Judge rules Trump violated federal privacy protections
The Trump administration violated federal privacy protections when it overhauled a citizen data program so that it could be used more aggressively to purge voter rolls, U.S. District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan has ruled. It is major setback for Donald Trump’s effort to find foreigners on state voter lists, an effort voter advocates and election officials say can wrongly ensnare citizens, risking the disenfranchisement of eligible voters. Sooknanan’s order halts the use of the expanded data system. “All in all, the federal government has knowingly trampled on the privacy rights of American citizens in a manner that threatens the sacred right to vote. This Court cannot stand idly by while that happens,” Sooknanan wrote. The judge said the administration knew it was violating privacy protections passed by Congress.
Cost of Trump’s Reflecting Pool work now $16.4M
The cost of Donald Trump’s project to fix the National Mall Reflecting Pool has now reached $16.4 million, with the pool plagued by green algae and a new blue lining that is failing and peeling away. Trump originally said the cost of the project would be only $1.8 million. Trump told reporters that the current conditions at the pool are not his fault. He has tried to blame the problems with changing the color of the bottom of the pool to blue and growth of green algae on vandals and, most recently, on Former President Barack Obama. Trump said the government has evidence of vandalism but he refused to make it public. The company that Trump recommended for the no-bid contract to do the work at the reflecting pool said it would make repairs under its warranty.
Europe swelters under unusual heat
Heat alerts were in place for 23 countries in Europe Tuesday, with five at the most severe red level: Germany, France, Spain, Switzerland and Luxembourg. Scientists warn this extreme heat is a huge problem for Europe and a wake up call to a new reality. Europe is the planet’s fastest-warming continent, heating at around two to three times the global average. The current heat wave has been underway for two months and all-time temperature records are expected to be broken before Europe even reaches July, typically its hottest month. Three elderly people lost their lives in the heat near Bordeaux, France, and two children aged two and four were found dead in a hot car in southern France Tuesday.
Pulte begins firings at National intelligence
Donald Trump’s acting director of national intelligence has started mass firings at the office he is heading until a permanent director is in place. Bill Pulte, a Trump loyalist who senators of both parties made clear they would not confirm as permanent director had gone to the agency when former director Tulsi Gabbard still was running the place. Pulte asked for a list of all employees. Two sources familiar with the matter told CNN that they believe the request tied in with Pulte’s mandate from Donald Trump to carry out mass firings. The start of firings on Monday came as top Democrats on the Senate and House Intelligence Committees sent a letter to Pulte warning him of the risks of making large cuts to the workforce. “Making significant structural changes to ODNI, to include a reduction in force, is not an appropriate course of action for anyone in an acting capacity, let alone without consultation with Congress, and you should refrain from doing so,” they wrote.
Cover-up that Trump’s name is off Kennedy Center continues
The large tarp remains in place at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., covering up the wall from which Donald Trump’s name was removed after a federal judge ruled that Trump had no right to have the center renamed for himself. While the tarp prevents people from seeing that Trump’s name is gone new images obtained by CNN show an angle view of the wall with Trump’s name removed. The images, first reported by the Washington Post, were provided to CNN by the activist organization “Hands Off the Arts.” The large tarp remains in place at the building ten days after Trump’s name was taken down. Workers began removing Trump’s name from an exterior wall of the Kennedy Center overnight on June 13, complying with a judge’s ruling that the institution could only be named for John F. Kennedy as a living memorial to the late president.
Warning of AI hazard
Artificial Intelligence programs capable of launching major cyberattacks that could overwhelm the defenses of governments and businesses are months away, an international alliance of intelligence agencies warned in a joint statement. The Five Eyes grouping, comprising the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, urged governments and corporate leaders to “act now” to improve their defenses against sophisticated cyber threats. ”The timeline is not years, it is months,” the group of spy agencies said in the statement adding, “The evolving landscape of artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming cyber risk, and we must act swiftly to remain ahead.” The group said AI can lower “barriers for malicious actors and increases the speed and complexity of attacks.”
Some material ™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
