NuseReal

Trump & Co Watch September 2025

Key takeaways from Trump's speech to US military generals: president tells top military officers they will play part in 'war from within' in major US cities. (LINK) 30 September 2025

Hegseth: all non-white military leaders were DEI promotions: The SecWar smeared every minority and person of color in the military. (LINK) 30 September 2025

Devex Exclusive: US seeks ouster of Egyptian UN drug and crime agency chief Ghada Waly, several weeks before her planned departure in November, in favour of U.S. national (LINK) 30 September 2025

— It remained unclear why the U.S. decided to press for a change so late in Waly's term. But it signaled a more proactive U.S. role at the U.N. drug agency at a time when the U.S. is militarizing its own policy towards the international drug trade.

US citizen sues after twice being detained by immigration agents (LINK) 30 September 2025

White House withdraws E.J. Antoni nomination to lead BLS: a favorite of MAGA stalwarts like Steve Bannon, but even conservative economists viewed him as unqualified and too partisan (LINK) 30 September 2025

U.S. soybean farmers caught in looming crisis as US trade war with China cripples sales: "China has not bought a single export cargo of beans so far this year, which is not very typical" (LINK) 29 September 2025

Ukraine war briefing: Ukraine discussing ‘mega’ arms deal with US, Zelenskyy said on 27 September. What we know on day 1,313 (LINK) 28 September 2025

Trump says he is authorizing military to use 'full force' in Portland to handle 'domestic terrorists': unclear what "full force" means (LINK) 27 September 2025

— Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek said her team has been "provided no information on the reason or purpose of any military mission," and that her office is reaching out to the Trump administration for more information. "There is no national security threat in Portland. Our communities are safe and calm," the Democrat said. "I ask Oregonians to stay calm and enjoy a beautiful fall day."

US revokes Colombian president's visa after UN visit: Gustavo Petro told US soldiers to "disobey Trump's orders" while addressing a protest in New York (LINK) 27 September 2025

— "From here in New York, I ask all soldiers in the United States Army not to point their rifles at humanity," he said. "Disobey Trump's order! Obey the order of humanity!" He was already on his way back to Bogota when the US announced it would cancel his visa, Colombian media reports.

Trump tariffs: Who stands to lose from new US pharma duties? Not clear (LINK) 27 September 2025

Supreme Court lets Trump withhold $4 billion in foreign aid approved by Congress (LINK) — ground.news: 238 media reports (LINK) 26 September 2025

Trump's 21-point Gaza peace plan leaves door ajar for Palestinian state (LINK) — ground.news: 49 media reports (LINK) 26 September 2025

— The plan would deny Hamas any future role in the governance of Gaza, instead calling for two levels of interim governance — an overarching international body and a Palestinian committee. The plan does not indicate that the US would support the creation of a Palestinian state, but recognizes it as an aspiration of the Palestinians. It includes unconditional release of all hostages.

Rudy Giuliani and Dominion Voting Systems settle defamation suit over his 2020 election claims (LINK) 26 September 2025

Defense Secretary Hegseth’s mysterious meeting with generals will focus on grooming and warrior ethos (LINK) 26 September 2025

Trump fired US attorney who told border agents to follow law on immigration raids — from 15 July (LINK) 26 September 2025

Trump-backed WLFI plunges 58% — buyback plan announced to halt freefall (LINK) 26 September 2025

— Just days after launch, WLFI burned 47 million tokens on September 3 to counter a 31% sell-off, sending the supply to a verified burn address.

ICE arrests top educator: superintendent of the largest school district in the state of Iowa, accusing him of overstaying his student visa (LINK) 26 September 2025

President Donald Trump is putting import taxes of 100% on pharmaceutical drugs, 50% on kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities, 30% on upholstered furniture and 25% on heavy trucks starting on Oct. 1 (LINK) 25 September 2025

Abu Dhabi royal family to take 15% stake in TikTok US under Trump deal (LINK) 25 September 2025

Pam Bondi transfers people who received Biden commutations to supermax prison in Colorado (LINK) 25 September 2025

Native News: Hegseth says cavalry soldiers who massacred hundreds at Wounded Knee get to keep their medals of honor (LINK) 25 September 2025

— In July 2024, then-Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had established a five-member panel to reassess the commendations awarded to troops for their actions at Wounded Knee. For several years, native organizations have urged Congress to pass the Remove the Stain Act that would rescind the Medal of Honor to those awarded for their violent deeds at Wounded Knee.

