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Trump & Co Watch May 2026

Trump drops 'unprecedented' $10 billion lawsuit against IRS over leaked tax records (LINK) — 18 May 2026

Al Jazeera: Trump holds prayer rally to 'rededicate' US as 'one nation under God': Critics have denounced the event as a blurring of the separation of church and state mandated by the US Constitution (LINK) — 17 May 2026

Federal funding for Trump ballroom in trouble after Senate ruling (LINK) — 16 May 2026

— Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough ruled on Saturday that the proposed funding, as written in a spending bill, does not comply with the chamber's budget rules, a Democratic lawmaker said. Republicans seek to use taxpayer money for security upgrades linked to President Donald Trump's planned White House ballroom.

China throws major roadblock at US' Iran Resolution; Trump team left stunned at UN (LINK) — 16 May 2026

— Beijing openly opposed a U.S.-backed resolution demanding Iran halt attacks and mining operations in the waterway. Chinese UN Ambassador Fu Cong said the "timing and content" of the proposal were inappropriate and warned that passing it would not help ease tensions. Reports suggest both China and Russia could veto the resolution if it reaches a vote at the UN Security Council.

Politifact: How are people doing economically? (LINK) — 15 May 2026

— "For the majority of Americans the economy is close to stagnant — little hiring (or firing), real wages nearly flat, sustained inflation, and little optimism that things will change."

• Prices for key goods and services have increased: from 3.2% for groceries to 8.7% for electricity
• Six key consumer costs have risen: today's per gallon gasoline price has been exceeded only for eight weeks in 2022
• Inflation is now close to eating away all wage gains under Trump
• By one metric, consumer sentiment is near its all-time low

Trump-Xi summit: China, US disagree on what they agreed on: US touted trade deals; China said it warned Washington over Taiwan. Neither side confirmed the other's claims (LINK) — 15 May 2026

Trump and Xi conclude 'very successful' talks but no deals confirmed (LINK) — 15 May 2026

PBS: Analysts break down Trump-Xi meeting and calls for stability and cooperation (LINK) — 14 May 2026

Five takeaways from the Trump-Xi summit in Beijing so far: Xi reserved his sharpest language for Taiwan, calling it "the most important issue in U.S.-China relations" (LINK) — 14 May 2026

US planning to criminally indict ex-Cuban leader Raúl Castro, 94, over the shooting down of two aircraft three decades ago (LINK) — 16 May 2026

NY Times: With possible Raúl Castro indictment, U.S. eyes Venezuela playbook — (LINK)

Trump bought up to $5 million of Nvidia stock, then OK'd AI export deals that sent shares soaring (LINK) — 15 May 2026

President Trump discloses Coinbase, Robinhood and Bitcoin mining stock trades among more than 3,000 securities trades (LINK) — 15 May 2026

— Decrypt.co: According to the filing, the president was assessed and paid a late fee for the more than 100 pages reported, which detail more than 3,000 securities trades. Although specific trade amounts are not indicated, the ranges highlighted show trade ranges from $1,001-$15,000 to those between $1 million and $5 million. While President Trump and his family have drawn scrutiny for their crypto ties, which reportedly led to more than $1 billion in crypto profits by October 2025, a spokesperson for the Trump Organization said that neither the president nor his family has any say in the trades reported on the ethics filings.

Colorado's Democratic governor will let Trump ally Tina Peters out of prison early (LINK) — 15 May 2026

— NPR: Peters was convicted for her role in facilitating a security breach of Mesa County's voting machines when she was clerk and recorder. The incident occurred six months after the 2020 election, as part of her effort to prove Trump's baseless claims of a rigged election. In April, a state appeals court upheld Peters' 2024 conviction but ruled that she should be re-sentenced, saying that the trial court judge who issued her nearly nine-year sentence improperly factored in her protected speech. She was sentenced on Oct. 3, 2024, so that means on June 1, she will have spent more than 600 days incarcerated. Trump issued a pardon to Peters in December that was considered symbolic, because a president doesn't have jurisdiction over state-level crimes.

US: Supreme Court rejects Virginia's bid to restore congressional map favouring Democrats (LINK) — 15 May 2026

— AP: In recent days, the justices have sided with Republicans in Alabama and Louisiana who hope to redo their congressional maps to produce more GOP-leaning seats following the court's voting rights decision. It stemmed from a 4-3 ruling by the Virginia Supreme Court that struck down a constitutional amendment that voters narrowly passed just last month. The state court found that the Democratic-controlled legislature improperly began the process of placing the amendment on the ballot after early voting had begun in Virginia's general election last fall.

