criticism

Reporting from Washington — Embattled Secretary of Labor R. Alexander Acosta announced his resignation Friday amid mounting criticism of a lenient plea deal he struck with a now-convicted sex offender while Acosta was a federal prosecutor in Florida.

Acosta’s departure, which takes effect next week, means acting secretaries will head four major federal departments. He is the 11th Cabinet official to quit or be forced out, several under ethical or legal clouds, since President Trump took office.

Trump told reporters that Acosta had called him Friday morning to resign, adding, “It’s his decision.” Acosta said he wanted to avoid becoming a distraction to the administration so it could focus on the economy.

The resignation came two days after Acosta held a news conference to try to save his job by defending the plea agreement he negotiated in 2008 with Jeffrey Epstein, a wealthy financier, when Acosta served as U.S. attorney in Miami.

The news conference was aimed in part at persuading a president who is happy to gin up his own controversies but tends to resent bad publicity caused by underlings. Acosta’s effort to absolve himself of responsibility failed after prosecutors in Florida publicly challenged his account.

On Friday, Trump praised Acosta but did not say he had tried to persuade him to stay.

“I do not think it is right and fair for this administration’s Labor Department to have Epstein as its focus,” Acosta said as he stood beside Trump at the White House before the president departed for a trip to Wisconsin and Ohio for fundraising events and a speech.

Trump seemed less concerned.

“Alex believes that. I’m willing to live with anything,” he said. “Alex felt that way.

“He was a great student at Harvard. He’s Hispanic, which I so admire, because maybe it was a little tougher for him and maybe not,” Trump added. “That’s what I know about him. I know one thing — he did a great job.”

Acosta added that “Cabinet positions are temporary trusts,” a fact that is especially notable in Trump’s White House, which has struggled with record turnover.

Acosta’s departure means Patrick Pizzella, the deputy secretary of Labor, will serve as acting secretary. Pizzella’s career also is tinged by controversy.

A former lobbyist, Pizzella was involved in an effort in the late 1990s and early 2000s to prevent the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. commonwealth in the Western Pacific, from adopting federal minimum wage laws.

Pizzella worked on the project with Jack Abramoff, an influential lobbyist who later was sentenced to six years in prison for charges related to fraud.

The issue dogged Pizzella during his Senate confirmation hearings for deputy secretary in July 2017.

“One of the key issues you lobbied on was to block bipartisan legislation for basic worker protections in the Northern Mariana Islands, where garment manufacturers could produce clothing labeled made in the USA without having to comply with U.S. minimum wage laws,” then-Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) said.

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, an umbrella group of 200 activist organizations, later accused Pizzella of working to advocate policies “that essentially allowed for unchecked slave labor to be performed.”

Pizzella was confirmed by the Senate, 50-48.

Acosta’s downfall stems from his role in the prosecution of Epstein, a once-powerful financier who socialized with Donald Trump before he became president and Bill Clinton after he left the White House.

Epstein was charged in 2008 with luring underage girls to his Palm Beach, Fla., mansion for sex.

Under the plea agreement with Acosta’s office, Epstein avoided a federal trial — where, if convicted, he could have faced a potential sentence of life in prison — and pleaded guilty instead to two state felony solicitation charges.

He served 13 months in a county jail but was allowed to go to his office six days a week on a work release program.

In February, a judge ruled that the deal was improper because Acosta did not tell victims about the arrangement. The Justice Department subsequently opened an investigation into Acosta’s handling of the case.

Acosta has denied any wrongdoing, but the deal gave rise to a growing chorus of complaints in the #MeToo era that a sexual predator was granted favorable treatment because of his vast wealth and high-powered social connections.

The controversy reignited last weekend when federal prosecutors in New York charged Epstein with bringing underage girls to his opulent Manhattan townhouse and abusing them. He has pleaded not guilty.

Trump’s own ties to Epstein made the episode increasingly awkward for the White House.

Although Trump has tried to distance himself from his former friend, in a 2002 interview with New York magazine, he called Epstein a “terrific guy” and “a lot of fun to be with” while noting that “it is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side.”

