Trump Action Archive

Supporting reports

• Kennedy suggests measles deaths in Pennsylvania were fabricated — As the U.S. faces a measles outbreak that has killed two unvaccinated people in Pennsylvania—including a newborn too young for vaccination—HHS Secretary Kennedy suggested that Democratic Governor Josh Shapiro's announcement of the deaths might have been "altogether fabricated by one of the Governor's hopeful staffers." The claim contradicts documented public health data.
• HHS Secretary RFK Jr. testified falsely about 2019 Samoa visit, documents show — According to the Associated Press, HHS Secretary RFK Jr. repeatedly told lawmakers who held the key to his confirmation last year that a 2019 visit to Samoa before a deadly measles outbreak had "nothing to do with vaccines." New documents refute that testimony. Kennedy, then a prominent anti-vaccine activist, preceded the visit with a letter to the Samoan Prime Minister requesting to study the Pacific island nation's measles, mumps and rubella vaccines after the deaths of two children who had received them.
• RFK Jr. praised low vaccine uptake in Lancaster County in 2021, preceding measles deaths — The Pennsylvania Department of Health announced that two unvaccinated people in Lancaster County died from measles. In 2021, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., then chair of the Children's Health Defense, spoke at an Amish country fair in Lancaster County where he praised the low childhood vaccine uptake and downplayed the severity of measles. The timing and location of Kennedy's remarks preceded the recent measles deaths in the same community.
• RFK Jr. falsely testified to Congress about Samoa vaccine visit — Documents obtained by the press reveal that RFK Jr., now HHS Secretary, made false statements during his 2025 Senate confirmation hearings when he claimed his 2019 Samoa visit had "nothing to do with vaccines." Letters show Kennedy explicitly told the Samoan prime minister he intended to investigate the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine. Kennedy's visit is reported to have empowered anti-vaccine activists; a measles epidemic followed that killed 83 people. Knowingly lying to Congress is a federal crime, though rarely prosecuted.

Supporting reports

• Earthjustice files lawsuit challenging EPA approval of datacenter chemicals — Earthjustice, a nonprofit environmental law organization, filed a lawsuit challenging the EPA's approval of two photoacid generator compounds used in datacenters. The lawsuit argues that the EPA violated the Toxic Substances Control Act by approving chemicals it acknowledged may present unreasonable risk to workers and the public without implementing adequate protective restrictions, and that the approval represents a fundamental failure of the agency's obligation to protect public health.

Supporting reports

• Trump EPA proposes rule to exempt datacenters from public air pollution disclosure — The Trump administration's Environmental Protection Agency proposed a new rule that would eliminate the Clean Air Act requirement for datacenters to publicly disclose air pollution emissions. The rule would make disclosure voluntary at state and local officials' discretion rather than mandatory. Datacenters are significant sources of nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide, and heavy metals. Environmental advocates warn the change will reduce public oversight, prevent communities from knowing what pollutants they will breathe, and weaken enforcement of federal pollution limits linked to asthma, heart disease, and cancer.
• EPA approves two toxic datacenter chemicals despite acknowledged health risks — The Trump administration's Environmental Protection Agency approved two photoacid generator compounds for import and immediate use in U.S. datacenters, despite acknowledging in consent orders that the chemicals may present "unreasonable risk" to workers and the public and could cause sudden death, cancer, neurological damage, and reproductive harm. The EPA admitted insufficient data to quantify acute toxicity and lethality risks but approved the chemicals anyway with minimal restrictions, prompting a lawsuit by Earthjustice arguing the approval violates the Toxic Substances Control Act.

Supporting reports

• DHS approves $20 million plan to equip ICE officers with electric-shock gloves — The Department of Homeland Security published plans to spend up to $20 million to outfit Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers with G.L.O.V.E. (Generated Low Output Voltage Emitter) electric-shock gloves by March 2027. The gloves deliver electric shocks via button activation and bare-skin contact. Civil rights groups and legal experts have raised alarm, citing inadequate oversight of ICE use of force, lowered hiring standards, and documented cases of abuse in detention facilities, including a Kentucky man allegedly shocked 27 times who suffered cardiac arrest, and a middle school student shocked by police in Omaha.
• ICE awarded $16.7 million contract for electric-shock gloves — On Thursday, ICE awarded a $16.7 million no-bid contract to purchase 6,000 pairs of electric-shock gloves capable of delivering painful electrical shocks through direct contact with skin, along with support equipment and services over six months. The award came hours after Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto and 15 colleagues urged ICE to cancel the plan, raising concerns about deploying another use-of-force device during civil immigration arrests without clear rules and oversight. Earlier in August, 50501 reported that ICE was considering spending up to $20 million on the gloves.