Donald Trump
President of the United States
51 articlesPower
Bondi Misses Epstein Deposition; Democrats File Civil Contempt Resolution, Republicans Schedule May 29 Interview
Former Attorney General Pam Bondi did not appear for a bipartisan Oversight Committee deposition on April 14, 2026, despite a legally binding subpoena. On April 29, House Oversight Democrats filed a civil contempt resolution. Within 45 minutes, Republicans confirmed a new date: Bondi will give a transcribed interview on May 29.
Energy
Seven Days After an Industry Petition, Interior Opens NEPA Scoping for an NPR-A "Development Permit Program"
A Federal Register notice published May 19 confirms the Bureau of Land Management is initiating an Environmental Impact Statement to support a rulemaking that would pre-authorize "qualifying production sites" across the 23-million-acre National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska — moving from project-by-project NEPA review to a criteria-based permit-by-rule framework. BLM cites a petition filed by the Alaska Oil and Gas Association exactly one week earlier as the trigger.
Money
Senate Confirms Warsh as Federal Reserve Chair, 54-45, in Closest Vote of Modern Era
The Senate voted 54-45 on May 13 to confirm Kevin Warsh as Federal Reserve chairman, with Sen. John Fetterman the only Democrat to cross party lines. The confirmation triggers a 90-day divestiture clock on Warsh's private fund holdings, with the deadline falling around August 11, and sets up the first FOMC meeting of his tenure for June 16-17.
Science
162 Declassified UAP Files Released at war.gov — None Confirm Extraterrestrial Origin
The Department of War opened the PURSUE portal on May 8, publishing 162 files from five federal agencies spanning 1945 to 2026. Every case is labeled unresolved. The release is the largest single public disclosure of UAP records in U.S. history — and contains no determination that any observed phenomenon was extraterrestrial.
World
First U.S.-Venezuela Flights Land in Caracas After Seven-Year Ban, Following Maduro Capture
American Airlines resumed direct Miami-Caracas service on April 30, 2026, ending a flight suspension that began in May 2019. The resumption followed the January 2026 U.S. military capture of Nicolás Maduro, a TSA security assessment at Simón Bolívar Airport, and a State Department travel alert downgrade.
Power
Supreme Court Hears Arguments on TPS Terminations for Haiti and Syria — Ruling Threatens 335,000 Holders
The Supreme Court heard 105 minutes of argument on April 29 in consolidated cases challenging the Trump administration's termination of Temporary Protected Status for Haitian and Syrian nationals. The government argued that federal law bars courts from reviewing any TPS termination decision. A ruling is expected by late June or early July 2026.
Power
Three Agencies Miss House Oversight's April 27 Deadline on Missing Scientists Inquiry
The FBI, NASA, and the Department of Energy failed to provide the staff-level briefings the House Oversight Committee demanded by April 27 on at least 13 scientists with classified-access ties who have died or disappeared. NASA's spokesperson said the agency sees no national security threat; the FBI director said a report is coming "in short order."
Money
Senate Banking Committee Advances Warsh for Fed Chair in First Fully Partisan Vote
Kevin Warsh cleared the Senate Banking Committee 13-11 on April 29 after a contentious hearing where he pledged a regime change in monetary policy and declined to disclose the underlying holdings of more than $100 million in investments, some of which include stakes in regulated banks.
Power
Senate Bill Extends Section 702 to June 12 in Single Day; House Approves 261-111 With 85 Democrats Opposed
S. 4465 — three operative lines, no privacy reforms — was introduced, passed both chambers, and signed by President Trump on April 30, 2026, hours before Section 702 was set to expire. It is the second short bridge in two weeks and pushes the new sunset to June 12. House Democrats split 94-85 in opposition; 26 Republicans joined them; Rep. Andy Biggs, the warrant-amendment author at the center of the prior fight, did not vote.
Power
Lutnick Tells Congress Trump's 'Gold Card' Visa Has Approved One Applicant — Thirteen Months After Claiming He Sold 1,000 in a Day
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told a House appropriations subcommittee on Thursday that the administration's $1 million Gold Card visa has been approved for one person since applications opened in December. In March 2025, he told the All-In podcast he had 'sold 1,000' of the cards at $5 million each — a claim valued at the time at $5 billion in a single day.
Money
DOJ Moves FDA-Approved and State-Licensed Medical Marijuana to Schedule III, Sets June 29 Hearing on Broader Reclassification
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche signed an order on April 23 placing FDA-approved cannabinoid drugs and state-licensed medical marijuana in Schedule III — the same tier as ketamine and anabolic steroids — while leaving recreational marijuana in Schedule I pending a June 29 DEA hearing on broader rescheduling.
