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Incumbent Governor Kathy Hockul, the Democratic candidate running in the New York State gubernatorial general election to be held on the 3rd of next month, and Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, the Republican candidate, clashed fiercely at the first televised debate held on the 13th. In the debate hosted by NY1 News, the two candidates engaged in a heated exchange with no quarter given over key issues facing New York State, such as immigration policy, where the conflict with the federal government is intensifying, and the issue of responsibility for soaring prices. Challenger Blakeman, who opened the attack first, blamed Governor Hockul for the increases in gas and electricity rates across the state, raising his voice and declaring, “If I win this election, I will immediately implement my pledge to cut electricity rates in half.” In response, Governor Hockul countered, stating, “Energy prices, including gasoline, are skyrocketing due to President Trump’s senseless war against Iran,” and added, “The checks of up to $200 currently being distributed to all taxpayer households in the state are an energy support measure designed to ease the burden of public utility bills for residents.”

He further emphasized the intent of his policy, noting, “The reason for suspending the construction of high-power data centres for one year is also to prevent power shortages and rate hikes.” Governor Hockul then launched a counterattack by appealing to voter sentiments with high antipathy toward President Trump, stating, “Candidate Blakeman is a prominent Trump supporter who even said he wanted to bring Trump’s leadership to the state capital, Albany.” In response, Candidate Blakeman retorted, “Trump is the greatest president of the era I have lived in,” and argued, “The reason Candidate Hockul is clinging to President Trump like this is because he wants to hide his own poor administrative achievements.” He continued to respond strongly, saying, “I consider Dwight D. Eisenhower to be the greatest president of all time, but I am confident that Trump will surpass him during the remainder of his term.” The confrontation over immigration policy was also heated.

Governor Hockul lashed out, stating, “The Federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) plunging New York’s immigrant community into fear is a clear illegal act, and the excessive enforcement by ICE agents deserves condemnation.” On the other hand, Candidate Blakeman countered, “ICE enforcement is conducted only against undocumented immigrants who have committed crimes,” adding that “the state government is artificially restricting cooperation between the federal and local governments, which is immediately having a negative impact on Nassau County’s security and immigration policies.”

An incident occurred in which a heavily intoxicated woman in her 40s from Maryland was caught engaging in lewd behaviour on an airplane, causing significant inconvenience to passengers.

According to local media reports on the 5th, bartender Katie Inger (46) is being investigated for allegedly engaging in lewd behaviour immediately after take-off on an American Airlines flight departing from Baltimore to Miami on the 11th of last month. According to a report by the Miami-Dade County Sheriff’s Office, a passenger complained to a flight attendant that “Ms. Inger took off her pants and was making inappropriate noises while engaging in lewd behaviour.” It is reported that when a flight attendant immediately approached and stopped her, Ms. Inger put her pants back on and fell asleep for the remainder of the flight.

Ms. Inger, who was apprehended by Florida police who were waiting immediately after landing at Miami Airport, smelled strongly of alcohol and had bloodshot eyes. During the police investigation, she reportedly stated, “I do not remember what happened because I fell asleep while intoxicated.” Due to the nature of the incident, which occurred inside a flying aircraft, it has been transferred to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for investigation following jurisdictional issues. Meanwhile, there has been a recent series of incidents in the United States involving sexually offensive lewd acts on board aircraft. According to FBI statistics, the number of sexual assaults and sexual misconduct cases on aircraft totalled 104 in 2024 alone.

There is a possibility that Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, will extend his influence beyond the aerospace, artificial intelligence (AI), and automotive industries to the film and broadcasting sectors. On the 23rd, the U.S. media outlet Semaphore reported that executives at Paramount Skydance (hereinafter Paramount) discussed asking Musk to join their group of equity investors. Musk is known to be close to Larry Ellison, the founder of Oracle and father of Paramount CEO David Ellison. Larry Ellison invested $1 billion (approximately 1.3667 trillion won) when Musk took Twitter (now X) private in 2022, and he also has a connection to Musk, having served as a director of Tesla from 2018 to 2022. According to entertainment media outlets such as Deadline and Variety, Paramount is in need of a massive sum to finalize its mega-merger and acquisition (M&A) with Warner Bros. Discovery. The company has secured a commitment of $24 billion in investment from three sovereign wealth funds led by Saudi Arabia—specifically Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates—and upon completion, these funds will hold a 38.5% stake in the merged entity.

Larry Ellison has reportedly pledged to personally guarantee an investment of $40 billion and is planning to contact various wealthy individuals to cover the remaining amount. To date, the names of the other billionaires besides Musk have not been disclosed. Semaphore pointed out that it could be uncomfortable for Musk to become an investor in the merged entity, given that Paramount will come to own both CNN and CBS News through this merger. Musk served as the head of the Department of Governmental Effectiveness (DOGE) during Donald Trump’s second term and has provided substantial financial support to Republican candidates during every election season. In contrast, CNN is considered a progressive media outlet that has levelled sharp criticism against both President Trump and Musk. Semaphore, which reported on this, is a new media outlet co-founded by Justin Smith, former CEO of Bloomberg Media, and Ben Smith, a New York Times columnist.

