Federal immigration agents are now working alongside state troopers at commercial truck weigh stations across the country as the Trump administration intensifies its crackdown on illegal commercial drivers, according to U.S. Border Czar Tom Homan.
Appearing on Fox News on Tuesday, Homan said the Department of Homeland Security is partnering with the U.S. Department of Transportation and state law enforcement agencies to identify commercial drivers who are operating trucks with improperly issued commercial driver’s licenses.
“We’ve got a lot of people we’re looking for,” Homan said. “Actually, some states we’re actually working weigh stations with the troopers, trying to get these people as they’re coming through.”
Homan said more than 28,000 non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses have been revoked nationwide and acknowledged that obtaining driver records from some states has complicated enforcement efforts.
“We’re working very closely with many states,” Homan said, adding that DHS is coordinating with Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy while the Department of Justice pursues legal action against jurisdictions that refuse to share driver information.
Enforcement expands beyond paperwork
The latest announcement builds on a series of recent commercial vehicle enforcement operations by state agencies focused on licensing violations, unsafe equipment, hours-of-service compliance and immigration-related offenses.
Last week, FreightWaves reported that law enforcement agencies in Texas, Arizona and California had expanded commercial vehicle inspections targeting unqualified drivers and unsafe trucks. Those operations resulted in immigration arrests, equipment citations and drivers being placed out of service.
Homan suggested the latest federal effort goes beyond revoking licenses by focusing on locating drivers who remain behind the wheel after their commercial driving privileges have been canceled.
According to Homan, DHS agents are working directly with state troopers at weigh stations to identify those drivers during routine commercial vehicle inspections.
Arizona stop highlights safety concerns
The enforcement push comes as Arizona authorities continue reporting cases involving commercial drivers operating without required credentials.
In a Facebook post, the Arizona Department of Public Safety said on Tuesday a Highway Patrol Commercial Vehicle Enforcement trooper stopped a hotshot truck on June 26 along State Route 202 near Arizona State University after discovering numerous violations.
Investigators said the driver lacked both a commercial driver’s license and a required USDOT medical certificate. Inspectors also found that none of the trailer’s brakes were functioning, meaning only the tow vehicle could stop the fully loaded 14,900-pound trailer.
Arizona troopers also cited exposed hubcaps and a missing emergency brake cable before placing the driver and vehicle out of service.
When Will The Cattle Cycle Turn? BofA Has Answers For Beef Lovers
Bank of America analysts spoke with Oklahoma State University agricultural economist Derrell Peel, who offered new insight into the US cattle cycle. His key takeaway: the herd-rebuilding phase may not meaningfully begin to turn until near the end of the decade, suggesting elevated beef prices at the supermarket are here to stay.
The most important issue in the beef industry is when the cattle cycle will turn. The US beef cow herd is the smallest since 1961, while the 2025 calf crop is the smallest since 1941. Beef production is expected to decline by 4.5% to 5% in 2026 and continue falling through at least 2027, despite heavier carcass weights partially offsetting lower slaughter volumes.
Peel explained to Sara Senatore, a BofA Securities research analyst covering restaurants, protein processors, and food and beverage, that the beef industry has not yet seen the tightest supplies because meaningful heifer retention has only just begun.
He added that if ranchers begin saving heifer calves in 2026, those animals would be bred in 2027, calve in 2028, and only begin adding to supply in 2029 or 2030.
Peel explained more about when the cattle rebuilding cycle could turn:
The bottom line is, I don’t think we’re saving very many heifers yet. I don’t think we’re doing more than perhaps slowing the liquidation down, or stabilizing the herd. We’re certainly not going to expand any in 2026. I think the prospects for expansion in 2027 are very limited at this point, because again we know that the supply of heifers that’s already on the ground, that we would need to be breeding this year to enter the herd next year, just isn’t there.
And so if we start saving heifers, which would really be heifer calves in 2026, we breed them in ’27, they would calve in 2028, we’re talking about 2029 into 2030 before those calves would be weaned and fed out and have an impact on beef production. So we’re really looking at the end of the decade before we can change the path here.
