Markwayne Mullin confirmed as next DHS secretary
The Senate confirmed Mullin in a 54-45 vote, with two Democrats voting for him and one Republican opposing his nomination.
What to know today
- MULLIN CONFIRMATION: The Senate confirmed Markwayne Mullin as the next secretary of homeland security to replace Kristi Noem. Democratic Sens. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania and Martin Heinrich of New Mexico voted for him, while Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky was the only Republican to oppose President Donald Trump's nominee.
- DHS FUNDING: Trump said at an event in Memphis, Tennessee, today that he told Republicans in Congress not to make a deal with Democrats on Department of Homeland Security funding unless they can get an agreement to pass the SAVE America Act. Senate GOP leader John Thune told reporters later that it’s "not realistic" to tie DHS funding to passing the voting bill.
- ICE AIRPORT DEPLOYMENT: Trump said it was his idea to send ICE agents to airports across the country today to assist the Transportation Security Administration with security as talks to end the Department of Homeland Security shutdown drag on. He also said he could deploy the National Guard to assist at airports.
- SUPREME COURT ELECTION CASE: Conservative Supreme Court justices appeared skeptical today about a Mississippi law that allows mail-in ballots to be counted after Election Day. The questioning during arguments indicates the court could be closely divided over the practice, which Trump opposes.
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Senate Republicans optimistic about DHS funding after meeting with Trump
Senate Republicans expressed optimism about a path on DHS funding tonight after a small group of them met with Trump at the White House.
Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins, R-Maine, said she would not “get into the details that were agreed on at the White House, but I will say that I’m optimistic that we’re on a good track.”
Asked whether Republicans had a solution to funding DHS, Sen. Katie Britt of Alabama said, "We do."
Britt, who was spotted at the White House this evening along with Sens. Steve Daines of Montana and Bernie Moreno of Ohio, deferred to Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., on sharing the specifics of the plan.
Thune, who was not at the White House meeting, said there was nothing to announce “at this point,” but he said he heard the meeting was positive. Later, Thune said he feels “good about it,” adding that the “White House meeting, I think, was very constructive.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said, “Both sides are talking in a serious way.”
Schumer was spotted on the Senate floor tonight talking with Britt, Moreno and Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the Appropriations Committee.
Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., meanwhile, expressed frustration that the Senate was “not making any progress” on funding DHS.
“Maybe there’s some major breakthrough with the White House that Katie’s talking about, but every one of these meetings could be an email,” said Kennedy, who was not at the White House and had not yet spoken to Britt.
Trump said in Memphis today that he told Republicans not to make a deal with Democrats on funding DHS, which is in a partial shutdown, unless there's an agreement on passing the massive voting overhaul bill known as the SAVE America Act, which Democrats oppose.
Trump casts a mail ballot again in Florida even as he calls the method ‘cheating’
Trump cast a mail ballot in an upcoming Florida special election, according to Palm Beach County records, as he publicly condemns the voting method as fraudulent.
“Mail-in voting means mail-in cheating. I call it mail-in cheating, and we got to do something about it all,” Trump said today.
Public records indicate his mail ballot was received and counted by election officials in Palm Beach County, where he is registered to vote, though the records do not detail how it was delivered to election officials.
It’s a familiar refrain — and action — from Trump, who has often criticized mail voting as rife with fraud. He has used such rhetoric to push a massive elections overhaul bill in Congress called the SAVE America Act.
New federal prosecutor to take the helm in New Jersey after months of upheaval
A career prosecutor is set to lead the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey after successful consultations between federal judges and the Trump administration that were preceded by months of legal fights and significant turnover.
The U.S. Courthouse in Camden, N.J. Matt Rourke / AP file
Robert Frazer, who has served in the New Jersey U.S. attorney’s office for more than two decades and was most recently its senior trial counsel, will become the top federal prosecutor in the state.
The chief judge for the district signed a one-sentence order today appointing Frazer.
The same day, a letter signed by an assistant U.S. attorney in the office said Frazer’s appointment “followed consultations between the District Court and the Department of Justice’s senior leadership.”
