<p><span class="citation-401 citation-end-401">A U.S. envoy&#8217;s meeting with Vladimir Putin yields &#8220;great progress&#8221; on peace talks just before President Trump&#8217;s deadline, as the U.S. hikes tariffs on India for buying Russian oil</span>. <span class="citation-400 citation-end-400">President Trump is set to sign an executive order targeting &#8220;de-banking&#8221; to protect Americans from being denied financial services based on their political or religious beliefs</span>. <span class="citation-399 citation-end-399">NASA announces an accelerated plan to build a nuclear reactor on the moon by 2030, driven by a new space race with China</span>.</p>
<p><span class="citation-398 citation-end-398">It’s Thursday, August 7, 2025, and this is the news you need to know to start your day</span>.</p>
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<h2><b>U.S. Envoy Meets With Putin Ahead Of Peace Deadline</b></h2>
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<p><b><span class="citation-397">Topline:</span></b><span class="citation-397 citation-end-397"> U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff held a &#8220;highly productive&#8221; meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday, just two days before President Trump’s deadline for a ceasefire in Ukraine</span>.</p>
<p><span class="citation-396 citation-end-396">On Wednesday, Steve Witkoff and Vladimir Putin held a nearly three-hour meeting that both the White House and the Kremlin described as &#8220;constructive&#8221; and &#8220;useful&#8221;</span>. <span class="citation-395 citation-end-395">Following the discussion, President Trump announced that &#8220;great progress&#8221; was made and that he intends to meet with Putin personally as soon as next week, before bringing both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky together for talks</span>. <span class="citation-394 citation-end-394">The diplomatic push comes just before Trump’s shortened deadline of this Friday for Russia to agree to a ceasefire</span>. <span class="citation-393 citation-end-393">While Putin is <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-08-05/russia-weighs-ukraine-air-truce-offer-to-trump-without-ending-war">reportedly</a> not ready for a full ceasefire, he may agree to de-escalate by pausing airstrikes</span>.</p>
<p><span class="citation-392 citation-end-392">As part of a &#8220;carrot and stick&#8221; approach, the Trump administration increased pressure on Russia&#8217;s allies immediately following the meeting</span>. <span class="citation-391 citation-end-391">On Wednesday, the president signed an order to raise tariffs on goods from India by an additional 25%, bringing the total tariff to 50%</span>. <span class="citation-390 citation-end-390">National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett <a href="https://x.com/TrumpWarRoom/status/1953116777103106303">explained</a> that the move was intended to close a &#8220;release valve for Russia,&#8221; which has been funding its war effort by selling oil to India</span>.</p>
<p><span class="citation-389 citation-end-389">There has also been significant misinformation surrounding the war in Gaza</span>. <span class="citation-388 citation-end-388">The New York Times recently ran a front-page story featuring a photo of an emaciated child, implying starvation caused by Israel</span>. <span class="citation-387 citation-end-387">It was later revealed that the child suffered from preexisting medical issues</span>. <span class="citation-386 citation-end-386">While conditions in Gaza are dire, hundreds of tons of aid enter the territory daily, but according to the U.N., nearly 90% of it is looted by Hamas</span>. <span class="citation-385 citation-end-385">As one Gazan native told <a href="https://grabien.com/story?id=538958">MSNBC</a>, &#8220;Hamas wanted to see the deterioration of the humanitarian conditions in Gaza&#8221; to create &#8220;horrendous imagery&#8221; and turn the international community against Israel.</span></p>
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<h2><b>Trump To Sign Order Targeting ‘De-Banking’</b></h2>
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<p><b><span class="citation-384">Topline:</span></b><span class="citation-384 citation-end-384"> President Trump is set to sign an executive order to ban the practice of “de-banking,” which denies customers access to financial services based on their political or religious beliefs</span>.</p>
<p><span class="citation-383 citation-end-383">The practice of &#8220;de-banking&#8221; grew under the previous administration and has targeted numerous conservative individuals and organizations</span>. <span class="citation-382 citation-end-382">Ryan Bangert of Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) told Morning Wire that the executive order is &#8220;very needed,&#8221; because &#8220;access to financial services is absolutely essential to be able to function&#8221; in the modern economy</span>.</p>
<p><span class="citation-381">Bangert pointed to several documented cases of de-banking, including the Supreme Court case  </span><a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf/22-842_6kg7.pdf"><i><span class="citation-381">NRA v. Vullo</span></i></a><span class="citation-381 citation-end-381">, where New York regulators pressured financial institutions to cut ties with the National Rifle Association</span>. <span class="citation-380 citation-end-380">He also cited a congressional report that found Treasury Department officials had pressured banks to surveil customers who shopped at sporting goods stores like Cabela&#8217;s or were associated with groups labeled as &#8220;hate groups&#8221; by far-left organizations, including ADF</span>.</p>
<p><span class="citation-379 citation-end-379">While some states like Tennessee and Idaho have passed laws to prohibit ideological de-banking, this executive order will provide federal protection</span>. <span class="citation-378 citation-end-378">Bangert dismissed concerns that the order would infringe on the rights of private businesses, arguing that this type of discrimination is already unlawful and that the order would relieve banks from pressure from &#8220;leftists and elitists in government&#8221;</span>.</p>
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<h2><b>NASA Announces Plan For Nuclear Reactor On The Moon</b></h2>
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<p><b><span class="citation-377">Topline:</span></b><span class="citation-377 citation-end-377"> In a major push to win the new space race, the Trump administration has directed NASA to build a nuclear reactor on the surface of the moon by 2030</span>.</p>
<p><span class="citation-376 citation-end-376">This week, acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy issued a directive to build a 100-kilowatt nuclear micro-reactor on the moon within the decade</span>. <span class="citation-375 citation-end-375">The ambitious plan is driven by a renewed space race with China and Russia, both of whom have announced their own intentions to put reactors on the moon by the mid-2030s</span>. <span class="citation-374 citation-end-374">Duffy stressed the urgency, <a href="https://x.com/UAPJames/status/1952770864555971018">saying</a>, &#8220;We want to get there first and claim that for America,&#8221; to prevent adversaries from declaring a &#8220;keep-out zone&#8221; that would inhibit U.S. operations</span>.</p>
<p><span class="citation-373 citation-end-373">Nuclear power is considered the most efficient option for a long-term lunar base because the moon experiences two weeks of continual darkness every month, making solar power impractical</span>. <span class="citation-372 citation-end-372">The reactor is a key component of NASA’s Artemis Program, which aims to return astronauts to the moon by 2027 and eventually establish a permanent base</span>.</p>
<p><span class="citation-371 citation-end-371">The lunar base will serve as a critical staging point for future deep-space exploration, particularly missions to Mars, as launching from the moon&#8217;s lower gravity is far more efficient than from Earth</span>. <span class="citation-370 citation-end-370">While the mission&#8217;s stated purpose is exploration, it also has potential military implications, as a lunar presence would be of significant interest to the Pentagon in an era of increasing weaponization of space by adversaries like China and Russia</span>.</p>
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Morning Brief: ‘Productive’ Peace Talks With Putin, De-Banking Ban, NASA Plans Lunar Nuclear Reactor