Category: News

Miami judge rules federal noncitizen voting law violates US Constitution

Judge Leibowitz’s decision underscores state jurisdiction over voter qualifications, limiting federal actions.

Published On 2 Oct 2026

A United States federal judge has ruled that a law criminalising voting by noncitizens is unconstitutional, dealing a setback for President Donald Trump’s administration as it cracks down on alleged election fraud ahead of November’s midterm elections.

US District Judge David Leibowitz in Miami dismissed a federal case on Thursday against Chelsea Cox, a Florida resident originally from Jamaica who had been charged in October 2025 with illegally voting in the 2020 presidential election.

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Leibowitz, who was nominated to the bench by former Democratic President Joe Biden, found that under the US Constitution, only individual states, not the US Congress, have the authority to set voter qualifications.

Since every state already requires US citizenship to vote, he wrote, it is up to Florida, not the Department of Justice, to prosecute Cox for breaking that rule. “Florida can and does,” he wrote, noting the state already has its own laws against the conduct Cox is accused of.

The ruling applies only to Cox’s case and it does not bind judges elsewhere, though about 45 similar cases remain pending nationwide. At least four other defendants have raised the same constitutional challenge.

Court filings show Cox entered the US as a tourist in 1999, overstayed her visa, and later used a fraudulent birth certificate from the US Virgin Islands, a US territory in the Caribbean, to obtain a Florida driver’s licence and register to vote in 2012.

Trump has falsely claimed that noncitizen voting, which is already illegal and rare, cost him the 2020 election, and has cast it as part of a broader effort by Democrats to dilute Republican support.

The Department of Justice has charged at least 60 people with the offence since Trump returned to office in January 2025.

Among 129 people charged with “voting by an alien” since 2021, none was accused of conspiring to sway an election, backing a candidate, or being paid to vote, according to Reuters. Most were found to be lawful permanent residents who had registered by mistake or on the incorrect advice of an election worker or government clerk.

Cox’s lawyer, Bruce Udolf, welcomed the ruling and said he hoped authorities would not now seek to deport her, citing her declining health conditions.

October 3, 2026
New aircraft carrier, 10,000 US troops: Is the Iran war about to escalate?

The United States is deploying a third aircraft carrier strike group to waters in the Middle East close to Iran, a US official has told Al Jazeera, as the war enters its eighth month and both sides weigh escalation and diplomatic engagement.

Thousands more troops are also on their way to the region, just a month before November US midterm elections, which could see US President Donald Trump’s Republican Party hit hard by his handling of the war, which is deeply unpopular in the US.

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We look at what the latest troop deployment means and whether it signals a coming escalation in the war on Iran:

What troops and military equipment have been deployed?

A US official told Al Jazeera that the USS Theodore Roosevelt carrier strike group left its San Diego base on Sunday, bound for the region, followed a day later by the Makin Island Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), which is carrying more than 2,000 Marines.

The Wall Street Journal reported that the strike group and naval deployments could involve an additional 9,000 to 10,000 US troops in total, including sailors and Marines assigned to the carrier strike group and other ships.

By the end of November, the official said, three aircraft carriers and two amphibious landing groups will be positioned near Iran.

The official said the concentration of force would hand President Donald Trump a wider menu of options if he decides to act.

Al Jazeera’s Tanya Noury, reporting from Washington, said the new deployment, which includes F-35 fighter jets, will add to the roughly 50,000 US service members already stationed in the region.

The goal, Noury said, quoting sources inside the Pentagon and White House, is to keep military options “on the table” for Trump regardless of how diplomacy unfolds. The Pentagon is not currently planning to withdraw any assets even if an agreement with Iran is reached.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said forces are “ready to go” should Trump order new attacks.

What forces does the US already have in the Middle East?

The US has stationed troops and military assets at bases in the Middle East for decades.

According to the Council on Foreign Relations, the US operates from a broad network of military sites, both permanent and temporary, across at least 19 locations in the region.

Of these, eight are permanent bases, located in Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

The US’s first deployment of soldiers in the Middle East took place in July 1958, when combat troops were sent to Beirut during the Lebanon crisis. At its height, there were almost 15,000 Marines and soldiers in Lebanon.

As of mid-2025, there were 40,000 to 50,000 US soldiers stationed around the Middle East, comprising personnel stationed in both large, permanent bases and smaller forward sites across the region.

