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On Friday, law enforcement authorities announced the arrest of a 22-year-old for the shooting death of Charlie Kirk. 

Kirk, a Trump ally and the co-founder of Turning Point USA, died after being shot at an event at Utah Valley University. He was speaking to a large crowd at an outdoor “Prove Me Wrong” debate, where he invited students to challenge his political and cultural views. 

At a press conference, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox asked Americans to consider what happens from here – an escalation or an off ramp.

Kirk’s killing is the latest in a spate of rising political violence across the country. A Minnesota state legislator was murdered in her home in June. The Pennsylvania governor’s house was set on fire in April. And last year on the campaign trail, Donald Trump faced two assassination attempts.

Experts who study political violence say the frequency and seriousness is increasing significantly. So, how did we get here. And is it possible to pull back? We examine the effect political violence has on the health of our democracy.

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Republican provocateur and online personality Charlie Kirk was shot and killed while hosting an event at Utah Valley University this week. Despite authorities searching for the person responsible, no suspects are in custody.

Donald Trump’s takeover of the Washington D.C. police department expired Thursday evening. Trump signaled that he would seek an extension, but that desire has reportedly cooled.

Meanwhile, in an attempt to harm Hamas, Israel bombed the Qatari capital of Doha this week. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signaled that he and his forces are prepared to do so again despite a rare condemnation of Israeli military strategy by the U.S.

Poland invoked NATO’s Article 4 this week after Russian drones entered its airspace, leading to consultations between representatives of the alliances member nations.

France’s government has collapsed again. Now, President Emmanuel Macron has appointed outgoing defense minister Sébastien Lecornu as the country’s next prime minister.

We get into all this and more during this week’s News Roundup.

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The nation’s patchwork system of abortion laws is once again being challenged.

This time, opponents are targeting telehealth abortions. That’s when a provider in a state where abortion is legal meets virtually with a patient and sends them pills to take at home.

Those patients come from states all over the country – even those with abortion bans. A quarter of all abortions in the U.S. are done via telehealth. That’s according to a June report from the Society of Family Planning.

Now, attorneys general in Texas and Louisiana are suing a doctor in New York for prescribing pills to patients in their states, where abortion is almost completely banned. New York is one of several states that’s enacted shield laws after Roe was overturned. These statutes ban cooperation with other states’ attempts to enforce abortion bans.

Now that this has evolved into a battle between states, the Supreme Court is expected to weigh in soon. Their decision could drastically change access to abortion nationwide.

So, what’s at stake in this case? And how did states’ rights become the latest flashpoint in the battle over abortion access?

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What’s behind Donald Trump’s ongoing battle with the Federal Reserve? That’s the question on some analysts minds as the White House proposes staff shakeups at the historically independent central bank.

Trump has been attempting to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook since Aug. 25. Cook was nominated by Joe Biden and confirmed by the Senate in 2022.

The administration is attempting to fire her based on allegations that she committed mortgage fraud before joining the Fed – that’s despite the fact that she hasn’t been convicted or charged with any crime.

On Tuesday night, a federal judge temporarily blocked the president from removing Cook from the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors. She’ll continue to serve as she contests her dismissal.

The Fed has operated independently since its inception more than a century ago. How do the Trump administration’s proposed changes threaten that independence? And what effect could changes at the Fed have on the U.S. economy?

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President Donald Trump has tested the limits of the law since the day he took office at the start his second term.

This includes signing an executive order to end birthright citizenship, terminating or freezing billions of dollars in federal funding, and enacting sweeping tariffs on foreign goods without congressional approval.

But these actions have not been met with silence.

Over the last eight months, hundreds of lawsuits have been filed by state attorneys, physicians, media organizations, international students, and others to challenge the Trump administration’s policies.

We check in on major lawsuits against the administration. Where do they stand now? What do they mean for our country’s system of checks and balances?

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In recent weeks, we’ve seen a seismic shakeup inside the Department of Health and Human Services and unprecedented discord between the agency, scientists, and doctors.

HHS Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr. is bucking the science-backed guidance of physicians on vaccines. That’s angered some Democrats. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren went after Kennedy over his pseudoscientific approach to running the agency during a Senate hearing Thursday.

So, what happens when political ideology outweighs medical consensus?

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Jobs numbers are out. They indicate a stalling labor market, with U.S. employers adding just 22,000 jobs in August and unemployment rising to 4.3 percent.

After rumors about the president’s supposedly failing health swirled online last weekend, Donald Trump appeared in public at a press conference this week announcing the relocation of the Space Force headquarters from Colorado to Alabama.

Florida announced this week that it’s set to become the first state in the U.S. to end vaccine mandates in schools, including for young children.

The leaders of China, India, Russia met this week in a display of friendship meant to signal unity to the world. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Chinese President Xi Jinping convened in China for a summit of powers not aligned with the West.

Meanwhile, Putin told officials in Kyiv he was willing to try and negotiate the end the war in Ukraine should “common sense prevail.” However, he also threatened that he was prepared to continue should he not find terms agreeable.

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Every August, New York City becomes the headquarters for all things tennis thanks to the U.S. Open.And a lot has happened for the sport in the Big Apple.

This year marks 75 since Althea Gibson broke the tennis color barrier at the tournament.

So, ahead of the finals this weekend, we sit down with a panel of experts to talk about the biggest takeaways from this year’s event and the future of the sport.

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A 6.0 earthquake hit Afghanistan on Sunday night leaving more than 1,400 dead and at least 3,000 injured.

Rescue crews struggled to reach affected villages in remote areas of the country’s Kunar Province as powerful aftershocks continued to rattle the area.

All of this is happening in a country already reeling from deep cuts to aid funding, a struggling economy, and an influx of millions of Afghans forcibly returned from Iran and Pakistan.

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Congress returned to the Capitol on Tuesday after their month-long summer break. They’re already in a time crunch.

Lawmakers have around four weeks – or around just 14 legislative days – to pass a spending measure and avoid a government shutdown before Sept. 30.

Tensions between Republicans and Democrats are high. After the passages of President Donald Trump’s spending and rescission bills, Democrats say they are ready for a fight. But the potential for being blamed for a government shutdown also puts them in a tough spot.

On Tuesday, House Speaker Mike Johnson said the ball is in the Democrats’ court, but will Republicans play ball at all?

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