Friday, July 10, 2026. The buffoon Chump admits "I don't know" when it comes to the war he started with Iran, he's pushing toxic chemicals allowing them to be used in the US for the first time ever, his Pentagon has a runaway budget and imagine how much worse it would be economically if he had put boots on the ground in Iran, people are demanding answers in the death of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo who was killed earlier this week by ICE, and much more.
It's been 133 days since Chump started the war with Iran. It wasn't a needed war. But Senator Lindsey Graham coaches Netanyahu on how to sell the war to Chump and Chump dove right in. 133 days later and Chump doesn't know what to do.
As Lawrence O'Donnell noted last night on MS NOW, Chump's answer regarding the war is "I don't know."
Lawrence O'Donnell: When asked on the airplane last night, "Are we returning to full scale military conflict?," Donald Trump said, "I don't know." In fact, he said it twice, "I don't know. I don't know." You would think that that person who in the same discussion proclaimed himself to be world's greatest peacemaker, greatest peacemaker of all time, greatest peacemaker in human history would have some idea of how close to peace he was in his war.
In the days before President Trump
signed his preliminary deal with Iran after a dinner at Versailles —
where World War I officially ended — he and his aides described their
strategy: The Strait of Hormuz would open to traffic, and the United
States would open the spigot so that Iran could sell billions of dollars
of oil.
The theory, Mr. Trump said,
is that after years of sanctions, Iran would quickly get addicted to a
torrent of revenue, and access to dollars in Western banks. It was a
“really good deal for Iran,” the president said in a call to a New York
Times reporter three days before he signed the June 17 memorandum of
understanding.
“They are actually proud of it,” he said of the Iranian negotiators. “I think they were tired of getting hit.”
Apparently
not. Less than a month into the accord, strikes on three ships passing
through the strait, in a channel beyond Iran’s control, led Mr. Trump to
revoke the waiver that allowed Iran to sell oil. The United States has
bombed more than 170 Iranian military targets over two nights. And no
negotiations are scheduled, at least for now, on the far larger, more
complex and ostensibly permanent agreement that the two sides had agreed
to negotiate in 60 days
Chump is an idiot who has surrounded himself with idiots -- by his own choice.
The Defense Dept? It's headed by an idiot -- an unqualified idiot -- and it's got a ton of problems. Where to start? How about with its inability to manage a budget. Hegseth had no qualifications for the job and he had a history -- Concerned Veterans for America -- of allegations that he mismanaged finances. So the nonsense with the DoD's budget right now? Completely predictable. Nikki McCann Ramirez (ROLLING STONE) reports:
The
budget of the American Department of Defense is eternally bloated. Like
a ballooned whale carcass that is fed on by a frenzy of contractors,
corporations, and ever-growing military operations, the DOD is the heart
of a financial ecosystem that spans the globe. With nearly a trillion
dollars allocated annually to its function, it's a bit of a shock that
the Trump administration is claiming the so-called "Department of War"
is about to run out of cash.
According to sources who spoke to NBC News,
the Pentagon is warning lawmakers that it could soon run out of cash on
hand should Congress not approve pending supplemental funding requests.
So what spending is driving the budget shortfall? Primarily, Trump's
war with Iran.
After initially
claiming that the war with Iran would cost roughly $25 billion, the
total estimated cost of the war - which Trump put back in active gear on
Wednesday - has ballooned to over an estimated $132 billion.
While
the outright cost of operations is one thing, the DOD is also
broadcasting to Congress that it will need additional funds to restock
arms stockpiles and weapons systems that have been depleted.
We may need to start "parking jets and turning off exercises" one former Pentagon official told NBC News.
In
the background, Trump is demanding another 44-percent increase in
annual Pentagon funds from Congress - on top of the $150 billion already
authorized by the "Big Beautiful Bill" in July of last year. The move
would balloon the budget of America's military apparatus to over $1.5
trillion in annual spending. The DOD itself is requesting $67 billion in
emergency supplemental funding from Congress.
The
demands have gridlocked Congressional Republicans, who are facing tough
reelection bids in the upcoming midterms, and are wary of dumping
billions more into Trump's deeply unpopular Iranian quagmire.
Chump vowed no foreign wars but now he's asking for more than $1.5 trillion in spending by the Pentagon.