Trump has been beefing up the US military presence in the Middle East since the start of this year, initially sending warships, including the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier, to the Arabian Sea.

What military assets and troops did the US send ahead of the war?

According to open source intelligence analysts and military flight-tracking data, the US has deployed more than 120 aircraft to the region since early February. This is the biggest surge in US airpower in the Middle East since the 2003 Iraq War.

Reported deployments include E-3 Sentry Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft, F-35 stealth strike fighters and F-22 air superiority jets alongside F-15 and F-16 fighter aircraft. Flight-tracking data showed many of these planes departing bases in the US and Europe, supported by cargo aircraft and aerial refuelling tankers, a sign of sustained operational planning rather than routine rotations, military analysts said.

In March, the Pentagon also ordered additional US forces to the Gulf.

The reinforcements consisted of three distinct formations, each with a different origin, route and timeline.

The first was the Tripoli Amphibious Ready Group, centred around the America-class assault ship USS Tripoli and the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU).

The second was the Boxer Amphibious Ready Group, built around the Wasp-class assault ship USS Boxer and the 11th MEU, based in Southern California in the US.

Together, these two Marine groups have added 4,500 Marines and sailors in the region.

The third was a contingent of about 2,000 soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division’s Immediate Response Force, based at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. The airborne infantry division is focused on parachute assaults.

In total, nearly 7,000 additional soldiers have already been deployed to the Middle East since the war on Iran began.

What does the latest deployment signal?

While it is not clear if the new troop deployment signals an escalation in the war, in an interview with Time magazine published on Thursday, Trump suggested that it is “possible” he could ramp up bombing Iran after the midterm elections.

When asked by Time for further details, Trump said: “I can’t tell you that because look, you know, you’re asking, where are you going to bomb?”

Some analysts have suggested that sending more troops to the region could be Washington’s negotiating technique with Iran.

Last week, Iran sent a new proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within seven days, subject to certain conditions it wants the US to meet, including the lifting of sanctions, unfreezing Iranian assets and guaranteeing an end to strikes.

However, the Trump administration rejected the proposal. Analysts say the US wants other issues, such as Iran’s nuclear programme, to be discussed before it agrees to any terms.

In his Time interview, Trump said that he had rejected the latest ceasefire proposal from Iran because it included “things” he “wouldn’t have approved a year ago” and “wouldn’t have today”.

Washington has paired the show of force towards Iran with economic pressure, sanctioning Iran’s rail and automotive conglomerates this week, as the Treasury Department called the new measures an effort to drain what remains of Tehran’s revenue. Last month, the US unveiled sweeping new sanctions on Iran, as well as on other countries which trade with it.

What stage are diplomatic efforts at?

Indirect peace talks conducted between the US and Iran via mediators have been continuing without any breakthroughs.

At talks held on the sidelines of the United National General Assembly (UNGA) in New York last month and mediated by Qatar, the opening of the Strait of Hormuz remained a sticky subject.

At the talks, Iran pushed a seven-day roadmap, conveyed through Qatar, that would see it reopen the Strait of Hormuz and resume nuclear talks in exchange for an end to the US naval blockade, sanctions relief and a regional ceasefire covering Lebanon and Yemen.

The plan was rejected by Trump.

US ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz told NBC the plan’s demand for frozen funds and sanctions relief was non-negotiable, noting “these aren’t just the United States’ sanctions … these are global sanctions”, and pointing to seven UN Security Council resolutions against an Iranian nuclear weapons programme.

In response, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told NBC that Tehran was “fully prepared” to resume the war, before writing on X that “we did not come to New York to sell a war. We came to forge peace.”

Late on Thursday, Trump warned Iran that the current confrontation will end “very soon”, threatening severe consequences if Tehran fails to reach a deal with Washington.

Speaking at a Peterbilt Motors plant in Denton, Texas, Trump said Iran will either “do something very proper and smart, or they won’t be around very long”.

He also questioned whether Iran can be trusted to honour any agreement, saying: “When I make a deal with this company, you’re going to honour it. When you make a deal with them, it’s very possible that they won’t honour it.”

October 3, 2026
Kennedy Center Honors To Move To D.C.’s Capital One Arena Amid Closure Of Arts Complex

The Kennedy Center Honors will move to a new location for the first time in its history, as it will be held at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.

