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Montgomery County Schools Cut Staff as Enrollment Drops

Nathan Brinkman — Fri, 21 Aug 2026 12:01:50 +0000

By Sean Salai (The Washington Times)

Montgomery County Public Schools is cutting support staff and preparing for fewer students when the academic year begins Tuesday, despite having the biggest budget in the district’s history.

Officials for Maryland’s largest public school system told reporters on Thursday that rising living costs necessitated the $3.72 billion fiscal 2027 budget — a $143 million (3.6%) increase over last year but $36 million short of what they wanted.

“The pace of costs going up has outpaced the budget going up,” Superintendent Thomas Taylor said in response to a question from The Washington Times.

The increased budget cuts 415 full-time psychologists, counselors, tutors, English-language assistants and other support staff who primarily serve the system’s Spanish-speaking students.

MCPS officials did not provide data on the current number of workers. The school system had 23,986 employees in the 2024-25 academic year, according to the most recent data analyzed by Georgetown University’s Edunomics Lab.

Meanwhile, officials anticipate fewer students, as a pandemic-era trend of lower enrollment continues. A total of 156,050 students enrolled during the 2025-26 academic year, down more than 10,000 students from a historic peak of 165,267 students during the 2019-20 term.

Fall classes will resume Tuesday with about 12,000 enrolled high school seniors, roughly 10,000 per class in the middle school grades and 9,000 in kindergarten. International enrollment is 1,000 students this year, down from 1,544 at the end of last year and down from nearly 3,000 at the end of 2024.

Trump administration crackdowns on illegal immigration have added to the pandemic-era enrollment decline driven by falling birth rates, cutting into public funding based on enrollment.

Montgomery County, Maryland’s most populous jurisdiction, has the state’s largest concentration of Spanish-speaking residents.

According to the school district, Spanish-speaking students make up the majority seeking mental health services, reflecting deportation fears that have led many families with varying immigration status to self-deport under the Trump administration.

“Imagine going through that trauma,” county Board of Education President Grace Rivera-Oven said Thursday. “It’s an impact on the whole community.”

The school district says federal immigration agents have never entered its campuses, although they have stopped people on nearby corners. The school system does not have a formal sanctuary policy, but requires a judicial warrant to cooperate with the authorities.

That reflects a broader policy nationwide of public school districts declining to track students’ and families’ immigration status. In Northern Virginia, Arlington County Public Schools Superintendent Francisco Duran reiterated that stance to families in a letter sent Thursday.

“We know that recent immigration enforcement activity in our area is causing fear, uncertainty and stress for some members of our community,” Mr. Duran wrote. “Some families have been directly affected, while others may be worried about what these developments could mean for their loved ones.”

A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials do not enter public schools to make arrests.

“Those who are here legally and are not breaking other laws have nothing to fear,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement.

The statement called the fear of campus arrests a “false narrative” that has demonized ICE agents, who have experienced a 1,300% increase in assaults and an 8,000% increase in threats since President Trump returned to office. It also noted that nearly 70% of ICE arrests involve illegal aliens already charged with or convicted of a crime.

“If a dangerous or violent illegal criminal alien felon were to flee into a daycare, or a child sex offender is working as an employee, there may be a situation where an arrest is made to protect the safety of the children,” the spokesperson said.

Other Struggles

Meanwhile, MCPS officials are contending with other issues as students return to school.

The system is upgrading cameras and installing external door sensors at campuses, acting on a safety audit following two teen shootings earlier this year.

A February shooting at Thomas S. Wootton High School in Rockville left one 16-year-old boy in stable condition, while an April shooting at Blake High School in Silver Spring injured a 17-year-old.

The district is expanding cellphone restrictions during instructional time that it enacted at middle schools last year, as it moves toward implementing a state law requiring all districts to impose bell-to-bell bans by the start of the 2027-28 term.

Most Montgomery County high schools banned phones during class time last year. Beginning next week, all schools will be required to lock away student phones throughout the day, including between class periods.

MCPS officials have credited last year’s restrictions for bolstering two consecutive years of academic performance growth, following years of declining test scores. They say that starting this year will allow them to work out any kinks ahead of the statewide implementation deadline.