And in fact, what it means is that in the meantime we have to save some additional heifers. We haven’t yet seen the tightest supplies of this particular situation. We’ve got tight supplies, the feeder supply continues to decline with these smaller calf crops, but at some point we have to pull additional heifers out of that mix in order to retain them for herd rebuilding. We have not done that yet to any appreciable degree.
Cow calf producers are getting market incentives, returns are good. But we’ve been very slow to respond as an industry for, I think, a wide variety of reasons, that includes drought and financial conditions and demographic changes in the herd or in the producer population, and just a variety of things that contribute to that.
The upshot of it all, this is my final analytical slide, is that we think that prices will continue to go even higher. I would expect that heifer retention process to be what would put the peak in this thing. That peak will not happen, in my opinion, at this point in 2026. It will be at least into 2027. And there is a possibility that it gets pushed off even beyond that if we don’t see some indications of heifer retention pretty quickly here in 2026.
So the short answer is the current situation will continue, and I think persist, and actually get a little bit more in terms of higher cattle prices. Now, that’s all predicated on demand continuing as strong as it is. I don’t see that changing at this point. There’s certainly some potential threats out there that we’re watching, but I don’t see demand changing enough to prevent this.
So the short answer is the current situation will continue, and I think persist, and actually get a little bit more in terms of higher cattle prices. Now, that’s all predicated on demand continuing as strong as it is. I don’t see that changing at this point. There’s certainly some potential threats out there that we’re watching, but I don’t see demand changing enough to prevent this.
The warning that the cattle cycle is still several years from a meaningful turn builds on our prior note that there are “no quick fixes” for historically tight supplies.
The structural fix is herd rebuilding, and Peel’s timeline points to meaningful relief in beef production closer to 2029-2030, not anytime soon.
In other words, high supermarket beef prices are not a temporary squeeze. This is a new reality folks must understand: a broken cattle cycle that will take years to repair – and quality might lack…
That’s why locking in high-quality beef now matters. While the Trump administration searches for ways to bring prices down (see here) and the industry waits years for herds to rebuild, readers can skip the junk at the supermarket and buy directly from our ranchers.
Radia and Blue Water Shipping (Blue Water) have announced a strategic alliance that will combine the former’s gigantic Windrunner aircraft with the latter’s global logistics network. Under the agreement, Radia will supply the aircraft, and Blue Water will do basically everything else.
“The companies expect to focus initial collaboration efforts across several strategic sectors, including energy and project cargo, humanitarian aid and disaster relief, aerospace logistics, and military and defense-related transportation,” Radia explains in a press release.
In case you are unaware, the Windrunner is being marketed as the world’s “largest cargo aircraft.” Not in terms of raw weight, incidentally, but rather in the fact that it can vary extremely large, and non-standard cargo.
To date, examples have included 328-foot (100-meter) long turbine blades, large military vehicles, satellites, and aircraft fuselage parts, among other notable examples. So, in a sense, the selling point for it is its cargo-carrying volume.
Windrunner Is One Hell Of An Aircraft
Another interesting wrinkle is that the Windrunner is designed to operate out of both existing and “semi-prepared runways.” This means it can deliver cargo to dirt strips, compacted gravel, temporary runways, and remote airfields.
That means it could, in theory, fly directly to places like wind farm construction sites, military bases, disaster zones, and mining projects, rather than unloading hundreds of miles away.
Both Radia and Blue Water are particularly pitching their services to militaries and humanitarian aid efforts. The former often requires irregular cargo like radar systems, missile launchers, helicopters, engineering gear, bridge-laying equipment, etc, delivered to areas with no existing aerodromes.
The same is true for humanitarian aid, especially when natural disasters have knocked out existing infrastructure.
“Many of the industries we support are constrained not only by infrastructure but by the inability to efficiently move oversized cargo where and when it is needed,” said Mark Lundstrom, Founder and CEO of Radia.
Blue Water is a logistics company that has made its fortune arranging global logistics via things like ships. trucks, trains, etc, and navigating all the administrative red tape like customs, permits, etc. Both companies believe they can combine their respective talents to streamline the integration of their respective services.
