July 20, 2026: All Newsclips

Lead Stories

Ken Paxton scrambles to win back the GOP’s big-dollar donors

A day after Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton defeated longtime Sen. John Cornyn for the party’s Senate nomination, his campaign called billionaire businessman Bob Rowling. Rowling, who had contributed more than $750,000 to groups supporting Cornyn, is one of the high-dollar Republican donors who could be key to Paxton’s efforts in a competitive race. But Rowling, a onetime supporter of Paxton, had been turned off by his alleged extramarital affairs and was emotional over his drubbing of Cornyn, he said. He initially declined to help. Then Rowling got a call from Sen. Ted Cruz, who asked him to meet with Paxton. Rowling said he had begun to consider whether Democratic opponent James Talarico was a concerning enough threat for him to open his wallet again.

click here for more

He ended up taking a meeting with Paxton and Cruz to hear them out. Rowling’s hesitation highlights the bind confronting a bloc of deep-pocketed Texans weighing how involved to get in the race. Many can’t stomach Paxton—a populist firebrand dogged by legal and ethical scandals and known for targeting corporate interests. But with control of the Senate in the balance and a well-funded Democrat on the other side, some are deciding they can’t afford to sit this one out. Paxton’s success hinges, in part, on winning them back. He has his work cut out for him. After Paxton’s nomination, donors at one major Republican fundraising organization asked that their money not go to him—because his office had sued so many of them, and because they feared he could misuse it, according to a person familiar with the conversations. Paxton will need all the support he can get. Texas is a notoriously expensive state for political campaigns: It has 20 media markets and 19 million registered voters spread across two time zones. Talarico, buoyed by a Democratic base desperate for its first statewide win since 1994, has been a fundraising powerhouse, reporting $27 million in the first quarter of the year and $30 million in the second.

Talarico has spirited exchange with Houston voters during U.S. Senate campaign stop

State Rep. James Talarico, the Democratic candidate for U.S. senator from Texas, was about to answer the final question of a town hall in southwest Houston on Sunday when 50-year-old Kandice Webber stood up. "Our people don't trust you for this reason," said Webber, who is Black, after the crowd quieted to listen. "And you cannot win without us. So you stay here, you answer our questions, or you suffer the consequences." Talarico turned his attention to her and attempted to cool the tension: "I appreciate you being here, and I appreciate you traveling in and I appreciate you—" "I came for my people, not for you," she said. The crowd murmured. "It's alright, it's alright, it's alright," Talarico said. "This is what this conversation is supposed to be about."

click here for more

He turned to answer more questions and push the event longer, but Webber stayed standing, visibly disappointed. She hadn't asked her question and wanted to hear Talarico address her concerns about Teach for America's effect on public education funding. Talarico formerly taught at a public San Antonio middle school through Teach for America and has characterized public education as a core driver of his political career. The moment underscored the passion and a keen sense of urgency inside a packed room at the Kingdom Builders Center, where hundreds of prospective voters turned out to listen to Talarico on Sunday afternoon. Talarico is in a tight race, if recent polls are correct, with Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton — a race in which Talarico wants to be the first Democrat elected to statewide Texas office in more than 30 years. The room greeted him with a standing ovation full of cheers after introductions from U.S. Rep. Christian Menefee, State Rep. Lauren Ashley Simmons and Houston City Council Member Martha Castex-Tatum. The crowd chanted "Take back Texas" as they hoisted campaign signs.

In search of fraud, Huffines plans to shift auditors at Texas Comptroller's Office from auditing businesses to government

Don Huffines told CBS News Texas that when he becomes the Texas Comptroller on August 1, he plans to make some changes at the office. "I'm going to be doing a lot of shifting with my team," said Huffines. "I have over 600 auditors down there, and we're going to be increasing that staff. I'm shifting a lot of my auditors over to auditing government from auditing businesses currently for revenue." When asked if he will still want to make sure that companies aren't defrauding the state, Huffines said, "Of course. Yes. It's a real delicate balance. It really is. If you owe your tax, we want to make sure you're paying that tax." Governor Greg Abbott appointed Huffines to the position after the current Acting Comptroller, Kelly Hancock, announced he would resign effective July 31st.

