Trump asks the Supreme Court to let his mail-ballot limits take effect before November
The same week, the Justice Department rescinded a $1.8 billion fund to move Todd Blanche's stalled confirmation, and a 100% tariff took effect on branded drugs.
Trump asks the Supreme Court to let his mail-ballot limits take effect before November1
The Supreme Court now holds the administration's emergency bid to enforce its federal voter-list order for the November 3 election.1 California and 22 other states plus the District of Columbia filed their opposition on August 3.23 The application asks the justices to lift a June 25 injunction by U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani that blocks the order's mail-ballot and state-citizenship-list provisions in the challenging states.2 Justice Jackson, the circuit justice for the First Circuit, had called for that response.3 Twelve states led by Alabama back the government.2 Solicitor General D. John Sauer argued that the injunction “impedes the President’s ability to direct his subordinates and preempts the Executive’s deliberative policymaking.”1 The question the justices must resolve is narrow: whether the challenge is premature because no agency has finalized its rules.3 The Postal Service says it is “running out of time” to change how ballots are handled before November.3
- Stage
- Emergency stay application; state response filed Aug. 3, 2026.
- Question
- Whether to lift the injunction blocking the order’s mail-ballot rules before the November 3 election.
- Stakes
- How mail ballots are verified in the 23 challenging states this November.
Blanche ends the $1.8 billion payout fund and clears his path to attorney general4
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche signed an order late on August 2 rescinding the $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization fund,” removing the objection that had stalled his own confirmation.5 The order declares that the May 18, 2026 order establishing the fund “is rescinded and shall have no force or effect.”4 Senators John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina, the two Republicans who had withheld their votes, said they would now support him. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska has not committed.5 The Senate Judiciary Committee, which holds the nomination, was set to report it to the full Senate on August 4.6 The written order does not bind a later attorney general, who could restore the fund by issuing another one.5
A 100% tariff on branded drug imports takes effect for the first tier of companies7
A 100 percent tariff on imported branded drugs and their active ingredients took effect at 12:01 a.m. EDT on July 31, under a Section 232 order the president signed this spring.7 It applies first to the companies listed in the proclamation’s Annex III. Other importers face the same duty from September 29.7 Generic drugs are exempt for now, leaving the duty on patented medicines that face no generic competition.7 Countries with a trade agreement pay a reduced rate, so the full 100 percent lands on branded drugs from any country without one.8
| Trading partner | Duty rate |
|---|---|
| Japan, European Union, South Korea, Switzerland and Liechtenstein | 15% |
| United Kingdom | 10% |
| No trade agreement | 100% |
Michigan reports the first two deaths in the multistate Cyclospora outbreak9
Michigan reported the first two deaths in this year’s multistate Cyclospora outbreak on August 3, both in people with underlying health conditions.10 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention counts at least 1,947 laboratory-confirmed cases across nine states, with 98 hospitalizations, and says it is aware of “two cyclosporiasis-related deaths in people with underlying health conditions” in Michigan.9 It traces the outbreak to iceberg lettuce grown in central Mexico and supplied by Taylor Farms de Mexico, and cautions that the real case count is likely higher because mild infections often go untested.9
California’s one-request data deletion becomes binding on brokers11
Registered data brokers in California became legally obligated on August 1 to pull requests from the state’s “accessible deletion mechanism” at least every 45 days and act on them.11 The platform, known as DROP, lets a California resident erase their personal data from every registered broker with one verified request under the state’s Delete Act.11 A broker that fails to act faces penalties reported at $200 for each request per day it stays unprocessed.12
Sources
- Supreme Court of the United States · Application for a Stay of the Injunction, Trump v. California (No. 26A124)
- SCOTUSblog · Trump administration asks Supreme Court to clear the way for new mail-in-voting restrictions
- Votebeat · Trump asks the Supreme Court to allow new mail-ballot restrictions
- Office of the Attorney General · Order Rescinding the Anti-Weaponization Fund (Aug. 2, 2026)
- NPR · Todd Blanche rescinds Trump anti-weaponization fund
- The Washington Post · Committee expected to send Blanche to full Senate after he ends Trump payout fund
- Federal Register · Adjusting Imports of Pharmaceuticals and Pharmaceutical Ingredients Into the United States
- Crowell & Moring · Trump Administration Imposes Section 232 Tariffs on Patented Pharmaceutical Imports
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · Cyclosporiasis Outbreak Investigation (07-26)
- U.S. News & World Report (AP) · Michigan Reports Two Deaths in Ongoing Cyclosporiasis Outbreak
- California Privacy Protection Agency · Data Brokers (DROP)
- Alston & Bird · DROP Is Coming Due: What California’s Delete Act Means for Data Brokers in August