Power
House Kills Its Own Rule to Advance 18-Month FISA 702 Extension; 10-Day Bridge Becomes Public Law No. 119-84
H.R. 8035 — a three-paragraph bill that would have extended the warrantless-surveillance authority through October 20, 2027, with no privacy reforms — never reached a floor vote. The House rejected its rule of consideration on April 17 after the Rules Committee blocked an amendment to require a warrant for U.S.-person queries. Congress then passed a 10-day bridge, H.R. 8322, which President Trump signed the next day.
Power
Trump Invokes Defense Production Act Across Oil, Gas, Coal, LNG, and the Grid in Five Simultaneous Determinations
President Trump signed five Section 303 Defense Production Act determinations on April 20, each directing the Secretary of Energy to use federal purchases, loans, and commitments to expand a different piece of the US fossil-fuel and electric-grid supply chain. All five waive the statute's standard review-and-approval gates, citing the national energy emergency Trump declared on his first day in office.
Money
Trump Administration Nears $500M Spirit Airlines Rescue With Warrants for Up to 90% Equity, as His Transportation Secretary Resists
President Trump told CNBC on April 21 that the federal government should 'maybe' help Spirit Airlines, currently in its second bankruptcy in 14 months. By April 22 the administration was reportedly in advanced talks for a $500M financing package — with warrants that could leave the U.S. government owning up to 90% of the post-bankruptcy carrier. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has publicly opposed the deal.
Power
Pentagon Inspector General Bars 'Department of War' Title From Court Filings, Subpoenas, and Criminal Investigations
An April 1 memo from the DoD Office of Inspector General lists the places where the Trump-ordered 'Department of War' rebrand does not apply. They are the places where the name carries legal weight.
World
Amnesty's 2026 Report Names Trump, Putin, and Netanyahu as the 'Voracious Predators' of 2025
In the foreword to the State of the World's Human Rights report released Monday, Amnesty Secretary-General Agnès Callamard singles out three heads of state by name and catalogues what she calls a 'predatory world order' of unlawful war, extrajudicial killing, and the abandonment of multilateralism.
Power
72 Veterans and Military Family Members Arrested at Cannon Rotunda After Folding Flags for 13 U.S. Troops Killed in Iran War
Center on Conscience and War Executive Director Mike Prysner and a coalition of seven veterans' groups staged a flag-folding ceremony inside the House office building, demanded a meeting with Speaker Mike Johnson, and were zip-tied by Capitol Police after holding red tulips for Iranians killed by U.S. strikes.
Power
Virginia's April 21 Vote: Why Congressional Control Now Depends on Who Draws the Maps
Of 435 U.S. House seats in 2026, only 18 are rated genuine toss-ups. Whoever draws the other 417 mostly determines which party wins them. Virginia voters are deciding today whether to let the General Assembly redraw the state's districts to shift four seats toward Democrats — enough, in a chamber where Republicans hold a 218-213 majority, to potentially decide U.S. House control for the 2027-2028 Congress. Polls close 7 p.m. ET.
Money
Trump Signs Nine Enbridge Pipeline Permits, Authorizing New 24-Inch Bakken Crossing at the Canadian Border
The Federal Register on Monday published nine presidential permits that Donald Trump signed April 15 for Enbridge's cross-border oil pipelines. Eight are renewals of existing authorizations; one clears a new 24-inch Bakken pipeline at Burke County, North Dakota, tied to Enbridge's Mainline Optimization 2 plan to redirect light crude toward the Dakota Access Pipeline.
Money
CBP Opens Tariff Refund Portal for $166 Billion in IEEPA Duties Struck Down by Supreme Court
Customs and Border Protection launched Phase 1 of its CAPE refund tool at 8 a.m. Monday, letting more than 330,000 importers file claims for duties the Supreme Court invalidated in February.
Power
Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer Resigns; White House Says She'll Go to Private Sector
The White House announced Monday that Lori Chavez-DeRemer is leaving the Trump Cabinet 13 months after her swearing-in. Deputy Secretary Keith Sonderling becomes acting secretary. Neither the White House nor Chavez-DeRemer acknowledged the Labor Department Inspector General investigation that multiple outlets have reported preceded her exit.
Money
NPR Announces $113M in Gifts, Including $33M From an Anonymous Donor to Replace CPB Infrastructure
Philanthropist Connie Ballmer gave $80 million and an anonymous donor contributed $33 million, nine months after Congress clawed back $1.1 billion in forward appropriations from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
Power
Trump EO Orders FDA-DEA Pathway for Ibogaine Access, $50M for State Psychedelic Research
President Trump signed an executive order directing the FDA and DEA to create a Right to Try pathway for psychedelic drugs — explicitly naming ibogaine — and allocating $50 million in HHS funds to match state psychedelic research programs.
