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    Trump’s Handpicked Graham Successor Draws Challenge From Old GOP Nemesis

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    1
    [Photo Credit: The White House from Washington, DC, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons]

    Mark Sanford is back — and once again running headlong into President Donald Trump’s political machine.

    The former South Carolina governor and congressman announced Thursday that he is seeking the Senate seat previously held by the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, joining a rapidly expanding Republican field despite Trump already throwing his support behind Graham’s sister, Sen. Darline Graham.

    “Our country is at a financial tipping point, and I can’t sit on the sidelines while Washington adds a trillion dollars to the debt every 100 days,” Sanford wrote on social media.

    “I’ve spent my entire time in politics fighting this fight, and I’m running for U.S. Senate to keep the American dream alive for our sons, my grandson, and those you love. Join us,” he added.

    Sanford’s announcement included a video in which he reflected on Graham’s death and described the loss as a reminder of “how short and precious life is.”

    “My own dad got Lou Gehrig’s disease when I was in high school, and this notion of all of us having just a little time has always hit me hard,” Sanford said. “We’re stewards of our lives and the things that we love for just a short time.”

    The campaign gives Sanford another opportunity to revive his longtime crusade against federal spending — but it also places him squarely against Trump’s preferred candidate.

    Trump announced last week that Darline Graham would receive his “Complete and Total Endorsement” if she entered the race, enthusiastically declaring: “RUN, DARLINE, RUN!” (RELATED: Trump Speaks Out On Potential Lindsey Graham Replacement)

    Graham, who was appointed by Gov. Henry McMaster to temporarily fill her brother’s seat, confirmed during an interview with Sean Hannity that she would seek the full six-year term. Her appointment made her the first woman to represent South Carolina in the Senate.

    Sanford’s entry creates an especially combustible matchup because he and Trump have already fought — and Trump won.

    Sanford repeatedly criticized Trump during his first administration, drawing the president’s wrath while seeking another House term in 2018. Just hours before polls closed in that year’s Republican primary, Trump endorsed Sanford’s opponent, state Rep. Katie Arrington, and declared that Sanford had been “very unhelpful” and was “better off in Argentina.”

    The jab referenced Sanford’s infamous 2009 disappearance while serving as governor. His staff initially said he was hiking the Appalachian Trail, but Sanford later acknowledged that he had traveled to Argentina to visit a woman with whom he was having an affair.

    Arrington narrowly defeated Sanford, handing him his first loss in a South Carolina election. Arrington had spent much of the campaign portraying Sanford as a “Never Trumper.”

    Sanford returned the challenge the following year by launching a long-shot campaign against Trump for the 2020 Republican presidential nomination. That effort, which also focused heavily on the national debt, lasted roughly two months before Sanford pulled the plug after struggling to gain traction.

    His latest campaign also represents a reversal from the position he took only months ago.

    Sanford briefly launched a campaign for his former House seat earlier this year but withdrew in April, saying “the most effective way I can contribute right now is not by seeking office.” At the time, he said he planned to build a nonprofit and grassroots movement focused on the country’s growing debt.

    Graham’s death, however, opened a rare statewide opportunity — and Sanford is now arguing that Washington’s spending binge demands his return to elected office.

    The 66-year-old served as South Carolina’s governor from 2003 through 2011. He represented the state’s 1st Congressional District from 1995 through 2001 and again from 2013 through 2019.

    Sanford joins a Republican field that already includes Graham, Reps. Russell Fry and Ralph Norman, businessman Mark Lynch and attorney Duke Buckner. Norman has secured support from several prominent conservatives, including Rep. Nancy Mace and former Sen. Jim DeMint, underscoring the resistance to Trump’s effort to consolidate the party behind Graham.

    The compressed campaign leaves Sanford little time to rebuild his political organization or convince Republican voters to look past his long-running feud with Trump.

    Candidate filing closes July 28. The special Republican primary will be held Aug. 11, followed by an Aug. 25 runoff if no candidate receives a majority. The winner will advance to the Nov. 3 general election against Democrat nominee Annie Andrews, according to the South Carolina Election Commission.

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    Jim Jordan Demands DOJ Probe Jack Smith Over Trump Testimony

    By
    admin
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    1

    House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan is calling on the Justice Department to investigate former Special Counsel Jack Smith, accusing the longtime prosecutor of misleading Congress about his pursuit of lawmakers’ private communications during the Trump election case.

