India’s First Hydrogen-Powered Train to launch July 17 in Haryana: Route, features and why it matters| Explained
The Hydrogen Fuel Cell Powered Train will initially operate on the Jind-Sonipat section of Northern Railway, connecting Jind Junction, Gohana Junction and Sonipat. Details inside.
Why did so many scientists resign from ISRO? Here’s what Minister Jitendra Singh said
His comment came after it was reported that the Department of Space (DoS) had issued a directive, tightening rules on voluntary retirements and resignations.
CM Rekha Gupta-led Delhi govt approves Rs 400-crore startup policy to boost jobs, entrepreneurs
Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said the policy is designed to develop Delhi into one of the country’s leading hubs for innovation and entrepreneurship while ensuring that young people receive every possible support to turn their ideas into successful start-ups.
Chhattisgarh set to become first state with risk-based business approvals
The Bill introduces self-certification or certification by licensed engineers, architects and authorised professionals for low-risk enterprises, replacing frequent departmental inspections.
East Texas counties move to protect groundwater with new conservation district
More than a dozen counties in Northeast Texas have signed resolutions to create a groundwater conservation district in a bid to protect local groundwater.
Proposed EPA rule could weaken Texans’ voice on certain air permits used by data centers
The change would give states greater power on deciding how much notice and public input residents receive before such permits are approved or denied.
Todd Blanche roasts Adam Schiff in heated hearing: ‘You’re a lawyer, you know the rules’
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche came out swinging against Sen. Adam Schiff on Wednesday, denying allegations of self-dealing and intentional refusal-to-recuse in President Donald Trump’s cases, while accusing the California Democrat of lying. Schiff sparred with Blanche over several legal matters he said prove the nominee is unfit for the job of America’s top law enforcement officer, citing what he described as serious conflicts of interest. Blanche denied the allegations while telling Schiff he was misstating ethics rules and botching key timelines. Schiff pressed Blanche on whether he met with Justice Department ethics lawyers about his prior representation of Trump in the Stormy Daniels, Mar-a-Lago classified documents, and Jan. 6 cases. TRUMP’S AG NOMINEE RACKS UP MASSIVE SUPPORT AHEAD OF CONFIRMATION HEARING: ‘REAL RESULTS’ Blanche affirmed and said he has recused himself from future litigation or Justice Department business involving any of those suits. But Schiff countered that Blanche reportedly told a crowd at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) that there was no conflict of interest in the Justice Department firing prosecutors linked to Jan. 6 or other cases. Blanche soon fired back when Schiff criticized him for moving to vacate Jan. 6-related convictions for 12 members of far-right groups. “I was the acting attorney general – so yes, my department moved to dismiss,” he said, adding that there was no reason for him to recuse himself when Schiff pressed him further. BIDEN SPECIAL COUNSEL’S ‘RUNAWAY TRAIN’ SCOOPED UP SENSITIVE LAWMAKER INFO: ‘ABUSE OF POWER’ “From the Proud Boys matter?” Blanche responded with a puzzled look. “You’re a lawyer, you know the rules,” Blanche told the Massachusetts-born graduate of Harvard Law. OBAMA JUDGE HANDS PROGRESSIVES A WIN OVER ANTI-TRUMP ’86 47′ MESSAGE AMID RISING THREATS “There are rules that say when I have to recuse and that’s not one of them,” Blanche said. “There are rules,” Schiff agreed. “And when you’re told to recuse yourself from investigations that you handle for the president…” — “I always do,” Blanche cut in – “you’re supposed to recuse yourself,” Schiff finished. Schiff noted that the second volume of Special Counsel Jack Smith’s report on Trump has not been released and said the Justice Department has opposed making it available. Blanche denied having anything to do with the decision and pointed out it is not the Justice Department, but a federal judge in Miami that has prohibited its release. “If you went into court asking them to release it, it would be released by now,” Schiff argued. Blanche shot back: “What you’re saying happens not to be true – I did not do that.” “You can’t accuse me of