🌊 Trump Mobile: Where All Calls Are Perfect

What’s that smell? Wait… is that the RocaNews YT cooking?

Our main focus this year is to do more original reporting around the country. Our goal is to capture the US/world without bias or fear, and our two most recent reports — from Connecticut and Pakistan (please don’t question Max T’s commitment by choosing to visit Greenwich, CT, while Max F hitchhiked across the Karakoram Mountains) — have given our RocaNews YouTube channel its best weekend ever (+13k subscribers).

Thank you to all of you who’ve been tuning in. The Roca Wave is growing fast, and we can’t wait to explore the US and its most fascinating places this summer.

–Max and Max

KEY STORY

Trump Phone Launches

The Trump Organization launched Trump Mobile on Monday, including mobile service with a signature $47.45/month unlimited plan and a flagship T1 “Trump Phone”

• The announcement came on the 10-year anniversary of Trump’s 2016 campaign kickoff and promised a “made-in-America alternative” in the mobile industry, including both a smartphone and a wireless service plan

• Amid corruption allegations, Eric Trump, who co-leads the Trump Organization, argued that the venture was necessary due to the deplatforming that the family has faced in the past

Dig Deeper

• Eric Trump said in a Trump Organization statement, “I'm incredibly excited to step into this new digital space, hard-working Americans deserve a wireless service that's affordable, reflects their values, and delivers reliable quality they can count on”

• “Trump Mobile is going to change the game, we’re building on the movement to put America first, and we will deliver the highest levels of quality and service. Our company is based right here in the United States because we know it’s what our customers want and deserve,” said Donald Trump Jr., the other co-leader of the organization

KEY STORY

US Considers Iran Intervention

President Trump dialed up his rhetoric against Iran, fueling a growing belief that the US is preparing to join the conflict

• On Monday, amid a heavy Israeli air campaign that has killed senior commanders and decimated parts of Iran’s military infrastructure, Iran signaled a willingness to resume nuclear talks with the US. Iran did not offer any new concessions, though, such as ending uranium enrichment

• Israel has damaged Iran’s nuclear facilities, but has not destroyed them. One major Iranian facility, Fordow, is buried deep underground. Only the US has the bombs large enough to destroy it

• Throughout Monday, anti-intervention commentators like Tucker Carlson conducted an aggressive PR campaign to persuade Trump not to join the conflict. On Monday night, though, Trump posted on Truth Social, “Somebody please explain to kooky Tucker Carlson that,’ IRAN CAN NEVER HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON!’”

Dig Deeper

• Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has vowed to continue the war for “as many days as it takes” to neutralize Iran’s nuclear and missile programs

• After leaving the G7 meeting early, Trump told reporters that he wanted something “much bigger” than a ceasefire and wanted a “real end” to the war, but reiterated that any end must dismantle Iran’s nuclear program

QUOTE OF THE DAY

KEY STORY

G7 Summit Kickoff

Canada kicked off the G7 Summit in Alberta under Prime Minister Mark Carney

• The G7 is a group of seven advanced economies: Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States

• Beyond discussing the current ongoing conflicts, trade will be a major point of focus. The Trump Administration has set a July 9 deadline to reach new trade terms before tariffs automatically resume

• Trump told reporters, “Our primary focus will be trade”

Dig Deeper 

• UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s office said he met with leaders from France, Germany, and Italy to discuss the escalation in the Mideast

• Meanwhile, on the the Ukraine-Russia war, French President Emmanuel Macron said, "The G7 should have the objective… for Ukraine to get a ceasefire to lead to a robust and lasting peace, and in my view it's a question of seeing whether President Trump is ready to put forward much tougher sanctions on Russia"

• Trump said of a meeting with Carney, "We have a tariff concept, Mark has a different concept, which is something that some people like. But we’re going to see if we can get to the bottom of it today"

• Trump proceeded to leave on Monday night, a day early, saying he needed to deal with the situation in the Middle East

KEY STORY

Immigration Enforcement Rollback

ICE temporarily paused deportations targeting workers at farms, hotels, and restaurants, however, it’s unclear what will come next

