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Teen arrested in girl's murder one year after police said she accidentally shot herself while recording video

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 08:32:59 -0400

The family of a 14-year-old Washington, D.C., girl who was initially believed by police to have accidentally shot herself says an arrest in her killing brings a measure of relief after they spent months insisting Zytina Mason-Brown did not take her own life.

Police have taken a 17-year-old male suspect into custody in connection with Mason-Brown’s death. Authorities allege the teen was inside the apartment when Mason-Brown was fatally shot.

"I’m feeling — I don’t want to say happy because it’s not a joyous occasion, I just wish we didn’t have to go through this — but I’m feeling satisfied that D.C. police did apprehend the suspect," Mason-Brown’s grandmother, Michelle Brown, told FOX5 DC. "And they did their job on this one."

TRUMP'S DC CRIME CRACKDOWN 'WORKING' AS CITY SEES HOMICIDES PLUMMET 43% SINCE 2025: SLAIN INTERN'S MOM

The arrest marks a major turn in a case that Mason-Brown’s family questioned from the beginning.

Mason-Brown, an eighth grader who dreamed of becoming a beautician and real estate agent, was killed May 21, 2025, inside an apartment at the Benning Courts Pentacle complex in the 1700 block of Benning Road Northeast, across from Hechinger Mall.

Police initially characterized the shooting as an accident, saying Mason-Brown had apparently shot herself while recording a video for social media.

TEEN ARRESTED ON MURDER CHARGES AFTER CITADEL CADET AND CHILDHOOD FRIEND FOUND SHOT DEAD

Her family did not believe that account.

Months after the shooting, the D.C. Office of the Chief Medical Examiner officially ruled Mason-Brown’s death a homicide in August 2025.

"We knew that Zytina did not kill herself," her aunt Dawna Cooke told FOX5DC. "And I really want to thank the Metropolitan Police Department for fighting so hard to come to the conclusion and get the suspect in custody."

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Details about the 17-year-old suspect’s identity and upcoming court appearances have not been made public because of juvenile privacy laws.

Odell Beckham Jr eyes his old number amid dramatic return to the Giants

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 08:00:42 -0400

Odell Beckham Jr. had a stranglehold on opposing defenses when he was with the New York Giants to start his career.

He had 390 catches for 5,476 yards and 44 touchdowns while with the Giants for the first five years of his career, putting himself on a historic pace if he would have stayed healthy and available. Injuries and other issues turned the public perception around on Beckham as he moved his way through the Cleveland Browns to the Los Angeles Rams to the Baltimore Ravens and finally to the Miami Dolphins through the 2024 season.

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In a last-ditch effort to extend his career, Beckham found himself fighting for a roster spot with the Giants. After Calvin Austin III went down with an injury, Beckham was elevated to the 53-man roster ahead of the team’s first game of the 2026 season against the Dallas Cowboys.

It’s not a complete full-circle moment for Beckham, though. There is one more thing he’s looking to accomplish before he suits up for the first game – his old number.

Beckham wore No. 13 when he started with the Giants and kept the number as he played for the Browns. He switched to No. 3 when he joined the Rams, helping the team to a Super Bowl title. He was also No. 3 with the Ravens and Dolphins.

Back with Big Blue, Beckham said Monday he’s hoping to get that jersey number again.

"I think we all know what that means to me, and there definitely will be some conversations," he told reporters. "I'll just say we'll see what happens, but like I said, it would be an honor and a privilege to put that back on."

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Jalin Hyatt is wearing No. 13 right now. He was cut and then signed to the practice squad. Hyatt was given No. 13 after the Giants selected him in the third round of the 2023 draft. But he has not exactly lived up to the expectations that come with being a wide receiver selected on Day 2 of the draft. He has 36 catches for 470 yards and no touchdowns in 41 games.

Presently, Beckham is wearing No. 3.

Numbers aside, Beckham said he felt like he can still produce at a high level.

"I feel confident in my ability, and whatever it is that I need to provide, I'm looking to do that and more," he said. "I've never shied away from competition or anything like that. So, I feel that I can produce. I know that's what I want to do and now it's about putting the work in to be able to do that."

Beckham isn’t going to be wide receiver No. 1 – that’s slotted for Malik Nabers when he’s back to full health. The offense also has Darius Slayton, Malachi Fields and Darnell Mooney as well.

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Second-year quarterback Jaxson Dart will have plenty of options to throw to this season.

Social media photo craze sparks tourist invasion at picture-perfect vacation hot spot

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 08:00:03 -0400

Long lines of tourists are forming at some of Santorini's most famous photo spots as visitors seek out the island's iconic views.

Videos circulating online show crowds lining the narrow streets of Oia to pose in front of the Greek island's famous blue-domed churches — with some visitors lining up early in the morning for their turn.

Mandee Migliaccio, CEO of New Jersey-based Stepping Out Travel, told Fox News Digital that Santorini was a bucket-list destination long before social media, but she believes that today's platforms have amplified travelers' desire to capture the same iconic images.

ONCE-GLAMOROUS VACATION SPOT OVERRUN BY INFLUENCERS AND CROWDS: 'ALMOST UNBEARABLE'

"People are wanting to go get those iconic pictures," Migliaccio said. "It's been there, but yes, it has been amplified."

The churches, with their brightly colored domes, are among the island's most photographed locations — along with sunsets, windmills and whitewashed staircases, she said.

Crowding can become particularly intense when cruise ships are in port.

"You have thousands upon thousands of people getting off the boats and wanting to take the same four pictures," Migliaccio said.

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She encouraged travelers not to plan their entire experience around recreating photos they've seen online.

"Make your own story. Make your own vacation," she said. "Don't just go there and plan a trip around four photos you're gonna take [on the trip]."

For those who still want the famous shots, she recommended going early and staying several days.

On Mondays and Tuesdays, there tend to be more cruise ships in port, while Sundays may be less crowded, she said.

The scenes have also sparked discussion online about whether social media has been changing the way people travel.

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"Traveling is so much fun if you're not doing it for social media," one TikTok user commented.

Reddit users have expressed mixed views as well.

One commenter said seeing the same destinations online repeatedly can create expectations and diminish some of the surprise, while also acknowledging that social media has made planning trips easier.

Another person called social media "an amazing resource" for discovering places, restaurants and attractions they otherwise might have missed.

Migliaccio said travelers can also use social media to highlight experiences beyond the same famous photo spots, including cooking classes, wine tours and other parts of the island.

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"Santorini is so beautiful and there's so much to do," she said. "And it's not just about the photos. Go experience it."

She also urged visitors to remember that the island is home to local residents.

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"People often forget, because you're on vacation, that this is people's homes," Migliaccio said.

Massive chemical fire erupts at electrical transformer plant in Mississippi, forcing evacuation

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 07:48:44 -0400

Flames and thick black smoke billowed from a manufacturing facility in Mississippi on Monday as a massive chemical fire forced employees to evacuate and drew fire crews from across the county, according to local reports.

The fire broke out at a Howard Industries facility in Laurel after a paint booth caught fire next to a tanker truck carrying an explosive substance, Mayor Johnny Magee told local media.

All employees were evacuated, and fire departments across Jones County were called to the scene, according to WDAM-TV. Crews had mostly contained the fire by 8 p.m.

SHOCKING VIDEO SHOWS GIANT BLACK PLUME OF SMOKE RISING FROM TENNESSEE PLASTIC RECYCLING FACILITY FIRE

Video posted to social media showed flames burning at the facility as thick smoke filled the sky and fire trucks arrived.

Several loud booms could be heard as people ran from the area and firefighters worked near the fire, according to WAPT-TV.

"Everybody’s gotta leave," Brandon Herford Brewer, who posted one of the videos, could be heard saying.

Brewer described the heat as unbearable as he prepared to leave the area.

"My face is melting," he said. "It’s Howard industry, and I’m about to get out of here. I am sweating down."

EMERGENCY CREWS RESPONDING TO MASSIVE EXPLOSION AT NEW ORLEANS-AREA OIL REFINERY: SHERIFF

Brewer later said the building had been cleared and everyone had gotten out.

Howard Industries makes electrical transformers, including the equipment utilities use to get electricity to homes and businesses. The company says its Laurel plant covers about 2.3 million square feet.

Officials urged people to avoid the area, warning that traffic could slow firefighters and put workers and first responders at risk.

It was not immediately clear whether anyone was injured or how much damage the fire caused.

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Officials did not immediately release more information.

Trump says Iran is ‘dead’ as Tehran is nearing the brink and more top headlines

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 07:13:51 -0400

Good morning and welcome to Fox News' morning newsletter, Fox News First. And here's what you need to know to start your day ...

TOP 3

1. Trump says Iran is ‘dead’ as Tehran is nearing the brink

2. Accused Charlie Kirk assassin could finally enter plea

3. Insanity verdict may offer little relief for Lindsay Clancy's fate

MAJOR HEADLINES

TEHRAN TROUBLE — Iran now wants US to return to memorandum of understanding. Continue reading …

EXIT STAGE LEFT — Tensions erupt in hearing as Democrats rage against anti-socialism resolution. Continue reading …

VERDICT IS IN — Duane 'Keffe D' Davis found guilty of first-degree murder in 1996 killing of Tupac Shakur. Continue reading …

LATEST NUMBERS — State Department gives update on missing Americans after deadly Nepal flood kills 903. Continue reading …

TRAGIC VOYAGE — Deadly ferry capsizes with over 250 aboard as children vanish in deep waters. Continue reading …

POLITICS

‘A DISGRACE’ — Judge who axed 9/11 mastermind's confession blamed military’s ‘conservative tendencies’ for rising ‘extremism’. Continue reading …

GLOVES OFF — Vance unloads on El-Sayed after Usha swipe with brutal warning. Continue reading …

BUILDING BATTLE — SCOTUS clears Trump's White House ballroom to roll on as fierce legal fight rages. Continue reading …

MAILED IT — Obama-appointed judge keeps USPS ballot rules blocked, despite SCOTUS decision. Continue reading …

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MEDIA

DIVIDED INDUSTRY — Hollywood superstar rejects 'appalling' antisemitism claim as peers reject his defense. Continue reading …

HISTORY ERASED — CBC defends controversial memo directing staff how to refer to 9/11. Continue reading …

BACK IN MY DAY — Gen Z Democratic lawmaker spars with Baby Boomers over whether American Dream is dead. Continue reading …

'I'M JUST SAYING' — El-Sayed stands by criticism of fireworks, tells Americans to find other ways to 'show you love'. Continue reading …

OPINION

HUGH HEWITT — We're living through the Summer of the DSA (and Hasan Piker). Continue reading …

EJ ANTONI — Fears of a Canadian trade war are overblown. So far, it’s more of a skirmish. Continue reading …

IN OTHER NEWS

BARE NECESSITIES — Naked DoorDash driver delivers food to Texas home in shocking security camera video. Continue reading …

ROYAL RIFT — Meghan Markle’s UK return poses Palace control ‘nightmare.' Continue reading …

BITTER FINDINGS — Popular sugar substitute linked to increased heart attack and stroke risk in major study. Continue reading …

AMERICAN CULTURE QUIZ — Test yourself on football futures and dessert drama. Take the quiz here …

LISTEN

Tune in for a closer look at what may have triggered the deadly Nepal-China border landslides and whether better warning systems could help protect vulnerable communities. Listen to more on Castbox.

PODCASTS

Why Ted Cruz said "hell no" to the Supreme Court—and chose the Senate instead on ‘Hang Out with Sean Hannity.’ Check it out…

Don't miss 'The Riley Gaines Show.' Catch the new episode at 10am ET ...

A retired Navy admiral dives into ocean mysteries on 'Planet Tyrus.’ Check it out…

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What's it looking like in your neighborhood? Continue reading…

Thank you for making us your first choice in the morning! We'll see you in your inbox first thing Wednesday.

A brutal summer just got worse for the 49ers and they don't have an answer for it

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 07:06:31 -0400

It's hard to find an NFL team that has had a worse summer than the San Francisco 49ers. And it just got worse.

The 49ers, an otherwise good team, have for the past couple of months been weaving and slipping bad news like a boxer trying to avoid a knockout punch.

Remember that head coach Kyle Shanahan in July got into a terrible head-on collision that he actually caused when he went looking for his cell phone in his car while relying on his Tesla's autopilot feature to drive for him.

49ERS COACH KYLE SHANAHAN ADMITS HE CAUSED CAR CRASH AFTER TAKING EYES OFF ROAD TO FIND HIS PHONE

The ensuing head-on collision when his car drifted into an oncoming lane left Shanahan with broken bones, facial lacerations, a concussion and regrets.

And, amazingly, that was perhaps the least bit of football-related bad news the team got during training camp. Because ...

Defensive end Nick Bosa, trying to get ready for the regular season after ACL surgery last season, hasn't practiced in four weeks and is not ready to play.

