🎧 LISTEN TO THE HEADLINES ON THE SUBSTACK APP
House Set to Vote on Amendment Fixing Supreme Court at Nine Justices
The House is expected to vote this week on H.J. Res. 1, a proposed constitutional amendment from Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ), that would lock the Supreme Court at nine justices, one chief and eight associates. The court’s size is now set by statute and can be changed by a simple majority in Congress. The last change came in 1869. An amendment would require two-thirds votes in both chambers and ratification by 38 states within seven years. Speaker Mike Johnson said the measure would force Democrats to take a public position after some in the party, including Rep. Al Green (D-TX), floated expanding the bench to 13. House Democrat Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (D-CA) called the vote a midterm “show vote” and said he would oppose it. The Judiciary Committee approved the resolution 15-8 in June along party lines.
🏛️ News & Politics
Eight Democrats Join Republicans as House Denounces Socialism
The House on Tuesday adopted a nonbinding resolution condemning socialism in all its forms, including the Democratic Socialists of America, and calling for enactment of the SAVE America Act. The measure passed 220-192. Eight Democrats voted with Republicans: Reps. Kathy Castor (D-FL), Henry Cuellar (D-TX), Don Davis (D-NC), Jared Golden (D-ME), Vicente Gonzalez (D-TX), Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-WA), Darren Soto (D-FL), and Gabe Vasquez (D-NM). Two Democrats voted present. Most of the Democrat caucus opposed the text because it tied the condemnation to proof-of-citizenship and photo-ID voting rules. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and other Democrat leaders voted no. The vote followed recent DSA-aligned primary wins and came after Golden and Gluesenkamp Perez helped Republicans clear a procedural rule that nearly failed.
Justice Department Requires All State Agencies Taking Welfare Grants to Report Known Illegal Aliens
The Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel issued an opinion on Sept. 1, holding that any state accepting Temporary Assistance for Needy Families or Supplemental Security Income funds must have every state agency report to the Department of Homeland Security the names and identifying information of individuals the state knows are not lawfully present. The opinion withdraws a 1998 Clinton-era interpretation that limited the 1996 welfare-reform statute’s reporting duty to only the agencies that cut the checks. All 50 states, the District of Columbia, and several territories participate in the programs, which include more than $16.4 billion in annual federal TANF block grants. Officials said the condition was written into the law when Congress created the programs and that noncompliance can result in loss of funding.
White House Presses Refiners on Capacity as Venezuela Oil Deal Takes Shape
President Trump met Tuesday with nearly a dozen refiners and distributors, including officials from Interior, Energy, and the National Energy Dominance Council, to discuss expanding U.S. refining capacity and cutting pump prices. The White House said plants are running near capacity and discussed faster permitting, regulatory changes, and new investment. AAA put the national average at $4.09 a gallon. Officials also detailed a Venezuelan arrangement granting North American Blue Energy Partners 100-year concessions for 17 fields previously held by Russian and Chinese operators. The Pentagon’s Office of Strategic Capital would take a 35% equity stake, with a 20% offtake at cost and no taxpayer cash invested. Royalties to Venezuela would be capped at 30%. The meeting comes as midterm voters watch gasoline prices after the Iran conflict.
Justice Department Backs OpenAI Fair Use Claim in Publisher Copyright Fight
The Justice Department filed a Sept. 1 statement of interest in Manhattan federal court supporting OpenAI against a 2023 copyright suit by The New York Times and other publishers. Government lawyers said training large language models on copyrighted text is “extraordinarily transformative” and that the United States has a strong interest in rejecting claims that such training violates copyright law. They cited national security, military uses, scientific progress, and competition for independent publishers. OpenAI and Microsoft argue the practice is fair use. The Times has said the models copy its work without payment and compete with its journalism. The filing is the first time the federal government has formally taken that position in the wave of AI training lawsuits. The judge is considering summary judgment motions.
Editor’s Note: There is a very real distinction between AI use and AI abuse. As far as copyright infringement is concerned, news is not a creation and, therefore, unless the text is plagiarized, there can be no infringement, thus, the fair use law.
