Four Senate Republicans again unite with Dems to block Trump’s SAVE America Act

June 4, 2026 7:03pm EDT / Fox News

Mike Lee slams Democrats for blocking the Save America Act

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, Mike Lee discusses the importance of the SAVE Act, countering Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s filibuster comments and former Vice President Kamala Harris’s claim that voter ID is a poll tax.

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Four Senate Republicans broke ranks to kill another effort to pass President Donald Trump’s marquee voter ID and election integrity legislation as the GOP marches to fund immigration enforcement.

Just like last time, Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Thom Tills, R-N.C., joined all Democrats to thwart the move.

It’s the second attempt by Republicans to attach the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act to their budget reconciliation package, and the second time that they’ve failed to get the legislation across the line months after launching a quasi-floor takeover to debate the bill.

DOZEN GOP REBELS FAIL TO PERMANENTLY KILL TRUMP’S CONTROVERSIAL $2B FUND

Sens. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., joined Senate Democrats to kill a late-night attempt to attach the SAVE America Act to the GOP’s immigration enforcement funding plan.(Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images; Photo by Li Ying/Xinhua via Getty Images; Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images; Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Trying to attach the bill to the nearly $70 billion budget reconciliation package geared toward funding Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol meant that the amendment from Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., needed at least 60 votes to pass.

That threshold again proved too high a bar on Thursday night.

And it’s a result that further solidified the political reality in the upper chamber that the SAVE America Act has little chance of passing, given the unanimous Democratic resistance and lack of total buy-in among the Senate GOP, even if Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., launched the long sought after talking filibuster.

REPUBLICANS FAIL TO ATTACH SAVE AMERICA ACT TO PARTY-LINE FUNDING PACKAGE

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6391392484112

Still, Graham challenged Democrats to bat down the amendment, accusing them of being “probably into cheating” in elections for not supporting voter ID.

“There’s no other reason to say you don’t have to have an ID. It just makes cheating easier,” Graham said. “Who wants a noncitizen voting in our election if you’re against that, that makes me wonder.”

“And biological males playing girls sports [is] not good for anybody, and a minor should not be allowed to transition their sex,” he continued. “That’s the biggest change you can make in your entire life. You shouldn’t be allowed to do that as a minor. This is what we say. What do you say?”

DEMS BLOCK GOP AMENDMENT TYING VOTER ID BILL TO TRANSGENDER SPORTS BAN

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., speaks to reporters after a briefing by Trump administration officials on U.S. strikes on Iran at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on March 3, 2026.(Nathan Posner/Anadolu)

But Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., noted “that just over a month ago, a similar proposal was defeated on a bipartisan basis.”

“Current safeguards are working,” Padilla said. “And yes, it is already unlawful for non-citizens to vote in the United States. What this amendment does is mirrors earlier attempts to push through the president’s priorities, to try to take over elections, to ban vote by mail.”

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“And while we’re at it, while they’re at it, attacking trans folks during pride month, that’s pretty damn offensive,” he continued.

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

Colorado court orders retrial for paramedics in Elijah McClain case

June 4, 2026 9:58 PM UTC / Reuters

Item 1 of 2 Protesters march to call for justice for Elijah McClain after Governor Jared Polis amended his executive order regarding the investigation of McClain’s death, which has raised concerns that charges against the police officers involved may ultimately be watered down, in Denver, Colorado, U.S., November 21, 2020. REUTERS/Kevin Mohatt/File Photo

[1/2]Protesters march to call for justice for Elijah McClain after Governor Jared Polis amended his executive order regarding the investigation of McClain’s death, which has raised concerns that charges against the police officers involved may ultimately be watered down, in Denver, Colorado, U.S.,… Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tabRead more

June 4 (Reuters) – An appeals court in the U.S. state of Colorado on Thursday ordered a retrial of two paramedics ​convicted over the death of Elijah McClain, a ‌young Black man who was pinned down by police and injected with a powerful sedative.

McClain, a 23-year-old massage therapist, was stopped ​by officers in Aurora, a Denver suburb, in ​2019 after a report of suspicious behavior. Officers ⁠placed him in a neck hold, and paramedics Jeremy ​Cooper and Peter Cichuniec injected him with an excessive ​dose of ketamine. He later died.

