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Trump posts new passport rendering — featuring a memorable photo of himself

2026-06-26 6:02 PM ET / CNN

By Donald Judd, Jennifer Hansler

Updated Jun 26, 2026, 6:25 PM ET

PUBLISHED Jun 26, 2026, 6:02 PM ET

This rendering of an American passport was posted to President Donald Trump’s Truth Social account on Friday, June 26, 2026. The post read, “The U.S.A.’s New Passport, which says, ‘Welcome, but be good!’ President DJT.”

Donald Trump/Truth Social

President Donald Trump unveiled a new rendering of a special commemorative US passport bearing his likeness Friday, debuting a limited-edition passport to mark America’s 250th anniversary this year.

“The U.S.A.’s New Passport, which says, ‘Welcome, but be good!’” Trump posted on Truth Social.

He included a sample passport page featuring an image of him looming over the Resolute Desk, the text of the original Declaration of Independence in the background and his signature on the bottom. The opposite page has an image of the “The Declaration of Independence” painting by John Trumbull.

The new passport appears to feature a rendering of Trump based off of the president’s portrait from the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery in Washington, and differs from renderings released by the State Department earlier this year, which featured a different image of the president.

This previous rendering shows a US passport with a different image of President Donald Trump on the inside.

US State Department

The White House X account later on Friday posted an image featuring the same rendering from the Truth Social post, captioned “New U.S. Passport to Commemorate America’s 250th.”

The White House directed questions to the State Department when asked if the latest image was the official rendering of the commemorative passports. CNN has reached out to the State Department for comment.

The new limited-edition travel document was first announced in April as part of the nation’s 250th anniversary celebration. It was billed as “a limited-edition U.S. passport to commemorate the historic occasion of America’s 250th anniversary,” featuring “custom artwork and enhanced images on the front, back, and inside covers.”

Speaking to CNN at the time, an official said that the passport “will be the default passport out of the Washington Passport Agency when available” for those who renew their passports in person at that location.

“Online options or other locations will maintain existing passport design,” the official said.

Currently, the inside front cover of US passports shows an image of Percy Moran’s painting of Francis Scott Key the morning after the bombardment of Fort McHenry — the battle that inspired Key to write what would become the US national anthem. Lines from the anthem are also printed inside the front cover.

This story has been updated with additional developments.

U.S. strikes targets in Iran after Iranian drone attack on cargo ship, posing challenge to ceasefire

June 26, 2026 / 6:19 PM EDT / CBS News

Washington— The U.S. military says it hit Iranian targets on Friday over Iran’s drone attack on a commercial vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, marking the first American strikes on Iran since the two countries agreed to extend an already rickety ceasefire last week.

The strikes targeted Iranian missile and drone storage facilities and radar sites, U.S. Central Command said in a statement posted to social media, calling it a “powerful response” to Iran’s “dangerous behavior.”

“The unwarranted aggression against commercial shipping by Iranian forces clearly violated the ceasefire,” CENTCOM said.

A U.S. official told CBS News that American aircraft hit multiple targets along the Strait of Hormuz and on Iran’s Qeshm Island. The strikes are now over, the official said.

One day earlier, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps struck a Singapore-flagged cargo ship, a U.S. official confirmed to CBS News on Thursday. The ship’s bridge was damaged, but no casualties or environmental impact were reported, according to the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations Centre, which said the vessel was off the coast of Oman.

President Trump called the attack a “foolish violation” of the U.S.-Iran ceasefire, which was extended for 60 days in a memorandum of understanding between the two countries last week. Asked by reporters Friday if Iran would face any consequences, Mr. Trump responded: “You’ll find out.”

The Iranian drone attack — and the U.S. response — could mark a setback to the Trump administration’s efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which was closed to most shipping traffic for months. Shortly after the vessel was struck, the United Nations’ International Maritime Organization paused an effort to evacuate hundreds of ships and thousands of mariners who were stranded in the Persian Gulf. The organization said the ship “did not transit under IMO’s evacuation framework.”

The U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding says Iran must arrange for safe, toll-free passage through the Strait of Hormuz “using its best efforts” for 60 days. In the week after Mr. Trump signed the deal, the number of ships that sailed through the strait every day surged, while oil prices plummeted to near pre-war levels.

