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# War on Iran Escalates, a Bombshell Whistleblower Report on Voting, and the Pentagon in Chaos
- URL: https://www.fromthefifth.com/war-on-iran-escalates-a-bombshell-whistleblower-report-on-voting-and-the-pentagon-in-chaos/
- Published: 2026-09-06T23:11:02.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-06T23:11:02.000Z
- Description: Plus: ICE plans to spend millions on "robot dogs" and how your taxpayer dollars were spent on a website for racist, MAGA arcade games
- Author: Huma Razvi

Here are the news stories that deserve your attention for the week August 30, 2026:

****The week in brief:**  
  
The US and Iran are back to active fighting 🔹 A whistleblower exposes a botched mail-in voting system 🔹 Hegseth's Pentagon is in turmoil 🔹 The House passes a bill to punish schools for not supporting Israel 

CRITICAL 

### #1) War on Iran: Uptick in Fighting

**This week, the US and Iran returned to** military attacks for the first time since July 29\. The two sides have been exchanging attacks all week, and as of this writing [strikes](https://apnews.com/article/iran-us-war-strait-hormuz-ship-attack-a52beec77dc90af3d040d0553837ad20?ref=fromthefifth.com) [are ongoing](https://apnews.com/article/iran-us-war-oil-tankers-b3650799901c56a6deeca962cbaa4109?ref=fromthefifth.com).

- **On the ground.** The US launched the first strike last Sunday, August 30, hitting Iran's Larak Island. The US military [claimed](https://apnews.com/article/iran-strait-hormuz-strike-united-states-6b098da673ac3161a266ee459d5eff44?ref=fromthefifth.com) it attacked there because Iran was preparing to launch rockets with sea mines.
  - **Iran** [**said**](https://en.irna.ir/news/86252866/Sirik-wedding-attack-has-completed-US-s-catalogue-of-atrocities?ref=fromthefifth.com) **the US on Tuesday hit** a wedding party at a home in Sirik, killing five people, including two children aged 4 and 16\. Dozens more were injured. CENTCOM said it was aware of the reports and — along with Vice President JD Vance — claims the US doesn't strike civilian targets on purpose. Iran called the attack a war crime. A [Reuters analysis](https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/us-probes-iran-wedding-strike-that-analysis-shows-was-likely-direct-hit-by-us-2026-09-03/?ref=fromthefifth.com) found that the strike was likely a “direct hit by a U.S. munition.”
  - **Iran** [**says**](https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/us-iran-exchange-attacks-lull-war-appears-over-2026-09-02/?ref=fromthefifth.com) **18 people** have been killed so far by US strikes this week.
  - **Iran's response this week** has included [attacks](https://apnews.com/article/iran-us-strikes-hormuz-trump-september-2-2026-cc891e22860d7a53bf7ade9a3d74c0ae?ref=fromthefifth.com) on US bases in Jordan, Iraq, Bahrain and Kuwait. It also [claimed](https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/us-iran-exchange-attacks-lull-war-appears-over-2026-09-02/?ref=fromthefifth.com) to have killed US soldiers in Iraq, which the US military denied.
- **War rhetoric:** Trump continues to claim (falsely) that the US controls the Strait of Hormuz and threaten Iran with annihilation, [telling](https://www.facebook.com/FoxNews/posts/breaking-trump-warns-iran-could-be-totally-wiped-out-as-a-country-if-they-repeat/1546234487366408/) Fox if this continues, "They're going to be totally wiped out as a country."
  - [**Reuters reports**](https://www.reuters.com/world/trump-aides-fearing-midterm-rout-push-keep-iran-war-quiet-now-2026-09-02/?ref=fromthefifth.com) **that Trump's aides** want to keep the war on the DL until the midterm elections and escalate after, citing four sources familiar with the internal discussions. "We are keeping the pressure on Iran," one White House official said. "But November is a priority.”
  - **When asked about Iran,** Vance told reporters: "I wouldn't call it a war" because "right now there's no active shooting." *Um, OK?*
  - **That’s apparently what someone** at the Pentagon told the widow of Maj. John "Alex" Klinner, 33, who was killed — along with five others — in March when his refueling plane [crashed](https://apnews.com/article/us-iran-tanker-aircraft-crash-iraq-kc135-c337359a58be6280dc96fdbf1cb48a5b?ref=fromthefifth.com) in Iraq. Libby Klinner says she and her three young children were denied certain military benefits because the government doesn't call what's happening “war.”
  - **"The Air Force recently told me** that because we haven't officially declared war, my kids and I aren't eligible for some benefits," Libby wrote on Instagram. "So not only was my husband killed in a war he never wanted to participate in, but now the benefits we're left with are being dictated by semantics and public perceptions."
  - **Later, Libby said the government had** cleared up her benefits and she appears to have deleted her earlier post. The Air Force says it gave her inaccurate information, [the AP reports.](https://apnews.com/article/military-air-force-klinner-benefits-3114b464c6f8c84325ea893d55483f57?ref=fromthefifth.com) At least 18 US service members have been killed in the war on Iran.
- **A Risky War:** Last weekend, The Washington Post [reported](https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/08/30/military-leaders-warn-hegseth-against-extending-iran-war-operations/?ref=fromthefifth.com) that senior military leaders were warning Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that prolonging the war on Iran is "unsustainable" and risky, citing sources who had access to information logged in a database known as the Secretary of Defense Orders Book (SDOB).
  - **After the Post’s story**, the Pentagon has now removed the SDOB from the department's web portal, [the Post reports](https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/09/02/pentagon-cuts-access-classified-information-amid-iran-war-concerns/?ref=fromthefifth.com).
  - **Seems those warnings have** fallen on deaf (and dumb) ears, because [The Wall Street Journal reports](https://www.wsj.com/politics/national-security/hegseth-extends-mideast-deployments-into-2027-escalating-strain-on-troops-c10fc533?ref=fromthefifth.com) that Hegseth has extended the deployment of about 50,000 troops until 2027.

