Salem News Channel

Senate Republicans are expected to abandon a proposal that would provide $1 billion for security upgrades at the White House complex and President Donald Trump’s new ballroom project. The White House had pushed to include the funding in a larger bill aimed at restoring money for ICE and the Border Patrol. Some Republicans are questioning the cost of the proposal and are asking for more details from the White House and Secret Service about how the money would be used. The debate highlights growing divisions within the GOP over federal spending priorities.

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Lawmakers on a House committee are showing bipartisan support for ensuring TSA officers are paid during future government shutdowns while also pushing for updated airport security technology. The hearing comes as the Trump administration continues to push a plan that would expand the use of private contractors to handle airport screening at smaller airports nationwide. Officials noted TSA officers went without pay for more than 100 days during recent funding lapses while continuing to work security checkpoints. The proposal would also cut thousands of TSA positions while shifting more airport security operations to private companies.

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Elon Musk has announced plans for what could become one of the largest initial public offerings in history for SpaceX. New financial filings show the company lost more than $2.6 billion last year despite generating nearly $19 billion in revenue. The planned IPO could surpass the record-setting public debut of Saudi Aramco and may push Musk’s personal wealth past the one-trillion-dollar mark. Forbes currently estimates Musk’s net worth at more than $839 billion.

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Two police officers who defended the U.S. Capitol during the January 6 riot are suing to block payouts from a new $1.776 billion settlement fund. The fund is intended for people who claim they were targeted by politically motivated prosecutions. The lawsuit comes after Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said he could not rule out the possibility that some January 6 rioters could qualify for compensation. The case was filed Wednesday in federal court in Washington, D.C.

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Federal prosecutors are seeking a 50-year prison sentence for Aimee Bock, the former head of the Minnesota nonprofit at the center of a $250 million pandemic fraud scheme. Bock ran “Feeding Our Future,” which claimed it provided millions of meals to children during the COVID-19 pandemic. Her attorney is asking for no more than three years in prison, arguing she was unfairly portrayed as the mastermind behind the scheme. Bock is scheduled to be sentenced Thursday in federal court in Minneapolis.

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Three people are dead in New Mexico after authorities responded to a rural home for a suspected drug overdose. State police say four people were found unresponsive inside a home near Mountainair, east of Albuquerque. More than a dozen first responders were also evaluated after possible exposure to an unidentified substance at the scene. Officials at the University of New Mexico Hospital say most of those exposed showed no symptoms and were later released after decontamination procedures.

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Stephen Colbert is hosting his final episode of “The Late Show” Thursday night, bringing an end to CBS’s 33-year late-night franchise. The network announced last year that Colbert’s show would end after 11 seasons, citing economic reasons. Colbert and some supporters, however, have suggested political pressure may have contributed to the decision. Colbert exits as the ratings leader in late-night television after nearly a decade behind the CBS desk.

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Trump Slams Democrats Over Failed Peace Talks with Iran

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Capturing Castro Next?

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LOS ANGELES (AP) — Attorneys for the man accused of sparking last year's deadly Palisades Fire in and around Los Angeles can't introduce evidence or arguments at his arson trial about alleged negligence by the fire department in responding to an earlier blaze, a federal judge ruled Wednesday. Jonathan Rinderknecht, 29, pleaded not guilty to starting what became one of the most destructive wildfires in California history. Prosecutors say Rinderknecht started a fire on Jan. 1 that burned undetected deep in root systems before flaring back up a week later. The Palisades Fire began Jan. 7, 2025, and burned through the hillside neighborhoods of Pacific Palisades and Malibu, eventually killing 12 people. Rinderknecht’s trial is set to begin June 8. His lead attorney, Steve Haney, has said that Rinderknecht is being used as a scapegoat for the Los Angeles Fire Department’s failure to fully extinguish the earlier blaze. During Wednesday's hearing, Judge Anne Hwang ruled that depositions by members of the fire department and a state park ranger cannot be introduced at trial because she thinks the information is irrelevant to the charges against Rinderknecht and could confuse the jury. The evidence that defense attorneys intended to use included testimony from a firefighter, fire captain and a state park ranger that the New Year’s Day 2025 blaze was visibly smoldering when first responders left the scene. That testimony was gathered as part of a lawsuit filed by fire victims against the city. Hwang also barred prosecutors from introducing AI-generated images of a city burning that prosecutors said Rinderknecht created a few months before the fire. Haney said the exclusion of the ChatGPT images was important to his client because they are “very, very prejudicial” and taken out of context. Other fire department actions can be discussed, including its initial response to and investigation of the Jan. 1 fire that burned some brush. Haney said he plans to argue that the government does not have solid evidence linking Rinderknecht to that fire, and that first responders had heard fireworks in the vicinity of where the blaze started. An outline of prosecutors’ strategy — with details about the defendant’s alleged state of mind on the night before the first fire began — appeared in an April 29 pretrial memo filed by the U.S. attorney’s office. Prosecutors will claim he was upset that he didn't have plans for New Year's Eve and ranted about being angry at the world before the initial blaze was sparked.

