ActBlue scrutiny fuels new GOP bills to tighten election donation rules

2026-05-11T15:00:05-04:00 / Fox News

The bills come as ActBlue faces scrutiny over leaked memos about its handling of foreign national contributions

By Robert Schmad Fox News

Published May 11, 2026 3:00pm EDT

Democrats fight ‘SAVE Act’ for election integrity, Rep. Steil responds to Schumer’s stance

Rep. Bryan Steil, R-Wis., weighs in as White House and Republicans criticize Democrats for opposing the SAVE Act for election integrity, which includes voter ID.

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FIRST ON FOX:House Administration Committee Chairman Bryan Steil, R-Wis., introduced a legislative package on Monday designed to improve transparency and security in campaign finance as a major Democratic payment processor faces scrutiny over foreign donations.

Steil’s package includes two bills: The Campaign Finance Transparency Act and the Preventing Foreign Influence in American Elections Act, Fox News Digital learned. The first piece of legislation would impose a suite of new transparency regulations on organizations that process political donations, such as ActBlue, while the second proposed law seeks to prevent foreign nationals from funding election-related activities through means other than campaign contributions.

A spokesman for Steil confirmed to Fox News Digital that they plan to expedite consideration of these bills through the administration committee.

“My investigation into ActBlue has demonstrated that the current campaign finance laws weren’t drafted for the modern era we live in,” the congressman told Fox News Digital. “The major gaps we’ve uncovered are being exploited by fraudsters and foreign nationals to make illegal political donations. For example, right now an individual could make a fraudulent donation online in someone else’s name and avoid getting caught. That’s an unacceptable vulnerability that bad actors are taking advantage of.”

DEM FUNDRAISING GIANT ACTBLUE ROCKED BY ALLEGATIONS IT MISLED CONGRESS ABOUT FOREIGN DONATIONS

Rep. Bryan Steil, R-Wis., speaks during the House Administration Committee hearing titled “Looking Ahead Series: House Sergeant at Arms Strategic Plan for the 118th Congress” in the Longworth Building on April 18, 2023.(Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc)

ActBlue is under increased scrutiny from congressional Republicans after the New York Times in April reported, citing leaked internal memos, that the payment processor’s lawyers warned that it may have misled Congress regarding its efforts to stop foreign nationals from donating to American politicians.

“It can be alleged that ActBlue accepted and/or facilitated the acceptance of foreign-national contributions into American elections,” one memo reportedly stated. “In addition, because ActBlue’s staff was aware that its system was not as robust as necessary, it could be alleged that these violations were ‘knowing and willful,’ a standard that both increases the penalties the F.E.C. might seek and gives the Justice Department jurisdiction for a potential criminal investigation.”

Fox News Digital has not independently confirmed the content of the ActBlue legal memos. ActBlue has denied breaking any laws, saying that its statements to Congress were rigorously reviewed by lawyers before being submitted, and characterized Republican inquiries as partisan in nature.

WinRed, the conservative equivalent to ActBlue, would also be covered by the laws if they pass. An Associated Press investigation in May 2025 found that Trump’s campaign reports listed citizenship as “verified” for two of more than 200 donors living abroad who contributed to him, many through WinRed.

WinRed and ActBlue did not respond to requests for comment when reached by Fox News Digital on Monday.

Exterior view of ActBlue offices building with glass windows and signage.(Getty Images)

ACTBLUE SUES TEXAS AG KEN PAXTON, ALLEGING POLITICAL RETALIATION OVER DEMOCRATS’ FUNDRAISING

Republicans have long argued that making donations with gift cards allows individuals to more easily conceal their identities while making illegal contributions. ActBlue’s lawyers also claimed, according to the memos viewed by the Times, that the payment processor sometimes failed to collect verification documents from donors residing in foreign countries to ensure they could legally make contributions.

Steil’s Campaign Finance Transparency Act will, among other things, prohibit political donations made using gift cards, require the name on a credit or debit card to match that of a prospective campaign donor and mandates the verification of citizenship or permanent resident status for donors without an American mailing address.

ActBlue, according to a letter it sent to Congress in April, no longer processes donations originating from outside the United States. The processor previously prompted foreign donors to input their passport number when making donations using credit or debit cards, per the letter.

Rep. Bryan Steil, R-Wis., speaks during a House Financial Services Committee hearing on oversight of the Treasury Department and Federal Reserve’s pandemic response in the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 2, 2020.(Greg Nash/Pool/Reuters)

STATE CONSERVATIVES DEMAND ACTION ON NONCITIZEN VOTING: ‘TIME FOR CONGRESS TO LISTEN’

Conservatives have also, in recent years, argued that foreign nationals are influencing American elections in ways beyond traditional campaign contributions.

Steil’s Preventing Foreign Influence in American Elections Act seeks to stop foreign donors from funding election-related activities such as ballot harvesting, voter registration initiatives and the commissioning of polls. The law would also bar foreign nationals from helping to pay for the administration of state or local elections.

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ActBlue is fighting back against its conservative critics. The platform, for instance, sued Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is investigating it, on May 1, alleging that he is abusing his office by engaging in a politically motivated legal action against it.

