News From Around the Web
# 1 Trump Admin Launches Its First Major H-1B Visa Fraud Investigation - Stephen Sorace for FOXBusiness, Eric Daugherty, Nick Sortor, James Fishback, cutoffs.io, and Nard/Morse Report on X
The Trump administration is escalating its crackdown on immigration-related fraud, launching its first major investigation into alleged H-1B and PERM visa abuse, labor trafficking, and the displacement of American workers, Labor Department Inspector General Anthony D'Esposito told FOX Business on Wednesday. D'Esposito announced the probe exclusively on "Mornings with Maria," calling it the latest step in the administration's expanding anti-fraud campaign ahead of Vice President JD Vance's nationwide fraud initiative event in Milwaukee set for later in the day. "This is another example where fraud is fueling violent crime," he said. "Much of the visa and the human trafficking that we see when it comes to this foreign labor is tied to cartels, is tied to transnational gangs, and this is the work that we should be doing, not only to make America safe again, but to make America more affordable again."#2 2 World Trade Center Breaks Ground 25 Years After 9/11 - Aaron Katersky for ABC News, Collin Rugg, Robert Sterling, Polymarket, and Kagan.Dunlap on X
Twenty-five years after the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, left a gaping void in Lower Manhattan, American Express broke ground Thursday on its new headquarters, a tiered glass and steel tower at 2 World Trade Center. The 55-story, 2 million square foot building with more than an acre of outdoor terraces and gardens is the last commercial development in the footprint of the fallen twin towers of the World Trade Center. The skyscraper is scheduled to be completed in 2031 and rise 1,226 feet...
#3 Trump Clears Out U.S. Election Assistance Commission Before Midterms - Sarah D. Wire for USA TODAY, Eric Daugherty, Gunther Eagleman, Bo Loudon, Mark Warner, and MAGA Voice on X
President Donald Trump has terminated two of the federal Election Assistance Commission's three members, eliminating the panel's ability to help local election officials prepare for the 2026 midterms. The two commissioners selected by congressional Democrats, Chairman Thomas Hicks and Benjamin Hovland, each received an email dismissing them on July 9. USA TODAY has reviewed a copy of that email. Christy McCormick, the commission's vice chair who was selected by congressional Republicans, resigned on June 9...
#4 News Outlets Urge a Judge to Sanction OpenAI in a High-Stakes AI Copyright Fight - Matt O’Brien and Jocelyn Noveck for AP News, Ken McCafferty, WCBI News, BNN Bloomberg, The Society of Composers & Lyricists, and Michael Eskenasy on X
he New York Times, the Daily News and other media outlets are asking a federal judge to impose sanctions on OpenAI, escalating a fight over artificial intelligence and copyright that could shape the future of a struggling news industry. The newspapers allege the ChatGPT maker is hiding evidence important to what could be a landmark copyright infringement trial over how OpenAI and its business partner, Microsoft, built their AI technologies using millions of news articles. At issue is whether AI chatbots are unfairly competing as an information source, siphoning off web traffic without doing the journalistic work involved in gathering the news...
#5 Charlie Kirk Assassination Suspect Expressed Regret After Shooting, Roommate Says - Daniel Arkin for NBC News, CONSTITUTION X, KanekoaTheGreat/DataRepublican (small r)/Jen Brooklyn on X, News ADDICTS, sandym, Jesse ON FIRE, and Erik Hoffmann on X
Tyler Robinson, the 23-year-old man accused of assassinating conservative political activist Charlie Kirk, allegedly said he wished “he hadn’t done it” the day after the shooting, according to a recording of an interview with his roommate played in a Utah courtroom Thursday. Lance Twiggs, who was also Robinson’s romantic partner, said the suspect nervously paced around their apartment after Kirk’s killing. Twiggs said Robinson told him he planned to confess to his parents or turn himself in to law enforcement...#6 Minnesota Daycare Owner Pleads Guilty to 2 Fraud Charges - WCCO Staff for CBS News, Nick shirley, Libs of TikTok, End Wokeness, Gunther Eagleman, and Dustin Grage on X
A Minnesota daycare owner who prosecutors said tried to flee the United States two days after shutting her center down pleaded guilty to fraud charges on Thursday. Fahima Mahamud pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, according to court records. Prosecutors said Mahamud ran Future Leaders Early Learning and pocketed money meant to feed children during the pandemic. Charges said she received more than $850,000 in fraudulent funds as part of the Feeding Our Future scheme, using most of that money to buy real estate. She also filed separate claims for about $4.6 million from the federal Child Care Assistance Program, according to the Department of Justice. Mahamud notified the state in February that Future Leaders was closing. That same day, she booked a flight to London, according to prosecutors...
