The Latest: Trump effort to control US capital expands to Union Station

As President Donald Trump asserts his power to control the nation’s capital, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced Wednesday that his department will manage Union Station, taking control away from Amtrak.

Lawyers for Kilmar Abrego Garcia, now the face of �հ��ܳ��’s hardline immigration agenda, told a federal judge on Wednesday that in the United States. Trump administration officials want him to admit he's committed crimes in the U.S., which he denies.

A whistleblower says after Department of Government Efficiency workers uploaded sensitive information to a cloud account not subject to oversight.

And as armed National Guard troops patrol the nation’s capital, a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows .

The Latest:

Latino leaders slam �հ��ܳ��’s threat to deploy troops to Chicago

Latino lawmakers and community leaders are denouncing �հ��ܳ��’s threat to deploy National Guard troops to Chicago.

Democratic Rep. Delia Ramirez urged residents to get involved the community organizations organizing protests against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Chicago. She was surrounded by dozens of people holding signs declaring “ICE OUT OF CHI.”

“Donald Trump is trying to ensure we stop protesting,” she said. “He’s trying to shove us into submission.”

She vowed that the Illinois Legislative Latino Caucus “will do anything in their power to hold the line.”

US and European leaders discuss Iran as sanctions deadline looms

Secretary of State Marco Rubio held a phone call with the foreign ministers of Germany, France and the U.K. on Wednesday about the status of negotiations with Iran and its nuclear program. Just days remain before an end-of-August deadline the leaders had set to reimpose U.N. sanctions on Iran if it did not comply with a series of conditions related to its nuclear activity.

The three European countries — known as the E3 — have been meeting with Iranian officials over the last week with the hope of a diplomatic resolution but no agreements have been made thus far.

“All reiterated their commitment to ensuring that Iran never develops or obtains a nuclear weapon,” Tommy Pigott, the deputy State Department spokesperson, said in a statement.

US VP says he’s at White House, monitoring Minnesota shooting aftermath

Minneapolis leaders said the shooter had been “contained” after gunfire injured at least five students at the and that there was no longer any “active threat” to residents. The school has been evacuated, with families directed to a “reunification zone.”

In an X post, JD Vance said he was at the White House monitoring the situation. Both he and Trump solicited prayers for those involved.

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Amid global outrage, the pope has a message for Israel

The Israeli foreign minister’s meeting with Trump comes amid mounting outrage over this week’s that killed journalists, emergency responders and others.

The toll from the attack on Nasser Hospital rose to 22 after two more people died Wednesday, Gaza health officials said. The Israeli military, which has said it will investigate, offered no immediate explanation for striking twice and no evidence for an assertion that six of the dead were militants.

As a growing chorus of international leaders urge Israel to reconsider its offensive and commit to talks, to halt the “collective punishment” of Palestinians in Gaza.

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Rubio and Trump to meet with Israeli foreign minister

Secretary of State Marco Rubio was set to meet Wednesday with Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar in Washington to discuss post-war Gaza as Israel’s military called the evacuation of Gaza City “inevitable” ahead of and .

U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff told Fox News on Tuesday that Trump would chair a separate meeting, which would feature “a very comprehensive plan.” He did not offer details about that meeting, which did not appear on �հ��ܳ��’s public schedule for Wednesday.

Trump reacts to school shooting in Minneapolis

Trump just released a statement on Truth Social:

“I have been fully briefed on the tragic shooting in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The FBI quickly responded and they are on the scene. The White House will continue to monitor this terrible situation. Please join me in praying for everyone involved!”

Authorities gave no immediate information on the number of injuries in the shooting at the Annunciation Catholic School, but Gov. Tim Walz called it a “horrific act of violence” in a post on X.

The Minneapolis city government said the shooter had been “contained” and there was no longer any “active threat” to residents.

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Housing regulator sued by liberal group

American Oversight is going to court to get records from the Federal Housing Finance Agency, whose director Bill Pulte has been a key figure in �հ��ܳ��’s attacks on political opponents.

The organization said it’s bringing the lawsuit because of �հ��ܳ��’s “unprecedented and legally dubious attempt” to fire Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve.