Not An Exclusive Partnership, More Of An Open Relationship
“By combining WindRunner’s transformational airlift capabilities with Blue Water Shipping’s global logistics expertise, we believe we can help create more flexible and resilient transportation solutions for customers operating in some of the world’s most challenging environments,” Lundstrom added.
“Blue Water Shipping has extensive experience delivering complex logistics solutions across industries that depend on precision, reliability, and flexibility,” said Rasmus Svane, Head of Global Product Development Wind, Blue Water Shipping.
“Our collaboration with Radia represents an exciting opportunity to explore new logistics models for oversized cargo and help customers rethink what is possible when combining multimodal transportation solutions,” he added.
It is important to note that the agreement is for both to become “preferred partners” of one another. That doesn’t mean exclusivity, but rather, they will bid together for projects that benefit both.
“Turn Off Bluetooth, Use Signal”: ACLU Advises Anti-Trump Protesters On Evading Gov’t Surveillance
If you want a sign of how the left-wing, permanent protest-industrial complex is gearing up for the next wave of street mobilization, look no further than Chad Marlow, a senior policy counsel at the ACLU.
Marlow, whose work focuses on privacy, surveillance, and technology, has circulated guidance for protesters on social media about how to limit digital exposure, avoid government surveillance, and communicate via encrypted messaging platforms while protesting.
“If you’re protesting and not actively using your phone, the best thing you can do to prevent it from sharing information about you and your location is to shut it off entirely. If you want to turn on your phone to take pictures and record video during the day, turn your phone on, enable Airplane Mode, and turn off Bluetooth. That way, your phone won’t be inadvertently sharing your private location and other data while you’re using it,” Marlow said in a video posted on Instagram.
He continued, “If you need to use your phone, turn it on while you’re communicating, then shut it off when you’re done. By the way, it’s always safest to use a fully encrypted app like Signal, which makes it more difficult for the government to intercept your communications.”
After the North Texas Antifa defendants were convicted over the anti-ICE terror shooting attack and the Minnesota Antifa cell suspects were indicted for anti-government violence, leftist groups have been releasing guides on how to hide and destroy digital evidence.
The ACLU is listed as a proud partner of the failed No Kings rally, an event that is far from organic; instead, it is a heavily coordinated coalition of far-left socialist groups, NGOs, and unions seeking a socialist revolution by toppling Trump.
Marlow’s educational session on how protesters can limit digital exposure and evade government surveillance is certainly not a good look for a nonprofit that claims to defend all civil liberties. Instead, it has become a legal arm of far-left protesters.
Concerns that the ACLU is no longer merely protecting constitutional rights but is increasingly helping to equip DSA-aligned protesters for their revolution are very troubling, given what socialists say in their own words:
DSA Members: “The most important thing we can do is take America down from within” pic.twitter.com/phicruCxKe
This blurs the line between civil-liberties advocacy and activist support infrastructure at a time when the broader protest-industrial complex appears to be gearing up for the next round of street chaos.
Israel Hands US Curiously-Timed Intelligence Saying Iran Plotting To Assassinate Trump
Update(21:00ET): Here’s what President Trump said from Ankara on Wednesday which left many wondering just what he was referring to: “They want to take out the U.S. leader—me,” he said in reference to the Iranians. “I’m on every list. I saw this morning, I’m on every single one of their lists. And so far, I guess I’ve been a little bit lucky, but that maybe doesn’t last very long.”
The Wall Street Journal in a Thursday evening report says that Israel has provided fresh intelligence to the White House indicating just such a Tehran-linked plot. The timing is quite curious and interesting given it comes just as the warring sides standing on the brink of returning once again to full-scale war:
Israel shared new intelligence with the U.S. that it said indicated a fresh Iranian plan to kill President Trump, people familiar with the matter said, a finding that would mark an escalation in the war between Washington and Iran.
Iran for years has vowed openly to retaliate against Trump for the assassination of Qassem Soleimani, who was a top general in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, in the president’s first term.
