United States

Jessie Laurel Tepler Mujambere, 28, the adopted son of Maine state Sen. Denise Tepler, D-Topsham, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement while leaving the country through New Hampshire this week. He had recently obtained Canadian citizenship and arrived in Canada on Friday, his family said, calling the outcome a "best-case scenario" given he could have faced deportation to Burundi instead.

Mujambere came to the U.S. in 2014 as a teenager fleeing violence in Burundi; the Teplers became his legal guardians. The Department of Homeland Security said his decade-long pending asylum application did not confer legal status, a position immigration attorneys dispute as a departure from past practice.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Maureen P. Kelly held Attorney General Todd Blanche, Homeland Security chief Markwayne Mullin, and an acting ICE field office director in civil contempt after Nain Vasquez Gonzalez, a Salvadoran man she had ordered released following 38 months of detention, was rearrested by ICE agents in New Jersey hours later. Kelly said officials gave "inconsistent stories" and failed to produce body camera footage, with one agent's camera reportedly uncharged. She criticized ICE's use of masks to conceal agents' identities, calling it "unamerican," and imposed sanctions covering attorney's fees. Immigration attorneys called the contempt finding unusual but an even-handed application of court authority.

A group of 15 Texas Republican House members, led by Rep. August Pfluger, is threatening to derail the more than $1 trillion farm bill over a Senate provision expanding ethanol blending requirements. The lawmakers argue the measure, backed by Midwestern senators and corn-state interests, would raise costs for Texas oil refineries and push fuel prices higher. The dispute revives a long-running fight between the agriculture and oil industries over federal ethanol mandates dating to 2005. The House already passed its version of the farm bill in April; the Senate has yet to act before the current congressional session ends in January, and Texas farm groups worry the ethanol dispute could further delay final passage.

A New York Times report alleges top aides to Alaska Democrat Mary Peltola searched voter rolls in 2025 for a resident named Dan Sullivan, hoping to recruit one to run against Republican incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan and split his support under the state's ranked-choice system. The effort, reportedly run by operative Jerid Kurtz with DSCC coordination, found retired teacher Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. in Petersburg, who entered the race; both Sullivans now appear on the four-person ballot, distinguished by middle initial, "Jr.," party affiliation, and an "Incumbent" label. Peltola's campaign and the DSCC deny involvement, calling the report a "distraction," though a fired former campaign manager told the Times Peltola was "definitely aware."

Gov. Mike Dunleavy directed Alaska's Department of Public Safety to investigate whether the scheme violated state law, saying the report shows an "organized effort" to confuse voters. The order follows Trump's call for Peltola's prosecution and a DOJ lawsuit seeking to block certification of a Peltola win if Sullivan Jr. stays on the ballot. Dunleavy has since suggested the state could withhold or delay certifying the Senate results if Peltola wins, pending the probe's findings, and the House Oversight Committee has opened its own inquiry. Sullivan Jr. denies coordinating with Democrats, and the Alaska Supreme Court previously allowed him to remain on the ballot; a legal analyst notes recruiting a spoiler candidate, even if true, may not be illegal under Alaska law.

Ocean County, New Jersey voters on Tuesday decide a contested Board of Commissioners race and a ballot referendum that would nearly double the county's open space preservation tax. Republican incumbent Frank Sadeghi, seeking a second term, faces Democrat Kia Phua, a Berkeley-based union official aiming to end a 37-year Democratic drought in countywide office. Sadeghi has emphasized infrastructure and managing rapid population growth; Phua is campaigning on property taxes, affordability and vendor-contract oversight.

Separately, voters will weigh raising the Natural Lands Trust Fund tax rate from 1.2 to 2.2 cents per $100 of valuation, unchanged since 1997, which officials estimate would add about $20 million annually for land preservation.

Chief Judge John McConnell granted summary judgment for Providence City Councilman Miguel Sanchez, ruling that Gov. Dan McKee's top aides, Chief of Staff Antonio Afonso and Deputy Chief of Staff Joseph Almond, violated Sanchez's First Amendment rights by firing him from a constituent-services role in 2023 over social media posts criticizing Israel's actions in Gaza and calling for a ceasefire. McConnell found Sanchez spoke as a private citizen, his firing drew far more public and media attention than the posts themselves, and other staffers who posted dissenting views were not disciplined. McKee's office disagrees with the ruling and is reviewing its options; a trial on damages remains ahead. Sanchez, soon to be City Council president, called it a free speech victory.