Platner campaign rocked with damning allegations from another ex-lover as Senate race heats up: report
A day after Graham Platner became the Democratic Senate nominee in Maine, a woman took to social media to allege that she briefly dated Platner in 2021, recounting stories of having met him on the Tinder dating app, his infidelity and how Platner’s story about his infamous Nazi tattoo had changed over time. “I am stepping forward as a person who has experienced lying and manipulation by his hand to lend my voice to what is a growing number of women who have been wronged by this man in one way or another,” a female streamer with the X handle, 420mercymain69, wrote in a long X statement on Thursday. “It is hideous,” the woman, who claimed she was attracted to Platner’s Tinder profile because he was “hot and he was a leftist,” said in her X statement. The new details add another layer to Platner’s allegedly deceptive conduct towards romantic partners and grows the pile of scandals that have trailed his campaign. SENATE CANDIDATE GRAHAM PLATNER SENT EXPLICIT TEXTS TO MULTIPLE WOMEN WHILE MARRIED, WIFE SAYS: REPORT Platner, who officially became the Democratic nominee to challenge incumbent Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, earlier this week, has grappled with his resurfaced past — receiving criticism for making off-color remarks on sexual abuse, race and terror and allegedly threatening behavior toward women. According to 420mercymain69, a native of Maryland who considered herself a “well-informed leftist,” the two of them started talking on Tinder in Feb. 2021 and started dating until mid-July 2021. When approached about his Totenkopf tattoo, a symbol used by the Nazi SS, the author claims Platner said that he had gotten it in ignorance but that he had kept it as a reminder that the U.S. were “the bad guys” in many parts of the world. “A sob story of monumental proportions that only further solidified my perception of his ideology,” the author remembered. “But surprisingly enough not the one he gave to the people of Maine,” she continued. “And I do mean genuinely surprising because from the moment he announced his campaign, that is exactly what I expected to hear when the truth inevitably came out.” DEMOCRATIC MAINE SENATE CANDIDATE GRAHAM PLATNER CONFRONTED BY MS NOW HOST ABOUT TATTOO CONTROVERSY When the tattoo surfaced late last year, he had said he wasn’t familiar with its Nazi associations. “Graham’s repeatedly said he picked a skull-and-crossbones tattoo off a wall in Croatia to commemorate surviving Ramadi and his friends who were killed there,” a spokesperson from the Platner campaign told Fox News. “Graham has also since covered up the tattoo, and answered countless questions about it.” “Unlike Susan Collins, who refuses to take questions on her disastrous vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh, gut rural hospitals, and supported every foreign war of the last thirty years,” the spokesperson continued. Aside from the tattoo, 420mercymain69 also accused Platner of several instances of relational infidelity. Platner and the post’s author parted ways after she discovered from a mutual friend that he was allegedly seeing someone else while the two were still dating. “He was talking about a woman he had blown it with, saying she was ‘the love of his life.’ I was naïve and probably a little too starry-eyed from my own good, but as a person who had only been on a handful of dates with him and f—– around a bit, I was smart enough to know he wasn’t talking about me,” the woman claimed. “I took the hint,” she continued. She claimed that, after leaving the relationship, she discovered Platner had been engaged to a woman named “Jen” when the two began conversing. She was also told that Platner was allegedly cheating on her with a third woman. “She had walked in on him having sex with another person at a wedding they were at in D.C. That mutual friend also advised that he was trying to repair things with this woman and asked me if I was going to seek her out to tell her,” she said on X. In summarizing her experience, which was reportedly confirmed by The New York Post, the author said she did not intend to derail Platner’s campaign, but that she shared concerns about his character. Fox News Digital could not independently confirm the claims from the alleged ex-girlfriend. PLATNER SUPPORTER KHANNA CALLS SENATE HOPEFUL’S PAST RELATIONSHIPS ‘TOXIC,’ BUT SAYS HE DESERVES ‘REDEMPTION’ “There will be more information that comes out,” she claimed. “If I were a Maine voter seeing the things I’m seeing, I wouldn’t have voted for him, personal experience notwithstanding, because I do not trust him. Why, after all that has come out, would I?” “People that I have admired are brushing this off, discounting women’s experiences, attacking other journalists,or allowing people in their comment sections to do so. Especially with regard to domestic violence. It is hideous,” she concluded.