Still, disagreements over the strait have lingered. The U.S. favors a route through the southern portion of the Strait of Hormuz, hugging the coastline of Oman, while Iran has said ships still need to seek its permission and use a northern route closer to the Iranian coast. Iran also hasn’t ruled out collecting tolls on commercial ships after the 60-day period ends, an idea the U.S. and its allies in the region have called unacceptable.

Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority said Thursday: “Any passage through routes outside the framework designated by PGSA will not be covered by safe passage guarantees and will not be entitled to insurance coverage or related liabilities.”

It’s also not clear what impact the renewed U.S. strikes on Iran will have on talks between the two countries, which are set to negotiate over Iran’s nuclear program for the next two months. The two sides first struck a ceasefire in early April, and while that arrangement was repeatedly tested by tit-for-tat strikes, U.S. forces did not reopen the large-scale bombing campaign against Iran that ran for more than a month.

Vice President JD Vance, who is helping lead talks with Iran, wrote on social media Friday: “Iran signed a ceasefire agreement. We have honored it. If they have disagreements about how the memorandum of understanding is being applied, they can pick up the phone. But violence will be met with violence.”

以黎美达成框架协议 鲁比奥：为解除真主党武装制定路线图

2026年6月27日 07:28 / 联合早报

三方框架协议由以色列和黎巴嫩驻美大使以及美国国务院官员霍勒（中）共同签署。美国务卿鲁比奥（后排中）出席了在华盛顿举行的签字仪式。 （法新社）

黎巴嫩、以色列和美国星期五（6月26日）签署一项三方框架协议，旨在为长期交恶的黎巴嫩和以色列达成和平协议铺路。

综合法新社和新华社报道，三方框架协议由黎巴嫩和以色列驻美大使以及美国国务院官员霍勒共同签署。

美国务卿鲁比奥在华盛顿举行的签字仪式上说，这项协议将“为持久和平与安全奠定框架”，“这只是一个开始，未来还有大量工作要做。”

美国官员说，框架协议包括一项试点计划，由黎巴嫩军队将接管以色列占领的两个地区，并启动解除黎巴嫩真主党武装的进程。

鲁比奥当天发表声明说，框架协议确立的进程旨在恢复黎巴嫩主权、解除真主党武装，同时确保以色列在威胁消除后撤回至边界。

根据协议，成立由美方推动的“三方军事协调小组”，协助黎以双方落实框架。美国战争部将向黎武装部队提供超过3000万美元（约3900万新元）资金，支持黎巴嫩实现持久和平。此外，美国还将与联合国协调，提供1亿美元的人道主义援助。

据以色列多家媒体星期四（26日）报道，根据框架协议，以军将从黎南部约6英里（约9.7公里）纵深的“安全区”内两个区域撤出，撤离后由黎巴嫩军队接管。

以色列总理内坦亚胡当天在视频讲话中称，以黎双方同意在两处区域启动“试点项目”，拆除黎巴嫩真主党基础设施，并将相关地区控制权移交黎政府军队。

两处区域均由以军提出，其中一个区域位于利塔尼河以南，在原有“安全区”之外；另一个位于利塔尼河以北，为以军过去两周扩大的“安全区”内一小块区域，以军认为该区域已无须继续驻军。

黎巴嫩驻华盛顿大使穆阿瓦德说，框架协议“是恢复黎巴嫩主权和领土完整、确保永久和最终停止敌对行动、让我们的人民能够返回家园的第一步”。

House Democrat lashes out when grilled on whether socialist victories would threaten Dem unity

2026-06-26 5:01pm EDT / Fox News

Rep John Larson, D-Conn., expressed confidence Jeffries can manage ideological tension inside the caucus

By Alec Schemmel, Chad Pergram, Fox News

Published June 26, 2026 5:01pm EDT | Updated June 26, 2026 5:58pm EDT

WATCH: House Dem clashes with Fox reporter over socialist candidates’ threat to Jeffries speakership

Rep. John Larson, D-Conn., got into a heated exchange with Fox News’ Chad Pergram over whether the DSA-affiliated candidates who won in New York City’s primaries could create headaches for House Democrats and a possible Speaker Hakeem Jeffries.

