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May 26, 2026 - World

Steve Schmidt, former Republican operative, had a scathing response to the Trump administration and MAGA on Memorial Day.The co-founder of the anti-Trump group The Lincoln Project described "MAGA's ultimate disgrace" and called President Donald Trump and his White House "America's most despicable men and women."He reflected on Memorial Day, the ultimate sacrifice that Americans have made serving their country around the world — and warned that there were forces trying to infiltrate the military and dishonor its reputation."And it's not abstract and it's not history, not for the families of the Americans killed in action in Iran, not for the families whose loved ones are buried in section 60 at Arlington National Cemetery," Schmidt said."The grief never abates — 26 years of war and the United States has been transformed by it," Schmidt explained. "What it has produced is a soft tyranny, an autocratic man in freedom's chair who desecrates in word, and deed and action, with every breath, the sacrifice we honor and celebrate."Schmidt described Trump's attempts to change the military and MAGA's influence. "He is a contemptuous man and a contemptible one," Schmidt added. "He is a low down, no good man, a liar, a felon, an abuser of women and children, a man who dishonors and disgraces the American military and whose attempts to transform it into a personal pretorian guard are a national obscenity. The military does not belong to Trump, and it does not belong to MAGA. It belongs to the nation. And it is made up of the nation's sons and daughters. It is our most precious resource. It is our most fragile institution. And it is being broken in half by America's most despicable men and women. We should not tolerate it."

May 25, 2026 - World

The United States confirmed it had targeted military facilities in Iran on Monday in "self defense," CNN reported.Military officials have confirmed they targeted a series of Iranian facilities in Bandar Abbas responsible for attacking U.S. war ships in the Strait of Hormuz, according to CNN. Explosions could be heard near the base and in other cities.The attacks were targeted towards missile launch sites and boats, and come as President Donald Trump has signaled ongoing negotiations to try and end the war in Iran, reports indicated.No deal has yet been secured as a top Iran official said on Iran state media that "there will be no retreat." Iran has reportedly made no agreements to end its nuclear program and has insisted the discussions should take place at a later time, CNN reported."The Enriched Uranium (Nuclear Dust!) will either be immediately turned over to the United States to be brought home and destroyed or, preferably, in conjunction and coordination with the Islamic Republic of Iran, destroyed in place or, at another acceptable location, with the Atomic Energy Commission, or its equivalent, being witness to this process and event," Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform.

May 25, 2026 - World

Former National Security Advisor John Bolton warned on Monday that Iran can sense how "desperate" President Donald Trump is to secure a deal that its leaders are "playing him."Bolton told CNN anchor Pamela Brown that as negotiations drag on, Tehran has sensed Trump's weaknesses — and that the president might not fully understand Iran's level of "fanaticism of what's left of the regime and the people who are in power." Bolton argued that Trump's worldview throughout his life has been that he can negotiate with anyone, and that's not the case with this military conflict and adversary."He thinks everybody wants to make a deal on just about anything," Bolton said. "That's not what these people are into. And they can see that Trump is so palpably desperate to have a deal that he can declare to be a victory and it lowers prices of gasoline —and they're playing him on that. They're stretching him out. They're buying time. All of that works in their advantage."Former Trump National Security Adviser John Bolton says Iran is playing Trump because he’s desperate to make a deal: He thinks everybody wants to make a deal on just about anything. That's not what these people are into. And they can see that Trump is so palpably desperate to… pic.twitter.com/7k53nc6Zqf— Acyn (@Acyn) May 25, 2026