The ceremony will take place at the new venue on December 7, a center spokesperson said. The honorees have not been announced, and a broadcast partner will be announced at a later date. The event’s contract with CBS, which broadcast the event since its origin in 1978, expired last year.

The Kennedy Center’s main building, where the honors have been held, is currently closed amid an assessment for safety risks, officials with the complex have told a federal judge.

Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-OH), an ex officio member of the board, sued the center earlier this year over its plans to close the complex for two years for a large-scale renovation. She also challenged the board’s decision to add Donald Trump‘s name to the center.

A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction ruling that only Congress could add another name to the center, and ordering that the president’s name be taken down from its façade and other materials. He later rejected the board’s plans to add Trump’s name to the façade in other ways. The judge also prohibited the center from closing for two years unless the board more fully weighed its impact. The center has said that the recent closure is temporary, with safety risks being assessed on a week-to-week basis following the recent collapse of part of the ceiling.

The December 7 date is the traditional weekend for the ceremonies. Trump hosted the event last year, with honorees including Sylvester Stallone and George Strait. At the time, its then-president, Ric Grenell, said the ceremony had raised $23 million.

But the finances of the center have deteriorated. Its attorneys from the Justice Department warned last month that it was facing “certain financial collapse within weeks” and that adding Trump’s name to the complex may be the only way to get him to “lead the financial rescue of the center.” The attorneys later told an appeals court that Trump had raised $17 million “to keep it afloat.”

The attorneys wrote that “the funds are fast being expended, and without the Trump Administration, the accounts will dry up and Center will continue its deterioration into an unsafe structure that will eventually collapse, with a determination to follow on how to proceed and what to do with the site.”

Since Trump took over the center and ousted board members appointed by his predecessors, the center has seen a drop in ticket sales, while artists have canceled performances. The Washington Post and CNN have recently done deep dives on the dire state of Kennedy Center finances. Major shows ended in July, which had been the original time frame for when Trump and the center planned for the long-term closure for renovations.

October 3, 2026
Did water levels at Yellowstone Lake drop 11 feet overnight?

Claim:

Water levels at Yellowstone Lake in Wyoming dropped 11 feet between Sept. 26 and 27, 2026.

Rating:

In September 2026, a rumor (archived) circulated online that water levels in Wyoming’s Yellowstone Lake dropped 11 feet between Sept. 26 and 27.

For example, a Facebook user wrote on Sept. 29:

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK – Scientists are investigating after portions of Yellowstone Lake reportedly dropped nearly 11 feet overnight when an unknown underground channel opened beneath the lake bed.

Rangers first noticed the change Sunday morning after several docks were found sitting completely above the waterline. Geologists believe shifting rock beneath the lake may have opened a previously sealed underground passage, allowing millions of gallons of water to drain into Yellowstone’s extensive subterranean geological system.

The rumor also spread on X and Threads (archived, archived).

The rumor originated from the Facebook page Casper Planet, which described its content as satire. The page’s About section read, “Snews that doesn’t matter directly to your Snews feed. Did we say this is satire? Well it is, names/locations are made up.”

In addition to Casper Planet’s own declaration of the satirical nature of its content, we found no reporting from reputable sources on Google, Yahoo or DuckDuckGo (archived, archived, archived) that supported the Facebook page’s claim about Yellowstone or cited the “geologist Dr. Aaron Keller” who featured in Casper Planet’s post.

The image that Casper Planet used to illustrate the satirical story was fake. The highly regarded Pangram artificial intelligence detection tool found the image to be “fully AI.” Open AI’s Verify scanner found that someone had generated the image using Open AI’s tools.

Though Casper Planet did note on its page that its content was satire, it did not say so on the actual post. Shares of Casper Planet’s posts on X and Threads contained no indications (aside from the nature of the content) that the story was satire.

The United States Geological Survey’s water level readings from the Yellowstone River at its inlet into Lake Yellowstone did not show an 11-foot drop in water levels between Sept. 26 and 27. The USGS found that water levels between 9 a.m. on Sept. 26 and 9 a.m. on Sept. 27 varied by inches, not feet.

Snopes has previously investigated other satire claims shared by Casper Planet, including whether an ancient city appeared under Wyoming’s Horse Peak Mountain or whether Wyoming wolves mauled a Colorado man who tried to join their pack.