The Israeli embassy in Washington declined to comment. Iran’s Mission to the United Nations didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. The White House referred The Wall Street Journal to comments the president made on Wednesday.
The Israelis have remained deeply dissatisfied with terms laid out in the previously agreed-to MoU, and so have every incentive to goad Washington further into the conflict. Certainly many within the US administration know this, and so might be taking this new ‘intelligence warning’ – which was leaked rather quickly to major media – with the appropriate degree of skepticism.
Meanwhile the US says it is still engaged in ‘technical talks’ with Iran, despite the past days of tit-for-tat bombings. “Technical talks between the US and Iran are continuing, according to a US official, following two days of clashes that threatened to shatter an already fragile ceasefire between the two nations,” reports Bloomberg, also late in the day Thursday. “The US is still committed to finding a solution with Iran, the official said Thursday, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the matter.”
So it appears there’s still hope that things might not spiral further. As for the alleged assassination plot, this isn’t the first time Iran has faced such accusations, and each time Tehran officials have vehemently denied them.
* * *
Just as the US nighttime strikes were significantly bigger than prior rounds in June, so has Iran’s ‘retaliation’ been bigger – chiefly on Gulf states and American bases there.
In the overnight and Thursday daytime hours, Iranian ballistic missiles and drones have targeted Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and even faraway Jordan. The country is reporting that it has intercepted several missiles, which targeted Muwaffaq Salti Air Base – jointly operated by US and Jordanian forces. Oil prices have persisted above prewar levels on Thursday.
“Jordan has intercepted eight Iranian missiles in its airspace after sirens sounded across the country, according to the armed forces,” reports Al Jazeera. “Falling shrapnel did not cause any casualties or material damage, it added.”
Following the US bombing of the Islamic Republic for a second consecutive night, which came after Iranian forces sought to enforce its own shipping route and protocol on the Strait of Hormuz (which saw several international vessels attacked), Tehran has newly confirmed it in turn struck “US bases and strategic centers” in Bahrain, Kuwait, and Qatar.
In particular the IRGC has claimed that two US bases in Kuwait and two base in Bahrain were attacked – and the Iranian elite force is threatening more to come. US Central Command (CENTCOM) says the rate of its strikes have grown to about 14 times the number of targets hit in the last late June flare-up in fighting.
Sirens blared in several cities in Jordan as Iranian missiles were intercepted.
U.S. forces have struck more than 170 Iranian military targets in the past two days, including air defense systems, drone and missile storage sites, military speed boats, and logistics infrastructure along the coast near the Strait of Hormuz, according to the U.S. Central Command.
CENTCOM released footage of some of the fresh strikes:
According to a release from U.S. Central Command, in the most recent wave of U.S. strikes against Iran in response to the Iranian targeting of commercial shipping, 90 military targets, including military logistics infrastructure, missile and drone storage sites, air defense… pic.twitter.com/c1sRyvbN5H
In some instances civilian infrastructure like rail lines and bridges have reportedly been hit, which marks a return to the opening months of Operation Epic Fury, when targets all across the country were damaged or obliterated.
Little that’s confirmable in the way of damage has come out of the Gulf states at this point:
Kuwait said that it had intercepted three ballistic missiles, a cruise missile and 10 drones early Thursday morning and that falling debris had injured one person and caused material damage. Bahrain’s military said it had intercepted and destroyed several drones and missiles after Iran launched attacks on Thursday.
Iran also said that it had launched an attack in Qatar, a key mediator in Iran’s talks with the United States. The Qatari authorities did not confirm any strikes but did issue a public security alert early this morning that it later lifted.
Iranian state sources have said the two days of renewed American attacks have killed 14 people and wounded 78. The casualty count could be much higher given that strikes and counterstrikes could be extended as an offramp becomes more elusive. Explosions have been observed along the Iranian coast, including Bushehr, Chabahar, Bandar Abbas, and Sirik.
VIDEO | Footage shows the Chabahar maritime traffic control tower following last night’s US attack.
