Good morning, Kitties. Financial disclosures show Donald Trump personally gave four White House aides $155,000 in holiday cash gifts, American forces destroyed five Iranian oil carriers after attempted missile attacks on a Navy warship, and Missouri somehow has courts giving conflicting instructions about which congressional map voters are supposed to use. Meanwhile, a billion dollar deportation contractor is facing new scrutiny, privacy activists are fighting surveillance on a shoestring, and Americans are being reminded that national parks are not just pretty places to photograph bears. They are economic infrastructure too. Welcome to Wednesday, where even the map needs a lawyer.
Key Takeaways
A Billion Dollar Deportation Contractor Hired an Executive With a Previous Ethics Violation
Salus Worldwide Solutions, involved in Project Homecoming, hired former New York technology official Rajiv Rao, who previously admitted violating state ethics rules involving undisclosed contacts with a lobbyist. The reporting says Salus did not disclose the matter to DHS, although applicable federal rules did not specifically require disclosure of that state violation.
Trump Gave Natalie Harp and Other White House Aides Large Cash Gifts
Financial disclosures show Trump gave Natalie Harp, Margo Martin, and Chamberlain Harris $45,000 each and Walt Nauta $20,000 as holiday gifts, totaling $155,000. The White House says the personal gifts were unrelated to government duties and permissible, while ethics specialists have raised questions about unusually large payments from a president to government employees.
Twenty Dollars Can Still Buy a Little Resistance to Big Brother
Nightfire examines inexpensive ways people can understand, document, and challenge increasingly sophisticated surveillance infrastructure. Surveillance technology may cost millions, but examining what it does does not necessarily require a defense contractor sized checking account.
Missouri Has Courts Giving Conflicting Instructions About Its Congressional Map
Missouri entered extraordinary legal territory after its state Supreme Court blocked a congressional map, Justice Brett Kavanaugh declined emergency intervention, and a federal judge subsequently ordered officials to use the disputed map. Election administrators are now confronting conflicting judicial instructions with the midterms approaching.
The Supreme Court Refused Missouri’s Emergency Request
Justice Kavanaugh declined Missouri officials’ emergency request to revive the legislature’s congressional map after the Missouri Supreme Court blocked it pending a referendum. The subsequent federal ruling means the underlying dispute remains unresolved and election officials still need clarity about which boundaries govern voting.
National Parks Are Also Economic Engines
National park visitors spent roughly $29 billion in nearby communities in 2024, supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs and billions in wages. Protecting public lands is therefore also an economic issue for communities dependent on tourism and recreation.
CENTCOM Destroyed Five Iranian Oil Carriers
U.S. Central Command says American forces destroyed five Iranian crude oil carriers on September 8 after the IRGC attempted ballistic missile attacks against an American warship twice in two days. CENTCOM says crews were ordered to abandon the vessels before the strikes and no American personnel were injured.
A Report Claims Senior Officials Restricted Trump’s Access to Some Iran Intelligence
Blue Amp reports that senior administration officials restricted Trump’s access to certain sensitive operational information during the Iran conflict. The most consequential portions depend on anonymous sourcing and classified information unavailable for public examination, so those claims should remain clearly identified as reported allegations.
A Brazilian Meat Billionaire Story Examines Money, Access, and Presidential Power
The Hartmann Report examines relationships involving Brazilian meat industry wealth, political access, and Trump administration decisions. Its broader conclusions are analysis, making it important to distinguish documented transactions and government actions from interpretation.
Iran Faces Growing Military and Economic Pressure
The Critical Threats Project reports continued Iranian military activity alongside intensifying American pressure on Iranian oil exports and regional networks. The destruction of additional oil carriers illustrates how the conflict increasingly encompasses economic infrastructure as well as conventional military targets.
October 17 Is the Next No Kings National Action
No Kings organizers have announced October 17 as another nationwide day of demonstrations and early voting related events. Organizers describe the planned activities as peaceful civic participation focused on voting and constitutional government.
Closing RK Thoughts
Today’s stories share a common demand for transparency.
If a president gives employees unusually large personal gifts, disclose them. If taxpayers fund a billion dollar contractor, inspect the contract. If courts disagree about a congressional map, voters deserve to know which rules actually govern their election. If the military destroys ships carrying another country’s oil, the public deserves clear information about the authority, objectives, and consequences.
And when extraordinary claims depend on anonymous officials or inaccessible intelligence, label them accordingly.
Receipts matter because they let us distinguish the genuinely consequential from the merely viral. Read the filings. Follow the money. Save the records. Check the court orders.