Since the effectiveness of satire is subjective, we use “originated as satire” or “labeled satire” ratings based on creators’ description of their work. It’s your call on whether you agree.

October 2, 2026
Are Texas Muslims ordering businesses to remove haram products within 30 days? Here’s the truth

Claim:

In September 2026, social media posts accurately reported that Muslims in Texas are ordering business owners to stop selling haram products — products that Islamic religious law prohibits — within 30 days.

Rating:

What’s True

One imam in Houston has been videoed with some of his supporters calling for Muslim business owners to stop selling haram products, like pork, alcohol and lottery tickets, that are prohibited under Islamic religious law.

What’s False

As far as Snopes could tell, the request was coming from one individual imam and is not a coordinated or widespread movement. The imam’s messaging is directed toward Muslim business owners, not all business owners, and is framed as a request rather than an order. No such wider order has been issued.

Context

Under the First Amendment, all American have the right to freedom of speech and freedom of religion.

In September 2026, a claim spread online that Muslims in Texas are ordering local businesses to stop selling products Islam considers “haram” (forbidden), such as pork, alcohol and lottery tickets, within 30 days.

Multiple Facebook users posted similar captions saying Muslims have “taken to the streets in Houston” and other Texas cities, going “store to store” issuing “threats” of protests or more “if there’s a continued noncompliance” (archived, archived).

Snopes readers searched our site and contacted us looking for more information regarding the rumor.

In short, the claim is exaggerated.

Footage does show one Houston imam, Qasim ibn Ali Khan, protesting with signs and asking Muslim convenience store owners to stop selling products deemed haram. One video posted on Khan’s TikTok account in May 2025 (screenshotted), that features no signs of being generated using artificial intelligence, shows him telling employees at two Houston convenience stores that he planned to demonstrate if the staff did not remove haram products within 30 days. He did not specify where he planned to hold such demonstrations, only saying they would take place “around the city.” Therefore, there is an element of truth to the claim.

@imam.qasim.khan #CapCut #haram #harampolice ♬ original sound – MASJID AT-TAWHID HTX

Khan posted a follow-up video in July 2025 (screenshotted) showing him and his supporters protesting outside one of the convenience stores that features in the May 2025 clip.

It was not possible to determine whether the stores removed their haram products.

@imam.qasim.khan #CapCut #haram #trending ♬ original sound – MASJID AT-TAWHID HTX

Similarly, it was not possible to find evidence of an “order” being issued — Khan specifically says in first the recording that he has no power to enforce his request — nor evidence of a coordinated, widespread movement to get businesses to stop selling haram products. Furthermore, Khan’s rhetoric in the video shows he was making a request of specifically Muslim-owned businesses.

As such, we rate the claim mostly false.

Snopes attempted to contact Khan for comment, but got no response. We will update this article if we hear back.

Forbidden products across religions

Each of the world’s religions, and the denominations within them, have different interpretations of religious law.

Using dietary restrictions as an example, Christian denominations rarely impose restrictions on what people can eat, though some practice abstinence from drinking alcohol. Hinduism promotes, but does not mandate, vegetarianism; Jainism requires vegetarianism, among other restrictions; observant Jews must follow kosher; and Islamic dietary law requires Muslims to not drink alcohol or consume pork.

As stated above, the grouping of forbidden practices in Islam is called “haram.” In contrast, approved practices are called “halal,” which is why some food products have a halal mark.

Texas Republicans, Islam and the First Amendment

Ahead of the 2026 U.S. midterm elections, Republicans in Texas have made the idea that Muslims wish to implement Shariah law (Islamic religious law) in the United States a talking point in their campaigns.

(It should be noted: the phrase Shariah law can be interpreted in various ways to mean different things. In this case, Republicans appear to mean fundamentalist Shariah law, the strictest form, which applies Shariah principles to all matters of justice).

On Sept. 6, 2026, Amy Mekelburg — who is known for posting anti-Muslim videos online and who founded an organization the Southern Poverty Law Center considers an anti-Muslim hate group — posted one of Khan’s TikTok videos to X. The footage shows Khan speaking outside a purportedly Muslim-owned convenience store. It’s likely this is the origin of the claim that Muslims were ordering a ban on haram products.

In the clip, Khan says he asked the store to stop selling products deemed haram and that Muslim merchants should have “a higher standard,” but he also states that he and his followers have no authority to force anyone to stop selling haram products:

We can’t stop them, of course, this is the United States of America, and people have the freedom to sell what they want, as long as they’re supported by the United States government.

