The Latest: ICE officer federally charged with lying about Minneapolis shooting, AP source says

The Trump administration on Thursday again asked the Supreme Court to let it move ahead with restrictions on mail ballots before the midterm elections in November. The government filed an emergency appeal asking the court to intervene after a judge in Boston handed down a new decision blocking President Donald Trump ’s executive order for two weeks. The justices previously allowed the president’s plan to move ahead, but they have not decided whether it is legal. Under Trump’s executive order, the U.S. Postal Service could refuse to deliver ballots from states that do not submit lists of eligible voters and follow a uniform envelope style.

Federal prosecutors have charged a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer with lying to investigators about the events leading up to the nonfatal shooting of a Venezuelan man during the Minneapolis immigration crackdown earlier this year, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity. The officer, Christian Castro, shot Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis in the leg in January, authorities say.

Trump on Wednesday urged Republican lawmakers facing tough reelection campaigns to run on his record in the White House despite his sagging popularity, and he pledged to campaign in all of the roughly three dozen contests that are likely to determine control of Congress.

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Key Democrat says the Pentagon is diverting potentially billions from NIH budget

U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, said the Defense Department has signed an interagency agreement that would allow it to access billions that Congress had intended for biomedical research at the National Institutes of Health.

“This secretive attempt to siphon research funds away from NIH is outrageous,” DeLauro of Connecticut said in a statement. “The interagency agreement needs to be terminated immediately.”

She said the Defense Department is under financial strain because of Trump’s war in Iran, but the administration cannot simply divert money that Congress provided for research into infectious diseases including influenza, malaria, Ebola and others.

The Pentagon did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

Maryland high court allows congressional redistricting measure on the November ballot

The redistricting amendment is being pushed by Democrats as part of a nationwide battle for control of the U.S. House in future elections.

The Maryland Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the proposed constitutional amendment must be placed on the November ballot, reversing two lower court rulings that had blocked it from going to voters. But the court directed the ballot summary to be rewritten.

The decision marks a notable victory for Democrats, who are trying to counter a Republican redistricting movement pushed by Trump.

Democrats already hold seven of Maryland’s eight U.S. House seats. The proposed amendment would not change voting districts for the midterm elections. But if approved by voters, it could free Democratic lawmakers to draw new congressional districts that give the party a shot at a clean sweep in the 2028 elections.

White House website now features arcade games

The White House website has unveiled Arcade, a collection of five low-resolution video games that promote different aspects of the president’s agenda.

“Build the Wall” is a “Tetris” knockoff that transforms the classic game into an effort to “Protect the border from the coming horde.” In ”Rio Run,” which resembles the mobile favorite “Snake,” an icon resembling Trump runs around gathering potential border crossers.

In “Supply Line,” which looks like a condensed version of the arcade game “Tapper,” food moves along an assembly line and you must reject items that don’t meet “Make America Healthy Again” standards.

Two of the games take place over the skies of the nation’s capital. In “Flappy Bill,” an eagle carries a bill across the National Mall. In “Trump Savings Tycoon,” your goal is to collect money flying through the air to “Fill your kids’ Trump Accounts,” the administration savings plan that offers $1,000 to every child born during Trump’s term.

Missouri court blocks Trump-backed US House map and orders it to be put to a vote

The Missouri Supreme Court has ruled that the map cannot be used until voters first get a chance in November to uphold or reject it.

Republican Secretary of State Denny Hoskins had turned down a citizens’ petition seeking to put the map to a vote. But the court reversed that decision and ordered a referendum to be held.

The decision Thursday marks a rare setback for Republicans in a national redistricting battle. Republicans had hoped Missouri’s new congressional boundaries could help them win an additional seat and hold onto their slim House majority in the midterms. The ruling still could be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

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Virginia Democrat calls Trump’s arch a ‘monstrosity’

U.S. Rep. Don Beyer, whose congressional district includes Arlington National Cemetery, said the administration has not addressed concerns about traffic, disruptions and other issues related to the proposed arch in Washington.

“This project is not even close to being ready for prime time,” said Beyer, whose parents, grandparents and sister are buried at Arlington.

He has proposed a viewshed protection act that would prohibit the arch’s construction.

“Donald Trump boasted aloud that his sole intent for building this arch is to honor himself,” Beyer said in a statement. “All of us who oppose it must stand up and redouble our efforts to stop this monstrosity.”

The Trump administration halted a Great Lakes project. Then Whitmer called Trump

An unexplained Trump administration hold on construction of a state-federal project aimed at preventing invasive carp from reaching the Great Lakes was abruptly lifted this week, hours after a call to Trump by Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

The Army Corps had halted work without explanation on the Brandon Road Interbasin Project near Joliet, Illinois, in July, leaving officials in Illinois and Michigan struggling for answers about the pause even as environmental officials warned that invasive carp were being found alarmingly close to Lake Michigan.

