President Trump is telling confidants he's weighing a strike on Iran that would be, in his words, "bigger than ever before" — potentially targeting bridges, power plants, and nuclear sites. The U.S. has now conducted airstrikes against Iran for twelve consecutive days since the summer ceasefire collapsed. The economic fallout is already here: Brent crude hit $100 per barrel and U.S. gas prices jumped to a national average of $4.09 per gallon.
The House passed a War Powers Resolution 214 to 208 to block continued U.S. strikes against Iran, with four Republicans — including Thomas Massie and Brian Fitzpatrick — crossing the aisle to side with Democrats. The measure is largely symbolic and faces Senate opposition, but it marks the second such congressional rebuke of the Iran campaign in weeks. The vote was forced through a privileged resolution mechanism, bypassing House GOP leadership.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune is prioritizing a continuing resolution to prevent a government shutdown over advancing Trump's SAVE America Act — the president's top election-security bill — sparking fury among House Republicans. Speaker Johnson insisted the Senate can "walk and chew gum at the same time," while a House coalition is threatening to paralyze floor votes until the Senate acts. The standoff is clouding Congress's entire legislative calendar with the midterm clock running.
New polling shows three in five Americans disapprove of Trump's handling of the economy — a record low for the president on that issue. Cost of living tops voter concerns at 46%, with healthcare and housing close behind, and 53% say prices are the worst they can remember. Democrats are watching these numbers closely as the party eyes gains in the fall midterms.
Friday was the first night in nearly two weeks that the United States did not launch new airstrikes against Iran — but Houthi forces in Yemen quickly filled the silence by firing ballistic missiles at the Saudi coastal city of Jizan. Saudi Arabia intercepted the incoming missiles, averting casualties, but the attack signals the conflict is spreading to the Arabian Peninsula. Multiple Gulf fronts are now active simultaneously.
Houthi attacks in the Red Sea have effectively created a second global oil chokepoint alongside the Strait of Hormuz, squeezing supply on both waterways simultaneously. Energy analysts warn the dual disruption is the kind of sustained supply shock that doesn't resolve quickly. Brent crude is at $100 a barrel — its highest level in years — with no immediate relief in sight for consumers.
American intelligence agencies believe Iran's new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, is more willing to develop nuclear weapons than his father was. The elder Khamenei maintained a religious fatwa against nuclear arms; the son, who rose to power after his father was killed in the opening U.S.-Israeli strikes on Tehran, reportedly holds no such restraint. The assessment has significantly raised the stakes of the ongoing conflict.
Researchers at UC San Diego guided teleoperated humanoid robots through two live laparoscopic gallbladder removal procedures on pigs — a world first for general-purpose machines in an operating room. The robots, standing five feet tall and costing around $20,000 apiece, copied surgeons' movements remotely rather than operating autonomously. Scientists say the technology could one day bring specialist surgical care to rural clinics, field hospitals, and underserved areas globally.
High-power laser systems have been used to intercept aerial threats in actual combat for the first time in history — a landmark moment in directed-energy defense. The Pentagon has simultaneously sealed contracts worth up to $847 million for next-generation laser systems capable of generating 150 to 500 kilowatts of output. For context: a traditional missile interceptor costs around $5 million per shot; a laser engagement costs cents.
The New York Times removed captured Venezuelan strongman Nicolas Maduro from its annual "39-ish Most Stylish People of 2026" feature after a photo of the deposed dictator in a gray tracksuit went massively viral following his arrest and transport to the U.S. An editor's note dated July 7 acknowledged the removal, linking to a separate Styles piece on how the tracksuit image — first posted to Trump's Truth Social — became a global meme. The moment even inspired Secretary of State Rubio to board Air Force One in a Nike tracksuit as a pointed parody.