It’s unclear whether Pulte is using government resources to develop the allegations he has made. Mortgage documents are generally public records, but they are typically maintained at the county level across most of the U.S.. However, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, both overseen by Pulte, purchase large tranches of mortgages from lenders, which could centralize much of that information, real estate and legal experts say.

FHFA did not respond to a detailed list of questions from the AP, including whether Pulte or his aides used government resources to conduct his research.

Pulte targets Democrats but not Republicans

Pulte also raised mortgage fraud accusations against Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff and New York Attorney General Letitia James.

But Pulte has ignored a similar case involving the Republican Attorney General of Texas, Ken Paxton, a Trump ally now running for U.S. Senate. Paxton took out mortgages that were all identified as his primary residence, and has mortgages on two other properties that explicitly prohibit him from renting the properties out, but both have been repeatedly listed for rent.

Asked about Pulte’s investigations and �հ��ܳ��’s role in them, the White House said that anyone who violates the law should be held accountable.

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Top U.S. housing regulator is targeting �հ��ܳ��’s political enemies

Bill Pulte told senators weighing his nomination as the nation’s top housing regulator that his “number one mission will be to strengthen and safeguard the housing finance system.” Since then, he’s become one of ’s enforcers, using property records to make accusations of mortgage fraud and encourage criminal investigations of the president’s political enemies.

Pulte’s allegations against — that she designated two homes as her primary residence to get more favorable mortgage rates — are serving the president’s efforts to exert more control over the independent central bank. Cook plans to fight her removal, laying the groundwork for that could reshape a cornerstone institution in the American economy.

“Fraud will not be tolerated in President �հ��ܳ��’s housing market,” Pulte wrote on social media. “Thank you for your attention to this matter.”

�հ��ܳ��’s push to oust Cook extends his efforts to control independent institutions

vow to fire , an economist who is the first Black woman to serve on the board of governors, has kicked off another tense battlefront over the independence of U.S. institutions. It’s also another potential high-profile ouster of a Black leader from the federal government as Trump crusades against diversity and inclusion policies.

Critics warn that �հ��ܳ��’s efforts to assert control over ostensibly and broader American and may do long-term damage to trust in the data, policies and processes that undergird American strength.

Trump economic adviser says Lisa Cook should go on leave

Kevin Hassett, who directs �հ��ܳ��’s National Economic Council, told reporters at the White House that “the fact that she is not doing that suggests that she is partisan and is trying to make a partisan stance.”

Hassett, who himself has been suggested as a potential Fed Chair after Jerome Powell’s term ends in May 2026, also defended �հ��ܳ��’s attempt to fire Cook from the central bank. Establishing a for-cause removal usually requires a proceeding allowing Cook to answer charges and present evidence, which hasn’t happened since a Trump appointee accused her of mortgage fraud.

“The president absolutely has the authority to fire a fed governor for cause and I think the accusations are serious,” Hasset said.

Kilmar Ab

rego Garcia’s lawyers say he wants to seek asylum in the United States

Abrego Garcia, who has become the face of �հ��ܳ��’s hardline immigration agenda, wants to seek asylum in the United States, his lawyers told a federal judge Wednesday.

The 30-year-old Salvadoran national was in Baltimore by U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement after leaving a Tennessee jail on Friday. Administration officials have said he’s part of the dangerous , an allegation Abrego Garcia denies.

His lawyers are fighting the deportation efforts in court, arguing he has the right to express fear of persecution and torture in Uganda. Abrego Garcia has also told immigration authorities he would prefer to be sent to Costa Rica if he must be removed from the U.S.

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Trump extends control by taking Union Station management away from Amtrak

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced Wednesday that his department is taking management of Union Station, the main transportation hub in Washington, away from Amtrak.

Duffy said ahead of an appearance with Amtrak President Roger Harris at Union Station for the launch of the NextGen Acela, the rail service’s new high-speed train, that the building a short walk from the U.S. Capitol had “fallen into disrepair” when it should be a “point of pride.”

Duffy’s words echoed Trump, who said last week that he wants $2 billion from Congress to beautify Washington as part of his crackdown on the city.