violating my ethical rules and then lie about what I did,” he continued, Schiff asked Blanche at length what allegedly evolved in his professional life that led him to be under such criticisms. “What I don’t understand, Todd Blanche, is what happened to the Todd Blanche who was a prosecutor in the Southern District of New York? What happened to the prosecutor people had respect for,” he said. “What happened to the prosecutor who said that there wouldn’t be a whiff of political partisanship and then prosecutes the president’s enemies over seashells cases, over making a video stating the plain law in the Constitution?” Schiff said – appearing to reference investigations into former FBI Director Jim Comey’s “8647” post that critics said amounted to a threat on Trump’s life. “I think Robert Caro had it right when he said that power doesn’t corrupt as much as it reveals. I suspect it has just revealed who you are and who you are as someone willing to sacrifice everything you once believed in for that title, for that position of Attorney general,” Schiff claimed. “I am still here. I am the same exact person I was when I was a federal prosecutor in the SDNY,” Blanche replied. The exchange led to further criticism of Schiff, including from the Trump-appointed prosecutor in his home region: SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER “Facts are not Senator Schiff’s strong suit,” claimed First Assistant U.S. Attorney for Central California Bill Essayli. Former Alabama federal prosecutor Jay Town called the exchange “excellent.” “What [Blanche] is essentially saying is that the Justice Department has gone back to the fundamentals of increasing prosecutions and lowering crime nationwide, unlike the Garland DOJ targeting parents, Catholics, etc.” Fox News Digital reached out to Schiff for comment.
Bessent invokes assassination attempt ‘2 hours after being sworn in’ in dramatic brushback of leftist threat
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Thursday he was the target of an assassination attempt by a “left-wing activist” just two hours after being sworn into office, citing the case as evidence that violent political extremism from the left is a real and growing threat. Speaking at the State Department‘s Ministerial on the Resurgence of Political Terrorism, Bessent pushed back against critics who have questioned the Trump administration’s focus on violent far-left extremist groups. “I’m going to remind everyone in this room — and all the media — that I was the subject of an assassination attempt by an addled left-wing activist two hours after being sworn into my job,” Bessent said. “Any of you who want to report that this is a fiction and does not exist, be there for the sentencing this August.” Bessent appeared to be referring to Ryan Michael English, a 24-year-old Massachusetts man who pleaded guilty in March to charges related to attempting to assassinate the then-Treasury secretary nominee at the U.S. Capitol. English traveled to Washington on Jan. 27, 2025, carrying a folding knife and two improvised Molotov cocktails before approaching a U.S. Capitol Police officer and asking to turn himself in, according to the Justice Department. Prosecutors said English admitted he had come to the Capitol intending to kill a Cabinet nominee whose Senate confirmation vote was scheduled that day or burn down a Washington think tank. Investigators also recovered a note in which he allegedly wrote, in part, “This is terrible but I cant do nothing while nazis kill my sisters.” English pleaded guilty in March to one count of unlawful receipt, possession and transfer of a firearm and one count of carrying a dangerous weapon on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol. He is scheduled to be sentenced Aug. 14. Before his time as Treasury secretary, Bessent spent years at Soros Fund Management, serving as the firm’s chief investment officer from 2011 to 2015 after earlier helping lead its London office. Following his departure, he launched Key Square Capital Management with backing from George Soros, the billionaire investor and Democratic megadonor who has frequently been a target of criticism from Trump and other conservatives. Bessent made the remarks as administration officials gathered representatives from roughly 65 countries for a State Department summit aimed at building international cooperation against what the Trump administration describes as a resurgence of violent far-left political terrorism.