The tower was attacked in an attempt to disrupt Iran’s control over the Strait of Hormuz. pic.twitter.com/wM5KLRhgqN
As for potential offramp, President Trump is still claiming that Tehran wants to make a deal “badly” – and even specified to reporters aboard Air Force One that Iran “called a while ago” make just such a request. Most pundits and reporters, after hearing the same line literally dozens of times over the past months, are skeptical to say the least.
While this remains Trump’s public-facing rhetoric, a fresh Thursday report in The Wall Street Journal offers a contrasting account. “Angered by the strikes, Trump pressed them on whether they believed Iran was serious about reaching a final deal,” WSJ writes. “In the end, after discussing it with his senior aides, the president decided they weren’t.”
Reports by Iranian state-run media of a cruise missile impact on the site of the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant in Southern Iran. pic.twitter.com/T9hKKx80NJ
Trump had later (on Wednesday) said from Ankara at the NATO summit, “To me, I think it’s over.” He then emphasized: “I don’t want to deal with them…They’re liars, they’re cheats, they’re sick people.”
As for Tehran’s position, “An Iranian diplomat said Wednesday that the US had violated the peace deal by setting up a shipping lane that wasn’t coordinated with Tehran, contending that it justified the Islamic Republic’s decision to fire at traffic,” according to the same report.
⭕️ Axios, which has frequently published official U.S. and Israeli leaks throughout the war, reports that the White House is preparing for what could become a multi-day or even multi-week military campaign against Iran centered on the Strait of Hormuz after President Trump… https://t.co/s0A4M71boV
From there, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth warned alongside Trump that the United States would hit Iran “even more, and even deeper” – after that the Pentagon announced it would “further degrade their ability to threaten freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.”
A US official was also quoted in the WSJ as saying Iran had chosen “the path of violence” and so will face the consequences.
The US has once again bombed fishing boats under the pretext of hitting IRGC fast attack boats. pic.twitter.com/WYYEkOnaw1
— Arya Yadeghaar (Backup) (@AryJeayBackup) July 9, 2026
* * *
More overnight developments
via Newsquawk…
Overnight strikes:
At the direction of the Commander in Chief, US Central Command forces have started conducting additional strikes against Iran to further degrade their ability to threaten freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. The United States is holding Iran accountable for recent unjustified aggression against commercial shipping and civilian crews freely navigating a vital international waterway.
US military base in Kuwait was hit in an Iranian retaliatory attack, while explosions heard at the US Fifth fleet HQ in Bahrain.
Iranian missiles targeted the Azraq base in eastern Jordan, Fars reported.
Iranian opposition sources report that maritime industries, shipyards, and the Revolutionary Guards’ naval base in Bandar Abbas were attacked, report Kan News.
US Commentary:
US President Trump said Iran called a while ago, they want to make a deal.
US President Trump’s frustration with Iran was due in part to his anger over the Strait not being fully open yet and that Iran hit ships transiting the Strait, CNN reported citing a US official. The official added that Trump is losing patience with the pace of negotiations, specifically Iran’s appearing to slow walk Washington on the nuclear talks.
US President Trump posted “This is in retribution for yesterday’s bombing of ships by Iran. If it happens again, it will get much worse!”.
US President Trump said Iran was just hit very hard, we have many ways to win; do not know if Iran will honour a deal but Iran wants to make a deal badly. Europe wants to help on Iran.
A US official said the ceasefire with Iran has been halted, at least temporarily, CNN reported.
“Everything depends on Iran’s response – if they continue to shoot, the night’s events could become a daily, weekly event. We are prepared,” i24News reported citing a US source.
The length and severity of the new campaign depends entirely on Tehran’s next moves, Axios reported citing a US official; The White House is preparing for a multi-day or multi-week exchange of fire with Iran over the Strait of Hormuz.
Israel has no connection to the US strikes on Iran, Al Arabiya reported citing an Israeli military source. Any attempt to target Israel will be met with a swift, decisive and strong response.
Iran Commentary:
Iran’s Bushehr Governor said that US attacks on a nuclear plant in the region are not true.