    Jordan sent a criminal referral Wednesday to Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche after newly released Justice Department records appeared to conflict with testimony Smith gave under oath in December 2025.

    The referral does not compel the DOJ to open an investigation or bring charges, but it formally places Smith’s testimony before federal prosecutors for review.

    At the center of the explosive dispute are text messages involving members of Congress.

    During a closed-door deposition, Smith was asked whether telephone records subpoenaed by his office included the contents of lawmakers’ calls or text messages. Smith answered “no” to both questions.

    Those answers were technically accurate when applied specifically to toll records, which generally contain information such as telephone numbers, dates and call durations—not the substance of communications.

    But Jordan argues Smith left lawmakers with a deeply misleading impression.

    Records recently released by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley indicate Smith’s team separately obtained the contents of text messages through a subpoena issued to the National Archives and Records Administration. According to Jordan, the material included communications involving dozens of lawmakers.

    “The responses provided by Mr. Smith gave the impression that neither Mr. Smith nor his team had access to the content of Members’ privileged text messages. We now know this to be false,” Jordan wrote.

    Smith’s attorneys fired back, accusing the Republican chairman of twisting their client’s words to manufacture a criminal allegation.

    Peter Koski and Lanny Breuer argued that Smith answered the precise questions he was asked about toll records, which did not contain message content. They said Jordan was improperly conflating those subpoenas with a separate legal process used to obtain communications from another source.

    “During his testimony, Mr. Smith provided truthful, responsive answers, and candidly discussed his work as Special Counsel,” the attorneys wrote in a letter to Jordan and Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin.

    They characterized the referral as an effort to “weaponize the justice system” against a career prosecutor.

    The Justice Department confirmed that it received Jordan’s referral and said it “will investigate all evidence of criminal conduct.” The department did not say whether it has formally opened an investigation into Smith.

    Jordan alleges the former special counsel may have violated federal law by knowingly making materially false statements to Congress. Prosecutors must now determine whether Smith merely answered a narrowly worded question—or deliberately concealed the full reach of his investigation.

    The referral opens another front in the long-running battle over Smith’s prosecutions of President Donald Trump involving classified documents and challenges to the 2020 election results.

    Smith abandoned both cases following Trump’s 2024 election victory, citing Justice Department policy against prosecuting a sitting president. He resigned shortly before Trump returned to the White House.

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    Trump’s New DHS Chief Already Ruffling Feathers Inside White House: Report

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    0
    Indian Affairs Committee Hearings to examine Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act successes and opportunities at the Department of the Interior and the Indian Health Service, in Washington, DC on September 17, 2025. (Official U.S. Senate photo by Ryan Donnell)

    Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin has been on the job for just four months — and he is reportedly already stepping on toes inside President Donald Trump’s White House.

    Tensions between Mullin and senior administration officials have been building after a string of policy disputes, public missteps and concerns surrounding his preferred candidate to lead Immigration and Customs Enforcement, NBC News reported Thursday.

    The first major collision reportedly came when Mullin ordered ICE to temporarily halt most vehicle stops following fatal shootings involving immigration agents in Houston, Texas, and Biddeford, Maine.

    The Wall Street Journal reported that Mullin and acting ICE Director Dave Venturella made the call without first briefing Trump. News of the pause began leaking before the president could be informed, leaving him caught off guard. The Wall Street Journal and ABC News separately confirmed that Mullin directed the suspension.

    Trump wasted little time reversing it.

    “We CANNOT give up one of I.C.E.’s most important and effective Crime Fighting tools, THE TRAFFIC STOP!” the president wrote on Truth Social.

    The episode apparently did not sit well inside the West Wing.

    “Every Cabinet secretary knows that they have to come to the White House for major policy decisions,” a senior administration official told NBC News. “The president sees, hears, reads everything.”

    Mullin also reportedly irritated officials with a recent CNN interview concerning the Supreme Court’s decision allowing the administration to move forward with ending Temporary Protected Status for immigrants from Haiti and Syria.

    The secretary suggested that hundreds of thousands of affected immigrants could apply for another legal status. They could not automatically do so under the ruling, according to NBC News, which described Mullin’s remarks as a misstatement that “annoyed” some administration officials.

    The Supreme Court ruled on June 25 that lower courts could not continue postponing the administration’s termination of the two countries’ TPS designations while litigation moved forward.

