Trump Blasts Putin, Boost Ukraine

Your unbiased daily news brief

July 09, 2025

Good Wednesday morning. Wedding season is well underway. Here are some tips on how to survive. Have a great day!

... and more

First time reading? Sign up here

President Donald Trump is fed up with his Russian counterpart.

The news: Trump said he is “not happy” with Vladimir Putin and accused the Russian president of “throwing bulls—t” at the U.S. regarding an end to his war with Ukraine. “I’m very unhappy with him,” Trump said, indicating he is considering hammering Moscow with stiff new sanctions.
More details: Trump expressed his anger a day after announcing he would send more weapons to Ukraine. That decision followed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s recent move to cut off Kyiv from most shipments — which reportedly caught the White House off-guard. Trump has said he did not sign off on the temporary halt.
Big picture: Trump has talked tough about Putin and Russia before and then softened his stance toward the Kremlin. He has been equally topsy-turvy in his stance toward Ukraine. But President Volodymyr Zelensky is seeking to grab the current wind and further align with the U.S. There are also rumblings Hegseth’s long-term future leading the Pentagon continues to be in doubt after another move without Trump involved.

Ten people were arrested for allegedly plotting an ambush of an ICE detention facility in Texas. A proposed Senate bill would mandate federal immigration officers ID themselves and ban them from wearing most masks (More | More)
President Trump criticized a reporter for asking questions about Jeffrey Epstein during a cabinet meeting. The White House continues to be under fire after asserting the late pedophile financier died by suicide in 2019 and did not blackmail high-profile people (More)
Maine police ruled the death of a paddleboarder a homicide. They did not disclose how the woman, initially reported as missing, died; no suspect is in custody (More)

Bangladesh's former prime minister approved deadly force against student-led protests last year, according to leaked audio. Sheikh Hasina resigned amid a national uprising and entered exile in India; she is being tried for crimes against humanity in absentia (More)
Haitian gangs reportedly destroyed a historic building. The Hotel Oloffson in Port-au-Prince was famous for hosting celebrities and politicians; it has been closed for years and is in gang-held territory (More)
The first malaria treatment for babies and infants has been approved. The Novartis medicine is expected to be rolled out in several African nations within weeks after getting sign-off from Swedish regulators (More)

Dan Osborn will run for Senate in Nebraska again as an independent, challenging Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts. The Navy veteran and mechanic lost by six points to GOP Sen. Deb Fischer last year; no Democratic candidate is expected to enter the race (More)
Pennsylvania Rep. Dan Meuser is not expected to run for governor. President Trump publicly endorsed the GOP member as a potential challenger to Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro earlier this year (More)
Georgia Lt. Gov. Burt Jones will mount a gubernatorial bid. Current Gov. Brian Kemp is term-limited; Jones will battle Chris Carr, the state's attorney general, for the GOP nomination (More)

Major indexes closed mixed yesterday. The Nasdaq eked out a small gain while the Dow Jones dropped over 150 points (Dow -0.37%, Nasdaq -0.07%, S&P 500 +0.03%).
Wendy's CEO Kirk Tanner will take the same position at Hershey. He will replace retiring CEO Michele Buck in August; CFO Ken Cook will be the fast food chain's interim leader (More)
Boeing delivered 60 airplanes last month, its biggest output since 2023. It delivered 150 planes in Q2, the most since 2018; Airbus said it delivered 306 planes in the first half of the year, a 5.5% YoY drop (More | More)

The NHL and NHLPA ratified a new collective bargaining agreement. The four-year deal, which begins with the 2026-27 season, will include an 84-game regular season (More)
A+E Global Media is headed to the auction block. The parent company of A&E Network, History and Lifetime is a joint venture between Disney and Hearst; Wells Fargo will handle the sale process (More)
The 2026 Champions League soccer tournament kicked off yesterday with qualifying matches. The early rounds mostly feature the champions of Europe's lower-level national premier leagues (More)