Bessent Sees US Trade Talks Largely Done by October, Nikkei Says
The comments, made to Nikkei on Thursday, come after President Donald Trump's sweeping new tariffs took effect. Some key trading partners, including Canada, Mexico and Switzerland, are still seeking to secure more favorable terms with the US.
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Yahoo
15 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Optiva Inc. Reports Second Quarter 2025 Financial Results
All amounts are stated in United States dollars unless otherwise indicated Revenue of $10.3 million Total Contract Value ('TCV')(1) bookings of $26.6 million Gross margin of 49% Adjusted EBITDA(1) loss of $1.6 million EPS loss of $ 0.71 $12.9 million of cash TORONTO, Aug. 13, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Optiva Inc. ('Optiva' or 'the Company') (TSX:OPT), a leader in powering the telecom industry with cloud-native billing, charging and revenue management software on private and public clouds, today released its second quarter financial results for the three-month period ended June 30, 2025. Demonstrating continued bookings growth, during the second quarter, Optiva was selected by two new customers, a Tier 1 European mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) and a Tier 1 European telecom. This brings the total to 13 new customers in two years, a clear sign of confidence in the Company's roadmap and portfolio. Additionally, a key current customer has signed an extended multi-year BSS platform support agreement. Further, the Company was chosen as a finalist for the Most Innovative Telco AI/ML Product or Solution for the upcoming Leading Lights Awards by Light Reading. Update Regarding Optiva's Matured Secured Notes and Strategic TransactionAs announced on July 18, 2025, the company has entered into a 45-day support agreement with 85% of noteholders, allowing the Company to negotiate a transaction with a strategic third party. The negotiations have progressed, and while there can be no assurances that a successful transaction will be completed, it is expected that a binding agreement will be reached prior to the end of the 45-day forbearance period. Optiva has continued to operate in the ordinary course, upholding its commitments to customers, employees and suppliers since the maturity of the Notes, and with approximately $12 million cash on hand, it has the liquid resources to meet its working capital commitments for the foreseeable future. "We are deeply grateful to our customers for their continued trust as we finalize our future ownership structure. This transition will lead to an even stronger, more dynamic Optiva, greatly benefiting them. I also extend my sincere gratitude to the entire Optiva team. Their world-class capabilities and powerful innovations are evident in our strong momentum, reflected in new customer wins and product adoption,' said Robert Stabile, Chief Executive Officer of Optiva. For more information about Optiva, please visit: Business Highlights TCV of Q2 bookings totaled $26.6 million. For the trailing twelve months, TCV of bookings totaled $64.3 million. A Tier 1 European MVNO selected Optiva to modernize its business support systems (BSS). Optiva will deploy its AI-enabled, end-to-end stack, empowering the MVNO to achieve next-level agility, flexibility and scalability. Optiva BSS Platform and its AI-driven analytics tools will be deployed across multiple countries and markets. The modernization will further position the MVNO at the forefront of the industry, aligning with its broader digital transformation strategy to continue leading in the MVNx, mobile-first, experience-driven era. A Tier 1 European telecom chose Optiva to power its next-generation mobile virtual network enabler (MVNE) platform. With Optiva's modular, full end-to-end, AI-enabled BSS stack at its core, the operator will offer an enhanced and agile solution to MVNOs and other wholesale customers, including fixed wireless access (FWA) and fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) providers. Optiva BSS Platform will offer modularity and choice to the operator's customers, allowing them to select and customize capabilities tailored to their specific business needs, driving differentiation, innovation and new revenue. Digitel, a leading mobile network operator in Venezuela with more than 7.2 million subscribers and an Optiva customer since 2014, renewed its BSS platform support agreement for an additional three years. Optiva was named a finalist for Most Innovative Telco AI/ML Product or Solution for the Leading Lights 2025 Awards by Light Reading. The nomination recognizes how Optiva solutions apply AI and machine learning to support the changing needs of communications network operators. Second Quarter 2025 Financial Results Highlights: Q2 Fiscal 2025 Highlights Three Months Ended Six Months Ended ($ US Millions, except per share information) June 30, June 30, (Unaudited) 