Morning Announcements

Today's Headlines: California and Iowa held their primaries Tuesday — Becerra and Hilton are leading California's governor's race with Steyer's money in a distant third, Karen Bass is holding first in LA's mayoral race with Spencer Pratt in second, and several Beverly Hills residents showed up to vote for Pratt only to discover they don't live in Los Angeles, perfect. Missing New Jersey congressman Tom Kean Jr. — absent for three months — won his uncontested primary anyway, with Trump endorsing him and calling him "tireless," while Kean remains well enough to execute stock trades but not apparently to show up to work. The House passed a War Powers Resolution requiring Trump to withdraw from Iran unless Congress authorizes the war — four Republicans defecting. Iranian drones struck Kuwait's main airport yesterday killing at least one person, and Trump defined the current ceasefire as "when you're shooting in a more moderate manner." The Kushner Albania situation escalated to over 100,000 protesters, a government corruption investigation, and frozen bank accounts tied to the land company behind their resort, over how ecologically protected land was quietly reclassified to clear the way for their development. George Santos is under investigation by the DOJ and CFTC for betting against his own State of the Union attendance on Kalshi after publicly tweeting he'd be there to inflate the odds — which is the most on-brand insider trading imaginable. And finally, DOGE whistleblower Daniel Berulis filed a defamation lawsuit against Elon Musk, revealing that less than a week after his whistleblower report was published, someone cut the brakes on his car, removed the airbag sensor, and left fingerprints inside — with the only entities that had his address on record being his utilities and the Office of Personnel Management, which DOGE had already taken over.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

The Guardian: Trump-backed candidate loses in Iowa governor’s race as Democrats look to flip Senate seat

NYT: Election Live Updates: Races Are Close in California With Many Votes Still to Count

NYT: A Congressman Was Suddenly Absent. So We Looked. And Looked

Politico: New Jersey Rep. Tom Kean Jr. says he's 'energized' but appears to push back timeline for return

The Independent: Where’s Trump? President resurfaces after a week with no public events amid health questions and tumbling polls

NYT: House Passes Iran War Powers Resolution

AP News: Kuwait says Iranian drones hit airport and killed 1 as ceasefire is tested again

WSJ: Trump Tells Aides He Won’t Resume All-Out War With Iran Unless U.S. Troops Are Killed

MSN: Albania freezes assets in Kushner resort corruption probe

Wired: He Blew the Whistle on DOGE. Then His Brakes Were Cut

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Today's Headlines: The Department of Agriculture is dealing with a bedbug infestation in the offices of the agency responsible for containing invasive pests. Yes, you read that right. Todd Blanche confirmed to Congress — not under oath, refusing to put it in writing — that the DOJ is dropping the Traitor Fund, while clarifying that the part protecting Trump and his family from IRS audits remains in effect, which was clearly the point all along, and a federal judge revived Trump's IRS lawsuit to investigate whether the whole arrangement was "premised on deception." The Trump administration hired a convicted January 6th rioter — 19 when he stormed the Capitol — to work in the Defense Department's irregular warfare and counterterrorism section, one of the most sensitive portfolios in the government, and named Bill Pulte — a family friend with zero government experience whose father is in the Epstein files — as acting director of national intelligence, using "acting" specifically to skip Senate confirmation. New Jersey's attorney general sued GEO Group, the private contractor operating Delaney Hall detention center, over inhumane conditions and demanding health inspections — GEO holds a $1 billion ICE contract. The Kushner family is planning a $1.4 billion luxury hotel complex off the Albanian coast, which the prime minister loves and locals are actively protesting. And finally, Democratic congressman Jimmy Gomez — chairman of Congress's "Dad Caucus" — admitted to cheating on his wife after the New York Post outed him, he denied it, and CNN reported the House Ethics Committee is already investigating him for sexual misconduct, completing a full humiliation arc in under 48 hours.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

