Prepared for the Office of Public Affairs (OPA)
U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Editorial Note: The DHS Daily Briefing is a collection of news articles related to Department’s mission. The inclusion of particular stories is not intended to reflect their importance, nor is it intended to endorse the political viewpoints or affiliations included in news coverage.

Washington Examiner [8/30/2025 3:34 PM, Staff, 1563K] reports border czar Tom Homan told reporters that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations will expand after Labor Day in sanctuary cities nationwide, including Seattle, Wash., and Portland, Ore. "You’re going to see a ramp up of operations in New York. You’re going to see a ramp up of operations continue in L.A. and, you know, Portland, Seattle," Homan told reporters gathered near the White House. "I mean, all these sanctuary cities refuse to work with ICE … we’re going to address that.” Homan said some other states are complying and working with ICE. "We don’t have that problem in Texas and Florida, where all the sheriffs are working with us and they’re actually holding people for us and letting us know when someone’s being released," he said. "So, we’re going to take the assets we have and move them to problem areas like sanctuary cities, where we know for a fact they’re releasing public safety threat illegal aliens to the streets every day. That’s where we need to send the majority of the resources, and that’s where they’re going.” Homan was in Portland on Aug. 21 to meet with ICE personnel. After the visit, Portland Mayor Keith Wilson reaffirmed the city’s sanctuary status and said city employees, including police officers, will not assist in ICE operations. "I was in San Diego and Portland in the last week meeting with the men and women of ICE to understand the hate that’s being pushed against them and letting them know the President has their six," Homan said. "I have their six.” The Center Square contacted Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell’s office on Friday for comment on what the nation’s border czar had to say. "Seattle will not be intimidated by the Trump administration’s threats. Suggesting that federal immigration raids or deployments of federal agents could soon target our city is not about public safety – it’s about political theater and an overreach of federal authority," said Harrell in a statement emailed to The Center Square. "Seattle is a welcoming city, and our policies comply with both federal and state law. Immigration enforcement is the federal government’s responsibility, not the city’s, and we will not allow our police resources to be commandeered for political purposes. "We are already working closely with Gov. [Bob] Ferguson and Attorney General [Nick] Brown, and have asked the City Attorney’s Office to review every legal option available to protect our residents. We have successfully taken this administration to court before … over its attempts to punish sanctuary cities, and we are prepared to do so again. We will stand firm, protect our communities, and preserve local control over our public safety resources. Seattle’s values are not up for negotiation.” Homan said enforcement operations across the country are improving public safety for Americans. "I look at the numbers every morning," he said. "There’s about 22 pages of data; 70% of everybody arrested is a criminal," he said. "But the left says, ‘Well, not criminal enough. It’s just a DUI.’ DUIs kill over 10,000 people a year. That’s a public safety threat. I don’t care what anybody thinks.” As for the other 30% of arrestees, Homan explained, "We arrested thousands of national security threats. Many of them don’t have a criminal history because their whole goal is to lay low ‘til they do their dirty deed. Gang members. A lot of gang members don’t have a criminal history.” He concluded, "And finally, final deportation orders. People who had due process at great taxpayer expense. They were ordered removed by a federal judge, and they didn’t leave. And we’re looking for them, too, because we’re sending a message to the whole world. It’s not okay to enter this country illegally. It’s a crime.”

CNN [8/30/2025 12:01 PM, Whitney Wild and Piper Hudspeth Blackburn, 662K] reports Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson signed an executive order Saturday laying out initial plans for how the city will try to resist President Donald Trump’s planned immigration crackdown in the coming days. The mayor’s order provides guidance and directives to the city’s agencies and law enforcement "in the midst of escalating threats from the federal government." CNN previously reported the Trump administration is preparing to conduct a major immigration enforcement operation in Chicago as soon as next week, according to multiple sources familiar with the planning. "We may see militarized immigration enforcement. We may also see National Guard troops. We may even see active duty military and armed vehicles in our streets. We have not called for this. Our people have not asked for this, but nevertheless, we find ourselves having to respond to this," Johnson said before signing the executive order on Saturday. The mayor’s order "affirms" that Chicago police will not "collaborate with federal agents on joint law enforcement patrols, arrest operations, or other law enforcement duties including civil immigration enforcement.” The order also "urges" federal law enforcement officers who operate in Chicago "to refrain from wearing masks, to wear and use body cameras and to identify themselves to members of the public with names and badge numbers." Johnson reiterated the city’s police force will be required to wear attire that clearly identifies them. Johnson’s order also directs city departments to "pursue all available legal and legislative avenues to resist coordinated efforts from the federal government" that violate the rights of Chicagoans. The mayor’s order ultimately demands Trump "stand down" from deploying military forces to Chicago for immigration enforcement – but it’s not clear how effective it will be in stopping Trump’s plans. It marks the latest effort to push back on the Trump administration’s attacks on Democratic-led cities. The move comes as Trump has signaled expanding his law enforcement efforts in Los Angeles and Washington, DC to cities across the country. CNN has previously reported that the administration’s plans for Chicago would be different from the ongoing law enforcement crackdown in the nation’s capital. Instead, they are expected to look like Trump’s deployment of the National Guard in June to Los Angeles to quell immigration protests. Trump is currently facing a legal challenge over that deployment. Reuters [8/30/2025 5:46 PM, Susan Heavey, 45746K] reports that the White House dismissed Johnson’s move and accused Democrats of trying to make tackling crime a partisan issue. "If these Democrats focused on fixing crime in their own cities instead of doing publicity stunts to criticize the President, their communities would be much safer," White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said in a statement. While it is unclear how much state and local officials can do to push back against any U.S. deployment, the mayor said he was pursuing any legal and legislative measures available, including possible lawsuits. "We will use the courts if that’s necessary," Johnson said. Trump, meanwhile, has repeatedly said he wants to be asked for federal agents to be deployed to various cities even as he continues to threaten to send them anyway without any formal request. Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, a Democrat whose name has also been floated as a possible 2028 presidential candidate, has said the president lacks the legal authority to deploy troops to his state if not requested by the governor. That differs from Washington, a federal city whose police department Trump took over. Previous deployments of the National Guard to Chicago were coordinated with local officials. A president’s power to send in troops is limited under U.S. law, but there are no restrictions on the deployment of federal law enforcement officers such as ICE agents.NBC News [8/30/2025 4:24 PM, Alexandra Marquez, 43603K] reports Johnson’s move comes as the president has already deployed troops and federal law enforcement to Washington, D.C., and as he’s increasingly threatened to do the same in other major American cities, like Baltimore. Most Democratic officials have so far pushed back on Trump’s threats to send troops to American cities, with over a dozen Democratic governors on Thursday releasing a statement condemning the president’s actions. "Whether it’s Illinois, Maryland and New York or another state tomorrow, the President’s threats and efforts to deploy a state’s National Guard without the request and consent of that state’s governor is an alarming abuse of power, ineffective, and undermines the mission of our service members," the governors said in the statement. "This chaotic federal interference in our states’ National Guard must come to an end.” On Friday, Trump border czar Tom Homan told Fox News that the administration was looking into action in Chicago. "Chicago is coming, along with every other sanctuary city," Homan said. "President Trump is committed that we’re going to focus on and prioritize sanctuary cities because that is where the problem is.” "Get out of the way, because we’re going to do it," Homan said later when asked about potential pushback from local officials.

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Los Angeles Times [8/30/2025 10:22 PM, Margery A. Beck, 12715K]
New York Post [8/30/2025 8:05 PM, Anna Young, 43962K]
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The Hill [8/30/2025 5:03 PM, Filip Timotija, 12414K]
AP [8/30/2025 6:52 PM, Margery A. Beck, 2608K]
Chicago Tribune [8/30/2025 3:08 PM, Alice Yin, 5352K]
Washington Examiner [8/30/2025 3:35 PM, Emily Hallas, 1563K]
NewsMax [8/30/2025 6:30 PM, Jim Thomas, 4779K]
Telemundo [8/30/2025 2:12 PM, Staff, 2782K]
Telemundo Washington DC [8/30/2025 12:43 PM, Marian Marval, 46K]

Politico [8/30/2025 6:06 PM, Shia Kapos, 14810K] reports Mayor Brandon Johnson issued an executive order Saturday calling for President Donald Trump to “stand down” on his threat to deploy the National Guard to Chicago. The order also affirms that the Chicago Police Department doesn’t take orders from anyone other than the mayor. Chicago police will not “collaborate with federal agents on joint law enforcement patrols, arrest operations, or other law enforcement duties including civil immigration enforcement,” according to the order. Johnson’s directive also urges the federal law enforcement officers on the ground in Chicago “to refrain from wearing masks” and to identify themselves by agency and badge number. Chicago Police, including undercover officers, will be required to wear their full uniforms. “It gives a clear directive” about who’s in charge, Johnson told reporters after signing the order. “This is about making a clear distinction about what our law enforcement engages in vs. what the federal government engages in. This president is not going to come in and deputize our police department.” The mayor’s executive order follows a memo from the Department of Homeland Security requesting use of the Naval Station Great Lakes north of Chicago as a home base for immigration operations in Chicago. Local officials said nearby suburbs could be affected, too. Separately, Trump has vowed to send the National Guard to Chicago to address crime, similar to actions his administration took in Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles. In response, the White House slammed Johnson and Democrats more broadly for “doing publicity stunts” to criticize Trump, and praised the DC mayor for her tempered response to the administration’s takeover. “They should listen to fellow Democrat Mayor Muriel Bowser who recently celebrated the Trump Administration’s success in driving down violent crime in Washington DC,” said Abigail Jackson, a White House spokeswoman. Johnson, who has spoken to LA Mayor Karen Bass, said his office expects an “expansive slew” of federal agents are being sent to Chicago “as early as Friday.” Johnson and Gov. JB Pritzker have both criticized the Trump administration for not communicating its plans. Without any information, the city is preparing by using the playbook it followed during the Democratic National Convention, which drew large protests that were considered peaceful.