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The case inspired police reforms in Colorado, including a ban on chokeholds.

Cooper and Cichuniec were found guilty ​of criminally negligent homicide in 2023. The Colorado Court ​of Appeals reversed those convictions on Thursday, citing errors in the ‌jury ⁠instructions, but upheld Cichuniec’s separate conviction for second-degree felony assault.

Cooper was sentenced in 2024 to 14 months in a work-release program, and four years of probation.

Cichuniec was released early from prison ​in 2024 ​after a judge ⁠reduced his sentence to four years of probation.

Attorneys representing McClain’s mother and the two ​paramedics did not immediately respond to requests ​for ⁠comment.

A jury came to a split verdict for three officers in the case.

Randy Roedema was found guilty of criminally negligent homicide while Jason ⁠Rosenblatt was ​found not guilty on manslaughter ​and assault charges.

Another police officer, Nathan Woodyard, was found not guilty of manslaughter.

Reporting ​by Andrew Hay in New Mexico; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani

乌拉圭将对中国公民实行免签

2026年6月5日 07:12 / 联合早报

乌拉圭将对中国公民实行免签

南美国家乌拉圭宣布将对中国公民实行免签。图为中国外交部长王毅（右）5月28日在纽约与乌拉圭外长卢贝特金会面。 （新华社）

南美国家乌拉圭宣布将对中国公民实行免签。

据新华社报道，乌拉圭外交部长卢贝特金（Mario Lubetkin）星期四（6月4日）宣布，该国将对中国公民免签。

今年2月，乌拉圭总统奥尔西（Yamandu Orsi）对中国展开为期七天的国事访问。他也是去年12月初美国公布新版《国家安全战略报告》后，第一位访华的南美洲国家元首。

当时，中国国家主席习近平在北京与奥尔西举行会谈时说，当今国际形势变乱交织，单边霸凌愈演愈烈，中国愿与乌拉圭共同推进平等有序的世界多极化、普惠包容的经济全球化。北京并支持拉美和加勒比国家维护自身主权、安全、发展利益。

Why John Bolton is trending

2026-06-04T20:48:02.936Z / CNN Politics

Why John Bolton is trending

By Katelyn Polantz and Mounira Elsamra, CNN

Updated 5:06 PM EDT, Thu June 4, 2026

https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/04/politics/video/john-bolton-plea-deal-trending-cli-hrzn

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The former national security adviser during President Donald Trump’s first term is expected to plead guilty to mishandling sensitive national security information. CNN’s Katelyn Polantz explains what investigators found in Bolton’s home that led the Justice Department to file charges. Discover more videos, including live streams and exclusive storytelling, on our Watch page.

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Sen. Ron Wyden wants to know why Leon Black paid Epstein $170 million for tax planning over 5-year period

June 4, 2026 / 6:10 PM EDT / CBS News

By

Graham Kates Reporter
Graham Kates is an investigative reporter covering criminal justice, privacy issues and information security for CBS News Digital. Contact Graham at KatesG@cbsnews.com or grahamkates@protonmail.com

Read Full Bio

Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon is demanding that a House panel question billionaire Leon Black over the extraordinary sums he paid Jeffrey Epstein for tax advice when he testifies before the House Oversight Committee later this month.

In a letter Thursday to the committee’s chairman, GOP Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, and Democratic Ranking Member Rep. Robert Garcia, Wyden outlined the results of a four-year investigation into Black’s relationship with Epstein.

Wyden wrote in his letter that Black paid Epstein $170 million between 2012 and 2017 for tax and estate planning advice.

“To date, I do not believe Black has provided a credible explanation as to why he paid Epstein amounts that vastly exceeded those paid to other professional advisors involved in his tax and estate planning,” Wyden wrote.

Wyden’s letter notes that in 2013 and 2014, Black also paid a law firm $2 million for estate planning, a small fraction of what he paid Epstein during those years.

“Black’s attorneys from premier law firms demand rates exceeding $1,000 an hour, yet Epstein was paid exponentially more than a small army of high-priced lawyers from firms,” Wyden wrote.

