作者： root

Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., has confirmed he will “seriously consider” a run for president in 2028, opening the door to a potential White House bid.

Kelly’s comments to the BBC Feb. 16 came as he remains locked in a legal and political battle with the Trump administration.

In an interview, the retired Navy captain and former astronaut made clear he has not yet decided whether to launch a campaign but confirmed the idea is under consideration.

“I have people talk to me about it all the time, but we have an election in 2026 that I’m really worried about. We’ve got to get through that first. I will make a decision.”

Kelly emphasized that any choice would involve discussions with his wife, Gabrielle Giffords, their daughters and his identical twin brother, also a former astronaut.

“You know, with my wife, Gabby, with my two daughters, and my brother, I have a twin [brother who was also an astronaut]. Think about for a second how this would affect him. We’re identical twins,” he said.

“So you know, I’ll seriously consider this, because we are in some seriously challenging times right now,” Kelly added.

Kelly’s comments came within days of two major developments in his standoff with the administration.

As previously reported by Fox News Digital, a federal judge blocked the Pentagon from demoting him Feb. 12 over a controversial video about “illegal orders.”

A grand jury declined to indict him and five other Democratic lawmakers on seditious conspiracy charges.

The dispute is over a 90-second video Kelly recorded with fellow Democratic lawmakers reminding U.S. service members that they are not obligated to follow “illegal” commands.

“Our laws are clear,” Kelly said in the clip. “You can refuse illegal orders.”

President Donald Trump had labeled the video “seditious behavior” and suggested the lawmakers be arrested.

The Justice Department sought indictments, but a grand jury refused to bring charges.

War Secretary Pete Hegseth had also moved to initiate retirement-grade determination proceedings against Kelly, potentially reducing his rank as a retired Navy captain and cutting his retirement pay.

Kelly sued, arguing the action was unconstitutional retaliation for protected speech.

U.S. District Judge Richard Leon agreed to temporarily block the demotion, writing that the administration had likely violated Kelly’s First Amendment rights and warning against “shrinking the First Amendment liberties of retired service members.” Hegseth has vowed to appeal.

“This will be immediately appealed,” Hesgeth wrote in the post. “Sedition is sedition, ‘Captain.’”

In the Feb. 17 interview with the BBC, Kelly also reflected on his career.

“I don’t know if I would be the best person in this job. I am a lot different than [most of these other 100 senators] there are,” he said.

“I’m one of the very few engineers. I’m the only person with a graduate degree in engineering in the United States Senate. I’ve got combat experience that’s kind of rare,” Kelly explained.

“I spent 25 years in the military. I didn’t start out in some state legislature somewhere. I don’t think of myself as a politician. I’m a Navy pilot who was so fortunate and so lucky, in fact, that I had the opportunity to [fly this incredible spaceship], you know, four times and back.”

Kelly also struck a note of humility about a possible White House run.

“I never thought I’d find myself here. So I will obviously think about this. It’s a serious decision. I just haven’t made it yet,” he added.

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

Emma Bussey is a breaking news writer for Fox News Digital. Before joining Fox, she worked at The Telegraph with the U.S. overnight team, across desks including foreign, politics, news, sport and culture.

Colbert says CBS scrapped interview after Trump FCC’s threats | CNN Politics

Published 6:01 PM EST, Tue February 17, 2026

CNN’s Jake Tapper reports.

4:24 • Source: CNN

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Schumer: ICE is

Man arrested after running toward US capitol with loaded shotgun, say police

By Reuters
February 17, 2026 8:53 PM UTC Updated 3 hours ago

节点运行失败

A view of the dome of the U.S. Capitol building, during a vote in the U.S. House of Representatives on a stopgap spending bill to avert a partial government shutdown that would otherwise begin October 1, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. U.S., September 19, 2025. REUTERS/Kent Nishimura/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

Feb 17 (Reuters) – An 18-year-old man ran toward the U.S. Capitol with a loaded shotgun on Tuesday before police arrested him without incident, said U.S. Capitol Police Chief Michael Sullivan.

The motive of the man, who police said was wearing a tactical vest and tactical gloves, was not immediately known. He also had a Kevlar helmet and a gas mask in his vehicle, police said.

