Ex-Nuclear Negotiator Criticizes Trump’s Push for Abraham Accords in Iran Deal
Trump threatened to blow up Oman and said Gulf states “owe” it to the US to normalize relations with Israel.

Donald Trump’s retribution campaign is turning the Justice Department against E. Jean Carroll.The DOJ has opened a criminal investigation into the writer, probing whether Carroll committed perjury in her previous cases against Trump, reported CNN Wednesday.Carroll has a long and unfortunate history with the president. Trump was found liable by a jury in May 2023 for having sexually assaulted Carroll in the mid-1990s. He subsequently lost his defamation case against her the following January, when a judge ruled that Trump had continued to slander the advice columnist by denying the rape on the basis that she wasn’t his “type,” and by accusing her of making up the sexual assault allegations against him for the benefit of her book.The American public also did not agree with Trump’s interpretation of events. Ultimately, two juries awarded Carroll $88.3 million in damages, though she hasn’t yet seen a dime. Earlier this month, a federal appeals court allowed Trump to continue staving off his payments until the Supreme Court decided whether it will pick up the case.Yet despite the court rulings, Trump is apparently still keen to use the power of his office to punish her: The DOJ investigation will examine whether Carroll committed perjury during depositions for her civil suits, reported CNN.The theory hinges on a 2022 deposition statement provided by the magazine columnist, in which Carroll claimed she received no outside funding for her lawsuit. That would later prove untrue, as it was revealed that billionaire Reid Hoffman—the co-founder of LinkedIn—had paid some of Carroll’s legal fees.Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has been recused from the investigation into Carroll, since he was previously involved in the cases while serving as Trump’s personal attorney. Blanche, nonetheless, has played a major role in advancing Trump’s retribution campaign, placing immense pressure on the DOJ to ramp up its process against the president’s personal foes since he took the reins of the department in April.
Trump threatened to blow up Oman and said Gulf states “owe” it to the US to normalize relations with Israel.
Negotiators representing the U.S. and Iran have reached a tentative agreement about the ceasefire, according to various news outlets.If signed by President Donald Trump and the Iranian regime, the ceasefire would extend for another 60 days. Trump has not yet signed off on the memorandum of understanding, according to an official who wanted to remain anonymous.'President Trump is not going to make a bad deal for the American people, for the US.'"This is an agreement to get everybody to the table," the official told Axios. "We will work out the details in the negotiations."If both sides agree to the ceasefire, it would lead to the Strait of Hormuz being opened to trade again and possibly lowering gas prices across the globe. Other policies to be decided include billions of dollars of frozen assets that Iran would like to regain and restrictions on its ability to refine uranium for military nuclear capabilities.The president had lambasted previous offers from the regime and at one point called its proposals "garbage" and "unacceptable."RELATED: Trump offers unique insight into Iran's 'strange' negotiations: 'It won't be pretty!' When Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was asked about the deal on Thursday, he would not answer directly."Everything depends on what the president wants to do, and President Trump is not going to make a bad deal for the American people, for the U.S.," he said.This is a developing story. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!
Advocates say the state has fallen short as hospitals have shut down care for transgender people nationwide.
In a Truth Social post Wednesday, President Trump typed out a lengthy paragraph on the necessity of protecting the prediction and crypto markets, taking the opportunity to label a slew of Democrats “scum,” call the US the crypto capital of the world, and claim prediction markets are a new form of financial market. He didn’t […]
Few events in President Donald Trump’s second term have prompted as much outrage as the announcement that the DOJ will create a $1.776 billion “anti-weaponization” fund to compensate those “harmed” by the Biden administration, which has been broadly denounced as a “slush fund” for convicted J6 criminals. There has been bipartisan discussion of how to block the fund, and now famed Esquire political commentator Charles P. Pierce is applauding one “imaginative” idea. Earlier this week, New York Democratic state assemblymember and House candidate Alex Bores unveiled legislation that would level a 100 percent tax against payouts from the fund. Then on Wednesday, California Governor Gavin Newsom gave even greater visibility to the idea, telling reporters, “Anyone from California that receives any of those funds, we want to tax 100 percent of those proceeds.” Other congressional Democrats have gotten behind similar efforts.