Friday's Brief News Report, December 5th, 2025

Heres a summary of todays key developments.

Deadly Military Action

The U.S. Department of Defense conducted another lethal strike in the eastern Pacific, directed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, resulting in four fatalities. This marks the 22nd such operation against suspected drug-trafficking vessels reported in recent months under the current administration.

Legal Setback for New York AG

A federal grand jury declined to reindict New York Attorney General Letitia James on mortgage fraud allegations, according to sources familiar with the case.

Supreme Court Decisions

The Supreme Court sided with Texas in an emergency appeal over a congressional map backed by Donald Trump, favoring Republican interests ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

Additionally, the Court agreed to review President Trumps attempt to challenge birthright citizenship, a ruling that could change the longstanding policy granting automatic U.S. citizenship to anyone born in the country.

Inflation Update

The Federal Reserves preferred inflation measure, the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index, showed a 2.8% increase in September compared with last year. The PCE tracks consumer spending on goods and services, covering about two-thirds of national expenditure and a major portion of the economy.

Geopolitical Alert

French President Emmanuel Macron cautioned that the U.S. might be on the verge of betraying Ukraine, according to a leaked transcript of a discussion among European leaders regarding Kyivs protection.

Trump-Appointed Judges Rulings

A federal appeals court ruled that President Trump can remove members of the National Labor Relations Board and the Merit Systems Protection Board at will. This 2-1 decision overturns lower court restrictions that had blocked such removals.

Epstein Case Update

A federal judge in Florida ordered the release of grand jury transcripts from the sex trafficking cases involving Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. The ruling cited a recent federal law that overrides previous restrictions on releasing grand jury proceedings.

Elon Musks Platform Fined

Elon Musks social media platform, X, was fined $140 million by the European Union for breaching the Digital Services Act, which aims to enforce transparency and accountability on major tech platforms.

Oregon Coast Guard Reversal

The U.S. Coast Guard has canceled plans to remove a rescue helicopter from an Oregon fishing and crabbing community after local opposition and a temporary court order halted the decision.

Meta Reduces Metaverse Investment

Meta Platforms is scaling back its metaverse operations after accumulating over $77 billion in losses in the Reality Labs division since 2020, despite CEO Mark Zuckerberg previously branding it as the companys future.

Wishing everyone a safe weekend.

Author: Chloe Ramirez