Meanwhile
Chump continues to waste time and human power of the Justice Dept with
his delusional lie that the 2020 election was stolen from him. Khaya Himmelman (TALKING POINTS MEMO) notes:
The
FBI is ramping up its probe into the 2020 election in Fulton County,
Georgia — part of the Trump administration’s continuing effort to sow
seeds of distrust in the state’s election system and magically
materialize evidence of election fraud to support President Trump’s 2020
delusions about the election results there.
In
January, the FBI executed a search warrant at an election hub in Fulton
County (which is home to Atlanta and also ground zero for Trump and his
allies’ election conspiracy theories in 2020), seizing voting equipment
and ballots, and other records related to the 2020 election. According
to the warrant, investigators were looking for “all physical ballots
from the 2020 General Election in Fulton County; including, but not
limited to: absentee ballots to include envelopes; advanced voting
ballots; provisional ballots; in-person election day ballots; emergency
ballots; damaged or destroyed ballots; duplicated ballots; or any other
ballot that was used to cast a vote.”
In April, the DOJ got a grand jury subpoena demanding the personal information of thousands of Fulton County election workers. On Tuesday, though, a federal judge decisively shut down this effort, ruling that the “subpoena is unreasonable and must be quashed.”
The
latest is that, per an internal FBI memo, the FBI helmed by Director
Kash Patel has found a new way to step up its seemingly bogus
investigation.
Last week, in what appeared to be a major expansion of the probe, the FBI ordered 260 analysts to assist in what is now reportedly being called a “priority” investigation related to the 2020 election in Fulton County, according to an internal memo obtained by MS NOW.
“In
support of the Director’s Office priority effort, the Directorate of
Intelligence (DI) and Criminal Division are requesting all FBI field
offices to immediately surge support to an FBI Atlanta priority
investigation,” the memo said.
The memo, which
does not give details on the investigations, notes that each staffer is
to conduct a total of 708 “record checks” by July 17.
“Looking
for derogatory information is the short answer. The idea is to build a
case. Look at associations between people, look into their social media,
their business activity, travel, contact with other investigative
subjects,” an anonymous official told MS NOW, in response to a question
about what exactly these staffers are supposed to be looking for in
these documents.
New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez is accusing the US Justice Department of withholding access to unredacted files related to late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, arguing that the lack of cooperation is preventing the state from bringing justice to survivors.
“Every
day that the USDOJ withholds these records, the foundation upon which a
New Mexico prosecution could be built erodes,” Torrez wrote in a
scathing letter to Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche on June 30 that
was publicly released on Thursday. “Witnesses relocate and become
unreachable. Memories, already strained by years of trauma, fade
further. Physical and documentary evidence degrades, is lost, or is
rendered more difficult to authenticate with the passage of time.”
Torrez’s
letter marks the latest criticism of the US Justice Department’s
handling of the Epstein case as Congress forced the department to
release files related to the sex trafficker with a bipartisan bill late
last year.
Todd Blanche is so busy covering up for Jeffrey Epstein -- who died in 2019 -- that he refuses to assist the government of New Mexico. And he wants to be, Blanche wants to be, Attorney General.
This is how he treats the job when he's auditioning for it. Can you imagine how much worse he will be if he's confirmed?
Denmark
banned diflufenican – a herbicide never before sprayed on American
crops – specifically because it contaminates groundwater with
trifluoroacetic acid, a persistent PFAS. The EPA approved it for use on
American corn and soybeans on June 30, 2026.
That
single fact captures something important about the moment American
agriculture just entered. Two pesticides with no prior history of use in
the United States were cleared in one day for the country’s two largest
crops. A third chemical, already flagged in human urine samples at
rates approaching near-universal exposure, received its first-ever
approval for use on American food. And five days before any of it
happened, the Supreme Court removed one of the last legal avenues
Americans had to sue pesticide makers over cancer warnings.
The
sequence matters. The EPA’s new approvals and the court’s ruling didn’t
happen in isolation. Together, they mark a significant shift in who
controls what ends up on your food, and what legal recourse you have if
something goes wrong.
