Morning Announcements

Latest Episodes:

Tuesday, June 9th, 2026 - Trump Booed at NBA Finals, RFK Jr. Is Ignoring Ebola, the Pentagon Accidentally Deleted the Mormons Jun 09, 2026

Show notes

Today's Headlines: Trump attended the Knicks game last night, shutting down a 10-block radius around Madison Square Garden to sit with owner James Dolan and the usual suspects of administration figures — all of whom got to watch their boss get booed louder than the Spurs during the National Anthem. Trump spent the next morning posting at 5am that Israel and Iran must stop "shooting", which neither country is taking seriously given that strikes continued yesterday despite him reportedly calling Netanyahu directly to ask him to stop — again. Meanwhile, Spencer Pratt officially lost the LA mayoral race to progressive Nithya Raman, who will face Karen Bass in November, and Trump responded by claiming without evidence that "two republicans are being cheated" in California, using the state's slow vote-counting as cover to pre-seed election fraud claims — a preview of his midterm strategy. In other news, five cases of flesh-eating New World screwworm have now been confirmed across Texas and New Mexico, with the USDA building a $750 million sterile fly factory in Texas to combat it, while RFK Jr. — according to multiple colleagues — has shown "little interest in managing the details of his department" and is instead hunting for evidence that vaccines are harmful, receiving almost no Ebola briefings, and leaving nearly half of NIH's 27 institutes without permanent directors. The Pentagon accidentally deleted Mormons from its approved religion list, added them back after Senator Mike Lee lost his mind, then failed to classify them as Christians — a three-step own goal that somehow happened in one week. And OpenAI filed its IPO paperwork with the SEC, becoming the third trillion-dollar AI company to go public after Anthropic and SpaceX, in what was described in an unsigned blog post as something they're announcing only because "we expect it to leak" — which is a strange way to announce a trillion-dollar IPO.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

Axios: Trump visit locks down midtown Manhattan, scrambling Knicks game

NYT: President Trump roundly booed by New York crowd at NBA Finals Game 3 at MSG

WTOP: Epstein files reading room to open in DC

Axios: Trump calls on Israel and Iran to "immediately stop shooting" as ceasefire frays

NBC LA: Nithya Raman overtakes Spencer Pratt for 2nd place in LA mayoral race, results show

NYT: Trump Previews Fall Strategy With Baseless Claims of California Vote Fraud

AP News: A flesh-eating cattle parasite spreads beyond Texas as new screwworm cases are found

NYT: RFK Jr. Appears Disengaged on Many Health Department Matters Beyond Vaccines

WaPo: After Mormon lawmakers object, Pentagon revises Christian religious categories

Wired: OpenAI Confidentially Files for IPO on the Heels of SpaceX and Anthropic

Subscribe to the Betches News Room and join the Morning Announcements group chat. Go to: betchesnews.substack.com

Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Monday, June 8th, 2026 - Trump Walks Out, Iran Fires on Israel, DOGE's Death List, Trump's UFC White House Lawsuit Jun 08, 2026

Show notes

Today's Headlines: Trump's Meet the Press interview derailed when Kristen Welker told him to his face that he lost in 2020, but not before he confirmed on the record that he wants January 6th defendants who assaulted police officers compensated, called them victims of "dirty cops," denied ever promising no new wars, and compared Iran favorably to Vietnam. Coincidentally, a Vietnam veteran filed a lawsuit over the UFC fight night at the White House, arguing it wasn't authorized by Congress and benefits Trump directly since he bought UFC parent company stock while promoting the event, with the Lincoln Memorial scheduled to host fighter weigh-ins, which is a sentence that exists. Trump will also be at the Knicks game inconveniencing everyone with TSA screening and canceled watch parties. On the war beat, Iran fired missiles at Israel for the first time since the April ceasefire, Israel bombed Beirut, oil spiked 3.6%, and Trump responded by calling Fox News to criticize Israel and telling Axios he was phoning Netanyahu because "each of them had their fun" — not the standard framework for analyzing a missile exchange. The May jobs report came in better than expected with 172,000 payrolls added, but markets dipped anyway, prompting Trump to post that "stocks should go up not down, that's the way it was for 200 years," which is not how markets work. And finally, a former Social Security Administration executive blew the whistle on a DOGE-backed plan to mark 2.7 million living people — citizens, permanent residents, teenagers, senior citizens — as dead in federal databases to make life impossible for immigrants and funnel them into Social Security offices where they could be arrested, which didn't go through, though last year officials did successfully file 6,000 people into the Death Master File, some of whom had to physically show up to prove they were alive.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