FIRST ON FOX: DOJ sues Spanberger’s Virginia over laws kneecapping federal agents as mask war escalates
FIRST ON FOX: The Justice Department sued The Commonwealth of Virginia on Thursday over two new laws the DOJ says would subject masked federal agents to criminal penalties and threaten local ICE cooperation agreements. “Law enforcement officers risk their lives every day to keep Americans safe, and they do not deserve to be doxed or harassed simply for carrying out their duties,” said acting Attorney General Todd Blanche in comment provided to Fox News Digital on Thursday. “Virginia’s anti-law enforcement policies regulate the federal government and are designed to create risk for our agents. These laws cannot stand.” The lawsuit, first shared with Fox News Digital, argues Virginia is violating the Constitution by attempting to dictate how federal officers carry out law enforcement operations — including when they can wear masks, what identifying information they must display and whether local agencies can maintain ICE cooperation agreements unless the federal government accepts state-imposed conditions. The DOJ said the laws threaten officer safety, undermine federal immigration enforcement and violate the Supremacy Clause. At the heart of the suit, are a pair of laws that Democratic Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger signed, which are set to take effect on July, including: one restricting law enforcement officers, including federal officers, from wearing facial coverings while on duty and requiring them to display identifying information, and another imposing state-mandated conditions on federal immigration enforcement agreements. ICE PRESSURES SPANBERGER AS FAIRFAX MURDER SUSPECTS TRIGGER NEW DETAINERS IN ‘SANCTUARY’ CLASH The DOJ said federal officers who violate Virginia’s mask and identification law could face a Class 1 misdemeanor, punishable under Virginia law by up to 12 months in jail, a fine of up to $2,500, or both. The lawsuit names Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones and left-wing Fairfax County Commonwealth Attorney Steve Descano — who was previously backed by groups connected to George Soros. The suit claims Virginia’s mask ban is “blatantly unconstitutional” because it attempts to regulate “what federal officers may and may not wear” while carrying out their duties, exposing agents’ identities and increasing risks to them and their families. “The Department of Justice will steadfastly protect the privacy and safety of law enforcement from unconstitutional state laws like Virginia’s,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate of the DOJ’s Civil Division in the press release. FEDERAL JUDGE BLOCKS CALIFORNIA LAW FORCING ICE AGENTS TO REMOVE MASKS DURING OPERATIONS DOJ is seeking a court order to block both laws that begin July 1. Spanberger, Jones and Descano have all moved to counter the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement agenda in Virginia. In February, Spanberger issued an executive order that rescinded a Youngkin-era order directing state law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration enforcement efforts. TOM HOMAN VOWS TO WORK AROUND NEW DEM VA GOV SPANBERGER’S EXECUTIVE ORDER ENDING ICE COOPERATION “The President told us that we are safer because unaccountable, poorly trained ICE agents are arresting mothers and detaining children. Our broken immigration system is something to be fixed — not an excuse to terrorize our communities,” Spanberger posted on X in response to Trump’s State of the Union. The suit comes as there have been ongoing protests outside the Delaney Hall immigration detention center in New Jersey where protesters verbally abused ICE agents, obstructed vehicles, allegedly assaulted officers, and made threats leading to multiple arrests. “Governor Spanberger cannot tell Federal officers how to do their job,” said Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward in the press release. “She certainly cannot prohibit them from ensuring their own safety in conducting Federal law enforcement operations. Our suit today stops those unconstitutional efforts.” Fox News Digital reached out to the offices of Gov. Spanberger and AG Jones for comment.
