Brooke Rollins, the president's agriculture secretary, has announced that there will be "big announcements" next week to help Donald Trump fulfill his pledge to let ranchers and farmers process their own food, thereby escaping the "nasty monopoly" of large processing plants. Because nothing says national security like a good steak.
Rollins declared that being able to "feed and fuel ourselves" is a "matter of national security," and outlined plans to waive "red tape in processing" and expand ranchers' ability to "sell across state lines." Because what could possibly go wrong with deregulating meat processing? Rollins previously defended the president's decision to pause higher tariffs on 300,000 metric tons of foreign beef, calling it "a very short-term fix" to "get lower cost beef on to American plates" in an interview with Spectrum News. However, she admitted she had no idea where the beef would come from: "I am actually not part of any of those conversations, so I am not sure what that looks like. I think we'll know very soon." Classic.
Meanwhile, in other news that is definitely not a distraction, Donald Trump is in Houston, Texas, where he will present the four NASA Artemis II crew members with the Congressional Space Medal of Honor. Because nothing says "we're handling things" like giving out medals while the country burns.
In Pennsylvania, anti-vaccine activists are trying to track down the families of two people, including at least one newborn, who died after contracting measles, as Governor Josh Shapiro tangles with Robert F Kennedy Jr over his "inaccurate and misleading claims." Kennedy, the secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), suggested the deaths might be "fabricated" after a Republican coroner in Lancaster county claimed one death was unrelated to the virus, despite the cause being consistent with measles. Brian Hooker at Children's Health Defense - an anti-vaccine organization Kennedy recently led - said the group is "trying to get boots on the ground" and "do outreach" in Pennsylvania. Paul Offit, an infectious diseases physician at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, summed it up: "It's like the world's turned upside down."
Over in Wisconsin, Republican gubernatorial nominee Tom Tiffany has pushed back on Trump's executive order to rename Lake Ontario as "Lake America." Tiffany said at a campaign event in Green Bay, "The Great Lakes are Great Lakes, and we should leave them that way." Trump signed the order on Wednesday, but he has no authority to rename Canada's portion of the lake or compel anyone else to adopt the new name. It's almost like he's doing this to distract from something.
And in a move that will surely be remembered on the 25th anniversary of September 11, Trump will mark the occasion by delivering remarks at the Pentagon instead of visiting ground zero. According to CNN, he's skipping the World Trade Center ceremony because politicians aren't allowed to speak there, and he wants to talk. Vice-President JD Vance will attend the memorial in Manhattan instead. Because it's all about him, even on a day of national mourning.
Autism groups are alarmed by a federal research roadmap drawn up by advisers handpicked by Kennedy, fearing it will promote unproven fringe therapies over promising genetic research. The 336-page plan, from the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC), includes "supported-living models" like "farmstead or campus-based communities," which advocates worry could revive institutional confinement. Helen Tager-Flusberg, an emeritus professor at Boston University, called it "fringe science that is absolutely not ready for prime time." Kennedy overhauled the panel in January, replacing experts with anti-vaccine advocates who have promoted dangerous remedies like chelation therapy and industrial bleach. Because who needs science when you have bleach?
Kevin Warsh, the new chair of the Federal Reserve, warned at the Jackson Hole symposium that US inflation is running too high and the Fed may have "work to do." He said the Fed's "predominant focus right now should be on prices." Inflation cooled slightly in July to 3.4% annually, but prices remain higher than before the war with Iran. Price increases hit a three-year high in May, reaching 4.2%. So, you know, it's all under control.
More than 400 endangered species could face accelerated extinction after the Trump administration rescinded a rule protecting old-growth forests. The Center for Biological Diversity reports that rolling back the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule could put 7.4 million acres of endangered-species habitat and nearly 1,800 miles of protected rivers and streams at risk, while opening over 45 million acres to roads, drilling, and logging. Conservationists are not thrilled. Randi Spivak of the Center said, "Bulldozing more roads through them will mean dirtier water, fragmented wildlife habitat and greater wildfire risk." But hey, at least we'll have more beef.
Trump also announced today that he will authorize ranchers and farmers to process their own food, following an interview with conservative commentator Glenn Beck, who implored him to look at the "meat processing cartel." Trump wrote on Truth Social, "There are, essentially, 4 of them, a very non competitive number, and they make life miserable for our wonderful Farmers and Ranchers, and I can't let that happen." Because nothing says "I'm helping" like letting everyone do their own thing, regardless of safety.
And in case you were wondering about the economy, Jonathan Freedland spoke to Dan Alexander of Forbes about how Trump made so much money last year while trade wars, military wars, and rising national debt hurt the US economy. Also, $1 billion worth of goods crosses the river between Detroit, Michigan, and Windsor, Ontario every day, and Trump's escalating trade spat with Canada has everyone worried. Political and economic leaders have labeled the move "hubris," blamed Trump's "ego," and called it "insanity." But sure, let's rename a lake.