Senate confirms Markwayne Mullin to be DHS secretary, replacing Kristi Noem
The Senate voted tonight to confirm Markwayne Mullin to lead the Department of Homeland Security as the shutdown of the sprawling agency dragged into its sixth week with no end in sight.
The vote to confirm Mullin, a Republican senator from Oklahoma, as the head of DHS was 54-45, with Sens. John Fetterman, D-Pa., and Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., supporting his confirmation.
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., the chairman of the panel overseeing DHS, voted against Mullin this evening after he clashed with him at his hearing last week and questioned whether a man with “anger issues” could be trusted to set a good example for ICE and Border Patrol agents.
Senate to hold confirmation vote for Markwayne Mullin at 7:45 p.m.
The Senate is scheduled to vote at 7:45 p.m. ET on whether to confirm Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., to be the next secretary of homeland security.
Mullin is expected to reach the 51 votes needed to be confirmed. Yesterday, the Senate voted 54-37 to move forward with his nomination, with two Democrats voting yes: John Fetterman of Pennsylvania and Martin Heinrich of New Mexico.
Eight Democrats and one Republican did not vote yesterday.
Republicans reject another Democratic attempt to pass a bill to fund TSA but not the rest of DHS
Senate Democrats, this time led by Jacky Rosen of Nevada, again tried to pass a bill that would fund TSA but not the rest of the Department of Homeland Security.
Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., blocked the measure as Rosen sought unanimous consent for its passage.
“You know, I find this really disappointing. Paying our hardworking TSA officers shouldn’t be controversial. It’s not partisan. The funding isn’t controversial,” Rosen said.
Democrats forced a roll call vote on a similar measure over the weekend. The measure needed 60 votes to advance, and it failed 41-49.
Democrats have vowed to continue trying to fund TSA independent of the rest of DHS as long security lines at airports delay travelers at airports.
NBC News previously reported that over the weekend, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., discussed with Trump a potential off-ramp to the partial DHS shutdown that would fund all of DHS except ICE. Trump rejected the proposal.
Trump said today that he told Republicans not to make a deal with Democrats on funding DHS, which is in a partial shutdown as Democrats insist on changes to ICE, until there’s an agreement to pass the voting bill known as the SAVE America Act.
Conservation groups sue to block Trump efforts to ‘hastily gut’ the Kennedy Center
Several conservation groups sued today to block the planned massive renovations at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, arguing the Trump administration plans to “hastily gut” the center without regard to its history or statutory guardrails.
Trump and his handpicked board of trustees plan to “fundamentally alter this iconic property without complying with bedrock federal historic preservation and environmental laws, and without securing the necessary congressional authorization,” their suit says.
The suit contends that time is of the essence because Trump, who named himself the board’s chair last year, has acknowledged they’ve “already commenced preliminary construction work” at the site and announced this month that the center would temporarily close on July 5 so the renovations can begin in earnest.
Thune says it’s 'not realistic' to tie DHS funding to passing the SAVE America Act
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said this afternoon that Trump’s insistence on Truth Social that there should be no “deal” with Democrats until the SAVE America Act is passed is “not realistic.”
As for Trump’s encouraging Republicans to stay in Washington for Easter, Thune told reporters to ask him again Thursday. “We’ll see how it goes this week and how much progress we make and if we can find a way to get things funded,” he said.
Thune refrained from commenting on his discussions with the White House about DHS negotiations, saying only that “they continue.”
Trump begins another White House renovation project
Trump plans to redo the West Wing Colonnade walkway, swapping out the existing pavers for some made of black granite, according to a White House official. Work on the project started today. It is just the latest major renovation Trump has made to the White House and surrounding areas since his second term started.
White House spokesman Davis Ingle said in a statement: “President Trump continues to implement long-overdue and necessary renovations to beautify the People’s House as we approach our great Nation’s 250th anniversary of independence. Thanks to the Builder-in-Chief, the White House will be properly glorified and remain in excellent condition for generations to come.”
ICE deployed to airports amid hourslong TSA lines
Trump is sending ICE agents to a number of airports plagued by extremely long security lines as TSA workers face shortages in record numbers because of the partial government shutdown. Trump's border czar, Tom Homan, said ICE will handle security tasks so TSA can focus on its expertise like X-ray scans. NBC News’ Jesse Kirsch reports for "TODAY."
