D.C. sues Trump administration over deployment of National Guard
The city of Washington has filed a lawsuit against Trump and the military over the deployment of the National Guard in the nation’s capital.
Putin warns Western troops would be ‘targets’ if sent to Ukraine before a peace deal
Russian President Vladimir Putin warned today that any troops Western countries would send to Ukraine before a peace deal would be “targets for their destruction.”
“If any troops appear there, especially now, during military operations, we proceed from the fact that these will be legitimate targets for their destruction,” Putin said at an economic forum event in Vladivostok, Russia.
Putin also said that if a long-term peace deal is reached, he doesn’t see a reason for a Western troop presence in Ukraine.
“Because if these agreements are reached, let no one doubt that Russia will implement them in full,” he said. “And we will respect those security guarantees that, of course, must be developed for both Russia and Ukraine. And, I repeat once again, of course, Russia will fulfill the agreement.”
Ukraine’s allies, however, aren’t suggesting troops be sent into Ukraine before a peace deal. The U.S. could take a lead role, for example, in monitoring a large buffer zone inside Ukraine if a peace agreement is reached.
Venezuelan military aircraft flew by U.S. Navy vessel in ‘highly provocative move,’ Pentagon says
The Pentagon said last night that two Venezuelan military aircraft flew by a U.S. Navy vessel in international waters.
“This highly provocative move was designed to interfere with our counter narco-terror operations,” the Defense Department said in a statement posted on X. “The cartel running Venezuela is strongly advised not to pursue any further effort to obstruct, deter or interfere with counter-narcotic and counter-terror operation carried out by the US military.”
The U.S. carried out a strike on a vessel that left Venezuela allegedly carrying drugs in the southern Caribbean earlier this week. Trump said the vessel was operated by the Tren de Aragua gang and the strike killed 11 people on the boat.
Trump’s envoy to Israel on what binds the two countries
U.S. could take lead watching Ukraine buffer zone if peace deal with Russia comes together
Reporting from Washington
If a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine ever comes together, the United States could take the lead role in monitoring a large buffer zone inside Ukraine envisioned as a way to protect the country from Russia, according to four people familiar with a plan that military officials from Ukraine’s allies, including the United States, have been discussing.
The buffer zone would be a large demilitarized area — the borders of which have not yet been decided — inside what is now Ukraine, dividing Russian and Ukrainian territory within the country. In part because of its technological capabilities, the United States would take the lead in watching the buffer zone, using drones and satellites along with other intelligence capabilities, but it would coordinate with other countries that would also monitor.
Democrats return to Trump’s Washington after getting an earful of ‘Do something’ at home
Congressional Democrats returned to Washington earlier this week, fresh off of a lengthy summer recess where they heard one prevailing message from constituents in town halls and other events: Do something.
Now, Democratic lawmakers — in the minority in the Senate and the House as well as out of the White House — are confronting the limited number of things they can do while trying to appease party members desperate to see some action.
Democrats from battleground states and districts told NBC News near the end of the congressional recess that constituents repeatedly urged them throughout August to keep resisting Trump and his congressional GOP allies. But they acknowledged that there’s little they can do to fight the president’s agenda with no power in Congress, instead focusing on how they can raise the profile of some issues and also organize ahead of the midterm elections.
Trump grows pessimistic about the prospect of ending the Russia-Ukraine war
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Garrett Haake, Katherine Doyle, Peter Nicholas and Kristen Welker
Reporting from Washington
Trump has grown increasingly pessimistic about the chance of brokering an end to the Russia-Ukraine conflict anytime soon or seeing the leaders of the two warring countries meet in person, according to two senior administration officials.
Trump isn’t abandoning hopes of settling the dispute: He joined a conference call Thursday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders, in which he stressed that “Europe must stop purchasing Russian oil that is funding the war,” a White House official said. Trump also made the point that European leaders must subject China to economic pressure for underwriting the Russian war effort, the official added.
But Trump’s more dour view of reaching a peace deal underscores the distance he has traveled since the 2024 campaign, when he brashly predicted he’d end the war within 24 hours of taking office. (He later said he was speaking “figuratively.”) Trump has since acknowledged that the war has proved a more stubborn problem than he expected.
Trump to sign executive order rebranding Defense Department as the Department of War
Reporting from Washgington
Trump will sign an executive order today adding “Department of War” as the secondary title of the Defense Department, two White House officials told NBC News.
The order, which Trump is expected to sign in the Oval Office, won’t rename the Defense Department, but it will authorize Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to use secondary titles like “secretary of war” and “Department of War” in official correspondence and public communications and during formal ceremonies, according to a White House preview of the order.
Jobs report expected to show weakness in labor market
The federal government will release data this morning that experts say is unlikely to allay concerns about a slowdown in the jobs market.
Analysts estimate the U.S. added 75,000 jobs in July, which would be a slight improvement from the 73,000 in June. However, it would put the year-to-date total at 672,000, barring revisions, down from more than 1.1 million during the same period last year.