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    Trump Issues Blistering Response After Israel, Iran Violate Ceasefire Deal

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
    -
    1
    Photo via Gage Skidmore Flickr

    President Trump is not happy…

    President Donald Trump expressed deep frustration with both Israel and Iran on Tuesday, saying the two countries “don’t know what the **** they’re doing.”

    Trump announced a ceasefire between Israel and Iran on Monday night, dubbing the conflict a “12-day war.”

    Trump made the comments while departing from the White House for a NATO summit Tuesday morning. Both Israel and Iran fired missiles at one another following the imposition of a ceasefire on Monday night.

    “I’m not happy with Israel. You know, when I say, okay, now you have 12 hours, you don’t go out in the first hour and just drop everything you have on them. So I’m not happy with them. I’m not happy with Iran either, but I’m really unhappy if Israel is going out this morning,” Trump said.

    He continued, “We basically have two countries that have been fighting for so long and so hard that they don’t know what the **** they’re doing.” 

    “I’m gonna see if I can stop it,” he added.

    “ISRAEL. DO NOT DROP THOSE BOMBS. IF YOU DO IT IS A MAJOR VIOLATION. BRING YOUR PILOTS HOME, NOW!” Trump wrote on Truth Social shortly after boarding Marine One.

    Minutes later, he announced that Israel was canceling its plans for an attack Tuesday morning.

    President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shake hands during their joint press conference, Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017, in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C. (Official White House Photo by Leslie N. Emory)

    “ISRAEL is not going to attack Iran. All planes will turn around and head home, while doing a friendly ‘Plane Wave’ to Iran. Nobody will be hurt, the Ceasefire is in effect! Thank you for your attention to this matter!” he wrote.

    He then topped it off with a post stating: “IRAN WILL NEVER REBUILD THEIR NUCLEAR FACILITIES!”

    A senior Israeli official told Fox News on Tuesday that Iran had launched two missiles toward Israel following the announcement of the ceasefire, “and we believe they are trying to fire more in the next couple of hours.”

    “Unfortunately, the Iranians have decided to continue to fire toward Israel,” the official said to Fox News Chief Foreign Correspondent Trey Yingst after Trump unveiled the deal Monday.

    “Now we will have to retaliate, this will happen of course,” the official added. “It could end within several hours, but they [the Iranians] need to make a decision.” 

    The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that the Israel Defense Forces carried out a small airstrike on Iranian radar equipment before backing down from further attacks. 

    “At 7:06 a.m., Iran launched one missile toward Israeli territory, and at 10:25 a.m., two more missiles. The missiles were intercepted or landed in open areas without causing casualties or damage,” the office said. “In response to Iran’s violations, the Israeli Air Force destroyed a radar array near Tehran. Following President Trump’s conversation with Prime Minister Netanyahu, Israel refrained from further strikes.” 

    “In the call, President Trump expressed his deep appreciation for Israel — which achieved all the objectives of the war. He also expressed his confidence in the stability of the ceasefire,” the office added. 

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    Trump And Putin Agree To 30-Day Ceasefire

    By
    Patrick Houck
    -
    0
    Kremlin.ru, via Wikimedia Commons

    U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have agreed to a 30-day cessation of attacks on energy infrastructure in Ukraine, following an extensive phone conversation. This agreement is a preliminary step toward broader peace negotiations, although a comprehensive ceasefire has not yet been established.

    During their three hour discussion, both leaders emphasized the importance of addressing the underlying causes of the conflict to achieve lasting peace. They agreed to initiate technical negotiations aimed at a maritime ceasefire in the Black Sea and to continue efforts toward a full cessation of hostilities.

    Additionally, Russia and Ukraine have consented to exchange 175 prisoners each as part of confidence-building measures. While Ukraine has accepted the 30-day ceasefire proposal, Russia’s support is conditional, with President Putin expressing concerns about Ukraine potentially regrouping during the ceasefire and emphasizing the need for guarantees to prevent such actions

    President Trump has indicated that further sanctions could be imposed on Russia if a comprehensive peace agreement is not reached, underscoring the urgency of the situation.

    This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.

    Article Published With The Permission of American Liberty News

    Report: Trump Team Mulling Replacement For Controversial Admin. Nominee

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
    -
    5
    By Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America - Pete Hegseth, CC BY-SA 2.0

    This Trump nominee could already be on his way out…

    President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team has reportedly been drafting a list of alternative nominees for Defense Secretary in case Trump rethinks his choice of, Fox & Friends Weekend co-host Pete Hegseth.