Wyden had written to Black in March to demand answers to questions related to revelations from the so-called Epstein files about Black’s “significant personal and financial entanglements with Epstein.”

Adam Fridman, an attorney for Black, responded in April, writing to Wyden that, “those materials do not contain any credible evidence that Mr. Black was aware of, or involved with, Mr. Epstein’s then-ongoing criminal activities.”

Fridman also accused Wyden, the ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, of seeking information outside the committee’s jurisdiction.

“We see no discernable legitimate legislative purpose underpinning the March 20 Letter,” Fridman wrote. “Congressional investigations are not vehicles for public inquiries about an individual private citizen’s personal life.”

Still, Wyden said Black has “refused” to respond to questions about “outstanding irregularities” related to his payments to Epstein.

A spokesperson for Black declined to comment Thursday.

Susan Estrich, an attorney for Black, told CBS News in December that Black requested an internal investigation at Apollo of his relationship with Epstein. The law firm, Dechert LLP, “investigated and reviewed more than 60,000 documents and concluded that Mr. Black paid Epstein for estate planning and tax advice, no more, no less,” Estrich said.

Wyden also claimed that recently unsealed DOJ records “appear to indicate that Black may have funneled hush money payments to women using Jeffrey Epstein as a middleman,” and that Epstein “kept close tabs of women who Black had reached settlements/NDAs with and reached out to Russian government officials to help Black with these so-called problems.”

Wyden’s letter refers to an October 2017 email exchange in which a woman, described as an associate of Black’s, wrote to Epstein, “L mentioned he’s going to transfer me $100,000 but I’ve received $28,000.”

“The ‘L’ here seemingly refers to [Leon] Black,” Wyden wrote.

Wyden also flagged a $62 million legal settlement between Black and the government of the U.S. Virgin Islands “for all issues related to Jeffrey Epstein.”

“It is unclear what potential conduct this criminal immunity was intended to cover,” Wyden wrote.

美国总统特朗普的长子小特朗普星期四（6月4日）在瑞士苏黎世一场面向投资者的活动上说，他不会选择投资中国。图为小特朗普（左）与特朗普5月3日在白宫散步。 （法新社）

尽管美国总统特朗普政府正在推动改善美中经贸关系，他的长子小特朗普星期四（6月4日）在瑞士苏黎世一场面向投资者的活动上说，他不会选择投资中国。

据彭博社报道，小特朗普在活动上问及是否会投资中国时回答：“我不会。我认为我们不能假装中国是盟友，那样做是愚蠢的。”

与弟弟埃里克（Eric Trump）共同担任特朗普集团执行副总裁的小特朗普，在父亲重返白宫后积极推动多项海外投资与开发项目。他向现场投资者说，自己尤其担忧中国的法律体系，并认为这一体系对外国企业不利。

他说：“我想不出有哪个非中国企业在中国做生意时，曾赢得过一场诉讼。”

小特朗普发表上述言论之际，美国贸易代表办公室当天刚启动公众意见征询程序，准备落实特朗普与中国国家主席习近平上月在北京会晤期间提出的“贸易委员会”（Board of Trade）构想。

美国官员透露，双方正寻求确定各约300亿美元（385亿新元）的商品清单，确保相关贸易不涉及国家安全风险，并以此为基础降低部分商品关税。

特朗普去年初重返白宫后，美中一度陷入针锋相对的关税战。不过，双方随后达成协议，同意相互降低部分关税，美中贸易关系也因此出现缓和迹象。

Pentagon hires man who pleaded guilty in Jan. 6 riot for sensitive civilian job in special operations policy office

June 4, 2026 / 6:18 PM EDT / CBS News

A man who pleaded guilty to participating in the Jan. 6 riot as a 19-year-old — and later described the events of that day as a “disgrace” — works in a sensitive job in the Defense Department, a defense official confirmed to CBS News.

Elias Irizarry serves as a special assistant to Assistant Secretary of Defense Derrick Anderson, who leads the military’s Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict policy office, a division that oversees special operations and irregular warfare capabilities, the official said. As part of that role, Irizarry has a top-secret security clearance.

He has worked as an employee at the Defense Department since early last year.