U.S. mortgage rates have risen for four consecutive weeks, soaring to their highest level since President Donald Trump began his second term. According to Freddie Mac, a U.S. government-sponsored mortgage lender, on the 17th, the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage stood at 6.95% this week, up 0.19 percentage points from the previous week. This marks the fourth consecutive week of increases and was the largest weekly rise in 16 months.

Interest rates, now closely approaching the 7% mark, are also the highest level since January of last year, immediately following the start of President Trump’s second term. While mortgage rates showed a downward trend early this year, briefly falling below 6% in February for the first time in three years, they have continued a steep upward trajectory due to a confluence of factors: rising international oil prices following the outbreak of war in Iran, increasing inflationary pressure, and concerns regarding U.S. government fiscal spending. The yield on 10-year U.S. Treasury bonds, considered a key benchmark for U.S. mortgage rates, even breached the psychological resistance level of 5% this week.

Consequently, if a buyer purchasing a typical home takes out a 30-year mortgage at a rate close to 6% early this year versus the current rate, the difference in total principal and interest payments could amount to tens of thousands of dollars. The Federal Reserve’s decision yesterday to raise the benchmark interest rate by 0.25 percentage points to defend against inflation could also act as a burden on borrowing conditions for homebuyers in the short term. However, some analysts suggest that if the Fed’s interest rate hikes lead to actual inflation control, they could help lower mortgage rates in the long run. Misha Fisher, chief economist at U.S. real estate information firm Zillow, stated, “Today’s high benchmark interest rate is the medicine needed for tomorrow’s housing market recovery,” adding, “As market confidence grows that inflation is under control, mortgage rates will fall, and the likelihood of the housing market recovery getting back on track increases.”

“The Democrats play political games, while the Republicans produce results. We are ready to win (the midterm elections)!” At the host’s shout at the Republican National Convention for the midterm elections, which kicked off on the afternoon of the 9th (local time) at the American Aviation Centre in Dallas, Texas, roars and cheers erupted from the audience. The crowd chanted “USA” and held up signs emblazoned with the American flag. However, the cheers were not that loud. This was because the venue, which can accommodate 20,000 people, was only about half full. With daytime temperatures reaching a high of 37 degrees and President Donald Trump’s speech—the highlight of the convention—scheduled for after 8 p.m., there was a possibility that party members would flock in starting around sunset; however, considering the stature and importance of the event, attendance appeared quite low.

While the venue floor was relatively full of regional participants from various states, there were more empty seats on the upper levels of the tiered seating. The first-floor seating also appeared to be about 70% full. Even if the stands fill up for President Trump’s evening speech, it is questionable whether this convention will generate the level of popularity the Republican Party had hoped for.

Over 100 speakers will take the stage over two days to intensively promote the Republican Party’s governance and legislative achievements. The themes include manufacturing reshoring based on “America First,” job protection, tax cuts, healthcare costs, border control, the fight against corruption, and the culture war. Republican candidates locked in close races with Democratic candidates in battleground states will also take the podium one after another to appeal for support and attention. Following his keynote address this evening, President Trump will deliver closing remarks on the evening of the 10th. Several top officials of the Trump administration, including Vice President J.D. Vance and Treasury Secretary Scott Besant, will also take the stage. Foreign policy and the Iran war were completely excluded from the topics. Major pending issues, such as the current status and direction of the Trump administration’s foreign policy and solutions for a prolonged Iran war, failed to make the list of convention topics.

Instead, the venue was filled with blatant mockery and criticism targeting the Democratic Party. House Republican Leader Steve Scalise, the second-highest ranking member, received loud applause from the audience when he said, “The Democratic Party today is not the Democratic Party of your fathers’ time. The Democratic Party has been completely taken over by crazy communists, and I will call this the ‘Bolshevik Revolution within the Democratic Party.'” House Majority Leader Tom Emmer, the third-highest ranking member, also went on the offensive, stating, “Every Democrat is a socialist, a communist, and an anarchist,” and adding, “The only thing they agree on is a disgusting hatred of America and the great President (Trump).”

Sales of gold-coloured one-dollar coins featuring the face of President Donald Trump to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States began at noon on the 2nd (Eastern Time). The U.S. Mint has set the selling price at $61 for a roll of 25 coins (approximately $2.44 per coin) and $154.50 for a bag of 100 coins (approximately $1.55 per coin). The obverse side features President Trump’s face, surrounded by the English word “LIBERTY,” the phrase “In God We Trust,” and the numbers “1776 (year of the founding of the U.S.)–2026.” The reverse side features the number “250” commemorating the 250th anniversary of the nation’s founding, alongside the presidential seal depicting the bald eagle, the national bird, holding an olive branch and a bundle of arrows.