Tight end George Kittle, trying to get ready for the season after surgery to repair a torn Achilles, hasn't practiced during training camp either, despite constant reports he's on the mend and ahead of schedule.

Then majority owner Jed York got popped in a prostitution sting by the Mahoning Valley Human Trafficking Task Force in Ohio. The arrest and York subsequently pleading no contest to lesser charges didn't stop the story from going viral and putting York in the crosshairs of the NFL Personal Conduct Policy.

Hey, um, did we mention that 2024 first-round pick Ricky Pearsall, required knee surgery the first week of August, effectively ending his 2026 season before it even began?

Breaking: None of this is good.

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But it gets potentially worse.

On Sunday, Aaron Donald announced he is returning to the NFL to play for the Los Angeles Rams after being retired the past two years.

Donald saw what the Rams have done this offseason in loading up for a run at the Super Bowl and decided he wanted to join the fun and make life difficult for rivals like ... the 49ers.

And although the three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year has been out since 2024, Donald thinks he's still going to be dang good at age 35.

During his comeback news conference Donald detailed his grueling preparation to return to the game. He said he ran full-speed on the treadmill and lifted weights to stay in top physical shape during his time away from the game.

And he explained that he worked with the trainer who had known him since high school to get an honest assessment of his current explosiveness compared to that of his youth.

"You ain't missed a step," Donald said his private trainer told him.

That's great for the Rams. But not so much for the 49ers because they play the Rams twice in the NFC West, including in their season opener Sept. 10 in Australia.

More bad news? Of course.

Shanahan on Monday announced he doesn't know who is going to start at left guard in that game to fill the assignment of blocking Donald.

"Don't know yet," Shanahan told reporters when asked for details.

The 49ers practiced Monday, then will do so again Tuesday and Wednesday before leaving for Australia. And until those practices happen, well, Shanahan isn't ready to pick a starter.

"We haven't had those three practices yet and we just added a new guy to the group too," the coach said. "So, it's truly fluid."

This isn't a coach being coy about an answer he doesn't want to reveal for competitive purposes. This feels more like Shanahan and his staff evaluated rookie fourth-round pick Carver Willis throughout training camp and do not feel comfortable enough to name him as the starter.

And definitely not against Aaron Donald.

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The 49ers were so uncertain about Carver they felt compelled to trade for depth-guy Jarrett Patterson in an exchange with the Houston Texans. And now the depth guy they acquired is suddenly in the mix to start less than two days after joining the team.

"It's still fluid in all our positions in there, so I want to see where he fits in the group in these three days," Shanahan said. "So, I want to get him in the group, see where he fits, just see him in person, see how he can help us at guard, how he can help us at center and how he stacks up to the other guys."

It's not all terrible news for the 49ers.

The NFL has given Donald a roster exemption in case the Rams feel he needs more ramp-up time before playing again. That could mean he doesn't play the 49ers in that season-opener.

Sure, Aaron Donald might decide after spending six weeks getting ready for his NFL return, it would be wise to not play in a nationally televised game against a rookie or a guy the 49ers just added to the roster.

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Meghan Markle’s UK return poses Palace control ‘nightmare,’ expert warns

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 07:00:53 -0400

Meghan Markle is returning to Britain with more independence than she had as a working royal, an arrangement experts say could test Buckingham Palace's boundaries.

Markle, 45, and Prince Harry, 41, recently relocated to the United Kingdom with their children Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5, for an extended stay though they will remain private, non-working members of the royal family.

While the couple is expected to establish a private residence outside London and keep their home in Montecito, California, royal observers told Fox News Digital that Markle's ability to pursue her own media, business and public-facing projects from Britain could create new tension with the institution she once represented.

PRINCE HARRY, MEGHAN MARKLE PLANNING TO MOVE BACK TO UK WITH CHILDREN 6 YEARS AFTER ROYAL EXIT: REPORTS

"The nightmare for the Palace is that they can’t be controlled," royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams told Fox News Digital. "Diary clashes will probably mean royal engagements are overshadowed by what the Sussexes choose to do and what they are, or are not, asked to by the Palace."

Kinsey Schofield, host of YouTube’s "Kinsey Schofield Unfiltered," said that Buckingham Palace will have "very little control" over the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's public and commercial activities because they no longer represent Harry's father King Charles as working royals.

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"They are private citizens and no longer working on behalf of the King, so Buckingham Palace isn’t approving Meghan’s interviews, appearances, Instagram posts or commercial projects," Schofield said.

"But Harry is still the King’s son and Meghan is still the Duchess of Sussex, so there is an inevitable association with the monarchy," she added. "That’s the complicated part. They can operate independently while still benefiting from an enormous amount of public interest that exists because of Harry’s DNA."

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Markle's status as a private citizen living in the U.K. marks a sharp departure from her life as a working royal, when Palace protocols and communications staff shaped much of her public role. The former "Suits" star is returning with her own career, team and support system, according to People magazine.

"She has been vocal about how she felt about it before, but that doesn’t mean things are going to be exactly the same again," an ally told People. "It doesn’t mean it can’t be different and can’t change."

Another source told the outlet that the Sussexes' support network is "stronger now than it ever was to protect her — to protect them."

However, Schofield pointed out that Buckingham Palace retains one important source of influence.

KING CHARLES SENDS 'DEFIANCE' MESSAGE TO PRINCE WILLIAM WITH BUCKINGHAM PALACE ROOM OFFER TO HARRY: EXPERT

"The palace can’t control what they do, but it can control access to the institution. It can decide how much proximity they have to working royals, royal residences, and official events," she said. "That is where the palace still has considerable leverage."

"Meghan may be returning without palace restrictions, but she is also returning without palace protection," she added. "You don’t get one without losing the other."

PRINCE HARRY, MEGHAN MARKLE BLASTED FOR ‘FAUX ROYAL TOUR’ AS EXPERTS ACCUSE COUPLE OF EXPLOITING TITLES

However, Buckingham Palace's ability to limit the Sussexes’ access to official royal events, however, would not prevent their public appearances, announcements or business ventures from drawing attention away from the working royals. Fitzwilliams said that dynamic could become particularly challenging when it comes to the carefully coordinated royal calendar.

"The problem is that royal diaries are planned well in advance," Fitzwilliams said. "Here there are likely to be numerous clashes, and this will fuel fascination with the Sussexes."

PRINCE WILLIAM LIKELY 'LIVID' OVER MEGHAN MARKLE'S 'TASTELESS' PHOTOS AT PRINCESS DIANA'S HOME: EXPERT

Schofield told Fox News Digital that a competing announcement would not necessarily violate a formal Palace rule, but she noted there are longstanding expectations around the timing of public engagements.

"If Meghan were repeatedly scheduling appearances or announcements to coincide with major royal engagements, people would notice," she said. "She might not be breaking a written rule, but there are conventions and courtesies around these things."

PRINCE WILLIAM'S ABSENCE SPEAKS VOLUMES AS KING CHARLES REUNITES WITH PRINCE HARRY AND MEGHAN MARKLE: EXPERTS

"If you consistently attempt to overshadow the working Royal Family, eventually the pattern becomes the story," Schofield added.

Schofield explained that the concern over competing headlines echoes the central issue Queen Elizabeth II confronted when Harry and Markle stepped back from their roles as working royals in 2020.

At the time, the late queen rejected a proposed hybrid arrangement that would have allowed the couple to pursue financial independence while continuing to carry out official duties and retain the benefits of their royal connection.

"This is essentially the dilemma the late Queen was trying to avoid with the original ‘half-in, half-out’ rejection," Schofield said. "Meghan can enjoy enormous interest because she married into the Royal Family without having to behave or work like a royal."

"But there is another side to that bargain," she continued. "She doesn’t have the institution behind her anymore either. There is no royal communications operation required to defend her, no royal security, and no guaranteed place at major royal occasions. A lot of the perks are gone."

The experts agreed that the question of access is further complicated by the fractured relationship between the Sussexes and the royal family. The couple publicly detailed strains within the royal family in their 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey, their 2022 Netflix docuseries "Harry & Meghan" and Harry’s bombshell 2023 memoir "Spare."

Schofield said that history could make Palace staff particularly wary as Harry and Markle establish a new life in the U.K.

"There is also a significant trust deficit," she said. "Harry published private family conversations in ‘Spare,’ and Harry and Meghan have discussed private royal relationships publicly in interviews and their Netflix series. That history doesn’t disappear simply because they’re living in Britain again."

British broadcaster Helena Chard told Fox News Digital that Charles and his son and heir Prince William may need to establish clearer expectations around the Sussexes’ access to official engagements and the working royal family as they settle back into Britain.

"Formalities need to be drawn up, put in place and made clear to all," Chard said. "These will essentially be the 'dos and don'ts' formalities."

According to People magazine, the Sussexes' move back to the U.K. is also about more than their business interests or public profiles. The outlet reported that the decision was "taken as a family," with the couple viewing a longer stay in Britain as an opportunity to connect their children with Harry’s heritage.

Earlier this summer, Archie and Lilibet joined their parents for a trip to the U.K. during which they reunited with Charles and Queen Camilla at Highgrove House, the king's country home. The children also visited Althorp, the childhood home and final resting place of Harry's late mother, Princess Diana. They were joined by Harry's uncle and Diana's brother Charles Spencer, and members of the late Princess of Wales' family.

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"Meghan feels very fortunate that they’re able to give Archie and Lilibet the opportunity to experience both worlds," a source told People. Another insider shared that Harry wants his children "to understand the world he grew up in and where their family comes from."

Meanwhile, not every royal observer expects Markle’s return to immediately deepen the rift.

Royal broadcaster Ian Pelham Turner told Fox News Digital that she may take a more restrained approach, similar to that of William's wife and the Princess of Wales Kate Middleton, as the family establishes its new life in Britain.

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"I feel Meghan will play a very cautious hand at first similar to that devised by Kate and be the very epitome of decorum, style and elegance," Turner said.

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"The ability Meghan has is real empathy with people, a strong intelligent mind capable of using well rehearsed opinions to drive forward opportunities for many cultures and communities in Britain," he added.

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"I think she will relish the chance to prove her doubters wrong and be an asset in waiting for the Royal family again."

7 new dementia risk factors revealed — including one millions struggle with

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 07:00:06 -0400

The World Health Organization (WHO) has released a major update to its guidelines on reducing the risk of cognitive decline and dementia.

The second edition of the original 2019 report was updated to "reflect the latest evidence and advances in dementia risk reduction."

The following seven additional health conditions and exposures were added to the list.

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Stroke
Traumatic brain injury
Vision impairment
Sleep problems
HIV
Air pollution
Menopausal hormone therapy

These new risk factors joined the previously existing 12, which are listed below.

Cognitive activity
Social activity
Physical inactivity
Harmful alcohol use
Tobacco use
Unhealthy diet/nutrition
Obesity
Diabetes
Hypertension
Dyslipidemia (abnormal amount of lipids (fats) or lipoproteins in the blood)
Hearing loss
Depression

WARDING OFF ALZHEIMER'S MIGHT MEAN MAKING THESE 11 LIFESTYLE CHANGES, EXPERT SAYS

Dr. Daniel Amen, physician and founder of Amen Clinics in California, has his own formula for reducing Alzheimer’s risk factors, following an acronym called BRIGHT MINDS.

This stands for blood flow, retirement and aging, inflammation, genetics, head trauma, toxins, mental health, immunity and infections, neurohormones, diabesity (co-occurrence of obesity and type 2 diabetes) and sleep. The WHO’s updated guidelines offer similar advice.

Amen spoke with Fox News Digital about the new additions to the WHO's list of risk factors.

Menopausal hormone therapy (MHT)

The WHO does not recommend menopausal hormone therapy specifically to prevent dementia in postmenopausal women 65 and older. For younger women, it says there is not enough evidence to determine whether MHT affects dementia risk.

Amen agreed that there is not enough evidence to support using MHT specifically to prevent dementia. He said hormonal changes during menopause may affect mood and memory, although the relationship between MHT and dementia risk remains uncertain.

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"For women, as they go through menopause, lower progesterone makes them anxious, and [with] lower estrogen, they start to have memory problems," he said. "Hormone replacement early on is helpful, and that's what we see on the brain imaging work that we do."

Experts note that while menopause-related hormonal changes can be associated with mood and cognitive symptoms, these effects can vary widely.

Stroke

A stroke occurs when blood flow to part of the brain is blocked or when a blood vessel in or near the brain bursts, according to the American Stroke Association.

Conditions that affect the heart and blood vessels can also affect brain health and are associated with a higher risk of dementia, according to Amen.

That can include conditions such as heart disease, heart rhythm problems, stroke and transient ischemic attacks. Erectile dysfunction can also be associated with underlying vascular disease, he said.

