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Lightning flashes behind the Texas State Capitol in Austin on April 27, 2023. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has ordered the arrest of Democratic lawmakers who left the state in a bid to block a vote on congressional districts.

“Texas House Democrats abandoned their duty and are holding flood relief and property tax cuts hostage,” Abbott said in a post to social media on Aug. 4.

Abbott said he directed the Texas Rangers to investigate the Democrats for potential violations of Texas law, including bribery. 

“Any Democrat who solicited or accepted funds to break quorum may have violated bribery laws,” he said.

His comments came after the Texas House of Representatives voted 85–6 to arrest the dozens of Democratic state lawmakers who weren’t present when the House went into session on Monday afternoon.

Republican House Speaker Dustin Burrows said on the floor he would sign civil arrest warrants for the Democratic legislators who weren’t there.

“Come back and fulfill your duty, because this House will not sit quietly, while you obstruct the work of the people,” Burrows said. “The people of Texas are watching. And so is the nation. And if you choose to continue down this road, you should know there will be consequences.” (More)

President Donald Trump has reshaped U.S. foreign policy in his second term by using tariffs not just as economic leverage but as a central tool of diplomacy.

The Trump administration has us economic pressure to address global conflicts and secure concessions from trading partners, marking one of the most significant shifts in U.S. foreign policy in decades.

Just months after taking office, Trump made clear stating that his second term would be very different from his first.

“The first time, I had two things to do—run the country and survive; I had all these crooked guys. And the second time, I run the country and the world,” he told The Atlantic in an April interview.

Trump has touted how his tariff strategy, which resulted in trade concessions from allies and breakthroughs in conflicts, is evidence that the new foreign policy approach is delivering results.

His trade threats have already helped end several conflicts, including the recent border skirmish between Thailand and Cambodia and the crisis between India and Pakistan.

On June 27, Trump hosted the foreign ministers of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda to the White House as they signed a peace deal to end their 30-year war.

Michael Walsh, senior fellow in the Africa program at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, said the White House has demonstrated that it can promote regional stability through economic incentives.

“They believe very strongly that if you can show countries that they have an economic incentive to not fight with one another and to work with one another and work with the United States, that you can resolve a lot of conflicts in the world,” Walsh told The Epoch Times. (More)

More Politics:

Elon Musk steps off Air Force One upon arrival at Morristown Municipal Airport in Morristown, N.J., on March 22, 2025. (Brendan Smialnowski/AFP via Getty Images)

Tesla’s board has approved a stock award valued at about $29 billion for CEO Elon Musk, a move aimed at retaining the billionaire entrepreneur as the company pivots toward artificial intelligence and fights a court ruling that voided his previous pay package.

The grant, disclosed in an Aug. 3 Securities and Exchange Commission filing, gives Musk 96 million restricted shares at a purchase price of $23.34 each—the same strike price as his rescinded 2018 award. At current market prices, the stock is worth roughly $29 billion.

The new award follows a 2024 ruling by the Delaware Court of Chancery that voided Musk’s record‑setting 2018 compensation plan, valued at more than $50 billion, after finding Tesla’s board process flawed and unfair to shareholders. That decision, ordered the plan rescinded and sparked a high‑profile appeal by Musk, who claims that the judge made multiple legal errors in striking down the package.

In a letter to shareholders, Tesla’s board described Musk’s new package as “an important first step” in compensating him for his “extraordinary” work at the company. The directors cited his “unique vision and leadership” in building Tesla’s shareholder value and said that “retaining Elon is more important that ever before” as the company faces a challenging transition.

The board described the current moment as pivotal for Tesla, as it shifts from a pure electric‑vehicle and renewable‑energy firm toward an ambitious push into artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and related services. The directors said the impending changes could unlock extraordinary shareholder value but warned that “outcomes are not guaranteed,” hence the need for a proven leader to guide Tesla through the transition.

