Welcome back Knoch Knighters! The Knight Times is back in full swing, along with everyone’s seasonal depression.
One thing that did not take a summer vacation though, was politics. In fact, it seemed to be going even harder! Who would have thought!
So today, for you, I’m going to lay out a couple major events that happened while you were sleeping all summer.
June
In June, I.C.E. (Immigration & Customs Enforcement) began to really ramp up raids in major U.S. cities to detain illegal immigrants.
There was a lot of debate about this because to many people, it seemed as only a fraction of the detainees were given due process, which is very important when it comes to deportation.
Because of the raids, a movement called “No Kings” began. June 14th, 2025, millions of people across the country gathered together to protest Donald Trump and his administration, calling him a tyrant, dictator, and everything else under the sun.
July
July brought lots of odd moments for us. It’s time to get into the Big Beautiful Bill! Aren’t you so excited? If you somehow completely missed this, here’s a rundown.
The controversial Spending Bill passed in July, dubbed “The Big Beautiful Bill” by President Trump, aimed to cut taxes and government misuse of funds.
The bill increased the budget for defense and immigration enforcement, cut social program funding such as SNAP and various research programs, and raised the debt limit.
A lot of people didn’t like this very much, as it took away government funds for things like cancer research or LGBTQ+ youth services.
Some people believe this is necessary to secure the border; others feel these services are incredibly necessary and deserve fair funding.
August
Perhaps you see this as the biggest summer month in politics this year, or maybe it’s just because it is the closest to the present so you remember more of it. That being said, America was booked and busy this month.
On August 11th, Trump deployed 2,000 national guard troops into Washington D.C.. He said this was done to counter the “rise in crime” in the area. The troops are now assisting local police, maintaining order when they have the chance, and directing traffic.
This caused lots and lots of backlash, with protests in Washington D.C. facing a very dramatic rise. Thousands upon thousands of people gathered and marched to the Whitehouse in protest, but the troops remain in D.C. to this day.
On August 15th, President Trump met with Russian President, Vladimir Putin, in Alaska to discuss ways to end the war between Russia and Ukraine.
Going into the summit, many people were worried that this meeting would possibly be to establish a deal where Russia would immediately ceasefire with Ukraine in exchange for receiving Alaska back from the United States. Alas, our 50th state is still with us!
Just three days later, Trump met with Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and other European leaders.
In this meeting Trump and Zelenskyy discussed different ceasefire and security opportunities, Zelenskyy even saying that Ukraine is prepared to purchase more than $90 billion dollars worth of weapons for security from the United States. Currently Trump and Zelenskyy are preparing for another upcoming meeting.
So all in all, we had a rather busy summer here in the great ol’ states. Now that we are back in school, maybe you find yourself being forced to pay more attention to what is going on nationwide.
Sometimes you don’t always like what you see, I know I sure don’t. It’s important to remember to take breaks from reading the news if possible, because your mind is not built to process so much violence and sadness at once.
As always protect your mental health, you are more important than any silly thing that happened in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
If you are ever feeling distraught about the state our world is in and you are feeling alone, please do not hesitate to reach out to me via email at: [email protected] .
I promise, I know exactly how you are feeling, and you do not have to be alone thinking that you are the only one who cares about our country.
