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    Longstanding Ground Zero Rule Upends Trump’s 9/11 Plans

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
    -
    2
    David B. Gleason from Chicago, IL, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

    A rule that has kept politics out of Ground Zero’s Sept. 11 ceremony for more than a decade reportedly helped send President Donald Trump’s anniversary plans in a different direction.

    Trump is now expected to deliver remarks at the Pentagon on the 25th anniversary of the terrorist attacks rather than travel to the World Trade Center memorial in Manhattan, according to multiple reports.

    The native New Yorker had shown interest in appearing at Ground Zero, but people briefed on the planning told CNN that the president wanted to deliver a speech.

    That presented a problem.

    Politicians have not been permitted to speak during the Manhattan commemoration since 2012. The restriction is intended to keep the solemn ceremony nonpartisan and focused on victims and their families.

    Instead, Trump is expected to appear at the Pentagon, where presidents may deliver formal remarks. Vice President JD Vance will attend the Ground Zero ceremony in his place.

    A White House official told NewsNation that Vance is “still traveling to NYC” and that the Trump administration will be represented at all three sites attacked on Sept. 11, 2001.

    White House spokesperson Anna Kelly also pushed back against any suggestion that Trump’s absence from Manhattan would diminish his connection to the anniversary.

    “As a proud New Yorker, President Trump has spoken about his own experiences watching the horrific events,” Kelly said.

    The president will honor the victims, their families and the first responders who “put their lives on the line,” she added.

    Trump attended the Pentagon observance last year with First Lady Melania Trump. During his remarks, he praised the courage Americans displayed in New York, Virginia and Pennsylvania and declared that the country would “never yield.”

    The official White House account of the ceremony said Trump also participated in a wreath-laying and renewed America’s promise never to forget the 2,977 lives lost.

    Meanwhile, the 25th-anniversary ceremony at Ground Zero will remain centered on the families. Relatives will read aloud the names of 2,983 people killed in the 2001 attacks and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.

    Six moments of silence will mark the attacks and collapse of the towers, the strike on the Pentagon and the crash of Flight 93. A seventh will honor those who later died from 9/11-related illnesses.

    Trump’s decision also simplifies a packed travel schedule. The president is expected to leave for Ireland on Sept. 12 to attend the Irish Open at his golf course in Doonbeg.

    The location may have changed, but the White House’s message has not: Trump intends to use the historic anniversary to remember the victims and honor the Americans who ran toward danger when the country was under attack.

    Trump’s Secret Service Rocked By Suspected Betrayal From Within

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
    -
    4

    President Donald Trump’s protective agency is confronting a suspected betrayal from within—just weeks after details of one of its most sensitive security operations spilled into public view.

    Three senior Secret Service employees, including communications chief Anthony Guglielmi, were escorted from the agency’s Washington headquarters on Monday and placed on administrative leave, according to RealClearPolitics.

    The officials reportedly had their security clearances suspended, lost access to their government devices and were designated “do not admit,” barring them from Secret Service facilities while investigators examine how classified or sensitive information may have reached the media.

    All three worked in the agency’s communications office and were non-law-enforcement personnel—not field agents.

    RealClearPolitics reported that the Secret Service’s Office of Professional Responsibility is leading the investigation. One source told the outlet that the FBI and CIA are also participating, suggesting the case could extend far beyond a routine personnel dispute.

    The Secret Service has confirmed the suspensions but has not disclosed what the employees are accused of doing.

    “Three non-law enforcement personnel at the U.S. Secret Service have been placed on administrative leave pending an investigation into potential misconduct,” an agency spokesperson told CBS News.

    The agency said its “zero-fail mission” requires employees to maintain an unwavering commitment to honesty, courage and professionalism.

    Placing employees on leave and temporarily revoking their access is standard during an internal investigation and does not prove wrongdoing. The Secret Service has also not publicly connected the three officials to any particular disclosure.

    However, the investigation comes as the Trump administration hunts for the source of leaks involving a clandestine maneuver used to protect the president from an alleged Iranian assassination plot.

    After attending the NATO summit in Ankara on July 8, Trump publicly boarded an older Air Force One while reporters and numerous administration officials watched. Behind the aircraft, however, a catering truck was being used as part of an elaborate escape plan.

