Monday, July 21, 2025
All civic learning topics for this day
Today's Topics
US plans to eliminate climate action from 2026 G20 agenda
Reuters reported July 21, 2025, that Trump administration officials plan to remove climate change and development aid from the G20 agenda when the U.S. assumes presidency in 2026, pursuing "back to basics" economics instead. European Council President Charles Michel threatened to organize a parallel climate summit excluding America if Washington abandons two decades of cooperation.
Harvard fights Trump over $2 billion in frozen research funding
Harvard University President Alan Garber faced off in federal court July 21, 2025, against Trump officials who froze $2 billion in research grants affecting 47 cancer trials and 10,000 patients. Education Secretary Linda McMahon justified the freeze as reviewing "woke research," while Harvard lawyers argued the action violates First Amendment protections for academic speech.
DNI Director Gabbard falsely accuses Obama of treason for 2016 election
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard released classified reports July 21, 2025, challenging the intelligence community's unanimous 2016 assessment that Russia interfered in the election to help Trump defeat Hillary Clinton. CIA Director John Ratcliffe joined Gabbard in declassifying documents that career intelligence officers warn cherry-pick data to support predetermined conclusions.
Democrats push cosmetics safety bill as industry hides cancer-causing chemicals
Representatives Jan Schakowsky and Frank Pallone reintroduced the Safer Beauty Bill Package July 21, 2025, requiring the $90 billion cosmetics industry to disclose toxic ingredients and ban cancer-causing chemicals. Industry lobbyists spent $50 million defeating similar legislation while one in eight beauty products contains substances banned in Europe for causing birth defects.
Trump urges attorney general to release sealed Epstein jury files
Former President Trump on July 20, 2025, directed Attorney General Pamela Bondi to file a federal court petition to unseal ‘pertinent’ Jeffrey Epstein grand jury testimony after the Wall Street Journal published an alleged letter. He denied the letter’s authenticity and threatened legal action.
Senator Booker storms out of confirmation hearing over transparency
Senator Cory Booker led a Democratic walkout in the Senate Judiciary Committee on July 20, 2025, after Republicans advanced Emil Bove’s appeals court nomination without whistleblower testimony. The move delayed the nomination vote and highlighted concerns over transparency in judicial confirmations.
Banks warn digital currencies could drain $3 trillion in deposits
Traditional banks and the Federal Reserve on July 18, 2025, warned that U.S. dollar–pegged stablecoins like Circle and Tether could siphon off more than $3 trillion in customer deposits, undermining lending models and stressing insurance frameworks. They cautioned that the GENIUS Act’s reserve rules may give nonbanks an upper hand in liquidity access.
Senate merges foreign aid agency into State Department, cuts PBS
The Senate passed the rescissions bill 51–48 on July 19, eliminating $1.1 billion for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and folding USAID into the State Department. Senators Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski joined Democrats in opposing the media cuts. President Trump praised the vote as a win for fiscal discipline.
Justice Department demands immigrant jail records from all states
On July 20, the DOJ gave California sheriffs 30 days to hand over names, charges, and release dates of all noncitizen inmates. AG Pamela Bondi said the timeline enforces federal immigration law against state sanctuary statutes. Los Angeles and San Francisco sheriffs pushed back, citing privacy and state protections.