Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
President Donald Trump set off another round of social media speculation Friday after cameras caught what looked like copious amounts of makeup on his hand during public appearances in Washington.
A patch of foundation, slightly lighter than his skin tone, was visible while he toured an exhibit at The People’s House museum. Later that day, during the World Cup 2026 draw event at The Kennedy Center, Trump kept one hand over the other while addressing the crowd — a move that didn’t go unnoticed by outlets like The Daily Beast, which pointed out the recurring appearance of cosmetic cover.
This isn’t the first time similar images have made the rounds. Observers cited previous instances following Trump’s meetings with French President Emmanuel Macron in February, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in July, and U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Asked about the chatter, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt brushed aside the tabloid-style coverage.
“President Trump is a man of the people, and he meets more Americans and shakes more hands on a daily basis than any other president in history,” Leavitt told The Independent Saturday. “His commitment is unwavering, and he proves that every single day.”
The renewed scrutiny follows last month’s stir over photos showing discoloration and swelling in Trump’s legs during a FIFA Club World Cup appearance. The White House later confirmed the president has chronic venous insufficiency — a common circulatory condition in which blood pools in the veins due to weakened valves.
According to the Cleveland Clinic, the condition can lead to discomfort but is manageable. Leavitt said Trump isn’t in pain and hasn’t required treatment or changes to his daily routine.
In April, White House physician Capt. Sean Barbabella declared the president in “excellent cognitive and physical health” after his annual checkup. He attributed bruising on Trump’s hands to aspirin therapy, a standard precaution for heart health.
FULL TRANSPARENCY: Karoline Leavitt addresses speculation about President Trump’s bruised hand and swollen ankles pic.twitter.com/sKTgb9PYqT
The White House, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) sued the federal government Tuesday, arguing that a new Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) policy unlawfully ties major federal funding streams to compliance with the Trump administration’s new restrictions on gender-related medical care for minors.
The lawsuit challenges an HHS policy that, according to the attorneys general, conditions billions of dollars in health, education and research funding on compliance with a presidential executive order addressing sex and gender-related treatments.
“The federal government is trying to force states to choose between their values and the vital funding their residents depend on,” James said in a statement. “This policy threatens healthcare for families, life-saving research, and education programs that help young people thrive in favor of denying the dignity and existence of transgender people.”
The dispute stems from President Donald Trump’s January 2025 executive order directing HHS to take steps to curb what the administration calls “chemical and surgical mutilation” of children. President Trump has made limits on transgender-related medical care for minors a central part of his second-term domestic agenda.
NYC Public Advocate Tish James via Wikimedia Commons
Last month, HHS announced a sweeping package of proposed regulatory actions aimed at ending what it described as “sex-rejecting procedures” for minors. In guidance accompanying the announcement, the department warned that doctors and health systems could be excluded from federal health programs — including Medicare and Medicaid — if they provide treatments such as puberty blockers, hormone therapy, and gender surgeries to minors.
James’ lawsuit argues that the federal government is using funding leverage to pressure states, hospitals, universities, and other institutions to change policies on transgender care.
The attorneys general also claim HHS lacks legal authority to impose the conditions and is attempting to rewrite federal law through executive action. They argue the policy is vague and fails to spell out what recipients must do to remain compliant, creating uncertainty for states and institutions that rely on federal dollars.
Failure to comply with the policy could lead to termination of grants, repayment of funds already spent, or potential civil or criminal penalties, according to the complaint.
The lawsuit asks a federal court to declare the policy unlawful and block HHS from enforcing it, allowing states and institutions to continue receiving federal funding without changing existing policies.
The legal fight also adds to the long-running political and courtroom clash between Trump and James. James has positioned herself as one of the country’s most aggressive state-level opponents of Trump, repeatedly using New York’s legal powers to pursue high-profile cases involving his businesses and allies. Trump has frequently accused James of pursuing politically motivated investigations.
Trump officials have defended the executive order as a child-protection measure and a pushback against what they say is ideological medicine being imposed through federal agencies and school systems.
The case is expected to intensify a national debate already playing out in Congress and state legislatures, where Republican-led states have moved to restrict or ban gender-related treatments for minors, while Democrat-led states have expanded protections and access.
(Nova York - EUA, 24/09/2019) Presidente da República, Jair Bolsonaro, durante encontro com o senhor Rudolph Giuliani, ex-prefeito da cidade de Nova York. .Foto: Alan Santos/PR
Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani has reportedly left the intensive care unit, according to his spokesperson, after being hospitalized with pneumonia.
Giuliani “will spend some time recovering before leaving the hospital,” spokesperson Ted Goodman said in a statement, adding: “The mayor and his family appreciate the outpouring of love and prayers sent his way.”
