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U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer rejects mounting calls to resign, even from his own party

May 12, 2026 / 1:15 PM EDT / CBS News

London– British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer insisted Tuesday that he will “get on with governing,” rejecting growing calls from within his own party for him to step aside, which have been intensified by multiple resignations from his cabinet.

In the wake of disastrous results in local elections last week, a fifth of all members of the U.K. Parliament from Starmer’s own Labour Party have now called on him to step down, and four members of his cabinet resigned Tuesday in an effort to force him to quit.

Jess Phillips, the national minister for safeguarding; Alex Davies-Jones, minister for victims and tackling violence against women and girls; Zubir Ahmed, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health Innovation and Safety; and Miatta Fahnbulleh, minister for devolution, faith and communities, all announced their resignations on Tuesday.

“People are crying out” for change, Fahnbulleh wrote in her resignation letter to the prime minister. “The public does not believe that you can lead this change – and nor do I.”

CBS News’ partner network BBC reported Tuesday that more ministerial resignations are expected in the coming days.

On Monday, six lower-ranking ministerial aides quit, and several senior members of Starmer’s governing cabinet urged him to set out a plan for his resignation and to hold a party leadership contest, according to The Guardian newspaper.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer meets construction apprentices during a visit to London South Bank Technical College on May 12, 2026 in London, England. Toby Melville – WPA Pool/Getty Images

But speaking Tuesday morning with his cabinet ministers, Starmer was defiant.

“I take responsibility for these election results and I take responsibility for delivering the change we promised,” said the embattled prime minister.

“The country expects us to get on with governing,” Starmer added. “That is what I am doing and what we must do as a cabinet.”

If 20% of all the Labour Party’s elected members of parliament can agree on an alternative figure to head the party — which, with Labour’s current 403 seats in the House of Commons, would mean 81 MPs — they can effectively force him out of the role, and the country’s top job with it.

At least 80 MPs have publicly called for Starmer’s resignation, according to the BBC, but they have not all backed the same alternative candidate. And it may be a very high bar to clear, with at least three names of potential Starmer replacements being bandied about by politicians and political pundits.

Starmer confirmed Tuesday that the Labour Party’s process for challenging a leader had not been triggered by unified dissent.

If that were to happen, he would be able to stand against any challengers in a leadership contest, in a process similar to U.S. primaries. Alternatively, if a majority of Starmer’s cabinet decide he’s not the right man to lead the party forward, they could resign en masse and make his position untenable.

How did it come to this?

In a May 7 round of elections for local council seats in England and seats in the semi-autonomous legislatures of Wales and Scotland, Starmer’s Labour Party lost big. It not only hemorrhaged 1,000 council seats in England, but also lost its firm grip on the Welsh legislature, which it had controlled for 27 years.

The big winner on the day was populist, anti-immigration party Reform UK, led by President Trump’s ideological ally Nigel Farage. Reform won nearly 1,300 local seats in England, made huge gains in Scotland and came second in Wales.

The elections were seen as a referendum on the current government, not unlike the U.S. midterms, and they were an unmitigated disaster for Labour — and personally for Starmer, a former government lawyer whose popularity has spiraled downward since he took power in 2024.

Starmer tried to claw back the initiative in a speech on Monday. With his shirt sleeves rolled up, he vowed to rebuild Britain’s relationship with Europe and nationalize the flailing U.K. steel industry — and he warned the U.K. could “go down a very dark path” if Labour failed to recover from its election losses.

“I know I have my doubters and I know I need to prove them wrong,” he said. “And I will do so.”

But some lawmakers from his own party seemed unimpressed by the effort, with various parliamentarians telling the BBC that the speech, “made me feel sorry for the PM,” that it “really didn’t cut the mustard,” and, perhaps most damningly: “Meh.”

Another MP said it came across like Starmer “delivering a planning application” — a familiar critique of a politician who has always come across as more managerial than charismatic.

The shadow of the Epstein scandal

Starmer’s government, despite a massive Labour majority in parliament, has struggled to lower the cost of living and kick start a floundering British economy — hampered albeit by the wars in Ukraine and Iran and their devastating impact on global energy prices.

But the pointed criticism of him as an individual leader really started gaining steam in April, when Starmer was widely criticized over his decision to appoint a former friend of Jeffrey Epstein as the U.K.’s ambassador in Washington.

Opposition politicians insisted that Starmer was either lying about what he knew, or guilty of ineptitude for not knowing sooner of Peter Mandelson’s close ties with the late American financier and convicted sex offender. Several opposition lawmakers started calling for him to resign then.

Issues “deeper than the prime minister”

Even now, there are Labour politicians who feel that sacking Starmer may do little to address the underlying problems the party is facing.

