Timothy Jones with AP, AFP, dpa, Reuters
Published 10/06/2026Published October 6, 2026
For the first time since World War II, a far-right party has a house speaker in a German state parliament. And Germany’s foreign minister has warned that the climate crisis could fuel extremism.
https://p.dw.com/p/5NonZ
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Skip next section What you need to know
What you need to know
Tobias Rausch from the Alternative for Germany (AfD) has been elected as the far-right party’s first speaker in a state parliament
Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul has warned of the consequences of climate change in fragile states
A German-Russian man has been sent to prison in Latvia after being found guilty of aiding Russian military personnel
A former German spy chief has been arrested on charges of espionage and treason
This blog has now closed. Read below for a look at the latest news stories from and about Germany on Tuesday, October 6, 2026:
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Skip next section Germany to buy 4 TKMS frigates: report
10/06/2026October 6, 2026
Germany to buy 4 TKMS frigates: report
Germanyplans to buy four more Meko A-200 frigates from TKMS for about €5.6 million ($6.3 billion), the Reuters news agency reported on Tuesday, citing a Finance Ministry document.
The country’s parliamentary budget committee is expected to approve the purchase on Thursday, with the construction due to be finalized by 2035, as per Finance Ministry documents seen by Reuters.
Defense Minister Boris Pistoriushad cancelled a rival F126 frigate project with Dutch company Damen, over delays and cost overruns.
https://p.dw.com/p/5Nrin
Skip next section WATCH: What does an AfD state speaker mean for Germany?
10/06/2026October 6, 2026
WATCH: What does an AfD state speaker mean for Germany?
Germany’s far-right AfD party took a significant step toward exercising political power in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt.
One month after winning 44% of the regional vote, the party secured the presidency of the state parliament, with Tobias Rausch elected as speaker of the house.
What does this moment mean for Germany? DW reports from Magdeburg.
Far-right AfD wins first state parliament speaker post
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https://p.dw.com/p/5Nr5W
Skip next section AfD will also field a deputy speaker in Saxony-Anhalt parliament
10/06/2026October 6, 2026
AfD will also field a deputy speaker in Saxony-Anhalt parliament
Parliamentarians in Saxony-Anhalt have also voted for AfD politician Hans-Thomas Tillschneider to be one of the deputy speakers in the chamber.
This follows Tobias Rausch of the right-wing populist AfD being voted into the speaker’s role earlier on Tuesday.
Tillschneider received 44 votes in favor in Tuesday’s session, while 38 parliamentarians opposed his appointment. Nobody abstained from the vote, which was by secret ballot. The AfD has 39 seats in the chamber.
Lawmakers decided to elect three deputy speakers in total, with elections for the others expected to follow later.
Tillschneider, aged 48, is the deputy chair of the AfD’s Saxony-Anhalt parliamentary group. He’s an AfD veteran, having joined the party in 2013 soon after it was founded.
Tillschneider is a member of the identitarian movement, and was a member of the two AfD fringe groups — the so-called Flügel (wing) and its “Patriotic Platform” — that have since been formally disbanded. He also had close ties to the Pegida and Legida groups that organized anti-migrant protests in eastern Germany.
As well as his strong views on Islam and migration, Tillschneider is also known for his ties to Vladimir Putin’s Russia. He was one of three AfD parliamentarians to visit Russia in September 2022, barely six months after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, in a visit that AfD party co-leader Alice Weidel rapidly disowned as a “private trip” and “not productive.”
Since 2023, Tillschneider has written a monthly column for the Vedomosti newspaper in Russia. He attended the 73rd birthday celebrations for Putin at the Russian Embassy in Berlin last October.
https://p.dw.com/p/5Nqus
Skip next section CDU state premier: Where did the votes for Rausch come from?
10/06/2026October 6, 2026
CDU state premier: Where did the votes for Rausch come from?
The outgoing premier of Saxony-Anhalt says he can’t explain where an additional four votes backing the AfD’s Tobias Rausch as the state’s new parliamentary speaker came from.
In a first for the far-right party, 35-year-old Rausch was elected to the post on Tuesday with the help of the populist BSW party (see entry below).
The Christian Democratic Union (CDU) parliamentary group leadership had recommended that its 15 lawmakers in the state parliament abstain from voting.
But CDU regional leader and current state Premier Sven Schulze said it had become clear by this morning that not all the party’s lawmakers planned to do so.