The
June 30 approvals included two new forever chemicals pesticides never
before used in the United States: diflufenican and epyrifenacil, both
cleared for corn and soybeans, with epyrifenacil also approved for
wheat. These are not reformulations of older chemicals. They had never
been registered for any American food crop before this decision.
According to USDA planting data,
farmers planted 95.3 million acres of corn and 85.4 million acres of
soybeans in 2026 – together covering an area larger than the state of
Texas. The scale of potential exposure from applying two newly approved
PFAS-related chemicals across that combined footprint is unlike anything
previously authorized for these compounds.
MAHA?
MAHA was a joke. You got punked by Chump and Junior. They were never
going to make America healthy again. Chump repeatedly poisons our soil
and water.
President
Trump rejected FEMA disaster aid requests from four blue states last
Friday, after accepting the aid requests of six red states just two days
before, according to Politico.
This continues his blatant trend of prioritizing petty political beef
over sorely needed FEMA funding—putting Americans at risk in the
process.
New York, New Jersey,
Massachusetts, and Rhode Island were all denied after requesting a total
of $227 million in aid following the brutal blizzard in February. All
four states were l well past the damage threshold required to trigger
aid consideration.
“After months of waiting,
President Trump today denied our request for a Major Disaster
Declaration following the blizzard that pummeled New York City, Long
Island and the Mid-Hudson in February of this year,” New York Governor
Kathy Hochul said in a statement
last week. “New York’s communities … deserve to have access to every
resource available to recover and rebuild. Instead they have a President
who is turning his back on his home state. … We will appeal to ensure
New Yorkers receive the federal assistance they deserve.”
Disaster
aid? He oversees it like he did the 250th anniversary: Only a select
few are allowed to participate. You have to celebrate him and suck up
to him and swear allegiance to him.
Otherwise, he's not even going to recognize you.
I
didn't vote for him but that doesn't mean I'm not an American citizen.
It doesn't mean that my state (which went for Kamala Harris) doesn't
deserve disaster aid. Chump is a lousy president because he is petty
and bitter.
President Donald Trump’s approval rating
is sitting at record lows across two national surveys released in early
July, underscoring a sustained period of deep public discontent during
his second term.
A new Economist/YouGov poll
conducted between July 3 and July 6 among 1,603 U.S. adult citizens
shows 35 percent approving of Trump’s job performance and 61 percent
disapproving, giving him a net approval rating (those who approve minus
those who disapprove) of minus 26—matching the lowest level recorded in
that series in May 2026.
Trump’s net approval of −26 also matches the lowest point seen across his two terms and Biden’s presidency, according to YouGov.
It found Trump’s net approval rating at minus 23—also described by the pollster as an “all-time low” in its series.
Presidential approval is one of the clearest indicators of political strength. When ratings settle at or near record lows across multiple polls, it suggests not just short-term dissatisfaction but a broader, more entrenched erosion in public confidence.
That is particularly significant heading into a midterm cycle, when sustained net-negative approval has historically been associated with electoral headwinds for the president’s party.
Gas prices have spiked in response to President Donald Trump's resumed attacks on Iran.
On Thursday, the average gas price in the U.S. spiked by five cents per gallon to nearly $3.85, according to data from AAA.
The
U.S. military said it hit approximately 90 targets in an attack on Iran
on Wednesday. Trump said he considers the ceasefire between the U.S.
and Iran "over."
Thursday's price spike is the biggest single-day increase since May 6, according to CNN.
The spike ends more than a month of steadily decreasing gas prices.
The average cost of gas dropped more than 70 cents from its peak
earlier this year. That decline was driven largely by the Memorandum of
Understanding that temporarily cooled the conflict between the U.S. and Iran.
PepsiCo
on Thursday warned of higher commodity costs in the second half of the
year, at a time when the snack and beverage giant is increasing
investments and lowering prices to attract value-conscious consumers.
Shares
of PepsiCo, which slipped about 5%, were on track for their worst day
since April 2025 after the company kept its forecast intact and reported
a 2% drop in sales in its North American food business.
PepsiCo's
results underscore the challenges facing packaged food companies in the
U.S. as they try to revive snack demand by cutting prices and investing
heavily in product reformulations and healthier offerings to adapt to
shifting consumer preferences and the rise of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs.