According to the BBC, more than 100 Labour MPs had signed a letter by Tuesday backing Starmer to remain in his position.

Stephen Houghton, who last week was booted from his position as Labour leader of the Barnsley city council in the north of England — one of hundreds of local officials who lost posts to members of the surging, populist, anti-immigration Reform UK party — said the problem “goes deeper than the prime minister.”

Speaking of the Labour rout in the local elections, Houghton, who lost the council leadership but managed to cling onto his own seat, said the blow had “been coming for 30 years around the country, in post-industrial communities, coastal communities, that have been left behind.”

“You can change prime ministers all day long,” he argued. “If you don’t change policy, it’s not going to charge.”

“This is not just about this government, previous governments have ignored the problem, too, but I will be saying to Keir Starmer that he needs to deal with this now, because if he doesn’t, there will be even more losses like this coming soon.”

US budget watchdog estimates Golden Dome will cost $1.2 trillion, dwarfing Pentagon’s $185 billion estimate

May 12, 2026 6:18 PM UTC Updated 1 hour ago / Reuters

By Mike Stone

U.S. President Donald Trump makes an announcement regarding the Golden Dome missile defense shield next to U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 20, 2025. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

WASHINGTON, May 12 (Reuters) – The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated ​on Tuesday that U.S. President Donald Trump’s ‌Golden Dome missile defense shield could cost approximately $1.2 trillion to develop, deploy and operate over 20 years, a ​figure that dwarfs a $185 billion price tag offered ​by the program’s Pentagon director.

Golden Dome envisions ⁠expanding ground‑based defenses such as interceptor missiles, sensors ​and command‑and‑control systems while adding space‑based elements meant ​to detect, track and potentially shoot down incoming threats from orbit. These would include advanced satellite networks and orbiting weapons.

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The ​CBO estimated acquisition costs alone for the ​system would total just over $1 trillion, with the space-based interceptor ‌layer — ⁠a constellation of 7,800 satellites — accounting for about 70 percent of acquisition costs.

The system would cover the entire United States, including Alaska and Hawaii, ​and would ​have the ⁠capacity to fully engage an attack from a regional adversary such as North ​Korea. However, the CBO warned the ​system could ⁠be overwhelmed by a full-scale attack from Russia or China.

The executive order establishing Golden Dome, signed ⁠on ​January 27, 2025, set an aggressive ​timetable to field a comprehensive homeland missile-defense system by 2028.

Reporting ​by Mike Stone in Washington; editing by Chris Sanders

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

FBI Director Patel spars with lawmaker who raises reports of his behavior during Hill testimony

2026-05-12T19:27:15.260Z / CNN

By Holmes Lybrand

33 min ago

PUBLISHED May 12, 2026, 3:27 PM ET

FBI Director Kash Patel testifies during a Senate Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on Tuesday in Washington, DC.

Win McNamee/Getty Images

FBI Director Kash Patel sparred with a lawmaker briefly during a Tuesday afternoon hearing at the Senate Appropriations Committee when asked about media reports alleging he drinks to excess.

In his opening statement, Sen. Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat, raised concerns about Patel’s leadership, noting reports of his personal behavior, the recent firing of counterintelligence agents tasked with monitoring threats from Iran, and subpoenas recently sent to reporters.

Ranking member US Sen. Chris Van Hollen (left) questions FBI Director Kash Patel as Chairman US Sen. Jerry Moran (right) looks on during a Senate Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on Tuesday in Washington, DC.

Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

“Director Patel, I don’t care one bit about your private life,” Van Hollen said. “I don’t give a damn what you do on your own time and your own dime, unless and until it interferes with your public responsibilities.

The Atlantic recently published a story alleging Patel has “alarmed colleagues with episodes of excessive drinking and unexplained absences.”

“You cannot perform those public duties if you’re incapacitated,” Van Hollen said to Patel Tuesday, noting “reports of you being so drunk and so hungover that your staff had to force entry into your home.”

Patel has since sued the Atlantic, calling the reporting false and saying he has never been drunk at work.

FBI Director Patel spars with lawmaker who raises reports of his behavior during Hill testimony
1:13 • Source: CNN

FBI Director Patel spars with lawmaker who raises reports of his behavior during Hill testimony

1:13

Patel shot back at Van Hollen later during the hearing, accusing the senator of “slinging margaritas” with a known felon, referring to a meeting Van Hollen had with Kilmar Abrego Garcia when he was mistakenly deported to El Salvador. Van Hollen has denied that anyone drank margaritas.

“Director Patel, come on. These are serious allegations that were made against you,” Van Hollen said.

After a brief match where the two continued to speak over each other, the senator asked if Patel would take a test — instituted in the military — to measure whether someone has a drinking problem.

“I’ll take any test you’re willing to,” Patel said.

The director added: “Let’s go. Side by side.”