    Trump was secretly moved off Air Force One and taken to a nearby Air Force C-32A. He then flew to the United Kingdom aboard the smaller aircraft while reporters and members of his staff continued on the original plane, believing the president was traveling with them.

    The operation was reportedly ordered after U.S. intelligence detected a credible Iranian plot to fire a missile at Trump’s aircraft.

    Trump later confirmed that the military and Secret Service “wanted me to go in a different flight.”

    “Any consequential president has a lot of threats,” he told reporters.

    Several Trump administration officials were reportedly furious when details of the operation became public, warning that exposing classified protective tactics could make it harder to safeguard presidents during future emergencies. FBI Director Kash Patel helped establish an earlier investigation into the disclosure, according to RealClearPolitics.

    The agency is also investigating a separate suspected leak involving Vice President JD Vance’s protective detail.

    In July, an agent was placed on leave after allegedly disclosing operational information about Vance’s travel, including a planned Marine Corps helicopter trip involving the vice president’s son.

    At the time, it was Guglielmi who announced that investigation.

    “Any conduct that potentially threatens the safety of a protectee will not be tolerated,” Guglielmi said in a Secret Service statement reported by CBS News.

    Now Guglielmi—who has led the agency’s communications operation since 2022—is among those sidelined while investigators determine whether another internal line was crossed.

    His attorney, Gregg Bernstein, pushed back against any implication of wrongdoing.

    “Anthony Guglielmi is a professional of deep integrity whose decades-long public record advocating for local, state and federal agencies speaks for itself,” Bernstein told CBS News, adding that Guglielmi is cooperating fully.

    The turmoil presents another major test for Secret Service Director Sean Curran, the longtime member of Trump’s detail who helped shield him during the 2024 assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania.

    Curran was personally selected by Trump to rebuild an agency battered by security failures, communication breakdowns and internal distrust. Six agents were previously disciplined over the Butler debacle, while a government review released by Sen. Chuck Grassley found that senior officials failed to share critical threat intelligence with personnel responsible for securing the rally.

    The current investigation strikes at an even more fundamental question: Can the president trust the people given access to his most sensitive security information?

    There is currently no proof that Guglielmi or the other two employees leaked Trump’s movements. But the decision to pull their clearances, cut off their devices and bar them from Secret Service facilities shows how seriously the agency is treating the possibility that its latest threat came from inside its own walls.

    Iranian State TV Airs Chilling Barron Trump Kill Video, Touts Alleged $10M Bounty

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
    -
    1
    The White House, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

    Iranian state television aired a sinister propaganda video threatening Barron Trump, claiming the regime is tracking President Donald Trump’s youngest son and invoking an alleged $10 million reward for targeting him.

    The roughly three-minute segment aired on Iran’s Channel 3 under a title translated by Euronews as “Where and how should we kill Barron Trump?” The title appeared in blood-red lettering as the video displayed surveillance-style graphics and purported information about the 20-year-old’s movements, education and online activity.

    The broadcast claimed Barron is “fully monitored” and suggested its creators had identified accounts he uses for gaming and social media. It also displayed people and locations allegedly connected to him while depicting attempts to penetrate layers of Secret Service protection, according to Iran International.

    None of those operational claims has been independently verified. Iran International reported that the segment relied heavily on dramatized graphics and offered no evidence that anyone associated with Tehran had successfully reached Barron or breached his security.

    Still, the decision to broadcast an assassination fantasy involving the president’s son on state television marked a disturbing escalation in Iran’s threats against the Trump family.

    Toward the end of the segment, the narrator reportedly declared that “many would be willing” to accept a $10 million reward connected to targeting Barron.

    “This is just the beginning,” the video warned. “Barron Trump, wait for us.”

    The broadcast followed a similar propaganda campaign targeting first lady Melania Trump. In July, Iran’s IRGC-linked Tasnim News Agency circulated a video titled “How to Kill Melania Trump,” which purported to reveal her movements and security routes, Mediaite reported.

    Iranian media has also circulated material targeting Trump himself, including purported details about his motorcade routes and possible security vulnerabilities.

    Although Tehran’s latest video may be propaganda, Iran has previously been accused of moving beyond rhetoric and attempting to organize assassinations on American soil.

