MSN

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent snapped "Don't be absurd!" at a Democratic lawmaker Thursday after getting cornered on the administration's rosy claims about the Iran conflict — a tense exchange that exposed the widening gap between White House spin and reality on the ground.

During a House Ways and Means Committee hearing on the Treasury Department's budget priorities, Rep. Brad Schneider (D-IL) pressed Bessent on an offhand remark the secretary had made suggesting the conflict with Iran was over.

The Kennedy Center is moving to comply with a federal court order to strip President Donald Trump's name from the iconic Washington arts venue, according to a memo obtained by CBS News.

The center's general counsel sent the memo to staff Thursday, instructing them to "immediately change email signatures, letterhead, and other documents" to reflect the original name — the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Interior and exterior signage must be switched back by June 12.

Georgetown University law professor Steve Vladeck analyzed a little-noticed Supreme Court occurrence in Margolin v. National Association of Immigration Judges that may reveal how Justice Amy Coney Barrett will rule on consequential Trump-era legal battles.

Justice Clarence Thomas, joined by Barrett, advocated going further than the narrow procedural ruling to restrict federal employees' ability to challenge politically controlled administrative tribunals. The case centers on "channeling" — the doctrine requiring plaintiffs to exhaust designated administrative forums before reaching federal court.

Alex Jones unloaded on Donald Trump Thursday over the president's decision to nominate acting Attorney General Todd Blanche to permanently lead the Department of Justice, calling it "terrible news" and accusing Blanche of betraying Trump's MAGA base.

Trump announced his intent to nominate Blanche during a White House event Wednesday evening. Blanche, Trump's former personal lawyer, has served as acting AG since April after Trump fired Pam Bondi.

Democratic Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes plans to seek a new indictment against allies of President Donald Trump who aided his bid to overturn the 2020 election, her office announced Thursday after the state Supreme Court rejected her appeal to revive the original case.

The high court's brief, unexplained ruling closed the door on a two-year-old indictment that had threatened some of Trump's closest allies — among them former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, attorney John Eastman, and 11 Arizona Republicans who falsely claimed to be the state's legitimate presidential electors.

One of the Republican senators driven out of office by President Donald Trump has signed on to a legal challenge fighting the administration's so-called anti-weaponization fund.

Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), who lost a GOP primary to a challenger endorsed by the president, joined Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) in submitting an amicus brief in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia opposing the $1.776 billion fund established by the Treasury Department to pay off Trump allies who claim they were targeted for prosecution by previous administrations.

Former Republican National Committee chair Michael Steele used Trump's birthday UFC spectacle at the White House to eviscerate what he characterized as the administration's carefully constructed — and deeply misleading — image of presidential fitness.

In a column for MS NOW, Steele called out the White House health reports as "nonsense" and flagged the underlying narrative as patently suspicious.

Conservative podcaster Candace Owens is facing intense backlash within her own movement after appearing at the Kremlin-backed St. Petersburg International Economic Forum alongside sanctioned Russian officials.

Radio host Mark Levin called Owens a "Woke Reich traitor" on X.

Nancy Pelosi and a conservative reporter who has made a habit of confronting her in Capitol hallways went at it again Thursday — and the former House speaker didn't hold back.

Alison Steinberg, a congressional correspondent for LindellTV, the media outlet founded by MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, approached Pelosi (D-CA) in the halls of Congress and immediately invoked their last encounter. "Last time I asked you about January 6, why you turned the National Guard away on January 6, you told me to shut up and that I was repeating Republican talking points," Steinberg said.

Senior oil industry executives have privately warned Trump administration officials that global fuel inventories are draining at an alarming rate following the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, but the White House denies those high-level talks.

Four industry executives told Politico that insiders have delivered warnings in recent weeks to senior White House officials and Cabinet members that a significant price spike could arrive as soon as mid-to-late June, and data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration shows companies are increasingly drawing on storage reserves to compensate for the near-total halt in crude oil flows from the Middle East.