"And 40% of 40-year-olds have erectile dysfunction, 70% of 70-year-olds. So, if I'm an older person, I'm thinking if I get my brain right, my love life could be better, too," Amen added.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI)

Amen surmised that the WHO is "late to the party" in emphasizing the importance of head trauma as a dementia risk factor. TBI can range from a mild concussion to a severe brain injury.

COMMON VACCINE LINKED TO 24% LOWER DEMENTIA RISK IN OLDER ADULTS

"One of the big lessons from the brain imaging work we do is that mild traumatic brain injury ruins people's lives," he said. "They end up seeing psychiatrists because they have temper problems or ... depression or anxiety, and it's really from a snowmobiling accident in [their] 30s."

Amen added that failing to protect the brain — which he described as "very soft" and having the consistency of "soft butter" — is "not the smart thing to do."

Vision impairment

A significant portion of the brain is dedicated to vision, according to Amen.

"So, if your vision becomes troubled, your brain's troubled," he said.

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Amen said vision impairment may place additional demands on the brain. While the condition has been linked with cognitive decline, the WHO says there is insufficient evidence to recommend vision treatment specifically for dementia prevention.

Sleep disorders

Sleep appears to support the brain’s waste-clearance processes, Amen noted.

Sleep challenges affect tens of millions of Americans. In 2024, 30.5% of U.S. adults reported getting less than seven hours of shut-eye per day, according to the CDC.

For those with sleep problems such as sleep apnea, it can cause changes in the brain that resemble the hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease, the expert said.

Research suggests that sleep may help the brain clear beta-amyloid, although the relationship between sleep and dementia remains complex and is still being studied.

HIV

Inflammation and infections can affect brain health. Untreated HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) can affect the central nervous system and is associated with HIV-related cognitive impairment.

Amen said he has scanned "hundreds of people" with HIV, stating that the virus is "clearly a risk factor."

Untreated HIV is known to affect the central nervous system and is associated with HIV-related cognitive impairment. Effective antiretroviral therapy has greatly reduced the incidence of severe HIV-associated dementia.

Air pollution

Exposure to any toxins, from alcohol and marijuana to lead, mercury or air pollution, could be detrimental to brain health, according to Amen.

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The WHO recommends reducing exposure to household and outdoor air pollution, particularly fine particulate matter. Research has linked long-term exposure to air pollution with a higher risk of cognitive decline and dementia, although the WHO characterizes the evidence as low to very low certainty.

Getting ahead of it

Dementia risk rises sharply with age. A recent U.S. analysis estimated that about one in five people had developed dementia by age 85, with risk increasing further at older ages.

While those with a genetic predisposition to the disease have a higher risk, Amen noted that certain lifestyle factors can increase the risk for anyone.

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"We should be on a dementia prevention program our whole lives," the doctor said. "It’s not something to start when you're 65."

Amen urged everyone to ask themselves the question: "Is what I’m doing good or bad for my brain?"

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"Social activity is one of the prevention strategies. New learning is a prevention strategy," he added. "So always working on being connected with other people and then just making better decisions."

"If you love and care for your brain, you're going to love your life a whole bunch more."

California’s affordability crisis threatens America’s defense industrial base

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 07:00:01 -0400

America is investing billions to build the world’s most advanced ships, aircraft, missiles, autonomous systems and satellites. But those investments mean little if we do not have the welders, machinists, technicians, engineers and mechanics to build and maintain them.

California should be leading that effort.

The state is home to more than 30 major defense installations and one of America’s most important aerospace and defense ecosystems. These industries offer skilled workers good careers – often paying $90,000 to $100,000 a year without requiring a four-year degree.

AMERICA FACES A CRISIS IN OUR MILITARY ARSENAL THAT TRUMP IS RACING TO FIX

There is just one problem: California has made it increasingly difficult for the workers we need to afford to live here.

A $100,000 salary sounds impressive until rent approaches $3,000 a month. Gasoline, electricity, insurance, food and taxes consume more of every paycheck and homeownership feels increasingly out of reach.

NEWSOM TARGETS MAJOR AFFORDABILITY SQUEEZE IN ‘STRIKING’ CONVERGENCE WITH TRUMP

We cannot talk seriously about California’s workforce shortage without talking about California’s affordability crisis.

The defense industrial base already faces an aging workforce and a shortage of skilled tradesmen. Across America, millions of manufacturing jobs could go unfilled in the coming years as experienced workers retire and too few young Americans replace them.

WANT TO STRENGTHEN AMERICA'S ECONOMY? THE KEY INVESTMENT IS HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT

California cannot afford to make that challenge worse by pricing workers out of the state.

The first part of the solution is getting more young Americans into the trades.

SKIP TWO YEARS OF COLLEGE DEBT AND GIVE YOUR FAMILY A LIFETIME OF WEALTH

For too long, our culture promoted a "college for all" mentality that treated a four-year degree as the primary measure of success. That was a mistake. College is the right choice for many Americans. It is not the only path to prosperity.

Skilled trades offer something increasingly valuable: the opportunity to earn while you learn.

ELITE COLLEGES ARE LOSING AMERICA’S TRUST. COMMUNITY COLLEGES CAN WIN IT BACK

Instead of spending four years accumulating student debt, apprentices can begin earning immediately while developing skills employers desperately need. A young machinist, welder, diesel mechanic or heavy-equipment operator can establish a career years before many college graduates enter the workforce.

Artificial intelligence may disrupt some white-collar professions. But AI is not going to weld the hull of a ship, repair a diesel engine, machine a precision component, or maintain an aircraft on a flight line.

AMERICA'S AI BOOM IS A JOBS OPPORTUNITY, NOT AN EXCUSE FOR UNIVERSAL BASIC INCOME

These are good jobs. They are essential jobs. And California should be competing aggressively to attract the Americans capable of doing them.

The Trump administration is taking important steps nationally by challenging the outdated "college for all" model, reducing unnecessary barriers to career and technical education, expanding apprenticeships and opening additional pathways for short-term vocational training.

INNOVATION IS KEY TO AMERICA STAYING A SUPERPOWER. BUT IT IS MISSING AN ESSENTIAL PIECE

The America First Policy Institute’s "America First Workforce Agenda" similarly recognizes that rebuilding American manufacturing requires government, education and private industry to put the American worker first.

But Washington cannot solve California’s problem alone.

THINK YOUR STATE IS EXPENSIVE? NEW DATA REVEALS WHERE AMERICANS FACE THE HIGHEST COST-OF-LIVING

Sacramento has a responsibility, too.

It makes little sense to train a 22-year-old Californian for a $90,000 defense manufacturing job if that worker concludes he can afford a better home, and have lower taxes, cheaper energy and a higher quality of life by taking his skills to another state.

California government must make prosperity part of its workforce strategy.

That means building more housing, lowering unnecessary regulatory barriers, confronting excessive energy costs, reducing the cost of doing business, expanding career and technical education and making it easier for manufacturers to build factories and hire workers.

Workforce development cannot simply mean training people. It must mean creating a state where those workers can afford to build lives and raise families.

California once embodied that promise. It was the Golden State because Americans came here to build things, start businesses, raise families and pursue opportunity. Its aerospace industry helped win the Cold War and put Americans on the moon.

California can lead again.

But we cannot simultaneously say we desperately need machinists, welders, mechanics and technicians while pursuing policies that make those same workers unable to afford a home near their jobs.

National security and economic prosperity increasingly depend on rebuilding America’s industrial base. California possesses the installations, companies, universities, technical expertise and history to be at the center of that revival.

Now it needs the workers.

Parents should encourage young Americans to consider the trades. Schools should treat technical education with the respect it deserves. Industry should invest in apprenticeships and training.

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And California’s government must do its part by making the Golden State affordable and prosperous enough that the next generation of American workers actually wants – and can afford - to stay.

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America needs them to build our arsenal. California should make sure they can build their lives here, too.

Top election schemes roiling key midterm races as both parties accuse rivals of trickery

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 06:35:24 -0400

Republicans and Democrats are deploying increasingly aggressive tactics to shape the 2026 midterms — including efforts to influence rival primaries, obscure political spending and exploit election deadlines.

Both parties are accusing one another of using cynical tactics to influence voters and shape the field ahead of Election Day, even as operatives aligned with each of them employ similar strategies. Those maneuvers have included routing millions of dollars through deceptively named political committees to influence rival primaries and using filing deadlines in ways that gave favored successors a clearer path to the ballot.

Many of these schemes are being carried out in key races, meaning that control of Congress may come down to what many view as cheap tricks — a prospect that could serve to further erode public trust in government.

The tale of three Dans

Two separate individuals named Dan Sullivan are running for Senate in Alaska, and a third just endorsed one over the other.

ALASKA SENATE RACE’S ABSURD NAME PROBLEM GETS EVEN HARDER TO UNTANGLE

Republicans have argued that the confusing state of affairs in Alaska is the product of a Democratic ploy to disorient voters.

Incumbent GOP Sen. Dan S. Sullivan is facing a challenge from teacher Dan J. Sullivan, whom Republicans have accused of running as a Republican solely to confuse voters to the benefit of Democrats. Alaska’s electoral system allows the top-four vote-getters in the state’s nonpartisan primary to advance to the ranked-choice general election.

Fox News Power Rankings rates the Alaska Senate race as a toss-up, meaning neither party currently has a clear advantage. If enough voters confuse Dan S. Sullivan with Dan J. Sullivan, it could be enough to give Democratic nominee Mary Peltola an edge.

Republicans point to the fact that Dan J. Sullivan worked with a Democratic-aligned consultant as evidence that he is part of a plot to siphon voters off of Dan S. Sullivan. Dan J. Sullivan, meanwhile, maintains that he is an actual Republican with legitimate grievances as to the incumbent senator’s representation of his state.

A third Dan Sullivan, the former mayor of Anchorage, recently waded into the Senate race to endorse Dan S. Sullivan.

Dan J. Sullivan is reportedly being investigated by the Justice Department and Alaska election officials in separate probes examining whether he sought to deliberately mislead voters. The investigation follows a failed Republican legal effort to remove him from the ballot.

Texas primary games

The National Republican Senatorial Committee reportedly worked behind the scenes to encourage Rep. Jasmine Crockett to enter Texas’ Democratic Senate primary. Once she entered, other Republican actors also ran messaging that Democrats argued could help her with primary voters.

One source familiar with the process dubbed it an "AstroTurf recruitment process" when speaking with NOTUS in 2025.

The NRSC began its alleged campaign by releasing a poll showing Crockett, who was believed by some to be a weaker candidate in the general election than Texas state Rep. James Talarico, leading the field in a hypothetical Democratic primary. Prior to the NRSC's poll, Crockett had not been included in most primary surveys.

That quickly changed and subsequent polls showed Crockett pulling in considerable support. The congresswoman ultimately cited the strong polling as part of her motivation in entering the race.

MORNING GLORY: ALASKA’S 'REAL' SENATOR DAN SULLIVAN STOOD UP OVER CHALLENGER

The source who spoke to NOTUS claimed that the NRSC worked diligently to spread those polls in progressive digital spaces and drum up support for Crockett. Once she entered the race, conservative political committees ran ads ostensibly criticizing her liberal record, though critics argued this was merely an underhanded tactic to get more Democrats to support her by publicizing positions that are generally popular with the Democratic base.

Multiple Republicans also said publicly that they were concerned about her candidacy, statements that could entice liberal voters to throw their support behind her.

Even with Crockett defeated, tensions from the bruising primary have lingered, with some Black elected officials and activists pressing Talarico to do more to address concerns among voters who overwhelmingly backed Crockett.

In(D)ependents and money movers

A network of Democratic donors, dark-money groups and left-leaning super PACs has spent well over $10 million backing five independents in Republican-leaning areas.

Critics of the strategy see it as a way for liberals to sneak left-leaning lawmakers into Congress by eschewing the branding of the Democratic Party. Though the candidates identify themselves as independents, skeptics hold that they’ll vote like Democrats if elected, a charge many of them deny, stressing their independence.

In the Nebraska, Idaho and South Dakota Senate races, for instance, the Democratic nominees withdrew from their races, which Republicans have pointed to as evidence that the party is using independent candidates as a backdoor to get liberals into Congress.

GOP SENATOR, EX-HOUSE DEM EMERGE FROM ALASKA’S ‘JUNGLE PRIMARY’ DESPITE FAR-LEFT MEDDLING

"Dan has taken small-dollar donations from Republicans, Independents, and Democrats from all 93 of Nebraska's counties who are done being taken advantage of by D.C. lobbyists, corporate PACs, and party bosses," a campaign spokesperson for Dan Osborn, the independent running in Nebraska, told Fox News Digital. "Ricketts has been running from his record all campaign and has resorted to lying about Dan because he’s scared."

On the other side of the aisle, Republican political operatives have admitted to using deceptively named super PACs to boost far-left Democratic candidates in primary elections as part of a strategy to elevate easier-to-defeat opponents.

