Police: Gunman Opens Fire on Minneapolis Church, Killing Two Children During Mass

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Two children were killed and 17 others injured Wednesday morning when a gunman opened fire through the windows of a Minneapolis Catholic church during a school Mass, authorities said.

The shooting took place shortly before 8:30 a.m. at Annunciation Catholic Church while students from a nearby Catholic school were attending Mass, Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara confirmed at a press conference.

According to O’Hara, the suspect fired multiple rounds from outside the building toward the children seated in the pews. The shooter was armed with a rifle, a shotgun, and a pistol. Two children, ages eight and ten, were fatally struck. The suspect later died by suicide, police said.

Parents gathered outside the church and school Wednesday morning as authorities secured the scene.

“This kind of act of evil should never happen,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said during the briefing, his voice breaking as he addressed reporters.

Police said the identities of the victims and the gunman have not yet been released. The investigation is ongoing, with local and federal authorities assisting.

DOJ Settles with Ten FBI Whistleblowers Targeted by Biden Administration

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Ten FBI whistleblowers who say the Biden administration punished them for their “political beliefs” and for disclosing misconduct in the bureau will have their security clearances reinstated and collect back pay, according to a settlement announced Tuesday.

“These ten (whistleblowers) collectively suffered 12-years-worth of unjustified suspension time,” Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, posted on X after getting word of the settlement. “They were punished (because) of their disclosures/political beliefs. In other words, they were treated like skunks at a picnic. Now they receive justice.”

Sen. Grassley has long advocated for the whistleblowers and has helped navigate the settlements to their retaliation complaints. According to the Senator’s office, under the Biden administration the ten whistleblowers received retaliation that included demotions, loss of pay, and revocation of security clearances.

The legal nonprofit Empower Oversight represented the ten FBI employees. The organization detailed in a 12-page, March 5 letter to the FBI’s general counsel the improper “retaliatory targeting” of the men and women it represented. (Read more from “DOJ Settles with Ten FBI Whistleblowers Targeted by Biden Administration” HERE)

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‘Deeply Disturbing’: Prime Minister Announces They’re Banning Iran’s Ambassador

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Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced Monday that his government is cutting diplomatic ties with Iran after intelligence officials linked Tehran to two antisemitic attacks on Australian soil.

Albanese said the Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO) uncovered evidence that Iran directed assaults in 2024 on a Sydney kosher restaurant and a Melbourne synagogue. Days earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Albanese of having “betrayed” and “abandoned” Israel and the Australian Jewish community.

“Enough credible intelligence has now been gathered to reach the deeply disturbing conclusion that the Iranian Government has directed at least two of these attacks,” Albanese said in a statement. “These were extraordinary and dangerous acts of aggression orchestrated by a foreign nation on Australian soil. This is an attack on our society, aimed at creating fear, stoking internal divisions and eroding social cohesion.”

ASIO found the Iranian government had directed arson attacks on the Lewis Continental Kitchen, a kosher food company, in Sydney last October and on the Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne in December, Albanese said.

As part of the response, Australia is expelling Iran’s ambassador and relocating its own diplomats stationed in Tehran to a third country, Albanese said. The government also plans to formally designate Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization. (Read more from “‘Deeply Disturbing’: Prime Minister Announces They’re Banning Iran’s Ambassador” HERE)

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Study Links Abortion to Higher Risk of Psychiatric Hospitalization

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A recent study published in the Journal of Psychiatric Research has found that women who undergo induced abortion face more than twice the risk of psychiatric hospitalization compared to women who give birth.

The study, conducted in Quebec, Canada, analyzed more than 1.2 million pregnancies over a period of up to 17 years. Researchers reported that, per 10,000 person-years, 104 women who had abortions were hospitalized for mental health issues—including psychiatric disorders, substance abuse, and suicide attempts—compared to 42 women who gave birth.

The data also showed that women who had multiple abortions were at greater risk of hospitalization than those experiencing their first abortion. The likelihood of psychiatric hospitalization was highest within the first five years following an abortion. Researchers noted that women with preexisting mental health conditions were more vulnerable, and the study adjusted its findings to account for this factor.

The Quebec study is not the first to suggest a connection between abortion and subsequent mental health challenges. A 2023 study using Medicaid data similarly reported that women who had a first-pregnancy abortion were at higher risk of needing mental health treatment, particularly inpatient care, than those who carried to term.

Separate research has also highlighted medical risks associated with abortion procedures. Reports indicate that more than 10 percent of women who take the chemical abortion drug mifepristone experience serious adverse events, such as hemorrhaging or sepsis. Pro-life groups and some medical organizations have argued that the risks of mifepristone are underreported by both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the drug’s manufacturer, Danco Laboratories.

