All posts tagged: Government and politics

Trump says Nidal Hasan execution won’t be livestreamed

Trump says Nidal Hasan execution won’t be livestreamed

Published by Sam Flores

Nidal Hasan, charged with killing 13 people and wounding 32 in a November 2009 shooting spree at Fort Hood, Texas, is pictured in an undated Bell County Sheriff’s Office photograph. Bell County Sheriff’s Office | Reuters President Donald Trump said Thursday that the planned execution by firing squad of convicted Fort Hood mass killer Nidal Hasan would not be livestreamed, canceling the Pentagon‘s plans to do so. Trump’s announcement came after growing backlash against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s effort to show the former U.S. Army major’s execution live online, with concern that the footage would become a recruiting tool for terrorists. Hasan, who is paralyzed from the waist down, is scheduled to be executed Dec. 3 by an Army firing squad at 1 p.m. Central Time in Fort Hood, which is located in Killeen, Texas. Hasan, who during his 2013 court-martial said he was motivated to defend the “leadership of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, the Taliban,” could seek to delay the execution with a new legal challenge. “Nidal Malik Hasan, a former U.S. Army …

What taxpayers, voters should know

What taxpayers, voters should know

Published by Sam Flores

Bill Oxford | Istock Unreleased | Getty Images U.S. Postal Service postmark practices that were formalized in a December 2025 rule could mean a longer delay between when something is mailed and when it’s postmarked — a distinction that matters for tax returns, mail-in ballots and other time-sensitive documents. The issue may crop up as two deadlines approach: Oct. 15 for taxpayers who received a six-month extension to file their federal income tax returns, and Nov. 3 for voters casting ballots in the midterm elections. Taxpayers who mail their return can meet Thursday’s deadline by taking it to the post office for a manual postmark. But voters casting ballots by mail for the midterms can’t necessarily count on the same rule. That’s because while the IRS generally considers a return filed on the day it is postmarked, most states require mail-in ballots to arrive by Election Day, regardless of when they were mailed or postmarked. A postmark shows the date your mail was processed, which may not be the day you mailed the ballot.  Read more CNBC …

U.S. reportedly weighs ‘mother of all bombs’ for Iran strikes

U.S. reportedly weighs ‘mother of all bombs’ for Iran strikes

Published by Sam Flores

A U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) handout photo shows the Massive Ordinance Air Blast (MOAB) weapon on March 11, 2003 at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. Usaf | Getty Images News | Getty Images The U.S. military has drawn up options for renewed strikes on Iran that include the potential use of one of the biggest non-nuclear bombs in its arsenal, CNN reported Thursday, as Tehran vowed to continue fighting for its demands. The strike plans involve the possible use of the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb, nicknamed the “mother of all bombs,” CNN reported, citing multiple U.S. officials familiar with the matter. CNBC has not independently confirmed the report and has reached out to the Defense Department for comment. The 21,600-pound air-burst weapon is designed to affect surface targets over a wide area and has so far not been deployed by the U.S. in previous strikes on targets inside Iran. It was used in Afghanistan in 2017 during the previous Trump administration. U.S. President Donald Trump said last week that he would not …

Ukraine to resume strikes on Russian refineries, Zelenskyy says

Ukraine to resume strikes on Russian refineries, Zelenskyy says

Published by Sam Flores

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Ukraine will resume attacks on Russian energy infrastructure after Moscow failed to uphold its end of an “energy ceasefire” deal proposed by President Donald Trump.  “The block [on attacking refineries] is out. We’re done,” Zelenskyy told the Financial Times after Ukraine paused strikes on energy targets for three days at the request of Washington. On Sunday, Trump announced an “energy ceasefire” between Ukraine and Russia in an effort to put an end to the countries attacking each other’s power facilities and thereby lower the price of oil and diesel ahead of the U.S. midterm elections next month.  Despite Ukraine’s pause, officials in Kyiv said the country has been stripped of advance warnings of incoming ballistic missiles, as Starlink connectivity services had been restricted across the country, disrupting military operations. The restrictions apply to the sister service Starshield.  Serhii Beskrestnov, an adviser to Zelenskyy on defense technology, said Wednesday that SpaceX has implemented a speed limit on Starlink terminals in motion without notifying Ukrainian defense forces.  “It is clear that this …

Musk says Trump responsible for any curbs on Ukraine’s Starshield

Musk says Trump responsible for any curbs on Ukraine’s Starshield

Published by Sam Flores

SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk said Wednesday that the U.S. government and President Donald Trump was responsible for any curbs on Ukraine’s military-grade Starlink network. Writing on X, Musk said that “Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the U.S. government. Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS.” Ukraine had accused SpaceX of imposing new restrictions on the Starshield internet service without warning, leading to disruptions to Ukrainian military operations amid fresh Russian strikes on its energy infrastructure. On Wednesday, Serhii Beskrestnov, an advisor to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on defense technology, said SpaceX had implemented a speed limit on Starlink terminals in motion, without notifying the country’s defense forces. That had disrupted some missions, and the same restrictions also applied to Starshield, he said on Telegram. Starlink is used to operate Ukraine’s interceptor drones, the “most effective solution” against Moscow’s Shahed drones, Beskrestnov said. Starshield is a military-grade satellite network, while Starlink is only meant for “civilian or defensive activities,” Musk said. Some restrictions appear …