Not Us: The Federal Government’s Insect-Defense Agency Is Infested With Bed Bugs

NBC News: Todd Blanche says DOJ ‘not moving forward’ with ‘anti-weaponization’ fund

NYT: Order Shielding Trump Family From I.R.S. Audits Will Remain, Blanche Says

WaPo: Pentagon hires convicted Jan. 6 rioter for sensitive counterterrorism job

The Guardian: ‘Americans will be less safe’: alarm as Trump picks loyalist as intelligence chief | Trump administration

The Guardian: New Jersey sues Geo Group, private operator of Delaney Hall ICE facility

NYT: Protests Grow in Albania Over Kushner-Linked Project

CNN: Exclusive: House Ethics Committee investigating Rep. Jimmy Gomez over sexual misconduct allegations, sources say

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Today's Headlines: The Traitor Fund is effectively dead for now — the DOJ said it "disagrees strongly" but will abide by the court's ruling, which is the closest thing to a clean win we've gotten in a while. Trump's America 250 birthday celebration continues to implode, with a competing Power to the People Festival announced for October 3rd featuring Springsteen, Joan Baez, and Dave Matthews, while the UFC fight at the White House is still on but now requires attending service members to meet a waist-to-height ratio under .55, and the National Park Service is spending $5 million on a no-bid contract to gold-plate four bronze horse statues near the Lincoln Memorial, which is giving Saddam Hussein's living room. Trump reportedly told Netanyahu on a bad phone call that "you're fucking crazy, you'd be in prison if it weren't for me, everybody hates Israel because of this" — accurate — and Netanyahu pulled back on planned Beirut strikes, with Lebanon's parliament speaker saying Hezbollah is ready for a full ceasefire with Israel, though the US bombed Iranian drone sites yesterday and a cargo ship was attacked in the Strait of Hormuz, so "ceasefire" continues to mean whatever anyone needs it to mean. Florida's attorney general sued OpenAI and Sam Altman for marketing ChatGPT without adequately warning of its dangers, citing its alleged role in mass shootings, suicide encouragement, and helping a murder suspect dispose of bodies — and Anthropic filed its IPO the same day at a $965 billion valuation, because timing is everything. And finally, a second man named Dan Sullivan entered the Alaska Senate race against incumbent Republican Dan Sullivan with no policies and no party affiliation, just a stated goal of unseating the other Dan Sullivan, which is either a Democratic ploy or the most chaotic campaign launch of the cycle.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

AP News: Trump reconsidering $1.8 billion fund, AP source says, as Justice Department temporarily pauses it

Rolling Stone: Tom Morello Announces Power to the People Festival With Bruce Springsteen, Foo Fighters, More

NBC News: No heavyweights allowed: Troops must meet fitness criteria to attend White House UFC event

Ts-horse-statues

Axios: "You're fucking crazy": Trump fumes at Netanyahu in call on Lebanon

Axios: Lebanese official told U.S. that Hezbollah ready for full ceasefire with Israel

AP News: US bombs Iran, downs missiles fired at bases in Kuwait

Axios: Florida sues OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman over ChatGPT - Axios Tampa Bay

CNBC: Anthropic confidentially files IPO prospectus with SEC, prepping Wall Street for landmark AI deal

NYT: Senator Dan Sullivan Has a New Challenger in Alaska

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Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson

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Today's Headlines: Trump had a rough weekend legally — a federal judge blocked the Traitor Fund in response to a lawsuit from a fired January 6th prosecutor, and another judge ordered Trump's name removed from the Kennedy Center within two weeks on the grounds that he never had legal authority to put it there. Trump responded by posting he has "no interest" in the Kennedy Center anymore and threatening to cancel his own America 250 celebration, which is already in freefall after nearly every performer dropped out once they realized it was Trump's birthday rally and not the legitimate congressional celebration — leaving Vanilla Ice, Kid Rock, and eventually Trump himself as the headline act for anyone who paid $1.5 million for a VIP package expecting a concert. On the Iran beat, Trump is requesting edits to the deal his own negotiators already agreed to, with a senior official explaining the response will take three days because…caves. The Delaney Hall ICE detention center in Newark escalated to a mandatory curfew for the surrounding half-mile, with ICE in riot gear pepper spraying protesters while detainees continue a 10-day hunger strike over conditions that remain uncorrected. Pam Bondi's Epstein testimony was exactly as useless as expected — she blamed Todd Blanche, refused to answer Trump-related questions, and wasn't under oath — so the House Oversight Committee is now going after Blanche directly. In AI-is-a-scam news, a Pizza Hut franchisee is suing corporate for $100 million after a mandatory AI rollout tanked delivery times, and Starbucks scrapped its AI inventory system after nine months because it could not count milk — hallucinating bottles that weren't there — which is a real thing that happened with technology that costs more than a person with eyes. And finally, a three-foot meteorite may have landed in Cape Cod Bay on Saturday, with a double boom heard from Delaware to Montreal, which would normally be bigger news if we had any remaining capacity for surprise.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

NBC News: Judge halts Trump ‘anti-weaponization’ fund after Jan. 6 prosecutor sues

Axios: Trump's name must be removed from Kennedy Center, judge orders

Politico: Trump vents about judge who blocked Kennedy Center changes

ABC News: Trump to headline 250th anniversary celebration on National Mall after several artists back out

CNBC: New York passes Mamdani's pied-a-terre tax. Here's who pays and how much

NYT: Dell Gets a $9.7 Billion Defense Contract. Trump’s Portfolio Stands to Benefit

WaPo: Trump misses deadline to disclose tens of millions of dollars in stock trades

ABC 7 NY: Delaney Hall protests: Newark Mayor Ras Baraka orders mandatory curfew for half mile surrounding facility

Politico: Bondi shifts responsibility for Epstein files’ release to Todd Blanche, making him Democrats’ next target

Yahoo: The owner of 110 Pizza Huts is suing the chain, claiming $100 million in losses from the botch adaption of an AI tool

Fortune: Starbucks quietly retires its AI inventory tool after barista complaints of inaccuracies 

WCVB: NASA: Meteorite that thousands heard over Mass. may have landed in Cape Cod Bay

Subscribe to the Betches News Room and join the Morning Announcements group chat. Go to: betchesnews.substack.com

Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson

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Today's Headlines: Trump's Treasury appointees are pushing to put his face on a new $250 bill — the printing director who resisted was reassigned, Trump personally gave the artist edits, and the whole plan is technically illegal since living people have been banned from US currency since 1866. ProPublica revealed that the White House intervened to help Don Jr.'s venture firm secure a $620 million Pentagon loan for a rare earth startup called Vulcan Elements, pushed through by Peter Navarro with officials told to approve it at unusual speed because "the call came from the White House." The DOJ also opened an investigation into E. Jean Carroll — who won two civil cases against Trump and is owed over $80 million — over whether she committed perjury by not disclosing that a nonprofit covered some of her legal fees, because losing twice apparently wasn't enough. April's inflation came in at 3.3% — the highest since May 2023 — with personal income growth falling below the inflation rate and the savings rate dropping from 3.6% to 2.6%, meaning people are draining their savings to cover rising costs. Pam Bondi testified before the House Oversight Committee about the Epstein files coverup without being under oath, represented by a DOJ attorney from the same agency she led during the coverup, which rendered the whole exercise fairly decorative. On Iran, negotiators reportedly reached a 60-day memorandum of understanding to extend the ceasefire and open the Strait of Hormuz — though Trump hasn't approved it, Iran hasn't confirmed it, so "ceasefire" continues to be a creative use of the word. A former CIA officer was charged with stealing 300 gold bars worth $40 million, stashing them at home, and claiming work expenses — he also faked his entire résumé across three job applications over nine years and was somehow hired anyway, which raises some questions about the CIA. And Peter Thiel relocated his family to Argentina because he prefers Javier Milei's vibe and is worried about America's future — ok, Peter. 

