Trump Directs Military to Target Foreign Drug Cartels … President Trump ordered the State Department to label drug cartels as terrorist organizations after taking office in January.Haiyun Jiang/The New York Times  —  President Trump has secretly signed a directive to the Pentagon …

Justice Dept. Abruptly Escalates Pressure Campaign on a Trump Adversary  —  Letitia James, New York's attorney general and a longtime nemesis of the president, is being investigated in two separate inquiries, in a remarkable use of executive power to pursue a foe.  —  Glenn Thrush and Santul Nerkar

Trump administration seeking $1 billion settlement from UCLA  —  The Trump administration is seeking a $1 billion settlement from the University of California, Los Angeles, CNN has exclusively learned, marking the latest effort by the White House to shape higher education and extract significant concessions from universities.

Trump Is Removing the I.R.S. Chief 2 Months After He Was Confirmed  —  The change comes just two months into the former Republican congressman's tenure leading the tax agency.  —  President Trump is removing Billy Long from his job leading the Internal Revenue Service just two months …

MAGA world swallows a difficult truth: Arresting Trump's opponents is easier said than done … It's a familiar refrain for Trump's second term: The far right lusts to see prominent Democrats or Trump adversaries hauled off in handcuffs, only to be let down when their revenge fantasies run into reality.

Intel CEO responds to ‘misinformation’ and Trump threat in letter to employees … Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan addressed “misinformation” about his previous roles after President Donald Trump called for his resignation and raised ethical concerns.  —  " I want to be absolutely clear …

Veterans' Care at Risk Under Trump as Hundreds of Doctors and Nurses Reject Working at VA Hospitals  —  ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power.  Sign up to receive our biggest stories as soon as they're published.  —  Veterans hospitals are struggling …

The White House has a preferred alternative to PBS.  It may already be in countless classrooms.  —  The Corporation for Public Broadcasting announced last week that it would shut down after Congress voted to claw back over $500 million of federal funding from the organization.

The Race to Find a Measles Treatment as Infections Surge  —  Vaccine was so effective the disease was considered eliminated in the U.S., but resurgence of outbreaks spurs need for drugs  —  As a record number of people in the U.S. are sickened with measles, researchers are resurrecting …

American Nazis: The Aryan Freedom Network is riding high in Trump era  —  With Donald Trump's return to power, a neo-Nazi group buoyed by his rhetoric is expanding its reach and changing the face of white extremism in America.  Its leaders: a Texas couple, both born to Ku Klux Klan leaders.

US and Russia Plan Truce to Cement Putin's Gains in Ukraine  —  Washington and Moscow are aiming to reach a deal to halt the war in Ukraine that would lock in Russia's occupation of territory seized during its military invasion, according to people familiar with the matter.

Appeals court tosses judge's contempt finding against Trump administration in prison deportations  —  A split appeals court panel tossed out a judge's contempt finding against President Donald Trump's administration on Friday in a case over deportations to an El Salvador prison.

Trump is underwater on trade in 40 states  —  According to analysis of issue approval data in Strength In Numbers/Verasight polls  —  This week, Donald Trump put in place a fresh set of tariffs on imports from nearly 70 countries.  The new taxes range from 10 to 41%, and add to the tariffs …

Nancy Mace Loses It After Being Fact-Checked to Her Face  —  TOTAL FREAKOUT  —  “You're a raging Democrat... a raging leftist with that kind of questioning!” she blasted.  —  A testy Nancy Mace had a meltdown at a town hall event, calling a reporter a “raging Democrat” …

The Sydney Sweeney Saga Shows Why Republicans Keep Winning … Look, we're all tired of the Sydney Sweeney discourse.  But if it's going to cost Democrats politically — and cost all of us brain cells — we should at least understand why it mattered.  Let's get through this together.