On Friday,Trump reiterated that he had a falling out with Epstein some years ago and that he is “not a fan.” He did not disclose the nature of their dispute.

Acosta had run afoul of the White House before Epstein’s legal problems reemerged. Some of Trump’s advisors had complained that Acosta failed to aggressively pursue deregulation and other pro-business initiatives the president favored.

Before he joined the Trump administration, Acosta served on the National Labor Relations Board and in the Justice Department’s civil rights division under President George W. Bush.

He later was a well-respected dean of Florida International University, a public university in Miami. Much of his role in the Epstein case was known publicly when Trump selected him.

But unlike other presidents who have broad connections in government, Trump came to office as an outsider and relied on the judgment of others to fill out his staff. Vetting in many cases appeared cursory at best.

Acosta said Friday that he had never met or spoken with Trump when he came for an interview in early 2017 and was offered the job.

Like many others who have come into Trump’s orbit, he leaves as a damaged figure.

No modern president has lost as many Cabinet officials or senior advisors in his entire first term as Trump has in his first 30 months, according to records maintained by Kathryn Dunn Tenpas for the Brookings Institution, a nonpartisan think tank.

“No matter how you slice the data, the turnover is off the charts,” Tenpas said.

“It handicaps a president’s capacity to enhance his agenda or fulfill his campaign promises,” she added.

In all, eight secretaries who have left permanent Cabinet posts have done so under pressure or protest.

Only one moved to another administration job. That was John F. Kelly, who left as secretary of Homeland Security to become White House chief of staff. Kelly left the latter post in January after multiple disputes with Trump, and his replacement, Mick Mulvaney, is still in an acting capacity.

Three other Cabinet officials who do not head permanent Cabinet departments also left — one under pressure and two voluntarily.

Trump has said he likes the flexibility of having officials serve in an acting capacity, and his propensity to replace people has prompted those aides to work especially hard to stay in his good graces, flattering the president often in public.

That was on display Thursday when Trump held a Rose Garden event to announce an embarrassing retreat — he was giving up his fight to add a citizenship question on the U.S. census after being rebuffed by the Supreme Court.

Rather than admit defeat, Atty. Gen. William Barr praised Trump repeatedly. “Congratulations again, Mr. President,” he said.

The constant speculation about which of Trump’s aides will be next to fall — published reports Friday suggested Direction of National Intelligence Dan Coats may be on the edge — has distracted from the White House agenda.

“It means that people are focusing not on the mission of the organization, but they’re focusing on the water cooler chat about who’s going to be their boss and who’s going to be sticking around,” said Max Stier, chief executive of Partnership for Public Service, a nonpartisan nonprofit group focused on making government work better.

When top government advisors leave or face uncertain futures, their subordinates are also at risk of replacement, creating instability throughout the agency.

Trump’s picks have been surrounded by more controversy in part because he often selects them hastily, announcing appointments before they have been vetted.

UNITED NATIONS — The Trump administration announced Wednesday that it is issuing sanctions against an independent investigator tasked with probing human rights abuses in the Palestinian territories, the latest effort by the United States to punish critics of Israel’s 21-month war in Gaza.

The State Department’s decision to impose sanctions on Francesca Albanese, the U.N. special rapporteur for the West Bank and Gaza, follows an unsuccessful U.S. pressure campaign to force the international body to remove her from her post. It also comes as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is visiting Washington this week to meet with President Trump and other officials about the war in Gaza and more.

It’s unclear what the practical impact the sanctions will have and whether the independent investigator will be able to travel to the U.S. with diplomatic paperwork.

Albanese, an Italian human rights lawyer, has been vocal about what she has described as the “genocide” by Israel against Palestinians in Gaza. Both Israel and the U.S., which provides military support to its close ally, have strongly denied that accusation.

The U.S. had not previously addressed concerns with Albanese head-on because it has not participated in either of the two Human Rights Council sessions this year, including the summer session that ended Tuesday. This is because the Trump administration withdrew the U.S. earlier this year.

Albanese has urged countries to pressure Israel

In recent weeks, Albanese has issued a series of letters urging other countries to pressure Israel, including through sanctions, to end its deadly bombardment of the Gaza Strip.

She has also been a strong supporter of the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrants against Israeli officials, including Netanyahu, for allegations of war crimes. She most recently issued a report naming several large U.S. companies as among those aiding what she described as Israel’s occupation and war on Gaza.

“Albanese’s campaign of political and economic warfare against the United States and Israel will no longer be tolerated,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio posted on social media. “We will always stand by our partners in their right to self-defense.”

Liz Evenson, international justice director at Human Rights Watch, said the U.S. government’s decision to sanction Albanese for seeking justice through the ICC “is actually all about silencing a U.N. expert for doing her job — speaking truth about Israeli violations against Palestinians and calling on governments and corporations not to be complicit.”

“The United States is working to dismantle the norms and institutions on which survivors of grave abuses rely,” Evenson said in a statement. “U.N. and ICC member countries should strongly resist the U.S. government’s shameless efforts to block justice for the world’s worst crimes and condemn the outrageous sanctions on Albanese.”

Albanese’s July 1 report focuses on Western defense companies that have provided weapons used by Israel’s military, as well as manufacturers of earth-moving equipment that have bulldozed Palestinian homes and property.

It cites activities by companies in the shipping, real estate, technology, banking and finance and online travel industries, as well as academia.

“While life in Gaza is being obliterated and the West Bank is under escalating assault, this report shows why Israel’s genocide continues: because it is lucrative for many,” her report said.

A request for comment from the U.N.’s top human rights body was not immediately returned.

Israel strongly refutes Albanese’s allegations

Israel’s diplomatic mission in Geneva, where the 47-member Human Rights Council is based, called Albanese’s report “legally groundless, defamatory, and a flagrant abuse of her office” and having “whitewashed Hamas atrocities.”

Outside experts, such as Albanese, do not represent the United Nations and have no formal authority. However, they report to the council as a means of monitoring countries’ human rights records.

Albanese has faced criticism from pro-Israel officials and groups in the U.S. and in the Middle East. The U.S. mission to the U.N. issued a scathing statement last week, calling for her removal for “a years-long pattern of virulent anti-Semitism and unrelenting anti-Israel bias.”

The statement said Albanese’s allegations of Israel committing genocide or apartheid are “false and offensive.”

Israel’s ambassador to the U.N., Danny Danon, celebrated the U.S. action, saying in a statement Wednesday that Albanese’s “relentless and biased campaign against Israel and the United States has long crossed the line from human rights advocacy into political warfare.”

Trump administration’s campaign to quiet criticism of Israel

It is a culmination of a nearly six-month campaign by the Trump administration to quell criticism of Israel’s handling of the war in Gaza. Earlier this year, the administration began arresting and trying to deport faculty and students of U.S. universities who participated in pro-Palestinian demonstrations and other political activities.

The war between Israel and Hamas began Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel and killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took 251 people captive. Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed over 57,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which says women and children make up most of the dead but does not specify how many were fighters or civilians.

Nearly 21 months into the conflict that displaced the vast majority of Gaza’s 2.3 million people, it is nearly impossible for the critically wounded to get the care they need, doctors and aid workers say.

“We must stop this genocide, whose short-term goal is completing the ethnic cleansing of Palestine, while also profiteering from the killing machine devised to perform it,” Albanese said in a recent post on X. “No one is safe until everyone is safe.”

Amiri writes for the Associated Press. AP writer Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report.

Trump administration says it is targeting Francesca Albanese for encouraging ICC war crime prosecution against Israel’s Netanyahu.

Washington, DC – The administration of United States President Donald Trump has imposed sanctions on United Nations expert Francesca Albanese over her documentation of Israel’s abuses against Palestinians during its war on Gaza.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the penalties on Wednesday, accusing Albanese of waging a “campaign of political and economic warfare against the United States and Israel”.

Albanese, who serves as UN special rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territory, has been a leading global voice in calling for action to end Israel’s human rights violations.

Israel and its supporters have been rebuking Albanese and calling for her to be removed from her UN position for years.

Earlier on Wednesday, she called out European governments for allowing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – who is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crime charges in Gaza – to use their airspace while travelling.

“Italian, French and Greek citizens deserve to know that every political action violating the [international] legal order, weakens and endangers all of them. And all of us,” Albanese wrote in a social media post.

Rubio cited Albanese’s push for the prosecution of Israeli officials at the ICC as the legal basis for the sanctions.

Trump had issued an executive order in February to impose penalties on ICC officials involved in “targeting” Israel.

Last month, the Trump administration sanctioned four ICC judges.

On Wednesday, Rubio accused Albanese of anti-Semitism.

“That bias has been apparent across the span of her career, including recommending that the ICC, without a legitimate basis, issue arrest warrants targeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant,” he said.

The ICC charged Netanyahu and Gallant with crimes against humanity and war crimes in Gaza for depriving Palestinians in the enclave of “objects indispensable to their survival, including food, water, and medicine”.

Rubio also highlighted a recent report by Albanese that documented the role of international companies, including US firms, in the Israeli assault on Gaza, which she describes as a genocide.

“We will not tolerate these campaigns of political and economic warfare, which threaten our national interests and sovereignty,” the top US diplomat said.

Trump’s ICC decree freezes the assets of targeted individuals in the US and bans them and their immediate family members from entering the country.

Nancy Okail, head of the Center for International Policy (CIP) think tank, decried the sanctions against Albanese as “devastating”.

“Sanctioning a UN expert gives the signal that the United States is acting like dictatorships and rogue states,” Okail told Al Jazeera.

Over the past 21 months, Israel’s US-backed campaign in Gaza has levelled most of the territory and killed at least 57,575 Palestinians, according to local health officials.

PILTON, England — Irish-language rap group Kneecap gave an impassioned performance for tens of thousands of fans on Saturday at the Glastonbury Festival despite criticism by British politicians and a terrorism charge against one of the trio.

Liam Og O hAnnaidh, who performs under the stage name Mo Chara, has been charged under the Terrorism Act with supporting a proscribed organization for allegedly waving a Hezbollah flag at a concert in London in November. The rapper, who was charged under the anglicized version of his name, Liam O’Hanna, is on unconditional bail before a further court hearing in August.

“Glastonbury, I’m a free man!” O hAnnaidh shouted as Kneecap took the stage at Glastonbury’s West Holts field, which holds about 30,000 people. Dozens of Palestinian flags flew in the capacity crowd as the show opened with an audio montage of news clips referring to the band’s critics and legal woes.

Between high-energy numbers that had fans forming a large mosh pit, the band members led the audience in chants of “Free Palestine” and “Free Mo Chara.” They also aimed an expletive-laden chant at U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who has said he didn’t think it was “appropriate” for Kneecap to play Glastonbury.

The trio thanked festival organizers Michael and Emily Eavis for resisting pressure to cancel Kneecap’s gig and gave a shout-out to Palestine Action, a protest group that the British government plans to ban under terrorism laws after its members vandalized planes on a Royal Air Force base.

The Belfast trio is known for anarchic energy, satirical lyrics and use of symbolism associated with the Irish republican movement, which seeks to unite Northern Ireland, which is part of the U.K., with the Republic of Ireland.

More than 3,600 people were killed during three decades of violence in Northern Ireland involving Irish republican militants, pro-British Loyalist militias and the U.K. security forces. Kneecap takes its name from a brutal punishment — shooting in the leg — that was dealt out by paramilitary groups to informers and drug dealers.

The group has faced criticism for lyrics laden with expletives and drug references, and for political statements, especially since videos emerged allegedly showing the band shouting, “up Hamas, up Hezbollah,” and calling on people to kill lawmakers.

Members of the group say they don’t support Hezbollah or Hamas, nor condone violence, and O hAnnaidh says he picked up a flag that was thrown onto the stage without knowing what it represented. Kneecap has accused critics of trying to silence the band because of its support for the Palestinian cause throughout the war in the Gaza Strip.

A performance at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April — where the band accused Israel, with U.S. support, of committing genocide against the Palestinians — sparked calls for the group members’ U.S. visas to be revoked.

Several Kneecap gigs have since been canceled as a result of the controversy.

The BBC, which airs many hours of Glastonbury performances, didn’t show Kneecap’s set live, but said it would “look to make an on-demand version of Kneecap’s performance available on our digital platforms” afterward.

About 200,000 ticket holders have gathered at Worthy Farm in southwest England for Britain’s most prestigious summer music festival, which features almost 4,000 performers on 120 stages. Headline acts performing over three days ending Sunday include Neil Young, Charli XCX, Rod Stewart, Busta Rhymes, Olivia Rodrigo and Doechii.

Glastonbury highlights Friday included a performance from U.K. rockers the 1975, an unannounced set by New Zealand singer Lorde, a raucous reception for Alanis Morissette and an emotional return for Scottish singer Lewis Capaldi, two years after he took a break from touring to adjust to the effect of the neurological condition Tourette syndrome.

Dixon writes for the Associated Press.

Sabrina Carpenter divided fans earlier this month with her choice of cover art for her forthcoming album, “Man’s Best Friend.” Playing on the title, she poses on all fours like a dog while a faceless man pulls her hair.

While some interpreted the cover as cheeky and ironic — especially given the themes of the album’s first single, “Manchild” — others accused the former Disney Channel star of promoting sexist stereotypes and setting women‘s rights back decades.

Carpenter has addressed criticism by releasing an alternative cover “approved by God,” the singer revealed Wednesday on Instagram.

The black-and-white image seemingly channels Marilyn Monroe as the singer, dressed in an elegant beaded gown, leans against a man in a suit. Carpenter is front and center while the man‘s face is partially hidden.

This isn’t the first time Carpenter has ruffled some feathers.

In 2023, she received backlash from the Catholic Church after she filmed parts of her “Feather” music video at the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church. The Diocese of Brooklyn said it was “appalled” by the nature of the video and the priest who allowed her to film there was removed from his administrative duties.

When asked about the incident in an interview with Variety, Carpenter responded, “Jesus was a carpenter.” She doubled down during her Coachella debut in 2024, wearing a shirt with the same phrase.

The singer has also raised eyebrows on her Short n’ Sweet Tour, which returns to North America this fall. During her sultry performance of “Juno,” she acts out a different sex position every night.

Carpenter addressed the criticism that she’s shaped her entire brand around sex in her June cover story with Rolling Stone.

“It’s always funny to me when people complain,” she said. “They’re like, ‘All she does is sing about this.’ But those are the songs that you’ve made popular. Clearly you love sex. You’re obsessed with it. It’s in my show. There’s so many more moments than the ‘Juno’ positions, but those are the ones you post every night and comment on. I can’t control that.”

In a since-deleted post, an X user shared the first “Man’s Best Friend” cover and asked, “Does she have a personality outside of sex?” Carpenter responded, “Girl yes and it is goooooood.”

Among those who came to Carpenter’s defense of the original album art was “You’re So Vain” singer Carly Simon, who received backlash for the cover of her 1975 album, “Playing Possum.”

“She’s not doing anything outrageous,” Simon told Rolling Stone. “It seems tame. There have been far flashier covers than hers. One of the most startling covers I’ve ever seen was [the Rolling Stones’] ‘Sticky Fingers.’ That was out there in terms of sexual attitude. So I don’t know why she’s getting such flak.”

“Man’s Best Friend” will be released Aug. 29, a little over a year after Carpenter’s last project, “Short n’ Sweet.” Signed editions and copies with the alternative cover are available for preorder on her website.

June 25 (UPI) — A key vaccine-focused committee of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention met Wednesday despite bipartisan protestations and controversy that surrounds the group’s membership.

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, began at 10 a.m. EDT to discuss vaccination policy in regard to COVID-19 and RSV before its adjournment at 5:30 p.m. The panel will reconvene Thursday to discuss vaccines and vaccination recommendations for flu, chikungunya, anthrax, MMRV and the use of thimerosal in inoculations.

The panel had consisted of eight members, who replaced the 17 people who were terminated by U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. earlier this month, but Dr. Michael Ross stepped down Tuesday night as two United States senators recently suggested the ACIP meeting be postponed.

Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., a physician and chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said Monday that the new members of the panel selected by Kennedy “lack experience studying new technologies such as mRNA vaccines, and may even have a preconceived bias against them,” and declared that Wednesday’s meeting should not happen.

“The meeting should be delayed until the panel is fully staffed with more robust and balanced representation-as required by law-including those with more direct relevant expertise, Cassidy wrote. “Otherwise, ACIP’s recommendations could be viewed with skepticism, which will work against the success of this administration’s efforts.”

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., put out an X post late Tuesday that also took umbrage with the new ACIP panel.

“RFK Jr. fired all of the experts at CDC’s vaccine advisory committee,” Murray said. “He installed [eight] unvetted people, including anti-vaxxers who should have zero role in deciding which vaccines insurance should cover.”

“The committee’s next meeting must be postponed,” she added.

The American Academy of Pediatrics also spoke against the ACIP meeting in an announcement on its social media platform Wednesday.

“Today’s ACIP meeting is usually a time where experts come together to inform the future of vaccines,” the post stated. “That is not what today will be. That is not what we can stand behind.”

The AAP concluded its post by sharing that it “will continue to recommend its own childhood vaccine schedule.”

Wednesday’s ACIP meeting, which can be viewed online, opened with a preamble from the ACIP chair Dr. Martin Kulldorff, in which he stated that “Secretary Kennedy has given this committee a clear mandate to use evidence-based medicine when making vaccine recommendations. And that is what we will do.”

President Trump’s decision to strike three nuclear sites in Iran will almost assuredly draw more criticism from some of his supporters, including high-profile backers who had said any such move would run counter to the anti-interventionism he promised to deliver.

The lead-up to the strike announced Saturday exposed fissures within Trump’s “Make America Great Again” base as some of that movement’s most vocal leaders, with large followings of their own, expressed deep concern about the prospect of U.S. involvement in the Israel-Iran war.

With the president barred from seeking a third term, what remains unknown is how long-lasting the schism could be for Trump and his current priorities, as well as the overall future of his “America First” movement.

Among the surrogates who spoke out against American involvement were former senior advisor Steve Bannon, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), commentator Tucker Carlson and Charlie Kirk, the founder of the conservative youth organization Turning Point. Part of their consternation was rooted in Trump’s own vocalized antipathy for what he and others have termed the “forever wars” fomented in previous administrations.

As the possibility of military action neared, some of those voices tamped down their rhetoric. According to Trump, Carlson even called to “apologize.”

Here’s a look at what some of Trump’s biggest advocates had said about U.S. military involvement in Iran:

Steve Bannon

On Wednesday, Bannon, one of the top advisors in Trump’s 2016 campaign, told an audience in Washington that bitter feelings over Iraq were a driving force for Trump’s first presidential candidacy and the MAGA movement. “One of the core tenets is no forever wars,” Bannon said.

But the longtime Trump ally, who served a four-month sentence for defying a subpoena in the congressional investigation into the U.S. Capitol attack on Jan. 6, 2021, went on to suggest that Trump will maintain loyalty from his base no matter what. On Wednesday, Bannon acknowledged that while he and others will argue against military intervention until the end, “the MAGA movement will back Trump.”

Ultimately, Bannon said that Trump would have to make the case to the American people if he wanted to get involved in Iran.

“We don’t like it. Maybe we hate it,” Bannon said, predicting what the MAGA response would be. “But, you know, we’ll get on board.”

Tucker Carlson

The commentator’s rhetoric toward Trump was increasingly critical. Carlson, who headlined large rallies with the Republican during the 2024 campaign, earlier this month suggested that the president’s posture was breaking his pledge to keep the U.S. out of new foreign entanglements. Trump clapped back at Carlson on social media, calling him “kooky.”

During an event at the White House on Wednesday, Trump said that Carlson had “called and apologized” for calling him out. Trump said Carlson “is a nice guy.”

Carlson’s conversation with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) that day laid bare the divides among many Republicans. The two sparred for two hours over a variety of issues, primarily about possible U.S. involvement in Iran. Carlson accused Cruz of placing too much emphasis on protecting Israel in his foreign policy worldview.

“You don’t know anything about Iran,” Carlson said to Cruz, after the senator said he didn’t know Iran’s population or its ethnic composition. “You’re a senator who’s calling for the overthrow of a government, and you don’t know anything about the country.”

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene

The Georgia Republican, who wore the signature red MAGA cap for Democratic President Biden’s State of the Union address in 2024, publicly sided with Carlson, criticizing Trump for deriding “one of my favorite people.”

Saying the former Fox News commentator “unapologetically believes the same things I do,” Greene wrote on X this past week that those beliefs include that “foreign wars/intervention/regime change put America last, kill innocent people, are making us broke, and will ultimately lead to our destruction.”

“That’s not kooky,” Greene added, using the same word Trump used to describe Carlson. “That’s what millions of Americans voted for. It’s what we believe is America First.”

Alex Jones

The far-right conspiracy theorist and Infowars host posted on social media earlier in the week a side-by-side of Trump’s official presidential headshot and an artificial intelligence-generated composite of Trump and former Republican President George W. Bush. Trump and many of his allies have long disparaged Bush for involving the United States in the “forever wars” in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Writing “What you voted for” above Trump’s image and “What you got” above the composite, Jones added: “I hope this is not the case…”

Charlie Kirk

Kirk said in a Fox News interview at the start of the week that “this is the moment that President Trump was elected for.” But he had warned of a potential MAGA divide over Iran.

Days later, Kirk said that “Trump voters, especially young people, supported President Trump because he was the first president in my lifetime to not start a new war.” He also wrote that “there is historically little support for America to be actively engaged in yet another offensive war in the Middle East. We must work for and pray for peace.”

In Kirk’s view, “The last thing America needs right now is a new war. Our number one desire must be peace, as quickly as possible.”

Kinnard writes for the Associated Press.

The French Open night sessions – which were introduced in 2021 – feature just one singles match on Court Philippe Chatrier.

A women’s singles match, played over three sets, has not been put in this primetime slot since 2023 – meaning the past 19 night-time sessions have been men’s singles matches, which are played over five sets.

Only four matches have been from the women’s draw since they were brought in four years ago.

Questions are raised every year about whether the French Open should do more to promote the women’s game.

Mauresmo says women’s matches potentially going “really fast” is the justification behind the choices.

“There is nothing new under the sun compared to the previous editions,” she said.

“We have one single match per night session. It hasn’t changed. We won’t change everything again.

“Two sets can go really fast when you have three sets minimum – that’s the lens for me.

“It’s not the level the [women] reach right now. I’m not talking about this.”

Mauresmo also said the tournament does not want to have two matches in the night session, like the Australian Open and US Open, in fear of creating late finishes.

She pointed to the full crowd at Thursday night’s match between French favourite Gael Monfils and British number one Jack Draper – played in front of a full house until it finished at 23:45 local time – as a measure of the schedule’s success.

“If we have two matches in the night sessions, it doesn’t work in terms of how late the players are going to finish,” she said.

“But if we start earlier, the stands are going to be empty in most of the first match, so we keep this one match in the evening.

“It’s not ideal. We cannot check every box because we have many, many things to think when we are doing these choices.”

PA Media

‘I know where I stand’

Lineker hitting headlines