Giuliani had been hospitalized in critical condition earlier this week, his spokesperson said Sunday.
Dr. Maria Ryan told Fox News that Giuliani’s condition had deteriorated rapidly after he returned from a trip to Paris, with severe breathing issues forcing doctors to place him on a ventilator. At one point, his situation became so dire that a priest was called to administer last rites.
But by Tuesday, everything changed.
“He’s a fighter — the way he was yesterday in such a critical condition, he did have a priest come anoint him,” Ryan said. “And all the prayers from around — it’s like a miracle. This guy’s got 9 lives, today he’s doing much better.”
Goodman said Giuliani was previously diagnosed with restrictive airway disease, which he said was a result of his proximity to the collapsed World Trade Center towers on Sept. 11, 2001.
“This condition adds complications to any respiratory illness, and the virus quickly overwhelmed his body, requiring mechanical ventilation to maintain adequate oxygen and stabilize his condition,” Goodman said Monday.
Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Minnesota Senate Republicans have introduced a bill to define “Trump Derangement Syndrome” (TDS) as a form of mental illness. Senate Bill 2589, which is set to be formally introduced and read on March 17, 2025, igniting significant debate due to the novelty of a politically charged term in the medical lexicon.
The bill, sponsored by Republican State Senators Eric Lucero, Steve Drazkowski, Nathan Wesenberg, Justin Eichorn, and Glenn Gruenhagen, seeks to amend the state’s definition of mental illness by adding a specific reference to TDS. According to the text of the bill, mental illness would include “Trump Derangement Syndrome” or an organic disorder of the brain that significantly impairs an individual’s ability to function in daily life.
The bill describes TDS as “the acute onset of paranoia in otherwise normal persons that is in reaction to the policies and presidencies of President Donald J. Trump.” According to the proposal, individuals affected by TDS exhibit symptoms of paranoia and an inability to separate legitimate political disagreements from perceived personal or psychological pathology in Trump’s behavior.
The bill further characterizes TDS as leading to “Trump-induced general hysteria,” where individuals may struggle to distinguish between policy differences and a supposed mental condition in the former president’s actions. These symptoms, the bill argues, can severely impair personal relationships, work, and other aspects of daily living.
The bill has already been logged into the Minnesota legislature’s official website, but it is set to undergo formal introduction on March 17, 2025. Its introduction has garnered widespread attention, with reactions split along party lines.
Supporters of the bill argue that it is a legitimate attempt to address a condition that they believe affects a significant portion of the population, particularly those who strongly opposed former President Trump. By naming and defining TDS, they argue, the bill opens a discussion about how political figures can profoundly affect the psychological well-being of individuals, especially during times of heightened political polarization.
Article Published With The Permission of American Liberty News
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear escalated pressure on Sen. Mitch McConnell this week, demanding that the longtime Republican lawmaker publicly demonstrate that he remains capable of serving—or resign from office.
In a letter dated Monday and reported Tuesday, the Democratic governor called on McConnell to “directly and verbally address the people of Kentucky” and prove his capacity to continue representing the state.
Beshear’s ultimatum came one day after McConnell’s office released a new photograph of the 84-year-old senator alongside his wife, Elaine Chao, and confirmed that he remains in a rehabilitation facility more than six weeks after being hospitalized.
BREAKING:
A statement from the Office of the Attending Physician says Mitch McConnell "is not yet medically cleared to leave the rehab facility and return to the office."
“It has now been 43 days since news of your hospitalization,” Beshear wrote, according to Mediaite.
McConnell has missed 38 consecutive Senate votes since his hospitalization, according to the Daily Caller News Foundation.
“As Governor of the state you serve, I am calling on you to directly and verbally address the people of Kentucky and provide proof of your capacity to serve, or resign,” Beshear wrote.
The governor also sent the letter to Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) and urged him to investigate McConnell’s ability to remain in office if the senator declines to speak publicly.
Beshear said he would press Thune to report his findings to the American people and begin the process of removing McConnell if an investigation determined that such action was warranted.
“All of this speculation and even this letter could have been avoided with a minimal amount of transparency,” the governor added.
Beshear acknowledged McConnell’s right to medical privacy but argued that elected officials surrender a degree of that privacy when they accept responsibility for representing the public.
The Senate can expel one of its members only with a two-thirds vote. Such action is exceedingly rare: Only 15 senators have been expelled since 1789, with 14 of those removals occurring during the Civil War, according to the Senate Historical Office.