Jumpstart your morning with the latest legal news delivered straight to your inbox from The Daily Docket newsletter. Sign up here.

Sullivan said the man arrived in a white Mercedes SUV just after noon and parked near the Capitol, before getting out and running toward the building that houses the U.S. Congress.

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Police challenged the man and ordered him to drop the weapon, which he did, Sullivan told reporters.

The incident took place less than three months after a National Guard member was killed and another wounded in an ambush shooting near the White House.

President Donald Trump is due to deliver the State of the Union address at the Capitol next week.

“We take the State of the Union very, very seriously, and this doesn’t change our posture. We will be prepared on State of the Union night,” Sullivan said.

Reporting by Ismail Shakil; editing by Michelle Nichols and Nia Williams

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

马克龙用中文拜年：愿马年带来动力 | 联合早报

发布/2026年2月18日 07:17

法国总统马克龙星期二（2月17日）通过社交平台用中文拜年，祝愿马年能带来力量与动力。 （马克龙X账号）

法国总统马克龙在大年初一通过社交平台用中文拜年，祝愿马年能带来力量与动力。

马克龙星期二（2月17日）在X（前称推特）写道：“我向所有庆祝农历新年的朋友们致以最诚挚、最温暖的祝福。”

他也说：“愿这马年带来力量与动力，让我们携手努力，造福众人。”

马克龙也用法文、越南文和韩文拜年。

The many claims by Trump’s DHS that have fallen apart

Analysis by Aaron Blake
2 hr ago
PUBLISHED Feb 17, 2026, 4:42 PM ET

Federal agencies National security Terrorism Donald Trump

The imminent exit of Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin from the agency is the latest sign of a reset in the Trump administration’s aggressive deportation strategy, which has fallen sharply out of favor with the American people.

And it’s difficult to overstate how big a role the department’s overly aggressive, poor and often bizarre messaging played in that.

The administration and McLaughlin, who’s set to leave next week, seemed to think they could say whatever they wanted about episodes such as the shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by federal immigration agents, regardless of the evidence. But there proved to be political consequences to that approach.

A Quinnipiac University poll earlier this month showed registered voters said by more than a 2-to-1 margin (61%-25%) that they did not think the administration had given an “honest account” of Pretti’s shooting in Minneapolis in late January.

Even among Republicans, 4 in 10 declined to vouch for the administration. (About half were neutral, while half distrusted it.)

And that reputation was more than earned — if not just via the administration’s botched handling of Pretti’s shooting, but by its handling of many other high-profile incidents.

Over and over again in recent months, DHS has made claims that were later undermined by video, other evidence, local police and/or judges. Its legal cases against people it accused of targeting federal agents repeatedly fell apart.

And while Pretti’s killing was perhaps the most shocking example of the department’s botched messaging, it was of-a-piece with plenty of other examples – including some we learned more about in recent days, shortly before McLaughlin’s exit was reported. (CNN reports that she started to plan her exit in December but stayed on in the aftermath of those Minneapolis shootings.)

Let’s review some examples of big DHS claims that fell apart.

Renee Good (January 7)

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a news conference at Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters, on January 24.
Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP/File

The claims: McLaughlin said Good had “weaponized her vehicle in an attempt to kill or cause bodily harm to federal law enforcement.” Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem called it “an act of domestic terrorism.” And President Donald Trump said Good “willfully and viciously ran over” the agent.

The evidence:Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Jonathan Ross was not run over. There is some question about whether the vehicle made contact with him. But there remains no evidence that Good aimed to run over the agent; indeed, Good was turning away from the agent as she drove away and was shot. And video evidence shows Ross continuing to shoot her even from the side of the vehicle.

Alex Pretti (January 24)

A picture of Renee Good is covered with flowers at a memorial in Minneapolis on January 29.
Scott Olson/Getty Images

The claims:McLaughlin said it looked like Pretti had aimed to “massacre law enforcement.” Noem again invoked “domestic terrorism.” White House adviser Stephen Miller called Pretti an “assassin” who “tried to murder federal agents.”

The evidence: The video contradicted these claims even more strongly than with Good. There is no evidence that Pretti targeted the agents. He was legally armed but did not draw his gun, and he was disarmed before he was shot and killed. The administration has since backed off of these claims.

