President Donald Trump on Sunday announced a trade agreement with the European Union that would set tariffs at 15%, ending what had been months of uncertainty surrounding trade with the United States’ largest trade partner.
The tariff rate is a reduction from the 30% that Trump threatened on July 12 and the 20% he said he would impose on April 2.
Announcing the agreement, Trump said the E.U. will not impose a tariff on U.S. imports. He added this agreement was “satisfactory to both sides.”
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Sunday alongside Trump that the pact “will bring stability. It will bring predictability. That’s very important for our businesses on both sides of the Atlantic.”
However, Trump said 50% tariffs on steel would remain unchanged and more tariffs could still be on the way for pharmaceutical products, which Ireland is one of the top sources of. Trump recently threatened 200% tariffs on pharma goods.
‘Meet the Press’
Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., who are working together to push the Trump administration to release federal files related to Jeffrey Epstein, disagreed over whether Trump should pardon Epstein’s longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell.
Massie told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” during a joint interview with Khanna that “whatever they need to do to compel [Maxwell’s] testimony, as long as it’s truthful, I would be in favor of.”
Khanna, on the other hand, said, “No, I don’t” believe that Maxwell should be pardoned or have her sentence commuted and that he is “concerned” that she met with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche last week.
“Look, I agree with Congressman Massie that she should testify, but she’s been indicted twice on perjury. This is why we need the files,” Khanna added.
In a separate interview, Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said he would defer to the president on whether Maxwell should be pardoned, telling moderator Kristen Welker, “That’s not my lane.”
Johnson later added, “If you’re asking my opinion, I think 20 years was a pittance. I think she should have a life sentence at least. I mean, think of all these unspeakable crimes, and as you noted earlier, probably 1,000 victims. I mean, you know, this, this is, it’s, it’s hard to put into words how evil this was.”
Politics in brief
- Close to home: Democrats are planning to make Rep. David Valadao’s support for Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” — and his vote for Medicaid cuts — a focal point of their campaign in a key midterm race.
- Charting old territory: As Texas Republicans plow ahead with a plan to redraw congressional maps ahead of schedule, many governors are increasingly grappling with the issue sooner than expected.
- First up: The Democratic Party shook up its presidential primary schedule in 2024, placing South Carolina out in front. State leaders want to keep it that way in 2028.
- More South Carolina: Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., a member of the Freedom Caucus, announced he is running for governor, looking to succeed GOP Gov. Henry McMaster.
As Israel announces a ‘tactical pause’ in fighting, Sen. Lindsey Graham says there’s no way to negotiate with Hamas
Israel announced it was pausing fighting in some areas of the Gaza Strip to facilitate aid delivery after international outrage swelled in recent days over surging deaths by malnutrition and widespread starvation caused by Israeli restrictions on humanitarian aid.
The announcement issued by the Israel Defense Forces said it would be implementing “humanitarian corridors” for the safe movement of United Nations aid trucks and “humanitarian pauses” in some of Gaza’s most densely populated areas.
Meanwhile, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said in an interview on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” that he believes there is no way for Israel to safely negotiate an end to the war with Hamas and that Israel would take over Gaza, comparing the move to U.S. actions at the end of World War II.
“They’re going to do in Gaza what we did in Tokyo and Berlin, take the place by force and start over again, presenting a better future for the Palestinians, hopefully having the Arabs take over the West Bank and Gaza,” he later added.
How armed gangs are hunting the internet’s high rollers
As the price of bitcoin rises, criminals are increasingly reaching beyond cyberspace, with a growing number of real-life kidnappings aiming to empty people’s crypto wallets.
Crypto-related abductions increased every year since 2019, an NBC News analysis found, with a review of news reports and legal documents identifying 67 incidents of crypto kidnapping in 44 countries involving a target or their family member.
Muhammad Arsalan, a 23-year-old crypto influencer from Pakistan, was forced to surrender $340,000 worth of tether when he was kidnapped and held at gunpoint in December.
“I had no options left. This is my whole life savings. This is all my life’s money,” Arsalan said.
Live and let dye: The race to replace artificial food colorings
Food manufacturers across the U.S., big and small, are facing hurdles as they seek to phase out synthetic food dyes.
Kraft Heinz, Nestle, General Mills and major ice cream makers have all recently vowed to shift to natural coloring amid the Trump administration’s push to eliminate artificial dyes from the country’s food supply, as well as a broader movement by states to ban them because of safety concerns.
The transition presents challenges for food companies in developing reliable, cost-effective natural dyes, which are generally more expensive and difficult to make, requiring higher concentrations to achieve the same hue. The shift has also raised questions about the long-term impact of natural dyes on consumers’ health.
The Texas-based Atkinson Candy Company, which makes the Chick-O-Stick candy bar, is among smaller manufacturers struggling to maintain a distinctive hue while phasing out synthetic food dyes.
“They say in the industry that taste is king, but color is queen,” CEO Eric Atkinson explained. “The queen is very important.”
Notable quote
The director of national intelligence and the White House are lying, again.
Susan Miller,former senior CIA officer
The former senior CIA officer who helped oversee the intelligence assessment on Russia’s interference in the 2016 election told NBC News that Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and the White House are “lying” when they claim that it was an attempt to sabotage Trump.
In case you missed it
- Michigan officials are seeking a terrorism charge in addition to 11 counts of assault with intent to murder against a man who allegedly stabbed nearly a dozen people at a Walmart in what they described as a seemingly random attack.
- The Illinois man who was sentenced to 53 years in prison for the murder of a young Palestinian American boy in a 2023 hate crime died in prison, authorities said.
- Four adults were arrested after being accused of abusing nine children in their home by caging them with plywood under a bunk bed and spraying them in the face with vinegar as a form of punishment, Florida officials said.
- Beyoncé reunited Destiny’s Child for the final “Cowboy Carter” tour date, with Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams appearing onstage in Las Vegas.
- Thailand and Cambodia on Sunday signaled their readiness to negotiate an end to a deadly border dispute following mediation efforts by Trump, who has pressed for ceasefire talks.
- England beat Spain in a penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw to win back-to-back Women’s European Championships.
- Syria will hold parliamentary elections in September, the first to take place under the country’s new authorities after the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad.
- Tadej Pogačar blasted his way to a fourth Tour de France victory, besting rival Jonas Vingegaard by 4:24 across the famed Champs-Élysées finish line.
