Military expert Col. Peter Mansoor told CNN an Iranian Shahed drone strike on a U.S. Apache helicopter over the Strait of Hormuz changes the entire situation in the ongoing conflict. If Iran intentionally targeted the helicopter, it would represent a new operational capability for Shahed drones, which are designed as air-to-surface cruise missiles, not air-to-air weapons, Mansoor explained. The strike could indicate either an accident or a significant tactical shift. Mansoor noted, Iran never lost its entire drone capability during initial airstrikes and has spent the ceasefire period recovering buried equipment and reconstituting launch platforms. "So there's no doubt that Iran today is more capable than it was when the ceasefire began. But it's going to take years for it to recover the sort of production capability that was lost during the airstrikes," He argued.Watch the video below. Your browser does not support the video tag.
More than 2 million barrels of oil are transiting through the Strait of Hormuz every day despite the passageway's closure due to the war in Iran, experts said.
President Donald Trump clarified comments he made on Wednesday about hundreds of millions of barrels of oil he claimed to have secretly taken from Iran. Trump hosted reporters on Wednesday morning at a bill signing ceremony in the Oval Office, where he claimed the mystery operation had been driving down global oil prices, even as […]
A Somali referee says he was held for half a day before being kicked out of the United States, where he hoped to officiate games at the World Cup.The official in question is Omar Abdulkadir Artan, who recently refereed high-profile international matches for the Africa Cup of Nations and also earned the award for best male referee in Africa last year, per BBC.'President Trump's administration will not allow any security threat to enter our country.'Artan was set to be the first Somali ref to work at a World Cup but was dropped from the list after being denied entry to the United Sates. As one of 52 officials chosen by FIFA, he was attempting to enter the official training camp in Miami.Artan told the New York Times on Tuesday, "I had the right papers and everything. I had the right visa." He also had an accreditation from FIFA before traveling to the U.S.However, the 34-year-old was turned away from Miami International Airport after an alleged 11-hour process that involved a detainment in a holding cell before he was sent back to Istanbul, Turkey, where he departed from.An unnamed official with the Donald Trump administration told Fox News that the referee's entry was rejected because he was suspected of being associated with terrorists."This individual was seeking admission to the United States. Upon further inspection by CBP, derogatory information, including association with suspected members of terror organizations, was discovered making the traveler ineligible for admission to the United States under the Immigration and Nationality Act," the official said, per reporter Bill Melugin. RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: CBP dogs on high alert as World Cup-destined third-worlders smuggle in rotten souvenirs The official said the "traveler" was refused admission and provided immigration forms that cited the law used to complete his extradition."President Trump's administration will not allow any security threat to enter our country — full stop," the official added.FIFA later confirmed the referee's removal to the BBC, saying that "match official Omar Abdulkadir Artan will be unable to train and officiate at the FIFA World Cup 2026 after he was denied entry into the United States."The soccer organization added that it is "not involved in host country immigration processes, including visa adjudications, and has been informed by authorities that Mr. Artan's status will not be changed at present."FIFA also noted that host governments ultimately decide who is worthy of admission into their country.RELATED: Trump and Mamdani are on a collision course about ICE at the World Cup Khaled DESOUKI/AFP/Getty Images Similar complaints were made about members of Iran's national soccer entourage, which the country described as the United States having "revoked World Cup ticket allocation for their supporters."In response, the White House recirculated comments from April by Secretary of State Marco Rubio when he said, "What [Iran] can't bring is a bunch of IRGC terrorists into our country and pretend that they're journalists and athletic trainers."Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!
