Prepared for the Office of Public Affairs (OPA)
U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Editorial Note: The DHS Daily Briefing is a collection of news articles related to Department’s mission. The inclusion of particular stories is not intended to reflect their importance, nor is it intended to endorse the political viewpoints or affiliations included in news coverage.

FOX News [5/14/2026 12:47 PM, Bill Melugin, Brooke Taylor, Alexandra Koch, and Alex Nitzberg, 37576K] reports U.S. Border Patrol Chief Mike Banks told Fox News on Thursday he is resigning, effective immediately. "It’s just time," Banks told Fox News correspondent Bill Melugin. "I feel like I got the ship back on course from the least secure, disastrous, chaotic border to the most secure border this country has ever seen," he said. "Time to pass the reigns, 37 years, it’s time to enjoy the family and life." The Washington Examiner [5/14/2026 12:56 PM, Anna Giaritelli, 1147K] reports Banks led the 19,500-member Border Patrol for nearly 16 months since President Donald Trump took office, but he had faced scrutiny in light of the revelations about his personal conduct. Customs and Border Protection has not yet announced Banks’s sudden retirement. One senior administration official told the Washington Examiner that Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin met privately with National Border Patrol Council President Paul Perez on Wednesday to discuss Banks, in light of a second news story officials anticipated would come out on Thursday and paint Banks in a negative light. Perez and the union were heavily involved in selecting Banks to lead Border Patrol when Trump took office. The same person said Mullin was cleaning house since taking office in March and replacing Kristi Noem as DHS secretary. Breitbart [5/14/2026 3:47 PM, Randy Clark, 2238K] reports that Breitbart Texas confirmed the announcement with several sources within CBP who say Banks had been contemplating his exit for several months. Banks had officially retired from the Border Patrol before assuming the role as Texas Governor Gregg Abbott’s first border czar. As a political appointee in the Trump administration and former Border Patrol retiree, Banks cannot retire twice from the agency and will depart through resignation instead. The New York Times [5/14/2026 7:12 PM, Ashley Ahn, 148038K] reports Mr. Banks is the latest high-profile official to leave a post in the Department of Homeland Security, the agency responsible for carrying out Mr. Trump’s mass deportation campaign. His exit comes less than a month after Todd Lyons, the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said he would leave the agency on May 31. On Tuesday, the Trump administration tapped David Venturella, a former career ICE official, to serve as the agency’s next acting leader. Mr. Trump fired Kristi Noem as Homeland Security secretary in March after a string of controversies. Rodney Scott, the commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which oversees Border Patrol, said in a statement, “We thank U.S. Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks for his decades of service to this country and congratulate him on his second retirement after returning to serve during one of the most challenging periods for border security.” Mr. Banks previously retired from Border Patrol in 2023 and was appointed to be the first Texas “border czar” by Gov. Greg Abbott, who called for more aggressive immigration enforcement during the Biden administration.

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Wall Street Journal [5/14/2026 9:00 PM, Michelle Hackman, Josh Dawsey, and Tarini Parti, 646K] reports Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin has embarked on a wholesale effort to clean house at his embattled department, firing officials closely associated with his predecessor’s leadership and reviewing her spending decisions, according to people familiar with the matter. Mullin’s moves follow the ouster of former Secretary Kristi Noem, who attracted unflattering attention for her department’s aggressive immigration enforcement—culminating in the killing of two U.S. citizen protesters in Minneapolis—as well as her spending millions on a flashy government-run ad campaign prominently featuring herself. The secretary, who has no prior immigration-related experience, faces the challenging task of improving the department’s image ahead of the midterm elections while still implementing President Trump’s central campaign promise of mass deportations. Mullin has told associates that, ahead of November, his primary marching orders are to lower his agency’s profile and avoid bad press so the issue of immigration recedes in the public consciousness, according to people familiar with the matter. Polls show voter approval of Trump’s handling of immigration to have declined, and the president has told advisers that some of the previous team’s moves went too far. So far, Mullin has directed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement not to launch any large or overly aggressive immigration raids, such as those Noem directed in Los Angeles, Chicago and Minneapolis, people familiar with his directives said. Many officials inside the department and the White House have been gratified by his lower-key approach, after they came to believe the dramatic raids turned public opinion against Trump’s immigration goals and put ICE officers at unnecessary risk.

