Today’s edition of quick hits.
* How many times have we seen this happen? “U.S. President Donald Trump says he will order American forces to hold off on new strikes against Iran, claiming Mideast allies have reached the parameters of a deal to end the 5-month old war.”
* On a related note: “Iran denied that any negotiations were being held or planned. The contradictory statements suggest there is little prospect for a diplomatic resolution to the war anytime soon.”
* Ebola: “The last outbreak in Congo, which began in 2018, took more than 10 months to reach the same death toll. Health officials and experts say the crisis is being driven by a combination of cuts to global aid, conflict in the region and a surge in misinformation that has fueled distrust about the existence and severity of the disease, allowing the virus to spread faster than response efforts can contain it.”
* Washington wildfires: “Wildfires in the Spokane, Wash., region have not yet been contained as of Monday, since the fires began over the weekend. … The fires, which began Saturday, have forced the evacuation of roughly 65,000 people in the Spokane area, officials said Monday.”
* Cyclosporiasis outbreak: “Two people have died from cyclosporiasis in Michigan, the state’s health department said on Monday, marking the first fatalities in one of the largest foodborne illness outbreaks in recent U.S. history.”
* Keep an eye on the policy to stabilize the yen: “The United States and Japan last week carried out a rare coordinated intervention in foreign exchange markets to stabilize the rapidly weakening yen, marking the first joint operation of its kind in more than a decade.”
* Why did this take so long? “Jay Clayton was sworn in Monday as the U.S. director of national intelligence, cementing the senior federal prosecutor’s control over the nation’s sprawling intelligence apparatus as the Iran war intensifies and the country hurdles toward November’s midterm elections.”
* The House will still need to pass this before Sept. 30: “Senate appropriators announced a bipartisan deal Sunday to fund the government into early December, while temporarily blocking a contested Trump administration rule that critics say would politicize the awarding of federal grants. The draft continuing resolution, unveiled Sunday afternoon, would extend current funding through Dec. 11 — a week later than House Republicans proposed in their recent stopgap measure.”
* Donald Trump said Sunday that he’s still prepared to punish Canada over wildfire smoke.
* In related news: “Travel by Canadians to the United States fell 25 percent in 2025, Canadian government data shows, as President Donald Trump returned to the White House and Canadians opted to spend their vacation dollars elsewhere. Canadians made 29.1 million trips to the United States in 2025, down from 39 million in 2024. Their travel spending declined by $2.3 billion in the United States while climbing $2.5 billion overseas.”
* Best wishes for a speedy recovery: “Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur was hospitalized following a hit-and-run car crash in her home state of Ohio on Sunday morning, according to the Toledo Police Department.”
See you tomorrow.
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