The Hill [8/30/2025 7:14 PM, Sarah Polus, 12414K] reports President Trump doubled down on his warnings to Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D) on Saturday to get Chicago crime under control or possibly be subjected to a federal law enforcement takeover. "Six people were killed, and 24 people were shot, in Chicago last weekend, and JB Pritzker, the weak and pathetic Governor of Illinois, just said that he doesn’t need help in preventing CRIME," Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. "He is CRAZY!!! He better straighten it out, FAST, or we’re coming! MAGA. President DJT.” Trump’s threat marks the latest in the back-and-forth between the president and the Democratic governor since Trump suggested he would deploy National Guard troops in Chicago in comments earlier this month. Trump and Pritzker, a potential 2028 presidential candidate, have traded barbs in recent days, with Trump often citing Chicago crime statistics in his notes. ‘Panic stricken Governor Pritzker says that crime is under control, when in fact it is just the opposite. He is an incompetent Governor who should call me for HELP," Trump wrote in a similar post earlier this week. Pritzker challenged Trump’s Chicago crime assertions in a Wednesday post on X, writing, "According to federal data, 13 of the top 20 cities in homicide rates have Republican governors. None of those cities are Chicago. 8 of the top 10 states in homicide rates are led by Republicans. None of those states are Illinois. And yet Trump is sending troops here. Pritzker earlier this week cautioned Trump against sending the National Guard to the Windy City, as he has with other Democrat-run cities, including Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. Pritzker called the move "exactly the type of overreach that our country’s founders warned against.” Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson (D) also hit back at Trump’s plans by signing a Saturday executive order detailing how the Windy City will attempt to respond to President Trump’s potential move. "The City of Chicago will do everything in our power to defend our democracy and protect our communities. With this executive order, we send a resounding message to the federal government: we do not need nor want an unconstitutional and illegal military occupation of our city," Johnson said in a statement. Trump has touted a drop in crime in Washington, D.C., since he began his federal takeover of the nation’s capital earlier this month. "DC is virtually, in just 14 days, a CRIME FREE ZONE. The people living and working there are ecstatic!!! President DJT," Trump also wrote on Truth Social on Saturday.

The Hill [8/30/2025 11:46 AM, Filip Timotija, 12414K] reports Attorney General Pam Bondi ousted a Justice Department (DOJ) staffer for “inappropriate conduct” toward National Guard troops who are deployed to patrol the nation’s capital amid President Trump’s federal police takeover. Bondi terminated Elizabeth Baxter, who worked in the DOJ’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. The staffer reportedly bragged to a DOJ security guard earlier this month that she told a soldier at the Metro Center stop, “F**k the National Guard” and flipped them off, Bondi told The Post. The following week, she similarly told another security guard that she despises the National Guard and purportedly told them to “F**k off!” Baxter is the second DOJ employee who was fired by Bondi this month for behavior deemed unacceptable. Sean Dunn was ousted from the DOJ after allegedly throwing a sandwich at a Customs and Border Protection agent in protest of their deployment to the district. This week, Dunn was charged with misdemeanor assault after a felony indictment failed to stick.

The Hill [8/30/2025 10:28 AM, Anna Kutz, 12414K] reports the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Friday announced it will allot $110 million to more than 600 faith-based organizations and nonprofits for security improvements. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem’s announcement follows a deadly shooting at a Catholic school in Minnesota that killed two and injured 18 others. Police say the 23-year-old shooter "expressed hate towards almost every group imaginable." "In the face of violent criminals and radical organizations intent on hurting American communities, the Trump Administration is helping houses of worship, schools and community centers to harden their defenses against attacks and protect themselves," Noem wrote in a post online. The funds would be administered through the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) existing nonprofit security grant program, which doles out cash for "physical security enhancements and activities to nonprofit organizations that are at high risk of terrorist attack," according to its website. The money could be used for cameras, gates, lighting, training programs for staff and warning and alert systems, Noem said. The additional $110 million is roughly 45 percent of the grant program’s FY 2025 budget, which sits at $274.5 million.

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Washington Examiner [8/30/2025 11:31 PM, Sydney Topf, 1563K] reports

Reuters [8/30/2025 11:47 PM, Matt Mcknight, 45746K] reports two firefighters who were responding to a wildfire in the state of Washington when they were detained by U.S. border agents are being held at an ICE detention center in Tacoma, a U.S. congresswoman said on Saturday. U.S. Rep. Emily Randall, a Democrat who represents the district where the detention center is located and the fire is burning, told Reuters she made an unannounced visit to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility on Saturday. She said she was not allowed inside, but that officials there confirmed they were holding the two people working for companies that had been contracted to help fight the 9,000-acre Bear Gulch fire in the Olympic National Forest. Federal officials have not named the two arrested on Wednesday. Randall said she had been unable to speak to the detained firefighters. In a letter to U.S. Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon on Thursday, lawyer Stephen Manning said his Portland, Oregon, firm was representing one of those arrested, an Oregon resident Manning said was unlawfully detained. Manning, who was seeking Wyden’s help in gaining his client’s release, said the man had come to the United States with his family as a four-year-old about 19 years ago and was awaiting a response to a visa application made after he and his family were victims of a crime in Oregon. According to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection statement on Thursday, the Bureau of Land Management had terminated contracts with the firefighting companies after completing an unspecified criminal investigation. The BLM asked for Border Patrol help verifying the identities of 44 members of the companies’ work crews. Two of those people were arrested after being determined to be in the U.S. illegally while the other 42 were escorted off the federally owned land. "What’s really troubling to me this week is the unprecedented coordination between BLM and Border Patrol to raid an active response site," she said. "This 9,000-acre fire has yet to burn a home or kill anyone, but that is because of the incredible work of fire crews who are managing timber, who are cutting firebreaks to ensure that the fire doesn’t spread into more populated areas.” A U.S. Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said on Friday that the detained people were providing support roles and not actively fighting the fire when Border Patrol agents conducted the identity check. The department said their arrests did not affect firefighting.

New York Post [8/31/2025 1:33 AM, Shane Galvin, 43962K] reports the three victims of the Indian immigrant truck driver who made an illegal U-turn across a Florida highway earlier this month have been identified as Haitian immigrants, according to officials. The driver Herby Dufresne, 30, and passengers Faniola Joseph, 27, and Rodrigue Dor, 53, all Haitian immigrants, were in their minivan when it plowed into the side of an 18-wheeler driven by Harjinder Singh, an immigrant from India, on Aug. 12, the Miami Herald reported. Dufresne arrived in Miami in December 2023 from Port-au-Prince and was given a two-year permit to live and work in the US after obtaining a financial sponsor under a Biden-era program, the outlet reported, citing a friend of the victim. No information was provided on Joseph and Dor’s arrival or immigration status other than that they previously lived in Florida, the Miami Herald reported. The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to a request for comment. At the time of the fatal accident, all three men were on the way to Indiana, where Dor relocated after failing to secure work in Miami, a friend told the outlet. Footage from the driver’s side of Singh’s truck showed him making a wide U-turn on the Florida Turnpike — with the minivan plowing into its side and wedging itself partially underneath the tow bed. The 28-year-old barely reacts to the visibly devastating crash, video showed. Singh, an illegal migrant from India, came to the United States in 2018, failed English proficiency exams administered by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration after the April 12 crash. He was able to accurately read only one of four signs he was presented during that test, Department of Transportation officials said. After being nearly deported in 2018, Singh was granted a work permit under the Biden administration in 2021. The now-Florida inmate received his commercial driver’s license in California in 2024 and received one in Washington in 2023, according to the DOT. CDL tests are only administered in English in California, while in Washington, they can be taken in English, Spanish, Russian, or Serbian-Croatian.

AP [8/30/2025 10:09 PM, Aamer Madhani] reports a federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration from carrying out speedy deportations of undocumented migrants detained in the interior of the United States. The move is a setback for President Trump’s efforts to expand the use of the federal expedited removal statute to quickly remove some undocumented migrants without appearing before a judge first. Trump promised to engineer a massive deportation operation during his 2024 campaign if voters returned him to the White House. And he set a goal of carrying out 1 million deportations a year in his second term. But U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb suggested the administration’s expanded use of the expedited removal of migrants is trampling on due process rights. She added that "prioritizing speed over all else will inevitably lead the Government to erroneously remove people via this truncated process."

