Iran Has Agreed ‘They Don’t Want’ Nuclear Weapon– www.breitbart.com Source Link Excerpt:
WASHINGTON — Senior adviser and assistant to the president Steve Witkoff told Breitbart News exclusively that the government of Iran has told him that the Iranians have agreed they do not want a nuclear weapon.
Witkoff, who made the explosive revelation in an exclusive long-form on-camera interview with Breitbart News on Thursday at the White House, is leading negotiations for President Donald Trump with the Islamic Republic of Iran. Witkoff is expected to meet with the Iranians, possibly as soon as this weekend, for a fourth round of talks in Oman, after two previous discussions in Iran and another in Rome. Witkoff will be meeting with them during a broader trip to the Middle East this upcoming week, where President Trump is expected to visit Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar. Witkoff is joining Trump for those legs of the trip, but breaking off on his own to meet with the Iranians separately in Oman at the president’s direction.
“We’ve stated our position. The Iranians cannot have a bomb. They have stated back that they don’t want one,” Witkoff told Breitbart News. “So we’re going to, for the purposes of this discussion, take them at their word that that’s actually how they feel. If that’s how they feel, then their enrichment facilities have to be dismantled. They cannot have centrifuges. They have to downblend all of their fuel that they have there and send it to a faraway place—and they have to convert to a civil program if they want to run a civil program. Now, they have a civil reactor actually in the state of Iran—it’s called Bushehr. They have no enrichment capability at this place and if we take them at their word why not just turn all the rest of their facilities just like Bushehr? Bushehr they have no ability to enrich, they have no ability to have centrifuges there, they can only use that facility for civilian purposes—making of electricity and things of that sort of civilian purposes—and if that is what they choose to do, if they believe in that program, they ought to expand it if they want to. An enrichment program can never exist in the state of Iran ever again. That’s our red line. No enrichment. That means dismantlement, it means no weaponization, and it means that Natanz, Fordow, and Isfahan—those are their three enrichment facilities—have to be dismantled.”
Former US Supreme Court Justice David Souter dies at 85 – ABC News Source Link Excerpt:
“Justice David Souter served our Court with great distinction for nearly twenty years,” Chief Justice John Roberts said in a statement Friday. “He brought uncommon wisdom and kindness to a lifetime of public service. After retiring to his beloved New Hampshire in 2009, he continued to render significant service to our branch by sitting regularly on the Court of Ap
Judicial Watch sues IRS for records on possible targeting of J6 protesters – justthenews.com Source Link Excerpt:
Judicial Watch said Tuesday filed a lawsuit against the IRS over possible targeting of Jan. 6th protesters.
The watchdog group group filed the Freedom of Information Act suit on April 25 to obtain records regarding potentially improper targeting of Jan. 6th Capitol rioters, their supporters, and related nonprofits.
The IRS didn’t respond to a FOIA request filed Jan. 22, which sought records of IRS officials, such as former Commissioner Daniel Werfel, acting Commissioner Douglas O’Donnell, and Chief Tax Compliance Officer Heather Maloy regarding President Trump or his pardons of the rioters and records about plans for audits of the rioters, their supporters, and related nonprofits.
Judicial Watch cited an NPR report from January 2024 that noted, “Democratic Congress members are calling for the IRS to scrutinize a nonprofit that supports defendants charged in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol and has close ties to the Trump campaign.”
The article mentioned that the nonprofit, the Patriot Freedom Project, “provides financial help to January 6 defendants and describes them as, quote, ‘political prisoners.'”
Russia says it will help Taliban fight Islamic State in Afghanistan – Reuters Source Link Excerpt:
Russia will help the Taliban authorities in Afghanistan fight against the Afghan branch of Islamic State, Moscow’s special representative for the country was quoted as saying on Friday.
Zamir Kabulov, a former Russian ambassador to Afghanistan, referred to Islamic State Khorasan (ISIS-K) as the “common enemy” of Moscow and Kabul.
“We see and appreciate the efforts that the Taliban are making in the fight against the Afghan wing of ISIS,” Kabulov told the RIA state news agency in an interview.
“We will provide our best assistance to the authorities of (Afghanistan) through specialised structures.”
US appeals court blocks Trump’s attempt to revoke legal status of parolees living in US – Jurist.org Source Link Excerpt:
The US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit on Monday rejected President Donald Trump’s attempt to revoke the temporary legal status of hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians, Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans living in the US. The ruling follows a class action lawsuit filed on behalf of individual beneficiaries, sponsors of humanitarian parole processes, and affected parolees.
The lawsuit comes after the Trump administration in March revoked the temporary legal status of hundreds of thousands of people residing in the US. The “Keeping Families Together” program, introduced by former president Joe Biden, allowed “certain alien ‘applicants for admission’ to be present in the United States on a temporary, case-by-case basis for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit.” If granted parole, these individuals could apply for adjustment of status “to that of a lawful permanent resident” without having to leave the US.
