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Politics Archive

Archives for August 2026

Richard Lawler
Richard Lawler
Pflugerville, Texas, cancels its Flock contract after a records request found outside agencies searched its data 1.6 million times.

The San Antonio Express-News reports that a request from Pflugerville, TX, resident Sam Aly found that hundreds of unauthorized agencies were searching the city’s Flock data, even though the company claims only two agencies were improperly included. The City Council canceled Flock’s contract last week and covered its cameras.

Aly:

Between February 16 and August 15, 2026, outside agencies searched Pflugerville’s camera data 1,597,918 times. 1.6 million searches in six months. 459 different agencies searched us. That works out to roughly 8,900 outside searches per day, every day. Our own police department ran 5,078 searches in the same period. So for every 1 search by Pflugerville PD, outside agencies ran 315.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
MapQuest downloads surge after refusing to rename Lake Ontario.

It’s the top navigation app on Apple’s and Google’s app stores after it took a stance against renaming Lake Ontario to “Lake America.” Google Maps changed the name of the Great Lake over the weekend, while Apple Maps may make the switch following the company’s chat with President Trump, according to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum.

Screenshot: MapQuest
Richard Lawler
Richard Lawler
George Santos is the first person banned from Kalshi for life.

Kalshi says that in February, the former Republican congressman “placed a series of large trades in a market where the underlying contracts depended upon his own attendance” at the State of the Union. He’s now permanently banned and penalized $71,356.

In other news about everything being gambling now:

New York Governor Kathy Hochul thinks AI should be ‘less evil’
Play

The governor on 3D-printed guns, AI and data center backlash, and who protects kids online.

Nilay Patel
Thomas Ricker
Thomas Ricker
Reddit, Roblox, and ChatGPT now targets of EU regulators.

Reddit and Roblox have been designated “Very Large Online Platforms” under the Digital Services Act (DSA), while ChatGPT has been named a “Very Large Online Search Engine.” Those designations bring strict obligations to protect user safety, ensure transparency, and curb illegal content in the bloc. The companies now have four months to get their houses in order.

Terrence O'Brien
Terrence O'Brien
MapQuest knows this whole thing is ridiculous.

Google can have its “long-standing policy,” but MapQuest is having a laugh.

Terrence O'Brien
Terrence O'Brien
Trump doesn’t actually care about free speech exhibit 2,048.

In a tirade on Truth Social, the president said that NBC News’ Kristen Welker should be “reported to the FCC for rebuke or punishment,” because she pointed out that the his prefered candidates had “mixed results” in their respective primaries.

Terrence O'Brien
Terrence O'Brien
Google capitulates in Trump’s attempt to rename Lake Ontario.

Amidst his trade tiff with Canada, President Trump issued an executive order renaming Lake Ontario to Lake America. As it did when the president tried to rename the Gulf of Mexico, Google has caved to his whims, swapping in Lake America on Maps. Users in Canada will continue to see Lake Ontario. In a blog post, Google said, “These updates follow our long-standing policy for bodies of water with names that vary from country to country.”

Update August 30th: Added link to Google’s blog post about the change.

Lake Ontario now labeled as Lake America on Google Maps.
Screenshot: Terrence O’Brien / The Verge
Terrence O'Brien
Terrence O'Brien
Trump’s teleprompter operator fined $172,000 for betting on speeches.

In July, Gabriel Perez was accused of insider trading on Kalshi and became the target of a federal investigation for placing bets on what words would be mentioned in the president’s speeches. Now the invesitgation has come to a close. The CFTC issued a release on Friday saying:

Perez must disgorge the profits he made from his unlawful trading totaling $107,539.02 and pay a civil monetary penalty of $65,000 … Under the order, a three-year trading ban is imposed on Perez.

Adi Robertson
Adi Robertson
Milo Yiannopoulos has reportedly been detained by ICE.

TMZ first reported that the UK-born longtime right-wing internet personality was apprehended in Louisiana, and Mother Jones’ Anna Merlan (and The Verge) confirmed he’s listed in ICE custody records. In recent years, Yiannopoulos has fallen out of favor with MAGA world, and Trump ally Laura Loomer, for one, is gloating.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
ICE to buy Boston Dynamics’ Spot robots to “support public safety.”

A notice published on the Department of Homeland Security’s website says the agency plans to spend up to $2 million on Boston Dynamics’ robot dog, as reported earlier by 404 Media. This comes just weeks after the Associated Press reported that ICE aims to spend up to $20 million on gloves that deliver electric shocks.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
Trump signs executive order to rename Lake Ontario to “Lake America.”

The executive order, which comes days after Canada announced retaliatory tariffs against the US, says Trump is changing the name to honor Lake Ontario’s “flourishing economic resource and its critical importance to our Nation’s economy.”

We have reached out to Google and Apple to see if they’re going to swap Lake Ontario to Lake America in their Maps apps — as they did with the Gulf of America last year.