click here for more

Huffines became the Republican nominee for the job in November after defeating Hancock and two other candidates in the March primary. Huffines faces Democrat Sarah Eckhardt, a State Senator from Austin, in November. While campaigning, Huffines has emphasized his desire to root out fraud and waste. Huffines said, "This is a nonpartisan issue to find out where our money is actually going. How is it being spent? Is it being spent correctly?" He often says he wants to "DOGE Texas", referring to the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency, which was created by an executive order from President Trump last year and run by Elon Musk for several months. The Department shut down operations as scheduled on July 4th. Republicans praised the effort, while Democrats sharply criticized it. When asked if he believed the state of Texas has done enough to root out fraud, Huffines said, "No, I don't think the state has. There are so many government programs. Most states have said that's the federal job to review the program, to find out if the money is being spent correctly. We're seeing that across the board. That's just not the case. The federal government has not paid attention to how the money is being spent. People have been gaming the system for decades."

Trump immigration officials seek to mend frayed ties with business as arrests spike

The Department of Homeland Security under Secretary Markwayne Mullin is cultivating a relationship with business groups whose concerns about losing workers to aggressive immigration enforcement had been rebuffed by former secretary Kristi L. Noem. Earlier this month, DHS officials met at the agency’s Washington headquarters with the Essential Worker Immigration Coalition, which represents the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and major trade associations that depend on immigrant labor, according to several people with knowledge of the meeting, which has not been previously reported. It was the first such meeting to be reported since President Donald Trump reentered the White House. Business groups say they have been trying to gain a foothold at the agency since Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrests began to spike last year.

click here for more

Mullin did not attend the early July meeting — which included officials from ICE and Customs and Border Protection, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly — and the gathering did not produce an immediate change in policies. But two of the people said DHS officials said they want to meet regularly with the group to assess the impact of Trump’s mass deportation campaign and business needs. “It was cordial, it was constructive,” one of the people said. “It’s actually very welcome because the last secretary was absent, and her proxies were not very responsive.” A DHS spokesperson declined to comment on the meeting; coalition members declined to comment publicly. Immigration arrests have more than quadrupled since Trump took office, driven by a dramatic increase in traffic and neighborhood stops, workplace sweeps and other public arrests, according to the Deportation Data Project. As a result, industries including agriculture, manufacturing, construction, health care and elder care say they are reeling from shortages in jobs critical to the economy.

State Stories

House members urge Trump to ease tariffs for Houston-area copper plant

Three U.S. House members are pressing President Donald Trump to ease tariff rules for a European company that plans to build a $1 billion copper cable plant to supply Texas' data center boom. U.S. Reps. Wesley Hunt, Michael McCaul and Randy Weber, all Republicans, are asking Trump's trade counselor Peter Navarro to allow a subsidiary of the Polish firm Tele-Fonika Kable to invest what it currently spends on tariffs exporting copper cable to the United States on building the plant in Waller, outside of Houston. "Rather than simply sending those funds to the Treasury, this approach would ensure that tariff revenue is reinvested directly into new American manufacturing capacity," they wrote in a letter in May. "This type of investment is exactly the outcome your trade policies are intended to encourage: global manufacturers choosing to build factories in the United States, hire American workers, and strengthen domestic supply chains for critical industrial materials."

click here for more

The White House did not respond to a request for comment Thursday. Representatives of Tele-Fonika have been meeting with the Trump administration to try and get approval on the tariff relief proposal but so far have not gotten an answer, said Johnston Dietz, operations manager at JDR Cable Systems, a subsidiary of the Polish company. He said the company had begun working on building the Texas plant in 2022, before Trump instituted his tariffs on foreign imports last year. "The addition of these tariffs threatened the financial validity of the investment. It makes it difficult to secure the financing," he said. "We're not looking for something to last years on end, just support through the end of the financial investment." Copper cables have come under high demand amid the data center boom and the push to build out the electricity grid that powers them. Other traditional industries like oil and gas drillers in Texas also depend on the cables. The Waller plant would eventually employ 700 people, with plans to begin operations in three years, Dietz said.