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Rep. John Larson, D-Conn., clashed with Fox News chief congressional correspondent Chad Pergram on Capitol Hill while being pressed on whether Democratic Socialists of America-backed candidates who won New York primaries this week could threaten Democratic unity and complicate House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries’ path to the speakership.

The exchange came after several socialist candidates won Democratic nominations in New York City this week, fueling questions about whether the party’s left flank could complicate Democrats’ messaging and create new headaches for Jeffries if Democrats win back control of the House.

Larson defended New York voters’ right to choose their nominees and repeatedly expressed confidence that Jeffries, D-N.Y., could manage any new ideological tension inside the House Democratic Caucus, while also saying he opposes antisemitism and agreeing that some DSA positions are not very American.

“Isn’t it going to create hassles here on Capitol Hill? For Jeffries?” Larson was asked.

SOCIALISTS CHEER ‘SHOCKWAVE’ PRIMARY NIGHT AS DSA-BACKED CANDIDATES WIN, ADVANCE ACROSS THE MAP

WASHINGTON – DECEMBER 5: Rep. John Larson, D-Conn., arrives for the House Ways and Means Committee “Hearing with the IRS Whistleblowers: Hunter Biden Investigation Obstruction in Their Own Words” in the Longworth House Office Building on Tuesday, December 5, 2023.(Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

“ The voters of New York make up their own mind. We don’t control voters of New York. In America, in a free Democratic-Republic, people get to choose their elective representatives,” Larson shot back. “The people of New York have made a decision. The people in Wyoming make decisions too, the people in other states make decisions. That’s the way democracy works.”

Pressed on whether DSA-affiliated candidates coming to Capitol Hill would create division and dissension inside the House Democratic Caucus, Larson said Jeffries will “bring everybody together,” arguing he has been able to adequately handle numerous challenges thus far and will do so again with anymore that come his way.

“Hakeem Jeffries is the greatest leader that we can have, because he will bring everybody together, as he has with the 11 separate, different caucuses and more in the Democratic caucus already,” Larson responded.

Larson was then pressed on whether the DSA-backed candidates could present a new kind of challenge for Jeffries, particularly as he tries to become Speaker.

DNC CHAIR DOWNPLAYS SOCIALIST–MODERATE RIFT AS MAMDANI’S RISE HAS SOME DEMS RATTLED

“There was some argument out there that, you know, if this was Nancy Pelosi some years ago at the height of her powers, she’d be able to finesse this — he’s never been Speaker,” Pergram posited to Larson.

“Well, she wasn’t Speaker for a long time either, but she became Speaker and she did an outstanding job. Jeffries is going to be an outstanding Speaker because of his ability to bring people together,” Larson said back.

“Is there any backlash in the caucus about — and again, these are folks from New York, [Jeffries] is from New York, right? Schumer’s from New York — that this could undercut some of them. If others in the party think that these folks are going to drag them too far to the left?” Pergram continued to press.

HAKEEM JEFFRIES CONFRONTED ON ‘YOU’RE NEXT’ CHANTS FOLLOWING NY DEMOCRATIC SOCIALIST VICTORIES

Rep. John Larson-D, Conn, and House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi, greet fans as they walk to their seats at RFK stadium during the annual congressional baseball game one year in D.C.(Philip Scott Andrews/Roll Call/Getty Images)

“Hakeem Jeffries will be the Speaker of the House, plain and simple,” Larson shot back. “And why? Because he’s demonstrated his leadership and he’s held the most diverse caucus ever assembled in the history of the world together.And that’s what he’s great at, and that’s what it’ll continue to do.”

Larson was also pressed on whether Democrats would distance themselves from candidates or groups accused of holding antisemitic views.

“Will you stand by people if they have antisemitic views?” Pergram asked.

“The people in New York chose the candidates they did,” Larson replied.

When pressed again, Larson said, “Am I against antisemitism? If that’s your question,” making clear he opposed antisemitism while continuing to argue that voters had the right to choose their nominees.