Once doomed, Trump’s pick to carry out his economic vision clears first crucial hurdle

May 12, 2026 12:29pm EDT / Fox News

The Senate is expected to fully confirm Warsh on Wednesday, ending months of high-stakes drama over his Fed nomination

By Alex Miller, Fox News

NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles!

President Donald Trump’s next pick to lead the nation’s central bank is one step closer to securing the job, despite early fears that his nomination was doomed.

The Senate, in a test vote, confirmed Kevin Warsh to be on the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors, the main governing body of the central bank, and a post he previously served on nearly two decades ago. The institution dictates monetary policy for the nation and has been a thorn in Trump’s side throughout his second term.

Tuesday’s successful test vote was the first step in Republicans’ quest to confirm Warsh as the next chair of the Federal Reserve. And it comes as current Chair Jerome Powell’s term at the helm comes to a close on May 15.

SENATE WEIGHS NEW, PAINFUL LEVERAGE TACTIC AS FEARS OF ANOTHER GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN GROW

Kevin Warsh, incoming chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, has called a government-issued digital currency a “bad policy choice.”(Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The Senate is expected to wrap up confirmation of Warsh on Wednesday.

It’s a far quieter ending to a process that for months was marred by high-stakes drama, legal disputes and speculation about whether Trump’s handpicked successor to Powell could actually survive the process.

That’s because until recently, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., vowed to block any replacement pick unless the Department of Justice dropped its criminal probe against Powell.

FRAGILE RELATIONSHIP WITH HOUSE GOP HAS SENATE REPUBLICANS WARNING ‘SOMETHING NEEDS TO CHANGE’

President Donald Trump speaks during a military Mother’s Day event in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on May 6, 2026.(Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg)

That probe, which ended late last month amid pressure from top Senate Republicans, was related to alleged mismanagement of renovation funds for updates of the Federal Reserve’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., and played out despite Powell’s anticipated exit this month.

Speculation swirled about whether the probe was launched as a retaliatory effort against Powell, who refused to adhere to Trump’s desires to sharply lower interest rates as the central bank navigates inflation and new economic pressures from the war in Iran.

Though Powell’s time in the spotlight as chair of the Federal Reserve is soon coming to a close, he’s not going anywhere. He told reporters last month that when his term ended, he would stay on the Board of Governors.

THE ONE LINE IN WARSH’S TESTIMONY SIGNALING A BREAK FROM THE FED’S STATUS QUO

President Donald Trump nominated Jerome Powell to lead the Federal Reserve in 2017.(Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“I plan to keep a low profile as a governor. There is only ever one chair of the Federal Reserve Board. When Kevin Warsh is confirmed and sworn in, he will be that chair,” Powell said.

Warsh’s vision of the Federal Reserve is one that would maintain the central bank’s independence while shifting away from delving into political and social issues.

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“The Fed must stay in its lane,” Warsh said during his testimony before the Senate banking panel last month. “Fed independence is placed at greatest risk when it strays into fiscal and social policies where it has neither authority nor expertise.”

Warsh needed every Republican vote he could get, given that Democrats have heavily scrutinized his finances and lack of financial disclosures related to wife Jane Lauder’s colossal fortune, and view him as a “sock puppet” for Trump’s economic vision rather than a force that would push back if need be.

Alex Miller is a writer for Fox News Digital covering the U.S. Senate.

Putin hails Russia’s test launch of new ICMB known as Satan II, calls it “most powerful missile in the world”

May 12, 2026 / 2:48 PM EDT / CBS/AP

Russia on Tuesday test-fired a new intercontinental ballistic missile as part of efforts to modernize the country’s nuclear forces, a launch hailed by President Vladimir Putin just days after his claim that the fighting in Ukraine is nearing an end.

Putin said that the nuclear-armed Sarmat missile would enter combat service at the end of the year. It was built to replace the aging Soviet-built Voyevoda.

“This is the most powerful missile in the world,” Putin declared, claiming that the combined power of the Sarmat’s individually targeted warheads is more than four times higher than that of any Western counterpart.

The Russian leader has repeatedly brandished the nuclear sword after sending troops into Ukraine in February 2022 to try to deter the West from ramping up support for Ukraine.

In this image made from video provided by Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on May 12, 2026, Russia’s new Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile is test launched at an unspecified location in Russia. AP

After overseeing a military parade on Red Square on Saturday commemorating the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II, which for the first time in nearly two decades didn’t include heavy weapons, Putin declared the conflict in Ukraine is coming to an end.

Since coming to power in 2000, Putin has overseen efforts to upgrade the Soviet-built components of the Russian nuclear triad – deploying hundreds of new, land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles, commissioning new nuclear submarines and modernizing nuclear-capable bombers.