Breitbart [8/30/2025 5:24 PM, Elizabeth Weibel, 2608K] reports illegal alien and accused MS-13 gang member Kilmar Abrego Garcia is seeking a gag order against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Attorney General Pam Bondi. In a motion filed on Thursday, attorneys for Abrego Garcia claimed that the Trump administration has "targeted" Abrego Garcia, who the Democrats and media have described as a "Maryland Man," according to the Hill. Abrego Garcia’s attorneys claimed that the Trump administration has leveled "highly prejudicial, inflammatory and false statements" against their client. Abrego Garcia’s attorneys said in a motion filed to U.S District Judge Waverly Crenshaw: To safeguard his right to a fair trial, Mr. Abrego respectfully renews his earlier requests that the Court order that all DOJ and DHS officials involved in this case, and all officials in their supervisory chain, including [Bondi and Noem], refrain from making extrajudicial comments that poise a substantial likelihood of materially prejudicing this proceeding,. The gag order against Noem and Bondi comes as Abrego Garcia’s attorneys have revealed that the illegal alien is seeking asylum in the United States, as he fears being deported to Uganda. Breitbart News’s John Binder reported that since a federal judge ordered Abrego Garcia to be released from a jail in Tennessee, he has been under Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody: Abrego Garcia is currently in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody in Virginia after a federal judge allowed him to be released from jail ahead of a human smuggling trial against him. Abrego Garcia, who Democrats and the media have described as a "Maryland Man," was deported to El Salvador earlier this year. While Democrats and the media have continued to defend him, the White House has pushed back, claiming that Abrego Garcia was allegedly a "leader, of the brutal MS-13 gang.” "The administration maintains the position that this individual — who was deported to El Salvador, and will not be returning to our country was a member of the brutal and vicious MS-13 gang. That is fact number one," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in April. "Fact number two, we also have credible intelligence proving that this individual was involved in human trafficking. And, fact number three, this individual was a member, actually a leader, of the brutal MS-13 gang — which this President has designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.” Breitbart News has reported that Abrego Garcia — who has denied being involved with MS-13, has also faced accusations that he beat his wife on several occasions.

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Blaze [8/30/2025 11:30 AM, Joseph MacKinnon, 1559K]

AP [8/30/2025 8:57 AM, Ben Finley, 37974K] reports Kilmar Abrego Garcia ‘s request for asylum in the United States is a prudent legal strategy, experts say, because it gives his lawyers better options for fighting the Trump administration’s efforts to deport him. But it’s also a gamble. Depending on how the courts rule, Abrego Garcia could end up back inside the notorious El Salvador prison where he claims he was beaten and psychologically tortured. “It’s a strategic move,” Memphis-based immigration attorney Andrew Rankin said of the asylum request. “And it can certainly backfire. But it’s something I would do as well if I were representing him.” Abrego Garcia, 30, became a flashpoint over President Donald Trump’s immigration policies when he was wrongfully deported to his native country in March. The Republican administration is trying to deport him again. Asylum, however, could end the fight. The request would place the focus solely back on his native El Salvador, where Abrego Garcia has previously shown that he has a credible fear of gang persecution. But he’s taking a risk by reopening his 2019 immigration case, Rankin said. If he loses the bid for asylum, an immigration judge could remove his protection from being returned to his native country. That could place him back in the infamous Terrorism Confinement Center, or CECOT. It’s where, Abrego Garcia alleges in a lawsuit, he suffered severe beatings, severe sleep deprivation and psychological torture. El Salvador’s president, Nayib Bukele, has denied those allegations. Abrego Garcia had applied for asylum in 2019. The immigration judge denied his request because it came more than a year after Abrego Garcia had arrived in the U.S. He had fled to Maryland without documentation around 2011. Abrego Garcia’s lawyers will likely argue that he has the right to request asylum now because he has been in the U.S. for less than a year after being wrongfully deported to El Salvador, Rankin said. If approved, asylum could provide him with a green card and a path to citizenship.

Breitbart [8/30/2025 7:25 PM, Elizabeth Weibel, 2608K] reports the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is launching a review to begin removing illegal aliens from Section 8 housing and requesting proof of U.S. citizenship for tenants in HUD-funded housing. HUD Secretary Scott Turner revealed on Friday that the agency was "requesting" each Public Housing Authority (PHA) "provide a full and comprehensive accounting" of all tenants who are either living in HUD-funded housing, or who are receiving a Section 8 voucher, within 30 days. HUD also requested proof of U.S. citizenship or "eligible immigration status.” "Within 30 days of receipt of this notice, HUD is requesting that every Public Housing Authority (PHA) provide a full and comprehensive accounting of all tenants who are receiving a Section 8 voucher and/or residing in HUD-funded housing," Turner said. "HUD is requiring the name, mailing address, number of bedrooms, the cost of the unit, and proof of American citizenship or eligible immigration status as defined by the law.” "No longer will illegal aliens be able to leave citizenship boxes blank or take advantage of HUD-funded housing, riding the coattails of hardworking American citizens," Turner continued. Turner continued to note that currently, "HUD only serves one out of four eligible families due, in part, to the lack of enforcement of prohibition against federally funded assistance to illegal aliens.” "HUD will leverage all available enforcement actions against entities who do not comply with the request for citizenship information, including, but not limited to, examination of HUD funding and/or evaluation of PHA program eligibility," Turner added. During an interview with Fox News’s Charles Hurt on Jesse Watters Primetime, Turner explained that the agency had informed "over 3,000 other PHAs" of the same requirements, according to Fox News. "American citizens will be prioritized when it comes to living in HUD-funded government-funded housing. We just sent out a letter to the D.C. Housing Authority, and it has been received by them," Turner said, adding that they have "30 days" to give a "full, comprehensive account of everyone living inside of D.C. Housing Authorities that are receiving Section 8 vouchers, or any type of HUD-funding.” HUD’s "Housing Choice Voucher Program," which is also known as Section 8, is described as helping "low-income families, elderly persons, veterans and disabled individuals afford housing in the private market," according to HUD’s website. Those in the program can pick "any eligible housing unit, including single-family homes, townhomes, and apartments, with rent partially covered by a subsidy paid directly to the landlord.” In April, Turner wrote a letter to HUD grantees and stakeholders clarifying that "no taxpayer dollars will be given to organizations that support, house, shelter, or provide care to illegal aliens who broke the law.” FOX News [8/30/2025 11:12 AM, Cameron Arcand, 40019K] reports that in March, Turner and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem signed a Memorandum of Understanding to scrutinize public housing due to the surge of illegal immigration during the Biden administration.

AP [8/30/2025 2:36 PM, Byron Tau and Lindsay Whitehurst] reports it’s a scene that has played out on the streets of Washington and Los Angeles since President Donald Trump declared a crime emergency in the nation’s capital and ramped up deportations nationwide: Federal agents, some in masks, grabbing someone off the street, bundling the person into a car and driving away, ignoring questions from bystanders. In an executive order signed this month, Trump said the District of Columbia government’s "failure to maintain public order and safety has had a dire impact on the Federal Government’s ability to operate" and that it was his duty as president to use federal agents to restore order. He has threatened to expand those operations — law enforcement duties traditionally reserved for local police — to other cities. Urban leaders, police officials and civil rights advocates say federal agents are not the best equipped for this type of policing. They also are concerned the strategy will erode the delicate relationship that local police have with the communities they serve.

NewsMax [8/30/2025 5:24 PM, Sandy Fitzgerald, 4779K] reports all of the lawyers assigned to the Justice Department’s Sanctuary Cities Enforcement task force have now resigned, with the final member departing this week, after claiming they were not given substantive legal duties. "The assignment was a sham," Bonnie Robin-Vergeer, a former chief of the Civil Rights Division’s appellate section who left after six weeks, told Washington Post. "We did very little.” The task force was created in the first weeks of the Trump administration, with about a dozen senior career attorneys reassigned from high-profile divisions, including civil rights and national security. But rather than being assigned to serious cases, the lawyers were directed to conduct basic research into sanctuary city policies and were not involved in lawsuits filed against cities such as Los Angeles, New York, and Denver. Some participants compared the reassignment to New York City’s "rubber rooms," where teachers accused of misconduct were paid to sit idle while awaiting disciplinary decisions. The group’s members, many with decades of senior-level experience, sometimes referred to the office as the "VIP rubber room.” A DOJ spokesperson declined to comment, but the departures come as the administration faces challenges over personnel actions, which have included the dismissals of dozens of lower- and mid-level career staffers. Many of those who were dismissed have filed appeals with the Merit Systems Protection Board, arguing the firings violated due process. This month, the board ordered the reinstatement of two immigration judges, a decision the administration could continue to contest. Senior employees placed in the sanctuary cities working group have less recourse because they were not formally fired. Some resigned immediately, while others opted into a deferred resignation program that allowed them to collect paychecks until Sept. 30. Robin-Vergeer said she initially accepted the reassignment in hopes of eventually returning to her old post, while others stayed on while searching for outside jobs. Several attorneys said they continued to study legal issues around sanctuary cities, expecting they might be asked for input. That request never came. "At first, when we asked about what they needed from us, no one would know," one former member said. "The whole thing was bizarre.” The reassignments were largely issued before Attorney General Pam Bondi took office in February, which avoided a federal guideline requiring a 120-day moratorium on certain reassignments after new leadership arrives. Federal law prohibits most political appointees from unilaterally moving career employees, though the rule does not apply to members of the Senior Executive Service, which includes several of the attorneys reassigned.