Conservative Americans PAC, a super PAC funded by the right-leaning dark money group American Prosperity Alliance, funneled millions of dollars into three ostensibly left-leaning committees called Lead Left PAC, Real Change PAC and California Blue PAC.

The seemingly liberal committees, in turn, spent large sums of money backing candidates in Democratic primaries widely believed to be weaker general election contenders than their opponents.

Conservative Americans PAC was able to do this undetected because the ostensibly liberal PACs were formed sufficiently late such that disclosures revealing the right-wing funding did not need to be released until after the primary elections were over. This means that, as the ads were rolling, voters had no way of knowing who was paying for them.

"Republicans are leveling the playing field after over a decade of Democrats meddling in our primaries, and with the Democrat Party in the midst of a civil war, Republicans would be stupid not to take advantage while pushing their candidates farther left," a spokeswoman for Conservative Americans PAC said of the spending.

Phantom polling

Some political polls that circulated widely this cycle were later revealed to have been fabricated.

Median Strategies, an organization recently revealed to have been run by a 21-year-old, released polls on the Los Angeles mayoral election as well as the Wisconsin and Nevada gubernatorial elections that circulated through the media ecosystem, drawing coverage from news outlets and even being touted by Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass.

After members of the press began raising scrutiny, however, Median Strategies folded and admitted that its polls were fake to the Los Angeles Times.

ALASKA REPUBLICANS SCRAMBLE TO EDUCATE VOTERS ON SUSPECTED DEM PLANT AS 'BALLOT FATIGUE' THREATENS RACE

"Median Strategies was created as a short term social experiment to examine how purported polling information could enter and spread through the political information ecosystem without independent verification," the company said in an email to the Times.

The fake polling outfit pushed polls claiming that Bass was leading her DSA-aligned rival by a significant margin and that Wisconsin state lawmaker Francesca Hong, who ultimately lost her primary, had a commanding lead over other Democrats.

Paperwork workaround

Sen. Steve Daines, a Republican from Montana, suspended his re-election campaign just minutes before the filing deadline for candidates.

While this may seem puzzling on its own, Kurt Alme, Daines’ preferred successor, filed paperwork to run for Senate just minutes before the senator withdrew.

STEVE DAINES' HANDPICKED SENATE SUCCESSOR KURT ALME VOWS TO KEEP MONTANA IN REPUBLICAN HANDS IN 2026

When a sitting member of Congress retires, top-tier candidates typically throw their hats into the ring to take advantage of the fact that there won’t be an incumbent to run against. Because Daines held off retiring to the last moment, and seemingly coordinated with Alme, he effectively cleared the field for him, as no high-profile Republicans filed to run in Montana’s Senate primary.

"They obviously did this to keep certain people out of these races," former Democratic Montana Sen. Jon Tester said of the maneuver. "It wasn’t an accident."

Daines wasn't the only one to leverage filing deadlines in this manner.

Rep. Chuy Garcia, a Chicago-area Democrat, decided not to seek reelection, while his congressional chief of staff had gathered the signatures necessary to appear on the Democratic primary ballot. Once again, the maneuver effectively cleared the way for a lawmaker's chosen successor.

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Garcia cited health problems when explaining his sudden decision to retire, though he called criticisms over how the situation looked "fair."

NJ boater faces homicide charge as deadly summer on the water claims another life in third fatal crash

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 06:00:36 -0400

A New Jersey man faces felony charges following a late-night crash in Barnegat Bay that killed a 26-year-old passenger and left two others critically injured along the Jersey Shore in late July.

Troopers from the New Jersey State Police Marine Bureau arrested Kevin Wells, 40, of Warren, New Jersey, on Friday, charging him with vehicular homicide and two counts of assault by vessel while intoxicated.

State police said troopers responded just before 11 p.m. on July 25 to reports of a serious vessel collision along the Intracoastal Waterway in Toms River Township.

UNLICENSED NYC BOAT OPERATOR ALLEGEDLY IGNORED SAFETY WARNINGS BEFORE MOTHER, BABY DIED IN CAPSIZING: FEDS

Investigators said Wells was operating a 32-foot Boston Whaler through the waterway when the boat struck a channel marker.

Following the impact, Wells navigated the damaged vessel to a private residence on Silver Lagoon Drive in Toms River Township, where emergency personnel arrived to render aid.

A passenger aboard the boat, Michael T. Bereheiko, 26, of Green Brook, New Jersey, was rushed to an area hospital, where he later died.

Two other passengers – 27-year-old Steven Pochick, of Green Brook, and 27-year-old Nicholas Cherasaro, of North Plainfield – sustained serious injuries and were transported to a local hospital. A fourth passenger, 24-year-old Sarah Stulh, of Bayville, suffered minor injuries.

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According to his obituary, Bereheiko was a 2017 graduate of Watchung Hills Regional High School, where he played varsity football on both offense and defense. Teammates affectionately called him "Bear."

He later attended Lincoln Tech, studied to become a heavy diesel mechanic and worked for Schifano Construction Corporation in Middlesex. His family noted he possessed a natural mechanical talent and loved spending time at the Jersey Shore.

TWO DEAD, INCLUDING INFANT, AFTER BOAT CAPSIZES IN NEW YORK HARBOR; 12 RESCUED

Following his arrest on Friday, Wells was booked into the Ocean County Jail. Records show he is being held without bail pending a formal court detention hearing.

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State police said the investigation into the crash remains active.

The incident marks at least the third fatal boating collision involving alleged impairment in the area this summer.

State police charged another New Jersey boater in August for a separate fatal Memorial Day crash along the Jersey Shore. Jennifer L. Pearson, 59, of Barnegat, surrendered on Aug. 19 after authorities alleged she was intoxicated while operating a 23-foot center console vessel in Barnegat Bay near Brant Beach.

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Pearson’s boat collided with a channel marker around 5:45 p.m., ejecting her 28-year-old son, Gunnar Pearson, and his girlfriend into the water. Gunnar Pearson was rushed to a hospital, where he later died, while four others were treated for minor injuries.

Pearson faces charges of second-degree death by vessel, operating a vessel under the influence, reckless operation, operating without a safety certificate and failure to keep a proper lookout.

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Court records show investigators smelled alcohol when speaking with Pearson, who admitted to drinking earlier that afternoon.

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In a third fatal crash this summer, authorities charged 64-year-old Stephen Schneider after a July 19 boating collision claimed the lives of his two young grandchildren in the bay near Berkeley Township, NJ.com reported.

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Schneider was charged with two counts of reckless vessel homicide after his boat struck a channel marker, the outlet reported.

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Police alleged Schneider was intoxicated at the time of the crash, which killed 9-year-old Mya Bella Golabek and 7-year-old Sigmund Paul Golabek.

Fox News Digital’s Sarah Rumpf-Whitten contributed to this report.

Naked DoorDash driver delivers food to Texas home in shocking security camera video

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 06:00:17 -0400

A Houston DoorDash customer said he was shocked when he went to fetch his food from his doorstep and saw on his security camera that the delivery driver was naked.

Kiante Matlock told FOX 26 Houston that he didn't expect the delivery driver to drop off his food while naked, "which is crazy."

"And then to handle somebody's food … is ridiculous," he said. "[There] could have been an underage child coming to the door or a woman. … It's just sick."

BURGER KING MAKES MAJOR CHANGES AFTER THOUSANDS OF CUSTOMERS SOUNDED OFF

Matlock told FOX 26 he was playing video games inside his home when his daughter alerted him to a notification on his phone, which turned out to be a notice from DoorDash that his Burger King order had arrived.

When he first looked at the Ring doorbell camera footage, Matlock thought the driver was wearing a onesie before realizing he was "completely naked."

By the time Matlock got to the door, the driver was gone.

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Matlock said he did not eat the food the naked driver delivered and that DoorDash refunded his order.

"What this consumer experienced was abhorrent, and we've reached out directly to offer our support," a DoorDash spokesperson told Fox News Digital.

"This man's behavior was vulgar and completely unacceptable, and as soon as we were made aware, our team permanently removed their access to our platform. We do not tolerate sexual harassment or misconduct of any kind, and we stand ready to assist law enforcement with any investigation."

The driver has not been identified.

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DoorDash urges customers to report inappropriate or concerning delivery behavior through the app and to contact law enforcement, including 911 in emergencies, if they feel unsafe.

Houston police told FOX 26 that residents should report concerning behavior and preserve surveillance footage or other evidence. Depending on the circumstances, criminal charges could be possible following an investigation.

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Matlock said he wanted to share his experience to help protect others.

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"If you have the opportunity to go get your own food, go get your own food," he said. "But if you can't, I guess just be careful and get you some cameras, that's all I can say."

Democrats’ generational battle erupts as 80-year-old senator faces younger challenger

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 06:00:16 -0400

Massachusetts is the latest battleground in the political fight between the left and the center for the future of the Democratic Party.

But in a flip of the script, progressives are supporting the longtime incumbent against a more moderate challenger as solidly blue Massachusetts holds primary elections on Tuesday.

The Senate nomination showdown between 80-year-old Sen. Ed Markey and 47-year-old Rep. Seth Moulton is also the latest faceoff in the Democratic Party's push for generational change, which was fueled two years ago by then-81-year-old President Joe Biden's exit from the presidential race amid questions over his physical and mental stamina following a disastrous debate performance against Trump.

There's a six-way scrum to succeed Moulton in the U.S. House, and four members of the state's all-Democrat congressional delegation, including House Minority Whip Katherine Clark, are facing challenges from the left. And Bay State Republicans will choose a gubernatorial nominee to challenge Democratic Gov. Maura Healey.

THE TOP FIVE MOST HEATED MOMENTS IN THE FINAL MARKEY-MOULTON DEBATE SHOWDOWN

But taking center stage on Tuesday is the battle between Markey and Moulton.

Markey, who served 37 years in the House before winning election in the Senate in 2013, is backed by progressive champions Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Bernie Sanders of Vermont, and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, who seven years ago teamed up with Markey to co-sponsor the Green New Deal.

The senator is vowing to keep fighting for a left-wing agenda that along with the Green New Deal includes Medicare for All, a Trans Bill of Rights, taxing billionaires, and slashing military spending.

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Moulton, a Marine Corps combat veteran, is backed by New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill, a Naval Academy graduate who piloted helicopters, and recently landed the endorsement of the Boston Globe, the state's largest daily newspaper

Moulton has made generational change a centerpiece of his primary challenge,

"I served with some of the most amazing leaders in my life in the Marines, but at 23 years old, they don't get to run for Congress," Moulton said at last week's final debate. "I think we should have upper age limits as well."

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Markey responded, "I think everyone watching this debate can see that I'm more energized than I've ever been before and in my life."

"Congressman Moulton has a hard time keeping up with me," the senator added.

But Markey seemed unclear of the topic when asked whether he uses A.I. platforms like Claude or ChatGPT in his work. The senator answered that he uses "whatever is inside of my iPhone or my iPad — whatever comes up."

The two rivals agree on many issues, including abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and allowing biological males to participate in female sports. But Moulton during the primary campaign was forced to apologize for his past remarks that he did not want his young daughters "getting run over on a playing field by a male or formerly male athlete."

Markey was the clear polling and fundraising frontrunner heading into the primary election.

The winner will be considered the overwhelming favorite to win the general election against attorney John Deaton, the presumptive Republican Senate nominee.

Six candidates are facing off in the battle to succeed Moulton for the Democratic nomination in Massachusetts' 6th Congressional District, including former Andover Selectman Dan Koh, financial technology executive John Beccia and state Rep. Tram Nguyen.

Koh, who served in then-President Joe Biden's administration, is showcasing endorsements from Biden and former Vice President Kamala Harris.

The winner of the Democratic primary will face Republican Micah Q. Jones, who is unopposed for the nomination.

THESE 12 MIDTERM RACES WILL DECIDE WHICH PARTY CONTROLS THE SENATE

Among the incumbents facing primary challenges from the left is Clark, who is the second-ranking Democrat in the House. So are longtime Democratic Reps. Stephen Lynch and fellow septuagenarian Richard Neal, who are both facing challenges from 39-year-old rivals who say it is time for new blood.

Three-term Democratic Rep. Jake Auchincloss, a Marine Corps Reserve officer, is also facing a primary challenge.

In the race for the Republican nomination for governor, Army veteran, businessman, and former CEO Mike Minogue is facing off against Briani Shortsleeve, a Marine Corps veteran, businessman and chief administrator and a former acting general manager of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.

Minogue has the backing of the Massachusetts GOP.

The winner will face an uphill climb in the general election against Healey in a state dominated by Democrats but where Republicans have had success in gubernatorial showdowns.

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Tuesday's primary could potentially be the last under the current system.

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That's because Massachusetts voters will decide during the general election on a ballot initiative that would get rid of the state's current primary system and replace it with a single, all-party primary.

Under that system, the top two vote-getters would advance to the general election regardless of party affiliation.

