America in Brief

The United States and China concluded their latest trade talks; the U.S. government is offering $608 million for states to detain illegal immigrants.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (2nd R) walks outside Rosenbad ahead of trade talks between the United States and China in Stockholm, Sweden, on July 29, 2025. Fredrik Sandberg/TT News Agency via AP

US–China Conclude Talks

Trade talks concluded in Stockholm between the United States and China on July 29, with both countries reaching a truce to deescalate recent spats between the two.

As of yet, no extension has been agreed upon; the current rate will remain for now, with the United States imposing a 30 percent tariff on China and a 10 percent rate on U.S. goods going to China.

The United States has set an Aug. 1 deadline before new reciprocal tariffs begin on all goods.

Countries have been rushing to set deals with the United States ahead of the deadline.

Illegal immigrants walk alongside the U.S.–Mexico border wall after crossing the Rio Grande into El Paso, Texas, on Feb. 1, 2024. John Moore/Getty Images

US Offers $608 Million to Detain Illegal Immigrants

The U.S. government is offering $608 million in grants for states to detain illegal immigrants as part of its attempt to stamp out illegal immigration.

Called the Detention Support Grant Program, the initiative was launched by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and aims to increase the detention capacity of states in order to house illegal immigrants until they are handed over to immigration authorities.

Part of President Donald Trump’s campaign promise was to solve the United States’ illegal immigration crisis.

There were approximately 18.6 million illegal immigrants residing in the United States as of March 2025, according to a report by the Federation for American Immigration Reform.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement reported 66,463 arrests and 65,682 removals within Trump’s first 100 days of office.

Students on the campus of Columbia University in New York City on April 14, 2025. Charly Triballeau/AFP via Getty Images

Columbia University Agrees to Pay $200 Million to Restore Federal Funding

Columbia University has agreed to pay $200 million as part of a settlement in claims that it violated anti-discrimination laws, in exchange for restoration of federal funding.

The prestigious Ivy League university has been accused of failing to protect Jewish students during the pro-Palestinian protests that swept the United States in 2024, over Israel’s military response to the Hamas terrorist group’s attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

In March, the U.S. government severed $400 million in grants to the university over its alleged failure to address anti-Semitic harassment of Jewish students on campus during the protests.

The U.S. Department of Justice has also found the University of California–Los Angeles in violation of civil rights for failing to address harassment against Jewish and Israeli students on campus during protests.

US Government Addressing Homelessness

President Donald Trump has signed an executive order aiming to address homeless encampments.

Titled “Ending Crime and Disorder on America’s Streets,” the order is aimed at getting people off the streets and into “long-term institutional settings.”

Fueled mainly by mental illness and drug addiction, the chronic problem is getting out of control, the Trump administration said, citing a record 274,000 people found to be experiencing homelessness in a single night during the previous administration.

“Endemic vagrancy, disorderly behavior, sudden confrontations, and violent attacks have made our cities unsafe,” the order states.