NBC News: Read the transcript: President Donald Trump interviewed by NBC News’ ‘Meet the Press’ moderator Kristen Welker

NYT: Trump Defends Compensation Fund and Iran War in ‘Meet the Press’ Interview

NYT: Lawsuit Aims to Stop U.F.C. Fights at White House on Trump’s Birthday

AP News: No bags, no watch parties at Madison Square Garden with Trump attending Game 3 of the NBA Finals

NYT: Live Updates: Iran Fires Missiles at Israel for First Time Since April Cease-Fire

NYT: Israel Bombs Beirut Outskirts as Fighting With Hezbollah Escalates

Axios: Trump tells Axios he will ask Netanyahu not to strike back at Iran

Bloomberg: Oil Jumps As Israel retaliates Against Iran After Missile Attacks

CNBC: Jobs report May 2026

Fortune: Trump stunned as stocks fall on great jobs report. Barclays explains why ‘we are entering the warning zone'

WaPo: Whistleblower claims DOGE planned to mark 2.7 million people dead

Subscribe to the Betches News Room and join the Morning Announcements group chat. Go to: betchesnews.substack.com

Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Friday, June 5th, 2026 - Traitor Fund Limbo Continues, Blanche To Be Nominated AG, Kennedy Center Free Of Trump Name, John Bolton Pleads Guilty Jun 05, 2026

Show notes

Today's Headlines: The fate of the Traitor Fund remains unknown — Blanche said they're dropping it but won't put it in writing, Trump said he loves it but "ask the lawyers," Senate Democrats tried to force a vote to block it and Republicans voted against the block anyway, and January 6th defendants are already filing claims — while what is confirmed is that Trump is still getting permanent IRS audit immunity for himself and his family regardless. Meanwhile, Trump is officially nominating Todd Blanche — his personal criminal defense attorney — as permanent Attorney General, while Bill Pulte, the family friend with no intelligence experience named as acting DNI, is already being phased out with Trump hinting he'll be tasked with investigating whether past elections were rigged. In slightly more satisfying news, Trump's name is officially coming off the Kennedy Center less than a week after a judge ordered it — off the facade, out of email signatures, and off employee ID cards. In other news, John Bolton pleaded guilty to illegally retaining classified national security documents after Iranian hackers breached his email, agreeing to pay over $2 million with up to 60 months in prison — less revenge prosecution, more bad judgment. And now that Congress is back to work, the House passed a measure cutting food aid for over 5 million pregnant women and children, great. In war updates, Israel and Lebanon announced a ceasefire that Hezbollah immediately rejected because it would ban their operatives from parts of their own country with no maps or implementation details. And finally, a flesh-eating New World screwworm — not seen in US livestock for 60 years — was found in a Texas calf, with quarantines now in place, which is bad timing for beef prices already at record highs.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

NYT: Trump Administration Live Updates: Republicans Defeat First Attempt to Block President's $1.8 Billion Payout Fund

WaPo: House bill rolls back food aid for pregnant women, children

Politico: Trump expected to nominate Todd Blanche to be attorney general

AP News: Trump says Pulte won’t be his nominee for director of national intelligence

WaPo: Kennedy Center orders staff to begin removing Trump’s name after ruling

CNN: Exclusive: John Bolton reaches plea deal over mishandling of sensitive national security information

