Afternoon Sun: Annihilation & Escalations

Good afternoon. This is the Afternoon Sun newsletter for Sept. 22, 2026. You can get it in your inbox every day by signing up here — it’s free!

THE LATEST

Donald Trump threatened to “annihilate” Iran during his U.N. speech, taking his longstanding message to a much larger stage. The president used his 38-minute address to defend his actions in the Middle East and other global escalations — but his asking allies for help, instead of admonishing them, marked a shift.

• The Cuban delegation abruptly walked out during the speech after Trump mentioned ongoing negotiations with its government.

• Trump also appeared surprised to see CNN’s Kaitlan Collins following his ban of the outlet from the White House — despite the summit taking place in New York City. “You should not be here,” he told the journalist.

THE ADMINISTRATION

Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping will meet this week while the U.S. is in an unusually weak position, The Washington Sun’s Akbar Shahid Ahmed writes.

• White House aides have prepared to confront Beijing over the alleged theft of U.S. artificial intelligence models by Chinese competitors, in what would be an escalation of the United States’ posture toward its technological rivals.

Weapons, oil, AI. Trump made 1,156 personal financial trades in July, many of which involved corporate giants that his administration helps regulate or that do business with the federal government.

The federal government is removing more than 750,000 people from their Affordable Care Act coverage, JD Vance announced today.

A high-profile hacking group says it has breached multiple FBI-related services and stolen data “on all FBI employees and applicants,” 404 Media reports.

The firm behind Trump’s social accounts is suing co-founder Derek Utley, alleging he embezzled and gambled away millions, Politico reports.

THE HILL

Sen. John Curtis (R-Utah) called for Donald Trump Jr. to testify about the wedding party a Russian oligarch reportedly bankrolled for him.

Three Republicans failed to file their annual financial disclosures on time despite receiving extensions from House Ethics: Reps. Dan Crenshaw and Michael McCaul of Texas and Lauren Boebert of Colorado.

THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL

Republican Monae Johnson, South Dakota’s secretary of state, crossed party lines to endorse a Democrat to succeed her. Now Terrence Davis is making the case that Republican voters should set aside party affiliations to vote for him.

THE GEM STATE

Thank you for reading! Today’s newsletter was produced by Kelly Poe and Erik Schutz. If you liked it, please forward it to a friend. If someone shared it with you, please sign up — it’s free! Got a tip or comments to share? Email us at newsletters@washsun.com.