Beshear’s letter represents his second formal request for more information about McConnell’s condition. On July 8, the governor asked the senator to provide Kentuckians with a full health update and clarify whether he remained capable of fulfilling his duties.
McConnell was hospitalized June 14 after suffering a fall at his Washington, D.C., residence that left him briefly unconscious. In a July 12 written statement, the senator said doctors had ruled out a heart attack, stroke, concussion, broken bones, tumors and hemorrhaging. He also disclosed that he had developed a mild case of pneumonia while receiving treatment.
McConnell was eventually transferred from the hospital to a rehabilitation facility, where he has been undergoing multiple physical-therapy sessions each day.
His office released its latest update Monday, accompanied by a photograph that it said was taken July 26 and showed McConnell sitting beside Chao.
The Office of the Attending Physician said McConnell has not been medically cleared to leave the facility and return to his Senate office. Doctors said the lingering effects of the senator’s childhood battle with polio remain a significant factor affecting his mobility.
McConnell said he was still “working hard” to resume his schedule but announced that he would miss Kentucky’s Fancy Farm picnic Saturday. The annual political gathering is a major tradition in the state and one McConnell first attended 42 years ago.
“As always, I appreciate all of your continued well wishes, and I’m looking forward to getting back to the Senate and to Kentucky soon,” McConnell said in the official update.
A spokesman previously said McConnell continued meeting with staff and discussing defense appropriations, foreign policy, the farm bill, constituent services and federal grant requests during his recovery. Republican leaders, including Thune and Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso of Wyoming, have also said they spoke with McConnell by telephone.
The senator has not, however, participated in a live video interview or addressed Kentuckians directly since his hospitalization, leaving Beshear and other critics dissatisfied with the written statements and photographs released by his office.
McConnell has experienced several highly publicized health scares in recent years, including falls, two on-camera freezing episodes in 2023 and an intensive-care hospitalization earlier this year for flu-like symptoms.
The seven-term senator has already announced that he will not seek reelection and plans to leave office when his current term expires in January 2027. If the seat becomes vacant before then, Kentucky law calls for a special election to fill the remainder of the term.
An adviser to President-elect Trump’s campaign, Alex Bruesewitz, passed out and collapsed as he was speaking onstage during a New York Young Republican Club gala Sunday night.
Alex Bruesewitz, 27, was introducing incoming White House senior aide Dan Scavino inside a venue in Manhattan when he began stumbling over his words and fainted, video on social media shows.
Several people quickly rushed to help after his collapse. It was not immediately clear what caused him to faint.
“I talked to our friend Alex Bruesewitz and you know what he said to me? He goes ‘Did I at least look cool?’ I said Alex, you used gravity like I’ve seen nobody use gravity before in their lives,” Kassam said. “But he’s recuperating back there, so give him a big cheer so he’ll hear you.”
Trump also said following the collapse that he believes Bruesewitz will be fine, according to the New York Post.
“I know that Alex is going to be fine because he’s a tough son of a gun,” Trump said. “There’s no doubt about that. So I want to say hello to Alex, because he’s a very special guy.”
Bruesewitz is the CEO of consultancy firm X Strategies LLC, which states its mission to help elect “America First” candidates. Its website says he is “a prominent political consultant and strategist known for his unwavering support of President Donald Trump and the America First agenda.”
Before his collapse, Bruesewitz commended the New York Republican Club for backing Trump’s campaign. He also gave shout-outs to several supporters of the incoming president who were at the event, including former Florida congressman Matt Gaetz, who recently resigned from his U.S. House seat.
Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) returned to the Capitol on Monday, casting his first Senate vote in more than three months after a fall at his Washington home left him hospitalized.
The 84-year-old senator arrived in a wheelchair and briefly addressed reporters outside the Senate chamber.
“Time to get back to work, finish the job of this Congress,” McConnell said, according to The Hill.
McConnell then voted to advance the nomination of Matthew Byrne to serve as a federal judge for the Southern District of Ohio. The cloture motion passed 47-46, according to the official Senate roll call.
His lengthy absence had fueled questions about his health and whether he would return before his term ends in January. McConnell acknowledged that his recovery has been difficult, saying he is “still not quite back to 100 percent” and continues to undergo physical therapy.
The Kentucky Republican said the lingering effects of childhood polio have complicated his recovery, but he has assured Senate Majority Leader John Thune that he will try to attend closely contested votes when Republicans need him.
McConnell also identified the farm bill, NATO and continued support for Ukraine as priorities during his remaining months in office. His return gives Senate Republicans another crucial vote as they attempt to move stalled legislation through closely divided committees.
McConnell has served in the Senate since 1985 and is retiring when his current term concludes in January.