Washington Post [8/31/2025 5:00 AM, Emma Uber, 32099K] reports U.S. Park Police have initiated at least 10 car chases in the past three weeks as part of President Donald Trump’s surge in federal law enforcement in D.C., court records show. They’re pursuing drivers they tried to stop for tinted windows and fake tags, broken headlights and running a stop sign. A driver with a minor in the back seat struck a tree, then a guardrail. Another accelerated to more than 80 mph before hitting multiple cars on Interstate 295. A third nearly hit a detective before flipping the car. Court records reviewed by The Washington Post show that among the 10 chases since Aug. 14, at least six involved crashes. The pursuits — all of which began as traffic stops for nonviolent crimes and were initiated by federal task forces formed in response to Trump’s Aug. 11 executive order — would have violated D.C. police policy. The District’s police department allows car chases only when the driver is putting other lives in danger or is suspected of committing a violent crime. Park Police had imposed stricter rules, allowing pursuit only for people wanted for violent felonies, after two officers chased, then shot and killed unarmed motorist Bijan Ghaisar in Northern Virginia in 2017.But last week, Park Police announced those chase restrictions were gone. “That’s right criminals,” the Park Police union posted to its X account. “If you flee from a traffic stop in DC, we will chase you — and we will catch you. Tell your friends.” Police departments across the nation have adopted more conservative approaches to pursuits in recent years, with the New York Police Department in January banning high-speed chases for low-level offenses. Experts say police pursuits should be reserved for extreme situations because the lives of motorists and pedestrians are at risk.

Los Angeles Times [8/31/2025 6:00 AM, Mery Mogollón and Patrick J. McDonnell, 14672K] reports U.S. warships steam toward the southern Caribbean. The Trump administration denounces embattled “narco-president” Nicolás Maduro and doubles a bounty on his head to $50 million. Rumors of an invasion, coup or other form of U.S. intervention flood social media. For the beleaguered people of Venezuela, mired in more than a decade of crisis — hyperinflation, food shortages, authoritarian rule and rigged elections — a new phase of anxiety is once again rattling nerves. Even so, Venezuelans are trying to soldier on. “We try to keep up our activities, our schedules despite the uncertainty,” said Leisy Torcatt, 44, a mother of three who heads a baseball school in a nation where a passion for sports helps fend off despair. “Our daily problems continue, but we cannot become paralyzed. ... We keep on going forward trying to work out our differences,” she said. There is an inescapable sense here that matters are largely out of people’s control. The massive anti-Maduro street protests of past years did little to dislodge, or undermine, Maduro, and the opposition has long been deeply divided. Authorities have jailed dissenters and broken up coup attempts. And now, once again, Venezuela appears to be in Washington’s crosshairs.

Washington Examiner [8/31/2025 6:00 AM, Barnini Chakraborty, 1563K] reports Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) is calling out President Donald Trump for sending in thousands of National Guard troops and federal agents to Democrat-led states, including California, while ignoring Republican-led ones with much higher homicide rates. Newsom claims that Trump is exaggerating statistics and the situation in blue states to stoke fear for political gain. The Democratic governor has amplified his complaints on X, where he has drawn a comparison between California’s homicide rate and those of Indiana, Florida, West Virginia, Virginia, Texas, Ohio, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Nevada, South Carolina, Alaska, Georgia, Missouri, Tennessee, Alabama, and Mississippi. All of those states have Republican governors who have largely fallen in line with what Trump does and says. “If the president is sincere about the issue of crime and violence, there’s no question in my mind that he’ll likely be sending the troops into Louisiana and Mississippi,” Newsom said Thursday.

NewsMax [8/30/2025 1:42 PM, James Morley III, 4779K] reports a federal judge has temporarily halted the Trump administration from deporting Kilmar Abrego Garcia, extending the pause until at least early October. Acting Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement Todd Lyons told Newsmax on Saturday that these are "judges just trying to block lawful law enforcement work." Lyons said it’s been frustration for all ICE personnel that certain judges and politicians are protecting the wrong people.

Washington Post [8/31/2025 6:00 AM, Marie-Rose Sheinerman, 32099K] reports Purple Heart recipient José Barco thought he had paid his debt to society after he served 15 years in prison for attempted murder. The federal government decided otherwise. Barco, a U.S. Army veteran who was injured in Iraq, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in January when he was granted parole. He’s now being held in Denver and is slated to be deported to Venezuela, where he was born after his family fled Cuba, under a federal law that allows noncitizens to be stripped of legal residency and removed from the country if they are convicted of a crime. The Biden administration issued a directive in 2022 making it harder for ICE to deport noncitizen veterans. But the Trump administration has sought lists from jails and prisons of noncitizen inmates and detainees as part of its mass deportation campaign. At least four veterans — all of whom have criminal records and were lawful permanent residents before their service — are in ICE detention facilities and facing deportation proceedings, The Washington Post confirmed through interviews with family members and attorneys. More than 80 noncitizen veterans were in the federal prison system as of late August, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons. For those who have been released from prison after serving sentences, deportation feels like an “unjust second punishment,” said Jennie Pasquarella, legal director at the Seattle Clemency Project, which provides legal aid to formerly incarcerated people. Scott Mechkowski, who spent 22 years in ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations division and over 30 years in the Army, said he and his ICE colleagues “always had to give discretion to military service” by looking for legal ways to grant relief from deportation to veterans convicted of certain nonviolent crimes, such as drug possession. Barco’s case is different because he was convicted of an aggravated felony, Mechkowski said. Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, noted the severity of Barco’s crime in a statement and called him and Tek “heinous criminal aliens.”

Washington Examiner [8/31/2025 6:00 AM, Brittany Dunn and Lior Weinstein, 1563K] reports every generation faces a test of its moral imagination. Ours is this: Human trafficking has evolved into a sophisticated digital enterprise while our response remains stubbornly analog. Case in point: Today, we identify only 1% of victims. Not 10. Not five. One. Yet the anti-trafficking movement stands divided. Technologists promise artificial intelligence will revolutionize victim identification. Survivors and advocates warn that algorithms can’t comprehend trauma. Meanwhile, traffickers coordinate across continents using encrypted apps, recruit on social media, and move money through digital channels that leave barely a trace. This asymmetry is deadly. Modern trafficking thrives in the gaps — between jurisdictions, between agencies, between the moment someone notices something wrong and the moment they act. A hotel worker suspects something’s amiss. A neighbor sees troubling patterns. A teacher worries about a student. These moments of concern often die in uncertainty. People don’t know what they’re seeing.

NPR [8/30/2025 10:11 PM, Chloe Veltman, 34837K] reports members of the music community are rallying in support of Donggin Shin — who goes by John — following the Utah-based professional violinist’s arrest and detention by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Colorado last week. Department of Homeland Security officials, citing the reason for his arrest, said the South Korean-born Shin overstayed his visa and was later convicted of a DUI in 2019. According to Shin’s attorney, Adam Crayk, the musician — who has played with the Utah Symphony and Ballet West, among other groups — was abruptly arrested on Aug. 18 at a hotel parking lot while he was traveling in Colorado. According to an ICE database, he is being held at the Denver Contract Detention Facility in Aurora, Colo. "John Shin is a longtime member of the local Salt Lake City music community," said Utah Symphony spokesperson Meredith Kimball Laing in an email. "His many contributions as a violinist have included some performances with our orchestra through the years, and our hearts go out to him and his family.” Musicians have been staging ongoing performances in protest at the Utah State Capitol and sharing their anger and concern on social media. "I am calling upon all string players in Salt Lake City to unite in support of our fellow musician John Shin, who has been detained by ICE," wrote violist Eugene Dyson on Facebook. "The time has come for us to rally together and fight for our own with unwavering solidarity.” In a Facebook post on Aug. 20, Shin’s wife, DaNae Shin, shared the details of the phone call she said she received from Shin on the day of his arrest. " ‘Honey, I don’t have much time. I’ve been arrested by ICE and they are sending me to a detainment center. I love you and the kids, I will be okay, please call our attorney,’ " DaNae wrote. She added, "John is not a criminal, he is an amazing husband, father, and person, and I will do whatever it takes to bring him back home." DaNae Shin set up a GoFundMe campaign to help cover her husband’s legal fees. At the time of writing, it had received more than $72,000 in donations. Crayk said Shin, 37, came to the U.S. from South Korea with his father when he was a child. In a statement to NPR, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed the arrest. Describing Shin as "a criminal illegal alien from South Korea," the DHS statement gave Shin’s criminal history — specifically a 2019 DUI conviction — as the reason. "Shin entered the U.S. on a tourist visa on September 3, 1998. This visa required him to depart the U.S. by March 3, 1999. Over 25 years later, he was still illegally in the U.S.," read the DHS statement. "President Trump and Secretary Noem are committed to restoring integrity to the visa program and ensuring it is not abused to allow aliens a permanent one-way ticket to remain in the U.S. Our message is clear: criminal illegal aliens are not welcome in the United States.”

