Republicans break with Trump over Russia diesel deal

Plus: Federal agents raid Ilhan Omar's home  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

Olivia-Anne Cleary | October 13, 2026     Hello, readers! Are you someone who leaves a review after you’ve had a disappointing shopping experience, or do you keep your complaints to yourself? Well, singer Kelly Clarkson did the former, and her less-than-stellar store review has created a social media storm. More on the discourse below. (I’m British, so naturally I can’t relate to complaining out loud.) Elsewhere, President Donald Trump is facing growing calls from lawmakers to reverse course on his Russian diesel deal and Rep. Ilhan Omar has accused the Trump Administration of political intimidation after agents searched her home. IN TODAY’S BRIEF Anger at Trump’s diesel deal Ilhan Omar pushes back Debates may be a thing of the past Is Trump losing his grip on farm country? Europe rallies against Russia When a store visit goes viral         READ THIS FIRST Republicans denounce Trump’s diesel deal with Putin Brendan Smialowski—Getty Images President Donald Trump on Monday defended his plan to import diesel from Russia amid mounting calls from within his own party to reverse course on the controversial deal. Lawmakers across party lines, however, argue that the deal goes against a 2022 law which banned Russian oil imports and is not in the best interests of the American public. “Congress was clear: The U.S. should not import oil from Russia until it ends its aggression against Ukraine and ceases threats against our NATO allies,” read a joint bipartisan statement released Sunday by four Republican Senators and three Democrats. Elsewhere, Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania announced plans to introduce a bipartisan bill intended to stop Trump from lifting sanctions on Russian oil. —Tiago Ventura Read the full story here.         SPONSORED REVERB SPONSORED Live concerts bring millions of fans together through music. Behind the scenes, REVERB channels that energy into environmental action. See how REVERB has helped eliminate 4.6 million single-use bottles and is driving an entire industry to make sustainability part of every show. Watch the episode         IN THE NEWS Rep. Ilhan Omar says she will ‘not be silenced’ after federal agents raid her home Andrew Leyden—Getty Images Democratic Representative Ilhan ‌Omar of Minnesota on Monday called the federal agents’ search of her Washington, D.C. home an “attempt to target political enemies and weaponize federal law enforcement.” The lawmaker is a vocal critic of President Donald Trump and has previously been subjected to his insults. “For ten years, Trump has targeted me with baseless lies and smear campaigns. This is just the latest escalation in his campaign of political intimidation,” said Omar. “I will not be silenced.” A spokesperson for the Department of Justice told TIME that “Homeland Security Investigations executed a judicially authorized search warrant secured by the Department of Justice. This enforcement action is part of an ongoing federal criminal investigation.” No further details were provided. According to Reuters, a person familiar with the investigation said it is related to alleged immigration fraud and part of the probe concerns the Somali-born lawmaker's immigration paperwork that was filled out by her late father when she was a child. —Olivia-Anne Cleary Read the full story here.         VIEW FROM D.C. The new campaign strategy: don’t debate Saul Loeb—Getty Images In more than half of the races for Governor and Senate, the two major-party candidates are not expected to participate in any debates before Election Day. The trend holds even in races viewed as competitive. The non-partisan Cook Political Report rates five races for Governor as true toss-ups. Three—Georgia, Nevada, and Ohio—are not likely to hold a debate. The same is true so far for two of the hardest-fought Senate races—Texas and Ohio. Strategists explain the evolution as a response to how voters are consuming information. They say few voters watch the debates themselves. The more in-depth coverage of a debate offered by local journalists rarely reaches as many voters as the gaffes and gotchas from the event that are clipped and amplified by partisan media.  It’s a cliche in the political class that no one really wins a debate, it’s just that someone loses. Sen. Darline Graham learned that last lesson the hard way. —Philip Elliott Read the full story here.         