Federal

• The Supreme Court ruled on Monday, June 29, 2026, that the president has the authority to fire the heads of independent agencies without cause. • The decision specifically allows President Donald Trump to remove Democratic member Rebecca Slaughter from the Federal Trade Commission, whom he fired last year. • This ruling strikes down a nearly century-old legal precedent designed to protect independent agencies from executive political influence.

Plan to limit scrutiny of polluters and shift financial risks to taxpayers is attack on democracy, advocates sayThe Trump administration is attempting to shrink public comment periods for fossil fuel leasing on federal land while shifting the financial risks of cleanup to taxpayers and allowing for more planet-warming emissions. It’s part of a broader effort to dismantle public input processes and save polluting companies money, advocates say.“By ignoring public comment [requirements] while propping up companies,” said Alexa Dietrich, research director at the science advocacy organization Union of Concerned Scientists, “they’re really attacking democracy in a very clear way.” Continue reading...

Mangione, accused of killing health executive Brian Thompson, has pleaded not guilty in state and federal casesLuigi Mangione is scheduled to appear at Manhattan federal court on Monday morning in relation to the murder of UnitedHealthcare executive Brian Thompson.Mangione stands accused of the 4 December 2024 killing of Thompson on a New York City street. He faces murder and weapons charges in his state-level case, and stalking counts in the federal proceedings. Continue reading...

• A federal judge dismissed a Department of Justice lawsuit against Philadelphia City Commissioner Al Schmidt, ruling that Pennsylvania is not required to share its unredacted voter-registration database with the Trump administration. • This legal action was part of a broader effort by the DOJ to sue more than half of U.S. states to force the release of unredacted voter rolls. • The ruling marks the tenth time a federal judge has sided against the administration in these specific efforts to obtain voter data.

• Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh has initiated a leadership shift focused on streamlining the central bank's communications and operations. • Recent changes include a dramatically shorter policy statement that removes hedging boilerplate and replaces vague inflation goals with a definitive commitment to deliver price stability. • During his press conference, Warsh adopted a leaner approach, refusing to engage in speculative forecasting or pretend the bank has a "crystal ball."

• The German Federal Criminal Police recorded 486 offences against media and journalists in 2025, highlighting a persistent trend of violence against press freedom. • Right-wing offenders were responsible for 150 of these crimes, while those linked to "foreign ideology" accounted for the largest share of violent offences. • Left-wing offenders were identified as the primary perpetrators in cases involving bodily harm.

• A federal judge has halted an executive order signed by President Trump that aimed to create a centralized federal voter list. • Judge Talwani rejected the administration's motions to dismiss, ruling that postponing judicial review would be impracticable given the upcoming election cycle. • The decision marks the second ruling in two days against Trump's executive orders seeking increased federal oversight of national elections.

• A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration's attempts to implement mail-in voting restrictions and create a national voter database ahead of the midterm elections. • The administration argued these measures were necessary to strengthen election integrity and combat potential voter fraud. • A key point of contention involves a proposed U.S. Postal Service rule that would require states to provide lists of eligible absentee voters to the federal government to ensure ballot delivery.

• Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh is addressing a complex economic narrative as U.S. inflation reaches a three-year high due to energy supply disruptions caused by the Iran war. • The Cleveland Fed's proprietary forecasting tool predicts a modest decline in overall prices for June, offering a glimmer of optimism for Wall Street. • Despite the projected dip, the situation remains precarious because a key inflationary indicator used by the central bank continues to stay stubbornly high.

• A federal judge struck down key portions of an executive order issued by President Trump that aimed to restrict mail-in voting procedures. • The ruling, issued on Thursday, explicitly stated that the U.S. Constitution does not grant the President specific powers to alter federal election procedures. • This decision is significant as it prevents the administration from unilaterally changing how voters cast ballots via mail, preserving existing access.

