Texas and California — the two most populous U.S. states — are the leading actors in a back-and-forth push to remake the balance of power in the U.S. House, kicked off when President Donald Trump called for Texas to redraw district lines with the GOP’s fragile House majority imperiled in the upcoming 2026 midterm elections.

The fight for control of the House in the 2026 midterm elections is underway — long before a single ballot is cast next year. Texas is fighting to enact a GOP-led redistricting effort that would give Republicans five more seats in the state and help them hold their narrow majority in the U.

Texas House Democrats who have left the state to block a vote on redistricting were hosted by California leaders on Friday. California Gov. Gavin Newsom, House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi and other prominent California Democratic leaders spoke at a press event along with the Texas lawmakers.

Gold futures on Comex were up 0.1% at $3,456.80 an ounce Friday afternoon, retreating from a record high at $3,534.20 an ounce set after a ruling by the U.S. Customs and

The global gold market has been thrown into fresh turmoil after a US government agency indicated that bullion would not be exempt from tariffs.

A meeting between Trump and Putin is tentatively scheduled for the end of next week, a senior White House official told NBC News.

The White House previously said President Putin must meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for a meeting with Trump to occur -- something the Kremlin has not been willing to commit to.