Trump appeals ruling against White House ban of MS NOW, CNN, Politico

Trump appeals ruling against White House ban of MS NOW, CNN, Politico

Published by Sam Flores

The Department of Justice said Wednesday it is appealing a federal judge’s decision to extend his order blocking the White House from enforcing its ban on MS NOW, CNN and Politico. The notice of appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit came less than a day after U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly ruled that the three outlets targeted by President Donald Trump can keep their access to the White House complex. That ruling, a preliminary injunction, replaces Kelly’s temporary restraining order against the ban that Trump first announced on Sept. 18. It is not a final ruling in the ongoing lawsuit that the three news outlets filed against Trump, White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, U.S. Secret Service Director Sean Curran and White House communications director Steven Cheung. Kelly, in an opinion filed Tuesday night, said the plaintiffs are likely to succeed on their claims that Trump and his co-defendants violated their First Amendment rights through unlawful retaliation and viewpoint discrimination. “It is likely that Plaintiffs were selected …

Lisa Cook lawyer questions Trump committee as president slams Fed gov

Lisa Cook lawyer questions Trump committee as president slams Fed gov

Published by Sam Flores

Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook and attorney Abbe Lowell leave the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, Jan. 21, 2026. Kevin Dietsch | Getty Images An attorney for Lisa Cook voiced strong doubts that President Donald Trump’s committee investigating mortgage fraud allegations against the Federal Reserve governor would be fair and objective. The lawyer, Abbe Lowell, said the committee is plagued by issues that undermine the appearance of the Fed’s independence, including “demonstrably biased members” and “unspecified additional allegations” against Cook. Those and other issues “would have to be addressed before a hearing could occur” in the probe, Lowell wrote in a letter sent Tuesday to Will Scharf, Trump’s aide and counsel. No such hearing could take place until at least December, weeks later than the initially scheduled date, Lowell insisted. The letter came three days after Trump slammed Cook as “dishonest” and griped that she was an “automatic no vote” — apparently referring to her opposition to cutting interest rates, which the president strongly desires. Cook last voted to cut rates in December 2025, siding …

Iran ‘counting the moments’ until it can attack American warships

Iran ‘counting the moments’ until it can attack American warships

Published by Sam Flores

The USS Abraham Lincoln, pictured on Oct. 8 in San Diego, set a U.S. Navy record spending over 260 days consecutively at sea without a port call while playing a key role in Operation Epic Fury and regional maritime security operations in the Middle East. Justin Sullivan | Getty Images Saudi officials said Wednesday that an administrative building belonging to oil giant Saudi Aramco was targeted overnight, as the Tehran-backed Houthi militants step up their attacks on the kingdom. The strike caused a fire, but no injuries were reported at the site in the city of Dhahran on the country’s eastern coast, according to a statement from the Saudi Ministry of Energy. The Houthis, a Yemen-based militia group backed by Iran, have launched a series of strikes on Saudi targets over the past week. Airport attacks in the capital city of Riyadh led to multiple fatalities, flight cancellations and property damage. Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport remains closed until Saturday. Yemen’s civil war has returned to full-scale fighting between the Houthis and the country’s internationally …

South Texas Latino voters shift ahead of 2026 midterm election

South Texas Latino voters shift ahead of 2026 midterm election

Published by Sam Flores

TEXAS — Tano Tijerina had a confession to make. “I want to tell you something I never thought I’d have to say from a stage like this,” Tijerina, a former minor league baseball player and a Texas GOP congressional candidate, said during a speech at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas.  “I used to be a Democrat.” The line was hardly a bombshell. Tijerina had been elected three times for Webb County judge — in 2014, 2018 and 2022 — on the Democratic ticket. And he’s made his 2024 defection a key part of his campaign in the majority-Latino, South Texas border district in which he’s running. But Tijerina’s admission elicited shouts of “No!” and boos. Just to be sure, he quickly made clear he had kicked his old Democratic habits. “I’m a beef-eating, truck-driving, gun-slinging, … Bible-thumping, Jesus-loving, calloused-hand cowboy that’s going to fight like hell for South Texas,” Tijerina — looking like a Texas brawler in a beige cowboy hat and a tight blue suit that hugged his biceps — thundered over a …

Mike Rogers breaks with Trump in Michigan Senate race on tariffs, Iran

Mike Rogers breaks with Trump in Michigan Senate race on tariffs, Iran

Published by Sam Flores

Michigan Republican Senate candidate, former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers speaks during a barn party campaign event at Hoffman Farms Winery on Oct. 9, 2026 in Highland Township, Michigan. Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images Michigan Republican Senate nominee Mike Rogers sat at a neighborhood bar, a bottle of Canadian Labatt Blue pilsner in hand, and delivered a message that would have been hard to imagine just weeks ago. “Here in Michigan, we know that Canada is not our enemy,” Rogers says into the camera in an advertisement released Oct. 7. “We need to end this tariff war now.” He never mentions the man who started it: President Donald Trump. It’s a dramatic reversal for Rogers, who spent months defending Trump’s tariffs, saying as recently as September that “Trump is right to put America first” by imposing duties. But in Michigan, where farms, factories and tourism rely on Canadian trade, Trump’s trade fight and Ottawa’s retaliation have become a political quagmire three weeks before an election that could decide Senate control. Rogers is locked in a dead …