Iran’s advisor to the Supreme Leader Rezaei said “martyr Khamenei taught us not to fear American and showed that falsehood will perish. Await the hard slap from the Iranians”.
Iran’s IRGC said they will respond to the targeting of a bridge in Aqqala, Al Arabiya reported.
Iran’s IRGC said two US bases in Kuwait and two base in Bahrain were attacked, response will be extended to other US bases in the region if the US repeats its attacks.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Ghalibaf said America has not yet learned that bullying and breach of promise are no longer free, adds the Strait of Hormuz will only open with Iranian arrangements, not American threats.
The US attack on Bushehr did not cause any damage to the nuclear power plant, Nour news reported citing a source.
Lebanon:
“The US ambassador in Beirut: Negotiations between Lebanon and Israel have moved to Rome for technical reasons”, via Al Arabiya. Preparations are underway regarding the start of work in the pilot areas.
Israeli Defence Minister Katz said they will remain within the Lebanon security zone and will operate within it until Hezbollah is disarmed.
The U.S. Department of Justice said July 7 the Biden administration’s oil and gas leasing restrictions in northern Alaska’s Arctic region violated federal law and asked the court to dismiss lawsuits by the state and its industrial development and export authority challenging the regulations.
The lawsuits were filed in 2025 over the Biden administration’s 2024 restrictions on oil and gas lease auctions in the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Alaska argued that the administration essentially sabotaged bidding with its restrictions on surface use and occupancy, which made “any development economically and practically impossible.”
“The Biden era Alaska oil and gas leasing program violated the law and improperly limited Alaska’s energy potential with unreasonable regulation,” U.S. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a July 7 press release.
“This settlement supports the Trump administration’s commitment to secure American energy independence and our national security for generations to come,” he added.
Congress set aside 1.5 million acres along the Alaska coast in 1980 for potential oil and gas development, and in 2017 instructed a federal agency to develop the resources on the land. Alaska’s lawsuit claims the Biden administration negated Congress’s directive.
“These resources not only help our energy independence as a nation but also grows the Alaska economy and puts more money in the Alaska Permanent Fund for future generations,” Gov. Mike Dunleavy said in a January 2025 statement.
The settlement says the 2024 leasing program violated the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act by abdicating the government’s duty to conduct a second lease sale, closing 75 percent of the 1.56 million-acre Coastal Plain to exploration and leasing, imposing unreasonable surface use restrictions on the remaining 25 percent, and unreasonably restricting surface disturbance.
“This settlement sets the record straight that the Biden administration’s 2024 restrictions on oil and gas production in Alaska were overly restrictive and contrary to Congress’s clear command to establish a competitive oil and gas leasing program in Alaska’s Coastal Plain,” Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward said in a statement.
Alaska’s governor’s office and the industrial development and export authority didn’t immediately return requests for comment about the settlement.
The Justice Department also settled a decades-old lawsuit with Alaska on July 7 over a botched federal expansion project at the Don Young Port of Alaska in Anchorage, agreeing to pay the state $180 million.
Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy speaks at the White House in Washington on July 16, 2020. Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images
The funds will go toward rebuilding the Don Young Port, according to Dunleavy.
The port serves about 90 percent of Alaska’s population with food, fuel, building materials, and other goods.
New Hampshire Kills Historic $100M Bitcoin Bond Proposal
New Hampshire’s Executive Council narrowly rejected a proposal Wednesday that would have authorized a $100 million Bitcoin-backed bond, ending what supporters hoped would make the state a pioneer in digital asset finance, according to Bitcoin Magazine.
The measure failed in a 3-2 vote after reaching its final approval stage, despite receiving a favorable rating review from Moody’s and backing from Governor Kelly Ayotte and the New Hampshire Business Finance Authority. Had it moved forward, officials said it would have been the first municipal bond in the world secured by Bitcoin.
The report notes that supporters argued the transaction would not put taxpayers at risk. Instead, it would have connected private investors with a private borrower using Bitcoin as collateral, while allowing the state to collect fees that could fund small business, housing, child care, and economic development initiatives if the deal proved successful.