Dems roasted for comparing Hegseth’s testosterone initiative to ‘gender-affirming care’
Democrats, including Sens. Adam Schiff of California and Mazie Hirono of Hawaii, are being mocked online for likening the Pentagon’s new testosterone testing and treatment plan to cross-sex “gender-affirming care.” Following Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s announcement that the military would begin screening for testosterone deficiency, Democratic leaders quickly took to social media to mock the program as a return to “gender-affirming care.” “Pete Hegseth comes out in favor of gender-affirming care…,” wrote Schiff, while Hirono wrote, “So the Pentagon is promoting gender-affirming care now?” Several other Democrats piled on with similar posts. Their posts, however, were met with immediate pushback. MED SCHOOL DEANS COME UP EMPTY IN TENSE HEARING WHEN ASKED POINT BLANK IF MEN CAN HAVE BABIES: ‘RIDICULOUS’ Commenting on Schiff’s post, one user wrote, “Giving testosterone to men is gender-affirming and not harmful. Chemically castrating a boy or a double mastectomy on a girl is gender-denying, irreversible and harmful. [Schiff] is not only a liar, he is stupid.” In response to a post by Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., saying, “Sounds like gender-affirming care to me,” conservative influencer “Just a Bama Gal” shot back, “Not even close.” Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., even brought up the program during a House hearing, bashing it as “absurd” and suggesting that the government could begin testing whether representatives are “male enough to be in Congress.” “The Secretary of Forever Wars, Pete Hegseth, just announced they are going to provide hormone therapy to male service members who don’t have enough testosterone,” Jayapal wrote on X. “Let’s be clear: This is gender-affirming care, and it completely debunks all of Republicans’ attacks on trans people.” In response, one user who goes by the name Ellie May wrote, “Let’s be clear your ignorance is showing. Giving your body more of something that it naturally produces is not the equivalent of giving your body the exact opposite it needs to thrive and survive.” DEMOCRATS REVOLT OVER ‘BIOLOGICAL’ WORDING IN WOMEN’S HISTORY MUSEUM BILL “Are you crazy???” responded another user named Leah Babcock, “When a woman goes through menopause and gets hormone replacement she’s not suddenly a trans person.” Hegseth announced the program in a post on Wednesday. He explained the military would begin testosterone screening for service members over 30 and optional screening for those under 30 as part of its annual health assessment. Hegseth said that if treatment is recommended, service members will have the choice of undergoing testosterone replacement therapy. He clarified, “This is not about artificial enhancement; it’s about restoring and optimizing your natural capabilities, protecting your longevity and ensuring you have the biological foundation required to sustain the fight.” In an X post, he labeled his announcement “the High-T Department of War.” Meaghan Mobbs, a former Army paratrooper and president of the nonprofit the R.T. Weatherman Foundation, posted on X, “If you are one of the people melting down because the Department of War wants to screen men over 30 for testosterone deficiency, I am begging you to spend ten minutes reading the science before letting Hegseth Derangement Syndrome rob you of common sense.” “Testosterone is not some cosmetic ‘masculinity’ metric,” Mobbs explained. “It is a major endocrine signal tied to muscle mass, bone density, red blood cell production, metabolism, sexual function, energy, concentration, mood, recovery, and physical performance. Clinically low testosterone can present as exhaustion, loss of strength and muscle, impaired concentration, irritability, depressed mood, reduced motivation, and diminished sexual function.” She said that “for years, veterans, clinicians, and military families have begged the system to [take] endocrine health more seriously,” adding, “Now someone finally is. Thank God.” TRUMP SAYS US IS ‘BOOMING,’ PREDICTS IRAN WILL BE ‘DEFEATED VERY SOON’ Likewise, Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services Adm. Brian Christine wrote, “I fully support Secretary Hegseth’s initiative at the Department of War in recognizing the importance of healthy testosterone levels in its warfighting men!” “Optimizing testosterone supports strength, endurance, healthy body composition, cognitive performance, mission readiness, and overall well-being—ensuring America’s fighting force is prepared to perform at its highest level,” wrote Christine.
