The Daily Brief
Today
Good morning. [The Trump administration is imposing new tariffs on dozens of countries starting the exact moment a prior round of tariffs is set to expire](https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/news-wrap-trump-announces-new-tariffs-on-dozens-of-countries) while the president shills for AI and lies about surging energy prices. Tensions are running high in Madison, Wisconsin, following the fatal police shooting of a man with a knife.
The GOP House Judiciary chair issued a criminal referral against former special counsel Jack Smith targeting the prosecutor who pursued Trump for his actions after the 2020 election. [Liberal Justice Elena Kagan defended her conservative colleagues from criticism that they have rubber-stamped President Trump's agenda at an annual meeting of judges and lawyers](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/23/us/politics/elena-kagan-supreme-court-trump.html).
Massachusetts state House lawmakers passed a bill loosening restrictions on late-term abortion access by a 119-33 vote sending H.5595 to the state Senate. Simultaneously, [250 organizations from across the country urged Senate Environment and Public Works leaders to reject industry-led efforts to weaken the Toxic Substances Control Act](https://www.commondreams.org/newswire/250-organizations-urge-senate-put-americans-health-before-chemical-industry-profits) putting Americans' health before chemical industry profits.
[Six contenders for United Nations secretary general argued their case to lead a world body at a time when conflicts in Iran, Gaza and Ukraine, as well as divisions among global powers, have deepened concerns about its effectiveness](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-07-23/un-chief-candidates-make-case-for-restoring-world-body-s-stature). [Trump pegs a newly signed Saudi nuclear deal allowing the kingdom to build nuclear power plants with US technology to Israel talks](https://www.semafor.com/article/07/23/2026/trump-pegs-saudi-deal-to-israel-talks).