Climate scientists have predicted greater flooding in Texas for decades. It's happening now

One of the shocking things about the storms that hit Texas this week is that rainfall of similar devastating strength struck almost exactly a year ago in many of the same places. That tragic repetition may be less of a surprise to those who follow climate science. While it is tricky to attribute specific rain events to climate change, experts say they know enough about how the warming atmosphere and warming oceans affect precipitation to recognize trends. “We’re not saying that our warming climate caused these floods this year, last year” Shel Winkley, chief meteorologist at Climate Central, told Texas Public Radio’s The Source. "But we understand how it’s making it more likely, more frequent.” A warming atmosphere, for example, increases extreme rainfall risk because warm air holds more moisture that can lead to about 4% more rainfall for every one degree warmer the air becomes, Winkley said.

click here for more

In a 2024 report, the Office of the State Climatologist of Texas noted that Texas had already seen up to a 15% increase in extreme rainstorms this century from the latter part of last century. That report predicted a 20% increase in the frequency of those storms by 2036 that would more than double the previous odds of extreme rainfall happening. The same report found that increased rainfall will contribute to a 10% to 15% increase in flooding in urban areas, potentially doubling the risk of floods from last century. Ocean temperatures, made warmer through heat-trapping pollution, also contribute to stronger storms. “Right now the Gulf of Mexico, even by July standards, is above average,” Winkley said. “A warmer ocean can allow for more evaporation, more rain making moisture.“

'Important for us to stay united' | Hundreds take to Houston streets, demanding justice for Lorenzo Salgado

Twelve days after Lorenzo Salgado was fatally shot by ICE agents during an operation in Houston, hundreds of people gathered Sunday to demand justice and call for changes to immigration enforcement. The protest began at Chew Park in Houston's Fourth Ward before demonstrators marched toward the nearby U.S. Highway 59 bridge. The gathering came one day after Salgado's funeral and was organized by a coalition of about 30 groups, according to organizers. "This is the power of the people, and we will continue to manifest and push for these things to change," organizer Stephy Padilla with Immigrating Youth Texas said. Participants held signs and chanted as they marched, calling for accountability following the fatal ICE-involved shooting earlier this month.

click here for more

"This is wrong as the day is long and won't be tolerated in Texas and won't be tolerated in Houston," protester Samuel said. Another attendee, Walter Mallett, questioned why incidents like Salgado's continue to happen. "How and why does something like this continue to happen to working-class people?" Mallett said. Federal officials have said Salgado was not the intended target of the operation. Before the march began, Salgado's two sons addressed the crowd. "We want to continue to pressure the government to allow for a full, transparent, independent investigation," Ronaldo Salgado said. His brother, Lorenzo Salgado Jr., urged supporters to remain united. "It's really important for us to stay united, to stay positive and keep fighting for justice," he said. Because of the excessive heat, organizers shortened the planned march route after several participants began feeling the effects of the high temperatures. They said, however, that the change did not alter the purpose of the demonstration.

Coppell-based Csquare valued at $3.2 billion after lukewarm stock market debut

The rising AI tide can only lift a boat so high. Csquare, a Coppell-based provider of data center services, made its stock market debut Thursday, pricing its initial public offering below the target range it had filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. It offered 50 million shares of common stock at $21, bringing its total market capitalization to $3.2 billion. Shares of Csquare were trading for $20.35 when the market opened Friday. It ended the day at $20.40. In its Form S-1, initially filed confidentially, Csquare said it expected to sell its stock between $23 to $27 per share, but certain disclosures in the registration statement may have left investors reticent to buy the data center firm at quite that premium.

click here for more

Proceeds of the IPO, tabbed at around $1.05 billion, were expected to go nearly entirely to paying down debt, according to the filing, and the company had reported significant losses, albeit on growing revenue, in 2025 and the first quarter of 2026. Csquare, which recently rebranded from Centersquare, operates 80 data centers across the U.S., Canada and London, specializing in colocation, in which businesses purchase data center space and the support services to house their own servers. The company was created by Brookfield Asset Management in 2024 after it acquired Cyxtera out of bankruptcy in 2023 for $775 million. Brookfield, which has more than $1 trillion in assets under management, then combined Cyxtera assets with its other data center outfit, Evoque, positioning the resultant company to capitalize on the AI and related infrastructure boom. Brookfield still owns a majority of Csquare’s voting power. Csquare made $987 million in 2025, improving on its revenue in 2024 by around $80 million. In the first quarter of this year, it improved revenue to $270 million, nearly 16% growth versus the same period last year. However, the company reported a nearly $120 million loss of income in 2025, and further losses of $66 million in the first quarter of this year, as interest expenses continue to grow.

