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'It's just not there': Fact-checker shuts down Trump's budget claims

President Donald Trump spoke to a rally crowd at the Iowa State Fair on Thursday night, but CNN fact-checker Daniel Dale said there were several fibs.

Speaking Friday morning, Dale only had time to cite two major ones. First, Trump's 2024 campaign promise not to tax Social Security. It's not in the bill.

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Trump 'doesn't care' if abandoned GOP seats are won by Democrats: ex-senator

According to a former Republican lawmaker who fell out of favor with Donald Trump, walked away from his seat in the U.S. Senate and then saw a Democrat take his place, the president is unfazed by the GOP caucus taking another possible loss.

In a deep dive into two GOP lawmakers recently announcing they will not run in 2026, Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE) and Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), former Senator Jeff Flake (R-AZ) was asked about the shrinking number of Republican moderates in Congress by the Wall Street Journal.

After butting heads with Trump, Flake walked away from his seat, saw it filled by then-Democrat Kyrsten Sinema who was then replaced by Sen. Rueben Gallego (D-AZ).

As the Journal's Molly Ball wrote, the two recent announcements of departures are "the latest casualties of the president’s insistence on unstinting loyalty as the party looks ahead to a potentially difficult midterm election next year."

RELATED: Bullying misstep threatens to leave Trump presidency 'dead in the water': WSJ

Noting Trump nonchalantly responded to reporters by stating, "I didn’t get along with Tillis, and he resigned. Which I was happy about. He did us all a favor,” former lawmaker Flake begged to differ, stating the president once again made life more difficult for the GOP leadership.

After stating, "For me it became clear, just as I think it became clear to Thom Tillis, that if he were to be able to win a primary, he would have to change who he was completely,” Flake referred to his own departure in 2019 which led to the Democrats landing another seat in Congress and pointed out, "The president doesn’t care about that—he doesn’t care about the party."

The Journal's Ball added, "Departures like Flake’s were a common feature of Trump’s first term as Republicans with traditional values couldn’t bring themselves to change their ways and endorse Trump’s shifting whims. Many left office voluntarily, while others lost primaries to Trump-backed challengers. In today’s Trumpist party, such departures have become rare because there are fewer dissenters left. There have also been fewer occasions for Republicans to defy him and spark his wrath thus far, with Congress spending most of the year on a single piece of legislation."

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Hegseth 'blindsided' State Dept. with weapons claim: NBC

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is reportedly the one responsible for halting aid to Ukraine, blindsiding the U.S. State Department.

According to NBC News, no one, including members of Congress, officials in Kyiv, and allies in Europe, knew that the allocated aid was going to be paused, officials said.

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GOP’s ‘big fold’ now a habit: report

Congressional Republicans are again facing scrutiny for what is being described as their increasingly familiar political routine: fiery opposition followed by quiet surrender – especially when President Donald Trump is involved.

In a deep dive Thursday night, Politico spotlighted what it called “the GOP’s big fold.” The latest example was on full display in recent days as the House narrowly passed Trump’s massive spending bill. Just hours before the Republican victory, conservative hardliners blasted the Senate’s changes.

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CNN panel laughs after GOP strategist fails to define communism

The panel on CNN's "NewsNight with Abby Phillip" erupted with laughter after GOP strategist Scott Jennings failed to define communism after claiming New York Democrat Zohran Mamdani is a member of the political party.

Jennings' comments come at a time when the GOP is actively trying to brand Mamdani as a communist. Mamdani is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America and has said he wants to implement programs to provide free child care and transportation to New Yorkers.

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‘Uh, stop calling’: Expert warns Putin launches missiles after Trump phones

A national security expert issued a stark warning Thursday night after President Donald Trump’s latest phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin was followed by a massive Russian missile barrage over Kyiv.

Appearing on CNN’s “The Source with Kaitlan Collins,” Beth Sanner, a former deputy director of national intelligence, didn’t mince words as she analyzed the timing of Russia’s latest assault on Ukraine – just hours after Trump himself publicly confirmed his call with Putin.

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'Why does he look so well?' Salvadoran leader disputes migrant's 'torture' claim

President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador pushed back on claims made by Kilmar Abrego Garcia through his lawyers that he was tortured while he was housed in the country's infamous CECOT prison.

In a court filing on Wednesday, Abrego Garcia claimed that he was physically abused, mentally tortured, and sleep deprived while he stayed at CECOT. His lawyers said they are working with him to file a more detailed account of his stay.

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‘Absolutely wild’: Internet explodes over Trump’s UFC White House pitch

Social media exploded Thursday night after President Donald Trump floated a plan to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary with an Ultimate Fight Championship fight on the White House lawn.

Speaking at a rally in Des Moines, Iowa, as he took a victory lap to celebrate the passage of his massive spending bill, Trump told rallygoers he wants to mark the country’s upcoming 250th anniversary with a string of events at national parks and historic sites. He also said he wanted a “full championship fight” on the White House grounds.

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Supreme Court justice says Trump has conservative judges 'on speed dial'

One member of the Supreme Court of the United States' (SCOTUS) liberal minority didn't hold back in blasting both her conservative colleagues and President Donald Trump's administration.

On Thursday, SCOTUS ruled in favor of the Trump administration regarding the deportation of immigrants to countries other than the one in which they were born. While the administration initially planned to send immigrants to countries like Libya and South Sudan, U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy (who was appointed by former President Joe Biden) ruled in April that the administration's proposal for the new deportation destinations was illegal.

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'Deadly Kool-Aid': Insiders warn GOP just signed its own 'death warrant'

Two Democratic political strategists warned the GOP on Thursday that they were drinking some "deadly Kool-Aid" by voting to pass President Donald Trump's massive domestic spending bill.

Overall, estimates suggest the bill will add more than $3 trillion to the national deficit over the next decade. It will also kick more than 11 million people off Medicaid and reduce public benefits for impoverished children and the elderly. The House of Representatives passed it on Thursday by a party-line vote, sending it to Trump's desk.

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'Press will crucify him': Trump hammered after 'blatant lie' about his megabill

President Donald Trump took a victory lap Thursday night at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines and touted the passing of his signature "Big Beautiful Bill." But he couldn't slip one falsehood past pesky internet observers.

An exuberant Trump bragged to MAGA attendees, "Just as I promised, we're making the Trump Tax Cuts permanent, and delivering no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, and no tax on social security for our great seniors."

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Trump casually drops antisemitic slur during Iowa rally

President Donald Trump casually used an antisemitic slur during his Thursday night rally in Iowa.

Trump was talking about a provision in his mega budget and domestic policy bill that made the $15 million estate tax threshold permanent. That means people who own estates valued at less than $15 million can transfer them to their children or heirs tax-free.

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District 'alarmed' after ICE agents caught on video urinating on school grounds

Officials at the Ruben Salazar High School in the Southern California city of Pico Rivera were horrified after footage appeared to show an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent urinating in public on the premises of the facility.

According to The New York Times, "The sight of federal agents alone was alarming on the morning of June 17, a Tuesday, less than two weeks after the Trump administration sent the National Guard to the Los Angeles region to protect federal officials who had ramped up their raids targeting undocumented immigrants. Then, the agents, some wearing fatigues, emerged from the vehicles. At least eight of them ducked behind storage containers on campus, some peering over their shoulders. In the shadows, one at a time, the men appeared to relieve themselves, based on footage captured by overhead security cameras."

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