Khan is correct — the First Amendment guarantees both freedom of speech and freedom of religion. As Texas Gov. Greg Abbott reportedly said during a September bill signing, according to the Texas Council for American-Islamic Relations, “Texas law and Texas courts govern those businesses and those neighborhoods. No ranting imam can change that.”

In the video, Khan also says his request is being made specifically to Muslim business owners, not all businesses, as suggested in the social media posts spreading the claim in question:

Of course, you have the right to sell what you want, but as a Muslim, you should have higher principles, higher code of ethics that are supported by the Quran and the Sunnah [teachings] of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him.

Despite thorough searches, it was not possible to find evidence of a widespread campaign making similar requests to businesses, Muslim-owned or otherwise.

Sources

“Anti-Muslim.” Southern Poverty Law Center, https://www.splcenter.org/resources/extremist-files/anti-muslim/. Accessed 30 Sept. 2026.

‘Are Jains Vegan? What Do Jain Scriptures Say About Dairy?’ Arihanta Institute, https://www.arihantainstitute.org/blog/www.arihantainstitute.org/blog/47-are-jains-vegan-what-do-jain-scriptures-say-about-dairy. Accessed 1 Oct. 2026.

Ashby, Ellie. “Muslims Push Back on Texas GOP’s Sharia Law Attacks.” The Texas Tribune, 31 Aug. 2026, https://www.texastribune.org/2026/08/31/texas-sharia-muslims-islam-republican-party/.

CHRISTIANITY | Food in Catholicism | The Religious Affairs Office | Ajuntament de Barcelona. https://ajuntament.barcelona.cat/oficina-afers-religiosos/en/blog/christianity-food-catholicism. Accessed 1 Oct. 2026.

Dyer, Meridith. “Islam in Texas: Lawmakers on Both Sides Speak Out.” The Texan, 23 Sept. 2026, https://thetexan.news/issues/social-issues-life-family/islam-in-texas-lawmakers-on-both-sides-speak-out/article_894e4465-080f-41c6-90f6-f5709231e669.html.

‘Fasting Guidelines’. Holy Protection Orthodox Church, https://www.holyorthodox.org/fastingguidelines.html. Accessed 1 Oct. 2026.

‘Food and Drink’. Christianity, https://www.christianity.org.uk/article/food-and-drink. Accessed 1 Oct. 2026.

Governor Abbott Designates Muslim Brotherhood, CAIR As Foreign Terrorist Organizations. https://gov.texas.gov/news/post/governor-abbott-designates-muslim-brotherhood-cair-as-foreign-terrorist-organizations. Accessed 30 Sept. 2026.

Governor Abbott Signs Law Banning Sharia Compounds In Texas. https://gov.texas.gov/news/post/governor-abbott-signs-law-banning-sharia-compounds-in-texas. Accessed 30 Sept. 2026.

Greg Abbott Calls out Houston Imam as GOP Goes All in on Targeting Sharia Law – CAIR-Texas. https://cairtx.org/project/greg-abbott-calls-out-houston-imam-as-gop-goes-all-in-on-targeting-sharia-law/. Accessed 30 Sept. 2026.

“Islamophobic Far-Right Activists among Wave of Newly Verified Twitter Users.” Middle East Eye, https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/islamophobic-far-right-activists-among-wave-newly-verified-twitter-users. Accessed 30 Sept. 2026.

Katariya, Ayona. “Vegetarianism and Veganism in Jainism.” Samyak: An Undergraduate Journal of Jain Studies, vol. 1, no. 1, Sept. 2025, pp. 35–36. journals.library.unt.edu, https://doi.org/10.12794/journals.sujjs.v1i1.293.

McDermott, Mat. “4 Things About Hinduism and Vegetarianism.” Hindu American Foundation, 29 Sept. 2017, https://www.hinduamerican.org/blog/4-things-about-hinduism-and-vegetarianism/.

‘Our Founder’. RAIR, https://rairfoundation.com/our-founder/. Accessed 1 Oct. 2026.

Team, Halal Foundation Editorial. “What Is Halal? What Halal Exactly Means.” American Halal Foundation, 20 Jan. 2025, https://halalfoundation.org/what-is-halal/.