NewsNation [8/30/2025 7:30 AM, Amanda Rhoades, Anthony Kustura, 6811K] reports U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Tom Homan told reporters Thursday morning to expect to see operations ramp up across the country after Labor Day, including in Portland. In a press conference, the White House border czar said that operations will increase in all sanctuary cities that refuse to work with ICE. Homan said in Texas and Florida, which are not sanctuary states, sheriffs are working with ICE to hold people and let them know if someone is being released. The president says ICE is targeting criminals, but Muñoz argues even minor offenses like traffic citations are leading to detentions, and that several communities feel targeted. As KOIN 6 News previously reported, Homan was in Portland on Aug. 21 to meet with ICE personnel. After the visit, Portland Mayor Keith Wilson reaffirmed the city’s sanctuary status and said city employees, including police, would not assist federal immigration enforcement efforts.

Univision [8/30/2025 11:42 AM, Staff, 4932K] reports Javier Ramírez was at his car dealership in California when a group of hooded men, who identified themselves as ICE agents, arrived. The hooded officers arrived to arrest him while Javier Ramírez remained confused. Ramírez claims he never resisted arrest and that, despite claiming he had his passport and repeating that he was born in San Bernardino, California, the men ignored him. Ramírez claims he was detained for four days without any charges being filed. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said Ramirez was detained during an immigration enforcement operation and released after his citizenship was confirmed. Attorney Michael S. Carrillo says officers allegedly entered Javier’s business without a search warrant. This situation occurred last June, but on August 20, Ramírez filed a legal claim and is seeking one million dollars. Javier Ramírez filed his complaint along with five other citizens and one legal resident, alleging wrongful detentions by ICE and Customs and Border Protection agents. The lawyers allege racial profiling and civil rights violations. They are seeking $1 million per case.

Los Angeles Times [8/30/2025 5:04 PM, Gabriel San Román, 12715K] reports the Garden Grove City Council has decided not to take a public position on the federal immigration raids that swept through parts of town this summer. Supporters of the proposal that would have reaffirmed the fact that local police are not involved in immigration enforcement failed to convince their peers to officially acknowledge a climate of fear following federal raids in the city. On Aug. 19, agents briefly detained a father outside of a local elementary school after he dropped off his son. Agents eventually released the man after he provided documentation, according to Garden Grove Unified. Agents have also arrested day laborers outside of a Home Depot in the city. Councilmember Ariana Arestegui sought to reaffirm a symbolic resolution promoting "community harmony and safety" that a prior council passed in January 2017 at the onset of the first Trump administration. "It pains me to hear that folks feel like they can’t even take their kids to school anymore," she said during Tuesday’s council meeting. "Because things feel like they’re getting so intense that I felt that it’s important for us to make a statement as a collective body.” The original resolution touted Garden Grove as a diverse city — one that promoted "harmony." It also denounced hate speech and stressed that the Police Department is not involved in immigration enforcement. "The things that we were worried about back then, a lot of them have turned into a reality now," Arestegui said. But not all of her colleagues saw a need to renew the resolution or felt comfortable with its language, whether old or new. George Brietigam, a retired Los Angeles Police Department officer, opposed the 2017 resolution as a resident and did not support reaffirming it as a sitting councilmember. "It’s not making anyone feel safer," Brietigam argued. "But what is it doing? It’s putting a target on our back.” He claimed that the federal government would increase enforcement if the resolution was reaffirmed. Garden Grove, which has sizable Latino and Asian populations, is just the latest Orange County city to grapple with how to respond to immigration raids by armed and often masked agents. In February, Santa Ana reaffirmed its standing as the county’s sole "sanctuary city." Anaheim voted in April to reaffirm its "welcoming city" status. Aside from symbolic stances, Santa Ana, Anaheim and Costa Mesa have dedicated immigrant relief funds for those impacted by beefed up enforcement. Huntington Beach’s conservative City Council declared theirs a "non-sanctuary city" before raids targeting Latino neighborhoods. A divided Orange City Council tabled a resolution opposing the use of masks by federal immigration agents. Garden Grove Councilmember Joe DoVinh did not see urgency in reaffirming the city’s "harmony" stance and moved to table the discussion. "It’s not as terrifying as some people make it out to be," he said. "I do feel for the families, but I don’t want to give into fear. I do believe the storm will blow over.”

Los Angeles Times [8/30/2025 11:33 PM, Karen Garcia, 12715K] reports a Los Angeles city councilmember has openly opposed Home Depot’s plans to open a new location at Eagle Rock Plaza, claiming the home improvement retailer has been complicit with immigration enforcement operations. In an Instagram post, Councilmember Ysabel Jurado wrote, "Take your orange aprons somewhere else," citing a raid that occurred Thursday morning at Westlake Home Depot, one of several at that location since June. Jurado’s district spans from downtown to El Sereno and Eagle Rock. Home Depot plans to demolish the former Macy’s department store in Eagle Rock Plaza to make space for its new location, The Eastsider reported. On Thursday, surveillance video obtained by The Times shows federal agents arriving in several vehicles across from the Home Depot and CARECEN Day Labor Center, and immediately running after people, including vendors and day laborers. As people scattered, federal agents can be seen deploying tear gas. A man who was apprehended and pinned to the ground by federal officials was punched in the face, according to a statement by the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights. "We are disturbed by what can only be described as an act of terror and indiscriminate roundup of Latino street vendors, day laborers, and people who were going about their daily lives," the organization stated. At least eight to 15 people were arrested during the operation, according to CHIRLA. This specific home improvement store on Wilshire Boulevard and South Union Avenue has been the site of four immigration operations since June 6, including "Operation Trojan Horse," in which half a dozen border patrol agents jumped out of a Penske truck and arrested 16 people. These raids, Jurado said, "are part of a disturbing pattern across Los Angeles, with ICE repeatedly targeting Home Depot parking lots — common gathering spots for day laborers — without judicial warrants, in clear violation of people’s rights.” In her post, the councilmember accused Home Depot of "remaining silent.” "When your name becomes associated with terror and you refuse to speak, you are complicit," the post read. "Home Depot has chosen power and profit over the working people who sustain it.” In a statement to The Times, Home Depot spokesperson Sarah McDonald said the company isn’t notified of planned ICE operations and "we’re not requesting them." In many cases the company doesn’t know arrests happen until after they’re over, she said. "We’re required to follow all federal and local rules and regulations in every market where we operate," McDonald said. The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to the Times’ request for comment before publication.

Univision [8/31/2025 1:18 AM, Staff, 4932K] reports ICE agents conducted an arrest operation at a car wash business in Studio City on Friday, arresting four people apparently of Guatemalan and Mexican origin. According to witnesses, ICE agents arrived unannounced and initiated arrests without presenting warrants or verifying the immigration status of the workers. A business owner or representative expressed his dissatisfaction with the operation. "These workers had documents because we don’t hire those who don’t have them. ICE agents should be ashamed of themselves," he said. The operation caused inconvenience to several customers, who were unable to move their vehicles because the detained workers had the keys. In one case, an agent returned to the establishment to return a key, while another customer had to wait for a family member to bring him his car key. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Telemundo52 [8/30/2025 9:58 PM, Dinorah Pérez and Elizabeth Chavolla, 93K] reports a woman and her four children, all U.S. citizens, moved to Mexico after her husband was deported following an immigration appointment. Margarita Lopez, originally from Los Angeles, said she was separated from her husband for almost four months and made the decision to move to avoid deportation leaving her children without their father. Lopez, who has never lived outside the country, left a few weeks ago from downtown Los Angeles for Michoacan to join her husband, who was detained by federal agents in May on his way to an immigration appointment. "These deportations have been very disastrous, destroying many families," Lopez said. Jose Garcia never knew if the detention was for an arrest he had years earlier for driving under the influence of alcohol. Telemundo 52 met Lopez in May, when her husband tried to cross the border again and was deported a second time. "It’s very horrible," Lopez said. After spending four months apart, Lopez decided to move to Mexico. "We suffered a lot," said Lopez, who moved to Mexico with her children, two of whom have severe and moderate autism. "Thank God, we are together again," she said. Lopez now lives in her mother-in-law’s house in Michoacan. "[I made them] for my children, for my family and also logical, I love my husband and I want my family to be together," Lopez said. The concern is to adapt to a new country, get a job and for the children to learn the language. The family is also looking for the two children with special needs to receive the necessary attention. For now, there is relief that all six are together again. "My heart is happy now," Lopez said. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

CBS News [8/30/2025 10:44 AM, Staff, 45245K] reports the office of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas urged the U.S. government on Saturday to reverse its decision to revoke his visa, weeks before he is meant to appear at the United Nations’ annual meeting and an international conference about creating a Palestinian state. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio rescinded the visas of Abbas and 80 other officials ahead of next month’s high-level meeting of the U.N. General Assembly, the State Department disclosed on Friday. Palestinian representatives assigned to the U.N. mission were granted exceptions. The State Department said in a statement that Rubio also ordered some new visa applications from Palestinian officials, including those tied to the Palestine Liberation Organization, to be denied. The Palestinian Authority denounced the visa withdrawals as a violation of U.S. commitments as the host country of the United Nations.

