And the Interesting Thing is on June 9

Los Angeles Protests Stretch into Third Day

Law-enforcement officers fired tear gas and rubber bullets as standoffs with protesters in downtown Los Angeles escalated late Sunday night into Monday morning. Vehicles were set on fire on Sunday, and police accused protesters of using incendiary devices against horse patrols. The unrest temporarily brought the 101 freeway to a halt, and there were scattered reports of looting

LA Police Chief Jim McDonnell said Sunday evening many of the earlier protests around the city had been peaceful, but that conditions deteriorated as people committing vandalism and violence replaced daytime demonstrators. At least 56 people were arrested in Los Angeles over the weekend, police said. Shortly after midnight, LAPD announced that all of downtown Los Angeles had been "declared as an UNLAWFUL ASSEMBLY and ordered everyone to leave the area immediately.

Instead of trying to calm the situation and de-escalate the tension, the president took to social media to offer real time commentary, criticize state and local officials, and to goad officials to call in ‘the troops.” Across several posts, the president suggested that Governor Gavin Newsom (not “Newscum” as the president likes to call him) and LA Mayor Karen Bass should apologize for doing a “horrible job,” referred to protestors as “paid insurrectionists,” encouraged Chief McDonnell “Don’t let these thugs get away with this. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!! and then said “Looking really bad in L.A. BRING IN THE TROOPS!!!”

In an emailed letter released on Sunday afternoon, Newsom formally asked Hegseth to rescind Trump’s order to deploy the National Guard in Los Angeles. "We didn’t have a problem until Trump got involved," Newsom said in the accompanying social media post. "This is a serious breach of state sovereignty — inflaming tensions while pulling resources from where they’re actually needed."

The letter stated that law enforcement resources in Los Angeles County were "sufficient to maintain order," adding that Guard members were deployed without appropriate training or orders, which "risks seriously escalating the situation."

In an interview with MSNBC Sunday night, the governor said that California would sue the Trump administration on Monday over the deployment of the National Guard, describing it as an “unconstitutional act…Commandeering a state’s National Guard without consulting the Governor of that state is illegal and immoral.”

In the same interview, Gov. Newsom challenged Trump’s “border czar,” Tom Homan, to arrest him for speaking out against federal immigration enforcement that sparked the violent protests. Newsom called Homan's bluff to arrest state and local officials who interfered with federal agents on the ground , urging him to "just get it over with" and move ahead with the arrest.

“He’s a tough guy. Why doesn’t he do that? He knows where to find me,” Newsom said. “That kind of bloviating is exhausting. So, Tom, arrest me. Let's go."

And the interesting thing is, the last time a U.S. president deployed the National Guard without a governor's request was on March 20,1965, when President Lyndon Johnson sent troops to Alabama protect civil rights demonstrators during the pivotal march from Selma to Montgomery in support of the Voting Rights Act. This followed the infamous “Bloody Sunday,” the previous month when state and local police attacked peaceful marchers with clubs, attack dogs, and tear gas. State and local police beat the late civil rights leader and U.S. Rep. John Lewis (D-GA), fracturing his skull on live television.

US and Chinese Officials Meet for Tariff Talks in London

A new round of talks aimed at resolving the trade war between the US and China have started today in London.

A senior U.S. delegation including Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer is meeting with a Chinese delegation led by Vice Premier He Lifeng to resolve tensions between the world's two largest economies, which is threatening global growth.

This round of talks follows a direct phone call last week between President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, which Trump described as “very good” and “productive.” Xi, however, used the call to demand that Washington withdraw “negative measures” it had taken against China—signaling Beijing’s frustration with continued U.S. sanctions and export restrictions.

The meeting in London comes little more than two months after Trump’s “liberation day” tariffs unleashed a tit-for-tat escalation in levies between the U.S. and China that soared as high as 145% and led to unprecedented sell-offs in global financial markets.. Last month in Geneva, Secretary Bessent reached a deal that brought US tariffs on Chinese products down to 30%, while Beijing slashed levies on US imports to 10% and promised to lift barriers on critical mineral exports. The agreement provided a 90-day deadline to try to reach a more permanent deal.

But even after the truce in Geneva, tensions between the US and China have remained high, with both sides accusing the other of violating the deal. Partly in response to China maintaining strict curbs on exports of rare earth magnets that have crippled supply chains, the Trump administration suspended sales of jet engines, semiconductors and certain chemicals and machinery to China; in addition to announcing plans to revoke visas for Chinese students studying in the United States. In a May 30 truth social post, the president lashed out at China and accused it of “violating” the Geneva agreement.

China hit back, accusing the U.S. of its own violations, including banning sales of computer chip design software to Chinese companies, warning against using chips made by Chinese tech giant Huawei and cancelling visas for Chinese students.

Trump said on Friday that Xi had agreed to restart trade in rare earth materials.

On Saturday, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce announced that it had approved some applications for rare earth export licenses, although it did not provide details of which countries were involved.

But speaking on Sunday, White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett told CBS News that "those exports of critical minerals have been getting released at a rate that is, you know, higher than it was, but not as high as we believe we agreed to in Geneva".

And the interesting thing is, China’s exports to the U.S. plunged 34% last month—the worst drop off since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, highlighting the stakes for Beijing in today’s meeting.