TikTok – Make Your Day. https://www.tiktok.com/@imam.qasim.khan/video/7506968365202738463. Accessed 1 Oct. 2026.

TikTok – Make Your Day. https://www.tiktok.com/@imam.qasim.khan/video/7523730868842548511. Accessed 1 Oct. 2026.

“Unmasked Anti-Muslim Troll Amy Mekelburg Connected to Chris Gaubatz.” Southern Poverty Law Center, 12 June 2018, https://www.splcenter.org/resources/hatewatch/unmasked-anti-muslim-troll-amy-mekelburg-connected-chris-gaubatz/.

“What Is Kosher Food? What Does Kosher Mean? OU Kosher Rules & Definition.” OU Kosher Certification, https://oukosher.org/the-kosher-primer/. Accessed 30 Sept. 2026.

Wilson, Michael. “Cruz, Abbott Slam Houston Imam’s Call for Boycotts Over Pork and Alcohol.” Texas Scorecard, 9 Sept. 2025, https://texasscorecard.com/local/cruz-abbott-slam-houston-imams-call-for-boycotts-over-pork-and-alcohol/.

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/republican-campaigns-target-muslims-in-texas. Accessed 30 Sept. 2026.

October 2, 2026
ICC ends contract with French insurer amid US sanctions threat

ICC and Axa terminate agreement amid mounting US criticism and looming financial restrictions on the court, FT reports.

Published On 1 Oct 2026

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has ended its contract with the French health and life insurer Axa effective immediately and will be moving to use another insurance provider.

The change, which was first reported by the Financial Times on Thursday, comes as United States President Donald Trump ramps up attacks on the Hague-based court.

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Late last month, the Wall Street Journal reported that the White House was preparing sanctions against the ICC amid the court’s call to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The Trump administration has already sanctioned more than a dozen ICC judges and prosecutors, including the ICC president in August.

At last week’s United Nations General Assembly, Trump referred to the ICC as an “evil” and “a rogue institution” and urged countries to leave it. The only country to follow suit is Naoero, a tiny Pacific island nation formerly known as Nauru.

The Trump administration has said that the ICC oversteps its authority by claiming jurisdiction over citizens of countries, including the US and Israel, that have not ratified its founding treaty, known as the Rome Statute.

The ICC said sanctions could prohibit it from conducting transactions involving the US dollar, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Axa and the ICC expressed concern that the looming sanctions would force the Paris-based insurer to stop doing business with the court, the Financial Times reported. After months of talks, the two sides were unable to find a solution without using what is called a blocking statute — a legal mechanism designed to protect European firms from the impacts of sanctions imposed by third countries, the report said.

“Axa and the Court have decided by mutual agreement to terminate the contractual relationship,” the ICC spokesperson told Reuters news agency in a statement.

The ICC and Axa did not respond to Al Jazeera’s request for comment.

The Financial Ttimes said that the court would use a new health insurance provider but didn’t specify the firm.

October 2, 2026
Nithya Raman Reaches Out To David Ellison To Make Sure L.A Production & Jobs Return Now That ParaBros Deal Is Done

Leading in polls in the Los Angeles mayor’s race, Nithya Raman went on a charm offensive Thursday with the film and TV industry, and Paramount‘s CEO David Ellison in particular.

“To David Ellison, to his co-CEO, I don’t just want those dollars that you’ve committed to productions to be spent in America — I want them to be spent in Los Angeles,” the two-term councilmember said today at the Bloomberg Screentime conference, which is taking place in her Hollywood district. Raman said that though she was opposed to $111 billion merger of Paramount and Warner Bros Discovery, now that the deal has been approved she has no interest in “relitigating this into eternity.”

As has been the case many times in the past, the home of Hollywood has some unlikely bedfellows when it comes to the bottom line. It is unknown whether Raman has directly reached out to Paramount brass since U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín signed off Tuesday on the antitrust settlement between the Ellison-run company and a dozen state attorneys general. Paramount reps did not respond to Deadline’s request for comment on any communication between the councilmember and the CEO.

Paramount CEO David Ellison

Getty

In full campaign mode, Raman emphasized during today’s panel interview that she will be a “relentless advocate” for uncapping the state’s current $750 million a year film and TV tax incentive program as a further move to get production back to California and L.A. With a room full of execs before her, the spouse of TV comedy scribe Vali Chandrasekaran also reiterated she would “ensure that we had a film office in the mayor’s office that was liaising with other jurisdictions, that was making it as simple to shoot here as possible, as low cost to shoot here as possible, and that work would be established almost immediately.”

