The Latest: Putin hosts Trump envoy Witkoff for crucial talks on Ukraine peace deal
By The Associated Press
Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks with U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff in Moscow on Wednesday, the Kremlin said, days before the White House’s Friday deadline for Russia to reach a peace deal with Ukraine or potentially face severe economic penalties that could also hit countries buying its oil. Earlier talks between Russia and Ukraine, and Russian and U.S. officials, made no progress on ending the three-year war following Russia’s invasion of its neighbor.
Here’s the latest:
Here are the states now considering early redistricting
1. Texas — Gov. Gregg Abbott is threatening Democrats with arrests, fines and removal after they left the state to deny a quorum.
2. California — Democrats could reshape their own district maps to cut away five Republican seats.
3. Missouri — Gov. Mike Kehoe is eyeing a Kansas City Democrat’s district to expand the 6-2 GOP advantage.
4. New York — Gov. Kathy Hochul said if Texas proceeds, “we must do the same.”
5. Wisconsin — Democrats want the courts to force a redrawing
6. Maryland — Majority leader David Moon plans to trigger redistricting if Texas or any other state does it
7. Florida — Gov. Ron DeSantis said he’s considering early redistricting
8. Ohio — must redraw its maps before the 2026 midterm elections, and could expand its 10-5 advantage
9. Indiana — Gov. Mike Braun said Vice President JD Vance’s visit will include talk of redistricting, which he said looks like “it’s going to happen across many Republican states.”
More states consider redrawing congressional maps
The Texas Republicans’ push to redraw congressional maps to secure five more House GOP seats for Trump has kicked off a no-holds-barred battle between blue and red states.
Changing congressional maps to ensure one party’s victory over another — called gerrymandering — has typically been done more furtively, since both parties have feared a backlash if voters think the system is rigged. But Trump’s call for Texas redraw its maps mid-decade for blatantly partisan purposes has blown the lid off.
Gerrymandering, once a feared accusation, has now become a battle cry.
Why Texas Democrats fled and how Republicans want to punish them
A walkout by Texas House Democrats is stalling redrawn political maps that President Donald Trump wants before the 2026 elections to bolster Republican chances of keeping its U.S. House majority.
Since leaving the state on Aug. 3 to block a vote in the Texas Capitol, dozens of Democrats have scattered to Chicago, New York and Boston and faced escalating threats from Republicans who have signed civil arrest warrants and mobilized state troopers.
Trump said Tuesday the FBI “may have to” help to bring back Texas Democrats, who have not said how long they are prepared to hold out. But they’ve signaled no intention of quickly returning home.
▶ Read more things to know about Trump’s effort to secure House control through redistricting
Per Trump’s order, Park Service and Hegseth order Confederate statues restored
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Tuesday that a statue commemorating the Confederacy would be returned to Arlington National Cemetery. And the National Park Service announced Monday that the statue of Albert Pike, a Confederate brigadier general, would return to Washington’s Judiciary Square.
The Pike statue was pulled down with ropes and chains on Juneteenth in 2020 as part of mass protests following the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police.
In 2022, an independent commission recommended that the Arlington memorial be removed. It features a Black woman depicted as “Mammy” holding what is said to be the child of a white officer, and an enslaved man following his owner to war. Hegseth said it should “never should have been taken down by woke lemmings. Unlike the Left, we don’t believe in erasing American history — we honor it.”
▶ Read more on these Confederate statues
Trump threatens federal takeover of DC after attack on DOGE’s ‘Big Balls’
Two 15-year-olds have been arrested in connection with the attempted carjacking and beating of one of the most prominent members of the Department of Government Efficiency. Trump responded with a threat to seize control of the nation’s capital.
Edward Coristine, nicknamed “Big Balls,” was assaulted around 3 a.m. Sunday by a group of teenagers attempting to carjack him and a woman police identified as his significant other.
The attack provided new fuel for long-standing Republican efforts to challenge Washington’s autonomy. Trump posted: “If D.C. doesn’t get its act together, and quickly, we will have no choice but to take Federal control of the City, and run this City how it should be run.”
▶ Read more on Trump’s response to this street crime in DC
Trump weighs in on Texas Democrats fleeing state to halt vote
The president said the FBI “may have to” have a hand in bringing back lawmakers who left Texas in order to prevent a vote on redistricting maps that aim to give Republicans five more seats in the U.S. House.
Republican Sen. John Cornyn of Texas called on the FBI to help locate and arrest the Democrats under civil arrest warrants. Legal experts say enforcing consequences against the Democrats would be difficult.
RFK Jr. cancels $500 million in funding for vaccines
The Department of Health and Human Services will cancel contracts and pull funding related to 22 projects that utilize mRNA technology, including projects developing vaccines that fight respiratory viruses like the flu and COVID-19.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the health secretary and a longtime vaccine critic, said Tuesday that he wants the U.S. to move away from mRNA vaccines and called on the department to start “investing in better solutions.” Experts say evidence shows mRNA technology is safe and effective.
Judge rules Trump administration can’t reallocate $4 billion meant for disaster mitigation
A federal judge in Boston granted a preliminary injunction sought by 20 Democrat-led states while their lawsuit over the funding moves ahead.
FEMA said in April that the agency would end the program, which provides funds to strengthen infrastructure against potential storm damage.
Later, the agency said it was only evaluating whether to end the program or not, but the states argue that the threat of losing the funding alone has put numerous projects at risk of being canceled, delayed or downsized.