Russia’s effort to revamp its nuclear forces pushed the United States to launch a costly modernization of its arsenal.

Nuclear arms pact expired

The last remaining nuclear arms pact between Russia and the U.S. expired in February, leaving no caps on the world’s two largest atomic arsenals for the first time in more than a half-century and fueling fears of an unconstrained nuclear arms race.

That same month, the U.S. and Russia agreed to reestablish formal, high-level military communications that were suspended in late 2021, prior to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The Sarmat — designated “Satan II” by NATO — is meant to replace about 40 Soviet-built Voyevoda missiles. Its development began in 2011 and before now, the missile had only one known successful test and reportedly suffered a massive explosion during an abortive test in 2024. A satellite image analyzed by CBS News at the time showed a large crater and remnants of a possible explosion on a launchpad at Plesetsk Cosmodrome in northern Russia.

The Sarmat is classified as a “heavy” ICBM and is capable of carrying up to 10 tons in payload, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Missile Defense Project.

Putin said Tuesday that the Sarmat — part of a slew of new weapons that Putin revealed in 2018, claiming they would render any prospective U.S. missile defenses useless — is as powerful as the Voyevoda but with a higher precision. It is capable of suborbital flight, he said, giving it a range of more than 21,700 miles and an extended capability to penetrate any prospective missile defenses.

Moscow’s new weapons include the Avangard hypersonic glide vehicle, capable of flying 27 times faster than the speed of sound. The first vehicles have already entered service.

Russia has also commissioned the new nuclear-capable Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile, and used its conventionally-armed version twice to strike Ukraine. Oreshnik’s range of up to 3,100 miles makes it capable of reaching any target in Europe.

Putin also announced Russia was in the “final stages” of the development of the nuclear-armed Poseidon underwater drone and the Burevestnik cruise missile powered by miniature atomic reactors. The Poseidon is designed to explode near enemy coastlines and cause a radioactive tsunami. The Burevestnik has virtually unlimited range thanks to nuclear propulsion, allowing it to loiter for days, circling air defenses and attacking from an unexpected direction.

Putin has described those new weapons as part of a Russian response to the U.S. missile shield that Washington developed after its 2001 withdrawal from a Cold War-era U.S.-Soviet pact that limited missile defenses.

Russian military planners have feared a missile shield could tempt Washington to launch a first strike that would knock out most of Moscow’s nuclear arsenal in hopes of intercepting a small number of surviving missiles fired in retaliation.

“We were forced to consider ensuring our strategic security in the face of the new reality and the need to maintain a strategic balance of power and parity,” Putin said.

The nuclear treaty that expired in February was a bilateral agreement between the U.S. and Russia, which have about 4,300 and 3,700 nuclear warheads respectively, according to the Federation of American Scientists.

Meanwhile, the governments of the U.S. and Ukraine have drafted a memorandum outlining the terms of a potential new drone defense deal between the countries, three sources familiar with the matter told CBS News.

Eleanor Watson contributed to this report.

FDA chief to depart after Trump signed off on ousting him

May 12, 2026 1:34 PM ET / CNN

By Kaitlan Collins, Ben Tinker, Adam Cancryn, Sarah Owermohle

Updated May 12, 2026, 3:34 PM ET

‘He was having some difficulty’: Trump reacts to resignation of his FDA chief

Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary is leaving the Trump administration, according to three people familiar with the situation, after President Donald Trump signed off on a plan to fire him last week.

The FDA chief had come under intense and sustained pressure from within the administration — including over his resistance to approving the sale of flavored e-cigarettes, an episode that prompted Trump to confront him directly — and from outside allies, including in the pharmaceutical industry and anti-abortion interest groups. And he oversaw constant turnover within the agency’s senior ranks.

Trump is expected to appoint Kyle Diamantas, a deputy commissioner who heads the agency’s food program, as acting FDA chief, according to two people familiar with the decision. Trump later confirmed that Makary was leaving and that he had tapped Diamantas in a Truth Social post.

Still, Makary’s resignation means Trump will now need to fill yet another vacancy — the eventual permanent pick requires Senate confirmation — in the top ranks of the US Health and Human Services Department. The administration already lacks a permanent leader atop the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and a permanent surgeon general, who traditionally serves as the nation’s top doctor.

A source familiar with Makary’s departure said it was largely due to disagreements over the vape issue. “He doesn’t want to approve youth-appealing flavors, but has been forced to by the powers that be,” the person said.

Makary’s departure comes one day before he was set to testify about the FDA’s proposed budget before the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Politico first reported his resignation.

A push to oust Makary had accelerated in recent days, driven by a faction of White House and HHS officials who had soured on an FDA that had been marked by constant chaos, internal clashes and policy confusion, people familiar with the matter said.