    According to Vanity Fair, which spoke to two unnamed Republican sources “close to Trump,” the president-elect’s transition team has been “quietly preparing a list of alternative defense secretary candidates should Trump abandon Hegseth,” following news of a 2017 sexual assault allegation.

    “It’s becoming a real possibility,” claimed one of the sources. The other source said, “People are upset about the distraction. The general feeling is Pete hasn’t been honest.”

    Shortly after Trump announced his decision to nominate Hegseth for secretary of defense this month, the Trump transition team was informed about a 2020 payment Hegseth reportedly made to a woman who accused him of sexually assaulting her at a hotel and spa in 2017.

    In a statement, Hegseth’s lawyer Timothy Parlatore insisted, “Mr. Hegseth is completely innocent. Not only did she take advantage of him, but we believe she then extorted him knowing that at the height of the #MeToo movement the mere public allegation would likely result in his immediate termination from Fox News.”

    The New York Times reported last week that Trump had “not moved off supporting Mr. Hegseth, despite claims that his team was reassessing the pick, according to several people close to the incoming president.”

    Hegseth’s nomination took Senate Republicans by surprise.

    Asked for his thoughts on the nomination, Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) reportedly remarked, “Really? I’d have to think about it.”

    Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) reacted, “Wow… I’m just surprised because the names that I’ve heard for Secretary of Defense have not included him,” while Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) asked, “Who?”

    Sen. Ted Budd (R-NC) was more optimistic about the nomination, calling Hegseth “an impressive individual.”

    US Takes 10% Stake In Intel Under Trump To Strengthen Chip Production

    By
    Patrick Houck
    -
    1
    Donald Trump via Gage Skidmore Flickr

    A public-private deal aims to bring microchip manufacturing back to American soil — and deliver taxpayer returns in the process.

    A Strategic Bet on Semiconductors

    President Donald Trump announced Friday that chipmaker Intel agreed to give the U.S. government a 9.9% equity stake, valued at $8.9 billion. The move, the first of its kind under the CHIPS and Science Act, is intended to strengthen domestic semiconductor capacity and ensure that federal subsidies come with direct returns for taxpayers.

    “They’ve agreed to do it, and I think it’s a great deal for them,” Trump told reporters during a briefing. The agreement follows internal administration discussions about using existing Commerce Department funding to acquire a stake in Intel, an effort confirmed earlier in the week by Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.

    The stake is expected to be funded through the CHIPS Act and the Department of Defense’s Secure Enclave program. It will be a passive investment, meaning the government will not receive board seats, governance rights, or special access to information.

    Intel Under Scrutiny

    Trump also shed light on how the agreement came about — including a conversation with Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan, whose background had drawn criticism from Capitol Hill.

    Earlier this month, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) raised alarms over Tan’s past leadership of Cadence Design Systems, which in 2008 pleaded guilty to illegally exporting chip design software to a Chinese military university. Tan’s investments in China-based firms had also raised national security concerns.

    “I said, ‘Well that’s right, he should resign,’” Trump said. “And he came in, he saw me, we talked for a while. I liked him a lot. I thought he was very good. I thought he was somewhat a victim, but, you know, nobody’s a total victim, I guess.”

    Following their meeting, Trump floated the idea that Intel should offer a 10% equity share to the U.S. government.

    “He said, ‘I would consider that,’” Trump recalled. “Intel has been left behind, as you know, compared to [Nvidia CEO] Jensen [Huang] and some of our friends.”

    Commerce: “We Can’t Rely on Taiwan”

    Commerce Secretary Lutnick emphasized that the deal has more to do with national security than boardroom politics. In an interview on CNBC’s Squawk Box, Lutnick pointed out that Taiwan, which manufactures over 90% of the world’s most advanced semiconductors, sits just 80 miles from China.

    “We cannot rely on Taiwan, which is 9,500 miles away from us and only 80 miles from China,” Lutnick said. “So, you can’t have 99 percent of leading-edge chips made in Taiwan. We want to make them here.”

    He noted that the administration wants to ensure that U.S. companies are capable of producing next-generation chip nodes domestically.

    “One of those pieces is, it would be lovely to have Intel be capable of making a U.S. node or a U.S. transistor — driving that in America,” Lutnick added.

    A Rare Bipartisan Signal

    The move drew support across ideological lines, with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) praising the basic premise: that if the federal government is handing out billions in subsidies, the public should see a share of the profits.