The initial complaint mentions various groups of individuals—including “Ukrainians seeking safety from the Russian invasion of their country; Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans all fleeing political instability, persecution, and environmental disasters; and Afghans who assisted the United States government during its war in Afghanistan”—hoping to find safety and stability in the US.
Russian flag carrier Aeroflot canceled more than 100 flights to and from Moscow. More than 140 flights were delayed as Russian planes were repeatedly grounded, flight data showed, because of what officials described as the Ukrainian drone threat and amid heightened security measures around the Victory Day events. Russian air defenses repelled an attack by nine drones close to the Russian capital, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said.
Though Ukrainian drones have targeted Moscow in the past, the sustained attacks appeared designed to disrupt preparations for the 80th anniversary celebrations marking victory over Nazi Germany in World War II — Russia’s biggest secular holiday of the year…
Voter ID and vote-by-mail reform bills move to Pa. House – Pennsylvania Capital-Star Source Link Excerpt:
Pennsylvania lawmakers will consider a package of election reforms including a voter ID requirement and changes to the commonwealth’s vote-by-mail law after a House committee passed the long-debated measures.
Most Democrats have staunchly opposed proposals requiring voters to prove their identities every time they vote but leaders have recently expressed a willingness to negotiate in exchange for support on other measures to modernize Pennsylvania’s election system.
On Tuesday, House Bill 771, sponsored by Rep. Thomas Mehaffie (R-Dauphin) passed with a bipartisan 14-12 vote in the House State Government Committee. Democratic Reps John Inglis of Allegheny County and Nancy Guenst of Montgomery County voted in support.
The committee voted along party lines, however, to approve an omnibus bill that would eliminate ambiguity in Act 77, the law that gave Pennsylvanians the option to vote by mail without an excuse for the first time in 2020.
The vote-by-mail provision has been the subject of numerous lawsuits, including one now before the U.S. Supreme Court, as candidates and parties have argued over how election officials should handle irregularities, such as errors on completed ballots, that are not explicitly addressed.
The bill would make clear that county election officials are required to notify voters if their mail-in ballots have been rejected for the lack of a signature and give the voter an opportunity to “cure” the error.
Among other changes, House Bill 1396 would also give election workers up to a week before Election Day to prepare to count mail-in ballots, a process that has been a bottleneck for election results in parts of the state, providing fodder for election deniers.
New York State Senate committee approves anti-trans sports bill – Gay City News Source Link Excerpt:
The New York State Senate’s Education Committee approved an anti-trans sports bill on May 6 that would stop the state education commissioner from implementing trans-inclusive sports policies, drawing immediate criticism from LGBTQ advocates.
Senate Bill S460 would ban the education commissioner from creating any rules preventing schools from implementing bans on trans athletes if a school “determines” that a student’s participation would somehow “have an adverse effect on the physical or emotional safety of female participants or would adversely impact a female student’s ability to participate successfully in interschool athletic competition.”
The legislation drew five “aye” votes — including from Democrats — and six “nay” votes, but three others voted “aye WR,” or “aye with reservations,” which suggests that those three lawmakers had issues with the bill but voted for it to move forward nonetheless. The “aye” votes came from Republicans Stephen Chan of Brooklyn, James Tedisco of Saratoga County and Schenectady, Daniel Stec of North Country, Bill Weber of Rockland County, and Alexis Weik, whose Long Island district includes parts of the queer haven of Fire Island.
House Democrats are launching a longshot procedural move to prevent safety net cuts– www.politico.com Source Link Excerpt:
House Democratic leaders said Tuesday they would launch a longshot effort to force a vote on a bill preventing cuts to key federal safety-net programs.
The discharge petition is meant to put political pressure on Republicans as they eye cuts to Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program in writing their domestic policy megabill.
“All we need are four House Republicans to join Democrats in protecting the health care and nutritional assistance of the American people,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries told reporters Tuesday.
If 218 members sign the discharge petition, it would force a floor vote on a bill that would prevent the House from taking up bills under the party-line reconciliation process that would cut Medicaid or SNAP. Members are generally reluctant to buck party leadership to sign discharge petitions, and GOP leaders have taken steps this Congress to block the process entirely.
Trump puts the U.N. on notice: Don’t expect the gravy train to keep rolling – Washington Times Source Link Excerpt:
The United Nations is not exactly known for its thrifty ways. Despite facing periodic pressure to reduce its budget, the world body spends trillions of dollars annually, and much of that funding comes from the United States. Thanks to President Trump, that’s about to change.
Almost lost amid the flurry of executive orders Mr. Trump has signed since Inauguration Day is one calling for a review of all “international intergovernmental organizations of which the United States is a member.” As the title of Mr. Trump’s order makes clear, withdrawing from these organizations is very much on the table.
The United Nations is on notice, so its leadership recently told all its departments to prepare a list of budget cuts.