    In 2024, the Justice Department charged alleged IRGC asset Farhad Shakeri after authorities said the Iranian regime tasked him with developing a plan to assassinate Trump. Shakeri allegedly operated a network of criminal associates used to conduct surveillance and arrange attacks against targets inside the United States.

    The IRGC has publicly sought revenge for Trump’s 2020 drone strike that killed Iranian Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani, according to the Justice Department.

    Federal prosecutors separately charged an IRGC member in 2022 with attempting to pay $300,000 for the assassination of former Trump national security adviser John Bolton in Washington or Maryland.

    The danger surrounding Trump became especially visible last month when security officials secretly altered the president’s aircraft movements as he departed Turkey. CBS News reported that the extraordinary precautions followed intelligence concerning a credible threat from Iran and its proxies.

    The latest threat comes as the war with Iran continues and the Trump administration prepares another round of punishing economic measures against Tehran.

    Trump declared Monday that Iran was “completely collapsing,” while Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent described the coming sanctions campaign as an “economic D-Day” and “the single greatest financial offensive ever marshaled against an adversary.”

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    Trump Smuggled Off Air Force One Amid Reported Iranian Missile Plot

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    2
    President Donald Trump answers questions from members of the media aboard Air Force One en route to Mount Pocono, Pennsylvania, for a rally on the economy, Tuesday, December 9, 2025. (Official White House Photo by Molly Riley)

    President Donald Trump appeared to board Air Force One in Ankara and prepare for an ordinary flight home.

    Then he vanished.

    Shortly before the presidential jet departed Turkey on July 8, Trump was secretly moved from the aircraft with the help of an airport catering truck and taken to a smaller military plane, according to explosive new reporting.

    The covert switch followed intelligence about a reported Iranian plot to target the president’s aircraft as it left the Turkish capital.

    CBS News reported that U.S. intelligence had detected a credible plan involving Iran and its allied proxies to fire a missile at the plane carrying Trump.

    Trump had already acknowledged the danger during the NATO summit, describing himself as Iran’s “number one target.”

    A Presidential-Scale Decoy

    Television cameras captured Trump climbing the stairs of the older, blue-and-white Air Force One at Ankara Esenboğa Airport. A catering truck could be seen parked against the opposite side of the aircraft.

    Minutes later, the truck pulled away and drove toward another U.S. government plane—an Air Force C-32A, according to The Washington Post, which first revealed the deception operation.

    Trump flew to a refueling stop in the United Kingdom aboard the smaller plane. Meanwhile, reporters and some members of the president’s staff traveled the same route on the older presidential aircraft, apparently believing Trump was with them.

    They had unknowingly become part of the decoy.

    Reporters aboard the plane were instructed to keep the window shades in the press cabin closed. When later asked about that order, Trump said they were “probably on a dangerous flight” because of the adversaries the United States was confronting.

    The operation was so tightly controlled that the administration never publicly disclosed that the president had traveled separately.

    The Iran Threat Behind the Ruse

    The unusual security measures unfolded during a dangerous moment in the conflict with Iran. The United States had launched fresh strikes against Iranian targets shortly before Trump’s departure, further raising fears that Tehran or one of its proxies could retaliate against the president.

    The Wall Street Journal reported that Israel had warned Washington about a possible Iranian plot to kill Trump. Some U.S. officials reportedly questioned how fully credible that intelligence was, but the warning was serious enough to help trigger extraordinary precautions.

    CBS later reported that U.S. intelligence had identified a specific missile threat against Trump’s aircraft.

    The differing assessments underline the uncertainty security officials faced: They could not know whether an attack was imminent, but they could not afford to assume it was a bluff.

    The Disappearing Act Continued

    The deception apparently did not end when Trump landed in Britain.

    According to reporting cited by The Guardian, Trump was driven from the C-32A back to the older presidential aircraft at RAF Mildenhall. He boarded through a separate entrance before emerging from the familiar upper door, creating the appearance that he had traveled aboard the jet alongside the press.

    Trump then boarded the newer, Qatari-donated presidential plane for the flight across the Atlantic. He spoke with reporters during that leg of the trip without revealing that they had spent the first flight aboard a decoy.

