Politics

By Steve Contorno, Jeff Simon, CNN Grapevine, Texas (CNN) — As the daughter of an American oil field worker living in Iran in the 1970s, Blake Zummo watched as the streets around her regularly descended into violence in the years before the Iranian revolution. Now 62 and residing in Texas, she rejects arguments — including

CNN, POOL, HOUSE TV, KOLD, KYW, HOUSTON AIRPORTS By Ted Barrett, Morgan Rimmer, CNN (CNN) — The Senate unanimously moved to fund most of the Department of Homeland Security, except for Immigration and Customs Enforcement and part of Customs and Border Protection, in a rare overnight session. The agreement would fund other parts of the

By Ted Barrett, Morgan Rimmer, CNN (CNN) — The Senate unanimously moved to fund most of the Department of Homeland Security, except for Immigration and Customs Enforcement and part of Customs and Border Protection, in a rare overnight session. The agreement would fund other DHS components, such as the Transportation Security Administration and US Coast

By Adam Cancryn, Zachary Cohen, Alayna Treene, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump is weighing several options for dramatically escalating the war against Iran should his latest push for diplomacy fail. None of them are ideal. While the military campaign has heavily focused on bombing the country so far, Pentagon officials preparing for a next

By Eric Bradner, Steve Contorno, CNN Grapevine, Texas (CNN) — The movement that helped return President Donald Trump to the White House in 2024 is split over the war with Iran and Trump’s relationship with Israel, the administration’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files, fractures among some of its most prominent personalities and more. But

By Piper HudspethBlackburn, CNN (CNN) — US paper currency will soon feature President Donald Trump’s signature going forward, the US Treasury Department announced Thursday, the latest of the president’s efforts to leave his mark across the federal government. It will be the first time a sitting US president’s signature has appeared on paper notes. Treasury

By Priscilla Alvarez, Gabe Cohen, Michael Williams, CNN (CNN) — The Department of Homeland Security inspector general has launched a sprawling investigation into how contracts have been solicited and handled, including the involvement of former Secretary Kristi Noem and her de facto chief of staff Corey Lewandowski, according to two sources familiar with the probe.

By Holmes Lybrand, CNN (CNN) — A man who has since fled to China was charged with placing an improvised explosive device outside the visitor’s center at a Florida military base housing US Central Command, which is leading the joint US-Israeli war effort against Iran. During a press conference Thursday, US Attorney for the Middle

By Camila DeChalus, CNN (CNN) — The House Ethics Committee has found Democratic Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick guilty of violating several campaign finance laws and regulations, the panel announced Friday. The congresswoman was found guilty on multiple counts of failing to both comply with Federal Election Commission regulations and uphold the Code of Ethics for Government

By Hannah Rabinowitz, CNN (CNN) — Every Justice Department or FBI employee who worked on the criminal investigations into President Donald Trump has been fired, resigned, or took early retirement, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said Thursday. “There is not a single man or woman at the Department of Justice who had anything to do

By Ted Barrett, Morgan Rimmer, Sarah Ferris, Lauren Fox, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump directed his newly installed Department of Homeland Security chief to swiftly pay Transportation Security Administration agents in a bid to reduce long lines at airports, as talks to fund the department collapsed on Capitol Hill. “I am going to sign

By Kaanita Iyer, CNN (CNN) — TV host Bill Maher will receive the prestigious Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, the Kennedy Center announced on Thursday — just days after the White House denied that the comedian would be awarded the honor. The annual award, which is given by the Kennedy Center, will be presented

By Edward-Isaac Dovere, CNN (CNN) — As speculation continues about what Kamala Harris will do next, she has at least the first part of an answer: a swing through four Southern state Democratic Party events in April. And conversations about similar stops through the summer and fall are already underway, a person familiar with her

By Isabelle Khurshudyan, CNN (CNN) — In the years since disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein was found dead from what was ruled a suicide in his prison cell on August 10, 2019, conspiracy theories have abounded about whether the convicted sex offender actually killed himself. That speculation is likely to get new life now that Tova

