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Welcome back, we made it through the end of the week. Let’s take a look at the stories making headlines today: Trump unveils double-digit tariffs on dozens of U.S. trading partners; conservative influencer Laura Loomer meets Zelenskyy in Ukraine after her major reversal on the war; and nearly 150,000 mail ballots have been rejected in California’s June primary.
President Donald Trump arrives with Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts and owner Mark Walter for an event to honor the 2025 World Series champions Los Angeles Dodgers in the Rose Garden of the White House, Thursday, July 23, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Trump imposes new tariffs
President Donald Trump is going ahead with new double-digit tariffs on dozens of U.S. trading partners just as the clock runs out Friday on stopgap levies he imposed after a stinging defeat at the Supreme Court. Read more.
What to know:
- The United States will slap taxes of 10% to 12.5% on imports from 60 trading partners accounting for 99% of U.S. imports, charging that they have inadequately enforced bans on goods produced by forced labor. The new tariffs will take effect just as temporary 10% worldwide tariffs expire Friday. Trump had turned to those temporary levies after the Supreme Court struck down his biggest and boldest tariffs in February.
Related coverage →
Carney says Canada is ready to respond to tariffs
Canada holding solo celebration of new bridge to US
House again passes a resolution seeking to halt military action in Iran as the conflict escalates
Explosions are heard near a US base in northern Iraq after US strikes Iran
Trump adds new condition to Saudi nuclear deal, says kingdom must normalize relations with Israel
Laura Loomer meets Zelenskyy in Ukraine after her major reversal on the war
The ardent ally of President Donald Trump, with a reputation for incendiary social media commentary, sat down with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday. Read more.
Why this matters:
- It was a stunning reversal for a woman who had spent years criticizing U.S. support for Ukraine’s defense. Loomer had minimized Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and amplified Russian propaganda to her nearly 2 million followers.
- Trump gave his stamp of approval on social media. “Very good!!!” he wrote on Thursday evening. It was unclear what had prompted Loomer’s trip or how she had arranged the meeting with Zelenskyy. Loomer and the White House did not respond to requests for comment on the trip. “It is really important that @LauraLoomer is in Ukraine and sees things with her own eyes as they are,” Zelenskyy’s office wrote.
Related coverage →
US is ready to help end the ‘senseless war’ in Ukraine but no quick deal ahead, Rubio says
How protests over a popular minister’s firing sparked Ukraine’s sudden military reset
Ukraine hits Russia’s largest online marketplace, hurting small businesses and bringing the war home
Nearly 150,000 mail ballots rejected in California primary despite efforts to count every vote
According to state data, 1.73% of all mail ballots were rejected in the June election. It’s a spike from recent elections even as the state attempts to make voting easier with the goal of boosting participation and counting every ballot. Read more.
What to know:
- California has become notorious for its ponderously slow vote counts that can drag on for weeks and sometimes longer, largely the result of multiple changes over the years that were intended to increase turnout but have done little to achieve that. Among the changes: Every voter receives a mail-in ballot that can arrive at an election office seven days late and still be counted, provided the envelope is postmarked by Election Day.
- Yet even with that generous week-long window, the primary driver of the higher rejection numbers is late-arriving ballots, according to data compiled by the secretary of state’s office. Voting experts suspect the main problem is postmarks on ballots that came after Election Day, making them ineligible to be counted. The culprit could be U.S. Postal Service changes that might affect the timing of when postmarks are applied.
Related coverage →
Alaska sends 3,000 letters asking voters to verify their citizenship ahead of this year’s elections
FACT FOCUS: Posts falsely claim Obama urged noncitizens to vote in 2016
Federal judges allow new Tennessee congressional map that splits majority-Black district in Memphis
Democrats say Social Security boss’ message pushed misleading statements on Trump tax law’s benefits
Government withdraws subpoenas of 3 reporters for The New York Times after admitting legal errors
Liberal Justice Elena Kagan says the Supreme Court is not a rubber stamp for Trump
Nun speaks out for first time about being detained by ICE while walking to Mass in Texas
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Today in History: In 1959, Vice President Nixon engaged in the ‘Kitchen Debate’ with Soviet leader Khrushchev
Rabbi Jeffrey Myers, who led the Tree of Life Congregation during the 2018 synagogue shooting, is retiring. It was the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history. Join AP journalists Peter Smith and Jessie Wardarski, who covered the shooting and the community’s recovery, for a Live Q&A on APNews starting at 10:30 a.m. EDT.
WATCH
Southern Europe: Wildfires spread as Spain declares national emergency
Californios: First Mexican restaurant in the world to earn three Michelin stars
Spider-Man: Man in superhero costume helps person in wheelchair cross street in Arkansas
A breakfast egg and cheese on an “everything” bagel photographed in Phoenix, Ariz., Tuesday, July 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Our readers weigh in on bagels
I spent yesterday afternoon drooling over your emails after Wednesday’s bagel story, which absolutely stuffed my inbox. Thanks to everyone who wrote in. We heard from some of you in Hawaii, Costa Rica, Arizona, Colorado and Louisiana, who wrote about missing favourite bagel shops. Several readers told me off for omitting onion, tomato and capers from my smoked salmon and cream cheese order, which are all ingredients I like, promise! Both Josh Cornfield, who wrote the story, and Dario Lopez-Mills, who photographed the bagels, like an egg on their bagels sometimes. In fact, Dario cooked the egg and cheese you see above himself. Once he was sure he had the shot, he ate it for breakfast. Nice gig, right? Happy Friday, bagel lovers.
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