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After Texas ruling, Trump and Republicans head to 2026 with a redistricting edge

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After Texas ruling, Trump and Republicans head to 2026 with a redistricting edge

After the Supreme Court’s conservative majority ruled in favor of Texas lawmakers last week, Republicans head into the 2026 election year with an edge in the redistricting fight kicked off by President Trump.

The court Thursday allowed Republicans’ new congressional map to move ahead — despite a lower court finding that the Texas legislature had likely conducted a racial gerrymander.

The map could yield five more seats for the GOP.

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It is the latest major turn in the nationwide redistricting race, from California to Florida, that Trump started to help maintain Republican control of the House of Representatives.

If Democrats take control of the chamber, they could stymie the president’s legislative agenda and launch investigations of his administration.

The House is currently closely divided, with 220 seats held by Republicans and 213 held by Democrats. The sitting president’s party tends to lose seats in midterm elections.

At this point, it appears the redistricting battle could tilt about 12 or 14 seats toward Republicans and Democrats could counter with around nine seats pushed their way — but that all depends on the outcome of pending court challenges and state legislative votes. So a lot is still in play.

Democratic State Representative Matt Pierce speaks against redistricting in the Indiana House last week.

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This week, Indiana lawmakers are meeting on redistricting. And in Missouri, petitioners face a deadline on signature collections that could block the redistricting until a public vote is held.

It won’t be clear if this all makes the difference in the House until votes are counted in the election on Nov. 3, 2026.

Trump started the race in Texas, California countered

States usually redistrict early in the decade after the decennial census determines how many seats each state gets based on their population. While states used to redistrict frequently in the 1800s and early 1900s, Trump’s push has set off a redistricting race not seen since the 1960s.

Last week’s Texas ruling followed a drama that played out this summer after Trump called on the state to tilt five seats toward the GOP. Democrats walked out for over two weeks to delay the passage of maps they said diluted the voting power of Black and Latino communities.

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Democrats in California countered Texas by approving, with a special election, a map that could flip five seats held by Republicans there.

Republicans in Missouri and North Carolina voted to target a Democratic-held seat in each of those states. On Friday, the Indiana state House passed a new map that could help the GOP win two Hoosier seats. It goes to the Senate next, where Republicans are divided on the issue.

Some Indiana Republicans have been hesitant to follow Trump’s call, though he and Republican Gov. Mike Braun threatened to support primary challenges against those who don’t get on board. Several lawmakers have also faced anonymous threats to their families over the last few weeks.

It’s easier for Republicans to redistrict than Democrats

Republicans have more options for redistricting than Democrats. For starters, redistricting is done by state legislatures and Republicans control more legislatures around the country than Democrats. Also, some of the states that Democrats control have legal barriers to partisan gerrymandering — that is, drawing lines to benefit a party — or they have laws requiring that special commissions draw the lines.

Republican Gov. Mike Braun (in glasses, center left) in the Indiana Capitol attends a rally last week in favor of redistricting that was organized by Turning Point Action.

Republican Gov. Mike Braun (in glasses, center left) and Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith in the Indiana Capitol attend a pro-redistricting rally last week that was organized by Turning Point Action.

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Virginia’s Democratic-led legislature has voted to hold a special election that could amend the state constitution to allow redistricting. Another vote is required in January to hold the election in time. If it passes, the redistricting could tilt two or three seats toward Democrats.

The Democratic governor of Maryland has formed a commission to make redistricting recommendations. But that state already only has one Republican-held House seat to target.

Meanwhile, Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis is urging Republicans in control of the legislature to redistrict this spring and turn as many as five seats toward their party. A Florida House committee held its first meeting on redistricting last week.

But Florida has laws against partisan gerrymandering and could be limited by bans on racial gerrymandering in the federal Voting Rights Act. On the other hand, the Supreme Court is currently considering the VRA and could weaken it, allowing more redistricting that would likely work in the Republicans’ favor.

The VRA outlaws intentional attempts to weaken the voting power of minority communities by “cracking” them apart into new districts or “packing” them into one district.

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Reigning champion Argentina escapes with remarkable World Cup victory over Egypt

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Reigning champion Argentina escapes with remarkable World Cup victory over Egypt

Lionel Messi #10 of Argentina celebrates scoring his team’s second goal during their World Cup match against Egypt in Atlanta on Tuesday.

