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US, Denmark & Greenland Reach Open-Ended Arctic Security Pact
President Trump said Friday the United States, Denmark and Greenland had agreed to give Washington permanent control over security and other needs in Greenland at no cost to the United States. He called it an âInfinite Lifeâ agreement and said no U.S. adversary may have a base, a military presence or make sensitive investments there without written U.S. approval. He said a large American military presence would begin immediately. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the pact permanently addresses U.S. Arctic security interests. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenland officials said the deal recognizes Danish sovereignty and Greenlandâs right to self-determination. Signing is expected next week at the U.N. General Assembly. The announcement followed a Sept. 1 U.S.-aligned purchase of Greenlandâs Sarfartoq rare-earth project.
Editorâs Note: The critical verbiage here is âwithout US approvalâ. So, the next Obama or Biden would, of course, approve of our foes entering Greenland.
đď¸ News & Politics
Courts Curb Third-Country Removals as Minnesota Judges Coordinate on Cases
A First Circuit panel on Friday mostly upheld a Massachusetts district ruling that blocked a March 2025 Homeland Security policy allowing third-country deportations in as little as six hours. Judge Seth Aframe, a Biden appointee, wrote that blanket assurances from receiving countries do not replace notice and a chance to raise fear of persecution or torture. Judges Jeffrey R. Howard, a Bush appointee, and Lara E. Montecalvo, another Biden appointee, joined him. The panel struck a requirement from District Judge Brian Murphy, yet another Biden appointee, that officials first try designated or home countries. Separately, Minnesota federal judges shared templates, email threads and an on-call rotation as immigration filings surged. Senior Judge Patrick Schiltz, a Bush appointee, and Judge Katherine M. Menendez, a Biden appointee, were among those described as staying on call.
Editorâs Note: It is time to evaluate whether the federal benches actually exist under the US Supreme Court. Increasingly, they rule in opposition to SCOTUS rulings.
DOJ Says It Will Not Prosecute Dealers Who Sell Handguns to Adults Under 21
The Justice Departmentâs Office of Legal Counsel concluded Friday that the 1968 federal ban on licensed dealers selling handguns and handgun ammunition to 18- to 20-year-olds cannot be criminally enforced. Assistant Attorney General T. Elliot Gaiser said 18-year-olds may vote, serve on juries, be drafted, and face adult criminal penalties, including capital punishment. The office said 18- to 20-year-olds are among âthe peopleâ protected by the Second Amendment under Heller and Bruen and that Founding-era militia laws required service at 18 with personally furnished arms. The statute remains on the books. The opinion does not override state age limits. The Fifth Circuit reached a similar result in Reese v. ATF for its own circuit.
Tech Chiefs Set to Join Trump and Xi at White House State Dinner
President Trump will host Chinese President Xi Jinping at a White House state dinner next week with a guest list of U.S. technology and finance chiefs. Confirmed attendees include Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Jensen Huang, Sam Altman, Sundar Pichai, Michael Dell, Jane Fraser and Tim Cook, White House principal deputy press secretary Anna Kelly said. The dinner is Thursday in the East Room. Xiâs visit runs Wednesday through Friday, with an Andrews arrival, a Rose Garden review, a bilateral meeting, a private tea, and a National Archives tour. Officials said AI safety and the Busan trade truce, which expires in November, are on the agenda. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is to meet Chinese counterparts in New York this weekend. Trump has said AI needs a strong president, not new rules that would slow the United States while China advances.
Left-Leaning Voter Groups Face 40 Percent Funding Drop Ahead of Midterms
Several large progressive voter-engagement groups are short of cash and cutting staff as midterm voting begins. America Votes, which coordinates more than 400 allied organizations, said it is well below its 2022 funding. A July memo among Democratic fundraisers said groups that registered voters in 2018 and 2022 have raised nearly 40 percent less than at the same point in those cycles. Vamos a Votar said it still needs $5.4 million for turnout work in 10 states and 17 House districts. Organizers said many donors shifted to legal groups suing the administration or pulled back after 2024. Some asked whether groups could drop âBlackâ from their names. The DNC said it is expanding voter-protection work and did not address allied-group shortfalls.