U.S. stocks rise, oil prices fall after Trump backs off threat to hit Iran’s power grid
U.S. stocks surged today after Trump announced he was postponing all military strikes on Iranian power plants for five days.
Iranian state media responded that Trump had “backed down” after Iran’s firm response.
The semiofficial Mehr news agency also relayed a message from the Iranian Foreign Affairs Ministry that “there is no dialogue between Tehran and Washington.”
Trump, however, said Iran had “called” to discuss trying to resolve the war diplomatically.
ICE agents spotted at airports assisting TSA as partial shutdown drags on
Travelers in America’s overstressed airports today spotted Department of Homeland Security personnel, including ICE agents, who have been tasked with assisting TSA workers as they entered another week without pay because of the partial government shutdown.
NBC News confirmed that ICE and other Homeland Security officers and agents were at several major airports, including Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta, Chicago’s O’Hare and New York’s John F. Kennedy.
Supreme Court conservatives appear skeptical of mail-in ballots that arrive after Election Day
Conservative Supreme Court justices today questioned whether states should be allowed to count ballots that are mailed on time but arrive after Election Day.
The nine justices heard more than two hours of arguments as Trump has ramped up his opposition to mail-in voting and urged Congress to ban it in most cases.
The court is considering a Mississippi law similar to measures in 13 other states that allow mail-in ballots to be counted as long as they are postmarked by Election Day. The case could have implications for the midterm elections in November, when voters will decide which party controls the House and the Senate.
White House rejects meeting between Homan and Democrats
The White House rejected a request from Democrats to meet with border czar Tom Homan this morning, two sources familiar with the request told NBC News.
Homan had been negotiating with a centrist group of Democrats to fund the Department of Homeland Security in exchange for reforms to immigration enforcement.
They last met in person Friday night and have continued conversations that many saw as moving in the right direction until Trump told Senate Republicans not to make a deal after all.
Trump says Senate shouldn't take Easter recess: 'Make this one for Jesus'
Trump suggested in his remarks in Memphis that the Senate shouldn't take its two-week recess for Easter unless it passes the Save Act and funding for DHS.
"You don't have to take a fast vote. Don't worry about Easter, going home. In fact, make this one for Jesus. Okay, make this one for Jesus," Trump said in a message to Republicans.
He added, "The most important part of homeland security is voter ID and proof of citizenship. Nobody can vote on Homeland Security without voter ID or proof of citizenship."
Senators are slated to leave Washington at the end of the week for the holiday recess.
Trump says he's telling Republicans 'don't make a deal on anything' amid DHS shutdown
Trump said this afternoon he's telling Republicans not to reach an agreement with Democrats to end the DHS shutdown without reaching a deal to pass the SAVE America Act, an election overhaul bill that includes voter ID requirements.
"I'm again demanding the Democrats in Congress immediately end their disgraceful shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security and restore the full funding for airport security and the TSA. They are holding it up because they want to take care of illegal immigrants coming into our country," Trump said at his roundtable event in Memphis alongside Attorney General Pam Bondi and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
"As part of homeland security, and I'm suggesting strongly to the Republican Party, don't make any deal on anything," he added. "The most important thing we can have is what's called the SAVE America Act. Don't make any deal on anything unless you include voter ID."
He also argued again for Republicans to eliminate the filibuster, which requires 60 votes to advance most pieces of legislation.
Trump begins speaking at meeting on Memphis crime task force
The stage at the venue in Memphis where Trump just began speaking to the task force aimed at fighting crime in the city is piled high with props, including boxes labeled DEA evidence, guns, bags of marijuana, methamphetamines and handgun collection containers.
Digital signs also display rotating messages about crime reduction, arrests, missing children recovered and criminal cases cleared.
Attorney General Pam Bondi, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, FBI Director Kash Patel and White House aide Stephen Miller are among those at the event.
Dozens of guests and service members in uniform are in the audience.