    “No. Taxpayers should not be providing billions of dollars in corporate welfare to large, profitable corporations like Intel without getting anything in return,” Sanders said. “If microchip companies make a profit from the generous grants they receive from the federal government, the taxpayers of America have a right to a reasonable return on that investment.”

    Not Everyone on Board

    Some conservatives pushed back against the concept of government equity stakes in private corporations.

    Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) called the proposal a “terrible” precedent.

    “If socialism is government owning the means of production, wouldn’t the government owning part of Intel be a step toward socialism?” Paul wrote in a post on X.

    Despite the criticism, the administration has defended the agreement as a narrowly targeted investment — not a takeover — intended to align taxpayer contributions with long-term national and economic security.

    Looking Ahead

    The Intel stake marks a sharp departure from traditional federal industrial policy. Rather than simply issuing grants or tax breaks, the administration is pursuing a more transactional model: public money in, public equity out.

    For the Trump administration, the goal is clear — to use government leverage to secure America’s position in next-generation chip manufacturing and reduce dependence on overseas supply chains.

    READ NEXT: When Loyalty Breaks: Hegseth Moves Against Key Military Leader

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    Republican Senator To Vote ‘No’ On Trump Defense Pick

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
    -
    10

    Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Ak.) said on Thursday she can’t support Pete Hegseth to be President Donald Trump’s secretary of Defense. 

    “Given the global security environment we’re operating in, it is critical that we confirm a Secretary of Defense, however, I regret that I am unable to support Mr. Hegseth,” she concluded in a lengthy statement posted to X. 

    In her reasoning, Murkowski cited infidelity, “allegations of sexual assault and excessive drinking” and Hegseth’s previous comments on women serving in the military. 

    The behaviors that he has admitted to alone, she said, show “a lack of judgment that is unbecoming of someone who would lead our armed forces.”

    While Hegseth has admitted to past infidelity, he has denied claims of excessive drinking and sexual assault.

    This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.

    Hegseth’s Inner Circle Crumbles — Top Aide Out In Pentagon Shakeup

    By
    Patrick Houck
    -
    1
    By Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America - Pete Hegseth, CC BY-SA 2.0

    Joe Kasper, former chief of staff to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, likely walked out of the Pentagon as a Department of Defense (DOD) employee for the last time Thursday as controversy over leaked classified information spiraled out of control. His exit follows bombshell revelations that Hegseth shared sensitive military plans — including airstrike details in Yemen — with unauthorized parties via Signal, an encrypted messaging app.

    The scandal, now called “Signalgate,” has set off a series of investigations and toppled senior aides, including Deputy Chief of Staff Darin Selnick and Senior Advisor Dan Caldwell. Former Pentagon spokesman John Ullyot called it a “full-blown meltdown,” and warned that Hegseth’s days could be numbered.

    Even as the chaos grows, President Trump is standing by Hegseth — at least publicly. But the fallout is exposing serious cracks in the Pentagon’s leadership and raising alarms about operational security.

    Kasper’s abrupt departure marks another blow during a brutal period of scrutiny. Although Hegseth told the hosts of “Fox & Friends” that his chief adviser would move to “a slightly different role” within the DOD, Kasper is officially gone — eyeing a return to government relations and consulting.

    A senior official confirmed the news on Friday, according to a report by The Guardian:

    “Secretary Hegseth is thankful for [Kasper’s] continued leadership and work to advance the America First agenda,” the official said in a statement, referring to Donald Trump’s protectionist policy push.

    The quick exit comes after Kasper was implicated as the orchestrator of a power grab that led to the dismissal of three senior Pentagon officials – Dan Caldwell, Darin Selnick and Colin Carroll – allegedly as part of a leak investigation.

    The administration’s first hundred days created a troubled tenure for Kasper, with anonymous sources claiming he was frequently late to meetings, failed to follow through on critical tasks, and displayed inappropriate behavior, including berating officials and making crude comments allegedly about his bowel movements during high-level meetings.

    “He lacked the focus and organizational skills needed to get things done,” one anonymous insider told Politico.

    Other reports surfaced that the strip club aficionado shared inappropriate personal stories about exotic dancers during classified meetings — one of several reasons he became a liability. He’s now the fifth top aide to leave Hegseth’s circle in just a week.