BBC: Hezbollah rejects US-backed Israel-Lebanon ceasefire

Axios:New World screwworm confirmed in Texas, stoking fresh cattle fears

Subscribe to the Betches News Room and join the Morning Announcements group chat. Go to: betchesnews.substack.com

Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thursday, June 4th, 2026 - Primaries Update, House Passes Iran War Powers Resolution, Kushner Albania Corruption, Santos Is In Trouble Again Jun 04, 2026

Show notes

Today's Headlines: California and Iowa held their primaries Tuesday — Becerra and Hilton are leading California's governor's race with Steyer's money in a distant third, Karen Bass is holding first in LA's mayoral race with Spencer Pratt in second, and several Beverly Hills residents showed up to vote for Pratt only to discover they don't live in Los Angeles, perfect. Missing New Jersey congressman Tom Kean Jr. — absent for three months — won his uncontested primary anyway, with Trump endorsing him and calling him "tireless," while Kean remains well enough to execute stock trades but not apparently to show up to work. The House passed a War Powers Resolution requiring Trump to withdraw from Iran unless Congress authorizes the war — four Republicans defecting. Iranian drones struck Kuwait's main airport yesterday killing at least one person, and Trump defined the current ceasefire as "when you're shooting in a more moderate manner." The Kushner Albania situation escalated to over 100,000 protesters, a government corruption investigation, and frozen bank accounts tied to the land company behind their resort, over how ecologically protected land was quietly reclassified to clear the way for their development. George Santos is under investigation by the DOJ and CFTC for betting against his own State of the Union attendance on Kalshi after publicly tweeting he'd be there to inflate the odds — which is the most on-brand insider trading imaginable. And finally, DOGE whistleblower Daniel Berulis filed a defamation lawsuit against Elon Musk, revealing that less than a week after his whistleblower report was published, someone cut the brakes on his car, removed the airbag sensor, and left fingerprints inside — with the only entities that had his address on record being his utilities and the Office of Personnel Management, which DOGE had already taken over.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

The Guardian: Trump-backed candidate loses in Iowa governor’s race as Democrats look to flip Senate seat

NYT: Election Live Updates: Races Are Close in California With Many Votes Still to Count

NYT: A Congressman Was Suddenly Absent. So We Looked. And Looked

Politico: New Jersey Rep. Tom Kean Jr. says he's 'energized' but appears to push back timeline for return

The Independent: Where’s Trump? President resurfaces after a week with no public events amid health questions and tumbling polls

NYT: House Passes Iran War Powers Resolution

AP News: Kuwait says Iranian drones hit airport and killed 1 as ceasefire is tested again

WSJ: Trump Tells Aides He Won’t Resume All-Out War With Iran Unless U.S. Troops Are Killed

MSN: Albania freezes assets in Kushner resort corruption probe

Wired: He Blew the Whistle on DOGE. Then His Brakes Were Cut

Subscribe to the Betches News Room and join the Morning Announcements group chat. Go to: betchesnews.substack.com

Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Wednesday, June 3rd, 2026 - Trump Keeps IRS Immunity, J6 Rioter Got a Pentagon Security Clearance, and the USDA Has Bedbugs Jun 03, 2026

Show notes

Today's Headlines: The Department of Agriculture is dealing with a bedbug infestation in the offices of the agency responsible for containing invasive pests. Yes, you read that right. Todd Blanche confirmed to Congress — not under oath, refusing to put it in writing — that the DOJ is dropping the Traitor Fund, while clarifying that the part protecting Trump and his family from IRS audits remains in effect, which was clearly the point all along, and a federal judge revived Trump's IRS lawsuit to investigate whether the whole arrangement was "premised on deception." The Trump administration hired a convicted January 6th rioter — 19 when he stormed the Capitol — to work in the Defense Department's irregular warfare and counterterrorism section, one of the most sensitive portfolios in the government, and named Bill Pulte — a family friend with zero government experience whose father is in the Epstein files — as acting director of national intelligence, using "acting" specifically to skip Senate confirmation. New Jersey's attorney general sued GEO Group, the private contractor operating Delaney Hall detention center, over inhumane conditions and demanding health inspections — GEO holds a $1 billion ICE contract. The Kushner family is planning a $1.4 billion luxury hotel complex off the Albanian coast, which the prime minister loves and locals are actively protesting. And finally, Democratic congressman Jimmy Gomez — chairman of Congress's "Dad Caucus" — admitted to cheating on his wife after the New York Post outed him, he denied it, and CNN reported the House Ethics Committee is already investigating him for sexual misconduct, completing a full humiliation arc in under 48 hours.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