Trump admin fires US attorney in Seattle minutes after he was appointed
The Trump administration took the fight over who controls U.S. attorney appointments to a whole new level, firing a Seattle-based prosecutor less than an hour after he was picked for the job without the blessing of the administration. “District court judges can appoint a temporary U.S. Attorney, and POTUS can fire them,” acting Attorney General Todd Blanche wrote Wednesday on X as he was testifying before the Senate in his confirmation hearing, calling out a U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington state panel for elevating Judge Roger Rogoff to be the top federal prosecutor in Seattle. “WDWA judges abandoned the time-honored process of consultation with the administration so that the selected U.S. Attorney is qualified to serve in the administration,” Blanche said. “Roger Rogoff has been fired by the President.” That post came after Rogoff, 57, a former King County Superior Court judge and longtime state and federal prosecutor, was sworn in before 8 a.m. local time at the federal courthouse in downtown Seattle as U.S. attorney for the Western District of Washington. TRUMP’S AG NOMINEE RACKS UP MASSIVE SUPPORT AHEAD OF CONFIRMATION HEARING: ‘REAL RESULTS’ He then went to the U.S. Attorney’s Office and asked to meet with Charles Neil Floyd, the Trump administration’s preferred choice for the job, whose 120-day interim term expired in February. While Rogoff waited in the lobby, he received an email notifying him that Trump had removed him from office. Rogoff’s situation was not mentioned in Blanche’s Senate confirmation hearing Wednesday, but Blanche is back before the Senate again Thursday and Rogoff now might be a notable topic of discussion during his confirmation process. BIDEN JUDGE REJECTS TRUMP’S SANCTUARY CITIES LAWSUIT, SAYS EVEN A WIN WOULDN’T SOLVE DOJ’S PROBLEM The quick dismissal came after all 17 active and senior federal judges in the deep-blue district appointed Rogoff to the vacancy. The judges, appointed by five presidents (10 by Democrats and seven by Republicans), had opened an application process after the administration did not send Floyd’s nomination to the Senate and instead kept him in place by making him first assistant U.S. attorney while leaving the top job vacant. U.S. attorneys, who serve as the Justice Department’s chief federal prosecutors in each district, are normally nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate. Federal law allows the attorney general to name an interim U.S. attorney for 120 days. If that period expires without a confirmed nominee, district judges may appoint someone to serve until the vacancy is filled. Because of obstruction by Democrats in the narrowly held Senate, the Trump administration has resorted to using acting titles and other personnel moves to keep its prosecutors in place. Courts have pushed back in several Democrat-heavy districts like Seattle and New Jersey, issuing legal challenges to the Justice Department and White House authority. “I don’t think it’s the way to run the Department of Justice,” Rogoff told The New York Times. “When you have this sort of made up way of putting people in these positions, the process breaks down.” Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., opposed Floyd for the U.S. attorney job and blasted Rogoff’s quick firing. “Throughout his career, he has demonstrated an outstanding commitment to public service, and he was appointed legally by the federal judges in the Western District of Washington,” Murray wrote in a statement. “This administration doesn’t want to deal with advice and consent — they just want to install cronies to carry out a corrupt political agenda.” LEGAL WAR ON TRUMP’S AGENDA GAINS FIREPOWER AS FEDERAL LAWYERS DEFECT TO DEMOCRATS Trump administration officials have long noted that the “advise and consent” role of the Senate does not grant Democrats against Trump’s administrative priorities to be a hard block on his agenda and nominees, though. Rogoff has retained an employment law firm and is considering a legal challenge to his firing. Fox News Digital reached out to Rogoff for comment. The Seattle clash follows similar disputes elsewhere. In New Jersey, Alina Habba resigned as the top federal prosecutor after an appeals court said she had been serving unlawfully. In Virginia, Lindsey Halligan left an acting U.S. attorney post after a judge found her appointment unlawful and dismissed indictments she had brought against New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey. The administration has also fired court-appointed U.S. attorneys in other districts. Rogoff, who spent 20 years as a state prosecutor and six as a federal prosecutor before becoming a state judge, said he knew the administration might fire him immediately. Despite this, he said he had no qualms about the potential conflict he was walking into, because being U.S. attorney is “the best job there is.” “I’m really proud of my career,” Rogoff said. “The fact that the judges of this district — most of whom I’ve spent my career appearing in front of, or trying cases against, or working with — believed that I was the right person to do this work is just really humbling and amazing.” The Associated Press contributed to this report.