Trump Bars CNN, MS NOW and Politico From White House Over Fake News Claims
President Trump said Friday he was immediately banning CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House over what he called constant fake news. He wrote on Truth Social that outlets should not report fiction and lies about the president, his administration, or the United States, and that other outlets could follow suit. In the Oval Office, he said the move was cumulative, not about one story, and that he does not have to admit them to the peopleâs house. He previously restricted Associated Press access after a style dispute over the name "Gulf of Americaâ. An appeals court later allowed limits on some presidential spaces. CNN called the ban an illegal assault. Politico said it would defend its First Amendment rights. On Saturday, the three outlets said White House press passes were confiscated.
Editorâs Note: The âfree pressâ First Amendment right isnât an all-access pass. It is the right to report without government censorship. CNN, MS NOW and Politico are still free to report as they see fit. They just arenât privileged to be granted White House access, like so many other smaller networks and publications.
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Texas Democrat Running for Railroad Seat Called Communism Pacifist
State Rep. Jon Rosenthal (D), the Democrat nominee for Texas Railroad Commission, voted against 2025âs SB 24, which requires public schools to teach the history and tactics of communist movements and atrocities tied to communist regimes. During amendment debate, he said the bill should not discuss communism âin isolation of that wordâ but connect it to totalitarian regimes, âbecause communism in its purist form, in its own form, is pacifist.â He also sought to add teaching about Nazism and said he saw signs of rising authoritarianism. The bill passed and was signed into law. Rosenthal faces Republican Bo French, who won a May primary over incumbent Jim Wright. The commission oversees Texas oil and gas.
Islamo-Communist Piker Says a Nuclear-Armed Iran Would Make the Middle East More Stable
Islamo-Communist streamer Hasan Piker, a Democratic Socialist, said in an interview released Friday that the Middle East would be more stable if Iran had a nuclear weapon. Asked whether Iran should be free to build one, he said any sovereign nation has a right to defend itself regardless of its domestic policies. He said he does not want Iran, the United States, Russia or China to have nuclear arms. He said he was not advocating sending Iran weapons-grade uranium and called the nuclear file a distraction used for sanctions relief. He also said that, pound for pound by deaths, the United States has caused more terror than al-Qaeda. Michigan Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed has unsuccessfully tried to distance himself from Piker after campaigning with him.
Minnesota County Shuts $2 Million ICE-Impact Grant Fund After Fraud Wave
Hennepin County ended a $2 million small-business relief fund created for firms claiming losses from Operation Metro Surge after officials flagged most applications as fraudulent. About 300 applications came in. Officials approved 82 and paid about $500,000 before stopping the program. Site visits found businesses that did not exist. Reviewers found the same AI-generated language copied across dozens of unrelated files. Commissioner Jeff Lunde said applicants still felt they could get away with it and that processing was halted as results declined. County officials said no grant money was lost to fraud as a result of the review. Unused funds were redirected to consulting and other support.
New York Holds $19 Million From Nuns After Sale of Manhattan Residence
The Sisters of the Congregation of Divine Providence sold the Jeanne dâArc Residence in Manhattan in 2024 for $22.5 million to John Catsimatidis after 123 years of housing young women. New York law required Attorney General Letitia James to approve the charity-asset sale. Her office approved it and released about $3.1 million for carrying costs, taxes and fees. It has held the remaining $19.3 million for more than two years. The attorney generalâs office said the order did not provide a breakdown of planned use. The sistersâ lawyer, Christine Sama, said a January letter stated that the funds would support the same work as Jeanne dâArcâs, including care for aging sisters at Holy Family Home in Kentucky, a local shelter, immigrant resettlement, and clinics and schools in Madagascar. Officials said the use was not sufficiently similar to that of the sold building.
Editorâs Note: Letitia James is a thief and a criminal.
UNF Trustee Votes No, Calling President-Elect Too Conservative
University of North Florida Trustee Allison Korman Shelton voted against hiring University of North Georgia President Michael P. Shannon after the board interviewed him as sole finalist. She said she finds him âvery, very conservativeâ and that UNFâs demographics are not as conservative as he is. She cited her long financial history with the university and said she never attended UNF and has no involvement as a student. The board selected Shannon 10-2 as the schoolâs eighth president, subject to Florida Board of Governors confirmation. Shannon is a retired Army lieutenant colonel and first-generation college graduate. A contract vote is scheduled for Sept. 23.