The news is chaotic enough without helping bullshit sneak through the side door.
Claws out. Receipts ready.
Featured Resisters and Resources
- The Activist Handbook is a collaborative, open-source guide for changemakers around the world. From protest planning to campaign strategy, this wiki-style toolkit offers practical how-tos for building movements and making power nervous.
- Straight from the U.S. Office of Civil Defense: a vintage how-to guide on ducking, covering, and maybe surviving the apocalypse. Equal parts terrifying and unintentionally hilarious—use it to plan, or just laugh-cry.
What We Are Watching Today
- 8:45 AM EDT
NH Democrats Hold Post-Primary Election Breakfast - 11:00 AM EDT
U.S. Senate Candidate Josh Turek (D-IA) Holds Town Hall in Des Moines - 11:30 AM EDT
Texas Democrats Hold Press Conference Ahead of RNC Midterm Convention - 12:45 PM EDT
U.S. Senate Candidate Mike Rogers (R-MI) Remarks on Education - 3:00 PM EDT
Republican Midterm Convention, Day 1 - 4:00 PM EDT
U.S. House Candidate Lindsay James (D-IA) and Martin O’Malley on Social Security - 4:00 PM EDT
Texas Democrats Hold Press Conference with National Party Leaders - 7:30 PM EDT
Former President George W. Bush Reflects 25 Years Later on 9/11 Attacks
Today’s Call to Action
1. Read Today’s Resistance Survival Guides
2. Sign these Petitions and Send These Pre Written Letters
- Tell the EPA to end the 90-day dog test
- Tell Congress: Stop Flock’s Mass Surveillance Network
- But incumbent Senator Jim Risch is too scared to earn your vote. He’s refusing a public debate with me because he’s scared of our momentum. That’s why I’m asking you to sign our petition and be one of the thousands of people calling on Jim Risch to debate! ➼
3. Verify your voter registration status and help at least one other person check theirs
4. Save contact information for local legal aid and voting support organizations
5. Attend an Event
- Better Choices for Democracy: Wednesday, September 9 at 1:00 p.m. Eastern. Online discussion about practical election reforms and voter choice.
- Keep Calm and Check the Mail: Wednesday, September 9 at 1:00 p.m. Eastern. Online briefing about election mail, court challenges, Postal Service rules, and protecting November ballots.
- Safety at the Polls: Wednesday, September 9 at 1:00 p.m. Eastern. States United briefing about voter safety, intimidation, violence, and preparing polling locations for the midterms.
- No Kings: Vote Early Kickoff Call: Thursday, September 10 from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m. Eastern. National organizing call focused on early voting, election protection, and local participation.
- Florida Rising Voter Mobilization Events: Opportunities throughout the week to canvass, phone bank, register voters, and help Florida voters prepare for the general election.
6. Contact Your Lawmakers Directly
- Release the Epstein Files: Hi, my name is [NAME], and I am a constituent from [ZIP CODE]. I am calling to demand full enforcement of the Epstein Files Transparency Act. Protect survivors, release every legally required record, and investigate anything improperly withheld or removed. Will [MEMBER’S NAME] support full DOJ compliance?
- Protect Mail Voting: Hi, my name is [NAME], and I am a constituent from [ZIP CODE]. I am calling to demand protection for mail voting and opposition to the SAVE America Act. Congress must stop last minute federal restrictions that could disenfranchise eligible voters. Will [MEMBER’S NAME] oppose these restrictions?
- End the Unauthorized Iran War: Hi, my name is [NAME], and I am a constituent from [ZIP CODE]. I am calling to demand an end to unauthorized United States hostilities against Iran. Congress must block funding for offensive military action it never authorized. Will [MEMBER’S NAME] defend Congress’s war powers?
7. Who Are We Boycotting This Week?
- Amazon and Whole Foods: Amazon Web Services provides technology used by ICE. Skip Amazon purchases, cancel Prime, and shop locally when possible.
- Spotify: Spotify has carried ICE recruitment advertisements. Cancel Premium and move your playlists elsewhere.
- Hilton: Hilton removed a hotel from its system after the property refused accommodations to ICE agents. Avoid Hilton, Hampton Inn, Embassy Suites, DoubleTree, and other Hilton brands.
- Microsoft: Microsoft provides technology and cloud services used by federal immigration enforcement. Pause Microsoft purchases and subscriptions where practical.
- Dell: Dell has supplied technology to ICE. Skip Dell computers, accessories, and business purchases this week.
Our money does not need to finance the surveillance, detention, and deportation machine. Apparently, corporations understand morality best when it appears as a missing revenue line.
