5th Circuit Alien Enemies Win + Inflation Drops to 3.4% Under Trump

The biggest legal story of the day belongs to President Trump and the Alien Enemies Act. The full en banc panel of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals — meaning every judge on the court, not just a three-judge panel — dismissed a major AEA challenge as moot after ruling it had no named petitioners left to grant relief to, since the three Venezuelan plaintiffs had already been deported. That procedural outcome dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction, and Judge James Ho's blistering concurring opinion went further, offering a direct substantive endorsement of the President's authority to invoke the AEA against Tren de Aragua gang members. While district courts have been a patchwork of rulings on this issue, the Fifth Circuit's move is a significant structural win for the administration.

On the economic front, a story that conservative media argues is being buried by mainstream outlets: July inflation came in at 3.4% year-over-year, below expert predictions and down from June's 3.5%. Core inflation — stripping out food and energy — rose just 2.5% annually, which Bloomberg noted matched the slowest pace since March 2021. Gasoline and grocery costs both moderated on the month. The Federal Reserve, which has held rates steady through five straight FOMC meetings, now faces a lower-pressure environment heading into its mid-September decision, with markets pricing in a 55.9% chance of no rate hike, per the CME FedWatch tool. Fed Chair Kevin Warsh addressed the inflation target last month after that fifth consecutive hold.

These two stories — the AEA ruling and the cooling inflation data — reflect the same underlying dynamic: the Trump administration is racking up policy wins that its supporters say a hostile press is either downplaying or ignoring. The DOJ's denaturalization of Moldovan-born Tatiana Power, who helped run a child exploitation ring targeting Eastern European children and distributing content to over 100 countries, fits the same pattern: aggressive enforcement action that cuts against the open-borders narrative. Meanwhile, the Colorado smart thermostat story taps into a parallel anxiety: that "voluntary" participation in government-adjacent utility programs can quietly strip Americans of control over their own homes.

Tomorrow, watch the Dearborn, Michigan flashpoint closely — the August 18 city council meeting is only days away, and the police chief's public plea for residents to stay home signals authorities expect significant confrontation. Also keep an eye on the WNBA's ongoing gender eligibility deliberations; the league punted on a firm ruling and said a decision is still "weeks and months" away, ensuring the controversy will keep burning. And with Karoline Leavitt's departure from the White House press secretary role now confirmed, the jockeying among potential replacements — including Katie Zacharia, Jason Miller, and Anna Kelly — will intensify heading into the weekend.