Donald Trump’s latest boast should concern Americans far more than it reassures them.Trump announced on social media that he has passed three cognitive decline tests while mocking former presidents for supposedly never taking one. He framed the tests as proof of his fitness and mental sharpness. In reality, his comments highlight the fact that the United States still has no meaningful standard for evaluating the cognitive fitness of its presidents. For years, I have advocated for routine cognitive testing for all presidential candidates and sitting Presidents. That position was never about Donald Trump specifically, nor Joe Biden, nor any individual politician, but about the presidency itself. The presidency is one of the few jobs in America where advanced age does not require objective evaluation. We require airline pilots, surgeons, and military personnel to undergo cognitive and physical health assessments. Fighter pilots have their executive functioning tested. Yet the President and Commander-in-Chief of the United States, who oversees all military operations and nuclear capabilities, faces no standardized cognitive screening requirement.Public concern is bipartisan and substantial. Polling from Healthcare for Action found overwhelming support for cognitive testing for elected officials,regardless of political affiliation.. Americans recognize that aging affects everyoneCognitive decline is not a moral failing or a partisan issue, but a medical and human reality.I understand how closely cognitive health is tied to physical health. Conditions affecting blood flow, cardiovascular function, and sleep can influence memory, judgment, and processing speed. Cognitive changes often emerge subtly, appearing as repetition, confusion, impulsivity, or difficulty handling stress.When the lifeline of our country depends on one person, the slightest impairment, whether physical or cognitive, matters. One of the most commonly discussed assessments is the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, known as the MoCA. The test evaluates memory, attention, language, and executive function. It is not designed to diagnose dementia on its own, but is a validated screening tool that can identify whether further evaluation is warranted.However, passing a MoCA is not equivalent to proving exceptional cognitive fitness. It’s simply a baseline screen. Bragging about passing one, like President Trump has done, is comparable to boasting that you passed a standard vision exam while renewing your driver’s license. It may be reassuring if concerns exist, but it is hardly definitive evidence of superior functioning. If cognitive testing becomes treated as a performative talking point, we will lose an opportunity to establish a serious public health standard. The goal needs to be transparency and trust, not scoring partisan victories.The American public has spent years watching uncomfortable debates over aging and mental acuity among political leaders. Voters are often asked to ignore what they see with their own eyes. Critics argue that cognitive testing could stigmatize aging, but I disagree. Avoiding evaluation fuels suspicion and misinformation while honest assessment respects both candidates and voters. Others claim voters alone should decide whether a candidate appears mentally fit. But voters already rely on mandatory disclosures in other areas such as financial status.. Transparency strengthens public trust. Cognitive health should not be any different simply because discussing it makes politicians uncomfortable. None of this is about disqualifying older Americans from leadership. Age alone does not determine competence. Some individuals remain extraordinarily sharp well into their 80s, while others experience meaningful decline much earlier. The only responsible approach is objective evaluation. Trump is correct about one thing: cognitive testing is now part of the national conversation. But instead of using the issue as another political taunt, we should finally treat it as a serious institutional question. The presidency demands mental endurance, judgment, and clarity. Voters should never have to guess whether those qualities are intact. They deserve to know.
The flags around the world are diverse in color schemes, symbolism and much more, but are Americans well-read on them? Brandon London hit the streets of New York City to find out.
The U.S. annual inflation rate is the highest it’s been in three years—a clear consequence of President Trump’s widely unpopular, very expensive war on Iran, which drags on even as he constantly claims that he’s close to a deal.The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Wednesday that the consumer price index rose 0.5 percent last month, with energy costs accounting for 60 percent of that increase. The annual inflation rate is at 4.2 percent—the highest since April 2023.“Americans are getting squeezed financially by inflation that’s back at a three-year high,” Navy Federal Credit Union chief economist Heather Long told CNBC. “The frustration for many Americans is that so many of the basics are up in price right now—gas, food, electricity, and medical care are all clear pain points that are above 3 percent inflation. Ending the war in Iran will help to moderate inflation, but the worst is likely still to come for rising food prices.”Trump, for his part, has claimed that Iran will “pay the price” for not making a deal. But it’s clear at this point that Iran is willing to draw this conflict out so that American’s pockets hurt more and more every day. It’ll be a difficult sell to midterm voters with inflation at a three-year high and a cost-of-living crisis that was already dire—two issues Trump ran on solving. And it’s entirely his fault.CNN: INFLATION TOPS 4% FOR FIRST TIME IN THREE YEARS AS OIL PRICES JUMP pic.twitter.com/icTIIyDLJq— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) June 10, 2026
The internet was stunned on Wednesday after explosive reporting from two New York Times reporters revealed how the Trump administration panicked as the Justice Department released the Epstein files. In an excerpt from the upcoming book from Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan, “Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump,” the reporters detailed what happened behind-the-scenes as former Attorney General Pam Bondi reportedly infuriated the Trump team over meeting with right-wing influencers about the Epstein files, while Chief of Staff Susie Wiles believed that the Jeffrey Epstein controversy would eventually pass. The reporting also revealed that Vice President JD Vance convened an urgent Situation Room meeting to address the unfolding crisis after the DOJ denied there was an Epstein client list — infuriating MAGA — and told top administration officials, "This is a huge problem."Public figures and media experts reacted to the revelations."Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan report that sheer panic over sordid facts surrounding the conduct of both Donald and Melania Trump have left the White House in a state of complete panic for over half a year. Suppressing the files and diverting attention from them led to commencement of a war," Scott Horton, Harper's Magazine contributing editor and lecturer at Columbia Law School, wrote on Bluesky."DOJ had already closed the Epstein file. No client list. Death ruled suicide. The Situation Room meeting wasn't about accountability. It was about stopping a MAGA civil war before the WSJ published a birthday letter Trump had been trying to bury. The performance of transparency. Not the thing itself," political commentator and Substack writer Mike Young, who has more than 15,000 followers, wrote on X."BIG excerpt out from new @maggieNYT and @jonathanvswan book 'Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump'...apparently WH staff were terrified about the release of a document alleging Trump had a 'predilection for nipples' and abused those of an Epstein victim," Tommy Vietor, co-host of Pod Save America and former spokesperson for President Barack Obama and the National Security Council, wrote on X. "A must read by Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan," actress and activist Mia Farrow wrote on X.
President Donald Trump vows to strike Iran again and scolds the country for delaying talks on an interim peace deal during remarks with reporters at the White House. (Source: Bloomberg)