WASHINGTON — An effort to ramp up U.S. weapons production and build more ships, planes and drones will require a massive upfront investment, President Trump’s budget director told a House committee Wednesday.

The testimony from Russell Vought jump-starts the White House’s push to increase defense spending to nearly $1.5 trillion in the next budget year, up from nearly $1 trillion this year, while cutting health research, heating assistance and scores of other domestic programs by about 10% overall. Such cuts do not cover mandatory spending, which includes such programs as Social Security and Medicare.

The debate over Trump’s proposal underscored the sharp divide that will shape some of the most significant policy debates going into a midterm election that will give voters the ultimate say on the direction of the country.

“For the industrial base to double or triple and build more facilities, not just add shifts, it requires multiyear agreements to purchase into the future,” Vought told lawmakers. “That cost has to be booked in this first year.”

The White House is calling for about $1.1 trillion for defense through the regular appropriations process, which typically requires support from both parties for approval. An additional $350 billion would come through a separate bill that Republicans can accomplish on their own, through party-line majority votes.

Rep. Brendan Boyle of Pennsylvania, the ranking Democratic member of the committee, said he believes in a strong national defense. But he said the idea of increasing defense by more than 40% while cutting programs that people need shows that the Republican administration’s priorities are “out of whack.”

The committee chairman, Rep. Jodey Arrington (R-Texas), predicted the hearing would be more “amped up” than usual, and that proved to be true, beginning with his opening statement focused on criticizing Democrat Joe Biden’s presidency. Arrington said he did not know of any president in his lifetime who “inherited such a complete and utter mess as President Trump did in January of last year.”

Since then, Arrington said, Trump has secured the border, cut taxes and constrained nondefense spending.

It was the beginning of several back-and-forths at the hearing.

“You know how bad this economy is when we hear Joe Biden being invoked, we hear trans people being invoked. I was waiting for Jimmy Carter to be blamed next,” Boyle said in response to Arrington’s opening remarks.

Boyle said consumer confidence is plummeting under Trump and noted a gas station he passed in Philadelphia recently was selling gas at $4.11 a gallon versus less than $3 a gallon some six weeks ago because of Trump’s “war of choice in Iran.”

Rep. Becca Balint (D-Vt.) called the proposed defense spending increase shocking.

“We’ve never in the history of this country seen spending like this, paid for by slashing healthcare, education and housing,” Balint said. “Mr. Vought, yes or no, is $350 billion for the war in Iran lowering costs for Americans?”

“It is certainly not defunding child care. We fully fund child care in this budget,” Vought said, not directly answering the question.

Balint went on to incorporate Trump’s “America first” mantra in her questioning.

She said that $350 billion could pay for an enhanced health insurance tax credit for 10 years and that her constituents are asking how the country can continue to spend money on wars and not find a solution to helping people afford healthcare.

Vought said the president has made clear he was not going to let Iran have nuclear weapons, missiles and a navy that affect U.S. national security.

“He is doing what is necessary to keep us safe, while at the same time trying to pursue diplomacy so that we can get out of wars and lower those costs over time,” Vought said.

Vought said it was unclear how much the administration would seek to fund the war during the current budget year, which ends Sept. 30. That money would be part of an emergency supplemental spending bill and would be on top of the funds the White House is seeking to boost defense spending next year.

“Would it be more than $50 billion?” asked Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-Texas).

“We’re still working on it,” Vought said. “I don’t have a ballpark for you.”

Freking writes for the Associated Press.

Emery replaced Steven Gerrard as Villa manager in October 2022 with Villa hovering just above the relegation zone on goal difference.

The former Arsenal and Villarreal boss brought with him his own backroom staff, with many of the old guard departing.

Former Sevilla goalkeeper Monchi also joined as Villa’s president of football operations in June 2023 – having previously worked with Emery at Sevilla and winning three Europa League titles together.

Emery immediately made an impact, imposing structure, clarity and belief on a Villa side that was once again flirting with relegation to guide them to a top‑seven finish and European qualification in his first season.

The following campaign proved the progress was no fluke.

Turning Villa Park into a fortress, they established themselves as a top‑four contender during 2023-24 while also reaching the semi-finals of the Conference League, where they were beaten 6-2 on aggregate by Olympiakos.

“The first year we got here in the Conference League, a lot of us hadn’t played in Europe so when we got to the latter stages there was a lot of pressure,” Watkins said.

“Each year we’ve learned and taken something from it. And to trust the manager because he’s so experienced in this competition. He’s won it numerous times so we believe in what he tells us and keep going.”

A first taste of top-tier European competition since 1982-83 came last season when they reached the Champions League quarter-finals against Emery’s former side Paris St-Germain.

And on their way to the last eight, they posted memorable league-stage wins against Bayern Munich and RB Leipzig while also holding Juventus to a goalless draw.

And this season’s run on the continental stage further underlines their upward trajectory under the Spaniard.

“It’s an amazing achievement for us to progress to the semi-finals and to go one step further than last year in the Champions League,” Watkins said.

“We’re really enjoying being in this competition and this is where we want to be, in the semi-finals.”

Emery told TNT Sports: “I’m very happy. We were organised and tried to impose our ideas and style, which is not easy against Bologna.”

“We are so happy with the way we are performing in this competition. It was fantastic. We are in the semi-finals, but there is still work to do.”

There are scenes of celebration on roads in southern Lebanon as people begin driving back to their homes as the ceasefire with Israel takes hold. Israeli forces had continued to bomb the south up until the midnight truce began.

Abed Abou Shhadeh, a political commentator based in Israel, says the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon is ‘extremely problematic, not only for Netanyahu, but for the Israeli public who were promised for two and a half years now, absolute victory’.

Corrie star Craig Charles took on the Retching Ball challenge with fellow campmate David Haye in a bid to earn food for camp in the latest bushtucker trial

The latest bushtucker trial left I’m A Celeb star Craig Charles throwing up a mouthful of maggots.

The 61-year-old Corrie star took on the Retching Ball challenge with fellow campmate David Haye in a bid to earn food for camp. The duo were strapped into a revolving ball while having to answer questions directed at them by Ant and Dec.

But of course in true I’m A Celeb style they were not alone in the ball cage, as creepy crawlies were dumped on them to add to their distress. Following a dumping of maggots on the duo, David Haye cried out ‘I’ve got maggots in my mouth’ and it wasn’t long before co-star Craig began throwing up.

READ MORE: Mum fumes as family banned from Parkdean resort after “inappropriate behaviour”READ MORE: Police update on teens arrested in connection with 73-year-old’s death as family pay tribute

David and Craig carried on for another round but the momentum seemed to catch up with Craig. As he threw up Ant quipped “Oh I think we’ve had a vomit. Now Craig you’ve just worked out why it’s called the wretching ball,” he added.

Despite his sickness, he kept going but he ended up being sick again in the final round where they were asked to name Adele songs. Craig looked delighted when time was up and he and David were removed from the retching ball to learn they had secured seven out of a possible 11 stars in total.

In a sneak peek at tomorrow evening’s episode Gemma Collins appears to quit again. She told the cameras: “I’m A Celebrity get me out of here. I am done.”

She looked to be in tears again as a stunned Scarlett watched on. It left fans pondering if she had actually walked again, or if it was another low moment for the reality TV star.

On X, formerly known as Twitter, one user said: “Hope Gemma doesn’t go from that clip! I need misery guts David gone before anyone else in camp!”

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Threads.

Long-haul flights can cause in-flight circulation stiffness and fatigue, especially for older travellers

Anyone who’s flown long-haul will be acutely aware of the stiffness, exhaustion and sluggish circulation that can develop, potentially marring the start of your holiday. And this is particularly relevant for older passengers.

With this in mind, Inspiring Vacations has teamed up with Melbourne-based Pilates instructor Brittany Tatterson to reveal some movements anyone can perform while still aboard their flight.

She explained: “Seated movements every 30 to 60 minutes are ideal, with the opportunity to stand and walk every one to two hours where possible. Many people wait until they already feel stiff, but by that point the body has already tightened and circulation has slowed.

“The good news is you don’t need to stand in the aisle or take up extra space. The most effective movements are often the smallest and can be done entirely within your seat.”

The discreet in-seat exercises you can do (without anyone noticing)

The first movement Brittany suggests is gently tilting your pelvis forward and backwards, as this can help engage your core and relieve pressure from your lower back.

“You can also keep your toes on the floor and slowly lift your heels up and down to encourage circulation through the legs, which is particularly important on long-haul flights,” Brittany added.

“Breathing is another big one. Inhaling through your nose and allowing your ribs to expand, then exhaling slowly, can help improve both your breathing and overall energy levels.” She also notes that even minor neck movements, such as gentle nods, turns and slight tilts, can alleviate tension that accumulates from screen time and poor posture.

Meanwhile, simply clenching and releasing your glutes can help support your pelvis and ease strain on the lower back without drawing any attention from those around you.

How to move without annoying your neighbour

While these movements are vital for a comfortable journey, Brittany emphasises that they should never come at the expense of those around you.

“Move slowly and mindfully; there’s no rush. Slower movement is not only more considerate, it’s actually more effective for the body,” she says. “The key is to keep everything small and controlled, staying within your own space wherever possible.”

A few simple etiquette rules can make all the difference:

• Keep movements small and within your seat space
• Avoid wide arm stretches or anything intrusive
• Move during quieter moments, not meal service
• Only walk the aisle when it’s clear

WASHINGTON — In a rare bipartisan moment, the House passed legislation Thursday that would extend temporary protections for Haitian immigrants, a long-shot effort fighting back against President Trump’s attempts to end the program.

The bill, pushed forward by House Democrats with a group of Republicans over the objections of the GOP leadership, would require a three-year extension of temporary protected status for Haitians by the Trump administration. That would allow hundreds of thousands of qualifying immigrants to remain in the United States without fear of deportation.

The vote was 224-204, drawing applause in the chamber. But it faces uncertainty in the Senate, and the Republican president would almost certainly seek to veto it.

“I know firsthand how important our Haitian neighbors are to our communities, to our civic life, to our culture, to our workforce, to our economy,” said Democratic Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, who is co-chair of the House Haiti Caucus and represents one of the largest Haitian communities in the country.

During the debate, she recounted the number of Haitian immigrants working in healthcare, housing construction and other industries. Haitians with temporary legal status “are not the problem, quite the contrary, they are part of the solution,” she said.

Pressley has said deporting Haitians back to the troubled Caribbean country would be a “death sentence,” given the effects of natural disasters and gang violence. “Congress can do the right thing,” she said.

Ten Republicans, many from districts with large numbers of Haitian residents, joined all Democrats and one independent in voting for passage.

Congress tries to act before the Supreme Court does

The effort to help 350,000 Haitians living lawfully in the United States comes as the administration is working to end the temporary legal status for several groups, exposing them to deportation.

In less than two weeks, the Supreme Court is prepared to consider a fast-track case that would end the protected status for Haitian and Syrian immigrants in a challenge widely seen as threatening the broader program. The administration filed emergency appeals after lower courts stopped the immediate end of the program.

It is part of the administration’s efforts to strip certain immigrant groups of legal status as the White House works to fulfill Trump’s campaign promise of conducting the largest mass deportation operation in history. Some 1.3 million people fleeing countries around the world have been granted temporary protected status in the U.S.

The protections for Haiti, first approved after a devastating 2010 earthquake, have been extended multiple times. The State Department warns Americans not to travel to Haiti “due to kidnapping, crime, terrorist activity, civil unrest.”

Guerline Jozef, executive director of the Haitian Bridge Alliance, an advocacy organization, fought back tears as she described the fear of deportations coursing through the community.

“We are asking, where will you be? On the right side of history?” she said at a news conference outside the Capitol. “Or continuing to cause trauma to people who are asking for nothing other than safety and protection?”

Trump has described migrants from poorer countries in vulgar terms, and he has falsely accused Haitian migrants in Ohio of eating their neighbors’ cats and dogs.

The conservative majority court has allowed the end of temporary legal status for a total of 600,000 people from Venezuela while lawsuits play out, leaving them to face potential deportation.

Lawmakers debate whether to help Haitians or stick with Trump

Rep. Laura Gillen (D-N.Y.) whose district includes Long Island’s Haitian community, said she promised constituents she would work to protect their status. She introduced the legislation with Republican Rep. Mike Lawler of New York as soon as she took office last year.

“It’s cruel to expect Haitians to be forced to return to these deadly, dangerous conditions,” she said at a news conference. “Human lives are at risk.”

Lawler said there are differences of opinion on immigration policy, but that Haitian immigrants have become vital to his community and forcing them out would be unjust and unwise.

“They are small business owners, they are nurses, they are caregivers, they participate in our economy and take care of American citizens,” he said. “Congress has a responsibility to act.”

But Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) decried the number of immigrants, including Haitians, who have entered the U.S., and cited Democratic efforts to halt funding for enforcement and deportation efforts.

“Make temporary permanent,” he said, “that’s their plan.”

Rep. Brandon Gill (R-Texas) said the program was “backdoor amnesty” for foreigners.

To Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Calif.), the temporary status first granted under the Obama administration has become “an open-ended invitation” for immigrants to enter the country, including some illegally, and remain.

“The Trump administration has heeded the cries of the American people,” he said.

Using a discharge petition to force votes

The vote was the latest effort by House Democrats to maneuver past the Republican majority using a discharge petition — once a rare tool, but now used increasingly to form bipartisan coalitions.

The discharge petition process forces the bill to the House floor for consideration, powering past House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and GOP leaders. It was used to help pass legislation that required the Justice Department to release the files of the sex trafficking investigation of Jeffrey Epstein.

Republicans hold a slim majority in the House and are typically able to swat back such efforts from Democrats. But Democrats and Republicans have formed bipartisan alliances to reach the majority needed on the discharge petitions.

Pressley’s effort to discharge the bill won support from four Republicans on the initial petition, and several more once it came to the floor vote.

Mascaro writes for the Associated Press.

Four months after being pushed into retirement by the Clippers, future Hall of Famer Chris Paul apparently took delight in the team’s quick exit from the postseason Wednesday night.

Paul posted the familiar meme “stopped by my biggest hater’s funeral” on his Instagram story shortly after the Clippers blew a 13-point fourth-quarter lead in a 126-121 play-in loss to the Golden State Warriors.

Paul, the Clippers’ all-time assists leader, called out teammates, coaches and executives during his short second stint with the team early this season. In an effort to inject accountability during the team’s 6-21 start, Paul instead angered many, including head coach Tyronn Lue, who wasn’t on speaking terms with Paul at the end.

“Everyone was fed up,” a league source told The Times in December.

Paul, who is second to John Stockton in NBA career assists with 12,552, posted at the time about his being cut on social media, saying “Just Found Out I’m Being Sent Home,” along with a peace emoji.

For their part, the Clippers turned around their season, going 36-19 after a horrific start to finish with a winning record for the 15th consecutive season at 42-40.

Then came the dispiriting loss to the Warriors and the 40-year-old Paul’s opportunity to get in the last meme, even though it wasn’t exactly original. Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid posted the same one when the team traded guard Ben Simmons in 2022.

April 16 (UPI) — The House on Thursday passed a bill to extend temporary protected status for people from Haiti who are living in the United States through 2029.

Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., who is co-chair of the House Haiti Caucus, introduced a discharge petition to advance a bill to extend protection for Haitian nationals.

The legislation was initially introduced by Rep. Laura Gillen, D-N.Y., whose Long Island district — as well as the rest of Long Island and New York City — have large Haitian populations, and is the first bill she introduced after her election to the House.

After the discharge petition succeeded, with bipartisan support, the bill passed the full House with 10 Republicans voting in support of it.

“This is a critical step forward in our fight for immigrant justice and delivering our Haitian neighbors the protections they deserve — and it’s a testament to the strength of our broad, diverse and bipartisan coalition,” Pressley said in a statement after the motion to discharge was agreed to.

“I am grateful to my colleagues on both sides of the aisle who supported our discharge petition,” she said.

After the vote, Gillen in a statement encouraged the Senate “to take up this measure and show the compassion and good sense to protect our Haitian community members.”

“Not only would this threaten the lives of our neighbors, it would also have a devastating effect on our economy,” Gillen said, noting that the extension protects “law-abiding and tax-paying Haitians who would face horrific condition if forced back to Haiti.”

The bill, however, faces a battle in the Republican-run Senate and, if it does get passed, the White House has indicated that it will veto the legislation, reports have said.

Although former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem had attempted to end TPS for at least half a million Haitians last Fall, a judge in February blocked the Trump administration from carrying it out.

As a result of the ruling, TPS for people from Haiti expired on Feb. 3, its original expiration date, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, which Pressley said made the discharge petition to force a vote on the bill so crucial.

The Supreme Court also is due to rule on the Trump administrations efforts to end TPS for Haitians, as well as for people from Syria, who have protected status because of the dangerous situation in that country.

The Army’s top official pointed to low-cost interceptor drones first sent to Ukraine as one defense against Iranian barrages of Shahed-136 one-way attack munitions. During Congressional testimony on Thursday, Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll lauded the Merops interceptor and the process to get it quickly into the hands of troops in the Middle East.

The Merops is a small, relatively inexpensive drone built specifically to zip through the skies and intercept long-range one-way attack drones. As we have previously reported, Ukraine has been using several locally produced drones, as well as Merops, to counter Russian Shaheds successfully for some time now, proving-out the concept.

“When the conflict kicked off, within about eight days, we were able to purchase…13,000 Merops, which are incredible,” Driscoll exclaimed. “They’re about $15,000 a piece right now. We think as they scale, they’ll get less than [$10,000] and we’re able to take Shaheds down that cost $30,000 to $50,000, which is amazing because that puts us on the right end of the cost curve, and we will make that trade all day long.”

The U.S. has its own interceptors that have been in service for years, such as Raytheon’s Coyote, but they cost roughly 10 times more.

A new system to identify and take down Russian drones is deployed to NATO’s eastern flank

In a recent interview with Bloomberg, Driscoll said that larger orders could drive that to $3,000 to $5,000 per interceptor. Given the success in Ukraine, it is likely that the Pentagon and other customers would see far less risk when it comes to ordering large numbers.

As we noted in a story last month, the Pentagon sent thousands of these drone interceptors to the Middle East. Iranian strikes on U.S. military facilities killed U.S. troops and caused damage to bases and equipment. Driscoll did not offer more specifics about how often they were used, how many Shaheds they downed or exactly where they were deployed.

Merops was “developed as part of the US-backed Project Eagle initiative, which includes contributions from Swift Beat, a company associated with former Google CEO Eric Schmidt,” according to the Ukraine Defense Tech Community (DTC), a marketplace for modern weaponry. “The system is built around Surveyor drones, which act as airborne interceptors capable of destroying enemy UAVs mid-flight.”

Each Merops unit “includes a command station, launch platforms, and a fleet of Surveyor drones,” DTC explained. “These interceptors can operate autonomously or be remotely piloted and are equipped with onboard sensors for target tracking.”

While full technical specifications remain undisclosed, they can reportedly reach speeds of over 280 km/h (175 mph). “The platform is considered fast enough to intercept jet-powered drones such as the Russian Geran-3, which can exceed 300 km/h,” DTC pointed out.

The interceptor can carry an explosive warhead and destroys targets either through a direct collision or a proximity detonation.

Driscoll said the ability to field Merops so quickly is because the Army streamlined its acquisition process.

“Fundamentally, one of the core problems was our own bureaucracy, our own infrastructure, our own decision-making organizations had decayed from any sort of speed and rationality,” he testified. “The reason we’ve been able to move fast since the conflict in Iran started is because of work 10, 12, 14 months ago to reorganize our acquisitions department.”

“And practically,” he added, “what that did is it took us from a 16-step decision-making process – where each of the bodies along those 16 steps could veto it and start it back over, and it could take two to seven years to purchase something.”

“We put everybody into a group who could make decisions on the fly,” the secretary noted. “And so a lot of the things the Army has worked on in the previous year are paying dividends as we try to make decisions quickly.”

You can watch Driscoll’s testimony on Merops at the 36-minute mark of the video below.

Budget Hearing – The United States Army

In Ukraine, Merops has proven to be a far cheaper alternative to munitions like Patriot interceptors and even far less advanced missiles for downing Shahed drones which have caused widespread destruction across that country. While these drones have neither the payload nor range of the far more expensive Patriot munitions, they can be deployed in great numbers giving them the ability to cover larger geographical areas. That helps keep the magazine depth of more sophisticated effectors from being quickly depleted and turns the disastrous ‘exchange ratio’ between cost of target versus effector on its head. In many cases, these systems would still need to be part of a layered defense, especially when used as point defense at high value installations and infrastructure.

Now that these weapons have helped save American lives and equipment, Merops success means we will likely be seeing more low-cost drone interceptors like it in the future.

Contact the author: howard@thewarzone.com

Coronation Street actor Gareth Pierce has been playing Todd Grimshaw since 2020, but fans were shocked to discover his real accent

Coronation Street’s Gareth Pierce is well known for his portrayal of Todd Grimshaw, yet in real life, he sounds remarkably different.

Gareth, 45, rose to prominence when he joined the Corrie cast in 2020 as Todd Grimshaw, stepping into the role previously held by Bruno Langley, who departed the show in 2017.

Over the past six years on the long-running soap, Todd has been at the centre of some heartbreaking storylines, including the deaths of his closest friends Billy Mayhew (Daniel Brocklebank) and Paul Foreman (Peter Ash).

Last year, Todd embarked on a relationship with dashing scaffolder Theo Silverton (James Cartwright), who was already married with two children.

Theo, who had kept his sexuality a secret, found himself ostracised by his family when his wife Danielle (Natalie Anderson) uncovered his affair with Todd, reports the Daily Star.

Despite initially pulling away from Todd to concentrate on his family, the pair quickly rekindled their romance, though the road has been far from smooth.

Matters took a darker turn when James Bailey (Jason Callender) drunkenly attempted to kiss Todd at number eleven, prompting Theo to deliver a stark warning. He has since continued to tighten his grip on every aspect of his boyfriend’s life.

For months, Theo has been subjecting Todd to both mental and physical abuse in a deeply disturbing domestic violence storyline. Most recently, Theo launched a brutal attack on Todd, leaving him bloodied and battered in deeply distressing scenes.

The funeral director has been quietly struggling for months, with Todd’s nearest and dearest beginning to notice that something isn’t quite right. Regrettably, their concern about his wellbeing has driven the scheming Theo to resort to increasingly extreme measures.

Theo manipulated Todd into walking down the aisle with him, but his sinister plans didn’t stop there. The conniving villain subsequently schemed to spirit his new husband away to Belfast, far from his loved ones and support network.

Todd informed Theo that he wasn’t prepared to relocate, prompting the villain to confiscate his phone and hold him captive. As a Weatherfield resident is set to meet a grisly end in an upcoming whodunnit, could Theo be next in line?

Away from the Manchester-based soap, Gareth has left fans stunned after revealing his real-life accent. Last year, he took to Instagram to wish the Welsh women’s football team well as they competed in the Euros.

Sporting a Welsh football shirt, Gareth, who hails from Gwynedd in Wales, said: “Massive week ahead in the Women’s Euros. Wales and England both playing today, but also playing each other on Sunday. Big showdown. Obviously, I’m shouting for Wales.”

Speaking in Welsh, he added: “Good luck, Wales. Let’s go. Come on, Wales!”

Soap devotees were left gobsmacked after watching the clip, as Todd’s Mancunian accent on Coronation Street is worlds apart from Gareth’s natural Welsh lilt.

Flocking to the comments, one viewer wrote: “You learn something new every day. Did not know he was Welsh”, while another added: “Love the slight Welsh accent.

“Didn’t know you were Welsh”, a third chimed in as another exclaimed: “Didn’t know he was welsh c’mon Cymru.”

“Are you Welsh, mate?” asked one fan while another stated: “Mind blown!”

Coronation Street airs weekdays on ITV and ITVX

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Thursday faced federal lawmakers for the first time since September as he sought to defend a more than 12% proposed cut to his department’s budget and dodge arrows from angry Democrats along the way.

In his testimony before the House Ways and Means Committee, kicking off an expected sprint of seven budget hearings he’ll attend across congressional committees and subcommittees over the next week, Kennedy emphasized the administration’s work to reform dietary guidelines and crack down on waste, fraud and abuse.

Republicans on the committee praised Kennedy as a “breath of fresh air” and asked him to promote his department’s recent actions. Democrats, who have been furious over Kennedy’s sweeping overhaul of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, largely had a different agenda.

They needled Kennedy on what they viewed as the Trump administration’s hypocrisy on fraud, demanded to know why he was cutting budgets for various programs and slammed his efforts to pull back vaccine recommendations and messaging, which they said have caused unnecessary deaths.

Kennedy fired back, often raising his voice as he accused the Democrats of misrepresenting his work and past statements.

Here are three standout moments from Thursday’s hearing:

A standoff over measles

One heated exchange early in the hearing came between Kennedy and Rep. Linda Sanchez. The California Democrat decried recent measles outbreaks across the U.S. and asked Kennedy to answer for the fact that under his leadership, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention pulled back public health messaging supporting vaccination.

“As a mother, this horrifies me,” Sanchez said. “Did President Trump approve your decision to end CDC’s pro-vaccine public messaging campaign?”

Kennedy repeatedly refused to answer, saying first he wanted to respond to the “misstatements that you’ve made” and later praising the Trump administration’s record on preventing measles, although protections against the disease have eroded in some parts of the country as vaccination rates have dropped.

“That’s not answering my question,” Sanchez said as the two talked over each other.

But Sanchez also got Kennedy, a longtime anti-vaccine activist before he entered politics, to acknowledge that a 6-year-old who died of measles last year in West Texas could have potentially been saved with vaccination.

“Do you agree with the majority of doctors that the measles vaccine could have saved that child’s life in Texas?” she asked.

“It’s possible, certainly,” Kennedy said.

RFK Jr. denies talking about Black children being ‘re-parented’

A fight erupted between Kennedy and Rep. Terri Sewell, a Democrat from Alabama, when Kennedy vehemently denied making remarks he’d said in 2024.

The comments dated back to when Kennedy was a presidential candidate. On the “High Level Conversations” podcast last July, he said, “Psychiatric drugs — which every Black kid is now just standard put on Adderall, SSRIs, benzos, which are known to induce violence, and those kids are going to have a chance to go somewhere and get re-parented to live in a community where there’ll be no cellphones, no screens, you’ll actually have to talk to people.”

“Have you ever re-parented, or parented, I should say, a Black child?” Sewell asked, as her staff held up a poster featuring an abbreviated version of the quote.

“I don’t even know what that phrase means,” Kennedy said. “I’m not going to answer something I didn’t say.”

“You’re making stuff up,” he later claimed.

A recording of the podcast shows he made the comments during a conversation about free rehabilitation facilities he was proposing opening at the time in rural areas around the country.

Health and Human Services spokesperson Emily Hilliard said Kennedy before joining the administration was referring to spaces where young people facing alienation, mental health challenges and despair could get re-parented, which she said was a psychotherapy term for “developing the emotional regulation, discipline, boundaries, and self-worth that may not have been established in childhood.”

For Kennedy and his former party, civility is the exception

Kennedy spent most of his life as a Democrat, the scion of one of the nation’s most famous political families. Both Republicans and Democrats during the hearing began their remarks by expressing their admiration of Kennedy’s relatives, among them former President John F. Kennedy.

But again and again throughout Thursday’s hearing, the fraying of bonds between Kennedy and his former party was on full display as spiteful comments were passed back and forth.

The Health secretary grew defensive and visibly agitated. He repeatedly criticized Democratic lawmakers for not giving him a word in edgewise.

“They’ve all shut me up,” Kennedy said at one point. “They give a little speech that they can go and market, you know, for fundraising, and they don’t allow me to answer the question.”

On a few rare occasions, the exchanges were civil. One representative, Gwen Moore of Wisconsin, used humor to make that happen.

“I promise to give you easy, comfortable questions if you don’t yell at me and hurt my feelings,” she told Kennedy. He promised he wouldn’t.

Swenson writes for the Associated Press.

NEW YORK — Mike Trout hit his fifth homer of the series and the Angels overcame a homer by Aaron Judge in their 11-4 victory over the New York Yankees on Thursday afternoon for a four-game split.

Trout, who recently made a mechanical adjustment, went six for 16 with five homers and nine RBIs in the series. Trout hit his latest homer with one out in the seventh inning when he sent a 2-2 slider from reliever Angel Chivilli about halfway up the left field bleachers for a 7-4 lead.

Trout homered in his fifth straight game at Yankee Stadium and became the fourth to hit five homers in a series against the Yankees. The others were Jimmie Foxx (1933), Darrell Evans (1985) and George Bell (1990), according to MLB researcher Sarah Langs.

Trout’s latest homer contributed to a rare loss for the Yankees when Judge and Giancarlo Stanton homer in the same game. Including the postseason, New York is 53-8 when the duo both connect.

Jo Adell added a grand slam in the eighth for the Angels, who lead the AL with 32 homers.

Judge hit his 89th career first-inning homer and Stanton hit a two-run shot to give the Yankees a 3-2 lead in the fourth before the Angels scored four runs in the sixth off Max Fried (2-1) and Fernando Cruz. Ben Rice also homered in the sixth.

Trout walked three times and scored the tying run in a four-run sixth on a double by former Yankee Oswald Peraza, who also hit a two-run homer in the first.

Vaughn Grissom hit a go-ahead RBI single, and Josh Lowe hit a two-run single for a 6-3 lead.

The Yankees lost for the seventh time in nine games and Fried gave up five runs and three hits in 5 1/3 innings. Manager Aaron Boone was ejected for the first time this season after New York batted in the eighth.

Brent Suter opened the game and went two-plus innings. Sam Aldegheri (1-0) gave up a run in 1 2/3 innings.

A 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon has gone into effect. It began at midnight local time (21:00 GMT on Thursday), after being announced by US President Donald Trump.

The election victory of Hungary’s Tisza party on April 12 marks the end of the 16 year rule of Viktor Orbán, a figure who has long defined Hungary’s contentious relationship with the European Union. His tenure reshaped Hungary’s domestic institutions and repeatedly placed the country at odds with EU norms, laws, and political consensus.

The incoming leadership under Péter Magyar now inherits not only a domestic mandate for change but also the complex task of rebuilding trust with the EU after years of institutional confrontation.

A fractured relationship with Brussels

Under Orbán, Hungary frequently clashed with EU institutions over rule of law, judicial independence, media freedom, and migration policy. One of the most controversial measures was the lowering of the retirement age for judges and prosecutors, which critics argued enabled political reshaping of the judiciary.

Tensions escalated further after 2022, when Hungary’s stance on sanctions against Russia and support for Ukraine created repeated deadlocks within EU decision making processes.

Financial pressure also became a key tool of EU leverage. The European Commission suspended billions of euros in funding to Hungary, citing concerns over corruption and democratic backsliding, deepening the political divide.

Allegations and escalating mistrust

Relations deteriorated further following leaked reports alleging that senior Hungarian officials coordinated with Russian counterparts during sensitive EU discussions. These claims intensified accusations within parts of the EU that Hungary had undermined collective decision making during a period of heightened geopolitical tension.

While Budapest has rejected many of these allegations, they contributed to a climate of mistrust that severely weakened Hungary’s position within the bloc.

A new government with a reform mandate

The Tisza party’s victory signals a clear domestic demand for change, particularly around governance and corruption. The new administration has strong incentives to restore relations with the EU, not least because of the approximately 17 billion euros in suspended funding that could be unlocked if conditions are met.

EU leaders, however, have made it clear that financial normalization will depend on compliance with a wide set of governance and legal reforms. These include anti corruption measures, judicial independence safeguards, and adjustments to policies affecting migration and minority rights.

Structural constraints on reform

Despite political momentum for rapprochement, significant obstacles remain. Hungarian society remains more socially conservative and more sceptical of the EU than many of its Western counterparts. This limits the political space for rapid liberal reforms, particularly in sensitive areas such as LGBTQ+ rights and asylum policy.

Economic pressures further complicate the situation. The new government will inherit fiscal strain linked to years of disputed EU funding and broader geopolitical uncertainty, including the economic effects of the ongoing war involving Iran, which has disrupted global energy markets and increased financial volatility.

Ukraine and the Russia question

One of the most sensitive areas in Hungary’s future EU relationship will be its position on Ukraine. While Péter Magyar has signaled a willingness to improve relations with Ukraine and align more closely with NATO and EU policy, key ambiguities remain.

His stated openness to continuing Russian energy imports for the foreseeable future, combined with proposals for a referendum on Ukrainian EU membership, suggests that strategic continuity with aspects of the previous government may persist.

Given public scepticism toward Ukraine within Hungary, any referendum could significantly complicate EU enlargement plans.

Analysis

The end of Orbán’s long tenure represents a clear political inflection point in EU Hungary relations. It removes a persistent source of institutional confrontation and opens the possibility of renewed cooperation with Brussels.

However, the assumption that relations will automatically normalize is overly optimistic. The structural sources of tension between Hungary and the EU extend beyond one leader. They include divergent political cultures, competing interpretations of sovereignty, and deep disagreements over migration, rule of law, and foreign policy alignment.

The new government’s dependence on EU funds gives Brussels significant leverage, but also creates domestic political risk if reforms are perceived as externally imposed. This creates a delicate balancing act between compliance and legitimacy.

On foreign policy, Hungary’s position on Russia and Ukraine will remain the most consequential test. Even partial continuity with previous policies could reintroduce friction at a time when EU unity is under pressure from multiple geopolitical crises.

Ultimately, Orbán’s departure may mark the end of one chapter, but it does not resolve the underlying tensions that have defined Hungary’s relationship with the European project. The reset, while possible, will be gradual, conditional, and politically contested.

With information from Reuters.

Dr Xand van Tulleken told viewers ‘it can be like a heart attack for your legs’

A BBC doctor has given a worrying update for anyone who has woken up in the morning with a pain in the leg. Appearing on BBC Morning Live, Dr Xand van Tulleken told viewers they should ‘never’ just write symptoms off as what happens due to ageing.

Many people get aches and pains, but specific discomfort in the legs should be investigated, he said. Host Helen Skelton said: “We’re looking at protecting our health now, though. And if you started this morning with a pain in your leg, you’re not alone.

“It’s thought that one in five people over the age of 60 is living with a blood vessel disorder.“ Dr Xand said “It’s really important that no one should ever regard any symptoms they have as just part of getting older. If you have a symptom and you don’t know why you have it, you need to get an explanation.

“Whether it’s shortness of breath or pain in your legs. There are lots of different causes for pain in your legs, but this morning we’re talking about peripheral arterial disease, which is a sort of intimidating medical term, but really we mean just peripheral, meaning it’s at the outside of your body. It’s in your legs rather than being in your heart or your brain.”

Arterial disease might be the cause – and that’s a condition which can mean there are serious health issues at stake beyond just aching legs. Dr Xand said “Arterial disease is the same problems that gives us heart attacks and strokes. Your blood vessels narrow over time. They can calcify, they harden, they clog up with cholesterol, and you are left with a narrower space for blood to flow through and that means that you’re not getting a sufficient blood supply to your legs and that can give you leg pain.

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“And you can think of it a little bit like in the same way that some people get angina, they get heart pain when they exercise, when they move around. This is a bit like angina for your legs. And sometimes if those blood vessels completely clog off, it can be like a heart attack for your legs.”

The NHS says many people with PAD have no symptoms. However, some develop a painful ache in their legs when they walk, which usually disappears after a few minutes’ rest. The medical term for this is “intermittent claudication”.

The pain can affect 1 or both legs, range from mild to severe, and usually goes away after a few minutes when the person rests their legs.

Other symptoms of PAD can include:

• hair loss on your legs and feet
• numbness or weakness in the legs
• brittle, slow-growing toenails
• ulcers (open sores) on your feet and legs, which do not heal
• changing skin colour on your legs, such as turning paler than usual or blue – this may be harder to see on brown and black skin
• shiny skin
• in men, erectile dysfunction
• the muscles in your legs shrinking (wasting)

The NHS adds: “The symptoms of PAD often develop slowly, over time. If your symptoms develop quickly, or get suddenly worse, it could be a sign of a serious problem requiring immediate treatment.”

Dr Xand added: “The quality of the pain is quite specific. I mean, the way that people describe it and it typically wouldn’t be a pain that you’d get when you’re just sitting still, much like angina. It’s the pain that comes from not getting enough oxygen to your muscles. Those blood vessels aren’t working. And so, people tend to describe a kind of deep, heavy ache, like they’re just not, and you can almost feel that thing of just not getting enough.

“It’s a bit like if you’re lifting weights at the gym, if you go beyond your limits, you know, your muscles really start to hurt. It’s a similar thing. The pain is called claudication, but it’s that kind of pain. And typically, if you rest, it’ll go away again. So, that’s the that’s the kind of pain, but there are other changes that you can look for as well.”

He said people might see changes in their legs which could indicate the problem. Dr Xand said: “If you do look at your legs, you may see some changes if you don’t have a good enough blood supply. So, things like loss of hair on your legs would be an examples. The hair the hair can’t grow anymore because you’re not getting enough nutrients to your leg.

“Cold feet, the warm blood from the middle of your body is no longer reaching your feet. Ulcers or cuts are not healing because your immune system carried in your bloodstream is not reaching those and so you’re getting skin breakdown. You’re not getting antibodies and white blood cells and things like that. Changes in skin tone. So, your skin may look kind of mottled and gray as if it’s not getting enough blood. And then your toenails, you may think, I haven’t cut my toenails in a while. Well, are they just simply growing because they’re not getting the nutrients from the bloodstream that they need. So, those are things that might be a clue.”

Tackling the problem

A main cause is smoking, Dr Xand said, and also making sure people get cholesterol, blood pressure measured and check if you have diabetes. He said exercise is a good way of trying to improve the situation: “This may sound a bit a bit paradoxical, may sound like it’s hard to exercise, you’re getting pain when you exercise, but doing some exercise can stimulate the growth of new blood vessels. It can help those blood vessels open up.

“It will lower your cholesterol. It will lower your blood pressure. It will lower your stress. It will improve your blood sugar. You get so many wins from doing a bit of exercise.”

More information from the NHS here.

WASHINGTON — President Trump railed against a federal judge’s decision on Thursday that continues to block above-ground construction of a $400-million White House ballroom, allowing only below-ground work on a bunker and other “national security facilities” at the site.

U.S. District Judge Richard Leon’s latest ruling comes in response to an appeals court’s instruction to clarify an earlier decision on the 90,000-square-foot ballroom planned for the site where the East Wing of the White House once stood.

Trump on social media called Leon, who was nominated to the bench by Republican President George W. Bush, a “Trump Hating” judge who “has gone out of his way to undermine National Security, and to make sure that this Great Gift to America gets delayed, or doesn’t get built.”

The administration filed a notice that it will ask the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to review Leon’s latest decision, too.

Carol Quillen, president and chief executive of National Trust for Historic Preservation, whose group sued to challenge the project, said in a statement that the group is pleased with the court’s ruling.

Leon said that below-ground work on security measures is exempt from his order suspending above-ground construction. Government lawyers have argued that the project includes critical security features to guard against a range of possible threats, such as drones, ballistic missiles and biohazards.

Leon’s latest ruling comes several days after a three-judge panel from the D.C. appeals court instructed him to reconsider the possible national security implications of stopping construction.

In his previous order, Leon barred above-ground work on the ballroom from proceeding without congressional approval. The judge also ruled on March 31 that any construction work that’s necessary to ensure the safety and security of the White House is exempt from the scope of the injunction. Leon said he reviewed material that the government privately submitted to him before concluding that halting construction wouldn’t jeopardize national security.

Leon had suspended his March 31 order for two weeks. He stayed his latest decision for another week, which gives the administration more time to seek Supreme Court review.

Leon said he is ordering a stop only to the above-ground construction of the planned ballroom, apart from any work needed to cover or secure that part of the project. Otherwise, the Trump administration is free to proceed with the construction of any excavations, bunkers, military installations, and medical facilities below the ballroom.

“Defendants argue that the entire ballroom construction project, from tip to tail, falls within the safety-and-security exception and therefore may proceed unabated,” the judge wrote. “That is neither a reasonable nor a correct reading of my Order!”

On Saturday, the appeals court panel said it didn’t have enough information to decide how much of the project can be suspended without jeopardizing the safety of the president, his family or the White House staff.

Leon said he recognizes the safety implications of the case, but stressed that “national security is not a blank check to proceed with otherwise unlawful activity.” He also said he has “no desire or intention to be dragooned into the role of construction manager.”

On April 2, two days after Leon’s previous ruling, Trump’s ballroom won final approval from the 12-member National Capital Planning Commission, which is charged with approving construction on federal property in the Washington region.

The preservation group sued in December, a week after the White House finished demolishing the East Wing to make way for a ballroom that Trump said would fit 999 people. Trump says the project is funded by private donations, although public money is paying for the bunker construction and security upgrades.

Kunzelman writes for the Associated Press.

Bright lights, big stage, same LeBron.

Unmoved by postseason pressure, superstar LeBron James said he doesn’t plan to change his preparation ahead of the Lakers’ playoff opener against the Houston Rockets on Saturday. Approaching his record-tying 19th postseason appearance, James has reason to believe in his well-established routine.

“Nothing changes for me from the regular season to the postseason,” James said, “besides just making even more heightened focus.”

The consistent approach that guided him through 23 regular seasons puts James in position to star in another high-stakes game as the Lakers (53-29) chase the franchise’s 18th NBA championship. James will command almost the entire spotlight with guards Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves still sidelined.

The 41-year-old, 22-time All-Star has never had a problem with being a leading man.

“I think a lot of the great players, the best players, what they’re addicted to is being the showman,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said, referencing Stephen Curry’s fourth-quarter heroics that pushed the Golden State Warriors over the Clippers in a thrilling play-in game Wednesday night. “And being on the stage and giving a performance. …

“One of the reasons they’re great and they’re able to be the showman so consistently is because they recognize [that] to be the showman, I have to do all the things necessary to then go on stage and perform at my best. And that’s the commitment with LeBron that I’ve talked about so often.”

