Trump Says He Has Ruled Out Using a Nuclear Weapon on Iran, Days After Reports of Pentagon Tactical-Nuclear Discussions
Asked at an Aug. 31 press event whether he had ruled out a nuclear strike, Trump said yes and called the question "stupid," following U.S. strikes on Larak Island, Iranian missile and drone attacks on bases in Jordan, and reporting that low-yield nuclear options were raised inside the Pentagon.
U.S.
Army Secretary Dan Driscoll Submits Resignation After Reported Clashes With Pentagon Chief Pete Hegseth
The White House said Driscoll is stepping down after 18 months; unnamed officials told several outlets his resignation raised concerns about Army transformation and the removal of generals, while the White House statement gave no reason and praised his record.
Grand Jury Subpoenas Comey Adviser Daniel Richman in Leak Inquiry, Fox News and CNN Report
Two news outlets, citing unnamed law enforcement sources, say a federal grand jury subpoenaed Columbia law professor Daniel Richman on Aug. 31 in a revived look at how James Comey's 2017 memos reached The New York Times; the Justice Department has not publicly confirmed the inquiry.
Massachusetts Holds Sept. 1 State Primary, With Markey and Moulton on the Democratic Senate Ballot
Polls are open across Massachusetts for U.S. Senate, U.S. House, governor and other statewide nominations; the last public surveys before the vote showed Sen. Ed Markey leading Rep. Seth Moulton by wide margins.
Supreme Court Lets White House Ballroom Construction Continue in 5-4 Emergency Order; Roberts Dissents
The unsigned order said the National Trust for Historic Preservation likely lacks legal standing to sue, without deciding whether the project is lawful; Chief Justice John Roberts and three liberal justices dissented.
Trump Says He Will Report NBC's Kristen Welker to the FCC After She Called His Primary Endorsements 'Mixed Results'
The FCC's lone Democratic commissioner said the agency has no authority to punish journalists; the FCC licenses individual stations, not networks, and its news distortion policy requires proof of deliberate intent.
Federal Judge Narrows Idaho Abortion Health-Exception Injunction to Apply Only to the Doctor Who Sued
U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill's Aug. 25 order limits his Aug. 13 injunction to Dr. Stacy Seyb, citing the Supreme Court's 2025 ruling against nationwide injunctions, while Idaho's appeal goes to the Ninth Circuit.
N.C.
Kalshi Suspends NC-01 Republican Laurie Buckhout for Three Years, Fines Her $2,589.96 for Trading on Her Own Race
The prediction-market exchange published a settlement notice on August 31, 2026 saying Buckhout bought under $1,000 of contracts on her House race against Rep. Don Davis; she called it "a dumb mistake," and Davis called it a "disqualifying breach of public trust."
NCDHHS Says October Asheboro Clinic Will Be North Carolina's 100th Opioid Treatment Program; Suspected Overdose Deaths Down More Than 23% in the First Half of 2026
State health officials announced federal approval of an Acadia Healthcare clinic in Randolph County and released midyear data showing fewer suspected overdose deaths and fewer overdose emergency room visits than in the same period of 2025.
North Carolina Begins Mailing Absentee Ballots Sept. 4 After Judge Blocks USPS Mail-Ballot Rule
State election officials say they will meet the Sept. 4 deadline set by state law, three days after a federal judge in Massachusetts temporarily halted a new Postal Service rule that the Supreme Court had cleared the way for on Aug. 24.
NC Utilities Commission Waives Notice and Hearing Rules for 1.31-Mile Power Line to Vulcan Elements Magnet Plant
The commission let South River Electric Membership Corp. skip the usual public-notice and hearing steps for a 230-kilovolt line to the Benson factory, saying delay could jeopardize an in-service date tied to national defense objectives.
Four Health Systems Apply for North Carolina Approval to Add 92 Hospital Beds in Buncombe County
HCA's Mission Hospital, AdventHealth, Novant Health and UNC Health each filed certificate-of-need applications for beds the state says western North Carolina needs; a state decision is expected by the end of 2026.