• A three-judge federal appeals panel in Michigan rejected an effort by the Department of Justice to gather voting data from states to identify ineligible voters. • The legal challenge is part of a broader administration-wide push by President Trump and his allies to uncover evidence of widespread voter fraud. • Critics argue the initiative is an attempt to sow distrust in the electoral process and create new barriers to voting, noting that no substantial evidence of fraud has been found.

• U.S. District Court Judge Denise Casper in Boston has permanently barred the Trump administration from implementing a proof of citizenship requirement for voters. • The ruling converts a preliminary injunction issued one year ago into a permanent ban, blocking several of the administration's attempts to overhaul election rules. • Judge Casper rejected the administration's claim that the lawsuit, filed by Democratic state attorneys general, was premature since the rules had not yet been implemented.

Driver told authorities he had driver-assistance technology engaged before crash that killed 76-year-old Martha AvilaThe US government has opened a second federal investigation into a recent crash of a Tesla that reportedly had driver-assistance technology engaged, struck a Texas home and killed a resident.Meanwhile, the family of Martha Avila, the 76-year-old resident who was killed, has sued over the wreck. Continue reading...

Ruling is win for democracy advocates who have fought back against Trump’s push to take power over votingA US federal court blocked Donald Trump’s attempt to regulate elections via executive order, a win for democracy advocates who have fought back against the US president’s push to take power over voting.Trump issued an executive order on elections, including a documentary proof of citizenship requirement that would have necessitated that people show passports, birth certificates or other documentation when they registered to vote, or changed their registration. Continue reading...

Woman detained at airport after allegedly making racist remarks directed at workers unloading baggage, police sayBrazil’s federal police have detained a Spanish citizen in São Paulo’s international Guarulhos airport for racism, in the latest of a series of high-profile arrests of foreign tourists on similar grounds.Brazil has some of the strictest anti-racism laws in Latin America. Insulting a person on the basis of race carries a penalty of imprisonment from two to five years and a fine. Continue reading...

Judge vacates administrations policies, finding actions of ICE and another government arm ‘arbitrary and capricious’A federal ⁠judge in California vacated the ⁠Trump administration’s ​nationwide policies expanding arrests at immigration courthouses and the duration for detaining noncitizens in short-term facilities, finding the actions of US Immigration ⁠and Customs Enforcement and another government arm “arbitrary and capricious”.US district judge P Casey Pitts of the northern district of California on Tuesday vacated ICE’s ⁠policies that had rescinded previous strictures on arrests at immigration courthouses and allowed detainees to ​be held in short-term cells for up ‌to 72 hours. He ‌did the same for a similar policy undertaken by the US Department of Justice’s ‌executive office for immigration review that removed limits on courthouse arrests. Continue reading...

Greenspan served under the presidencies of Ronald Reagan, George HW Bush, Bill Clinton and George W BushAlan Greenspan, the influential economist who ​steered US ⁠monetary policy ⁠during ​his ‌five ‌terms as chairman ‌of the Federal Reserve ‌under four presidents, ​has died aged 100, ⁠NBC News ​reported ​on ​Monday.In a statement that she shared with the network, Greenspan’s wife, NBC News correspondent Andrea Mitchell, said he died from complications of Parkinson’s disease. Continue reading...

• The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) maintained the target federal funds interest rate in the 3.50%-3.75% range during its June 17 meeting. • This decision aligns with investor expectations as the Federal Reserve seeks to balance the containment of inflation with the need to support labor markets. • Fed policy is critical because it directly influences borrowing costs, savings returns, and general financial conditions across the U.S. economy.

Funds meant for Secret Service were transferred to project president promised would be financed by private donationsUS politics live – latest updatesDonald Trump’s administration has quietly redirected $352m in federal funds designated for the Secret Service toward the president’s controversial White House ballroom project, despite repeated promises by Trump that the construction would be financed by private donationsThe funds were drawn from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Trump’s signature tax legislation passed last summer on Republican-only votes. The law stipulates the money may only be spent on Secret Service personnel, training facilities, technology and related costs, not construction. Continue reading...

