Free Republic

President Trump and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan quietly sought to arrange a meeting between senior U.S. and Iranian officials in Istanbul this week amid Israel's escalating war with Iran. But the effort collapsed when Iran's supreme leader — in hiding due to fears of assassination — couldn't be reached to approve it, according to three U.S. officials and a source with direct knowledge of the matter. -snip- Behind the scenes: Trump received a phone call from Erdoğan on Monday while meeting with G7 leaders in Canada. Erdoğan proposed hosting a meeting in Istanbul the next day between U.S. and...

A crackdown on undocumented workers by the Trump administration has sent shockwaves through the nation’s farms, factories and food supply chains — prompting warnings of worker shortages and higher prices. Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller sounded the alarm this week as immigration raids continue to disrupt labor across the state’s farming industry — particularly in dairy operations. Miller told Bloomberg that the situation has become more dire for livestock producers amid growing absenteeism among workers fearful of being detained. “Those cows, they have to be milked every eight hours, so if milkhands are gone, what are you going to do?...

With federal immigration sweeps showing no signs of slowing across Southern California, there is growing concern from top officials, spiritual leaders and business owners that a climate of fear was sending more people underground and changing the rhythm of city life.Once-bustling immigrant hubs, including MacArthur Park, the Garment District, downtown’s produce market and areas of the Eastside have seen a noticeable reduction in foot traffic over the last week, with some businesses forced to close as a result.It comes as social media is rife with videos of people spotting immigration agents at shopping centers, markets and neighborhood streets, and capturing...

With federal immigration sweeps showing no signs of slowing across Southern California, there is growing concern from top officials, spiritual leaders and business owners that a climate of fear was sending more people underground and changing the rhythm of city life. Once-bustling immigrant hubs, including MacArthur Park, the Garment District, downtown's produce market and areas of the Eastside have seen a noticeable reduction in foot traffic over the last week, with some businesses forced to close as a result. It comes as social media is rife with videos of people spotting immigration agents at shopping centers, markets and neighborhood streets,...

SummarySupreme leader's military advisers killed by strikesRaises risk of strategic miscalculations, sources sayKhamenei's son said to be increasingly central figureDUBAI/LONDON, June 17 (Reuters) - Iran's 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei cuts an increasingly lonely figure.Khamenei has seen his main military and security advisers killed by Israeli air strikes, leaving major holes in his inner circle and raising the risk of strategic errors, according to five people familiar with his decision-making process.One of those sources, who regularly attends meetings with Khamenei, described the risk of miscalculation to Iran on issues of defence and internal stability as "extremely dangerous". Several senior...

The struggling news network is expected to face massive spending cuts by company chief Gunnar Wiedenfels ... CNN staffers are bracing for impact as the network faces yet another corporate restructuring by its parent company Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), fueling an unsettling morale in the newsroom. "I'd say the mood remains really grim," ... WBD announced that it was splitting into two companies, separating the studios and streaming business from its cable networks ... "We knew this was happening," the CNN staffer said. "And it was required to be able to sell the company. People are hoping CNN will be...

Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) is facing an uphill re-election battle due to declining favorability numbers among Republican primary voters, a new survey from one of the most accurate pollsters found. The new poll, which was conducted by Quantus Insights, surveyed 600 registered voters in the Palmetto State between June 10-13. In terms of overall approval among all voters, Graham finds himself in the red, with 41 percent of respondents voicing approval and 46 percent voicing disapproval. An additional 13 percent of respondents remain undecided. Among Republican respondents, 22 percent said they will “definitely” be backing a challenger to the longtime...

*Unconfirmed* reports from Tehran that former president Ahmadinejad was assassinated at point-blank. This demon’s nickname was the “poison dwarf.’ This mass murderer lived too long.

BREAKING: The Israeli Air Force has struck the Ilam Petrochemical Plant in western Iran. It produces some of the chemicals used to propel Iran’s ballistic missiles.

The truck carrying two men suspected of living in the country illegally was pinned between a white rusty fence and two border patrol vehicles near a busy intersection in Hawthorne. Standing by the passenger door, two federal agents were handcuffing a pregnant woman, a U.S. citizen, angering the crowd that had gathered there and prompting masked agents to stand guard with less-lethal weapons and batons. “Let her go, she’s pregnant,” a woman screamed out. “That girl is pregnant, let her go!” “Get back!” yelled an agent with a steel baton. “We are back!” a man responded loudly. The sweep near...