Skeptics, however, questioned whether New Hampshire should attach its name to a financing structure built around a volatile digital asset. Councilor Karen Liot Hill said she was not opposed to cryptocurrency itself but believed the state should be cautious about endorsing a transaction tied to Bitcoin’s price swings.
Business Finance Authority Executive Director James Key-Wallace rejected the idea that Bitcoin remains an “emerging” asset class, arguing it has already established itself in global finance. He also suggested the proposal could have opened the door to similar transactions in the future.
Ayotte, who signed legislation making New Hampshire the first state to authorize a strategic Bitcoin reserve and giving the state treasurer authority to invest in Bitcoin, said pursuing innovative financial structures is worthwhile so long as taxpayers remain protected.
The vote came after Liot Hill unsuccessfully attempted to delay consideration of the proposal. She was joined by Janet Stevens and David Wheeler in opposing the measure, while Joseph Kenney and John Stephen voted in favor.
The decision arrives as Bitcoin and the broader cryptocurrency industry are facing heightened scrutiny. Bitcoin has pulled back from recent highs, while renewed attention has focused on Michael Saylor and Strategy, whose aggressive Bitcoin dividend strategy has drawn increasing debate as the cryptocurrency’s price weakens.
That backdrop has put high-profile Bitcoin-related proposals under a brighter spotlight, even as adoption efforts continue at the state and institutional levels.
A new report has revealed that a pair of Southern California school leaders separately stole nearly $20 million from their schools in order to fund lavish personal lifestyles.
According to The New York Post, the report was co-authored by the State Financial Officers Foundation, a watchdog made up of state treasurers and auditors, and OpenTheBooks, a nonprofit focused on transparency in government spending.
The cases of the two Southern California educators were among the most expensive examples of K-12 education fraud documented nationwide.
Jorge Armando Contreras, the former fiscal services director for the Magnolia Elementary School District in Orange County, was charged with altering school checks over several years to funnel $16.7 million into his personal accounts.
Contreras was spending the money on everything from a luxury home and a BMW to designer clothes and pricey tequila and federal investigators found stacks of cash stuffed into a mini-fridge and luxury designer bags at his home.
He was sentenced to nearly six years in federal prison in 2024 and order to pay $16.7 million in restitution to the Magnolia School District in Orange County.
Another case highlighted in the report revealed that Janis Bucknor, the head of the Community Preparatory Academy charter school in Los Angeles, stole more than $3 million in taxpayer funds to cover travel, restaurants, shopping and private school tuition for her children.
Bucknor also pleaded guilty to spending more than $220,600 on Disney cruise line vacations, theme park admissions, and other Disney-related expenses.
In a statement to Fox News Digital, State Financial Officers Foundation CEO OJ Oleka said:
All fraud is harmful, but defrauding education dollars meant to help kids learn and succeed is especially hideous. The findings in this report should alarm every family, teacher, and civic leader.
The California cases were part of nearly 90 cases identified by a coalition of auditors over the past six years involving embezzlement, phony invoices, inflated enrollment, bid-rigging and kickbacks, among other crimes.
The report follows the Trump administration’s promise to crack down on government waste, with Vice President JD Vance leading a nationwide “War on Fraud” that has raised new questions about oversight of federal education spending.
Strongest El Nino In 75 Years Sets Off Food Supply-Chain Alarm Bells
The US Climate Prediction Center has warned that the weather phenomenon El Niño, which only recently emerged across the Pacific, could become the most powerful in more than 75 years. This raises the risk of adverse weather conditions across the US, Asia, Australia, and South America. The stronger the weather event becomes, the greater the threat to critical food supply chains, which are already vulnerable to drought, flooding, export restrictions, and rising protectionism.
The CPC, a NOAA/National Weather Service unit that issues official US government climate outlooks, wrote in its report that sea-surface temperatures at least 1C above normal have spread across the central and eastern equatorial Pacific, with an 81% chance the event becomes “very strong” and ranks among the largest on record since 1950. Some parts of the Pacific were 2.7C above normal last week.