In Balcones Heights, a mayor takes his own city to court

In Balcones Heights, it’s Mayor Johnny Rodriguez Jr. against the city government he was elected to lead. Rodriguez portrays himself as a good-government reformer and an underdog. But many others inside city hall see him as an intolerant blusterer and an out-of-control micromanager. In March, the City Council hired a law firm to investigate a slew of workplace complaints against Rodriguez, which accused him of bullying, threatening and demeaning city employees. They also voted 3-1 to bar Rodriguez from parts of Balcones Height’s administrative offices and restricted his contact with city employees while the investigation played out.

click here for more

The Austin-based law firm released a report in June that detailed some of the mayor’s heated interactions with city employees since he was elected in 2024. Rodriguez allegedly used the N-word “numerous times” during a meeting with city staffers, said he was disgusted by the “lifestyle” of an employee he believed was LGBTQ+ and called city workers “rats” in a voicemail, according to the 35-page report. More broadly, the report portrays Rodriguez as creating a culture of fear inside city government. He allegedly publicly berated employees and threatened to fire those who spoke out against him — even though under Balcones Heights' system of government the mayor can’t dismiss municipal workers or department heads. “The Mayor has created a culture that it is his way, or you will not be here anymore, making everyone fear for their position,” the report states. But the turmoil, which has been building for months, didn’t derail Rodriguez’s bid for reelection. No one ran against him in the May city election, and he returned to office with 54 votes.

Hood County judge dismisses lawsuit seeking automatic approval of proposed data centers

A Hood County district judge dismissed a lawsuit brought by developers seeking approval of two proposed data center projects, handing county officials a legal victory in an ongoing dispute over local oversight of large-scale industrial developments. District Judge Bryan Bufkin granted Hood County's Plea to the Jurisdiction Tuesday, dismissing claims brought by National CRE Holdings LLC and Greenland Capital LLC with prejudice and preventing the lawsuit from being brought again in the same form. In the lawsuit, developers argued two proposed data center campuses known as Project Red and Project Yellow should receive automatic approval because county officials did not act within a statutory 30-day deadline to approve development plans under the state's local government code.

click here for more

The court rejected that argument after defendants argued the projects did not fall under the definition of "development plans," defined in statute as "a preliminary plat, preliminary subdivision plan, subdivision construction plan, site plan, general plan, land development application, or site development plan." In other words, they argued, the court could not rule in the companies' favor based on another definition of that term. The companies have indicated they will appeal the ruling in court filings. Laura Crawford — co-founder of Protect the Paluxy Valley, a local advocacy group that has opposed the proposed developments — said the decision is a significant victory because it prevents developers from using a state law's 30-day approval deadline to bypass county oversight. "I think it's a big win for us," Crawford said. "The projects are saying that they fall under the rule of law and the 30-day shot clock and they would be automatically approved if that were the case. The court sided with Hood County.”

Texas Ag Commissioner Sid Miller speaks at Lubbock data center protest

A Lubbock community group held a protest Saturday evening at Clapp Park as part of a national day of action against data centers, gathering signatures for a petition seeking an 18-month moratorium on data center development in the city. The “Citizens of Lubbock Against Data Centers” organized the event, which included free food and community outreach. The group said it was protesting in what it called “the Lubbock way.” The event comes as the Lubbock City Council has said it wants to explore the possibility of bringing a data center to the city. Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller attended the protest and is leading an effort to regulate data center expansion across the state. Miller said data centers could threaten agricultural land, water supply, and the power grid.

click here for more

He is calling for a special 30-day legislative session to address the issue, citing a lack of existing regulations. “We could deal with them, have the legislation up in the books in six weeks, and we could all get around this,” Miller said. “But so far, I haven’t heard back from the governor. Of course, I never hear back from him. Never got a meeting with him in twelve years, so I’m not surprised that he doesn’t answer back. So that’s why we’re here. We’re trying to raise awareness and highlight the issue... that we’re not saying that we’re all against data centers, but we need to know that they’re not gonna drive up our electric rates and use all our water and take away our good farmland.” State Rep. Vikki Goodwin, a Democrat running for lieutenant governor who represents an Austin district, also attended the protest. She said the impact of data centers on state resources remains unclear and called for a special session as well.