Trump says Iran is ‘DEAD’ — experts point to the real sign Tehran is nearing the brink

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 06:00:12 -0400

President Donald Trump declared Iran a "Failed Nation" Monday, claiming the country is economically and militarily broken as renewed fighting with the U.S. raises questions about how much leverage Tehran still has left.

"Iran is officially a Failed Nation. IT IS DEAD!" Trump wrote on Truth Social Monday morning. "They have no Navy, they have no Air Force, they have no currency, they are not paying their soldiers or police."

Trump also claimed Iranian inflation had reached 300% and said the country's leadership was "in total disarray and incapable of properly representing the country."

Iran is facing pressure from nearly every direction — renewed U.S. military strikes, tighter sanctions and a steep drop in oil exports — raising fresh questions about how long Tehran can keep absorbing the economic pain and still maintain leverage against Washington.

COULD IRAN’S REGIME COLLAPSE? EXPERTS ASSESS BESSENT’S BID TO SEVER FINANCIAL LIFELINES

Official Iranian data cited by Reuters put annual inflation at 66% in July, while the IMF projects average consumer-price inflation of 68.9% in 2026.

Trump's post came amid the sharpest U.S.-Iran military escalation in weeks. U.S. forces struck two Iranian launchers on Larak Island Sunday after Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces were observed preparing to launch rockets with sea mines into the Strait of Hormuz, according to a U.S. official. Iran retaliated by launching ballistic missiles toward U.S. bases in Jordan, while Jordan said it intercepted eight missiles that entered its airspace.

The renewed confrontation comes as Washington ratchets up economic pressure.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Reuters Sunday that the administration expects to roll out additional secondary sanctions as frequently as every week, initially focusing on banks and potentially cutting financial institutions that continue facilitating Iranian transactions out of the U.S. dollar-based financial system.

IRAN’S DEEPEST WEAKNESS IS GETTING EXPOSED THROUGH AMERICA’S MAXIMUM PRESSURE CAMPAIGN

Iran's own leaders are acknowledging growing economic strain.

President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran's exports and imports have fallen nearly 35% because of U.S. sanctions and the naval blockade, while annual inflation reached 66% in July, Reuters reported Aug. 29. The IMF projects Iran's economy will contract 5.4% this year.

Miad Maleki, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies who previously served as associate director of Treasury's Office of Global Targeting at the Office of Foreign Assets Control, told Fox News Digital that the Islamic Republic may be nearing an economic breaking point. FDD says Maleki previously helped oversee U.S. sanctions programs and served as chief and senior sanctions coordinator for Iran and the Middle East.

"I think where we stand today, it's very clear — we see very clear signs, indications of what I would call an economy that is on the verge of collapse, if it hasn't already collapsed yet," Maleki said.

Maleki argued that the critical pressure point is Iran's ability to turn oil exports into usable revenue.

US TARGETS CHINESE REFINERY IN SWEEPING IRAN OIL CRACKDOWN, SANCTIONS ‘SHADOW FLEET’ TANKERS

He estimates Tehran needs roughly 1 million barrels of oil exports per day to sustain itself, about 1.5 million to avoid hyperinflation and approximately 2 million to support development. Maleki said Iranian exports have fallen dramatically and Tehran is increasingly struggling to repatriate revenue from the oil it can sell.

Kpler data cited by Reuters showed Chinese imports of Iranian crude falling from an average 1.4 million barrels per day in 2025 to a provisional 534,000 barrels per day so far in August.

Maleki said Tehran is increasingly relying on money creation rather than cutting politically sensitive salaries and pensions. But there are limits.

"They can keep printing money, but they can't really print the type of commodities that they need, such as gasoline, such as wheat," he said.

The pressure, however, may create a dangerous paradox.

IRAN COULD UNLEASH ‘KINETIC’ RESPONSE AS US TIGHTENS ECONOMIC CONTAINMENT, ANALYST WARNS

Iran analyst Danny Citrinowicz, a fellow at Israel's Institute for National Security Studies and a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council's Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative, told Fox News Digital that the maritime blockade, wartime losses and wider economic pressure are hurting Tehran, but argued Washington should not assume economic pain will lead to capitulation.

Citrinowicz said continued pressure could instead increase Tehran's incentive to escalate if Iranian leaders conclude the status quo is worse than renewed confrontation. He said Iran could attempt to target "U.S. economic assets in the Gulf," ports or U.S. vessels involved in enforcing the blockade, even as its missile-production capabilities have been degraded.

Maleki agreed Iran would likely attempt to escalate, but questioned how much leverage Tehran still possesses.

"They're going to try to escalate," Maleki said, pointing to the attacks of the last 24 hours. But he argued that further escalation would increasingly affect Gulf states Iran has relied upon for trade, sanctions evasion and diplomacy — potentially bringing even greater economic and diplomatic pressure.

MILLIONS OF BARRELS OF IRANIAN OIL SIT BEYOND TRUMP BLOCKADE AS HE VOWS ‘ZERO LEAKAGE’

Asked whether Iran was losing its leverage, Maleki responded: "Absolutely."

He argued Tehran has emerged weakened from internal unrest and the external war and is increasingly isolated domestically and internationally.

What Maleki is watching next is not necessarily missed government payrolls, but shortages that could trigger another wave of domestic unrest.

"What I'm looking for is shortages of items such as gasoline," Maleki said. "Right now they're fighting a war inside Iran that is way more challenging to the regime than it is from external forces that they're facing."

Commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remained severely disrupted Monday, while Brent crude climbed more than 2% to above $90 as markets reacted to the renewed U.S.-Iran exchanges. Reuters reported Aug. 31 that Gulf oil flows have recovered from their wartime lows but remain below pre-war levels.

Maleki said he expects Iranians to return to the streets and argued Western governments should prepare now to help them communicate and organize if Tehran again shuts down internet access.

"What we need to do is to contain this regime, cut off this economic lifeline, empower the Iranian people, be prepared next time Iranians are back on the street [and] take actions to stop this regime from slaughtering Iranians," Maleki said.

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"Those are the right policies — put the pressure on, be prepared to push back on the Iranian regime every time it escalates," he added. "At this point, they are the weakest they've been since 1979. Every time they try to escalate, they become weaker."

Reuters contributed to this story.

Judge who axed 9/11 mastermind's confession blamed military’s ‘conservative tendencies’ for rising ‘extremism’

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 06:00:03 -0400

The judge who recently threw out a confession by Khalid Sheikh Mohammed: the alleged mastermind of the Sept. 11 terror attacks, previously argued that the U.S. military had a growing domestic extremism problem fueled in part by "conservative tendencies" reinforced by "extreme right-wing groups."

Lt. Col. Michael Schrama, an Air Force judge who specializes in military and environmental law, is presiding over the military commission in the 9/11 case. Last week, he tossed Mohammed’s 2007 confession on the grounds that it was not given voluntarily. The ruling could complicate what has already been a decades-long wait for the suspected plotter to stand trial. Just days before the 25th anniversary of the attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people, Schrama rejected prosecutors’ request to begin the trial in January 2027 and instead set it for June 2028.

The decision, which was not initially made public, has drawn criticism, including from journalist and author Gerald Posner, who called it a "shameful prelude to the 9/11 anniversary." Scrutiny of Schrama’s record has also resurfaced a 2023 essay he wrote titled "Creating a Codified Legal Response to Domestic Extremism in the Ranks" for the national security and foreign policy publication "War on the Rocks."

In the essay, Schrama argued for creating a new provision in the military legal code to address what he referred to as the "rising population of military members engaging in extremist activities."

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Before his role on the military commission overseeing the 9/11 case, Schrama served as an Air Force trial judge at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia. He has also served as a staff judge advocate and defense counsel and was deployed in 2019 as a staff judge advocate to Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait. Between June 2017 and January 2019, he specialized in environmental law.

He wrote in his essay that "as an active-duty Air Force military judge, I have seen firsthand a rising population of military members engaging in extremist activities."

He said that "there is more than ample evidence that military members are a ripe population for extremist recruitment" and that the "rise of domestic extremism in the military ranks is a threat to national security."

To illustrate his argument, he pointed to a 2021 study by the Center for Strategic & International Studies that said military personnel were responsible for 17.6% of domestic terrorism plots and attacks.

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He also wrote that 12% of those charged with participating in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot had some form of military experience, including service members on active duty.

As to the reasons for this rising extremism, he argued that "military institutions tend to become more conservative and isolated from civilian society" and that "these conservative tendencies are constantly reinforced, and young military members can be easy prey for the extreme right-wing groups that relate through similar conservative ideology."

"Unfortunately, the United States Criminal Code and the Uniform Code of Military Justice do not currently provide the tools to deal with this crisis, as they do not treat domestic extremism as a specific criminal offense," he wrote, adding, "Codifying domestic extremism as a punitive article under the military code would provide a means for commanders to adequately address the rising tide of domestic extremism."

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He also noted a 2019 case in which a Coast Guard officer pleaded guilty to gun and drug charges after prosecutors said he stashed weapons and planned to murder Democratic politicians, Supreme Court justices and TV journalists.

He wrote that "despite describing Hasson as a domestic terrorist, federal prosecutors chose these more minor charges due to the fact that no domestic terrorism statute currently exists."

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Ronald Flesvig, a spokesperson for the Military Commissions Convening Authority, declined to comment on Schrama's ruling, saying it would be inappropriate to comment on the military judge's decision. He also declined to comment on Schrama's essay, saying it was published "not in his capacity as a judge for the military commissions."

Mohammed’s case, along with those of three co-defendants — Walid Muhammad Salih Mubarak bin 'Atash, Mustafa Ahmed Adam al Hawsawi and Ali Abdul Aziz Ali — has been stuck in pretrial proceedings for years. Schrama became the fifth judge assigned to preside over the case in 2025.

In response to Schrama’s decision last week, White House senior advisor Stephen Mueller told Fox News, "Our judicial system is so badly broken it sides at every turn with predators, monsters and, in this case, a 9/11 mastermind."

Mueller also railed that the system "enables the persecution of innocent Americans who did nothing wrong, while protecting cartel killers and foreign terrorists."

"It’s a disgrace, it’s a travesty, it’s an outrage," he said.

MORNING GLORY: We're living through the Summer of the DSA (and Hasan Piker)

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 05:00:51 -0400

1967’s "Summer of Love" kicked off the American habit of defining a summer season with a phrase. Some phrases stick. Some do not.

1968’s "Summer of Rage" tagline stuck.

The "Summer of Watergate" could be 1973 and the Senate Select Committee’s hearings would have stuck, but President Richard Nixon survived those and would have survived the summer of 1974 but for the release of the tapes.

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The Bicentennial Summer was as memorable as this summer’s celebration of the 250th birthday of the United States — but those months are defined by a day, not months. 1977’s Summer of Sam, 1994’s Summer of O.J. and 2020’s Summer of George Floyd are not fixtures of the language, but do serve as reference points.

With a week left in this summer, the touchpoints seem likely to be the rise of Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) and the meteoric rise in awareness among the general public of Hasan Piker, an online Twitch streamer whose toxic combination of radical politics, profanity, vulgarity, anti-Israel and hate-filled rhetoric merged with the DSA’s march through the Democratic primaries to make it appear to "normal" Americans from the center-left to the center-right as though the Democratic Party had become unhinged and taken over by a cult-like group of crazed anti-American extremists.

The "Summer of the DSA and Hasan Piker" is unwieldy, but accurate. Shorthand will probably reduce it to the "Summer of the DSA," and even though Piker is closely ideologically aligned with DSA, appearing at DSA events and rallies, Piker does not appear to be a dues-paying DSAer.

Still, the "Summer of DSA" will catch him up even as it includes the primary election victories of Chris Rabb in Pennsylvania, Claire Valdez, Darializa Avila Chevalier and Brad Lander in New York (Lander is a former DSA member but left in 2023), and Democratic Senate nominees Angie Nixon in Florida and Troy Jackson in Maine who are DSA-endorsed candidates. Hard-left "progressive" Democrats running for Senate like Peggy Flanagan in Minnesota, Sherrod Brown in Ohio and James Talarico in Texas have not been formally endorsed by their state DSAs or the national group, but their ascendancy compliments rather than contradicts the enormous shift to the left of the Democrats in the wake of President Trump’s re-election in 2024.

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Will the "Summer of DSA" define the actual midterms ahead? Many in legacy media want to define the fall’s voting, which culminates on November 3, as a referendum on President Trump but that’s not what is unfolding. The rise of the DSA and unhinged rantings like those of Piker as well as numerous "co-chairs" of the DSA has muddied what would typically be a "referendum" election, turning it in many if not most statewide or Congressional district races into a "choice election" of the sort Republicans are hoping for.

Because the DSA, Piker, candidates like Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan and James Talarico in Texas are just so far outside of the mainstream of American politics as to shift the awareness of the American electorate away from the issues of 2026 to the much bigger issue of the future of the country. The vast majority of Americans love their country. They can and do disagree among themselves on the politics of the moment and the policies that would best serve the country’s future.