Additionally,
food and beverage companies are contending with rising packaging and
logistics costs as the Iran war keeps oil prices higher.
Although
PepsiCo is expecting higher input cost inflation in the second half of
the year, its CFO, Steve Schmitt, said refund claims for tariffs paid
last year and productivity savings should help cushion the hit.
Lorenzo Salgado Araujo.
We noted him yesterday, worked in the United States for decades until recently when he was shot dead by ICE. Maria Verza (AP) reports:
Mexico
will request criminal charges over 17 Mexicans who died in ICE custody
or during immigration enforcement operations by the Trump
administration, officials said Thursday.
Mexican
Foreign Minister Roberto Velasco's announcement Thursday morning
further escalated tensions with the United States, as Mexico's
government has sharply criticized the treatment of its citizens under
U.S. President Donald Trump's push to increase deportations.
The
request, which carries no legal weight, will be submitted to state
prosecutors’ offices and the U.S. Department of Justice, asking them to
consider criminal charges against those responsible for the deaths.
It
will be accompanied by civil lawsuits against the companies that
operate the detention centers in an effort to put an end to human rights
violations in those facilities, Velasco said.
President
Claudia Sheinbaum said Thursday that Mexico decided to “move beyond
diplomatic channels” and escalate its complaints after an ICE agent
killed Mexican citizen Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston this week.
Sheinbaum said the killing “is not only sad and regrettable, but also
appears to have been targeted.”
“We are going to do
everything in our power, because we cannot stand silent” in the face of
the deaths of Mexicans “whose only crime is working honestly in the
United States,” Sheinbaum said.
Mexican
Foreign Minister Roberto Velasco said the move comes after repeated
failed attempts to engage with the U.S. through diplomatic channels.
"We
are going to move beyond the diplomatic sphere and go directly to U.S.
prosecutors to file complaints regarding these incidents, requesting
that they are investigated as criminal matters," Velasco said.
The
Mexican government will also file civil lawsuits against the private
companies that operate immigration detention centers in the U.S.,
Velasco added.
In the last
year and a half, ICE has repeatedly lied to the American people and to
the US courts. They have claimed that someone tried to ram their
vehicle when nothing of the sort occurred. One woman, Marimar Martinez, ICE attacked her and shot her five times lying that she had tried to ram their vehicle. U.S.
Border Patrol Agent Charles Exum in fact rammed her and turned into her
car. After the government lost the case against Martinez in court,
they tried to prevent the release of the footage as well as the release
of Exum's texts bragging about shooting Martinez.
February
3rd, Martinez shared her story with a bicameral public form chaired by
US House Rep Robert Garcia and Senator Richard Blumenthal. Her opening
remarks included:
Two weeks before the Government dismissed all the charges in my case, I sat in a
federal courtroom and watched from 20 feet away as the Border Patrol agent who
attempted to kill me testified at a hearing. Agent Charles Exum. Charles Exum. My
attempted executioner was Charles Exum. I hope the government does not consider
my use of his name here to be considered doxing. But I think it is important now that
the truth of this case is exposed that people know his name. Charles Exum.
Exum was in that courtroom testifying attempting to weave a coherent story
explaining why he took his vehicle that I allegedly rammed out of the secured FBI
Evidence garage and drove it back to Maine where the Border Patrol onsite mechanic
was ordered to “buff out” the damage to the vehicle. This was all done prior to me or
my attorneys having the ability to examine the vehicle. Because he did this, no expert
witness would ever be able to prove that it was Exum who swerved into my vehicle.
Watching Charles Exum testify made me sick to my stomach. I grew up revering law
enforcement. Prior to this incident I had great respect for local and federal law
enforcement. I knew every day they put their lives on the line to keep me safe, to keep
the kids at my school safe, and I thought to keep everyone in our community safe.
But seeing what ICE was doing in our community at this time changed my view of
law enforcement. This administration has misled the American people by claiming it
would focus on the “worst of the worst” while their actions show otherwise. Evidence
from these operations including statements made under oath, reveals a pattern of
misleading the public. The Government told the people they were targeting the “worst
of the worst” but their actions demonstrated otherwise. They are not targeting the
worst of the worst, they are targeting individuals who fit a certain profile, who simply
have a certain accent, or a non-white skin color just like mine.
