The Daily Brief
Today
Good morning. A federal judge struck down the Trump administration's indefinite visa ban on nationals from 75 countries, ruling the policy illegally discriminated on the basis of nationality. [The administration had halted visa issuance for citizens of nations spanning every corner of the globe because it deemed them likely to need public assistance](https://www.npr.org/2026/08/22/nx-s1-5941765/trump-immigration-visa-ban-75-countries), and the judge said the pause ran afoul of antidiscrimination protections.
[Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale, a major force behind the Trump administration's policy of pushing unhoused people toward incarceration](https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2026/08/joe-londsdale-cicero-institute-homelessness), is a longtime critic of "housing first" policy — which proposes that homelessness be solved by supplying those in need with housing.
[Representative Don Bacon told Newsweek the Trump administration has gone "after people who make zero sense to deport,"](https://www.newsweek.com/don-bacon-trump-admin-overreached-deportations-12356606) calling it an overreach. [In New Jersey, Representative Tom Kean drew a flood of mockery after launching a "laughable" attack on his Democratic opponent](https://www.rawstory.com/tom-kean-2677759666), [critics noting the irony of a lawmaker who boasts "I do the most local press engagements of any NJ Member of Congress" while vanishing from public view for months](https://www.rawstory.com/tom-kean-2677759666).
[Public pushback against data centers is boiling over in key swing states: politicians on both sides of the aisle in Michigan, Ohio, and Pennsylvania are racing to distance themselves from the controversial facilities](https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/6044618-ai-data-center-backlash-michigan-ohio-pennsylvania), with candidates scrambling to endorse stricter policies and accusing opponents of being too cozy with the industry. [Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Moke is poised to slam into the south of Hawaii's islands with heavy rains and strong winds just days after the region was battered by a previous storm](https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/aug/22/hawaii-tropical-storm-moke), with forecasters warning of flooding and mudslides in areas strongly affected.