Some indicated that they planned to vote “no,” Schulze said in comments to the German press agency DPA. “But none of us said we would vote ‘yes,'” he added. “Not a single one.”
Rausch was elected with 48 votes in favor and 29 against from 82 eligible votes in the secret ballot. There were five abstentions.
The AfD holds 39 seats in the parliament and the BSW five, meaning Rausch also got backing from members of other parties besides the AfD and BSW.
The center-left Social Democrats demanded answers, with the party’s general secretary, Tim Klüssendorf, calling for the CDU to “immediately clarify who from within its ranks may have considered this disastrous decision to be right.”
Klüssendorf also criticized the BSW for supporting Rausch’s election.
“The BSW has made a conscious decision to elect, for the first time since 1945, a politician from a far-right party to the leadership of a German parliament,” Klüssendorf told the Rheinische Post newspaper.
In addition to the CDU, the Social Democrats and the BSW, the Left party and the Greens are also represented in the state’s parliament. Except for the BSW, the other parties have refused to work with the AfD, but some combination of them cast a secret vote for Rausch.
https://p.dw.com/p/5Nr0d
Skip next section Bank board member agrees to quit, but cleared of wrongdoing in brothel loan inquest
10/06/2026October 6, 2026
Bank board member agrees to quit, but cleared of wrongdoing in brothel loan inquest
The Volksbank Köln Bonn in western Germany has agreed to part ways with a board member, Jürgen Neutgens, after a scandal over a loan he authorized to Cologne’s large brothel, Pascha.
It made the announcement on Tuesday, several months after placing Neutgens on leave and commissioning an independent law firm to investigate the transaction for potential wrongdoing.
“The investigation … found no indications of financial irregularities or actions contravening obligations in the loan processes or the business relationship,” the bank said in a press release. “Nevertheless the past weeks have weighed considerably on everyone involved.”
Against this backdrop, the bank said the parties involved had mutually concluded that “a trusting and candid cooperation for the future can no longer be continued on the appropriate foundation.”
It said both sides had agreed to confidentiality on the further details and terms, and thanked Neutgens for his service and wished him well for the future.
The loan was issued amid the restrictions of the COVID pandemic, which took a severe toll on the sex industry in Germany and led to the Pascha brothel in Cologne filing for insolvency and then changing ownership.
A family from China, or more specifically the autonomous casino-rich region of Macao, bought the business. But they needed a bridging loan of around €5 million (roughly $5.6 million at today’s exchange rates) to cover part of the purchase price when their funds were held up in Hong Kong.
https://p.dw.com/p/5Nqei
Skip next section Pope receives German Christmas cake gift by car from Saxony
10/06/2026October 6, 2026
Pope receives German Christmas cake gift by car from Saxony
A typical German Christmas speciality intended as a gift for Pope Leo XIV was driven to Rome in an official vehicle from the state of Saxony after it was deemed unsuitable for air transport, officials revealed on Tuesday.
The 4-kilogram (8.8-pound) cake, a so-called stollen, which was made in the Ore Mountains in eastern Germany, was taken by Saxon Premier Michael Kretschmer to the Vatican for a private audience at the end of September.
The cake was reportedly too large to be taken into the cabin and too fragile to be placed in the aircraft hold, the officials said.
No information was provided on the cost by the officials at the Saxon State Chancellery.
The vehicle also transported other presents and documents.
https://p.dw.com/p/5NqGq
Skip next section Greens leader in Saxony-Anhalt says border has been crossed
10/06/2026October 6, 2026
Greens leader in Saxony-Anhalt says border has been crossed
The leader of the Green parliamentary party in Saxony-Anhalt, Susan Sziborra-Seidlitz, has vowed to defend democracy following the election of a member of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), Tobias Rausch, as parliamentary speaker.
The election of the member of a confirmed right-wing extremist, anti-constitutional party as house speaker meant that a “border” had been crossed, she said.
“We will not allow ourselves to be intimidated, and we will not sit by when rights here or those of the people in this state are to be curtailed,” she added.
Earlier in her address, she said that if the AfD were to take power in the state, her party would “speak out if people were denigrated because of their origins, beliefs or lifestyle.”
Sziborra-Seidlitz said Saxony-Anhalt could not afford for “exclusion to become the political brand of this parliament and our state.”
The AfD emerged from September elections as the strongest single force in parliament but has so far failed to find parties willing to enter into a coalition with it.