Marimar Martinez (October 4, 2025)

A picture of Alex Pretti on January 25 at a memorial in the area where he was killed in Minneapolis.
Octavio Jones/AFP/Getty Images

The claims: Good and Pretti were not the first US citizens to be accused of terrorism. After a Border Patrol agent shot Marimar Martinez several times in Chicago, a DHS statement said the agents involved were “ambushed by domestic terrorists that rammed federal agents with their vehicles.” It said the shots were “defensive.” McLaughlin added: “We will not allow domestic terrorists to attack our law enforcement.”

The evidence:Video evidence released last week bolsters Martinez’s claim that it was her vehicle that was rammed, not the agent’s. And the prosecution of Martinez previously fell apart amid numerous problems, including the fact that the agent’s vehicle — which was due to be evidence — was driven more than 1,000 miles away after the incident.

Attacking agents with shovels and brooms (January 14)

The claims:DHS claimed in a statement that three migrants, including one who was shot in the leg in Minneapolis, Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, “violently assaulted law enforcement with a shovel and broom.” Noem described an “attempted murder of federal law enforcement.”

The evidence: ICE admitted last week that its agents made “false statements” under oath, and Justice Department prosecutors moved to drop criminal charges against two of the men. Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said the claims were contradicted by video evidence.

Threats to assassinate Trump (May 2025)

The claims: DHS accused Milwaukee resident Ramón Morales Reyes of writing a letter in which he “threatened to assassinate President Trump.” Noem urged Trump’s critics to tone down their rhetoric.

The evidence: Last month, another man admitted in court that the letter was a ruse, and was actually written by him. The man had allegedly stabbed Morales Reyes and wanted to get him deported before he could testify. DHS’ claim remains online, with no indication that it falsely accused Morales Reyes. (It instead says he was “no longer under investigation.”)

Greg Bovino and tear gas (October 23, 2025)

Marimar Martinez sits for a photograph in Chicago on November 21, 2025.
Leonel Mendez/CNN

The claims: Greg Bovino, the Border Patrol official who formerly led the Minneapolis operation, claimed he deployed tear gas after being struck in the helmet by a rock in Chicago. DHS also said a rock “struck Chief Greg Bovino in the head.”

The evidence: In a case involving limits on federal agents’ use of force, a judge said Bovino “admitted in his deposition that he lied multiple times” about the incident. The judge said Bovino’s claims shifted repeatedly, and he finally admitted no rock had been thrown at him before he deployed the tear gas.

The aggressive apprehension of a teenager (October 10, 2025)

The claims:After video emerged of an aggressive apprehension of a teenager in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, McLaughlin claimed it was old video and didn’t involve ICE. She called it “a video from a burglary arrest Chicago Police made over a year ago.”

The evidence:PolitiFact determined McLaughlin’s claims were false. The scene involved agents wearing uniforms that identified them as tied to ICE, and it would make no sense for the arrest to involve Chicago police, given it was in a suburb 30 miles away. The teenager’s family also spoke out.

Another shooting by an agent, in Maryland (December 24, 2025)

The claims: DHS claimed that two men were in a van that one of them drove “directly at ICE officers,” in Glen Burnie, Maryland. One of them was shot by an agent.

The evidence:Anne Arundel County police later said one of the two men was “already in custody” at the time. DHS later amended its claims to reflect that only one person was in the van.

A 13-year-old and a gun (October 9, 2025)

Greg Bovino leaves a courthouse in Chicago, on October 28, 2025.
Leah Millis/Reuters

The claims: McLaughlin said that a 13-year-old who was arrested and detained by ICE in Massachusetts “was in possession of a firearm and 5-7 inch knife when arrested.”

The evidence: Everett, Massachusetts, Mayor Carlo DeMaria strongly denied the teen had a gun, saying, “No guns were found.” (DeMaria confirmed the knife.) Asked by CNN for further comment, DHS did not respond.

The tear-gassed family (January 14)

Arthur Berto, a 13-year-old living in Everett, Massachusetts, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Courtesy Josiele Berto

The claims: After two children were hospitalized after being tear-gassed as their family drove near a protest in Minneapolis, DHS suggested their parents were “agitators.” DHS wrote in a post: “It is horrific to see radical agitators bring children to their violent riots.”