    Another potential fault line involves Richard “Lance” Schroyer, Trump’s nominee to lead ICE.

    Schroyer, a former Marine and Oklahoma Highway Patrol veteran, is a longtime Mullin ally whom the secretary previously called “a good friend of mine.” Mullin brought Schroyer into DHS to advise local law enforcement agencies participating in a federal immigration enforcement program before Trump nominated him for the top ICE post in June.

    But the nomination has reportedly drawn resistance from officials who question whether Schroyer possesses enough federal management experience to run the agency spearheading Trump’s deportation campaign.

    Trump border czar Tom Homan was among those who objected to the selection, according to The Wall Street Journal.

    “Homan and others aren’t particularly thrilled with him,” the administration official told NBC News.

    The White House publicly played down any suggestion of a widening rift, insisting Mullin remains committed to carrying out Trump’s immigration agenda.

    “Secretary Mullin is working hard to implement the President’s immigration enforcement agenda,” White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said. “Thanks to President Trump and Secretary Mullin, the border is totally secure, dangerous illegal immigrants are being deported, and Americans are safer.”

    “Secretary Mullin will continue to enforce federal immigration law as effectively as possible,” she added.

    Trump selected Mullin to replace Kristi Noem, and the former Oklahoma senator was sworn in on March 24 after receiving bipartisan Senate confirmation.

    During his confirmation process, Mullin said his goal was to keep DHS from dominating the daily news cycle.

    “My goal in six months is that we’re not in the lead story every single day,” he told senators.

    Four months later, the reported turbulence inside Trump’s team is threatening to make that promise harder to keep.

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    Secret Service Agent Benched Over Alleged Leak From JD Vance’s Security Detail

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    1

    A Secret Service agent assigned to protect Vice President JD Vance has been yanked from duty over allegations that someone inside his security detail leaked sensitive information to the press.

    The unidentified agent was placed on administrative leave and is now the subject of an internal investigation, the Secret Service confirmed Thursday.

    “A member of the Vice Presidential Protective Division is the subject of an administrative investigation, and potential criminal inquiry,” agency spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement obtained by CNN.

    Guglielmi said any behavior that damages the trust between an official and the agents protecting that person is “fundamentally incompatible with our mission and will not be tolerated.”

    The agent is suspected of feeding information to MS NOW for a July 15 report detailing growing frustration inside Vance’s protective detail, according to CNN.

    That story portrayed agents as fed up with the vice president’s last-minute travel demands and alleged use of government resources for family trips.

    The flashpoint was a planned Marine Two flight carrying Vance and his young son to Joint Base Andrews, where the boy was scheduled to receive a golf lesson. The helicopter trip was ultimately scrubbed because of severe thunderstorms and high winds around Washington.

    While no Secret Service policy reportedly prohibits a vice president’s child from riding aboard a government helicopter, current and former supervisors told MS NOW they knew of no precedent for using one for that purpose.

    Marine Two costs taxpayers between $16,000 and $24,600 per flight hour, based on 2022 Defense Department budget estimates cited by The Independent.

    “That is RIDICULOUS,” one person familiar with the planned flight told MS NOW, claiming former Vice Presidents Mike Pence and Kamala Harris never made a similar request.

    Sources also accused the Vance family of frequently changing plans and arranging sudden “off the record,” or OTR, movements that force agents to build security operations on short notice.

    “The detail is tired of them not giving notice on things and making everything an OTR,” one source told the outlet.

    The frustration allegedly became so intense that agents created mocking challenge coins and stickers reading “Bobcat OTR Survivors Club,” a reference to Vance’s Secret Service code name. Other items reportedly carried the motto: “Advance. OTR. Repeat.”

    The original report also said the Vances had taken several last-minute helicopter trips to Middleburg, Virginia, while searching for a new home.

    Vance’s office defended the family while praising the agents responsible for protecting them.

    “The Vances are grateful to the men and women of the U.S. Secret Service who serve our country with distinction,” a spokesperson said.

    Secret Service Deputy Director Matt Quinn separately noted that protective assignments routinely require long hours, frequent travel and sudden changes.

    But the problem now facing the agency extends beyond bruised morale.

    CNN reported that the MS NOW story caught the attention of officials inside the Secret Service, FBI and White House, who were alarmed that details touching on Vance’s movements and protective operations had appeared in the press.