The Saxony-Anhalt chapter of the party has been classified as “confirmed right-wing extremist” by the domestic intelligence agency in the state.
Among other things, the party advocates a hard-line anti-immigration agenda and an intolerant stance toward LGBTQ+ rights.
https://p.dw.com/p/5NqEO
Skip next section Far-right AfD candidate elected state parliamentary speaker
10/06/2026October 6, 2026
Far-right AfD candidate elected state parliamentary speaker
Tobias Rausch, the far-right Alternative for Germany’s (AFD’s) nomination for speaker in Saxony-Anhalt’s state parliament, has been elected with the help of the populist BSW party.
Rausch gained 48 votes in favor to 29 against from 82 eligible votes. There were five abstentions.
The AfD holds 39 seats in the parliament and the BSW five, giving Rausch the majority he needed to win the post, as the other parties combined — all of which reject working with the AfD — also hold 39 seats.
The result, however, means that members of parties besides the AfD and BSW voted for him.
Rausch, 35, thus becomes the first member of the AfD — a party classified by domestic intelligence in Saxony-Anhalt as a “confirmed right-wing extremist” organization — to become speaker in a state parliament in Germany.
The new speaker is a real-estate entrepreneur by profession and has been a member of parliament for the AfD in Saxony-Anhalt since 2016.
The parliamentary session was accompanied by several anti-AfD protests in front of the parliament building.
The vote for speaker is separate from that for state premier.
The AfD’s lead candidate, Ulrich Siegmund, who won the September election with 44% of the vote — thus falling short of an absolute majority — intends to stand for the position in December.
As no other party so far wants to form a coalition with his party, it is still in question whether he can win a vote or form a government.
The AfD says it is in dialogue with the BSW and individual parliamentarians to seek the necessary support.
https://p.dw.com/p/5NpGF
Skip next section EU chief warns against German-led push to cut budget
10/06/2026October 6, 2026
EU chief warns against German-led push to cut budget
Emilio Reynoso with DPA
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, warned on Tuesday against major cuts to the European Union’s next long-term budget.
“I am aware that balancing all of these constraints is not easy. I am also aware of the difficult budgetary situation in the member states,” von der Leyen told the European Parliament in the French city of Strasbourg.
“But I would like to caution against large cuts. They would risk undermining critical priorities that we have all agreed upon,” she added.
Negotiations on the long-term budget for the 2028-2034 period are currently underway. The EU’s long-term budget, also known as the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), is the European Union’s seven-year spending plan that sets how much the bloc can spend and on which priorities, such as agriculture, regional development, research, defense, migration, and climate policy.
The European Commission has proposed a budget of around €1.76 trillion (about $1.98 trillion). The budget is financed mainly through contributions based on the size of member states’ economies.
The current MFF for 2021-2027 amounts to around €1.2 trillion.
Traditionally, Germany has opposed increases to the proposed budget, while other countries favor maintaining subsidies for economically disadvantaged regions. This time has been no different, with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz calling for major cuts.
Ireland, which currently holds the rotating EU presidency, is expected to present a new compromise proposal in the coming days.
European Council President Antonio Costa aims to secure an agreement on the new budget by the end of the year.
https://p.dw.com/p/5NpQC
Skip next section Applications to refuse military service on the rise
10/06/2026October 6, 2026
Applications to refuse military service on the rise
The number of applications from people wishing to refuse military service on grounds of conscience has risen sharply.
Altogether 12,102 such applications were made in the first eighth months of the year, according to figures from the Federal Office for Family Affairs and Civil Society Functions (BAFzA) — more than triple the number in the whole of 2025 (3,879).
The sharp increase comes after Germany’s new military service law came into effect on January 1.
That law foresees mandatory medical screening for young men born in 2008 or later, with an eye to recruiting volunteers to expand the armed forces.
Although compulsory military service has been suspended in Germany since 2011, it remains enshrined in Germany’s Basic Law.
The right to refuse armed military service as a conscientious objector also remains in place.
Parliament can decide to introduce needs-based conscription if recruitment targets are not reached under the current voluntary system.
https://p.dw.com/p/5NpQ8
Skip next section German Economy: Recovery faces setback as factory orders plunge
10/06/2026October 6, 2026
German Economy: Recovery faces setback as factory orders plunge
Emilio Reynoso
In August, orders from German factories fell faster than expected, marking the first decline in four months. Orders were down 10.6% compared to July.