This raises serious concerns about fairness, discrimination, and abuse of authority.
The lack of accountability for these actions is deeply troubling. We the people are
tired of this misconduct and demand transparency and accountability. Seeing Charles
Exum sit in a federal courtroom and lie about what happened that day completely
eroded all of my trust in law enforcement. I know just because Exum is not telling
the truth that I cannot hold that against all other law enforcement but to be honest I
do not know if I will ever view law enforcement the same way again
As my attorney showed the Court the disgusting text messages Exum sent to his
fellow border patrol buddies literally bragging about how many times he shot me, I
got sick to my stomach. Seeing how a federal law enforcement officer would talk this
way about shooting me, a woman who he swerved into, was both eye opening and
heartbreaking. Thankfully I survived Exum’s attempted murder of me and was able
to shine a light on his lies, but what about all the others who either did not survive,
or were not fortunate enough to have videos proving the agents lies? I know deep
down this was God’s purpose in having me survive Exum’s 5 bullets. It was for this
moment to happen, so that the world could see these text messages which were a
window into the soul of the U.S. Border Patrol at this critical time in our country’s
history.
Fourteen days after Exum was confronted with his own disgusting text messages, my
attorney called me with the wonderful news that the government was dismissing all
the charges against me. We showed up in Court later that day and some of the same
parents from my Montessori school who came to support me at my arraignment were
there again, this time with tears in their eyes as they heard Judge Alexakis tell me I
was free to go and the charges were dismissed with prejudice.
I have learned that surviving the physical wounds was only the beginning of this long
and painful journey. The real battle started after. In the weeks that followed I
thought I would feel great but I still struggle. I struggle with the memories of that
day. The initial swerving into me by Agent Exum. The shots ringing out and the
burning sensation as the bullets ripped through my skin and body. The images of the
puddles of blood dripping from my bandages listening to FBI agents argue about
whether the jail would accept me in this condition, later in federal prison staring out
the small window looking out onto Clark street.
And I struggle every day with the physical pain and suffering. I cannot close my hand
yet to hold a pen. I try to play with the children at times at school and I am in
significant pain as I attempt to do things I was so easily able to do before October 4.
I attend weekly physical therapy sessions to work on these issues and hope one day I
can move in the same ways I was able to move prior to October 4.
I know that what happened to me in the matter of seconds on October 4 will
unfortunately be with me for a lifetime. The physical scars will always be there. In
the mornings and evenings when I get dressed I stare at my body, now permanently
disfigured by the five lead bullets Exum fired into me. They will be there this summer
when I head to the beach with my dog and friends. They will be there when I get down
on the floor with my students and work with them on their motor skill activities. And
perhaps even worse, the mental scars will always be there as a reminder of the time
my own government attempted to execute me and when they failed at that to vilify
me..
Renee Good, Alex Pretti, Silverio Villegas Gonzalez should all be here today. I know
each of them would trade my bullet wounds and lifetime of mental distress in a
heartbeat to be able to be back with their loved ones this afternoon, and we must also
remember the countless others souls who lost their lives at the hand of those
entrusted with authority.
With that in mind, no, ICE doesn't get the benefit of the doubt, they've lied too much and too often.
A
Texas prosecutor accused federal authorities on Wednesday of sidelining
local officials from the investigation into the fatal shooting of a
Mexican national by an immigration officer in Houston.
Harris
County District Attorney Sean Teare stated in a social media post that
federal agencies were exclusively managing the probe into the death of
Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, who was killed Tuesday during a traffic stop
arrest by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer. Teare said
that his office typically conducted a “parallel investigation” into any
local death involving law enforcement, but federal authorities had
blocked that access.
“Mr. Salgado Araujo’s family and
our community deserve the truth,” Teare wrote in the post, appealing for
eyewitnesses to submit photos or videos of the encounter.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani reupped his call for the abolition of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) following the killing of a Mexican immigrant in Houston by the agency.
“Lorenzo
Salgado Araujo called Houston home for 35 years. On Tuesday, an ICE
agent shot and killed him. His family learned of his death from a video
before anyone bothered to knock on their door,” Mamdani wrote on social
media Thursday.