What Americans think about �հ��ܳ��’s approach on crime, from a new AP-NORC poll

As armed National Guard troops patrol the nation’s capital in an unprecedented federal takeover of Washington, D.C.’s police department, handling crime is now a relative strength for Trump, the poll found.

Americans are generally not happy about the Republican president’s handling of issues like immigration and the economy but are more positive about his tough-on-crime approach, according to the survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

Indeed, the vast majority of Americans — 81% — see crime as a “major problem” in U.S. cities — a concern Trump seizes on with threats to expand National Guard deployments to cities across the country.

But the poll shows less public support for federal takeovers of local police departments, suggesting that opinions could shift, depending on how aggressively Trump pursues his threats.

Danish security service strengthens presence in Greenland

The Danish Security and Intelligence Service responded to a request for comment by saying it believes that “particularly in the current situation, Greenland is a target for influence campaigns of various kinds” that could aim to create divisions in the relationship between Denmark and Greenland.

It said it “assesses that this could be done by exploiting existing or fabricated disagreements, for example in connection with well-known individual cases, or by promoting or amplifying certain viewpoints in Greenland regarding the Kingdom, the United States, or other countries with a particular interest in Greenland.”

The service, known by its Danish acronym PET, said that in recent years it has “continuously strengthened” its efforts and presence in Greenland in cooperation with authorities there, and will continue to do so.

The Danish foreign minister has issued a statement: ‘unacceptable’

“We are aware that foreign actors continue to show an interest in Greenland and its position in the Kingdom of Denmark,” Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said in a statement emailed Wednesday by his ministry. “It is therefore not surprising if we experience outside attempts to influence the future of the Kingdom in the time ahead.”

“Any attempt to interfere in the internal affairs of the Kingdom will of course be unacceptable,” Løkke Rasmussen said. “In that light, I have asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to summon the U.S. chargé d’affaires for a meeting at the Ministry.”

Cooperation between the governments of Denmark and Greenland “is close and based on mutual trust,” he added.

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Danish leaders had already warned the Trump administration against spying

This isn’t the first time Danish leaders summoned the top U.S. diplomat for an explanation about alleged spying in Greenland. They did it in May, after the Wall Street Journal reported that high-ranking officials under had directed intelligence agency heads to learn more about independence movement and sentiment about U.S. resource extraction there.

Denmark Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen spoke with The Associated Press the next day, saying “you cannot spy against an ally.” The embassy declined to comment on the summoning of Jennifer Hall Godfrey, acting head of the U.S. Embassy in Copenhagen.

What the Danish broadcaster is saying about the ‘influence operations’ in Greenland

Danish public broadcaster DR reported that government and security sources, which it didn’t name, believe that at least three Americans with connections to Trump have been carrying out covert influence operations in the territory.

One of those people allegedly compiled a list of U.S.-friendly Greenlanders, collected names of people opposed to Trump and got locals to point out cases that could be used to cast Denmark in a bad light in American media. Two others have tried to nurture contacts with politicians, businesspeople and locals, according to the report.

DR cited eight sources, who believe the goal is to weaken relations with Denmark from within Greenlandic society. DR said it had been unable to clarify whether the Americans were working on someone’s orders. The Associated Press could not independently confirm the report.

Here’s what’s on �հ��ܳ��’s schedule for the day

At 12:30 p.m. Eastern, the president is scheduled to have lunch with Vice President JD Vance at the White House.

That event, the only on his public schedule today, is closed to the press.

Dissenting FEMA workers put on leave

Some employees of the who were put on administrative leave Tuesday evening, according to documents reviewed by The Associated Press.

More than 180 current and former FEMA employees signed the letter sent to the FEMA Review Council and Congress on Monday critiquing recent cuts to agency staff and programs, and warning that FEMA’s capacity to respond to a major disaster was dangerously diminished.

The Associated Press has confirmed that at least two of the signatories received notices Tuesday evening informing them they would be placed on leave indefinitely, with pay, and that they must still check in every morning confirming their availability. It was unclear what the status was for other signatories. FEMA did not respond immediately to questions about how many staff received the notice and whether it was related to the opposition letter.