House Defies Trump and Passes War Powers Resolution to Halt Military Action Against Iran — Thanks to 4 GOP Defectors

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Four House Republicans voted with Democrats Wednesday to pass a war powers resolution aimed at forcing President Trump to end military action against Iran.

The measure cleared the House in a 215-208 vote – two weeks after House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) pulled a planned vote on the resolution after it appeared Republicans would not be able to defeat it.

Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), Tom Barrett (R-Mich.) and Warren Davidson (R-Ohio) joined every Democrat in backing the measure to end the three-month-long war.

The resolution will now head to the Senate, which advanced its own war powers resolution last month when a handful of GOP senators broke ranks with the president.

“The passage of my War Powers Resolution is a significant bipartisan rebuke of President Trump’s illegal and costly war in Iran, and the first step toward ending it once and for all,” Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY), the sponsor of the measure, said in a statement.

“Trump’s war has failed to accomplish the Trump Administration’s stated goals with respect to Iran,” Meeks continued. “If anything, it has pushed a diplomatic resolution of Iran’s nuclear program further away.” (Read more from “House Defies Trump and Passes War Powers Resolution to Halt Military Action Against Iran — Thanks to 4 GOP Defectors” HERE)

Netanyahu Declines to Discuss Infamous Trump Call, Says President the ‘Greatest Friend that Israel Has Ever Had in the White House’

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During an interview with CNBC’s Sara Eisen that aired Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed reports of a tense expletive-laden phone call[.] . .

Partial transcript as follows:

EISEN: So let’s talk about the call that you had with him this week, which is getting a lot of attention. The president confirmed that he said, you’re effing crazy. How did you react to that?

What really happened in that call?

NETANYAHU: Well, I’m not going to get into details of our conversations. We’ve had thousands, well, a lot, a lot of them. And if you think this is a crisis, you should be in some other conversations, but we’ve always found a way.

We have so many agreements. We agree on the main things. We want to get Iran, the nuclear program in Iran, finished.

We want to make sure that Iran doesn’t pose a threat to Israel, to the Middle East, to America, that it doesn’t develop nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them, not only to Israel and to every capital in Europe, but to every city in the United States. That’s our common goal. That’s what we set out to do, and to expand the circle of peace, as the president and I did in the Abraham Accords together.

So we have common goals. Sometimes we have, as in the best of families, you have these tactical disagreements. We always find a way to work them out, and we do so as great friends.

We can disagree in the morning, and by the afternoon, we have common action.

EISEN: So I was going to say, has your relationship at all shifted with him?

NETANYAHU: No, no. This has been a great relationship, because he’s been the greatest friend that Israel has ever had in the White House. And he respects me. I respect him. We always find a way to work out our differences.

EISEN: Did he say that you’d be in jail if not for me?

NETANYAHU: Look, I’m not going to get into the details, but he’s been very vocal about the absurdity of this fake trial that I’m going through. You know, they asked me, I don’t know if this came up with the last time you were here, but since then —

EISEN: Two years ago.

NETANYAHU: Yes, well, since then, they’ve asked me in the court, you know, I’m supposed to be receiving gifts. So one of the first things they said to me is, Prime Minister, 30 years ago, your five-year-old child received a Bugs Bunny gift from a friend. So this trial is ridiculous.

The president understands what a ridiculous trial is, and he’s been very vocal about that. I appreciate it. But it’s unraveling on its own.

It’s just so ridiculous.

(Read more from “Netanyahu Declines to Discuss Infamous Trump Call, Says President the ‘Greatest Friend that Israel Has Ever Had in the White House’” HERE)

Democrat Goes off the Rails, Allegedly Flashing Gun at County Employees

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A troubled Democratic congressional candidate in Hawaii has been arrested after allegedly brandishing a firearm at county employees.

At around 9:30 a.m. on Friday, a suspect later identified as 40-year-old Kirill Basin marched into a county building in Wailuku and began “brandishing a firearm and engaged in a verbal altercation with County employees,” prompting a call to dispatch at approximately 10:57 a.m., according to a press release from the Maui Police Department.

The county has not explained the 90-minute gap between when the suspect first arrived and when police were finally called, the Honolulu Civil Beat reported.

Basin was arrested in Kihei around 12:30 p.m. and taken into custody without incident, police said. He was later charged with felony first-degree terroristic threatening.

