Our live coverage has ended
Get the latest US politics updates here.
Key developments
• Iran war: President Donald Trump said he was “an hour away” from making the decision to launch new strikes on Iran before he postponed an attack yesterday at the request of three Arab states in the Persian Gulf. Vice President JD Vance said Iran’s negotiating position is unclear.
• Trump settlement terms: The IRS cannot ever bring claims against Trump, his family or businesses for past tax issues under additional terms published Tuesday in the agreement the Justice Department reached with Trump to resolve his $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS.
• Justice Department fund: The new term was released hours after acting Attorney General Todd Blanche denied that a $1.776 billion fund to compensate Trump allies who claim they were targeted by the previous administration is unprecedented or unwarranted.
• Questions around Jan. 6: Vance declined to rule out compensating those who attacked police officers on January 6, 2021 — though he said it was not the administration’s goal to pay people for assaulting officers.
Trump thanks lawmakers at annual congressional picnic
President Donald Trump touted his accomplishments and thanked members of Congress at Tuesday night’s annual congressional picnic on the White House South Lawn, where lawmakers and their families gathered alongside administration officials and Cabinet secretaries.
Attorney General Todd Blanche was spotted alongside his wife, as well as Director of the National Economic Council Kevin Hassett, who chatted with Small Business Administrator Kelly Loeffler. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick was dressed in a suit, while other officials dressed down, like Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, who opted for a more casual white polo in the 83-degree heat.
Trump praised House Speaker Mike Johnson, saying, “He’s going to go down as one of the great speakers” and shouted out Senate Majority Leader John Thune as a “terrific person.”
While there weren’t too many Democrats in sight, Michigan Rep. Shri Thanedar was there.
“It’s the people’s house,” he told CNN.
Melania Trump celebrates House passage of foster care bill
First lady Melania Trump took a victory lap Tuesday evening after the House of Representatives passed a bipartisan bill bolstering a key piece of her platform: support for children in the foster care system.
“I have breaking news. Today, the House passed the ‘Fostering the Future Act,’” Trump said in remarks to lawmakers and their families attending the Congressional Picnic at the White House, thanking lawmakers for voting “to lift America’s foster children above partisan politics.”
Earlier Tuesday, the House passed the bill named after the first lady’s initiative. The bill aims to modernize the foster care system, including efforts to help youth aging out of foster care connect with housing and education opportunities.
Trump personally lobbied for the bill in a rare appearance on Capitol Hill last month, and used Tuesday’s event to call on the Senate to follow suit.
“Senators, we have momentum now. It’s your turn to bring the ‘Fostering the Future Act’ across the finish line. Let’s support our next generation and swiftly guide this to the president for his signature,” the first lady said.
President Donald Trump called it a “big deal” and a “great thing” and reiterated his support for its passage in the Senate, later joking, “In fact, the only one that gets things approved now are Melania and her friends. She gets them approved bipartisan.”
The first lady’s brief remarks underscored how she has ramped up public appearances in recent months and how her platform is coalescing. After a slow start to her second term where she largely spent her time away from the White House, Melania Trump has been more visible since the release of her eponymous documentary, with a focus on artificial intelligence responsibility and online safety for children, as well as children in foster care.
Trump urges Congress to pass Railway Safety Act, championed by Vance in the Senate
President Donald Trump is “strongly urging” Congress to pass the Railway Safety Act, which was co-sponsored in 2023 by a bipartisan group of senators, including now-Vice President JD Vance.
“I have long said that the horrific tragedy that beset East Palestine in 2023, along with Sleepy Joe Biden’s utterly incompetent response, must NEVER happen again,” Trump said on Truth Social, going on to rail against the Biden administration.
“I am asking all Republicans to vote YES when this Bill comes up as an Amendment in the Transportation Committee this week,” he said. The Railway Safety Act addresses safety requirements for trains transporting hazardous materials.