Indictment of former FBO Director James Comey regarding leaks to media outlets that Comey was asked about in 2017 and 2020 congressional testimony (LINK) 25 September 2025

— In the grand jury room, 14 of at most 23 grand jurors decided prosecutors had probable cause to indict Comey, subsequent court proceedings revealed. Comey, the long-time nemesis of Donald Trump from the early days of Trump’s first term, has been criminally charged with two felonies, both related to a lie he allegedly told Congress in 2020.

Following a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, Trump says Ukraine can regain all territory lost to Russia (LINK) 23 September 2025

— Roughly a fifth of Ukrainian territory, including the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, is under Russian control, much of it throughout the war. Crimea, however, was illegally annexed well in 2014.

AFP: Trump at the UN: He mocked renewables as a "joke", praised "clean, beautiful coal" and declared climate change the "greatest con job ever". (LINK) 23 September 2025

Fox News: World leaders laugh, squirm as Trump blasts UN on climate, Ukraine, Gaza at General Assembly (LINK)

Alternet: 'Your countries are going to hell': 6 of the wildest moments from Trump's rambling UN speech (LINK) 23 September 2025

• Trump claimed that 'inflation has been defeated'
• Trump slammed UN for not living up to its potential
• Trump attacked UN members for immigration policies
• Trump insisted he deserves the Nobel Peace Prize
• Trump chastised EU members for not imposing more tariffs
• Trump ripped European countries for not using more fossil fuels

CNN: Five takeaways from Trump's UN speech (LINK) 23 September 2025

— "What is the purpose of the United Nations?" he asked during his speech. And he added later: "For the most part, at least for now, all they seem to do is write a really strongly worded letter and then never follow that letter up. It's empty words, and empty words don’t solve war."

• A lecture on migration
• Climate change the 'greatest con job'
• No major shift on Ukraine or Gaza – until after the speech
• Broken equipment — and a broken institution
• Veering off-script

Trump UN escalator snafu: White House wants investigation of sudden stop (LINK) 23 September 2025

— White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt fumed Tuesday that if anyone at the United Nations "intentionally" stopped an escalator right before President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump stepped onto it, "they need to be fired and investigated immediately."

Safety mechanism caused Trump escalator malfunction, UN says: president's videographer "may have inadvertently triggered the safety function" while capturing his arrival, the UN says (LINK) 24 September 2025

Trump's controversial tariffs generate nearly $350 billion, becoming 'very significant' US revenue source: approximately 18% of annual household income tax payments, says economist (LINK) 23 September 2025

Ryan Routh, former Trump supporter, found guilty in Trump golf course assassination attempt and killing Secret Service agent: tried to stab himself in the neck with a pen in the courtroom after the verdict was read (LINK) 23 September 2025

— Routh, who had pleaded not guilty to all the charges, faces life in prison when he is sentenced Dec. 18. In a brief and disjointed closing argument he tried to argue that there was no crime because he never fired a shot at Trump.

Robert Reich: The sleeping giant is awakening: After a week of authoritarian excess, the nation is turning on Trump (LINK) 23 September 2025

Trump signs executive order calling antifa a "domestic terrorist organization" (LINK) 22 September 2025

US sanctions wife of Brazilian judge who oversaw Bolsonaro prosecution (LINK) 22 September 2025

Heather Cox Richardson: the Epstein files, the Homan tapes, the Venezuelan fishing boatsheadline (LINK) 22 September 2025

US Supreme Court in December to consider Trump's power to fire top officials: 6-3 vote already allows the president to remove the sole Democratic official on the Federal Trade Commission, an independent body set up by Congress (LINK) 22 September 2025

Trump calls right-wing activist Charlie Kirk 'martyr' as his wife forgives shooter (LINK) — ground.news: 254 media reports (LINK) 21 September 2025

Michael Dell, Murdochs will also be involved in TikTok deal, Trump says (LINK) 21 September 2025

Speedboat destroyed by U.S. Navy held 1,000 kilos of cocaine in first joint operation against narco terrorism in the Caribbean, Dominican Republic says (LINK) 21 September 2025

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signs bill banning law enforcement and ICE from wearing masks (LINK) 21 September 2025

Journalists forced to obtain approval to publish stories in new Pentagon restrictions (LINK) 21 September 2025