Newsweek [5/14/2026 7:44 AM, Staff, 52220K] reports Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told an audience at a Police Week event that the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency has been "demonized." [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

CBS News [5/14/2026 9:26 AM, Staff, 51110K] reports Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin spoke to CBS News’ Nicole Sganga about his priorities for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement as the agency attempts to bolster support following Kristi Noem’s rocky tenure. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

FOX News [5/14/2026 5:48 PM, Charles Creitz, 37576K] reports the Justice Department is ordering sanctuary states to halt a new policy trend they say is putting Department of Homeland Security agents at risk of personal harm and can cause key operations to implode. The federal government currently works with states to disseminate "undercover" license plates for agents and officers whose identities need to be protected and who would have their cover otherwise blown if they were to use federally-issued "U.S. Government" plates. On Thursday, Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate issued a warning to several states, including Washington, where the department says DMVs are declining or inhibiting issuance of undercover license plates for Homeland Security operations. In a letter to Washington Attorney General Nicholas Brown, Shumate wrote that the Washington Department of Licensing is refusing to issue such plates to DHS but continues the practice for local and state police. Shumate gave Brown a May 22 ultimatum to prove compliance or risk further litigation.

Breitbart [5/14/2026 10:20 AM, Bob Price, 2238K] reports a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) task force investigation led to a 20-year prison sentence for an illegal alien from Mexico convicted of trafficking methamphetamine in Texas. Prosecutors said the criminal alien trafficked large quantities from Mexico into East Texas. Mauricio Diaz-Abraham, a 37-year-old illegal alien from Mexico, appeared before U.S. District Judge Amos Mazzant on May 12 for a sentencing hearing in Sherman, Texas. The judge handed down a 240-month prison sentence following the conviction on drug trafficking charges. Diaz-Abraham pleaded guilty in a sealed plea in June 2025, court records obtained by Breitbart Texas revealed. Prosecutors said that Diaz-Abraham began trafficking large quantities of methamphetamine from Mexico in 2020. The Mexican national was living illegally in Arlington, Texas, and was part of a conspiracy to move the drugs from Mexico to East Texas. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Texas stated that Diaz-Abraham admitted to being "personally responsible for the distribution of at least 4.5 kilograms of methamphetamine.