Resources/Articles mentioned:

WaPo: Trump $250 bill pushed by Treasury appointees

ProPublica: The White House Intervened to Get a $620 Million Deal for a Company Tied to Donald Trump Jr.

CNN: Exclusive: Justice Department launches a criminal investigation into Trump accuser E. Jean Carroll

Axios: Scoop: U.S. and Iran reach deal but need Trump's final approval, officials say

NBC News: Iran and U.S. trade new strikes as Trump dismisses pressure to end war

CBS News: The first inflation report under new Fed chief Kevin Warsh shows prices at highest in nearly 3 years

The Hill: Epstein survivors have little faith Pam Bondi interview will produce answers

NBC News: Former CIA officer accused of stealing 300 gold bars, sources say

NYT: In Argentina, U.S. Tech Billionaire Peter Thiel Finds An Escape

Subscribe to the Betches News Room and join the Morning Announcements group chat. Go to: betchesnews.substack.com

Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson

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Today's Headlines: A Delaware court ruled that companies can vote in municipal elections in the beach town of Fenwick Island — not just business owners, but the companies themselves as entities — and given that two-thirds of Fortune 500 companies are incorporated in Delaware, that's either a quirky local ordinance or the most efficient corporate takeover of democracy ever attempted. Joe Biden is suing the Trump administration to block the DOJ from releasing audio recordings of his conversations with his ghostwriter, which the DOJ is planning to drop on June 15th purely for the humiliation factor, since the investigation was closed and no charges were ever filed. Trump threatened Oman — the Gulf state that has been acting as the diplomatic channel between the US and Iran — during a Cabinet meeting, saying they'd better "behave or we'll blow em up." On the reflecting pool saga, a National Park Service analysis found that Trump's no-bid pool contractor — his favorite pool guy, does all his pools — submitted a contract with an $850,000 overcharge above the typical profit margin, and it turns out the contractor can't even seal the gaps between the  concrete slabs, which is a fairly foundational part of the job. California Governor Gavin Newsom announced he'll tax any Traitor Fund payouts to Californians at 100%, with a New York assemblyman proposing the same, which is the most satisfying thing to happen all week. New York state also passed a tax on luxury second homes valued at $5 million or more, expected to generate $500 million a year, and both New York and New Jersey AGs subpoenaed FIFA over alleged deceptive pricing practices for World Cup tickets at MetLife Stadium. A Google software engineer was charged with fraud and money laundering after making $1.2 million on Polymarket by betting on search trends using nonpublic Google data under the username AlphaRaccoon, which is somehow the most on-brand financial crime of 2026. And finally, the EU is actively screening travelers for Ebola as suspected cases in the Congo surpass 900.

Resources/Articles mentioned: 

Reuters: Delaware court upholds voting by companies in small town's election

CNN: Biden sues to stop Justice Department from releasing interview recordings

CNN: Trump’s threat against Oman means he’s now attacked or threatened 1 out of every 13 countries

NYT: Iran War Live Updates: U.S. Strikes Military Site and Drones in Iran

AP News: Trump plays mayor at Cabinet meeting, showcasing his DC renovations

NYT: Reflecting Pool Contract Has ‘Inflated’ Profit Margin, Government Analysis Finds

WaPo: Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy debuts America 250 jet

US News: California to Impose 100% Tax on Trump's January 6 'Slush Fund,' Governor Says

WSJ: New York Lawmakers Pass Pied-a-Terre Tax

CNN: Sky-high World Cup ticket prices spark investigation by NY and NJ attorneys general

WSJ: Google Employee Charged With Insider Trading on Polymarket

Politico: Europe beefs up Ebola detection as Congo epidemic surges

Subscribe to the Betches News Room and join the Morning Announcements group chat. Go to: betchesnews.substack.com

Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson

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Today's Headlines: Trump got a three-hour physical at Walter Reed and posted that everything checked out "PERFECTLY." and is also building a UFC cage on the White House lawn for a $60 million birthday fight with VIP packages at $1.5 million each — because that’s what the people's house needs. On a completely different note, Pope Leo dropped his first encyclical, a 42,000-word document warning the world's 1.4 billion Catholics about AI concentrating power in the hands of a tiny elite, with Anthropic cofounder Christopher Olah participating in the Vatican's formal presentation — and the Pope also issued the first-ever papal apology for the Vatican's role in legitimizing the trans-Atlantic slave trade, framing it as a warning about what AI could recreate. Back to the war nobody can define, the military carried out "self-defense strikes" against Iranian missile sites while Trump posted that negotiations are "proceeding nicely" and a spokesperson insisted they were "using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire" — ok. Meanwhile, New Jersey Senator Andy Kim got pepper sprayed at a protest outside the Delaney Hall ICE detention center after state officials were barred from inspecting conditions that led detainees to organize a hunger strike. Speaking of the administration burying bad news, the DOJ filed motions on the Friday before Memorial Day to dismiss the most serious January 6th seditious conspiracy cases, then one hour later scrubbed all records of January 6th prosecutions from their social media archives, calling them "partisan propaganda." On the redistricting wars, federal judges blocked Alabama's racially gerrymandered map citing "undisputed evidence of intentional racial discrimination," South Carolina's Republicans declined to redraw their maps only because early voting had already started, and Ken Paxton — too corrupt even for most Republicans — won the Texas Senate Republican primary with Trump's endorsement, setting up a general election against Democrat James Talarico.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

AP News: Trump wraps up 3-hour medical visit to Walter Reed and declares 'Everything checked out PERFECTLY'

BBC: White House erects UFC cage ahead of 250th anniversary celebration

Vatican: Encyclical Letter of His Holiness Leo XIV Magnifica Humanitas (15 May 2026)

WaPo: Anthropic aligns with Vatican over White House as Pope Leo addresses AI fears

PBS News: Pope Leo XIV makes historic apology for Vatican's role in legitimizing slavery

Ole-in-legitimizing-slavery

NJ: ICE agents pepper-spray protesters, N.J. senator in clash outside Delaney Hall in Newark

AP News: US military says it carried out 'self-defense' strikes in Iran, including on missile launch sites

Axios: Trump asked Muslim leaders to join Abraham Accords after Iran war ends 

NYT: Trump Administration Chips Away at Last Traces of Broad Inquiry Into Jan. 6

AP News: Federal court blocks Alabama plan for new congressional districts that could help Republicans

AP News: South Carolina Senate rejects Trump’s call to redraw congressional map for midterm elections

NYT: Texas U.S. Senate Republican Runoff Live Election Results 2026: Cornyn vs. Paxton

Subscribe to the Betches News Room and join the Morning Announcements group chat. Go to: betchesnews.substack.com

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Today's Headlines: Trump announced the US and Iran were near "finalization" of a deal on Saturday, then posted less than 24 hours later that he's "not in a rush" — with the reported framework giving Iran $25 billion in unfrozen assets in exchange for disposing of enriched uranium and temporarily reopening the Strait of Hormuz, while Iranian officials claim American diplomats have been privately telling them to ignore Trump's posts because they're "primarily for media consumption," which is either reassuring or terrifying. Tulsi Gabbard resigned as Director of National Intelligence citing her husband's rare bone cancer diagnosis, though it follows months of reporting that Trump was already planning to fire her. A gunman opened fire at a White House security checkpoint Saturday, was shot by officers, and died at the hospital — he had previously been arrested for walking into a restricted White House area while claiming to be Jesus Christ. A federal prosecutor was indicted for trying to leak Jack Smith's sealed Mar-a-Lago report by disguising it as a file called "bundt_cake_recipe.pdf" and emailing it to herself, which is both a federal crime and the most creative act of resistance we've seen all year. Hasan Piker and CodePink's Medea Benjamin were reportedly subpoenaed over a humanitarian aid trip to Cuba — except neither actually received subpoenas, and Piker had cleared the trip with the Treasury Department's own office beforehand. Minnesota became the first state to ban prediction market platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket outright, and the Trump administration immediately sued the state in response. CBS issued copyright notices against Colbert's surprise public access appearance the day after his Late Show finale, then backed off after universal backlash. And New York City recovered $9 million in unpaid idling fines from Amazon, because a $2 trillion company apparently couldn't be bothered to pay its tickets.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

