(August 20, 2025)
Die FDP-Europaabgeordnete Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann hat den Einsatz von deutschen Bodentruppen zur Friedenssicherung in der Ukraine nicht kategorisch ausgeschlossen. „Die Frage wird sein, wenn es erforderlich ist, die Ukraine zu sichern: Reicht es, das mit Aufrüstung zu machen? Bedarf es anderer Schutztruppen?“, sagte sie im gemeinsamen Morgenmagazin von ARD und ZDF.
(Sept 13, 2023)
At the Private and Public Sector Entity Levels. (In trillions of U.S. dollars)
PRIVATE SECTOR:
Households 121.9
Nonprofits 8.6
Noncorporate businesses 17.2
Total U.S. Private Sector 147.7
PUBLIC SECTOR:
Federal government – 21.3
State and local government 11.5
Total U.S. Public Sector – 9.8
Instrument discrepancies – 1.1
TOTAL U.S. WEALTH 136.8
(graphics)
„This budget was formulated, honestly, before we went into conflict with Iran,“ Jules Hurst III, the Pentagon‘s acting chief financial officer, told reporters at a briefing April 21.
In addition, the Trump administration separately plans to ask Congress for more than $200 billion in supplemental funding for the Iran war, according to reports.
„We‘re enforcing the blockade across the board against any ship of any nationality that is transiting to or from an Iranian port or territory,“ Caine said.
„We‘re closely tracking vessels of interest headed towards Iran and those moving away from Iran that were outside the blockade area when this blockade was ordered and … we‘re prepared and postured to intercept them,“ he said.
The U.S. naval blockade on Iran began on April 13.
Watch the full news conference in the video player above.
Speaking to reporters at the Pentagon, Hegseth said the U.S. blockade of Iranian shipping will continue „as long as it takes“ to accomplish America‘s „bold and dangerous“ mission to end Iran‘s threat to global security.
President Trump deleted a social media post depicting him as Jesus Christ after receiving widespread backlash over the AI-generated image. CBS News‘ Weijia Jiang has more.
President Donald Trump posted an AI-generated image depictimg himself late Sunday as a Jesus-like character healing a sick man, but the image included one not-so-subtle change from the original posted months ago by a MAGA fan – swapping out a U.S. soldier for a horned creature with wings.
The president’s religious depiction of himself in the viral image alone was enough to draw furious criticism from even his most die-hard supporters, who accused him of “blasphemy” and urged him to remove it.
In the image, the US President appears in red and white robes. His outstretched hand is healing a sick man, dressed in hospital clothes and laying in a bed. Rays of light come out of his hands.
An American flag flutters over President Trump’s shoulder, who is surrounded by two men in military camouflage, a nurse, and a praying woman. Eagles and fighter jets fly by. Depictions of what appear to be fighter pilots are ascending in the sky, where angels may typically be in a scene.
The image, posted to Truth Social late Sunday night, depicts Trump as Christ, laying his hand on a patient in a hospital bed, seemingly healing him.
He is surrounded by other figures, including a nurse, a soldier, and a praying woman. Also present in the image is the U.S. flag, several bald eagles, the Statue of Liberty, and the Lincoln Memorial.
(today)
Now, Hezbollah can continue to fire rockets across the border, and it has been doing that. Hezbollah has also been trying to slow Israel’s ground invasion in the south. But as you can see, Israel is the one that has the upper hand. It controls the skies, it can cause death, it can cause destruction, and this is all heaping pressure on the population and on the Lebanese government.
Hezbollah was counting on Iran having the leverage to silence this front, but that has not happened yet, despite statements from Iranian officials.
President Trump is expected to unveil his request for a $1.5 trillion military budget for the 2027 fiscal year on Friday, Reuters has reported, marking a 50% increase from this year’s already massive budget.
The 2026 military budget marked the first to officially exceed $1 trillion, which was achieved by Congress passing a 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) worth about $900 billion and combining it with $150 billion in supplemental military spending that was included in the so-called Big Beautiful Bill, a reconciliation bill that became law last year.