“We’re excited about the school year,” said Mr. Taylor, the superintendent. “It’s going to be a great year.”

This article was made available to WMAL via The Washington Times.

Organizers Finalize Freedom 250 Grand Prix Preparations

Nathan Brinkman — Fri, 21 Aug 2026 11:50:51 +0000

By Liam Griffin (The Washington Times)

Traffic on the National Mall will look a little different this weekend.

Honking horns, road-raging commuters and distracted out-of-town minivans will be replaced by 25 of the world’s best IndyCar drivers for the Freedom 250 Grand Prix.

The 147-lap race will feature cars hitting speeds of 170 mph around a scenic circuit that crisscrosses from 3rd Street in front of the U.S. Capitol to Pennsylvania Avenue, down 9th Street and 7th Street before crossing onto Independence Avenue to complete the loop.

Drivers such as Marcus Ericsson, Alex Palou and Kyle Kirkwood will be separated by as little as 2 inches as they jockey for position in front of 125,000 expected spectators.

“If we did that during the regular day, I think people would be put in jail, perhaps for the rest of their lives,” President Trump recently said of the speeds while promoting the event.

The Freedom 250 Grand Prix is the latest in a series of Washington events to mark the American semiquincentennial.

Like previous events — the UFC White House card and the Great American State Fair — this weekend’s festivities required a substantial logistical lift.

Workers from Penske Entertainment Corp., which owns the IndyCar series, have imported hundreds of walls to line the track, welded down maintenance hole covers, and constructed grandstands and pedestrian bridges to surround the circuit. More than 1,000 laborers have strung together 12-hour shifts to make the event possible.

“We’ve got upwards of 30 different agencies that we’re working with,” said Jonathan Bailey, Penske’s vice president of operations.

It’s the nature of working in the District, as Bailey and Penske President Bud Denker now understand.

Mr. Denker is part of the event’s brain trust, first coming up with the idea while sharing beers in Indianapolis with Fox Sports CEO Eric Shanks.

It took 81 meetings, an assist from the president of the United States and a venue change — Mr. Denker originally wanted the race to start closer to the Capitol but faced difficulty in obtaining bipartisan congressional approval.

Once Mr. Trump signed an executive order clearing the way for the race in January, Mr. Denker moved into high gear. His first walk around the site proved fruitful.

“By God’s will, I saw a racetrack in two hours,” Mr. Denker told The Washington Times.

Outlining a new racetrack is difficult in any city that hasn’t previously hosted an IndyCar event. Making the process even more complicated is when dozens of companies and federal agencies are involved.

In cities like Detroit or Arlington, Texas, Mr. Bailey’s teams have had three months to set up tracks and grandstands. They’d have an additional six weeks to remove the structures.

For the Freedom 250 event, the organizers completed most construction in just five weeks. Their hard work will be erased from the National Mall in three weeks.

“Everything is expedited as it relates to that,” Mr. Bailey said. “It’s a lot of hours, but it’s all worth it.”

The organizers aren’t alone in that feeling. Drivers have had a similarly tough time preparing for the first-of-its-kind race.

Most events on the IndyCar schedule are consistent from year to year. Returning drivers can rewatch footage from last year’s event to rehearse for their return to different tracks. Their teams can check turns and laps to identify areas for improvement.

Not this time.

None of the 25 drivers have raced on the National Mall before.

“It’s going to be a big challenge. Here, we don’t have that,” Ericsson, who won last week’s IndyCar race north of the border in Ontario, told The Times. “It’s a blank sheet of paper. You’ve got to be a fast learner. It’s really like you have to be strong from the get-go.”

The drivers, who experience forces of up to 5Gs during races, aren’t completely helpless. They’ve relied on simulators — like a high-tech version of a racing video game — to prepare for the trip to Washington.

The virtual reality setups let drivers rehearse the exact layout of the course, from the starting line on 3rd Street to the pit lane on Pennsylvania Avenue and the straightaway down Independence Avenue.

“I still have a feel for the corners that we’re going to have here,” Ericsson said of the seven-turn track. “Of course, reality is always a bit different from the simulation, but I have a sort of general feel on how to drive this track.”