A negative El Niño Southern Oscillation Index indicates pressure patterns consistent with El Niño, typically associated with weaker Pacific trade winds and warmer-than-average sea surface temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific. The SOI is now at levels not seen since 2005.
“Even the strongest El Niño events do not lead to typical impacts everywhere, but stronger events can more significantly tilt the odds in favor of expected outcomes,” the Climate Prediction Center said. El Niño “will strengthen through the end of the year, with a 97% chance it will last through early spring 2027.”
Goldman Sachs commodities research analyst Lina Thomas provided further insight into the looming El Niño threat, warning that global agricultural supply is “highly concentrated geographically,” leaving crop markets “highly vulnerable to localized weather, geopolitical, or policy shocks.”
Thomas warned about weather, geopolitical, and/or policy shocks that may put a bid under food prices:
Global agricultural supply is highly concentrated geographically. Across key crops such as soybeans, corn, rice, sugar, and palm oil, the top three exporting countries account for 60-90% of global trade (Exhibit 1), leaving agricultural markets highly exposed to localized weather, geopolitical, and policy shocks.
Because major agricultural exporters increasingly prioritize domestic food and energy security through export restrictions and biofuel mandates, even modest disruptions—or the fear of disruptions—can trigger policies that reduce exportable supply. In highly concentrated markets, the resulting loss of exportable supply can be much larger than the original production shock, amplifying price volatility. Import-dependent countries may in turn respond by stockpiling and pursuing greater self-sufficiency, often accepting higher domestic production costs in exchange for supply security. While these measures are ultimately aimed at improving resilience locally, they also fragment trade, reduce market liquidity, and increase the sensitivity of prices to future shocks.
We view the risk of protectionist policy responses as a key source of upside risk to crop prices and agricultural volatility, as three near‑term supply concerns could trigger precautionary measures even if the underlying disruptions ultimately prove limited.
First, El Niño conditions are already present, with a 63% probability of developing into a “super” El Niño. Because many major exporters of staples such as rice, and crops used for biofuels such as sugar and palm oil, are concentrated in regions that historically experience more adverse weather during El Niño episodes, even a modest weather shock—or the fear of one—could trigger precautionary export restrictions.
Second, higher energy prices in 2026H1 and concerns about fuel security may encourage governments to increase biofuel mandates, further diverting crops from export markets into domestic fuel production.
Third, fertilizer markets also remain exposed to renewed disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz during the critical Q3 procurement season for major nitrogen fertilizer importers ahead of 2H planting.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear is calling on Senator Mitch McConnell to publicly disclose more about his health after the longtime Republican lawmaker remained out of public view for nearly three weeks following his hospitalization in Washington.
In a letter released Wednesday, Beshear said Kentuckians deserve more information about McConnell’s condition and his ability to continue serving in office.
“Kentuckians have grown increasingly concerned about the current state of your health and well-being, and ability to hold office,” Beshear wrote.
McConnell, 84, was hospitalized June 14 and has not released a public statement, photo or video since then.
His aides have provided few details beyond saying last week that he “continues to improve, and is working closely with his staff on Kentucky and Senate matters while the Senate is out of session.”
The lack of public updates has fueled speculation over whether the former Senate Republican leader will return when the Senate reconvenes next week.
Republican leaders sought to tamp down those concerns Tuesday.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota and Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming both said they had spoken with McConnell and described him as alert and engaged in discussions about current events.
President Donald Trump said Wednesday he had not spoken with McConnell since the senator’s hospitalization.
“I have no idea how he’s doing,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One while returning from the NATO summit in Turkey.
McConnell has announced he will retire when his current term expires in January, but questions about his health have intensified interest in what could happen if he is unable to complete the remainder of his term.
Kentucky law no longer allows the governor to appoint a temporary replacement to the U.S. Senate.
Republican lawmakers changed the state’s succession process in 2021 and again in 2024, removing the governor’s appointment authority and instead requiring a special election if a vacancy occurs.