DEMOCRATIC LAWMAKER SLAMS MAMDANI, SAYS PARTY SHOULD HAVE ‘ZERO PATIENCE’ FOR ‘INTIFADA’ RHETORIC

Congressional candidate Claire Valdez, Congressional candidate Brad Lander, Mayor Zohran Mamdani, and Congressional candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier raise their hands during a Get Out the Vote (GOTV) rally at King’s Theater on June 18, 2026 in New York City.(Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

The exchange continued as Larson was grilled on the DSA statement that he said called for eliminating the Senate and having the House choose the president and the Supreme Court.

“That’s the DSA,” Larson said. “The people of New York decide who their elected officials are. The people of Connecticut decide who their elected officials are.”

Asked whether that sounded radical, Larson said, “A lot of people sound radical to me. Radical on the left. Radical on the right. What’s your point?”

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“Should you stand out and argue against saying, ‘Hey, we shouldn’t have people, you know, throw out the Senate. Eliminate the Senate? That’s not very American,” Pergram proposed back.

“I don’t think that’s very American either,” Larson said before he disengaged and took questions from another reporter.

Alec Schemmel is a Politics Reporter for Fox News Digital who is originally from Charlotte, North Carolina but now resides in the Washington D.C.-Baltimore Metro Area.

Trump ramps up attacks on Democrats as ‘godless Communists’ ahead of November’s midterms

2026-06-26T22:35:54.500Z / https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/26/politics/trump-communists-democrats-attack

President Donald Trump on Friday seized on the electoral success of several democratic socialist candidates to ramp up his attacks on the Democratic Party, claiming it was being taken over by “godless Communists” who pose an existential threat to the nation.

The heated rhetoric marked the latest bid by Trump to portray Democrats as political extremists ahead of November’s midterms — even though portrayals of even the party’s most liberal candidates as “communists” are far from reality.

“These are hard core, godless Communists,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post earlier on Friday, an accusation he repeated during remarks to a gathering of social conservatives. “This is the Greatest Threat to our Country since its Founding 250 years ago!”

The president’s stepped up bid to label Democrats as communists follows New York’s Democratic primary earlier this week, which saw voters in three deep blue districts select self-identified democratic socialists as their candidates for Congress.

Those primary wins came on the heels of New York’s election of another democratic socialist, Zohran Mamdani, for mayor. Democrats could send still more to Congress by the time November’s races are set, with hopefuls on the ballot in several states across the country.

It’s a movement that appears set to push the Democratic Party further to the left. Yet the tenets of socialism — much less democratic socialism — are still far removed from the communist ideology that Trump has loudly, and inaccurately, portrayed as a rising threat.

The democratic socialists rising within the Democratic Party are advocating for major policy changes within the US’ already established capitalist system, chiefly through a significant bolstering of the social safety net. That includes directing greater public funding toward guaranteeing health care for all citizens, providing far more in housing assistance and relying on the government to a much greater degree to lift peoples’ quality of life.

The main tradeoff for those benefits is higher taxes, especially on the wealthy, which democratic socialists contend is necessary to ensure a more balanced and equal society.

That’s a view that has raised the ire of Republicans, and even factions within the Democratic Party, who are opposed to such change — or believe that it’s more prudent to make change incrementally.

Yet even that aggressive platform is far from what would typically be defined as communism, which envisions a government-less, class-less society where resources are distributed evenly no matter how hard or well any individuals work. Implementing such an ideology would first require effectively dismantling capitalism — a step that no leading Democrats see as preferable or feasible.

Those clear differences between democratic socialism and communism aren’t likely to deter Trump, whose party faces an uphill battle in retaining full control of Congress. On Friday, speaking at the Faith & Freedom Coalition’s 2026 Policy Conference, he warned that Democrats’ “communist” policies would lead to societal collapse — and possibly even violence.

“I’m sorry to say, but assassination is a big deal for them,” he said, speaking at the same Washington, DC, hotel where earlier this year a gunman who authorities say was attempting to kill him was subdued. “They’re animals in many cases.”

The president also cast the struggle against communism in religious terms, referencing violence against Christians in Nigeria and warning of dire consequences domestically.

“They will close your churches in this country. They go communist, and they’re trying to. They will kill your people, and that’s what they’re about. They want to end religion,” he said.

It was a sharp contrast compared to his evaluation just days earlier of the leader of an actual communist country: China’s Xi Jinping.

