Judge blocks construction of Trump’s arch
A federal judge has blocked construction of President Donald Trump’s arch for 14 days after a commission that Trump has stacked with his loyalists voted Thursday to allow construction to begin. The National Capital Planning Commission voted approval Thursday after more than 120 citizens, many of them veterans, lined up to plead with the panel to block the project. After more than eight hours of public testimony, the commission approved the arch by a vote of 8-4 around 10:29 p.m. Within an hour of its passage, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan prohibited the Trump administration from “initiating, making or otherwise effectuating” any “construction-related activity” near the proposed site of the arch. Opponents denounced the planned arch as a vanity project for Trump and objected to its planning, which was not approved by Congress. Protests near the site took place throughout Thursday.
Hegseth on offense to save his job
In a video posted on social media Thursday, Defense Secretary Hegseth argued that he has done a good job in handling the war with Iran and the military in general. The video came amid indications that some Republicans are lining up with Hegseth’s critics and may try to impeach him and blame him for the Republican defeat in the mid-term elections. Apart from Donald Trump, few in Washington are willing to publicly defend Hegseth. Hegseth referenced the impeachments of Trump in his video. “It’s all about the politics of personal destruction. Didn’t work against President Trump, and it won’t work with me. You can rest assured of that,” Hegseth said. Hegseth boasted about driving “the weird and the woke” out of the military. Hegseth’s speech was accompanied by a blitz of supportive social media posts by aides in what increasingly looks like an orchestrated campaign to save his job.
Wall St. on edge after Thursday selloff
A stunning $2.5 trillion was wiped off the value of the tech-heavy Nasdaq on Thursday as investors rushed to dump tech stocks, rattled by fears that Democrats’ midterm victories could slow the artificial intelligence (AI) buildout. But another force made the sell-off more brutal: Investors who had borrowed heavily to bet on the boom were under pressure to sell. Hedge funds and other investors who borrow to make bigger bets may have to sell more stocks to cover losses and meet demands for cash, which can deepen a sell-off. On Wednesday morning, Wall Street had rallied as investors cheered Democrats’ gains. By Thursday, however, that optimism had given way to fears that Democrats could use their new political leverage to impose tighter regulation and rein in the AI buildout.
Northeastern U.S. soaked after GA and TN flooding
The first significant rainfall in weeks is falling along parts of the Northeast coast on Friday from the same storm that produced historic and catastrophic flooding on the Georgia and Tennessee. More than 100 people had to be rescued as feet of floodwater overwhelmed homes and businesses in McCaysville, Georgia, and Copperhill, Tennessee, after downpours swelled their shared river to a new record high. Extreme flooding like this is not expected along the East Coast, but the downpours could still cause flash flooding despite dry ground after weeks without rain. Heavy rain is underway in coastal portions of the Northeast and Mid–Atlantic and is expected to last through Friday night or possibly early Saturday morning. A few locations caught under repeated heavy downpours could deal with up to six inches. Flooding rainfall is possible from the New York City area to southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina. These areas could deal with ponding on roadways, delays at airports and isolated flash flooding.
More bomb threats in Europe
Fresh disruption hit several European airports and flights on Friday while Ireland’s national broadcaster RTÉ evacuated its offices after also receiving a bomb threat. Several other media organizations, including Sky, said they too had received similar threats. Over a dozen flights were impacted on Thursday, including four flight diversions in the Czech Republic and two in Italy, two days after several other flights and one cruise ship also received bomb threats. A representative of Václav Havel Airport in Prague, told CNN the threats it received about bombs being placed on four flights were made in an anonymous email. A Czech Police spokesperson told CNN the email was addressed to the airport, adding that similar emails were sent to other airports in Europe. Eric Schouten, the head of aviation security group Dyami, suggested saboteurs acting on behalf of the Russian state could be to blame. “From railways to the food infrastructure that you see happening with the fridges being hacked and all kinds of other operations, it does fit the narrative of Russian state actors who want to disturb Europe,” Schouten said, according to Reuters. He also pointed out that many of the countries affected have supported Ukraine in the war Russia started.
Brand found guilty of sex charges
British actor, comedian and media personality Russell Brand faces a lengthy prison sentence after he was found guilty in a London court on Thursday of raping a young fan and sexually assaulting three women. Brand, 51, was convicted of raping the 21-year-old admirer in 2009 after they met at one of his shows in west London. He was also found guilty of groping an MTV worker at a bar in central London in 2004, kissing and groping another woman at her workplace in 2005 and sexually assaulting another woman in 2009 when she was forced to give him a massage. A jury of eight men and four women cleared the star of other charges of rape and one count of attempted indecent assault, after deliberating for around eight and a half hours. While rape can carry a maximum life term, Britain’s Sentencing Council says the range is usually 4-19 years custody. Before the verdict was delivered, Brand said “I love you” to his wife Laura Gallacher, an author and illustrator. Brand previously was married to U.S. pop star Katy Perry.
Some material ™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
Source: westfaironline.com