    The maneuver was extraordinary, but not unprecedented. President Bill Clinton used a similar operation during a 2000 trip to Pakistan, flying aboard an unmarked executive jet while the official presidential aircraft served as a decoy.

    The C-32A used in Trump’s operation is a specially configured Boeing 757 normally employed to transport the vice president, Cabinet officials and other senior government leaders. The Air Force describes it as a secure, long-range aircraft equipped with advanced communications and avionics.

    Questions Surround Trump’s New Jet

    Hours before leaving Ankara, Trump announced that he would use the older Air Force One “for old time’s sake” instead of the newly retrofitted Boeing 747-8 donated by Qatar.

    He said the move would also allow American service members at the British refueling stop to tour the new plane.

    Behind the scenes, however, CBS reported that the Secret Service had recommended using the older aircraft for security reasons. At the time, questions were already being raised about whether the Qatari-donated jet possessed the same visible missile-detection and countermeasure equipment found on the legacy presidential planes.

    The Air Force has maintained that the newer aircraft is safe and properly equipped for presidential travel. The White House has similarly insisted that it contains high-level security systems.

    Yet for the most dangerous leg of Trump’s journey, neither of the large presidential jets carried him. One served as a decoy while the other flew separately.

    Officials Furious Over Security Leak

    Several Trump administration officials reportedly expressed anger after details of the operation became public, warning that exposing classified protective procedures could make similar tactics harder to use in the future.

    White House communications director Steven Cheung did not directly confirm the plane switch when questioned about it. He said the administration uses “every tool at our disposal” to protect the president from America’s enemies.

    In Ankara, that meant hiding Trump’s movements from the press, much of his own staff and anyone who might have been watching the presidential aircraft.

    For several tense hours, the plane presented to the world as Air Force One carried nearly everyone—except the one man the entire operation was designed to protect.

    END THE INDOCTRINATION OF AMERICA’S STUDENTS – your input is urgent.

    Iran’s Sick New Threat Targets Melania And Barron Trump

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
    -
    3
    First Lady Melania Trump participates in the Senate Spouses Luncheon at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., Wednesday, May 21,2025. (Official White House Photo by Andrea Hanks)

    Iranian propaganda has crossed another sinister line — this time placing First Lady Melania Trump and her 20-year-old son, Barron, in its crosshairs.

    Tasnim News Agency, an outlet closely associated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, released a disturbing video Monday encouraging attacks against the president’s wife and threatening that Barron could be next.

    The roughly two-minute clip opens with a bloody image of Melania alongside the words, “Where to Kill Melania?!” It then purports to track her movements through New York City, displaying footage of her motorcade and making claims about her security arrangements and personal routines, according to The Times.

    The video calls on supporters of the Islamic Republic and so-called “global freedom fighters” to take action against the First Lady.

    It closes with an even more chilling warning: “This is just the beginning. Barron Trump, wait for us.”

    Russian state television outlet RT helped spread the propaganda on social media, claiming that the video revealed routes and routines using information obtained from “anonymous security networks,” Mediaite reported.

    Much of the material, however, appears to have been compiled from publicly available information and wrapped in menacing graphics intended to make the threat appear more sophisticated.

    The Secret Service confirmed Tuesday that it is examining the video.

    Nate Herring, an agency spokesman, told Newsweek that the Secret Service investigates “anything that can be perceived as a threat toward our protectees.”

    “Out of concern for operational security, we do not discuss matters of protective intelligence,” Herring added, according to The Independent.

    Both Melania and Barron receive full-time Secret Service protection, and the Trump family’s residences are heavily secured, according to the New York Post.

    Neither the White House nor the First Lady’s office had publicly responded to the video as of Tuesday morning.

    Fox News host Mark Levin condemned the clip after it began circulating online.

    “The Iranian regime continues to threaten the assassination of Trump family members,” Levin wrote.

    The threat is not an isolated piece of Tehran’s increasingly grotesque propaganda campaign.

    Days earlier, billboards appeared along a highway in Tehran depicting fabricated images of Melania, Barron and Ivanka Trump as corpses. The word “KILLED” was splashed across the images alongside the warning, “Hey, terrorist! Get ready to die.”