    Meanwhile, the broader Pentagon leadership is under fire for security breaches, including Hegseth’s use of an unsecured “dirty” internet line for Signal communications — a move that may have exposed critical data to foreign surveillance, according to NSA warnings.

    READ NEXT: Trump’s Deportation Squad Takes Down Judge Linked To Gruesome Pics

    Trump Mulls Renaming Department Of Defense

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
    -
    2

    Big things are happening…

    On Monday, President Trump announced he plans to restore the Department of Defense to its original title: The Department of War.

    The president said at the White House that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth “has been incredible with the, as I call it, the Department of War.”

    “You know we call it the Department of Defense, but between us, I think we’re going to change the name. You want to know the truth? I think we’re going to have some information on that, maybe soon,” Trump added. 

    “But I think because, you know, Department of Defense, we won the World War One, World War Two. It was called the Department of War. And to me that’s really what it is. Defense is a part of that. But I have a feeling we’re going to be changing,” Trump continued. “I’m talking to the people. Everybody likes that. We had an unbelievable history of victory when it was Department of War. Then we changed it to Department of Defense. 

    Later on, NewsNation reporter Kellie Meyer asked, “And on the Department of War, how do you plan to do that? It requires an act of Congress to rename the Defense Department–”

    Trump then said, “It’s something that I think you’re going to be hearing about or seeing about over the next couple of weeks,” and “probably that change is going to be made over the next week or so.” 

    When asked about the name change at another White House event Monday, Trump told a reporter “We’re just going to do it.”

    “I’m sure Congress will go along if we need that. I don’t think we even need that. But, if we need that, I’m sure Congress will go along,” Trump also said. You know, that was the name when we won World War One. We won World War Two. We won everything. And, just to me, seems like just a much more appropriate. The other is, defense is too defensive. And we want to be defensive, but we want to be offensive too, if we have to be. So it just sounded to me like a better name.” 

    The Department of Defense says on its website that the Department of War was established by Congress in August 1789 “at the cabinet level to oversee the operation and maintenance of the Army, Navy and Marine Corps.” 

    Following the conclusion of World War II, in July 1947, President Harry Truman signed the National Security Act which, the site says, merged “the Navy and War Departments and the newly independent Air Force into a single organization called the National Military Establishment led by a civilian secretary of defense who also oversees the Joint Chiefs of Staff.”

    Two years later in August 1949, the National Security Act was amended, renaming the National Military Establishment as the Department of Defense.

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    ‘Vladimir, STOP!’ – Trump Blasts Putin Over Deadly Strikes On Kyiv

    By
    Patrick Houck
    -
    3
    Photo via Gage Skidmore Flickr

    In a dramatic public rebuke of Russian President Vladimir Putin, President Donald Trump took to Truth Social on Thursday morning to condemn Russia’s latest missile and drone assault on Kyiv, which killed at least nine people and injured more than 70.

    “I am not happy with the Russian strikes on KYIV,” Trump wrote. “Not necessary, and very bad timing. Vladimir, STOP! 5000 soldiers a week are dying. Let’s get the Peace Deal DONE!”

    The Hill has more:

    The Trump administration has been pushing for a ceasefire in the war in Ukraine, but top officials have in recent days signaled they are prepared to walk away from negotiations if the two sides don’t reach a deal soon.

    Fighting has been ongoing in Ukraine since Russian forces invaded in February 2022 after amassing troops near the border.

    Trump has vacillated between criticizing Russia for its continued assault on Ukraine and lashing out at Zelensky.

    Trump’s comments came just hours after he slammed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for vowing that Ukraine would never recognize Russia’s occupation of Crimea — a strategic peninsula that was illegally annexed by Moscow in 2014 and is home to more than 2 million people.

    By President Of Ukraine – https://www.flickr.com/photos/165930373@N06/54169325552/, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=156221279

    “Nobody is asking Zelenskyy to recognize Crimea as Russian territory,” Trump posted Wednesday. He added that such declarations from Kyiv “make it so difficult to settle this war.”

    The White House recently announced that Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, will soon visit Moscow for a fourth round of negotiations with Putin, underlining ongoing diplomatic efforts.

    Kremlin.ru, via Wikimedia Commons

    Meanwhile, European leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron, have squarely blamed Putin for prolonging the war, stating that Russia alone prevents peace. Macron emphasized that only Putin’s agreement could stop the violence, underscoring the international community’s call for a resolution.