President Donald Trump arrives for a roundtable in Memphis, Tenn., today. Saul Loeb / AFP - Getty Images
White House border czar Tom Homan said he anticipates protests at airports where ICE is located
White House border czar Tom Homan said he expects protests could develop at airports where the Trump administration has deployed ICE agents.
Homan said in an interview on Chris Cuomo’s SiriusXM show that the administration is sending ICE "out to the biggest airports with the biggest wait lines." He declined to identify which airports because he said "we have massive protesters out there and we want to start this out low-key and without fanfare."
Asked if he anticipates demonstrations to arise, Homan said, "I’m sure there will be. You know, in the bigger cities where there’s been issues in the past, I expect there’s going to be protests outside the airport."
Supreme Court hearing on Mississippi's mail-in ballot law concludes
The Supreme Court's hearing on Mississippi's law allowing mail-in ballots to be counted after Election Day has concluded after about two hours.
The state's solicitor general argued in defense of the law, while the Trump administration and the Republican National Committee said the law should be overturned.
Solicitor General D. John Sauer delivers opening remarks
Solicitor General D. John Sauer, who is arguing against Mississippi's mail-in ballot law, said in his opening remarks to the justices that the state's "theory of election is so general and permissive that it would authorize statutes that Congress could not possibly have approved in the 19th century."
"Official receipt is at the definitional heart of election," Sauer argued. "Every source from the 1840s onward that addresses the specific question treats official receipt as essential to an election."
"Mississippi cites a few definitions that are too general to address the question, but they cite no authorities holding that a vote can be perfected by anything other than official receipt," he concluded.
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson pushes back on RNC lawyer's post-election ballot counting argument
Paul Clement, a Republican National Committee lawyer arguing against Mississippi’s mail-in ballot law, argued that if late ballots tip an election, "there's just no way the loser is, whoever it is, is going to accept that outcome, and the supporters aren't going to accept the outcome."
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson pushed back, saying that "this idea of the votes being cast by Election Day and counted after Election Day has been around."
"It's not like we're talking about a brand new thing from Mississippi, from the standpoint of no one ever had a post-Election Day ballot deadline before," she said.
"And so I guess I'm just concerned about the various conclusions that you would have us draw from these historical practices, because it seems to me that we have a very long history of states having a variety of different ballot receipt deadlines to include after Election Day," she added.
Trump rejects off-ramp to fund DHS as airport delays worsen
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., discussed an off-ramp with Trump yesterday to reopen TSA and end the long lines and delays at airports.
It would fund all of the Department of Homeland Security except for ICE, which Democrats have refused to support without new limitations on immigration enforcement operations, two sources with knowledge of the conversation told NBC News.
Republicans believe that the off-ramp Trump and Thune discussed would win support from Democrats, who have offered to fund noncontroversial parts of DHS on the Senate floor while the two parties continue to negotiate on immigration. But Trump rejected it — as he made clear in a Truth Social post last night.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor asks about RNC lawyer's views on ballot boxes
Justice Sonia Sotomayor asked Paul Clement, a Republican National Committee lawyer arguing against Mississippi’s mail-in ballot law, whether submitting votes through a ballot box should be considered as received by the government.
"In D.C., I vote by going to a ballot box that's on the city streets, all over the city streets," Sotomayor asked. "Is that receipt by a state official? I just go to the ballot box. It's locked. I don't know and don't remember if it's time stamped or not, but the city, I don't even know if it picks it up before Election Day, it certainly picks it up at some point. Is that legal under your theory?"
Clement said he thinks that is compliant. Pressed on why, he said that the ballot box is "official state custody."
"I think it's important to remember that when ballots come into official state custody — and this is true under Mississippi law as well — at that point, the state treats it very seriously and establishes a chain of custody," he said.
Rubio to testify in trial of former roommate accused of secretly lobbying for Venezuela
The federal trial of a former Miami congressman accused of secretly lobbying for Venezuela’s government during the first Trump administration begins Monday with Secretary of State Marco Rubio set to testify over his interactions with his old friend.
Prosecutors allege David Rivera was a hired gun for former President Nicolás Maduro, leveraging Republican connections from his time in Congress to push the White House to abandon its hard line on Venezuela’s socialist government.
