These were “righteous strikes,” Cotton, who chairs the Senate Intelligence Committee, told reporters on Capitol Hill. He was one of several lawmakers briefed by Admiral Frank Bradley and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Gen. Dan Caine on the Sept. 2 boat strikes in the Caribbean, near Venezuela. Asked to describe what he saw in the footage of the second boat strike, Cotton chuckled. Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said he was “deeply disturbed” by what he saw. “This must and will be the only beginning of our investigation into this incident.”Asked by a reporter what he made of Himes being shaken by the video footage, Cotton essentially shrugged.

AdvertisementIt’s the latest setback for the Justice Department in its bid to prosecute the frequent political target of the Republican president. It’s the latest example of pushback by grand jurors since the beginning of the second Trump administration. It’s so unusual for grand jurors to refuse to return an indictment that it was once said that prosecutors could persuade a grand jury to “indict a ham sandwich.” But the Justice Department has faced setbacks in front of grand juries in several recent cases. AdvertisementEven if the charges against James are resurrected, the Justice Department could face obstacles in securing a conviction against James. !”AdvertisementComey was indicted three days after Halligan was sworn in by Bondi, and James was charged two weeks after that.

nopparit via Getty ImagesThe brain is the most complex organ in the body. It regulates everything from body temperature to memories to breathing and generates thousands of thoughts every day. Must Read: 11 Foods Experts Say Can Boost Your Brain Health And Help Ward Off Dementia“The brain has to have a balanced diet,” she said. “There’s this new culture of smoothies where everything goes into the gut before your teeth have ever chewed it. Need some help with something you might be doing wrong?

This Holiday Tells A StoryThis year, the holidays don’t feel celebratory for many Americans who’ve been negatively affected by the Trump administration’s decisions. We’re here to make sure those people do not go unheard. Help us hold the administration accountable. Already a member? Log in to hide these messages.

LOADING ERROR LOADINGWhen it comes to gerrymandering efforts by Democrats and Republicans ahead of the 2026 midterms, redistricting expert Jonathan Cervas believes one party currently has an advantage. “If nothing changes, as [the districts] are right now, Democrats have clearly won this war,” Cervas said in a Wednesday appearance on Mediaite founder Dan Abrams’ SiriusXM radio show. The 2025 elections were widely characterized as the first electoral test of President Donald Trump’s second term. The Democrats won governorships in New Jersey and Virginia, and in New York City, democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani defeated Trump’s candidate of choice, former Gov. So ultimately, who’s going to win the war is contingent on questions that we don’t know answers to yet.”Advertisement

This Holiday Tells A StoryThis year, the holidays don’t feel celebratory for many Americans who’ve been negatively affected by the Trump administration’s decisions. We’re here to make sure those people do not go unheard. Help us hold the administration accountable. Already a member? Log in to hide these messages.

continually insisted they would be able to fix a looming spike in health care costs in December. The GOP’s failure to coalesce around a solution mirrors their yearslong failure to come up with a larger plan to lower health care costs or replace Obamacare. Voters largely do not trust Republicans to deal with health care, and many of the party’s ideas are unpopular. That has left Senate Republicans up in the air about whether to even offer a plan at all. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) speaks during the Senate Democrats' news conference on extending expiring Affordable Care Act tax credits in the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 4.

Kelly has a visceral reminder at his side of what that kind of rhetoric can lead to. Since Trump's attacks began, both Sen. Mark Kelly and his wife, former Rep. Gabby Giffords, who survived an assassination attempt, have received an influx of threats. “They’ve chosen the wrong guy to make a target here,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) told HuffPost. AdvertisementAsked what he made of Republicans and other pundits suggesting he was laying the groundwork for a presidential run, Kelly declined to directly answer. In 2024, he was considered as a vice presidential running mate for Democratic presidential contender Kamala Harris.

Justice Samuel Alito had previously temporarily blocked the order while the full court considered the Texas appeal. The justices have blocked past lower-court rulings in congressional redistricting cases, most recently in Alabama and Louisiana, that came several months before elections. The Texas congressional map enacted last summer at Trump’s urging was engineered to give Republicans five additional House seats. Texas state Sen. Pete Flores, R-Pleasanton, looks over a redrawn U.S. congressional map during debate over a bill in the Senate Chamber at the Texas Capitol in Austin, Texas, Aug. 22, 2025. “To be sure, politics played a role in drawing the 2025 Map,” Brown wrote.

This Holiday Tells A StoryThis year, the holidays don’t feel celebratory for many Americans who’ve been negatively affected by the Trump administration’s decisions. We’re here to make sure those people do not go unheard. Help us hold the administration accountable. Already a member? Log in to hide these messages.

“The order was basically: Destroy the drugs, kill the 11 people on the boat,” said Washington Rep. Adam Smith, the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee. The Washington Post had reported that Bradley ordered the follow-on attack on the survivors. At the time of the attack, Bradley was the commander of Joint Special Operations Command, overseeing coordinated operations between the military’s elite special operations units out of Fort Bragg in North Carolina. About a month after the strike, he was promoted to commander of U.S. Special Operations Command. Republican lawmakers who are close to Trump have largely stood by Hegseth and the administration’s decision to conduct the strikes.

“We never accept any kind of pressure,” Tomoko Akane, a judge from Japan and the ICC’s president, said during the ongoing summit. Critics of the warrants often cite doubts about Karim Khan, the ICC prosecutor who requested and secured them. This year, the court has rejected an Israeli request to quash the warrants, then an Israeli appeal against that rejection. The U.S. and many of Israel’s other allies, for instance, have previously welcomed an ICC warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin over accusations of war crimes in Ukraine. Additionally, the ICC judges cited Israeli attacks that appeared directed at civilians, another potential war crime.

This Holiday Tells A StoryThis year, the holidays don’t feel celebratory for many Americans who’ve been negatively affected by the Trump administration’s decisions. We’re here to make sure those people do not go unheard. Help us hold the administration accountable. Already a member? Log in to hide these messages.

The 27-year-old is accused of shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, 50, in the back at point-blank range exactly one year ago. The brazen shooting launched a massive manhunt that ended five days later with Mangione’s arrest at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania. Several of Mangione’s supporters told HuffPost they even planned to brave this Friday’s potentially record-breaking cold snap in their tents. Initially, Mangione gave the officers a false name along with a New Jersey driver’s license. Mangione gave his real name after the warning.

DJ AG performs in a care home and encourages residents to sing and dance along. A North London-based DJ is bringing cheer to UK care homes this winter with his charm and toe-tapping beats. Advertisement AdvertisementAdvertisement AdvertisementAnd now, as Christmas draws near, the DJ is turning his efforts to Britain’s care homes, where he’s on a mission to bring joy and music to the nation’s elders. “The reason I started performing in care homes goes back to my grandmother,” he told HuffPost UK. Performing in care homes is my way of reminding them that they’re not forgotten.