‘Transgender madness’ under fire after Congress lets taxpayer funding ban lapse
Congress’ ban on tax dollars flowing to Planned Parenthood is about to lapse, and a Senate Republican wants to investigate piles of taxpayer money that has allegedly been used by the organization to push transgender procedures. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., in a letter first obtained by Fox News Digital, is demanding that Planned Parenthood be put under a microscope for roughly $1.5 billion in Medicare and Medicaid funding that he alleges “are flowing to an organization that promotes transgender treatments on minors.” Fox News Digital did not hear back from Planned Parenthood for comment. SEN HAWLEY WARNS IT WOULD BE ‘UNCONSCIONABLE’ IF BILLIONS OF TAXPAYER FUNDS FLOW TO TRANS KIDS’ SEX CHANGES Hawley wants Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services Administrator Mehmet Oz to open an investigation into Planned Parenthood as part of the agency’s continued pursuit to uncover fraud in federally funded healthcare programs. “I urge you to direct your investigative efforts toward Planned Parenthood and its role in pushing transgender madness onto minor children,” Hawley said. Republicans last year banned federal tax dollars from flowing to abortion providers in President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill,” but that ban is set to lapse on July 4. UNDERCOVER INVESTIGATION: PLANNED PARENTHOOD PRESCRIBING HORMONES TO MINORS WITH MINIMAL OVERSIGHT Hawley and others have tried to extend the ban, with his attempt to amend the latest budget reconciliation package to keep the ban going failing earlier this year. That amendment would have extended the ban on providing Medicaid funding to abortion providers until 2035. His focus now is on uncovering whether the $1.5 billion in funding was directed toward pushing minors toward gender-affirming medication or referring minors for gender-affirming surgical procedures. Hawley accused Planned Parenthood of exploiting “legal loopholes to provide these dangerous and irreversible gender-transition drugs to minors without their parents’ consent.” TRUMP’S PUSH FOR $350 BILLION ‘ARSENAL OF FREEDOM’ HITS GOP SKEPTICISM “The organization openly advertises that it provides sex-change drugs and refers for transgender surgeries,” Hawley said. “According to one recent report, Planned Parenthood’s provision of this so-called “gender-affirming care” has exploded — with a 40% year-over-year increase.” Hawley is pinpointing a stream of money between 2019 and 2022 that was tracked by the Government Accountability Office in a report first published in November 2023. That report did not outline that the money was used to push transgender surgeries nor medication. “In other words, billions of taxpayer dollars have been taken from those in poverty and the elderly and given to Planned Parenthood,” Hawley said. “Moreover, these funds apparently have been used to prop up Planned Parenthood’s provision of transgender procedures to children.”
Mamdani stands by fellow socialist candidate despite resurfaced far-left, anti-American posts
New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani is standing firmly behind his fellow democratic socialist and candidate for U.S. Congress Darializa Avila Chevalier, despite vile deleted social media posts that recently resurfaced. Avila Chevalier, 32, a longtime community organizer who led the anti-Israel protests at Columbia University, slammed the United States, the Democratic Party, private property, police, borders and called to nationalize large swaths of the private sector in the now-deleted posts from 2018 to 2022. She is running a heated race to oust five-term incumbent Rep. Adriano Espaillat, D-N.Y., in the state’s 13th congressional district, which encompasses Upper Manhattan and parts of the west Bronx. In a 2021 repost, Avila Chevalier said that abolishing borders, prisons and police is “possible, necessary, and the only moral way forward,” and later echoed posts that said “all deportation is wrong” and, “Yes, literally abolish the border,” according to one report. NYC MAYORAL CANDIDATE ZOHRAN MAMDANI DEFENDS PAST TWEETS, SAYS CUOMO ATTACKING ‘MYTHICAL VERSION’ OF HIM “This country is a f—–g disgrace,” she said in a post. “I forgot to get napkins so I just wiped my hand on the American flag behind me,” she reportedly said in yet another. She reportedly called former President Joe Biden a “rapist” and “war criminal,” chastised Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., for his “liberal Zionism,” and said “F–k Kamala Harris.” NYC VOTERS FLOCK TO SOCIALIST-STYLE FREEBIES AS MAMDANI PUSHES RENT FREEZES, CITY-RUN STORES During the COVID-19 pandemic, Avila Chevalier demanded the government provide $3,000 per month in universal basic income, nationalizing utilities, pharmaceutical companies and hospitals, suspending mortgages and rent, seizing private property from landlords, dissolving insurance companies and expanding Medicare to every citizen. None of these past posts deterred Mamdani from supporting his fellow socialist when asked in a Wednesday news conference. “When it comes to Darializa’s campaign, I had not seen those tweets and what I’ve heard from her and what I know a lot of others in the district that have heard from her is that her views have evolved and that the campaign she is running on is reflective of what she’s going to be fighting for,” Mamdani said. PROGRESSIVE POWER PLAYERS RALLY VOTERS FOR ZOHRAN MAMDANI AS EARLY VOTING KICKS OFF IN NYC MAYORAL RACE “And frankly, when I see a candidate who has a record like she does of freeing New Yorkers who are unjustly detained by ICE, of standing up for the working person who has often been left out of our politics, especially in a district that has so many of the same themes that we’re speaking of today — a fear of displacement, a fear of being pushed out of a place you helped to build — I think that she would be an incredible champion for that district and for the city as a whole,” he continued. Mamdani first endorsed Avila Chevalier in late May. “She grew up with a commitment to the very people that politics have left behind, and what I see in her is that commitment fulfilled,” the progressive mayor said on MS NOW. “I can’t wait for her to be introduced to so many across the city and across this country as we fight for that affordability agenda, from New York City to D.C.” New York’s primary election date is June 23. Fox News Digital reached out to the offices of Mamdani, Avila Chevalier and Espaillat. None responded to requests for comment.