By Priscilla Alvarez, CNN (CNN) — The Justice Department admitted to a federal judge Tuesday it’s been incorrectly relying on an Immigration and Customs Enforcement memo to justify arrests at immigration courts, according to a new court filing in an ongoing lawsuit. The lawsuit – brought by civil rights groups last year – challenges the

By Annie Grayer, Sarah Ferris, Lauren Fox, Ted Barrett, CNN (CNN) — A key group of House Republicans are growing increasingly wary of the US war with Iran after a briefing with Department of Defense officials on Wednesday left some unsatisfied with what they were told about the objectives and length of the war effort.

By Kaitlan Collins, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump’s top housing official Bill Pulte issued two new criminal referrals for New York Attorney General Letitia James on Wednesday, attempting to revive the administration’s ongoing legal pursuit of one of his political opponents. According to a person familiar with the matter, Pulte, the director of the

By Jennifer Hansler, Kylie Atwood, Tal Shalev, CNN (CNN) — Almost exactly one month ago, US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met indirectly with the Iranians in Geneva as the Trump administration continued to claim diplomacy was its preferred option. Two days later, the US and Israel launched their war against Iran. Now,

By Annie Grayer, Katelyn Polantz, CNN (CNN) — Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin asserted in a new letter that newly released Justice Department files show that prosecutors once considered whether President Donald Trump had improperly retained classified material relevant to his business interests after his first term. Raskin said the Justice Department had revealed the consideration

By Hannah Rabinowitz, Casey Gannon, CNN (CNN) — The Justice Department has reached a settlement with Michael Flynn, Donald Trump’s former national security adviser who sued the government for millions of dollars over what he alleged to be a wrongful prosecution. In a brief court filing Wednesday, lawyers for both Flynn and the Justice Department

By Natasha Bertrand, Zachary Cohen, Kylie Atwood, Tal Shalev, CNN (CNN) — Iran has been laying traps and moving additional military personnel and air defenses to Kharg Island in recent weeks in preparation for a possible US operation to take control of the island, according to multiple people familiar with US intelligence reporting on the

By John Fritze, CNN (CNN) — In a major loss for the nation’s music industry, the Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that a major internet service provider is not liable for copyright infringement because it failed to kick known copyright violators off its network. Justice Clarence Thomas wrote the opinion for a unanimous court. The

By Paula Reid, Casey Gannon, CNN (CNN) — The former assistant attorney general for civil rights under President Joe Biden, Kristen Clarke, is joining the National Association for the Advancement of Color People (NAACP) as general counsel, according to the organization. Clarke was previously the top civil rights lawyer at the Justice Department where she

By Betsy Klein, CNN (CNN) — When the historic East Wing of the White House was suddenly demolished last year to make way for President Donald Trump’s new ballroom construction, another piece of history was taken down with it. The Jacqueline Kennedy Garden, dedicated in 1965 by first lady Lady Bird Johnson in honor of

By Annie Grayer, Em Steck, CNN (CNN) — The House Oversight Committee released videos Tuesday of closed-door depositions with two men in Jeffrey Epstein’s inner circle as part of its probe into the late convicted sex offender. Darren Indyke, a longtime Epstein employee and attorney, and Richard Kahn, Epstein’s longtime accountant, appeared before the committee

CNN By Molly English, Randi Kaye, CNN (CNN) — Democrat Emily Gregory has won a special state House election in a Palm Beach district that includes President Donald Trump’s Florida home of Mar-a-Lago, adding another special election win to a recent string of victories around the country for Democrats. Tuesday’s election was a prime opportunity

By Hannah Rabinowitz, CNN (CNN) — The House Intelligence Committee voted Tuesday to give federal prosecutors classified records related to John Brennan, according to a committee spokesperson, signaling the Justice Department’s investigation into the former CIA director may be heading towards possible charges. The committee held the vote behind closed doors, a source said, and