Editorâs Note: Perhaps Ms. Shelton should realize she doesnât live in California, Illinois, New York, or Minnesota.
ON THIS DAY IN 1796:
President George Washingtonâs famous Farewell Address was published in Philadelphia's American Daily Advertiser. In it, he warned the nation against deep political partisan divides and entangling foreign alliances.
đ International
US Advances $24 Billion F-35 Sale to Saudis Despite China Leak Warnings
The State Department notified Congress of a proposed $24.3 billion sale of 48 F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia. Congress has 30 days to review it. U.S. intelligence assessments, including a Defense Intelligence Agency report, warned China could obtain F-35 technology through espionage in the kingdom or through Saudi military and security ties with Beijing. Analysts flagged Chinese access to Saudi bases and Huawei and ZTE gear in Saudi telecommunications. They asked whether sites housing the jets would be limited to U.S. and Saudi personnel. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., said the sale could put American military technology within reach of the Chinese Communist Party. Israel is the only current F-35 operator in the Middle East.
Iran Sends Cease-Fire Terms to Washington Through Qatar
Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iranâs Supreme National Security Council, said Saturday that Tehran has given Qatar its conditions for ending the war with the United States and is waiting for President Donald Trumpâs reply. He listed an end to fighting on all fronts, the release of frozen Iranian assets and an end to the naval blockade. Consultations with Qatari and Pakistani mediators continue after a memorandum of understanding expired last month. Rezaei said Iran is prepared for a full-scale war if Washington refuses. He said Tehran still follows the late Ali Khamenei fatwa against nuclear weapons and has not decided to leave the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, adding that U.S. and Israeli actions could change that. He also said Iran recently tested an anti-ship missile near a U.S. carrier.
Editorâs Note: If I were the Iranian Supreme National Security Council, I would be very careful what you wish forâŚ
Cuba Grid Collapses for the 7th Time in Nationwide Blackout
Cubaâs electrical grid collapsed Friday afternoon, leaving the island without power. Cuban authorities said high-voltage lines in central Cuba failed around 2 p.m. local time, starting with the Matanzas-Cienfuegos and Matanzas-Santa Clara 220 kV lines. The U.S. Embassy in Havana warned American citizens to plan accordingly and reported cellphone and internet outages. Officials said the cause was under investigation and restoration protocols were underway. Power returned first around some Havana hospitals. The outage was at least the seventh nationwide collapse this year. Fuel shortages, aging plants and rolling blackouts have been routine even when the grid is up.
US Clears $2.68 Billion Ukraine Air Defense Sale Using Prior Aid Funds
The State Department on Friday approved a possible $2.68 billion Foreign Military Sale to Ukraine for air defense upgrades. Kyiv requested S-300 Clone missiles, GAM-67 missiles, range-extended laser-guided rocket systems, launchers, counter-drone radars, trailers and spare parts. Ukraine would pay with European contributions and U.S. Foreign Military Financing appropriated under the Biden administration. That financing would count as a one-to-one U.S. contribution to the Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund. The package still faces congressional review. Kyiv has faced ammunition shortages as Russian strikes on the capital have increased. President Trump signed a separate sanctions bill targeting Russiaâs energy and defense sectors the same day.
Taliban-Linked Faction Claims Kohat Police Compound Massacre
A suicide attacker rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into a police compound in Kohat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, on Friday as officers and families prayed at a mosque inside. Gunmen then stormed the Old Police Lines complex, which houses counterterrorism and Special Branch offices. Early tallies put the dead at 16. By Saturday, police said the toll had risen to at least 31, including about 16 officers, with more than 100 wounded. Ittihadul Mujahideen Pakistan, a Pakistani Taliban-linked faction associated with Hafiz Gul Bahadur, claimed responsibility. Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, the main Pakistani Taliban umbrella, issued a statement disowning the attack. Officials said the attackers were killed in the blast and a subsequent gunfight. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the assault.