The district judge handling the case recently wrote that “the court is tentatively of the opinion” that ActBlue will “likely to prevail on some, if not all, elements” of the first part of their legal complaint, which accuses Paxton of violating ActBlue’s First Amendment rights by allegedly targeting it for engaging in constitutionally protected political activity.

Soros-backed prosecutor hit with rebuke after dismissing probe as Trump ‘partisan attacks’: ‘Hey scumbag’

Victim Rights Reform Council head calls Descano a ‘scumbag,’ says probe was filed on behalf of a murder victim’s mother

2026-05-11T13:02:49-04:00 / Fox News

By Peter Pinedo Fox News

Published May 11, 2026 1:02pm EDT

Mother of murder victim Stephanie Minter calls out lenient policies amid DOJ investigation

Cheryl Minter, mother of murdered Stephanie Minter, expresses outrage over her daughter’s killing by an illegal immigrant with a violent criminal history. Minter reveals that Fairfax County Commonwealth Attorney Steve Descano repeatedly showed leniency to the suspect. She reacts to news that the DOJ is investigating Descano for giving preferential treatment to illegal immigrants over citizens, emphasizing the need to prioritize American children and citizens.

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Embattled Soros-backed prosecutor Steve Descano is facing scrutiny again, this time for dismissing a Justice Department probe into allegations that he gave favorable deals to illegal immigrants, calling it one of President Donald Trump’s “partisan attacks.”

Jennifer Harrison, head of the Victim Rights Reform Council, responded to Fairfax County, Virginia, Commonwealth’s Attorney Descano’s claim by writing on X, “Hey scumbag… This has NOTHING to do with President Trump and it’s not going to be the fundraising tool you thought it would be – no Soros blood money for you today.”

The DOJ opened a “pattern or practice” civil rights investigation into Descano last week, examining whether his office violated federal law by weighing “immigration consequences” in charging decisions and plea deals, amid an ongoing spate of violent crime in Fairfax County involving illegal immigrants.

Victim Rights Reform Council requested that the DOJ launch an investigation on behalf of Cheryl Minter, whose daughter, Stephanie Minter, was fatally stabbed at a bus stop earlier this year, allegedly by Abdul Jalloh, a 32-year-old illegal immigrant from Sierra Leone.

DOJ OPENS INVESTIGATION INTO SOROS-BACKED DA ACCUSED OF SHIELDING ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS FROM CONSEQUENCES

Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano speaks at an event in Fairfax County, Va.(Sarah Voisin/Getty Images)

Descano responded to the DOJ investigation through spokeswoman Laura Birnbaum, who wrote in a statement that “this investigation is the latest example of the Trump administration’s own ‘pattern or practice’ of misusing the Justice Department to launch partisan attacks.”

Birnbaum said the “DOJ’s letter announcing the investigation distorts the office’s policy,” which she said has “been in place publicly for over five years – and happened to arrive just a week before Commonwealth’s Attorney Descano is set to testify before Congress.”

Descano, whose entry into political office was propelled by a massive $627,653 donation from the Soros family’s Justice and Public Safety PAC, is set to testify before the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement on Thursday.

The hearing is titled “Fairfax County, Virginia: The Dangerous Consequences of Sanctuary Policies.” County Sheriff Stacey Kincaid will also testify, along with Minter, former Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares, a Republican, and Virginians for Safe Communities President Sean Kennedy.

SOROS-BACKED DA’S LAX ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION POLICIES LED TO ‘PREVENTABLE’ BUS STOP STABBING MURDER: COMPLAINT

Abdul Jalloh, 32, is accused of killing Stephanie Minter, 41, at a bus stop in Virginia.(Fairfax County Police Department; provided)

Birnbaum insisted, “Our office’s policies are fair, legal, and reflect the values of Fairfax County.”

She said Descano’s office “will not be distracted from our mission of keeping this community safe and holding individuals accountable when they commit crimes.”

In response, Harrison said the civil rights investigation was initiated after a request from a victim’s loved one.

“Hey scumbag – Cheryl Minter, mother of Stephanie filed the complaint that initiated the investigation. I know bc I filed it on her behalf,” wrote Harrison.

She continued, “We are also well aware that your deadly and disastrous policies were in place for quite some time – if not Cheryl’s daughter Stephanie would still be alive which is why we filed the complaint and asked for this investigation.”

DEM GOVERNOR UNDER FIRE AFTER ILLEGAL ALIEN ALLEGEDLY STABS WOMAN TO DEATH AT BUS STOP: ‘HEINOUS’

Harmeet K. Dhillon speaks at the IAC National Summit at The Diplomat Beach Resort in Hollywood, Fla., on Jan. 17, 2026.(Noam Galai/Getty Images)

In another X post, Harrison called the victim’s mother “an amazing, brave woman,” writing, “We cannot bring Stephanie back but we can make sure this does not keep happening in her honor.”

Fox News Digital reached out to Descano’s office for comment.

In a press release following Minter’s death, the Department of Homeland Security claimed that Descano’s office had been warned about Jalloh and the danger he posed to the public ahead of Minter’s death.