By Dianne Gallagher, CNN (CNN) — North Carolina State Senate leader Phil Berger on Tuesday conceded his primary race to Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page, a political earthquake that took down arguably the most powerful politician in a pivotal swing state. A full machine recount last week held Page’s narrow 23-vote lead in the March

By Haley Britzky, Zachary Cohen, CNN (CNN) — More than 1,000 US soldiers with the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division are expecting to deploy in coming days to the Middle East, according to two sources familiar with the matter, adding to the growing military firepower in the region as the Trump administration says it is in

By Daniel Dale, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump is pushing for new restrictions on mail-in voting. To sell his proposal, he is telling lies. Trump has been making false claims about mail-in voting since the 2020 campaign that was held amid the Covid-19 pandemic. Now, as he asks Congress to pass a bill that

By David Wright, CNN (CNN) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom said that he regretted using the word “apartheid” to describe the Israeli government’s treatment of Palestinians, though he warned “that’s a word you may hear others use” if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushes for territorial gains. Newsom made the initial remark during a live appearance

By Priscilla Alvarez, CNN (CNN) — Newly confirmed Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told senators during his confirmation hearing that he wanted to keep the department out of the headlines. That won’t be easy. The Department of Homeland Security is charged with one of President Donald Trump’s key domestic priorities: cracking down on immigration. Mullin,

By Jennifer Hansler, CNN (CNN) — A US citizen imprisoned in Afghanistan for more than a year arrived back in the United States on Wednesday morning after being released from Taliban detention. Dennis Coyle landed at a US military base in San Antonio, Texas, shortly before 7:30 a.m. local time. He was greeted by family

By Molly English, Randi Kaye, CNN Palm Beach, Florida (CNN) — President Donald Trump voted in Tuesday’s Florida state House special election by mail even as he suggested on Monday that “mail-in voting means mail-in cheating.” “You know, brought to my attention today that we’re the only country that does mail-in voting,” Trump said at

By Devan Cole, CNN (CNN) — The Supreme Court spent more than an hour Tuesday debating what “arrives in” the US means, with justices on both sides of the ideological spectrum appearing torn over whether a cryptic provision of federal immigration law could thwart President Donald Trump’s desire to revive a controversial asylum policy. Does

By Sunlen Serfaty, Betsy Klein, CNN (CNN) — The new director of the Kennedy Center is a young, well-liked facilities manager who most recently was “in charge of HVAC and toilets” — as one former colleague put it — at the renowned performing arts institution. Moments after the Kennedy Center board voted to rename the

By Molly English, Randi Kaye, CNN (CNN) — Democrat Emily Gregory has won a special state House election in a Palm Beach district that includes President Donald Trump’s Florida home of Mar-a-Lago, adding another special election win to a recent string of victories around the country for Democrats. Tuesday’s election was a prime opportunity for

By Joan Biskupic, CNN Chief Supreme Court Analyst (CNN) — The Supreme Court on Monday appeared ready to limit mail-in ballots, a move that would reinforce the justices’ pattern of shrinking voter protections and that has, at bottom, favored Republican interests and the Trump administration. And at a time when some justices publicly minimize their internal

By Sarah Ferris, Morgan Rimmer, Ted Barrett, Alison Main, CNN (CNN) — Top Senate Republicans are desperately seeking a way out of the nearly 40-day shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security. Yet they’re struggling to sell their plan to top Democrats — and even President Donald Trump refuses to say he’s fully on board.