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Trump Signs Executive Order Imposing Federal Penalty for Burning U.S. Flag

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President Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order directing the Department of Justice to prosecute individuals who burn or desecrate the American flag in a manner that could spark violence or incite riots.

The move marks one of Trump’s strongest challenges yet to long-standing First Amendment protections. In Texas v. Johnson (1989), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5–4 that flag burning constitutes symbolic speech and is therefore protected under the Constitution. But Trump argued the ruling does not shield actions that lead to public disorder.

“As you know, through a very sad court, I guess it was a five-to-four decision, they called it freedom of speech,” Trump said during the signing. “But there’s another reason, which is perhaps much more important. It’s called death — because what happens when you burn a flag, is the area goes crazy. If you have hundreds of people, they go crazy.”

Trump insisted that flag burning often provokes violent reactions. “When you burn the American flag, it incites riots at levels that we’ve never seen before,” he added. “People go crazy — in a way, both ways. There are some that are going crazy for doing it. There are others that are angry — angry about them doing it.”

Under the order, Attorney General Pam Bondi has been tasked with investigating and prosecuting such cases, but only in circumstances where prosecution would not violate constitutional free speech protections.

The penalty for conviction will carry a mandatory federal prison sentence. “What the penalty is going to be, if you burn a flag, you get one year in jail — no early exits, no nothing,” Trump declared. “You get one year in jail.”

The announcement immediately reignited debate on Capitol Hill. While Democrats have largely opposed Trump’s executive actions, efforts to restrict flag desecration have historically garnered bipartisan support.

Trump’s order revives the long-standing debate over whether flag burning should remain protected expression or be subject to legal penalties when tied to unrest.

With the new order in place, the Justice Department will now determine how far prosecutors can go without running afoul of constitutional limits — a battle that seems destined for another test in the courts.

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Trump Fires Federal Reserve Governor over Mortgage Fraud Allegations — But She Refuses to Step Down

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President Trump fired Federal Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook Monday over allegations that she committed mortgage fraud.

“Pursuant to my authority under Article Il of the Constitution of the United States and the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, as amended, you are hereby removed from your position on the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve, effective immediately,” Trump wrote in a letter addressed to Cook, which he posted on Truth Social.

Cook, however, argued that Trump has “no authority” to fire her and indicated that she’s not leaving her post, in a statement.

“President Trump purported to fire me ‘for cause’ when no cause exists under the law, and he has no authority to do so,” Cook said, according to multiple outlets. “I will not resign. I will continue to carry out my duties to help the American economy as I have been doing since 2022.”

The longtime academic, who previously served on former President Barack Obama’s White House Council of Economic Advisers and former President Joe Biden’s transition team, has hired former first son Hunter Biden’s lawyer, Abbe Lowell, to represent her. (Read more from “Trump Fires Federal Reserve Governor over Mortgage Fraud Allegations — But She Refuses to Step Down” HERE)

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RFK Jr. May Roll Back Major Trump-Era COVID-19 Vaccine “Achievement”

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President Donald Trump and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. are allegedly considering a plan to ban COVID-19 vaccines “within months,” according to an associate of Kennedy’s. The move would represent a reversal of what Trump previously called a “monumental achievement” during his administration.

Trump said in December 2020 that the development of the vaccine under Operation Warp Speed was a “historic” success, crediting doctors, scientists, pharmaceutical executives, and government leaders for expediting the process during the height of the pandemic. The vaccines were later met with criticism from segments of Trump’s political base, along with ongoing questions about their efficacy and safety.

Kennedy, who has faced scrutiny for past statements on vaccine safety, announced earlier this month that HHS would withdraw $500 million in federal funding for 22 mRNA vaccine development projects. He said the decision was based on data showing the vaccines “fail to protect effectively against upper respiratory infections like COVID and flu.” Kennedy has maintained he is not “anti-vaccine.”

An HHS spokesperson told Newsweek the agency does not comment on potential policy decisions. The White House dismissed claims that the administration plans to end COVID vaccine access.

“The Administration is relying on Gold Standard Science and is committed to radical transparency to make decisions that affect all Americans,” White House spokesperson Kush Desai said Monday. “Unless announced by the Administration, however, any discussion about HHS policy should be dismissed as baseless speculation.”

Kennedy’s associate, cardiologist Aseem Malhotra, linked the possible shift in policy to a 2022 research paper published in the journal Vaccine. The paper reported a secondary analysis of clinical trial data for Pfizer and Moderna’s mRNA vaccines and found that vaccinated adults showed a 16 percent higher risk of “excess serious adverse events” compared to those who received a placebo.