Trump's $499 gold phone ships after months of delays (LINK) — 14 May 2026

Natalie Harp, executive assistant behind Trump's late-night posting sprees — and what takes place (LINK) — 13 May 2026

— AlterNet: Each evening, Harp arrives with stacks of printed-out draft posts—material she and other advisers believe will appeal to the president. These proposed messages often recycle content from fringe social media accounts, partisan commentators, and anonymous users across X and other platforms. Once Trump approves the selections, Harp logs into the president's account—often during late-night and early-morning hours when most White House staff have gone home. She then posts batches of messages in rapid succession. On a single night in December, Trump's account posted nearly 160 times between 8:17 p.m. and midnight. Unlike typical White House operations, she does not share draft posts with the chief of staff's office, communications aides, or national security officials before they are posted.

US deportations to El Salvador double to 5,033 in first 2026 quarter as Bukele aligns himself with Trump agenda (LINK) — ground.news: 21 media reports (LINK) — 12 May 2026

Heather Cox Richardson: The president of the United States is mentally unwell (LINK) — 12 May 2026

Trump administration elevates former private prison company exec to lead ICE (LINK) — 12 May 2026

Florida's "Alligator Alcatraz" detention center to close as soon as June, sources say (LINK) — 12 May 2026

US appeals court spares Trump from paying $83 million defamation award to E. Jean Carroll — for now (LINK) — 12 May 2026

Trump shares AI image of Obama, Biden and Pelosi bathing in feces (LINK) — 12 May 2026

— The post was among several the president shared that referenced his controversial decision to repaint the Lincoln Memorial's Reflecting Pool.

Rwanda-backed rebels accuse the US of falling short as a peace mediator in Congo's conflict — (LINK) — ground.news: 12 media reports — 9 May 2026 (LINK)

Trump, frustrated by courts, sees his 10% tariffs take new hit — 9 May 2026 (LINK)

— The three-judge tribunal under the U.S. Court of International Trade called the tariffs "unauthorized by law". The proposed tariffs replaced global tariffs that the Supreme Court outlawed in February. On Thursday, Trump threatened to raise tariffs on the European Union if they do not comply with their part of a U.S.-EU trade deal by July 4th. And last week he increased tariffs on cars and trucks coming from the European Union by 25 percent.

US Supreme Court's Voting Rights Act ruling cited misleading data from DoJ — 8 May 2026 (LINK)

Utah Supreme Court justice resigns amid probe into alleged relationship with redistricting attorney — (LINK) — ground.news: 60 media reports — 8 May 2026 (LINK)

Trump Media and Technology Group lost $406m in first three months of 2026: generated only $870,000 even as net sales were up 6% — 8 May 2026 (LINK)

US isn't looking at imminent military action in Cuba despite Trump threats: AP News: has offered Cuba tens of millions in humanitarian aid and two years of free Starlink internet access, conditional on releasing political prisoners and ending political and religious repression — (LINK) — ground.news: 68 media reports — 8 May 2026 (LINK)

US Dept of State: U.S. sanctions target Cuba's military regime, elites — 7 May 2026 (LINK)

U.S. and Iran closing in on one-page memo to end war, officials say — 6 May 2026 (LINK)

Trump candidates oust incumbents in Indiana primaries after rejected redistricting push — 6 May 2026 (LINK)

— At least five incumbent GOP state legislators lost against Trump-backed candidates in Indiana after they failed to launch a mid-decade redistricting push.

Roger Stone paid $50k/month to lobby for Myanmar junta — (LINK) — ground.news: 32 media reports — 5 May 2026 (LINK)

US supreme court expedites Voting Rights Act ruling so Louisiana Republicans can redraw maps for midterms — 4 May 2026 (LINK)

Trump family's crypto firm sues investor Justin Sun, escalating feud — 4 May 2026 (LINK)

US: Judge mulls contempt over DHS' 'patently false' allegation in deportation case, posting an allegation that she knowingly released an ICE detainee with an international warrant for murder — 4 May 2026 (LINK)

AP: Trump administration defies dozens of court orders in second term: at least 31 lawsuits, with more than 250 additional violations flagged in individual immigration petitions — 3s May 2026 (LINK)

— Examples of noncompliance include deporting alleged gang members to a dangerous El Salvador prison despite court orders, withholding billions in foreign aid, and limiting mental health grant funding to schools despite an injunction

US to cut troop levels in Germany by 5,000 amid Trump spat with Merz — 2 May 2026 (LINK)

— The decision comes a day after Trump criticised Merz, who suggested the US had been "humiliated" by Iranian negotiators.

Trump's latest purge — of the entire National Science Foundation Board — could bring major risks, experts say — 1 May 2026 (LINK)

Judge decides DOJ can use a military lawyer to prosecute civilians in landmark ruling — 1 May 2026 (LINK)

— The case centered on Paul Johnson, a Minnesota resident charged with assaulting a Customs and Border Protection agent. Defence lawyers for contended that using JAG attorneys to prosecute civilians in cases without a military connection violated the Posse Comitatus Act, an 1878 law generally prohibiting military involvement in civilian law enforcement, as well as Department of Defense regulations. However, judge sided with the government, finding that Congress had created exceptions to the Posse Comitatus Act through two other laws.