The Washington Stand

As global headlines celebrated the release of one prominent Chinese minister, the wife of another pastor is pleading with the world not to forget those still jailed in China. “Zion Church has eight leaders still detained,” said Sister Su Ziming, wife of Pastor Wang Lin, who leads Beijing Zion Church alongside the recently released Pastor Ezra Jin.

When Hollywood announces new film adaptations of classic or well-loved works of literature, alarm bells instantly begin ringing for many conservatives — or even just normal people, honestly. What woke perversions will this rendering of my favorite book portend? How will money-hungry film studios subvert the timeless messages or meanings of this or that foundational text of Western literature?

The degradation within socialist Cuba has taken root and is now bearing fruit. It began with the glorification of revolutionary violence. The state not only executed and tortured thousands of Cubans who held dissenting views but also incited its followers to assault — with clubs and beatings — anyone who rejected the Revolution or its leaders.

The legislation to protect youth under 19 years of age from the experimental, harmful protocol of puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and radical surgeries has already been adopted by many states and is being considered at the federal level. That’s a good start, but it doesn’t safeguard a much larger group — young people in their 20s who are easy prey for surgeons and gender clinics.

A common trope from classic cartoons featured characters sawing off the tree limb on which they were standing. Last month, the United Methodist Church (UMC) tried to pull the same stunt in real life. At a closed-door meeting in Nashville, Tenn. from June 17-18, the UMC University Senate decided to remove Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Ky. and Northeastern Seminary in Rochester, N.Y. from its approved list of seminaries.

Look at the evidence. In his address to the nation on election integrity, President Donald Trump declassified compelling evidence that America’s elections are vulnerable to manipulation, from noncitizens voting to foreign interference. The president argued that the evidence demands action by Congress to protect one of the most sacred rights of American citizens, the right to vote. The principle applies elsewhere. When the evidence is clear, it demands action.

In a primetime address to the nation Thursday night, President Donald Trump revealed major election infrastructure vulnerabilities in the U.S., which have allowed foreign actors to exploit and manipulate American elections for years. “Tonight, I’m announcing the immediate declassification and release of critical intelligence, revealing shocking vulnerabilities in our election infrastructure,” the president announced.

A child’s car seat must meet federal crash-performance standards. Medicines intended for children are assessed with their unique stages of growth and development in mind. Yet a company can place a human-sounding artificial intelligence companion in a child’s pocket without first demonstrating that it will not manipulate the child, foster dependency, displace real relationships, or interfere with healthy development. That disparity should trouble parents, lawmakers, and technology companies alike.

On today’s News Brief: the Trump administration announces a crackdown on fraudulent voting. Meanwhile, smoke from a Canadian wildfire, fills the U.S.

In a seven-minute video posted to X on Tuesday, a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives made a shocking declaration. “This is a message to all of God’s children in our country,” said William Upham. “We must defend ourselves against all enemies. We are at war with evil. This is a war between God and the Antichrist. There is no doubt in my mind that the president of the United States, Donald J. Trump, is the Antichrist.