The stakes are high for Ericsson and the other drivers. Sunday’s race is not an exhibition — it factors into the championship standings with just two weeks remaining in the season.

Beyond the competitive considerations, the setting provides a unique spotlight for the sport. June’s UFC fights at the White House became the promotion’s most-watched event ever.

IndyCar is enjoying a similar spotlight.

“It’s not only the race; it’s everything that goes around it,” Ericsson said. “There’s a lot of things going on, so I really hope that we can reach some new people — new fans — and make them fall in love with IndyCar racing.”

The event begins with practice sessions on the track at 9 a.m. Saturday. The race is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. Sunday.

This article was made available to WMAL via The Washington Times.

Woman Charged in Alleged ISIS-Inspired Plot Targeting New York Capitol

Nathan Brinkman — Fri, 21 Aug 2026 06:57:45 +0000

A 35-year-old Albany woman has been charged with allegedly planning an ISIS-inspired attack on the New York State Capitol. Reuters reported that federal authorities arrested Jessica Bowie after she took possession of what she believed was an explosive device, according to the U.S. Justice Department.

Prosecutors allege Bowie intended to use the device at the Capitol to kill public officials and damage as much of the building as possible. Reuters cited Justice Department officials who said she had visited the Capitol grounds, photographed the building and discussed plans to flee to ISIS-controlled territory in Syria after the proposed attack.

Authorities also allege that Bowie expressed anti-American views online and celebrated previous terrorist attacks. The accusations are contained in a criminal complaint and have not been proven in court. A lawyer for Bowie could not immediately be reached for comment.

Following the arrest, New York Governor Kathy Hochul said security was strengthened at the Capitol and other government locations. She added that officials were not aware of any immediate threat to the public.

White House Tech Strategy Lists Navy Submarines as Top Priority

Nathan Brinkman — Thu, 20 Aug 2026 10:53:59 +0000

By Bill Gertz (The Washington Times)

American submarines are a key focus in protecting U.S. military advantages against foreign enemies, along with new national security space systems know-how, according to a recent White House strategy report.

The National Security Science and Technology Strategy, made public this week, also states that applying artificial intelligence will remain a priority for advanced technology development.

“The United States will prioritize technological advantage in areas integral to deterring attack and prevailing in conflict against sophisticated and capable adversaries, capitalizing on existing U.S. advantages in key areas,” the report states.

Undersea battlefield dominance and underwater power projection are listed first in three target technology areas in the strategy.

“Clear technological superiority in the undersea domain, including submarine survivability and anti-submarine warfare” remains a key priority, the report said.

For space, technological superiority will be used to detect, identify and counter threats to American satellites ranging in zones from very low Earth orbit through the space between Earth and the moon, known as cislunar space.

Supporting the rapidly advancing field of AI and robot weapons technology is identified in the strategy as a third goal.

Other sectors that are the focus of the new strategy and deemed critical for American national security include building air warfare superiority through stealth technology, electronic warfare and anti-aircraft power.

Missiles also will remain a high-tech priority with a focus on long-range strike weapons and the ability of missiles to penetrate advanced defenses and “reach targets on operationally relevant timescales, and strike with precision” — likely a reference to new and soon-to-be deployed hypersonic missiles.

U.S. military command and control, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, a major American strategic military advantage, is listed in the report as another area for funding and support.

Military command control advantages will provide what the strategy calls “information dominance in all phases of conflict, and superior ability to direct, coordinate, and control forces and assets, including in the face of adversary cyber operations.”

Navy submarines, both nuclear missile and conventional attack boats, remain a vital mainstay of U.S. military power and strategic nuclear deterrence.

American submarines are regarded as the quietest in the world and thus capable of destroying Russian and Chinese submarines and warships in a future conflict without being detected.

For example, military leaders project that U.S. submarine power is a key deterrent for Chinese plans to launch an amphibious assault across the 100-mile-wide Taiwan Strait.

Elbridge Colby, undersecretary of defense for policy, said in a recent speech that the Navy’s submarine force is the most advanced in the world. He noted the use of a submarine to launch Tomahawk cruise missiles during the joint operation with the B-2 bombers and advanced stealth jets to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities.