The evidence: DHS soon deleted the post, with McLaughlin acknowledging the people were not agitators but instead “victims.”

Rümeysa Öztürk (March 25, 2025)

A family trying to get home from their son’s basketball game found themselves trapped in a protest and tear gassed in their car, resulting in the mother having to administer CPR to her infant.
Yaakov Strasberg/@YaakovStras

The claims: After the Tufts University PhD student was detained by masked federal agents last spring, McLaughlin told CNN that Rümeysa Öztürk had been found by investigators to be “engaged in activities in support of Hamas, a foreign terrorist organization.”

The evidence: Last month, a newly released State Department memo said the investigators did not find that Öztürk had “made any public statements indicating support for a terrorist organization.” It said DHS found no grounds to remove her for “material support to foreign terrorist organization or terrorist activity.”

Federal agencies National security Terrorism Donald Trump

House GOP’s razor-thin majority threatens to grind Trump’s Capitol Hill agenda to halt

Johnson navigates 1-seat majority as rebellious House Republicans team up with Democrats to inflict procedural defeats

By Elizabeth Elkind
Fox News

Published February 17, 2026 4:00pm EST | Updated February 17, 2026 4:18pm EST

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6 min

With less than nine months before a politically bruising battle in the November midterm elections, the realities of a one-seat majority are bearing down on the House GOP.

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. — and by extension, President Donald Trump — faced back-to-back losses on the House floor last week after a small group of GOP rebels joined Democrats in an effort to curb Trump’s unilateral tariff authority.

It’s part of a growing trend that comes with a razor-thin House majority, and moderates making a choice between appealing to their battleground district voters and following the president in a year when history dictates the opposing party will fare better in the coming elections.

“Getting things done in Washington can be tough enough as it is,” veteran GOP strategist Doug Heye told Fox News Digital. “Add to that a super slim majority and the shortened legislative calendar of an election year, and it’s tough to see much happening legislatively through the rest of the year.”

REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: GOP REBELS DEFY TRUMP AS CONGRESSIONAL GRIP CONTINUES TO WEAKEN ACROSS MULTIPLE VOTES

Last Tuesday, House GOP leaders tried to insert language into an unrelated procedural vote aimed at blocking Democrats from forcing consideration of a bill aimed at limiting Trump’s ability to levy tariffs on Canada without consent from Congress.

That failed, however, after three Republicans joined Democrats in sinking that procedural vote — Reps. Kevin Kiley, R-Calif., Don Bacon, R-Neb., and Thomas Massie, R-Ky.

“I think it was not unexpected, and certainly we’ve got to find a new course to chart now,” one House Republican granted anonymity to speak freely told Fox News Digital.

“This is going to change the dynamics of the type of legislation we’re going to see, and the type of political posturing the Democrats are going to do the next nine months. So we’ve got to come up with a better strategy.”

But Republicans who spoke with Fox News Digital largely did not blame Johnson, arguing he was doing his best with the circumstances in front of him. Instead, much frustration was aimed at their fellow GOP lawmakers who dissented.

The move not only paved the way for a vote on Trump’s Canada tariffs, but opened the door to allowing Democrats to force a vote on tariffs targeting other countries as well.

HOUSE GOP MAJORITY ON THE BRINK AS ALL-DEMOCRAT TEXAS SPECIAL CONGRESSIONAL ELECTION UNDERWAY

“A lot of people were disappointed with how that went, with the actors who voted no” rather than House leadership, a second House Republican said.

They pointed out that the following day would bring a vote on Trump’s tariffs themselves — a politically tricky situation for people in vulnerable seats.

“I get the overall idea about tariffs. That’s not the vehicle to vote no on and put a lot of our moderates in jeopardy, and that’s exactly what happened,” the second GOP lawmaker said.

A third House Republican said there was “frustration that they aren’t playing team ball like they used to, and we need them to.”

But not everyone agreed. Rep. Eli Crane, R-Ariz., a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, told Fox News Digital, “I actually like when they put bills on the floor, even if they don’t have the votes…it gives the American people a chance to see where their representatives stand. And far too often, the calculus is, well, we’re not gonna put it on the floor if we don’t think it has the votes.”

“A lot of the American people don’t even know where their reps stand, because this whole place is designed to shield members from taking votes,” Crane said.