U.S. federal law prohibits the engraving of a living person’s portrait on a one-dollar coin. However, in 2020, during the first Trump administration, a bill was passed allowing the issuance of a 250th anniversary commemorative coin that prohibited human faces only on the reverse side. In other words, this effectively opened the way for placing a portrait on the obverse side of the coin. While this coin is primarily for collectors, it can be used as legal tender. It was cast using a mixture of copper, 6% zinc, 3.5% manganese, and 2% nickel to produce the golden hue favoured by President Trump. It does not contain actual gold.

The U.S. Mint emphasized on its website that it “will undoubtedly be a standout collectible in modern coin collections.” Access to the Mint website even experienced temporary outages ahead of the sales launch. President Trump is not the first sitting U.S. president to have his face featured on a coin. The faces of then-President Calvin Coolidge and the first U.S. President George Washington appeared side by side on a 50-cent commemorative coin produced in 1926 to mark the 150th anniversary of the founding of the United States.

The Supreme Court has lifted a lower court injunction that had blocked the implementation of President Donald Trump’s executive order significantly tightening requirements for mail-in voting. As this ruling comes just over two months before the November midterm elections, it is causing repercussions throughout U.S. political circles. On the 24th, the Supreme Court accepted an emergency request filed by the Trump administration and suspended the enforcement of the executive order restricting mail-in voting issued by the Massachusetts U.S. District Court last June.

Consequently, the path has been opened for the Trump administration to push for changes to mail-in voting procedures ahead of the upcoming November midterm elections. In March, President Trump issued an executive order requiring the Department of Homeland Security to compile and provide lists of citizens by state to state governments, and instructed the Department of Justice to prioritize the investigation and prosecution of election officials who issued federal ballots to ineligible individuals. He also directed the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to pursue the enactment of new rules requiring mail-in ballot envelopes to include unique barcodes and official election mail markings.

However, 23 states, including New York and California, along with Washington D.C., filed lawsuits to block the enforcement of the executive order, arguing that the administration of federal elections is a constitutional authority of state governments and legislatures, and that presidential executive orders cannot alter how state governments conduct elections. The lower court partially accepted the states’ arguments, blocking the execution of certain provisions of the executive order, and the appeals court also rejected the administration’s request for a stay of execution. However, the Supreme Court lifted the lower courts’ injunctions, ruling that it was premature for states to file lawsuits before the administration issued actual implementation measures, and that it was difficult to conclude that the executive order alone caused concrete harm to the states.

Nevertheless, the Supreme Court drew a line, stating that this decision did not validate the legality of the executive order itself. This implies that specific measures taken by the administration to implement the executive order in the future could be subject to separate legal judgment. Immediately following the ruling, the Trump administration assessed the decision as a victory for strengthening election security. The White House stated that it was a common-sense measure to protect mail-in ballot security and ensure that only American citizens elect American leaders, and announced that the administration would lawfully continue to pursue President Trump’s campaign promises, including election safety and security.

However, the state governments that filed the lawsuits are strongly pushing back. California, which spearheaded the action, stated that it would continue its legal response, while New York and Washington also reaffirmed their stance that the President does not have the authority to determine how state governments conduct elections, asserting that this decision is not a final judgment. It remains uncertain whether actual election procedures will change immediately. Implementation is currently unclear as a separate injunction remains in place to prevent the Postal Service from enforcing the relevant measures.

With only a little over two months remaining until the election and early voting openings in many states even closer, critics point out that it remains unclear whether the executive order can actually be applied to this election. In particular, with mail-in ballots for overseas and military voters scheduled to begin in early September in some states, critics argue that it is too tight a timeframe to change procedures nationwide before the November midterm elections.

A lawsuit has been filed in federal court to halt the implementation of the Trump administration’s new immigration regulations, which strictly limit the stay of international students to a maximum of four years. On the 18th, major U.S. educational and media organizations, including the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and the National Association of International Educators (NAFSA), filed a complaint against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in the Massachusetts federal court and requested an injunction to suspend the effect of the executive rule. This lawsuit aims to block the regulations limiting the duration of stay for international students (F visas), exchange visitors (J visas), and foreign journalists (I visas), which are scheduled to take effect on September 15. [Reported on page A1 of this newspaper on July 17] Under previous regulations, as long as the visa holders maintained their academic programs or reporting employment, they could legally remain in the United States without separate extensions under the “Duration of Status (D/S)” system.