“I mean, you look at our submarine force, it is the best in the world, and I don’t say that lightly. It is absolutely devastating, and that’s a product of technology,” Mr. Colby told a conference at the Strategic Command earlier this month.

The submarine advantage is the result of 80 years of development and “constant, constant practice and learning and refinement,” he said.

“If you go into the maritime domain, you are going to deal with our submarine force, and that is going to be very, very, very dangerous,” Mr. Colby said.

The Navy currently operates three types of submarines — strategic nuclear missile, conventional cruise missile and fast attack vessels.

Current deployments include 18 Ohio-class nuclear missile subs, 22 Los Angeles-class fast attack subs, three Seawolf attack submarines and 22 Virginia-class submarines.

To bolster the cruise missile-firing submarines as older Ohio-class SSGNs are retired, the Navy plans to deploy Tomahawk missile launchers on some Virginia-class boats.

China, the sole adversary mentioned by name in the report, is seeking “global technological dominance” through coercive industrial policies and state security tools, the report said.

The new administration’s technology strategy calls for targeted federal research and development funding and partnerships with companies and universities to assist in meeting national security goals.

Federal investment also will be made in science and technology education and training.

Report warns on China AI data commercialization

Communist China is commercializing and monetizing data sets in ways designed to boost both commercial trade and intelligence collection and military capabilities, according to a congressional China commission report.

The ruling Chinese Communist Party regards its data collection as a strategic resource and is now using data as a factor of production.

“Beijing’s ambitions extend beyond economic growth. It is marshaling data to drive productivity, power its AI and technology goals and improve its intelligence collection and military capabilities,” the report by the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission warns.

The commission report reveals the effort to create a market for its data includes a bid to set global standards for such trade in ways controlled by the CCP.

Unlike American AI companies that have largely exhausted the open internet for training AI data, China is gathering valuable “enterprise, operational and physical-world data that cannot be scraped,” the report said.

That information is valuable for training AI tools for business, autonomous vehicles and humanoid robots, and could give Beijing an advantage over the United States in developing robotics software for both military and commercial use, the report said.

“Over the last half-decade, China has been able to consolidate data, find ways to label it and refine it, and Hoover up new data and make sure it’s quickly made available to entities,” Mike Kuiken, the commission’s vice chair, told Reuters.

“It has the benefit of advancing their innovation ecosystem, and it has the benefit of enhancing the control of the (Chinese Communist) Party.”

The report said China now views data as a “factor of production” similar to land, labor, capital and technology. In 2023, Beijing set up a National Data Administration organ to direct nationwide data standardization that seeks to create a national market for data trading.

Data is one of three major components of advanced artificial intelligence, along with computing power and software and algorithm capabilities.

Most U.S. technology experts say the United States leads China in the AI race in terms of computing power and algorithm development, but China is regarded as ahead in data collection.

The commission said the U.S. government has no similar policy toward data and Congress should consider a national strategy that regards data as an economic asset.

Allowing China to set global standards in a data trade would boost Beijing’s state-controlled approach to data and give its companies an advantage.

“Congress should consider how the United States, working with allies and partners, can lead on data interoperability and transaction standards rather than ceding that ground to China,” the report said.

Chinese military spies caught in South Korea

China’s military intelligence arm is conducting aggressive spying operations against U.S. and South Korean military and commercial targets in the Republic of Korea, according to retired Defense Intelligence Agency official Nicholas Eftimiades.

Mr. Eftimiades, a specialist on Chinese intelligence, stated in an online report that the Joint Intelligence Bureau, the spying arm of the People’s Liberation Army Central Military Commission, is waging a highly coordinated espionage operation in South Korea.

In the past year, at least six cases of Chinese espionage in South Korea were uncovered, Mr. Eftimiades said.

“China is executing a whole-of-society approach using scholars, students and business persons to support intelligence collection operations against U.S. and South Korean military targets and South Korea’s strategic semiconductor industry,” he told Inside the Ring in commenting on the report.

The report details PLA intelligence recruitment tactics, logistical timelines, and specialized spy methods used by a Chinese academic-turned-operative who infiltrated South Korean defense circles before he was arrested.

