The Department of Homeland Security has ditched its shiny “Defend the Homeland” branding added to ICE cars under former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem’s leadership — opting to return to vehicles with a lower profile, according to a report.

Months after Markwayne Mullin, 48, was confirmed to take over the Department of Homeland Security Secretary role from Noem, 54, the agency has taken on a more low-key approach to the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, Politico reported.

Several changes have been made under Mullin’s leadership, including the return of unmarked Immigration and Customs Enforcement vehicles as opposed to the flashy fleet used under Noem, which had the words “Defend the Homeland” and “President Donald J. Trump” on the side and rear window.

Polls show JD Vance is far ahead of Marco Rubio in a hypothetical race for the 2028 Republican presidential nomination

Donald Trump is reportedly giving increasingly high marks to Vice President JD Vance, strengthening Vance’s chances of securing the Republican Party’s presidential nomination in 2028.

Vance has been in the spotlight throughout the year, promoting a new memoir about his faith, appearing frequently on TV and negotiating an end to the Iran war — all of which has reportedly caught Trump’s eye.

The president, who is said to have openly quizzed friends and associates about whether Vance or Secretary of State Marco Rubio should succeed him in office, has shifted his tone, insiders told Axios.

The Federal Communications Commission will vote to eliminate a rule that requires Internet service providers to list all of their so-called “passthrough” fees on an easily accessible broadband price label. The FCC vote could also make the price labels themselves a bit harder for consumers to find.

ISPs routinely advertise prices much lower than those actually charged to consumers on their monthly bills. One method of raising monthly bill prices above advertised rates is to tack on fees that, ISPs claim, are used to offset charges imposed by local governments.

At least 43 killed and many wounded, including woman and child hurt at World Cup gathering in Los Angeles

A weekend of celebrations as the US marked its semiquincentennial was marred by outbreaks of gun violence that claimed dozens of lives and left multiple other people wounded.

Those hurt included a woman and a child among four shot during a gathering of Mexico soccer supporters in Los Angeles following their team’s World Cup elimination on Sunday night.

According to the Gun Violence Archive, which keeps a running total of cases, deaths and injuries involving firearms, at least 43 people were killed since early Saturday – the 250th anniversary of the US’s declaration of independence from the UK – in a succession of shootings in numerous cities and neighborhoods.

The California governor described White House reporters as ‘sycophants’

California Governor Gavin Newsom criticized the media for what he described as overly deferential coverage of Donald Trump, characterizing reporters in Oval Office press briefings as “sycophants.”

The Democratic governor — widely seen as a potential contender for the 2028 presidential race — made the remarks during a Sunday interview with progressive commentator Jack Cocchiarella.

Cocchiarella pressed Newsom on what he framed as “hesitancy” within the White House press corps to scrutinize certain subjects: namely, the 80-year-old president’s health.

“You see these press conferences in the Oval Office,” the governor replied. “You maybe have one or two reasonable reporters. They ask a question; there's no chance for a follow-up. And then it’s seven sycophants from news outlets.”

Two Tennessee National Guard members assigned to a crime-fighting patrol in Memphis fatally shot a man Sunday who turned toward the soldiers with a gun during a downtown pursuit, authorities said.

The Guard members are part of a federal task force in Memphis created by President Donald Trump, who last year sent troops and federal agents to Democrat-run cities that he described as overrun with crime. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, a Republican, had deployed the Guard to support the effort.

Authorities said the soldiers in Memphis were responding with local police to reports of gunshots around 4 a.m. when they began pursuing an armed man fleeing on foot. The guardsmen opened fire after the man turned toward them with his weapon, according to the city’s police department.

Donald Trump on Sunday posted a falsified image of former President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle Obama, waving before boarding an Air Force One that had been spray-painted with graffiti.

It came months after another racist post by the president that showed the couple as primates in a jungle. That one was deleted after stiff, bipartisan backlash.

The latest image shows the Obamas smiling and waving at the top of stairs alongside a baby blue and white presidential plane with graffiti painted on it that included the Democrat’s campaign slogan “Yes We Can,” “Obama” and “BLM,” short for Black Lives Matter. The post also shows graffiti in Arabic on the plane that says the phrase “alhamdulillah,” which means “praise be to God” or “thank God.”