#7 Costco Hit With Lawsuit Alleging Protein Powder Sold in Stores Contains ‘Dangerous’ Levels of Lead, Arsenic - Bonny Chu for FOXBusiness, Norm Roulet, NewsTongue, Clarion Ledger, Newsweek, The San Diego Union-Tribune, and The Seattle Times on X
Costco has been hit with a class action lawsuit alleging that one of the products it sells contains "dangerous" levels of heavy metals, including lead, arsenic, and cadmium. The lawsuit centers on Orgain protein powders, including the Vanilla Bean and Creamy Chocolate Fudge varieties, which are marketed in stores and online as providing "good, clean nutrition." Seven plaintiffs from across the U.S. allege Costco failed to properly screen the products for toxic heavy metals or disclose their presence to consumers, according to the lawsuit filed Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington state. The plaintiffs are seeking to hold the warehouse retailer accountable for marketing the protein powders as safe and healthy despite the alleged presence of the contaminants...#8 Probe of Alibaba Unearthed Evidence It Knowingly Let Dangerous Drugs Be Sold to U.S. Consumers — but DOJ Did Not Prosecute - Sarah N. Lynch for CBS News, Jungleball2, Gordon G. Chang/UnveiledChina, CaixinGlobal, and M. Noman on X
For eight years, Chinese online retailer Alibaba and its U.S. payment processing company failed to prevent dangerous drugs, chemicals, and pill presses from being sold to American customers — even after employees warned of compliance problems, public records show. Prosecutors at the Justice Department believed they had enough evidence to prove that the companies had committed felony violations of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, multiple sources with knowledge of the matter told CBS News. That law, first enacted in 1938, prohibits the sale, distribution, or manufacturing of counterfeit, adulterated, or misbranded drugs and medical devices, as well as food, supplements, and cosmetics...
#9 Total of 8 Suspects Now Indicted in Alleged Plot to Attack White House UFC Event - Luke Barr and Alexander Mallin for ABC News, Tracy Solomon, Ian Cone, NewsRadio WKCY - 107.9 FM, Victor vicktop55 commentary, The Epoch Times, and WLWT on X
A total of eight men have been indicted for their alleged roles in the plot to attack a UFC event on the grounds of the White House last month, according to federal prosecutors. The men allegedly wanted to use drones to create a diversion, and then use snipers to attack attendees fleeing from the June 14 event on the South Lawn of the White House, according to the Justice Department. Authorities arrested five men in connection with the alleged plot on the weekend it took place, and another two suspects the following week...
#10 ‘Legalized Election Fraud’: Musk Boosts Spencer Pratt’s Claims Of ‘Janky’ Voting System After LA Mayoral Loss - Sara Dorn for Forbes, Elon Musk, Gavin Newsom/Kalshi, Eric Daugherty, Justine Bateman/Spencer Pratt, and MAGA Voice on X
Musk reposted a 10-minute video message from Pratt discussing the “Red Mirage” phenomenon when early election results tend to favor Republicans, only to swing in favor of Democrats when mail-in ballots are counted, since Democrats historically vote by mail in larger proportions than Republicans. “California has legalized election fraud,” Musk wrote in reposting the video. Pratt held second-place, and was more than 40,000 votes ahead of LA City Council member Nithya Raman, a Democrat, in the days after Election Day, but she leaped ahead of him when mail-in ballots were counted and advanced to a runoff against incumbent Mayor Karen Bass...