Trump pivots on strikes while dangling Iran deal, testing whether Tehran blinks
After months of predicting a nuclear deal with Iran was just around the corner, President Donald Trump appears to be testing whether military pressure can accomplish what diplomacy alone has not. The strategy was on full display over the past 24 hours. Trump followed through on his threat to strike Iran again overnight, launching a barrage of Tomahawk missiles and fighter jet attacks against Iranian targets while warning that additional bombing would follow unless Iran agreed to a deal. Hours later, however, he announced he had canceled planned strikes for Thursday evening, saying negotiations had been elevated to the highest levels of Iran’s leadership and that the parties had approved the final contours of an agreement. The rapid sequence of threats, strikes and renewed diplomacy highlights an increasingly familiar pattern in Trump’s approach to Iran: using military pressure to push negotiations forward while keeping a diplomatic off-ramp open. The question is whether the strategy is increasing Washington’s leverage — or reinforcing Iran’s belief that the United States ultimately wants a deal more than continued confrontation. “He has made so many threats that he has not carried through on and telegraphed on many occasions his strong desire to end this war as soon as possible, that I think Iran does not take these threats seriously,” Michael Eisenstadt, director of the Military and Security Studies Program at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, told Fox News Digital. TRUMP KEEPS FORECASTING AN IRAN DEAL — WHY THE WHITE HOUSE STILL THINKS IT CAN HAPPEN Trump said Iranian officials contacted him during the strikes and asked for the bombing to stop. “If they don’t sign the deal, we’ll bomb the sh*t out of them tomorrow night,” he said. Trump suggested Thursday the campaign could eventually expand to Iran’s energy infrastructure, including Kharg Island, the country’s most important oil export hub. “At some point in the not too distant future, we will be taking Kharg Island, and other oil infrastructure points, and assume total control of their Oil and Gas Markets, much like we have with Venezuela.” But later, he sounded less certain. “My preference has always been to take Kharg Island. I don’t know that America has the stomach for it, to be honest,” Trump said on Fox and Friends. Yet even as he promised additional military action, Trump maintained that negotiations had been on the verge of success. “We’ll see what happens with the deal. We were really close to a deal,” he said earlier Wednesday. The comments marked a sharp escalation from a president who only days earlier predicted an agreement could arrive within “two or three days” and has repeatedly suggested a breakthrough remains imminent despite months of unresolved disputes over uranium enrichment, sanctions relief and Iran’s nuclear stockpile. “They keep tapping us along,” Trump told reporters Wednesday. “They keep playing us for suckers because you know what? They dealt with some very stupid presidents.” Trump’s latest actions suggest the administration is still offering Tehran an off-ramp through a negotiated nuclear agreement. The question is whether military pressure strengthens Washington’s hand — or whether Iran has concluded it can withstand the costs and outlast the campaign. Iran “has more resilience,” said James Robbins, dean of academics at the Institute of World Politics, noting that Iran has been forced to work around global isolation for decades. “They’re kind of used to sanctions. They’re used to economic dislocations, much more so than Americans.” Behnam Taleblu, senior director of the Iran Program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, argued that mounting pressure does not necessarily make the regime more willing to compromise. TRUMP SAYS IRAN IS ‘NEGOTIATING ON FUMES,’ BELIEVES REGIME THOUGHT THEY COULD OUTWAIT HIM “The more desperate the regime becomes, the more aggressive the regime becomes,” Taleblu told Fox News Digital. He also questioned whether strikes on bridges, power plants and other infrastructure would fundamentally alter Iran’s decision-making, arguing that the regime is primarily concerned with threats to its own hold on power. “Until those making the key national security decisions, those enforcing the key national security decisions, and those enforcing the regime’s longest war, which is on its own people, so long as those three are not targeted, we’ll be back where we started,” he said. Eisenstadt argued that Iran may ultimately believe it can absorb sanctions, withstand military pressure and simply wait for political pressures inside the U.S. to grow. “I think they believe that time is on their side, given domestic criticism of the war and its economic impacts in the United States,” he said. Trump’s lates strike threats came days after an Iranian drone brought down a U.S. Apache helicopter operating near the Strait of Hormuz, triggering retaliatory U.S. strikes on Iranian radar and air-defense sites and threatening to unravel an already fragile ceasefire. The administration’s goal has long been that sustained military and economic pressure would eventually force Iran to make concessions that months of negotiations alone have failed to produce. Trump and his advisors have repeatedly argued that sanctions, military operations and the U.S.