Last week, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon said the investigation into Descano would zero in on his plea bargaining, charging decisions and sentencing policies.

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“Under my leadership, the Civil Rights Division will not allow local prosecutors to pick and choose winners based on their immigration status,” said Dhillon, adding, “This investigation will uncover whether this prosecutor is putting the community at risk in offering sweetheart deals to illegal immigrants charged with serious crimes.”

Fox News Digital also reached out to the DOJ and White House for comment.

Fox News Digital’s Leo Briceno and Ashley Oliver contributed to this report.

Peter Pinedo is a politics writer for Fox News Digital.

Trump approves plan to fire FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, sources say

May 11, 2026 / 1:20 PM EDT / CBS News

By Kristin Brown, Ed O’Keefe,

Ed O’Keefe Senior White House and Political Correspondent

Ed O’Keefe is CBS News’ senior White House and political correspondent reporting for all CBS News platforms. He’s part of the team covering President Trump and covered all four years of Joe Biden’s presidency. From the White House to the campaign trail, O’Keefe’s reports stretch from the politics of the moment to how policy enacted in Washington affects the nation and the world.

Read Full Bio

Ed O’Keefe, Michael Kaplan

Michael Kaplan Reporter and Producer

Michael Kaplan is an award-winning reporter and producer for the CBS News investigative unit. He specializes in securing scoops and crafting long-form television investigations. His work has appeared on “60 Minutes,” CNN and in The New York Times.

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Michael Kaplan

Washington— President Trump has approved a plan to fire Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary, according to two sources.

The president dodged questions about Makary’s potential ouster on Friday. The timing of his potential termination remains unknown, and the president could always change his mind.

Makary has not been notified of his firing yet, according to a senior Health and Human Services official who also told CBS News that he has a lot of support inside HHS.

He didn’t appear Monday in the Oval Office alongside other top federal public health officials as the president touted his administration’s work on maternal health.

He’s also expected to testify before the Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday, and a spokesperson for panel told CBS News Monday that “he’s still scheduled to appear.”

Makary, a British-American surgeon, was confirmed to the post in March 2025. The Wall Street Journal first reported the president had signed off on a plan to fire Makary.

There have been reports of conflict and tension over the FDA’s agenda. On May 6, the FDA approved flavored e-cigarettes, which according to The Wall Street Journal came only after Mr. Trump pressured Makary to approve the fruit-flavored vapes, which he’d been refusing to do. The Journal reported that advisers had told the president that Makary was blocking the vaping agenda and said he was a problem for the Trump administration.

Alan He, Kathryn Watson and Dr. Céline Gounder contributed to this report.

Trump wants to suspend the federal gas tax. How much would that help drivers?

May 11, 2026 / 2:45 PM EDT / CBS News

A move by the Trump administration to suspend the federal gasoline tax would offer only modest relief to U.S. drivers socked by soaring fuel costs, according to tax and energy experts.

Americans face the highest prices at the pump since 2022, with a gallon of gas surging roughly $1.54 since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran in late February. On Monday, drivers nationwide paid an average of $4.52 a gallon, according to AAA.

“I think it’s a great idea,” President Trump told CBS News White House correspondent Nancy Cordes on Monday of the plan to temporarily lift the gas tax. “Yup, we’re going to take off the gas tax for a period of time, and when gas goes down, we’ll let it phase back in,”

How much is the federal gas tax per gallon?

Suspending the gas tax would likely provide only limited relief, as recent price increases have far outpaced the federal levy. The federal government charges 18.4 cents per gallon on gas and 24.4 cents per gallon on diesel, with the revenue funding the Highway Trust Fund.

“I really don’t think it would make much of a difference when gas prices are $1.50 a gallon more than last year,” GasBuddy petroleum analyst Patrick De Haan told CBS News. “That 18 cents doesn’t really amount to a whole lot, in my mind.”

A tax suspension would reduce the current price of regular gas to $4.34 per gallon and diesel to $5.39 per gallon. That would return prices to roughly early May levels, when gasoline costs were still about 46% higher than before the Iran war.

“The irony of a gas tax suspension is that the higher prices go, the less of an impact it has,” Andrew Lautz, director of tax policy at the nonpartisan Bipartisan Policy Center, said Monday in a social media post. “For a sedan at national average prices, filling up your car costs $18-$25 more than it did before the war. A federal gas tax holiday saves you up $2 per fillup.”

Consumers can estimate their fuel savings using a tax calculator Lautz created. For example, a California driver with an SUV could save between $2.36 and $3.09 per fill-up if the federal tax were suspended. But that driver would still be paying roughly $24 to $32 more per tank since the Iran war began.

Obstacle ahead?

Because the fuel tax is governed by federal law, Congress would need to approve any suspension — a high hurdle given Washington’s partisan divide and the approaching Midterm elections. On Monday, Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri, a Republican, said he planned to introduce legislation to suspend the federal gas tax.

The proposal could also face pushback because it would drain the Highway Trust Fund. The suspension would cost the federal government about $2.1 billion a month in lost revenue, GasBuddy’s De Haan estimated.

