1 AG Blanche Says DOJ May Take Voter Roll Fight To Supreme Court
Attorney General Todd Blanche said yesterday that the Justice Department may take its fight to obtain copies of states' voter rolls to the Supreme Court, after losing 22 cases in lower federal courts so far. Asked on NBC's "Meet the Press" whether he would appeal those losses to the high court, Blanche said, "Absolutely, it's a possibility." He argued that election integrity is something President Trump ran on and that every American should care about, saying the department will not run away from investigating how elections are conducted. The effort stems from an executive order Trump signed in March 2025 directing the federal government to seek broad access to state voter rolls, including voters' names, dates of birth, home addresses, driver's license numbers, and the last four digits of their Social Security numbers. Critics remain wary of Blanche's close personal ties to Trump. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, appearing later on the same program, accused the Justice Department under Blanche of becoming what he called a wholly owned subsidiary of the Trump operation.
2 Five People Shot At Lexington, Kentucky Event, One Killed
Five people were shot, one fatally, during summer festivities at a downtown Lexington, Kentucky, park on Saturday evening, police said. The gunfire erupted at Charles Young Park, where a crowd had gathered for a community event. Among the victims were a 4-year-old, a 14-year-old, and two adults, all of whom were hospitalized with injuries that were not considered life-threatening. Police have not yet identified the person who died, released any information about a suspect, or made any arrests, though they said there is no threat to the public. Governor Andy Beshear announced the shooting while speaking at a Democratic Party dinner at a downtown hotel.
3 President Orders A Scale-Back Of Military Exercises With South Korea
President Trump said yesterday he has ordered the Pentagon to scale back joint military exercises with South Korea, after the country recently declined to help with the U.S. effort to denuclearize Iran. In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump called the drills costly and said they send a signal that is totally inappropriate and hostile to North Korea, which he said has been unthreatening and respectful during his presidency. He cited his good relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Trump said it was too late to cancel the exercises but told Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to substantially reduce them, adding that his decision was somewhat unrelated to South Korea's refusal on Iran. It is not the first time Trump has moved to pause the war games, having called them provocative during his 2018 summit with Kim in Singapore.