“To succeed, it requires a leader who combines strategic foresight, adaptability, and relentless execution to outperform competition and inspire the team,” the board said. “Elon has demonstrated these unmatched leadership abilities time and time again with his unparalleled track record of delivering shareholder value since he joined as a founding figure and spearheaded the transformation of our extraordinary company.” (More)

More U.S. News:

President Donald Trump threatened to “substantially” raise tariffs on goods from India, saying that the country’s continued purchase of Russian oil is fueling “the Russian War Machine.”

The president’s comments come as he seeks to broker a deal that would end Russia’s war in Ukraine by Aug. 8.

“India is not only buying massive amounts of Russian Oil, they are then, for much of the Oil purchased, selling it on the Open Market for big profits,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. “They don’t care how many people in Ukraine are being killed by the Russian War Machine. Because of this, I will be substantially raising the Tariff paid by India to the USA.”

India has defended the decision to continue its energy trade with Russia, citing the need to ensure “predictable and affordable energy costs to the Indian consumer.” It also noted that the United States has continued to buy Russian fertilizers and other chemicals needed for the nuclear and electric vehicle industries.

“In this background, the targeting of India is unjustified and unreasonable,” Indian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in an Aug. 4 statement. “Like any major economy, India will take all necessary measures to safeguard its national interests and economic security.”

Trump announced a 25 percent tariff on Indian goods this week on top of an unspecified penalty for buying Russian oil and weapons.

Oil exports have become a vital source of revenue for Russia, as it seeks to sustain its war effort in Ukraine amid sweeping Western sanctions that are putting its economy under considerable strain. Taking advantage of the sanctions, India has surpassed China to become the largest buyer of Russian crude, accounting for more than one-third of Russia’s crude oil exports in 2024. (More)

More World News:

An aerial photograph shows the MS Mediterranean Sky, an abandoned cruise ship on the coast of Gulf of Elefsina, west of Athens, on Aug. 4, 2025. (Angelos Tzortzinis/AFP via Getty Images)

📸 Day in Photos: Abandoned Cruise Ship, Beirut Explosion Anniversary, Storm Floris Threatens UK (Look)

🎙️ Podcast: What Does a Communist Regime Fear Most?—China Watch (Listen)

✍️ Opinion

🎵 100 Days of Mozart: Day 6 - Early Symphonies, Part 6 (Listen)

(Sponsored) Join Eric Trump at Clay Clark’s business conference Sept. 25-26 2025. Request Tickets At: ThrivetimeShow.com. Discover proven systems for accounting, management, marketing, sales, & workflow design. $250/ticket. Name-your-price tickets are available.

Peach Melba, named after Australian soprano Nellie Melba, is a summer dessert consisting of peaches, ice cream, and raspberry sauce. (Marco Veringa/Photos.com)

Famous opera stars and composers have inspired recipes for over 100 years. Our imagined, semi-formal dinner here is compiled of some of the best of these recipes. We'll begin the gastric fantasy with a fish course, “Crab and Shrimp Pavarotti,” named for tenor Luciano Pavarotti.

There are at least three variations on this recipe. All are casseroles that include bread crumbs, evaporated milk, onion, parsley, hard boiled eggs, mayonnaise, garlic powder, salt, mushrooms, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, paprika, and a pound each of crab and shrimp.''

Tournedos alla Rossini is the meat offering. Giacomo Rossini was a famous gourmand for whom numerous recipes were created. But this is “the most famous dish in the Rossinian gastronomic canon,” according to Michael Zwiebach, as quoted in a 2012 San Francisco Classical Voice article. Zwiebach described it as, “a dish that is the last word in decadent haute cuisine.” 

A story about its creation goes that Rossini kept interrupting the Paris Café Anglais chef preparing the meal at Rossini’s table with “instructions and requests.” When the frustrated chef finally complained to the changes Rossini was making, the composer said, “Well if you don’t like it, turn your back” (“tournez le dos”). 

Zwiebach described the dish as follows:

“Sautéed filet mignon on buttered toast, topped with the mandatory slice of foie gras and truffles, and finished with a small pond of sauce made from veal stock, the pan juices of the filet deglazed with [what else?] Madeira, chopped truffles, and butter.” (More)

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