The business community, from El Monte to Downey to Perris, no longer fears the impact of federal immigration raids on workplaces. They are seeing the painful fallout firsthand. In the weeks after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents ramped up their roundups of migrant workers from car washes, swap meets and hubs such as L.A.’s Flower District, business owners and city leaders say the operations are disrupting life and spreading fear in their communities. ... Todd Lyons, the head of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, defended his tactics last week week against criticism that authorities are being too heavy-handed....

Remember this story out of Omaha where the feds used E-verify to track down more than 100 illegal aliens using fake IDs? And that those illegals allegedly pulled box cutters on ICE agents? =============================================================== ICE uses E-Verify system to nab over 100 illegal aliens at Omaha meat packer 🤔 E-Verify was meant to screen out illegals from taking American jobs, but ICE's recent raid on Glenn Valley Foods in Omaha, Nebraska, shows it doesn't really work. NOTTHEBEE.COM https://notthebee.com/article/ice-nabs-75-80-illegal-immigrants-in-raid-on-meat-packing-plant-in-omaha-that-used-e-verify-to-screen-employees ============================================================ We were told this city would be in turmoil. The plant wouldn't know what to do without their illegal workforce. There...

Every seat in the waiting area of Glenn Valley Foods was occupied with people filling out job applications early Thursday afternoon, two days after the meatpacking plant became the center of the largest worksite immigration raid in the state of Nebraska so far this year. Dozens of prospective employees, many of them Spanish speakers, had been coming in and out of the plant all day. Some were hoping to land a new job; others were coming in for training. The scene gave the company’s president, Chad Hartmann, a glimmer of hope amid the chaos that ensued after Tuesday's raid purged...

Revolutionary Guard commander Sardar Esmail Kowsari told local media in an interview closing the Strait of Hormuz "is under consideration, and Iran will make the best decision with determination." "Our hands are wide open when it comes to punishing the enemy, and the military response was only part of our overall response," added Kowsari, who is a member of parliament in addition to his military position. Iran’s short- and medium-range missiles would be capable of targeting oil infrastructure platforms, pipelines in the Strait, or even attacking commercial vessels, and surface-to-surface missiles could target tankers or ports along the Gulf. Airstrikes...

WASHINGTON — (AP) — President Donald Trump's administration this week provided deportation officials with personal data -- including the immigration status -- on millions of Medicaid enrollees, a move that could make it easier to locate people as part of his sweeping immigration crackdown. An internal memo and emails obtained by The Associated Press show that Medicaid officials unsuccessfully sought to block the data transfer, citing legal and ethical concerns. Nevertheless, two top advisers to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ordered the dataset handed over to the Department of Homeland Security, the emails show. Officials at the Centers for...

daho (ABC4) — Cenobio Feliciano-Galeana came to the U.S. illegally when he was 18 years old. 18 years since he’s found a life, a wife, and now four children. But after seeing the deportations taking place across the country, he has decided to self-deport back to his home country of Mexico Ashlee, Cenobio’s wife, says she and the family are coming with him. At the end of the year, she plans move with her four children to a country they have never known, just to keep the family together

When immigration agents pulled up outside a Los Angeles car wash on a quiet Sunday afternoon, it sparked instant chaos. Some customers at the Westchester Hand Wash, which sits in the centre of a busy shopping area just blocks from the city's airport, froze as the officers in olive-green uniforms approached, CCTV footage obtained by the BBC shows. Two employees who spotted them ducked behind a luxury SUV they were wiping down with a rag. Another worker halfway through cleaning the back window of a car looked up. Then all at once they scattered and ran, some jumping over a...

Benny Johnson @bennyjohnson 🚨BREAKING: The DNC has voted 294–99 to nullify the election of David Hogg as Vice Chair and hold a new vote. 5:31 PM · Jun 11, 2025

A Detroit high school student who was detained by federal agents last month was denied a request to pause his deportation, according to his attorney. The Michigan Immigrant Rights Center, which represents 18-year-old Maykol Bogoya-Duarte, said it received a notice from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Wednesday. "While we are angry and sad about this decision, we are heartened by the overwhelming support for Maykol shown by so many of you — fellow students, educators, neighbors, friends, faith leaders, community members, elected officials, and the DPSCD Board of Education. In the words of Maykol's mother, 'mil mil gracias,'" the...

Thousands of protesters gathered in Federal Plaza and marched along downtown Chicago streets Tuesday evening in a demonstration against the Trump administration and raids by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. A car sped through a march for immigration rights in downtown Chicago Tuesday evening. Around 6:19 p.m., the car was seen barreling down the street as the protesters marched at Monroe Street and Wabash Avenue. It did not appear as if anyone was hit. A witness, Dr. Howard Ehrman, said the car came very close to slamming into the marchers — and accused Chicago police of failing to take sufficient...