D.C. Circuit Restores Bergdahl Desertion Conviction After Judge Overreached
A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that a federal district judge had no authority to vacate former Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl’s 2017 court-martial conviction for desertion and misbehavior before the enemy. Bergdahl walked off his post in Afghanistan in 2009, was captured by the Haqqani network and held for nearly five years, then was freed in 2014 in a swap for five Taliban detainees from Guantanamo Bay. He pleaded guilty in 2017 and received a dishonorable discharge, reduction to the lowest enlisted rank, and a $10,000 forfeiture, with no prison time. In 2023, U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton voided that judgment after finding that military judge Col. Jeffrey Nance failed to disclose a Justice Department immigration-judge application. Circuit Judge Robert Wilkins, joined by Chief Judge Sri Srinivasan and Judge Gregory Katsas, held that only military appellate courts may vacate a court-martial judgment. The panel sent the case back with orders to dismiss it for lack of jurisdiction. The conviction stands.
Listen to Underground USA’s podcast:
⭐⭐ Chicago’s Late-Summer Slaughter Isn’t a Tragedy…It’s a Natural Outcome
BE SURE TO LIKE THE ARTICLE & SHARE IT WIDELY
📢 The American Fifth Column
Colorado Student Walkout Tied to 50501 Partners Backed by Dark Money Networks
Students from more than 160 Colorado public schools plan to walk out at noon Sept. 4 against ICE, organized by the Denver-based Youth Coalition and promoted by 50501, a partner in the national No Kings protests. 50501 lists no public leadership or centralized budget. Its documented partners include Political Revolution and Ford Foundation-backed Voices of Florida. No Kings coalition groups such as Indivisible have received millions from George Soros’s Open Society network, Hansjörg Wyss vehicles, Tides, and the Arabella Advisors dark-money complex, including the Sixteen Thirty Fund. New York Post reporting on earlier ICE Out actions under the 50501 umbrella also flagged promotion by the People’s Forum and Party for Socialism and Liberation, groups tied to China-based donor Neville Singham. Local Youth Coalition's finances are undisclosed. A rally is planned at Denver’s La Alma Park.
Unknown Man Gets Five Years After Using Dead Teen’s Social Security Number for Two Decades
A man whose true name remains unknown was sentenced to 61 months in federal prison after using the identity of Carlos Ramon Obregon, a Los Angeles boy killed in a 1977 drive-by shooting at age 14. The defendant applied for a replacement Social Security card in Obregon’s name in 2000. Over the next 24 years, he collected about $177,516 in Social Security disability payments, $91,145 in Medicaid, $12,166 in food stamps, and $3,200 in pandemic stimulus checks. He obtained Idaho IDs, a 2022 Real ID Star Card, and a U.S. passport, which he used for trips to Mexico. Obregon’s mother testified that her son is dead. A 2024 passport renewal attempt exposed the scheme. Judge David C. Nye ordered $283,977 in restitution.
Editor’s Note: Kinda shoots the entire “Real ID” thing in the foot…
Justice Department Sues Kansas District Over Secret Student Gender Plans
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and the U.S. attorney for Kansas filed a first-of-its-kind federal lawsuit Tuesday against Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools. The complaint alleges the district’s internal transgender guidance, in place since 2017, lets staff develop “gender plans” for students and withhold names, pronouns and related details from parents when a student requests it. Officials say the practice violates the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act and the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment by blocking parental access to education records and skipping required consent for sensitive evaluations. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon said schools do not know children better than their parents. Education Secretary Linda McMahon said the administration is ending years of unenforced parental-rights laws. The district maintains that it complies with federal law and that the document is guidance, not formal policy.
Massachusetts Woman Charged After Allegedly Filming Clancy Trial Jurors
A 56-year-old Sutton woman was arrested Tuesday outside Plymouth Superior Court on a charge of intimidation of a witness or juror after she allegedly filmed members of the jury in the Lindsay Clancy triple-murder trial. Dawn Light was taken into custody around 3:40 p.m. as jurors left the courthouse following a day of deliberations in which the panel had reported it was deadlocked. State police said she was scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday. Sources told a local reporter that jurors saw the filming.