Some context: Trump visited the site of a train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, in February 2023, just months after he announced his second run for president. During the visit, Trump sought to contrast himself with President Joe Biden, who visited a year later.
The Norfolk Southern train derailment sent toxins into the soil, water and air, and hundreds of residents were forced to evacuate.
Justice Department officials defend new "anti-weaponization fund"
Beyond Assistant Attorney General Todd Blanche, Justice Department officials, including Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward, continue defending the new fund for those who believe they are victims of past Justice Departments.
“It’s way, way, way too early for us to rush to judgment on whether this was a good or a bad idea, to describe it as a slush fund, or really even to criticize it,” Woodward said of the fund during a press conference today.
Before being selected by President Trump to join the administration, Woodward was a defense attorney for people involved in the storming of the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, as well as a co-defendant of Trump’s in the since-dismissed classified documents case.
“I would not be signing off on any settlements involving any former clients,” Woodward said, adding that he believed the fund was set up in a better, more accountable way than in past examples.
Woodward noted that there would be five people who would make decisions on doling out the funds. Four of those people, however, would be selected by Trump’s attorney general.
“The idea that the president can remove somebody from the committee,” Woodward scoffed at the criticism, “Well, guess what, he can remove me too.”
Senate advances measure aimed at limiting Trump’s war powers in Iran with new GOP defection
The Senate advanced a measure on Tuesday aimed at restricting President Donald Trump’s war powers by requiring congressional approval for any future military action in Iran.
The measure advanced, 50-47. Democratic Sen. John Fetterman joined Republicans in rejecting it, while GOP Sens. Rand Paul, Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski and Bill Cassidy voted with Democrats. This is Cassidy’s first time voting with Democrats.
Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican, lost his bid for a third term in a remarkable defeat over the weekend, after two primary challengers — including one backed by President Donald Trump — finished ahead of him and headed to a runoff for his seat.
The vote to advance the measure comes after the Senate previously rejected similar efforts seven times. There were several GOP absences for today’s vote amid campaigns in senators’ home states, making the measure unlikely to succeed on final passage.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer announced in April that Democrats would force a war powers vote each week the Senate is in session for the foreseeable future.
Some Republicans have indicated they think Congress should have a role in authorizing the war, or at least more oversight. But Senate Majority Leader John Thune has told reporters that most of his members haven’t pushed to vote on war authorization.
First on CNN: Michael Caputo makes first known claim to “Anti-Weaponization Fund”
Longtime Trump adviser and former Trump administration official, Michael Caputo, has filed the first known claim to the newly established “Anti-Weaponization Fund” for individuals who believe they have been wrongly investigated by the Justice Department. Caputo is asking for $2.7 million in restitution and reimbursement.
In a letter to acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, obtained by CNN, Caputo writes, “I was the target of the illegal Crossfire Hurricane investigation and our family suffered greatly during that dark era of political weaponization.”
In his letter, he says that he continued to be under investigation until December 2025.
Caputo’s is the first known claim made to the fund, which has not been formally set-up. The fund will be comprised of five members selected by the attorney general and one selected with input from Congress. Blanche told lawmakers Tuesday that there is no partisan requirement to receive compensation and that each claim will be vetted independently.
DRC team, but not fans, expected to be able to come to US for World Cup
The World Cup team from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is expected to be able to come to the United States for the competition, but fans from the country will likely be blocked from coming to the United States under an Ebola-related travel ban, a senior State Department official said Tuesday.
On Monday, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention invoked Title 42, a public health law that restricts entry to the US due to the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda. The order applies to non-US passport holders if they have been in DRC, Uganda or South Sudan during the last 21 days.
“We expect that the team will be able to attend and participate in the World Cup,” the official told CNN.
“We’re working to get them into the same protocol for testing and isolation that American citizen returnees and legal permanent residents would be subject to,” they said. They did not provide further details on that protocol, saying it was not out yet and being led by the CDC.
The official added that their understanding is that the DRC team is not training in the country and have been in Europe, so they may not even be subject to the restriction.
“At this point, we don’t anticipate exemptions for the fans,” the official said.
Can Trump's settlement be stopped?
Though President Donald Trump’s opponents face procedural hurdles in trying to stop the deal, his critics are flagging several legal problems with the fund DOJ announced and the lawsuit that prompted it.
Firstly, there is the overarching constitutional mandate that requires a live “case” or “controversy” for a case to proceed in court.
Judge Kathleen Williams – an Obama appointee who sits in Miami, where Trump’s lawsuit was filed – had previously raised concerns about that very issue and had sought briefing from outside lawyers on how to view the question.
In her order dropping the case at Trump’s request, Williams noted that there is no official record of the deal in court. “Because the Notice does not reference any settlement or include a stipulation of settlement, there is no settlement of record,” Williams wrote.
Under federal law, the attorney general only has authority to make settlement deals when the government is fending off “imminent litigation,” while the relevant regulations concerning the judgment fund also limits it to “actual or imminent litigation.”
In response to the new deal, legal observers have floated lawsuits under the Constitution’s Emoluments Clause, which prohibits the president from receiving government payments that go beyond his salary, or under the Administrative Procedures Act, which allows litigants to challenge in some circumstances actions by government agencies that run afoul of the law.
Still, it’s not clear who could show they’re being harmed by the fund in a way that would establish they have standing to challenge it in court. Supreme Court precedent has foreclosed taxpayer standing except in a very limited set of circumstances.
New settlement term bars IRS from investigating Trump, his family for past tax issues
The Internal Revenue Service can’t bring claims against President Donald Trump, his family or businesses for past tax issues, according to additional terms added Tuesday to the settlement the Justice Department reached with Trump to resolve his $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS.
The additional terms, first reported by Politico, were quietly added in a hyperlink to Monday’s Justice Department press release that contained an agreement to create a nearly $1.8 billion fund to compensate people or organizations that have been “weaponized” by past administrations — a fund widely expected to benefit Trump’s allies, including January 6, 2021, US Capitol rioters.
Trump’s lawsuit — and how the Trump administration resolved it — has been labeled “self-dealing” by the president’s critics, since Trump controls the executive branch agencies that were deciding how to respond to a lawsuit he brought in his personal capacity. Trump abruptly dropped the case after signals that the judge could probe whether it was a legitimate legal dispute belonging in court.
According to the new document, dated Tuesday and signed by acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, the federal government is “FOREVER BARRED and PRECLUDED” from prosecuting or pursuing “claims” or “examinations” arising from matters pending before the IRS, including “tax returns” filed by Trump before the agreement was reached. The language applies not just to Trump, but to his family, trusts, companies and other affiliates.
The IRS and the Justice Department did not immediately respond to CNN’s inquiries about the new language
What Trump and Vance said today about the Iran war and negotiations
President Donald Trump unexpectedly invited reporters to view construction of his sprawling East Wing ballroom today, while Vice President JD Vance held a press briefing at the White House.
Both Trump and Vance addressed the Iran war and offered their respective views on the state of negotiations while taking questions from reporters.
If you’re just joining us, here are key takeaways from what they said:
- Trump said that he was on the verge of launching new strikes on Iran before he postponed the attack yesterday at the request of several Gulf nations. “I was an hour away; we were all set to go,” he told reporters. “It would’ve been happening right now.”
- The president put a limited timeline on his decision to temporarily pause the planned attacks as negotiators in the region work toward a potential peace deal.
- Trump said he thinks the US war with Iran is popular and that even if it’s not, stopping Tehran from having a nuclear weapon is a worthwhile mission.
- Meanwhile, Vance told reporters that he’s “not certain” about the prospects for a deal with Iran but that he feels good enough about the chances that he’s continuing to work toward an agreement.
- The vice president said he continues to see fractures within Iran’s leadership and that Tehran’s negotiating position is unclear.
- Vance also pushed back against criticism over comments from Trump that he didn’t consider Americans’ finances while trying to resolve the Iran war, telling CNN the president “has a mandate to be focused on a number of things.”
CNN’s Adam Cancryn, Betsy Klein, Kit Maher, Alejandra Jaramillo, Kevin Liptak, Donald Judd and Morgan Leason contributed to this report.
Vance says “you never know until you know” about prospects for Iran deal
Vice President JD Vance told reporters that he’s “not certain” about the prospects for a deal with Iran but that he feels good enough about the chances that he’s continuing to work toward an agreement.
Asked on Tuesday about the possibility that Iran is stringing the US along, Vance said, “Look, you never know until you know, right? All we can do is negotiate in good faith.”
He added: “I am not certain, and I’m not going to be certain until we sign a deal that we have a deal. But I feel confident enough to keep on doing the work and to try to find a good deal for the American people, and that’s what I’m going to do.”
Vance defends Trump's remark that he didn't consider Americans' finances amid Iran war
Vice President JD Vance pushed back Tuesday against criticism over comments from President Donald Trump that he didn’t consider Americans’ finances while trying to resolve the Iran war, telling CNN the president “has a mandate to be focused on a number of things.”
Asked last week how much Americans’ economic concerns were motivating his push for a peace deal, Trump responded: “Not even a little bit.”
“The only thing that matters when I’m talking about Iran [is] they can’t have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said.
In an exchange with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins on Tuesday, the vice president claimed reporters “misrepresented” the exchange with the president and a subsequent defense Vance gave last week.
Vance told Collins that the president “allegedly said that he didn’t care about Americans’ financial situations — he never said that.”
“It was totally taken out of context — what he said is that when he is negotiating with the Iranians, he’s focused on the national security objectives that he’s trying to achieve,” the vice president said.
Vance said that Trump is “focused” on issues facing Americans, adding that “every single day I have conversations with him about it— every single day, he’s worried about his fellow Americans.”
Vance downplays Trump's thousands of stock trades while in office
Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday sidestepped scrutiny of President Donald Trump’s extensive stock trading activity while in office, arguing that he was not personally buying and selling the stocks.
“He has independent wealth advisers who manage his money,” Vance said during a press briefing. “He’s not making these stock trades himself.”
The vice president bristled at the question about Trump’s most recent financial disclosure, which showed thousands of stock trades, including investments in companies that Trump had publicly praised or that had business before the administration.
But pressed on whether that activity was appropriate, Vance downplayed the issue and instead contended that Trump supported restrictions on public officials’ ability to trade stocks.
“All of us believe that nobody should be taking proprietary information gained from public service and buying and selling stocks,” he said. “I think the way to lead by example is banning that process, banning that approach, and making it illegal, which is exactly what the president has proposed doing.”
Vance won't rule out compensating Jan. 6 defendants who assaulted police
Vice President JD Vance declined to rule out compensating those who attacked police officers on January 6, 2021, using a new $1.776 billion settlement fund — though he said it was not the administration’s goal to pay people for assaulting officers.
He said there’d be a process to ensure that only those who were “really mistreated” are compensated.
“We’re not trying to give money to anybody who attacked a police officer. We’re trying to give money — not give money — we’re trying to compensate people where the book was thrown at them, they were mistreated by the legal system,” Vance said.
“We do have people who were accused of attacking law enforcement officers,” he said. “That doesn’t mean that we’re going to completely ignore some of the claims that they’re going to make.”
Pressed by CNN’s Kaitlan Collins about previous comments that anyone who assaulted a police officer on January 6 should go to prison, Vance emphasized that claims would be evaluated on a “case-by-case basis.”
“I don’t rule things out categorically when I know nothing about a person’s individual circumstances,” he said.