Power
DOJ Loses Fifth Straight Voter Data Case as Trump-Appointed Judge Calls Lawsuit a 'Fishing Expedition'
A Trump-appointed federal judge dismissed the DOJ's demand for Rhode Island's unredacted voter rolls -- the fifth consecutive loss for a legal campaign that has sued 30 states and DC for their residents' Social Security numbers and driver's license data.
Power
Trump Nominates Former Deputy Surgeon General Erica Schwartz as CDC Director, His Third Pick for the Role
Rear Admiral Erica Schwartz, who served as deputy surgeon general during Trump's first term, would inherit an agency that has been without a permanent director for over eight months amid turmoil over vaccine policy.
Power
Trump Says He's 'Prepared' to Appoint Up to Three Supreme Court Justices
In a Fox Business interview, Trump acknowledged Alito could retire and said he has nominees ready. Alito was secretly hospitalized for dehydration last month, fueling speculation about his future on the bench.
Money
The Pentagon's $185 Billion Missile Shield Has $398 Million in the Actual Budget
The FY2027 request for Golden Dome totals $17.5 billion, but 97% depends on a second reconciliation bill. There is no funding plan for FY2028.
Power
Commerce Department Strips Disparate-Impact Protections from All Its Grant Programs, Effective Immediately
A final rule published today rescinds the portions of Commerce's Title VI regulations that prohibited federally funded programs from having discriminatory effects -- not just discriminatory intent. The change covers NTIA broadband grants, NOAA, NIST, EDA, and every other Commerce-funded program.
Power
Acting AG Blanche Says Trump Has 'Right' and 'Duty' to Order DOJ Investigations Into His Enemies
In his first press conference after replacing fired AG Pam Bondi, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the president has the "right" and "duty" to direct Justice Department investigations -- including into people Trump "has had issues with."
Power
Trump Fires All Six Presidio Trust Board Members, Leaving San Francisco's 1,500-Acre National Park Without Leadership
The White House dismissed every Biden-appointed trustee of the federal agency that manages the Presidio, a former Army post turned self-funding national park that generates $182 million a year.
Power
Trump Posts Surveillance Footage of Fatal Hammer Attack, Calls for End to Haitian TPS
Trump posted graphic surveillance video on Truth Social of a fatal hammer attack at a Fort Myers gas station, using the case of a Haitian immigrant charged with murder to demand an end to TPS -- two and a half weeks before the Supreme Court hears the case.
World
Cuba's Diaz-Canel Warns of Guerrilla War in First US TV Interview Since Castro
In his first American television interview -- the first by a Cuban leader since Fidel Castro in 1959 -- President Miguel Diaz-Canel told NBC he would die before stepping down and warned the U.S. of guerrilla warfare if Cuba is attacked.
Power
Appeals Court Allows White House Ballroom Construction Through April 17
A divided DC Circuit panel stayed a lower court order halting the $400 million project, sending the case back to weigh the administration's claim that stopping construction would jeopardize presidential security.
World
Trump Attacks NATO After Rutte Meeting: 'They Won't Be There If We Need Them Again'
President Trump posted a blistering attack on NATO hours after meeting Secretary General Mark Rutte at the White House, demanding allies commit naval forces to the Strait of Hormuz within days and signaling the administration may relocate US bases away from uncooperative members.
Power
Trump Triumphal Arch Submitted for CFA Concept Review: 250 Feet Tall, Topped by 60-Foot Winged Lady Liberty
The Department of the Interior, on behalf of the Executive Office of the President, has filed concept drawings for a 250-foot triumphal arch on Columbia Island directly across from the Lincoln Memorial. The full Harrison Design submission is in the Commission of Fine Arts' April 16 meeting packet.
World
UK Shelves £3.4B Chagos Handover After Trump Truth Social Post: 'Do Not Give Away Diego Garcia'
Britain will not introduce legislation to return the Chagos Islands to Mauritius in the parliamentary session beginning May 13, the Foreign Office confirmed, after Donald Trump publicly attacked the 99-year Diego Garcia lease as 'a big mistake' Starmer was making with a claimant Trump called 'fictitious.'
Power
Trump's April 3 College Sports Executive Order Uses Federal Contractor Leverage to Force NCAA Rule Changes by August 1
The order directs federal agencies that fund university research to treat violations of NCAA rules on NIL, transfers, and eligibility as a responsibility question for contracting and debarment. It also sets a five-year eligibility cap, bans federal money from NIL and coaching compensation, and tells the Attorney General to sue state NIL laws that conflict with the NCAA framework.
