Trump Fury At War Memorial Vandalism: ‘We Are On Their Trail’President Donald Trump on Friday condemned the vandalism of the World War II Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., and said his administration is investigating the incident.“THERE CAN BE NO GREATER INSULT TO THOSE AMERICAN HEROES WHO DIED IN WORLD WAR II,” he wrote on Truth Social.The memorial was vandalized with bubbles filling a fountain and “Clean hands dirty $” written in red paint. In his post, the president went on to reference the botched repair job of the nearby Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, which Trump blamed on vandalism.Last month, the Department of Justice moved to dismiss a criminal case charging a former Olympian with deliberately damaging the Reflecting Pool because of a lack of evidence.It left Trump furious with U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, who wrote the filing asking a judge to formally dismiss the case.“First the Reflecting Pool, now this,” Trump wrote Friday. “We are on their trail! Where do these animals come from???”Luigi Mangione's Lawyers File Motion To Dismiss State Murder ChargesAttorneys representing Luigi Mangione filed a motion Friday to dismiss state murder charges against him.Mangione pleaded guilty to federal charges in connection to the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on Friday morning. With his separate state murder trial fast approaching, defense attorney Karen Friedman Agnifilo said those charges should be dismissed based on New York’s double jeopardy law.“New York does not permit a person to be prosecuted and punished twice for the exact same crime, under a statute that governs excessive prosecutions, also known as the double jeopardy law,” Agnifilo said at a press conference following Mangione’s guilty plea. “Today’s guilty plea triggers the statute, and we just filed our motion in state court explaining why the state charges must be dismissed under New York’s double jeopardy protections.”U.S. Retail Sales Slump Unexpectedly And SharplyAfter splurging on the World Cup and Amazon Prime Day sales, Americans unexpectedly cut their spending in July by the biggest amount in more than a year.Retail sales fell 0.6% last month, marking the biggest decrease since May 2025, compared with a revised gain of 0.2% in June, according to the Commerce Department data released Friday. Economists were projecting a small increase.Read more, via AP:Luigi Mangione Pleads Guilty To Federal Stalking Charges In Healthcare CEO CaseLuigi Mangione, the accused killer of a UnitedHealthcare CEO, pleaded guilty Friday to two federal counts of stalking resulting in death.“I shot Mr. Thompson in Manhattan and he died,” Mangione told the court, per The Associated Press. “I knew what I was doing was illegal.”Read more here: Brian Thompson's Family Attends Luigi Mangione's Federal Court AppearanceThe family of the healthcare CEO gunned down on a Manhattan sidewalk attended the federal court appearance of Luigi Mangione on Friday.UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, 50, was fatally shot in the back and leg as he left a Midtown hotel on the morning of Dec. 4, 2024. Mangione pleaded guilty during his Friday hearing to two stalking charges related to the killing of Thompson.Family members of Thompson attended Friday’s hearing and sat in the front row.The hearing is ongoing, and more details of the plea deal have not yet been released. Mangione still faces a state murder charge.It’s Been 2 Months Since Trump Claimed Deal With Iran ‘Complete’Happy two-month anniversary to the completion of the Iran-deal-that-wasn’t.“The Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete,” President Donald Trump proclaimed on June 14. “Congratulations to all!”“I hereby fully authorize the toll free opening of the Strait of Hormuz, and, simultaneously herewith, authorize the immediate removal of the United States Naval blockade,” he added. “Ships of the World, start your engines. Let the oil flow! President DONALD J. TRUMP”At the start of the conflict in late February, Trump said the Iran “excursion” would last four to five weeks, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth lashed out at reporters for questioning the war.On Thursday, Hegseth told reporters the U.S. could maintain a blockade of Iran’s ports “indefinitely.”In related news, a new aircraft carrier is headed to the region after sailors aboard the old one attempted to go overboard in suicide attempts while experiencing mental health issues due to the extended deployment.Trump Wants SCOTUS To Allow White House Ballroom Construction To ContinuePresident Donald Trump’s administration on Friday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to allow it to continue construction of his $400 million White House ballroom after an appeals court ruled the project lacked the necessary approval from Congress.The Trump administration asked the justices to keep the ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on hold while it prepares a full appeal to the Supreme Court.Read more from Reuters:Nigel Farage Beats Count Binface To Win Back Seat In Parliament In Widely Mocked ElectionNigel Farage regained his seat in Parliament on Friday, beating a field of fringe candidates led by trash-can-wearing comic Count Binface in a special election boycotted by mainstream parties that called it a farce.Farage, leader of the anti-immigration Reform UK party who some see as a possible next prime minister, abruptly quit his seat in July amid an investigation into whether he failed to report a 5 million pound ($6.7 million) gift from an overseas crypto billionaire.Read more from The Associated Press:Jeffries Calls For 'Dramatic Supreme Court Reform'House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) backed major changes to the Supreme Court during an interview on Thursday, signaling that Democrats could focus on the issue if they retake the House majority this fall. “In my view, dramatic Supreme Court reform is necessary,” Jeffries said when asked about the subject at the National Association of Black Journalists convention in Atlanta. “...There’s a variety of different options that are on the table. And I think that we can’t foreclose any single one of them.”Jeffries added that he deferred to House Judiciary Democrats, led by Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), to navigate the possibilities, but emphasized that reforms were required given the types of decisions that conservative justices have issued. “The conservative right-wing majority on the Supreme Court has become, you know, basically a subsidiary of the MAGA Republican Party,” Jeffries said, adding, “they don’t have the credibility.”AOC Says It's 'Pretty Funny' Conservatives Are Freaking Out Over Her Egg FreezingRep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said she finds it “pretty funny” that some people are freaking out over her decision to freeze her eggs and share her experience online. Speaking in a video posted Thursday, the Democrat specifically called out political commentator Allie Beth Stuckey for accusing her of “glamorizing the lie that women can have it all.” Stuckey was among a number of conservatives who have taken to the internet in recent days to bash Ocasio-Cortez’s decision to freeze her eggs at 36. “Can you believe that?” she said, referencing Stuckey’s comments. “I find it very funny because the way of life that conservatives are trying to push out there, which is to marry young and have lots of kids at a young age, that is no threat to me.”But, Ocasio-Cortez also discussed the positive responses she has seen, describing it as “incredibly overwhelming.”“I see people completely independent of what I’m sharing help each other and say ‘I went through this, too,’” she said. “And people are asking each other questions and realizing that you’re not alone.”Blanche Gives Speech To DOJ That’s Undermined By Past ActionsNewly confirmed Attorney General Todd Blanche gave remarks on Thursday that marked a sharp contrast from past statements and actions he’s taken as a top official at the Justice Department. In his remarks, Blanche pledged to focus on the DOJ’s “core mission” of “uphold[ing] the rule of law fairly and impartially” and to embrace disagreement among staff at the agency. “We will always respect the role of the judiciary,” Blanche added. “We will not engage in or stand for any sort of performative attacks that undermine the institutions that we are sworn to uphold.”Members of Justice Connection, a group of DOJ alums, noted that the agency’s recent track record severely undermined his statements. During Trump’s second term, the DOJ has fired staff who previously worked on classified documents and election interference cases against the president. Additionally, Blanche hasn’t been shy about calling out “rogue activist judges” and supporting an indictment of former FBI Director James Comey, one of Trump’s perceived political enemies. “Attorney General Blanche’s platitudes will only resonate if his actions start matching his words,” Justice Connection executive director Stacey Young said in a statement.See All Updates