Blanche Defends $1.776B Fund Amid Congressional Scrutiny

 

WASHINGTON — Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche testified before a Senate appropriations subcommittee Tuesday defending a plan announced Monday to create a $1.776 billion Anti-Weaponization Fund intended to compensate people who say they were politically targeted; Blanche, who assumed control of the Justice Department weeks earlier, answered lawmakers' questions about...

United States: Google, Blackstone form $25 billion AI venture

 

United States – Google and Blackstone Inc. have formed a joint artificial intelligence cloud business to expand large-scale computing capacity for generative AI workloads, the companies announced this week. Blackstone will contribute an initial $5 billion in equity and hold a majority stake in the new entity, with leverage lifting...

Washington halts planned Iran strike after Gulf appeals

 

Former U.S. President Donald Trump said he canceled a large-scale military strike on Iran that had been scheduled for Tuesday, May 19, after leaders from Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates asked him to delay the operation for several days. Trump disclosed the previously unknown plan in a...

France: Jacob Elordi cancels Cannes jury appearance

 

FRANCE — Australian actor Jacob Elordi has withdrawn from his position as an official juror at the 79th Cannes Film Festival, with representatives informing organizers that a sudden foot injury prevented him from traveling to the Côte d’Azur. The Euphoria star had been officially confirmed earlier in the year to...

Spain court orders Shakira $64 million tax refund

 

Spain’s National High Court has ordered the Spanish Tax Agency to refund Colombian singer Shakira about $64 million (€60 million) after ruling that authorities failed to prove she was a Spanish tax resident in 2011. The court found that Shakira spent 163 days in Spain that year, below the 183-day...

New York districts decide school budgets across towns

 

New York voters and school boards decided multiple district budgets this week, with voting and board actions occurring across the state. On Tuesday, Binghamton voters provisionally approved their school budget, Prattsburgh’s proposed budget failed to reach the required supermajority, and on Wednesday night Buffalo’s school board unanimously passed its 2026-27...

Mid-Atlantic Heat Wave Peaks Tuesday; Storms Follow Wednesday

 

Washington, D.C. region recorded a peak heat advisory Tuesday as local meteorologists forecast highs in the low to upper 90s and potential record readings near 96–97°F in parts of the D.C.-Richmond corridor; forecasters warned of hot overnight lows and breezy southwest winds through midweek, with limited humidity but elevated heat...

Missouri High School Baseball District Playoffs Produce Winners

 

Sedalia — The Tipton Cardinals beat Sedalia Sacred Heart 2-1 at Liberty Park on Monday to win the Class 2 District 13 title, and Eli Higgins pitched a complete-game three-hitter. In New Bloomfield on Wednesday, the Eugene Eagles defeated Russellville 7-2 to claim the Class 2 District 8 championship; both...

Teenagers Attack San Diego Mosque, Three People Killed

 

San Diego. On May 18, two teenagers entered the Islamic Center of San Diego and opened fire during late-morning activities, killing three people and prompting children and staff to shelter in classrooms; a nine-year-old survivor described dozens of shots and said officers later led occupants out after the assault ended. Local...

Weather Disrupts Missouri Boys Golf State Championships

 

Columbia and Springfield reported on Monday that multiple Missouri boys golf state championship events were affected by weather and opening-round play. In Columbia, Class 4 and Class 5 tournaments were postponed Monday and shortened to 18 holes for the next playable day, while in Springfield and Farmington Class 1 and...