Today's Headlines: Bill Gates testified before the House Oversight Committee that Epstein tried to blackmail him after he tried to distance himself, saying he never went to the island or witnessed criminal conduct — the standard answer at this point — while a New York Times excerpt from an upcoming Haberman/Swan book revealed the White House Situation Room freakout over the Epstein files last July, with JD Vance emerging as a conspiracy theorist who wanted full file release and suggested Tucker Carlson interview Ghislaine Maxwell to clear Trump, while the administration quietly panicked over a specific sex allegation about Trump. On the war beat, the US launched strikes for the second consecutive night, Pete Hegseth announced they would "negotiate with bombs," Iran responded by attacking Bahrain and Kuwait and closing the Strait of Hormuz with a shoot-on-sight policy for any ship attempting to pass — the Dow fell nearly 1,000 points, the Nasdaq closed down 2%, inflation came in at 4.2% the worst in three years driven by energy prices, and Trump said "I love the inflation," which he said out loud. New reporting found at least 500 babies and toddlers in ICE custody during Trump's second term, averaging 25 per day and ten times higher than under Biden. The EU warned Albania that the Kushner Sazan Island resort could jeopardize their EU membership bid, as tens of thousands of Albanians enter their tenth day of protests. The White House launched an official "Media Offenders" page categorizing journalists under headers like "Left-Wing Lunacy" and "Malpractice." And finally, Nancy Mace abandoned her congressional seat to run for South Carolina governor, finished fifth in the primary, and announced she's "headed back to the private sector as the founders intended."
Resources/Articles mentioned:
NYT: Bill Gates Says Epstein Tried to Use His Extramarital Affairs Against Him
NYT: Inside Trump’s White House, the Epstein Files Caused a Freako
NYT: Live Updates: U.S. Strikes Iran Again After Trump Says Talks Are Taking Too Long
Reuters: Iran announces closure of Strait of Hormuz after US attacks
WSJ: Stock Market Today: Dow, Nasdaq Open Lower; Inflation Rises to 4.2% — Live Updates
CNBC: CPI inflation report May 2026: Prices rose 4.2% annually
MS Now: Jacob Soboroff: ICE detained over 500 babies and toddlers under Trump
The Independent: Trump administration says Somali referee denied US entry over links to ‘terror organisation’ suspects
Noise 11: Trump White House ‘Media Offenders' List Sparks New Press Freedom Debate In America
Euronews: ‘Act without delay’: Brussels warns Albania over Trump-linked resort project
The Hill: Mace ‘headed back to private sector’ after congressional term ends
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