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ICE is getting electric-shock gloves—and Democrats aren’t happy about it
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Immigration and Customs Enforcement is moving ahead with a $16.7 million purchase of 6,000 pairs of electric-shock gloves designed to help federal officers gain control of resisting suspects and combative detainees.
Supporters describe the gloves as another tool for officers confronting dangerous people. Democratic lawmakers and civil-rights advocates see a weapon ripe for abuse.
The CTG-5 G.L.O.V.E.—short for Generated Low Output Voltage Emitter—looks and functions like an ordinary patrol glove until an officer activates its electrical mode. When the glove touches exposed skin, it sends electrical pulses into the person’s body, causing intense pain intended to stop resistance and compel compliance.
Weed use climbs as cigarettes fade; poll reveals Americans’ changing habits
Americans are increasingly turning away from traditional cigarettes and alcohol while marijuana, vaping and newer nicotine products occupy a larger place in the nation’s assortment of habits and vices, according to a new Gallup survey.
Seventeen percent of American adults now report smoking marijuana, tying the highest level Gallup has recorded since it began asking the question in 2013.
At the same time, only 11 percent said they had smoked a cigarette during the previous week, matching the lowest percentage in Gallup’s lengthy history of tracking tobacco use.
Trump targets soaring ground beef prices with 90-day import deal; Iowa grocery bills could get relief
WASHINGTON — Iowa families battered by stubbornly high beef prices could soon see some relief at the grocery store after President Donald Trump announced Friday, August 21, 2026, a 90-day plan allowing hundreds of millions of pounds of additional ground-beef product into the United States without triggering a higher import tariff.
Trump said the agreement will allow up to 300,000 metric tons — roughly 661 million pounds — of product used for ground beef to enter the United States during the next 90 days without the higher “out-of-quota” tariff normally imposed once import limits are exceeded.
The president said foreign suppliers have committed to selling the beef at 25 percent below current market prices.
Trump task force yanks 600 visas in sweeping birth-tourism crackdown
WASHINGTON – Foreign nationals accused of treating American citizenship like a deluxe travel package are losing their tickets into the United States as the Trump administration launches a worldwide assault on the lucrative birth-tourism industry.
Trump administration says border releases remain at zero for 15th straight month as illegal crossings plunge
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration says the dramatic collapse in illegal border crossings is continuing, with federal officials reporting zero releases at the border for a 15th consecutive month and southwest Border Patrol apprehensions down 94 percent from the monthly average recorded during the Biden administration.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection released the latest figures Thursday, August 13, 2026, highlighting another month of historically low apprehensions along the southwest border.
Senate panel votes to hold Fauci in contempt after he repeatedly takes Fifth
WASHINGTON — A U.S. Senate committee voted Thursday, August 6, 2026, to hold former federal health official Dr. Anthony Fauci in contempt of Congress after he repeatedly refused to answer questions about the government’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Federal crackdown pulls more than 800 dangerous truckers and vehicles off America’s roads
WASHINGTON — Federal authorities say a three-day nationwide crackdown removed hundreds of unsafe commercial drivers and vehicles from America’s highways while detaining 51 illegal immigrants and arresting 86 operators accused of dangerous behavior.
Federal ruling delivers nationwide warning to Democrats offering college benefits to illegal aliens
Socialists, communist-sympathizers and Democrats across the country are seething and ready to take to the streets today after a federal judge ruled that blue states cannot give illegal aliens college benefits that are denied to American citizens.
Ernst backs crushing sanctions to cut off Russian oil money funding Putin’s war
WASHINGTON — Iowa U.S. Senator Joni Ernst is backing a sweeping bipartisan sanctions package designed to choke off the oil and gas money financing Russia’s war against Ukraine — and potentially punish major Russian energy customers with tariffs of up to 100 percent on everything they sell to the United States.
White House claims massive Chinese election operation compromised data on 220 million U.S. voters
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump and the White House are accusing China of carrying out what the administration describes as one of the largest compromises of American election data in history, claiming Beijing acquired information tied to approximately 220 million U.S. voters while intelligence officials failed to fully expose the operation.
Trump laid out the explosive allegations during a nationally delivered address from the White House on Thursday, July 16, 2026, as his administration released a large collection of newly declassified intelligence and election-security documents.
Two American warriors killed defending U.S. forces from Iranian attack in Jordan; another missing
WASHINGTON — Two American service members have been killed in action and another remains missing after U.S. forces came under Iranian ballistic missile and drone attack in Jordan, adding another painful chapter to America’s ongoing military confrontation with Iran.
U.S. Central Command announced that the two service members were killed July 17, 2026, as American and partner forces defended against Iranian ballistic missiles and drones.