Not Us: The Federal Government’s Insect-Defense Agency Is Infested With Bed Bugs

NBC News: Todd Blanche says DOJ ‘not moving forward’ with ‘anti-weaponization’ fund

NYT: Order Shielding Trump Family From I.R.S. Audits Will Remain, Blanche Says

WaPo: Pentagon hires convicted Jan. 6 rioter for sensitive counterterrorism job

The Guardian: ‘Americans will be less safe’: alarm as Trump picks loyalist as intelligence chief | Trump administration

The Guardian: New Jersey sues Geo Group, private operator of Delaney Hall ICE facility

NYT: Protests Grow in Albania Over Kushner-Linked Project

CNN: Exclusive: House Ethics Committee investigating Rep. Jimmy Gomez over sexual misconduct allegations, sources say

Subscribe to the Betches News Room and join the Morning Announcements group chat. Go to: betchesnews.substack.com

Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tuesday, June 2nd, 2026 - Trump Told Netanyahu "You're F*in' Crazy," the Traitor Fund Is Blocked, and Florida Sued OpenAI Jun 02, 2026

Show notes

Today's Headlines: The Traitor Fund is effectively dead for now — the DOJ said it "disagrees strongly" but will abide by the court's ruling, which is the closest thing to a clean win we've gotten in a while. Trump's America 250 birthday celebration continues to implode, with a competing Power to the People Festival announced for October 3rd featuring Springsteen, Joan Baez, and Dave Matthews, while the UFC fight at the White House is still on but now requires attending service members to meet a waist-to-height ratio under .55, and the National Park Service is spending $5 million on a no-bid contract to gold-plate four bronze horse statues near the Lincoln Memorial, which is giving Saddam Hussein's living room. Trump reportedly told Netanyahu on a bad phone call that "you're fucking crazy, you'd be in prison if it weren't for me, everybody hates Israel because of this" — accurate — and Netanyahu pulled back on planned Beirut strikes, with Lebanon's parliament speaker saying Hezbollah is ready for a full ceasefire with Israel, though the US bombed Iranian drone sites yesterday and a cargo ship was attacked in the Strait of Hormuz, so "ceasefire" continues to mean whatever anyone needs it to mean. Florida's attorney general sued OpenAI and Sam Altman for marketing ChatGPT without adequately warning of its dangers, citing its alleged role in mass shootings, suicide encouragement, and helping a murder suspect dispose of bodies — and Anthropic filed its IPO the same day at a $965 billion valuation, because timing is everything. And finally, a second man named Dan Sullivan entered the Alaska Senate race against incumbent Republican Dan Sullivan with no policies and no party affiliation, just a stated goal of unseating the other Dan Sullivan, which is either a Democratic ploy or the most chaotic campaign launch of the cycle.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

AP News: Trump reconsidering $1.8 billion fund, AP source says, as Justice Department temporarily pauses it

Rolling Stone: Tom Morello Announces Power to the People Festival With Bruce Springsteen, Foo Fighters, More

NBC News: No heavyweights allowed: Troops must meet fitness criteria to attend White House UFC event

Ts-horse-statues

Axios: "You're fucking crazy": Trump fumes at Netanyahu in call on Lebanon

Axios: Lebanese official told U.S. that Hezbollah ready for full ceasefire with Israel

AP News: US bombs Iran, downs missiles fired at bases in Kuwait

Axios: Florida sues OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman over ChatGPT - Axios Tampa Bay

CNBC: Anthropic confidentially files IPO prospectus with SEC, prepping Wall Street for landmark AI deal