SPONSORED SEABOUND SPONSORED Nearly 90% of the world’s goods travel by ship. From the food on our shelves to the packages at our doors, shipping touches nearly every part of our lives, and so does its carbon footprint. Seabound is betting on an unexpected solution: a box of rocks. By turning limestone into a sponge that captures CO₂ emissions, the company is proving that small innovations can help change the course of global shipping. Watch the episode         IN FOCUS How Trump’s policies are testing farmers’ loyalty ahead of midterms Mandel Ngan—Getty Images Rising diesel and fertilizer costs, coupled with President Donald Trump’s shifting tariff policies, have made it harder for Oklahoma farmer Brent Rendel to plan future crops. Over the past few months, he says, the political mood among fellow farmers—traditionally some of the President’s most reliable supporters—has begun to shift. “From my discussions with other farmers, there is a higher level of dissatisfaction with what's going on with the [Trump] Administration,” says Rendel. “You didn't used to really see that, but now we're seeing it and hearing it.” That dissatisfaction could pose a political problem for Trump and Republicans ahead of the pivotal midterm elections. Trump won 69% of the rural vote in 2024, but an AP-KFF poll, conducted in August, found that 57% of rural voters disapprove of Trump’s handling of the economy. Among rural Republican voters, around one-quarter (27%) disapproved of his handling of the economy—and that group was "substantially less likely" than those who approved to say they were certain to vote in November. The findings come as Democrats poll competitively in some traditionally Republican states such as Texas, Iowa, and Kansas. Incumbent Texas agriculture commissioner Sid Miller, an eighth-generation farmer and rancher, says farmers have felt the effects of Trump’s 90-day scheme to suspend tariffs on 300,000 metric tons of imported foreign beef to ease the strain on grocery bills. “I haven't talked to one rancher that's not upset about it,” says Miller. “Just the packers and the processors are reaping the benefits, not the consumer or the cattle rancher. Calves that are going to market now are bringing $300-500 a head less.” In Florida, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Texas—10 major beef-producing states—Trump has seen a decline in approval rating, according to Civiqs polling data collected from Aug. 21 to Sep. 21. “For Republicans, as a rule, our strongest voting bloc is the rural areas of the United States,” says Miller.  “I think we're going to lose some statewide races in Texas because of multiple things,” he adds, listing tariffs, diesel fuel costs, and fertilizer prices as other key concerns. “It's like death from 1,000 cuts.” —Callum Sutherland Read the full story here.         ONE NUMBER 1,600 The European Union on Monday adopted nearly 1,600 new sanctions listings targeting Russia, as Europe doubles down on its pressure campaign while Washington appears to ease off. SOURCE: EUROPEAN COUNCIL         A VIRAL MOMENT The Pretty Woman treatment? Sometimes the most curious of things can captivate the internet. In this case, it’s the tale of singer Kelly Clarkson walking into a store in Brooklyn and having, what she says, was a disappointing encounter. Her Oct. 10 post recounting the incident has been viewed more than 45 million times. The store in question has issued its version of events and, well, we’ll allow the New York Times to fill you in on the rest…          SPONSORED AMINI SPONSORED Across the Global South, Amini is working to ensure nations are not left out of their digital future. From climate intelligence to sovereign AI, Amini is building the infrastructure countries need to own their data, strengthen public services and create economic opportunity on their own terms. Watch the episode       Linked In this addictive word-association game, find the steps that will unite two seemingly unrelated words in just four moves. PLAY NOW       ALSO WORTH YOUR TIME IDEAS Normalcy Bias Prevented Me from Recognizing My Daughter’s Heart Failure WORLD Cyberattack on Supermarket Fridges in France Highlights Food Systems’ Vulnerability       More Newsletters from Click to sign up. D.C. BRIEF +FUTURE PROOF +HEALTH MATTERS +INSIDE TIME +IN THE LOOP +WORTH YOUR TIME + Subscribe to TIME Email us: thebrief@time.com Received this from a friend? Sign up here Connect with TIME   PRIVACY POLICY     © 2026 TIME USA, LLC. All rights reserved. TIME Customer Service, P.O. Box 37508 Boone, IA 50037-0508, United States Unsubscribe