Virginia attorney says he resigned on Friday under pressure from Trump after sources say he refused to charge NY AG Letitia James: "He didn't quit, I fired him!" Trump posted online (LINK) 20 September 2025

CNN: Fact check: Debunking the fake photos and wild conspiracy theories swirling around the murder of Charlie Kirk (LINK) 20 September 2025

• The man charged with the murder wasn't a Trump donor or a Republican. A Utah man named Tyler Robinson had contributed to Trump's 2020 presidential campaign. But that was a different Tyler Robinson. Prosecutors' charging documents paraphrased Robinson's mother as having said that "over the last year or so, Robinson had become more political and had started to lean more to the left — becoming more pro-gay and trans-rights oriented.".
• Robinson’s Halloween tracksuit doesn’t mean he was a far-right 'groyper' (White nationalist).
• Some images purporting to show Robinson are fakes or not of him, supposedly wearing political t-shirts — in support of either Trump or his Democratic opponent in the 2024 presidential election, former vice president Kamala Harris.
• Nobody has provided any proof for their suggestions of a broader left-wing conspiracy. Influential far-right Trump ally Laura Loomer speculated that a "trans terror cell with other targets as well" was behind Kirk's murder.
• There is no basis for conspiracy theories about Israeli involvement. Some anti-Israel commentators have promoted false claims that YouTube deleted a video in which Kirk raised critical questions about the Israeli government's handling of the Hamas assault on October 7, 2023. In fact, the video remains online.
• Man in white cap and man with the prosthetic hand weren't involved. The man in the cap is one of Kirk's friends, the man with a prosthetic hand is a Kirk supporter.

The Parnas Perspective: Disney loses millions as boycotts grow after Kimmel suspension, and more (LINK) 20 September 2025

Heather Cox Richardson: U.S. District Judge Steven Merryday threw out $15 billion lawsuit President Donald J. Trump filed against the New York Times for defamation (LINK) 19 September 2025

Trump imposes $100K fee on 3-year+ H-1B visas in new immigration action (LINK) 19 September 2025

— 65,000 H-1B visas are granted annually, with another 20,000 reserved just for people who hold advanced degrees from US higher education institutions. Demand for the visa often exceeds the supply. Tech firms big and small say they need the H-1B programme to hire trained talent that they can’t find at home.

— In a separate order, Trump also directed the creation of a "gold card" immigration pathway that he said would fast-track visas for certain immigrants in exchange for a hefty fee. The policy will expedite visas for foreigners who pay the US $1 million, while allowing a company to pay $2 million to speed up the process for a foreign worker that it sponsors.

U.S. Senate confirms Mike Waltz as UN ambassador: the vote means Waltz will be partially in his role in time for U.N. General Assembly (LINK) 19 September 2025

On Truth Social Trump says he's designating Antifa as a terrorist organization (LINK) 18 September 2025

Karen Attiah, the last full-time Black opinion columnist at The Washington Post, was fired last week after 11 years due to a social media post related to controversial conservative activist Charlie Kirk (LINK) 18 September 2025

ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show allegedly after his comments about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Regulatory threats from Donald Trump's administration. Hollywood Comes to his defence (LINK) 18 September 2025

techdirt: TikTok to be sold to Trump's right wing billionaire buddies Andreessen Horowitz, Larry Ellison and Silver Lake, and converted into a propaganda mill (LINK) 17 September 2025

FBI director Kash Patel says he's never spoken to Trump about the Epstein files (LINK) 17 September 2025

CNN: Trump team finds someone to throw under the bus on Epstein: former top Trump administration official Alexander Acosta, who was US attorney in Florida in the late 2000s and cut a nonprosecution agreement with Epstein (LINK) 16 September 2025

Trump sues The New York Times for $15 billion, alleging defamation and libel (LINK) 16 September 2025

— Trump has also brought a $10 billion defamation suit against The Wall Street Journal for its article linking him to an Epstein birthday note.

MSNBC: Supreme Court erased the Fourth Amendment by OK'ing Trump's immigration sweeps (LINK) 15 September 2025

Trump wants to abolish quarterly earnings reports in favor of biannual (LINK) 15 September 2025

Heather Cox Richardson: Behind the Lisa Cook, Charlie Kirk stories (LINK) 13 September 2025

U.S. Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook's bank documents appear to contradict Trump administration's mortgage fraud allegations (LINK) 13 September 2025

— Cook declared in financial forms that her Atlanta property would be used as a "vacation home" and not her primary residence, according to documents obtained by NBC News that appear to undercut allegations of mortgage fraud by the Trump administration.

