NEWS - WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 19, 2026 - NEWS
The U.S.-Israel campaign against Iran was billed as the final blow to Tehran's 'Axis of Resistance,' but the alliance though bloodied is unexpectedly resilient. LA Times
VOA VIEW: Iran took all the US had and survived.
Local nonprofits are also rehabbing full blocks at once -- all while violent crime makes historic drops. New York Post
Republicans hold every statewide elected office and have drastically swung voter registration in the state. A newly gerrymandered congressional map has added four Republican-leaning seats. New York Times
VOA VIEW: Florida has held the red line.
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Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are seeking larger oil reserves in Japan and South Korea as regional conflict threatens supply routes. New York Times
The network asked a court to stop the agency from taking steps that could force ABC stations off the air and accused the F.C.C. of violating its First Amendment rights. New York Times
VOA VIEW: A valid point, as liberal as ABC is.
The power grid relies on thousands of aging, hand-built transformers. If enough fail, the blackout could last years. New York Times
The attack follows a series of military interventions in Syria over the past two years, and spurred the latest American rebuke of Israeli actions in recent weeks. New York Times
VOA VIEW: Israel is protecting itself.
A reworking of the spacecraft’s power systems could extend the nearly 50-year-old Voyagers’ exploration of interstellar space into the early 2030s. New York Times
At least 17 commercial sailors have been killed in and around Iranian and Omani waters since March. Six months into the conflict, the vital waterway remains exceptionally dangerous. New York Times
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A Kentucky woman accused of vandalizing the National Mall’s World War II Memorial was released from custody with directions to avoid the monument on a U.S. judge’s order, according to court records. OANN
VOA VIEW: A foolish judge.
First Lady Melania Trump has facilitated the reunification of another Ukrainian child with their family after being displaced by the Russia-Ukraine war, marking the sixth round of reunifications, which have now helped a total of 34 children. OANN
A former Anoka County Assistant Attorney and three accomplices have been charged in connection with a multi-year sex trafficking network that operated across the Minneapolis metropolitan area. OANN
President Donald Trump welcomed 16-year-old lifeguard, Ryder Williams, to the Oval Office on Monday to commemorate his daring Santa Cruz, California, ocean rescue that saved a 10-year-old boy's life. OANN
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A federal judge ruled against a new relocation plan pushed by the administration of President Donald Trump for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) headquarters. OANN
The Pennsylvania attorney general announced charges against 14 people in connection to a cocaine-trafficking operation involving primarily college students and two fraternities at Penn State University. Washington Times
Generation Z is contributing massively to entrepreneurship, as young adults bypass traditional college and use artificial intelligence tools to start businesses and navigate a tight labor market. Washington Times
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America First Policy Institute asked the Supreme Court to discipline three justices on Hawaii's Supreme Court over a ruling in which the justices accused the high court of "white sight." Washington Times
The Justice Department finalized a rule Monday that will pave the way for people who've been barred from owning firearms because of criminal convictions to apply to have their gun rights reinstated. Washington Times
VOA VIEW: Reasonable for no gun related crimes.
Civil rights advocates on Monday said they asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a Texas law requiring public schools to display the Ten Commandments, teeing up a case that could set a new national standard for the limits of state-sponsored religious expression in classrooms. Washington Times
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is pitching a plan to help shield local police officers who make immigration arrests from possible financial consequences if they are accused of on-duty misconduct. Washington Times
VOA VIEW: Mistakes should not carry a heavy burden.
"The boulders that were coming down were so heavy they were like shaking the ground," resident Alice Birnbaum told CBS News. CBS
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U.S. District Judge Theodore Chuang ruled that the Trump administration's move to divert funding and cancel a plan to move the FBI to Maryland was "arbitrary and capricious and not in accordance with law." CBS
VOA VIEW: The judge does not the authority.
Thirteen former and current Penn State students, and one student's father, are facing charges related to an alleged cocaine ring. Prosecutors allege drugs were cut and packaged at two frat houses, sometimes by pledges. CBS
U.S. kindergarten vaccination rates have declined again, with exemptions reaching a record high for the 2025-2026 school year CBS
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The car manufacturer is also recalling another 107,000 vehicles outside the U.S. over the same issue. CBS
VOA VIEW: Over priced junk.
Sunita Doddamani argues that she was terminated as an assistant U.S. attorney because she prosecuted activists accused of blocking an entrance to an abortion clinic. CBS
VOA VIEW: She was a fool.
Shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz sank to a new low as a ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran is set to expire on Monday with no deal in sight. CNBC
VOA VIEW: There should be no deal.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., announced a new proposal on Monday to protect federal student loan borrowers from having their Social Security checks garnished. CNBC
VOA VIEW: They should pay.
Russia struck port infrastructure in Ukraine’s Odesa region, damaging a Togo-flagged civilian vessel near Izmail after Kyiv launched a major drone attack on Moscow. CNBC
ICE arrested a Brazilian fugitive convicted of aggravated murder at a Massachusetts courthouse just days before Gov. Maura Healey signed the PROTECT Act. FOX News
Security footage and three suitcases led Orlando investigators to charge Jose Proano with the murder and dismemberment of his 71-year-old stepfather. FOX News
Miguel Diego Sandoval lurked outside until his ex-boyfriend's family went to bed before gunning down four people and torching their California home. FOX News
A group of Texas families are asking the Supreme Court to hear a challenge to a state law that requires schools to post the Ten Commandments. UPI
VOA VIEW: As they should.
The percentage of U.S. adults who say they've taken part in any form of gambling over the past year has dropped from 64% in 2016 to 45% in 2026. UPI
The Trump administration has agreed to pay out about $4 billion to companies to encourage them not to build out offshore wind energy projects. UPI
Russia accused the intelligence services of a Western country of aiming to portray Moscow as an illegal weapons supplier in Latin America. UPI
British Prime Minister Andy Burnham communicated with a person posing at U.S. President Donald Trump's chief of staff, Susie Wiles. UPI
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Minnesota's Department of Health (MDH) voluntarily suspended a grant program that was specifically based on race after the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) initiated a Civil Rights Act compliance review, the DOJ said in an announcement.
The Capacity Strengthening Initiative, according to the DOJ, was a grant program which "limited eligible grantees to organizations that worked with 'people of color,' provided 'strategic consideration' and 'gave priority' to proposals from organizations 'led by populations of color.'" It also, the DOJ alleged, prioritized allocating a higher proportion of grants to "Black or African American" and "nonwhite Latino(a)" communities. A 2023 summary of the Capacity Strengthening Grant from the third party Grant Portal described it as being designed "To support and strengthen the capacity of metro and rural community-based organizations and faith-based organizations serving people of color, American Indians, LGBTQIA+, and people living with disabilities."
The strict race-based language, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division explained, was a violation of the Civil Rights Act. "Recipients of federal dollars cannot decide who benefits from those funds on the basis of race, color, or national origin," Dhillon said in a DOJ statement. "The Department appreciates that the State of Minnesota has recognized this foundational principle and has repealed the statute governing the program."
MDH withdrew the grant program after the DOJ initiated a review based on Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, the DOJ statement claimed. Title VI prohibits any recipient of Federal financial assistance — a group that includes MDH — from discriminating on the basis of race, color, or national origin.