He added of Johnson’s leadership, “I think it’s one of the hardest jobs you can have. I’ve been critical of the speaker in the past, but what he’s working with, I think he’s doing a good job.”

Democrats did successfully force a vote on ending Trump’s emergency at the northern border the following day, which if passed in the Senate and signed into law would effectively roll back his Canada tariffs.

Three more Republicans — Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., Jeff Hurd, R-Colo., and Dan Newhouse, R-Wash. — joined the original trio in voting to pass the measure, even despite Trump vowing political “consequences” for those who dissented.

GOP CALLS TRUMP ITS ‘SECRET WEAPON’ — BUT POLLS SHOW WARNING SIGNS HEADING INTO MIDTERMS

It’s almost certain that Trump would veto the resolution if it gets to his desk, but it’s an example of a situation that is increasingly likely to happen as the midterms draw closer.

Bacon and Newhouse, for example, are not running for re-election. Fitzpatrick and Hurd are running in battleground districts where their independence from the party line could be critical to their survival — and Republicans’ overall chances of keeping the House.

Trump is already targeting Massie with a primary challenge, and Kiley has not yet said what his plans are for November after California Democrats badly disadvantaged him with a new congressional map.

HOUSE GOP MAJORITY SHRINKS TO JUST ONE VOTE AS JOHNSON SWEARS IN NEW HOUSE DEMOCRAT

“I think you’re going to see some moderate Republicans try to distinguish themselves as being independent voters or independent thinkers … and this is a way to do it,” John Feehery of EFB Advocacy, who served as press secretary to former Republican House Speaker Dennis J. Hastert, told Fox News Digital.

“And the tariffs are not uniformly popular amongst the Republican conference. I mean, most Republicans would probably want to vote with those guys. But they don’t want to undermine the president as he’s negotiating.”

Republicans are currently dealing with a one-seat majority until mid-March, when a special election for the seat vacated by former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., is likely to get another GOP lawmaker into the House.

But the April race for a blue-leaning seat to replace New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherill could bring the margin back down. Republicans would then not likely see relief until August, when a special election will be held to replace late Rep. Doug LaMalfa, R-Calif.

And Feehery said Democrats’ unwillingness to work with Trump will likely keep much of the president’s agenda from succeeding in Congress this year.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

“It doesn’t look to me like the Democrats have any interest in giving Trump any kind of legislative victory, so that makes it very difficult. I mean, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., he doesn’t really want to work with Trump at all, and so it’s going to pretty much scale back the ability for Republicans to get much done for the rest of the year,” he said.

“And the other situation is that the Senate, they’re not going to get 60 votes for a lot of things, so it just makes the agenda itself pretty slim.”

Elizabeth Elkind is a politics reporter for Fox News Digital leading coverage of the House of Representatives. Previous digital bylines seen at Daily Mail and CBS News.

Follow on Twitter at @liz_elkind and send tips to elizabeth.elkind@fox.com

Man arrested running toward Capitol with shotgun and wearing tactical vest, police say

Updated on: February 17, 2026 / 3:24 PM EST / CBS News

Washington — An 18-year-old man allegedly carrying a shotgun and running toward the Capitol was arrested by U.S. Capitol Police on Tuesday, the head of the police force said.

U.S. Capitol Police Chief Michael Sullivan said the man parked a white Mercedes SUV near the Capitol just after noon and exited the vehicle with the shotgun. He then began running toward the West Front of the Capitol, the side that is adjacent to the National Mall.

“This individual was challenged by United States Capitol Police officers in order to drop the weapon, which he did comply with,” Sullivan said at a news conference Tuesday afternoon. “He laid down the weapon and then laid down on the ground and was taken into custody by our United States Capitol Police officers.”

Sullivan said the man, whom he did not name, was wearing a tactical vest and had tactical gloves. He said the shotgun was loaded, and the man was carrying additional rounds. Officers found a Kevlar helmet and a gas mask in his vehicle, Sullivan said.

The police chief said the suspect was not previously known to Capitol Police. He said the individual is an 18-year-old “who does not live in the area.” He said the vehicle was not registered to the individual and he had multiple addresses, “so we’re trying to chase down where he actually came from.”

