Today's health story

President diagnosed with 'chronic venous insufficiency'

What happened
President Donald Trump was examined by physicians after he reported noticing swelling in his legs several weeks ago. And he has now been diagnosed with "chronic venous insufficiency," a fairly common vein disorder that affects approximately 1 in 20 adults, the White House announced yesterday.

Who said what
Doctors found "no evidence of deep vein thrombosis or arterial disease," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said during a press briefing yesterday. The president's lab work was all "within normal limits."

Trump's diagnosis is a "pretty normal part of aging," particularly for someone in the "overweight to obese category, which is where the president has always been," Harvard Medical School Professor Dr. Jeremy Faust said to CNN. The White House's announcement follows a "spate of online speculation" over the president's swollen ankles and visible bruising on his hands, said Politico. Reading from a note attributed to Capt. Sean Barbabella, the president's personal physician, Leavitt said the bruising was the result of "frequent handshaking and the use of aspirin."

What next?
Trump "remains in excellent health," and his aspirin usage is part of a "standard cardiovascular prevention regimen," said Leavitt. Treatment for chronic venous insufficiency can include "weight loss, exercise, elevation, compression socks, and, in some cases, medicines or minor procedures," said CBS. Surgical interventions can also be an option in "severe cases."

Today's entertainment Story

CBS cancels Colbert's 'Late Show'

What happened
CBS is ending "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" next year, its host told a live audience Thursday. The late-night talk show debuted in 1993 with David Letterman as host before Colbert took over in 2015. Earlier this month, CBS's parent company Paramount settled a $16 million lawsuit with President Donald Trump over a 2024 episode of "60 Minutes" Trump alleged was deceptively edited. On Monday, Colbert slammed the payment as a "big fat bribe."

Who said what
This decision was "purely financial" and unrelated to the show's "performance, content, or other matters happening at Paramount," CBS executives said in a statement. Indeed, media companies are "growing wary of the high price tags" of production while younger audiences turn to digital video, said Variety.

But the cancellation comes "just THREE DAYS" after Colbert's monologue on the Paramount settlement, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren said on X, adding that "America deserves to know if his show was canceled for political reasons."

What next?
"The Late Show" will officially end in May of 2026. Colbert said he was looking forward to hosting for the next 10 months.

It's not all bad

Six years after becoming paralyzed from the chest down, concert pianist Riccardo Baldini returned to the stage using Resonate, a tool he helped invent that lets him control the piano's foot pedals with his mouth. Baldini developed Resonate with a team of engineers to improve "accessibility in music and equality of opportunity," he said to CTV News. In June, Baldini was invited to perform with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, giving him the chance to publicly demonstrate how Resonate works.

Under the radar

Nigeria's 'baby factories': a hidden UK crisis

A "worrying trend" is unfolding, said the BBC. Young children are possibly being taken into the U.K. illegally, some from Nigeria's so-called "baby factories." Last summer, British authorities identified an infant seemingly trafficked into the country after a woman's elaborate "fake birth story" fell apart under scrutiny.

Many "baby factories" in the West African nation operate under a veil of legitimacy, "disguised as private medical clinics, orphanages or even social welfare homes," said Human Rights Pulse back in 2021. But inside, women and girls are being held against their will, abused and forced to give birth for this "dirty, profitable business." After the babies are born, they are "forcefully taken away" either for adoption at a price or to be trafficked to become "prostitutes or child laborers."

A "fear of poverty" means both men and women have become vulnerable, said Deutsche Welle. Bearing children is "considered significant in many African societies," and the pressure can cause "humiliation" for infertile couples. Traffickers know this, and a high demand, for male children in particular, makes the practice "especially lucrative."

Trafficking thrives due to the "ready market" for children, said Nigerian newspaper Punch. The legal adoption process can often be "prolonged, stricter and more expensive," driving couples to "resort to illicit means." There have been occasional raids and arrests, but the "slow Nigerian judicial system" is blamed for the practice continuing to fester.

Work to prevent trafficking continues abroad. The U.K. government has "restricted adoptions from Nigeria" since 2021 due to fears of the illegal movement of children, said the BBC. According to one expert, "DNA testing of newborn babies and purported parents" might help.

On this day

July 18, A.D. 64

The Great Fire of Rome began, quickly making its way through densely packed buildings and engulfing much of the city. Roman Emperor Nero received part of the blame for an inadequate response to the blaze, and the phrase "Nero fiddles while Rome burns" is still a common idiom today.

TODAY'S newspaperS

House 'cedes power' to president

In a "rare ceding of power" the House has prepared to approve Donald Trump's request to "claw back" $9 billion from foreign aid and public broadcasting, says The New York Times. This takes Republicans "one step closer" to their ambition, says The Palm Beach Post.
But cuts to Medicaid would be a "matter of life and death" for children with disabilities, says USA Today. Meanwhile, from "Panama to Singapore," Trump is deploying an "unprecedented number of Floridians" as U.S. ambassadors, says the Miami Herald. One third are from the sunshine state.

► See the newspaper front pages

Tall tale

(Tres)pass/Fail

A high school teacher in South Korea and the father of one of his students were arrested after they allegedly tried to break into a classroom to steal test papers, according to police. The student "consistently maintained top grades," but it's "unclear if their academic record is related to previous cases of exam paper theft," said the BBC. Authorities believe this was not the duo's first time trying to enter the school after hours.

Morning Report was written and edited by Nadia Croes, Rebekah Evans, Catherine Garcia, Jessica Hullinger, Scott Hocker, Justin Klawans, Summer Meza, Chas Newkey-Burden, Devika Rao, Rafi Schwartz and David Edwards, with illustrations by Stephen Kelly and Julia Wytrazek.