The White House is expected to go with a similar strategy to reach $1.5 trillion. It may request an NDAA worth about $1 trillion or less and seek a supplemental spending bill for $400 to $600 billion.
Here is the latest breakdown based on official state tallies:
Iran: At least 1,444 killed and 20,984 injured
Lebanon: 1,024 killed and 2,740 wounded
Iraq: At least 61 killed, most from the Iran-backed PMF
Israel: 18 killed, including two soldiers in southern Lebanon
United States: 13 service members killed — seven in operations against Iran and six in a refuelling aircraft crash over Iraq
United Arab Emirates: Eight killed, including two soldiers
Kuwait: Six killed, including two Interior Ministry officers and two army soldiers
Saudi Arabia: Two killed
France: One soldier killed in northern Iraq and six others wounded
Qatar: No fatalities reported, 16 injured
On day ten of Operation Epic Fury, we are winning with an overwhelming and unrelenting focus on our objectives, which are the same as the day I gave my first briefing here on Operation Epic Fury. They‘re straightforward and we are executing them with ruthless precision.
One: destroy their missile stockpiles, their missile launchers and their defense industrial base; missiles and their ability to make them. Two: destroy their Navy. And three: permanently deny Iran nuclear weapons forever. It‘s a laser focused, maximum authority mission delivered with overwhelming and unrelenting precision, no hesitation, no half measures.
(…)
Second, we continue to strike the Iranian Navy and their capabilities in order to do things like sustain movement through the Straits of Hormuz. And third, we continue to start working on and going deeper into Iran‘s military and industrial base in order to prevent the regime from being able to attack Americans, our interests and our partners for years to come and project power outside their borders. This means servicing production facilities, research and development sites and infrastructure.
(…)
SECRETARY OF WAR PETE HEGSETH: Ultimately, the aftermath is going to be in America‘s interests, our interests. We won’t live under a nuclear blackmail scenario of conventional missiles that can target our people, which is why the objectives have been scoped from the beginning: missiles, missile production, the defense industrial base, navy, all in service of ensuring they don‘t have nuclear power projection capabilities.
That is why Caine’s wording evokes Henry Morgenthau’s wartime vision for Germany. Morgenthau argued that making Germany incapable of renewed aggression required more than smashing its armaments sector. He called for eliminating the metallurgical, electrical, and chemical industries and contemplated a Germany that would become “predominantly agrarian.” Another State Department summary described the plan as looking toward converting Germany into a country “primarily agricultural and pastoral in character.”
No, the administration has not formally announced a Morgenthau Plan for Iran. But that is not the point.
(January 16, 2025)
The very richest Americans are among the biggest winners from President Joe Biden’s time in office, despite his farewell address warning of an “oligarchy” and a “tech industrial complex” that threaten US democracy.
The 100 wealthiest Americans got more than $1.5 trillion richer over the last four years, with tech tycoons including Elon Musk, Larry Ellison and Mark Zuckerberg leading the way, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. The top 0.1% gained more than $6 trillion, Federal Reserve estimates through September show.
(Sept 13, 2023)
At the Private and Public Sector Entity Levels. (In trillions of U.S. dollars)
PRIVATE SECTOR:
Households 121.9
Nonprofits 8.6
Noncorporate businesses 17.2
Total U.S. Private Sector 147.7
PUBLIC SECTOR:
Federal government – 21.3
State and local government 11.5
Total U.S. Public Sector – 9.8
Instrument discrepancies – 1.1
TOTAL U.S. WEALTH 136.8
„I am Cilia Flores,“ she said. „I am first lady of the Republic of Venezuela.“
Hellerstein interjected, saying, „The purpose today is just to ask you who you are.“ The judge then explained her rights to remain silent and to be represented by an attorney.
„Yes I understand and I‘ve heard it,“ Flores said.