Cyclospora infections making people sick nationwide; Iowans urged to watch for symptoms
DES MOINES — Federal health officials are warning Americans, including Iowans, to be alert for a parasitic intestinal illness that has sickened people across the country.
The illness, known as cyclosporiasis, is caused by the microscopic parasite Cyclospora cayetanensis. It is typically spread when someone eats food or drinks water contaminated with the parasite.
Gallup: More people worldwide say their communities are good places for minorities
ANYTOWN, USA – A new Gallup survey finds that more people around the world believe their communities are good places for racial, ethnic and other minority groups than at any point in the past two decades, signaling a gradual improvement in how people view inclusion where they live, and further enlightening that DEI is pointless and racism is nearly eradicated.
Iowa leaders mourn death of U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, longtime South Carolina Republican
DES MOINES — Iowa leaders are mourning the death of U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, the longtime South Carolina Republican who spent more than three decades in Congress and became one of the most recognizable foreign-policy voices in Washington.
Trump Administration boots predator protected by Tim Walz and Minnesota Democrats
WASHINGTON – The United States Department of Homeland Security reported today that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has arrested and deported an illegal alien from Laos who had been pardoned by Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and his fellow sanctuary politicians despite a prior conviction for repeatedly sexually assaulting a 10-year-old girl.
Trump begins process to remove Syria from U.S. terrorism list, opening door to rebuilding
WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Donald Trump has informed Congress that his administration intends to rescind Syria’s designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism, a major foreign-policy shift that could clear the way for expanded trade, investment and rebuilding in the war-battered country.
Supporters of the move argue that Syria cannot be rebuilt while locked out of global commerce and investment. They say economic recovery and diplomatic engagement may help stabilize the country, reduce extremism and give ordinary Syrians a better future.
Homeland Security slams Democrat policies after Haitian illegal crash kills state trooper
A Haitian national living in the United States illegally has been charged in a deadly semi-truck crash that killed Pennsylvania State Police Trooper Michael E. Pahira Jr., prompting federal immigration officials to lodge a detainer and sharply criticize
Americans report more use of weight-loss drugs as obesity rate falls, Gallup poll says
More Americans say they are using GLP-1 weight-loss medications, and the country’s adult obesity rate continues to move downward, according to new Gallup polling released July 7, 2026.
Gallup found that 11% of U.S. adults say they are currently taking GLP-1 medications for weight loss, up from 3% in 2024. The share who say they have ever used the drugs for weight loss has risen to 15%, Gallup reported.
Supreme court hands Trump birthright citizenship setback, but Vance says ruling shows fight may be far from over
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court handed President Donald Trump a major setback Monday by upholding birthright citizenship, but Vice President JD Vance and other conservatives are already pointing to the close ruling as a sign the constitutional fight may only be temporarily delayed.
U.S., Israel and Lebanon sign framework aimed at disarming Hizballah and easing border war
WASHINGTON — The United States, Israel and Lebanon have signed a new trilateral framework that American officials say could open a path toward ending the latest war on Israel’s northern border, restoring Lebanese sovereignty and dismantling Hizballah’s military infrastructure.
For Lebanon, the framework offers a possible route out of years of conflict, economic crisis and militia domination. For Israel, it offers a possible way to remove a persistent threat along its northern border. For the Trump administration, it represents another attempt to reorder the Middle East around deals that isolate Iran and its proxies.
Former Trump national security adviser John Bolton pleads guilty in Espionage Act case
WASHINGTON — Former U.S. National Security Advisor John R. Bolton II pleaded guilty Friday to violating the Espionage Act, admitting in federal court that he willfully retained national defense information after serving in one of the most sensitive posts in the federal government.
Bolton, 77, of Bethesda, Maryland, served as national security adviser to President Donald Trump from April 2018 to September 2019. The Justice Department said Bolton used personal accounts to send classified information to family members who were not authorized to receive it, including through a personal email account later hacked by a cyber actor allegedly linked to Iran.
The case marked a dramatic fall for Bolton, a longtime Republican foreign-policy hawk who held senior national security roles across multiple administrations and later became a sharp critic of Trump after leaving the White House.
Bolton faces a maximum penalty of 60 months in prison. As part of the plea agreement, he also agreed to pay a $2.25 million fine. DOJ said federal law also bars Bolton or his survivors from collecting an annuity or federal retirement pay because of the conviction.
U.S. intelligence chief releases documents alleging Fauci hid Wuhan lab ties, misled Congress
WASHINGTON — Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard released newly declassified documents Thursday alleging that Dr. Anthony Fauci helped steer U.S. taxpayer money to risky coronavirus research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, then worked with elements of the intelligence community to shape the public narrative around COVID-19’s origins.
The controversy centers on the Wuhan Institute of Virology, U.S.-funded coronavirus research, and whether SARS-CoV-2 emerged naturally from animals or escaped from a lab.