Patient seeking care at NIH hospital detained by ICE  —  NIH officials called immigration authorities after the patient presented a non-real ID while passing security at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center.  —  Federal immigration authorities detained a woman seeking medical care …

Smithsonian restores Trump to impeachment display in American history museum  —  The museum removed a placard describing the president's two impeachments last week.  The new text makes minor changes — and offers slightly less detail.  —  The Smithsonian's National Museum of American History …

California 2026 Poll: Porter, Hilton Lead in Race for Governor; Plurality Undecided  —  Home Polls California 2026 Poll: Porter, Hilton Lead in Race for Governor; Plurality Undecided  —  23% of California Democratic Primary voters support Newsom for 2028 presidential bid

Trump's Confederacy rises again  —  🗣️ Paid subscribers keep Public Notice free.  If you appreciate our fiercely independent coverage of American politics, please sign up and support us.  👇  —  🎯 Subscribe to PN 🎯  —  Last Friday, Donald Trump responded …

Google says it's working on a fix for Gemini's self-loathing ‘I am a failure’ comments  — Google Gemini users said it's sharing some disturbing messages.  — One screenshot showed the chatbot saying, “I'm am a failure.”  — Google DeepMind's Logan Kilpatrick blamed an “annoying infinite looping bug.”

Things Aren't Going Donald Trump's Way  —  Donald Trump has almost certainly complained more about journalists than any of his predecessors have, maybe more than all of them combined.  So when Trump deemed a query “the nastiest question” he's ever gotten from a member of the press, it was notable.

Trump Tells Purple Heart Recipients: 'It Wasn't That Easy for Me Either'  —  THOSE BONE SPURS  —  The president, who avoided the Vietnam War draft, has been given multiple Purple Hearts by his supporters.  —  Donald Trump couldn't resist praising himself at a Purple Heart Day ceremony …

White House Did Have Secret Talks on Epstein Crisis  —  FLIP-FLOP-FLIP  —  Trump had forced JD Vance to deny that a meeting was taking place.  —  Turns out the Trump administration really did huddle behind closed doors to talk about the Jeffrey Epstein files, despite JD Vance's public denial.

Don Jr. Posts Bizarre Image of Dad Throwing Sex Toy From White House Roof  —  CRINGE  —  The AI-generated image appears to be a reference to an incident involving WNBA player Sophie Cunningham.  —  Donald Trump Jr. is keeping up his streak as purveyor of unusual memes involving his father …

Trump's Fed pick has envisioned a major overhaul of the central bank  —  In naming Stephen Miran to the governor spot vacated Friday as Adriana Kugler steps aside, President Trump is seeking to place someone who wants a root-and-branch overhaul of the Fed inside the central bank.

Amid campaign cash battle with Adams, Cuomo hits Hamptons for major fundraiser  —  As he and Eric Adams compete for financial support from New York's deep-pocketed business community, Andrew Cuomo is returning to the Hamptons on Friday for his first large-scale campaign fundraiser …

Even Republicans have questions about Israel's plan to occupy Gaza City  —  Some congressional Republicans are raising questions about Israel's planned occupation of Gaza City as pro-Israel Democrats push back on the operation with unusual ferocity. … - Lawmakers sympathetic to Israel …

ICE Barbie Lashes Out at ‘South Park’ After It Tore Her Apart  —  MELTDOWN  —  Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem made her criticism despite saying that she hasn't watched the show.  —  Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem lashed out at South Park's “lazy” and “petty” …

Jim Lovell, commander of NASA's Apollo 13 moon mission, dies at 97  —  American astronaut Jim Lovell, commander of the failed 1970 mission to the moon that nearly ended in disaster but became an inspirational saga of survival and the basis for the hit movie “Apollo 13,” has died at the age of 97, NASA said on Friday.

Alan Dershowitz once again denied pierogi as Martha's Vineyard residents chant ‘time to go’  —  'I am very surprised that you're here because of the things that you've been saying about us and the business online,' the pierogi vendor told Alan Dershowitz on Wednesday.

The Christian nationalist pastor with ties to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth  —  Self-described Christian nationalist pastor Douglas Wilson is part of an ascendent group of Christian religious leaders finding influence among MAGA conservatives.  US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is Wilson's …