Midterm Mail-In Voting Starts, IRS Targets DEI In Schools, ICE Officer Charged

September 4, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

The Trump administration is asking the Supreme Court to let the Postal Service impose new restrictions on mail-in voting for the midterm election, even as voting begins today in North Carolina. A federal judge has already blocked those requirements as likely illegal, but the administration is pressing ahead. Meanwhile, the IRS has announced plans to revoke the tax-exempt status of private schools and universities that maintain race-based programs like scholarships for minority students, a move the American Association of University Professors has promised to fight. And an ICE officer has been charged with lying to federal investigators about a January shooting in Minneapolis, a rare prosecution of an immigration officer under President Trump.

Supreme Court Asked to Allow Mail Ballot Restrictions

The Trump administration is back before the Supreme Court, this time asking it to let the Postal Service impose new conditions on how states handle mail-in ballots. Under the administration's plan, USPS would refuse to deliver ballots to voters unless state election officials provide lists of mail voters' names and addresses and place certain barcodes on ballot envelopes. No state is currently complying with these requirements, and a federal judge in Boston has already blocked them, finding they are likely illegal because USPS has no authority to control voting by mail.

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What you'll learn

1 (00:02) **Trump Admin Returns to Supreme Court to Restrict Mail-In Voting** - The administration asks the Supreme Court to allow the Postal Service to impose new requirements on mail ballots, even as mail-in voting begins today for the midterm election.
2 (02:10) **Mail-In Voting Begins Amidst Legal Uncertainty** - North Carolina begins mailing absentee ballots today, marking the first official day of voting for the general election, while other states prepare to send ballots later this month.
3 (06:27) **IRS Targets DEI Programs in Private Schools and Universities** - The IRS announces it will revoke the tax-exempt status of private educational institutions that have programs designed to benefit students on the basis of race, starting next spring.
4 (09:18) **Legal Gray Area and Administration's Stance on Historic Discrimination** - The administration's guidelines explicitly state that the government or private institutions should not play any role in addressing the effects of historic discrimination.
5 (10:18) **ICE Officer Charged with Lying About Minneapolis Shooting** - Christian Castro, an ICE officer, is facing six federal counts of making false statements about a January shooting during a Trump administration immigration enforcement operation.
6 Standout Quotes
7 (09:03) "AAUP is not gonna stand by and watch President Trump once again attempt to destroy the greatest system of higher education in the world that gives opportunity to a diverse set of students for a diverse country. So yes, emphatically yes, we are going to fight this." - Todd Wolfson, AAUP president, on the IRS plan to target DEI programs.

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Show Notes

The Trump administration is asking the Supreme Court to allow new Postal Service requirements for mail ballots just as midterm voting begins, despite warnings from election officials that the plan could disrupt voting.
The I.R.S. is proposing to revoke the tax-exempt status of private schools and universities with programs designed to benefit students based on race, potentially affecting thousands of institutions.
An ICE officer is facing federal charges for allegedly lying about a shooting in Minneapolis after video evidence contradicted his account, in a rare prosecution of a federal immigration officer under the Trump administration.

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Today’s episode of Up First was edited by Megan Pratz, Jennifer Portman, Anna Yukhananov, Mohamad ElBardicy, and Alice Woelfle.

It was produced by Ziad Buchh and Nia Dumas.

Our director is Christopher Thomas.

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And our Executive Producer is Jay Shaylor.

(0:00) Introduction
(01:59) Midterm Mail-In Voting Starts
(06:16) IRS Targets DEI In Schools
(10:07) ICE Officer Charged

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