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VATICAN CITY (AP) – Pope Leo XIV criticized the surge of nationalist political movements in the world as he prayed Sunday for reconciliation and dialogue – a message in line with his pledges to make the Catholic Church a symbol of peace. The pope celebrated Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square in front of tens of thousands faithful, and asked the Holy Spirit to “break down barriers and tear down the walls of indifference and hatred.” “Where there is love, there is no room for prejudice, for ‘security’ zones separating us from our neighbors, for the exclusionary mindset that, tragically,...

On Saturday on MSNBC’s “Velshi,” one of President Donald Trump’s former lawyers, Michael Cohen, said Tesla CEO Elon Musk will lose in his feud with the president. Cohen said, “Elon said that he’s the one that delivered the election. I’m not so sure we can say that, but he certainly didn’t hurt.” He continued, “You know where Elon Musk is making a mistake? The feud should not have gone on the way that it did. And I say that because while Elon Musk may be the richest man in the world, Donald Trump is the most powerful man in the...

Friday on FNC’s “Jesse Watters Primetime,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) dismissed the possibility of the so-called “big, beautiful” spending bill stalling out on Capitol Hill because of Tesla CEO and former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) head Elon Musk’s critique. “All right, Speaker,” host Jesse Watters said. “Is Elon going to derail the big, beautiful bill?” “Absolutely not,” Johnson replied. “Look, we are feeling the same energy that the President is. He’s leading. He’s delivering on his promises, and we all are. The big, beautiful bill is basically all those campaign speeches reduced to legislation. That’s what it is,...

Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) said Friday on CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360” that he will never apologize, but President Donald Trump should apologize for the way the legal process has happened in the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia. Host Anderson Cooper said, “I want to read what a part of a statement released by the White House. ‘The Democrat lawmakers, namely Democrat senator Chris Van Hollen, and every single so-called journalist who defended this illegal criminal abuser must immediately apologize to Garcia’s victims.’ Your response to that?” Van Hollen said, “I will never apologize for defending the Constitution. In fact,...

Cook County has erased nearly $665 million in medical debt for local residents since launching the effort in 2022, according to new figures released Thursday. County leaders are celebrating the latest milestone of the program, which has so far helped almost 557,000 people have some of their debt abolished. The effort has relieved the most debt for people on Chicago’s South and West sides and in the south and west suburbs.The amount erased ranges from around $600 to $4,000 on average per person depending on where they live.

SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s father Errol Musk said Friday on Al Arabiya English’s “Global News Today” that President Donald Trump will “prevail” in the public feud with his son. Musk said, “It seems a bit silly to me.” Host Tom Burges Watson said, “Do you think this is a bump in the road, or do you think this is the end of the road for the relationship between your son and Mr. Trump?” Musk said, “Just a bump in the road. It will fizzle out in a few days.” He continued, “I haven’t spoken to him, but I...

Thursday on Fox News Channel’s “Jesse Watters Primetime,” former House Speaker Newt Gingrich reacted to the ongoing dust-up between Donald Trump and Elon Musk. He called it the “soap opera phase of American politics,” suggesting there were more important issues facing the globe than Musk’s “temper tantrum.” “I’m beginning to think that they are mad at each other,” he said. “I don’t want to get into much. Look, this is the soap opera phase of American politics. Everybody can understand it. Everybody can pay attention to it. But in the long run, what’s happening with China, what’s happening with Russia,...

Friday on CNN’s “The Situation Room,” chief political correspondent Dana Bash detailed her morning phone conversation with President Donald Trump. Co-host Wolf Blitzer asked, “You had a chance to speak with the president this morning. How did that go?” Bash said, “Well, look, the headline in our conversation about Elon Musk is that the president says that he has no plans to speak with Musk, and he said that he thinks that Musk has got a problem. So the reason why that is the question right now is maybe, perhaps very obvious but behind the scenes, the push is on...

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) met privately Thursday afternoon with President Donald Trump’s “ambassador” to Hollywood, Oscar-winning actor Jon Voight, to discuss ideas for saving the film industry. Hollywood has been losing jobs due to high costs, damaging union strikes, artificial intelligence, and the tax incentives offered by competing film locations elsewhere, such as Vancouver, Atlanta, and overseas sites. Newsom is an implacable opponent of President Trump, but evidently is willing to work with him to save one of California’s most important industries — and the source of many of his own political donations. Politico reports: The pair met privately...

Thursday on CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360,” left-wing political commentator Van Jones said President Donald Trump should “fire, investigate and prosecute” all of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) employees. Jones said, “Look, a couple of things. One is, you know, the power that Elon Musk still has is significant. Somebody said Trump has three and a half more years, Elon has 40. He’s a billionaire. He’s got a long-term play.” Cooper said, “I believe it was Elon Musk who said that.” Jones said, “Elon’s correct. You good at math? But the other piece of it is those DOGE employees are...