According to the statistics agency Destatis, the decline in orders from large German manufacturers highlights the fragility of the recovery in Europe’s largest economy.
Germany’s economy has been stagnant for an extended period and has only been recovering slowly, supported by massive public spending. However, recent data have shown signs of strengthening.
The German Economy Ministry said that August’s orders data represented a “significant setback.” It also noted that, excluding the drop in large orders, the overall situation was virtually unchanged from July.
The August decline was driven by weaker domestic demand. Orders fell by more than 60% in the category that includes military vehicles, aircraft, ships, and trains.
Is Germany’s weak economy boosting the right-wing AfD?
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Germany raises military spending
Orders in this sector have increased as Germany spends vast sums on its military to confront an increasingly hostile Russia and amid concerns about US security guarantees for Europe.
The ministry stressed that the growing importance of public procurement has made orders “highly volatile.”
By comparison, new orders from June to August were 1.3% higher than in the previous three-month period.
The energy crisis stemming from the conflict in the Middle East has created additional challenges for Germany’s economic recovery, but the economy has weathered the impact better than initially feared.
Experts recently doubled their growth forecast for this year to 1.3%.
https://p.dw.com/p/5NpJW
Skip next section IN DEPTH: Ex-spy chief August Hanning arrested for espionage — reports
10/06/2026October 6, 2026
IN DEPTH: Ex-spy chief August Hanning arrested for espionage — reports
August Hanning, who served as the head of Germany’s BND foreign intelligence agency from 1998 to 2005, has been arrested on suspicion of espionage, according to various media sources.
DW will keep you up to date with the latest developments in the case in this article: Germany: Ex-spy chief arrested for espionage — reports
https://p.dw.com/p/5NpJY
Skip next section Police rush to Lower Saxony school after rampage alarm sounded
10/06/2026October 6, 2026
Police rush to Lower Saxony school after rampage alarm sounded
Police in Lower Saxony have been deployed to a high school in the town of Langwedel after being alerted to a possible rampage attack by an alarm, according various German media.
Later, officers confirmed that the situation was resolved. It remained unclear if a false alarm was triggered or if a serious security threat had been brought under control.
https://p.dw.com/p/5NpIm
Skip next section German-Russian man jailed over helping Russian military
10/06/2026October 6, 2026
German-Russian man jailed over helping Russian military
A German-Russian man has been sentenced in Latvia to seven years in prison and one year on probation after being found guilty of collecting and supplying money and goods to Russian military personnel.
The man was detained by Latvian authorities while on one of his car trips allegedly transporting the goods across the Latvian-Russian border.
The man denied supplying sanctioned goods, saying he was transporting humanitarian aid such as wheelchairs, crutches and nappies.
The Latvian news agency LETA cited the responsible court in Riga as having said he was in fact carrying goods including night-vision devices and telescopes.
Prosecutors used correspondence, photographs and videos found on the man’s mobile phone to back their case against him.
The verdict against the man, who holds both German and Russian citizenship, is not yet final and can be appealed.
https://p.dw.com/p/5Np4i
Skip next section Wadephul warns of climate change as security risk
10/06/2026October 6, 2026
Wadephul warns of climate change as security risk
Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul has highlighted the consequences of climate change for global security as the Berlin Climate and Security Conference kicks off in the capital.
“Particularly in fragile states, climate change exacerbates poverty and hunger — and can thus also become a fertile ground for extremism and terrorism or lead to waves of migration,” he said.
Wadephul also emphasized the importance of climate protection in enhancing national security.
“When Russia once more deliberately attacks the energy infrastructure in Ukraine, decentralized, renewable energy sources could become a form of life insurance,” he said.
“Investment in climate protection is also investment in our security,” he added.
The Berlin Climate and Security Conference, which has been held annually since 2019, brings together some 250 international actors in the fields of climate, peace and security.
Participants include representatives from countries particularly affected by climate change and from the UN, EU and scientific and civil society organizations.
https://p.dw.com/p/5Np2o
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Jim Bakker, who along with his first wife Tammy Faye built an evangelical empire around the hugely successful “The PTL Club” TV show, only to lose it all over a sex scandal and financial crimes, has died. He was 86.
Bakker died Monday, his second wife, Lori Bakker, said in a statement. His cause of death was not immediately clear.
“He was a pioneer of Christian television, but to me, he was my husband, my best friend, and the man I was honored to walk beside through so many seasons of life and ministry,” she said.