About 40% of Fort Worth ISD campuses will have a new principal this school year

With just weeks until the start of the 2026-27 school year, Fort Worth ISD is naming new principals at dozens of its campuses as expansive leadership shakeups continue across the district following the Texas Education Agency’s takeover. After another flurry of hires in recent days, the district has now filled 48 principal positions this summer through new hires and internal placements. Twenty-three of those were filled through internal promotions of former assistant principals or other staff, while the other 25 were external hires. Three principal positions still remain vacant as of Friday, July 17, according to data from the district provided to the Star-Telegram. Principals who left the district following the takeover have done so for a number of different reasons.

click here for more

Some left on their own accord because of changes made following state intervention. Others were not retained by new district leadership that is looking to jumpstart progress at struggling campuses. The district also moved dozens of principals to new campuses following the creation of the Elevate Network, a group of schools handpicked by Superintendent Peter Licata and his team because of persistent underwhelming academic performance. Of the 19 campuses included in the network, 12 will have a new principal this upcoming school year. Five of those 12 are new to the district, a spokesperson told the Star-Telegram. Schools who most recently had principal changes this summer include: Carter Park Elementary, Sunrise McMillan Elementary, JP Elder Middle, Jacquet Middle, Stripling Middle, Daggett Middle, McLean Middle, Clifford Davis Elementary, Burton Hill Elementary, M.H. Moore Elementary, Wedgwood Middle, Western Hills High, Arlington Heights High, McLean 6th, North Hi Mount Elementary, Paschal High, Marine Creek, RJ Wilson Elementary, Southwest High, Carter-Riverside High, and dozens more.

US military identifies 2 soldiers killed in Iranian attack on Jordan as from Texas and Hawaii

The Trump administration on Monday identified two soldiers killed in action last week as part of the U.S. war with Iran. The Defense Department said in a statement that 1st Lt. Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, and Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas, were killed in Jordan, where they were supporting a U.S. mission against the Islamic State. It’s unclear how they were killed. On Saturday, the U.S. Central Command had two service members were killed in Jordan while defending against Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks. The U.S. military has said the total number of deaths in the war with Iran is 17.

click here for more

Alamo Drafthouse founder to bring new theater experience to Austin

The co-founder of Alamo Drafthouse, Tim League, is back at reinventing the cinematic experience and plans to open his new concept in Austin next year. Metro Private Cinema will be a private screening experience accompanied by a refined menu. The company is raising $4 million to $5 million in a convertible note structure and has already reached the halfway mark in that effort. The raise will close in six weeks, League said. Metro will open in April 2027 at the The Baker School in the Hyde Park Historic District, a property owned by League and his wife, Karrie. Metro was co-founded by League and Mikey Trafton, the former chief technology officer at Alamo Drafthouse and an early leader at Capital Factory.

click here for more

Trafton died in 2025 before the first Metro location opened. HomeAway co-founder Brian Sharples is an investor. League said Metro was Sharples' original idea and the two workshopped the concept together. Alamo Drafthouse is also an investor in Metro, though League declined to disclose the investment amount. As League’s tastes have changed over time, so has his business vision. “I've always wanted to build things that I want to do, I want to go, I want to patronize,” League said. “I love this experience and it really kind of crystallized during Covid where we were just yearning to hang out with our friends. And honestly, the movie’s great but the time seated across the table for a family-style, really nice dinner in a quiet dining room is almost always my favorite part. And I’m a movie nerd.” The movie theater first opened about six months ago in the Chelsea area of Manhattan and that’s been going well, League said. Though Manhattan was its first location, the business is headquartered in Austin.