“We’re not making commitments to give anybody money, we’re just making commitments to look at things case-by-case,” he added.
President Donald Trump gave sweeping pardons to those charged in connection with January 6, including those who assaulted police.
Vance on Tuesday denied that money would go to the Trump family, using people like election denier Tina Peters as an example of who would be eligible.
“The people that would get the money are people, some of whom have been prosecuted completely disproportionate to any crime they’ve ever committed,” he said.
Vance says Russia taking Iran’s enriched uranium is not part of US plan
Vice President JD Vance said that Russia taking possession of Iran’s enriched uranium as part of negotiations to end the war is “not currently” the US plan.
“That is not currently our plan. That has never been our plan. I’ve seen some reporting on that. I don’t know where it comes from,” Vance told reporters at a White House briefing on Tuesday.
Vance suggested such an arrangement would likely face resistance from both Washington and Tehran.
“So, that is not currently the plan of the United States government. The Iranians have not raised it. My sense is that it’s not something the Iranians would be particularly excited about, and I know the president isn’t particularly excited about it either,” he added.
But the vice president said he would not make pre-commitments in a negotiation “on any particular topic.”
Vance says Iran's negotiating position is still unclear
Vice President JD Vance said he continues to see fractures within Iran’s leadership and that Tehran’s negotiating position is unclear as the Trump administration works toward a deal to end the war.
“The Iranians aren’t themselves quite clear in what direction they want to go to, they also are just a fractured country,” Vance told reporters at the White House.
Vance said it wasn’t clear whether the divisions were the product of bad communication or bad faith, but that the result was a muddled process.
“I will say with confidence it’s sometimes hard to figure out exactly what it is that the Iranians want to accomplish out of the negotiation,” he said.
NOW: Vance holds briefing at White House
Vice President JD Vance is holding a briefing at the White House.
We’ll bring you updates as we get them.
Pentagon official doesn't say if admin will seek congressional approval to restart strikes
A senior Pentagon official declined to say whether the Trump administration would rule out putting US boots on the ground in Iran and did not say whether it would seek congressional authorization to restart operations against Tehran.
“Are we reinitiating offensive combat operations?” Rep. Patrick Ryan asked during a House Armed Services Committee hearing Tuesday.
“Of course, that decision is the president’s to make,” responded Daniel Zimmerman, assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs.
“Is that an option that’s been briefed to him?” Ryan asked.
“Well, Mr. Congressman, it’s his decision to make,” Zimmerman said.
“Are you planning to ask Congress this time for a declaration or an authorization now that we’re almost three months in?” Ryan pressed.
“As you know, right now there are negotiations going on at the highest order to try to achieve a long-term solution,” Zimmerman said. He also declined to say whether one of the options going forward would put US military forces on the ground in Iran, saying President Donald Trump “retains the options at his disposal.”
Trump told reporters earlier that the restarting of military operations against Iran was “an hour away” before he called it off after speaking with Gulf nation leaders.
Top US Central Command officer pressed on plan to "win" Iran war
The US military’s commander of forces in the Middle East got into a heated exchange with Democratic Rep. Seth Moulton, in which Moulton pressed him repeatedly on the success of the United States’ war with Iran thus far.
Moulton pressed Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of US Central Command, about the change of leadership in Iran, oil sanctions, and the Strait of Hormuz — which Cooper repeatedly said were policy decisions that he was not involved in as a military commander.
“What’s the plan now? What’s the plan now to actually win this war? Because it feels like we’re losing. We don’t have a nuclear deal, we don’t have the strait open, the president has called for unconditional surrender, is that part of the plan?” Moulton said.
“Congressman, we achieved all our military objectives, we are presently in a ceasefire, we’re executing a blockade, and we’re prepared for a broad range of contingencies,” Cooper said.
“I think it’s an entirely inappropriate statement from you sir, with all due respect,” Cooper responded.
“It’s not a statement; it’s a question,” Moulton said.