Politico [5/14/2026 8:52 PM, Jordain Carney and Jennifer Scholtes, 21784K] reports the Senate parliamentarian ruled Thursday that major pieces of the GOP’s party-line immigration enforcement package do not comply with the chamber’s rules — a setback to Republicans racing to clear the bill this month. The parliamentarian, Elizabeth MacDonough, found that four parts of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee’s portion of the legislation will need to be reworked — or risk Democrats forcing a floor vote on each provision that would be subject to a 60-vote threshold, according to a statement from Budget Committee Democrats Thursday night. Republicans are now expected to try to rewrite the provisions to meet MacDonough’s approval, according to two people granted anonymity to disclose private strategy. They will need to work quickly if they are going to meet the June 1 deadline President Donald Trump has set for clearing the legislation, recognizing that the House will need time to pass the package as well. Democrats immediately declared victory. “This fight is just getting started,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement, adding that Democrats will force Republicans “over and over to defend their real priority: Trump’s palace over your paycheck.” But Ryan Wrasse, a spokesperson for Majority Leader John Thune, said the ruling simply will require “technical fixes that were not unexpected.” “We look forward to continued productive work” with the parliamentarian, he added, “to fully fund Border Patrol and immigration enforcement.” Though senators could technically overrule MacDonough, they generally defer to her interpretations of the restrictions governing what is permissible in a filibuster-skirting budget reconciliation bill. MacDonough has ruled against a line in the bill that would fund the screening of people entering the United States, as well as $19.1 billion for parts of Customs and Border Protection. According to Democrats, she found those pieces of the legislation violate the strict rules of the reconciliation process because they would impact policy beyond the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee — one of the two panels Republicans directed in the budget framework they adopted last month that unlocked the ability to advance the legislation in the Senate by a simple majority. That could be an easier fix for Republicans, since the Judiciary Committee, the second of the two committees, also has jurisdiction over DHS. But the parliamentarian also took issue with a section that includes $2.5 billion Republicans are trying to enact to bolster the funds they enacted last summer through their party-line tax and spending megabill, as well as language that would allow funding to be used for initial screenings of unaccompanied immigrant children. MacDonough is expected to make her rulings on provisions contained in the Judiciary Committee’s portion of the immigration enforcement package as soon as Friday. Lawmakers are awaiting a verdict on whether they can use reconciliation to fund security infrastructure involved in Trump’s ballroom project.

AP [5/14/2026 6:52 PM, Michael Kunzelman and Nicholas Riccardi, 2493K] reports President Donald Trump exceeded his authority when he issued an executive order to restrict voters’ ability to cast ballots by mail, attorneys for Democrats and civil rights groups told a federal judge on Thursday. U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols didn’t rule from the bench on the plaintiffs’ request for an order blocking officials from implementing Trump’s March 31 order, his second related to elections since winning his second term in the White House. The case is one of multiple lawsuits filed to block the order on the grounds that only states and Congress, and not the president, are given power under the Constitution to decide how elections are run. Trump’s initial executive order to revamp elections by requiring documentary proof of citizenship, issued last year, was largely halted by multiple federal judges on similar grounds. He issued his latest order only after the voting bill he backed stalled in Congress. The current legal fight comes as the country is in the midst of primary elections and election officials are preparing for the intricacies of holding the fall’s midterm elections. “I understand the time pressure here,” said Nichols, who questioned both sides but gave no clear indication of which way he’s leaning. The president can’t rewrite election rules to give himself and the Republican Party a partisan advantage, the plaintiffs’ attorneys said. They argued that the executive order’s requirements are illegal and designed to coerce states into limiting voter registration and ballot access. “It is harming our clients every day in the middle of an election season,” said Orion Nevers, an attorney representing the NAACP. Democrats are more likely to vote by mail. Since even before his 2020 loss, Trump has falsely implied there is mass fraud involved in the practice and fought to curtail it, even after his baseless claims led to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol and were repeatedly debunked by audits and reviews, including some run by Republicans. Since returning to office, Trump has said he wants Republicans to “take over” elections in Democratic areas and launched investigations of the 2020 vote. His latest executive order calls on the Department of Homeland Security to make a list of eligible voters in each state and seeks to prohibit the U.S. Postal Service from sending absentee ballots to those not on each state’s approved list.

Roll Call [5/14/2026 6:24 PM, Michael Macagnone, 673K] reports a federal judge in Washington acknowledged Thursday the tight timeline he faces in deciding whether to pause President Donald Trump’s executive order to create a national voter list and limit mail voting nationwide. Congressional Democratic leaders, the Democratic National Committee and party campaign committees, as well as civil rights groups and advocacy organizations, urged Judge Carl Nichols for the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to pause aspects of the executive order Trump issued at the end of March. The executive order sought to have the Department of Homeland Security create a nationwide "state citizenship list" and then have the government coordinate with states to use that list as they manage their voter rolls. Separately the order would have the U.S. Postal Service create a rule to restrict election mail to only people on state voter lists. Additionally, the order directed the attorney general and other agencies to seek to investigate and punish states or local governments that did not comply, including by rescinding federal funds. At one point during Thursday’s two-hour hearing, Nichols said that if he waited until July, when the order stated the postal service would finalize the rule, "now we’re on the cusp of election season.". "Why shouldn’t I take it up now?" Nichols asked the government. Stephen Pezzi, attorney for the Justice Department, argued that the Democrats and civil rights groups can’t articulate how the federal government would violate the law because of the order, either in the creation of the voter list or with the postal service rule.