NYT: Senator Dan Sullivan Has a New Challenger in Alaska

Subscribe to the Betches News Room and join the Morning Announcements group chat. Go to: betchesnews.substack.com

Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Monday, June 1st, 2026 - Judge Blocks Traitor Fund, Trump Concert Lineup Is Down to Vanilla Ice, Meteorite May Have Hit Cape Cod Jun 01, 2026

Show notes

Today's Headlines: Trump had a rough weekend legally — a federal judge blocked the Traitor Fund in response to a lawsuit from a fired January 6th prosecutor, and another judge ordered Trump's name removed from the Kennedy Center within two weeks on the grounds that he never had legal authority to put it there. Trump responded by posting he has "no interest" in the Kennedy Center anymore and threatening to cancel his own America 250 celebration, which is already in freefall after nearly every performer dropped out once they realized it was Trump's birthday rally and not the legitimate congressional celebration — leaving Vanilla Ice, Kid Rock, and eventually Trump himself as the headline act for anyone who paid $1.5 million for a VIP package expecting a concert. On the Iran beat, Trump is requesting edits to the deal his own negotiators already agreed to, with a senior official explaining the response will take three days because…caves. The Delaney Hall ICE detention center in Newark escalated to a mandatory curfew for the surrounding half-mile, with ICE in riot gear pepper spraying protesters while detainees continue a 10-day hunger strike over conditions that remain uncorrected. Pam Bondi's Epstein testimony was exactly as useless as expected — she blamed Todd Blanche, refused to answer Trump-related questions, and wasn't under oath — so the House Oversight Committee is now going after Blanche directly. In AI-is-a-scam news, a Pizza Hut franchisee is suing corporate for $100 million after a mandatory AI rollout tanked delivery times, and Starbucks scrapped its AI inventory system after nine months because it could not count milk — hallucinating bottles that weren't there — which is a real thing that happened with technology that costs more than a person with eyes. And finally, a three-foot meteorite may have landed in Cape Cod Bay on Saturday, with a double boom heard from Delaware to Montreal, which would normally be bigger news if we had any remaining capacity for surprise.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

NBC News: Judge halts Trump ‘anti-weaponization’ fund after Jan. 6 prosecutor sues

Axios: Trump's name must be removed from Kennedy Center, judge orders

Politico: Trump vents about judge who blocked Kennedy Center changes

ABC News: Trump to headline 250th anniversary celebration on National Mall after several artists back out

CNBC: New York passes Mamdani's pied-a-terre tax. Here's who pays and how much

NYT: Dell Gets a $9.7 Billion Defense Contract. Trump’s Portfolio Stands to Benefit

WaPo: Trump misses deadline to disclose tens of millions of dollars in stock trades

ABC 7 NY: Delaney Hall protests: Newark Mayor Ras Baraka orders mandatory curfew for half mile surrounding facility

Politico: Bondi shifts responsibility for Epstein files’ release to Todd Blanche, making him Democrats’ next target

Yahoo: The owner of 110 Pizza Huts is suing the chain, claiming $100 million in losses from the botch adaption of an AI tool

Fortune: Starbucks quietly retires its AI inventory tool after barista complaints of inaccuracies

WCVB: NASA: Meteorite that thousands heard over Mass. may have landed in Cape Cod Bay

Subscribe to the Betches News Room and join the Morning Announcements group chat. Go to: betchesnews.substack.com

Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Friday, May 29th, 2026 - Trump Wants His Face on a $250 Bill, Don Jr. Got a $620 Million Pentagon Deal, CIA Officer Stole 300 Gold Bars May 29, 2026