• The European Central Bank raised its deposit facility rate to 2.25% on June 11, marking its first rate hike since 2023. • In contrast, the U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to maintain its federal funds rate between 3.50% and 3.75% during its June 16-17 meeting. • This divergence in monetary policy is driven by the U.S. AI boom, leading the Fed to adopt a less hawkish stance than the ECB.

• The Federal Reserve unanimously decided to keep interest rates steady at a range of 3.5% to 3.75% during its first meeting under new chair Kevin Warsh. • Despite the hold, the Open Markets Committee signaled a potential rate hike before the end of the year, citing that economic activity is currently expanding at a "solid pace." • US stock markets reacted negatively to the signal of future tightening, experiencing a drop on Wednesday afternoon.

Four states file alongside FTC, claiming WPath made deceptive claims about gender-affirming care for minorsThe Federal Trade Commission and four states sued the World Professional Association for Transgender Health on Wednesday, in the latest push by Donald Trump’s administration and others to limit gender-affirming care for transgender minors.The suit alleges the group, known widely as WPath, made deceptive claims about gender-affirming care for minors and that its members profited off the claims. Alaska, Iowa, Nebraska and Texas filed along with the FTC. Continue reading...

• Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh is expected to withhold his "dot plot" projection during the June 2026 meeting, while Bank of America reports at least three members may project further rate hikes for the year. • A rate cut is considered implausible due to rising inflation data, with May's wholesale producer prices (PPI) climbing 6.5% year-over-year and consumer prices (CPI) at 4.2%. • Economic uncertainty persists as G7 tariff discussions and fluctuating oil prices create a murky inflation outlook, despite a recent ceasefire providing some downward pressure.

US central bank makes decision in first meeting under new chair and Trump appointee Kevin WarshThe US Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged for the fourth time this year after its first meeting under new chair, Kevin Warsh, a Donald Trump appointee who has taken over the central bank during a tumultuous time for the US economy.“Economic activity is expanding at a solid pace despite elevated uncertainty that owes, in part, to the conflict in the Middle East,” the Fed’s open market committee said in a short statement. “Productivity growth and capital investment are strong. Job gains have kept pace with the workforce, and the unemployment rate has changed little.” Continue reading...

Federal Tort Claims Act, over which DoJ has total discretion, provides workaround to Trump’s $1.8bn slush fundJanuary 6 defendants who assaulted police officers are pursuing legal claims for millions in compensation from the Trump administration using an obscure federal process with minimal oversight, but which offers the Trump administration a way to compensate those responsible for violence even after scrapping its “anti-weaponization fund”.The defendants are pursuing their claims using the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), which allows individuals wronged by the government to file claims for monetary damages. The justice department has complete and unchecked discretion over whether to settle the claims, giving the Trump administration a powerful vehicle to reward those responsible for violence on January 6. The claims would be paid out from the judgment fund, a perpetual appropriation allowed for by Congress and the same pot of money Trump’s $1.8bn slush fund was going to draw from. All of the defendants seeking compensation received a pardon from Trump. Continue reading...

Housing and urban development department alleges fraud in administration’s latest clash with CaliforniaThe Trump administration has suspended federal funding to Los Angeles’s beleaguered homelessness agency.The announcement is the administration’s latest move rescinding funding to California, where Donald Trump has feuded with the state’s Democratic leaders. Continue reading...

Emily C Marks finds method proposed to kill Jeffery Lee violates ban on cruel and unusual punishmentA federal judge on Tuesday permanently blocked Alabama from executing a man with nitrogen gas after declaring the method violates the ban on cruel and unusual punishment.US district judge Emily C Marks issued the decision a day after an appeals court reversed her ruling that the method is constitutional. Continue reading...

President dramatically raised cost of visa for highly skilled workers in executive order last yearA federal judge on Monday declared a $100,000 fee that Donald Trump imposed on new H-1B visas for highly skilled foreign workers is unlawful and must be invalidated.US District Judge Leo Sorokin in Boston issued the ruling in a lawsuit filed by 20 Democratic state attorneys general challenging a fee Trump announced in September that dramatically raised the cost of obtaining H-1B visas. Continue reading...