2025 2024 2025 2024 Revenue 10.3 11.4 21.8 23.1 Net Income (Loss) (4.4 ) (5.6 ) (6.8 ) (11.6 ) Earnings (Loss) Per Share ($0.71 ) ($0.90 ) ($1.09 ) ($1.88 ) Adjusted EBITDA(1) (1.6 ) (1.7 ) (1.2 ) (4.0 ) Cash from (used in) operating activities 4.9 5.2 1.9 1.8 Total cash, including restricted cash 12.9 17.1 12.9 17.1 Revenue for Q2'25 was $10.3 million. On a year-over-year basis, the change by revenue type included a $1.0 million decrease in support and subscription revenue, $0.1 million decrease in software and services revenue and no change in third party software and hardware revenue. The decrease in support and subscription in the period mainly relates to the earlier than expected discontinuation of support by migrating customers. Gross margin for Q2'25 was 49% compared to 56% during the same period in 2024. The decrease in gross margin is primarily attributable to lower revenue from high margin support and subscription revenue and higher amount of customizations with lower margins ordered by customers that required fulfillment, compared to the previous period. We expect our gross margins may fluctuate as our cloud-native model and product capabilities are adopted by new and existing customers in the public or private cloud in future periods. Adjusted Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization ("EBITDA")1 for Q2 was a loss of $1.6 million as compared to loss of $1.7 million during the same period in 2024. Net loss for Q2 was $4.4 million compared to a net loss of $5.6 million during the same period in 2024. The net loss for the three months ended June 30, 2025, was lower mainly due to the lower operations expenses incurred during the period compared to last year. The company's lower operating expenses reflect ongoing efforts to optimize resources in support of our product roadmap, customer service, expanding our customer base, and administrative needs. The Company ended the second quarter with a cash balance of $12.9 million (including restricted cash.) (1) EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, TCV and adjusted EPS are non-IFRS measures. These measures are defined in the "Non-IFRS Measures" section of this news release. Non-IFRS Measures 'EBITDA" and "Adjusted EBITDA" are not financial measures calculated and presented in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute to net income (loss), operating income or any other financial measures of performance calculated and presented in accordance with IFRS, or as an alternative to cash flow from operating activities as a measure of liquidity. The Company defines EBITDA as net income (loss) excluding amounts for depreciation and amortization, other income, finance costs, finance income, income tax expense (recovery), foreign exchange gain (loss) and share-based compensation. The Company defines "Adjusted EBITDA" as EBITDA (as defined above), excluding restructuring costs, one-time provision amounts and other one-time unusual items. The Company believes that Adjusted EBITDA is a metric that investors may find useful in understanding the Company's financial position. The following table provides a reconciliation of Net Income to EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA (in thousands of U.S. dollars). Three months ended, June 30, Six months ended, June 30, 2025 2024 2025 2024 Net loss for the period $ (4,415 ) $ (5,601 ) $ (6,754 ) $ (11,633 ) Add back / (subtract): Depreciation of computer equipment 75 153 188 332 Finance income (68 ) (132 ) (156 ) (325 ) Finance costs 2,991 2,845 5,897 5,674 Income tax expense (recovery) 295 343 496 582 Foreign exchange loss (gain) (500 ) 86 (584 ) 248 Share-based compensation (21 ) 593 (270 ) 1,100 EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA $ (1,643 ) $ (1,713 ) $ (1,183 ) $ (4,022 ) TCV is the Total Contract Value of all bookings closed in the period. About Optiva Optiva Inc. is a leading provider of mission-critical, cloud-native, agentic AI-powered revenue management software for the telecommunications industry. Its products are delivered globally on the private and public cloud. The Company's solutions help service providers maximize digital, 5G, IoT and emerging market opportunities to achieve business success. Established in 1999, Optiva Inc. is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX:OPT). For more information, visit Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statement Certain statements in this document may constitute "forward-looking" statements that involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements or industry results to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. When used in this document, such statements use such words as "may," "will," "expect," "continue," "believe," "plan," "intend," "would," "could," "should," "anticipate" and other similar terminology. Forward-looking statements in this document include statements regarding the Company's "qualified pipeline", the