The Wednesday phone call was a surprising intervention by the Democratic governor, who has developed an unusual relationship with a president who was once one of her fiercest political foes. Hours after the call, the stop-work order was lifted.

The episode also underscores the top-down and relationship-driven nature of his administration, where direct phone calls and displays of deference to the president remain the best way to get things done.

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Trump political adviser says Republicans will be pleased with upcoming spending

The president’s top outside political adviser says Republicans who have been clamoring for Trump to open his wallet and spend some of the enormous war chest he has amassed on the midterm elections will soon find relief.

“When it’s all said and done, all Republicans, at least, will be quite pleased and relieved at the support they find,” James Blair said at an Ohio energy affordability summit.

“You can watch the news for the next week or so, and I think the question will answer itself,” added Blair, the former White House deputy chief of staff, who recently left his post to run Trump’s outside political operation.

Trump’s MAGA Inc. group had more than $400 million cash in hand at the end of July, but has so far spent little.

Blair acknowledged an enthusiasm gap between Republican and Democratic voters, but predicted that gap would start to close as the president hits the campaign trail.

The Supreme Court won’t step into a Michigan ballot dispute

The court has declined to intervene in a dispute over whether a proof-of-citizenship voting measure can appear on the November ballot in Michigan.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh denied an emergency appeal from supporters of a proposed constitutional amendment. The group Americans for Citizen Voting came to the high court after state officials declined to certify the proposal for the upcoming ballot.

If passed and enacted, the initiative would require the secretary of state to review government records to determine if registered voters are citizens. Voters who are flagged could be removed from the voter rolls if they do not provide proof of citizenship. Backers of the initiative turned in more than 700,000 signatures in March.

U.S. citizenship is required to vote across the country, and people must attest that they are citizens under penalty of perjury to register. Data indicates that voting by noncitizens is rare.

US Forest Service to close 23 research facilities as part of a reorganization

The U.S. Forest Service is closing 23 research and development stations in more than a dozen states as part of a cost-cutting overhaul under President Trump that’s designed to concentrate the agency’s resources in Western states.

A federal official discussed the plan in an interview Thursday. Forest Service Associated Chief Chris French says the work being done at the research stations will continue at other sites.

He says another 41 research facilities that faced possible closure will remain open after local officials and members of Congress raised concerns about the reorganization first announced in March.

“Our primary goal was to get our facilities costs under control,” French said. “We’re not closing any ongoing science activities. We’re not closing any of the experimental forests that are important to our researchers.

Forest service research runs a gamut including studies of invasive species and protecting water resources to how wildfires are changing.

Former EPA officials accuse Trump administration of sitting on PFAS survey

The Trump administration has stalled a study that would help regulators understand which industries dump harmful forever chemicals with their wastewater, according to two former agency officials involved in its development.

Records show the first-of-its-kind survey of wastewater treatment plants was submitted to the White House for approval nearly two years ago during the Biden administration. The White House Office of Management and Budget must approve the survey, and the two ex-officials note reviews typically take around 60 days.

“This is sufficiently unusual and a very long period of time that it is worth asking the question: Is OMB just sitting on it?” said Stuart Shapiro, a former OMB staffer and now a dean at Rutgers University-New Brunswick in New Jersey.

The former officials say the survey would not only help officials understand the scope of PFAS is in the nation’s wastewater, but equip regulators with the information needed to consider new limits against the spread of the chemicals.

The Office of Management Budget did not respond to a request for comment.

Trump administration imposes tariffs on foreign drones

The presidential order took effect Thursday and is intended to keep out Chinese-made drones and promote domestic manufacturing of the unmanned aircraft, which have become a popular consumer product and increasingly critical on the battlefield.

The Trump administration is imposing a 100% tariff on foreign drones that weigh more than 55 pounds (25 kilograms), or those with thermal imaging capabilities, as well as certain drone parts. Smaller drones, or those weighing 55 pounds (25 kilograms) or less, face a 25% tariff.

The administration has capped the tariff at 15% for drones from countries such as South Korea, Japan and Switzerland as well as the European Union. Drones from the U.K. are levied at 10%.

Vance gives White House briefing, but makes clear he’s not the new press secretary

Press secretary Karoline Leavitt has left the White House and Trump has yet to name a replacement. So the vice president stepped in Thursday to brief the media.

“Are we talking to you as the vice president or the press secretary,” Fox News White House reporter Peter Doocy asked Vance.

Vance referred to a meme about the many extra jobs Trump has given Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

“I’m not Marco,” Vance joked. “I’ve not yet accepted any additional jobs.”

He said Trump wished him well while sparring with reporters, but warned if he did too well he might get the job full time. “So I’ve got to screw up a little bit because I’m busy enough as it is,” he said. “But I’m very much up here as the vice president.”

