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What to know:

• French firefighters have been able to keep the blaze in check, but officials have warned that smoldering vegetation, rising temperatures and falling humidity could trigger fresh outbreaks. Western Europe recorded its hottest June on record, with extreme heat and widespread dryness helping fires spread and intensify in France and Spain, the European Union’s Copernicus climate service said.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

• Wildfire created a monster cloud, unleashing lightning that ignited more fires 
  
  
• Photos of Europe battling wildfires
  
  
• Wildfire survivors share stories of narrow escapes
  
  
• WATCH: Roof camera captures wildfires in Spain
  
  
• WATCH: How wildfires impact your health
  
  
• Wildfire closes major Oregon interstate for 70 miles
  
  
• US wildfire tracker

POLITICS

Trump administration asks Supreme Court to allow order targeting mail-in voting before midterms

The Trump administration has asked the Supreme Court to clear the way for an executive order that could dramatically change mail-in voting ahead of November’s midterm elections. Read more.

Why this matters:

• The president ordered the government in March to create a “state citizenship list” of eligible voters and deliver mail ballots only to people on that list. Democratic officials in 23 states and the District of Columbia sued, saying the Constitution gives states and Congress the authority to set election rules, not the president.
  
  

• Using mail ballots has become increasingly popular with voters of both parties, with about 30% of all ballots cast that way during the 2024 presidential election, according to federal data. The process also is secure. A 2025 Brookings Institution study found only about four cases of fraud out of every 10 million mail ballots cast.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

• Trump demands Senate cancel August break until it passes voting bill
   
• Republicans decry a new Democratic Socialists of America platform as Dem primaries split the party
  
  
• US looks to boost anti-China spending worldwide by hundreds of millions, documents say 
  
  
• Federal judge dismisses a lawsuit over makeup of Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission
  
  
• Trump defends his sweeping tariffs and watches ‘America First’ drag races during Michigan stop
  
  
• McConnell remains in rehab and says he’ll miss key Kentucky political event
  
  
• Kamala Harris endorses Democrat Troy Jackson, in Maine’s US Senate race after last-minute nomination 
  
  
• Ex-Olympian charged with damaging Reflecting Pool sees ‘irregularities’ in grand jury proceedings

US NEWS

Americans rewire their grocery shopping routines while digesting the biggest price jump in 50 years

Buying food to eat at home has gotten 33% more expensive in U.S. cities since the beginning of 2019, according to government figures. Couponing, comparison shopping and cutting back on favorite foods are new habits for millions of Americans. Read more.

Why this matters:

• The historic increase happened for numerous reasons. The coronavirus pandemic snarled supply chains and raised labor and transportation costs. Droughts, hurricanes and diseases like bird flu drove down production. Tariffs raised prices on foreign products like coffee, tomatoes and chocolate. Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine disrupted oil and fertilizer supplies. The fresh conflict in the Middle East is accelerating food price inflation again this year, and affordability is a central issue in the fall midterm elections.