-led blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, which has cut off the pathway for roughly 80% of Iran’s oil exports, have left Iran increasingly isolated and economically vulnerable. Iranian officials publicly rejected the notion that expanding the target set would force Iran to bend. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian called Trump’s threat to strike power plants and transportation infrastructure a “sign of desperation.” “Critical infrastructures are the lifeblood of the people,” Pezeshkian said in a post on X. Trump repeatedly has rejected the notion that Iran can wait out his administration. “They thought they were going to out-wait me, you know. ‘We’ll out-wait him. He’s got the midterms.’ I don’t care about the midterms,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting May 27. Despite Trump’s repeated assertions that a deal is near, negotiators remain divided over several core issues, including uranium enrichment, sanctions relief and the future of Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium. Iranian officials have acknowledged progress on some
Trump nominates Jay Clayton, former SEC chairman, current US Attorney, as intelligence director
President Donald Trump announced Thursday that former SEC Chairman and current U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton will be the next permanent director of national intelligence. The nomination followed a brief stint by acting Director William Pulte, who took over after Tulsi Gabbard stepped down. “I am pleased to announce the Nomination of very Highly Respected Jay Clayton, former Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, the former Head of Sullivan & Cromwell, one of the most prominent and successful Law Firms anywhere in the World, and the current United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, to be the next Director of National Intelligence and, importantly, to serve in my Cabinet,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. “Few people anywhere in the Legal Community are respected at the level of Jay,” he added. “I encourage the United States Senate to confirm Jay as soon as possible,” Trump said. TRUMP GREEN LIGHTS NEW DNI PULTE TO ‘START THE PROCESS’ ON MASS INTELLIGENCE FIRINGS Clayton will need to be confirmed by the Senate before officially taking over as director of national intelligence (DNI). The development came after Trump originally tapped Pulte to serve as acting director of national intelligence. As previously reported by Fox News Digital, Pulte’s appointment, which was set to take effect June 19, became a major point of contention in negotiations already complicated by disputes over the controversial Section 702 surveillance authority. Critics argued that Pulte lacked the intelligence and national security experience associated with overseeing the nation’s 18 intelligence agencies. TODD BLANCHE ‘HONORED AND HUMBLED’ BY TRUMP’S AG NOMINATION AFTER EXPLOSIVE WEEK OF FEDERAL ARRESTS Trump’s decision to name Pulte also sparked significant backlash on Capitol Hill, leading to a standoff in Congress. Democrats warned they would oppose the renewal of key foreign intelligence authorities unless the administration withdrew Pulte’s appointment and put forward a permanent nominee. Clayton is regarded as one of the nation’s top federal prosecutorial districts and known for handling high-profile cases, including the prosecution of Nicolás Maduro. Tulsi Gabbard had resigned in May announcing that she was stepping down as Director of National Intelligence primarily to care for her husband. This is a breaking story. Return for updates.
Trump’s push for $350 billion ‘arsenal of freedom’ hits GOP skepticism
President Donald Trump wants Congress to supercharge military funding and pass stalled voter ID and citizenship verification legislation in one fell swoop, but many Republicans aren’t sold on the plan. Trump on Wednesday called on congressional Republicans to steer around Democrats’ opposition again and “immediately” pass a third budget reconciliation package, including $350 billion in defense spending coupled with the stalled Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act. “This is a GENERATIONAL Investment in our Military, even bigger than President Reagan’s! Recon 3.0 is the ONLY path to the full $1.5 TRILLION DOLLAR Military Budget our Warriors need in order to build THE ARSENAL OF FREEDOM,” Trump said on Truth Social. TRUMP’S SAVE AMERICA ACT SHOWS SIGNS OF LIFE IN THE SENATE DESPITE REPUBLICAN REVOLT The president’s request came just hours after he signed Republicans’ second budget reconciliation bill into law that would fund immigration enforcement through the rest of his presidency for $70 billion. Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act was also passed through budget reconciliation. But many Republicans are lukewarm at best to the idea of restarting the budget reconciliation process, which would require strict party unity amid a dwindling calendar of legislative days heading into the November midterm elections. The GOP has also yet to fully come around to Trump’s $1.5 trillion defense spending request, and some lawmakers have voiced concern about circumventing the normal appropriations process to boost defense spending. Trump’s plea for a third bite at the apple comes as he and congressional Republicans are increasingly at odds over policy decisions that have made passing legislation on the Hill all the more difficult. TRUMP SCORES VICTORY DESPITE GROWING GOP DIVIDE AFTER SENATE PASSES $70B ICE, BORDER PATROL FUNDING PACKAGE Some Republicans who have pushed for a third attempt at the party-line process have acknowledged that it’s unlikely to work. Further, Congress is unlikely to pass any other bills before the midterm elections in November because of Democratic opposition. “I think it’s a very, very long shot that anything passes between now and the midterms,” Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., said. “It gives me heartburn to say that, but I think that’s political reality.” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., didn’t completely close the door on another reconciliation bill, but he noted that there is skepticism among Republicans on moving forward. “You’ve got to have something that you can win on,” Thune said. “And you’ve heard some of our folks already express their views on another reconciliation bill.” Earlier in the week, during a contentious Senate Appropriations hearing, Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., both agreed that another reconciliation bill was unlikely to happen, particularly as a dumping ground for billions in additional defense spending. TRUMP LOCKS IN ICE FUNDING THROUGH END OF PRESIDENCY AFTER HOUSE PASSES $70B PACKAGE Collins, who chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee, said, “Reconciliation is not the best approach.” “It would be very difficult to get the reconciliation bill approved,” Collins said. Discussions on a third reconciliation package were underway in the House prior to Trump’s public endorsement. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has voiced confidence that his chamber will clear a third budget bill by the August recess. But some GOP lawmakers have questioned its viability amid Republicans’ slim majority and the potential lack of a unifying policy idea to keep the conference together. “I haven’t quite heard enough policy proposals that lead me to think it’s going to gel, but I’m certainly open-minded,” Rep. Nick Langworthy, R-N.Y., told Fox News Digital on Wednesday. Rep. Kevin Kiley, I-Calif., a Republican-turned-independent who voted against Trump’s $70 billion immigration enforcement measure, indicated he isn’t likely to support a third attempt. “We have now gotten to this habit of one party takes power, they do reconciliation bills and the other party does it, and this cycle hasn’t been good,” the California lawmaker told Fox News Digital. “It’s one of the things that fed the cycles of dysfunction that we have around here.”
Trump says he’s canceled Iran strikes, adds potential deal-signing ‘to be announced shortly’
President Donald Trump on Thursday canceled strikes against Iran, saying a deal with Iran is expected soon, hours after promising to attack the Islamic Republic amid tense negotiations. “Based on the fact that discussions with the Islamic Republic of Iran have been brought to the highest level of Iranian leadership and approved, I have, as President of the United States of America, canceled the scheduled strikes and bombings against Iran this evening,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. President Donald Trump on Thursday said he had called off strikes against Iran while a deal is being worked out. US ARMY HELICOPTER GOES DOWN, BUT PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP SAYS ‘PILOTS ARE FINE’ “Discussions and final points have been, in both concept and great detail, approved by all parties involved, including the United States, Israel, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Turkey, Pakistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, Egypt, and others,” he added. Trump also wrote that the U.S. naval blockade on Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz—the vital global shipping route that sees 20 percent of world oil and natural gas pass through—will “remain in full force” until a deal is finalized. The sudden change came after Trump vowed on Wednesday to initiate a forceful response, accusing Tehran of prolonging nuclear negotiations and targeting a U.S. helicopter. Hours before canceling the strikes, Trump said U.S. forces would be hitting Iran “VERY HARD TONIGHT.” In response, Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, a key figure in U.S.-Iran negotiations, warned against using “wrong strategies and impulsive decisions.” TRUMP KEEPS FORECASTING AN IRAN DEAL – WHY THE WHITE HOUSE STILL THINKS IT CAN HAPPEN “Wrong strategies and impulsive decisions will reset the entire board for the worse, explode energy infrastructure and markets, and create an endless quagmire that you will be stuck in for years,” he wrote on X. “We’re going to be attacking them and attacking them very hard,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. On Tuesday, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said U.S. forces had completed self-defense strikes against Iran at Trump’s orders in response to the downing of the helicopter. The two crew members aboard a U.S. Army AH-64 Apache were rescued by American forces after the helicopter went down near the coast of Oman while patrolling regional waters, CENTCOM said Monday. Both soldiers were safely rescued within two hours. Despite being close to a deal, Trump said, Iran has been “tapping us along” and “playing us for suckers.”