Duke Energy Settlements Would Cut NC Rate Request; Attorney General Declines to Sign, Disputes 6.8% Figure
Duke's two North Carolina utilities settled with the Public Staff in July 2026 at a 9.8% allowed profit rate, but Attorney General Jeff Jackson declined to sign either deal — rejecting the Duke Energy Carolinas settlement over its own disclosed 9.5% residential increase, and separately rejecting the Duke Energy Progress settlement because he says residential bills there would rise 9.3%, not the 6.8% Duke testified to — as Utilities Commission hearings continued through August.
Finance
Boeing and Engineers' Union SPEEA Resumed Contract Talks Aug. 31 After Members Rejected Offer; Contracts Expire Oct. 6
SPEEA's roughly 17,000 Boeing engineers and technical workers voted down a four-year offer their own negotiators had recommended, and authorized a strike that could not legally begin before Oct. 7.
China's Official Manufacturing PMI Rises to 49.8 in August, a Second Month Below 50
The National Bureau of Statistics reported a 0.6-point increase from July that still left the index under the 50 line, while a separate private survey of smaller exporters showed expansion at 51.5.
SLB Agrees to Buy German Cooling Maker Kelvion for $3.4 Billion in Cash Plus $0.7 Billion in Debt
The Houston-based oilfield-services company said on August 31 it will buy Kelvion from Apollo-managed funds and Triton-advised funds, in a deal it values at about 11 times Kelvion's estimated 2026 earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
Yen Weakens Toward 160 Per Dollar a Month After U.S.-Japan Joint Intervention
Japan's finance minister and U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent both said Tokyo remains ready to act, as Japanese long-term borrowing costs hit a 30-year high ahead of the Bank of Japan's Sept. 18 decision.
Gold Rose About 10% in August Through Aug. 28, Then Fell 3.2% After Fed Chair Warsh's Jackson Hole Speech
Gold closed Friday, Aug. 28 near $4,454 an ounce — its strongest month since January — after a one-day drop that followed hawkish remarks from Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh, and it remains more than $1,100 below the record set Jan. 28.
World
China Says Its 'Lawful Rights and Interests' in Venezuela Must Be Protected After U.S.-Venezuela Oil Deal
A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on September 1 that Beijing's investments in Venezuela are shielded by international law, days after President Trump announced a venture giving the United States a stake in Venezuelan oil fields.
Xi, Putin and Modi Attend 26th SCO Summit in Bishkek; Modi Tells Putin the Ukraine War Should End
Leaders of China, Russia, India, Iran and Pakistan met August 31 and September 1 in Kyrgyzstan and signed the Bishkek Declaration, with Modi telling Putin in a sideline meeting that the world must "move away from endless war."
Seoul's Spy Agency Tells Lawmakers a US–North Korea Summit Is 'Possible at Any Time,' While Saying Direct Contact Is Unconfirmed
South Korea's National Intelligence Service briefed a parliamentary committee on September 1, 2026 that it sees signs of renewed U.S.–North Korea dialogue, though it said no actual contact between the two governments has been verified.
Colombia's President Ends 'Total Peace' Talks and Signs Extradition Orders for Five Armed-Group Leaders
Abelardo de la Espriella issued resolutions closing the negotiation tables his predecessor opened and stripped the peace-negotiator status that had blocked five men's extradition to the United States.
Niger's Junta Says It Put Down an Army Mutiny in Niamey; Russia's Africa Corps Backed Loyalist Troops
State television said dozens of soldiers were killed or arrested after mutineers hit Air Base 101, the state broadcaster and the presidential palace on August 29; Algeria sent four fighter jets the next day.
Russia Extends Diesel Export Ban to September 30 After Ukrainian Drone Strikes on Refineries
A government decree signed August 29 keeps Russian producers from exporting diesel, marine fuel and gasoil for another month; separate bans on gasoline and jet fuel exports were set earlier in 2026 and run into November and January.
Analysis
Unbiased, evergreen deep-dives on the bigger questions — not breaking news.
What Fauci's Released Diary Documents About the U.S. COVID-19 Response — and What It Leaves Unresolved
A 1,141-page personal diary released by Sen. Rand Paul's committee is roughly one-third routine administrative logging; a minority of entries bear directly on contested questions, and a few conflict with contemporaneous public statements.
Eight Months of Mamdani: What New York's Record Actually Shows, and What It Cannot Yet Show
A claim-by-claim audit of what Zohran Mamdani has delivered, how New Yorkers judge it, and what the evidence does and does not license anyone to conclude about the rest of the country.