CIA working to arm Kurdish forces to spark uprising in Iran, sources say  —  The Middle East Donald Trump Federal agencies National security  —  The CIA is working to arm Kurdish forces with the aim of fomenting a popular uprising in Iran, multiple people familiar with the plan told CNN.

Texas GOP Senate primary heads to runoff, with Cornyn, Paxton on ballot  —  The competitive Republican primary for Senate in Texas is headed to a runoff, according to a Decision Desk HQ projection.  —  The race will head to a May 26 showdown between incumbent Sen. John Cornyn …

Americans Stranded in the Middle East Are Having a Hard Time Getting Help From the State Department  —  The Trump administration told Americans trying to evacuate the Middle East that they cannot “rely” on U.S. government assistance, despite urging Americans to “depart now” …

Scoop: Lutnick volunteers to testify on Epstein ties  —  Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, once a Manhattan neighbor of Jeffrey Epstein, voluntarily agreed to an interview with the House Oversight Committee over past ties to the convicted sex offender, Axios has learned.

Inspector General Says Kristi Noem's DHS Has ‘Systematically Obstructed’ Its Work  —  Letter outlines 11 instances of agency allegedly blocking information, including in criminal inquiry  —  The inspector general for the Department of Homeland Security said the agency's leaders had …

Trump Administration, in Reversal, Tries to Continue Fight Against Law Firms  —  The administration told a court on Monday that it was abandoning its defense of executive orders targeting the firms.  But on Tuesday, the Justice Department abruptly changed its position.

House Dems fume at Trump admin's “bullsh*t” Iran briefing  —  House Democrats left a Tuesday night briefing on Iran expressing even greater frustration towards the Trump administration than they had going in, with several lawmakers describing it as “bullsh*t.”

Support for abolishing ICE reaches 50%  —  Support for abolishing ICE has hit a new high in this week's Economist / YouGov poll.  Half (50%) of Americans now somewhat or strongly support abolishing ICE.  Only 39% oppose abolishing the agency.  —  This marks the first time support has reached 50% in YouGov polling.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's Son Emerges as Leading Choice to Be His Successor  —  If Mojtaba Khamenei is chosen by Iran's senior clerics, it may signal a victory for hard-liners, an analyst said.  —  The senior clerics responsible for selecting Iran's next supreme leader met on Tuesday to deliberate …

US Military Leaders Accused of Framing Iran War as Biblical Mandate, Jesus' ‘Return’  —  An organization that has been fighting against religious extremism in the United States military for two decades has reported more than 200 new complaints since Saturday's initial strikes against Iran …

Senators Question Kristi Noem on ICE Immigration Tactics  —  Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem repeatedly refused to apologize for suggesting that Alex Pretti and Renee Good, two U.S. citizens shot and killed by agents, were domestic terrorists.  —  What we've seen is a disaster under your leadership, Ms. Noem.

Emotional tributes begin pouring in after four US soldiers killed in war with Iran identified  —  Pentagon identifies first US casualties in US-Israeli war with Iran  —  Secretary Noem defends ICE actions in combative hearing  —  Former U.S. Representative stuck overseas due to Iran war

Hundreds of Voters in Dallas and Williamson Counties Affected by Polling Location Confusion  —  DALLAS/FORT WORTH - Today should be a celebration of democracy.  Instead, hundreds of Dallas and Williamson County voters are being turned away from the polls — and we know exactly why.

Kuwaiti Fighter Jet Mistakenly Shot Down American F-15s, Initial Reports Say  —  A Kuwaiti F/A-18 fighter jet was the cause of the accidental shootdown of three American F-15s on Sunday, according to three people familiar with initial reports of the incident.

There Are 47,635 Epstein Files Offline for Review, DOJ Says  —  Among the unreleased documents are a woman's unverified allegations against President Trump  —  The Justice Department has withheld thousands of documents from the Epstein files, including FBI documents that detailed …

Arkansas Democrats just flipped a Republican seat  —  Democrat Alex Holladay won a Republican-held seat in the Arkansas state House on Tuesday night, marking the ninth time Democrats have flipped a district from red to blue in a special election since the start of Donald Trump's second term.

‘Cheap’ and ‘Appalling’: Trump's Ballroom Plans Receive a Flood of Negative Comments  —  The National Capital Planning Commission received about 32,000 messages during its public comment period.  Suffice it to say: Many people are not happy with the president's ballroom plans.  —  “Gaudy and cheap.”

Justice Department rescinds Biden-era ‘no-knock’ warrant policy  —  Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche has rescinded the Biden Justice Department's policy that tightly restricted when law enforcement agents executing a search could take the exceptional step of bursting into a home without knocking first.

U.S. Takes Military Action in Ecuador Against ‘Terrorist Organizations’  —  U.S. Special Forces soldiers were advising Ecuadorian commandos on raids against suspected drug shipment facilities and other drug-related sites.  —  As Trump Bashes Spain, the German Chancellor Looks On

How Anonymous Bettors Cashed In on the Iran Strike, Just Hours Before It Happened  —  Polymarket users placed hundreds of bets of at least $1,000 predicting an imminent American strike, raising concerns about insider trading.  —  One day before the United States and Israel launched an attack on Iran …