“New York City stands with the
Salgado family in demanding a full, independent investigation and real
accountability. To the Salgado family and any immigrant family in this
city living in fear: we grieve with you and we will continue to stand
beside you in the pursuit of justice. Abolish ICE,” he said.
“He wanted nothing else in life but to provide for his wife and see his
sons become great people,” said Ronaldo Salgado, one of Mr. Araujo’s
sons. “That’s how I want the world to know my father — not as someone
who got shot and killed, but as a family man, a man who understood that
good things come to those who put in hard work.”
U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained a 20-year-old man
who plays in a mariachi band—and is married to a U.S. citizen—one day
after he filed paperwork seeking a green card, his attorney told local
outlet KENS 5. Herbert Kaleth Ibarra Castro’s June detention has drawn
attention as Democratic Representative Joaquin Castro, whose district
includes part of the San Antonio area, has called for his release.
Castro
said in a post to X that a detention facility worker taunted Ibarra
Castro, saying, “If you sing me a song, I’ll let you go.”
[. . .]
Ibarra
Castro had two court hearings in Pearsall, Texas, on Wednesday, one of
which was a bond hearing and the other a removal hearing.
“This
morning, the Immigration Judge granted our request for bond and issued
an order authorizing Herbert’s release upon payment of the bond,” a
spokesperson from Ibarra Castro’s legal team told Newsweek in an email
Wednesday afternoon.
“We anticipate that the
bond will be posted and expect Herbert to be released within the next
couple of days,” the statement continued.
According
to his lawyer and San Antonio Express-News, the musician sang “The
Star-Spangled Banner” to mark July Fourth while in custody at the
detention facility.
Chump is trying to farm out some of the immigration tasks to local police. Former Assistant Attorney General Amy L. Solomon (USA TODAY) notes several problems with that:
This
is more than a budget story; it’s a public safety story. The question
is not whether immigration laws should be enforced, but whether federal
dollars are now driving police, sheriffs, prosecutors and other justice
agencies toward a mission that could pull them away from their core
responsibilities: preventing crime, solving serious cases, protecting
victims and maintaining public trust.
[. . .]
Local
law enforcement already faces a demanding public safety agenda:
reducing shootings, solving cases, responding to disorder and sustaining
cooperation from residents who may be reluctant to report crimes or
serve as witnesses.
Now those same agencies
are being asked, pressured or paid to shift attention toward
immigration. Given that Congress has approved funding for enforcement,
detention and deportation at unprecedented levels through the end of
Trump’s term, the actions underway today could be just the tip of the
iceberg.
The Trump administration argues
that this approach improves safety by removing dangerous people from
the country ‒ and some of those arrested by ICE have serious criminal
histories. But data shows that the immigration push is not focused on
the most serious threats.
Less than 14% of the nearly 400,000 arrested by ICE in 2025 had been convicted of or charged with violent crimes, according to internal documents obtained by CBS News, while nearly 40% had no criminal record.
There
is another cost. When immigrant residents fear that contact with local
police could lead to detention or deportation, some will avoid reporting
crimes, cooperating as witnesses or calling for help. The impact of
their hesitation does not fall on immigrant communities alone. It
affects all of us by weakening the flow of information police need to
solve crimes, prevent retaliation and protect victims.
Let's wind down with this from Senator Patty Murray's office:
Senator Murray reiterates that even
as we are still working to understand how AI will change the future of
work, Congress should pass a pro-worker, pro-family legislative agenda
now—emphasizing that there is no need to delay on policies like national
paid leave, universal health care, affordable child care, and stronger
labor laws
Murray has opposed the Trump administration’s efforts to stamp out state-level regulations of AI
Seattle, WA – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray
(D-WA) hosted a roundtable discussion on artificial intelligence (AI) in
Seattle focused on how leaders can work to deploy AI safely,
transparently, and in a way that benefits working people—not just giant
corporations and billionaires. At the roundtable, Senator Murray spoke
with leading AI experts about the challenges and opportunities
associated with AI. Senator Murray made clear that while policymakers
can’t yet predict exactly how AI will change our economy and how we
work, there is no reason for Congress to delay in passing so many of
Murray’s longstanding legislative priorities that would benefit working
people like stronger labor laws and enforcement, national paid leave, universal health care, the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, affordable child care for every working family, and much more.