    Another display placed portraits of President Trump, his wife and all five of his children above American flag-draped coffins under the message “Blood for Blood.” Other regime-linked artwork has depicted Trump dead or staring down the sights of a rifle, the Post reported.

    Some Iranian propaganda has veered into the bizarre, including AI-generated videos featuring Lego-like versions of Trump and other world leaders. But the regime’s history of pursuing assassination plots on American soil means its latest threat cannot be dismissed as another crude cartoon.

    In March, a federal jury convicted Asif Merchant, an Iranian intelligence operative who entered the United States to arrange political assassinations on behalf of the IRGC.

    Merchant contacted people he believed could serve as hired killers, discussed possible attacks and paid a $5,000 advance before being arrested. The supposed hitmen were undercover law enforcement officers.

    The Justice Department said Merchant understood that Trump could be the eventual target of the plot, which was intended to avenge the 2020 killing of Iranian military commander Qasem Soleimani.

    “This man landed on American soil hoping to kill President Trump,” then-Attorney General Pam Bondi said following Merchant’s conviction, according to the Justice Department.

    Trump has said Iran considers him its top target and has publicly warned Tehran that any attempt on his life would trigger overwhelming retaliation.

    “I’m the No. 1, because they’re scum,” Trump told reporters earlier this month. “That’s the way they act.”

    The president later wrote that the U.S. military had received orders to “completely decimate and destroy” Iran if the regime attempted to assassinate him.

    The latest threat emerged as Trump met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House to discuss the Iran war and possible negotiations with Tehran.

    Even as Trump considers giving diplomacy another chance, the Iranian regime appears determined to send a different message — one aimed directly at his family.

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    Trump Takes Rare Public Swipe At Netanyahu Over Iran Warning

    By
    Seijah Drake
    -
    1
    President Donald J. Trump visits the El Arepazo Doral restaurant, Monday, March 9, 2026, in Miami, Florida. (Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok)

    President Donald Trump publicly criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday after reports emerged that the Israeli leader planned to present new intelligence suggesting Iran is continuing work on its nuclear program at a deeply buried facility known as Pickaxe Mountain.

    Speaking during an interview on Fox & Friends, Trump said he was already fully aware of developments at the Iranian site and questioned why Netanyahu had publicly discussed the matter before their scheduled White House meeting.

    Trump: “I Know Exactly What’s Going On”

    Asked about reports that Netanyahu would present intelligence regarding Iran’s activities at Pickaxe Mountain, Trump dismissed the notion that he needed to be briefed by the Israeli leader.

    “Well, I don’t need Bibi to tell me that. Bibi is telling me that because he wants me to stay involved,” Trump said.

    “We know exactly what’s going on. But no, I heard Bibi announce that. I said, ‘Why don’t you just tell it to me? Why do you have to announce it to the world?'”

    Trump said the United States has been closely monitoring the underground facility through satellite surveillance.

    “I know exactly what’s going on at Pickaxe. It’s not a big problem. We took out their nuclear site, and we’ll have to take out Pickaxe if we don’t make a deal.”

    Focus on Pickaxe Mountain

    Pickaxe Mountain is located roughly 120 miles south of Tehran near Iran’s Natanz nuclear complex, which the United States targeted in June 2025.

    According to previous reporting by The New York Post, Israeli intelligence believes Iran has transferred nuclear centrifuges into tunnels buried approximately 300 feet beneath Kolang Mountain, making the site significantly more difficult to destroy than above-ground facilities.

    Netanyahu is expected to argue that the activity demonstrates Iran continues pursuing nuclear capabilities despite recent military operations.

    Israeli officials are also reportedly prepared to present evidence that Iran has been rebuilding its missile arsenal following the joint U.S. and Israeli strikes carried out earlier this year.

    Questions Over Iran’s Intentions

    The intelligence briefing comes as the Trump administration continues negotiations with Tehran over its nuclear program.

    According to The New York Post, Israeli officials remain concerned that Iran is negotiating in bad faith while continuing to advance its military capabilities underground.

    Trump, however, insisted discussions remain productive despite repeated public denials from Iranian officials that direct negotiations are taking place.

    “For some reason, we can be in the midst of a beautiful discussion, and they’ll come out and say ‘We’re not talking or we didn’t discuss nuclear,'” Trump said.