WSJ: Trump Says He Is in No Rush for an Iran Deal That Is Far From Finished

Substack - Dean Blundell: BREAKING: US Officials Told Iran That Trump's Truth Social Lie About a Deal is Just "Political Theatre For an American Audience" and "Not to Worry About It."

NBC News: Secret Service kills man who opened fire at White House security checkpoint

PBS: Tulsi Gabbard resigns as Trump's national intelligence director

HuffPost: Hasan Piker, Medea Benjamin Reportedly Subpoenaed Over Cuba Trip

Forbes: Prosecutor Tried Hiding Secret Trump Report In A Bundt Cake Recipe, Indictment Alleges

Yahoo: Minnesota signs nation's first ban targeting Kalshi and Polymarket as Trump administration sues

NBC News: CBS backs off effort to stop sharing of Colbert’s surprise ‘Only in Monroe’ segment amid backlash

Patch: NYC Recovers Millions From Amazon Truck Violations | New York City, NY Patch

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Today's Headlines: The Department of Homeland Security is threatening to cut customs staffing at major international airports in sanctuary cities like New York, LA, Chicago, and DC — which would affect not just tourism but cargo shipments and the broader economy — because DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin apparently thinks international trade can just reroute to Florida. Trump, meanwhile, said he's "in no hurry" to end the Iran war while also telling reporters he might skip his own son's destination wedding in the Bahamas because of "this thing called Iran," which is either a convenient excuse or the most relatable thing he's ever said. The Traitor Fund — formerly known as Trump's $1.776 billion slush fund — is getting wilder by the day: Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio wants $2-5 million, Mike Lindell is asking for $400 million, a January 6th rioter who compared herself to Jesus during sentencing wants $10 million, George Santos might file, and the couple who pointed guns at BLM protesters is reportedly interested. Acting AG Todd Blanche went to Congress to lobby Republicans not to block the fund — and offered to cut them in on it, specifically noting that senators whose records were secretly subpoenaed are eligible to file claims, which is a sentence that exists. The Senate responded by going home for a few weeks rather than dealing with it, which is technically a dereliction of their constitutional duty to approve funding, but here we are. Mortgage rates also hit a nine-month high this week at 6.51%, Trump is claiming he can build his DC arch without congressional approval, and a design commission approved the arch's look, which is one of many steps still required — Congress included, no matter what Donald says. On the Epstein files, Jeffrey Epstein's former personal assistant Sarah Kellen testified before the House Oversight Committee in a session described as deeply informative and genuinely harrowing — revealing she was recruited at 21, sexually and psychologically abused by Epstein for over a decade, and was "being paid in part to be raped." She also told the committee that the federal government included her name in Epstein's 2008 nonprosecution agreement without ever speaking to her, effectively branding her a criminal in a secret deal made with her own abuser. And finally, last night was Stephen Colbert's last show, which aired after this episode was recorded.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

The Atlantic: Homeland Security’s Plan to Squeeze International Flights

NYT: Trump Says He Will ‘Try and Make’ Son Don Jr.’s Wedding, but Timing ‘Not Good’