The pair lived near the Missouri entertainment town of Branson and filmed their TV show “The Jim Bakker Show” there since it launched in 2003. Bakker suffered a stroke in 2020.
But it was another evangelical program that made Jim and his first wife Tammy Faye Bakker cultural icons — so much so that they were often skewered in the 1980s and 1990s by late-night comedians and parodied on “Saturday Night Live.” A theatrical movie on their lives, “The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” was released in September 2021.
At its peak in the mid-1980s, the Bakkers’ ministry included not only the TV show drawing up to 13 million nightly viewers but also the Christian-based Heritage USA theme park and hotel in Fort Mill, South Carolina.
Bakker got his start as a traveling preacher
Bakker was born in Muskegon, Michigan, and attended North Central Bible College in Minneapolis, where he met Tammy Faye. They married in 1961 and dropped out of college to start their own traveling ministry — he preached, she sang and played the accordion as they crossed the country visiting churches and tent revivals.
They caught the attention of televangelist Pat Robertson, and in 1965 launched a children’s show on Robertson’s Christian Broadcasting Network. By 1966, he was hosting “The 700 Club,” a Christian talk show.
Bakker left CBN in 1972 and two years later formed the PTL Satellite Network. “The PTL Club” — PTL stands for “Praise the Lord” — became its signature show.
When it hit its heyday in the 1980s, “The PTL Club” was drawing millions of viewers — and bringing in millions of dollars annually from followers.
The show featured chats with guests and Christian entertainers. Bakker offered upbeat sermons and Tammy Faye — charismatic and always wearing her trademark heavy mascara — sang. Most episodes were taped at their sprawling complex just south of Charlotte, North Carolina.
The couple was so famous that they were often parodied by TV comedians for their lavish lifestyle and Tammy Faye’s abundant makeup.
Sex scandal and financial crimes damage his empire
In March 1987, their empire began to crack when Bakker admitted to a sexual encounter with church clerk Jessica Hahn. Bakker was forced to resign from his own empire, turning over operations to pastor and broadcaster Jerry Falwell.
Tammy Faye stuck by Bakker, often with tears running down her mascara, even as many saw his downfall as a fitting symbol of the greed and hypocrisy of the 1980s.
Things only got worse.
In 1988, Bakker was indicted for mail fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy after an investigation of PTL’s finances. He was convicted and sentenced to 45 years in federal prison, though the sentence was later reduced to eight years.
At a news conference after Bakker was found guilty, Tammy Faye stood in front of the microphones and sang the hymn, “On Christ the Solid Rock I Stand.”
Their marriage crumbled and Tammy Faye divorced Bakker in 1992, just short of their 31st anniversary, while he was still in prison. She later married Roe Messner, a building contractor whose projects included the Heritage USA theme park. Messner was convicted of bankruptcy fraud in 1995 and spent about two years in prison.
Tammy Faye died of colon cancer in 2007.
Bakker was released on parole in 1994. He married his second wife, Lori, in 1998. The couple launched “The Jim Bakker Show” on the PTL Satellite Network five years later.
In June 2021, Bakker and his Morningside Church Productions Inc. settled a lawsuit accusing him of falsely claiming the health supplement Silver Solution could cure COVID-19. The settlement called for $156,000 in refunds to people who paid money or gave contributions to obtain the product in the early days of the pandemic.
The lawsuit said Bakker and a guest made the cure claim during 11 episodes in February and March of 2020.
Bakker and Tammy Faye had two children. He and his second wife adopted five children in 2002.

Branson, Mo. — Jim Bakker, who along with his first wife Tammy Faye built an evangelical empire around the hugely successful “The PTL Club” TV show, only to lose it all over a sex scandal and financial crimes, has died. He was 86.
Bakker died Monday, his second wife, Lori Bakker, said in a statement. His cause of death was not immediately clear.
The pair lived near the Missouri entertainment town of Branson and filmed their TV show, “The Jim Bakker Show,” there since it launched in 2003. Bakker suffered a stroke in 2020.
“He was a pioneer of Christian television, but to me, he was my husband, my best friend, and the man I was honored to walk beside through so many seasons of life and ministry,” Lori Bakker said in a statement. “Jim loved people deeply. He loved this ministry, and he loved the friends and partners who stood with him throughout the years. Even in his final days, his heart was still for the work of God and for the Gospel to continue reaching the world.”