    The agency’s internal affairs office is leading the review. Administrative leave does not constitute a finding of wrongdoing, and investigators have not publicly identified which information the agent allegedly disclosed. It remains unclear whether the case will result in discipline or criminal charges.

    This is also not the first alleged security breach involving Vance’s detail this year.

    In January, another agent was placed on leave after an undercover journalist recorded him allegedly discussing travel plans, shift schedules and protective formations. The agent’s clearance was suspended, and the Secret Service ordered its personnel to repeat anti-espionage training, according to People.

    The latest investigation comes as the Trump administration intensifies its war on unauthorized leaks.

    The Justice Department recently subpoenaed New York Times journalists over reporting about security concerns surrounding the Qatari-donated aircraft converted for use as Air Force One. Prosecutors also sought phone records connected to reporters and some of their relatives in an effort to uncover their sources, according to reports.

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    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 To Welcome Fallen Heroes Home As Iran Faces Fierce Warning

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    0
    President Donald J. Trump and First Lady Melania Trump attend the Dignified Transfer of remains of six U.S. soldiers killed in an Iranian drone strike in Kuwait, Saturday, March 7, 2026, at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware. (Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok)

    President Donald Trump is heading to Dover Air Force Base to welcome home two young American soldiers killed by Iran—and he is promising Iran that their deaths will not go unanswered.

    Trump will attend the dignified transfer of fallen U.S. service members Tuesday evening following one of the deadliest weekends for American forces during the renewed conflict.

    “President Trump will attend the dignified transfer of our fallen heroes tomorrow evening at Dover Air Force Base,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote Monday on X. “The President and the entire White House are praying for their families.”

    The solemn military ceremony will return the remains of the fallen to American soil. Flag-draped transfer cases will be carried from a military aircraft to vehicles bound for Dover’s mortuary facility as grieving families, military leaders and the commander in chief look on.

    The Department of War identified two of the fallen soldiers Monday as 1st Lt. Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, and Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas.

    Gonzales was killed in action July 17 when Iran unleashed ballistic missiles and drones against Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan. Feehan was killed in action the following day as a result of the same attack, according to the Pentagon.

    Both soldiers were supporting Operation Inherent Resolve, the American-led mission against the Islamic State.

    Feehan served with the 2nd Battalion, 55th Air Defense Artillery Regiment at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Gonzales was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 57th Air Defense Artillery Regiment in Ansbach, Germany.

    “U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command mourns the loss of 1st Lt. Tyler Feehan, whose service and sacrifice will never be forgotten,” Lt. Gen. John L. Rafferty said in an Army statement.

    “Losing him to enemy fire will inspire our Soldiers and strengthen their resolve to continue the mission,” Rafferty added.

    The Army said Feehan will be posthumously promoted to captain and awarded the Bronze Star and Purple Heart.

    Four other American service members were medically evacuated after the Jordan attack, according to U.S. Central Command. They have since been discharged.

    Another service member was initially declared missing. American personnel later recovered unidentified remains at the base, but military officials said the examination process was still underway.

    A third American service member was killed in northern Iraq on July 18 during the controlled detonation of unexploded ordnance from a downed Iranian attack drone. Another service member suffered minor injuries.

    As the fallen return home, Trump has issued a chilling warning to the regime responsible.

    “Every time Iran kills an American Soldier they will pay for that killing many times over!” Trump declared on Truth Social.

    The president said his directive had already been delivered to Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine and military leaders throughout the chain of command.

    Trump previously told reporters that the latest American attacks on Iran were carried out in honor of the troops lost over the weekend.

    “We hit them very hard again tonight, and we did that in honor of the probably three, as opposed to two, great patriots,” Trump said Sunday after arriving at Joint Base Andrews.

    American forces responded to the attack in Jordan by striking Iranian coastal surveillance and air defense facilities, maritime capabilities, and missile and drone storage sites.

    https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/2079001736396652710

    CENTCOM said the military also directly targeted Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces accused of launching the deadly assault against the Americans.

    That retaliatory operation was followed by a ninth consecutive evening of strikes on Iranian command centers, communications networks, air defenses and missile and drone launch sites.

    Tuesday’s ceremony will be another somber visit to Dover for Trump during the conflict. The president and first lady Melania Trump attended the dignified transfer of six American soldiers killed in an Iranian drone attack in Kuwait in March.