CBS News: Trump says Netanyahu will do "whatever I want" on Iran, and he's "in no hurry" to make a deal

The Independent: Jan 6ers and other Trump allies already lining up to get their hands on slice of his $1.8B ‘slush fund’

X - Paula Reid: https://x.com/PaulaReidCNN/status/2056842557334904940

USA Today: Fuming at Trump over 'slush fund,' Senate GOP skips town without passing ICE bill

WaPo: Trump officials say they can build 250-foot arch without Congress’s approval

WSJ: Mortgage Rates Hit a Nine-Month High in Blow to Prime Buying Season

ABC News: Former Jeffrey Epstein assistant tells House Oversight Committee he abused her for years

AP News: Stephen Colbert is saying goodbye to 'The Late Show.' How it ends is still a secret

Subscribe to the Betches News Room and join the Morning Announcements group chat. Go to: betchesnews.substack.com

Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson

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Today's Headlines: Two January 6th police officers — Harry Dunn and Daniel Hodges — filed a lawsuit to block Trump's $1.776 billion slush fund, naming Trump, Todd Blanche, and Scott Bessent, while exactly one Republican congressman, Brian Fitzpatrick, called it out publicly — prompting Trump to immediately shitpost about Fitzpatrick's wife. On the primaries, Tuesday's results confirmed that Trump owns the GOP completely: Mitch McConnell lost his Senate primary to a Trump-endorsed challenger, Georgia has two runoff races next month with no clear Trump favorite in either, and Alabama is in redistricting limbo with a special primary coming in August. The through-line is simple — any hint of dissent costs you your job, even as Trump's approval rating drops and voters are furious about costs. The Ebola outbreak is moving fast, with over 600 suspected cases and 139 deaths — a 30% jump in a single day — a 30-50% fatality rate, no treatment, and a vaccine still months away. The International Rescue Committee says Trump's USAID cuts left the region dangerously unprepared to catch the outbreak early, though the State Department has now pledged to fund 50 treatment clinics, which is good, and also something USAID was already doing before it was gutted. Remember when shitposting about Charlie Kirk was treated like a crime? Well, a retired Tennessee cop spent 37 days in jail and lost his job over a Facebook post quoting Trump after a school shooting — Perry County will now pay him $835,000 for the First Amendment violation, which seems like an expensive lesson. In real life Succession, James Murdoch officially acquired roughly half of Vox Media including New York Magazine and its podcast network for over $300 million, with The Verge and Eater not included in the deal. SpaceX filed for its IPO yesterday at a $1.25 trillion valuation — one day after Elon lost his OpenAI trial — with Musk's compensation package including a billion shares that only vest when there's a permanent Mars colony of at least one million people, so that's his retirement plan. OpenAI is filing for its IPO tomorrow at an $850 billion valuation, Anthropic is raising money at a $900 billion valuation, and Trump endorsed Spencer Pratt for mayor of Los Angeles, calling him "a character" and "a big MAGA person," with Pratt currently polling between second and third ahead of the June 2nd primary.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

NYT: Jan. 6 Police Officers Sue to Block Trump’s Payout Fund

PBS: Massie's loss leaves no doubt about Trump's power over the GOP. 6 takeaways from Tuesday's primaries

NBC News: Ebola death toll rises as two Americans are flown to Europe for monitoring

Politico: Relief group says Trump cuts ‘led to delayed detection of deadly Ebola outbreak’

AP News: Tennessee man jailed over Charlie Kirk post wins $835,000 settlement

NYT: James Murdoch Buys Half of Vox Media

CNBC: SpaceX's historic IPO plans: Billions in losses and Musk's massive ownership

CNBC: OpenAI to confidentially file for IPO as soon as Friday: Source

LA Times: Trump signals support for Pratt in L.A. mayoral election: 'I'd like to see him do well'

Subscribe to the Betches News Room and join the Morning Announcements group chat. Go to: betchesnews.substack.com

Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson

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