TCV of the qualified pipeline and the Company's expectations regarding future revenues. We draw your attention to the "Risks and Uncertainties" section of the Company's management's discussion and analysis for the quarter ended June 30,2025, and to note 1 of our consolidated financial statements which indicate the existence of material uncertainty that may cast significant doubt on the Company's ability to continue as a going concern. The Company had a working capital deficit (current assets less current liabilities) of $101.9 million as at June 30, 2025 (December 31, 2024 – working capital deficit of $94.8 million), reflecting inclusion of the 9.75% secured PIK toggle debentures due July 20, 2025 (the 'Debentures') as a current liability. The Debentures in the amount of $108.6 million as of June 30, 2025, had a scheduled maturity date of July 20, 2025. Based on the cash balance as of June 30, 2025 and the cash flows from operations to the Debentures scheduled maturity date, the Company had insufficient cash to meet its obligations upon maturity of the Debentures. The Company's board of directors has formed a special committee of independent directors that are actively engaged with strategic third parties, including key holders of the Secured Notes, for purposes of evaluating strategic alternatives, including a potential transaction, to optimize outcomes for the business, our people, and our customers. On July 18, the Company entered into a support agreement (the 'Support Agreement') with the holders of approximately 85% of the outstanding principal amount of the Debentures. The Support Agreement provides the Company with a 45-day grace period (the "Grace Period") to allow the Special Committee to conclude negotiations with the Debenture holders and prospective merger counterparties regarding a potential transaction. During the Grace Period, Debenture holders who are parties to the Support Agreement have agreed to forbear from exercising any of their rights or remedies in connection with any payment default occurring on the scheduled maturity of the Debentures on July 20, 2025. This Grace Period may be extended at the election of the Debenture holders. The Company's ability to continue its operations is dependent upon its ability to refinance the debentures or implement other financial alternatives, including other sources of financing through debt or equity, however there is no assurance that this will be successful. These factors indicate the existence of a material uncertainty that may cast significant doubt on the Company's ability to continue as a going concern. These statements are forward-looking as they are based on our current expectations, as at August 13, 2025, about our business and the markets we operate in and on various estimates and assumptions. Our actual results could materially differ from our expectations if known or unknown risks affect our business or if our estimates or assumptions turn out to be inaccurate. As a result, there is no assurance that any forward-looking statements will materialize. Risks that could cause our results to differ materially from our current expectations include the risk that the Company will not secure contracts with customers that are included in its qualified pipeline, the risk that existing customers may decrease their spend with the Company and other risks that are discussed in the Company's most recent Annual Information Form, available on SEDAR at and Optiva's website at Other unknown or unpredictable factors or underlying assumptions subsequently proving to be incorrect could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Optiva does not undertake or accept any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements to reflect any change in its expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based, except as required by law. For additional information, please contact: Media Contact: Misann Ellmakermedia@ Investor Relations: investors-relations@ Inc. Condensed Consolidated Interim Statements of Financial Position (Expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars) (Unaudited) June 30, December 31, 2025 2024 Assets Current assets: Cash and cash equivalents $ 11,446 $ 10,217 Trade accounts and other receivables 5,111 7,229 Unbilled revenue 10,467 9,292 Prepaid expenses 1,809 1,994 Income taxes receivable 355 346 Other assets 1,189 1,034 Total current assets 30,377 30,112 Restricted cash 1,438 843 Computer Equipment 431 571 Deferred income taxes 425 475 Other assets 3,111 2,712 Long-term unbilled revenue 345 384 Pension and other long-term employment benefit plans 1,906 2,773 Goodwill 32,271 32,271 Total assets $ 70,304 $ 70,141 Liabilities and Shareholders' Equity (Deficit) Current liabilities: Trade payables $ 1,805 $ 1,940 Accrued liabilities 13,704 14,229 Income taxes payable 3,030 3,367 Deferred revenue 5,246 2,688 Debentures 108,492 102,701 Total current liabilities 132,277 124,925 Deferred