Why Saronic picked Texas' southernmost county for $3.2B Port Alpha project

Over the last 12 months, executives from Austin-based Saronic Technologies Inc. scoured practically every state with water access — more than a dozen sites on the East, West and Gulf coasts — for their $3.2 billion Port Alpha manufacturing facility, according to CEO Dino Mavrookas. Their checklist included four items: massive land availability, deep water access, workforce availability and partnerships with local and state government. They ultimately picked the Port of Brownsville – reportedly over a site in Northern California and a few other unidentified locales – after "those last two (factors) ... tipped the scale for us," Mavrookas said. "Those first two are pretty binary," he said during a July 16 press event alongside Texas Gov. Greg Abbott at the company's Southeast Austin headquarters at 1231 Dalton Lane. He called Abbott and his team "instrumental" as Saronic aims to break ground this year and be up and running in 18 months – a speedy endeavor for a project of this size and scope.

click here for more

"I can't tell you another state where that's even possible," Mavrookas said. After months of speculation, Saronic and state leaders cemented Texas as the choice for Port Alpha, which the company has called its "next-generation shipyard." The economic impact was pegged at $160 billion for the Brownsville region and $264.5 billion for Texas over the next decade – one of the state's largest-ever economic development projects. Specifically, Saronic plans to build out a four-phased factory in Cameron County – the state's southernmost county and also home to Elon Musk's SpaceX and roughly 435,000 people. The first phase, targeted to become operational in 2028, will be located on 835 acres, with the option to expand to more than 4,000 acres in the following phases. It's slated to create 10,000 jobs over the next decade, with an average salary of $75,000. Abbott highlighted the $750 million annually in salary headed to that part of the state. He also highlighted the state's efforts to become a leader in the shipbuilding space. Earlier this year, Davie Defense Inc. announced it was undergoing a $730 million expansion and creating more than 2,400 jobs at a site in Galveston.

National Stories

US gas prices hit an average of $4 a gallon again

U.S. gas prices jumped to an average of $4 a gallon again Monday as the U.S. and Iran launched more attacks. According to motor club federation AAA, the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline is now back to $4. The average price a year ago was $3.14 a gallon. The price is a national average, meaning drivers in some states have been paying well over $4 a gallon for a while now, while others pay less. Prices vary between states due to factors ranging from nearby supply to differing tax rates.

click here for more

People around the world are also dealing with high gas prices as a result of the war. Gas prices first went over $4 a gallon on average at the end of March. They dipped below that in mid-June and continued to fall as crude oil prices eased when the U.S. and Iran reached an interim deal. Even then, President Donald Trump expressed frustration that gas prices weren’t falling as quickly as oil prices. Affordability is likely to be a key issue for voters in the U.S. midterm elections, and higher gas and oil prices can help push up prices for groceries and other goods. Oil prices have climbed again in recent days as the U.S. and Iran move closer to resuming an all-out war. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 3.2% to $90.95 per barrel Monday and benchmark U.S. crude climbed 2.8% to $84.04 per barrel.

The Pentagon is finally buying (some) weapons from startups

Since taking the top job at the Pentagon, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has rewritten rules and upended traditions that had for decades steered how the U.S. military buys weapons. More than a year into his tenure, he is keeping his promise to shower money on high-tech defense startups—while also unloading ever-larger sums of cash on the traditional vendors he has publicly disparaged as slow and bloated. Venture capitalists and startup founders have been salivating at what they hope is a true defense reformation that hands power—and billions of dollars—to defense-tech startups that have been excluded from the inner circle of weapons procurement. Investor exuberance in the sector has sent valuations soaring. Anduril, one of the fastest-growing defense startups, doubled its valuation from $30.5 billion a year ago to $61 billion in May. But many are anxious that Congress is preparing to slow the fire hose to a relative trickle amid growing scrutiny of Hegseth’s spending and disapproval of the Iran war, a move that could puncture the bubble around defense tech.

click here for more

Pentagon contract spending on the 15 highest-valued defense-tech startups in the last fiscal year tripled from 2022. Yet they accounted for less than 1% of total dollars for all defense contractors, a rate that has held consistent for years, according to a data analysis from the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute’s National Security Innovation Base Report Card. For many startups, even the scraps from the department’s trillion-dollar budget would spell success. “We’ve got a shot to disrupt this thing,” said Philong Duong, chief executive officer of startup NODA AI, which has a military contract selling software for autonomous weapons. Roughly 10,000 new defense companies have entered the market in the past two years, according to an analysis by the Center for Strategic and International Studies. So-called nontraditional companies, which include venture-backed startups and also small businesses and commercial tech companies, received over $122 billion in the prior fiscal year, double the amount from a decade prior. But during that same period, the Pentagon also doubled its spending on traditional primes, as the top-tier mega defense contractors are known, to $372 billion, the CSIS analysis shows.