Rivera, who at one time had been Rubio’s roommate in Florida and co-owned a house with him, allegedly persuaded then Foreign Minister Delcy Rodríguez — now Venezuela’s acting president — to award him a $50 million lobbying contract to be paid by state oil company PDVSA. As part of the alleged foreign influence campaign, prosecutors say Rivera was aided by Texas Republican Rep. Pete Sessions and a convicted Cali cartel associate as he sought meetings with the White House and Exxon Mobil on Maduro’s behalf.
California GOP sheriff who’s running for governor seizes ballots from 2025 election
A Republican sheriff in California who’s running for governor seized more than 650,000 ballots from election officials last week, saying he is investigating potential fraud in last year’s election.
Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco said a group of citizens conducted their own “audit” of California’s 2025 special election results in the county and claimed that the election workers’ tally of ballots received was 45,000 fewer than the number of votes certified to the state.
Which U.S. airports have ICE agents been sent to?
ICE agents have been deployed to the following airports, according to a list obtained by NBC News.
- Chicago-O’Hare International Airport
- Cleveland Hopkins International Airport
- Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport
- Houston’s William P. Hobby Airport
- John F. Kennedy International Airport (New York)
- LaGuardia Airport (New York)
- Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport
- Luis Munoz Marin International Airport (San Juan, Puerto Rico)
- Newark Liberty International Airport
- Philadelphia International Airport
- Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport
- Pittsburgh International Airport
- Southwest Florida International Airport (Fort Myers, Florida)
RNC lawyer Paul Clement argues against Mississippi's mail-in ballot law at Supreme Court
Paul Clement, a Republican National Committee lawyer arguing against Mississippi's mail-in ballot law, said in his opening remarks to the Supreme Court that the state's position "is wrong as a matter of text, precedent, history and common sense."
Clement argued that the process for counting ballots received after Election Day contradicts the idea that the country has a national Election Day.
"If somebody in Gulfport the day after the election asks, 'Is the election over?' The common sense answer is, 'No, it's not. The ballots are still coming in,'" he said. "And if somebody asks who won, the truthful answer is, 'We don't know yet, the ballots are still coming in, and they may trickle in for weeks or months.'"
"And in fact, they may trickle in for weeks or months, with or without a postmark in differing ways in differing states, that reality gives the lie to the idea that we have a uniform national Election Day," he concluded.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh asks about concerns over the appearance of fraud
In the hearing on the mail-in ballots case, Justice Brett Kavanaugh asked whether Mississippi's solicitor general is concerned about the losing side claiming that the election was stolen if there is a significant change in votes after Election Day.
"One, is that a real concern?" Kavanaugh asked. "Two, does that factor into how we think about how to resolve the scant text and the maybe conflicting or evolving history here?"
The solicitor general, Scott G. Stewart, said he respected "the perception," and said "there has not been much of a showing about actual fraud from post-Election Day ballot receipt itself."
There has not been evidence of widespread voter fraud in the U.S.
"Obviously people can be unhappy when a result flips," Stewart said later after being pressed again on the concerns of appearance of fraud.
"I think Congress may be able to take measures to address that," he continued, adding that he didn't think Congress has previously been concerned by the issue "beyond preventing double voting, in this context."
What is ICE doing in airports?
At least 50 ICE personnel will be working per shift at airports where they are deployed, and they will not be performing screening duties, a senior ICE official told NBC News.
Another ICE official involved with training at the agency told NBC News that ICE personnel are not trained in using magnetometers or X-ray machines, as would be required if they replaced TSA officers who are calling out from working in airports. ICE agents are trained in crowd control, monitoring lines and checking IDs, which could be useful skills at airports in the lines leading up to security screening, the second ICE official said.
Separately, Real ID requirements impede anyone who is not a U.S. citizen or otherwise lawfully present in the United States from flying on commercial airlines even domestically, so it is unlikely ICE officers and agents would be making immigration arrests in airports.
Mississippi's lawyer defends state's mail-in ballot rules
Mississippi's lawyer began the Supreme Court oral arguments with a defense of the state's law allowing mail-in ballots to be counted if they are postmarked by Election Day.
The state's solicitor general Scott G. Stewart is defending the law.
“No one claims that in setting the federal Election Day, Congress blocked most of those changes,” he said, referring to changes in practices such as absentee voting and secret ballots. “The dispute is whether Congress blocked just one change, allowing ballots cast by Election Day to be received after that day.
"States have allowed that for over a century," Stewart said. "Congress has respected it. No one challenged it, until now. The question is whether Congress in 1845 blocked that practice. The answer is no."
He argued that if elections reverted to how they operated in 1845, it "dooms absentee voting, modern methods of voting, the secret ballot and more."
Congress established the day for presidential elections in 1845.
"Congress did not adopt that destabilizing view when it simply set the Election Day," he added.
Trump said he may bring in the National Guard to assist at airports
Trump said that he may bring in National Guard troops to assist at airports as passengers face security delays amid the DHS shutdown.
"I want to thank ICE because they stepped in so, so strongly. They’ll do great. And if that’s not enough, I’ll bring in the National Guard," Trump told reporters.
"We’re not going to have the Democrats destroy our country," he added, referring to the impasse in Congress over Department of Homeland Security funding as Democrats seek an ICE overhaul.
Trump says that deploying ICE agents to airports was his idea
Trump said this morning that it was his idea to deploy Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to airports to assist with TSA operations amid the shutdown at the Department of Homeland Security.
"ICE was my idea," he told reporters on the tarmac in West Palm Beach.
Trump said he called White House border czar Tom Homan to consult him about it. "He said, 'I think it’s great,'" Trump said.
"Then I saw today, there was some masks on," Trump said, referring to ICE agents at airports. "I didn’t think the masks were appropriate. I put out a statement, and I asked him, would it be possible to take off because they should wear a mask when they’re dealing with the murderers and the thugs."
Democrats launch new inquiry into Corey Lewandowski
Democrats on the House Oversight Committee have launched a new inquiry into outgoing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s top aide, Corey Lewandowski, who allegedly sought personal payments from contractors, as was outlined in an NBC News investigation last week.
Today, House Oversight Democrats sent a letter to the private prison company GEO Group asking it to disclose details of meetings and conversations Lewandowski had with the firm both before the transition period after President Donald Trump was elected in 2024 and during 2025.
Supreme Court rejects citizen journalist’s case against Texas officials who arrested her for reporting
The Supreme Court today rejected an attempt by a citizen journalist to revive her civil rights claim after she was arrested for soliciting information from a police officer.
At issue in the case brought by reporter Priscilla Villarreal was whether the officials in Laredo, Texas, could claim the legal defense of “qualified immunity,” which would protect them from being sued. The court’s refusal to hear the case means her claim that the officials had violated the Constitution’s First Amendment, which protects freedom of speech, cannot go forward.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer criticizes the SAVE America Act in a new op-ed
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., criticized the SAVE America Act in an op-ed in The New York Times, saying the proposed law would include "a system for purging eligible voters from the electorate — voters who are disproportionately likely to vote against Republicans."
His op-ed comes as senators are debating the bill, which proposes an overhaul of election law, including requiring photo identification to vote and proof of citizenship in order to register to vote. The bill, which is a top priority for Trump, doesn't appear to have enough support to pass the 60-vote filibuster threshold.
Schumer wrote that the alleged purge "would involve running the voter rolls through an algorithm that would ostensibly root out noncitizens — a program overhauled by Elon Musk and his so-called Department of Government Efficiency, which has already proved dangerously unreliable." He said that in a trial run in Boone County, Missouri, "more than half of the voters flagged as ineligible were, in fact, eligible American citizens."
Schumer wrote that the bill would not require that voters are notified if they are taken off voter rolls, and he said that millions of Americans do not have the required documentation to prove citizenship under the SAVE America Act.
In order to register to vote, the SAVE Act would require proof of citizenship, such as a U.S. passport or a driver's license paired with proof of citizenship, like a birth certificate.
"They would instead have to produce a passport (which only about half of Americans have) or a birth certificate (which many cannot easily access)," Schumer said. "For a married woman who changed her surname, and whose married name doesn’t match her birth certificate, even a birth certificate may not be enough."