CNN, CNN AIR, POOL, WBBM, SENATE TV, THE WHITE HOUSE By Morgan Rimmer, Alison Main, CNN (CNN) — Markwayne Mullin will serve as Donald Trump’s next Department of Homeland Security secretary, elevating the US senator to helm the agency at the center of the president’s controversial immigration enforcement effort and an ongoing shutdown. The Senate

By Morgan Rimmer, Alison Main, CNN (CNN) — Markwayne Mullin will serve as Donald Trump’s next Department of Homeland Security secretary, elevating the US senator to helm the agency at the center of the president’s controversial immigration enforcement effort and an ongoing shutdown. The Senate confirmed the nomination on Monday night, less than three weeks

By Kevin Liptak, Kylie Atwood, Zachary Cohen, Jennifer Hansler, CNN (CNN) — As President Donald Trump was departing Washington last week for Florida, ending the war with Iran appeared the last thing on his mind. “You don’t do a ceasefire when you’re literally obliterating the other side,” he said Friday from the White House South

By David Wright, CNN (CNN) — An already massive gap between Republican National Committee and Democratic National Committee finances widened in February, according to new reports filed with the Federal Election Commission. The RNC out-raised the DNC in February, $18.5 million to $10.3 million. And entering March, the RNC reported nearly seven times as much

By Tierney Sneed, John Fritze, Devan Cole, CNN (CNN) — The Supreme Court’s conservative majority appeared dubious of state laws that allow the counting of mail ballots that arrive at election offices after Election Day as justices heard oral arguments in a challenge to Mississippi’s five-day grace period for mail ballots. Over the course of

By Kara Scannell, CNN (CNN) — The chief district judge in New Jersey appointed Robert Frazer, a career prosecutor, to serve as US attorney for the state, ending for now a dispute over the legality of the office’s leadership that threatened to derail criminal investigations. Frazer is a longtime prosecutor who has worked on violent

By Lauren Fox, Alayna Treene, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump was presented Sunday with a potential off-ramp to the more than month-long Department of Homeland Security shutdown: fund every part of the department except enforcement operations by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, two sources familiar with the conversations told CNN. Senate Majority Leader John Thune

By Betsy Klein, CNN (CNN) — A consortium of the nation’s top architectural and historic preservation groups is targeting President Donald Trump’s plans to temporarily close and extensively renovate the Kennedy Center, filing a new lawsuit Monday that asks a federal judge to indefinitely halt the project. The complaint filed at a federal court in

By Daniel Dale, CNN (CNN) — Donald Trump’s White House spokespeople have a favorite two-step reply when reporters ask them to comment on one of the president’s false claims. First: They say, “President Trump is right.” Second: They defend some related point that isn’t the one Trump actually made. Trump’s communications team has returned to

By Piper Hudspeth Blackburn, CNN (CNN) — A statue of Christopher Columbus has been erected outside of an ornate federal office building on the White House grounds — the latest sign of the Trump administration’s efforts to reshape cultural and historical representations across the nation’s capital. The installation of the statue — which is a

By Dalia Abdelwahab, CNN (CNN) — Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, speaking in JD Vance’s home state of Ohio on Saturday, tore into the vice president, questioning his Appalachian roots and telling voters they “deserve better.” The comments from Beshear — who is viewed as a rising star in the Democratic Party and has been floated

By Riane Lumer, Alison Main, Aileen Graef, CNN (CNN) — Immigration agents will deploy to airports on Monday under the direction of border czar Tom Homan, President Donald Trump said Sunday, as talks to fund the Department of Homeland Security have yet to yield a breakthrough. Trump first threatened Saturday that if lawmakers didn’t reach

By David Wright, CNN (CNN) — “It’s disgusting,” says one woman in the ad. “Disqualifying,” says another. They’re shown reacting to old social media posts from Graham Platner, the Maine Democratic Senate candidate who’s been endorsed by Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, in a new ad from his rival, Maine Gov. Janet Mills. The

By Tierney Sneed, CNN (CNN) — A Supreme Court case examining state deadlines for election ballots sent in the mail is just the tip of the spear in President Donald Trump’s war on mail-in voting. Trump has never let go of his unfounded beliefs that voting by mail is rife with fraud, as he has

By Kaanita Iyer, Gianluca Mezzofiore, CNN (CNN) — Iran’s attempt to strike a US-UK base over 2,000 miles (over 3,000 kilometers) off its coast has renewed questions about Tehran’s military capabilities and how far its missiles can reach. On Friday morning local time, Iran launched two intermediate-range ballistic missiles at Diego Garcia, a joint US-UK