“I love this,” said Pierce. “This is the kind of imaginative grassroots pushback the national Democratic party needs. The more that this incredibly corrupt bargain is subjected to public scorn and ridicule, the better.”While the concept may have a hard time catching on among Republicans who are famously antagonistic toward enacting new taxes, conservative lawmakers have been so angered by the fund that they may be willing to take dramatic steps to oppose it. Even congressional Republicans who are usually hesitant to break with the president have blasted the move, with former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell declaring, “So the nation’s top law enforcement official is asking for a slush fund to pay people who assault cops? Utterly stupid, morally wrong — take your pick.” The tax idea hasn’t been the only effort to stymie the fund. Shortly after it was announced, the Bipartisan Transparency for American Taxpayers Act was introduced by Representatives Tom Suozzi (D-NY) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), which declared simply that “no federal funds may be used for the payment of any claim submitted to the Anti-Weaponization Fund, established by the Department of Justice on May 18, 2026.” If enacted, it would essentially kill the fund. Representative Jamie Raskin (D-CA) introduced the No Taxpayer-Funded Settlement Slush Funds Act, which would similarly deny federal cash to the fund.Interestingly enough, in February, a slate of Republican lawmakers began pushing the Stop Settlement Slush Funds Act of 2026, which has so far failed to gain traction. If enacted, it would prohibit government officials from entering into settlement agreements that divert funds to third-party organizations, with the intention of preventing the Executive Branch from circumventing Congress and steering settlement money to its preferred recipients — an exact description of the circumstances surrounding the J6 slush fund.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent gracelessly dodged questions about the $1.8 billion slush fund the Department of Justice awarded to the president and his allies. During a White House press briefing Thursday, a reporter asked Bessent to comment on the process for developing the $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund,” set up as part of a settlement for Donald Trump’s failing lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Services.Surprise, surprise: Bessent’s response did not mention the fund at all. “This is going to be the only question I take on this matter today. So, there’s ongoing litigation, so it’d be inappropriate for me to comment,” Bessent said. “President Trump is a great American who has endured more than 10 years—10 years of nonstop harassment and weaponization from federal and state government actors. A bad actor at the IRS leaked more than 400,000 tax returns including the Trump family, all the employees, and that’s how we got here now.”“No American should be targeted for political reasons and every citizen deserves fair treatment and the full protection of the law. The Department of Justice represented the Treasury and the IRS in this matter, and I’m going to have to refer any questions to active Attorney General Todd Blanche.”Q: There's a lot of people talking about the 'weaponization fund.' What is the process for those funds now?BESSENT: Thank you for the question. This will be the only question I will take on this matter. President Trump is a great American who has endured more than 10 years of… pic.twitter.com/j6qZZfaDxY— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 28, 2026CNN’s Kaitlan Collins also pressed the secretary on the sudden exit of Brian Morrissey, the Treasury’s top legal officer, following the announcement of the fund—but Bessent wouldn’t bite.“I will not be taking any other questions, I will not be taking any other questions,” he repeated. Maybe he should add that to his list of pathetic affirmations?Q: Mr. Secretary, about the $1.8B slush fund. Is it accurate that the general counsel of the Treasury Department resigned over that?Trump's Treasury Secretary: I will not be taking any other questions. pic.twitter.com/2sz5PDD5U0— Headquarters (@HQNewsNow) May 28, 2026It appears that Bessent is intent on allowing Trump to pillage the Treasury and award his worst allies with taxpayer dollars—without owing taxpayers any answers. This lack of transparency is par for the course, but Trump’s $1.8 billion slush fund is a criminal enterprise so egregious that it manages to stand out in a presidency that was already blatantly corrupt.
Cracks are forming in the MAGA-linked "Freedom 250" festival.Marketed as a celebration of America's 250th anniversary, artists in the lineup are now withdrawing due to the event's increasingly politicized direction. Morris Day denied involvement despite appearing in promotional materials, explicitly stating he would not perform, reports Bring Me The News. Young MC, the rapper behind "Bust a Move," followed suit, announcing on X he informed his agents he would not participate. Young MC also revealed artists were never told about political involvement with the event, despite organizers claiming it was non-partisan.The American rapper stated he hopes to perform in Washington D.C. at a future event "that is not so politically charged." The festival, scheduled for the National Mall, originally featured performers including Vanilla Ice and Flo Rida. The artist departures raise questions about the event's credibility and appeal.The "Freedom 250" Festival was described by SPIN magazine as "Trump-backed." Watch the video below. Your browser does not support the video tag.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will lead Thursday afternoon’s White House press briefing, hours after the new app for the Trump administration’s newborn investment accounts went live. President Trump has touted the investments, dubbed “Trump Accounts” and established under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, as another economic win ahead of the midterms. Under the plans,…