The academic was identified by South Korean authorities as a university professor named “Qing” who was convicted of violating military secrets laws while working under the direction of “Ken Jake,” the code name for a PLA spy unit. The unit was named after a pseudonym used on social media to target South Korean troops.

Qing and his handlers systematically recruited South Korean troops to obtain critical military secrets, including details on the Army’s Terminal High Altitude Area Defense anti-missile system, joint U.S.-South Korean military exercise plans and information on Taiwan.

“The conspiracy utilized sophisticated digital cover identities, encrypted communications, and physical dead drops on Jeju Island before it was compromised by an undercover counterintelligence operation,” the report said.

According to the report, Qing is from Shandong Province, China, studied in Taiwan and then South Korea, where he went to work at a university that was not identified by name.

His work as a Chinese military intelligence agent involved courier work and intelligence tasks.

Qing was recruited while in Taiwan from 2018 to 2022 by a PLA operative named Liu Nannan and was tasked with collecting intelligence on an unspecified Taiwanese female politician, the report said.

The PLA spy operation then successfully compromised a South Korean conscript who provided operational plans on the annual Ulchi Freedom Shield military drills, and a South Korean navy sailor who provided the PLA with GPS coordinates of a warship.

The report said PLA spies used aliases to gain access to military-themed social media groups and open chat rooms disguised as military researchers from Singapore.

The conspirators used technical gear in capturing classified documents with hidden camera wrist watches to record documents. Mobile phones were used to send the documents to the PLA, and dead drops — clandestine exchange points in public toilets — were part of the operations.

The report was published by Shinobi, a security firm that works exclusively on countering China’s espionage, covert influence and theft of technology and trade secrets.

The publication of the PLA spying operation report comes as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is set to visit South Korea this week, where he is scheduled to meet Foreign Minister Cho Hyun in Seoul and later President Lee Jae-myung, whose Democratic Party of Korea has shifted its policies sharply in favor of China.

This news and analysis was made available to WMAL via The Washington Times.

Trump Nominates Heidi Overton to Lead FDA

Nathan Brinkman — Thu, 20 Aug 2026 10:48:16 +0000

By Mary McCue Bell (The Washington Times)

A White House aide, Dr. Heidi Overton, has been tapped to lead the Food and Drug Administration, President Trump announced Wednesday.

Dr. Overton, the president’s deputy director of domestic policy, first joined the Trump orbit as a White House fellow during his first term. She returned in his second term to help lead his health policy.

Mr. Trump described her as a “prestigious” White House fellow in his first administration’s Office of American Innovation and Domestic Policy Council who is “SMART and RESPECTED by all!”

“Dr. Heidi has been a ROCKSTAR in my Administration, where she has worked directly with Secretary Kennedy, Dr. Oz, and team, to deliver on the MOST TRANSFORMATIVE Health Agenda in History,” he wrote on Truth Social. “She is known to take on the HARDEST issues, and bring me solutions that work best for the Country. Heidi is ’ALWAYS RIGHT,’ [Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.] recently said in the Oval Office! We need her leadership at the FDA now to ensure that the U.S. remains the WORLD LEADER for Scientific Discovery and CURES.”

She has worked closely with the Health and Human Services Department on several high-profile initiatives, including Mr. Kennedy’s push to redesign the food pyramid and overhaul the childhood vaccine schedule, and Mr. Trump’s pricing deals with pharmaceutical companies.

Dr. Overton’s resume includes leading health policy at the conservative think tank America First Policy Institute. She earned a medical degree from the University of New Mexico and a Ph.D. in clinical investigation at Johns Hopkins University, where she also trained as a general surgery resident.

The president said she will work with Mr. Kennedy and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Mehmet Oz “to RAPIDLY deliver on my priorities of FASTER Cures, INCREASED American Innovation, MAJOR Clinical Trial Reforms, LOWER Drug Prices, and even more MAHA WINS!”

Dr. Overton has, at times, frustrated leaders of the Make America Healthy Again movement, according to STAT News, even as she’s helped drive its signature policy wins like the vaccine-schedule overhaul and food pyramid redesign.

Her confirmation may not be smooth. Outgoing Senate Health Committee Chairman Bill Cassidy of Louisiana labeled last week’s vaccine executive order “wrong,” and her participation in that event could heighten opposition.