To that, with production significantly on the decline over the past six years and more than 50,000 jobs lost, Raman followed the headlines as Ellison and his newly minted co-CEO Ynon Kreiz prepare to meld the two iconic Hollywood companies.

“If I get to be mayor, I want to work with you and ensure and fight as hard as I possibly can to make sure that every single one of those shoots are happening here in Los Angeles,” the candidate said, addressing Ellison and Kreiz directly in absentia. “And I will do everything in my power to make sure that happens.”

Although Raman leads incumbent Mayor Karen Bass by double digits in many polls, the fact is one-third of voters in the City of Angels remain undecided just more than a month before the election. To that, the candidate has to win over a portion of those who voted for ex-The Hills regular Spencer Pratt in the three-way primary earlier this year — and she had a pitch.

“To every voter who voted for Spencer Pratt in the primary who is disappointed that he’s not in this general election, I want to speak directly to you,” Raman said of the Donald Trump ally. “I want to speak directly to them, and to say that I share your frustration with City Hall, and I will work with every molecule of my being to ensure that this city is working for you.”

Among his various post-primary endeavors, former Palisades resident Pratt has been instrumental, by all bipartisan accounts, in the crafting of federal film and TV tax incentive legislation — a bill Raman has said she also supports.

Leaning into her own outsider status, even with years on the L.A. City Council, Raman added, again addressing Pratt voters: “The frustrations that Angelinos have with the direction of our city is warranted. We have, under this mayor’s leadership, we have moved in the wrong direction and and away from actually delivering the kinds of services that we were able to deliver just a few years ago because of fiscal mismanagement under her leadership.”

“So, to those Pratt voters, I just want to say to you, I will do better for you,” she said.

October 2, 2026
U.S. Job Growth Slowed To 29,000 In September, With Slight Dip In Movie And Music Employment

U.S. job growth slowed in September to 29,000, while unemployment ticked up to 4.2%.

Overall, the employment situation was largely unchanged during the month, amid continued concerns over rising prices.

Employment in movies and music dipped slightly, shedding about 200 jobs to 328,500. Employment among broadcasting and content providers fell by 3,000, to 328,100. Industry lobbyists have pointed to job losses in movie and TV production as they press for passage of a 20% federal incentive, with hopes that Congress will take up a bill during the lame duck session.

The figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics are the final monthly release before the midterm elections on Nov. 3.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics also revised previous months’ figures, as is typical. The figures for July were changed downward by 31,000, showing a loss of 10,000 jobs. August’s job numbers, which were surprisingly robust, were revised down by 29,000 jobs, to 133,000.

The biggest gains were in health care, adding 17,000 jobs, while there was a slight growth in construction and manufacturing jobs.

The average hourly earnings rose by 5 cents, or 0.1%, to $37.81. Over the past 12 months, average hourly earnings have risen by 3%.

Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal, called the report “mediocre.” She wrote on X, “The biggest sore spot = wage growth of 3% in past year. That’s a new 5-year low and it’s wiped out entirely by ~3.4% inflation.”

October 2, 2026
US Supreme Court agrees to take up Trump’s ICE detention policy

The case is the latest dispute over US President Donald Trump’s sweeping immigration crackdown.

Published On 1 Oct 2026

The United States Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case focused on the Trump administration’s policy requiring millions of undocumented immigrants to remain in detention while they fight deportation.

The case, accepted on Thursday by the justices, is the latest dispute over US President Donald Trump’s sweeping immigration crackdown to reach the nation’s highest court.

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At issue is whether migrants already living in the US have a legal right to a hearing where a judge can decide whether they should be released on bond from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention while their deportation cases are pending.

In July 2025, the administration introduced new guidance directing federal immigration authorities to detain undocumented immigrants without a bond hearing for the duration of their deportation proceedings, which can last for years.

The new policy, which has divided lower courts, reverses a decades-old interpretation that allowed some immigrants in the US to be released while their cases were pending in immigration court, according to Reuters news agency.

Most US federal appeals courts have ruled that immigrants cannot be detained without a bond hearing. But the 5th and 8th US Circuit Courts of Appeals have found that immigrants accused of illegally entering and remaining in the country must remain detained while their deportation cases proceed.

