Read Online  |  May 13, 2026  |  E-Paper  | 🎧 Listen

“Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom.”

— Lao Tzu, “Tao Te Ching”

Ivan Pentchoukov
National Editor

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

• President Donald Trump departed Washington on Tuesday afternoon for China, where he will meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping for a high-stakes summit.
• Dr. Marty Makary is no longer the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, according to a resignation notice posted on social media by President Donald Trump.
• Kevin Warsh will be returning to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors to serve as the chairman. The U.S. Senate voted 51–45 to approve Warsh’s nomination to a 14-year term on the central bank’s board. Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) crossed party lines to support President Donald Trump’s nominee.
• Federal prosecutors have charged two global shipping firms and a supervisor with criminal conspiracy, obstruction, and misconduct that they allege led directly to a container ship knocking down Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 26, 2024.
• 🍵 Health: Scientists measured microplastics in coffee served in to-go cups. Here’s what they found.

President Donald Trump waves as he boards Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews, Md., on May 12, 2026. (Alex Wong/Getty Images) 

Trump Heading to China for High-Stakes Summit With Xi

President Donald Trump departed Washington on Tuesday afternoon for China, where he will meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping for a high-stakes summit.

Trump’s May 13–15 trip marks the first U.S. presidential visit to China since his 2017 state visit during his first term.

Trade is expected to dominate discussions between the two leaders, though several sensitive issues, including the Iran war, human rights, and Taiwan, are also likely to take center stage.

Speaking to reporters ahead of his departure, Trump expressed optimism ahead of his meeting with Xi.

“We’re going to have a very good meeting,” he said.

The president said he and Xi will have “a long talk” about the Iran war, given China’s significant oil imports from the region.

Among those traveling with the president on Air Force One to China were his son Eric Trump, his daughter-in-law Lara Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. First Lady Melania Trump is not accompanying the president on this trip, according to the White House.

Trump’s two-day itinerary includes a packed schedule of official events. He is expected to arrive in Beijing on the evening of May 13.

On May 14, Trump will attend a welcome ceremony and hold a bilateral meeting with Xi in the morning. In the afternoon, the two leaders are scheduled to tour the Temple of Heaven before attending a state banquet that evening.

On the morning of May 15, Trump will meet with Xi again for a bilateral tea and working lunch before departing China. (More)

POLL

(Department of Defense)

UFO Files Released: What We Know—and What We Don’t

A new release of declassified records by the Trump administration has reignited debate over what the government knows about unidentified aerial phenomena. While presented as a step toward transparency, key questions remain about what has been disclosed—and what it may mean. We invite you to share your views.

The results will be featured in an article published this Saturday. (Take the Survey)

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington on April 30, 2026. (Madalina Kilroy/The Epoch Times)

POLITICS

• Secretary of War Pete Hegseth announced on May 11 that he had directed the Pentagon’s general counsel to convene a special review panel to carry out a department-wide review of the military legal system.
• Trump immigration officials on Tuesday revealed findings from a nationwide investigation into a common work program for foreign students, outlining allegations of suspicious work sites, “phantom employees,” financial inconsistencies, and evidence of transnational fraud.
• Republican leaders of the Tennessee Legislature on May 12 responded to last week’s fiery protests against the state’s new congressional map last week by stripping committee assignments from all Democratic members.
• The South Carolina state Senate voted against extending its current session, a setback in the effort to postpone the congressional primaries in the state and to redraw the state’s congressional map.

LATEST NEWS

• Consumer prices accelerated for the second straight month in April as the war in Iran added to renewed inflationary pressures. The annual inflation rate rose to 3.8 percent from 3.3 percent in March, according to new Bureau of Labor Statistics data released on May 12. This is now the highest level of inflation since May 2023.
• In the third week of a high-stakes federal trial that could have a profound impact on the artificial intelligence (AI) race, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman on Tuesday told an Oakland jury that he remains committed to his company’s original mission of ensuring AI benefits humanity. Tesla CEO Elon Musk is accusing Altman and OpenAI President Greg Brockman of bilking him out of $38 million in donations, then restructuring the nonprofit lab they cofounded by exclusively licensing its flagship product to Microsoft—betraying a founding mission to operate an open-source charity that would counter the existential risks of profit-driven AI. 
• Federal agencies have seized more than 18 million units of illegal electronic nicotine delivery systems, known as e-cigarettes or vapes, U.S. Customs and Border Protection exclusively told The Epoch Times Tuesday.
• EBay has turned down videogame retailer GameStop’s $55.5 billion takeover proposal.
• Arizona’s commercial aerospace sector appears cleared for liftoff as rising investment and plans for a new spaceport fuel what could become a decade-long expansion in private space activity.

MORNING READ: They felt safe in America. Then Beijing went after their parents in China.

Missiles produced by Iran’s armed forces on display during commemorations marking the anniversary of the 1979 Iranian Revolution in Tehran on Feb. 11, 2026. (Majid Saeedi/Getty Images)

WORLD

• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said China has provided Iran with some military support—including components for missile manufacturing—adding new weight to long-running U.S. and Israeli concerns that Beijing-linked entities are supporting Tehran’s warfighting capabilities through dual-use technologies, industrial materials, satellite services, and covert procurement networks.
• Suspended death sentences recently given to two former defense ministers of the Chinese communist regime have sent shockwaves through the ranks of the People’s Liberation Army. Now, even mid-level and junior-grade officers fear for their own safety, according to insiders who spoke with The Epoch Times.
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s former chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, was placed under suspicion in a major corruption investigation on May 11.
• No indications of a larger outbreak of the deadly hantavirus have appeared so far, a World Health Organization official said on May 12.

 

OPINION

• The Resilience Deficit—by Tamuz Itai (Read)
• Democrats Are Favored in 2026, but Winning and Winning Big Are Very Different Things.—by David Schultz (Read)
• Why Are Public Institutions Teaching Activism?—by Christian Milord (Read)
• Bulldozing California’s Peach Orchards—by Mollie Engelhart (Read)

The Pairi Daiza animal park in Belgium has announced the birth of a second golden snub-nosed monkey on May 12, 2026, just a few weeks after the first birth. (John Thys/AFP via Getty Images)

📸 Day in Photos: Annual Sea Trials, Student Protest, and Epstein Survivor Hearing (Look)

🎙️ Podcast: 115 People Get Sick Aboard Cruise Ship in Norovirus Outbreak: CDC—Facts Matter (Listen)

🇺🇲 American Thought Leaders: The CCP’s Greatest Insecurity and America’s Greatest Weapon—Sam Brownback(Watch)

🍿 Film Review: The Sheep Detectives (Read)

💛 Inspiration: Torn between his patriotic and fatherly duties, a warrior must discover just how much he is willing to sacrifice in this classical Chinese story dance. (Watch)

🎵 Music: Mozart – Allegro In B Flat (Listen)

🚨 (Sponsored) Your “normal” blood work is lying to you. Urgent Alert for Statin Users: 5 Signs You’re Suffering with the Silent Deficiency that Blood Tests Don’t Catch. Taking a statin? Or, just want to keep your heart and blood pressure healthy? – Read this now.* 

HEALTH

(siamionau pavel/Shutterstock)

Scientists Measured Microplastics in Coffee Served in To-Go Cups. Here’s What They Found 

The same cup that keeps your coffee warm may be the very thing that makes it less safe to drink.

A recent study found that heat can release thousands to hundreds of thousands of microplastics into a beverage, depending on the cup material and temperature, raising questions about one of the world’s most common daily habits.

The study, published in the Journal of Hazardous Materials: Plastics, found that heat is a key driver of microplastic release from disposable containers. While microplastics leached regardless of the temperature at which the beverage was held, leaching levels increased as the temperature rose.

Researchers first analyzed data from 30 peer-reviewed studies on microplastic release from various plastic products, focusing on factors such as temperature and soaking time.

Products made of polyethylene (PE), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polypropylene (PP), and polystyrene (PS) showed significant increases in microplastic release as temperatures rose, with the most pronounced effects in the high-temperature range typical of hot beverages.

PE is commonly used in plastic cups and liners, PP in takeaway containers and lids, PS in foam cups and food packaging, and PET in beverage bottles. Among these, PET generally showed the smallest increase in release with rising temperature, suggesting greater thermal stability than the other types.

Across studies, higher temperatures, especially above 140 F, were linked to a sharper rise in very small particles—under 1 micrometer—relative to larger particles, suggesting that heat accelerates surface breakdown.

Cups and food containers showed much stronger temperature-related increases in microplastic release than bottles, which are usually made from more heat-resistant plastics and are less often used with hot liquids. (More)

🎲 Games

Spot the Difference is our readers’ favorite. Play it here.

Play more games at Epoch Fun ➞

♥️ Support our mission and donate.

🎧 Prefer to listen? Get the Morning Brief podcast.

💬 Feedback? Reply to this email or write to ivanmb@epochtimes.nyc

👋 New to Morning Brief? Subscribe.

💡 Got a news tip? Connect with us confidentially.

▶️ Follow The Epoch Times on Facebook, X, Instagram, or Truth Social

📫 Forward this email to a friend and tell them to subscribe. (Here)

☕ Show us your love with coffee, mugs, stickers, and clothes. Check out the shop.

💼 Own a business? Reach millions of engaged readers by advertising in our newsletters.

Thanks for reading 🙏

Have a wonderful day!

—Ivan Pentchoukov, Madalina Hubert, and Kenzi Li.

Copyright © 2026 The Epoch Times, All rights reserved. 

Our mailing address is: The Epoch Times, 129 West 29th Street, Fl 8, New York, NY 10001 | Contact Us

Our Morning Brief newsletter is one of the best ways to catch up with the news. Manage your email preferences here or unsubscribe from Morning Brief here.

*Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this advertisement are exclusively those of the advertiser and do not represent our views or positions. This material is promotional in nature and should not be mistaken for news, research or editorial content.