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    Trump Slams Mamdani’s Netanyahu Arrest Threat: ‘Will Not Happen’

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
    -
    8
    By Bingjiefu He - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0,

    President Donald Trump drew a bright red line Monday after New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani threatened to have Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrested on American soil.

    “Benjamin Netanyahu will not be arrested, in any way, shape, or form, while in the United States of America,” Trump declared in a Truth Social post.

    The president defended Netanyahu as a wartime leader confronting the Islamic Republic of Iran, which Trump accused of killing 52,000 protesters and spending decades targeting American troops.

    “The only ones that should be arrested are the people that led Iran into this unprecedented SPIRAL OF DEATH AND DESTRUCTION,” Trump added, arguing that previous presidents should have confronted the regime years ago.

    Trump’s declaration came after Mamdani revived one of his most controversial campaign promises during an interview with The New York Times’ Lulu Garcia-Navarro.

    “I believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu belongs in The Hague,” Mamdani said. “He’s a war criminal who has been charged by the International Criminal Court.”

    The democratic socialist mayor said his administration is now examining whether he could use the New York Police Department to detain Netanyahu when the Israeli leader is expected to attend the United Nations General Assembly in September.

    “That’s an active conversation with our legal department in seeing what the prospects are we have here in our municipality,” Mamdani said.

    He insisted he would follow existing city law and would not attempt to write new rules specifically targeting Netanyahu.

    But Mamdani’s arrest talk faces a mountain of legal obstacles.

    The United States is not a party to the Rome Statute establishing the International Criminal Court and does not recognize the court’s authority over Americans or Israelis. Foreign affairs are also controlled by the federal government, while diplomatic protections and head-of-state immunity could shield Netanyahu during a U.N. visit.

    U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz dismissed Mamdani’s proposal as “pure political theater.”

    “The U.S. is not party to the Rome Statute that underlies the ICC,” Waltz wrote on X, adding that the U.N. Headquarters Agreement grants protections to visiting foreign leaders and that “federal authority trumps any local mayor’s wishes.”

    Legal experts have expressed similar doubts. Syracuse University law professor Cora True-Frost said foreign affairs are the “exclusive power of the federal government” and that protections afforded to visiting diplomats would further restrict Mamdani’s ability to carry out his threat. NBC New York reported that several former prosecutors believe an attempt to enforce the ICC warrant could expose participating local officials to federal charges.

    The ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in November 2024, alleging war crimes and crimes against humanity during Israel’s military campaign against Hamas in Gaza. The court said judges found reasonable grounds to believe Netanyahu and Gallant bore responsibility for alleged crimes including using starvation as a method of warfare.

    Israel has categorically rejected the allegations, maintaining that its military takes extensive precautions to protect civilians while battling a terrorist organization that embeds itself among the Palestinian population.

    Netanyahu’s office fired back Sunday by branding the ICC a “kangaroo court that has no jurisdiction over Americans or Israelis.”

    “Under Prime Minister Netanyahu’s leadership, Israel has taken unprecedented wartime measures to minimize harm to civilians while confronting Hamas, a genocidal terrorist organization that uses Palestinians as human shields and deliberately targets innocent Israeli civilians,” his office said.

    It then turned its fire directly on City Hall.

    “Mr. Mamdani should focus on fixing the damage his policies have caused New York,” Netanyahu’s office concluded.

    Netanyahu has also accused the mayor of siding with “terror actors,” while Mamdani has repeatedly characterized Israel’s response to the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas massacre as genocide.

    The Trump administration, meanwhile, has backed its rejection of the ICC with more than words. It has imposed sanctions on court personnel and affiliated organizations involved in efforts to prosecute Israelis, declaring that neither the United States nor Israel is subject to the tribunal’s authority. The State Department has described the court’s actions as a threat to American sovereignty.

    Mamdani may be determined to turn Netanyahu’s expected September visit into an international showdown.

    Trump’s message was that the mayor will not get the chance.

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    Trump Praises JD Vance, Usha On Birth Of Fourth Child

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
    -
    0
    By Office of Vice President of the United States - @VP on X, Public Domain,

    The White House is celebrating the arrival of its newest—and smallest—addition.

    Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance welcomed their fourth child, a son named Alec Neel Vance, on Sunday morning.

    “We are excited to announce that our baby boy, Alec Neel Vance, was born this morning,” the couple said in a joint statement. “Usha and the baby are happy and healthy, and our kids are overjoyed to meet their little brother.”

