With National Guard troops already patrolling Washington, D.C., attention has turned to Chicago. President Donald Trump has hinted it could be next, but the Windy City’s mayor has warned him to stay away.
Plus, Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s freedom may be short-lived. The Maryland construction worker at the center of a national immigration battle faces an ultimatum Monday morning that could make his deportation imminent.
Also, are you waiting for an overseas package? Don’t hold your breath. Global mail carriers from Europe to Asia have paused deliveries to the U.S. as confusion grows over how Trump’s new tariffs will be collected.
These stories and more highlight your Unbiased Updates for Aug. 25, 2025.
National Guard troops in DC begin carrying guns
As the federal takeover of Washington’s police enters its third week, some National Guard troops on the streets of D.C. are now armed. More than 2,000 guardsmen from multiple states are deployed under President Donald Trump’s crime crackdown in the capital.
A Defense Department official said most will carry service pistols, but a small number will be issued rifles. The troops are concentrated in high-traffic areas, such as Union Station and the National Mall.
Commanders said guards can use their weapons only for self-defense and as “a last resort” if they face an imminent threat of death or serious harm.
For now, their mission remains unchanged: to guard landmarks and maintain a visible presence.
They still are not authorized to make arrests and stay on the sidelines of law enforcement in the district.
Trump threatens Chicago crime crackdown, Democrats push back
While the takeover in Washington continues, the White House is now zeroing in on another city: Chicago.
Over the weekend, city and state officials criticized the idea of a National Guard deployment, calling it unlawful, unnecessary and a political stunt.
The Washington Post first reported that the Pentagon has become involved in discussions and is considering options to deploy guard troops as early as September.
Trump framed the move as a crackdown on crime and immigration.
“We’re going to make our country very safe. We’re going to make our cities very, very safe,” Trump said. “Chicago’s a mess. You have an incompetent mayor, grossly incompetent. And, we’ll straighten that one out probably next. That’ll be our next one after this, and it won’t even be tough.
Trump has long painted Chicago as crime-ridden, even as city data shows violent crime has fallen.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson stated that homicides have decreased by over 30% in the past year, and shootings are down nearly 40%.
“This is who Chicago really is. What’s being painted by the federal government is false. We love one another. We support one another,” Johnson said.
He continued, “We put our arms around one another.”
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker called Trump’s plan a manufactured crisis to score political points.
He said, “Donald Trump is attempting to manufacture a crisis, politicize Americans who serve in uniform, and continue abusing his power to distract from the pain he’s causing families.”
Former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel went even further, telling CNN Sunday the threat has little to do with crime.
“When you look at what he did in DC, he’s not going to actually deal with crime. This is an attempt to get the goods through customs,” Emanuel said. “This is an attempt to deal with cities that are welcoming cities, known as sanctuary cities, and deal with immigration.”
If approved, Chicago would be the third city to face a federal deployment in recent months, following crackdowns in Los Angeles and Washington.
Vance claims Russia showing flexibility in talks with Trump
The White House said it’s making progress in its push to end the war in Ukraine. Vice President JD Vance claimed Russia has made “significant concessions,” but so far, there’s little evidence of a breakthrough.
Vance argued that the Kremlin is rethinking some of its earlier demands, including the installation of a puppet regime in Kyiv.
Appearing on NBC, Vance called it the first sign of flexibility in three and a half years of fighting.
“I think the Russians have made significant concessions to President Trump for the first time in 3.5 years of this conflict. They’ve actually been willing to be flexible on some of their core demands. They’ve talked about what would be necessary to end the war,” Vance said. “Of course, they haven’t been completely there yet, or the war would be over. But we’re engaging in this diplomatic process in good faith to try and find a middle ground to stop the killing.”
However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Moscow still does not want to end the war.
There’s no meeting planned between Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin, despite Trump’s push and the White House’s statement last week that such a meeting was set to happen in just weeks.
However, there was one small sign of dialogue over the weekend: Russia and Ukraine swapped 146 war prisoners on each side, in a deal mediated by the United Arab Emirates. Many had been held since 2022.
As Ukraine marked Independence Day over the weekend, the fighting has intensified.
Russia claims Ukrainian drones struck energy facilities inside its borders this weekend, while Kyiv reports downing dozens of Russian drones overnight.
Abrego Garcia faces deportation again after jail release
The immigration case that has become a flashpoint in Trump’s crackdown took another turn Monday morning. Kilmar Abrego Garcia — born in El Salvador and living in Maryland with his wife and child — must report to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Baltimore. He now faces deportation, once again.
The question is: where to?
Abrego Garcia walked free Friday from a Tennessee jail, greeted with cheers, flowers and chants of “yes, we did it” as he embraced his family after more than 160 days in detention.
However, his freedom could be short-lived.
ICE ordered him to report Monday morning, telling his lawyers that the administration plans to deport him to Uganda after he rejected a deal to go to Costa Rica if he pleaded guilty and stayed in jail.
In March, the U.S. wrongfully deported Abrego Garcia to El Salvador due to a paperwork error. Instead of letting him go, the administration fought to keep him in custody, accusing him of MS-13 gang ties. Abrego Garcia and his supporters strongly denied these allegations.
Global mail deliveries to US halted amid tariff confusion
Postal services worldwide have halted deliveries to the U.S. due to confusion over Trump’s new tariff rules.
Starting Friday, Aug. 29, the exemption for low-cost packages under $800 disappears.
Postal services in countries like Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Belgium said they don’t know how the duties will be collected or processed, so they have stopped shipments for now.
Under the new rules, personal gifts valued under $100 will remain duty-free, but everything else will be considered a regular import.
Powerball jackpot soars past $750M for Monday night’s drawing
The odds might be astronomical, but so is the payout. Monday night’s Powerball drawing is the 10th biggest in history, worth more than $750 million.
The cash option? A cool $338 million.
No one has won the jackpot in 37 consecutive drawings. Maybe number 38 will end the streak.
Odds of winning? 1 in 292 million.
Odds of daydreaming about winning? Pretty much one in one.
Somebody will get lucky eventually. We find out Monday night at 10:59 p.m. ET.
More from Straight Arrow News:
Under the Phoenix sun: How to fix deadly-hot bus stops
On a summer day in the Sonoran Desert, as temperatures often climb to 110 degrees, waiting for a bus can be uncomfortable — even deadly. At least 21 people died from heat exposure at bus stops in Phoenix, Arizona, in 2023, according to data from the city’s health department.
A little more than 4,000 bus stops dot Phoenix. Currently, 77.5% of these stops have shade structures, according to the Phoenix transit department, which has pledged to add shade to each structure by 2050.
Adding shade can reduce a metric called the “physiological equivalent temperature,” or PET — how hot a person’s body feels. But a recent study from the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston found that not all shade structures are created equal. Read the full story now >
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Author: Craig Nigrelli
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