It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Friday, July 31, 2026
Trump declares 'complete disarmament' of Hamas and other 'armed groups'
U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hold a joint press conference in the East Room at the White House in Washington, U.S., February 4, 2025. REUTERS/Leah Millis TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
President Donald Trumpproclaimed on his Truth Social platform Thursday that he has reached a solution for the Gaza war.
"Today, the Board of Peace reached a HISTORIC agreement for the COMPLETE DISARMAMENT of Hamas and all other armed groups in Gaza," said Trump. "This is a monumental step toward lasting PEACE and SECURITY." He called the agreement a "critical step" toward "Gaza finally being governed by a new Palestinian government that will work closely with the Board of Peace to help the Palestinian people," while ensuring Israel's security.
"This is a major milestone in the implementation of the Trump 20-Point Plan," Trump continued. "The agreement will be carried out in carefully structured phases. As disarmament is completed, Israeli forces will withdraw, and the International Stabilization Force will work with a new Palestinian police force to take responsibility for Gaza being safe for its residents and its neighbors."
"One year ago there was a violent raging war, humanitarian crisis and hostages kept in brutal captivity," the president continued. "We have made historic progress and there is still much work to do ... the threat that emerged from Gaza on October 7 will NOT be allowed to rebuild! Under this agreement, Gaza will finally be in the hands of a new Palestinian government that serves its PEOPLE. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL ON THIS AMAZING DEVELOPMENT, THAT EVERYBODY SAID COULD NEVER BE ACHIEVED!"
Trump has been trying to resolve the Israeli occupation of Gaza since taking office.
Super Bowl LX - Half-Time Show - New England Patriots v Seattle Seahawks - Levi's Stadium, Santa Clara, California, United States - February 8, 2026 Bad Bunny performs during the halftime show REUTERS/Mike Blake
The White House used a Bad Bunny song to promote its deportations and harsh immigration agenda — and Tik Tok was not happy about it, TMZ reported on Friday.
A TikTok posted Thursday shows ICE agents handcuffing and hauling off detainees to Bad Bunny's "LA MuDANZA," according to TMZ.
In the video, the White House took the original lyrics "un aplauso pa mami y papi porque en verdad rompieron," meaning "a round of applause for mom and dad, because they really crushed it" — and changed them.
The video instead had: "A round of applause for Donald J. Trump because he really crushed it." The post was captioned "We're making America great again."
Bad Bunny hasn't commented on the White House move yet, according to TMZ.
The Puerto Rican rapper Benito Antonio MartÃnez Ocasio has been a critic of the Trump administration and its policies. The international star performed at the Super Bowl halftime show in February, sending a message of pride to the Latino and immigrant community.
Tik Tok commenters were outraged. Nearly 3,000 people responded to the video, the top comments were mostly condemnations.
"Do not disrespect Bad Bunny like that," wrote one. Said another, "This is just disgusting."
'Irresponsible as hell': Outrage as Trump doubts bombshell intel on hostile attack
President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting at Camp David in Thurmont, Maryland, on July 31, 2026. REUTERS/Daniel Heuer President Donald Trump's remarks questioning whether Iran had hacked water systems in Minnesota sparked anger online Friday.
Trump pushed back on the U.S. and state officials' reports about Iran hacking in Minnesota and several other states during a cabinet meeting at Camp David in Thurmont, Maryland. "We heard in Minnesota there was a cyberattack and they blame it on Iran. I don't think so. I blame it on Minnesota because they're grossly incompetent."
Nearly three dozen water plants were attacked in the state this week, according to reports. But Trump blamed Gov. Tim Walz instead, despite evidence from U.S. intelligence officials saying it was likely to have been Iranian hackers, MS NOW reported.
"Iran's got bigger problems than worrying about Minnesota," Trump said.
Political experts and commentators pushed back on Trump's claims, suggesting that there could be more to the cyberattacks.
"Remember a few months ago when it was reported that Iran was psychologically profiling Trump to decode his behavior? One has to wonder if Iran targeted Minnesota specifically because they knew Trump would let them get away with it because of his deranged hatred of Minnesota," wrote behavioral scientist Caroline Orr Bueno, Ph.D, who has more than 377,000 followers on X.
"Let's be clear: Trump sees Minnesota as much as Iran (or maybe even more so) as constituting an enemy country," Greg Sargent, staff writer at The New Republic, wrote on X.
"At Helsinki, Trump undermined America’s intelligence community. At Camp David, he just did it again," Jessica Tarlov, Democratic strategist and co-host of Fox News show "The Five," wrote on X.
"Sure, sure, let’s just downplay an attack by a hostile foreign actor. Iran has some of the most persistent — and effective — hackers on the planet. This is irresponsible as hell from Trump," X political commentary account Angry Staffer, which has more than 565,000 followers, wrote.