But it was another evangelical program that made Jim and his first wife, Tammy Faye Bakker, cultural icons – so much so that they were often skewered in the 1980s and 1990s by late-night comedians and parodied on “Saturday Night Live.” A theatrical movie on their lives, “The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” was released in September 2021.
At its peak in the mid-1980s, the Bakkers’ ministry included not only the TV show, which drew up to 13 million nightly viewers, but also the Christian-based Heritage USA theme park and hotel in Fort Mill, South Carolina.
Bakker was born in Muskegon, Michigan, and attended North Central Bible College in Minneapolis, where he met Tammy Faye. They married in 1961 and dropped out of college to start their own traveling ministry — he preached, she sang and played the accordion as they crossed the country visiting churches and tent revivals.
They caught the attention of televangelist Pat Robertson, and in 1965 launched a children’s show on Robertson’s Christian Broadcasting Network. By 1966, he was hosting “The 700 Club,” a Christian talk show.
Bakker left CBN in 1972 and two years later formed the PTL Satellite Network. “The PTL Club” — PTL stands for “Praise the Lord” — became its signature show.
In its heyday in the 1980s, “The PTL Club” was drawing millions of viewers – and bringing in millions of dollars annually from followers.
Sort of a Christian version of “The Tonight Show,” it featured chats with guests and Christian entertainers. Bakker offered upbeat sermons and Tammy Faye – charismatic and always wearing her trademark heavy mascara – sang. Most episodes were taped at their sprawling complex just south of Charlotte, North Carolina.
The couple was so famous that they were often parodied by TV comedians for their lavish lifestyle and Tammy Faye’s abundant makeup.
Jim Bakker gets caught up in scandals
In March 1987, their empire began to crack when Bakker admitted to a sexual encounter with church clerk Jessica Hahn. Bakker was forced to resign from his own empire, turning over operations to pastor and broadcaster Jerry Falwell.
Tammy Faye stuck by Bakker, often with tears running down her mascara, even as many saw his downfall as a fitting symbol of the greed and hypocrisy of the 1980s.
Things only got worse.
In 1988, Bakker was indicted for mail fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy after an investigation of PTL’s finances. He was convicted and sentenced to 45 years in federal prison, though the sentence was later reduced to eight years.
At a news conference after Bakker was found guilty, Tammy Faye stood in front of the microphones and sang the hymn, “On Christ the Solid Rock I Stand.”
Their marriage crumbled and Tammy Faye divorced Bakker in 1992, just short of their 31st anniversary, while he was still in prison. She later married Roe Messner, a building contractor whose projects included the Heritage USA theme park. Messner was convicted of bankruptcy fraud in 1995 and spent about two years in prison.
Tammy Faye died of colon cancer in 2007.
Bakker was released on parole in 1994. He married his second wife, Lori, in 1998. The couple launched “The Jim Bakker Show” on the PTL Satellite Network five years later.
In June 2021, Bakker and his Morningside Church Productions Inc. settled a lawsuit accusing him of falsely claiming the health supplement Silver Solution could cure COVID-19. The settlement called for $156,000 in refunds to people who paid money or gave contributions to obtain the product in the early days of the pandemic.
The lawsuit said Bakker and a guest made the cure claim during 11 episodes in February and March of 2020.
Bakker and Tammy Faye had two children. He and his second wife adopted five children in 2002.

JD Vance discusses his approach to the midterms as he weighs a 2028 presidential run. Records detail a Cornell fraternity brother’s account of the night a woman alleges she was raped. And what long-term unemployment says about the economy.
Here’s what to know today.
Vance talks 2028, Ted Cruz and a tough midterm climate
Vice President JD Vance acknowledged that Republicans face an “uphill climb” in the midterms — telling NBC News the results could influence whether he runs for president in 2028.
This is Morning Rundown, a weekday newsletter to start your day. Sign up here to get it in your inbox.
“Regardless of what happens over the next 35 days, there will be new information, new things you have to make a decision over,” he said.
He said he’s cautiously optimistic that the GOP’s numbers are improving even as concerns about the Iran war and gas prices take a toll. He reiterated that Republicans can’t pretend things are perfect, but they can argue that the next wave of Democrats would be worse.
He also addressed a prospective rival — Ted Cruz.
“It is really obvious to me that, at this very moment, Ted Cruz is running for president,” Vance said. “At this moment, I’m not. I’m trying to help elect Republicans.”
