☕ Daily Brief: Big Cash Is Funding Influencers

Good morning. After a pleasant week spent relaxing and away from the news, it’s good to be back. Honestly, some of the only news I saw was that the great Dolly Parton had passed. What a great musician and a great American.

But now with fall right around the corner, football season starting, and the midterms coming up, it’s a great time to get back into the swing of things. — Brandon

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WHAT WE'RE WATCHING

🇻🇪 Trump strikes massive oil deal with Venezuela. President Trump’s new agreement with Venezuela gives the US a stake in 17 oil fields holding an estimated 65 billion barrels of crude, tapping into a country that controls roughly 20 percent of the world’s supply. This steadier oil supply could help diversify US imports and replenish the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

📈 ICE hits record nearly 50,000 arrests in July. ICE arrested 49,571 illegal migrants in July, a record for Trump’s second term and a 15 percent jump over June. This surge in arrests is being fueled in large part by growing cooperation with state law enforcement.

✈️ CAIR blames 9/11 on US support for Israel. The Council on American-Islamic Relations, now designated as a state sponsor of terror by multiple state governments, published a back-to-school guide falsely claiming the 9/11 attacks weren’t planned by Islamic terrorists, and citing American support for Israel as justification for the attacks.

🧕 Hochul wears hijab to appease Islamists. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) wore a hijab during a visit to the Islamic Center of New York. It’s not the first time Hochul has donned a headscarf to appease Muslim leaders, joining a growing list of Democrats — including Hillary Clinton, Nancy Pelosi, and AOC — who’ve done the same.

Remember that the same Democrats accusing conservatives of oppressing women and creating a real-life Handmaid’s Tale are also covering themselves with Islamic garb because it’s a sin to show their hair. — Brandon

WORLD NEWS

Behind the paywall: The secret Moscow trip a CIA director just made, where US forces struck for the first time in a month, and the lead France’s right-wing holds over Macron.

HOAX TRACKER

What a senator told CNN about ICE and school bus stops, and the border czar’s answer…

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YOUR TAKE

Should influencers disclose all payments made by political campaigns?

TODAY’S POLL

POP QUIZ

POLL RESULTS FROM FRIDAY

Are you worried about losing your job to AI?

🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 👍 Yes (82)
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 👎 No (535)
🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🤔 Unsure (41)

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