The federal government rewrote the story of slavery in the middle of last night.
Park Service crews entered Philadelphia’s Independence Park and stripped the memorial to the nine people George Washington enslaved. The new display says they enjoyed “a greater modicum of autonomy” under the man who owned them. A federal judge quoted Orwell when she ordered the original exhibit restored, calling the government’s edits a Ministry of Truth. The government won its appeal, then proved her right.
Autonomy, in the government’s telling, means Washington bought the people he enslaved tickets to the theater and the circus. Rewriting history works best when people doubt first and forget later. Don’t let them turn slavery into a rumor.
I’ve emailed 8,247 stories over 531 straight nights, free and without ads. The algorithm can’t show them all to you. Add your email address at govbrief.today and I will.
🟡108|🚨170|🟢61|🟡91|🟢72
House votes 308-117 to make daylight saving time permanent, sending the Trump-backed Sunshine Protection Act to a Senate where it stalled last year.
Today’s GovBrief News
Rangers evacuate up to 10,000 campers from Minnesota's Boundary Waters as smoke from over 100 Canadian wildfires blankets the Midwest and Northeast.
Source: The Associated Press
July 15, 2026
U.S. fires missiles to disable a tanker running the Iran blockade as Trump threatens to hit Iranian power plants and bridges next week.
Source: CBS News
July 15, 2026
Former Obama White House counsel Kathryn Ruemmler tells House investigators Epstein was a masterful liar who used respectable people to legitimize himself.
Source: CNBC
July 15, 2026
Federal judge blocks State Department from revoking visas and green cards of researchers targeted solely for working in content moderation and disinformation fields.
Source: Ars Technica
July 15, 2026
National Park Service installs panels overnight at Philadelphia's President's House saying Washington's enslaved staff enjoyed autonomy and theater tickets, replacing exhibits on slavery's brutality.
Source: The Philadelphia Inquirer
July 15, 2026
New York Times moves to quash grand jury subpoenas FBI agents served at three reporters' homes demanding they name confidential sources.
Source: The Wall Street Journal [gift link]
July 15, 2026
Defense Secretary Hegseth orders annual testosterone screening for troops 30 and older as the administration pushes wider access to hormone therapy.
Source: NBC News
July 15, 2026
Trump fires the U.S. attorney federal judges appointed in Seattle less than an hour after his swearing-in, without responding to two weeks of outreach.
Source: KOMO Seattle
July 15, 2026
Trump overrules DHS Secretary Mullin's pause on ICE traffic stops one day after it began, following MAGA criticism the shootings response looked weak.
Source: The Independent
July 15, 2026
U.S. Mint will produce $1 coins bearing Trump's face despite a law limiting currency portraits to deceased individuals, Treasury Secretary Bessent announces.
Source: UPI
July 15, 2026
House defeats a $3.3 billion cut to Israel military aid 104-314, with more Democrats voting to end the funding than to keep it.
Source: Roll Call
July 15, 2026
Senate hearings for Trump's attorney general and spy chief nominees turn contentious in one day, spanning the weaponization fund, Epstein redactions, and 2020 election denial.
Source: CNN
July 15, 2026
Trump suggests images of the Iranian girls' school strike that killed 120 children may be AI-generated, months after Pentagon investigators identified a U.S. Tomahawk.
Source: Mediaite
July 15, 2026
Bloomington, Indiana offers neighborhood groups up to $1,000 for resident-led climate projects like community gardens, composting, and solar on shared buildings.
Source: City of Bloomington
July 15, 2026
Federal judge dismisses DOJ's demand for New Mexico voter rolls with Social Security numbers, one of 14 such lawsuits yet to yield any data.
Source: Source New Mexico
July 15, 2026