revenue 136 64 Other liabilities 1,376 1,768 Deferred income taxes 85 126 Total liabilities 133,874 126,883 Shareholders' equity (deficit): Share capital 270,760 270,746 Contributed surplus 15,221 15,309 Deficit (355,316 ) (348,562 ) Accumulated other comprehensive income 5,765 5,765 Total shareholders' equity (deficit) (63,570 ) (56,742 ) Total liabilities and shareholders' equity (deficit) $ 70,304 $ 70,141 OPTIVA Inc. Condensed Consolidated Interim Statements of Comprehensive Income (loss) (Expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars, except per share and share amounts) (Unaudited) Three months ended, June 30 Six months ended, June 30, 2024 2024 2025 2024 Revenue: Support and subscription $ 6,415 $ 7,432 $ 13,915 $ 14,762 Software licenses, services and other 3,837 3,961 7,929 8,335 10,252 11,393 21,844 23,097 Cost of revenue 5,209 5,028 9,336 9,916 Gross profit 5,043 6,365 12,508 13,181 Operating expenses: Sales and marketing 2,148 2,508 4,072 5,264 General and administrative 1,851 2,626 3,526 5,643 Research and development 2,741 3,690 6,012 7,728 6,740 8,824 13,610 18,635 Income (loss) from operations (1,697 ) (2,459 ) (1,102 ) (5,454 ) Foreign exchange gain (loss) 500 (86 ) 584 (248 ) Finance income 68 132 157 325 Finance costs (2,991 ) (2,845 ) (5,897 ) (5,674 ) Loss before income taxes (4,120 ) (5,258 ) (6,258 ) (11,051 ) Income tax expense (recovery): Current 262 385 488 679 Deferred 33 (42 ) 8 (97 ) 295 343 496 582 Total net loss and comprehensive loss $ (4,415 ) $ (5,601 ) $ (6,754 ) $ (11,633 ) Net loss per common share Basic $ (0.71 ) $ (0.90 ) $ (1.09 ) $ (1.88 ) Diluted (0.71 ) (0.90 ) (1.09 ) (1.88 ) Weighted average number of common shares (thousands): Basic 6,222 6,212 6,218 6,196 Diluted 6,222 6,212 6,218 6,196 OPTIVA Inc. Condensed Consolidated Interim Statements of Cash Flows (Expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars) (Unaudited) Three months ended, June 30 Six months ended June 30, 2025 2024 2025 2024 Cash provided by (used in): Operating activities: Net loss for the year $ (4,415 ) $ (5,601 ) $ (6,754 ) $ (11,633 ) Adjustments for: Depreciation of property and equipment 75 153 188 332 Finance income (68 ) (132 ) (156 ) (325 ) Finance costs 2,991 2,845 5,897 5,674 Pensions 1,801 (777 ) 1,354 (864 ) Income tax expense 295 343 496 582 Unrealized foreign exchange (gain) / loss (264 ) (60 ) (429 ) (374 ) Share-based compensation (21 ) 593 (270 ) 1,100 Change in non-cash operating working capital 3,457 5,651 2,483 5,351 3,851 3,015 2,809 (157 ) Interest paid (2 ) (6 ) (2 ) (6 ) Interest received 51 114 139 286 Income taxes received (paid) 1,031 2,090 (1,084 ) 1,654 4,931 5,213 1,862 1,777 Financing activities: Payment of interest on debentures - - - (5,086 ) - - - (5,086 ) Investing activities: Purchase of property and equipment (58 ) (181 ) (58 ) (381 ) Decrease (increase) in restricted cash 38 (1 ) (594 ) 8 (20 ) (182 ) (652 ) (373 ) Effect of foreign exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents (12 ) 62 19 376 Decrease in cash and cash equivalents 4,899 5,093 1,229 (3,306 ) Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of period 6,547 11,243 10,217 19,642 Cash and cash equivalents, end of period $ 11,446 $ 16,336 $ 11,446 $ 16,336 Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Vox
17 minutes ago
- Vox
A court victory for Trump's foreign aid cuts, briefly explained
President Donald Trump in the State Dining Room of the White House on August 8, 2025. Nathan Howard/Bloomberg via Getty Images This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here. Welcome to The Logoff: The Trump administration's decision to cancel billions in foreign aid can stand, a federal appeals court said today, in a major blow to global humanitarian aid. What did the court actually decide? A three-judge panel on the DC Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 that the plaintiffs in the case weren't eligible to bring the suit in the first place. The majority found that only the Government Accountability Office can challenge the administration's decision to withhold congressionally appropriated funds under a specific process laid out in the Impoundment Control Act of 1974. What's the context for this decision? Donald Trump and Elon Musk made US foreign aid programs one of their first targets upon taking power in January. Musk boasted about feeding the US Agency for International Development 'into the wood chipper,' and Trump withheld billions in spending already authorized by Congress. A number of humanitarian nonprofits sued to restore the withheld funds, alleging it was an unconstitutional violation of the separation of powers — but today's ruling punts on that question altogether, instead focusing on procedure. What will the impact of this freeze be? To put it simply, US foreign aid saves lives, and cutting it will cost them. Among the money the Trump administration will now be allowed to withhold is billions of dollars in funding for HIV/AIDS prevention and other global health programs. As the New York Times calculated earlier this year, the potential death toll for slashing US aid is more than 1.5 million people in 2025 alone; many, including young children, have already died. The Logoff The email you need to stay informed about Trump — without letting the news take over your life. Email (required) Sign Up By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Notice . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. What else should I know? Separate from the human impact, this is a significant decision for the Trump administration's efforts to impound congressionally appropriated funds, for foreign aid and other purposes. Unless or until the GAO sues over impoundment, the administration can keep at it and keep chipping away at the separation of powers in the process. And with that, it's time to log off… You know what The Logoff hasn't featured in a while? That's right — an animal livestream. Today I'm spotlighting one of my favorites from Brooks Falls in Katmai National Park, Alaska.
CNN
17 minutes ago
- CNN
Analysis: Trump's 7 most authoritarian moves so far
The story of President Donald Trump's first seven months back in office is the consolidation of power. He has bulldozed the obstacles that often stood in his way in his first term and constantly tested boundaries, in an almost single-minded pursuit of more authority. Whether you think that's a good thing (because that's what the country needs) or a bad thing, that's objectively the state of affairs. Trump has for years made no secret of his disregard for the limits of his power, and he's governing accordingly. In recent days alone, he and his administration have taken major steps on this front. One is his federalization of the DC Metropolitan Police Department and his deployment of the National Guard to the nation's capital to deal with what he says is out-of-control crime. The former step is unprecedented, and the latter is extraordinary – given the guard is usually only called in for widespread disturbances like riots. Another step concerns Trump's politicization of government data. After the president fired the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics over a jobs report he disliked, the question was whether the financial markets could trust government data moving forward, given the message Trump was sending. But rather than soothing those fears with a well-regarded consensus pick, Trump picked a MAGA loyalist. And finally, there's the snowballing number of investigations of Trump's political opponents — which, as of last week, was growing at a rapid clip. Given all of that, it's a good time to run through the most significant and consequential Trump power grabs of his second term. These are the kinds of things we could one day look back upon as recasting the balance of power in American government and pushing us in a more authoritarian direction. If there's one Trump inclination that most concerned top military and defense officials in his first term, it might have been his desire to dispatch troops on US soil. And Trump is increasingly making it a reality. He has not only deployed the guard in DC, but he deployed both the guard and the Marines to Los Angeles two months ago in another extraordinary way (given the lack of widespread violence). Trump is also increasingly talking about ramping up these efforts. He's spoken this week about also deploying active-duty military in DC and expanding his approach to other cities in a way that would militarize the US homeland like never before. And he's suggested he can expand the effort in ways that appear to go beyond his legal authority, by declaring emergencies. Those top officials from Trump's first term worried about him politicizing the military, using it to target American citizens, and possibly even using it to hold on to power. While the tariffs saga now feels like just a reality of our daily political life, it's also a major power play. After all, this is the president claiming emergency powers over a prerogative that the Constitution gives to Congress, and constantly shifting the terms in an effort to bargain with other countries. He's in effect wielding an ever-changing level of taxation on American businesses and consumers. The courts are still sorting through whether he's exceeded his authority, with the US Court of International Trade initially ruling that he had. But perhaps more than any other issue, this is the one on which Trump has neutered Congress and run the country like an all-powerful executive. Lawmakers have the power to rein him in. And Republicans traditionally don't like tariffs. But the GOP-controlled Congress apparently wants no part of stopping their party's standard bearer. The Trump administration has already launched investigations or taken investigative steps against key figures in four high-profile efforts to scrutinize