Maine’s Troy Jackson is on a path to become Senate nominee

Former Maine Senate President Troy Jackson may have effectively clinched the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate in Maine. Jackson, who is seeking to replace scandal-plagued Graham Platner on the Democratic ticket after Platner dropped out, has the backing of more than half of the delegates who will attend next weekend’s nominating convention, according to an analysis by the Bangor Daily News. His position strengthened Sunday as four rivals — former state Center for Disease Control and Prevention Director Nirav Shah, Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, former Capitol Hill staffer Jordan Wood and Maine Beer Company co-founder Dan Kleban — withdrew from the contest.

click here for more

On Saturday, 500 delegates and 101 members of the state’s central committee are scheduled to meet in Bangor, Maine. Those 500 delegates were being chosen this weekend. The Bangor Daily News reported that York County, which borders New Hampshire, put Jackson over the top, bringing his total of pledged delegates over 301. “Thank you, York County. We’re organized, we’re ready, and we’re going to win. Solidarity forever,” Jackson wrote on X. The delegates are formally unbound, meaning they are not legally required to vote for a specific candidate even if they promised to during the delegate selection process. Shah said he would withdraw from the race to put the party’s energy into defeating Republican Sen. Susan Collins in November. “Today I am stepping aside, and I am doing it for exactly the same reason that led me to get in: we must defeat Susan Collins, and the Democratic Party must be unified to do it,” Shah wrote in a statement posted to X. Shah, Wood and Kleban immediately backed Jackson when they announced their decisions to drop out. The race to become the Democratic nominee for Senate reopened earlier this month after Platner withdrew amid sexual assault allegations, which he has denied.

Trump loomed over the World Cup, up until the awkward trophy ceremony

President Donald Trump’s World Cup ended with something he likely loved: being showered in gold. Trump appeared to shake off FIFA President Gianni Infantino as he lingered onstage after presenting Spain their second World Cup trophy ever. Trump stood next to the team as they lifted the trophy and cannons of gold confetti shot in the air. Infantino ushered Trump further from the team as they celebrated, putting the FIFA head and the president directly in the path of the flittering confetti. Trump was loudly booed as he entered the field after the match, waving to people as he made his way to the stage. He received a more mixed response when he was briefly shown on the big screen in the stadium after the national anthem. The reflective glass of his box made it difficult to see the president on screen.

click here for more

Trump had long viewed the tournament as one of the signature events of his term: a chance to showcase his version of the United States to the world, in the middle of a summer that also included America’s 250th anniversary celebrations. Throughout the game, Fox aired commercials promoting the upcoming Freedom 250 Grand Prix, an auto race around national monuments that the White House is promoting. The hosting of the World Cup was awarded to the U.S., Canada and Mexico during Trump’s first term. It arrived eight years later as the largest version of the tournament ever staged — a 48-team, 104-match spectacle stretching nearly six weeks and carrying a global audience measured in the billions. “It turns out we are a soccer country,” Trump said in an interview ahead of the game with Fox. “We’re a football country, we don’t want to get it confused. But I don’t think there’s anything like what’s happened with the World Cup.” Trump appeared to enjoy interacting with the players as he presented them each with medals. He patted them and spoke with them, with the players often reciprocating.

Spain beats Argentina 1-0 to win World Cup on Ferran Torres' goal

This is how good Spain was at the World Cup: Not even Lionel Messi had any answers. And when it was over, Spain walked off with the trophy. Messi simply walked off in tears. Spain is back atop the soccer world for a second time, after Ferran Torres’ first goal of this year’s World Cup — unquestionably the goal of his life — gave his country a 1-0 win over now-dethroned champion Argentina in the final on Sunday. “It was a goal scored by 47 million people,” Torres said, referring to Spain’s population. Maybe not by them — but certainly for them. The goal came with Argentina down to 10 men after Enzo Fernandez was sent off late in regulation following a reckless tackle. Tempers flared then, and flared again after the final whistle with Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni and players from both sides engaging in what appeared to be some pushing and shoving.