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May 20 (Reuters) - U.S. officials are working with Mapp Biopharmaceutical to make an experimental Ebola treatment available for people who may have been exposed to the virus, an HHS official said on Wednesday. The privately held biotech firm is working with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, known as BARDA, to supply the treatment for potential use in high-risk individuals as part of coordinated preparedness efforts, the official told Reuters. The investigational monoclonal antibody treatment was developed through a longstanding public-private partnership supported by BARDA to address Sudan virus, which is closely related to other ebolaviruses, the official said. Laboratory data suggest the treatment has the potential to be effective against the Bundibugyo ebolavirus, the cause of the current Ebola outbreak. The outbreak was declared last week and has alarmed experts because it spread undetected for weeks in a densely populated area. Any potential use of the product is being coordinated through a whole-of-government approach involving ASPR, FDA, and the Department of State, the official added. The official did not discuss specific supply levels, production capacity or procurement considerations. Bloomberg News first reported the development. The Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo that likely started two months ago has killed more than 130 people and is expected to continue to grow, the World Health Organization said. There is currently no approved vaccine or virus-specific treatment for the Bundibugyo strain, and any potential vaccine could take months to develop. Six hundred suspected cases and 139 suspected deaths have been recorded so far, with confirmed cases also reported in neighboring Uganda. The WHO has classified the outbreak as a public health emergency of international concern. First responders have said they lack basic supplies needed to help contain the spread. The San Diego-based Mapp focuses on vaccines and medicines for infectious diseases and previously developed an experimental Ebola drug, ZMapp, used during the 2014 outbreak. On its website, the company says ZMapp has been discontinued and lists MBP134, an experimental monoclonal antibody treatment targeting multiple ebolaviruses including the Sudan species, in its pipeline.

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May 20 (Reuters) - A sinkhole on Wednesday forced the closure of one of the runways at New York's LaGuardia airport, prompting cancellations and delays and ongoing emergency repairs. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which manages New York City area airports, said at 11 a.m. officials were conducting a daily morning inspection of LaGuardia’s airfield when crews identified a sinkhole. The authority warned "travelers should expect delays and cancellations, particularly with forecast thunderstorms expected later today." The Federal Aviation Administration said it was slowing flights into LaGuardia Airport, due to weather and the sinkhole. About 200 flights, or 17% of departing and arriving flights were cancelled at LaGuardia and 190 delayed, according to FlightAware, a flight tracking site. Delta Air Lines is the largest carrier at LaGuardia, accounting for about 40% of flights.

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Thomas Massie Deserved to Lose

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What Is Trump Going To Do With Iran?

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Hakeem Jeffries Wants Black Athletes to Boycott Southern Colleges Because of Voting Rights

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What's Going on with Iran?

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A Successful Trip to China

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Will Jen Psaki Get Sued by Eric Trump?!

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PHILADELPHIA (AP) — It's another hot day across the eastern U.S. a day after several spots broke daily heat records. While students elsewhere sweated it out in unairconditioned classrooms, the Philadelphia school district shifted to remote learning Wednesday for students in 57 schools. The National Weather Service said another day of record heat was expected from the mid-Atlantic to New England before a cold front brings rain later in the week. A heat advisory was in effect for portions of Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island through Wednesday evening, with high temperatures and humidity making it feel like up to 96 degrees Fahrenheit.

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Rand Paul's son goes after Rep. Mark Lawler (R-NY) for being Jewish—except Lawler isn't even Jewish. Then he blames the whole antisemitic meltdown on booze. Look, he gets a couple points for apologizing, but come on. That doesn't make this okay. Not even close. ---- Two iconic talk radio hosts. One unfiltered daily conversation. No scripts. No spin. Just Mike Gallagher and Mark Davis breaking down the news the way it should be — with decades of experience and zero apologies. If you love smart unscripted talk show chemistry, you’re in the right place. Subscribe & Watch M and M Extra Live ?? / @mandmextra ?? Weekdays at 12 PM ET Watch The Mike Gallagher Show Live ?? salemnewschannel.com/watch-live ?? Weekdays 9 AM – 12 PM ET Listen to The Mark Davis Show ?? 660amtheanswer.com/listenlive ?? Weekdays at 7AM - 10AM CT

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