Show notes

Today's Headlines: Trump's Treasury appointees are pushing to put his face on a new $250 bill — the printing director who resisted was reassigned, Trump personally gave the artist edits, and the whole plan is technically illegal since living people have been banned from US currency since 1866. ProPublica revealed that the White House intervened to help Don Jr.'s venture firm secure a $620 million Pentagon loan for a rare earth startup called Vulcan Elements, pushed through by Peter Navarro with officials told to approve it at unusual speed because "the call came from the White House." The DOJ also opened an investigation into E. Jean Carroll — who won two civil cases against Trump and is owed over $80 million — over whether she committed perjury by not disclosing that a nonprofit covered some of her legal fees, because losing twice apparently wasn't enough. April's inflation came in at 3.3% — the highest since May 2023 — with personal income growth falling below the inflation rate and the savings rate dropping from 3.6% to 2.6%, meaning people are draining their savings to cover rising costs. Pam Bondi testified before the House Oversight Committee about the Epstein files coverup without being under oath, represented by a DOJ attorney from the same agency she led during the coverup, which rendered the whole exercise fairly decorative. On Iran, negotiators reportedly reached a 60-day memorandum of understanding to extend the ceasefire and open the Strait of Hormuz — though Trump hasn't approved it, Iran hasn't confirmed it, so "ceasefire" continues to be a creative use of the word. A former CIA officer was charged with stealing 300 gold bars worth $40 million, stashing them at home, and claiming work expenses — he also faked his entire résumé across three job applications over nine years and was somehow hired anyway, which raises some questions about the CIA. And Peter Thiel relocated his family to Argentina because he prefers Javier Milei's vibe and is worried about America's future — ok, Peter.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

WaPo: Trump $250 bill pushed by Treasury appointees

ProPublica: The White House Intervened to Get a $620 Million Deal for a Company Tied to Donald Trump Jr.

CNN: Exclusive: Justice Department launches a criminal investigation into Trump accuser E. Jean Carroll

Axios: Scoop: U.S. and Iran reach deal but need Trump's final approval, officials say

NBC News: Iran and U.S. trade new strikes as Trump dismisses pressure to end war

CBS News: The first inflation report under new Fed chief Kevin Warsh shows prices at highest in nearly 3 years

The Hill: Epstein survivors have little faith Pam Bondi interview will produce answers

NBC News: Former CIA officer accused of stealing 300 gold bars, sources say

NYT: In Argentina, U.S. Tech Billionaire Peter Thiel Finds An Escape

Subscribe to the Betches News Room and join the Morning Announcements group chat. Go to: betchesnews.substack.com

Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thursday, May 28th, 2026 - Trump Threatens Oman, Delaware Lets Companies Vote, Google Employee Charged With Polymarket Insider Trading May 28, 2026

Show notes

Today's Headlines: A Delaware court ruled that companies can vote in municipal elections in the beach town of Fenwick Island — not just business owners, but the companies themselves as entities — and given that two-thirds of Fortune 500 companies are incorporated in Delaware, that's either a quirky local ordinance or the most efficient corporate takeover of democracy ever attempted. Joe Biden is suing the Trump administration to block the DOJ from releasing audio recordings of his conversations with his ghostwriter, which the DOJ is planning to drop on June 15th purely for the humiliation factor, since the investigation was closed and no charges were ever filed. Trump threatened Oman — the Gulf state that has been acting as the diplomatic channel between the US and Iran — during a Cabinet meeting, saying they'd better "behave or we'll blow em up." On the reflecting pool saga, a National Park Service analysis found that Trump's no-bid pool contractor — his favorite pool guy, does all his pools — submitted a contract with an $850,000 overcharge above the typical profit margin, and it turns out the contractor can't even seal the gaps between the concrete slabs, which is a fairly foundational part of the job. California Governor Gavin Newsom announced he'll tax any Traitor Fund payouts to Californians at 100%, with a New York assemblyman proposing the same, which is the most satisfying thing to happen all week. New York state also passed a tax on luxury second homes valued at $5 million or more, expected to generate $500 million a year, and both New York and New Jersey AGs subpoenaed FIFA over alleged deceptive pricing practices for World Cup tickets at MetLife Stadium. A Google software engineer was charged with fraud and money laundering after making $1.2 million on Polymarket by betting on search trends using nonpublic Google data under the username AlphaRaccoon, which is somehow the most on-brand financial crime of 2026. And finally, the EU is actively screening travelers for Ebola as suspected cases in the Congo surpass 900.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