• On Thursday, Trump wrote on Truth Social that deportations were removing “long-time workers” who are “almost impossible to replace.” That same day, a senior ICE official sent an email to regional ICE leaders that read, “Effective today, please hold on all work site enforcement investigations/operations on agriculture…restaurants and operating hotels”

• The order represents the political dilemma facing Trump’s “mass deportation” efforts

Dig Deeper 

• On June 12, Trump posted, “Our great Farmers and people in the Hotel and Leisure business have been stating that our very aggressive policy on immigration is taking very good, long time workers away from them, with those jobs being almost impossible to replace”

• The Department of Agriculture estimates that roughly 42% of crop farmworkers in the US aren’t authorized to work, meaning raids could upset the sector. Yet a former ICE official told NBC News that raids in “construction, dairy [and] meat processing facilities, carpet mills…is where you get the numbers”

RUNDOWN
Some Quick Stories for the Office

📱 Meta announced on Monday that it will begin showing ads on WhatsApp, reversing its long-standing pledge to keep the app ad-free

🇬🇧 British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has named Blaise Metreweli as the next head of MI6

🇺🇸 President Trump announced plans to expand ICE deployments into Democratic-run “sanctuary cities”

⚖️ Federal prosecutors have charged Vance Boelter with murder, stalking, and firearms offenses in connection with the June 14 shooting of Minnesota state lawmakers

🧑‍⚖️ A juror in Sean “Diddy” Combs’ federal sex-trafficking trial was dismissed on Monday after the judge determined he gave conflicting answers about his residency

What does Roca Nation think?

🧐 Today’s Question: What’s the most exotic food you’ve tried? Did you like it?

Reply to this email with your answer!

POPCORN
Some Quick Stories for Happy Hour

🪑 Crystal Catastrophe in the Gallery: A couple visiting a museum in Italy broke a crystal-covered art chair while posing for photos, then fled the scene without telling anyone

🚗 Runway Delivery: A DoorDash driver was spotted driving through secure roadways within Chicago’s O’Hare Airport

🦫 Mongoose on the Loose: A yellow mongoose has escaped from its enclosure at a wildlife park on Britain’s Isle of Man

🦗 Crickets in the Chamber: Protesters released crickets into a room in Charlotte, North Carolina during a Mecklenburg County Commission meeting

🥁 Pan-dering to the Record Books: A Trinbagonian artist known as “D Pan Man” set a new Guinness World Record by playing steelpan nonstop for 31 hours

ROCA WRAP
Military Justice

Uganda

This East African nation's president signed a law allowing military courts to try civilians.

Uganda is a landlocked East African country known for its diverse wildlife, including the famous mountain gorillas, and as the source of the White Nile. The nation gained independence from Britain in 1962 but has been marked by decades of political instability and authoritarian rule.

The country’s current president, Yoweri Museveni, took power in 1986 and has ruled for nearly 40 years. This week, Museveni signed into law an amendment allowing military tribunals to try civilians under certain circumstances. The move directly challenges his own Supreme Court, which earlier this year ruled such trials unconstitutional, arguing that military courts were neither impartial nor competent to exercise judicial functions over civilians.

Despite the ruling and a boycott by opposition lawmakers, parliament passed the amendment last month. Human rights activists have long accused the Ugandan government of using military courts to persecute political opponents. The government denies these accusations, claiming only civilians who use guns for political violence face military prosecution.

The Army’s spokesperson defended the law, writing that it "will deal decisively with armed violent criminals, deter the formation of militant political groups that seek to subvert democratic processes, and ensure national security." The law has gained prominence given the case of an opposition leader who was facing military trial but was transferred to a civilian court following the Supreme Court ruling.

That leader, a longtime Museveni rival, has faced numerous arrests and prosecutions over his political activities. Ugandan courts could still intervene against the new; however, Museveni is not backing down. Assuming he gets his way, in Uganda, the line between a civilian and a soldier will be a thin one.

EDITOR’S NOTE
Final Thoughts

Once again, here’s the 20 Questions link from last Friday — please tell us your favorite things! We almost put “favorite news source?” as a question, but that just sounded a little desperate, and our therapist — we go to therapy together — told us to be less needy.

We can’t wait to travel the US this summer. Our next trip is to southern Indiana, Ohio, and northern Kentucky! Let us know if you live there and have story recs.

–Max and Max