Money
Trump Signs Section 232 Proclamation Imposing 100% Tariff on Patented Pharmaceutical Imports — With Carve-Outs Down to Zero for Companies Accepting MFN Pricing
A proclamation signed April 2 and published in the Federal Register April 9 creates a six-tier tariff structure on patented drug imports: 100% default, 20% for companies with approved onshoring plans, 15% for EU/Japan/Korea/Swiss-Liechtenstein goods, 10% for UK goods, and zero for companies that sign both onshoring plans AND Most-Favored-Nation pricing agreements with HHS. Generics are exempt. Tariffs take effect July 31 for some companies and September 29 for the rest.
Money
Trump's new Section 232 tariffs now apply to full customs value of imports, effective April 6
A proclamation signed April 2 overhauls the tiered duty structure for steel, aluminum, and copper. The 50% base rate now applies to the full value of derivative products -- eliminating the metal-content carve-out that importers had used to reduce their tariff exposure.
World
Uganda Receives First US Deportation Flight: Eight Non-Citizens Sent to a Country They Have No Ties To
Eight African nationals, none of them Ugandan citizens, arrived at Entebbe airport on April 1 aboard a private charter -- the first transfer under an agreement that allows the US to send denied asylum seekers to countries they have no connection to.
Money
$500 Million in Oil Futures Traded 15 Minutes Before Trump's Iran Post, at 9x Normal Volume
Rep. Ritchie Torres is demanding the SEC and CFTC investigate what he calls 'potentially the largest instance of insider trading in history' -- over $500 million in crude oil bets placed minutes before Trump announced a pause in strikes against Iran on March 22.
Power
At Easter Egg Roll, Trump told children "tomorrow is going to be infrastructure day in Iran"
One day before agreeing to a ceasefire, the president described the F-15E rescue mission and previewed infrastructure strikes to an audience of children on the White House South Lawn.
Power
The DHS shutdown is now the longest in U.S. history at 53 days, with no end in sight
The Department of Homeland Security has been unfunded since February 14, affecting TSA, FEMA, the Coast Guard, and CISA. A Senate stopgap reopened most of the department but left ICE and CBP in limbo. The House returns April 14.
World
Ceasefire fractures within 24 hours: Israel hits 100 targets in Lebanon, Iran halts Hormuz tanker traffic
The IDF launched its largest coordinated strike on Lebanon since the war began -- 50 jets, 160 munitions, 100+ Hezbollah targets in 10 minutes -- hours after the ceasefire took effect. Iran responded by suspending tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, which the White House called false.
World
Pope Leo XIV calls Trump's threat to destroy Iranian civilization 'truly unacceptable'
The first American pope issued his sharpest rebuke yet of the Iran war, condemning Trump's warning that 'a whole civilization will die tonight' and urging both sides to return to negotiations.
World
US and Iran agree to two-week ceasefire as Israeli leaders across the spectrum call it a 'political disaster'
Trump suspended bombing hours after threatening to annihilate Iran, accepting a 10-point framework mediated by Pakistan. Iran will reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Israel, excluded from the talks, is furious.
Power
Trump's Profanity-Laden Easter Post on Iran Draws 'Vile' Rebuke from Carlson
The President posted 'Open the F---n' Strait, you crazy bastards' with 'Praise be to Allah' on Easter morning. Tucker Carlson called it 'vile on every level' and urged officials to defy orders. Trump responded by calling Carlson 'a low IQ person.'
Power
Trump Endorses Steve Hilton for California Governor, Reshaping a Fragmented Primary
Trump gave his 'complete and total endorsement' to the former Fox News host and ex-Cameron advisor in a state where no candidate polls above 17%. California's top-two primary system makes the endorsement a double-edged sword.
Power
Georgia Runoff Tests Whether a Democrat Can Win Marjorie Taylor Greene's R+19 Seat
Retired brigadier general Shawn Harris leads Trump-backed prosecutor Clayton Fuller into today's runoff after topping a 21-candidate field in March. The result directly affects the House's 218-214 Republican majority.
Power
Trump's 8 PM Deadline Passes as Strikes Hit Iranian Bridges and Railways
Israel struck eight bridges and multiple railway lines across Iran on Tuesday as Trump's 8 PM deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz expired. Trump said he had a plan for 'complete demolition by 12 o'clock.' Iran rejected a 45-day ceasefire and called the threats 'incitement to genocide.'
World
Russia and China Veto UN Resolution to Reopen the Strait of Hormuz
The Security Council voted 11-2 to demand Iran stop blocking commercial shipping, but Russian and Chinese vetoes killed the measure hours before Trump's military deadline.