AI-generated ads are trickling into political campaigns, sparking big worries
At least 15 campaign ads featuring AI-generated content have run since November, stoking concerns that the now-ubiquitous technology could cause confusion or even mislead voters ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
In state, local and federal elections across the country, AI has been everywhere from school board campaigns to governor’s races, used to enhance speech, turn politicians into cartoons or, in one notable case in Massachusetts, mimic a rival politician’s voice.
Trump says he doesn’t want ICE agents at airports to wear masks
Trump said in a Truth Social post that he does not want Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to wear masks when they work at airports.
The president said that he is “a BIG proponent of ICE wearing masks as they search for, and are forced to deal with, hardened criminals.”
“I would greatly appreciate, however, NO MASKS, when helping our Country out of the Democrat caused MESS at the airports, etc,” he wrote.
The president's post comes after he said over the weekend that he would deploy ICE agents to airports to address long lines as the Department of Homeland Security shutdown continues and TSA workers go without pay. Yesterday, border czar Tom Homan said he believed the deployments would start at large airports seeing the longest wait times.
Democrats have been pushing for ICE agents to not wear masks during immigration enforcement activities as well.
Trump administration places Christopher Columbus statue near White House
A statue of Christopher Columbus has been placed on the grounds of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building adjacent to the White House, the latest effort by Trump’s administration to recognize the controversial explorer.
The statue is a replica of one that was tossed into Baltimore’s harbor in 2020 during Trump’s first term at a time of nationwide protests against institutional racism.
Cast a ballot and wait for the plane. In Alaska, a grace period for ballots is seen as a necessity.
The tiny Alaska Native village of Beaver is about 40 minutes — by plane — from the nearest city. Its roughly 50 residents rely on weekday flights for mail and many of their basic supplies, from groceries to Amazon deliveries of everyday household items.
Air service plays an outsize role in the nation’s most expansive state, where most communities rely on flights for year-round access. Planes also play a critical role in elections, getting voting materials and ballots to and from rural precincts such as Beaver and in delivering ballots for thousands of Alaskans who vote by mail — some in places where in-person voting is not available.
The vast distances and relative isolation of so many communities make Alaska unique and are why its residents have a significant interest in arguments taking place today before the Supreme Court.
Many here worry that a case from Mississippi challenging whether ballots received after Election Day can be counted in federal elections could end Alaska’s practice of accepting late-arriving ballots. Alaska counts ballots if they are postmarked by Election Day and received within 10 days, or 15 days for overseas voters in general elections.
Tom Homan says ICE agents will assist at crowded airport security points amid TSA staffing shortages
White House border czar Tom Homan said Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents will deploy to airports across the country today to assist Transportation Security Administration officers with security at airport entrances and exits where lines have been particularly long in recent weeks.
Homan told CNN’s “State of the Union” he was currently working on a plan for the deployment with the leaders of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the TSA. He said he believed it would begin at large airports that have seen longest wait times and that agents would cover security points but wouldn’t provide help with baggage screenings.
Supreme Court tackles dispute over mail-in ballots ahead of November elections
The Supreme Court delves into the issue of mail-in voting this morning, weighing whether states can count ballots that are mailed on time but arrive after Election Day.
The justices will hear arguments as Trump has ramped up his opposition to mail-in voting and urged Congress to ban it in most cases.
The court is considering a Mississippi law, similar to measures in 13 other states, that allow for mail-in ballots to be counted as long as they are postmarked by Election Day. The case could have implications for the midterm elections this November, when voters will decide which party controls the House and Senate.
Senate to vote on Sen. Markwayne Mullin's nomination for DHS secretary
The Senate is expected to vote this evening on Sen. Markwayne Mullin’s nomination for homeland security secretary.
Trump picked Mullin, R-Okla., to replace Kristi Noem as head of the Department of Homeland Security amid mounting criticism of her leadership, including her handling of immigration enforcement and a controversial, $220 million DHS ad campaign.
Mullin is expected to be confirmed after two Democrats, Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania and Sen. Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, voted yesterday to advance his nomination.