Here’s what Vance said about data centers during the exclusive interview.
More politics news:
Analysis: Democrats have managed to regain ground on voter registration in key states after steep drops.
A look at Trump’s wins — and losses — as the new Supreme Court term begins.
Records give insight into how one Cornell student responded to rape accusation
A Cornell fraternity brother named in a lawsuit said he didn’t see the woman in distress, despite her allegation that she was assaulted, according to court records.
Scott Kretzschmar, now 22, said that after he saw a Snapchat post advertising “free p—y upstairs,” he entered the room already filled with several fraternity brothers, but never saw the woman naked, did not touch her or use ketamine.
A photo of Jane Doe was shared among active Chi Phi members in a Snapchat group, documents revealed.
Text messages obtained by NBC News between Jane Doe and another fraternity member she later accused of assault also provide context on the aftermath of the incident. “My reputation is destroyed and I’m utterly ashamed,” she wrote.
Here’s what else was mentioned.
More on Cornell:
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul replaced the DA handling the case, appointing AG Letitia James as backlash mounts. It’s not the first time prosecutor Matthew Van Houten has come under scrutiny.
A Cornell survey showed an increase in reports of female undergraduates experiencing nonconsensual sexual contact.
It’s rarely been harder for people to find new jobs
At 4.1%, the official unemployment rate is lower than its historical average of more than 5%, signaling a seemingly steady labor market. Long-term unemployment tells a different story.
The share of workers who have been out of a job for 27 weeks or longer now stands at 27%, the highest since 2015 outside of the Covid pandemic. The median spell of unemployment lasts about 11 weeks, and the average is more than six months, suggesting rising levels of long periods of joblessness.
Overall, fewer people are being hired, and those who have jobs aren’t leaving them.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics is set to announce September’s jobs report today. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones estimate the U.S. added 84,000 jobs last month, with the unemployment rate holding.
Read what’s behind the trends.
Shingles cases dropping among people who got chickenpox vaccine, data shows
The chickenpox vaccine appears to protect against shingles, according to a large new analysis.
Anyone who got infected with chickenpox as a child is at risk of later developing shingles. But new data suggests that people aged 34 and younger may be less likely to develop shingles than previous generations, because they are more likely to have been vaccinated against chickenpox.
It’s a promising development, though because shingles is typically rare in people younger than 50, the data can’t prove whether the protection will last as they age, said one researcher.
Read the full story here.
Staff Pick: Harmful kratom-like substances hidden in cat’s claw products across the country
My interest in kratom began in the summer of 2025. I had just come across a TikTok video of a man warning about its addictive potential and wanted to learn more. I had never heard of kratom, a supplement that causes opioid-like effects, but soon went down a rabbit hole of stories from people who said the substance nearly cost them their lives. Since then, kratom has continued to appear in news headlines. Most recently, two University of Mississippi students were found dead, and authorities said the supplement was found at the scene.
While many states are taking the steps to ban kratom, manufacturers are trying to get around that by selling it under different labels, such as cat’s claw — a substance used for inflammation. This is a growing problem, as Poison Control Centers are receiving an uptick in calls about exposure to “cat’s claw.” Health officials are sounding the alarm to prevent risk of overdose and death. People deserve to know what they are buying, and this situation is a case of false advertising. As one doctor said, these products are kratom in disguise.
— Claretta Bellamy, researcher
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As voter support for California’s proposed “billionaire tax” plummets below 50%, top luxury real estate titan Aaron Kirman is sounding the alarm, warning that the mere threat of Proposition 40 is freezing high-end transactions and driving California’s top job creators to the exit doors.
“We think this proposal is disastrous for California. It’s disastrous for the real estate market, and buyers and sellers have had enough of California taxation,” Kirman — the CEO and founder of Christie’s International Real Estate Southern California who has more than $26 billion in sales under his belt — told Fox News Digital.
“Being California is one of the highest-tax states, I think buyers and sellers, whether they’re billionaires or not, have just had enough,” he continued. “And the general public needs to understand that it’s a top-down market, and if buyers and sellers just decide to not transact in California, it affects the entire global community here.”
A recent UC Berkeley Citrin Center for Public Opinion Research-POLITICO poll found that 45% of likely voters support Proposition 40, while 43% oppose it and 12% are undecided. That’s down from 50% support in the Citrin Center-POLITICO poll conducted earlier this year.
