The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act passed with overwhelming bipartisan margins — 85-5 in the Senate and 358-32 in the House — but will become law tonight without Trump's signature after the president dismissed it as a "big yawn." Trump is withholding his pen as leverage to pressure the Senate into passing the SAVE America Act, his voter ID and proof-of-citizenship election reform bill. The housing legislation automatically takes effect at midnight unless vetoed, which Trump has not done.
The White House fired both Democratic members of the nonpartisan U.S. Election Assistance Commission by email Thursday evening; Republican Christy McCormick was simultaneously pressured to resign. The EAC is now without a quorum and cannot certify voting systems or issue guidance with midterms just four months out. The White House cited the Supreme Court's recent Slaughter decision as legal authority to remove officials not aligned with administration priorities.
U.S. forces struck approximately 90 additional Iranian military targets Friday, building on Thursday's 80-plus hits following the ceasefire collapse. Senate Minority Leader Schumer and fellow Democrats formally declared the campaign an "illegal war" and pledged unified opposition, demanding a congressional vote on the conflict. Iran has vowed consequences but has not yet responded militarily to today's wave of strikes.
Initial unemployment claims for the week ending July 4 came in at 215,000, capping a first-half 2026 run representing the lowest sustained level since 1968-69, when the U.S. workforce was less than half its current size. Analysts attribute the historically tight labor market to healthcare sector growth and reduced labor supply from restored border enforcement. The milestone has received virtually no mainstream media attention.
With Labour nominations now open, former Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham has secured backing from roughly 80 percent of Labour MPs and faces no serious challenger. He is expected to be formally declared party leader by late July and to become Prime Minister — Britain's seventh in a decade — following a meeting with King Charles III around July 20. Burnham positions himself to the left of Starmer on economics but is notably more skeptical of progressive social positions.
Ann Widdecombe, longtime Conservative MP, Brexit Party MEP, and most recently a spokeswoman for Nigel Farage's Reform UK, was found dead Thursday at her Dartmoor home with serious injuries. Devon and Cornwall Police arrested a 26-year-old man on suspicion of murder Friday morning. Authorities say the killing is not believed to be terror-related or politically motivated.
The Treasury's OFAC on Friday designated Dubai-based financier Ali Ansari, accused of managing international real estate and commercial holdings on behalf of Iran's new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, along with 13 associated individuals and entities. Holdings span Germany, the UK, Spain, Cyprus, and the UAE. The move is designed to squeeze the new Khamenei leadership's offshore financial infrastructure while U.S. military strikes on Iran continue.
China's Long March 10B rocket launched from Hainan on Friday, placed a satellite in orbit, and recovered its first-stage booster via a sea-based net-capture platform just eleven minutes after liftoff — the first nation ever to stick a booster recovery on a rocket's maiden flight. Unlike SpaceX's Falcon 9, the Long March 10B uses landing hooks to snag a catching net rather than extending legs. China now joins SpaceX and Blue Origin as the only entities operating reusable orbital boosters.
Japanese researchers at JAIST identified a bacterium found naturally in the intestines of tree frogs that, given as a single intravenous dose, eliminated colorectal tumors in mice with a 100 percent complete response rate, outperforming both immune checkpoint inhibitors and chemotherapy. The bacterium, Ewingella americana, appears to attack cancer cells directly while simultaneously activating the immune system. The findings were published in Gut Microbes with human trials described as the next step.
On July 7, Argentine flight instructor Leandro Bertazzo, 42, removed his headset mid-flight over Toledo, Argentina, told his student "you know what you have to do, carry on," opened the Cessna 150's door, and jumped to his death. The 22-year-old student, who already held a pilot's license, landed the aircraft safely. Investigators found Bertazzo had been receiving psychiatric care without his employer's knowledge; the incident is being treated as suicide.
