The Guardian

A bipartisan bill aimed at preventing presidents from demolishing presidential memorials, including the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, was blocked in the Senate on Monday after Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, objected to a unanimous consent request, offering no public explanation. The bill, introduced by Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and co-sponsored by Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, Jack Reed, Sheldon Whitehouse and Chris Van Hollen, would have required congressional approval before demolishing any presidential memorial designated by Congress. On the floor, Merkley accused Trump of wanting the building destroyed if he could not rename it after himself, framing the bill as a defense of the rule of law and separation of powers.

The effort follows weeks of turmoil at the Kennedy Center after a judge ruled twice that Trump could not attach his name to the building, prompting a brief closure and renewed demolition threats from Trump, who cited disrepair. A leaked photo showed Trump holding a sign reading "Kennedy Center DEMOLISH." A judge has since ordered any changes to the center be disclosed to the court 30 days in advance. Trump has floated replacing the venue with an outdoor amphitheater, while Rep. Joyce Beatty's lawsuit against renaming or destroying the center continues.

U.S. inbound tourism fell roughly 20 percent in 2026 compared to 2025, even as global travel grew 5 to 10 percent, according to U.S. Travel Association president Geoff Freeman. The decline would have been steeper without this year's World Cup, which drew large numbers of foreign visitors. The U.S. welcomed nearly 80 million visitors in 2019 and has not returned to that level since, a trend worsened by pandemic-era drops and now compounded by new pressures.

Freeman cited multiple causes: high costs, the war in Ukraine limiting flight paths for Asian travelers, political backlash against the Trump administration, and foreign press coverage of tourists detained by U.S. immigration authorities. Cases include British tourist Karen Newton, held six weeks over an expired visa, and Welsh backpacker Becky Burke, detained 19 days. Florida has been especially hurt by a steep drop in Canadian visitors and business travelers amid Trump's trade war with Canada, with Freeman warning the lost goodwill will have lingering economic effects on major tourism states like Florida, California, New York and Texas.

The California attorney general's office has dropped all felony charges against five Stanford University students prosecuted over a June 2024 campus protest against Israel's actions in Gaza. The students were among 12 who barricaded themselves in the university president's office for an hour, demanding Stanford divest from companies tied to Israel. They had faced felony conspiracy to trespass and vandalism charges, first announced in April 2025 by Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen.

Five students went to trial in early 2026, which ended in a hung jury. A judge later ordered Rosen to recuse himself over a conflict of interest, after evidence emerged he was using the case to fundraise for his reelection campaign. The state attorney general's office then took over and reached a resolution dropping all charges in exchange for 100 hours of community service and roughly $50,000 in restitution. Three students who had earlier accepted plea deals will also have their convictions overturned. Civil rights groups, including CAIR's San Francisco Bay Area chapter, welcomed the outcome, arguing the felony charges were disproportionate to the protest activity.

ICE agent Christian Castro, 52, was arrested by Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension agents in downtown Minneapolis and booked into the Hennepin County Jail on a state warrant, despite an arrangement to surrender at his attorney's office. He faces four counts of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon and one count of falsely reporting a crime, and is due in federal court Friday on a separate federal indictment for making false statements to an FBI agent.

The charges stem from a January 14 shooting during ICE's Operation Metro Surge in Minneapolis, when agents shot three people; U.S. citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti died in separate incidents amid related protests. Castro allegedly shot and wounded Julio Sosa-Celis, a Venezuelan national, after a car chase and foot pursuit, firing through a door despite two children being inside. Homeland Security initially called it a defensive shot but later cited "untruthful statements" by officers; charges against Sosa-Celis were dropped.

Castro spent 90 days jailed in Texas while Minnesota sought extradition, which Governor Greg Abbott refused, prompting a lawsuit from Minnesota officials. He was released after a federal judge declined to force extradition, then indicted federally before returning to Minneapolis. DHS has suspended him.