SmartNews

White House appears to hide Trump's swollen ankles during meeting with Zelenskyy: report

The White House appeared to take steps to help President Donald Trump hide his swollen ankles during a photo-op Monday afternoon with Ukraine's president, according to a new report.

The Daily Beast reported that the White House "conveniently placed Trump’s cherished Air Force One model in front of his enlarged lower limbs" during the meeting. Trump, 79, has received a lot of criticism for his swollen ankles after he criticized former President Joe Biden for being in poor health.

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'Galling': Marco Rubio gets brutal smackdown on MSNBC over Ukraine invasion remark

Secretary of State Marco Rubio told NBC News on Sunday that if the war continued between Russia and Ukraine, Americans wouldn't be impacted. However, Sue Gordon, former principal deputy director of national intelligence, called it false.

"Now, the President has traveled all the way to Alaska, all the way back, has dedicated months and months of work – him, our entire team – on this matter because we want to see an end to the war," Rubio told Kristen Welker.

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James Comer makes big Epstein claim involving Trump's DOJ

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) has made a big claim about the Jeffrey Epstein case files that seems to indicate President Donald Trump's Justice Department is caving on the issue.

According to HuffPost, Comer issued a news release announcing that “Officials with the Department of Justice have informed us that the Department will begin to provide Epstein-related records to the Oversight Committee this week on Friday.”

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'Rancid dissent!' Judge's 'rant' mocked by legal expert as Texas ban walloped

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit struck down West Texas A&M's ban on drag queens on campus, and Judge James Ho issued "a rancid dissent to whine about discrimination against Christians," Slate legal analyst Mark Joseph Stern said Monday.

In a post on Bluesky, Stern linked to the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, or FIRE, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that launched the lawsuit in 2023, calling it "unlawful censorship."

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'Revealing': CNN reporter flags 2 'key words' in Trump's hot mic moment

President Donald Trump appeared to make an admission about his relationship with his Russian counterpart that caught the eyes of a CNN analyst on Monday.

Trump was caught on a hot mic saying Russian President Vladimir Putin may want to "make a deal" to end the Ukraine war for Trump's sake. The statement happened during a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders at the White House.

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'Scandal of his own making': GOP rep under fire for trading spree amid Medicaid rollback

Congressman Rob Bresnahan, a Republican who campaigned on banning stock trading by lawmakers only to make at least 626 stock trades since taking office in January, was under scrutiny Monday for a particular sale he made just before he voted for the largest Medicaid cut in US history.

Soon after a report showed that 10 rural hospitals in Bresnahan's state of Pennsylvania were at risk of being shut down, the congressman sold between $100,001 and $250,000 in bonds issued by the Allegheny County Hospital Development Authority for the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

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Trump 'interrupts' Zelenskyy meeting for phone call with Putin: report

President Donald Trump reportedly interrupted a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders to speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin on the phone.

German journalist Paul Ronzheimer of BILD reported that Trump took the phone call with Putin despite an ongoing meeting with other leaders on Monday.

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'You sold us out': Elise Stefanik gets icy welcome at ceremony in her district

One of the most recognizable names in the MAGA world received a cold welcome during a renaming ceremony in Plattsburgh on Monday, according to reports.

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY), who was Trump's initial pick for the UN ambassador job, attended a ceremony to rename the Clinton County Government Center after the late John Zurlo, who was a county clerk for more than 50 years. Attendees booed and jeered Stefanik at the event, reported local news station NBC 5.

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MSNBC's Nicolle Wallace calls out Trump over stunning U-turn on Ukraine

President Donald Trump has evolved on his demand for a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, and MSNBC host Nicolle Wallace thinks she knows why.

Wallace began with the Oval Office meeting on Monday between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

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'Fascinating': CNN analyst in awe watching Trump get 'tag-teamed' by European leaders

The leaders of Europe ganged up on President Donald Trump to drill into his head how critically important it is to stand by Ukraine at Monday's meeting, CNN global affairs analyst Kimberly Dozier told anchor Brianna Keilar.

The meeting, which was marked by some embarrassing slip-ups for the president, comes a few days after Trump welcomed Russia's Vladimir Putin to a summit in Alaska, which ended with no clear progress toward a peace deal and the president seemingly persuaded against some of the hawkishness he had shown toward Russia over the past few weeks.

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'Mr. Magoo': Trump mocked as an 'embarrassment' after summit slip-ups

President Donald Trump made a few gaffes during his news conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and then again during his larger meeting with European leaders who support Ukraine over Russia.

The flubs were not lost on observers who watched on as Trump made unusual statements and reactions before ultimately losing the president of Finland, who was sitting directly in front of him.

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Texas GOP locks Dem in House chamber after she refuses police 'escort'

Republican leadership in Texas refused to let Democratic state Rep. Nicole Collier leave the House chamber after she refused to agree to a 24/7 police "escort."

For the first time in days on Monday, the Texas House of Representatives achieved a quorum following Democratic lawmakers' decision to return to the state despite an ongoing redistricting battle that could award five or more seats to Republicans.

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'I'm right here': Trump struggles to find foreign leader sitting in front of his face

President Donald Trump flubbed the introduction of Finnish President Alexander Stubb on Monday during the meeting with European leaders who support Ukraine.

Trump was announcing each leader, who then would make a comment or thank him for the invitation. He gave each official a little compliment.

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