Trump administration attorneys told the Associated Press the split is “disrupting the orderly administration of immigration law”.

“The result is an unworkable patchwork of inconsistent immigration enforcement, where aliens present without admission are subject to mandatory detention in some circuits but are entitled to bond hearings and often released in others,” the lawyers wrote.

Millions could be affected

The Supreme Court case stems from a 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals ruling involving Ricardo Aparecido Barbosa da Cunha, a Brazilian national who entered the US around 2004 or 2005.

Immigration officers arrested him in September 2025 while he was driving to work in the US state of Massachusetts. He was initially denied a bond hearing under the administration’s policy but was later released on bond, according to court documents cited by Reuters.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which is representing the plaintiffs, told the Associated Press the Trump administration is trying to deny bond hearings for immigrants apprehended within the US rather than limiting the restriction to noncitizens stopped at the border.

“Millions of noncitizens could be affected by the government’s new interpretation,” ACLU attorneys wrote.

The Supreme Court is expected to hear arguments on Monday, when its new term starts.

October 2, 2026
Canada to fast track oil pipeline meant to diversify economy away from US

Carney declared the pipeline a project of national interest, smoothening its way to a single federal regulatory review process.

Published On 1 Oct 2026

Canada will fast track the approval process for a new proposed crude oil export pipeline to its west coast that could generate billions in revenue and boost economic growth, Prime Minister Mark Carney has said.

Carney made the announcement on Thursday to fast-track the pipeline, which is a crucial part of his bid to diversify the economy away from the United States and help lessen the effect of US President Donald Trump’s tariffs.

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Carney said Ottawa is officially listing the Pacific Link pipeline, which had been announced in July, as a project of national interest. That will ensure it proceeds through a single federal regulatory review process. He said Ottawa aimed to complete the process by September 1, 2027.

“A pipeline to the west coast is part of our mission to transform our economy, to double our non-US exports over the next decade … [and] to unlock our full potential as a global energy superpower,” he told reporters in Fort McMurray, hub of Alberta’s tar sands industry.

Ottawa says the 1 million barrel a day project would create 140,000 jobs and generate more than 20 billion Canadian dollars ($14bn) in gross domestic product (GDP) per year and 100 billion Canadian dollars ($70bn) in government revenue by 2060.

Canada currently has just one east-west oil export pipeline in Canada, the 890,000-barrel-per-day Trans Mountain pipeline. An expansion of that pipeline was completed in 2024, but it is already running at capacity.

For years, Canada has sent more than 90 percent of its crude oil exports to the US via pipeline. A new oil export pipeline could make Canada a major global energy supplier, as Asia’s top importers seek oil from outside the Middle East in the wake of the Iran conflict.

Filling the pipeline, however, would require new tar sands expansions of the type no company has undertaken in more than a decade.

The pipeline will be built by government-owned Trans Mountain Corp in coordination with Pembina Pipeline Corp. Alberta estimates it could cost between 35.2 billion Canadian dollars and 43.7 billion Canadian dollars ($24.7bn – $30.7bn).

The majority owners will be the federal government and the government of Alberta. Indigenous communities will be offered a minimum of 10 percent ownership interest.

Previous oil pipeline projects in Canada have faced strong opposition from environmentalists and Indigenous groups, resulting in the cancellation of some projects and leading to cost overruns and construction delays with others.

Alberta separatism

Carney made the announcement alongside Alberta Premier Danielle Smith in Fort McMurray in the heart of Canada’s tar sands, a move meant to mend relations with oil-rich Alberta as separatists push for a referendum on leaving Canada.

Alberta is holding a public vote on October 19 on whether to hold a referendum on leaving Canada. Smith has long complained that Carney’s predecessor, Justin Trudeau, hindered Alberta’s energy industry and fuelled separatist sentiment.

Smith said she would vote to keep Alberta in Canada and called the roughly 22 percent support for separation in a recent poll “still too high for my liking”.

“I don’t like the fact that many of our fellow citizens have given up on Canada,” Smith said, adding that the pipeline was an example of how “cooperative federalism can work in action”.

Asked what message Albertans considering separation should take from the announcement, Carney said it demonstrated that “Canada is working” and showed what the country could achieve by acting together.

October 2, 2026