Chinese students, Gaza hospital strikes, and a big engagement

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By Sarah Naffa

August 27, 2025

By Sarah Naffa

August 27, 2025

 
 

In the news today: Some Federal Emergency Management Agency staff are put on leave after signing a dissent letter; President Donald Trump saying 600,000 Chinese students could come to the U.S. draws MAGA backlash; and the Israeli military released its initial findings into the Monday strikes on a Gaza hospital. Also, Cracker Barrel said it’s returning to its old logo after critics — including President Trump — protested the company’s plan to modernize.   

 
The Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters in Washington in May.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters in Washington in May. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

POLITICS

Some FEMA staff are put on leave after signing dissent letter

Some employees of the Federal Emergency Management Agency who signed a public letter of dissent earlier this week were put on administrative leave Tuesday evening, according to documents reviewed by The Associated Press. More than 180 current and former employees signed the letter; 35 signed their names while 141 signed anonymously. Read more.

Why this matters:

  • The dissent letter criticized an expenditure approval policy by which the Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem must approve contracts exceeding $100,000; the DHS decision to reassign some FEMA employees to Immigration and Customs Enforcement; the failure to appoint a qualified FEMA administrator as stipulated by law; and cuts to mitigation programs, preparedness training and the FEMA workforce.

  • FEMA did not respond immediately to questions about how many staff received the notice and whether it was related to the opposition letter. The notice said the decision “is not a disciplinary action and is not intended to be punitive.”

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POLITICS

Trump saying 600,000 Chinese students could come to the US draws MAGA backlash

President Donald Trump seemingly caught his loyal conservative base off-guard and sparked backlash by saying he would allow 600,000 Chinese students into American universities. Read more.

Why this matters:

  • Some of Trump’s most ardent supporters — from U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene to former adviser Steve Bannon and far-right activist Laura Loomer — rejected the idea of welcoming more Chinese students.

  • Secretary of State Marco Rubio has previously singled out China, saying in May that the State Department would revoke visas for students tied to the Chinese Communist Party and boost vetting of new applicants.

  • It’s not immediately clear why the figure Trump cited was so high — more than twice the number of Chinese students enrolled in the 2023-2024 school year. The White House and State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

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WORLD NEWS

Israeli military says strikes on Gaza hospital targeted a Hamas camera, without providing evidence

The Israeli military said Tuesday that its double strike on a Gaza hospital that killed 20 people targeted what it believed was a Hamas surveillance camera. But the first strike killed a cameraman from the Reuters news agency doing a live television shot, according to witnesses and health officials. Read more.

What to know:

  • The military released its initial findings into the strike, offering no immediate explanation for striking twice and no evidence for an assertion that six of the dead were militants, including two who were identified by their employers as a health care worker at the hospital and an emergency services driver. The dead also included five journalists.

  • The military said the back-to-back strikes on southern Gaza’s largest hospital were ordered because soldiers believed militants were using the camera to observe Israeli forces. But its account appeared to contradict witnesses at the scene of Monday’s attack on Nasser Hospital.

  • Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani, an Israeli army spokesperson, said none of the journalists killed in the strikes was suspected of being associated with militant groups and that they were not targeted.

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