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Apr 8, 2026 - World

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt pushed back after a reporter wondered how the U.S. could claim the moral high ground after President Donald Trump threatened to eliminate Iran's entire civilization."So, regarding the President's rhetoric, when the U.S. invaded Iraq in 2003, George W. Bush said in a message to the Iraqi people that the military campaign was directed, quote, against the lawless men who rule your country and not against you," the reporter noted during Wednesday's White House press briefing. "Yesterday, the President threatened to destroy Iran's civilization, the entire civilization, not the Iranian government, but the Iranian civilization, the Iranian people.""The U.S. has been a moral leader for most of its history by fighting wars against other governments, not against civilizations," he continued. "How can the president claim that America can ever have the moral high ground if he's threatening to destroy civilizations and not casting wars as fights against other governments?""I think you should take a look at the actions of this president," Leavitt replied without addressing Trump's threat. "A rogue Islamic regime that has chanted death to America for 47 years, that has killed and maimed thousands of American soldiers over the course of the last five decades.""The president absolutely has the moral high ground over the Iranian terrorist regime," she added. "And for you to even suggest otherwise is frankly insulting."With that, Leavitt cut the reporter off and moved on to the next question.

Apr 8, 2026 - World

Conservative podcaster Megyn Kelly blasted President Donald Trump for threatening to end Iran's civilization despite saying she would vote for Republicans even if he dropped a nuclear bomb."I am sick of this," Kelly said a day after Trump threatened Iran's civilian population. "Can he just behave like a normal human? I mean, honestly, like the president, 3D chess! Just shut up... shut up about that... You don't threaten to wipe out an entire civilization. We're talking about civilians just casually in a social media post."Kelly said she had "learned the hard way" not to put too much stock in Trump's social media posts."But this is completely irresponsible and disgusting," she insisted. "This is wrong. It's wrong. He should not be doing it. I don't care that it's a negotiation. His negotiation tactic is to kill an entire country full of civilians, men, women, and children."A day earlier, Kelly suggested she would support the Republican Party even if Trump used a nuclear weapon."All I think about when I think about the Democrats is those very unattractive people in Minneapolis," she asserted in an earlier podcast. "That to me, I could never vote for, never." "I mean, honestly, Trump could drop a nuke, and I'd still vote Republican over those people," she added.

Apr 8, 2026 - World

Donald Trump claims to have reached a successful but still evolving ceasefire agreement with Iran, but National Review editor Jim Geraghty has a different assessment: the president has been completely outmaneuvered and is poised to capitulate on nearly every significant demand.According to Geraghty's scathing analysis, Trump and Iran are describing fundamentally different agreements. The Iranian proposal includes concessions that represent a catastrophic setback for American national security interests.The Iranian demands include: "Iran's continued control of the Strait of Hormuz," "Iran's uranium enrichment right should be accepted," and "Payment of compensation for damages inflicted on Iran."Trump celebrated the deal, writing: "We received a 10 point proposal from Iran, and believe it is a workable basis on which to negotiate. Almost all of the various points of past contention have been agreed to between the United States and Iran, but a two week period will allow the Agreement to be finalized and consummated."Geraghty was not impressed. "The first things that jumps out about President Trump and the Iranian government's statements is that the two sides seem to have a dramatically different sense of what they just agreed upon."His verdict on Iran's demands was withering: "Your mileage may vary, but my answers to this list of demands would be 'depends upon how you define 'non-aggression'; no; no; heck no; hell no; [bad word] no; [even worse word] no; no [bad word]-ing way; absolutely no [bad word]-ing way; and you can stick this where the sun doesn't shine.'""These are nine-and-a-half unreasonable and unrealistic demands, and a U.S. concession to just about any of them would represent a dreadful setback to American national security interests. This is an ayatollah's wish list," Geraghty wrote.The ceasefire is already unraveling, he noted with reporting that Bahrain claimed Iranian drones damaged homes after the announcement. The United Arab Emirates military said air defenses are "actively engaging" incoming Iranian missiles and drones. Israel declared its agreement to cease attacks on Iran doesn't include stopping strikes on targets in Lebanon. So far, this is a ceasefire in name only — a violent catastrophe dressed up as diplomacy, he suggested.

Apr 8, 2026 - World

US vice-president says on visit to Budapest ‘we had to show’ support for Viktor Orbán, as opposition leads polls Hungary elections: what is at stake and who is likely to win?JD Vance has pushed back against claims that the US is interfering in Hungarian politics, describing the accusations as “darkly ironic”, as a set of polls suggested the opposition Tisza party could win a supermajority in the forthcoming elections.After spending his first day in Budapest excoriating the EU and accusing it of being behind one of the “worst examples” of foreign interference, the US vice-president spent part of Wednesday morning speaking at a thinktank and educational institution linked to Hungary’s leader, Viktor Orbán. Continue reading...

Apr 8, 2026 - World

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it had closed the Strait of Hormuz after U.S. President Donald Trump agreed to a ceasefire that required the waterway to remain open.Iran had threatened to close the strait again on Wednesday morning due to Israeli strikes in Lebanon. For his part, Trump insisted that Lebanon had never been part of the ceasefire deal."Chief international correspondent Lyse Doucet says that despite Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announcing a ceasefire on all fronts, attacks in Lebanon have continued - and in some ways intensified," BBC reported.Within hours, the IRGC said that traffic through the strait had been stopped. The Associated Press also confirmed the report."Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)-affiliated news agency Fars has reported that while two oil tankers were able to pass through the strait with permission from Iran this morning, the passage of oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz has been stopped," according to the BBC report. "The Islamic Republic News Agency is also reporting ships have been halted, with both outlets referencing Israel's continued strikes on Lebanon."Ship-broker SSY confirmed that vessels in the Gulf had been notified of the situation."Attention all vessels," an IRGC announcement said. "Attention all vessels. Attention all vessels in Persian Gulf and Oman Sea. This is the IRGC Navy Station. Transiting the Strait of Hormuz remains closed and you need permission from the IRGC before sailing through the strait. Any vessel trying to travel into the sea will be targeted and destroyed."