Construction crews were seen demolishing large parts of the the East Wing at the White House this week. The work is in preparation for the construction of Trump’s new ballroom. Dan Diamond, White House reporter at the Washington Post, joins to discuss how the president moved ahead on the project with no prior approval. Soybeans have become a central part of the tariff dispute between China and the U.S. The Wall Street Journal’s Patrick Thomas breaks down how American farmers are affected. Democrat Adelita Grijalva, daughter of the late congressman Raúl Grijalva, won a special election to take her father’s old seat but so far hasn’t been sworn in. Axios reports on how Democrats are increasing the pressure on House Speaker Mike Johnson to seat her. ABC News also reports that Arizona officials are suing to have her sworn in. Plus, why Trump sanctioned Russian oil companies, the U.S. carried out another boat strike in waters off of South America, and how mosquitoes showed up in Iceland. Today’s episode was hosted by Shumita Basu.

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“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.