Trump, 79, can't remember which country's war he solved: The president thinks he brokered peace between Azerbaijan and Albania. He did not (LINK) 12 September 2025

Trump announces nearly $79m in storm recovery funds for North Carolina, Wisconsin, Kansas (LINK) — ground.news: 17 media reports (LINK) 11 September 2025

— An Associated Press analysis published Tuesday found the Trump administration is taking more than a month on average to approve disaster declarations, which provide added federal assistance for states recovering from storms or other natural disasters. The news outlet found it typically took less than two weeks for a disaster declaration to be granted in the 1990s and early 2000s.

Jazz head at Kennedy Center is the latest firing at the beleaguered arts institution (LINK) 11 September 2025

Trump Administration wants to remove conservation from approved 'uses' of public land (LINK) 11 September 2025

— The Department of the Interior moved to officially rescind the Public Lands Rule passed in 2024, which elevates the conservation of public lands to the same level of protection as other uses.

FoxNews: "Leftist Wikipedia editors twist facts in shameless move to smear Charlie Kirk: Majority of sources cited in Charlie Kirk's Wikipedia page are left-leaning news outlets" (LINK) 11 September 2025

Scientists take on Trump: these researchers are fighting back through lawsuits, grant tracking, whistle-blowing and more (LINK) 10 September 2025

CNN: the most baffling aspects of the Trump-Epstein saga (LINK) 10 September 2025

— "It almost looks at times like [the administration] has been trying to keep it going."

White House says Trump notified Qatar ahead of Israeli strike on Hamas (LINK) — ground.news: 141 media reports (LINK) 9 September 2025

Qatar counters US, denies being notified of Israeli attack beforehand — (LINK)

Trump calls Israeli strike on Qatar 'unfortunate', but said that eliminating Hamas is a 'worthy goal' — (LINK)

Trump asks Supreme Court to allow $4 billion in foreign aid cuts (LINK) 8 September 2025

New Trump executive order concedes that the U.S. can't grow avocados, bananas, mangoes, pineapples, coffee or cocoa in large amounts and gives them zero tariffs (LINK) 8 September 2025

— The directive sets aside 45 categories for zero tariffs, which go into effect Monday for countries that have already struck a framework trade deal with the U.S. It altered the structure of Trump's global tariffs for "aligned partners" and concedes the U.S. cannot be a self-sufficient country in two specific categories: unavailable natural resources and closely related derivative products; certain agricultural products not grown or produced in sufficient quantity in the United States to meet domestic demand.

Trump loses bid to overturn $83.3 million judgment in E. Jean Carroll defamation case (LINK) 8 September 2025

Estate of Jeffrey Epstein gives Congress 'birthday book' allegedly signed by Trump with "tawdry image" that Trump had previously dismissed as "fake" (LINK) 8 September 2025

Donald Trump's mass deportation agenda has a surprising stakeholder: Bill Gates through a key service provider for immigration flights — Signature Aviation "the world’s largest network of private aviation terminals" (LINK) 8 September 2025

Supreme Court allows Trump ICE raids to resume in California (LINK) 8 September 2025

Trump family's wealth surges by $1.3 billion, largely driven by the trading debut of American Bitcoin (ABTC), a mining company co-founded by Eric Trump, and gains from World Liberty Financial (WLFI), a DeFi protocol associated with the family (LINK) 8 September 2025

White House says it didn't ask USTA to help censor reactions to Trump US Open appearance on Sunday (LINK) 8 September 2025

NBC: Trump's U.S. Open arrival delays match by 30 min and leaves many seats empty (LINK) 7 September 2025

— Many ticket holders waited hours in line to clear security, missing parts of the men's singles final between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz.

— Trump walked around to wave to the crowd at around 1:45 p.m. as the stadium was just about 10% full and was met with a wave of mixed cheers and boos. He then took his seat at the Rolex box located at midcourt.

Rolling Stone: U.S. Open crowd booed Trump repeatedly: The U.S. Tennis Association requested that broadcasters censor the crowd's response to Trump and "refrain from showcasing any disruptions or reactions in response to the President's attendance" — (LINK)

Venezuela flies military aircraft near U.S. Navy ship for a second time, Pentagon officials say (LINK) 5 September 2025

Trump's job market promises fall flat as hiring collapses and inflation ticks up (LINK) 5 September 2025

— AP: "Friday's jobs report showed employers added a mere 22,000 jobs in August, as the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.3%. Factories and construction firms shed workers. Revisions showed the economy lost 13,000 jobs in June, the first monthly losses since December 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic."