Mr. Cassidy said that while he respects Dr. Overton’s experience as a physician, he has “strong concerns about her nomination.”

“Her lack of managerial experience does not prepare her well for leading a large organization that is already dealing with staffing and morale issues,” he said on social media. “Additionally, Dr. Overton’s active role in last week’s nonsensical vaccine executive order calls into question her commitment to standing up for sound science and protecting children’s health. That alone is almost disqualifying.”

If Dr. Overton’s nomination clears the Senate, she would be taking on an agency that was struck by a high-profile leadership departure in May.

Marty Makary resigned as FDA commissioner amid political friction over drug reviews, vaping authorization and policy direction.

Since his exit, Kyle Diamantas has served as acting commissioner.

The next commissioner would be tasked with picking up unfinished business, including major regulatory initiatives, fast-track systems and chronic disease policy proposals that are underway or stalled.

If confirmed, Dr. Overton would also be inheriting an agency surviving amid staffing cuts.

The FDA has lost over 3,000 staff members in the past year.

This article was made available to WMAL via The Washington Times.

Trump Signals Plans for Another Meeting With Kim Jong Un

Nathan Brinkman — Thu, 20 Aug 2026 08:30:43 +0000

President Donald Trump says he intends to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un later this year, raising the possibility of renewed direct diplomacy between Washington and Pyongyang.

In comments reported by NBC News, Trump said he expects to meet Kim but did not provide a specific date or location. The potential meeting would bring the two leaders together again after several high-profile encounters during Trump’s first term, including summits in Singapore and Vietnam and a meeting at the Korean Demilitarized Zone.

Any renewed talks would come with major issues still unresolved. North Korea has continued developing its nuclear weapons and missile programs, while negotiations over denuclearization have remained stalled for years.

Trump has frequently pointed to his personal relationship with Kim when discussing North Korea. So far, North Korea has not publicly confirmed plans for a new meeting.

A future summit could reopen direct communication between the two governments, although the agenda and conditions for any talks remain unclear.

Trump’s Approval Rating Falls to 33%, Lowest of Second Term

Nathan Brinkman — Wed, 19 Aug 2026 12:42:36 +0000

By Jeff Mordock (The Washington Times)

President Trump’s approval rating dropped to the lowest level of his office tenure as the war in Iran and the economy dragged his number down to 33%, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released Tuesday.

The poll found that 64% disapproved of Mr. Trump’s performance in the White House. The 33% approval represents a decrease of 2 percentage points from just two weeks ago when that rating hovered around 35%.

The rating is lower than at any point in his current term and is tied for the lowest of his first term, when he hit the number in December 2017.

Respondents said their view was shaped by Mr. Trump’s handling of the war in Iran, a conflict that has boosted the cost of and slowed a fifth of the global oil trade. Mr. Trump said when the war started in February that it would be resolved in a few weeks, but Iran has proved resilient.

The poll found 80% of Americans, including 87% of Democrats and 71% of Democrats, predicted the Iran conflict would extend for a long time. Only 16% said the conflict would end in a few weeks.

Voters also preferred Democrats over Republicans when it comes to the economy, the first time Democrats topped the GOP in the poll in about a decade. The survey showed that 38% of voters think Democrats will handle the economy better versus 35% who said Republicans are better suited for the job.

Mr. Trump’s immigration agenda still remains popular with voters. Some 40% of respondents said Republicans have a better approach on immigration compared with 38% who said Democrats.

However, the poll revealed that Republicans are losing ground on an issue they once dominated.

In January 2025, Republicans held a 26% lead on immigration, according to an earlier Reuters poll.

The Reuters/Ispos poll was conducted online with 1,166 respondents and a margin of error of 3 percentage points.

This article was made available to WMAL via The Washington Times.

Fauci’s Former Chief of Staff Pleads Guilty to Hiding Records

Nathan Brinkman — Wed, 19 Aug 2026 11:31:03 +0000

By Stephen Dinan (The Washington Times)

Dr. David Morens, who spent years as chief of staff to Dr. Anthony Fauci, pleaded guilty Tuesday to trying to hide critical documents about the origin of the coronavirus pandemic and his attempts to restore funding to a firm that was siphoning U.S. cash to a Chinese virus lab.