President’s “Travel Ban” Takes Effect

President Trump's sweeping new travel ban, barring citizens of 12 countries from entering the United States went into effect at midnight.

The executive order, which Trump signed last week, restricts the nationals of Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen from entering the US. Citizens from seven additional countries—Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela—will face partial travel restrictions.

In a video announcing the new order, the president said these "common sense restrictions" would "protect Americans from dangerous foreign actors". He also indicated that the list could be revised if "material improvements" were made, while other countries could be added as "threats emerge around the world".

The president referenced the June 1 terror attack in Boulder, Colorado in which more than a dozen people were injured when a man attacked a group gathering in support of Israeli hostages, throwing two incendiary devices and using a makeshift flamethrower saying that it "underscored the extreme dangers" posed by foreign nationals who had not been "properly vetted." Interestingly enough, the man accused of carrying out the attack has been identified as an Egyptian national Mohamed Sabry Soliman, but Egypt is not included on the list of banned countries.

Also, just two of the 19 countries are on the US government's State Sponsors of Terrorism list—Iran, which has a full ban, and Cuba, which faces partial travel restrictions.

The order does not apply to:

· "Lawful permanent" US residents

· Their immediate family members who hold immigrant visas

· US government employees with Special Immigrant Visas

· Adoptions

· Dual nationals when the individual is not travelling on a passport from one of the affected countries

· Afghan nationals holding Special Immigrant Visas

· Holders of "immigrant visas for ethnic and religious minorities facing persecution in Iran"

· Foreign nationals travelling with certain non-immigrant visas

· Athletes, their teams (including coaches and supporting staff), and their immediate family when travelling for major sporting events, such as the men's football World Cup in 2026 and the Summer 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles

In addition, the US Secretary of State may grant exemptions to individuals on a "case-by-case" basis, if "the individual would serve a United States national interest"

The ban has come under mounting criticism from congressional Democrats and at least one Republican, but the order may be difficult to stop through legal challenges. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said the ban “undermines America’s moral leadership” and “does nothing to make us safer.” Democratic governors from several states have vowed not to assist federal agencies in enforcing the ban, setting the stage for potential legal and political standoffs.

Meanwhile Chad has retaliated by suspending all visas to US citizens, with President Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno saying the country "has its dignity and pride.” Somalia promised to work with the US to address any security issues, with ambassador to the US, Dahir Hassan Abdi, saying his country "values its longstanding relationship" with the US. Venezuela's Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello warned that "being in the United States is a great risk for anyone, not just for Venezuelans.” The African Union, which represents all 55 African nations, urged the United States to “engage in constructive dialogue” and reconsider its policy. The AU emphasized the importance of partnership and mutual respect in addressing global security concerns.

And the interesting thing is, in the opening days of his first term, the president issued an executive order in January 2017 banning travel to the U.S. by citizens of seven predominantly Muslim countries — Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen.

It was one of the most chaotic and confusing moments of his first term, as travelers from the affected nations were either barred from getting on their flights to the U.S. or detained at U.S. airports after they landed. The policy, or least its haphazard execution, was also hugely unpopular. The order, often referred to as the “Muslim ban” or the “travel ban,” was retooled amid legal challenges, until a third version was upheld by a 5-4 Supreme Court vote in June, 2018.

The Week Ahead

This week promises a volatile mix of high-stakes diplomacy, critical economic data, and congressional hearings that could prove interesting. Here’s what I’m keeping an eye on and will cover here throughout the week.

Economic Data in Focus: CPI, PPI & Consumer Sentiment

Investors and policymakers will be closely watching fresh inflation data. On Wednesday, May’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) will be released, which will shape expectations ahead of the Federal Reserve's June 17–18 policy meeting.

Thursday’s Producer Price Index (PPI) and jobless claims data will further insight into price pressures and labor market health.

The president’s tariffs will be a key topic in Friday’s consumer sentiment report, which dropped for four straight months before leveling out in May. Consumer worries that about tariffs and higher inflation sent the closely watched survey to some of its lowest readings since the pandemic.

Also on Friday, Europe and the U.K. will release their own inflation and GDP figures. The global economy remains fragile, with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) recently downgrading 2025 growth expectations to 2.9%, citing trade tensions and rising protectionism.

Capitol Hill

Here’s what’s happening on Capitol Hill this week:

One Big Beautiful Bill

While Senate GOP leadership will continue working to address differences between moderate and conservative factions within the caucus, several committees are expected to release draft text. The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) and Energy committees are expected to release their text on Tuesday; the Agriculture Committee on Wednesday; and the Homeland Security and Judiciary committees on Thursday.

Defense & Budget Hearings

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will testify before the House and Senate Armed Services committees Congress on the fiscal 2026 military budget. Lawmakers are expected to grill Hegseth on his use of non-secure messaging platforms, recent high-profile dismissals of defense officials, and social media posts over the weekend suggesting that he would deploy active-duty military to squash demonstrations in Los Angeles.

House Votes & Legislation

House Republicans will vote on codifying $9.4 billion in budget cuts made by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The cuts target funding for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (NPR & PBS). The vote follows the public feud between President Trump and Elon Musk, who was instrumental in DOGE efforts.

That’s all for today. See you back here again tomorrow!