Trump team pauses new student visa interviews as it weighs expanding social media vetting  —  It's the latest salvo against universities, many of whom rely heavily on foreign students for funds.  —  The Trump administration is weighing requiring all foreign students applying to study …

After struggling in the Senate, Alabama's Tommy Tuberville launches campaign for governor  —  If the senator makes it to the governor's office next year, it'll be a classic example of a politician failing up.  —  Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville's interest in Alabama's gubernatorial campaign has been anything but subtle.

Trump Pardoned Tax Cheat After Mother Attended $1 Million Dinner  —  Paul Walczak's pardon application cited his mother's support for the president, including raising millions of dollars and a connection to a plot to publicize a Biden family diary.  —  As Paul Walczak awaited sentencing early this year …

FEMA at ‘high risk’ of disrupting ‘life-saving’ disaster relief, per internal memo  —  If you want to support The Handbasket's 100% independent journalism, become a paid subscriber!  —  Video  —  Hurricane season in the United States kicks off this Sunday, June 1st, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is not prepared.

SpaceX Starship Loses Control on Test Flight 9 as Rocket Re-enters Earth  —  Much was riding on Flight 9 for Elon Musk's giant moon and Mars rocket after debris from January and March flights fell into the Atlantic Ocean, disrupting air travel.  —  The latest flight of SpaceX's Starship …

Putin is playing with fire, Trump says  —  U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that Russian President Vladimir Putin was “playing with fire.”  —  Trump's latest comments follow some of the biggest drone and missile attacks on Ukraine since Russia's full-scale war began in early 2022.

Trade Crime Is Soaring, U.S. Firms Say, as Trump's Tariffs Incentivize Fraud  —  President Trump's steep global tariffs have supercharged efforts to evade them.  Some U.S. companies say the government is ill-equipped to keep up.  —  President Trump's steep global tariffs have supercharged efforts to evade them.

U.S. Will No Longer Recommend Covid Shots for Children and Pregnant Women  —  Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. upended decades of standard protocol in announcing that the vaccine would be dropped from the immunization schedule for healthy children.  —  The Covid vaccine will no longer …

RFK Jr. threatens to bar government scientists from publishing in leading medical journals  —  The health secretary said the New England Journal of Medicine, the Journal of the American Medical Association, and The Lancet are in bed with pharma.  —  HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. threatened …

Judge Strikes Down Trump Order Targeting WilmerHale Law Firm  —  A judge struck down an executive order targeting WilmerHale, in the latest victory for the handful of firms that have fought back against a Trump administration crackdown.  —  President Trump's campaign of retribution …

Trump to pardon reality stars Todd and Julie Chrisley  —  The former stars of USA Network's “Chrisley Knows Best” were sentenced to 12 and seven years, respectively, in 2022 for fraud and tax evasion.  —  President Donald Trump will soon pardon a reality television couple found guilty …

Marshals' Data Shows Spike in Threats Against Federal Judges  —  Data gathered by the law enforcement agency responsible for judicial security showed 162 judges faced threats between March 1 and April 14.  —  Threats against federal judges have risen drastically since President Trump took office …

White House stunned as Hegseth inquiry brings up illegal wiretap claims  —  Exclusive: Trump advisers lose confidence in Pentagon leak investigation Hegseth used to justify firing three top aides  —  The White House has lost confidence in a Pentagon leak investigation that Pete Hegseth used …

There's a Very Simple Pattern to Elon Musk's Broken Promises  —  The entrepreneur's habit of overpromising on deadlines may be frustrating for investors—but for those looking to see whether a Musk pledge will come good, there's a key phrase to watch out for.

ACOG Statement on HHS Recommendations Regarding the COVID Vaccine During Pregnancy  —  The following is a statement from Steven J. Fleischman, MD, FACOG, president of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG):  —  “ACOG is concerned about and extremely disappointed …

Trump asks Supreme Court to make it easier to deport migrants to South Sudan and other third-party countries  —  President Donald Trump asked the Supreme Court on Tuesday to make it easier for his administration to deport people to South Sudan and other countries that are not their homeland …

Trump Court Pick Once Called For Bringing Back Literacy Tests In Elections  —  Literacy tests were banned in the 1960s for being racially discriminatory, but such tests “are not a bad thing,” Josh Divine argued in a 2010 college opinion piece.  —  WASHINGTON — One of President Donald Trump's nominees …

Hegseth's Safe Space  —  As backlash brewed over new restrictions on press access, the Pentagon made a second, quieter move—one that sent another troubling signal about how far it's willing to go to create a safe space for Pete Hegseth.  —  On Friday afternoon, just before the holiday weekend …

Secret Service suspends officers caught brawling on camera outside Obama's home: 'Whoop this girl's ass'  —  WASHINGTON — The Secret Service has suspended two uniformed officers who were reportedly caught on camera fighting each other outside former President Barack Obama's home last week.

Trump Border Czar's Cash-In With Key ICE Contractor Unmasked  —  DETENTION DOLLARS  —  Tom Homan's ethics filing has fueled concerns that his private sector ties are influencing the administration's immigration crackdown.  —  President Donald Trump's border czar Tom Homan was cashing checks …

Newsom backs rule change after Trump threatens to pull funding over transgender athlete  —  The decision to allow more athletes to compete in the state track and field championships came amid controversy over a transgender student's participation.  —  SACRAMENTO, California …

Read Elias Rodriguez's Leaked Chats  —  Accused killer of two Israeli Embassy aides ranted against many things — but not Jews  —  We do stories others won't touch; please make that work possible by becoming a paid subscriber (or gifting one)  —  Within minutes of the brutal gunning …

US government to have control in Nippon Steel-U.S. Steel deal, Trump and Sen. McCormick say  —  U.S. Sen. David McCormick said Tuesday that an arrangement that will allow Japan-based Nippon Steel to invest in U.S. Steel will guarantee an American CEO, a majority of board members from the United States …

The ugly truth behind ICE agents' masks  —  Victoria Brownworth was one of those forces of nature you tend to find here in Philadelphia.  She was a pioneering LGBTQ journalist whose work in recent years appeared in the Philadelphia Gay News, the Inquirer Opinion section (here and here), and too many other outlets to count.

4-year-old Bakersfield girl facing deportation could die within days of losing medical care  — In 2023, a Mexican girl with a life-threatening medical condition was allowed to enter the U.S. legally on humanitarian grounds.  — The Trump administration has now ordered the girl and her parents to leave the country.

11 injured after boat explodes near Fort Lauderdale: ‘Tossed people into the water’  —  (WFLA) - Eleven people were injured after a boat exploded in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Memorial Day, the US Coast Guard Southeast announced.  —  The incident occurred around 5:45 p.m. on Monday near the New River Triangle in Fort Lauderdale.

Ronnie Dugger, Crusading Texas Journalist, Dies at 95  —  As founding editor of The Texas Observer, he fought bigotry and exposed corporate greed, political chicanery and government corruption.  —  Ronnie Dugger, the crusading editor of a small but influential Texas journal who challenged presidents …

Judge approves Treasury DOGE team's access to sensitive data systems  —  The ruling found that the Trump administration had shown it set up a process to appropriately vet and train the employees.  —  A federal judge in New York on Tuesday cleared the way for the Treasury Department's entire DOGE team …