Thursday on CNN’s “The Arena,” Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) said that Tesla CEO Elon Musk “suddenly got a big dose of truth serum” while commenting on his disagreement with President Donald Trump. Host Kasie Hunt said, “What we are seeing play out right now between the President of the United States and the richest man in the world is unlike anything I think we’ve seen in politics.” Van Hollen said, “You’re absolutely right. It’s as if Elon Musk suddenly got a big dose of truth serum, and he’s letting it all pour out. And it is, I think, going...

Thursday on ABC’s “The View,” former President Bill Clinton defended former President Joe Biden’s 2024 debate performance by blaming the staff for his travel schedule. Co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin said, “Mr. President, I want to ask you, last time you were here, you were actually fiercely defender of President Biden’s when people were questioning whether he should stay in the race and when he decided to step aside. You praised his decision to do so. t]There have now been a lot of reports, books written with Democratic sources talking about what appeared to be decline while he was in the...

Walmart is reportedly laying off more than 100 employees in its technology offices in Silicon Valley, part of larger corporate layoffs across the country. The company’s tech workers in the San Francisco Bay Area are being axed as part of Walmart’s plan to lay off around 1,500 corporate employees across the country, according to a report by the San Francisco Chronicle. Positions within Walmart’s global technology, U.S. e-commerce fulfillment, and advertising divisions will reportedly also be hit as a result of the company being restructured. The company, however, did not disclose all of the locations that will be affected.

The U.S. trade deficit in goods and services narrowed sharply in April, falling to $61.6 billion from $138.3 billion in March—the largest monthly improvement on record—driven by a steep drop in imports and continued strength in American exports. The 16.3 percent decline in imports, the biggest on record, coincided with the introduction of new U.S. tariff schedules and followed months of accelerated purchasing by companies anticipating higher duties. Analysts noted that much of the shift reflected a hangover after months of elevated imports as businesses rushed to bring in goods ahead of the tariff hikes. At the same time, exports...

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Chicago workers making minimum wage are set to get a raise starting next month. Starting July 1, the city's minimum wage will be $16.60 and the minimum wage for subsidized youth employment programs, the minimum wage will be $16.50. Under the One Fair Wage Ordinance, the wages of tipped workers such as restaurant servers, bartenders, bussers and runners who earn a subminimum wage of $12.62 per hour will increase by eight percent per year until it reaches parity with Chicago's standard hourly minimum wage on July 1, 2028. Other regulations for paid leave, paid sick time and...

Wednesday on MSNBC’s “The Weeknight,” Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) said that President Donald Trump had been “flagrantly violating” the law with cuts to government through the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). DeLauro said, “Elon Musk knew nothing about impoundment or about the appropriations process. And I categorize empowerment as stealing, they are stealing these funds. and the president knows even less about those two issues.” She continued, “It’s in the Constitution, the Constitution in Article I Section 9, Clause 7, says that the power of the purse resides in the in the Congress, and there is no inherent authority that...

More voters approve of the job President Trump is doing than approved of the job former President Barry Obama was doing on this same day during Barry’s second term. How do you like those apples-to-apples? On this same day during his own second term (June 4, 2013), Obama’s average job approval rating was 47.1 percent. Today, exactly 12 years later, during Trump’s second term, The Donald enjoys an average approval rating of 47.5 percent. Trump is also scoring better than former President George W. Bush did on this same day during Bush’s second term (June 4, 2005), 45.9 percent for...

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that recent U.S. tariff increases will reduce federal deficits by $2.8 trillion over the next decade, primarily through increased customs revenue and lower interest payments on federal debt—more than enough to offset the projected cost of President Donald Trump’s proposed tax cut bill. In a separate analysis, the CBO recently estimated that extending the 2017 tax cuts, as proposed in the administration’s new tax and spending bill, would increase the deficit by roughly $2.4 trillion over the same period. That legislation would reduce federal revenues by $3.67 trillion while cutting spending by $1.25 trillion,...

Residents living across a huge area spanning three states have been warned of dangerous air pollution levels on Tuesday. Swathes of Minnesota, Iowa and Wisconsin are all affected by poor air quality, with an area around Minneapolis covered by one of the most severe warnings. Smoke from wildfires, combined with the current weather conditions, have contributed to the pollution. Why It Matters Health officials warn that vulnerable populations — such as children, older adults and individuals with existing respiratory issues — face heightened risks during periods of poor air quality. Even healthy members of the general public may experience health...

Sen. John Cornyn’s (R-TX) Second Amendment weakness, the result of his high profile support for gun control under Joe Biden, is hampering his reelection prospects. On May 28, 2025, Texas Southern University’s Barbara Jordan Public Policy Research and Survey Center reported that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has a nine percent lead over Cornyn in the March 2026 Republican primary. Five days later, on June 3, 2025, Punch Bowl News pointed to “a new independent poll” showing the Cornyn’s deficit had greatly increased, with Paxton ahead by 22. Breitbart News previously noted that Cornyn fell into low esteem with Texas...