Asked by a reporter about the suspect’s motive, Sullivan said police were unaware of a motive and that the investigation is ongoing.

U.S. Capitol Police noted earlier Tuesday that the individual was in custody and that there did not appear to be other suspects or an ongoing threat.

Sullivan commended the officers who apprehended the man.

“Who knows what could have happened if we wouldn’t have had officers here standing guard like they do every single day,” he said.

阿布扎比金融峰会与会者护照信息外泄

2026年2月18日 07:00 / 联合早报

“阿布扎比金融周”于2025年12月8日至11日举行。图为阿联酋首都阿布扎比。 （路透社）

英国《金融时报》星期二（2月17日）报道，阿布扎比旗舰投资峰会数百名与会者的护照及其他身份证件在网上泄露，其中包括英国前首相卡梅伦和对冲基金亿万富豪霍华德。

报道引述多份文件说，由阿联酋政府赞助的阿布扎比金融周（简称ADFW）于去年12月举行，超过3万5000人与会。一名安全研究员在与阿布扎比金融周相关的一个未加密云存储服务器上，发现700多本护照和身份证扫描件。

发现此次泄露事件的自雇安全研究员兼顾问苏霍夫斯基（Roni Suchowski）说，这些数据可通过简单的网络浏览器访问。

报道称，卡梅伦、霍华德（Alan Howard）、美国投资者、前白宫通讯联络主任斯卡拉穆奇（Anthony Scaramucci）的身份证件均在曝光之列。

霍华德拒绝对报道置评，卡梅伦和斯卡拉穆奇尚未作出回应。主办方阿布扎比全球市场（Abu Dhabi Global Market）也尚未置评。

《金融时报》16日就泄露事件联系阿布扎比金融周后，服务器已得加固。

阿布扎比金融周向《金融时报》证实，第三方供应商管理的服务器存在漏洞，并称仅小部分与会者受影响。

As Iran talks drag on, questions emerge over how long Trump will indulge diplomacy

By Kevin Liptak, CNN

PUBLISHED Feb 17, 2026, 5:04 PM ET

After passing notes for three-and-a-half hours Tuesday, Iranian and American negotiators departed their indirect talks in Geneva with an agreement to keep talking. What they’re talking about, exactly, remains an open question.

It’s unclear if the two sides are focused just on Iran’s nuclear program or other issues like the country’s ballistic missiles. Iran’s top negotiator said only that they’d arrived at a “set of guiding principles.” An American official was more circumspect, acknowledging “there are still a lot of details to discuss.”

The readout hardly eased growing fears of an impending regional war. Some officials have started to wonder how long President Donald Trump will allow diplomatic efforts to proceed. Adding to the sense of malaise, Iran conducted military exercises with cruise missiles and boats as the talks were underway, briefly closing the Strait of Hormuz.

Trump “reserves the ability to say when he thinks that diplomacy has reached its natural end,” Vice President JD Vance said in a Fox News interview, hours after the talks concluded Tuesday. He added that the two sides “agreed to meet afterwards” but that the Iranians have not acknowledged certain “red lines.”

So far, Trump has authorized the incremental back-and-forth that often defines high-stakes international dealmaking, dispatching his envoys Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner to foreign compounds to exchange papers with Iranian diplomats through an Omani intermediary.

But Trump is also wary of being “tapped along” by an Iranian regime looking to play for time, according to people familiar with his thinking. His allies have warned him that could be Iran’s intent, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu emphasized that argument in an urgently scheduled meeting last week.

Oman’s Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi, right, meets with US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, center, and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner ahead of the indirect US-Iran talks, in Geneva, Switzerland, on February 17, 2026.

Oman’s Ministry Of Foreign Affairs/Reuters

Trump is also acutely aware that every passing day without US military action is another day further from his initial promise — now nearly two months old — that he was coming to the assistance of Iranian protesters.

As the talks proceed, Trump has offered only loose deadlines.

“I guess over the next month, something like that,” he said when asked last Thursday if he envisioned a timeline. “Yeah, it shouldn’t take, I mean, it should happen quickly.”

Quickly, in diplomatic terms, can be relative. That is especially true when discussing the highly technical particulars of uranium enrichment, which in previous negotiations required the participation of nuclear physicists.