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But, that they want a future similar to the past, but improved at the margins remains the central and abiding truth of the American experience. We don’t want the "DSA way" and we sure do not want people addicted to rage the way Hasan Piker is to dominate our politics. El-Sayed’s limp attempt to distance himself from Piker this past weekend as summer draws to a close only guaranteed another week or more of scrutiny on El-Sayed’s choice to bring Piker into the Wolverine State’s politics. El-Sayed put on the Piker bodysuit, and it turns out it is very difficult if not impossible to erase that choice from the electorate’s consciousness.

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El-Sayed’s political free-fall has spillover effects across the country, as does the fact that the "Squad" in the House of Representatives is probably going to at least double in the next Congress. The Squad is almost certainly going to control the choice of the next House Democratic Leader. The increase in "Squad" numbers may remove Hakeem Jeffries as Leader of House Democrats, but it may not. Republicans are well aware of what a small majority means: the empowerment of the party’s fringiest members. The DSA could well be running the next House majority.

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The "Summer of the DSA" has made that possibility a crucial issue across every federal race. It is not a cause for celebration among Republicans, who realize that the country needs a healthy Democratic Party and not one run by extremists from the left.

Democrats need a way back to "between the '30s" competition in American political debates or the Democrats could face a wipeout of their extremist candidates outside of deep blue Congressional districts. (A "between the ‘40s" field would be even better for them.) An electoral train wreck in 2026 would, however, prevent an even worse crack-up in 2028, a presidential election year that could become a replay of the 1972 crash-out of the Democrats under the banner of George McGovern.

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The post-mortems of the 2026 cycle will be remarkable to read. The headlines of the ones faithful to the facts will include the abbreviation "DSA" and the name "Hasan Piker."

Hugh Hewitt is a Fox News contributor and host of "The Hugh Hewitt Show" heard weekday afternoons from 3 PM to 6 PM ET on the Salem Radio Network, and simulcast on Salem News Channel. Hugh drives Americans home on the East Coast and to lunch on the West Coast on over 400 affiliates nationwide, and on all the streaming platforms where SNC can be seen. He is a frequent guest on the Fox News Channel’s news roundtable, hosted by Bret Baier weekdays at 6pm ET. A son of Ohio and a graduate of Harvard College and the University of Michigan Law School, Hewitt has been a Professor of Law at Chapman University’s Fowler School of Law since 1996 where he teaches Constitutional Law. Hewitt launched his eponymous radio show from Los Angeles in 1990. Hewitt has frequently appeared on every major national news television network, hosted television shows for PBS and MSNBC, written for every major American paper, has authored a dozen books and moderated a score of Republican candidate debates, most recently the November 2023 Republican presidential debate in Miami and four Republican presidential debates in the 2015-16 cycle. Hewitt focuses his radio show and his column on the Constitution, national security, American politics and the Cleveland Browns and Guardians. Hewitt has interviewed tens of thousands of guests from Democrats Hillary Clinton and John Kerry to Republican Presidents George W. Bush and Donald Trump over his 40 years in broadcasting. This column previews the lead story that will drive his radio/ TV show today.

SEN BERNIE SANDERS: Yes, we must hit the pause button on AI before it is too late

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 05:00:08 -0400

Very few people disagree. Artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics will profoundly impact the lives of every man, woman and child in our country.

These revolutionary technologies will radically change our economy and, quite likely, eliminate tens of millions of jobs over the next decade.

They will result in the evisceration of our privacy, negatively impact the mental health of our children, radically alter how we as human beings relate to each other, undermine our democracy and transform the very nature of warfare.

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Further, AI data centers are raising electricity prices, straining water systems and harming the environment. That is why 75% of Americans oppose data centers near where they live and why over 500 communities have put in place restrictions on their construction.

Let’s be clear: this revolutionary transformation of society is being driven by the wealthiest people on Earth – including Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, Peter Thiel and Larry Ellison.

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As most Americans understand, these Big Tech oligarchs are not investing many hundreds of billions of dollars into AI because they want to improve the lives of ordinary Americans. Rather, they are doing it because they want to become even richer and more powerful than they already are – no matter how many lives they ruin in the process.

And here is something even more alarming. Over just the past month, there has been a frightening new story nearly every day about how Big Tech companies are losing control of the technology they are developing, with potentially cataclysmic results. Last month, we learned that AI has been used for the first time ever to create new viruses. In the wrong hands, this could lead to new bioweapons that might result in the deaths of tens of millions of people.

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Further, in July, we learned that OpenAI had lost control of an AI model that hacked into another company’s computers – a clear violation of federal law. AI models from Anthropic and Meta had similarly escaped human control. Just last week, we learned that the OpenAI incident was even more serious than we were initially told.

It turns out that over 1,000 AI agents figured out how to access the internet on their own, sent tens of thousands of secret messages to each other and coordinated to break the restrictions imposed upon them by the company. Shockingly, it took OpenAI nearly two weeks to discover this breach.

Bottom line: AI is developing at an extraordinarily rapid speed. It is becoming smarter and smarter every day. The leaders of the major AI companies publicly acknowledge that the technology is escaping their control.

Yoshua Bengio, the most cited living scientist in the world, said these incidents "should serve as a wake-up call."

I agree.

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If the CEOs of the major AI companies acknowledge that they are losing control of their extremely dangerous technology, it is irresponsible for society to allow them to move forward and make these products even more advanced. These CEOs must immediately pause the development of increasingly powerful AI. And that pause must be international in scope.

At the height of the Cold War, U.S. President Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev, president of the Soviet Union, represented nations with vastly different political and economic systems. But they both understood a fundamental truth: a nuclear war would benefit no one.

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When the survival of humanity is at stake, adversaries have an obligation to reduce the danger. And Reagan and Gorbachev found a way to negotiate nuclear arms control.

Presidents Trump and Xi will be meeting in Washington later this month. Like Reagan and Gorbachev, they must negotiate an agreement that protects humanity from a potential AI-caused disaster.

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Neither country benefits from an uncontrolled AI arms race to develop machines that are rapidly becoming too powerful for humans to control.

The future of humanity cannot be left in the hands of a handful of Big Tech oligarchs. The American people and people throughout the world must determine that future.

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We cannot simply sit by and be passive observers of a technology that could negatively impact and endanger not only us, but our kids and future generations.

Our goal: we must make certain that AI and robotics are safe and work to benefit all of humanity, not just to enrich some of the wealthiest people on Earth.

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Fears of a Canadian trade war are overblown. So far, it’s more of a skirmish

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 05:00:00 -0400

Listening to most of the media and Canada’s prime minister, you’d think the U.S. and its northern neighbor were in a full-blown trade war after new tariffs were announced days ago. Au contraire: Anyone who checks the numbers can see this is merely a skirmish.

On Aug. 22, the administration's Section 338 tariffs took effect, at 50% on roughly $20 billion of Canadian goods, or about 5% of what Canada sells the U.S. Ottawa's answer, effective Sept. 8, will be varying tariffs on roughly $20 billion of American exports to Canada, about 6% of what Canada buys from the U.S.

While tariffs on $40 billion aren’t chump change, they’re a small portion of the roughly $900 billion in products and services that are exchanged across the U.S.-Canadian border annually. Roughly 95% of transactions are proceeding exactly as they did in July.

People should be much more focused on January, because that’s when 50% tariffs hit many more Canadian exports, including cars, trucks and auto parts. Throw in potential Canadian retaliation, and we’re looking at higher tariffs on well over $100 billion of trade between the two countries.

When the artillery joins in like that, we go from a skirmish to a war. However, that doesn’t mean we can brush off these recent developments as insignificant. The current skirmish feels eerily similar to Union and Confederate reconnaissance units encountering each other outside Gettysburg.

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What makes this time different is the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). Other tariffs had carveouts for USMCA-compliant products. This was extremely important because businesses invested billions of dollars over several years to create supply chains in North America, and they shouldn’t be punished for playing by the rules.

That principle was violated, though not for the first time, with the recent implementation of these Section 338 tariffs, which apply regardless of USMCA qualification and which stack on top of the ordinary rate. Companies that played by the rules are now being punished for complying with a trade agreement that was heralded as "the new gold standard."

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This is pulling the rug out from under firms that acted in good faith, and on a large scale. The share of imports from Canada and Mexico claiming USMCA preference climbed from roughly 45% in late 2024 to 86% by February. Federal Reserve economists priced this regulatory compliance at $39 billion to $71 billion per year in manufacturing.

Ironically, some firms that spent years moving some of their production and assembly plants to Ontario now face higher effective tariff rates than some firms that stayed in Shenzhen, China. Certain tariffs that are supposed to serve as leverage for benefiting American production are instead hamstringing it.

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Consider that an American appliance manufacturer buying Canadian steel pays 50% on that input. The foreign competitor builds the finished washing machine overseas and typically ships it in at a lower rate. Because of how the current tariff regime has been thrown together, an appliance that’s USMCA-compliant can be hit with a tariff higher than an appliance made entirely in China.

If a trade deal is not reached by January, the situation will get even worse. An American automotive assembly plant will pay 50% on Canadian components, while a finished Korean car will enter at a lower rate.

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President Donald Trump has threatened to take auto parts from no tariff to 50%, slap higher tariffs on medium- and heavy-duty trucks and their components and effectively double the tariff rate on finished cars and light-duty trucks. If that happens, and Canada follows through with its threat to retaliate, then we’ll be in a full-fledged trade war.

That very expensive fate can be avoided, however, if both sides agree to reduce trade barriers and open their respective consumer markets to the other nation’s producers. That’ll reduce manufacturing costs and consumer prices alike through increased efficiency and more competition.

Unfortunately, that’s a tall order because of certain protectionist lobbies in both the U.S. and Canada, especially Ottawa’s notorious dairy lobby, which has an outsized influence on its nation’s trade policy. Canada’s cozying up to China and permitting it to abuse country-of-origin provisions are also not helping negotiations.

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It’s important that a deal is reached soon because no one wins in a trade war. Yet not everyone loses equally. Hopefully, Canada realizes it has more to lose than the U.S. and backs down before both sides incur more casualties.

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Even if a deal is reached, the U.S. still needs to rationalize its remaining slapdash tariff schedule. Under no circumstances should American-made products face higher effective tariff rates than foreign-made competition. There’s no need to wait on Canada to address that particular issue.

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Georgia cop kills beloved pet donkey in his own pasture as heartbroken owner demands justice: 'We miss him'

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 02:47:27 -0400

A Georgia police officer shot and killed a family's beloved pet donkey after officers searched the animal’s pasture in search of a missing child who was later found at a nearby church.

Hannah Israel, 30, said officers entered her family’s property in Rockmart, Polk County without warning at about 12:45 a.m. on Sunday while looking for the missing child when they noticed the baby donkey named HeeHaw.

"They claimed he ran up to them braying and they thought they were in danger and shot and killed him after trying to Taze him," Israel wrote on Facebook. "HeeHaw was shot and killed in his OWN pasture for doing what donkeys do. Alerting to a stranger. There is no way this is legal!"

She vowed to take legal action as she demanded justice for HeeHaw.

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"We are heart broken. He was my SON!!" she wrote.

"We miss him so much where is safe?? When my own baby was shot in his own home?" she added in another post.

A photo taken after the shooting showed Israel crying over her pet donkey, as the animal's eyes remained wide open as it lay lifeless on the ground.

"He would normally be standing right over there talking while I'm talking because he thought he could talk like a person could talk," Israel told 11Alive.

"Every time he saw somebody, he would run up and bray," Israel said. "And then do a really goofy sound, and because he loved people, and he thought he was a person. He slept in my bed for the first three months of his life," she added.

The Cedartown Police Department said the officer who shot the beloved baby donkey has been placed on paid administrative leave.

"The Cedartown Police Department has turned over the investigation of the animal shooting to the Georgia Department of Agriculture Law Enforcement Division for investigation and placed the officer involved on paid administrative leave while this investigation is ongoing," the department said in a statement.

Cedartown Police Chief Jamie Newsom said body camera footage exists, and he has viewed it, according to 11Alive.

"That search took them to the incident location where this very unfortunate and heartbreaking event occurred," Newsom said, according to the outlet.

Newsom said he understands the heartbreak that the family and the community are facing after the donkey's death.

"They're members of the human family, and I am too, and heartbroken," he said.

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The Georgia Department of Agriculture's Law Enforcement Division was at Elsberry Farm on Monday investigating HeeHaw's death.

Israel created a GoFundMe to help cover legal costs related to HeeHaw’s death. She said any donations left over would go toward the farm, care of the animals and a future HeeHaw foundation. She has raised more than $113,000 as of Tuesday morning.