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They looked beaten. And out. Argentina, the defending World Cup champion and No. 1-ranked team, was down 2-0 late against Egypt.

Then, in a span of 13 remarkable minutes, Argentina scored not once, not twice, but three times, capping a comeback for the ages and leaving Egypt stunned and shellshocked.

For much of the game in Atlanta, Egypt was in control, hobbling Argentina early. The Egyptian attack began almost immediately with a stunning header goal delivered by Yasser Ibrahim in the 15th minute. After that, Egypt’s defense closed ranks, making it practically impossible for Argentina to equalize.

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It was downhill from there for the Argentines: team captain Lionel Messi failed to convert a penalty kick, and in the 67th minute, Egypt got a second goal from Mostafa Ziko (after an earlier Egyptian goal had been disallowed after a video review). It looked like Argentina was finished. On the brink of elimination.

But no one told the Argentine players that.

In the 79th minute, Lionel Messi began doing his thing. He fired a cross near the Egyptian goal, and Cristian Romero headed it in. Messi was not done. Four minutes later, he powered a shot past the Egyptian keeper. It was his eighth goal of this tournament, the most of any player. The score was 2-2.

Then, in stoppage time, yet another Argentina header and another goal, this time from Enzo Fernandez.

“This is the World Cup for you,” said Messi after the game. “It wasn’t easy to come back from two goals down. But as I always say, this group never gives up. We always try to fight until the end.”

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French referee François Letexier speaks with Egypt forward Mohamed Salah during the World Cup Round of 16 match between Argentina and Egypt in Atlanta.

French referee François Letexier speaks with Egypt forward Mohamed Salah during the World Cup Round of 16 match between Argentina and Egypt in Atlanta.

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Afterward, Egypt coach Hossam Hassan complained about the French referee and the officiating. “I am not convinced. I am not convinced with this outcome. I’m not convinced with the way things unfolded during this match,” said Hassan in a post-match news conference. “We have been treated unfairly today. We have suffered injustice.”

“We would have deserved to earn this win, but we are leaving with honor, with pride, regardless of this defeat,” said Hossan.

African soccer teams have been the stars of this World Cup. Morocco has yet to lose a game. Cape Verde qualified for the first time in its history and stymied Spain, Uruguay and Saudi Arabia. Argentina barely beat them in a nail-biter of a match.

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Top Senate Democrats push Trump-affiliated companies for answers about IRS settlement

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Top Senate Democrats push Trump-affiliated companies for answers about IRS settlement

Top Senate Democrats are pushing for answers on whether a provision in a controversial settlement agreement between President Trump and his own administration applies to companies co-founded by or affiliated with the Trump family.

As part of a deal struck in May by the Justice Department to resolve a lawsuit brought by Mr. Trump, the Internal Revenue Service is permanently barred from pursuing claims against Mr. Trump, his oldest sons Don Jr. and Eric, and the Trump Organization based on prior tax returns.

In a one-page document signed by Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and dated May 19, the Justice Department said the defendants in the president’s lawsuit — the IRS and the Treasury Department — are “FOREVER BARRED and PRECLUDED” from “prosecuting or pursuing, any and all claims” arising from tax returns filed before the settlement took effect. Blanche also wrote that the settlement applies to “parties including trusts, parent, sister, or related companies, affiliates, and subsidiaries.”

Now, Senators Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, and Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee Ron Wyden of Oregon are pushing 11 businesses and organizations with ties to the Trump family to get answers for the “significant questions” the settlement raises relating to the tax audit provision, and whether the companies are included in the deal.

“Under the guise of a so-called legal settlement, the Trump administration has attempted to decree that the President, his family, and their entire business empire — potentially including entities with even the vaguest ‘affiliation’ to the family — are to face zero consequences if they have committed a range of financial crimes or misdeeds — regardless of the severity of the violation,” the senators wrote in letters transmitted to the companies Monday night. 

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The letters were sent to mining company Kaz Resources, defense firm Powerus, cryptocurrency companies World Liberty Financial and American Bitcoin, robotics startup Foundation Future Industries, investment firm 1789 Capital, private aviation company Tag Air, and prediction markets Polymarket and Kalshi. 

All of the companies either were founded by Mr. Trump and his two adult sons, or list members of the Trump family as advisers, board members, or partial owners. Donald Trump Jr. sits on Polymarket’s advisory board and 1789 Capital, where he’s a partner, has invested in Polymarket. Days before Mr. Trump took office for his second term, Kalshi also announced Trump Jr. would be a strategic adviser.