“The Maui Police Department will not compromise public safety, and incidents of this nature are taken extremely seriously in Maui County,” said a statement from Chief John Pelletier. “I am extremely proud of the quick response and professionalism displayed by our personnel, which helped ensure a peaceful resolution.” (Read more from “Democrat Goes off the Rails, Allegedly Flashing Gun at County Employees” HERE)

Mystery of How Bible’s Garden of Eden River was Formed Unlocked in Major Geological Discovery

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Researchers have finally discovered the “Genesis” of the legendary Middle Eastern river that was described in one of the Bible’s most important stories, per an eye-opening study in the journal Nature Geoscience.

The Euphrates River is featured in Genesis as one of a quartet of waterways that originated in the Garden of Eden, the lush oasis where the so-called first humans, Adam and Eve, were said to have resided.

In fact, this mighty river is cited over 50 times throughout the ancient text from Genesis through Revelation, where it is described as drying up in preparation for the Battle of Armageddon.

Coincidentally, the real-life water body, which stretches 1,740 miles through Turkey, Syria and Iraq, played an equally important role in shaping the earliest human civilizations: Along with its sister river, the Tigris, it helped provide the vital water supply that helped Mesopotamia — also known as the cradle of civilization and the Fertile Crescent — flourish some 6,000 years ago, National Geographic reported.

However, contrary to the depiction in the Bible, the origins of the Euphrates have remained a mystery — until now.

According to the study, conducted by an international team of researchers, this iconic river was formed from the convergence of two rivers flowing from Türkiye to the then-arid Mediterranean Basin between 3.6 million and 1.6 million years ago. (Read more from “Mystery of How Bible’s Garden of Eden River was Formed Unlocked in Major Geological Discovery” HERE)

Photo credit: Flickr

Trump says ‘Crazy’ Netanyahu has Made Everyone Hate Israel in Furious Phone Call – Report

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Donald Trump lashed out at Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu in an expletive-laden phone call over Israel’s continued strikes in Lebanon on Monday, according to US media reports.

The US president was reportedly furious after Iran threatened to suspend peace talks with the US over Israel’s strikes on Hezbollah in Lebanon, telling the Israeli prime minister that “everybody hates Israel” because of his actions.

In his public remarks after the two leaders spoke, Trump announced that a partial truce had been agreed between Israel and Hezbollah and that the call had been “very productive”.

But behind closed doors Trump is said to have yelled at Netanyahu over the phone, calling him “f****** crazy”, Axios reported late on Monday, citing two unnamed US officials familiar with the call.

“You’re f****** crazy. You’d be in prison if it weren’t for me. I’m saving your a**. Everybody hates you now. Everybody hates Israel because of this,” Trump said, according to a US official’s summary of the remarks. (Read more from “Trump says ‘Crazy’ Netanyahu has Made Everyone Hate Israel in Furious Phone Call – Report” HERE)

Secretary of State Rubio Says Iran ‘War over Now’

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Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared Tuesday that the Iran war is “over now,” while laying out what he described as the Trump administration’s non-negotiable conditions for any broader agreement currently under discussion with Tehran — including the full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the surrender of Iran’s highly enriched uranium stockpile, and severe long-term restrictions on the regime’s nuclear program before any sanctions relief would be considered.

Speaking in his first public congressional testimony since the launch of Operation Epic Fury in February, Rubio argued the Trump administration’s military and economic pressure campaign has significantly weakened the Islamic Republic while pushing Tehran into negotiations over aspects of its nuclear program the regime had previously refused to even discuss.

“There is the prospect before us — which could happen today, it could happen tomorrow, it could happen next week,” Rubio told lawmakers, referring to ongoing negotiations between Washington and Tehran. “For the first time, certainly in my memory, they have agreed to negotiate aspects of their nuclear program that just a month ago, just a year ago, they were refusing to even mention.”

Rubio said the current phase of negotiations is centered on forcing Iran to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz and commit to follow-up talks over its nuclear infrastructure and highly enriched uranium stockpile, while making clear the administration would not offer upfront sanctions relief in exchange for reopening the strategic waterway.

“They have to announce very clearly the straits are now open. We’re not charging a toll. We will help remove the mines that they put in there, and they will not fire on ships,” Rubio said, adding that Tehran must also agree to negotiations over “severe and long-term limitations and cancellation of enrichment activity.” (Read more from “Secretary of State Rubio Says Iran ‘War over Now’” HERE)

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr

Drone and Missile Attacks Target Cargo Ships near Iraq

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A cargo ship was attacked by drones while sailing near the Umm Qasr port in Iraq on Monday. On Tuesday, Iran’s terrorist Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed responsibility for a missile attack against a commercial vessel, describing it as justified retaliation for an attack by the “terrorist and child-killing U.S. military” against an Iranian ship.