    “Well, that’s all we discussed because they’ll never have a nuclear weapon.”

    “They understand that, and we have had some very good talks.”

    Military Action Still on the Table

    Although Trump expressed optimism about negotiations, he reiterated that military action remains an option if diplomacy fails.

    “If they don’t make a deal, then I go back, and I finish the job. But that’s going to take them forever to rebuild,” he said.

    The president insisted that the United States possesses the capability to inflict significant damage on Iran’s infrastructure but that he is reluctant to target facilities that would primarily harm civilians.

    “I could take out most of their bridges in less than an hour, less than an hour,” Trump said.

    “It really decimates a country. So those are the big things. And then there’s always the desalination plants, and who am I hurting there? I’m hurting the people, so I’m not looking to do that. I just want, very simply, they cannot have a nuclear weapon.”

    Growing Tensions Between Allies

    Trump’s unusually public criticism of Netanyahu comes amid reports of increasing disagreements between the two longtime allies over Iran and broader Middle East strategy.

    The president had reportedly considered expanding military operations against Iran earlier this month before pausing the campaign on July 24 as negotiations resumed.

    Netanyahu traveled to Washington this week and was scheduled to attend a memorial service Tuesday afternoon honoring the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, with discussions on Iran expected to remain a central focus of meetings between the two leaders.

    END THE INDOCTRINATION OF AMERICA’S STUDENTS – your input is urgent.

    Secret Service Reveals Security Lockdown for Trump’s WHCA Dinner Do-Over

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
    -
    2
    The White House, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

    There will be no second chances for a security nightmare.

    Nearly three months after gunfire and chaos cut short the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner, the Secret Service is locking down Washington’s Waldorf Astoria for President Donald Trump’s return Friday night.

    The revamped protection plan includes a private entrance, individually assigned digital tickets, government ID checks, airport-style screening, a heavy police presence and road closures surrounding the Pennsylvania Avenue hotel.

    “Our agency grows and adapts from every event we secure, and we have engaged with WHCA to ensure attendees are given timely information in the unlikely event of an emergency during the event,” Secret Service communications director Anthony Guglielmi told Fox News Digital.

    Unlike the April 25 dinner at the Washington Hilton, guests will not enter through the hotel’s main lobby. The ballroom will be accessible through a separate, secured entrance, with every pre-screened attendee required to present a unique QR code and valid identification.

    “Guests will see a visible police presence around the Waldorf Astoria hotel,” Guglielmi said, adding that everyone holding a ticket will pass through “airport-style magnetometer screening.”

    Roads immediately surrounding the hotel will also be closed Friday evening, while detailed arrival instructions are being sent directly to ticket holders.

    The Secret Service and a private security company hired by the WHCA have worked together to close the gaps exposed during the April attack, according to People.

    That night descended into panic before Trump could deliver his speech.

    Federal prosecutors say Cole Tomas Allen, 31, charged through a magnetometer outside the Washington Hilton ballroom while carrying a shotgun. Secret Service Officer Victor Gonzales was struck in the chest but survived because he was wearing a ballistic vest.

    Gonzales returned fire as other agents swarmed Allen, who was arrested before reaching the ballroom where Trump, administration officials and hundreds of journalists were gathered.

    Authorities recovered a 12-gauge shotgun and a .38-caliber pistol from Allen, according to the Justice Department.

    Prosecutors allege Allen traveled from California to Washington by Amtrak and checked into the Hilton one day before the attack. Shortly before the shooting, he allegedly sent a pre-scheduled message to relatives and a former employer apologizing for what he was about to do.

    Allen has pleaded not guilty to four federal charges, including attempting to assassinate the president and assaulting a federal officer with a deadly weapon. He remains behind bars awaiting trial, CBS News reported.

    While the Secret Service has maintained that its agents successfully prevented Allen from reaching Trump or the ballroom, Friday’s tighter perimeter makes clear that officials are taking no chances.

    The venue itself is also a major departure from tradition.

    For decades, Washington’s glitzy annual gathering of reporters, celebrities and political power brokers has unfolded inside the sprawling Washington Hilton. Friday’s redo will instead take place inside the Old Post Office building, which housed the Trump International Hotel before becoming the Waldorf Astoria.

    The gathering will also be dramatically smaller. Roughly 680 guests are expected, compared with approximately 2,600 people who attended in April, according to People. There will be no red carpet or surrounding weekend party circuit.

    Trump, however, will be back at the center of the room.

    The president is expected to deliver the remarks he never got to make in April, calling the rescheduled gathering a show of “Strength and Fortitude.”

    “We cannot allow Lunatics to change our way of life, or even its scheduling,” Trump wrote when the new date was announced.

    Much of Trump’s Cabinet is also expected to attend, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, FBI Director Kash Patel, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, according to Fox News Digital. First lady Melania Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio will miss the event because of prior commitments.

    Friday’s dinner will also put the spotlight back on the officer credited with helping prevent a potential massacre.

    Gonzales is set to receive the WHCA’s President’s Award for Exceptional Service for his actions during the attack.

    “Officer Gonzales played a significant role when he ran toward danger so that thousands of others could make it home safely,” former WHCA President Weijia Jiang said. “His courage stemmed from a dedication to service, which we are looking forward to honoring this week.”

    Three months after the first dinner ended with guests diving beneath tables and armed agents racing through the ballroom, the tuxedos are coming back out.

    This time, they will be arriving through a fortress.

    END THE INDOCTRINATION OF AMERICA’S STUDENTS – your input is urgent.

    Kash Patel Reportedly Planning Rare Russia Trip For Secretive FSB Talks

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
    -
    1
    Kremlin.ru, via Wikimedia Commons

    FBI Director Kash Patel is reportedly preparing for a rare trip into the heart of Russia — one that could put America’s top federal lawman across the table from the successor to the Soviet-era KGB.

    Patel is expected to visit Moscow and St. Petersburg on Oct. 14 and 15, according to a U.S. official and another person familiar with the plans who spoke with Politico.

    “His host is likely to be the FSB, the Russian security service that is heir to the Soviet-era KGB,” the U.S. official told the outlet.

    The purpose of the trip has not been disclosed, and it remains unclear which Russian officials Patel intends to meet. There has also been no indication whether a face-to-face meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin is under consideration.

    The FBI and Justice Department did not respond to Politico’s requests for comment, while the White House referred questions about the trip to the bureau.

    The Kremlin did little to clear up the mystery Tuesday.

    “These kinds of visits usually happen behind closed doors,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters while declining to confirm or deny Patel’s travel plans, according to The Moscow Times.

    The reported visit would carry particularly high stakes because Patel could be meeting with the same security service his bureau has publicly identified as an active threat to Americans.

    In a June warning, the FBI and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said Russian intelligence actors were conducting an ongoing phishing campaign against high-value targets. The agencies said FSB officers and others working for Russian military services were targeting current and former U.S. government officials, military personnel, political figures and journalists.

    The campaign allowed Russian operatives to take over messaging accounts and potentially access victims’ private conversations, according to the FBI and CISA advisory.

    That creates a striking backdrop for Patel’s expected talks: The FBI may need Russian cooperation on terrorism, cybercrime and other international investigations even while treating the expected host of the trip as a hostile intelligence organization.

    If Patel makes the journey, he would become the first sitting FBI director known to visit Russia since Robert Mueller traveled to Moscow in 2013.

    Mueller’s unannounced trip came shortly after the Boston Marathon bombing and included discussions with Russian officials about the investigation and security cooperation ahead of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

    Patel’s history makes the planned visit even more politically combustible.

    Before taking over the FBI, Patel rose to prominence as a House Intelligence Committee aide investigating the origins and conduct of the bureau’s Trump-Russia probe. He has repeatedly denounced the investigation into alleged collusion between Trump’s 2016 campaign and Russia as the “Russiagate hoax.”

    The trip is also being planned as relations between Washington and Moscow remain strained over the war in Ukraine and lawmakers push for tougher economic penalties against Putin’s government.

    Trump administration envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have made repeated attempts to negotiate an end to the war, but Russia has continued to demand Ukrainian territorial concessions that Kyiv has rejected, according to The Kyiv Independent.

    For now, the biggest question surrounding Patel’s journey remains unanswered: What exactly does America’s FBI director expect to accomplish behind closed doors with one of the country’s most powerful adversaries?