Reuters: Delaware court upholds voting by companies in small town's election

CNN: Biden sues to stop Justice Department from releasing interview recordings

CNN: Trump’s threat against Oman means he’s now attacked or threatened 1 out of every 13 countries

NYT: Iran War Live Updates: U.S. Strikes Military Site and Drones in Iran

AP News: Trump plays mayor at Cabinet meeting, showcasing his DC renovations

NYT: Reflecting Pool Contract Has ‘Inflated’ Profit Margin, Government Analysis Finds

WaPo: Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy debuts America 250 jet

US News: California to Impose 100% Tax on Trump's January 6 'Slush Fund,' Governor Says

WSJ: New York Lawmakers Pass Pied-a-Terre Tax

CNN: Sky-high World Cup ticket prices spark investigation by NY and NJ attorneys general

WSJ: Google Employee Charged With Insider Trading on Polymarket

Politico: Europe beefs up Ebola detection as Congo epidemic surges

Subscribe to the Betches News Room and join the Morning Announcements group chat. Go to: betchesnews.substack.com

Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Wednesday, May 27th, 2026 - DOJ Erased January 6th, Pope Leo Is Coming for Big Tech, Senator Kim Pepper Sprayed, Paxton and Talarico Win TX Primaries May 27, 2026

Show notes

Today's Headlines: Trump got a three-hour physical at Walter Reed and posted that everything checked out "PERFECTLY." and is also building a UFC cage on the White House lawn for a $60 million birthday fight with VIP packages at $1.5 million each — because that’s what the people's house needs. On a completely different note, Pope Leo dropped his first encyclical, a 42,000-word document warning the world's 1.4 billion Catholics about AI concentrating power in the hands of a tiny elite, with Anthropic cofounder Christopher Olah participating in the Vatican's formal presentation — and the Pope also issued the first-ever papal apology for the Vatican's role in legitimizing the trans-Atlantic slave trade, framing it as a warning about what AI could recreate. Back to the war nobody can define, the military carried out "self-defense strikes" against Iranian missile sites while Trump posted that negotiations are "proceeding nicely" and a spokesperson insisted they were "using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire" — ok. Meanwhile, New Jersey Senator Andy Kim got pepper sprayed at a protest outside the Delaney Hall ICE detention center after state officials were barred from inspecting conditions that led detainees to organize a hunger strike. Speaking of the administration burying bad news, the DOJ filed motions on the Friday before Memorial Day to dismiss the most serious January 6th seditious conspiracy cases, then one hour later scrubbed all records of January 6th prosecutions from their social media archives, calling them "partisan propaganda." On the redistricting wars, federal judges blocked Alabama's racially gerrymandered map citing "undisputed evidence of intentional racial discrimination," South Carolina's Republicans declined to redraw their maps only because early voting had already started, and Ken Paxton — too corrupt even for most Republicans — won the Texas Senate Republican primary with Trump's endorsement, setting up a general election against Democrat James Talarico.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

AP News: Trump wraps up 3-hour medical visit to Walter Reed and declares 'Everything checked out PERFECTLY'

BBC: White House erects UFC cage ahead of 250th anniversary celebration

Vatican: Encyclical Letter of His Holiness Leo XIV Magnifica Humanitas (15 May 2026)

WaPo: Anthropic aligns with Vatican over White House as Pope Leo addresses AI fears

PBS News: Pope Leo XIV makes historic apology for Vatican's role in legitimizing slavery

Ole-in-legitimizing-slavery

NJ: ICE agents pepper-spray protesters, N.J. senator in clash outside Delaney Hall in Newark

AP News: US military says it carried out 'self-defense' strikes in Iran, including on missile launch sites

Axios: Trump asked Muslim leaders to join Abraham Accords after Iran war ends

NYT: Trump Administration Chips Away at Last Traces of Broad Inquiry Into Jan. 6

AP News: Federal court blocks Alabama plan for new congressional districts that could help Republicans