President Donald Trump is facing pressure to use his executive power to block hospitals from denying organ transplants for people not vaccinated against COVID-19 after reports emerged that Vice President JD Vance’s 12-year-old relative was reportedly denied a heart transplant over her COVID-19 vaccination status
In a letter to President Trump, Rep. Michael Rulli (R-Ohio) alongside Rep. Erin Houchin (R-Ind.) called on Trump to take action. Rep. Rulli said he was partially moved to act after hearing about Vance’s relative.
“Over the past week, it has come to light that multiple desperate Americans have been denied life-saving organ transplants due to their COVID-19 vaccination status,” the letter said. “This outrageous denial of care has affected some of our most vulnerable citizens – including a child from Indiana and a veteran from Ohio.”
Houchin told Fox News, “Patients – especially children – should never be turned away from care due to government-imposed mandates. This effort urges President Trump to take action to ensure no hospital or transplant center can discriminate against patients based on their decision to decline the COVID-19 vaccine.”
“President Trump has done such a great job recently on executive orders,” Rulli told Fox News Digital in an interview. “And I am asking President Trump if he sees this, to please do an executive order… because you could save someone’s life today.”
“The timing is everything. If we don’t get this done, people’s lives could be at risk.”
The girl’s mother, Jeneen Deal, told the Daily Mail that giving her daughter the vaccine would violate the family’s religious beliefs.
Vance said in comments to the Daily Mail that he would try to help.
“I guess it’s been circulating on social media, but I was made aware of a couple days ago, and we’re trying to dig in and trying to help, obviously, as much as possible,” he said.
On the evening of Tuesday, June 17, 2025, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was rushed by ambulance to a Washington, D.C. hospital after suffering what officials described as an allergic reaction. According to a statement from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Noem was treated “out of an abundance of caution” and remains in stable condition.
The medical emergency drew swift attention — not only because of Noem’s high-profile cabinet role, but also due to the timing. Just one day earlier, she had visited the Integrated Research Facility at Fort Detrick, Maryland, a high-security federal lab that handles some of the world’s most dangerous pathogens, including Ebola and SARS-CoV-2. She was accompanied on the tour by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.).
The Fort Detrick facility has been under scrutiny in recent months. In April, it was temporarily shut down following safety concerns involving possible tampering with personal protective equipment. Though the lab has since resumed operations, the incident left lingering questions about oversight and internal protocols.
While the proximity of Noem’s hospital visit to her tour of the lab has sparked speculation, DHS downplayed any connection. Officials stressed there is no indication the allergic reaction had anything to do with the biohazard site, and current evidence points to coincidence, not causation.
Still, the lack of detail surrounding Noem’s condition — and the decision to visit to a facility recently flagged for a safety lapse — has fueled speculation. Noem has not issued a public statement since the incident, though an official told the Associated Press that the secretary is “alert and recovering.”
Security around the hospital was visibly heightened following Noem’s arrival, with multiple eyewitnesses reporting Secret Service personnel stationed at emergency entrances and perimeter points.
As of now, Noem remains under medical supervision, and DHS has indicated she will resume duties once cleared by her doctors. The department has not disclosed whether additional tests are being conducted to rule out environmental or chemical triggers.
What We Know — and Don’t
The facts are straightforward, even if the full picture isn’t: Secretary Noem had an acute medical event. She had just visited a facility known for housing lethal biological agents. There’s no official link between the two events. But in an era when institutional trust runs thin and information gaps invite conspiracy theories, the sequence of events is likely to keep this story alive longer than a typical health scare.
For now, DHS says Noem is recovering and expected to make a full recovery. But until more details emerge — from medical professionals or Noem herself — the story will likely remain a focus of intense public interest.
On Monday, President Trump revealed White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles has been diagnosed with early stage breast cancer.
“She has a fantastic medical team and her prognosis is excellent,” Trump said in a Truth Social post.
Trump went on to call Wiles “one of my closest and most important advisors.”
“Melania and I are with her in every way, and we look forward to working with Susie on the many big and wonderful things that are happening for the benefit of our Country!” the president said.
Trump:
Susie Wiles is an incredible Chief of Staff, a great person, and one of the strongest people I know but, unfortunately, she has been diagnosed with early stage breast cancer, and has decided to take on this challenge, IMMEDIATELY, as opposed to waiting. pic.twitter.com/DEgiwVleqQ
Praying for Susie Wiles as she begins treatment. She is a fighter and an incredible public servant who has worked tirelessly in service to our country. Wishing her strength, comfort, and a full recovery. https://t.co/72JFIvQZMd
— Congressman Russell Fry (@RepRussellFry) March 16, 2026
This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.
