Suvendu Adhikari’s PA Chandranath Rath’s murder: Police arrest three using UPI payment evidence
According to reports, Police tracked the UPI payment made by the assailants at a toll booth in Bally near Kolkata, leading to the arrest of the attackers.
Tamil Nadu CM Vijay meets DMK chief Stalin in Chennai day after taking oath
This was the first meeting between Vijay and Stalin after last month’s Tamil Nadu assembly election, which the former’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) party won. The meeting came after the new Tamil Nadu assembly held its first session on Monday morning.
MEA issues advisories to Indians in Gulf, ‘avoid traveling to Iran’, lists countries, airlines operating flights
As the US and Iran are locked in fierce negotiations over ending the war, lifting blockades with both sides rejecting demands of each other, India has cautioned its citizens living in the Gulf region over their security.
Is there shortage of petrol, diesel in India? Here’s what govt says after PM Modi’s ‘save fuel’ appeal
On Sunday, while speaking at an event in Telangana, PM Modi appealed to citizens to use petroleum products cautiously in the wake of a global energy crisis sparked by the Iran war. “Today, the need of the hour is also to use petrol, gas, diesel and such things with great restraint,” he said.
U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar’s bipartisan immigration bill draws GOP support — and backlash
The latest version of the El Paso Democrat’s Dignity Act includes a key change to make it more palatable to Republicans. Some have gotten on board, but others are firmly opposed.
Teachers with national certification earn more, but Texas is questioning its worth
The National Board Certification is widely considered the most demanding for teachers. Texas leaders are examining whether it fits the state’s merit-based system.
Texas took their licenses. Now these immigrant truckers face lost livelihoods, sense of betrayal
Texas was among the first states to heed Trump administration directives to revoke commercial driver’s licenses from some immigrants as a safety measure.
Jeffries calls out Trump-era gas prices after telling Republicans not to politicize pump pain under Biden
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., is hammering President Donald Trump over surging gas prices tied to the war with Iran, arguing voter frustration could help Democrats win back the House in November. But four years ago, he urged Republicans not to “play politics” with record prices at the pump under former President Joe Biden. “The average gas price is now $4.55 per gallon,” Jeffries wrote on social media Friday. “Is this what the golden age in America looks like?” As the conflict drags on, disruptions to oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz have pushed fuel prices higher. The Trump administration’s effort to end the war appears to be stalling, even as a month-old ceasefire with Iran has largely held. GAS SURGE TIED TO IRAN CONFLICT HITS SWING STATES, TESTING TRUMP’S LOW-PRICE PITCH Jeffries’ attack on gas prices is part of Democrats’ strategy to focus on affordability, as the party looks to unseat a swath of vulnerable Republicans in battleground House districts this year. Gas prices have risen on average by more than $1.50 — a roughly 50% increase — since Operation Epic Fury began on Feb. 28, according to AAA. A recent Fox News Poll found that nearly 60% of voters said gas prices were a “major problem” for their household. Another 29% of respondents said price increases at the pump were a “minor problem.” Voter concern about persistent inflation has contributed to Democrats holding an eight-point lead over Republicans on the issue, according to the April Fox News survey. Nearly three-quarters of voters believe the U.S. economy is getting worse, matching a record high that Fox News also observed under Biden in April 2023. “The problem with this reckless war of choice is life has gotten more expensive,” Jeffries told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” in April. But Jeffries struck a markedly different tone in March 2022, when gas prices surged following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Average gas prices ultimately rose to more than $5 per gallon in June of that year. FROM BIDEN’S ‘WAR’ ON GAS PRICES TO ‘SMALL PRICE TO PAY’: GOP SHIFTS TONE AS IRAN CONFLICT HITS PUMPS “It’s certainly my hope that my Republican colleagues won’t continue to play politics with an existential crisis for Ukraine, for Europe, for the West and for democracy because that is what is at stake right now,” Jeffries said during a March 2022 news conference, referring to a spike in gas prices. “It may be some sacrifice that is required across the world.” “Certainly, we are seeing incredible sacrifice by the Ukrainian people,” he went on. Asked by a reporter whether the Biden administration should ask Americans to temporarily work from home to ease the gas crisis, Jeffries replied, “Everything should be on the table” and suggested the private sector consider the idea. “To the extent that corporate America, American businesses, as was the case during World War II, see themselves as part of the effort to ease the sacrifices that may be required here, I think that would be a positive development for the country,” he said. Fox News Digital reached out to a Jeffries spokesperson before publication. Energy Secretary Chris Wright has voiced optimism that gas prices will fall following the end of hostilities with Iran while conceding that Americans are experiencing “discomfort” in the short term. “I’m avoiding price predictions,” Wright told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday. “Gasoline and diesel prices are up, and they’ll remain up while this conflict is in place, and then they will come back down. And ultimately they’ll come back down lower than they were before.” “Ending Iran’s nuclear program, that is massively positive for the flow of energy,” Wright said. “Meaning more energy will flow in the future, meaning lower energy prices for Americans and the rest of the world.”