****RELATED:**  
  
📍 ****The USS Abraham Lincoln docked** in Thailand on Wednesday after about 286 days at sea. The ship was "covered in rust from bow to stern," [CNN reports.](https://www.cnn.com/2026/09/03/asia/aircraft-carrier-abraham-lincoln-rust-intl-hnk-ml?ref=fromthefifth.com)

### #2) Election Interference — The “Shit Show”

### 

**Last week’s** [**#3 story**](https://www.fromthefifth.com/six-months-into-a-four-week-war/) **was about** how Trump is trying to manipulate the outcome of the midterm elections by messing with mail-in voting, a method used by roughly one-third of voters — [including Trump himself.](https://www.politico.com/news/2026/08/17/trump-vote-by-mail-primaries-florida-01039292?ref=fromthefifth.com) This week, we got a behind-the-scenes look at what else the Trump administration is doing — and it’s scary, according to an anonymous whistleblower.

- **Part I, The Backstory:** On March 31, Trump signed an [executive order](https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2026/03/ensuring-citizenship-verification-and-integrity-in-federal-elections/?ref=fromthefifth.com) overhauling how mail-in and absentee voting works (or doesn’t, *depending on which way you look at it*) via the USPS. Essentially, the order calls on the federal government to create a list of people it says are eligible voters — using information that is often out of date or inaccurate — and pretty much orders the USPS not to deliver ballots to people who are not on the list.
  - **In response to Trump’s EO**, the USPS began developing the Federal Ballot Mail Portal so it could keep track of who states are planning to send ballots to based on mail-in ballot applications. States would need to upload a list of people they plan to send ballots to, including their names and a barcode associated with each voter, into the system.
  - **States and voting rights groups sued** to block the order because states, not the federal government, are in charge of how to run their elections. Plus, the database wasn’t ready and the whole thing was confusing and burdensome. And, maybe *that's the point.*
  - **After a series of back-and-forth** legal challenges, U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani imposed an injunction on it, agreeing with states.
  - **On Sunday, the Trump administration** [appealed](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/09/06/trump-is-running-out-time-he-tries-restrict-mail-voting/?ref=fromthefifth.com) to the Supreme Court to lift Talwani’s injunction, arguing that it’s not really a burden because it’s just a matter of states uploading information they already have into the federal system. The government is also [arguing](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-administration/trump-administration-supreme-court-mail-ballot-restrictions-appeal-rcna596346?ref=fromthefifth.com) that it still leaves voter eligibility up to states – which is inaccurate.
  - “**The Supreme Court could still upend** mail ballot rules, but the president and the U.S. Postal Service are running out of options that don’t involve significant upheaval because tens of thousands of voters will be getting ballots in their mailboxes in the coming days,” [The Washington Post reports.](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/09/06/trump-is-running-out-time-he-tries-restrict-mail-voting/?ref=fromthefifth.com) “Even if the president can win in court, he will have tremendous difficulty changing how ballots are mailed because of timing constraints and logistical obstacles, according to election officials and those who work closely with them,” the Post adds.
  - **Wisconsin and North Carolina have** already begun mailing out ballots to people in their states.
- **Part II, The Real Backstory:** This week, we learned from an anonymous whistleblower that the Federal Ballot Mail Portal is basically a big hot mess that could be catastrophic to November’s elections. The whistleblower calls the whole project “secretive, rushed, chaotic, and fundamentally flawed” and said: “Potentially millions of American voters may not receive their mail-in ballot this election cycle in a timely manner, or at all.”
  - **According to the complaint filed** by Whistleblower Aid, a nonprofit representing the source: *“The Whistleblower also raises grave concerns that the administration has hidden the high likelihood that the new ballot mail verification processes will result in major disruptions in mail ballots ever getting delivered to voters. As presently designed, if even one bar code on one single ballot in a bulk-mailing of 10,000 ballots fails to properly scan during the verification process, the entire batch is rejected and sent back to the state… The Whistleblower is particularly concerned that the Portal (where the bar codes are stored) will almost certainly have significant operating problems when released to the public, due to the rushed IT development; this will contribute to failures in the verification process.”*
  - **The whistleblower adds USPS** officials describe the whole thing as a “shit show.” Developers working on different parts of the system aren’t coordinating with each other, the whistleblower says, which means the whole thing may not function properly.
  - **Creation of the system was rushed:** It was set up in three months, when something like this would normally take 9–12 months. And only one week was set aside to test the system, compared with another case in which a system was tested for 47 working days.
  - **The** [**whistleblower's complaint**](https://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/2026-08-31%5Ffinal%5Fletter-disclosure.pdf?ref=fromthefifth.com)was released by the [office of Sen. Richard Blumenthal](https://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/following-new-whistleblower-disclosure-blumenthal-demands-usps-provide-documents-answers-about-shit-show-process-to-screen-ballots-and-potentially-catastrophic-impact-on-mail-in-voting?ref=fromthefifth.com) (D-CT) on Tuesday. Blumenthal told reporters he thought the system was designed poorly on purpose.
  - **The USPS** [**issued a statement**](https://about.usps.com/newsroom/statements/090126-statement-on-development-of-us-federal-ballot-mail-portal.htm?ref=fromthefifth.com)saying it is looking into the whistleblower’s complaint.

**Related:**

- **It’s a federal crime for anyone in the civil** or military service of the US to bring or keep “any troops or armed men” at a polling place. [The statute](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2023-title18/html/USCODE-2023-title18-partI-chap29-sec592.htm?ref=fromthefifth.com) allows one exception — repelling “armed enemies of the United States." And that seems to be the basis for how the Trump administration is going to intimidate people at polls with armed men, and maybe some armed women.
  - **Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin** effectively [said](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=az3Pe3enjYM&ref=fromthefifth.com) his agents will be at the polls in November. “ICE isn’t there to patrol the polling places. We’re there to enforce specific threats,” Mullin said. And by threats, he means people the government claims are undocumented immigrants. From [Truthout](https://truthout.org/articles/voting-rights-groups-are-preparing-to-confront-ice-at-the-polls/?ref=fromthefifth.com): Mullin “indicated that a report of an undocumented person could be reason enough to deploy agents at or near a polling site.”
  - **Mullin has also ordered a division** of ICE known as Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) to pick up the pace of investigations into alleged voter fraud in at least nine states: Washington, Wisconsin, Missouri, Georgia, California, Pennsylvania, Nevada, New York and Connecticut, [CNN reports](https://www.cnn.com/2026/08/31/politics/homeland-security-voter-fraud-investigations?ref=fromthefifth.com).
  - **HSI “typically tackles major crimes** like human trafficking, drug smuggling and child exploitation. The agency has already surged an unprecedented number of agents to work on cases, including chasing down voter histories of people believed to be noncitizens who may have illegally voted or registered to vote.” [*Voter fraud is rare*](https://www.brennancenter.org/topics/voting-elections/vote-suppression/myth-voter-fraud?ref=fromthefifth.com) *— and here we are diverting resources from major crimes to… crimes that rarely happen.*
  - **Meanwhile, on August 18, Sen. Elissa Slotkin** (D-MI) wrote to Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Dan Caine asking him to confirm troops wouldn’t be sent to polling places or used to seize ballots — and to say whether he would refuse such an order from Trump. Caine’s reply, obtained Monday by [The Associated Press](https://apnews.com/article/caine-hegseth-trump-military-polling-voting-elections-98a06a37abf19613a0922a7e9359e999?ref=fromthefifth.com): “The Joint Force has no plans to send Federal military personnel or Federalized members of the National Guard to polling places during the 2026 elections.” He added: “Likewise, the Joint Force has no plans to use such personnel to seize ballots, voting machines, or other election-related material.”

### #3) Pentagon in Peril (New)

**There is a lot of turmoil inside the Pentagon** right now. I’m separating this out from the Iran war story as its own thread because, while this situation has been exacerbated by the war, it’s largely a Hegseth leadership problem now that will persist even if/when the war is over.

I’m seeing an uptick in “rumors” online that Hegseth will be out soon, which may or may not be based in reality. But here’s what we know is happening and what Hegseth is doing that is contributing to the situation:

- **Stifling Dissent.** As expected — and [mentioned](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/25/us/hegseth-purge-army-generals.html?unlocked%5Farticle%5Fcode=1.9VA.A%5FoY.6MBNpg5YYOL4&smid=url-share&ref=fromthefifth.com) in last week’s newsletter — Army Secretary Dan Driscoll [resigned](https://x.com/SecArmy/status/2094949678475264439?ref=fromthefifth.com) this week after months of disagreement with Hegseth over internal matters. Driscoll was the highest-ranking military leader in the Army, and a friend of Vice President JD Vance.
  - [**The New York Times reports**](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/01/us/hegseth-purge-army-officers.html?ref=fromthefifth.com) **that**, in a meeting with Trump, Driscoll complained that “Hegseth had fired some of the Army’s most combat-tested leaders, imperiling its efforts to modernize the force” and that this was damaging morale.
  - **The Pentagon denied any drama**, arguing that this is all par for the course at the Pentagon. “But senior officials and members of Congress have said that Mr. Hegseth’s moves are without precedent. In the past, the defense secretary and service secretaries have removed officers for moral or ethical breaches. But officials said that these officers have behaved in accordance with Pentagon policy.”
  - **As the Times notes, Hegseth has** purged at least 80 generals and admirals — roughly 10% of the military’s top officers. “The moves come at a time when the military is badly strained by the Iran war, which has gone on far longer than administration officials anticipated… The firings and Mr. Hegseth’s refusal to explain the logic behind them are dividing the Pentagon and alienating many in Congress, the officials said.”
  - **Retiring Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) is now** calling for Hegseth to be fired. “If we had a @SecWar who maintained the same priorities and forward-thinking, he would be fighting to retain talented leaders like Dan and the many flag officers he has forced into retirement. Instead, he is creating a leadership void at the top of our military ranks,” [Tillis wrote on X](https://x.com/SenThomTillis/status/2095175195648512020?ref=fromthefifth.com). “I urge the President to find a new leader at the Pentagon who will retain and empower our military talent rather than diminish it.
- **Cracking Down.** [The New York Times reports](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/04/us/politics/pentagon-staff-polygraph-tests.html?unlocked%5Farticle%5Fcode=1.-1A.ZzCa.EeMsnYZO9wdZ&smid=url-share&ref=fromthefifth.com) that the Pentagon has ordered about 50 military members to take polygraph tests, which “were conducted in August after a flurry of news reports detailed diminished stocks of crucial munitions, including of long-range missiles and Patriot interceptors. The show of force appeared aimed at not just ferreting out anyone who may have shared information, *but intimidating others who might do so in the future*, according to people with knowledge of the effort,” the Times reports. “The scope of the investigation is *without parallel*. Mass polygraph tests have *never been administered* to the top ranks of the U.S. military in modern history.” *(Emphasis added by me)*
- **Creating his own narrative.** The Pentagon has hired conservative influencers to key positions inside the department to amplify Hegseth’s “viewpoints and attack those who scrutinize” him, [The Washington Post reports](https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/08/30/pentagon-secretly-installs-military-influencers-civilian-roles/?ref=fromthefifth.com).

****RELATED**:  
  
📍 ****The Pentagon is going back** on its policy to test service members for low testosterone, [Reuters reports](https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/pentagon-temporarily-rescinding-guidance-testosterone-screening-us-troops-2026-09-03/?ref=fromthefifth.com).

---

ESCALATING 
- **The House passed a bill to punish universities** by pulling their federal funding if they participate in “non expressive commercial boycotts” of Israel . The bill known as the [Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/4795?ref=fromthefifth.com) passed 237-169, with 33 Democrats voting in favor of it along with all but two Republicans.
  - **What does “non expressive commercial boycotts”** mean? [Responsible Statecraft writes](https://responsiblestatecraft.org/house-passes-bill-israel-boycott/?ref=fromthefifth.com) this includes “’refusals to deal’ or terminating business relationships in order to limit commercial ties without a ‘valid business reason.’ The law would require these institutions to submit annual certification that they were giving students and faculty access to academic programs in Israel on the same terms as programs in other countries.”
  - **“The goal here is to basically say** every university not only cannot refuse cooperation with Israel but must actively seek every opportunity to cooperate with Israel,” Lara Friedman, the President of the Foundation for Middle East Peace, told RS ahead of the vote. “And if they're not doing that, they're pro-BDS and anti-Israel.”
  - **The two Republicans who** voted against the bill are Reps. Thomas Massie (KY) and Warren Davidson (OH).
  - **The bill was introduced by** Reps. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) and Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC).
  - **See how everyone** voted [here](https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2026295?RollCallNum=295&BillNum=H.R.4795&ref=fromthefifth.com). The bill will still need to be passed by the Senate.
- **Israeli minister Itamar Ben-Gvir** [**outlined**](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/sep/03/israel-far-right-minister-itamar-ben-gvir-plan-removal-palestinians-gaza?ref=fromthefifth.com) **a new** plan to forcibly expel the nearly two million Palestinians from Gaza within seven years. Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz said this would be “by any means… by sea, by air, by every way possible,” [The Times of Israel reports](https://www.timesofisrael.com/katz-israel-will-facilitate-emigration-from-gaza-by-any-means-as-soon-as-trump-allows/?ref=fromthefifth.com).
  - **“While the forced displacement of** civilians in occupied territory is considered a war crime under the Geneva conventions, Israeli political figures have competed over the harshness of their visions for Gaza, rebuffing efforts by the US president, Donald Trump, to advance a half-baked and largely moribund ceasefire deal that has been marked by continuing Israeli attacks,” [The Guardian’s Peter Beaumont writes](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/sep/03/israel-far-right-minister-itamar-ben-gvir-plan-removal-palestinians-gaza?ref=fromthefifth.com).
  - **US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee** [claims](https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/us-ambassador-israel-says-there-is-no-plan-force-palestinians-out-gaza-2026-09-05/?ref=fromthefifth.com) this is not true. "Nobody is suggesting that there will be forced displacement. The Israelis are not. The Americans are certainly not. ​I know ​of no ⁠one who supports that."
  - **Meanwhile, Save the Children** [reports](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/9/2/israel-kills-or-injures-7-children-a-day-in-lebanon-invasion-report-says?ref=fromthefifth.com) that Israel has been killing or injuring 7 children on average in Lebanon each day since March.
- **Ebola is spreading at an unprecedented rate** in the Democratic Republic of Congo, health officials warn. More than 3,000 people have died and more than 6,100 have been infected. “It remains the fastest-growing outbreak of Ebola ever,” [NBC News reports](https://www.nbcnews.com/world/africa/congo-ebola-outbreak-deaths-virus-spreads-unprecedented-speed-rcna595671?ref=fromthefifth.com). The WHO says it’s also on track to become the deadliest Ebola outbreak ever.
- **Couple that with the news that the Trump administration** is looking to cut billions from global health spending — all to make developing countries pay more, [The Washington Post reports](https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/08/30/trumps-deals-africa-could-cut-us-health-aid-by-more-than-half-analysis-shows/?ref=fromthefifth.com), citing “secretive agreements U.S. officials have pursued with more than a dozen governments to date…  
  - **"The planned cuts —** targeting programs that combat the spread of HIV/AIDS, Ebola and tuberculosis, among other deadly diseases — appear to reduce U.S. spending on global health initiatives to less than half of Washington’s output in 2024, the analysis found.”
- **Interior Secretary Doug Burgum** [**announced**](https://x.com/secretaryburgum/status/2095587973907755133?s=46&t=-aXH-trF90w0ZZmr0Jj8kg&ref=fromthefifth.com) that the government is going to break ground on a 250+ foot arch (*100 feet taller than Paris' Arc De Triomphe*) in D.C. even though it hasn’t received the necessary approvals and with a pending lawsuit filed by military families arguing that the structure would be an affront to the nearby Arlington National Cemetery.  
  - “The arch would stand smack-dab between the nation's most prominent military cemetery and the Lincoln Memorial, of which it would be more than twice the height. Critics have a long list of concerns with the project, ranging from the financial cost to the impact on nearby funeral processions to questions of vehicle, pedestrian and aviation safety. Memorial Circle is less than 2 miles from the final approach path of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport,” [NPR reports](https://www.npr.org/2026/09/04/nx-s1-5957459/trump-arch-excavation-lawsuit-veterans?ref=fromthefifth.com).
- **The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 to allow Trump to keep** [building](https://apnews.com/article/trump-white-house-ballroom-supreme-court-6b9434af0a2dbeffa0ca19f5cdf7d775?ref=fromthefifth.com) his $600 million ballroom project. Chief Justice John Roberts joined the three liberal justices in dissenting.  
  - **The majority ruled that the** National Trust for Historic Preservation — a nonprofit group that protects D.C.’s historic buildings — did not have legal grounds to sue.
  - **In his dissenting opinion**, Roberts wrote: “The President ordered the demolition of the East Wing of the White House to make way for a new, privately funded state ballroom in its place. Construction of the ballroom has proceeded apace for the better part of a year. That construction is likely unlawful.”
WATCHING 
- **Midterm News:**
  - **Trump’s on-again, off-again friend and** the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, is planning to spend $100 million to help Republicans win in November, [The New York Times reports](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/03/us/elon-musk-republican-spending.html?ref=fromthefifth.com). Right now, it appears Musk’s focus is on seven key Senate races in Texas, Maine, Ohio, New Hampshire, Iowa, Michigan and Alabama, plus eight House races. Most of the money spent so far is for print mail ads, but it also includes social media ads.
  - **Texas’ third-most-populous county**, with more than a million voters, will have one-third fewer polling places thanks to Republicans, [MS NOW reports](https://www.ms.now/news/texas-voter-suppression-access-battleground-midterms-trump-election-ballot-tarrant-county?ref=fromthefifth.com). Tarrant County voted 3-2 along party lines to cut polling sites from 316 in 2022 to 224 this year, despite growing protests over the move. “Many of the protesters MS NOW spoke to outside the courthouse fear the cuts will disproportionately affect communities of color and lower socioeconomic status.”
- **"Immigration" Policy:**
  - **ICE is going to spend $2 million** on “robot dogs” to help agents with their operations, [ABC News reports](https://abcnews.com/Politics/ice-plans-purchase-robot-dogs/story?id=136039320&ref=fromthefifth.com). This is in addition to the $20 million it plans to spend on buying electric shock gloves.
  - **The DHS** [**announced**](https://www.dhs.gov/news/2026/09/02/ices-august-arrests-break-record-number-illegal-aliens-arrested?ref=fromthefifth.com) **about 50,000 arrests** in August, on par with July, which was a record high. This includes arrests of parents at bus stops in Connecticut after their kids went off to school, [The Hill reports](https://thehill.com/policy/national-security/6059574-homan-ice-bus-stop-arrests/?ref=fromthefifth.com). [*More from NBC News here*](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/ice-arrests-50-thousand-people-august-continuing-record-rcna595510?ref=fromthefifth.com)*.*
  - **The Trump administration is sending people** off to countries they’ve never been to, like Liberia, including Afghans who helped U.S. troops during the 20-year military campaign in that country, [The New York Times reports](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/29/us/afghans-deported-us-central-african-republic.html?ref=fromthefifth.com). Roughly 23,000 people have been sent to countries with which they have no ties.
  - **A 20-year-old Haitian immigrant died** by an apparent suicide on Monday after he walked onto a busy highway in Springfield, Ohio. The man – still a child, I would argue – Pierre Damas Bel, was a student at Wright State University and had recently been fitted with an ankle tracking device after the Trump administration ended Temporary Protected Status for Haitians after decades. Bel and his family had a pending asylum case.  
    - **“His father said he couldn’t play** soccer as he had for years because of the weight of the tracker. Classmates bullied him and made cruel remarks. He begged federal immigration officers to remove the bracelet, his father said, but they refused… Then on Friday, his JROTC class instructor handed students their uniforms, which resemble those of the U.S. armed forces, but did not give one to Bel. His father said the college student concluded it was because of the device strapped around his ankle,” [The Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/2026/09/01/haitian-immigrant-ohio-takes-his-own-life-after-losing-temporary-protected-status-family-says/?ref=fromthefifth.com) reports.
    - **In July, Bel uploaded a picture of** the tracker on his ankle, writing: “I came to this country to pursue my education. I didn’t come here to commit a crime or hurt anyone. Yet now I’m walking through the streets of the United States with a GPS monitor on my leg, carrying a feeling of shame and humiliation that I never imagined I would experience,” [Mother Jones](https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2026/09/pierre-damas-bel-death-ice-tps/?ref=fromthefifth.com) reports.
  - **Meanwhile, gang violence in Haiti is surging**, according to the [Council on Foreign Relations](https://www.cfr.org/global-conflict-tracker/conflict/instability-haiti?gad%5Fsource=1&gad%5Fcampaignid=23819513442&gbraid=0AAAAAD-E15n8NFDz5ZccEoQOH033BivXw&gclid=Cj0KCQjw--7UBhCpARIsAGJBptg569qIZ8jilVMxgH2z4J%5Fv5zBndIpFhDVn753c47kTE2dAw7ivwX8aAvnxEALw%5FwcB&ref=fromthefifth.com) and the [UN](https://news.un.org/en/story/2026/08/1168222?ref=fromthefifth.com). The situation is so unstable that the FAA has banned planes from landing in Port-au-Prince for at least the next six months, [The Miami Herald reports](https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/haiti/article317094930.html?ref=fromthefifth.com).
- **The "Free Press":**
  - **Maria Bartiromo has abruptly left FOX News**. Oliver Darcy of Status News reports that she was let go after sharing internal guidance on how to cover Trump’s [election speech](https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jul/17/trump-speech-midterm-election-voting?ref=fromthefifth.com) with the White House. (FOX told senior folks not to peddle Trump’s lies.) [CNN](https://www.cnn.com/2026/09/04/business/maria-bartiromo-fox-news-trump?ref=fromthefifth.com) and [NYT](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/03/business/media/fox-news-maria-bartiromo.html?ref=fromthefifth.com) confirmed the reporting. Trump praised Bartiromo [on Truth Social](https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/117210339497817224?ref=fromthefifth.com) after the news broke. Her lawyer says she was not fired, [NBC News reports.](https://www.nbcnews.com/business/media/maria-bartiromos-lawyer-says-was-not-fired-fox-news-rcna596127?ref=fromthefifth.com)
  - **The Treasury Department wouldn’t give** press credentials to [The New York Times](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/29/business/reporters-denied-g20-meeting.html?ref=fromthefifth.com), The Wall Street Journal or Bloomberg for a G20 meeting in N.C. this week, [the AP reports](https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/treasury-department-blocks-certain-journalists-from-covering-g20-meeting?ref=fromthefifth.com).
  - **Trump** [**lashed out**](https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/117184581053116309?ref=fromthefifth.com) **at NBC’s Kirsten Welker**, saying she would be referred to the FCC for “rebuke or punishment” after she [correctly pointed](https://www.cnn.com/2026/08/30/politics/trump-kristen-welker-fcc-nbc?ref=fromthefifth.com) out that he’s had “mixed results” helping candidates win in the primaries.
- **Birthright Citizenship:**
  - **In June, the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 t**hat [Trump’s EO](https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/protecting-the-meaning-and-value-of-american-citizenship/?ref=fromthefifth.com) ending birthright citizenship violated the Constitution’s 14th Amendment. In August, Trump issued [another EO](https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2026/08/ending-birth-tourism/?ref=fromthefifth.com) — this time, trying to ban birthright citizenship for certain groups of people, like those whose parents work at foreign embassies, those determined to be engaging in birth tourism, or those labeled alien enemies.
    - **On Wednesday, Biden-appointed federal** judge Deborah Boardman [ruled](https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.mdd.574698/gov.uscourts.mdd.574698.181.0.pdf?ref=fromthefifth.com) that the recent EO is “almost certainly unconstitutional.” She added: “The Supreme Court has spoken: Children in the certified class are ‘citizens at birth.’” Attorney General Todd Blanche [told](https://www.politico.com/news/2026/09/02/birthright-citizenship-order-ruling?ref=fromthefifth.com) FOX News that the administration will “continue to fight… and if we have to go back to the Supreme Court, we will.” More from: [Reuters](https://www.reuters.com/world/us-judge-blocks-trumps-newest-order-limiting-birthright-citizenship-2026-09-02/?ref=fromthefifth.com) [NBC News](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/federal-judge-blocks-trumps-latest-order-limiting-birthright-citizensh-rcna595794?ref=fromthefifth.com) [SCOTUSblog](https://www.scotusblog.com/2026/09/judge-blocks-trump-second-birthright-citizenship-order/?ref=fromthefifth.com)
  - **Meanwhile, the State Department** is drafting a new rule that would require parents to prove their own citizenship or immigration status when applying for their children to get passports, [Reuters reports](https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/trump-birthright-curbs-may-prompt-us-passport-checks-parents-2026-09-01/?ref=fromthefifth.com), citing a review of a draft copy of the order.
- **Congress: Alleged Lawmaker Misconduct**
  - **FBI agents intercepted former Rep. Eric Swalwell** as he deplaned at San Francisco International Airport in mid-August as part of an investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct. Swalwell resigned from Congress and dropped his California gubernatorial bid earlier this year after the allegations were made public. The agents seized his phone and questioned him at the airport. [The Atlantic’s Shane Harris](https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/2026/09/eric-swalwell-air-marshals-fbi/688489/?ref=fromthefifth.com) reports that the sked the Federal Air Marshal Service to covertly monitor Swalwell on board and to watch him use his electronic devices, to see whether its officers could visually ascertain his passcodes, according to records I obtained that have not previously been reported on.” Law enforcement officials saw the request as “highly unusual,” the magazine reports. Swalwell hasn’t been charged with anything. [*KCRA*](https://www.kcra.com/article/eric-swalwell-fbi-confrontation-sfo-august/73586887?ref=fromthefifth.com) *has video of the moment at the airport.*
  - **The House** [**voted**](https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2026292?ref=fromthefifth.com) **413-2 to censure** Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-NC) for allegedly sexually harassing two female staffers in his office. Edwards and Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) were the only “no” votes. In his defense, Edwards — who apologized to the staffers for making them feel uncomfortable and decided not to run for re-election because of it — [argued](https://time.com/article/2026/08/28/chuck-edwards-house-ethics-probe-censure/?ref=fromthefifth.com) that the gifts and poem were not sexual harassment. *More from* [*Politico*](https://www.politico.com/news/2026/09/01/chuck-edwards-house-ethics-censure-01060666?ref=fromthefifth.com)*,* [*The News & Observer*](https://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/article317133305.html?ref=fromthefifth.com)