CBS News [5/14/2026 12:04 PM, Kaia Hubbard, 51110K] reports that the Senate unanimously agreed to adopt a resolution on Thursday that will withhold senators’ pay during a lapse in funding for any federal agency, following two lengthy and record-breaking shutdowns in recent months that have taken a toll on federal workers. Led by GOP Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana, the resolution directs the secretary of the Senate to withhold pay from senators during a lapse in appropriations for one or more federal agencies or departments. The payments would be released after the shutdown comes to an end. The resolution was adopted by unanimous consent Thursday. The chamber voted 99-0 to advance the measure earlier this week. Kennedy called it "shared sacrifice," pointing to how federal employees generally go without pay during a shutdown. Last year, the government was shut down for 43 days as Democrats in Congress protested the expiration of healthcare subsidies. Months later, the Department of Homeland Security shut down amid an impasse in Congress over reforms for its immigration enforcement agencies. That shutdown ended late last month after 76 days. "We ought to hide our heads in a bag," Kennedy said on the Senate floor as he pointed to the shutdown record. "It’s got to stop. Shutting down government — it should not be our default solution to our refusal to work out our issues and our differences.". The resolution, which applies only to the Senate, will take effect after November’s election.

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CBS News [5/14/2026 12:37 AM, Camilo Montoya-Galvez, 51110K] reports Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Thursday released the wife of an active-duty U.S. Army soldier and Afghanistan war veteran after a monthlong detention, her husband, Sgt. 1st Class Jose Serrano, told CBS News. Serrano’s wife, El Salvador native Deisy Rivera Ortega, was detained by ICE on April 14 during an immigration appointment in El Paso, Texas. Serrano, who has served in the Army for 27 years, including three deployments to Afghanistan, first revealed to CBS News last month that his wife had been arrested by ICE after living in the U.S. for roughly a decade. She attended that appointment as part of an application for a special immigration program known as Parole in Place, designed to protect military spouses and parents who are in the U.S. illegally or without permanent legal status from deportation. In an interview Thursday, Serrano said he was elated when he received the news of his wife’s release, saying he had come close to giving up. He said they gave each other a "big hug.” "I don’t have words to describe how happy I feel," Serrano told CBS News soon after he picked up his wife from an ICE detention center in El Paso. "When they called me that my wife would be released today, I started shaking, tears on my eyes and heart pounding super fast.” Rivera Ortega’s arrest was one of several ICE detentions in recent months involving relatives of U.S. service members. While historically rare, those arrests have become more common under the second Trump administration, which has vowed to oversee the largest deportation campaign in U.S. history. At the time, the Department of Homeland Security said ICE arrested Rivera Ortega because of a deportation order dating back to 2019. DHS also said she was convicted of entering the U.S. illegally, a federal misdemeanor. Serrano said his wife had been working in the U.S. legally with a government permit stemming from a legal protection she received under the United Nations Convention Against Torture that shields her from being deported to her native El Salvador. If granted, her pending Parole in Place application could also allow Rivera Ortega to obtain a green card or permanent residency based on her marriage to a U.S. citizen. Serrano said his wife was informed in ICE detention that she was facing deportation to a third country, such as Mexico, because her legal protection only bars officials from returning her to El Salvador. Serrano, who married Rivera Ortega in 2022, said his wife’s detention exacerbated his mental health challenges, noting he has been treated previously for a traumatic brain injury, PTSD and depression. During an interview with CBS News last week, White House border czar Tom Homan pledged to "look into" Rivera Ortega’s case after being asked about it. While he argued that those who have received deportation orders have been afforded "due process," Homan also acknowledged that it was a "difficult" case and noted ICE officers "have discretion" on who to target and who not to target. Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, a combat veteran, told CBS News in a statement late Thursday that she personally called Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, asking for Rivera Ortega to be released. "I’m thankful to Secretary Mullin for heeding my personal call to release Deisy, but she — and so many others — should never have been in this situation to begin with. I will never stop working to protect our Veterans and military families," Duckworth said. "They fought for this country, we must fight for them.” Serrano told CBS News he and wife are committed to following the immigration process to "fix" her legal situation. "My wife and myself will be on time in every appointment. That’s something you learn from basic training," he added.

AP [5/14/2026 5:56 PM, Claire Galofaro and Tim Sullivan, 1257K] reports a federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to bring a Colombian woman back to the U.S. from Congo, after she was deported to the African nation even though it had refused to accept her because it could not care for her medical needs. The deportation of Adriana Maria Quiroz Zapata “was likely illegal,” U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon ruled Wednesday. Zapata, 55, who has diabetes and a thyroid condition, “has been sent to a country that refused to accept her because they cannot provide sufficient medical care,” the ruling said. “As a result, she faces a daily risk of medical complications, up to and including death.” Black spots began to grow on Zapata’s back and foot while she was in detention, her skin started to peel and her nails blackened, according to documents Zapata submitted in court, which were provided to the AP by her lawyer. She also suffers from depression, anxiety and insomnia. “She’s not doing well and does worry that she’s going to die,” her lawyer, Lauren O’Neal, said. Zapata entered the U.S. from Mexico in August 2024 and was taken into Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody. A judge found last year that she could not be deported to Colombia because she could be tortured if returned. Her former partner there had ties to the national police force, and beat her so viciously he broke her teeth, stabbed her twice, raped her and threatened to kill her, she wrote in court documents. The government requested to send her to half a dozen other countries that all refused to accept her, according to court records. The Congolese government on April 14 notified ICE in writing that it also could not take Zapata. Within days, she was sent there anyway, records show. She was among at least 15 people who were sent to Congo, said Rep. Rob Menendez, a Democrat of New Jersey, who has been working with Zapata and her family for more than a year. Menendez likened the case to that of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whom the administration sent to a notorious prison in El Salvador before the U.S. Supreme Court ruled he be returned to the U.S. “We have to make the assumption that they are small reflections of what is happening more broadly,” he said. “These are reflective of this administration having zero concern for due process, zero concern for people’s legal rights, trampling all over our legal system, trampling all over individual rights and pushing the bounds and limits in ways we would have never even imagined.”