May 25, 2026 - World

World Health Organization Director-General Tedros ⁠Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned Monday that the swiftly spreading Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda “will get worse before it gets better,” as a deadly delay in detecting infections has responders to the epidemic “playing catch-up.”“The outbreak is spreading rapidly,” Tedros said during a virtual ministerial meeting on the matter. “So far, 101 cases have been confirmed in DRC, with 10 confirmed deaths. But we know the epidemic in DRC is much larger. There are now more than 900 suspected cases and 220 suspected deaths.”“Countries bordering DRC are at especially high risk and should take immediate action,” he asserted. “In Uganda, there are five confirmed cases and one death.”Tedros pointed out that “there are several aspects of this outbreak that make it especially challenging.”“First, the delay in detecting the outbreak means that we are now playing catch-up with a very fast-moving epidemic,” he said. “We are urgently scaling up operations, but at the moment, the epidemic is outpacing us.”“Second, as you know, the provinces of Ituri and North Kivu are highly insecure, with intensified fighting in recent months, causing more than 100,000 people to be newly displaced,” the WHO chief continued. “There is also significant distrust of outside authorities among the local population. In the past week, there have been two security incidents at health facilities.”“WHO is fully committed to working under the leadership of the governments of DRC and Uganda, side by side with Africa [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] and all other partners,” Tedros added. “We will not rest until we bring this outbreak under control.”Ebola—which typically kills between 25% and 90% of infected people, depending upon the strain of the virus and quality of available medical care—causes widespread and often catastrophic damage to the body’s blood vessels, immune system, and organs.Critics say US President Donald Trump’s ideologically driven decision to withdraw the US from the WHO, his administration’s dismantling of the US Agency for International Development (USAID), and reduced funding for the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s global public health efforts have adversely affected the response to the current Ebola epidemic, compared with 2014 and 2019 outbreaks.After US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said last week that the WHO was “a little late” in identifying new Ebola infections, Tedros retorted that “we don’t replace the country’s work, we only support them,” and suggested that Rubio’s comments could be rooted in “a lack of understanding” of the agency and countries’ responsibilities.While Rubio said that “our number-one objective on Ebola, before anything else... has to be, we can’t have it affect the United States,” public health experts warn that Trump administration actions could make it more likely that the virus will make its way to the country.There is currently no confirmed CDC director, Food and Drug Administration commissioner, or surgeon general.Taking aim at Trump’s evisceration of key public health agencies and programs, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) said last week: “Ebola does not wait for bureaucratic reorganizations. It spreads when surveillance systems are weakened, health workers are laid off, clinics lack protective equipment, and communities lose the trusted partners who help detect and contain outbreaks before they become public health emergencies.”“This is the perfect storm President Trump created,” she continued. “He recklessly dismantled USAID, withheld and slashed other United States assistance to the region, fired critical staff, and created global health chaos. This is not efficiency. It is dangerous neglect.”“The United States spent years building the relationships, supply chains, laboratories, and community health networks that help stop deadly diseases at their source,” DeLauro added. “The Trump administration tore into that capacity and now wants to pretend the consequences were unforeseeable.”

May 25, 2026 - World

Vice President JD Vance has been put in a tough position and has been considering whether he wants to run for president in 2028 or give up on the move, according to a new report from The Daily Mail published on Monday.With National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard announcing her exit from the Trump administration last week, Vance could be in a more vulnerable position as his "most senior non-interventionist ally is gone." Vance, like Gabbard, had expressed skepticism and concerns about the Iran war behind closed doors, according to insiders."JD Vance, now the lone dove in Donald Trump's cabinet after Tulsi Gabbard's resignation, has been left more isolated than ever and is even considering abandoning a run for the presidency in 2028," sources told The Mail."But the whispers racing through the West Wing find common ground: Iran," The Mail reported.Vance has not confirmed or denied whether he plans to run for president in 2028. And insiders have reported that he opposed the military strikes in Iran, trying to privately urge Trump to limit attacks."Vance's isolation comes at a moment when Marco Rubio's stock inside the West Wing has never been higher, with the Secretary of State helping to plan an invasion of Cuba, while the Vice President flails in peace negotiations with Iran," according to The Mail."The Vice President's dovish brand of foreign policy has set him on a collision course with Trump, the sources say, the rift deepening as Trump embraces his wartime-leader image," The Mail reported.The president has often compared Vance to Secretary of State Marco Rubio — whom both have called personal and professional friends. He has even asked people who they would support to succeed him as commander-in-chief during private and public events."Rubio has more mojo than Vance. The President listens to him. Vance is out of step and has been for a long time," a White House insider told The Mail. "The source cautioned that Rubio's dominance may prove fleeting. By championing an unpopular war effort, the Secretary of State risks burning through political capital in real time and alienating both Trump's base and the wider American public," The Mail added.