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The proposal — backed by the Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West — would impose a one-time 5% tax on certain assets exceeding $1 billion held by people who were California residents on Jan. 1, 2026, generally excluding real estate, pensions and retirement accounts. The tax would be due in 2027, and taxpayers could spread payments over five years at an additional cost, according to the Legislative Analyst’s Office.
Still, Kirman argued that the possibility of the tax and broader economic pressures, including inflation and elevated mortgage rates, have created headwinds for California’s real estate market. He said those factors, compounded by state and local tax initiatives, have created a “wait-and-see” freeze among buyers and sellers.
“Interest rates aren’t helping. Inflation has been challenging. And then moving parts in California have not been easy. So when you put it all together, the general sentiment for the luxury market is frothy. Buyers are weary to get into it. And we see a lot of buyers just sitting on the sidelines waiting to see what’s going to happen,” he said.
“Billionaires and multimillionaires are studying the whole picture,” Kirman said. “Today, people are re-evaluating that and saying, ‘Look, if I am gonna continue to get taxed in this manner, I would prefer to be in a state that appreciates my business and the employees that I generate’… And they really are looking at other places. And I do think that there would be a mass exodus if this tax goes through… We’ve already seen a lot of exodus in general from multimillionaires and billionaires opting for states that have less taxation. And the last thing we wanna do is continue that trend.”
The recent poll showed voters were less likely to support Proposition 40 if they did not believe it would remain a “one-time” tax. But despite the dropping support for the tax itself, the poll still found a prevailing wariness toward billionaires, with 44% of voters saying they do more harm than good.
“Behind the billionaire is a corporation, and behind that corporation are employees that work for the corporation. And all of this is good for a state. And I think people are finally beginning to realize that California needs industry to sustain. And the more people we lose, the worse the state’s going to be,” Kirman said.
“It’s not always as simple as ‘tax the rich’ and give to the people [in] need,” he added. “A state needs infrastructure, a state needs the businesses that are supporting the people, the economy. And from there, it is a top-down business, right? Not only is it the employees, it’s restaurants, it’s nightlife, it’s shopping. I mean, it’s all of these things that combine to make for what is really important, which is a state that is pro-business, supports growth, taxes correctly, and doesn’t always take it from the top.”
Kirman also pointed to Los Angeles’s Measure ULA Transfer Tax — the municipal “mansion tax” adding 4% on transfers over $5.4 million and 5.5% on transfers over $10.9 million — as a cautionary tale of local policy backfiring on housing supply and market activity.
“It starts with Measure ULA, which has been a catastrophic tax for the luxury segment in California,” he said. “We’ve seen, after ULA — which was a tax that went to homelessness — billions of dollars not going in the right spot. And this continues to be a trend, and I think the California voters are tired of it. I think that the business owners are tired of it, whether it’s big business or small business. And I think we as a community need to come together to make it clear that we want big and small business to survive, and we wanna continue to grow as a community and not have to retreat because of bad policy.”
“In a city [where] we need housing, we need apartments, that tax has backfired. They collected billions of dollars. We’re down in transactional volume by 60%; we are down in building apartments 70%,” Kirman said.
“And the concern isn’t just for billionaires. A lot of people that are very successful multimillionaires say, ‘Look, if they’re going to impose a billionaire tax, is there going to be a millionaire tax next,’ right? And this is the kind of messaging that is not helping California succeed,” the CEO continued. “And I think because there’s been so many taxes that LA and California has imposed, most principals are saying enough is enough.”
California remains the world’s fourth-largest economy, though the latest U.S. Census Bureau estimates show its population declined slightly from July 2024 to July 2025. Kirman emphasized that tax reform and policies aimed at economic growth are critical to maintaining the state’s competitiveness.
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“It really does hurt my heart a little bit because I do believe California is the best state in the country, or one of the best. We have amazing infrastructure. We have an amazing business. We are the fourth-largest economy in the world. And on top of it, we have a lifestyle that no other state can provide. And it’s sad to see corporations and multimillionaires and billionaires leave for other states, not because they want to, but because they’re looking for fiscally responsible states for themselves.”
“There’s two things we know certain in life: Death and taxes will always be in existence, and it will always be a conversation. But I do believe that California residents, as well as the government, need to start coming together and there needs to be some fiscally smart decision-making when it comes to tax. Because the last thing we wanna do is lose both our big and small businesses to other states.”