- Fatal ICE shooting in Maine raises bipartisan demands for transparent investigation amid questions about vehicle weaponization and lack of body camera footage.
- Federal judge throws out Trump's IRS settlement, calls case manufactured, imposes sanctions and blocks use of the invalid agreement.
- South Carolina Gov. McMaster appoints Lindsey Graham's sister Darline Graham Nordone to temporarily fill his Senate seat pending special primary.
From a deadly ICE operation in Maine to a major courtroom setback for President Trump, the week's biggest stories are already taking shape.
First up, a fatal ICE shooting is raising fresh questions about the use of violence during immigration enforcement. Meanwhile, U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams has delivered a blistering rebuke of President Trump's controversial settlement with the Internal Revenue Service, calling into question the legality of the agreement and the case that led to it.
And on Capitol Hill, find out who's been picked to temporarily fill the Senate seat left vacant by the late South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, a move that could shape the race to succeed one of the Republican Party's most influential lawmakers.
Here's more on the headlines shaping the week ahead.
A fatal ICE shooting is raising questions in Maine
ICE agents shot and killed a 26-year-old man in Maine on Monday morning, marking the second fatal shooting by the agency in less than a week.
A neighbor initially identified the victim as Joan Sebastian Guerrero, who lived with his partner and their three-year-old daughter. He encountered ICE on his way to work. Twelve hours after the shooting, DHS released a statement claiming that an ICE officer fired his weapon "fearing for public safety" as the victim "attempted to flee the scene" in a vehicle.
Guerrero's neighbor told CNN he was a "good person."
After initially receiving conflicting information, Sen. Angus King said Homeland Security officials later told him the man was not the target of the warrant officers were serving. According to officials, the officer opened fire after the man allegedly tried to use his vehicle as a weapon. The Maine attorney general's office said preliminary evidence also suggests he was driving toward an agent while trying to flee.
But an eyewitness offered a different perspective. Daniel Boucher, who said he watched the aftermath from his apartment window, told the AP he heard the wounded man say, "I tried to stop." Boucher also said an ICE agent later told him the man had tried to run him over.
The agent involved in the shooting has been placed on administrative leave pending the investigation. Still, the lack of body-camera footage has already fueled bipartisan calls for more answers. GOP Sen. Susan Collins said the shooting "requires a full and impartial investigation," while Democratic Gov. Janet Mills said state police, the attorney general's office, the chief medical examiner's office and federal officials are working together to determine exactly what happened. "I know that situations like these are alarming and frightening," Mills said.
The shooting comes less than a week after ICE officers fatally shot Lorenzo Salgado Araujo during a traffic stop in Houston. Federal officials similarly said he had "weaponized" his van by trying to run over officers, though some Texas officials have disputed that account.
A federal judge blocks Trump's IRS settlement
U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams threw out a settlement President Trump reached with the Internal Revenue Service in May. In an explosive ruling, she found that the underlying case had been manufactured to pave the way for a deal that would have shielded Trump from future IRS scrutiny and created a $1.776 billion "Anti-Weaponization" fund to compensate people who claim they were unfairly targeted by the federal government.
Williams was blunt in her 56-page order, writing that the case "was not brought to vindicate rights," but to "manipulate the judicial process." She pointed to the government's failure to defend the settlement against constitutional challenges, along with acting Attorney General Todd Blanche's decision to unilaterally cancel plans for the Anti-Weaponization Fund, as evidence that the legal dispute was never genuine.
Given what she described as an abuse of the judicial process, Williams also imposed a series of sanctions. She referred one of Trump's attorneys, Alejandro Brito, to the Florida Bar for possible disciplinary action and barred another, Daniel Epstein, from practicing in the Southern District of Florida. She also prohibited Trump, the IRS, and the Justice Department from citing the now-invalid settlement in future legal or administrative proceedings and sent copies of the ruling to the New York and D.C. bar associations, where Blanche and Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward are admitted.
Trump has a pick for Graham's temporary Senate replacement
Since Sen. Lindsey Graham's unexpected death over the weekend, outgoing Rep. Nancy Mace and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent were among the names floated as possible successors. But Republican leaders had someone else in mind: Graham's sister, Darline Graham Nordone.
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster announced Monday that he is appointing Nordone to serve out the remainder of Graham's Senate term, which expires on Jan. 3, 2027. Earlier in the day, Trump had urged McMaster to select her, calling the move "a fabulous tribute" to someone he "loved dearly."
The choice is deeply personal. After their parents died when they were young, Graham became Nordone's legal guardian and helped raise her. The two remained close throughout his life, and she stood by his side earlier this year as he launched his reelection campaign, joined by her children and grandchildren.
Nordone thanked McMaster for the appointment, saying she was "honored" to serve. "Lindsey has always been there for me, and now I will be there for him," she said.
Nordone will serve until early January unless she decides to run for the seat and wins. Since Graham died after securing the Republican nomination for another term, South Carolina Republicans will hold a special primary next month to choose a new nominee for the November general election.
