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President Trump announced Friday that three major outlets — CNN, MS NOW and Politico — are banned from White House access starting Saturday, citing what he called years of "FICTION and LIES." He hinted more outlets could follow. Politico vowed to "vigorously defend our First Amendment rights," and prior bans of this kind have drawn court injunctions.
The White House announced that every state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico, will now get the administration's "most favored nation" negotiated drug prices through the new GENEROUS Model. CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz said the terms were so favorable that even Democrat-run states signed. Trump claims states will save "tens of billions."
The Federal Reserve voted unanimously to raise its target range a quarter point to 3.75–4.00 percent — the first increase under new Chairman Kevin Warsh and the first hike in three years. Officials now see PCE inflation around 3.7 percent at year's end, with unemployment holding near 4.1 percent. Most Fed officials signal another hike before December, over Trump's objections.
The White House announced Thursday that the six-figure fee on new H-1B worker visas — set to lapse this month — will stay in place another full year. Officials said the restrictions "have proven to be highly effective" but the underlying conditions persist. Legal challenges over the fee's legality are still working through the courts.
Trump announced a sweeping framework with Denmark and Greenland granting the US permanent basing, access and overflight rights across the Arctic island — an arrangement he called an "Infinite Life" agreement. The deal bars China, Russia and other non-NATO states from bases, troops or sensitive investments there without written approval. Denmark's prime minister stressed that sovereignty remains non-negotiable; formal signing is expected at the UN next week.
Ambassador Mike Waltz said Trump will put the Iranian nuclear threat at the center of his UN General Assembly speech, alongside the administration's 20-point Gaza plan. Trump predicted gas prices will drop once Operation Epic Fury wraps. Meanwhile China's Wang Yi offered Beijing as a "constructive" bridge to Tehran, and the UN Security Council warned Houthi attacks risk widening the conflict.
Vladimir Putin spoke by phone with Nicolás Maduro on Thursday, pledging Moscow's continued support "in the face of growing external pressure." The call landed amid a growing US military buildup in the Caribbean as Washington pushes for Maduro's removal. Analysts read the two-front posture as leverage on Moscow over Ukraine as well.
Researchers in Bolivia confirmed Leopardus tilcayo — the Tilcayo tiger cat — as a new species after biologist Paula Nogales-Ascarrunz noticed its spot pattern and tail didn't match any known cat, and genetic testing backed her up. The animal weighs about three pounds and runs roughly 18 inches long, smaller than a housecat. A local man had been feeding one rice, eggs and noodles, believing it was a stray kitten, before handing it to a sanctuary.
A phase I trial at Cedars-Sinai, published in Nature Cancer, added L-glutamine to standard chemotherapy for 16 patients with advanced pancreatic cancer — and they lived nearly twice as long as expected. The disease typically kills within a year. It's a very small study, so it needs far larger trials before anyone changes treatment.
Baseball Hall of Famer Ichiro Suzuki, now 52, pitched in Japan's annual women's baseball all-star exhibition against a lineup of high school players — and handled them with the ease you'd expect. The event is a yearly showcase Ichiro has thrown himself into since retiring. Turns out three thousand career hits buys you a pretty good arm well into your fifties.
