June 4, 2026

U.S. WAR POWERS | The House of Representatives voted 215-208, with four Republicans joining Democrats in supporting the measure, yesterday to approve a war powers resolution that would block further U.S. military action in Iran. The fate of the resolution in the Senate remains unclear, and analysts say President Donald Trump is likely to veto the measure if it passes both chambers. [more]

U.S. IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT | The Senate voted, 53-46, yesterday to move forward with legislation to fund federal immigration enforcement agencies after removing a measure that would have provided $1 billion in security funding for the White House, including for President Donald Trump's ballroom, from the bill. Reports note that Senate consideration of the bill was stalled until the Trump administration said it would drop plans for a $1.776 billion compensation fund for allies of President Trump who feel they were unfairly investigated or prosecuted previously. [more]

U.S. ECONOMY | Labor Department data released today shows that initial claims for unemployment benefits in the U.S. rose by a higher-than-expected 13,000 to a seasonally adjusted 225,000 in the week ended May 30. The number of people filing for continuing claims fell 8,000 to a seasonally adjusted 1.777 million in the week ended May 23. [full report] [more]

TEXAS | The U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed yesterday that a case of New World screwworm fly infestation was detected in a single calf in Texas recently – the first such incident in cattle since the fly devastated the U.S. cattle industry before its eradication in the 1970s. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins says extensive efforts have been taken to control spread of the fly species and that his department believes "there is no threat of mass infestation." [more]

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE | President Donald Trump said yesterday that he intends to nominate Todd Blanche, who has been serving in the role on an interim basis since April, to be the U.S. Attorney General, as early as today. [more]

U.S. FEDERAL WORKFORCE | President Donald Trump signed an executive order yesterday that makes it easier to fire some 8,000 senior federal workers deemed to be in "policy-influencing" positions. Scott Kupor, director of the U.S. Office ⁠of Personnel Management, said of the order that, "You can have any political views, but if you allow those views to basically interfere with your willingness to actually carry out lawful orders and ​policy directives with the administration, then this provides a mechanism obviously for ​people in those agencies to be able to be removed effectively at will." [White House fact sheet] [full executive order] [more]

OHIO | Ohio State University's Board of Trustees reportedly agreed yesterday to pay about $100 million to settle legal claims from hundreds of former student athletes who said they were sexually abused by Dr. Richard Strauss, who worked at the school from 1978 to 1998. An independent inquiry found several years ago that university personnel knew of complaints about Strauss’ conduct as early as 1979 but failed to investigate or take meaningful action for years. [more]

U.S. DRUG WAR | The U.S. military's Southern Command said it targeted a suspected drug-trafficking boat in the eastern Pacific Ocean yesterday, killing two men. Reports note that this latest strike brings to at least 207 the number of people killed in anti-drug-trafficking strikes since last September. [more]

GLOBAL AI AND ENVIRONMENT | In a report released yesterday, the United Nations University says that, amidst the massive growth in artificial intelligence, data centers around the world used 448 trillion watt-hours of electricity last year – more than all but 10 countries of the world – and consumed about 1.2 trillion gallons of water while producing 208 million tons of carbon dioxide. Researchers say the "Environmental Cost of AI's Energy Use: Carbon, Water and Land Footprints" report "is not a case against artificial intelligence," but a "call for using it responsibly and addressing its unintended impacts proactively to make it sustainable and equitable." [press release] [full report] [more]

ISRAEL AND LEBANON | After Israel and Lebanon agreed yesterday to the terms of a U.S.-mediated cease-fire, leaders of the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group rejected the plan today, saying the agreement was a "roadmap for the annihilation of a section of the Lebanese ​people and the enslavement of the rest" and vowing to continue to resist Israeli occupation. [more]

NORTH KOREA | Calling on his country to expand its nuclear forces at an "exponential rate," North Korean leader Kim Jong Un yesterday unveiled a new uranium enrichment plant built to produce fuels for nuclear weapons. [more]

EUROPEAN UNION | Reports cite multiple officials as saying all member nations of the European Union have agreed to formally open accession talks with Ukraine and Moldova. [more]

SOMALIA | Clashes between state security forces and supporters of opposition political figures broke out in the Somali capital of Mogadishu yesterday and continued today ahead of a planned anti-government demonstration. No official casualty assessments have been released, but United Nations officials say the violence resulted in deaths, injuries to civilians, and damage to critical infrastructure. [more]

U.K. | In what it called a world-first move, the U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority ruled yesterday that Google must allow news publishers to opt out of having their online content scraped for use in AI overviews and other artificial intelligence services. [more]

ISRAEL AND GAZA | Palestinian health authorities say at least nine people were killed overnight in at least four Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City. Reports note that Israel has yet to comment on the strikes. [more]

CHILE | Thousands of students, teachers and social activists clashed with police in the Chilean capital of Santiago yesterday amidst large-scale demonstrations against planned education cuts and other austerity measures by the government of President José Antonio Kast. [more]

CHINA | Reports say the Chinese government has taken additional steps to suppress remembrance activities of the military crackdown on student-led pro-democracy protests in Beijing's Tiananmen Square, which took place on this date in 1989 and in which hundreds, and perhaps thousands, of demonstrators were killed. Government measures this year include banning relatives of victims from visiting a commemorative cemetery in Beijing and security measures to prevent what had previously been an annual candlelight vigil. [more]

PHILANTHROPY | Melinda French Gates announced today that she will donate an additional $215 million to groups around the world to support women's health, including in such areas as contraceptive access, maternal care, and menopause care and research. The new pledge brings to about $600 million the total French Gates has donated to women's health initiatives over the past two years. [more]

SPACE | NASA confirmed the loss yesterday of its Mars-orbiting Maven spacecraft after six months of no communications with the craft. Maven was launched in 2013 and fell silent in early December of last year. [more]

BASKETBALL | The New York Knicks beat the San Antonio Spurs, 105-95, last night to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven NBA Finals championship series. Game 2 of the series is scheduled for tomorrow. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1919, the Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which prohibited denying the right to vote on the basis of sex and, thereby, effectively recognized the right of women to vote, was passed by the Senate two weeks after being approved by the House of Representatives. The amendment was ratified by U.S. states and went into effect the following year. [more history]