Acting Pentagon press secretary Joel Valdez confirmed that Irizarry works for the department, writing on X: “Mr. Elias Irizarry is a qualified, patriotic young professional, and we are proud to have him as a political appointee at the Department of War.”

CBS News has reached out to Irizarry’s attorney for comment.

The Washington Post was first to report on Irizarry’s job at the Pentagon.

In early January 2021, federal prosecutors said Irizarry — then a student at the Citadel Military College of South Carolina — traveled to Washington with a friend and an internet acquaintance, attended President Trump’s “stop the steal” rally on Jan. 6 and marched to the Capitol.

An image of Elias Irizarry on Jan. 6, 2021, that appears in a Justice Department filing. U.S. Justice Department

He then climbed into the Capitol through a shattered window and spent 27 minutes inside the building, walking into a conference room and the Capitol rotunda while carrying a metal pole, prosecutors said. His lawyer said he entered the building to look for his acquaintance.

Irizarry pleaded guilty to one count of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds. He was sentenced to 14 days of incarceration. Mr. Trump pardoned him and almost everybody else linked to the Capitol riot on the first day of his second term last year.

During his 2023 sentencing hearing, Irizarry expressed strong remorse, apologizing to police officers who responded to the riot and telling a judge his actions “brought great shame upon myself, my family and even my country,” according to a hearing transcript. Irizarry said he recognized the events of Jan. 6 were wrong as soon as he left and watched videos of the violence.

“I am ashamed because I will always be a part of this disgrace,” he said, vowing to “work as hard as possible every day for the rest of my life to redeem myself.”

His federal public defender also wrote that Irizarry was “just different” from many of the other Capitol riot defendants he represented, describing him as a “bright young man” who was not an election denier or a conspiracy theorist, and whose “regret and remorse stands out.”

U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan described Irizarry’s sentencing as “one of the most difficult I have had of the January 6th cases,” citing his age and his “quite commendable” background. She also offered to write him a recommendation letter if he chose to reapply to the Citadel, which discharged him.

“Everybody makes mistakes; some are more serious than others, and yours was a big one,” Chutkan said during a sentencing hearing. “Life is like that, it takes us on strange journeys. You are at such an early stage in yours, you don’t know what road lies ahead for you. I suspect you are going to make something very remarkable of your life; I hope you do.”

FCC Chair says he has no plans to investigate CBS News for bias

7:12 PM EDT, Thu June 4, 2026 / CNN

https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/04/politics/video/fcc-carr-cbs-news-lead-jake-tapper

FCC Chair says he has no plans to investigate CBS News for bias

The Lead

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr joins The Lead.

1:48 • Source: CNN

Trump’s arch not subject to law limiting D.C. building height, planning chief argues

2026-06-04 4:30 p.m. EDT / The Washington Post

The federal requirement caps most construction in Washington to a maximum height of 130 feet,about half that of the president’s 250-foot project.

The U.S. Capitol seen behind D.C.’s waterfront in 2012. (Bill O’Leary/The Washington Post)

By Dan Diamond

The head of a federal commission reviewing President Donald Trump’s planned 250-foot triumphal arch said Thursday that he believed a federal law limiting the height of construction in Washington should not apply to the controversial project.

Correction officer testifies she was not the orange shape seen outside Jeffrey Epstein’s cell the night he died

June 4, 2026 / 7:24 PM EDT / CBS News

A former correction officer at the New York correctional facility where convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein died in 2019 testified before the House Oversight Committee last month that she was not the orange shape seen moving up the stairs of Epstein’s tier the night he died, furthering the mystery of what happened that night.

According to a transcript released Thursday, House Oversight Committee members questioned Tova Noel on May 18 about surveillance footage showing an unidentified orange-colored figure moving up a staircase at approximately 10:39 p.m. on Aug. 9, 2019, the night before Epstein was discovered dead in his cell in the Special Housing Unit of the Metropolitan Correctional Center in lower Manhattan. His death was ruled a suicide.

In her testimony, Noel steadfastly denied being the individual in the footage, and maintained that she was not present at that moment. She offered no explanation for what the shape could be.