The Democrats, who are in the minority, lack subpoena power, so Mr. Trump, his children and his companies can’t be forced to answer the questions posed by the senators.

According to recent financial disclosures, the president earned more than a billion dollars from cryptocurrency ventures alone last year, including from his meme coin business and World Liberty Financial, his family’s cryptocurrency firm. 

Separately, the senators also asked the Trump Organization in a separate letter if it believes it has “immunity from all audits, civil penalties or federal prosecution” for any crimes that could have occurred before the settlement.

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Trump Media and Technology Group, which is majority owned by a trust that lists Mr. Trump as the sole beneficiary and operates the Truth Social platform he uses daily, also received a letter from the Democratic senators.

“The public deserves transparency about the scope of this get-out-of-jail free card for Trump-aligned businesses, and about whether you intend to rely on this settlement as a free pass for any possible violations of the law,” the senators continued in their letter, which also seeks any communications that executives at the companies have had with the Justice Department and White House leading up to or after the settlement was signed.

The settlement was announced months after Mr. Trump and two of his sons and the Trump Organization accused the IRS and Treasury Department of unlawfully allowing a government contractor to leak tax returns to media outlets in 2020. 

In a statement, a Justice Department spokesperson said “the IRS routinely provides releases as part of resolving taxpayer reviews and audits. This settlement follows that same standard practice.” 

The spokesperson did not provide specific information about which companies are covered by the audit provision, or whether the Trump Organization and Trump family are the only entities covered by that addendum. 

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The U.S. men’s run at the World Cup ends with a 4-1 Round of 16 loss to Belgium

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The U.S. men’s run at the World Cup ends with a 4-1 Round of 16 loss to Belgium

Charles De Ketelaere #17 of Belgium celebrates after scoring his team’s second goal during the World Cup Round of 16 match against the United States on Monday in Seattle.

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SEATTLE — This time was supposed to be different.

The U.S. men’s national team came into this FIFA World Cup with a lineup full of players with key roles in Europe’s top leagues. They had the name-brand coach — Mauricio Pochettino, of Tottenham, PSG and Chelsea fame. And they had homefield advantage, with every game on U.S. soil for the first time in three decades.

For weeks, the hype seemed like it might be real: The team’s three wins over Paraguay, Australia and Bosnia-Herzegovina were the most ever by a U.S. men’s squad in a World Cup. A new generation of American fans filled stadiums by the tens of thousands and tuned in on TV by the tens of millions.

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But in the end, the Americans’ exit was the same as it ever was: Eliminated yet again in the Round of 16 at the hands of a European team — this time, Belgium, by a score of 4-1.

From the moment they stepped onto the Seattle field, the U.S. was outclassed by their opponent, No. 9-ranked Belgium. Countless turnovers and defensive lapses were seized on by the Belgians, who needed only nine minutes to take a 1-0 lead.

Then, once the Americans equalized on a free kick by midfielder Malik Tillman, Belgium scored yet again in barely a minute of play. Belgian forward Charles De Ketelaere scored both his team’s first-half goals.

After halftime, came an embarrassing nail in the coffin that silenced the Seattle sellout crowd for good — a 57th minute roll-in by Hans Vanaken after a slip-up by goalkeeper Matt Freese outside of the penalty area left the goal unguarded. Belgian forward Romelu Lukaku added a stoppage-time goal to seal the final score at 4-1.

Malik Tillman #17 of the United States celebrates scoring his team's only goal during their World Cup match against Belgium. In what was one of the few bright spots of the game, the U.S. pulled even with Belgium at 1-1. The tie lasted less than two minutes before Belgium scored again.

Malik Tillman #17 of the United States celebrates scoring his team’s only goal during their World Cup match against Belgium. In what was one of the few bright spots of the game, the U.S. pulled even with Belgium at 1-1. The tie lasted less than two minutes before Belgium scored again.

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“It stinks,” said U.S. midfielder Tyler Adams. “Tonight was not a good performance overall. It’s not what we look to achieve. There [were] a lot of things that we could have done better.”

The U.S. had entered Monday’s game under a cloud of controversy around their striker Folarin Balogun, who was shown a red card in last week’s Round of 32 match against Bosnia-Herzegovina. An automatic one-game suspension was set to sideline Balogun, the Americans’ leading scorer at the World Cup, for Monday’s game.

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