However, according to the new regulations, the maximum period of stay for international student and exchange visitor visas is limited to four years. Additionally, the duration of stay for foreign correspondent visas, which previously allowed for several years, is drastically shortened to a maximum of 240 days. In the complaint, the plaintiffs argued that “the new DHS regulations are arbitrary and rigid measures that completely fail to reflect the reality of higher education in the United States” and that they “violate the Administrative Procedure Act (APA).”

They specifically pointed out that international students pursuing doctoral programs, double majors, major changes, or Optional Practical Training (OPT)—which typically take more than five years—could face anxiety over the loss of their immigration status and additional economic and administrative burdens as they become tied down by unnecessary extension application procedures. They also added that regulations restricting re-education at the same degree level or changes in programs excessively infringe upon students’ academic rights. An official from NAFSA explained the rationale behind the lawsuit, stating, “This regulation will severely undermine the standing of international students who have contributed to U.S. universities, the economy, and national security,” adding, “Legal action was inevitable to prevent the immense damage that would be inflicted on national interests.”

The implementation of additional taxes on high-value non-residential second homes, which New York City has been pursuing, has resumed following the city’s immediate appeal, despite a court order to suspend the proceedings.

On the morning of the 10th, the Staten Island Court of New York accepted a request for a preliminary injunction filed by homeowners against the city to halt the enforcement of the additional second home taxes and issued a temporary suspension order. The order mandated the nullification of the September 18th deadline for taxpayers to file objections, as well as the suspension of all procedures for the additional tax, including the publication of a website listing candidates for the second home taxes and the mailing of tax notices. [Reported on page A1 of this newspaper on August 11] However, New York City refused to accept the lower court’s ruling and immediately filed an appeal.

According to New York State law, if New York City, a public entity, files an appeal against a lower court ruling, the effect of the court’s suspension order is automatically suspended. Consequently, New York City has gained the legal momentum to proceed with the administrative procedures for the additional taxation on second homes as scheduled, despite the lower court ruling.

New York City Mayor Zoran Mamdani stated, “This additional taxation on second homes is a legitimate policy aimed at resolving the housing shortage and bolstering city finances,” and expressed his intention to prove the justification and procedural legitimacy of the taxation through the appeal. Homeowners, however, are pushing back, arguing that “the city government’s bureaucratic mismanagement has not only imposed unnecessary administrative burdens on actual residents but has also led to the exposure of personal information and infringement of property rights due to the indiscriminate public disclosure of names.”

The Overseas Koreans Agency has officially announced plans to introduce postal and electronic voting in overseas elections. During a briefing on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Overseas Koreans Agency held at the Blue House on the 5th (KST), Agency Administrator Kim Kyung-hyup reported to President Lee Jae-myung that the agency aims to introduce postal and electronic voting by 2028, specifically targeting the elections two years from now.

In response, President Lee emphasized the need for active institutional reform, stating that postal voting should be introduced first in countries with established postal infrastructure, while alternatives such as expanding polling stations need to be prepared for the remaining nations. Currently, overseas voting is limited to presidential and parliamentary elections.

Given that the Agency is accelerating efforts to introduce postal and electronic voting—a long-cherished wish of the overseas Korean community—it is highly likely that if the system is implemented, it will be applied for the first time in the 23rd General Election in 2028. The Overseas Koreans Agency has been working to build social consensus for the expansion of polling stations and the introduction of postal and electronic voting. Last March, it hosted a forum at the National Assembly to convey the limitations of the current system and the desire of overseas Koreans to vote to the National Election Commission and the National Assembly; in April, it successfully ensured that the introduction of postal and electronic voting was included as an agenda item for the first time at the National Assembly Special Committee on Political Reform.

The Agency plans to work with the National Election Commission to develop institutional improvement proposals, including postal and electronic voting, by verifying postal systems and internet connectivity in various countries and conducting mock elections. It is also reviewing the requirement for establishing additional polling stations, lowering it from one per 30,000 overseas Koreans to one per 20,000. The number of polling stations per diplomatic mission is also expected to increase from a maximum of three to four. Furthermore, the Agency explained that it is currently constructing a “Digital Integrated Platform for Overseas Koreans” that combines civil complaints, interactive communication, and community functions, with a target completion date of 2027. In addition, the agency

plans to establish a unified World Korean Convention for the first time in history as part of a grand integration effort for the 7 million overseas Koreans. Furthermore, it intends to foster solidarity among local Koreans by providing intensive support for local commemorative events that reflect the specific characteristics of each country of residence, such as “Korean American Day” in the U.S. (January 13), “Korean Immigration Day” in Mexico (May 4), and “Korea Day” in Poland (the second Saturday of October). The Overseas Koreans Agency also decided to strengthen identity education by significantly increasing the government subsidy rate for Korean schools from the current 26% to 50% and expanding the scale of training programs inviting Koreans to the homeland to 4,500 participants by 2028.