Makary over the last week sought to shore up his standing with Trump, telling associates at some points that he believed the president still retained confidence in him.

So it caught Makary and his allies by surprise when several reports surfaced Friday that Trump had approved a plan to fire him. That prompted widespread speculation within the administration over who was behind the push, as well as when and whether Trump would make his removal official.

Despite the widespread dissatisfaction with Makary’s performance, some Trump aides had argued that ousting yet another senior health official would amount to a political misstep — further angering a portion of the administration’s “Make America Healthy Again” base. It would also create another high-level vacancy, forcing the Senate to devote precious floor time to confirming a replacement ahead of the midterms.

Others within the White House and HHS, however, saw Makary’s departure as inevitable. And they welcomed the opportunity to reset leadership at the FDA and shore up relationships with key constituencies in the anti-abortion movement and drug industry before November.

In addition to Makary’s planned ouster, White House and HHS officials were also weighing a restructuring of the agency’s senior staff.

Makary, a surgeon and author, had pledged to accelerate FDA decisions on drugs, devices and vaccines following his confirmation in March 2025. But he frequently found himself mired in controversy over the subsequent year — both from pharmaceutical companies unhappy with his management of the drug approval process and administration officials who questioned his handling of other areas of FDA’s sweeping portfolio, including tobacco regulation.

In a recent flashpoint that renewed talk among Trump and his advisers about firing Makary, the FDA chief resisted internal efforts to approve the sale of fruit-flavored e-cigarettes. The issue prompted an angry Trump to directly press Makary over vapes decisions, two people familiar with the episode said. The FDA subsequently reversed course on flavored e-cigarettes last week.

And in another major episode, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser — a significant figure in anti-abortion efforts — met with White House officials on Friday, pushing for the FDA to reverse regulations that allow providers to send the abortion pill mifepristone through the mail.

Such a move would have repercussions across the country for abortion access, as the FDA sets the nationwide rules for prescribing the drug. Medication abortion now accounts for roughly two-thirds of all US abortions and has helped fuel an overall increase in the procedure since the Supreme Court ended nationwide protections in 2022.

Social conservatives had warned for months that it could be a motivating issue in the upcoming midterm elections, and the Supreme Court is signaling it could take up the issue. But activists had long argued that part of the blame rested on Makary.

“FDA Commissioner Makary should be fired immediately,” Dannenfelser said in a statement days before the White House meeting. “Indifference is completely unacceptable to millions of pro-life voters expecting the administration to act to save lives.”

The FDA commissioner has also divided the “Make America Healthy Again” coalition sparked by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Some vaccine critics have lamented that Makary has not pulled Covid-19 vaccines off the market. Others, advocating for improved food policies, have praised him for taking steps to remove artificial food dyes and crack down on ultraprocessed foods.

This story has been updated with additional reporting.

Correction:This story has been updated to reflect the year the Supreme Court ended the nationwide right to an abortion.

CNN’s Kit Maher contributed to this report.

RNC launches multimillion-dollar election integrity push in 17 states ahead of midterms

2026-05-12T13:23:08-04:00 / Fox News

RNC Chair Gruters: Midterm election integrity unit ‘disciplined and ruthless’

By Eric Mack Fox News

Published May 12, 2026 1:23pm EDT

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Listen to this article

9 min

Fresh off declaring “victory” over Virginia’s roughly $65 million redistricting ballot measure — which Republicans criticized as a “dark money”-backed gerrymander — the Republican National Committee is looking to capitalize on that momentum.

Describing the RNC as “disciplined and ruthless, Chairman Joe Gruters revealed that the committee launched a multimillion-dollar election integrity push ahead of the 2026 midterms.

The effort involves hiring directors in 17 states to recruit poll workers, poll watchers and election observers, while coordinating legal and Election Day oversight across key battlegrounds, Fox News Digital has learned.

The directors will be the legal “eyes and ears on every vote cast and counted” in every battleground these midterms, according to officials. It is all coming from the top down, echoing President Donald Trump’s longstanding argument that the people counting votes are as important as those casting them.

WHERE TRUMP, GOP VS DEMOCRATS REDISTRICTING BATTLE HEADS NEXT IN WAKE OF KEY COURT RULINGS

President Donald Trump has directed the RNC to deploy its vast financial resources into making sure the RNC is behind the ground game that has “eyes and ears on every vote cast or counted” in these midterms.(Trump: Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg; and Gruters: Patrick T. Fallon)

“President Trump made it clear in 2024: secure our elections — and we haven’t let up since,” Gruters said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “We’re building a ground game across the country with poll workers, poll watchers and lawyers to protect every legal ballot.”

“This is a permanent, nationwide effort backed by legal muscle and disciplined operations. The RNC is all-in, year-round, to safeguard election integrity and ensure only legal votes count,” he added.

