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Michigan's Democratic establishment suffers a major primary defeat, Ukraine warns its air defenses are running dangerously low as Russian missile attacks intensify, and the Trump administration refunds $100 billion in invalidated tariffs. Plus, Eli Lilly surges on blockbuster demand, and we unpack the ballooning price tag behind America's proposed new battleship fleet.

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Abdul El-Sayed, a left-wing insurgent the Democratic establishment tried to stop, won Michigan's Senate primary on Tuesday night. Party leaders had lined up behind Rep. Haley Stevens, and he beat her anyway.

El-Sayed now faces Republican Mike Rogers, who ran unopposed, in a race that could decide control of the Senate. Michigan was one of five states voting Tuesday, three months out from the midterms.

Russia fired 115 drones and 24 ballistic missiles at Ukraine overnight, killing eight people at Kvitneva railway station near Kyiv. Ukrainian air defense downed most of the drones and not a single missile.

Kyiv says the interceptor shortage is now costing lives, with warehouses and a postal sorting hub destroyed and one fire still burning twelve hours later. Germany, meanwhile, found an explosives-laden drone at Leipzig airport, parked beside Ukrainian cargo planes.

The Trump administration has refunded $100 billion in "Liberation Day" tariffs to American businesses. Customs and Border Protection has now returned roughly 60% of everything the policy ever collected.

February's Supreme Court ruling found the IEEPA tariffs unlawful, and nearly $29bn more awaits trade-authority review. About $1.6 billion sits frozen because importers never supplied their banking details.

Israel launched strikes into Lebanon on Wednesday, accusing Hezbollah of breaching the current cease-fire — even as Israeli and Lebanese negotiators sat down in Rome for talks aimed at a longer-term deal. The split-screen of bombs in the south and diplomats in Italy captures just how fragile the year-old truce has become.

German police recovered a drone carrying explosives near Ukrainian cargo planes at a German airport, shortly before a separate object collided mid-air with another cargo aircraft. No suspect has been named publicly, but European security officials are on edge.

UN human rights chief Volker Türk raised alarm over Iran's execution rate, citing 56 people put to death on national-security charges since March, including 27 tied to January's protest wave. Tehran has long used security cases to prosecute dissent, and 2025's pace is running well above recent years.

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Missouri voters defeated a legislature-backed amendment that would have required citizen-led initiatives to win majorities in all eight of the state's U.S. House districts. The measure was widely read as retaliation for recent voter-approved initiatives on abortion and the minimum wage.

Kansas voters decisively rejected a proposal to begin electing state Supreme Court justices, preserving the current merit-selection system. It was a win for abortion-rights groups, who feared elections would flip the court that ruled abortion is protected under the state constitution.

The Kids Online Safety Act, which would force platforms to reduce harms to minors, cleared committee and moved to the Senate floor after stalling in the last Congress. Tech lobbyists and free-speech groups remain split on whether the bill will chill lawful content.

Eli Lilly crushed second-quarter estimates on the strength of Zepbound and Mounjaro, and lifted 2026 revenue guidance to $85–$87 billion, up from $82–$85 billion. GLP-1 demand isn't cooling, and Lilly's manufacturing expansion is finally catching up.

Etsy said it will lay off 12% of its workforce alongside its Q2 earnings report, framing the cuts as a bid to streamline operations and re-accelerate growth. The handmade marketplace has struggled to hold pandemic-era buyers now shopping on Amazon and TikTok Shop.

Uber shares fell 5% after the company matched Q2 estimates but issued third-quarter guidance below Wall Street forecasts. Investors have been jittery about ride-share growth and the looming competitive threat from robotaxis.

Four senior Google AI researchers, led by longtime executive Jeff Dean, are launching a new AI startup with backing from Google itself. It's the latest example of a Big Tech incumbent spinning out its own competitor to hedge against the frontier-model race.

Astronomers unveiled the most detailed images of the Sun ever captured, revealing swirling "whirlpools" of plasma activity previously invisible to instruments. The footage should help scientists better predict the solar storms that increasingly threaten satellites and power grids.

The FDA is expected to rule on whether to approve the first mRNA-based flu vaccine, which could be updated far faster each season than traditional egg-grown shots. Approval would mark the biggest expansion of mRNA technology since the Covid vaccines.

Four-time Pro Bowl receiver Stefon Diggs is signing with the Washington Commanders, giving Jayden Daniels another downfield weapon alongside Terry McLaurin. The Maryland alum returns to the DMV on a team suddenly stacked at the skill positions.

LIV Golf CEO Scott O'Neil said the league has secured funding from an outside investor that will keep the Saudi-backed circuit operating beyond this season. The move buys time as merger talks with the PGA Tour continue to drag.

Federal prosecutors allege a key defendant in the Terry Rozier gambling case tampered with witnesses — including by posting a rat emoji on Instagram. The filing raises the temperature on an NBA betting probe already threatening multiple players and associates.

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Peacock said Season 8 of "Love Island USA" has drawn nearly 19 billion minutes viewed across 35 episodes, making it the most-watched streaming series of the summer. The daily-drop format is one of the few reliable engines of live-feeling reality TV.

HBO Max is filming a documentary about "Gilmore Girls" with creator Amy Sherman-Palladino, EP Daniel Palladino and star Lauren Graham on board. The project arrives as Netflix reruns keep pulling a new generation into Stars Hollow.

A new WGA West report shows 27% fewer writers reported earnings in 2025 than at peak employment three years earlier, with roughly 5,072 members reporting income. Streaming contraction and shorter season orders have gutted what was once Hollywood's most stable middle-class job.

What it is: A new government estimate finds President Trump's proposed "golden fleet" of 15 namesake battleships is likely to cost 50% more than earlier projections — potentially $275 billion. The program envisions a new class of large surface combatants meant to project power across the Pacific.

The detail: The initial cost pitch sat around $180 billion, built on optimistic assumptions about steel prices, propulsion systems and shipyard throughput. The updated figure factors in current supplier constraints, labor shortages at the handful of yards capable of building capital ships, and the reality that lead-ship designs almost always run over. Inflation in specialized naval components, stretched defense supply chains, and years-long backlogs at U.S. shipyards have compounded the challenge, reinforcing concerns that even the revised estimate could prove optimistic if construction slips further behind schedule.

Why it matters: Even at $180 billion, this program would rival the largest defense procurements in U.S. history. At $275 billion, it would eat shipbuilding budgets for the better part of a decade — squeezing submarines, frigates and unmanned platforms. Critics inside the Navy have quietly questioned whether large surface battleships are even the right answer to a Pacific threat environment increasingly defined by long-range missiles and drones. Supporters counter that larger, heavily armed warships would provide visible deterrence and command capabilities that smaller autonomous vessels cannot yet match.

What to watch: Congressional appropriators get their first real look at the numbers this fall, and shipbuilders including HII and General Dynamics are already jockeying for lead-yard status. Watch for cost caps written into the authorization bill — and for the inevitable fight over trimming the fleet from 15 hulls to something more affordable. Debate is also likely to focus on whether the Navy should prioritize a smaller number of premium surface ships or spread funding across submarines, missile defenses, and autonomous systems that many strategists see as better suited for future conflicts.

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