Asked how she pleaded to the three counts of the indictment she faces. Flores responded, „Not guilty — completely innocent.“
Maduro and Flores are among six defendants named in a four-count superseding indictment that accused them of conspiring with violent, dangerous drug traffickers for the last 25 years. Maduro has long denied all the allegations.
(December 6, 2025)
The fragile ceasefire between Hamas and Israel has so far held off major engagements despite multiple small skirmishes between the two sides, as the slow implementation of President Donald Trump’s peace plan continues.
A portion of Tuesday’s hearing was held in closed session to allow the government to present material it says cannot be disclosed on national security grounds.
During these closed proceedings, known as closed material procedures (CMP), Ammori and her legal team replaced by a special advocate appointed by Ammori.
However, the special advocate is not permitted to share the government’s submissions with Ammori or her lawyers.
It means that if Ammori loses her case based on the secret evidence, neither she nor her team will know what the government argued against her or Palestine Action.
Reporting Highlights
– Americans Detained: The government doesn’t track how many citizens are held by immigration agents. We found more than 170 cases this year where citizens were detained at raids and protests.
– Held Incommunicado: More than 20 citizens have reported being held for over a day without being able to call their loved ones or a lawyer. In some cases their families couldn’t find them.
– Cases Wilted: Agents have arrested about 130 Americans, including a dozen elected officials, for allegedly interfering with or assaulting officers, yet those cases were often dropped.
(Nov 3, 2025)
Warning: Graphic language. Video shows the vehicle collision between federal agents and Dayanne Figueroa in Chicago‘s West Town neighborhood on Oct. 10, 2025. (Provided by Fernando Figueroa)
Dayanne Figueroa was on her way to work in Chicago last month when she drove onto a street where an immigration enforcement action was in progress. As she attempted to drive around the chaos, an unmarked vehicle collided with her car. Masked men jumped out of the vehicle, guns drawn and dragged Figueroa from her car by her legs. She was thrown into a minivan, taken away and held by Immigration and Customs Enforcement for hours. Dayanne Figueroa is an American citizen.
Figueroa’s arrest, captured in a now-viral video, illustrates the growing number of U.S. citizens caught up in federal immigration actions. These arrests and detentions violate ICE guidelines as well as the Constitution.
(March 26, 2025)
The letter was organized by the Responsible Wealth Project in coordination with Americans for Tax Fairness and Voices for Progress, according to reports.
The group sent out a similar letter to Congress in 2022. A group of wealthy Americans also sent a letter to presidential candidates in 2020 urging them to tax the ultra-wealthy more for the benefit of most Americans.
(January 16, 2025)
The very richest Americans are among the biggest winners from President Joe Biden’s time in office, despite his farewell address warning of an “oligarchy” and a “tech industrial complex” that threaten US democracy.
The 100 wealthiest Americans got more than $1.5 trillion richer over the last four years, with tech tycoons including Elon Musk, Larry Ellison and Mark Zuckerberg leading the way, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. The top 0.1% gained more than $6 trillion, Federal Reserve estimates through September show.
(Sept 13, 2023)
At the Private and Public Sector Entity Levels. (In trillions of U.S. dollars)
PRIVATE SECTOR:
Households 121.9
Nonprofits 8.6
Noncorporate businesses 17.2
Total U.S. Private Sector 147.7
PUBLIC SECTOR:
Federal government – 21.3
State and local government 11.5
Total U.S. Public Sector – 9.8
Instrument discrepancies – 1.1
TOTAL U.S. WEALTH 136.8
“An Agreement must be reached with Hamas by Sunday Evening at SIX (6) P.M., Washington, D.C. time,” he went on. “Every Country has signed on! If this LAST CHANCE agreement is not reached, all HELL, like no one has ever seen before, will break out against Hamas. THERE WILL BE PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST ONE WAY OR THE OTHER.”
Trump said he was asking “all innocent Palestinians” to leave areas of Gaza that are under siege by Israel “for safer parts of Gaza.”