AP [8/30/2025 11:59 AM, Imad Isseid] reports the Palestinian Authority president’s office on Saturday urged the U.S. government to reverse its unusual decision to revoke his visa, weeks before he was to appear at the United Nations’ main annual meeting and an international conference about creating a Palestinian state. The 27-nation European Union asked the Trump administration to reconsider the move, which drew broad criticism. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio rescinded the visas of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and 80 other officials ahead of next month’s annual meeting of the United Nations General Assembly, the State Department disclosed Friday, citing national security interests.

NewsNation [8/31/2025 12:56 AM, Fallon Fischer, 6811K] Video: HERE reports federal investigators have seized an online marketplace accused of selling counterfeit driver’s licenses, passports, and other identification documents. Investigators said they accessed the marketplace to buy counterfeit New Mexico driver’s licenses using cryptocurrency, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico. "The internet is not a refuge for criminals. If you build or sell tools that let offenders impersonate victims, you are part of the crime," Acting U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison said in the news release. "We will use every lawful tool to disrupt your business, take the profit out of it, and bring you to justice.” The FBI began investigating in August 2022 after discovering a plot to use stolen identity information to access cryptocurrency accounts. The investigation revealed that VerifTools offered counterfeit identification documents for all 50 U.S. states and multiple foreign countries for the cost of $9, payable in cryptocurrency. The FBI has identified the equivalent of approximately $6.4 million linked to the VerifTools marketplace. The FBI’s Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with the help of the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs. The Justice Department collaborated with investigators and prosecutors from multiple jurisdictions in this investigation, including the District of New Mexico, Eastern District of Virginia, the Dutch National Police and the Netherlands Public Prosecution Service.

AP [8/31/2025 12:01 AM, Albee Zhang and Didi Tang, 27036K] reports the 22-year-old philosophy student from China did not expect any problems after his 29-hour flight arrived at a Texas airport this month as he was on his way to study at the University of Houston. His paperwork was in order. He was going to study humanities — not a tech field that might raise suspicions. He had a full scholarship from the U.S. school and had previously spent a semester at Cornell University for an exchange program with no issues. But the student, who asked to be identified only by his family name, Gu, because of the political sensitivities of the matter, was stopped, interrogated and 36 hours later, put on a plane back to China. He also was banned from coming back for five years, abruptly halting his dream for an academic career in the United States. "There is no opportunity for the life I had expected," Gu said. He is one of an unknown number of Chinese students with permission to enter the United States who have been sent back to China or faced intense questioning after their arrival, drawing strong protests from Beijing and showing the uncertainty from President Donald Trump’s shifting policies. His administration has quickly pivoted from a plan to revoke visas for Chinese students to Trump himself saying he would welcome hundreds of thousands of them, partly to help keep some American schools afloat. Even so, some officials and lawmakers have expressed suspicions about Chinese students, especially those who study advanced technologies such as quantum computing and artificial intelligence, and their possible links to the Chinese government and military. Some lawmakers want to ban Chinese students altogether. There’s no immediate data available on how many Chinese students with valid visas have been interrogated and repatriated from U.S. airports in recent weeks. U.S. Customs and Border Protection did not respond to a request for that data or for comment on Chinese students being questioned or sent back. In recent days, Trump said he told Chinese President Xi Jinping that "we’re honored to have their students here." But he also added, "Now, with that, we check and we’re careful, we see who is there.” The Chinese Embassy said it has received reports involving more than 10 Chinese students and scholars being interrogated, harassed and repatriated when entering the U.S. "The U.S. side has frequently carried out discriminatory, politically driven and selective law enforcement against Chinese students and scholars, inflicting physical and mental harm, financial losses, and disruptions to their careers," the Chinese Embassy said in a statement.

Tampa Free Press [8/30/2025 12:31 PM, Mike Jenkins, 65K] reports in a move to restore accountability, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has fired two dozen members of FEMA’s IT department after an internal review revealed catastrophic cybersecurity failures. The terminations, announced on Friday, include FEMA Chief Information Officer Charles Armstrong and Chief Information Security Officer Gregory Edwards, along with 22 other employees. The shake-up follows a department-wide review ordered by Secretary Noem that uncovered major vulnerabilities within FEMA’s network. According to the investigation, the agency’s IT team failed to implement basic security measures, including multi-factor authentication, while also using outdated and prohibited legacy protocols. These lapses allowed an unnamed threat actor to breach the network, putting sensitive information and national security at risk. Noem said, “FEMA’s career IT leadership failed on every level. Their incompetence put the American people at risk.” She also accused “entrenched bureaucrats” of trying to cover up their failures and obstruct the investigation, adding, “These deep-state individuals were more interested in covering up their failures than in protecting the Homeland and American citizens’ personal data, so I terminated them immediately.”

Breitbart [8/30/2025 6:42 PM, Staff, 2608K] reports the California Highway Patrol reportedly will provide security protection for former Vice President Kamala Harris after she lost her Secret Service protection on Thursday. California officials on Friday bestowed dignitary status on Harris, who has been a private citizen since leaving office on Jan. 19, and will provide her with security protection instead of the Secret Service, The Los Angeles Times reported. California Gov. Gavin Newsom must sign off on CHP-provided security protection for Harris, but his office declined to comment on the matter. "Our office does not comment on security arrangements," Newsom spokesperson Izzy Gordon told The Los Angeles Times. Harris lives in Los Angeles and has a pending 15-city book tour that starts in New York City on Sept. 24, according to USA Today. The book tour is scheduled to last for 107 days, which would have required advance Secret Service work if Harris’ protection were to continue. Outgoing vice presidents receive Secret Service protection for six months after leaving office, but President Joe Biden extended Harris’protection beyond six months upon a request from her aides. Harris continued benefiting from the protection until President Donald Trump ended it as of Monday via a signed memorandum on Thursday. The president also had ended Secret Service protection for his adult children, Hunter and Ashley Biden, after their father extended the protection to them through July. Hunter Biden recently traveled to South Africa with his Secret Service team, Washington Post reported. Only former presidents and first ladies receive lifetime Secret Service protection in accordance with federal law. Ending Harris’ extended protection also ends all extended protections provided by the former president just before Biden left office in January. The San Francisco Chronicle [8/30/2025 3:45 PM, Elena Kadvany, 3790K] reports that former vice presidents usually get Secret Service protection for six months after leaving office. But before his term ended, former President Joe Biden had extended Harris’ protection beyond six months, to July 2026, at her request, according to media reports. Trump’s vice president from his first term, Mike Pence, did not have extended Secret Service protection beyond the standard six months. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass have been in talks on how to address the situation. "The safety of our public officials should never be subject to erratic, vindictive political impulses," he wrote in an email Saturday. "This is another act of revenge following a long list of political retaliation in the form of firings, the revoking of security clearances and more," Bass said in a statement. "This puts the former Vice President in danger and I look forward to working with the governor to make sure Vice President Harris is safe in Los Angeles.” According to the Associated Press, a recent threat intelligence assessment by the Secret Service conducted on those it protects, such as Harris, found no red flags or credible evidence of a threat to the former vice president. The security revocation comes as Harris is about to start a 15-city tour for her new memoir, titled "107 Days," including stops in San Francisco, London and Toronto. The book is named for the length of her presidential campaign. Harris lost to Trump in the 2024 election. Harris, a former senator, California attorney general and San Francisco district attorney, has said she won’t run for governor of California in 2026. The Hill [8/30/2025 8:23 PM, Sarah Polus, 12414K] reports Harris’s protection was revoked through a letter titled "Memorandum for the Secretary of Homeland Security" dated Thursday. Her protections are set to end Sept. 1, according to CNN. "You are hereby authorized to discontinue any security-related procedures previously authorized by Executive Memorandum, beyond those required by law, for the following individual, effective September 1, 2025: Former Vice President Kamala D. Harris," reads the letter, a copy of which was obtained by CNN. Harris’s security protections ran for six months following the end of the Biden administration, as is standard for vice presidents; however, former President Biden extended the deadline for protection by a year before leaving office, per CNN. Presidents receive lifetime Secret Service protection. The latest in politics and policy. Direct to your inbox. By signing up, I agree to the Terms of Use, have reviewed the Privacy Policy, and to receive personalized offers and communications via email, on-site notifications, and targeted advertising using my email address from The Hill, Nexstar Media Inc., and its affiliates. Bass denounced Trump’s decision to revoke Harris’s Secret Service protection in a statement to The Hill, saying she will work with Newsom to ensure Harris’s safety. "This is another act of revenge following a long list of political retaliation in the form of firings, the revoking of security clearances and more," Bass said. "This puts the former Vice President in danger and I look forward to working with the Governor to make sure Vice President Harris is safe in Los Angeles.”