That company, EcoHealth Alliance, was paying for what U.S. investigators say was risky bat coronavirus research in Wuhan, using money from the National Institutes of Health’s infectious diseases division, where Dr. Fauci and Morens worked.

Morens admitted in court to conspiring with EcoHealth researcher Peter Daszak to hide their communications about efforts to restore funding for EcoHealth after President Trump cut it off early in the COVID-19 pandemic.

He “concealed” and “destroyed” some of the records to keep them from being made public under open-records laws, according to his plea.

“I need to keep this off of govt email and govt phone text,” Morens said in one message as he and Dr. Daszak were working on a draft of an article to defend EcoHealth Alliance.

Morens also admitted to taking gratuities from Dr. Daszak, including bottles of wine, in exchange for defending EcoHealth.

Morens faces a maximum of five years in prison for one count of conspiracy to defraud the U.S.

His plea comes as attention focuses on Dr. Fauci, who refused to testify to the Senate late last month.

He invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

The Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee has voted to hold him in contempt of Congress. That matter now awaits action in the full Senate.

Dr. Fauci has received a full pardon from President Biden for any federal crimes he may have committed for activities during the pandemic.

In past testimony to Congress he distanced himself from Morens’ behavior, saying his aide’s actions in shielding and deleting documents were against agency policy and “wrong.”

The guilty plea didn’t identify EcoHealth or Dr. Daszak by name, but it did specify the NIH grant, making clear that’s who it identified as “Company #1” and “Co-Conspirator 1.”

The plea also refers to “Co-Conspirator 2,” who, based on the communications described, is Gerald Keusch, who was at Boston University at the time.

EcoHealth has been barred from federal funding and the government has also now placed restrictions on foreign labs conducting risky research.

Congressional Republicans had pushed for prosecution of Morens.

In 2024, the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic released an email from Morens talking about communicating with Dr. Fauci using Dr. Fauci’s “private Gmail.”

“He is too smart to let colleagues send him stuff that could cause trouble,” Morens said.

Morens, 78, in a 2021 message, said he learned “tricks” to avoid open-records laws from Margaret Moore, who was head of NIH’s Freedom of Information Act office. Morens said Ms. Moore “hates FOIAs.” FOIA is commonly used as a shorthand for a request for information under the law.

In a 2020 message, Morens asked Dr. Daszak, in a message also sent to Dr. Keusch, if Morens was getting a “kickback” after EcoHealth got a new grant from NIH.

EcoHealth used taxpayer money to fund research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology.

It has denied that the money went to gain-of-function research — the name given to attempts to artificially enhance viruses to test how they might evolve.

One of the theories on the origin of the pandemic is that the virus leaked from the lab.

Morens was at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases for nearly three decades, ending last year.

He was indicted in April. He is scheduled to be sentenced in November.

Prosecutions under open-records laws are rare, but it’s also rare to have so many statements of intent to foil FOIA.

In the plea, Morens admitted to drafting and editing statements on behalf of EcoHealth to submit to NIH. Those communications were done on his private email, though they were government work.

“In sum, Morens knowingly and willfully conspired to Co-Conspirator 1, Co-Conspirator 2 and others to evade FOIA and violate the [Federal Records Act] by concealing, destroying and attempting to destroy federal records used to facilitate his work as a public official and as senior advisor to Senior NIAID official 1,” the plea agreement says.

This article was made available to WMAL via The Washington Times.

Trump Pauses 50% Tariffs on Canadian Imports as Trade Talks Continue

Nathan Brinkman — Wed, 19 Aug 2026 06:38:43 +0000

President Donald Trump has temporarily paused plans to impose 50% tariffs on roughly $20 billion worth of Canadian imports as trade negotiations between the United States and Canada continue.

CNN reported that the three-day delay followed discussions between Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. Both sides indicated that progress had been made, although several major trade issues remain unresolved.

The proposed tariffs could affect a range of Canadian products, including dairy goods, wine, lumber and hockey equipment. Negotiations are also focused on market access for American products, automotive trade, alcohol sales, digital trade rules and broader economic security commitments.