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New York Times [5/15/2026 12:01 AM, Ruth Maclean, Emiliano Rodríguez Mega, Pranav Baskar and Justin Makangara, 148038K] reports Hugo Palencia said he was delivering meals in Aurora, Colo., for DoorDash and Uber around this time last year. Now, he is in a hotel in the Democratic Republic of Congo, dazed by a journey that he said took him in shackles from the United States to a Central African country that he had barely heard of before last month. Mr. Palencia was deported to Congo on April 16 along with 14 other migrants from Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, he said. They were all taken to a large hotel outside Kinshasa, the capital city. “I’m on the other side of the world,” Mr. Palencia said. The migrants’ odyssey was suddenly thrust in front of the courts this week when a judge ruled that one of them, Adriana Maria Quiroz Zapata of Colombia, was likely deported to Congo illegally. The judge said Ms. Zapata had been sent to the African nation even after it told the Trump administration it could not accept her because of a medical condition. The judge has ordered immigration officials to return Ms. Zapata to the United States. Mr. Palencia, 25, and other deportees who spoke to New York Times in interviews at the hotel said they were presented with a choice when they arrived. Officials from the United Nations’ migration agency, or I.O.M., told them they could return to their home countries in Latin America or stay in Congo and hope for the best, he said. They were given seven days to decide. The Trump administration’s so-called third-country deportation policy has sent thousands of migrants from the United States to far-flung nations other than their own. In many cases, migrants are stripped of their passports and phones, locked in foreign detention centers and kept in legal limbo. The administration is counting on the threat of being sent to a country like Congo, South Sudan or Cameroon to act as a deterrent for those planning to come to the United States illegally. In some cases, these nations may be more dangerous than the migrant’s home country, making that threat all the more palpable. A lawyer for the deportees, Alma David, said several of them had U.S. protection orders making it illegal for the U.S. to repatriate them, for fear of their safety. Though the Trump administration has described U.S. deportees as “barbaric criminals,” none of the migrants at the hotel in Congo has a criminal record in the United States, according to the Congolese government. The Department of Homeland Security did not comment on the 15 Latin American migrants deported to Congo. In a statement to The Times, the agency said, “Anyone who has been deported received full due process.”

Breitbart [5/14/2026 5:33 PM, John Binder, 2238K] reports Rep. Brandon Gill (R-TX) says Fairfax County, Virginia Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano (D) helped an illegal alien, accused of raping an underage teen, evade prison by offering him a deal with reduced charges and a suspended sentence. During a hearing before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement, Gill questioned Descano about a case involving illegal alien Ander Cortez-Mendez of Guatemala. In March 2024, Cortez-Mendez was arrested in Fairfax County and charged by Descano’s office with carnal knowledge of a 13 to 14-year-old. Two months later, Descano’s office reduced the charges against Cortez-Mendez to a misdemeanor charge of consensual sex with a child and offered him a 90-day suspended prison sentence. Fairfax County’s refusal to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ensured that Cortez-Mendez was not arrested by federal agents until April 2025 — almost a year after he was convicted of the misdemeanor sex crime. Descano said prosecutors "should not have" reduced Cortez-Mendez’s charges based on his illegal alien status, though he refused to give a precise answer.

Daily Caller [5/14/2026 5:13 PM, Derek VanBuskirk, 803K] reports as Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano defended himself before Congress on Thursday, a legal expert told the Daily Caller what to expect next in the Department of Justice’s case against him — and what changes could follow. Jason Johnson, president of the Law Enforcement Legal Defense Fund (LELDF), says he was the first to raise concerns about Descano with the DOJ. Johnson told the Caller he believes the DOJ will find policies or patterns showing Descano offered preferential treatment to illegal aliens over American citizens. A DOJ statement, paired with a May 6 notice of the investigation, said the department is examining Descano’s plea bargaining, charging decisions and sentencing policies to determine whether non-U.S. citizens were granted preferential treatment. The Daily Caller is working to be your voice by asking the questions you care about. Support the mission by joining today. Johnson said he wrote a letter in December to Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, who signed the notice, outlining accusations against Descano and requesting an investigation. "I guess they’ve looked at it, and now they’ve decided that there’s enough there for them to investigate," Johnson said. "They’re taking the exact approach that we asked them to take.". During his testimony, Descano said his office "does not provide sanctuary or safe harbor to undocumented immigrants," and that suggesting otherwise promotes a false narrative.

Washington Examiner [5/14/2026 6:00 PM, Mia Cathell, 1147K] repots Steve Descano, the commonwealth’s attorney in Fairfax County, Virginia, was grilled by lawmakers on Thursday during a heated congressional hearing on why he quietly removed a long-standing statement from his campaign website promising that he would grant leniency to illegal immigrants accused of crimes. "Mr. Descano, why’d you change your website?" asked Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, at Thursday’s immigration enforcement subcommittee hearing, titled "Fairfax County, Virginia: The Dangerous Consequences of Sanctuary Policies.". