The week’s political and economic news was led by Iran’s call for a negotiated solution to its conflict with the U.S. and Israel, alongside several major moves by President Trump and other U.S. officials. Iran’s proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end fighting was rejected by Trump, after being announced at the UN General Assembly and conveyed to the U.S. through Qatari mediators. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said conditions for action on the waterway would be set by Iran and argued that only negotiations could resolve the deadlock. Trump also approved new fuel-economy standards intended to reverse vehicle-efficiency rules introduced during Biden’s presidency, while critics warned of higher gasoline consumption. The Transportation Department is expected to finalize the standards on Monday. Separately, the Supreme Court revived an expanded voter-citizenship database, though federal law restricts systematic voter-roll purges within 90 days of an election. Trump canceled $810 million in congressionally approved funding through a rare pocket rescission (executive cancellation of approved budget authority), affecting immigration, education and housing programs across seven federal agencies. Vice President JD Vance criticized companies that replace American workers with foreign labor through the H-1B visa program (a U.S. work-visa system for skilled foreign workers).