The RNC is aiming to defy history in maintaining the president’s party majority in the House and Senate through a midterm election.

NEW RNC CHAIR JOE GRUTERS VOWS TO ‘RIDE THE PRESIDENT ALL THE WAY TO VICTORY’ IN MIDTERMS

Rather than relying on high-profile national election attorneys, the RNC is turning to local legal experts in key states — a strategy officials say was key to its legal approach in Virginia, where a multimillion-dollar ballot measure ultimately failed.

The plan revolves around smart data and even artificial intelligence to feed actual, actionable intelligence in the midterm battlegrounds. And the spending and swath of the operation will expand as the conditions on the ground warrant, according to officials.

The RNC hires are part of an initial seven-figure investment and build on the 2024 election integrity operation, which officials said recruited more than 230,000 volunteers in 18 target states for poll watching, poll work and legal support, along with more than 6,000 volunteer attorneys both remotely and on the ground.

MINNESOTA FRAUD CASE IS ‘CANARY IN THE COAL MINE’ FOR GOVERNMENT SYSTEMS — INCLUDING ELECTIONS, LAWYER WARS

The initial “seven-figure” spend remains a “moving target,” officials added, with the expectation that the investment will climb into the tens of millions nationwide.

Democrats spent comparable amounts in Virginia alone, according to critics of that effort. Republicans hope saving tens of millions will have a domino effect on the midterm battlegrounds.

Supporters argue that approach reflects fiscal responsibility and a broader strategic shift — something that seemingly left Democrat election lawyer Marc Elias publicly frustrated.

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6395262088112

‘JUSTICE’: CELEBRATION, MOCKERY ERUPT AFTER SPANBERGER ‘GERRYMANDER’ IS BLOWN UP IN BLOCKBUSTER DECISION

“We’ve got the Republican National Committee waging litigation in courtrooms around the country,” Elias lamented to MS NOW last month.

RNC officials pushed back, saying Elias’ “record is terrible” against them, as they outlined their next battle plan Monday.

The RNC said it will avoid hiring what it views as expensive national election attorneys who would be inexperienced and less informed on local law. The officials behind the multimillion-dollar campaign said hires “will not be names you recognize,” but they are the experts in those states and districts.

DAVID MARCUS: VIRGINIA DEMOCRATS STEP ON A $70M RAKE AND NOW THEY’RE CRYING

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6395278765112

Officials compared the strategy to long-term conservative legal efforts that ultimately led to the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade.

“Rather than lawlessly condemning SCOTUS, Dems should listen to Ari Fleischer,” Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, who clerked for Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, wrote Monday night on X as Democrats were pushing what Republicans described as a likely unsuccessful U.S. Supreme Court appeal for the Virginia high court ruling.

“For decades, Republicans lived with Supreme Court rulings they didn’t like. [With] Roe v. Wade, [they] didn’t say ‘we need to rig the Supreme Court.’ They worked within the system to change the way things worked.”

REPUBLICAN FUNDRAISING OUTPACES DEMOCRATS BY NEARLY DOUBLE, JUNE NUMBERS SHOW

Despite the recent gains in the courts on redistricting and criticism oscillating back to the left, the RNC has also faced criticism, particularly with regard to those upset that Democrats outspent Republicans by nearly a 3-to-1 margin on the ultimately doomed Virginia ballot measure.

RNC officials said they are unfazed by criticism, telling Fox News Digital the election integrity effort is akin to a football team’s offensive line — doing all the grunt work and none of the press.

Republicans have faced criticism for being judicious with what is estimated to be up to an $800 million war chest for the midterms, but RNC officials are signaling confidence in their approach.

“Just watch us” get results, the officials said.

REPUBLICANS SOUND ALARM ON DEMOCRATS’ ‘POWER GRAB’ AS VIRGINIA VOTES ON REDISTRICTING SHAKE-UP

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6393744034112

Defying history in helping Trump keep its congressional majority will “not be cheap” or easy, they admit. Just ask Democrats now upset in Virginia, they added.

RNC officials argued spending just a fraction and getting a narrow margin at the ballot box ultimately gave the “Virginia Supreme Court some cover” to rule the way it did.

WHERE TRUMP, GOP VS DEMOCRATS REDISTRICTING BATTLE HEADS NEXT IN WAKE OF KEY COURT RULINGS

The RNC said it led those legal challenges largely behind the scenes, with legal experts typically not seen on TV, which officials argue demonstrates how effective their quiet midterm legal ground game will be.

While there might be critics of how the RNC is spending on election integrity, the RNC officials stressed they stick to being quietly strategic and targeted in former Raiders head coach Al Davis’ “just win, baby” fashion.