“He’s a very smart man,” Trump told Axios in an interview published last week. “You don’t get to those levels where you are running a country, even if it was a small country, you have something special.”

Trump tries out midterms message that focuses on ‘communists’

June 26, 2026 at 4:34 p.m. EDT / The Washington Post

The president, responding to democratic socialist victories in New York, used similar language throughout the 2024 campaign.

President Donald Trump speaks during a Faith & Freedom Coalition conference Friday in Washington. (Tyler M. Andrews/The Washington Post)

By Isaac Arnsdorf and Natalie Allison

President Donald Trump denounced Democrats as communists after self-described democratic socialists won primaries in New York this week, previewing a new emphasis for his campaigning in this year’s midterms.

伊朗革命卫队称打击区内美军据点 回应美军新一轮袭击

2026年6月27日 07:51 / 联合早报

一艘悬挂新加坡国旗的集装箱船6月24日穿越霍尔木兹海峡时遭到袭击，美军26日袭击伊朗目标作为回应。 （路透社示意图）

伊朗伊斯兰革命卫队星期六（6月27日）说，打击区内美军军事据点，以回应美国对伊朗发起的新一轮袭击。

路透社报道，伊朗革命卫队并没有透露打击目标的具体细节。

伊朗半官方媒体“学生通讯社”（ISNA）早前刊登一份据称来自革命卫队的声明，称伊朗革命卫队对美国的还击将“迅速且果断”，但这则声明随后被删除。

美国总统特朗普26日指责伊朗袭击穿越霍尔木兹海峡的货船，违反了停火协议，美军随后对伊朗发动空袭。

美国中央司令部说，美军26日对伊朗发动袭击，以回应前一天伊朗袭击一艘穿越霍尔木兹海峡的商船。美军袭击目标是伊朗的导弹和无人机储存设施以及沿海雷达站。目前尚不清楚此次袭击造成的损失程度。

一艘悬挂新加坡国旗的集装箱船长丽轮（Ever Lovely）24日在阿曼湾遭到袭击，这似乎是自德黑兰与华盛顿上周签署初步和平协议以来，已知的第一起伊朗针对商船的袭击。联合国国际海事组织（IMO）随后宣布暂停在霍尔木兹海峡疏散滞留船舶的行动。长丽轮为台湾长荣海运公司旗下集装箱船。

Pete Buttigieg says he was separated from his children after false report was phoned in

June 26, 2026 / 5:43 PM EDT / CBS News

Former presidential candidate and Biden-era Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said Friday his family was targeted by a false report to Child Protective Services that led to 24 hours of confusion and separation from his 4-year-old twins overnight.

Michigan State Police said in a statement that the police and Child Protective Services “determined the report was false,” and condemned false reports to law enforcement. Buttigieg lamented the psychological stress to him, his husband, Chasten, and their twins. Swatting attempts — false calls intended to sic law enforcement on a target’s home — have become increasingly common for political and public figures.

Several days ago, Buttigieg said Friday in a post on Substack, a team from Child Protective Services showed up to his house and said an allegation had been leveled against him concerning the twins, whom the couple adopted in 2021.

“I was bewildered and troubled, but tried to stay calm,” Buttigieg wrote. “I’m used to any number of falsehoods, attacks, and serious problems being thrown my way. What I didn’t understand was what could have led to this kind of visit. Then, the CPS worker told me something that made my stomach turn: I was not to be alone around the children, at least until the interview took place the next day. They asked if I had relatives nearby or could perhaps stay at a hotel for the night.”

Buttigieg said he and his husband, Chasten, were left in the dark about the allegations as they agreed to send the children to their grandparents’ home overnight.

“The 24 hours until they returned are among the darkest hours of my life. I tried to get my head around the idea that I had been accused of something so serious that I couldn’t be alone around my own children, and had consented to have them interviewed by strangers, without my knowing where the accusation had come from or even what it contained,” he wrote.

After local authorities probed the situation and spoke to the twins, an officer explained what the allegation was during Buttigieg’s formal interview.

“An anonymous caller had contacted CPS,” Buttigieg said. “The caller said that he had spoken to a woman who claimed to have met me at a conference several years ago in Alabama, where she said I told her that I had committed unspeakable violent crimes, and the caller believed my children were still at risk. That was all.”