Judge blocks Trump administration's ending of legal protections for 1.1M Venezuelans and Haitians (LINK) 5 September 2025

Trump administration now plans to deport Salvadorian Abrego Garcia to Eswatini (formerly Swaziland), not El Salvador or Uganda (LINK) 5 September 2025

Fellow Kennedys call on RFK Jr. to resign as health secretary (LINK) 5 September 2025

Trump to rebrand Pentagon as Department of War (LINK) 5 September 2025

Florida shouldn't have been ordered to dismantle Alligator Alcatraz, appeals court finds (LINK) 4 September 2025

Don't cross a U.S. border without a "perfect burner phone" (LINK) 4 September 2025

Massive immigration raid at Hyundai megaplant in Georgia leads to 475 arrests. Most are Korean. Largest sweep yet in the current immigration crackdown at US worksites (LINK) 4 September 2025

Trump asks US Supreme Court to uphold his tariffs after lower court ruling that some do not fall within the president's mandate (LINK) 3 September 2025

— The appellate court ruled that the tariffs, imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), exceeded the president's authority and fell under Congress's power. The case could impact Trump's economic policies and require the US to refund billions in tariffs. Small businesses and states challenged the tariffs, arguing they caused harm, while the administration claims they are necessary to protect national security and domestic manufacturing. The Supreme Court's decision could determine whether the tariffs remain in effect or are revoked.

If Trump loses his tariff lawsuit, America may have to refund businesses more than $200 billion (LINK) 3 September 2025

President Donald Trump justifies the lethal military strike against Venezuelan ship as sending an unmistakable message to Latin American drug cartels (LINK) 3 September 2025

Ukraine War, Day 1,287: Trump "very disappointed" in Putin...but takes no action (LINK) 3 September 2025

Judge overturns Trump administration funding cuts to Harvard (LINK) 3 September 2025

More than 85 veteran climate scientists file a 400-page public, point-by-point rebuttal of Trump admin report casting doubt on climate change (LINK) 2 September 2025

— The Energy Department's Climate Working Group report, released July 29 alongside proposals to deregulate some polluting sectors, was authored by five well-known climate change contrarians and even portrayed climate change as potentially beneficial.

The White House says Trump's tariffs have raised $8 trillion in revenue. That's not even close: The customs and excise taxes collected from January 20, when Trump took office, to August 28 amount to about $156 billion, 2% of this figure (LINK) 2 September 2025

Trump's use of the National Guard during Los Angeles immigration protests is illegal, a judge says (LINK) 2 September 2025

Trump ends turf war and will move Space Command HQ to Alabama from Colorado, effectively punishing the Centennial State for electing Democrats while rewarding deep-red Alabama for supporting him and his party (LINK) 2 September 2025

McDonald's CEO says Trump's no tax on tips amplifies an 'uneven playing field' for its restaurants (LINK) 2 September 2025

Trump's crypto project WLFI under attack as Ethereum upgrade backfires (LINK) 2 September 2025

— Hackers exploiting EIP-7702 vulnerability to steal WLFI tokens. The attacks leverage a vulnerability in the May Pectra upgrade that allows externally owned accounts to delegate control to smart contracts, enabling attackers to plant malicious code that instantly drains all incoming ETH and tokens.

Trump plans a hefty tax on imported drugs, risking higher prices and shortages (LINK) 1 September 2025

Trump's World Liberty token falls in first day of trading (LINK) 1 September 2025

— President Donald Trump and his family are set to receive 75% of net revenue from the enterprise, according to a document published by World Liberty last year.

Trump family share of World Liberty crypto grows to $6 billion: The president and his family own 22.5 billion WLFI tokens, nearly a quarter of the total supply. — (LINK)

Trump declares D.C. a 'crime free zone' despite 442 crimes reported in past week (LINK) 1 September 2025

U.S.-run 'Gaza Riviera': Post-war redevelopment plan sees 'voluntary relocation' of millions (LINK) 1 September 2025

— The 38-page document envisions "voluntary" relocation of Gaza's population, AI-powered "smart cities", and a manufacturing hub named after Elon Musk.

1.2 million immigrants are gone from the US labour force under Trump, preliminary data shows (LINK) 1 September 2025