The Daily Brief
Today
Good morning. The Supreme Court has blocked the Trump administration from imposing new restrictions on mail ballots, an order that stops the postal system from enforcing the president's rules, and the White House says it will fall into line: Attorney General Todd Blanche, running Tuesday's briefing, said the administration will comply with the ruling. Voters and officials now have more clarity ahead of the November midterms — a defeat for an attempt to narrow the franchise that left Trump in angry froth.
Hours after a federal judge blocked efforts to put Trump's name on the building, the Kennedy Center board voted to immediately close its main building for a two-year renovation, Trump saying it hinges on his name — the endgame of his takeover of the institution.
The costs land on working people. US diesel prices hit record highs Tuesday as the oil crunch enters its most acute phase, stockpiles running low, while new-home construction is slowing across major cities — Austin, San Antonio and Orlando steepest. Yet the administration is transferring $3 billion in bombs to Israel on the taxpayer's dime, plus a notified $5 billion sale to Saudi Arabia: public money for weapons as households absorb the squeeze.
In Washington's pre-recess scramble, the Senate advanced a bipartisan bill to regulate college sports before lawmakers leave to campaign. Sen. John Fetterman drew fresh anger after admitting a trip with Fox News executives, having already appeared by video at Trump's midterm convention. Republican Thomas Massie moved to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as an Iran war looms. And Michigan Republican Mike Rogers will skip a debate with Abdul El-Sayed, citing the moderator's alleged "favoritism."
Zoom out: The courts checked the administration on two fronts — mail ballots and the Kennedy Center — even as diesel hit record highs, home-building slowed, and the midterm machinery ground on.