“To be very honest, I don’t know what it is, who it is, because I never went back to the tier, and I was never carrying anything orange at all, and I never issued anything orange to anyone in the SHU — not just only Epstein, just anyone,” Noel said.

CBS News had previously been the first to report the presence of the shape, as well as the FBI and the Justice Department Inspector General’s failure to question her about it. The Inspector General’s report had noted that it was likely her, but provided no evidence. An FBI log of the surveillance video had noted that it was possibly an inmate. The presence of an inmate outside of a cell at that time would have been highly unusual.

This was also the last time someone was seen approaching Epstein’s cell tier the night of his death.

This image from the video — zoomed in and highlighted by CBS News – shows a partial view of something orange on the stairs leading to Jeffrey Epstein’s cell tier. U.S. Bureau of Prisons

Because of a hard drive failure, a majority of the cameras were streaming but not recording that night, and the only available view of the Special Housing Unit, and specifically of the L tier where he was held, was from a camera on the other side of the common area that showed a partial view of the stairs leading to his tier, according to a 2023 report from the Department of Justice’s Inspector General.

Noel acknowledged that she failed to properly conduct required inmate rounds and counts on the night before Jeffrey Epstein’s death, but denied any involvement in his death.

Noel, an Antigua-born immigrant and former National Guard member who served in Kuwait during Operation Enduring Freedom, testified that she had recently returned to work after a workplace injury and was working mandatory overtime during her first overnight shift in the Special Housing Unit.

Noel said she did not know who Epstein was when he was moved into the SHU, and was unaware of several special conditions associated with his confinement, including that he required a cellmate.

She also said she had not seen a posted notice requiring mandatory 30-minute rounds on Epstein. This notice had been printed on orange paper and attached to the computer monitor at her desk. She testified that she learned about Epstein’s prior alleged suicide attempt from his cellmate Nicholas Tartaglione the day after the incident occurred and had never seen a note reportedly connected to that incident.

This was in reference to the purported suicide note obtained by the New York Times last month. Tartaglione had been Epstein’s roommate when the alleged attempt occurred and has made claims to have saved his life that night.

Noel was asked about the 12 cash deposits beginning in April 2018 that had been previously identified by investigators. She said the money came from her personal savings and had no connection to Epstein or anyone associated with him. She repeatedly denied receiving money from Epstein or any affiliated individuals, but refused to disclose the source of the funds.

“Like, I deposited my money into my bank account,” she said. “And that’s from my personal savings plan. And no one has ever approached me about money or given me money in reference to Mr. Epstein at all, ever.”

Noel testified that she first spoke with Epstein on Aug. 9, 2019, and that she and a fellow correction officer delivered his dinner that evening, but she did not enter his cell. She stated that, despite failing to complete required rounds, she believed Epstein’s death would have occurred even if the checks had been properly conducted.

She also denied intentionally searching for information about Epstein on a prison computer, explaining that she clicked on a news article link that appeared on a homepage. Regarding the discovery of Epstein, Noel testified that she never entered the cell, did not see the body initially, and only observed Epstein’s feet while another correction officer, Michael Thomas, performed CPR. She said she first saw the body when it was removed on a stretcher.

She recalled inmates chanting, “Y’all in so much trouble,” after Epstein was found, and said she waited for others to respond.

When asked about an email released in Justice Department records alleging that she and Thomas were paid $6,500 to neglect their duties so that a man named Michael Rose could enter Epstein’s cell and kill him, Noel denied any knowledge of Rose and rejected the allegations. Throughout her testimony, she maintained that while procedural failures occurred, she had no role in any conspiracy related to Epstein’s death. There have been numerous conspiracy theories that Epstein was killed because of his connection to wealthy and powerful people.

In a statement, Noel’s attorney told CBS News Thursday that Noel “voluntarily appeared for an interview by the House Oversight Committee because she wanted to assist in providing clarity to the victims of Jeffrey Epstein, ensure that the Oversight Committee has all the facts known to her — not based on speculation or conspiracy theories — about the circumstances surrounding the death of Mr. Epstein, and bring closure to her involvement in this tragic situation.”

CBS News has reached out to the FBI and the Justice Department Inspector General for comment, but have not received a response.