    The Vances also expressed their gratitude to the medical professionals who cared for Usha and Alec at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.

    “The incredible military doctors and staff members of Walter Reed Medical Center and the White House Medical Unit have been a blessing,” the couple said. “We are deeply thankful for all they have done for our family.”

    President Donald Trump joined the celebration Monday, offering the public its first glimpse of the newborn in a photo shared on Truth Social. The picture showed two of Alec’s older siblings smiling as they held their baby brother.

    “Congratulations!” Trump wrote. “A perfect baby boy for the wonderful Vance family.”

    Alec joins the couple’s three other children: sons Ewan, 9, and Vivek, 6, and daughter Mirabel, 4. JD and Usha Vance have been married since 2014.

    The birth also marked a milestone more than a century and a half in the making. Alec is the first child born to a sitting vice president since Schuyler Colfax III arrived in 1870, while his father, Schuyler Colfax Jr., served under President Ulysses S. Grant. CBS News described the Vances’ new arrival as the first known birth to the nation’s second family in 156 years.

    The couple announced Usha’s pregnancy in January, saying at the time that they expected their son to arrive in late July. Vance, who has frequently encouraged Americans to form and grow families, later joked that the pregnancy showed he was willing to follow his own advice.

    “So let the record show, you have a vice president who practices what he preaches,” Vance told the 2026 March for Life rally.

    Alec’s arrival continues something of a baby boom inside the Trump administration.

    White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt and her husband, Nicholas Riccio, welcomed their second child, daughter Viviana “Vivi,” on May 1. Leavitt announced the happy news several days later, sharing a photograph of herself holding the newborn inside a pink nursery. (RELATED: Karoline Leavitt Shares She Is Expecting Baby Girl In May 2026)

    “On May 1st, Viviana aka ‘Vivi’ joined our family, and our hearts instantly exploded with love,” Leavitt wrote on Instagram.

    “She is perfect and healthy, and her big brother is joyfully adjusting to life with his new baby sister,” she continued. “We are enjoying every moment in our blissful newborn bubble.”

    Leavitt returned to the White House briefing room on July 16 after taking maternity leave, according to People. Vivi joined the couple’s son, Niko, who recently turned 2.

    Now, just over two months after Vivi’s birth, the administration has another reason to celebrate—with the Vance children welcoming a little brother and Trump proudly introducing the “perfect baby boy” to the country.

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    Trump DHS Chief Warns Election Officials: Cooperate — Or Face Prison

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
    -
    1
    DHSgov, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

    Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin fired a blistering warning at state election officials Friday: Help the Trump administration police voter rolls — or risk fines, penalties and even prison time.

    Mullin delivered the threat during a White House press conference one day after President Donald Trump used a primetime address to sound the alarm over alleged vulnerabilities in America’s election system.

    Asked by a Daily Caller reporter whether the administration could ensure the midterm elections would be secure, Mullin said Washington could restore public confidence — but only if states cooperate.

    “Yes, we absolutely can build confidence in the American people, but the states have to do their part,” Mullin said.

    Then came the warning shot.

    “I will tell you, if the states that choose not to participate with the SAVE program and they choose not to participate in securing the elections, we will make sure that we make those states a priority to look at who voted in their states and hold them, the election officials, accountable,” Mullin said.

    “If the election officials, once we gave them the information they need to secure their elections and they chose not to, then those individuals can also be held accountable by fines, by penalties, and even, depending on how far it goes, prison time.”

    Mullin did not specify which federal laws could be used to prosecute officials who decline to participate in the program or what conduct would trigger criminal charges.

    His comments came as DHS claimed that a review of publicly available voter files uncovered more than 250,000 suspected noncitizens registered to vote in California, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Nevada.

    Mullin said those states had not cooperated with the administration’s review. DHS has reportedly sent letters notifying officials of its findings and asking them to confirm within two weeks whether they intend to work with the department.

    The secretary also said that 23 states already using the federal verification system had identified another 23,000 suspected noncitizens and approximately 400,000 deceased people on voter rolls, according to The Daily Signal.

    DHS has not publicly demonstrated that the individuals it identified actually cast ballots. Being listed on a voter roll does not necessarily mean someone voted.

    The Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements program, known as SAVE, is an existing DHS database originally designed to help government agencies verify the citizenship and immigration status of people applying for public benefits and licenses. It is separate from the pending SAVE America Act, despite sharing the acronym.