FOX News [8/30/2025 6:01 PM, Emily Trainham, 43962K] reports that, for Dyan Cannon, age is more than just a number. The "Heaven Can Wait" actress, 88, attempted to go inside the White House this week, but as she and her friends documented in a video shared on social media, the Secret Service refused to let her enter because of an age discrepancy on her passport. Cannon, along with fellow actresses Kym Douglas and Tracey Bregman and TV personality and chef Christine Avanti-Fischer, traveled to Washington, DC, together recently. They went out to do some sightseeing, but there was a hiccup in their plans. "We are lined up for a great tour, and we have these Secret Service guys and all of the federal agents. We can’t get in because someone lied about their age," Douglas, who filmed the video, explained. Cannon laughed throughout the explanation as Bregman and Avanti-Fischer teased her. "Listen," Cannon said. "Years ago, here’s the thing, I lied about my age on my passport.” "Who doesn’t, Dyan?" Douglas joked. Avanti-Fischer remarked, "If we get in, it’s going to be a miracle of God.” The video was originally shared by Douglas on her Instagram story Thursday, but Cannon reposted it to her own page, writing in her caption, "And I’d do it again.” She added, "It’s nobody’s business what the number is they’ve pinned on me ….right girls? Right guys? it’s just a blinkin number… no matter what number they put next to me there’s one thing that never changes …I WUV WU". Bregman commented on the post, writing, "Hilarious. Love you so but seriously, how can I change my age.”

The Hill [8/30/2025 8:00 AM, Jeremy Tanner, 12414K] reports a multi-phase scam credited with emptying the financial accounts of numerous Americans – many of whom were nearing the age of retirement – is again making headlines after the FBI recently issued a warning. Unlike many scams, "Phantom Hacker" attacks often come in three distinct phases, each building on the last to thoroughly convince the victim to allow access to their funds. Aaron Rose, security architect manager at cybersecurity firm Check Point Software, told Nexstar in an email that the crooks often use victims’ personal interests against them. Since 2024, the scam has reportedly been used to steal over $1 billion in funds, with the majority of victims being at least 60 years old, according to FBI data. While pretending to work in tech support for a legitimate company, the scammer will use a phone call, text, email or pop-up window to contact the victim.

FOX News [8/31/2025 6:00 AM, Stepheny Price, 40019K] Video: HERE reports college campuses across the country descended into chaos this week as false reports of active shooters sparked mass panic, lockdowns and major police responses – only to be revealed as coordinated hoaxes. On Monday alone, at least six universities reported active shooter alerts. All turned out to be false alarms, but not before causing widespread disruption and fear. "Swatting threats are not hoaxes – they’re serious. They disrupt the educational process and communities into upheaval," Ken Trump, president of National School Safety and Security Services, told Fox News Digital. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) confirmed to Fox News Digital that it’s seeing a nationwide increase in swatting incidents and is working closely with local agencies to investigate the coordinated threats. "The FBI is seeing an increase in swatting events across the country, and we take potential hoax threats very seriously because it puts innocent people at risk," a spokesperson for the FBI said. The bureau warned that these hoaxes not only waste law enforcement time and resources but also endanger lives. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

New York Times [8/30/2025 12:19 PM, Staff, 143795K] reports an online group said that it was behind a number of recent hoax emergency calls that drew a heavy law enforcement response to college campuses across the United States and were timed to coincide with the start of the school year. The group, which calls itself Purgatory, highlighted news media coverage of the recent hoaxes in a public-facing channel on Telegram, an encrypted messaging service often used by criminals. The online group is suspected of being connected to several of the episodes, including reports of shootings, according to cybersecurity experts, law enforcement agencies and the group members’ own posts in a social media chat. The group’s claims could not be independently verified. Federal authorities previously connected the same network to a series of bomb scares and bogus shooting reports in early 2024, for which three men pleaded guilty this year. The spreading of false reports — a practice known as swatting — is intended to sow fear and chaos at educational and governmental institutions, as well as commercial places. Some swatting episodes have focused on the homes of politicians and other famous people. Bragging about its recent activities, Purgatory said that it could arrange more swatting episodes for a fee.

NewsNation [8/30/2025 9:15 AM, Damita Menezes, 6811K] reports a loosely affiliated cybercriminal group called "Purgatory" is responsible for a recent wave of fake active shooter threats targeting universities across the United States, according to a new intelligence report from the Center for Internet Security. University swatting hoaxes began Aug 21, 20 campuses affected. The swatting incidents began Aug. 21 at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and Villanova University, where students were gathered for a start-of-school Mass that turned to chaos before authorities realized it was a hoax. Since then, at least 20 similar false threats have struck campuses across the country. John Cohen, executive director of the program for countering hybrid threats at the Center for Internet Security and former acting undersecretary for intelligence at the Department of Homeland Security, said analysts determined most incidents were conducted by a single group based on tactics and technology used. The group has claimed responsibility for the attacks and often livestreams the calls to attract new members and additional business from foreign intelligence services, criminal organizations and terrorist groups.

USA Today [8/30/2025 11:58 AM, Davis Winkie, 64151K] reports three Georgia universities briefly locked down on the evening of Aug. 29 after each received a false report of an active shooter on campus. The University of Georgia, the University of West Georgia and Clark Atlanta University each received a hoax report, according to university officials and local media reports. At the state’s flagship university in Athens, police responded to a report of an armed shooter near the school’s main library just before 9 p.m. Aug. 29. Officers found "the report was a hoax," according to a university statement. The University of West Georgia, located in Carrollton, alerted students around 10 p.m. about a suspected man with a gun near the school’s Ingram Library, according to Assistant Director of Strategic Communications Julie Lineback. An all-clear was issued approximately 30 minutes later. Clark Atlanta University, a historically black school located in the state’s capital, also received a hoax call Friday evening that featured the sound of gunshots in the background, reported Atlanta’s WSB-TV. University and City of Atlanta police later confirmed there was no threat. The fake active shooter reports came amid a nationwide wave of similar calls targeting universities in recent weeks. The FBI is investigating the slew of swatting calls in coordination with state and local law enforcement agencies.

New York Times [8/30/2025 8:34 PM, Chris Hippensteel and Orlando Mayorquín, 143795K] reports that, weeks before an assailant opened fire on a Catholic church in Minneapolis, the Trump administration cut funding to a program in Minnesota aimed at preventing acts of mass violence, documents show. The cancellation of those funds does not appear to have had an impact in the handling of the attack at Annunciation Catholic School that killed two children and injured 18 people. But state officials say the move severely weakens local efforts to identify future threats. The Trump administration said the money was being used to promote a partisan agenda and did not effectively fight those threats. In July, the Department of Homeland Security announced it was cutting $18.5 million in spending that involved one of its arms called the Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships, or CP3. The center was introduced during the first few months of the Biden administration and provides grants to state and local law enforcement agencies and other institutions to help recognize and prevent potential terrorist threats. The money also funds mental health services and training programs. About $700,000 of that money had been designated for the Minnesota Department of Public Safety. The reductions were first reported by CNN. With that money, the Minnesota agency made plans to create two roles, a special agent and a criminal analyst, jobs that would have been essential in responding to and working to prevent targeted violence and terrorism in the state, according to a letter in July that Bob Jacobson, the DPS commissioner, wrote to the state’s congressional delegation. “Without this funding, our capacity to protect our communities from targeted violence and terrorism will be significantly diminished,” he wrote. Since losing the funding, the agency has also canceled a planned statewide training conference and made other adjustments to cover existing expenses, Jill Oliveira, a DPS spokeswoman, said in a statement on Saturday. She added that previous funding helped authorities train law enforcement agencies, schools and faith-based institutions on recognizing and preventing threats of targeted violence. In its letter notifying the Minnesota Department of Public Safety that the funding had been terminated, a Homeland Security official wrote that the CP3 grants were no longer in line with the agency’s priorities under the Trump administration, which included immigration enforcement, border security and combating antisemitism. An official with Homeland Security said in a statement on Saturday that grants issued by CP3 were used for “left-wing ideologies and did next to nothing to combat actual threats in our communities.” The statement continued: “Far from working to end mental illness, under the previous administration many of these grants went to organizations that celebrated and encouraged transgenderism in our children.” The official added that it was “disgusting” for the media to “politicize the deaths of these innocent children.”

New York Post [8/30/2025 12:57 PM, Jared Downing, 43962K] reports one of the crazed Minneapolis church killer’s teachers reported her then-student for signs of self-harm — but claimed the pleas on behalf of "a kid who needed help" went ignored. Sarah Reely, an art educator at the all-boys, military style high school that Robin Westman attended before transitioning to a woman, described the future mass shooter as "definitely odd," and said the then teenager did not fit in with the other students. According to Reely, Westman had "evidence of self-harm" on his arms — and the art teacher reported the "need for help." But it’s unclear if the school took action before Westman transferred out and "vanished," the teacher wrote. It is unclear how long Westman, who ultimately graduated from Southwest High School in Minneapolis in 2021, was at Saint Thomas Academy. Westman had also attended the Annunciation Church and Catholic School, where more than 116 shell casings were recovered from the deadly shooting scene. Westman killed Fletcher Merkel, 8, and Harper Moyski, 10, who were praying in the pews of Annunciation Church just before 8:30 a.m. when a hail of bullets broke through the church’s stained glass windows. Several more victims, including 12-year-old Sophie Forchas and 13-year-old Endre Gunter remained in the hospital Saturday in critical condition.