"My bottle baby donkey 'HeeHaw' was killed in his own pasture on Saturday night by trespassing cops," she wrote on the fundraiser. "He was a loved member of our family and did many petting zoos and made many people smile."

She said she hired a lawyer but stressed that donations left over after legal costs would not be used for personal needs.

Lindsay Clancy’s future could rest with ‘prosecution doctors’ as case echoes infamous Maine killings: expert

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 00:30:45 -0400

If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

A retired Massachusetts Superior Court judge says that a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity wouldn't be an easy out for Lindsay Clancy, saying that "prosecution doctors" would be the ones deciding when she would be released, and are likely more inclined to keep her locked up.

Clancy, 36, faces three counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of her children — Cora, Dawson and Callan, all under age 6 — who were found strangled at the family's home in January 2023.

Retired Massachusetts Superior Judge Jack Lu told Fox News Digital that even if Clancy is found not guilty by reason of insanity, she would likely face a significant amount of time in a mental institution.

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He said a group of mental health officials would be responsible for periodically reviewing her commitment at the facility, but noted these are people who overwhelmingly side with prosecutors and usually testify on their behalf.

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"They're viewed as an arm of the prosecution," Lu said of the officials. "I'm going to be very frank, they kind of view this through the lens of if in doubt, lock them up... The people making release decisions have a prosecutorial mindset."

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Lu said, if Clancy is committed to a mental hospital, "I imagine she'd be committed year after year after year for some period of time."

"If you are committed on a mental health basis because of a major criminal case in Massachusetts, it is hard to get out... It is very difficult," he said.

He said there is another way for Clancy to be released from a mental institution if found not guilty by reason of insanity, which would be through the courts.

"The other way she could get out is if the government kept moving to commit her and the doctors did not really decide that she should be released, and then it goes to court and then a judge would decide whether she is a danger to herself or others," Lu said. "It could be more of a contested hearing, and if she were to win that contested hearing, that is the second way that she gets out."

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Clancy's case has drawn parallels with Constance Fisher, a then-24-year-old Maine woman who drowned her three children in a bathtub in 1954, according to The New York Times.

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She was committed to a mental hospital, and after several years, she returned home. She was accused of drowning three more children in 1967 and was sent back to the mental hospital, before she escaped and was found dead in the Kennebec River.

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The jury in Clancy's case, consisting of nine women and three men, led by a female foreperson, concluded a third day of deliberations on Monday without coming to a verdict.

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The jurors asked Judge William Sullivan around 4 p.m. to be dismissed for the day, and will return on Tuesday morning to continue deliberations.

Grand Canyon water pipeline damaged again as flooding complicates repairs

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 00:30:05 -0400

The one pipeline that supplies water for millions of visitors in the Grand Canyon was badly damaged by flash flooding over the weekend, setting up a complicated repair scenario and disrupting a yearslong project to upgrade the aging line across rugged terrain where helicopters are often needed for even basic maintenance.

Park officials estimate after conducting flyovers that about 40% of the pipeline sustained damage. The 12.5-mile long Transcanyon Waterline has suffered dozens of breaks in recent years. A more than $200 million repair and replacement project was well underway when the floods began.

The long-term impacts on the park’s infrastructure, visitors and year-round residents were not immediately clear.

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"We anticipate miles of the pipeline being destroyed," Grand Canyon Deputy Superintendent Brian Drapeaux said.

A full survey of the devastation will not be completed until Tuesday at the earliest.

At least two people died in the floods, and one person remained missing as of Monday night after roughly 80 people were rescued over the weekend, according to officials.

The park stopped overnight accommodations, with officials saying significant water reductions are needed. This includes limiting shower time, turning off the tap while brushing teeth and flushing toilets selectively to protect the limited stored water on the South Rim, where most visitors frequent.

"They have got to keep law enforcement going, they have to keep rescue operations going, backcountry operations, park admin going, the clinic and the campground," longtime river runner and Grand Canyon hiker Tom Martin said, adding that the park has hauled water in tanker trucks in the past.

The pipeline, which was completed in the 1970s, has broken more than 85 times since 2010.

The pipeline moves water from one side of the canyon, down to its base, across a bridge and back up the other side of the rough landscape. Any attempt to fix a break from rock falls or flash floods is precarious and costly and can take time, so fixing the latest damage will be complicated.

The pipeline upgrade project, which began in 2023, took more than a decade to design and fund. The project involves installing helicopter pads, building water treatment facilities and replacing several miles of pipeline. It also seeks to move the water intake for the pipeline further down the canyon to Bright Angel Creek, which would put it closer to Phantom Ranch, a popular lodge at the base of the canyon.

A 2018 evaluation of the project said key infrastructure for the intake would be outside of areas likely to flood.

Officials said even basic decisions proved to be complicated.

For example, the original pipe was aluminum, which is lighter and easier to move into the steep canyon but is more susceptible to breaking. Engineers chose a flex-steel material to balance weight and durability.

Even routine pipeline breaks lead to water restrictions. A decade ago, a hotel on the canyon’s rim that offers luxury dining and highlights its history hosting presidents had to reduce dishwashing and use paper plates and plastic utensils.

In 1995, a nearly monthlong repair on the pipeline required officials to truck in water.

The park had water conservation initiatives in place even before the latest flooding and damage.

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The flooding has forced parts of the park to close, and more flooding was possible on Monday, according to the National Park Service.

"Consider changing your plans if you were going to hike, boat, or paddleboard to a slot canyon or normally dry wash. If you do still decide to recreate, check in at a nearby visitor center or ranger station," the park website reads.

Officials previously said that the repair and replacement project would allow the park to meet its water supply needs for at least the next 50 years.

As the original pipeline was nearing completion in the 1960s, more than a foot of rain fell, which flooded the inner canyon and caused 40% of the project to be destroyed, according to officials.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Tyler Robinson hearing could decide death penalty fate, finally see plea in Charlie Kirk case

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 00:00:04 -0400

PROVO, Utah — Accused Charlie Kirk assassin Tyler Robinson returns to a Utah courtroom Tuesday for a hearing that could send his case to trial or dramatically reshape it, with a judge to weigh whether prosecutors have shown enough probable cause to support the aggravated murder charge that puts the death penalty on the table — and the suspect may finally be asked to enter a plea nearly a year after the slaying.

Robinson, a 23-year-old from Washington, Utah, is accused of firing a single shot that killed the 31-year-old father of two during a Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, on Sept. 10, 2025.

While the defense has argued that prosecutors have not established enough probable cause to pursue aggravated murder, which carries the potential death penalty, experts tell Fox News Digital that they don't expect Judge Tony Graf Jr. to take it off the table just yet.

ACCUSED CHARLIE KIRK ASSASSIN TYLER ROBINSON ASKS JUDGE TO TAKE POTENTIAL DEATH PENALTY OFF TABLE

"We’re at a preliminary hearing stage, so we’re at a very low burden," said Skye Lazaro, a Salt Lake City-based defense attorney who is not connected to the case. "It’s probable cause, and everything is taken in a light most favorable to the state."

The court held a week-long hearing in early July, then gave both sides weeks to file briefs before Tuesday's expected decision from Judge Graf.

WATCH: Retired FBI sniper says Charlie Kirk shooting put many lives in danger

She said she expects the entire case to be bound over for trial, including the sole aggravating factor that makes the aggravated murder charge eligible for the potential death penalty — that Robinson allegedly put other people at great risk of death by shooting Kirk in a crowded place.

Greg Rogers, a former FBI agent and SWAT sniper who now teaches at Utah Valley University, said the alleged risk to the crowd should be enough to preserve the aggravating factor at this stage.

"Shooting into a crowd is always dangerous because you don’t know if someone moves, someone walks behind him," Rogers told Fox News Digital. "There are all sorts of things that could happen in the very instant you pull that trigger."

TYLER ROBINSON RARELY HIT BULLSEYE IN PRACTICE SHOTS, PUTTING BYSTANDERS AT RISK IN KIRK SHOOTING: PROSECUTORS

Rogers said even highly trained law-enforcement snipers would consider such a shot dangerous.

"When you have a rank amateur that is shooting, it’s clearly, clearly very dangerous," he said.

TYLER ROBINSON'S LAWYERS SEEK CAMERA BAN FOR SEPT. 1 HEARING, SAY CASE IS NOT A 'REALITY TV SHOW'

Potential plea:

Separately, a court spokeswoman said last week that Graf may or may not hold an arraignment after deciding whether there's enough probable cause to bind the case over for trial.

If he does, it would be the first time that Robinson is asked to enter a plea.

TYLER ROBINSON HEARING ENDS WITHOUT RULING AS EVIDENCE DISMANTLES CHARLIE KIRK CONSPIRACY CLAIMS

"I would expect that they would enter not guilty pleas and move forward," Lazaro said.

Lazaro said a different plea would likely require an agreement taking the death penalty off the table.

ACCUSED CHARLIE KIRK ASSASSIN TYLER ROBINSON FIGHTS BACK AS PROSECUTORS' SPRAWLING CASE COMES INTO FOCUS

"I think the state has been so assertive on their position about the death penalty in this case that I don’t see them doing that right now," Lazaro said.

To attack the aggravator, Robinson's defense argued that only a single shot was fired, from an elevated position. It traveled over the crowd, rather than through it, and it only struck Kirk.

TYLER ROBINSON'S AND LANCE TWIGGS' DNA BOTH ALLEGEDLY FOUND ON KEY EVIDENCE IN CHARLIE KIRK'S ASSASSINATION

Prosecutors countered that Robinson was a bad shot, one who "seldom hit the bullseye and sometimes misses the target completely" when practicing shooting with the suspected murder weapon.

Other evidence against Robinson includes the suspected murder weapon, a .30-06 Mauser rifle that prosecutors have said belonged to his grandfather and had his DNA on it. Robinson allegedly confessed to multiple people, including his roommate and lover, Lance Twiggs, according to court documents.

ACCUSED CHARLIE KIRK ASSASSIN ALLEGEDLY CONFESSED IN TEXTS, APOLOGIZED AND DESCRIBED MOTIVE, AGENT TESTIFIES

"This is likely as straightforward a bindover decision as this Court will ever see," prosecutors wrote. "After admitting to several friends, including his roommate and romantic partner, that he assassinated Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University on September 10, 2025, in front of approximately 3,000 eyewitnesses, Defendant surrendered to law enforcement for that crime."

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Prosecutors also presented surveillance video, ballistic evidence, an alleged handwritten confession and witness statements.

In one message to Twiggs, Robinson allegedly wrote that, "I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk, and I took it."

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A source close to the Kirk family said last week that Kirk's widow Erika, and his parents, Rob and Kathy, all plan to attend the Sept. 1 hearing together as they did during the July hearing.

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But even if the case moves forward, Lazaro said the pretrial sparring won't end any time soon.

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"I do think we’re going to see a lot more litigation come down the road in terms of 1102 and expert-witness designations, forensic testimony on the ballistics and things like that," Lazaro said.

Get right out of town

Mon, 31 Aug 2026 23:31:22 -0400

The House of Representatives is back in town after not voting since July 23.

But the House is only back for less than a week. And the Senate doesn’t even return until Monday, September 14.

The first day of school, this is not.

House members descending on the Capitol this week – then abandoning Washington for Labor Day is kind of like the third and final preseason game in the NFL.

THE WILL OF 100: TRUMP’S SAVE AMERICA ACT SIDELINED AFTER SENATE UNANIMOUSLY AGREED TO AUGUST EXIT

Lots of fans show up for the first game of the NFL preseason. It’s usually a nice – if sweltering – August night. Not some bone-shivering chill in Cleveland with a foot of snow on the ground in mid-December. There’s anticipation. The first look at the new team. The first tailgate. First-string players and highly touted draft picks even play a series or two.

But by the third preseason game, few want to be there.

The die is cast for the roster spots. Players are cut. Even the most robust fans only show up for a quarter or two.

In the NFL, everyone is waiting for the regular season to begin in a few weeks.

That’s kind of where things are now in the House. Congress has tackled most of its business for the year. The highly-touted GOP "Reconciliation 3.0" likely falls by the wayside. Lawmakers even tucked into bed the usual autumn drama surrounding a possible government shutdown. The chances of a repeat following last year’s 43-day shutdown saga dissipated in early August when the Senate approved an interim, bipartisan bill which will fund the government through December 11. The House votes on that bill Tuesday.

Everyone on Capitol Hill is now waiting for the regular season to begin. That’s what awaits the body politic following the midterm elections in November.

And most members don’t even want to linger in Washington right now. As fast as they came to Washington, they wanted to skate out of town to campaign. That’s why attendance might be sparse over the next few days.

The House had 384 members present for one non-controversial measure Monday night. A second vote recorded 388 members present. Those attendance figures could slide if the House returns to Washington in mid-September – as the schedule dictates. Especially among those who either lost their primaries or are retiring. In fact, Fox is told that some members in both camps have even considered resigning early.