Joining Senator Murray for the discussion today were: Alexandra
Holien, Interim CEO at ADA Developers Academy; Professor Noah Smith,
Vice Provost for AI at the University of Washington; Cherika Carter,
Secretary Treasurer at the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO;
Yifan Zhang, Managing Director at the AI House; Professor Franziska
Roesner, Professor, University of Washington Paul G. Allen School of
Computer Science and Engineering; Chad Kruger, Associate Vice President
for Research Advancement and Strategy at Washington State University;
and Gretchen Peri, State Chief Technology Officer at Washington Technology Solutions.
“I’m not here today with a stack of AI bills to sign. This
technology is still taking shape, and anyone who tells you they’ve got
it all figured out isn’t being straight with the American people,” said Senator Murray. “But
here’s the thing: we do not have to wait to find out exactly how AI
impacts our economy to understand what workers need right now. I have
pushed a legislative agenda that puts working families first in our
economy for a long time. I am hopeful that as we stare down this new
technology, there will be a growing sense of urgency to strengthen the
American social safety net—now. We need a national paid leave policy,
universal health care, child care every working family can afford, the
freedom to join a union, and strong labor laws and strong enforcement.
These are things we can do right now to steady the ground under
workers.”
“At Washington State University, AI is a cornerstone of our work as a future ready land grant university,” said Chad Kruger, Associate Vice President for Research Advancement and Strategy.
“WSU researchers are applying AI to real-world challenges in
agriculture, rural health care, energy resilience, sustainable
aquaculture and fisheries, and rural education. Backed by more than $72
million in AI and machine learning research, WSU is helping position
Washington as a leader in responsible, community focused innovation. We
appreciate Senator Murray’s leadership in bringing folks together today
to help ensure AI’s future remains focused on the public good, creating
healthier communities, stronger industries, and greater opportunity for
the people across our state.”
“Size is no longer an advantage in the age of AI—it can actually be a disadvantage,” said Yifan Zhang Managing Director, AI House.
“The places that help founders, startups, and Small Tech thrive will be
where AI creates the most jobs, innovation, and opportunity.”
“Artificial intelligence is reshaping how governments serve
the public, and we have a responsibility to ensure that transformation
is safe, transparent, and equitable,” said Gretchen Peri, State Chief Technology Officer at Washington Technology Solutions.
“In Washington state, we’re focused on accelerating innovation while
strengthening the guardrails needed for public trust. Our focus is on
practical, transparent, and equitable implementation: building workforce
readiness, improving data foundations, and supporting agencies with
approved tools, guidance, and repeatable practices that scale what works
to protect privacy, and expand opportunity for every community. I
appreciate Senator Murray bringing leaders together to elevate this
conversation. Our commitment is to an AI future that strengthens
services, enhances operations, supports our workforce, and protects the
rights and trust of the people we serve.”
As vice chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Murray
negotiated the Commerce‑Justice‑Science (CJS) Appropriations Bill for
Fiscal Year 2026, which is currently the largest federal investment in
AI standards and testing ever passed through a CJS bill. The CJS bill
includes $1.8 billion for the National Institute of Standards and
Technology (NIST) overall, an increase of $690 million over last year’s
funding level. This includes no less than $55 million for AI research,
an increase of $20 million, and up to $10 million for NIST’s Center for
AI Standards and Innovation to advance AI research, standards, and
testing. Senator Murray fiercely defended science agencies from
President Trump’s proposed reductions, which threatened to cut NIST by
more than 28 percent.
Senator Murray also played a key role in helping to pass the bipartisan Chips and Science Act
which makes historic investments in American manufacturing, and
research and development. The bill included AI scholarships through NSF,
funding for the Department of Energy’s research and development on AI
and machine learning, support for NIST’s work on AI and quantum
information science, and resources for the creation of a NSF Directorate
for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships which will focus on
domestic development of AI and other quantum computing.
Senator Murray has also been outspokenagainst President Trump’s efforts to ban states from regulating AI. She recently introduced legislation
to halt the A.I.-Driven Wasteful and Inappropriate Service Reduction
(WISeR) model which is overruling doctors and delaying care for Medicare
beneficiaries.