click here for more

In the end, Spain denied Messi a second straight title in what he has indicated was his final World Cup match. Torres, a second-half substitute, pounced on a bouncing ball in the box and used his left foot to bury a shot just under the crossbar in the 106th minute. From there, the airtight defense that dominated opponents throughout the tournament came through one final time. Spain — which also won the title in 2010 — allowed only one goal in eight matches in this World Cup run, setting a record for fewest goals allowed by a champion. “I feel pride, to be honest,” said Spain coach Luis de la Fuente, who at 65 is now the oldest man to lead a team to a World Cup title. “Accompanying them on this journey is an honor.” This title, combined with the Women’s World Cup won by Spain in 2023, makes the European nation the first to hold both the men’s and women’s titles simultaneously. And in the streets of Madrid — probably many other places in Spain as well — countless people spilled into the streets, celebrating Sunday’s victory long into the wee hours of Monday morning.

‘A better way to be relevant’: Greens embrace data center fight

The nation’s biggest green groups have joined the fray over data centers — and they’re starting to notch some victories after 18 months of stinging environmental setbacks under the Trump administration. Groups including the Sierra Club, the Natural Resources Defense Council, Earthjustice, and Food and Water Watch are ramping up national campaigns, activating volunteers in states and providing support for local fights against the massive artificial intelligence facilities that are spreading across the country. The nation’s biggest green groups have joined the fray over data centers — and they’re starting to notch some victories after 18 months of stinging environmental setbacks under the Trump administration. Groups including the Sierra Club, the Natural Resources Defense Council, Earthjustice, and Food and Water Watch are ramping up national campaigns, activating volunteers in states and providing support for local fights against the massive artificial intelligence facilities that are spreading across the country. Their strategy is aimed at engaging with voters where they are most focused, and it could help generate new enthusiasm — as well as a stream of fresh funding — from progressive backers who have been far less aggressive in fighting for environmental causes than they were during the first Trump administration.

click here for more

“There is not a better way to be relevant that is as prevalent as data centers,” said Jane Kleeb, founder and director of BOLD Alliance, which got its start organizing rural landowners against the Keystone XL oil pipeline. “After doing this work for 20 years, it is easier to mobilize communities to block something than it is to build something.” Since President Donald Trump returned to office, the environmental movement has suffered a series of losses: a weakening of air and water pollution laws for factories and vehicles, eradication of climate change rules, and a sharp turn away from clean energy sources and toward fossil fuels. Now, opposition to the data center construction boom is offering a new opportunity — and green groups lodged a big win on Tuesday when Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul froze most new large-scale data center construction in the state, yielding to calls to pause projects until the state can establish standards around their development. That will enable the environmental groups to weigh in on new energy sources in the state and potentially head off the expansion of fossil fuel power sources that would increase climate change-causing carbon emissions and other pollution.

JD and Usha Vance welcome a baby boy, the first child born to a sitting VP in more than 150 years

Vice President JD Vance and his wife, second lady Usha Vance, on Sunday announced the birth of their fourth child, the first born to a sitting vice president in more than 150 years. Born Sunday, Alec Neel Vance joins older siblings Ewan, 9; Vivek, 6; and Mirabel, 4. Vance announced the birth on social media with a statement signed by him and his wife. “We are excited to announce that our baby boy, Alec Neel Vance, was born this morning. Usha and the baby are happy and healthy, and our kids are overjoyed to meet their little brother,” the statement said. They thanked doctors and staff at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center and with the White House medical team.

click here for more

The Republican vice president’s growing family is in keeping with his passionate advocacy for Americans to have more children. He has also suggested that the 2025 killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who was his friend, factored into the decision to have another child. Vance, a former U.S. Marine, repeatedly expressed alarm about declining birth rates in America as he launched his political career in 2021 with a bid for a U.S. Senate seat from Ohio. As vice president, he said in Washington at the 2025 March for Life anti-abortion rally, “I want more babies in the United States of America.” The vice president, who’s 41, has been accompanied on overseas trips by Usha Vance, 40, and their children, with the kids often pajama-clad as they board Air Force Two for the overnight flights. Usha Vance, the daughter of immigrants from India, had already been the subject of some public fascination because of her husband. Her pregnancy, which was announced in January, amplified that spotlight since it is rare for occupants of the United States’ highest public offices to add to their families while serving. The last time a sitting vice president became a new father was in the 1800s.

Copyright July 20, 2026, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved