🇷🇺 Senate Passes Major Russia Sanctions Bill After Graham's Death
The U.S. Senate has passed sweeping new sanctions legislation targeting Russia, a bill long championed by Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, one of Congress's most vocal Ukraine supporters.
Graham, who had pushed the legislation for over a year, died on July 11 — one day after visiting Kyiv. The bill passed on August 7, weeks after his death. The legislation has been widely referred to in media as the "sanctions bill from hell."
⚖️ Judge Tosses Trump Admin's Antisemitism Lawsuit Against Harvard
A federal judge dismissed the Trump administration's civil rights lawsuit against Harvard University on Thursday, ruling the case lacked legal merit.
U.S. District Judge Richard Stearns in Boston found the administration had not plausibly demonstrated an ongoing violation of Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, ruling that the alleged incidents of antisemitism on campus did not meet that threshold. The suit had accused Harvard of failing to protect Jewish and Israeli students from harassment during pro-Palestinian protests.
The dismissal is the latest setback for the Trump administration's legal campaign targeting Harvard over its response to Gaza war protests on campus.
Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack called for continued monetary policy restraint to bring down inflation, warning that growth and investment must not run so fast that the economy overheats.
Hammack, who voted to raise rates at the most recent meeting alongside Kashkari and Logan, said inflation is broad-based and not confined to specific sectors. She noted that supply-shock inflation has proved more persistent than expected, and that businesses have shown resilience and adapted to tariff and oil shocks.
🗳 Half of Young Americans Back Democratic Socialism, Poll Finds
A new CNBC Generation Lab poll finds nearly half of Americans aged 18 to 34 favor democratic socialism and hold strongly negative views of the U.S. economy.
The survey highlights a significant ideological shift among younger voters, with economic pessimism appearing to drive support for alternative political and economic models among the generation entering the workforce and electorate.
🛂 ICE Plans $20M Purchase of Electric-Shock Gloves
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is seeking to spend up to $20 million on electrified gloves that deliver painful shocks to gain compliance from combative individuals, according to a Department of Homeland Security notice published Monday.
The device, the CTG 5 GLOVE, is manufactured by Compliant Technologies, which describes it as a "conductive distraction and de-escalation" tool — and calls it "humane" and "low-optics." An unspecified quantity is set for delivery by March 2027.