Already, some states have taken steps to waive their local fuel taxes, including Georgia, Indiana and Utah. Because state fuel taxes range from 15 cents to about 60 cents per gallon, state suspensions can provide more meaningful relief than waiving the federal gas tax, according to experts.

“Indiana is seeing huge gas price drops thanks to the state waiving the use tax and excise tax — motorists getting a nearly 60c/gal discount with prices falling below $4 at some stations,” GasBuddy’s De Haan wrote in a May 10 social media post.

Still, some state lawmakers are hesitant to waive their gas taxes due to concerns about depleting the funds needed to maintain roads.

Suspending gas taxes could have unintended consequences, De Haan added. The jump in energy prices signals an imbalance in the market, with the virtual shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz strangling global oil supplies, he said.

“Reducing or limiting taxes may actually do more to further the imbalance between supply and demand,” De Haan noted. “My worry is that politicians who may be looking to help their constituents fight against rising fuel prices are also disincentivizing changes that Americans would probably start to employ given the higher prices of fuel.”

He added, “And at least for now, politicians are interrupting that balance, and they risk putting through tax cuts — they may stimulate demand instead of disincentivizing it.”

https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/video/trump-administration-considering-suspending-federal-gas-tax-temporarily/

Trump ties himself in knots to avoid resuming a full-scale war in Iran

2026-05-11T18:30:59.896Z / CNN

Analysis by

Aaron Blake

PUBLISHED May 11, 2026, 2:30 PM ET

Donald Trump The Middle East

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President Donald Trump speaks to reporters as he walks to board Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House on May 8 in Washington, DC.

Jose Luis Magana/AP

Perhaps the most bizarre moment in the monthslong Iran war occurred in mid-April, when President Donald Trump insisted that Tehran had just “agreed to everything” he had demanded.

That didn’t pan out, of course. And there’s no reason to believe the agreements existed — even tentatively — anywhere except in Trump’s own head. Pretty much everything else continues to suggest, even weeks later, that the two sides remain far apart.

Trump acted like he could will an agreement into existence. Instead, he made it abundantly clear to everyone, including Iran, that he was desperate for a deal.

It wasn’t the first time, or the last.

Over and over again, Trump has appeared remarkably hesitant in recent weeks to resume fighting if Iran doesn’t give him what he wants. He and his administration have tied themselves in knots to explain why they keep giving Iran latitude and time.

But while this approach might occasionally calm the markets, Iranian leaders seem to be taking it as a signal that they can just wait out a US president who doesn’t want to go back to full-scale war.

Returning to open military hostilities, after all, risks prolonging the economic pain of high gas prices, potentially risking American lives and depleting dwindling US weapons stockpiles.

None of it means Trump won’t ultimately strike Iran again. He declared Monday from the Oval Office that the monthlong ceasefire was “on massive life support.” He could ultimately decide Tehran has been stringing him along and that such attacks are necessary. But he’s clearly given it a remarkable amount of leeway.

The most frequent indicator of this dynamic is Trump’s repeated setting of deadlines for Iran to agree to a deal or else, and then his pulling back even when Iran didn’t agree to said deal. It happened on no fewer than five occasions in one month, between March 21 and April 21.

Most times, Trump said the deadline was being relaxed because a deal could be imminent. But by the fifth time, he didn’t even bother to claim that — and he explicitly said there was no deadline that time.

Even the very beginning of the ceasefire announced on April 7 revealed some anxiousness to end military strikes on Trump’s part. The two sides couldn’t even agree on some of the main aspects of the ceasefire, like whether it included Israeli attacks in Lebanon. But as Iran threatened to pull out, Trump and his administration rushed to work out some of those issues. It all suggested that the agreement was rather haphazardly and hastily assembled to avoid making good on Trump’s apocalyptic threats.

By April 19, Trump signaled the United States would send another delegation to Pakistan to negotiate. But Iran hadn’t publicly agreed to the peace talks. By April 21, the US delegation was called off.

That same day, Trump still extended the ceasefire, which was due to expire after two weeks — despite previously labeling that outcome “highly unlikely.”

Then came last week.

On Tuesday, the Defense Department said several bouts of Iranian aggression — including Tehran firing on US ships guiding vessels through the Strait of Hormuz and attacking the United Arab Emirates — didn’t clear the “threshold” for violating the ceasefire.

Ships and boats in the Strait of Hormuz, Musandam, Oman, May 1, 2026.

Reuters

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also suggested the episodes weren’t even part of the war. He depicted efforts to guide ships through the strait, which Trump had dubbed Project Freedom, as a separate operation. He urged Iran “to be prudent” in its actions during the ceasefire.

It was a striking moment. Top US defense officials seemed to be saying some Iranian attacks on the United States were fair game and straining to pitch the ceasefire as intact.

Later that day, Trump ended Project Freedom despite Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chaiman Gen. Dan Caine having spent the day espousing its value.

Thursday saw a similar series of events. Despite another exchange of fire with Iran, in which the US struck military facilities it said were responsible for the attacks in the strait, Trump called it “just a love tap” and said: “The ceasefire is going. It’s in effect.”