U.S. Sanctions Italian Tech Collective That Hosted Far-Left Attack Communiques
The State and Treasury departments designated Italy’s Autistici Inventati Collective a Specially Designated Global Terrorist on Aug. 26 for running NoBlogs and other tools used by far-left militants. Users posted anonymous communiques taking credit for ATM sabotage, pregnancy-center vandalism by Jane’s Revenge, and a California arson later tied to convicted bomber Casey Goonan. Officials said the platforms help cells organize, recruit, and hide from police. Clients have until Sept. 25 to stop using the services or face penalties. The collective said antifascism is not terrorism and that it does not know how the sanctions will land. Prior administrations left the network in place for years.
ON THIS DAY IN 1945:
Japanese representatives signed the official Instrument of Surrender aboard the battleship USS Missouri anchored in Tokyo Bay. General Douglas MacArthur presided over the ceremony, officially bringing World War II to a close.
🌐 International
FBI Seizes Hamas Crypto Funds and Online Fundraising Network
The Justice Department said Tuesday that the FBI seized more than $560,000 in cryptocurrency donations intended for Hamas and took control of websites, servers and communication platforms used by the group’s military wing, the Al Qassam Brigades, to raise money and recruit supporters. Court records show investigators used human sources and blockchain tracing to execute crypto seizure warrants in March, June and October 2025, then seized domains including AlQassam.ps that let agents intercept incoming donations. Officials also obtained information on thousands of people who contacted Hamas online seeking to give money. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said Hamas networks are not secure and its crypto is vulnerable. Assistant Attorney General John Eisenberg said the seizures cut resources used to recruit online and finance attacks such as the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre.
German Navy Fires Israeli LORA Missile From Frigate in North Atlantic Test
Germany launched an Israeli-made LORA ballistic missile from an F-125 frigate in the North Atlantic overnight, officials said Sept. 2. Vice Adm. Jan Christian Kaack called it naval history and said the system’s potential range exceeds anything the navy has fielded. Gen. Carsten Breuer said the shot showed deterrence at sea. Israel Aerospace Industries Chairman Boaz Levy said the missile hit its target with precision. LORA has a range of up to about 310 miles. Germany has no ballistic missiles of its own and relies on slower Taurus cruise missiles. Officials said Berlin will advance procurement plans. The test came as NATO states seek longer-range strike weapons after Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Le Pen Pledges Public Vote on Ban of Muslim Headscarves
National Rally leader Marine Le Pen said that if she wins the 2027 French presidency, she will put to a referendum a law against Islamist ideology that would make wearing the Islamic veil in public a punishable offense. Deputy Jean-Philippe Tanguy said women who kept the veil after such a ban would face a fine, comparing the penalty to a ticket for driving without a seat belt. The party has floated a public-space veil ban since Le Pen’s 2012 campaign. France already bars conspicuous religious symbols in state schools and face coverings in public. Party president Jordan Bardella backed a later referendum on Islamist ideology after an immigration vote and said the plan was not a clothing police. Left and centrist rivals called the measure Islamophobic or legally shaky. Polls have put Le Pen ahead for next year’s race.
Chevron Plans $7 Billion Venezuela Push to Double Output
Chevron said Wednesday it will expand Venezuelan joint ventures after receiving extra Orinoco Belt acreage and updated fiscal terms. The company, the only U.S. major still operating there after a century on the ground, plans to spend more than $7 billion over five years to raise output to about 600,000 barrels a day from current levels near 280,000. CEO Mike Wirth said the extra fields and better contract terms should keep costs under $20 a barrel. The move follows President Trump’s separate push to tap Venezuelan reserves after Nicolás Maduro’s removal, even as analysts note the country’s rusted infrastructure will take years and tens of billions more to restore. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called Chevron the American firm that knows the country best.
UN Panel Cites 1965 Treaty in Call for Slavery Reparations
The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination issued General Recommendation No. 40 on Aug. 31. The 18-member panel said countries bound by the 1965 International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination must implement comprehensive reparations for the transatlantic slave trade and its continuing effects. The committee argued that historical harms persist as structural racial inequality. Financial payments alone are insufficient. Reparations must also include restitution, rehabilitation, and structural reforms. Acknowledgments and apologies cannot replace those steps. The guidance is not legally binding. It treats present treaty obligations as the basis for claims rather than the laws in force at the time the trade occurred.
Editor’s Note: As soon as the African tribes that sold their “brothers” into slavery pay reparations, the subject can be broached. Until then, the UN should zip it.
FOLLOW US ON X
FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK
