Monday, Sept. 14
Trump insists artificial intelligence race must come first
President Donald Trump denied the need for artificial intelligence regulations Sunday, despite warnings from multiple CEOs of AI development companies.
On Saturday, Dario Amodei, CEO of AI company Anthropic, warned the technology’s development needs to slow down to make time for safety regulations to catch up. Elon Musk and Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, publicly agreed with Amodei’s statements, according to the Associated Press.
Despite that, Trump said the U.S. is leading the world in AI development and regulations may cede that advantage to China. Trump acknowledged there should be some regulation, but claimed AI is more good than bad, according to AP. Nonetheless, Republican and Democratic candidates in the upcoming midterm elections are showing little support for the implementation of data centers, as many communities are fighting against them.
Tuesday, Sept. 15
The Supreme Court rejects mail-in voting restrictions
The Supreme Court rejected Trump's bid to restrict mail-in ballots Monday ahead of the midterm elections, according to the AP.
Trump argued the restrictions would ensure election integrity, despite little evidence of fraud with mail-in ballots. The U.S. Postal Service will continue to send mail-in ballots under past processes, the AP said.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh was among the majority. Kavanaugh said new restrictions should not be implemented before the midterms, but indicated he might support Trump’s effort at a later date.
Election officials stated proper restriction implementation in the time before the midterms would be unrealistic, given some states have already begun sending ballots.
Wednesday, Sept. 16
US House votes to end Iran War, again
The U.S. House of Representatives voted in favor of a war powers resolution for the third time Tuesday, which would halt Trump’s ability to use military resources for the Iran war without congressional approval, according to the AP.
Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., who served in the Iraq War, mentioned Trump’s preliminary claims that the Iran war would last a few weeks. Moulton pushed Congress to ask tough questions regarding the war rather than following the “warmongering administration”.
Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, stated Iran remains a threat, and the current war will end decades of conflict with the country.
Thursday, Sept. 17
U.S. House recesses for the midterms
Speaker Mike Johnson decided to send the House lawmakers home Wednesday to campaign for the midterm elections, according to the AP.
GOP Rep. Thomas Massie criticized Johnson’s decision due to the amount of “unfinished business" that needs to be resolved. Massie’s resolution to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over the Iran war and his bipartisan effort to release more files in the Jeffrey Epstein investigation were among those left behind.
However, Johnson maintained that “the House has done its job.”
Friday, Sept. 18
Pentagon briefings on defense strategy spark bipartisan criticism
Democrats and Republicans were left frustrated after the Pentagon's top policy advisor, Defense Undersecretary Elbridge Colby, refrained from sharing an update on the Trump administration’s National Defense Strategy at a classified briefing Thursday, according to the AP.
Lawmakers shared dissatisfaction with the lack of information the Defense Department released regarding the Iran war and military deployment to polling locations. Colby stated the deployment of the National Guard for the midterm elections has been discussed amongst the department.
Sen. Kevin Cramer, a Republican from North Dakota on the Senate Armed Services Committee, highlighted how strange it was for the department to refrain from sharing the congressionally mandated update.
Sunday, Sept. 20
US to implement military presence in Greenland under deal
U.S., Greenlandic and Danish officials negotiated a deal on Greenland, bolstering the U.S. military presence in the country while keeping it under Danish control, according to the AP.
Trump announced the agreement would give the U.S. permanent control over Greenland’s security and any other needs, following months of proposed threats to seize the territory. It is unknown how the deal will compare to the current deal between the U.S. and Greenland, which allows the U.S. to deploy forces in the country, according to the AP.
The agreement has not been made public yet, but the countries have been quietly negotiating for months. With the announcement, Trump is able to share the foreign policy win ahead of the midterm elections.