Babies exposed to higher levels of neurotoxin more likely to have difficulty controlling impulses later, research shows

Exposure to common air pollution may cause childhood obesity because it affects children’s ability to control impulse, new first-of-its-kind peer-reviewed research finds.

Particular matter 2.5 (PM2.5) is a neurotoxin that has been linked to obesity, and Mt Sinai researchers say they have for the first time identified impulse control as a potential pathway. The study found that babies exposed to higher levels of PM2.5 during their first year of life were more likely to develop difficulties with controlling impulses later in childhood.

Those behavioral changes were then linked to higher body fat and higher BMI in children between four to eight years old.

Kyiv offers expertise on how to develop radar systems and ground stations as it turns from buyer to security provider

Ukraine hopes to sign major defence deals with at least seven Nato countries by the end of the year, according to a top official, highlighting a new aspect of Kyiv’s foreign policy intended to show it can be a provider as well as a recipient of military hardware and expertise.

Kyiv has signed “drone deals” with six countries in recent months. Three are Middle Eastern states, who became eager for Ukrainian support after being targeted with Iranian long-range Shahed drones after the US-Israeli war on Iran began in spring. These are the same weapons that have targeted Ukrainian cities relentlessly over the past four years. Azerbaijan has also signed an agreement with Kyiv, as well as the Nato members Latvia and Lithuania.

“The initiative is called the drone deal, but it actually covers way more than just drones … what’s even more important is the experience and knowledge, the access to all the components that form the system here in Ukraine,” said Davyd Aloian, the deputy secretary of Ukraine’s security council and one of those in charge of the deals.

The report comes in the midst of Trump’s aggressive campaign to overhaul some of Washington's most sacred cultural and historic institutions

A White House report has branded the leadership of the Smithsonian Institution, particularly the National Museum of American History, as radical activists who are untrustworthy, signaling Donald Trump's potential move to appoint his own team.

This report, issued by the White House Domestic Policy Council on Independence Day, aligns with President Trump's aggressive efforts to reshape Washington's prominent cultural and historical institutions.

Earlier in March, Trump had already indicated his intent to enforce changes at the Smithsonian through an executive order, which aimed to cut funding for programs promoting "divisive narratives" and "improper ideology," as part of his ongoing critique of what he perceives as overly liberal culture.

House Speaker Mike Johnson said he plans to move quickly to advance Donald Trump’s signature voter ID legislation through the arduous budget reconciliation process once the House returns to Washington, downplaying the heightened tensions within the GOP after he sent lawmakers home early for the holidays after a few Republicans brought the floor to a halt.

Last week, a small group of conservative hardliners, led by Florida Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, effectively blocked a key procedural vote to advance several bills on the floor out of protest that Congress had not sent the SAVE America Act to the president’s desk.

Driven by frustration, Trump has already held up a critical intelligence nomination and declined to sign a major bipartisan housing package, despite Senate GOP leaders insisting that they do not have the 60 votes needed to overcome the filibuster and proceed with the elections overhaul bill.

Experts say Ratepayer Protection Act ‘posing as a consumer protection measure’ and will raise prices on working people

The bipartisan Ratepayer Protection Act, designed to shield individuals from soaring electricity prices amid the datacenter boom, would fail to meaningfully protect the public from the centers’ true costs, consumer advocates warn.

The bill, backed by some in big tech such as Microsoft, moved through a House subcommittee in mid-June, and a vote in full committee scheduled for 1 July was delayed. Its measures are largely voluntary, meaning the state utility commissions that set electric rates can ignore the law altogether.

The legislative package also includes benefits for big tech that would speed datacenter construction, prioritize the centers’ connection to the electric grid and open new loopholes that would allow companies to claim they are paying for their own power, said Jim Walsh, policy director with Food and Water Watch, which opposes the package.

Ultimately, the bill largely addresses the needs of datacenters and utilities, but not ratepayers, Walsh said.