    READ NEXT: Legal Firestorm Erupts: US States Sue Trump Over Emergency Powers

    Trump Secures Landmark Deal Between Israel And Hamas

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
    -
    2
    President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shake hands during their joint press conference, Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017, in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C. (Official White House Photo by Leslie N. Emory)

    The Trump administration is being praised for its efforts in securing a landmark peace deal between Israel and Hamas that will see all remaining hostages brought home on Monday.

    Under the first phase of the agreement, Israel will release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for all remaining hostages, both living and dead. Israel will also withdraw its troops from most of Gaza, removing themselves behind a “yellow line” during a 24-hour ceasefire that has already begun.

    At the end of the ceasefire, a 72-hour clock will begin, during which Hamas must release all remaining hostages. Only 20 remaining hostages are believed to be alive, along with the 28 who are deceased and their bodies “scattered across Gaza” according to negotiators.

    Fox News noted it remains unclear if Hamas will be able to adhere to this timeframe after it flagged over the weekend the improbability that it will be able to quickly locate all deceased bodies, some of which are allegedly buried under rubble.

    Jerusalem will also authorize the release of some 1,700 Gazans arrested after the October 2023 attacks, along with roughly 250 Palestinians serving life sentences, under the first phase of the plan presented by President Donald Trump late last month.

    President Donald Trump announced the deal on Wednesday night, hailing assistance from Qatar, Egypt and Turkey.

    Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Shosh Bedrosian said this is only the first phase of the peace agreement. Details of later phases have not been announced.

    Secretary of State Marco Rubio handed President Donald Trump a note on Wednesday telling him that a Middle East peace deal was “very close” and was awaiting Trump’s approval for “a Truth Social post.”

    As Trump spoke to reporters, Rubio walked up to the president, whispered in his ear, and handed him a note

    “Very close. We need you to approve a Truth Social post soon so you can announce deal first,” the note read.

    Watch the moment:

    After being handed the note, Trump told reporters, “I was just given a note by the Secretary of State saying that we’re very close to a deal in the Middle East and they’re gonna need me pretty quickly.”

    Just over an hour later, Trump published a Truth Social post announcing “that Israel and Hamas have both signed off on the first Phase of our Peace Plan.”

    “This means that ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw their Troops to an agreed upon line as the first steps toward a Strong, Durable, and Everlasting Peace. All Parties will be treated fairly!” he wrote. “This is a GREAT Day for the Arab and Muslim World, Israel, all surrounding Nations, and the United States of America, and we thank the mediators from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey, who worked with us to make this Historic and Unprecedented Event happen. BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS!”

    Earlier on Wednesday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced that Trump was “considering going to the Middle East shortly” after his routine, annual medical checkup at Walter Reed Medical Center.

    “I may go there sometime toward the end of the week, maybe on Sunday, actually, and we’ll see,” Trump told reporters. “But there’s a very good chance. Negotiations are going along very well. We’re dealing with Hamas and many of the countries. As you know, we have a Muslim, all of the Muslim countries are included. All of the Arab countries are included. Very rich countries and some that are not so rich, but just about everybody is included.”

    Families of Israeli hostages erupted in cheers after President Donald Trump called to tell them their loved ones would return home in days after what he described as a “historic peace deal” between Israel and Hamas.

    In a video released by the Hostage and Missing Families Forum, the president spoke to relatives by phone late Wednesday, promising all captives would be back by Monday.

    The clip shows Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick on a call with Trump and standing with hostage families before they chant: “Thank you!”

    “This is amazing,” one said. Another added, “Mr. President, we believe in you, we know you’ve done so much for us in the past, since you became president, even before that. And we trust you’ll fulfill the mission until every hostage, until all 48 of the hostages are home. Thank you so much. Blessed be the peacemakers!”

    Watch:

    Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar offered new details on Israel’s peace agreement with Hamas in an interview with Fox News’ Jennifer Griffin on Thursday.

    Griffin pressed Sa’ar about Hamas’ role in Gaza moving forward as well as Israel’s plans for a military withdrawal.

    Sa’ar said Israel is already moving to withdraw its troops behind the “yellow line,” ceding 53% of Gaza’s territory amid Thursday’s ceasefire. He said further withdrawals will be negotiated in later phases of the peace agreement.

    He went on to say that, in the meantime, Gaza will be governed by a council of local Palestinians along with input from President Donald Trump. He said the existing Palestinian Authority may also play a role, but only if it adopts certain reforms.

    Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for Trump to receive the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in the peace deal.

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