Alabama’s congressional map hinges on US Supreme Court
Alabama’s Republican Gov. Kay Ivey signed legislation Friday that would demand the governor call special primary elections for impacted U.S. House districts if the Supreme Court allows the state to utilize district lines its legislature approved in 2023 but has been blocked from using. The governor also signed similar legislation pertaining to state Senate districts approved in 2021. “With this special session successfully behind us, Alabama now stands ready to quickly act, should the courts issue favorable rulings in our ongoing redistricting cases,” Ivey said in a statement. “I thank the Legislature for answering my call to address the issue in fast order. I am grateful to Speaker Ledbetter and Pro Tem Gudger for their strong leadership and focus this week. Alabama knows our state, our people and our districts best.” GOP SPEAKER CLAPS BACK AFTER BOOKER STUMPS AGAINST BID TO ERADICATE RED STATE’S DEMOCRAT-HELD DISTRICTS A federal court on Friday denied an emergency motion for a stay in the congressional redistricting case. “Quite simply, we do not have the authority to issue an order that upends Alabama’s status quo, especially in the middle of an election, while our injunction establishing that status quo is well under review in the nation’s highest court,” the order declared. SEN TOMMY TUBERVILLE, MORGAN MURPHY: REPUBLICANS MUST WIN THE MAP WAR ONCE AND FOR ALL The state is pressing the U.S. Supreme Court to take action to allow it to utilize the 2023 congressional map. “I will continue to fight for Alabama to be able to use the congressional map the people’s elected representatives enacted,” state Attorney General Steve Marshall said Friday. TRUMP CRITICIZES 2 SUPREME COURT JUSTICES BY NAME OVER TARIFF RULING “Alabama drew a map based on lawful policy goals, not race, and the Supreme Court’s recent ruling vindicates that approach. We were punished for doing the right thing, and we are asking the Court to correct that now,” the official noted.
Trump accuses Schumer of trying to ‘interfere in our elections’ with latest strategy
The partisan battle over midterm elections is heating up in Washington, D.C., with accusations flying that both sides are trying to rig the outcome in November. Republicans are trying to hold on to their majority in both chambers, while Democrats are trying to pounce on sluggish legislating, infighting and rising costs in their quest to take over the House, Senate or both. And President Donald Trump is already accusing Democrats of election interference months before Election Day. SCHUMER, DEMS LAUNCH ‘FREE AND FAIR’ ELECTIONS TASK FORCE AS TRUMP’S SAVE AMERICA ACT STUMBLES “The Democrats are totally unhinged, and we will not allow them to threaten the integrity of our Elections,” Trump said on Truth Social. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Democrats recently launched a “free and fair elections task force” that would recruit the likes of former Attorney General Eric Holder and Marc Elias, who Trump charged was “a terrible lawyer with a horrible track record.” “Palestinian Chuck Schumer is hiring Eric Holder, famous for handing guns to Mexican cartels under the Barack Hussein Obama administration, as part of a Democrat-led ‘Election Integrity Group’ that will no doubt try to suppress Republican voters, and interfere in our Elections,” Trump said on Truth Social. Schumer and Senate Democrats debuted the elections task force as Republicans struggle to move forward on voter ID and citizenship verification legislation, and on the heels of the Supreme Court’s redistricting decision that is expected to further crank up the redistricting arms race across the country. REPUBLICANS FAIL TO ATTACH SAVE AMERICA ACT TO PARTY-LINE FUNDING PACKAGE “Donald Trump and the Republicans realize that if the election were held fairly, that the likelihood is that they would lose, and we would win, that we would take back the House, take back the Senate,” Schumer said. “So they are doing all kinds of nefarious things, some of them legal, some of them not so legal, to try and overturn a fair result in an election,” he continued. Schumer described the task force’s mission as seeking out “election threats,” including actions at the administrative level by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS), attacks on the First Amendment, foreign threats and militarization of law enforcement at the polls. Trump countered that in the 2024 election cycle, Republicans mounted an “Election Integrity Army in every single State to preserve the sanctity of each legal vote.” “We will be doing the same again in 2026, but it will be much bigger and stronger,” Trump said. “All Americans should have their voices be heard by casting a vote. Be assured this Election will be fair!” Its inception is in response to what Democrats say is a “comprehensive effort” by Trump and his administration to undermine the upcoming election, particularly through efforts to pass the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act. TWO DOZEN HOUSE REPUBLICANS GO TO WAR WITH SENATE GOP OVER SAVE AMERICA ACT Trump has strongly pushed Republicans to pass the SAVE America Act, which would create federal voter ID laws, require proof of citizenship to register to vote and share information on voter rolls with DHS. Democrats say the legislation would disenfranchise millions of Americans. But Republicans aren’t unified behind the legislation. The SAVE America Act, or a version of it pushed by Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., failed last month when four Republicans joined Democrats to kill it. He has also called on Republicans to nationalize elections, and DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin didn’t rule out sending federal immigration agents to polling places in the fall during his confirmation hearing earlier this year. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt earlier this year pushed back against whether Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents would head to the polls come November, and said “that’s not something I’ve ever heard the president consider.” “I haven’t heard the president discuss any formal plans to put ICE outside of polling locations,” Leavitt said. It’s part of what Democrats charge is a concerted effort to tip the scales in the upcoming elections. “Donald Trump doesn’t think he did too much in 2020 to steal the election,” Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., said. “He thinks he did too little, and so that’s why you are seeing, already, a comprehensive effort to try to rig and steal the fall election.”