SmartNews

'Game, set and match': Steve Bannon despairs that GOP just lost a major battle

President Donald Trump vowed not to raise taxes on the rich to pay for his agenda — and handed a major win to the Democrats' left, a key player in the MAGA movement said Friday.

Former Trump adviser Steve Bannon said if the GOP had hiked taxes, it would have gutted “the AOC-Bernie ‘oligarchy tour.’”

Keep reading... Show less

‘Can’t imagine’: Trump defends ‘honorable’ allies — but can't rule out insider trading

President Donald Trump defended his administration following reports that White House officials may have tipped off Wall Street executives about a possible upcoming trade deal with India, The Washington Post reported.

Trump made the comments Friday while speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, where he admitted it was impossible for him to know for certain, given the thousands of people who work for him.

Keep reading... Show less

'You will be prosecuted': Trump's 'border czar' sends ominous message after judge's arrest

President Donald Trump's so-called "border czar" sent threats on social media following the arrest of a judge.

Tom Homan posted threats on X after the FBI arrested a Wisconsin judge who authorities said helped an immigrant by allowing them to exit a different part of the courtroom. The government alleged it was her way of obstructing justice.

Keep reading... Show less

'In a bind': Right-wing Supreme Court justices squirm as case puts them in awkward spot

The Supreme Court is set to hear an Oklahoma case that will force the justices to choose between allowing more religious control of public schools or "respecting the wishes of the Founding Fathers," according to a new article in The Atlantic.

History professor Adam Laats laid out how, "In 2023, the Oklahoma government approved an application from the Catholic Church to create a virtual charter school. Like other charter schools, this one would be funded by taxpayers. But unlike other charter schools, this one would be explicitly religious, teaching students Catholic doctrine."

Keep reading... Show less

Expert warns 'zero chance' Hegseth's phone isn't infiltrated after number found online

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s personal cellphone is turning up online on multiples sites, including social media and a fantasy sport site, according to a New York Times report.

It's posing significant security fears.

Keep reading... Show less

Right-wingers sell $140 Bible packed with debunked theories for Mother's Day: report

WallBuilders, LLC, a company founded by evangelical author and activist David Barton, is now selling a special "Founders' Bible" as a "Mother's Day" gift.

The new version of the holy book includes special essays by Barton and others between passages, wrote Peter Montgomery on Friday for the liberal organization People for the American Way's (PFAW) Right Wing Watch.

Keep reading... Show less

Key Trump voting bloc can no longer stomach major mandate: analysis

Independent voters helped propel Donald Trump to his second term in office because they viewed Kamala Harris and the Democrats "as the real threats to democracy," The Brookings Institution reported. But as America nears 100 days since Trump took office, new polling revealed that the same bloc soured on Trump due to at least one of his major mandates.

Greg Sargent with The New Republic cited CNN analyst Harry Enten who examined aggregated polling showing Trump to be "underwater" with Independents "by 22 points, the worst ever in presidential polling." Sargent postulated that the abysmal number may be due to "genuine backlash to Trump’s ethno-nationalist authoritarianism."

Keep reading... Show less

'Dramatic!' Witness describes judge berating sobbing George Santos in court

Disgraced former Rep. George Santos (R-NY) broke down in tears while being sentenced to 87 months in prison for fraud, CNN's Brynn Gingras told anchors Boris Sanchez and Brianna Keilar on Friday.

Santos had barely even been elected when it was revealed he had lied about virtually his entire campaign biography, from where he previously worked to his ethnic heritage, and things went from bad to worse after federal prosecutors charged him with a brazen fraud scheme in which he stole money from campaign donors. He was overwhelmingly expelled from the House in a bipartisan vote following a blistering ethics report against him, and he went on to take a plea agreement.

Keep reading... Show less

'Late!' Trump complains Zelensky dragging feet on 'very important' deal

President Donald Trump took a moment Friday afternoon to prod Volodymyr Zelensky, complaining on social media that the Ukrainian president hasn't signed his "very important" deal.

Trump’s recent rare earth mineral deal reportedly involves securing access to critical minerals, reducing dependence on China, and strengthening U.S. security and the economy. The agreement includes executive orders, investments in mining, international agreements-most notably with Ukraine-and a push for deep-sea mining.

Keep reading... Show less

Republican posts video defending law that declared slaves 'three-fifths' of a person

Indiana Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith (R-IN) appeared in an X video praising the so-called "Three-Fifths Compromise," established at the Constitutional Convention. The law determined that, for the purposes of representation in Congress and the Electoral College, slaves would be counted as three-fifths of a person.

Beckwith posted the video in response to a debate over a Senate bill which was compared to the three-fifths law by Democrats. Sitting on the edge of his desk, the lieutenant governor said that the constitutional "compromise" was a "great move by the North."

Keep reading... Show less

Trump gets bruising from 91-year-old GOP senator: You're being played as a 'patsy'

GOP Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) is urging President Donald Trump to end the war in Ukraine — or be seen as a "patsy."

“IVE SEEN ENOUGH KILLING OF INNOCENT UKRAINIAN women + children. President Trump pls put the toughest of sanctions on Putin. U ought to c from clear evidence that he is playing America as a patsy,” the 91-year-old posted on X.

The post came after President Trump told reporters on Friday morning that Ukraine and Russia were “coming close” to a deal.

Keep reading... Show less

Trump lawyers had rescue plan for El Salvador prisoner — and White House 'blew it up': report

Career officials within the Trump adminstration had been trying behind the scenes to return wrongly-deported Maryland father Kilmar Abrego Garcia to the United States after learning he had been sent to the infamous Salvadoran CECOT megaprison — but these efforts were shut down by White House officials early on, reported The Atlantic on Friday.

Garcia's removal has become a massive controversy and focal point of protest around President Donald Trump's mass deportation policy, as well as his defiance of court orders.

Keep reading... Show less

Trump eyes ways to make Musk's dramatic cuts permanent as he exits government: report

The Trump administration will essentially formalize Elon Musk's disruption of the federal government with its new budget proposal — even after the tech billionaire prepares to return to private business.

The proposed 2026 budget includes steep cuts that would eliminate some federal programs and shred the social safety net, cutting billions of dollars from programs supporting child care, health research, education, housing assistance, community development and the elderly, according to preliminary documents obtained by the New York Times.

Keep reading... Show less