    The Trump administration has expanded the database’s use for election-related citizenship checks and is pressing states to run their voter files through it.

    Mullin also indicated that federal election funding could become another pressure point.

    “We are going to make our security enhancements mandatory, meaning that if these states want a grant, and they want to be reimbursed to run federal elections, they’re going to have to implement security measures,” he said.

    The crackdown comes as Trump continues demanding that Congress pass the SAVE America Act, which would require proof of citizenship and identification for federal voter registration while sharply limiting mail-in voting.

    The legislation has repeatedly stalled in the Senate. Majority Leader John Thune has said Republicans lack the votes needed to overcome the filibuster or change Senate rules to force it through.

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    White House Slams Staffer Accused Of Betting On Trump Speech

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    2

    A longtime Trump aide has been yanked from the White House after allegedly turning advance knowledge of President Donald Trump’s speeches into a six-figure betting haul.

    White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt revealed Thursday that Gabriel Perez, who has operated Trump’s teleprompter since his first presidential campaign in 2016, was placed on unpaid administrative leave at the president’s direction.

    “Obviously, I’m aware of the report. The president is, too. I spoke with him about it,” Leavitt told reporters. “He believes it’s deeply unfortunate and, frankly, a disgrace.”

    “The White House has extremely strict ethical guidelines with respect to issues like this,” she added, stressing that Perez’s leave would be without pay. “That was the decision by the president, so it speaks for itself.”

    Another operator was tapped to handle Trump’s nationally televised speech Thursday night.

    Perez is accused of using his behind-the-scenes access to place bets on more than a dozen Trump speeches through Kalshi, an online prediction market where users can wager on whether specific words, phrases or subjects will come up during public events.

    Sources familiar with the federal investigation told ABC News that Perez won more than $100,000 over a roughly three-month period.

    The alleged bets reportedly involved Trump’s State of the Union address, a December primetime speech, his appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos and remarks delivered during a March Medal of Honor ceremony.

    As Trump’s teleprompter operator, Perez was often among the final people to see the president’s prepared remarks and was reportedly responsible for inserting last-minute changes.

    Investigators even uncovered instances in which Perez allegedly abandoned certain positions while a speech was still underway after Trump skipped passages containing words on which the operator had wagered, ABC News reported.

    That wrinkle is especially notable because Trump is famous for veering away from his prepared remarks.

    “You know, when you go up here, you take a big chance, especially me because I go off teleprompter about 80% of the time,” Trump said during a January appearance at the Detroit Economic Club—another speech investigators reportedly believe Perez bet on.

    Kalshi’s internal surveillance system reportedly detected unusual activity that did not match normal trading patterns. The company froze Perez’s account, trapping more than $90,000 in alleged profits, before referring the matter to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

    “Our surveillance team promptly flagged and referred these trades to the CFTC after an exchange investigation,” Kalshi enforcement chief Robert DeNault told CBS News. “We have been assisting regulators on this matter and provided evidence we collected, as we do in any referral.”

    The CFTC has declined to confirm or deny that an investigation is underway.

    Perez has reportedly cooperated with regulators and acknowledged some of the trades during an interview. Sources told ABC News that federal prosecutors in Manhattan declined to launch a criminal investigation, while CFTC officials have discussed a possible settlement that could require Perez to surrender his profits and stay out of similar markets.

    Perez did not respond to requests for comment from several news organizations.

    The allegations surfaced only months after the White House explicitly warned employees against using privileged information to make prediction-market bets.

    A March 24 email from the White House Management Office reminded staffers that using nonpublic information to trade such contracts could constitute a criminal offense.

    “All White House employees are reminded that the misuse of nonpublic information by government employees for financial benefit is a very serious offense and will not be tolerated,” the email said, according to CBS News.

    White House spokesman David Ingle said the administration expects every employee to follow its ethics rules and confirmed that Perez was cooperating with regulators.

    Leavitt said the White House was not aware of any other staffers suspected of making similar trades.

    The case could add fuel to a bipartisan push on Capitol Hill to crack down on government insiders using prediction markets for personal profit. Republican Sens. Todd Young and John Curtis joined Democratic Sens. Elissa Slotkin and Adam Schiff in introducing legislation that would prohibit federal officials and employees from trading on material nonpublic information.

    “Public service should never be a pathway to personal profit based on insider information,” Young said when the bill was introduced.

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