Good morning. It’s Friday, August 15.

1. TRUMP MEETS PUTIN

2. DC Sues Trump Over Police Takeover

3. DC Crime Data Allegedly Manipulated

4. Judge Blocks Trump’s DEI Crackdown in Schools

5. ICE HQ Evacuated After White Powder Letters Found

6. UK Petition for Snap Election Tops 750,000 Signatures

1. TRUMP MEETS PUTIN

President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, on Friday to begin a high stakes summit that Trump has said must show clear progress toward ending the war in Ukraine.

Trump applauded as Putin walked toward him down a red carpet laid out for his arrival. After sharing a warm handshake, both climbed into the presidential limousine — nicknamed “the Beast” — and drove together to the meeting location.

No interpreters appeared to be present, so they likely conversed in English during the short journey.

2. DC Sues Trump Over Police Takeover

Less than 12 hours after the Trump administration seemingly replaced Washington, D.C.’s, police chief with a federal officer, the District is headed to federal court to block the move.

D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb filed a lawsuit against the federal government Friday, claiming President Donald Trump has far exceeded the authority granted him in D.C.’s Home Rule Act, the Administrative Procedure Act and the U.S. Constitution.

Schwalb is seeking a temporary restraining order and to block U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi’s Thursday night order naming the head of the Drug Enforcement Administration as D.C.’s “emergency police commissioner” with all the powers of the police chief.

3. DC Crime Data Allegedly Manipulated

A formerly DC-based journalist revealed Thursday that she was “violently attacked and sexually assaulted” in the nation’s capital – and that the city’s police department refused to include the incident in their crime stats.

Anna Giaritelli, a homeland security reporter with the Washington Examiner, detailed the heinous, broad-daylight assault against her, as well as the response from the Metropolitan Police Department and the court system, in a dramatic op-ed – which comes days after President Trump announced a sweeping crime crackdown in Washington, DC.

“On a Saturday morning in 2020, I walked out of my apartment on Capitol Hill to mail a package at a post office several blocks from the US Capitol. I put on my black sweatshirt and black sweatpants then headed out the door. I never made it to the post office,” Giaritelli wrote.

4. Judge Blocks Trump’s DEI Crackdown in Schools

A federal judge struck down two actions from the Trump administration on Thursday that are aimed at eliminating diversity, equity, and inclusion policies in schools and universities across the nation.

Obama-appointed Judge Stephanie Gallagher argued that the Department of Education (DOE) violated the law when the agency threatened to cut funding from schools and universities if they did not put a stop to discriminatory DEI initiatives. The ruling came down on Thursday, with the American Federation of Teachers and the American Sociological Association bringing a lawsuit in February over the Trump administration’s actions.

The case centers on two memos from the DOE that said universities have to end “race-based decision-making” in admissions, hiring, and other aspects or lose federal funding.

5. ICE HQ Evacuated After White Powder Letters Found

Federal investigators are still working to determine the contents of several envelopes containing a suspicious white powder that were delivered to 26 Federal Plaza in Lower Manhattan on Thursday.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams confirmed earlier today, August 15, that the white powder is not dangerous.

The building houses multiple federal agencies, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and has been a center for protests in recent months amid the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, with its 10th floor serving as a makeshift detention center.

6. UK Petition for Snap Election Tops 750,000 Signatures

In a striking display of public discontent, close to 750,000 people at time of writing have signed an official parliamentary petition demanding an immediate general election in the UK.

Titled “Call an immediate general election,” the petition argues that the public seeks urgent change from the current Labour government, which won power just over a year ago in July 2024.

Under UK rules, any petition surpassing 100,000 signatures triggers consideration for a parliamentary debate, a threshold this one has far exceeded—it has also prompted a government response, with a debate now pending.