Buttigieg — who called the authorities who visited his home “courteous and professional” — said he told the police officer he had never been to the town where the accuser claimed to have met him.

“Then the officer made clear that he believed this was politically motivated, and said it would not be referred to a prosecutor. Nothing in the forensic interview with the children, which was conducted by trained personnel, had led to concerns,” the former presidential candidate continued. “After the officer spoke, the CPS worker likewise indicated she had not found anything to substantiate the allegation, though her process would take a bit longer to be formally completed.”

In a statement to CBS News, the Michigan State Police said it received an “anonymous report” this week, and the law enforcement agency and Child Protective Services “responded and determined the report was false.”

“False reports are dangerous and divert law enforcement officers and Child Protective Services workers from responding to legitimate emergencies and protecting vulnerable children and families,” the Michigan State Police added.

Buttigieg lamented the motivation behind the false report, adding it’s “not lost on me that this happened soon after we shared photos of our family on social media for Father’s Day,” and during pride month.

“I am a reasonable man,” Buttigieg wrote. “I try to keep as calm and low-key as possible. But I cannot describe the mix of rage and sadness that I feel at the idea that someone brought our children into this. They are four years old. Four. They do not know or care what a Democrat or a Republican is. They don’t know how politics works. They don’t know about hate.”

Trump says he will repair National Mall reflecting pool after July 4

June 26, 2026 7:16 PM UTC / Reuters

By Steve Holland

June 26, 2026 7:16 PM UTC Updated 13 mins ago

Construction continues at Reflecting Pool near the Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall in Washington D.C., U.S., June 25, 2026. REUTERS/Nathan Howard Purchase Licensing Rights

WASHINGTON, June 26 (Reuters) – President Donald Trump said on Friday he ​would repair the National Mall reflecting ‌pool after July 4, as the landmark remains under heightened security and surveillance amid ongoing ​controversy over its renovation and emerging ​maintenance problems.

The reflecting pool, located between ⁠the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington ​Monument, was the subject of a roughly $14 ​million Trump-directed renovation that aimed to restore and recolor the basin ahead of the nation’s 250th ​anniversary, but has since drawn scrutiny ​after reports of algae growth, peeling surface material and ‌visible ⁠deterioration just weeks after completion.

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Trump has blamed dark-of-night saboteurs for the issues with the project. While no evidence has ​emerged to ​support ⁠Trump’s claim that a vandal cut a 350-foot (107-meter) gash in the ​pool, a National Park Service ​official said ⁠in a sworn court statement late on Wednesday that on June 9, U.S. Park ⁠Police ​examined apparent intentional damage ​to the pool.

Reporting By Steve Holland and Jarrett Renshaw; ​editing by Michelle Nichols and Sanjev Miglani

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Federal arson case in Los Angeles’ deadly Palisades fire ends in mistrial

2026-06-26 / Reuters

LOS ANGELES, June 26 (Reuters) – A federal judge declared a mistrial on Friday in the arson case ​brought against the man accused of deliberately setting a blaze that grew into one of the deadliest, most destructive wildfires ever in Los Angeles, but prosecutors vowed to retry the suspect.

All three felony counts leveled against ‌Jonathan Rinderknecht, 30, were dismissed after jurors said they were hopelessly deadlocked 10-2 in favor of acquittal, and unable to reach a unanimous verdict on any of the charges.

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The U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California, Bill Essayli, swiftly announced his office would seek to renew its case against Rinderknecht, a former Uber driver of dual U.S.-French citizenship who once lived in the fire zone.

“The evidence is strong that Jonathan Rinderknecht is responsible for igniting the fire on January 1, 2025, which eventually became the Palisades fire. We fully intend to retry this case before a new jury and obtain ​guilty verdicts on all charged counts,” Essayli said in a statement posted on X.

Rinderknecht has been jailed since his arrest in Florida in October 2025, and U.S. District Judge Anne Hwang ordered him to remain in custody ​pending a mid-July status conference in the case. A re-trial date was tentatively set for October 19.

Defense lawyer Steve Haney told reporters outside the downtown LA courthouse that his ⁠client was innocent and would win an even more favorable result in a second trial.

“Ten to two (for not guilty) is an overwhelming message from the jury that the government failed and did not have enough evidence to prove their case,” Haney ​said, ruling out the possibility of a plea agreement to settle the case.

“Absolutely no deal. They’re not going to offer one. We’re not going to have any conversations. He didn’t do it,” Haney said.

TRIAL FEATURED COMPETING NARRATIVES

The mistrial capped a high-profile, three-week trial ​in which prosecutors branded Rinderknecht a malcontent loner who channeled the rage he felt toward the rich and society at large into an act of arson.

The defense countered by suggesting Rinderknecht was made a scapegoat for the failings of the fire department. Defense attorneys disputed the official origin story of a conflagration that killed 12 people and laid waste to the upscale seaside enclave of Pacific Palisades.

He had pleaded not guilty to all charges in October’s three-count indictment: destruction of property by means of fire, arson affecting property used in interstate commerce, and burning timber on public land.

Rinderknecht ​declined to testify in his own defense during the trial. He would face a penalty of up to 45 years in prison if found guilty as charged.

Jurors informed the judge in a note on Thursday that they were stalemated after 13 hours of deliberations, the ​Los Angeles City News Service and other local news media reported.

The judge sent the jurors home for the night, then declared a mistrial on Friday morning after jurors insisted again that they were deadlocked.

FIRE RANKED AMONG CALIFORNIA’S DEADLIEST

Rinderknecht was accused of starting a brush fire that ‌was suppressed relatively ⁠quickly but kept smoldering underground beneath dense scrub before re-igniting six days later, on January 7. Fierce winds whipped the blaze into the devastating Palisades fire.

Nearly 7,000 homes and other structures went up in flames, with property losses estimated at $150 billion.

The disaster coincided with another catastrophic wind-driven wildfire, apparently sparked by a downed power line, which erupted on January 7 in Eaton Canyon about 30 miles inland, killing 19 people and ravaging the suburban Los Angeles community of Altadena.

Rinderknecht was the only person criminally charged in connection with either of the two blazes, which together rank as the deadliest wildfire calamity in Los Angeles County history, surpassing the 29 lives lost in the Griffith Park fire of 1933.

DEFENSE POINTED TO FIREWORKS

Haney, the defense lawyer, sought to convince jurors that the hilltop New Year’s ​Day blaze near a trail at the edge of Santa ​Monica Mountains National Recreation Area was triggered by holiday ⁠fireworks, not Rinderknecht. Haney also argued that the massive Palisades fire was a separate arson fire perpetrated by someone other than his client.

The prosecution case had hinged on arson investigators’ official determination that the Palisades catastrophe sprang from a “holdover fire” — a blaze that keeps burning at low intensity below the soil line after it is presumed extinguished.

In this case, prosecutors said, the fire ​originally set by Rinderknecht continued smoldering in a thicket of roots beneath the surface, undetected for nearly a week, before hurricane-force Santa Ana winds fanned the flames back above ​ground.

Security camera footage and geolocation data ⁠from Rinderknecht’s own cellphone established he was the only person in the vicinity of the fire when it erupted shortly after midnight on New Year’s Day, according to prosecutors.

‘SOCIETAL REVENGE’

Rinderknecht told investigators under questioning prior to his arrest that he was walking alone in the area at the time the fire began and may have smoked a cigarette or two in a nearby clearing, but he denied setting any fire, according to trial testimony cited by CNS.

In terms of motive, prosecutors cast Rinderknecht as a malcontent resentful of the ⁠wealthy and driven ​to channel his quest for “societal revenge” and anger over failed relationships and financial struggles into an act of arson.

Jurors listened to a recording from ​portions of a rambling interview Rinderknecht gave to arson investigators in which he blamed corporate executives for an “unbalanced” system, telling the agents, “this is what I disrupted.”

Testimony also pointed to a fixation with fire, including images in a French-language rap music video that prosecutors said Rinderknecht repeatedly watched depicting the singer setting things ​ablaze, and footage Rinderknecht took with his cellphone of the New Year’s fire while it was burning.

Reporting by Matt Silverstein in Los Angeles; Writing and additional reporting by Steve Gorman in Portland, Oregon; Editing by Kevin Buckland, Matthew Lewis and David Gregorio