibly” Crimes Against Humanity

The report says that the US must prosecute those responsible, suggesting murder charges.

truthout.org

The U.S. reportedly “almost started a war” earlier this year over an errant report created by an analyst using AI to determine the contents of a ship from China in the Middle East. The “entirely false” AI report said that the ship was transporting components that could help build a nuclear weapon.

Report: AI-Generated “Intel” Nearly Sparked US War With China

The analysis was produced by a human but relied on false claims that an AI model had provided to them.

truthout.org

An ICE agent shot Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, 28, of Venezuela, who has a valid work permit and entered the U.S. legally. His attorney said he was doing a DoorDash delivery when he was shot. DHS officials said that his condition has stabilized, before suggesting that they are seeking to deport him.

ICE Shoots Man in Austin Doing Food Delivery, Spurring Protests

The shooting of Wilber Rafael Garces Perez came more than two months after an ICE officer fatally shot a man in Houston.

truthout.org

Northwestern is the latest university to restructure its program as the Trump administration continues to target DEI in higher education. buff.ly/6b2j4ao

Black and African Studies Programs Are Disappearing From College Campuses

Over a dozen public and private colleges and universities in the US have closed, merged, or scaled back these programs.

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The Clear Labels Act, designed to alert consumers to where their drugs were made, is headed for a full Senate vote. buff.ly/Ln4C88V

Experts Say Drug Transparency Bill Has Been Stripped of Critical Provisions

The Clear Labels Act, designed to alert consumers to where their drugs were made, is headed for a full Senate vote.

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Across three major data center companies, no one appears to accept explicit responsibility for ensuring proper tribal consultation. buff.ly/Zm2X6Xx

Big Tech Is Trampling Native Treaty Rights to Build Data Centers

Tribal consultation isn’t optional, but the corporations building data centers in New Mexico are acting like it is.

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Millions had fled along the highway I had taken. Behind them Iraq was riven, its wounds pried open and left unsutured. buff.ly/4m7kCAl

Walking September 11’s Other Crime Scenes

Millions had fled along the highway I had taken. Behind them Iraq was riven, its wounds pried open and left unsutured.

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Michigan is giving an Israeli military company $1 million to build a hub in the same state where thousands of residents are watching Israel demolish their homeland. “I’m sure most Michiganders would agree that legitimizing war crimes for potentially creating 125 jobs is a moral catastrophe.”

Truthout@truthout.org · 3d ago

Rep. Rashida Tlaib says Capture Systems has “no place in our state and should not be receiving a dime of public funds.” buff.ly/6enmhe0

The report raises questions regarding the military’s line-of-duty investigations following service member deaths. buff.ly/nCmvs3q

Pentagon Is Undercounting US Death Toll Amid Iran War, Washington Post Reports

The report raises questions regarding the military’s line-of-duty investigations following service member deaths.

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The proposed copper sulfide mine threatens to unleash 40 million tons of toxic waste in Michigan’s wetlands. buff.ly/HGBbvRy

Indigenous Tribes Form Resistance Camp Against Proposed Copper Mine in Michigan

The proposed copper sulfide mine threatens to unleash 40 million tons of toxic waste in Michigan’s wetlands.

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California could put money directly into the hands of families harmed by oil drilling, testing an approach advocates hope will spread nationwide. buff.ly/11EolqC

Some Black Los Angelenos May Soon Receive Environmental Reparations

New legislation would steer $5 million collected from penalized oil wells into cash aid for 1,000 nearby households.

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Rep. Rashida Tlaib says Capture Systems has “no place in our state and should not be receiving a dime of public funds.” buff.ly/6enmhe0

Arab Americans Feel Betrayed After Michigan Grants $1 Million to Israeli Military Contractor

Rep. Rashida Tlaib says Capture Systems has “no place in our state and should not be receiving a dime of public funds.”…

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The decision found that immigrants must have an opportunity to challenge their removal if they fear for their safety. buff.ly/bJvXThy

Appeals Court Blocks Trump Policy to Rapidly Deport Migrants to Third Countries

The decision found that immigrants must have an opportunity to challenge their removal if they fear for their safety.

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Federal courts have previously struck down attempts by Trump to bar certain press outlets on First Amendment grounds. buff.ly/OJT3HfA

Trump Says He’s Banning CNN, MS NOW, and Politico From the White House

“These outrageous attacks only demonstrate how scared he is of an informed public,” said one press freedom advocate.

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In the midst of the highest numbers of measles cases seen in decades, RFK Jr. gave a speech to an anti-vaccine group he once led, seeking to assure members that he was still allied with them. “Let me be clear. You have a strong and steadfast friend at the White House.”

“You Have a Strong and Steadfast Friend at the White House,” RFK Jr. Tells Anti-Vax Group

Kennedy’s remark comes as measles cases in the US are at their highest levels seen in decades.

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Organizers in Palm Beach County, Florida, are fighting to stop the county from investing further in bonds that help fund Israel’s genocide. The county already holds $1 billion in Israel Bonds, making its investment the largest in the world and 3 times the next highest investor, the State of Florida.

Organizers Aim to Thwart Purchase of Israel Bonds by World’s Largest Investor

Palm Beach County, Florida, has invested $1 billion in Israel Bonds — more than any other single investor in the world.

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The Trump administration is reportedly considering a dozen data center projects to be built on public lands, a plan that would grant tech firms at least 17,600 acres of protected lands across six states — Arizona, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah and Wyoming.

There Are 0 Data Centers on Public Lands. Trump Is Considering Building 12.

The Trump administration quietly fast tracked a data center project in Nevada earlier this year.

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A coalition of civil rights groups have sued the Trump administration to prevent the deployment of ICE agents to polls, arguing that the policy violates the federal law that prohibits “armed men” at election sites, and also causes voter intimidation, which is barred under the Voting Rights Act.

Trump Administration Faces Second Lawsuit to Keep ICE Agents Away From Polls

Groups argue federal law prohibits “armed men” at election sites, and agents’ presence causes voter intimidation.

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Newly unsealed court documents from a lawsuit of news organizations, including The New York Times, and 10 other publications that are suing Microsoft and OpenAI for copyright infringement, reveal that AI executives recognize the dangers that their own work poses to the future of journalism.

Court Filing Shows OpenAI Execs Hoped to Make “Gazillions” After Feeding Its AI Model Journalists’ Work

Executives said that “millions of people” could view their product as committing “theft of unprecedented proportions.”…

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Senators Markey, Merkley and Sanders introduced legislation to block a sale of $5 billion worth of bombs and bomb kits to Saudi Arabia, protesting the kingdom’s human rights abuses amid its escalation in fighting in Yemen.

Markey Moves to Block $5B US Bombs Sale to Saudi Arabia Amid Yemen Escalation

The State Department’s announcement of the sale comes as the administration is also pursuing a US-Saudi nuclear deal.

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