"His own FBI assessed it was Iran. They also said they attacked multiple states," Sawyer Hackett, political strategist and content creator, wrote on X.
"The President of the United States is siding with Iran over Minnesota!" Political commentator Covie, who has more than 182,000 followers, wrote on X.
"Just like he did with Putin in the past, he takes the side of an enemy over his own country," anti-Trump group The Lincoln Project posted on X.
Trump's 'incredible cognitive dissonance' leaves CNN anchor in disbelief
U.S. President Donald Trump disembarks Air Force One at Morristown Municipal Airport in Morristown, New Jersey, U.S., July 31, 2026. REUTERS/Daniel Heuer
A video of President Donald Trump and his cabinet members making statements that bucked recent polling numbers left a CNN anchor shocked.
CNN anchor Erin Burnett aired footage of Trump's cabinet members showering him with praise, including Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. touting the president's transparency and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent saying the economy under Trump is "the envy of the world" and a feat the founding fathers "could not have imagined."
She contrasted that with recent poll numbers that show Americans don't quite view Trump the same way, including a 34 percent approval rating. It marks Trump's "lowest approval rating among the American people so far," Burnett noted.
"At this point in a term, this is as low as it gets," she said. She also stressed that 73 percent of Americans said that Trump's priorities are wrong.
"Three-quarters of the American people say that the president of the United States is not paying attention to the country's most important problems," Burnett said. "That is a stunning number, three-quarters of Americans."
She also played a video of Trump saying, "America is safer and stronger and far more successful than it was two years ago, and I don't think it's ever been anything like this. We're going to leave this country in very, very good shape, better shape than it's ever been. This is the golden age of America."
The polling showed "stunning" and "unprecedented numbers," but based on the clips, "Trump's not hearing it. It's an incredible cognitive dissonance," Burnett said.
Hegseth's swagger meets a reckoning as Pentagon moves to unwind 'pugnacious' purge: report
U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth speaks during a cabinet meeting at Camp David in Thurmont, Maryland, U.S., July 31, 2026. REUTERS/Daniel Heuer
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is being pressured to backtrack after an airstrike gone wrong, according to The Atlantic.
The Pentagon is moving towards restoring as many as half of the roles that Hegseth cut during a "pugnacious" purge at the Department of Defense, according to reporting by The Atlantic. Hegseth's downsizing included the firing or reassignment of staff dedicated to avoiding civilian casualties in war, the reporting noted.
"The potential reversal, which hasn't previously been reported, now awaits Hegseth's signature," according to The Atlantic. The Pentagon is considering bringing back staff as it deals with the fallout of an airstrike that killed almost 170 people, most of them children, at a school in southern Iran, The Atlantic reported.
The Atlantic also noted that Hegseth said early in the conflict that the U.S. would fight with "no stupid rules of engagement" and "no politically correct wars."
An anonymous Pentagon official confirmed to The Atlantic that the DoD is "currently undergoing a strategic reassessment to inform its future reorganization."
A Pentagon inspector general report this spring determined that the DoD's cuts to civilian-harm protections may have violated laws designed to protect noncombatants, The Atlantic reported. Leaders of the Pentagon's combatant commands also support the restoration of personnel who can safeguard against civilian casualties, a U.S. official told The Atlantic.
"Over the last year, we have seen a total disconnect between the willingness to wage wars all over the world, at an unprecedented pace and scale, while at the same time all but abandoning their leading role in setting up the systems and approaches needed to better protect civilians," Emily Tripp, the head of Airwars, an independent UK-based watchdog, told The Atlantic.
Raging Trump pal unravels at Fox News CEO with vomit of sexist profanities
Loomer had been invited to discuss her recent reporting trip to Ukraine, where she made headlines this week by reversing her longtime support for Russia.
Laura Loomer, far-right activist, speaks with anti-Trump demonstrators near the entrance of the Fulton County Jail, as former President Donald Trump is expected to turn himself in to be processed after his Georgia indictment, in Atlanta on Aug. 24, 2023. Photo by Dustin Chambers for Reuters
Far-right activist Laura Loomer erupted at Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott with a string of sexist profanities Thursday after the network canceled a podcast appearance at the last minute.
Loomer had been invited by an unnamed Fox host to discuss her recent reporting trip to Ukraine, where she made headlines this week by reversing her longtime support for Russia.
The recording was set for 4 p.m. — then Fox pulled the plug with 20 minutes to go.
"I was just supposed to record a podcast episode with a Fox News host who invited me on their podcast to discuss my reporting in Ukraine," Loomer wrote on X. "I was supposed to record at 4 pm EST, but then they canceled on me 20 minutes before our interview because Fox News management said they can't have me on."
"What a miserable b—!" Loomer wrote.
Loomer claimed the snub is part of a decade-long pattern, alleging Scott placed her on a blacklist in 2017.
"I've been on this blacklist since 2017," she claimed. "When Pete Hegseth and Judge Jeanine worked for Fox News and tried to have me on, Suzanne Scott (a liberal) told them they couldn't have me on and would be reprimanded if they interacted with me on X," referring to former Fox host Jeanine Pirro.
"I'm told she allegedly directed the entire network to not cover my trip to Ukraine," she added.
CNNreported in September 2024 that Fox mentioned Loomer just once the week she flew with President Donald Trump to his presidential debate.
Loomer has previously called Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) a "lunatic hooker" and a "harlot" during a social media feud, and has lobbed profane insults at other women in public life.
Associated Press reported this week that Loomer traveled to Kyiv and interviewed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, reversing years of pro-Russia rhetoric. Fox News, she said, refused to cover any of it.
"Censorship is alive and well at Fox News," Loomer wrote.
Fox News host learns pigeons actually do lay eggs in brutal fact check to his face
Fox News channel logo (Photo credit: Poetra.RH / Shutterstock)
A Fox News anchor had to get a humiliating fact check from one of his guests after blundering on basic biology.
Will Cain had on Matt DuBoise of Carolina Coops, a poultry coop manufacturer in North Carolina, to talk about boxing legend Mike Tyson's coop for pigeons — and he opened the segment by asking DuBoise, "Mike Tyson knows pigeons don't lay eggs, right?"
After an awkward second, DuBoise said, "Uh, well actually, they — they do, but just not the chicken eggs that we want."
"Ah!" said Cain, smiling as he recovered.
Pigeons, like all birds, do in fact lay hard-shelled eggs. They're even edible, although they're not very commonly sold and fetch a hefty price due to the difficulties in producing them at scale.
This isn't the first Fox News egg-related controversy. The network infamously hosted Trump administration Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Jenkins last year in the middle of a critical egg shortage, where she proclaimed people should just raise chickens in their backyards if they want cheap eggs.
'True embarrassment': Expert twists the knife as Trump admin's Reflecting Pool case flops
U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro discusses charges related to vandalism of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool during a press conference in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 2, 2026. REUTERS/Cheney Orr
A legal analyst slammed the Trump administration's flopped case that sought to pin Reflecting Pool damage on an alleged vandal.
On Friday, the Trump Department of Justice withdrew criminal charges against Olympic canoeist David Hearn after accusing him of ripping up the Reflecting Pool liner with his bare hands. During an appearance on CNN, former prosecutor Elie Honig looked back at the case and the press conference by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, where she announced Hearn's indictment.
"I think you could see the problems with this case right away," Honig said. "I did not expect it to unravel so quickly. It's a real embarrassment, first of all, for the United States Justice Department."
The Reflecting Pool was plagued with algae after costly taxpayer-funded renovations finished in June, and then the lining along the bottom of the pool started to float up. Hearn was arrested next to the pool, which was captured in a social media video, as Trump blamed vandals for the poor condition. Hearn maintained that he just stopped to reach in and touch the floating liner.
"Let's remember, first, they arrest David Hearn, they charge him initially by complaint with a misdemeanor," Honig said. "Then they upgrade it to a felony. They get a grand jury to indict him for that felony."
Honig then reflected on Pirro's press conference, "where she's pounding the podium and talking about what a serious crime this is and how justice will be done. And now it turns out they dismissed the case voluntarily," he said.
"It's a true embarrassment for Jeanine Pirro," Honig said. "It's a true embarrassment for DOJ, and they brought it on themselves."
Reflecting Pool scapegoat case implodes as DOJ humiliatingly backs down
Evidence shows Trump admin caused Reflecting Pool damage it blamed on sabotage: ex-insider
In an admission of error, the Trump Justice Department withdrew criminal charges against an Olympic canoeist accused of vandalizing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.
Justice Department prosecutors acknowledged in a court filing that contrary to the assertions they made that David 'Davey' Hearn had damaged the iconic landmark, "damage to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in June 2026 was the result of flawed installation by the contractor," Meidas Touch's Scott MacFarlane reported.
The DOJ further admitted they have new information "showing that the damage was the result of a botched installation and not vandalism as initially represented by [the Department of the Interior]."
Trump's renovation of the Reflecting Pool was announced to great fanfare, with the president complaining that under previous presidents it was full of trash. However, after the pool was painted and sealed, it was taken over by a massive algal bloom. This prompted maintenance workers to dump vast amounts of hydrogen peroxide, which resulted in the lining starting to peel and break.
Trump claimed this damage was the result of a "gash" in the monument inflicted by political protesters, but no evidence of such a gash was found when the pool was drained for remedial maintenance.
Red state moms weaponize voter-approved law to take on Ten Commandments mandate
Ten Commandments. (Photo credit: Carmen K. Sisson / Shutterstock)
Three Houston mothers are suing to stop displaying the Ten Commandments in Texas public school classrooms, arguing that it violates the state’s religious freedom law and a voter-approved parental rights amendment.
Their lawsuit is the latest challenge to Senate Bill 10 — this time under Texas law. Other attempts to prohibit the display of the Ten Commandments in public schools under federal law — primarily the First Amendment’s guarantee of separation of church and state — have been unsuccessful so far.
The mothers’ suit, filed in Harris County, demands that the displays be taken down and that the court act before mid-August, when the school year begins.
Emily Roth, one of the plaintiffs, said in a Friday morning press release that the Ten Commandments poster purposefully ignores religious differences in the classroom and will make students feel like they do not belong.
“It teaches students, and their teachers, that exclusion is acceptable, maybe even preferred. That is not a lesson I want my children learning from the state of Texas,” she said.
The parents are suing under the Texas Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which the Legislature passed in 1999 and declares that “a government agency may not substantially burden a person’s free exercise of religion.”
They are also suing under the recently approved Texas Proposition 15 — also known as the “Parental Rights Amendment” — which ensures parents have the right “to exercise care, custody, and control of the parent’s child, including the right to make decisions concerning the child’s upbringing.”
Last year’s Senate Bill 10 requires Texas classrooms to display donated posters of the King James Version of the Ten Commandments. The posters must be visible in the classroom and cannot be smaller than 16 by 20 inches.
However, various faiths — such as Jewish, Catholic, and Protestant traditions — number and word the commandments differently, the press release noted.
Sixteen families sued 11 school districts to block the new law in July 2025. They argued that it violates the separation of church and state and pressures students to embrace religious principles and values they may not align with.
In August 2025, U.S. District Judge Fred Biery blocked the law in the targeted districts.
A 5th Circuit Court ruling this spring then permitted the enforcement of Senate Bill 10, stating that the Texas law did not violate the Constitution. The court also cleared the way for a similar law in Louisiana.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has long argued that the Ten Commandments are an important part of the heritage and history of the United States. Lawyers with his office have argued that the posters — because they are displayed rather than taught — do not qualify as coercive, as students are allowed to ignore them.
The three mothers suing in Houston are Roth, Audrey Rosa Nath and Sanjam Kaur Sohal.
Roth is raising her children without religion; Nath is raising her children across a variety of religious traditions found in her family, including Jainism, Hinduism, Judaism, and Quakerism; Sohal is Sikh, according to the press release.
Megan Hassan, lead counsel for the plaintiffs, said that despite the women’s different religious beliefs, they all want the same thing: “for their children to attend school without being compelled to display a message that conflicts with their faith.”
“They did not want a legal battle with the state of Texas,” she said. “They wanted a poster removed from a classroom wall. That should never have required a lawsuit.”
This story is published through a collaboration between The Texas Tribune and Religion News Service.
FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump holds up a red card as he meets with FIFA President Gianni Infantino in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, U.S., August 28, 2018. REUTERS/Leah Millis/File Photo
Gianni Infantino has scrapped his plan to sell a slice of the World Cup to private investors, backing down barely 72 hours after the proposal leaked and set off a revolt inside soccer's governing body, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The FIFA president announced Friday that FIFA Forward Enterprise would not proceed, saying the project had created divisions no longer in the interest of the sport.
“Having listened carefully to all the views,” Infantino said, “it has become clear that the project has created divisions of a nature that, regardless of the level of support, are no longer in the interest of the objective set out in the first place.”
The plan would have raised $4.2 billion at a roughly $20 billion valuation by selling about 20 percent of a new commercial arm, with a one-time payment of $20 million dangled to each of FIFA's 211 member federations.
The lead investor lined up for the deal was Thrive Eternal, a vehicle founded by Joshua Kushner, brother of Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, a link that had already drawn Democratic scrutiny before the reversal.
UEFA's 55 members voted unanimously Thursday to boycott all FIFA competitions if the sale went through, a walkout that would have sidelined powers like Spain, France and England from the men's and women's World Cups. The confederations for Asia and for North America and the Caribbean also rejected the plan.
The pressure reached Infantino's inner circle, with senior adviser Carlos Cordeiro, a former U.S. Soccer president who sat on the White House task force for the World Cup, resigning in protest. FIFA chief operating officer Kevin Lamour, who did not step down, said staff had been deceived by the secretive plan.
Trump, whose earlier phone call pushing FIFA to reverse a red card had fueled questions about his closeness to Infantino, distanced himself Friday. Asked at Camp David whether the FIFA boss had consulted him on the sale, the president told reporters, "No, I never spoke to him."