- **U.S. employers report that their health care cost**s per employee are estimated to go up by about 11%, [The New York Times reports](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/02/business/health-insurance-increases.html?ref=fromthefifth.com). “The upshot is that about 160 million people under 65 who rely on employers for health insurance will again confront higher costs and shoulder more of the burden. More and more, workers are facing year-over-year increases that further stress household budgets already dealing with the growing expenses of groceries and gasoline.”
- **The Trump administration** [**asked**](https://glad-org-wpom.nyc3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/20260828%5FTalbott-USA%5FWrit-of-Certiorari.pdf?ref=fromthefifth.com) **the Supreme Court to** take up a case — *U.S. v. Talbott* — over whether it can ban transgender people from serving in the military. It also asked the court to let it discharge transgender service members who are serving right now while the case proceeds. U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer [told](https://www.scotusblog.com/2026/08/trump-administration-asks-supreme-court-to-consider-ban-on-transgender-persons-in-the-military/?ref=fromthefifth.com) the Court that not letting the military decide who is fit to serve constitutes an “unprecedented intervention into military affairs.”
- **Yes, it’s true.** Your tax dollars have been used to create [arcade.gov](https://www.whitehouse.gov/arcade/?ref=fromthefifth.com) — a government website that allows you to play old-school arcade games with a [MAGA spin](https://x.com/WhiteHouse/status/2095615734567100766?ref=fromthefifth.com). One of the games lets you build a border wall and deport people.
- **Also true:** The U.S. Mint is selling $1 gold coins with Trump’s face on them. [USA Today](https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2026/09/04/trump-1-dollar-coins-unavailable-us-mint/91609055007/?ref=fromthefifth.com) reports: “Neither the $1 gold coin nor the 24K gold commemorative coin received approval from the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee, a nonpartisan group created by Congress to advise the Treasury on coin designs. That committee declined to review both coins, arguing that putting a sitting president on currency was against the country’s founding principles.”
- **Google and Apple Maps both changed the name** of Lake Ontario to Lake America for U.S. users on Trump’s orders. One map maker did not — MapQuest. Guess which of these three is now the number one downloaded map app this week? Having a spine is good for business. [*More from Slate here*](https://slate.com/technology/2026/09/mapquest-trump-lake-america-apple-google-maps.html?ref=fromthefifth.com)*.*
- **Trump** [**issued orders**](https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2026/08/establishing-the-united-states-space-academy/?ref=fromthefifth.com) **to create** a new space academy that would train people in space technology and exploration. [*Politico has more*](https://www.politico.com/news/2026/08/28/trump-space-academy-space-force?ref=fromthefifth.com)*.*
- **New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani imposed** a one-year moratorium on the use of generative AI for kids in grades K-8\. NYC has the largest public school system in the country. During this time, the city will test how AI impacts early education. *More from* [*Al Jazeera here*](https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2026/9/3/nycs-ai-ban-through-grade-8-sets-stage-for-rest-of-us-experts-say?ref=fromthefifth.com) *and* [*Mamdani’s announcement here*](https://www.nyc.gov/mayors-office/news/2026/09/mayor-mamdani-and-chancellor-samuels-put-students-first-with-nat?ref=fromthefifth.com)*.*
- **Trump will fly to Ireland next weekend** on his new $400 million Qatari-gifted jet for a golf tournament at his own course, even though the White House says the airplane doesn’t have the features necessary to carry a sitting president. [*More from The Washington Post here.*](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/09/04/trump-use-qatari-plane-international-trip-despite-security-worries/?ref=fromthefifth.com)
- **The trip will come a couple of days after** he holds a weird, first-ever convention for the midterms on Wednesday and Thursday in Dallas. *More from* [*Axios here*](https://www.axios.com/2026/09/05/republican-convention-dallas-trump-midterms?ref=fromthefifth.com)*.*
- **Trump’s former Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, who** resigned earlier this year, abused her position by doing things like having an inappropriate relationship with someone on her security detail and ordering her driver into a strip club to drop off money, according to a new government investigation. [*More from the AP + access to the report here.*](https://apnews.com/article/labor-secretary-lori-chavezderemer-misconduct-inspector-general-report-2a88e18069efd64df7f0d29f03900bcf?ref=fromthefifth.com)
- **Gloria Steinem** [**died**](https://apnews.com/article/gloria-steinem-feminism-trump-feminist-equal-rights-0d2c93e88bcb00ab3a8f417ea452a845?ref=fromthefifth.com) this week. She was 92\.
CORRECTIONS 

✅

In last week’s issue, I implied that the Senate would return from recess this week. The House returned from recess this week, the Senate does not return until September 14.

✅

In [last week’s issue](https://www.fromthefifth.com/six-months-into-a-four-week-war/), I wrote that Moskowitz had been named as the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. In fact, he was [named](https://democrats-foreignaffairs.house.gov/2026/8/meeks-welcomes-new-members-to-hfac?ref=fromthefifth.com) ranking member of the subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa that is part of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

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