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A new statue of Christopher Columbus went up on the White House grounds Sunday that was built using pieces from a monument to the Italian explorer that protesters destroyed six years ago. The 13-foot, one-ton replica of a Columbus statue toppled in Baltimore in 2020 – then dumped into the city’s inner harbor – was commissioned by the Conference of Presidents of Major Italian American Organizations and is part of the White House’s celebration of America’s 250th anniversary. The statue has been placed outside the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. Artists retrieved shards of marble belonging to the wrecked statue from...

President Trump announced Monday that the US will not attack any part of Iran’s power and energy infrastructure for five days after Washington and Tehran had engaged in “very good and productive talks” over the weekend about ending the three-week-old war. “I am please [sic] to report that the United States of America, and the country of Iran, have had, over the last two days, very good and productive conversations regarding a complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East,” Trump wrote, without elaborating. “Based on the tenor and tone of these in-depth, detailed and constructive conversations,...

President Donald Trump on Monday told CNBC’s Joe Kernen that Iran is in the process of regime change following his latest talks with the country. Moments before their phone call, Trump revealed in a Truth Social post that he had “productive conversations” with Iranian leadership. As a result of those conversations, the president said, there would be a temporary halt to military strikes on Iranian targets. Operation Epic Fury, the operation that began the war in Iran three weeks ago, killed more than four dozen members of the Iranian leadership, including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Iran, however, said “there has...

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Sunday said people need to give President Trump more empathy after Trump posted that he was “glad” former FBI Director Robert Mueller was dead. “I think that given what has been done to President Trump and his family it is impossible for either of us to understand what he has been through,” Bessent said during a Sunday appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Sunday said people need to give President Trump more empathy after Trump posted that he was “glad” former FBI Director Robert Mueller was dead. “I think that...

President Donald Trump floated joint control of the Strait of Hormuz and suggested he didn't know who was currently leading Iran when responding to a reporter on Monday morning. Trump spoke to journalists on the tarmac of Palm Beach International Airport as he departed Florida after spending the weekend at Mar-a-Lago and was asked by CNN's Kaitlan Collins who was in control of the Strait of Hormuz. The President answered that the Strait would be open 'real soon' if a deal he's teased with Iran works. 'It'll be jointly controlled,' he said of the waterway. When asked who would be...

NEW YORK (AP) — In a strongly worded decision this week, a federal judge ordered that the Voice of America — its mission to provide news for countries around the world largely shut down for the past year by the Trump administration — come roaring back to life. Whether or not that actually happens is anybody’s guess. The government filed notice Thursday to appeal U.S. District Court Judge Royce C. Lamberth’s order two days earlier to put hundreds of VOA employees who have been on paid leave the past year back to work. Lamberth had ruled on March 7 that...

Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump If Iran doesn’t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DONALD J. TRUMP Mar 21, 2026, 7:44 PM

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard fully intends to remain in her position despite rumors that she is planning to resign from President Donald Trump's administration in protest of the Iran war. Right-wing activist Laura Loomer announced on social media Thursday evening that Gabbard was preparing to resign, citing a member of the director's political staff as a source. She advocated that President Trump fire Gabbard before she could resign. But a senior administration official told the Daily Mail that Loomer’s claim was ‘total bull****.’ A spokesperson for the Director of National Intelligence also pushed back against the online rumors....

The Trump administration temporarily paused sanctions on Iranian oil “stranded at sea” Friday in an effort to curb soaring prices. “Today, the Department of the Treasury is issuing a narrowly tailored, short-term authorization permitting the sale of Iranian oil currently stranded at sea,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced on X. Bessent said easing sanctions would allow 140 million barrels of oil to hit global markets and help “relieve the temporary pressures on supply caused by Iran.” Sanctioned Iranian oil is presently being “hoarded by China on the cheap,” according to Bessent. “In essence, we will be using the Iranian barrels...

President Donald Trump’s top official overseeing disaster response insists he was once teleported to a Georgia Waffle House.Gregg Phillips, appointed in December to head the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Office of Response and Recovery, made the claim during a January 2025 episode of the podcast Onward, CNN reported on Friday in a deep-dive profile of the top official.“Teleporting is no fun,” Phillips said on the podcast, co-hosted by conservative activist Catherine Engelbrecht. “It was real.”Phillips, a longtime conservative activist who repeatedly shared conspiracy theories on social media before being appointed to a top FEMA position, described an incident in...