Reuters [8/31/2025 6:58 AM, Joshua McElwee, 45746K] reports Pope Leo, the first U.S.-born leader of the global Catholic Church, prayed on Sunday that God would "stop the pandemic of arms" after a mass shooting on August 27 at a Minnesota Catholic school that killed two children. "Our prayers (go) for the victims of the tragic shooting during a school Mass in the American state of Minnesota," Leo, speaking in English, said in a weekly prayer with crowds in St. Peter’s Square. "Let us plead God to stop the pandemic of arms large and small, which infects our world," said the pope. Leo was elected pope by the world’s cardinals in May after the death of the late Pope Francis. He has shown a different style to his predecessor, rarely speaking off the cuff and usually preferring a more cautious tone in his public appeals. Sunday’s appeal was also a rare instance of the pope addressing a world event in his native English. Leo usually prefers to use Italian, the language of the papacy.

Wall Street Journal [8/30/2025 9:00 PM, Alexander Ward and Robbie Gramer, 646K] reports when President Trump ordered airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities in June, U.S. diplomats who would normally be told of the decision were left in the dark. After the attack, officials from Middle East countries pressed officials in Washington and at U.S. embassies in the region for information about whether the attack signaled Trump was launching a broader regime-change campaign, officials involved in those conversations said. Almost no one had an answer, other than to refer them to Trump’s public announcement of the bombings. They hadn’t received talking points on what to tell other governments. It was a sign of how far Trump has gone to create an ad hoc, centralized approach to national security decisions. He has downgraded the role of the National Security Council staff, which other presidents have relied on to oversee developing policy options, ensure presidential decisions are carried out and coordinate with foreign governments. The NSC’s staff is now fewer than 150 compared with around 400 in previous administrations. Trump ousted national security adviser Mike Waltz after three months, assigning Secretary of State Marco Rubio to handle the job along with his role as top diplomat. The moves have left Trump reliant on a handful of senior advisers. “It is a top-down approach,” said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. “Maybe previous administrations wanted to tell everyone everything to make them feel good, but we don’t really care if your feelings are hurt. We just need to get a job done.”

NPR [8/31/2025 5:00 AM, Lauren Sommer, 45746K] reports the Trump administration is cancelling $679 million in federal funding for ports to support the country’s offshore wind industry, the latest move in President Trump’s ongoing campaign against wind power. Offshore wind is still a developing industry in the U.S., while Europe already has thousands of wind turbines in deep ocean waters. Those offshore turbines are dramatically larger than ones on land and require substantial infrastructure at ports for construction, from large assembly facilities to deepwater docks for ships that carry turbines out to sea. Ports around the country hoped to seize the economic opportunity to become hubs for the wind industry. Under the Biden administration, 12 port projects from California to Virginia were granted funds, all of which the Trump administration said on Friday it was either withdrawing or cancelling. "Wasteful wind projects are using resources that could otherwise go towards revitalizing America’s maritime industry," U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in announcing the decision. He said if possible, the funding would be redirected to "address critical port upgrades." Rep. Jared Huffman, D-Calif., who represents an area that lost funding, said in a statement, "This is a new level of idiocracy, where the Trump administration is trying to destroy an entire sector of clean energy, kill thousands of good paying jobs, and drive up electricity prices for American consumers."

Washington Post [8/30/2025 4:42 PM, Jacob Bogage and Emily Davies, 29079K] reports President Donald Trump has used the threat of tariffs as a bargaining chip with foreign leaders, counted on their revenue to raise trillions of dollars and even wielded them as part of an effort to head off international conflicts. That could all be over for now. A federal appeals court late Friday held that Trump does not have the authority to use emergency economic powers to impose taxes on imports, finding that power lies squarely with Congress or within existing frameworks to investigate trade imbalances. The ruling is a major setback for the White House and it threatens to stall much of Trump’s second-term agenda. Trump has described tariffs as “the most beautiful word in the dictionary” and asserted that imposing the duties — which are most often paid by U.S. consumers or businesses, not foreign producers or nations as he often suggests — will “Make America Rich, Strong, and Powerful Again.” The tariffs, he has said, would offset the cost of his “One Big Beautiful Bill,” the massive tax and immigration package that congressional bookkeepers say will add $4.1 trillion to the national debt over the next decade. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, which Trump and Republicans attacked for its estimated of the cost of the new law, later projected that the president’s tariffs would nearly pay for the whole measure through new revenue and lower interest payments on the national debt. Attorney General Pam Bondi said the Justice Department will appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court, and the federal circuit allowed the tariffs to remain in effect until the case is heard. White House spokesman Kush Desai said Trump had acted lawfully, and “we look forward to ultimate victory on this matter.” But success for the president is far from assured. And in the interim, the appellate ruling may effectively neuter Trump’s ability to leverage access to the U.S. market to bring friends and foes alike to heel. “It’s a big setback, but it’s far from a complete foreclosing of tariffs,” said Scott Lincicome, vice president of general economics and trade at the libertarian Cato Institute, who has criticized the import taxes, “because the reality is there’s all these other laws that Trump can use to effectively reverse-engineer a global tariff regime.” Trump used the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 to impose tariffs on goods from dozens of nations — from the U.S.’s largest trading partners to uninhabited Antarctic islands. That law allows the president leeway to respond to national economic emergencies. The appeals court did not take up the question of whether trade deficits really are an authentic national emergency or the policy rationale for issuing the tariffs, but rather found that the law did not grant the president the power to unilaterally impose permanent new taxes. “The statute bestows significant authority on the President to undertake a number of actions in response to a declared national emergency, but none of these actions explicitly include the power to impose tariffs, duties, or the like, or the power to tax,” the court’s 7 to 4 majority wrote. Trump responded by calling the court “highly partisan” on social media. Eight of the judges on the panel were appointed by Democratic presidents, and three by Republicans.

New York Post [8/30/2025 5:47 PM, Chris Harris, 43962K] reports the winds of change could soon blow on Iran, according to a new report. The Islamic Republic is facing collapse, indicates the report, issued by UK-based Henry Jackson Society this week, as the UN accuses Tehran of executing nearly 900 people already this year "as a tool of intimidation.” If the Islamic Republic falls, "there is a danger that regime collapse could lead to a vacuum of governance that is accompanied by civil war," according to the findings. "This is an outcome that must be avoided at all costs for the Iranian people, and every step must therefore be made to ensure that any transition is quick and painless," it added. The current Iranian regime "remains wedded to the Iranian revolution," according to the report. It added that the Ayatollah’s regime is committed to "reconstituting its nuclear program and exporting terrorism both regionally and internationally makes it an ongoing danger to the West.” Targeted attacks launched by Israel with the US in June on Iranian nuclear sites "set back the regime," the report said, but "it has not eliminated the strategic and security threats posed by the regime.” It appears to support the Iranian opposition instead, as it is "culturally liberal and yearns for freedom," but concedes the Islamic Republic’s "ability to coopt and quell the opposition creates for itself greater risk as cultural opposition and economic discontent inform one another.” "This offers a greater prospect of galvanizing the Iranian opposition if there is a plan for the day after as opposed to a vacuum of governance," the report added. "And in so doing, it contains the best prescription for both resolving the threat the Iranian regime poses to the international community, and to its own people.”

NewsMax [8/30/2025 7:07 PM, Jim Mishler, 4779K] reports President Donald Trump is reportedly planning to skip the upcoming — though not yet scheduled — Quad summit this fall, New York Times reported. Unnamed sources indicated Trump would not attend the meeting due to a souring relationship with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In July, the United States, Australia, India, and Japan agreed to expand their cooperation on maritime security in the Indo-Pacific and further collaborate on supplies of critical minerals and rare earths that are key components of high-tech production. The foreign ministers of the four countries, known as the "Quad," met in Washington as the Trump administration seeks to expand U.S. influence in the Indo-Pacific to compete with a rising China amid tensions with partners over trade and defense issues. In a joint meeting with his three colleagues, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Quad must be a "vehicle for action" that goes beyond statements of intent and stressed that commerce and trade will be critical to ensuring the group’s relevance in the future. There is no indication from the White House that the foundation of the four-nation collective is shaky. According to the Times’ sources, Trump is showing his displeasure over Modi’s failure to nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize by levying punitive tariffs on India. Modi has balked at crediting Trump with any involvement in easing tensions between India and Pakistan, following the latest military escalation between the two in a decadeslong, simmering dispute. Trump has said repeatedly that he "solved" the conflict. According to the Times, Modi has indicated he would be traveling to China this weekend for meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin. That is viewed by some political analysts as an indication that the Indian prime minister may be looking for support from China and Russia. Steep U.S. tariffs on a range of Indian products took effect Wednesday, threatening a blow to India’s overseas trade in its largest export market. Trump had initially announced a 25% tariff on Indian goods. But earlier this month he signed an executive order imposing an additional 25% tariff due to India’s purchases of Russian oil, bringing the combined tariffs imposed by the U.S. on its ally to 50%. Trump suggested on Tuesday that he was open to "using a very strong tariff system that’s very costly to Russia or Ukraine" to make peace.

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