The White House has not indicated that any formal changes to vaccine policy are under consideration.

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Washington, DC Goes 12 Straight Days Without a Murder Following Trump’s Capital Crime Crackdown — Breaking Pre-COVID Record

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The District of Columbia has gone 12 days without a single murder following President Trump’s federal takeover of DC police, a feat not seen since January, 2020, according to Metropolitan Police Department data analyzed by The Post.

The current streak of no killings is uncommon in a city that has already seen over 100 homicides in 2025, and averages nearly twice that in a typical year. The last recorded murder in the US capital was Aug. 13, two days after Trump announced the department would be federalized and the National Guard would be deployed on city streets.

“This town averaged 1 murder every other day for the last 20-30 years, which means in two short weeks the president and his team have saved six or seven lives, people who would have been killed on the streets of DC,” Vice President JD Vance said during an Oval Office press conference Monday.

“[Those people] are now living, breathing, spending time with their families because the president had the willpower to say no more, we’re not going to give streets of DC over to vagrants and robbers and murderers.”

Drug Enforcement Administration head Terry Cole, who was tapped by Trump to be the temporary leader of the MPD during the federal takeover, said there’s been an instant morale boost at the department since the president gave the order. (Read more from “Washington, DC Goes 12 Straight Days Without a Murder Following Trump’s Capital Crime Crackdown — Breaking Pre-COVID Record” HERE)

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Trump To Sign Order Aimed At Eliminating Policy That Supports Accused Criminals

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President Donald Trump plans to sign an executive order Monday ensuring “cashless bail” is eliminated for criminals arrested in the nation’s capital, a White House official confirmed to the Daily Caller.

The executive order directs the D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force to ensure those arrested in Washington, D.C., are “held in federal custody to the fullest extent permissible under applicable law, and to pursue Federal charges and pretrial detention for such arrestees whenever possible,” according to a fact sheet obtained by the Caller. If the city keeps its cashless bail policy in place, the executive order permits the administration to potentially punish D.C. via federal funding decisions or other methods.

The president also is expected to sign an executive order Monday aimed at ending nationwide cashless bail policies, a fact sheet obtained by the Caller says.

Under the order, the attorney general (AG) must submit a list of states and local jurisdictions with cashless bail policies. The action then instructs the administration to “identify Federal funds currently provided to cashless bail jurisdictions that may be suspended or terminated,” the fact sheet writes.

The third executive order the president plans to sign will direct the AG to prosecute those who desecrate and burn the American flag, according to a fact sheet obtained by the Caller.

(Read more from “Trump To Sign Order Aimed At Eliminating Policy That Supports Accused Criminals” HERE)

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Report: Pentagon Blocks Ukraine From Firing Western Missiles Deep Into Russia

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The Trump administration’s Department of Defense has reportedly been blocking Ukraine from using American and British-made long-range missiles to strike targets deep inside Russian territory, according to a new report from The Wall Street Journal.

Unnamed U.S. officials told the outlet that Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Eldridge Colby developed a procedure to review any Ukrainian requests to conduct long-range strikes using weapons of U.S. origin, or those that rely on American intelligence or components. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth reportedly has the final authority to approve or deny such strikes.

The restrictions affect weapons like the MGM-140 ATACMS (Army Tactical Missile System), a long-range surface-to-surface missile that Ukraine has sought to use against Russia’s military and logistical hubs.

The policy reportedly coincides with President Donald Trump’s push to broker a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. A Pentagon spokesperson declined to comment on the matter when reached by WSJ.

The Biden administration had previously allowed Ukraine to conduct strikes with ATACMS in November 2024, just weeks after Trump won the presidential election. Trump sharply criticized that move in a December interview with Time magazine, saying:

“It’s crazy what’s taking place. It’s crazy. I disagree very vehemently with sending missiles hundreds of miles into Russia. Why are we doing that? We’re just escalating this war and making it worse. That should not have been allowed to be done.”

Trump met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Aug. 15 in Alaska for a high-stakes summit aimed at negotiating a cease-fire in the nearly three-year war. As the two leaders convened, a B-2A Spirit stealth bomber and several fighter jets conducted a flyover at Elmendorf Air Force Base in Anchorage.

Three days later, on Aug. 18, Trump held talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and top European leaders to brief them on the summit discussions.

The Pentagon’s restrictions on long-range strikes are the latest flashpoint in the balancing act between supporting Ukraine’s defense and preventing escalation into a direct NATO-Russia conflict.

In July, Trump also struck a deal with NATO allies to boost weapons deliveries to Ukraine, with member nations pledging to purchase U.S.-made arms — including MIM-104 Patriot surface-to-air missile systems — and donate them to Kyiv.

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