Biden confidant under fire for Nazi tattoo defense in latest Graham Platner fallout: ‘Disgusting’
Former President Joe Biden’s chief of staff, Ron Klain, is facing fierce pushback online after jumping into the growing controversy surrounding Maine Senate Democratic nominee Graham Platner’s Nazi-linked tattoo, attempting to defend and explain away the Democrat’s disputed ink. “The fact that a Biden WH Chief of Staff Democrat is comfortable downplaying a Nazi tattoo from a different Democrat tells you everything you need to know about today’s Democrats,” posted Prager University contributor Shabbos Kestenbaum. Klain sparked a fight with the Republican Jewish Coalition Wednesday when he defended Platner on the group’s Instagram post condemning the candidate and calling on Democrats to withdraw their support. Platner has denied the tattoo was intended as a Nazi symbol, even as multiple people familiar with the candidate have identified it as an SS skull-and-crossbones design, which he has since covered. “This is just a partisan attack,” Klain wrote. “The tattoo was a skull and crossbones to remember his fallen comrades from his service in Afghanistan.” GRAHAM PLATNER BLAMES NAZI TATTOO ON MILITARY ‘CULTURE,’ DRAWS BACKLASH FROM GOP VETERANS Klain served as Biden’s chief of staff from 2021 to 2023, before becoming Airbnb’s chief legal officer. He was appointed to serve on the United States Holocaust Memorial Council by Biden in January 2025 before President Donald Trump removed him nearly four months later. The United States Holocaust Memorial Council is the presidentially appointed board that oversees the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. The exchange ignited a firestorm on social media, where critics argued Klain’s defense reflected a broader unwillingness among Democrats to distance themselves from Platner amid the growing controversy. “Here’s former Biden WH Chief of Staff, and @Airbnb Chief Legal Officer, Ron Klain whitewashing Graham Platner’s Nazi SS Totenkopf tattoo. This, after hosting a fundraiser for Platner last week. As a former United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Council @HolocaustMuseum member, Klain absolutely knows better,” RJC posted to X of the exchange. WATCH: DEM SENATORS EXCUSE PLATNER’S CONDUCT AT CRISIS HUDDLE WITH EMBATTLED MAINE CANDIDATE “This is a disgusting lie from Ron Klain and @Airbnb should be deeply concerned someone this dishonest is working for the company in a sensitive role,” posted Hudson Institute adjunct fellow Josh Block. “What has become of us when prominent Jews defend Nazi sympathizers? I am disgusted. Ex-Biden chief Ron Klain defends Graham Platner’s Nazi tattoo,” wrote former U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman. “It was NOT to honor his fallen comrades, which is wildly manipulative lie,” wrote Republican communicator Matt Whitlock on X. SENATE CANDIDATE GRAHAM PLATNER SENT EXPLICIT TEXTS TO MULTIPLE WOMEN WHILE MARRIED, WIFE SAYS: REPORT “You do not have to debase yourself for Platner. Pick your values over partisanship. Focus on other elections. This man is not worth your self-respect,” wrote columnist Alex Zeldin. “Worse: The highest-ranking elected Jewish official in the U.S., Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, still endorses Platner and has refused to revoke his support,” wrote Antisemitism Watch founder Trish Posner. Several of Platner’s ex-girlfriends have alleged the embattled nominee referred to his tattoo as “my Totenkopf” because of his belief that his unit shared similarities to the Nazi SS paramilitary forces. During his victory speech Tuesday, Platner acknowledged the controversy that has followed him while on the campaign trail. “Redemption is not just some simple or easy destination. It’s a journey. I’ve made mistakes in my life, mistakes that I regret, that I live with, that I continue to learn from and I’m still far from perfect,” said Platner. “But every day I wake up and I try to be a little bit better and a little bit kinder than I was the day before and if you give me the chance, I will be a senator for the people who cannot afford to buy a senator.” A string of controversies have followed Platner as he eyes to unseat Republican Sen. Susan Collins. In the heat of the primary race, Reddit posts surfaced detailing his past inflammatory comments, while he was also accused of physical misconduct, including aggressive behavior, with a former romantic partner. Platner denied those accusations. Fox News Digital reached out to Ron Klain, Airbnb and Graham Platner for comment.
