Closing summary
This concludes our running chronicle of the second Trump administration for Thursday, but we will be back on Friday morning. In the meantime, here are some of the latest developments:
California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, signed a law to hold a special election in November in which voters will be asked to approve a new congressional map, tilted in favor of Democrats, for the 2026, 2028 and 2030 elections, if Texas goes ahead with a plan to do the same for Republicans.
Donald Trump ventured from the White House in his motorcade through the not all that mean streets of Washington DC to deliver pizza and hamburgers to law enforcement officers and National Guard troops, and regale them with his plans to upgrade the grass in the district to make it look more like one of his golf courses. “I know more about grass than any human being I think anywhere in the world”, the commander-in-chief told the officers.
A federal judge ruled that Trump’s former lawyer and campaign surrogate, Alina Habba, has been unlawfully serving as the the top federal prosecutor in New Jersey.
A New York state appeals court tossed out a half-billion-dollar penalty that Trump had been ordered to pay after a judge found the president fraudulently overstated the value of his properties and other assets to bolster his family business. Despite the president falsely claiming the ruling to be a “total victory”, the five-judge panel let the lower court’s fraud verdict stand, which paves the way for New York attorney general Letitia James to appeal the decision to the state’s highest court.
The Trump administration ratcheted up pressure on the Federal Reserve to remove governor Lisa Cook, after the economist declared she had “no intention of being bullied” into stepping down.
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Federal judge orders Florida to close 'Alligator Alcatraz' within 60 days
A federal judge on Thursday barred the DeSantis and Trump administrations from bringing new detainees to the detention facility called Alligator Alcatraz and ordered the state begin closing operations at the immigration detention site within 60 days.
In her order, US district judge Kathleen Williams barred the state and federal governments from bringing new detainees to the detention center and stopped any expansion of the facility, including new lighting or any new buildings, including tents.
As the Miami Herald reports, the temporary injunction comes in response to a lawsuit filed by environmental groups and the Miccosukee Tribe in which they argue that the state and federal governments cut corners when erecting the site in a matter of days.
The environmental groups argue that the hasty construction of the facility violated the National Environmental Policy Act, which requires federal agencies to consider alternatives, consult the public and assess the environmental impact of building projects.
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