The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action — the Obama-era deal that Trump harshly criticized as too weak on Iran and ultimately withdrew from — took more than two years of painstaking negotiations to finalize. Trump’s own grinding negotiations with the Iranians early last year lasted months before eventually falling apart, resulting in US military strikes on Iran’s uranium enrichment sites over the summer.

Administration officials believe Iran is now more motivated to agree to a deal than in the past because of the dire state of its economy, strangled by western sanctions. The major US military buildup Trump has ordered around Iran is also intended to apply pressure.

Yet so far, the Iranians do not seem willing to immediately accede.

“This does not mean that we can reach an agreement quickly, but at least the path has begun,” Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tuesday after noting the two sides agreed in their indirect talks to “move toward drafting the text of a possible agreement.”

Araghchi, who led Iran’s delegation in Geneva, said that no date had been set for future conversations. The American official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive negotiations, said the Iranians indicated they would “come back in the next two weeks with detailed proposals” to address the gaps in their negotiating positions.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, on the day he addresses a special session of the Conference on Disarmament at the United Nations, on the sidelines of US-Iran talks in Geneva, Switzerland, on February 17, 2026.

Pierre Albouy/Reuters

That timeframe would loosely align with the time it will take the USS Gerald R. Ford — the world’s largest aircraft carrier — to sail from the Caribbean Sea to the Middle East, where it will join the massive buildup of US military assets Trump has ordered to be ready for potential confrontation.

Meanwhile, the two sides have struggled to even agree on what is up for discussion.

Heading into Tuesday’s discussions, Tehran had insisted it would only discuss its nuclear program as part of a deal that would lift sanctions and avoid a war with the United States. But some Trump administration officials, and Israel, say any deal must be more expansive, to include Iran’s ballistic missiles and its support for regional militant groups.

Vance, in the Fox interview, suggested it was the nuclear file that took precedence.

“There are a lot of ways in which they endanger America’s national security, but the most important way they could is if they acquired a nuclear weapon,” he said.

Some regional diplomats have floated a broader agreement that pairs concessions on the nuclear program and commitments on nonaggression with possible business deals, including granting the US privileged access to developing Iran’s oil, gas and rare earths resources, one source said.

Such an agreement would align with Trump’s interests in brokering grand deals that contain an economic upside for the United States. Still, if past negotiations with Iran are any guide, it is the technicalities of the nuclear concessions that will still prove to be the major hurdle.

Iran has signaled some willingness to make compromises on its nuclear program, which it has always insisted is intended for peaceful purposes. That includes offers to dilute its 60%-enriched uranium, which is a short technical step away from becoming weapons-grade, or temporarily suspend enrichment for up to three years, according to people familiar with the discussions.

Another possibility would be shipping its highly-enriched material to a third country, potentially Russia, as it did in the 2015 Obama-era deal.

Trump, however, continued to insist over the weekend that the US “doesn’t want any enrichment,” suggesting the US will not settle for a deal that allows even low-level uranium enrichment by Iran. That would seem to be a stubborn sticking point, given Iran’s longstanding position that enrichment is their right. But hardline positions going into negotiations can always change.

Lingering uncertainties around what the US might hope to achieve through military action in Iran may also motivate Trump to allow extended negotiations.

“The question (is) what happens to Iran the day after. If they had a clear answer to that, I think we already would have seen a military strike,” said Amos Hochstein, a special US envoy under President Joe Biden. “But all these talks and sending more military equipment is to gain time to figure that question out.”

“They’re going to have enough military equipment there, and personnel, very soon to be able to do whatever they feel they need to do,” Hochstein said. “The question is, is it wise to do it or not?”

Ultimately, whatever Iran agrees to will have to be approved by the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has both maintained a hardline on the nuclear issue and issued threats against the United States amid the military buildup.

“More dangerous than the American warship is the weapon that can send it to the bottom of the sea,” he said, ominously, ahead of Tuesday’s talks.

American officials say getting Khamenei’s sign-off would be the most difficult part of any negotiation, and that dealing with lower-level envoys that lack his authority has the effect of prolonging talks.

Trump, meanwhile, said last week that regime change in Iran — presumably including Khamenei’s ouster — would be the “best thing that could happen.”

