Monday, February 16, 2026

California votes to protect mountain lions under the state Endangered Species Act

The vote secured the Southern California and Central Coast mountain lions as a distinct population segment (DPS) and listed both populations as threatened under CESA because of their vulnerability to these threats and becoming locally extinct.

Trump administration revokes EPA endangerment finding, unraveling foundation of US climate rules

Rollback targets legal basis for greenhouse gas limits as environmental and public health groups prepare lawsuits.

Do special election results spell doom for Republicans in 2026?

And with the 2026 midterm elections less than nine months away, analysts are already scrambling for indications of the likely outcome.

Epstein file search logs in Bondi binder raise surveillance concerns during House hearing

Photograph from Judiciary Committee session prompts accusations that DOJ tracked lawmakers reviewing Epstein records.

Can Europe reassert itself after Ukraine?

For decades, Europe’s foreign policies have been decided elsewhere. As the war in Ukraine drags on and the U.S. priorities change, voices such as Glenn Diesen argue that Europe must rediscover strategic autonomy, whether the liberal international order survives or not.

MAGA outgrows isolationism

Does America first mean America alone?

Suffocating an island: What the US blockade is doing to Cuba

The American people need to know what the U.S. is doing to Cuba.

Senate GOP blocks effort to overturn $10.3 billion corporate tax break tied to IRS...

Resolution targeting Trump administration guidance on corporate minimum tax fails 51-47 as advocates warn of expanded loopholes.

FAA shuts down El Paso airspace for 10 days, cites national defense without explanation

Federal officials provide no clear justification for unprecedented airspace closure affecting nearly 700,000 residents in major border city.

The fight to keep ICE from reopening a notorious prison

Survivors of abuse at a shuttered federal prison known as “the rape club” are teaming up with local activists to keep ICE out of Northern California.