The first incident occurred on Monday, roughly 40 nautical miles southeast of Umm Qasr. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center (UKMTO) said the ship involved was hit by an unknown “projectile” on its starboard side, resulting in a large explosion.

According to Iraqi officials, a second blast on the same ship was caused by a drone attack while emergency crews were addressing the damage from the first explosion.

“As we were assessing the damage from the first explosion, we heard a drone hovering overhead, ​followed by a ​powerful ⁠blast that sparked a fire on the tanker,” said a member of the Iraqi maritime patrol.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, and UKMTO did not identify the vessel that was targeted. (Read more from “Drone and Missile Attacks Target Cargo Ships near Iraq” HERE)

Jury Acquits Asian Store Owner Who Shot And Killed Black Alleged Shoplifter

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South Carolina jurors acquitted a convenience store owner on Monday for fatally shooting a black 14-year-old who was carrying a gun, according to multiple reports.

Sixty-one-year-old Chikei Rick Chow was found not guilty of murder after he said he acted to protect his son in 2023 when killing Cyrus Carmack-Belton, who carried a handgun into the Columbia store, multiple news outlets reported. The case has reportedly sparked division and accusations of anti-black bias as nearly half the town’s population is black.

Prosecutors said Chow followed Carmack-Belton more than 100 yards after wrongly suspecting him of stealing water bottles from the store, the Associated Press reported. The defense reportedly argued Chow shot Carmack-Belton to protect his son because Carmack-Belton aimed his gun toward him. Prosecutors admitted the teen had a gun but argued he did not threaten anyone with it, according to the outlet. . .

Defense attorney Jack Swerling said the verdict reflects that Chow was justified in his actions while extending condolences to the family, according to the outlet.

“My heart goes out to them, but 14-year-old kid should not be roaming the streets of Columbia or South Carolina with [a] semiautomatic pistol loaded and ready to fire,” Swerling reportedly said. (Read more from “Jury Acquits Asian Store Owner Who Shot And Killed Black Alleged Shoplifter” HERE)

Pope Leo Taps Pro-Life American Media Exec To Lead Vatican Communications

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Pope Leo XIV appointed an American Catholic media executive with a strong pro-life and religious liberty background to lead Vatican communications Tuesday.

Maria Montserrat Alvarado, the president and chief operating officer of Eternal Word Television Network News (EWTN), will be the first laywoman to assume a leadership role in the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication in November, according to the Vatican.

Alvarado has led the conservative Catholic news group since 2023, expanding its multiplatform operations across several languages.

Before her time at EWTN, Alvarado worked at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty beginning in 2009. The organization tackles religious liberty issues in the courts, the public sphere and the academy. She eventually became the team’s chief operating officer, according to The Pillar.

“While this appointment was unexpected, I receive it with a sincere desire to serve the Holy Father as he begins his pontificate,” Alvarado said in a statement reported by The Pillar.

(Read more from “Pope Leo Taps Pro-Life American Media Exec To Lead Vatican Communications” HERE)

Trump Says Congressman Missing For Months Is ‘Working Tirelessly’ In Glowing Endorsement

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In a glowing endorsement, President Donald Trump on Monday endorsed Republican New Jersey Rep. Tom Kean Jr., who is nowhere to be seen and has missed over 100 floor votes since March.

Kean represents New Jersey’s 7th congressional district, rated by the Cook Political Report as a toss-up ahead of the 2026 Midterm elections. He has not participated in a House roll call vote since March 5, and missed 20% of all votes cast between January and March.

Trump, however, said Kean has been “working tirelessly.”

“A Tremendous Advocate of our America First Agenda, Tom is working tirelessly to Keep our Border SECURE, Stop Migrant Crime, Grow our Economy, Cut Taxes and Regulations, Champion Small Business, Unleash American Energy DOMINANCE, Support our Brave Military and Veterans, and Protect our always under siege Second Amendment,” the president wrote in a Truth Social post.

New Jersey’s 7th Congressional District could end up playing a decisive role in the balance of power in Washington. Kean is running unopposed in Tuesday’s primary, while several Democrats will contest their party’s nomination. (Read more from “Trump Says Congressman Missing For Months Is ‘Working Tirelessly’ In Glowing Endorsement” HERE)