The U.S. Treasury has authorized the purchase of Iranian oil that's already at sea, exempting buyers from the tight sanctions that have restricted the country's oil industry for years — a move aimed at stemming soaring prices amid the U.S.'s war with Iran. The sanctions license allows oil from Iran to be purchased if it was loaded onto a ship by 12:01 a.m. ET on Friday. The authorization lasts until April 19. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a Thursday morning Fox Business interview that "we may unsanction the Iranian oil that's on the water," estimating that it could free...

The Greater Springfield NAACP wants colleges — including the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst College and Holyoke Community College — to address surging Turning Point USA chapters on their campuses. The conservative group ramped up here and around the country after founder and spokesman Charlie Kirk was shot and killed during an event at a Utah university in September.

POLITICSJUST IN: Pentagon ‘Making Heavy Preparations’ For Potential Ground Operation, Report SaysPublished 7 hours ago on March 20, 2026By jake SHARETWEET Pentagon brass are quietly prepping for a potential U.S. ground invasion of Iran, even as President Donald Trump insists he’s not sending troops, according to multiple sources cited by CBS News. Senior military leaders have already submitted detailed requests outlining what it would take to put American boots on the ground as Trump weighs his next move in the escalating U.S.-Israel showdown with Tehran, the sources told CBS.

Under the decisive leadership of President Donald J. Trump, Operation Epic Fury is delivering overwhelming, devastating success against the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism. In just three weeks, America’s unmatched military has obliterated the Iranian regime’s air and naval capabilities, demolished its ballistic missile arsenal and production facilities, annihilated more than 7,000 targets, and crippled its ability to fund and arm terrorist proxies.Despite a relentless campaign by the Fake News and the Radical Left to manufacture tales of “division” to distract from this historic triumph, it is clear the American people — and President Trump’s base — stand firmly...

Washington — Pentagon officials have made detailed preparations for deploying U.S. ground forces into Iran, multiple sources briefed on the discussions told CBS News. Senior military commanders have submitted specific requests aimed at preparing for such an option as President Trump weighs moves in the U.S.-Israel-led conflict with Iran, the sources said. Mr. Trump has been deliberating whether to position ground forces in the region, sources said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. It was unclear under what circumstances he would authorize the use of troops on the ground."No, I'm not putting troops anywhere,"...

WASHINGTON — Education Secretary Linda McMahon is sending a letter to 43 million Americans with student loans — about 9 million of whom are in default — to notify them that the Treasury Department is taking over debt collection, The Post has learned. The letter describes the transfer of responsibilities as a way to protect taxpayers by improving the efficiency of the collection process — after loan repayments were paused through much of the Biden administration, with borrowers protected from delinquency through September 2024. “For too long, Americans have shouldered the consequences of poor leadership and persistent mismanagement of our...

President Trump on Friday slammed NATO allies as "cowards" for not sending troops to help open the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for the global oil trade that remains effectively closed amid Iran's continued retaliation for Israel's attack on the South Pars natural gas field.

Republican Representative Lauren Boebert of Colorado has responded furiously to reports that the Pentagon is seeking $200 billion in additional funds for the Iran war. Boebert told CNN's Manu Raju on Thursday that she would not support any supplemental funding for the war. "I will not vote for a war supplemental," she said. "No. I am a no. I've already told leadership. I am a no on any war supplementals. I am so tired of spending money elsewhere." She continued: "I am tired of the industrial-war complex getting all of our hard-earned tax dollars. I have folks in Colorado who...

While standing in front of a screen with the phrase, “A break in MAGA?” Enten remarked, “Sometimes you look at the polling data, and there are numbers that just jump off the screen.” “MAGA GOP … approve 100%. 100%. If you are a member of MAGA in the GOP, you approve of Donald John Trump,” he said. “0% say that they disapprove.”“You don’t have to be a mathematical genius to know you can’t go higher that 100%. He is the 1972 Miami Dolphins,” he added, referencing the only NFL team to have a perfect season.

President Trump asserted on Thursday that he had no plans to commit ground forces to the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran, even though he has acknowledged he is contemplating moves that could drag the military into land combat operations. Mr. Trump’s comments still left some room for him to reverse course. “I’m not putting troops anywhere,″ Mr. Trump told a reporter who asked about using ground troops. “If I were, I certainly wouldn’t tell you.” The president has spent several days alternating between threats to escalate strikes on Iran — which at times he has insisted are an “operation” or an...