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    Trump Ties FEMA Funding To New Election Security Rules

    By
    Patrick Houck
    -
    5
    DHSgov, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

    The Trump administration announced Friday that states will have to adopt a series of federal election security measures to receive certain Federal Emergency Management Agency grant funding, marking the latest effort to influence how states administer elections ahead of the 2026 midterms.

    The Department of Homeland Security said recipients of FEMA-administered homeland security grants will be required to implement what it called “common-sense election security measures” before receiving funding.

    “These new requirements for homeland security grant recipients will preserve election integrity and ensure that Americans can trust the results,” Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said in a statement.

    Funding tied to election changes

    According to FEMA grant guidance, up to 20% of funding under the State Homeland Security Program and the Urban Area Security Initiative may be withheld until states certify compliance with the administration’s election security requirements. The affected grant programs distribute roughly $1 billion annually for terrorism prevention, cybersecurity, emergency preparedness, and critical infrastructure protection.

    Among the requirements are:

    • Verification of the citizenship of registered voters and election workers.
    • Documentation of election audits.
    • Plans to transition jurisdictions that rely on barcode- or QR code-based ballot tabulation toward hand-marked paper ballots.

    The administration has argued that election infrastructure is part of the nation’s critical security framework and that stronger safeguards are necessary to bolster public confidence in election results.

    States question federal authority

    Election administration has historically been handled by states, and several state officials and election law experts have questioned whether the executive branch has the legal authority to condition homeland security grants on changes to state voting procedures.

    The announcement follows a series of recent actions by the administration aimed at reshaping election administration, including Justice Department letters requesting voter registration records from all 50 states and President Donald Trump’s removal of the remaining commissioners of the bipartisan U.S. Election Assistance Commission.

    Legal challenges expected

    The new FEMA conditions are expected to face legal scrutiny.

    Courts have already blocked portions of previous Trump administration efforts to impose nationwide election rules through executive action, with judges finding that the Constitution grants states broad authority over the administration of elections absent congressional action.

    Whether the administration can ultimately enforce the new grant conditions may depend on future court rulings. In the meantime, states seeking the affected homeland security funding will have to decide whether to comply with the new requirements or challenge them in court.

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    Trump Says He Left Orders To Bomb Iran If Tehran Assassinates Him

    By
    Patrick Houck
    -
    3
    The White House, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

    President Donald Trump said he has left instructions for the United States to launch an unprecedented bombing campaign against Iran if Tehran succeeds in assassinating him.

    “I’ve been on their list for a long time. That’s what we’re dealing with,” the president told the New York Post Friday. “I’ve left instructions — if anything happens, to just literally bomb them at levels that they’ve never seen before.”

    Trump did not explain whom he gave the instructions to, which targets would be included or how such an order would be carried out after his death.

    Trump calls himself Iran’s top target

    The president’s comments followed remarks he made during the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, where he said Iran may be seeking to kill him.

    “I’m their No. 1 target,” Trump said.

    Iran has threatened retaliation against Trump and other former administration officials over the January 2020 U.S. drone strike that killed Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani. American authorities have also previously accused Iranian operatives of pursuing plots against Trump.

    The latest concern arose after Israel reportedly shared intelligence with the United States before Trump landed in Washington indicating that Iran was considering another plot to assassinate the president.

    Mediaite’s Tom Durante has additional details:

    On the way back to the States, the president was forced to switch planes after the Secret Service reportedly voiced concerns about the new Air Force One, a $400 million jet gifted to him from the Qatari government.

    After that, Israel claimed it had shared intelligence with the president that the Islamic regime was “considering” a new plan to assassinate the president.

    In his interview with The Post, Trump denied those claims.

    “No, no. Israel came up with nothing. No, no,” he said. “I’ve been No. 1 [on Iran’s kill list] for a long time, and it’s the way life is, you know.”

    “I hope you’ll miss me,” he quipped.

    According to reporting cited by Mediaite, Israeli intelligence had not determined how far the alleged plot had progressed or whether Tehran had taken any concrete steps to carry it out.

    Trump nevertheless delivered an unmistakable warning: Any successful attack against him would bring an overwhelming American response.

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