Vance defends friendship with Tucker Carlson even as commentator beefs with Trump

Carlson, a conservative commentator, has been deeply critical of Trump’s decision to go to war with Iran. The president, for his part, has lashed back at his one-time ally.

Vance says he has deep disagreements with Carlson, but they’re still friends.

“Everybody knows that Tucker Carlson and I are friends, and I think it’s very obvious that Tucker has said some things that I disagree with,” Vance said.

He added, “I’m not going to play the game where I throw friends under the bus because I have political disagreements with them.”

Vance said he could support other Republicans for 2028

The vice president, who is widely expected to seek the presidency in two years but hasn’t said if he will run, was asked if he’d support U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas or Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth — two Republicans whose names have been floated as possible presidential candidates.

Vance said he encourages any Republican who cares about the country to focus on the midterm elections, not a job that is a few years away. But he added, “I could see myself supporting a whole host of people.”

He called Hegseth “a great guy” and of Cruz, he said: “Just, clearly, Ted is a very authentic and likable guy and I’m sure he’ll do great.”

Democrats plan counter-programming at GOP’s midterm convention

The House Democratic leader, U.S. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, said he expects “robust engagement” by Democrats at the Trump confab next week in Dallas.

“Listen, the fact that these Republicans are planning a celebration in the middle of an economic crisis — where everyday Americans are drowning because of this high cost of living — is extraordinary,” Jeffries said at the Capitol.

“How many different ways can Donald Trump and Republicans communicate to the American people that they don’t give a damn about their health, safety, and economic well-being?”

He said Democrats from the House and Senate, alongside governors from various states and the Texas State Democrats, are planning events.

Democrats’ campaign chief knocks GOP midterm convention

Rep. Suzan DelBene of Washington, the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said her party is making its case to voters “district by district all across the country where it matters.”

In an interview with The Associated Press, she dismissed any notion that Democrats were missing an opportunity in not hosting a national event of their own.

“I don’t know what they’re doing,” she said of the GOP event. “They don’t have a message, they have nothing to say. So I think that will be even more clear next week.”

Vice president avoids question about Dan Driscoll’s exit as Army secretary

Vice President JD Vance sidestepped a question about Dan Driscoll’s exit from his role as U.S. Army secretary after reported tensions with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

“Dan is obviously a very good friend of mine. I think he was a great secretary of the Army. Pete is also a very good friend of mine,” Vance said at Thursday’s White House briefing.

He then launched into a defense of the way Hegseth has run the department and changed the culture.

Vance says the Iran conflict is not a war

Vice President JD Vance said at a White House press briefing Thursday that the ongoing conflict between the United States and Iran is not a war, two days after the U.S. wrapped up its latest round of strikes.

“I wouldn’t call it a war right now,” Vance said after a journalist used the term. “There is no active shooting.”

“Major combat operations” lasted only about six weeks, during which much of Iran’s military capabilities were destroyed, he claimed.

But he says Iran keeps firing at ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz and that the U.S. must protect global shipping.

Vance says US got 15 million barrels of oil through Strait of Hormuz

JD Vance said the U.S. is finding ways to escort oil tankers out of the Strait of Hormuz and protect them from Iranian fire, but the administration can given conflicting figures on how much oil is involved.

“We got about 15 million barrels out of the Strait of Hormuz just yesterday,” Vance said at the White House briefing, saying that the operation occurred even though the Iranians continue to shoot at tankers.

That 15 million figure is meaningful, but it’s lower than the 18 million barrels that Trump posted on social media earlier in the day.

In a CNBC interview on Wednesday, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said 17 million barrels were carried through the strait on Monday with assistance from the U.S. Navy.

Vance says US is investigating report of airstrike hitting an Iranian wedding

The vice president said he was briefed on the reported attack and said “we’re investigating it very fully.”

Iranian state media reported that four people were killed when a U.S. missile hit a home where dozens of people were gathered to celebrate a wedding.

Vance said the U.S. never targets civilians in combat, but added that “sometimes things happen.”

“We’re investigating it because obviously we care, we want to know,” Vance said. “When our military makes mistakes, they learn from them to try to get better from them.”

U.S. Central Command spokesman Capt. Tim Hawkins previously said the U.S. military was looking into the reports.

Vice president says the Federal Reserve should lower rates

Vance said at Thursday’s White House briefing that inflation figures show the Federal Reserve should cut its benchmark interest rates.

“Our view, and this has been a consistent message from the president and the rest of the administration on down, is that we believe that the Fed should be lowering interest rates,” Vance said. “We feel quite confident that if you look at the inflation numbers, if you look at the CPI numbers, that it’s proper and responsible for the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates.”

Fed officials, including the chair picked by Trump, Kevin Warsh, have said inflation is running above the central bank’s 2% target. That’s a sign that the Fed should either hold its rates or hike them in order to put downward pressure on inflation.

The consumer price index rose 3.4% in July over the past 12 months.