The RNC’s initial field investment includes states such as Arizona, Georgia, Michigan and North Carolina, with officials saying the operation will cover entire states rather than only targeted congressional districts as the party builds a long-term infrastructure aimed at both the midterms and the 2028 presidential election.

GOP STRATEGISTS CALLED TO DC AS TRUMP TEAM CONFRONTS RISING MIDTERM HEADWINDS

Republican National Committee Chair Joe Gruters hails his midterm spending plan as ‘disciplined and ruthless’ in plotting how his party can protect the narrow majorities in the House and Senate these midterms.(Paul Steinhauser/Fox News)

The RNC said the new state directors will serve as the election integrity program’s “eyes and ears” on the ground, overseeing poll worker and poll watcher recruitment, coordinating with attorneys and supporting Election Day operations in battleground states.

That is the mission the RNC has accepted from the president.

Midterm elections historically have lower participation rates than presidential election years, so having legal “eyes and ears on every vote cast and counted” through this election integrity unit will take up the bulk of the RNC spending up to “eight figures,” according to officials.

TRUMP ACCUSES SCHUMER OF TRYING TO ‘INTERFERE IN OUR ELECTIONS’ WITH LATEST STRATEGY

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6395276400112

The move comes as Trump vowed Sunday to expand the GOP’s election integrity operation, writing on Truth Social that Republicans would again deploy an “Election Integrity Army” in 2026, but that it would be “much bigger and stronger.”

Trump also criticized a Democrat-led election integrity group involving former Attorney General Eric Holder and Elias, accusing Democrats of trying to “suppress Republican voters” and “interfere in our Elections.”

“The Democrats are totally unhinged, and we will not allow them to threaten the integrity of our Elections,” Trump wrote.

TRUMP’S CONVINCING 2024 VICTORY SETS HOUSE GOP UP FOR HOMEFIELD ADVANTAGE IN 2026 MIDTERM ELECTIONS

“During my Historic Election in 2024, when I won every single Swing State, and decisively won both the Electoral and Popular votes by wide margins, the Republicans had an Election Integrity Army in every single State to preserve the sanctity of each legal vote,” he wrote. “We will be doing the same again in 2026, but it will be much bigger and stronger. All Americans should have their voices be heard by casting a vote. Be assured this Election will be fair!”

SCOOP: HOUSE GOP CAMPAIGN ARM LAUNCHES ‘MAGA MAJORITY’ PROGRAM TO BOOST TRUMP-ALIGNED CANDIDATES

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6393744034112

Gruters said Sunday the RNC had deployed its first wave of field staff to 17 battleground states to turn out voters he says are needed to win the midterms.

“We’re building the ground game to win, [protect our majorities in the House and Senate, and give President Trump a full four years,” Gruters wrote.

In a separate post, Gruters said the RNC is “aggressively fundraising and deploying staff to battleground states across the country to get out the vote and secure our elections,” adding the committee is being “disciplined and ruthless” to make its resources count and stop Democrats from retaking Congress in November.

GOP OUTPERFORMED DEMS ON VOTER REGISTRATION IN KEY BATTLEGROUND STATES, NEW ANALYSIS REVEALS

The RNC kept its election integrity program intact after the 2024 election and is now expanding poll worker recruitment in 17 target states while also growing operations in non-target states. The committee said it is currently involved in more than 130 active election integrity cases across 30 states.

That included involvement in legal challenges related to the Virginia Supreme Court, which struck down a voter-approved redistricting measure that Republicans had criticized as a gerrymander, in a decision delivered Friday.

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6394507396112

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“Hey @JamesBlairUSA where are all the people attacking us for not spending enough in Virginia?” Trump’s 2024 campaign co-manager Chris LaCivita wrote Friday on X, directing his slam dunk on critics to the White House deputy chief of staff who is transitioning to leading the midterm operation.

“Oh yea …they are laughing at Dems for wasting $60 million #wannabees,” he wrote.

Eric Mack is a writer for Fox News Digital covering breaking news.

US posts smaller budget surplus in April as tax refunds rise | Reuters

2026-05-12T18:04:22.38Z / Reuters

Senate confirms Warsh to Fed Board, with Fed chair vote likely Wednesday

May 12, 2026 4:25 PM UTC / Reuters

By Richard Cowan and Ann Saphir

Kevin Warsh, U.S. President Donald Trump’s nominee to be next chair of the Federal Reserve, attends a Senate Banking Committee confirmation hearing to testify, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 21, 2026. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz/File Photo

May 12 (Reuters) – The U.S. Senate on Tuesday confirmed Kevin Warsh to ​a 14-year term as Federal Reserve governor, marking an important step toward his succeeding ‌Jerome Powell as the U.S. central bank’s next leader.

