Read Online  |  May 16, 2026  |  E-Paper  | 🎧 Listen

“Nothing great is done without great men, and they are great because they wanted it.”

— Charles de Gaulle

Ivan Pentchoukov
National Editor

Good morning! It’s Saturday. Here are today’s top stories:

• President Donald Trump wrapped up a high-stakes two-day summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing. Here are the key takeaways from the trip.
• The U.S. Supreme Court late on Friday rejected an appeal by Virginia officials who sought to challenge the Virginia Supreme Court’s recent decision to block a congressional map approved by voters that favored Democrats.
• Texas Children’s Hospital has been compelled to create the nation’s first detransition clinic, as part of an agreement with the Department of Justice.
• A ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon will be extended by 45 days.
• 🍵 Health: Polycystic ovary syndrome is one of the most misunderstood conditions women face. Here’s why researchers want to give it a new name.

President Donald Trump boards Air Force One before his departure from Beijing Capital Airport in Beijing on May 15, 2026. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)

Key Takeaways From Trump’s China Visit

President Donald Trump wrapped up a high-stakes two-day summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing on May 15. During the visit, Trump and his team discussed a broad spectrum of issues, from new purchase commitments to the tense situations in Iran and Taiwan, as well as wrongful detentions and human rights concerns.

Trump was welcomed on May 14 with a grand ceremony outside the Great Hall of the People on the edge of Tiananmen Square, where Chinese authorities violently suppressed the 1989 pro-democracy movement in what is known as the Tiananmen Square Massacre.

On the second day of his visit, Trump held meetings at Zhongnanhai, the heavily guarded leadership compound that serves as the headquarters of the Chinese Communist Party.

• Tight Security Measures: During the trip, the White House took extra precautions to reduce the risk of surveillance, hacking, or data theft by the communist regime in Beijing. Before leaving China, White House staff collected all badges and pins issued to journalists traveling with the president, according to the White House pool report. Reporters are typically not required to return such items provided by host countries. White House staff were also observed throwing the collected badges, pins, and burner phones into a bin at the bottom of the stairs before they got on Air Force One.
• No Progress on Jimmy Lai: Trump told reporters that releasing political prisoner Jimmy Lai is a “tough one” for Xi. His comments lowered hopes for a breakthrough to free Hong Kong’s pro-democracy media tycoon. Lai, 78, was sentenced in February to 20 years in prison under Hong Kong’s national security law. Trump, however, said Xi is seriously considering releasing detained pastor Ezra Jin Mingri.
• New Deals on Boeing Jets, Farm Goods: Trump said that China has agreed to buy soybeans, energy products, and Boeing jets from the United States following his meeting with Xi on May 14, the first day of the summit. In an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity on May 14, Trump said that China agreed to make major purchases of U.S. agricultural products, particularly soybeans, which are the top U.S. export to the Chinese market. “Last time we signed like 36 deals. This time it’s much bigger than that,” he said. “They’re gonna do a lot of soybeans for our farmers … they’re gonna be buying a lot of our farm products, which is great.” (More)

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POLITICS

• Colorado Gov. Jared Polis granted clemency to former county elections clerk Tina Peters, who had been convicted of lying to Colorado state officials about a tech specialist she brought in to observe changes to election software.
• The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit Friday against Connecticut over a law that prohibits federal officers from wearing face coverings.
• Longtime Democratic U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen, of Memphis, Tennessee, ended his reelection bid. Cohen said his decision was motivated by the Tennessee General Assembly’s splitting the Ninth Congressional District into three GOP-leaning districts last week.

LATEST NEWS

• Two antidepressants were associated with an elevated risk of autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in children, researchers say in a new paper.
• The U.S. federal government has sold 30-year debt at auction at a yield above 5 percent for the first time since 2007.

MORNING READ: With 4,900 AI data centers, one could be coming to your neighborhood.

Members of the public watch a motorcade ferrying members of the U.S. delegation from behind a barricade as police officers stand on patrol along a closed street in Beijing, China on May 15, 2026. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

WORLD

• Dissidents and rights activists in various regions of China were warned by the Chinese regime’s police not to accept interviews from foreign media, not to post on overseas social media platforms, and not to leave their homesduring President Donald Trump’s visit to China, according to social media posts and Chinese citizens who spoke with The Epoch Times.

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OPINION

• Cars Should Be 100 Percent Free of the CCP—by Anders Corr (Read)
• Another Grading Crisis Hits College—by Jeffrey A. Tucker (Read)
• America’s Fertility Problem Is Bigger Than Fertilizer—by Mollie Engelhart (Read)
• Taxes Down the Tubes—by Jeff Minick(Read)

Young women pose against the backdrop of blossoming apple trees in an apple orchard at the Kolomenskoye Museum-Reserve in Moscow on May 15, 2026. (Igor Ivanko / AFP via Getty Images)

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FILM

New York City is a crowded place for Alberto Buenaventura (Alejandro Santoni), in “Alberto and the Concrete Jungle.” (GJW+)

‘Alberto and the Concrete Jungle’: Chasing a Moving Exit 

New York City runs like a pressure cooker. Sidewalk traffic, subway cars, and rideshares push people together. People catch fragments of conversations, see arguments flare up over nothing, and watch strangers build entire personas in the span of a few blocks.

That kind of environment sits at the center of indie adventure flick, “Alberto and the Concrete Jungle,” and director Chris Shimojima clearly knows it from the inside out. Unlike many indie movies where New York just sits in the background, this one treats New York more like a running machine.

The city keeps presenting its main character, Alberto Buenaventura (Alejandro Santoni), with increasingly ridiculous encounters. One minute, he’s dealing with something that almost passes for normal, and the next, he’s surrounded by people who seem pulled from some off-kilter stage play.

At first, the film plays out like a slice-of-life. It then turns into a slice of compressed life, the kind that only works in a place where everyone is on top of each other and no one has the patience to smooth things out. A lot of the humor comes from that kind of close proximity, and anyone who has spent time in the city will recognize that rhythm almost immediately. 

The film follows Alberto, a roaming photojournalist who runs on impulse and instinct. New York is just one stop in his life journey. He keeps his baggage light, with just a camera, laptop, and a few other belongings. He then disappears into whatever country calls next. (More)

“Alberto and the Concrete Jungle,” is now available on Gan Jing World. As an exclusive to our subscribers, the film will be available to watch for freeuntil Sun, May 17.

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Thanks for reading 🙏

Have a wonderful day!

—Ivan Pentchoukov, Madalina Hubert, and Kenzi Li.

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