‘Flip flop’: Democrat firefighter in tight House race blasts popular Trump policy his national union supports
A swing-district Democrat disparaged Trump’s landmark overtime tax break despite his national firefighters union’s support, prompting his GOP opponent to accuse him of a “flip flop.” Nazareth, Pennsylvania’s Bob Brooks — running against Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, R-Pa., in a toss-up seat — is the president of the commonwealth’s firefighters union, setting up an apparent discrepancy with the national council, though the Democrat’s campaign says his concerns about the cuts are more nuanced and that it is the Republican who is harming first responders on the issue. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBB) provides a maximum annual deduction of $12,500 on qualified overtime compensation, phasing out after $150,000 of gross income or $300,000 for joint filers, according to the Internal Revenue Service. Brooks, president of the Pennsylvania Professional Firefighters Association — which is a subsidiary of the International Association of Firefighters (IAFF) — criticized the OBBB’s provisions during an appearance on the progressive “Meidas Touch” podcast in May. “Donald Trump just did it here [in Pennsylvania]. He was up at the [Mount Airy] casino. But literally, he brought a guy up on stage and claimed he was a fireman and profiting from the no-tax-on-overtime, which 90 percent of our guys didn’t get the benefit from anyways, but the guy wasn’t a paid fireman,” Brooks said, referring to a Stroudsburg-area first responder whom Trump introduced at a Mount Pocono rally in December. FIREFIGHTERS UNION BOSS WINS HOTLY-CONTESTED DEM PRIMARY IN A KEY PENNSYLVANIA SWING DISTRICT “I just don’t understand how they keep spewing the garbage,” added Brooks, a former Bethlehem firefighter of many years who notably served in top union roles. The man Trump introduced was indeed a volunteer firefighter but also a paid police officer in Monroe County who would therefore qualify for the no tax on overtime provision in his other first responder role. Conversely, the IAFF came out in support of Republicans’ tax policies that included the elimination of levies on qualified overtime pay. “Firefighters and emergency medical workers shouldn’t be penalized for choosing a career in public service,” IAFF president Edward Kelly previously told the New York Post. Kelly called the new overtime rule a “needed fix” for his 350,000 members whose jobs demand “long hours.” REPUBLICANS RIP 4 BLUE STATES FOR KEEPING TAXES ON TIPS, OVERTIME AFTER TRUMP REPRIEVE “President Trump respects the contributions lAFF members make to our country and recognizes the importance of ensuring these brave men and women can keep more of their hard-earned money,” Kelly told the paper. Meanwhile, the Fraternal Order of Police also wrote an April letter to Reps. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., and Emilia Sykes, D-Ohio, expressing support for House legislation ending taxes on overtime, noting it positively affects law enforcement officers nationwide. In response, a spokesperson for Brooks said the Democrat “ran into burning buildings for 20 years [and] knows what hard work is, and he knows that first responders deserve to keep more of their hard-earned money.” The spokesperson said Brooks does support “no tax on overtime” and “no tax on tips,” saying that instead it is Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, R-Pa.; his opponent; who doesn’t understand the issue. “Ryan Mackenzie is a life-long politician who wouldn’t know a hard day’s work if it hit him in the face,” Brooks’ spokesperson said. A source familiar with the matter said that, despite the IAFF’s endorsement of Trump’s policy, Brooks’ comments to Meidas Touch reflect how some firefighters do not qualify for the benefit, adding that Brooks supports fixing that discrepancy. They added that Brooks would however not actually support any effort to repeal such no-tax-on-overtime benefits. In a statement on his website about rural Carbon County being hurt by Washington policies, Brooks said that he would “work to repeal” the OBBB to restore higher SNAP funding, which also included the overtime policy. The source also accused Mackenzie of voting to cut funding for first responder support through Community Project Funding Grants (CFP) – a contention Mackenzie’s camp denies. NRCC LAUNCHES AD CAMPAIGN TARGETING DOZENS OF VULNERABLE DEMS WHO VOTED AGAINST KEY TRUMP PROPOSAL The grants plan preceded Mackenzie’s entering office in 2025, and there was later bipartisan agreement to forgo the spending bill that included the grants in favor of a continuing resolution (CR) to keep the government funded rather than adopt a new framework. The Republican voted in favor of it along with several Democrats. “No CPF funding was allocated in FY 2025 as a result of the decision by congressional leaders on both sides to support a clean, bipartisan continuing resolution,” Mackenzie said in a statement, noting that Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., supported the same CR. “Bob Brooks is a proven conman who was found by a court to have stolen over $100,000 from his own family,” Mackenzie said in response to the attacks. “His latest flip-flop proves once again that this fraudster is only in it for himself.” “Instead of standing with firefighters and the over 29 million Americans who saw record refunds from tax relief on overtime, Bob Brooks supported repealing these tax cuts and advocating for massive tax increases on everyone. Now he is now trying to trick voters by changing his unpopular position and thinking no one will notice. The House Republicans’ campaign arm told Fox News Digital that voters can proverbially see the truth through the controversy. “Bernie Bro Bob Brooks’ radical high-tax agenda would devastate working-class Pennsylvanians. Voters know Brooks wants them to keep less of their hard-earned money.” National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Reilly Richardson said. Brooks’ website indicated the IAFF has also endorsed Brooks — who enjoys support from Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Pennsylvania Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro, and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. Fox News Digital reached out to IAFF for comment.