Public opinion

Ohio preservation officials and state lawmakers are opposing federal permitting-reform legislation that would alter Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, a 1966 law requiring federal agencies to weigh public input before funding projects that could disturb historic sites. Supporters of the Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act, now in the U.S. Senate, say streamlining permitting would speed energy and infrastructure projects. Critics, including Ohio's State Historic Preservation Officer Diana Welling and Heritage Ohio's Frank Quinn, warn it would strip state and tribal preservation offices of consultation power, shifting decisions entirely to federal agencies. State Sen. Andrew Brenner introduced a bipartisan resolution, co-sponsored by Sen. Bill DeMora, urging Congress to reject the changes.

The FBI arrested Wanying "Heather" Zhang, 34, a real estate agent from Irvine, California, at Los Angeles International Airport as she prepared to board a flight to China. Federal prosecutors allege she worked as an unregistered agent for Beijing, surveilling the family of Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te. According to a federal affidavit, Zhang and an associate traveled to the Seattle area in September 2025 to monitor the home of Lai's son, Ting-Yu Lai, an engineer, photographing and filming the family and relaying license plate information to Chinese officials.

Taiwan's presidential office called the case "a classic case of transnational repression." Zhang, a naturalized U.S. citizen who reportedly attended a Beijing university with ties to China's intelligence services, was due in federal court in Los Angeles. The arrest follows a string of recent Justice Department prosecutions targeting alleged covert Chinese agents in the U.S., including a Southern California mayor who pleaded guilty earlier this year to similar charges.