Imagine what that could do to the narrow Republican majority.

TRUMP DEMAND PUTS VULNERABLE REPUBLICANS IN IMPOSSIBLE SPOT AHEAD OF MIDTERMS

So, will the House stick it out this week, go home and come back in a few weeks?

"Are we going to be here the entire period?" yours truly asked House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. "We’re going to be here this week, and then we're going to come back in a couple weeks?"

"Well, it’s on the schedule," Johnson replied.

That’s a schedule which the House Republican leadership etched out last December – on the heels of that epic government shutdown.

Who could have anticipated that government funding could work out so easily this time around.

So what’s on the agenda?

Republicans plan a vote on a resolution to get Democrats on the record of either supporting socialism or democracy. In other words, the GOP wants Democrats to put their voting cards where their policies are.

"They want to abolish things like the U.S. Supreme Court. The United States Senate," said Rep. Jeff Crank, R-Colo.

Republicans hope to compel Democrats to either accept or reject progressive, left-wing ideologies.

"We need to see where Democrats stand on this because the American people are rejecting it," said Rep. Tom Tiffany, R-Wis., on Fox.

"They're going to try to distance themselves as much as they can," said Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla. "But the fact is that's where the Democratic Party is going. That's where the energy of the Democratic Party is going."

This is what’s described in Congress as a "gotcha" vote. Republicans will dare Democrats to vote no. And if they do, the GOP will deploy that vote against vulnerable Democrats in campaign ads this fall.

Some Democrats could vote to reject any relationship with socialism. In fact, the vote could give those Democrats a gift to say they’re opposed to socialists in the Democratic Party. But Republicans ensconced a measure in the resolution which could oblige Democrats to vote no.

The measure includes the SAVE America Act. That’s the hallmark of the GOP’s agenda. It requires proof of citizenship for voting. Most Democrats view the SAVE America Act as a poison pill. So Democrats could vote nay. And some Republicans will still say "gotcha" if they oppose it.

"The resolution elevates the so-called Save America Act, which is just the ‘suppress the vote act,’ said House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y. "I'm not clear how many Democrats are actually going to support a resolution whose focus is on trying to rig the midterm election by elevating this voter suppression legislation that Donald Trump has been trying to jam down the throats of the American people for the last year."

The House could also wrestle with a resolution to censure Rep. Chuck Edwards, R-N.C. He admitted to inappropriate conduct around female aides and dropped his reelection bid. There could be an effort to expel Rep. Cory Mills, R-Fla. He faces allegations of financial misconduct and alleged assault of a woman at his apartment last year. But Mills lost his primary.

Then there is Rep. Max Miller, R-Ohio. The Ohio Republican faces allegations of spousal and child abuse. Republicans implored Miller to drop his re-election bid. But Miller doubled down, saying the allegations are false.

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Johnson says he supports Miller’s "re-election." He contends the House shouldn’t take action until the Ethics Committee completes its inquiry.

"He has been a great Member of Congress," said Johnson of Miller. "He has some personal issues he’s still working through."

But it’s possible Democrats – and even some Republicans – could engineer a special resolution to expel or otherwise punish Miller. Johnson and the GOP leadership want nothing to do with that. So the solution? Get lawmakers off Capitol Hill and back into their districts. Fast.

Yes, it’s unclear what the Senate may address when it returns in a few weeks. But House Republicans are more concerned with clinging to their narrow majority in November. So recessing until after the election could prove to be the safest political tactic for Republicans.

Don’t be surprised if the House leaves Washington until November in the next few days.

Think it’s not possible? Get right out of town.

Beloved Texas chiropractor killed in Grand Canyon flash flood, 2 friends still missing after hike

Sun, 30 Aug 2026 22:14:47 -0400

A beloved Texas chiropractor and father of three who disappeared during devastating flash flooding at the Grand Canyon has died, his former chiropractic practice announced Monday.

Dr. John Giusti, of Granbury, Texas, had been exploring the Grand Canyon when a flash flood tore through Bright Angel Creek on Aug. 29, turning what his wife described as a "lifetime dream" into tragedy.

"We are heartbroken to make this update. Dr. John was one of the victims of the Grand Canyon flooding," Whipple City Family Chiropractic, where Giusti previously practiced for eight years, announced on Facebook.

"John was a real-life superhero to everyone blessed enough to know him," Janet Giusti wrote in a tribute shared on the fundraiser.

PARK VISITORS FACE FLOOD DANGER OUT WEST WHILE SEVERE STORMS RIP THROUGH NY, NJ

Photos posted to Giusti’s ChiroHabit business page also show him in the Grand Canyon before the flooding began.

Janet remembered her husband as a dedicated chiropractor who "truly lived to treat and heal," but said his most cherished role was being a father.

"Beyond his practice, he was a man of electric energy and boundless passion---an avid runner, an enthusiast of fast cars, and a massive fan of comic books and legendary heroes," she wrote. "Yet out of all the titles he carried, his absolute favorite was being a devoted father to his three beautiful girls."

ARIZONA STATE STUDENT VANISHES DURING GRAND CANYON TRIP JUST DAYS BEFORE GRADUATION, FAMILY PLEADS FOR HELP

Janet said her husband was fulfilling a longtime dream when the deadly flood struck.

"John was living out a lifetime dream exploring the majesty of the Grand Canyon when tragedy struck," she wrote. "On August 29, 2026, a sudden flash flood swept through Bright Angel Creek, tragically taking him from us while he was immersed in an adventure he had longed for."

GRAND CANYON MYSTERY ILLNESS REPORTEDLY TRIGGERS NPS INVESTIGATION AFTER RAFTERS REPORT ALARMING SYMPTOMS

While describing the family's grief as "as vast and profound as the canyon itself," Janet said they were finding some solace in how John spent his final moments.

"We find a small comfort in knowing he spent his final moments surrounded by breathtaking beauty, living life to the fullest," she wrote.

Her tribute ended with a heartbreaking description of the different roles Giusti played in the lives of those around him.

"To the community, he was a gifted healer. To his friends, a powerhouse of life. To his daughters, he was their ultimate hero. To me, he was my whole world," Janet wrote.

The National Park Service has not publicly identified the approximately 15 people it is working to locate or account for, and officials have not confirmed Giusti’s name.

The agency is asking anyone who knows of hikers or backpackers who were in the Bright Angel Creek corridor on Aug. 29 or who had a campground reservation there to contact investigators.

Whipple City Family Chiropractic separately announced it was collecting donations at its Greenwich and Cambridge offices and would match the contributions to provide immediate support to the Giusti family.

Giusti practiced chiropractic care for 19 years and was a partner at Whipple City Family Chiropractic in New York for eight years before moving to Granbury in 2020, according to his business biography. He and Janet were raising their three
daughters in Texas.

ARMY BLACK HAWKS AIRLIFT 200-PLUS STRANDED CAMPERS AS MISSOURI FLOODS TRIGGER MORE 350 RESCUES

Giusti was not alone in the canyon when the flooding struck.

Loved ones identified the other two members of his hiking group as Brent Rosenkranz and Tim Smith, saying both men remained missing Monday as search-and-rescue efforts continued.

Rosenkranz had posted selfies from the Grand Canyon before the flooding, tagging Giusti and sharing his excitement about the grueling adventure ahead.

"Just arrived at the Grand Canyon. Will be hiking over 31 miles next four days with vertical change of over a mile," Rosenkranz wrote. "Carrying a 40 lb backpack. This should be an adventure!"

Rosenkranz joked that his fear of heights would likely make the trip even more memorable.

"Most of you know don't handle heights," he wrote. "So I should have lots of funny stories when I get back."

The post offered a glimpse of the group's trip before flash flooding tore through Bright Angel Creek.

Tina Newberry, whose daughter co-owns the ATA Glen Rose martial arts location, said Giusti had been exploring the canyon with fellow "ATA fathers" Rosenkranz and Smith when disaster struck.

"At this time, Brent and Tim remain missing, and search and rescue teams continue working to locate them," Newberry wrote in a public Facebook post.

Newberry said Rosenkranz is the husband of Elisha Rosenkranz and that the couple is deeply connected to ATA martial arts schools in Granbury, Cleburne and Glen Rose, Texas. She described Smith as a husband and father of three children who attend the schools.

"This tragedy is touching four ATA school communities---students, parents, instructors, and team members who know and love these families," Newberry wrote. "Please keep all of them, along with the search and rescue teams, in your thoughts and prayers."

"We continue to hold onto hope and pray in faith for Brent and Tim to be found," she added.

The flash flood began at about 2:30 p.m. on Aug. 29, according to the National Park Service. As of Sunday morning, 62 people had been evacuated from Phantom Ranch and the lower North Kaibab Trail, and no injuries had been reported.

Nearly all footbridges across Bright Angel Creek were destroyed, cutting off hiker access across the waterway. The flooding also forced the closure of Phantom Ranch, Bright Angel Campground, the North Kaibab Trail to Phantom Ranch, Black Bridge, Silver Bridge and the Colorado River to river traffic.

EXPERTS ZERO IN ON LIKELY CAUSE OF DEADLY NEPAL MUDSLIDE, WITH MORE THAN 1,400 MISSING

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs said her "heart is with the families and loved ones of every person unaccounted for after the flash flooding at the Grand Canyon."

Hobbs said the Arizona Division of Emergency Management is coordinating with the National Park Service and Coconino County Emergency Management to support search and recovery efforts.

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Anyone with information about people who may have been in the affected corridor is asked to contact the National Park Service Investigative Services Branch Tip Line at 888-653-0009 or nps_isb@nps.gov.

CBS News takes heat over report on Dem hopeful Abdul El-Sayed's now-deleted 9/11 posts

Mon, 31 Aug 2026 22:07:23 -0400

CBS News faced heat from the far-left Monday over a report about past comments Democratic Michigan Senate hopeful Abdul El-Sayed made about 9/11 ahead of the 25th anniversary of the terrorist attack.

"As the nation prepares to mark 25 years since Sept. 11, 2001, Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in Michigan, may be facing the risk of renewed scrutiny and fresh political attack," CBS News wrote Monday.

The report cited El-Sayed's deleted social media posts, including some from 2020 comparing the nearly 3,000 Americans killed on 9/11 to the death toll from the coronavirus pandemic. Another post from Sept. 11, 2021, first uncovered by The Washington Free Beacon, read, "Today, I mourn the 3K lives, 6K injuries, & infrastructural devastation in NYC, perpetuated ignorantly in the name of my faith. Tomorrow, I'll mourn ~1M lives, millions of injuries, & infrastructural devastation in 3 countries, perpetuated ignorantly in the name of my country."

UNEARTHED EL-SAYED ESSAY DRAWS EXPLOSIVE TRUMP-BIN LADEN PARALLEL: ‘RECRUITED, RADICALIZED AND REASSURED’

However, many of El-Sayed's supporters and other liberal critics expressed outrage linking El-Sayed to the forthcoming 9/11 anniversary.

"What an insane headline," far-left commentator Hasan Piker reacted on X. "This is why the [new Paramount owner David Ellison] bought CBS and put Bari Weiss in charge."

Bari Weiss was tapped by Ellison to become the network's editor-in-chief last fall as part of Paramount's multimillion-dollar acquisition of her outlet The Free Press.

"Hi @CBS @CBSNews @bariweiss do you think it's super offensive and disgusting and Islamophobic to do a tweet about the potential first ever Muslim Democratic senator which begins by referencing 9/11?" Zeteo founder and former MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan asked.

"Despicable anti-Muslim woke right garbage from the house CBS account," "The Bulwark" podcast host and MS NOW analyst Tim Miller wrote.

SOCIALIST CANDIDATES CAN DELETE OLD POSTS, BUT THEY CAN'T ERASE THEIR RADICALISM

"What an insane, blatantly racist headline. Unreal," Rep. Yassamin Ansari, D-Ariz., posted.

"The current state of institutional media legit bums me out," Vox host and editorial director Astead Herndon said. "We’ve burned through so much credibility in recent years. And our information ecosystem is worse for it."

YOUTUBE STAR MS RACHEL GIVES FUNDS TO DEMOCRATIC SOCIALIST MICHIGAN SENATE HOPEFUL ABDUL EL-SAYED

A CBS News source familiar with the story shrugged off the criticism, telling Fox News Digital that reports about deleted social media posts from politicians are published "all the time."

El-Sayed was confronted about his deleted posts by a local CBS News reporter on the campaign trail.

"What happened on 9/11 is a disaster. It was a terrible attack on our country," El-Sayed said. "And our responsibility is also to think about, how do we build an America where we are protecting our servicemen and women from being asked to fight in wars we have no business fighting in?"

CBS News did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.

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Potential plea:

Get right out of town

Beloved Texas chiropractor killed in Grand Canyon flash flood, 2 friends still missing after hike

CBS News takes heat over report on Dem hopeful Abdul El-Sayed's now-deleted 9/11 posts