The stage is set for a star-studded first-round series with James and Houston’s Kevin Durant. The Rockets’ superstar rose to fifth on the NBA’s all-time scoring list this season. He and James, the league’s all-time leading scorer, have 76,037 combined regular-season points, more than the rest of the Lakers’ roster combined (57,341).

“He’s the head of the snake,” James said of Durant. “But it’s the Houston Rockets and they have some damned good players on that team.”

Durant has the support of two-time NBA All-Star center Alperen Sengun, who is averaging 20.4 points, 8.9 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game. James leads the Lakers alone. They’re without Doncic (hamstring) and Reaves (oblique) indefinitely.

Since Doncic and Reaves were injured, James assumed the primary role in the Lakers’ offense and has delivered 25.5 points, 11 assists and 6.8 rebounds per game. Battling the emotional toll of Doncic’s and Reaves’ injuries, James set the tone for the Lakers’ strong finish to the regular season with his vocal leadership and strong play, Redick said. His teammates are falling in line.

“He’s been in the playoffs I don’t know how many times,” Lakers guard Bronny James said. “So he’s won series, won Finals, I think we just need to have our mind open and ears open and listen to whatever he says because he knows the most.”

Lakers star LeBron James and coach JJ Redick discuss strategy during a game against the Clippers this season.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

After years of competing against each other in the NBA and with each other on the international stage, Durant said earlier this season that the Miami Heat version of James was the hardest player he’s ever had to guard. James said every version of Durant feels like an impossible matchup.

The 37-year-old scores in bunches and does it efficiently, Redick said. Durant hasn’t shot worse than 50% from the field in a season since 2011-12. Now in his 18th season, Durant played the second-most total minutes of any player this season, trailing only 23-year-old teammate Amen Thompson.

“He’s a guard in a big man’s body,” Lakers guard Marcus Smart said. “I’m 6-3 and he’s 7-foot so he has that advantage and that’s what makes it tough, because he’ll shoot right over top of you it seems. But playing him the years that I have played him — and last month — it definitely gives you insight of what to expect.”

Durant averaged 18 points, 5.5 rebounds and three assists in two losses to the Lakers in March. He shot 55.6% from the field but had 11 total turnovers. The Lakers, who often double-teamed Durant to take the ball out of his hands, forced 36 turnovers in the two wins.

The Lakers expect the same defensive pressure from the Rockets, who are ranked sixth defensively. Guards Reed Sheppard and Thompson both rank in the top 10 in the league in total steals with 122 and 119, respectively.

Smart and guard Luke Kennard have taken larger ball-handling responsibilities along with James to offset the loss of Doncic and Reaves. Bronny James is in line for rotation minutes in the Lakers’ shorthanded backcourt. The 21-year-old guard has played in 10 consecutive games, the longest stretch of his young NBA career, averaging 6.6 points, two assists and a steal with seven-for-17 shooting from three-point range in the five games since Doncic and Reaves were injured.

Getting to share the court with his son, whether in regular-season games, practice or now the postseason, is “the best thing that’s ever happened to me in my career,” the elder James said.

With his future unknown beyond this season, James pledged all season to stay in the moment. The Lakers hope to make this postseason one last.

“The moment is all we have,” James said. “At the end of the day, that’s all that matters.”

The proposed 76-metre arch would tower over other iconic landmarks in Washington, DC, and has attracted scrutiny.

United States President Donald Trump’s goal of erecting a colossal arch in Washington, DC, has taken another step forward, with a key agency approving his proposed design for the monument.

The US Commission of Fine Arts, whose members were appointed by Trump, gave its go-ahead to the president’s design for a lofty 76-metre-high (250-foot) arch.

If given final approval, the arch would be built on Memorial Circle, between the Arlington National Cemetery and the Lincoln Memorial. It would tower above other landmarks in the national capital.

White House spokesperson Davis Ingle hailed the commission’s approval as a “step in accomplishing President Trump’s promise to the American people from the campaign trail — to Make America Safe and Beautiful Again”.

But the arch has faced criticism, including for potentially obscuring views of the national cemetery, a resting place for war veterans.

Public Citizen Litigation Group is representing some Vietnam War veterans in a lawsuit against the proposed construction, which they argue needs congressional approval.

Even the vice chair of the Commission of Fine Arts, James McCrery II, suggested that Trump’s proposed “Triumphal Arch” ditch the winged statue and eagles on its top. He also opposed the lions at its base, pointing out that African animals are “not a beast natural to the North American continent”.

The enormous arch is another effort by the US president to leave his mark on the physical landscape of Washington, DC.

In January, he told reporters he wants the arch to be the “biggest one of all”. The commission still needs to vote on final approval for the proposal after reviewing updated designs.

Current plans show the arch would be significantly larger than the Lincoln Memorial, which is 99 feet (30 metres) tall, and about twice as tall as the famous Arc de Triomphe in Paris, which the design resembles.

The phrases “One Nation Under God” and “Liberty and Justice for All” would be written in gold lettering atop either side of the monument.

About three out of every four people who delivered public comments about the project expressed opposition, many of them citing its enormous size.

But the arch is one of several Trump projects that have received public pushback.

Trump has sought to paint the granite of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building white, and his allies plan to close the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, a national theatre complex, for two years of renovations, after adding Trump’s name to the exterior.

One of the most permanent changes so far has been the abrupt demolition of the White House’s East Wing, in order to make room for an enormous ballroom, long one of Trump’s priorities.

But that project is likewise entangled in legal battles, with critics arguing that congressional approval is required.

On Wednesday, Judge Richard Leon clarified that construction on underground structures at the ballroom site could continue, as part of an exemption he previously allowed for national security concerns.

But he maintained his short-term injunction against construction on the ballroom itself, batting down Trump’s position that the whole project should proceed.

“Defendants argue that the entire ballroom construction project, from tip to tail, falls within the safety-and-security exception and therefore may proceed unabated,” Leon wrote in Thursday’s ruling.

“That is neither a reasonable nor a correct reading of my Order!”

The president responded on social media by calling Leon an “out of control Trump hating” judge. Leon was appointed in 2002 under Republican President George W Bush.

Death toll from Israeli attacks on Lebanon reached 2,196 on Thursday as 10-day ceasefire announced, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency.