Pete Hegseth Has Dumbest Defense Yet for Trump Resuming Nuclear Tests

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth offered a baffling defense Friday for President Donald Trump’s directive to resume nuclear testing.

Following a meeting with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn, Hegseth said his agency would work with the U.S. Department of Energy on just how they would carry out nuclear weapons testing for the first time in 30 years.

“We need to have a credible nuclear deterrent, that is the baseline of our deterrence. And so having understanding, and resuming testing is a pretty responsible—very responsible way to do that. I think it makes nuclear conflict less likely, if you know what you have and make sure it operates properly,” Hegseth said.

But experts suggest that resuming nuclear testing would shatter global norms, deprioritize disarmament, and grant nations license to test their own weapons.

Arizona Democratic Senator Mark Kelly slammed Trump’s explosive directive. “If we did a test and then China decided, ‘OK, I’m going to start testing.’ They’ll start testing their nuclear weapons, then their strategic forces capability gets much better,” the former naval aviator said Thursday. “We have zero to gain. This would be a gift to China.”

Paul Dean, vice president for policy at the Nuclear Threat Initiative, told Politico that the U.S. could certify its stockpile without expensive weapons testing (each test would cost $140 million). Dean added that it was a risky move “that can be easily misconstrued, generate arms race pressure and rapidly evolve into a crisis.”

Earlier this week, Beth Sanner, former deputy director of national intelligence, told CNN that resuming nuclear testing was a “bad idea” that would benefit other countries more than it would benefit the U.S. Already, Russia has indicated that if other nations resumed nuclear testing, Moscow would follow suit.

New York City votes Tuesday for its next mayor, but Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer still has to make a decision on who he’ll pick on his ballot.

The Democratic leader ran away from the press Friday when asked who he intended to cast his ballot for in the upcoming election.

“[Zohran] Mamdani, are you going to vote for him?” asked CNN’s Manu Raju.

“The bottom line is very simple. I have a good relationship with him, and we’re continuing to talk,” said Schumer.

“But the vote is on Tuesday. What are you going to do?” pressed Raju.

But Schumer had already turned his back and walked out of the room.

After a tight Democratic primary (and stunning upset victory) this summer, Mamdani has gained citywide appeal. The Ugandan-born New Yorker is currently leading the mayoral race by double digits, according to three new polls out this week.

An Emerson College poll published Thursday put Mamdani at 50 percent favorability with likely voters. Ex–New York Governor Andrew Cuomo trailed behind at 25 percent, while the poll estimated that Republican mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa would attract 21 percent. Just 5 percent of voters remained undecided, according to the Emerson College poll.

Mamdani’s candidacy has proven a pivotal turning point for the Democratic Party, separating out the politicians with a dream for the future against those without one. Ultimately, Schumer’s abstention only serves as yet another illustration of how detached Democratic leadership has become from the desires of their base, who apparently—per New York’s anticipated election results—crave drastic change.

Mamdani’s campaign has already collected support from the likes of Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and New York Governor Kathy Hochul.

Like Schumer, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries waited until the last minute to support the Democratic Socialist. Jeffries extended his backing just last week, too late to make any meaningful difference in the race’s outcome.

As Americans braced Friday for SNAP benefits to expire, President Donald Trump couldn’t stop bragging about his extravagant new bathroom.

With less than 24 hours left to fund essential food resources 42 million Americans rely on, Trump was hard at work sharing pictures on Truth Social of the pristine white marble facility adorned with gaudy golden hardware. In a separate post, Trump explained that they were photographs of the refurbished bathroom in the Lincoln Bedroom.

“Highly polished, Statuary marble!” he wrote. (In September, Trump reportedly took an hour to give Republican lawmakers from Florida a tour, where he showed off the new marble tiles he’d selected for the floors.)

But Trump wasn’t done there. With the deadline to ensure funding fast approaching, he turned his attention to his renovations at the Kennedy Center.

“It is really looking good!” he wrote in another post on Truth Social, touting fixes to the apparently corroded columns, rebuilt stages, fresh carpets, as well as “new seats, new chairs.”

“It is happening faster than anticipated, one of my trademarks,” Trump wrote. “My people are doing a really great job! We are bringing this building back to life. It was dead as a doornail, but it will soon be beautiful again!”

But it seems that speed is only a virtue when it comes to construction—the president has allowed the government shutdown to stretch on for 31 days, making it the second-longest in history.

A federal judge in Rhode Island issued a temporary order requiring the government to use contingency funds to pay for SNAP benefits as the shutdown continues. But just hours earlier, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins wouldn’t commit to releasing SNAP funds if ordered to do so.

Two federal judges have ordered the Trump administration to use contingency funds to pay out SNAP funds while the government is shut down.

U.S. District Judges John J. McConnell in Rhode Island and Indira Talwani in Massachusetts each ruled Friday that the government had to keep funding the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, either partially or in full for November. Prior to news of the ruling, the U.S. Department of Agriculture was planning to freeze payments for food stamps Saturday.

White House officials had refused to fund SNAP from a $5 billion contingency fund that existed precisely to keep funding the program in the event of something like this. In response, 25 states and the District of Columbia sued the federal government in federal court to keep the program running, alleging that the USDA had “both the authority and legal duty” to do so.

Both Talwani and McConnell asked for updates from the government by Monday. In his ruling, McConnell ruled that the previous work requirement waivers must stay intact, reversing the USDA’s decision during the shutdown to terminate waivers exempting older adults, veterans, and others from work requirements.

Talwani called the government’s suspension of SNAP unlawful, writing in her ruling that “Defendants’ suspension of SNAP payments was based on the erroneous conclusion that the Contingency Funds could not be used to ensure continuation of SNAP payments. This court has now clarified that Defendants are required to use those Contingency Funds as necessary for the SNAP program.”

The Trump administration will undoubtedly appeal, possibly all the way to the Supreme Court. But for now, millions of people across the country will not have to make hard choices about how to feed themselves and their families. Several states that had already declared emergencies to tackle the impending crisis will have at least some temporary relief.

This story has been updated.

One Republican representative is angry that Donald Trump’s redistricting war has put his congressional seat in danger.

California Representative Kevin Kiley criticized the GOP in an interview with The New York Times’ podcast The Daily Friday, saying that his party’s attempt to grab more seats in the House of Representatives and keep control of Congress is “incredibly destabilizing.”

“I said from the moment this was on my radar that it shouldn’t be happening anywhere. I’m against it in Texas, I’m against it in California. It’s pure political opportunism,” Kiley said.

If California Governor Gavin Newsom is successful in his retaliation, Kiley could be squeezed out of Congress, as California would gain five new Democratic seats. The congressman tried to head off the redistricting tit-for-tat back in August by introducing a bill to prevent congressional districts from being redrawn in the middle of a decade, as opposed to the customary end of a decade following the national census.

But Republican leadership didn’t support his idea and went on with their gerrymandering efforts across the country, including in places like Ohio, Missouri, Utah, and Indiana. This has prompted Democratic redistricting efforts in states besides California such as Maryland, New York, and even purple Virginia, and drawn the ire of other vulnerable Republicans in addition to Kiley. Who knows what Congress is going to look like when the dust clears?

The U.N. human rights chief has taken the unprecedented step of condemning America’s military strikes on boats in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean, accusing the U.S. of violating international law.

The Trump administration has committed 14 known strikes on small boats in the two regions over the last two months, killing at least 61 people.

Volker Türk, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, issued the critique—the first of its kind—Friday, calling for a “prompt, independent, and transparent” investigation into the strikes.

“These attacks and their mounting human cost are unacceptable,” Türk said, as relayed by spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani. “The U.S. must halt such attacks and take all measures necessary to prevent the extrajudicial killing of people aboard these boats.”

Shamdasani added that Türk believed “airstrikes by the United States of America on boats in the Caribbean and in the Pacific violate international human rights law.”

The White House has insisted the violence is justified, broadly accusing the boats of trafficking narcotics to the U.S. from Venezuela and Colombia, though U.S. lawmakers have been more than skeptical—particularly since several of the boats were thousands of miles away in international waters, and since the attacks were conducted without prior investigations or interdiction. On Thursday, Democratic Representative Sara Jacobs revealed Pentagon officials weren’t even concerned with identifying the people on the boats before attacking.

Trump has blamed the attacks on Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, who has remained atop the country’s government despite Trump’s forceful attempts in 2019 to install then–opposition leader Juan Guaido.

Last week, the Pentagon announced it would deploy the world’s largest warship—the USS Gerald R. Ford—to Latin America in an effort to ramp up the military firepower available for fighting the small watercraft.

But the escalation has only further strained America’s relationship with its Latin American neighbors. In an address to his country late last week, Maduro accused the U.S. of fabricating “a new eternal war.”

Vice President JD Vance had a social media meltdown Friday over the widespread backlash to his strange admission about wanting his wife to ditch her faith.

While appearing at a Turning Point USA town hall Wednesday, Vance said he harbored hopes that his wife, Usha, a Hindu, would be moved by the good word and become a late-in-life Catholic like him.

“As I’ve told her, and I’ve said publicly, and I’ll say now in front of 10,000 of my closest friends: Do I hope eventually that she is somehow moved by the same thing that I was moved in by church? Yeah, I do wish that. Because I believe in the Christian gospel, and I hope eventually my wife comes to see it the same way,” he said.

Many saw this as Vance rejecting his wife’s own religion and culture, including journalist Ezra Levant, who wrote on X: “It’s weird to throw your wife’s religion under the bus, in public, for a moment’s acceptance by groypers.”

But Vance didn’t like that one bit and took at X to cry “anti-Christian bigotry.”

“What a disgusting comment, and it’s hardly been the only one along these lines,” Vance wrote Friday. He claimed that the question was from someone “seemingly to my left,” and he’d felt compelled to answer honestly.

“Second, my Christian faith tells me the Gospel is true and is good for human beings,” he wrote.

Vance claimed that Usha had urged him to reengage with Christianity. “She is not a Christian and has no plans to convert, but like many people in an interfaith marriage—or any interfaith relationship—I hope she may one day see things as I do,” he wrote. “Regardless, I’ll continue to love and support her and talk to her about faith and life and everything else, because she’s my wife.

“Third, posts like this wreak of anti-Christian bigotry,” he wrote, misspelling “reek.” “Yes, Christians have beliefs. And yes, those beliefs have many consequences, one of which is that we want to share them with other people. That is a completely normal thing, and anyone who’s telling you otherwise has an agenda.”

But Christianity doesn’t teach followers to disrespect others’ beliefs. And Vance has a tendency to refashion Christian teachings to support his arguments, like the time he presented a bastardized version of Catholic doctrine to argue that Americans should turn on their neighbors.

Crucially, Turning Point USA isn’t exactly a breeding ground for cross-cultural understanding. Earlier this month, DOGE czar-for-a-day Vivek Ramaswamy came face-to-face with the rampant racism of the right wing at another Turning Point USA event in Montana.

Ohio Republicans adopted a new congressional map on Friday that would give Republicans a big boost in two Democratic-held districts. The move comes as Republicans nationwide engage in an effort to gerrymander maps in their favor as midterm elections approach.

The Friday deal places two of the five Democratic Representatives in Ohio—Greg Landsman and Marcy Kaptur—into redder districts in their already purple state. In return, Democratic Representative Emilia Sykes will be drawn into a slightly bluer district, though the race would still be competitive. The remaining two Democratic members of Congress, Joyce Beatty and Shontel Brown, will remain in their deep blue districts.

While this map isn’t the worst for Democrats, Landsman and Kaptur’s districts flipping red could have massive implications come 2026, given the currently slim margin of control Republicans have in the House. A Democratic victory would make it easier for them to oppose Trump’s policies, as Republicans are fully aware.

The redistricting committee will meet once more at 4 p.m. on Friday to send in the final map.

“Ban partisan gerrymandering,” former Ohio state Senator Nina Turner wrote on X in response to the news. “Ohio deserves better.”

Vice President JD Vance has some explaining to do over a hug that was a little too close with Erika Kirk, the widow of right-wing political activist Charlie Kirk.

The two were at the University of Mississippi Wednesday night for Turning Point USA’s “This Is the Turning Point” tour, the organization co-founded by Charlie that Erika took over after his death. Vance not only was the headlining guest but also filled Charlie’s old role of debating college students from a stage.

But the internet isn’t as concerned with the tour itself, or the fact that Vance has time to play conservative influencer while serving as vice president. Instead, they’re talking about the embrace between him and Kirk’s widow, with Vance’s hands on her waist and her face appearing to betray some emotion at the same time.

Several commentators seemed to suggest that this doesn’t bode well for Vance’s wife, Usha.

The pictures from Mississippi aren’t helped by Vance’s remarks about his wife at the event, where he said he hopes Usha will leave her Hindu faith and convert to Christianity. All three of their children are being raised as Christians, with the two older ones attending a Christian school.

“I honestly do wish that because I believe in the Christian gospel, and I hope eventually, my wife comes to see it the same way,” he said. “If she doesn’t, then God says, everybody has free will, so that doesn’t cause a problem for me. That’s something you work out.”

Is there something going on between Kirk and Vance? If there isn’t, the vice president’s words and that hug are already spreading rumors otherwise. Usha and her parents have both done a lot for Vance, and what happened Wednesday looks disrespectful, at a minimum.

President Trump’s takeover of the Kennedy Center has been a financial death sentence for the famed cultural institution.

The Washington Post has reported that ticket sales at the Kennedy Center are the worst they’ve been since the Covid-19 pandemic. The average show is selling just over half of its tickets right now, with some of those tickets being comped for various reasons. This is a massive dip. In 2023, that number was at 80 percent, and in 2024, it was at 93 percent.

This likely is the result of Trump’s crusade to “unwoke” the Kennedy Center.

“The programming was out of control with rampant political propaganda, DEI, and inappropriate shows,” Trump said back in May. “They had dance parties for, quote, ‘queer and trans youth.’ And I guess that’s all right for certain people.… But that wasn’t working out too well.”

Trump promised to make the Kennedy Center “hot” again and reinvigorate ticket sales that didn’t need much help in the first place.

“Given the unprecedented takeover of a nonpartisan arts institution combined with the inexperience and rhetoric of the new management, I expected a decline in sales; however, it is truly shocking to see that these actions have been worse for business at the Kennedy Center than the aftermath of a global pandemic,” an anonymous former staff member told the Post. “These numbers are likely more dire than they appear, as they don’t account for canceled productions or shows moved into smaller theaters due to weak ticket sales.”

Furthermore, Trump has placed the center in another precarious position, as it risks losing donors due to Trump’s right-wing cultural push.

“Depressed ticket sales not only cause a shortfall in revenue; they also bode unfavorably for future fundraising revenue,” former Kennedy Center President Michael Kaiser wrote in an email to the Post. He had the center running at a surplus during his tenure. “The vast majority of donors are ticket buyers who are anxious to enhance their relationships with the organization by making contributions in addition to paying for their tickets. We had 40,000 generous individual donors by the time I left the Center in 2014. Funding from these individuals formed the foundation for all we accomplished.”

Not only is Trump bad for the quality of cultural stewardship, he’s bad for business. We risk losing even more of the Kennedy Center’s operations as this administration continues.