But more than a month after the ceasefire began, there is little evidence it’s producing an environment for a deal. It mostly seems to have given two sides that would prefer not to fight right now an excuse not to fight.

That’s more helpful to Iran, though, which has telegraphed its willingness to dig in for a prolonged conflict. For Trump administration officials, that risks looking like they’re being willingly strung along while they try to figure out a face-saving exit from a potential quagmire.

Trump on Sunday responded to Iran’s latest proposal by calling it “TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE.”

That missive got a ton of attention Sunday, but another post might reveal more about where Trump’s head is at. Earlier Sunday afternoon, he wrote a whole social media post about how Iran had spent 47 years “‘tapping’ us along, keeping us waiting.”

It sounded like he might now believe that Iran isn’t so interested in cutting a deal — at least on terms that would be acceptable to Trump. Maybe the guy who has spent two months assuring Iran is desperate for a deal realizes it’s actually not.

But recognizing that and figuring out what to do about it are two different things.

And it appears Trump isn’t done giving Iran time and space.

On Monday, moments before he said the ceasefire was “on massive life support” and compared it to a patient with a 1% change of surviving, Trump signaled to Fox News that he was still focused on a diplomatic solution.

“They’re going to fold,” Trump said, adding: “I will deal with them until they make a deal.”

Group sues to block Trump’s blue resurfacing of Reflecting Pool at Lincoln Memorial

May 11, 2026 12:52 PM EDT / CBS News

Washington— A nonprofit architectural group is suing to block the Trump administration’s blue resurfacing of the Reflecting Pool in front of the Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, arguing the government is not following congressionally mandated procedures before changing the historic feature.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in D.C. by The Cultural Landscape Foundation, an education and advocacy nonprofit organization, seeks to immediately stop the resurfacing until the Trump administration complies with federal law, including the National Historic Preservation Act. The suit names the Department of the Interior and National Park Service as defendants.

The group says that the Trump administration began the resurfacing, which is still ongoing, without proper congressional review and notification being completed.

“No consulting parties have been notified, engaged, or given an opportunity to participate,” attorneys from the Washington Litigation Group, who are representing TCLF, wrote in a 26-page complaint on Monday. “This latest desecration of the reflecting pool is part of a pattern — epitomized most notably by the rush to destroy the East Wing of the White House — in which this Administration willfully disregards legal limits established by Congress.”

“Every day that the resurfacing continues, the historic character of the Reflecting Pool is being further and fundamentally altered,” the complaint continues.

In late April, Mr. Trump told reporters that his administration was planning to resurface the stone bottom of the pool in an “American flag blue,” made of the “latest and greatest filament.” Crews have been working to apply the new material to the surface of the drained pool in recent weeks.

Restoration work underway at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington, D.C., on May 8, 2026. Fatih Aktas/Anadolu via Getty Images

Mr. Trump said at the time that he was irked by the “terrible” condition of the pool, which was comprehensively renovated in 2012. The National Park Service has carried out some renovations since then, and the pool is also periodically drained to scrub out algae, garbage, bird droppings and dirt.

“You’re going to end up with a beautiful, beautiful reflecting pool, the way it’s supposed to be,” Mr. Trump said, holding up pictures of the construction process. “Much better than it ever was, actually.” He added it was “essentially a pool surface.”

Mr. Trump said that the cost of the project would be about $2 million in taxpayer funds. But on Monday, the New York Times reported that the contracting firm hired for the project would be paid more than $13 million. The lawsuit also cites the Times’reporting that the contract was awarded without a bidding process. The president and his motorcade drove into the pool last week to inspect the work.

Charles Birnbaum, president and CEO of TCLF, said in a statement that the “blue-tinted basin is more appropriate to a resort or theme park.”

“The Reflecting Pool should not be viewed in isolation; it is part of the larger ensemble of designed landscapes that comprise the National Mall. The design intent, to create a reflective surface that is subordinate, is fundamental to the solemn and hallowed visual and spatial connection between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial,” Birnbaum said.

Birnbaum was the coordinator for the National Park Service’s Historic Landscape Initiative from 1992 to 2007, and wrote the Department of Interior’s standards and guidelines guide, which is the “governing federal framework for the preservation and treatment of historic landscapes, including the Lincoln Memorial Grounds and the Reflecting Pool,” the complaint says.

In a statement, a Department of the Interior spokesperson said the National Park Service “chose the best company to expedite the repair of the iconic Reflecting Pool ahead of our 250 celebrations.” The department said the blue surface “will enhance the visitor experience by making the pool reflect the grand Lincoln Memorial and Washington Monument.”

The White House is also facing litigation seeking to stop other aspects of its major overhaul of some of D.C.’s historic structures. Multiple suits are seeking to block the president from adding his name to and renovating the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts; building a giant arch across the Potomac River from the Lincoln Memorial; and demolishing the White House East Wing to make way for a privately funded ballroom.

Pentagon’s new UFO file release logs near-miss as ‘super-heated’ orbs approach US helicopter

2026-05-11 12:47 EDT / Fox News

One orb came within 10 feet of the helicopter before abruptly changing direction, witnesses said in FBI interview

By Morgan Phillips Fox News

Published May 11, 2026 12:47pm EDT

UAP whistleblower: Pilots are ‘still having’ these encounters

Former Navy F-18 pilot and UAP whistleblower Ryan Graves discusses the Pentagon’s release of UFO and UAP footage on ‘The Big Weekend Show.’

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A senior U.S. intelligence official described a close-range encounter with fast-moving, “super-hot” unidentified objects that came within roughly 10 feet of a helicopter during an aerial search, according to newly released Pentagon UFO files.

The account is detailed in an FBI Form 302 interview report, which documents interactions between federal agents and witnesses, and is part of a broader tranche of previously classified unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP) records made public Friday as part of the Trump administration’s push to declassify government files on them.

The objects were detected as “super-hot” on infrared systems and traveled roughly 20 miles at speeds the helicopter could not match, according to the report, before abruptly changing direction and accelerating away.

UFO EXPERT WARNS MYSTERY CRAFT ARE OUTMANEUVERING US MILITARY IN RESTRICTED AIRSPACE

The release has drawn significant attention, as it includes previously unseen reports involving military personnel, sensor data and firsthand accounts from government officials — though many of the incidents remain unexplained.

The official was among multiple federal and state personnel involved in an aerial search after earlier sightings of unexplained lights, according to the report. The object was detected as “super-hot” on infrared systems, indicating it emitted a strong heat signature detectable by thermal imaging equipment.

The report does not offer an explanation for the source of that heat, and was observed traveling roughly 20 miles at a speed too fast for the helicopter to match.

The report does not identify the specific military facility or location of the encounter, and it is unclear from the document whether the helicopter involved was operated by U.S. military personnel or a partner agency.

The FBI summary describes a joint operation involving federal and state personnel, but does not provide additional detail about the units involved.

A senior U.S. intelligence official told the FBI about a close-range encounter with fast-moving, “super-hot” unidentified objects near a military facility, according to newly released Pentagon UFO files.(Guvendemir/Getty Images)

At one point, one of the objects reportedly came within roughly 10 feet of the helicopter before abruptly changing direction. Observers, including the intelligence official and helicopter crew, also reported the object splitting into multiple lights, followed by additional orbs appearing in sequence and forming repeated patterns across the sky.

Witnesses described groups of four or five glowing objects flaring into view and then disappearing, a cycle that continued for roughly 30 minutes.

Pilots involved in the search indicated they were recording, but many of the sightings occurred above the helicopter and outside the camera’s field of view.

The documents are part of a sweeping public release of UAP files that has drawn intense interest and skepticism.

Officials and analysts say that while some incidents were treated as credible and investigated using military assets, the material does not offer definitive explanations for what the objects are.

While many of the newly released files contain brief or heavily redacted accounts, the FBI interview stands out for its detailed timeline, multiple trained observers and the use of infrared systems, night-vision equipment and aircraft during an active search operation.

The report also includes a first-hand account from a senior intelligence official, which is uncommon among the largely anecdotal or historical records in the broader release.

Skeptics say many UAP sightings can be attributed to misidentified aircraft, drones, atmospheric phenomena or sensor artifacts, particularly in complex environments where infrared and night-vision systems can distort how objects appear.

Physicist and former director of the Pentagon’s All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office Sean Kirkpatrick said he didn’t find anything “unexpected” in the files.

“There’s nothing unexpected in their release. And without any analysis or context, [it] will only serve to fuel more speculation, conspiracy and armchair pseudoscience, particularly from the playhouse politics theater company,” he said, according to the Scientific American.

An FBI photo containing two black dots that appear to be UAPs(Federal Bureau of Investigation)

TRUMP ADMIN RELEASES HIGHLY ANTICIPATED FILES DOCUMENTING UFOS, ‘EXTRATERRESTRIAL LIFE’

The release also comes amid growing concern inside the Pentagon over unexplained aerial activity near sensitive military installations, including suspected foreign surveillance operations and unauthorized drone incursions linked to China and Russia.

Defense officials repeatedly warned in recent years that some incidents initially categorized as UAP could ultimately involve foreign intelligence collection platforms, advanced drones or other surveillance systems operating near U.S. military sites.

The issue drew renewed attention after a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon crossed the continental United States in 2023 before being shot down by the U.S. military, exposing gaps in detection and monitoring around sensitive defense infrastructure.

Lawmakers and defense officials also have raised alarms about repeated drone incursions near military bases, training ranges and nuclear facilities, warning that some unidentified aerial activity may reflect increasingly sophisticated foreign surveillance efforts rather than extraterrestrial phenomena.

“The latest UAP videos, photos, and original source documents from across the entire United States government are all in one place — no clearance required,” the White House said in a statement announcing the release.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said the records had “long fueled justified speculation” and argued “it’s time the American people see it for themselves,” while cautioning that many of the documents contain unresolved incidents rather than confirmed explanations.

A photo from the Apollo 17 moon landing that highlights three dots in the sky as seen from the moon’s surface.(Department of War)

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Other files released by the Department of War include reports of a “football-shaped” object observed over the East China Sea, erratic lights tracked over Iraq and Syria, and Apollo-era astronaut communications describing strange objects and bright fragments visible near the moon.

The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for more details.

By Dana Bash, CNN

Published 1:40 PM EDT, Mon May 11, 2026

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‘Too big of a risk to take’: Katie Porter unleashes on CA Governor opponent Xavier Becerra in final stretch of race

Inside Politics

Democratic California Gov. candidate Katie Porter joins Dana Bash on “Inside Politics” as early voting is underway in the primary.

7:53 • Source: CNN

https://www.cnn.com/2026/05/11/politics/video/inside-politics-katie-porter-california-governors-primary-race

Pakistan allowed Iran to park military aircraft on its airfields despite mediator role in conflict with U.S.

2026-05-11 2:58 PM EDT / CBS News

Washington — As Pakistan positioned itself as a diplomatic conduit between Tehran and Washington, it quietly allowed Iranian military aircraft to park on its airfields, potentially shielding them from American airstrikes, according to U.S. officials with knowledge of the matter.

Iran also sent civilian aircraft to park in neighboring Afghanistan. It was not clear if military aircraft were among those flights, two of the officials told CBS News.

Together, the movements reflected an apparent effort to insulate some of Iran’s remaining military and aviation assets from the expanding conflict, even as officials publicly served as brokers for de-escalation.

The U.S. officials, who all spoke only under condition of anonymity to discuss national security issues, told CBS News that days after President Trump announced the ceasefire with Iran in early April, Tehran sent multiple aircraft to Pakistan Air Force Base Nur Khan, a strategically important military installation located just outside the Pakistani garrison city of Rawalpindi.

Among the military hardware was an Iranian Air Force RC-130, a reconnaissance and intelligence-gathering variant of the Lockheed C-130 Hercules tactical transport aircraft.

U.S. Central Command referred CBS News to Afghan and Pakistani officials for comment.

A senior Pakistan official rejected the claims involving Nur Khan Air Base, telling CBS News, that “Nur Khan base is right in the heart of [the] city, a large fleet of aircrafts parked there can’t be hidden from [the] public eye.”

According to an Afghan civil aviation officer who spoke to CBS News, an Iranian civilian aircraft belonging to Mahan Air landed in Kabul shortly before the war started. After Iranian airspace was closed, the aircraft remained parked in Kabul airport.

Later, when Pakistan began airstrikes on Kabul in March during tensions with the Taliban-led government over allegations that the Afghan Taliban was offering a safe haven for the jihadist militant group Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, the Taliban’s civil aviation authorities decided to move the aircraft to Herat Airport near the Iranian border for safety reasons, to protect it from possible bombing of Kabul Airport by Pakistani jets.

According to the aviation officer, this was the only Iranian aircraft left in Afghanistan.

Taliban’s chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid denied the presence of any Iranian airplanes in Afghanistan, telling CBS News, “No, that’s not true and Iran doesn’t need to do that.”

Pakistan’s reliance on China for military assistance has risen dramatically over the past decade. A Stockholm International Peace Research Institute study showed China supplied about 80% of Pakistan’s major arms between 2020 and 2024, and Islamabad also has close economic ties with Beijing.

Islamabad has attempted to navigate both sides of the crisis — presenting itself to Washington as a stabilizing intermediary while avoiding steps that could alienate Tehran or China, Iran’s most powerful international backer.

China, which has deepened military and economic cooperation with both Pakistan and Iran in recent years, has publicly celebrated Pakistan’s role in facilitating indirect communications between Tehran and Washington.

Iran’s latest proposal to end the war included demands for U.S. war reparations, recognition of Iranian sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz and the removal of American sanctions, according to Iran’s state-run broadcaster.

The conditions were disclosed in a social media post by Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting a day after Mr. Trump publicly rejected Tehran’s counteroffer as “TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE.” The president did not specify which elements of Iran’s proposal prompted his rejection.

The rejection has further strained what seems to be a ceasefire in name only as Mr. Trump prepares to travel to Beijing this week for talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, where the war in Iran is expected to feature prominently alongside disputes over trade and Taiwan.

Meanwhile, small-scale clashes continued around the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, underscoring the fragility of the ceasefire between Iran and the United States.

The United Arab Emirates said Sunday that Iranian drones again targeted its territory following several strikes earlier in the week, according to Reuters. Last week, CBS News reported that three American Navy destroyers transiting the Strait of Hormuz came under attack, with the U.S. carrying out strikes on two Iranian ports abutting the strait.

Alabama AG makes Supreme Court play that could deal decisive blow in redistricting war

May 11, 2026 1:56pm EDT / Fox News

The move comes after the Louisiana Callais ruling raised questions about how race should factor into map-drawing

By Charles Creitz Fox News

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall tells Fox News Digital he’s fighting to undo a court-forced gerrymander after the Supreme Court ruled against race-based redistricting, firing back at Northern critics he says silence Republican voices.

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Alabama’s top law enforcement officer filed a Supreme Court challenge aimed at overturning a prior ruling that limited Republicans in decennial redistricting, after a recent Louisiana case raised questions about how the court previously ruled there.

Louisiana’s “Callais” ruling struck down the state’s map, including districts centered on New Orleans and a narrow majority-minority corridor from Baton Rouge. Alabama leaders said the decision conflicts with or calls into question Supreme Court precedent affecting their state by requiring racial factors to be considered when drawing congressional districts.

“Now they have a framework for Alabama to directly defend what the legislature did both in 2021 and 2023,” said Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, telling Fox News Digital he was “thrilled” to see where the court came down on Callais at the end of April.

“And that is, drawing maps based on historical redistricting principles that now I think Callais makes clear were constitutional exercises of that authority,” Marshall said, highlighting SCOTUS’ analysis that race should not predominate when drawing congressional districts.

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“And then unlike Louisiana, which was able to get direct relief through that decision, we now have to be removed from the injunction [against Alabama’s prior map] by the three-judge panel in order to either go back to the map that is being challenged or give the legislature the authority to draw a new map.”

A previous Supreme Court ruling, Allen v. Milligan, invalidated Alabama’s prior redistricting effort, with critics saying the decision wrongly weighted racial factors in creating what became a second Democratic-favored district in the ruby-red state.

If Alabama is able to get out from under Milligan, it could have national implications for Democrats’ attempts to gain enough seats in the slim GOP-majority U.S. House this fall, as Montgomery’s so-called Livingston map, originally struck down in the 2023 case, would see new life.

Marshall, who is also running to succeed retiring Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., this fall, said urgency before the court is important with the May 19 primary approaching.

“Because the lower court’s injunction cannot stand in light of the Supreme Court’s ruling, we have asked the court to lift the injunction. Alabama deserves the right to use its own maps, just like every other state.”

The AG said he is working separately from state lawmakers, who are in special session through Friday to address the legislative side of the fight, and that his office is “singularly focused” on getting legal relief from the Supreme Court.

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He also said that, regarding race, the Alabama of the 2020s is not the Alabama of the 1960s and that there are few, if any, barriers to minority suffrage in the Yellowhammer State.

“You saw some of that sentiment from Justice Kavanaugh in a concurrence in the Milligan case that Alabama had there a few years ago, saying there’s a point in time in which we have to acknowledge that circumstances have changed,” he said, as the prior case forced Alabama to draw a second district where Black voters have a meaningful opportunity to elect a candidate of their choice.

The YellaWood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama – one of the state’s premier attractions.(Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

For Democratic critics like New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, who descended on Alabama to push back — as he did at a counter-redistricting forum in Birmingham with the city’s Mayor Randall Woodfin and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Doug Jones — Marshall suggested they get their own house in order up north.

“[They’re] arguing for proportional representation, which is basically what they are saying, they make that same argument in Maine, in Rhode Island, in New Hampshire — where you don’t see a single congressional member there from the Republican Party.”

Underlining that New England states have large blocs of “unaffiliated” or independent voters, gerrymander critics often point to the region because those who are Republican essentially have no voice in Washington.

Maine is considered the most moderate of the states, with an estimated Republican bloc of about 30%, while Vermont’s more vague registration system resulted in about the same percentage of vote share going to President Donald Trump in 2024.

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Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts all have between 10% and 40% Republican vote share, presuming a bloc of the “unaffiliated” group votes at times for Republican candidates. Those states have more than 40% of their people registered unaffiliated or similar.

Fox News Digital reached out to Booker earlier this week on similar criticism but did not receive a response.

Marshall said his work is not necessarily in concert with the legislature, but the two are on similar tracks.

“While we’ll obviously watch what the legislature is doing, our job is to secure the relief from the [2023 redistricting] injunction as quickly as possible.”

“And the other thing, not only are we working on the state congressional map, but it’s also, we have a state Senate district [map] likewise that was subject to redrawing based upon a Voting Rights Act Section 2 challenge,” he said.

Steve Marshall, Alabama’s attorney general, speaks during a Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing for Ketanji Brown Jackson.(Al Drago/Getty Images)

His office is also involved in the New Orleans-based 11th Circuit Court of Appeals to challenge the state’s senatorial map while seeking Supreme Court review on the congressional front.

While Marshall spoke to Fox News Digital before the Supreme Court of Virginia struck down the Democratic-led redistricting map there, he called Richmond’s move “clearly [done] for hyper-political reasons that kept none of the traditional principles in mind.”

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Alabama’s redistricting efforts have aimed to follow the letter and spirit of the law, and the attorney general said he hopes to have a real chance of receiving favorable corrective action from the nation’s highest court and remedying a fight the Yellowhammer State previously lost.

Secretary of State Wes Allen indicated the May 19 primary will go on as expected, meaning Marshall’s motions may come just in time to give Republicans another incremental advantage in a nationally relevant electoral landscape.

Charles Creitz is a reporter for Fox News Digital.

He joined Fox News in 2013 as a writer and production assistant.

Charles covers media, politics and culture for Fox News Digital.

Charles is a Pennsylvania native and graduated from Temple University with a B.A. in Broadcast Journalism. Story tips can be sent to charles.creitz@fox.com.