Here are some details and context:

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• The vote passed 51-45, with a single Democrat, John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, casting his vote with the Republican majority.
• The Senate also approved the start of a ​30-hour countdown that allows a vote to approve Warsh for a concurrent four-year term as ​Fed chair as soon as Wednesday. Powell’s term as chair ends on Friday.
• A ⁠lawyer, financier and former Fed governor, Warsh is on course to lead the Fed at a ​time when the central bank’s political independence is being tested by pressure from the administration to deliver ​the interest-rate cuts demanded by President Donald Trump.
• Trump’s unprecedented efforts to exert control over the Fed include the attempted firing of Fed Governor Lisa Cook in a case now before the Supreme Court and support for a Department of Justice investigation ​into Powell’s management of a building renovation that a federal judge ruled was pretext for pressuring ​Powell to cut rates or resign.
• The DOJ dropped its investigation, but its lead prosecutor in Washington says she could ‌reopen ⁠it.
• Powell plans to take the unusual step of staying on as governor after his chair term ends, in response to the “series of legal attacks on the Fed which threaten our ability to conduct monetary policy without considering political factors.”
• Warsh says he plans “regime change” at the Fed, including tightening its coordination with ​the Treasury Department and ​the Trump administration on ⁠non-monetary policies and setting it on course for a smaller balance sheet, which he argues should allow for a lower policy rate.
• A surge in oil ​prices since the start of the Iran war has pushed up inflation ​and pared ⁠investor expectations for an interest-rate cut this year. Currently financial markets are pricing about a one-in-three chance of a rate hike by December. The Fed’s current target range for short-term borrowing costs is 3.50%-3.75%.
• The Fed ⁠chair has ​one of 12 votes on the interest-rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee, opens new tab ​and is one of 19 voices at the policy-setting table.
• The Fed’s next meeting, likely its first chaired by Warsh, is scheduled ​for June 16-17.

Reporting by Richard Cowan, Writing by Ann Saphir; Editing by Dan Burns and Andrea Ricci

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Social Security recipients could get a nearly 4% cost-of-living adjustment, forecasters say

May 12, 2026 / 2:18 PM EDT / CBS News

Social Security recipients could receive a 2027 cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) of nearly 4%, driven by inflation climbing at its fastest pace in almost three years.

Seniors and others who receive Social Security benefits could see a COLA of 3.9% next year, according to a new estimate from the Senior Citizens League, an advocacy group for older Americans.

“This is up quite a bit from earlier in the year, when our projection generally sat between 2% and 3%,” Alex Moore, the statistician for the Senior Citizens League, told CBS News in an email.

As of January, the average retired worker received $2,071 in monthly Social Security benefits, according to the agency. A 3.9% boost would add $80.77 to the typical monthly check, raising it to about $2,152.

The COLA is meant to help benefits keep pace with inflation, but the calculation is backward-looking. Because the 2027 adjustment will be based on inflation from July through September, seniors may lose ground if prices rise sharply before or after that period.

Reflecting these challenges, older Americans have told the advocacy group they’re struggling financially amid the recent spike in fuel prices caused by the Iran war, Moore added. Seniors received a 2026 COLA of 2.8%, but the Consumer Price Index rose at an annual rate of 3.8% in April and 3.3% in March.

That means millions of Social Security recipients aren’t keeping up with surging consumer prices.

“As we go throughout the year, rising oil prices have the potential to worsen the situation,” Moore said. “Higher energy prices make it more expensive to farm crops, transport goods and services, and even operate the machinery to produce goods in factories.”

Moore added, “So the inflation we’re seeing from rising oil prices right now is likely just the tip of the iceberg, with downstream effects on inflation across the whole economy — and thereby seniors — yet to come.”

The Senior Citizens League’s estimate is roughly in line with a projection from the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, or CRFB, which on Tuesday forecast a COLA next year of 3.8%, based on today’s inflation report.

The nonpartisan group, which supports U.S. deficit reduction, added that the COLA could range from 3% to 4.5%, depending on the course of inflation over the next several months.

Social Security’s financial issues

The Social Security COLA for 2027 will not be set until October, and the final figure could change depending on inflation’s path over the rest of the year.

A higher COLA could exacerbate the financial strains facing the Social Security Administration, which is grappling with a funding shortfall for its trust funds, the CRFB said on Tuesday. Paying out a higher COLA would mean drawing more deeply on the trust funds to pay benefits, according to the group.

“We estimate it would worsen Social Security’s shortfall by roughly $300 billion over the next decade and advance the insolvency of the old-age trust fund by three months from late 2032 to earlier in the year,” the CRFB said.

The group is urging lawmakers to shore up Social Security by capping benefits for wealthy retired couples at $100,000, which it said could save as much as $190 billion over a decade and close roughly 20% of the program’s solvency gap.

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/inflation-accelerated-in-april-to-highest-since-may-2023/