By Alejandra Jaramillo, Riane Lumer, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump said Saturday he will deploy Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to US airports on Monday if an agreement isn’t reached to fund the Department of Homeland Security as Transportation Security Administration workers go without pay and travel disruptions mount. “If the Democrats do not

CNN By Marshall Cohen, Kaanita Iyer, Evan Perez, CNN (CNN) — Robert Mueller, the former FBI director who led the historic probe into alleged collusion between Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign and the Russian government, has died. He was 81. “With deep sadness, we are sharing the news that Bob passed away last night,” his family

By Marshall Cohen, Kaanita Iyer, Evan Perez, CNN (CNN) — Robert Mueller, the former FBI director who led the historic probe into alleged collusion between Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign and the Russian government, has died. He was 81. “With deep sadness, we are sharing the news that Bob passed away last night,” his family said

By Arlette Saenz, CNN (CNN) — In the days after winning the Democratic nomination for Senate, Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton spoke to the two women with whom she could make history next year. “We both were just gleeful. I can tell you that much,” Democratic Sen. Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland said of her call

By Morgan Rimmer, Sarah Ferris, Annie Grayer, CNN (CNN) — After weeks of stalemate — and mounting airport delays nationwide — leaders in both parties are scrambling to work out a deal to reopen the Department of Homeland Security, though it remains unclear if a compromise is in reach. A Friday night meeting on Capitol

By Adam Cancryn, CNN (CNN) — Trump administration officials are making a desperate push to secure every available barrel of oil amid a worsening energy crisis — even if it means lifting sanctions on the very country that they’re fighting against. But three weeks into war with Iran, the administration is running out of options

By Em Steck, Andrew Kaczynski, CNN (CNN) — Former North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson admitted he lied about a bombshell CNN KFile investigation during the final months of his 2024 gubernatorial campaign, uncovering his extensive history of posting inflammatory and racist comments on a pornography website. Robinson initially denied the report and sued CNN

By Haley Britzky, CNN (CNN) — While Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has repeatedly stated that the number and intensity of the strikes the US is carrying out against Iran is only increasing, data provided by the US military shows a pace of operations that has ebbed and flowed over the last three weeks. As Hegseth

By Kit Maher, Sarah Ferris, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump is reshaping a Colorado Republican primary by offering one of the candidates a role in his administration and returning his endorsement to the incumbent, whom he called a “RINO” just last month. On Friday, Trump said that he met with Hope Scheppelman, who is

By Camila DeChalus, Veronica Stracqualursi, CNN (CNN) — More than a month into the Department of Homeland Security shutdown, lawmakers on Capitol Hill are reckoning with their own travel privileges amid anxieties the funding crunch could exacerbate issues at already understaffed airports around the country. Lawmakers typically are allowed expedited screenings and to request security

By Sunlen Serfaty, Donald Judd, CNN (CNN) — The White House has denied that TV host and comedian Bill Maher will receive the prestigious Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, even though two sources close to the Kennedy Center told CNN he had been offered the honor. “This is fake news. Bill Maher will NOT

By Alayna Treene, Zachary Cohen, Natasha Bertrand, Jim Sciutto, Kevin Liptak, CNN (CNN) — US officials are furiously trying to avert a potential monthslong closure of the Strait of Hormuz, privately acknowledging that reopening the key waterway is a problem without a clear solution and dependent at least in part on what lengths President Donald

By Betsy Klein, CNN (CNN) — The Trump administration slapped a new multibillion-dollar lawsuit against Harvard University on Friday, alleging that the school is in violation of a civil rights law and has failed to protect Jewish and Israeli students from discrimination. It is asking a federal judge to require the school to pay back

By John Fritze, CNN (CNN) — The Supreme Court on Friday revived a First Amendment lawsuit from a street preacher who used a loudspeaker to call people “whores,” “Jezebels” and “sissies” as they tried to enter an amphitheater to attend concerts in a suburban Mississippi community. Justice Elena Kagan wrote the opinion for a unanimous

By Kaanita Iyer, Brian Todd, CNN (CNN) — Veterans’ advocates are raising concerns that a new agreement between the departments of Veterans Affairs and Justice could take away veterans’ autonomy over their health care decisions and deter them from seeking care, particularly those facing homelessness. The memorandum, announced by the departments last week, would authorize

By Kara Scannell, CNN (CNN) — The co-founder of Super Micro Computer and two others were charged with diverting $2.5 billion worth of servers with Nvidia’s artificial intelligence chips to China, in violation of US laws barring exports to that country without a license. Yih-Shyan Liaw, known as Wally; Ruei-Tsang Chang, known as Steven; and

By Piper Hudspeth Blackburn, CNN (CNN) — The Treasury Department will begin to manage federal student loans in default, taking on a key function of the Education Department as the Trump administration further pushes to dismantle it. The Treasury Department “will assume operational responsibility” for collecting on defaulted federal student loans and “provide operational support”

By Betsy Klein, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump’s handpicked Commission of Fine Arts voted Thursday to approve a commemorative coin for the United States’ 250th birthday featuring the president’s likeness. And it’s going to be big. “I motion to approve this as presented, and with the strong encouragement that you make it as large

By Morgan Rimmer, CNN (CNN) — Sen. Thom Tillis on Thursday blasted talk of ending the Senate filibuster to pass the “SAVE America Act” as a “foolish and lazy idea” and warned his party that pushing the president’s priority through the so-called talking filibuster would hand control to Democrats. “I have made it crystal clear

By Kara Scannell, CNN (CNN) — The chief executive of Live Nation testified Thursday that it was “disgusting” that a top ticketing employee talked about “robbing fans blind” in internal messages. CEO Michael Rapino, who has led Live Nation since 2005, parsed his answers and pushed back at times to repeated questions about rising ticket

By Holmes Lybrand, Evan Perez, CNN (CNN) — The war with Iran has raised concerns about possible retaliatory terrorist attacks in major cities such as London, where the police commissioner says they have intensified focus on possible threats. But unlike in the US, where government officials have raised alarm of possible so-called Iranian sleeper cells,

By Holmes Lybrand, Hannah Rabinowitz, CNN (CNN) — The Justice Department on Thursday seized several websites it says were used by Iran as part of “psychological operations” targeting perceived advisories and spreading terrorist propaganda. Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security was using the four websites, in part, to post “sensitive data stolen during such hacks,

By Annie Grayer, Manu Raju, Alison Main, CNN (CNN) — Conservative hardliners who supported subpoenaing Attorney General Pam Bondi in the House Oversight Committee’s Jeffrey Epstein probe are now indicating that they are open to changing their position after Bondi met with the panel for a briefing that turned contentious with Democrats. GOP Rep. Lauren

By Sarah Ferris, Manu Raju, Annie Grayer, Lauren Fox, Zachary Cohen, CNN (CNN) — Cracks are emerging among congressional Republicans over the Iran war with key lawmakers skeptical about spending hundreds of billions of dollars to prolong the conflict and several refusing to support any money without a clear White House strategy. In the coming

By Em Steck, Annie Grayer, CNN (CNN) — Jeffrey Epstein’s longtime employee and attorney Darren Indyke testified to lawmakers on Thursday that he “had no knowledge whatsoever” of the convicted sex offender’s wrongdoing and rejected “any suggestion” he assisted or facilitated his former boss’ crimes, according to a copy of his opening statement. “Had I

By Morgan Rimmer (CNN) — Democratic Sen. John Fetterman cast the deciding vote Thursday to advance Markwayne Mullin’s nomination to serve as US Department of Homeland Security secretary, crossing party lines to send President Donald Trump’s nominee to the full Senate for consideration. He explained in a post on X his decision to join Republicans