Stephen Colbert slams CBS, says lawyers told him James Talarico interview could not air on “The Late Show”

Updated on: February 17, 2026 / 3:59 PM EST / CBS News

“The Late Show” host Stephen Colbert criticized CBS on Monday night, saying the network blocked his interview with U.S. Senate hopeful James Talarico from airing.

“You know who is not one of my guests tonight? That’s Texas State Representative James Talarico,” Colbert told his studio audience. “He was supposed to be here, but we were told in no uncertain terms by our network’s lawyers, who called us directly, that we could not have him on the broadcast. Then I was told in some uncertain terms that not only could I not have him on, I could not mention me not having him on. And because my network clearly doesn’t want us to talk about this, let’s talk about this.”

Colbert said the reason CBS prevented “The Late Show” from broadcasting Talarico’s appearance was rooted in new guidance from the FCC for daytime talk shows and late-night TV programs, which requires the shows to provide equal time to opposing candidates.

While “The Late Show” didn’t air Talarico’s interview on TV, it did post it on YouTube, where FCC rules don’t apply.

“The network says I can’t give you a URL or a QR code, but I promise you, if you go to our YouTube page, you’ll find it,” Colbert said.

Talarico, a Democrat, has served as a Texas state representative since 2018 and is campaigning in the Democratic primary to represent his state in the U.S. Senate.

CBS said in a statement: “THE LATE SHOW was not prohibited by CBS from broadcasting the interview with Rep. James Talarico. The show was provided legal guidance that the broadcast could trigger the FCC equal-time rule for two other candidates, including Rep. Jasmine Crockett, and presented options for how the equal time for other candidates could be fulfilled. THE LATE SHOW decided to present the interview through its YouTube channel with on-air promotion on the broadcast rather than potentially providing the equal-time options.”

CBS News has reached out to the FCC for comment.

FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez, who was nominated by former President Joe Biden, said Tuesday that CBS is protected under the First Amendment “to determine what interviews it airs.”

“That makes its decision to yield to political pressure all the more disappointing,” Gomez wroteon social media. “Corporate interests cannot justify retreating from airing newsworthy content.”

The FCC issued a notice last month that daytime talk shows and late-night programs must give equal time to opposing candidates. The announcement hinged on a decades-old federal law requiring any FCC-licensed broadcaster that lets a political candidate appear on its airwaves to also offer “equal opportunities” to all other candidates running for the same office. The law exempts “bona fide newscasts” and news interviews from the equal time rule.

FCC Chair Brendan Carr, who was appointed by President Trump and is an ally of the president, wrote on X as he shared the notice: “For years, legacy TV networks assumed that their late night & daytime talk shows qualify as ‘bona fide news’ programs – even when motivated by purely partisan political purposes. Today, the FCC reminded them of their obligation to provide all candidates with equal opportunities.”

On “The Late Show” Monday, Colbert said, “Well, sir, you’re chairman of the FCC, so FCC U, because I think you are motivated by partisan purposes yourself.”

“Let’s just call this what it is: Donald Trump’s administration wants to silence anyone who says anything bad about Trump on TV, because all Trump does is watch TV, OK? He’s like a toddler with too much screentime. He gets cranky and then drops a load in his diaper,” Colbert said.

CBS News has reached out to the White House for comment.

Talarico shared a clip on social media early Tuesday, saying, “This is the interview Donald Trump didn’t want you to see. His FCC refused to air my interview with Stephen Colbert. Trump is worried we’re about to flip Texas.”

Tuesday marked the first day of early voting in Texas for the March 3 primary, in which Talarico faces U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett and businessman Ahmad Hassan. They are facing off to take on the winner of the Republican primary, in which longtime GOP Sen. John Cornyn is being challenged by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt. Both races could go to runoffs if no candidate in either party gets 50% of the vote.

Networks, individual shows and talk show hosts have come under fire by Mr. Trump for what he has claimed is their politically biased programming. Mr. Trump has at times called for broadcasters to lose their FCC licenses.

After taking over “The Late Show” from David Letterman in 2015, Colbert is preparing to wrap his final season as its host in May, when CBS will retire the late-night franchise. Although many suggested the cancellation was politically motivated, as Colbert has been an outspoken critic of Mr. Trump and his administration, the network insisted its decision was purely financial.

Joe Walsh contributed to this report.