The temporary pause gives officials additional time to work toward an agreement before the higher tariffs take effect. Trade between the United States and Canada remains closely connected across several industries, making tariff changes significant for businesses and consumers on both sides of the border.

For now, discussions are continuing as the two governments try to settle the remaining disputes.

Mike Johnson ‘Absolutely Convinced’ GOP Will Grow Its Majority

Nathan Brinkman — Tue, 18 Aug 2026 14:51:30 +0000

By Lindsey McPherson (The Washington Times)

House Speaker Mike Johnson says he’s confident Republicans can keep and grow their majority as he paints the November midterm elections as a choice between “common sense and crazy.”

Speaking at a campaign stop in Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District, Mr. Johnson said Democratic socialists are driving the opposite party’s agenda and voters do not want to go down the “dark, dangerous, deadly road to communism.”

“In the next Congress, we will not be arguing over marginal tax rates or regulation,” the Louisiana Republican said. “We’ll be arguing over whether or not we’re going to maintain our republic in our 251st year as a nation.”

Mr. Johnson is in the middle of what he described as “a 30-day nonstop tour” campaigning in 34 House districts across 18 states.

“I’m absolutely convinced that we’re going to grow the House majority,” he said, touting Republicans’ roster of “extraordinary people running.”

On Monday, the speaker campaigned in Rep. Jen Kiggans’ district in Virginia. The two-term representative is facing a rematch against former Rep. Elaine Luria, a Democrat she defeated in 2022.

A Democratic poll conducted in July showed the race tied.

But Mr. Johnson expressed confidence that Ms. Kiggans can win, touting her record as “one of the most effective members of Congress.”

“She’s among the most bipartisan members, one of the members that can walk into the middle of chaotic situations and get things done,” he said, while also touting Ms. Kiggans’s experience as a Navy helicopter pilot and geriatric nurse practitioner.

Ms. Kiggans said her district wants to move forward, not backwards, but the onus is on her to remind voters what’s at stake.

“It’s a fight right now between craziness and common sense, and really civility and communism, socialism — the direction the Democratic Party has had to go to the left,” she said. “And the opponent that we’re running against who doesn’t live in the district and who made $21 million inside stock trading, who now turns around and says she’s against inside stock trading.”

Ms. Luria pushed back on social media, slamming her opponent and House Republicans for refusing to stand up to President Trump.

“As corrupt Jen Kiggans and Mike Johnson meet with wealthy donors today, working Virginians are seeing their gas and grocery bills skyrocket, their friends and family members in uniform sent to fight in another foreign war, and their healthcare taken away to pay for tax cuts for billionaires,” she said.

Ms. Kiggans offered a different narrative, saying “Republicans are delivering on security and prosperity.”

As she and Mr. Johnson took questions from the press on Monday, they were asked about House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York on Sunday, denouncing the Democratic Socialists of America’s policy platform and distancing his party from leftist policies such as Medicare for All.

“It’s a fascinating thing to see the Democrat Party; they’re in the midst of now an open civil war,” Mr. Johnson said.

He said that Mr. Jeffries and Senate Democratic leader Charles E. Schumer may say they are against some of the DSA’s platform, but they still have to bring those candidates into the fold.

“The energy and the excitement and the grassroots and the funding is on the side of the insurgent left in the Democrat Party,” the House speaker said. “They don’t know what to do about it. There’s no national leader of what they call the pragmatic Democrats. … There is no moderate Democrat Party anymore.”

Mr. Johnson said the left aims to bring waves of Marxists and communists into Congress over multiple election cycles until they can take it over “and assume the means of production to the government.”

“That means no more private property ownership. That means the small business owners across America who provide jobs and opportunity for people will be taken over by the government,” he said. “It’s a dangerous game.”

The speaker said House Republicans launched a website over the weekend, contrastforamerica.com, to highlight the differences between the two parties’ agendas.

“The Republican Party welcomes everyone with open arms,” Mr. Johnson said. “If you believe in America, if you believe in individual freedom and limited government and the rule of law and peace through strength and fiscal responsibility and free markets and human dignity, we have a place for you.”

This article was made available to WMAL via The Washington Times.