Trump: the Russia investigation, his first impeachment, the January 6, 2021, investigations and his personal criminal and civil cases. The retributive nature of these efforts is only reinforced by the fact that Trump has personally pushed for many of these probes – a break with longstanding practice. Early in his term, he even signed an executive order explicitly calling for investigations of two critics. It remains to be seen if any of these probes will amount to anything. The GOP's attempts to impeach then-President Joe Biden never did, and we haven't seen substantial evidence in these investigations. But even if they don't lead anywhere, a message will be sent to anyone else who might blow the whistle on or investigate Trump: If you scrutinize him, we'll go after you. That's a recipe for people keeping quiet. While it might seem relatively small-bore, Trump's maneuvers with BLS could have large-scale implications. Again, it's about the message it sends to others who might deliver bad news for Trump. And by nominating a loyalist in Heritage Foundation economist EJ Antoni for the new BLS commissioner, Trump is further eroding the expectation of independence from such officials. (Indeed, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick just this week called the notion of the independence of federal statistics 'nonsense.') It's a lot like Trump's longstanding efforts to fire nonpartisan government officials and watchdogs, and to lean on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to lower interest rates by repeatedly threatening to fire or investigate him. This is quite simply something that presidents don't do, because it adds the specter of political pressure in apolitical government functions. Trump increasingly appears to have no qualms about looking like he has his thumbs on the scale – even in circumstances where that could seemingly come back to bite him, like BLS and the Fed. Trump has gone to extraordinary lengths to use his bully pulpit and executive powers to demonstrate his dominance over these powerful institutions, with plenty of success. These institutions, which have made remarkable concessions to his administration, seem to be making the calculation that it's simply best not to be on Trump's bad side. That can't help but set new precedents that could impact other institutions and embolden him. And the president has been happy to gloat. 'You see what we're doing with the colleges, and they're all bending and saying, 'Sir, thank you very much. We appreciate it,'' he said at the White House in March. 'Nobody can believe it, including law firms that have been so horrible, law firms that, nobody would believe this, just saying, 'Where do I sign? Where do I sign?'' Nothing encapsulates Trump's disregard for the legislative branch – and its acquiescence – like TikTok. Congress passed a bill with huge bipartisan majorities requiring the social media platform to divest from its Chinese ownership or be banned, with lawmakers citing urgent national security concerns. The Supreme Court unanimously upheld that law. But Trump just keeps ignoring that and giving TikTok extensions, even as it's pretty evident he doesn't have the authority under the law. There are practical reasons he's been allowed to do that. Democrats, for example, don't want to be the bad guys in following through on banning an app that is so popular. And it's not clear who would have legal standing to sue Trump over this. But just because those practical problems exist doesn't mean this isn't a power play. It's a president effectively choosing to disregard the law, because he can. And he's doing so despite those supposedly very urgent national security concerns about the Chinese government mining Americans' sensitive data – concerns Trump once expressed himself. Its also of-a-piece with Trump's repeated efforts to simply disregard congressionally appropriated spending. Trump's efforts to ramp up deportations have included a number of power grabs. Most notably, that's taken the form of flouting due process and the rule of law. Trump invoked what has traditionally been a wartime authority – the Alien Enemies Act – to try and quickly deport undocumented immigrants. His efforts have led to a number of wrongful deportations and attempted deportations that have been blocked by the courts. At one point, the administration clearly ignored a court order to turn around airplanes holding migrants. Many of Trump's allies have argued these migrants aren't entitled to legal protections. And this has put Democrats in the politically uncomfortable position of standing up for those migrants' rights. Perhaps nothing has so called into question the authority of the rule of law and the courts, with plenty of poking and prodding by Trump and his administration to force the issue. This has been one area where the courts have stepped up and seemed to check Trump. But that's surely not the end of the power struggle.
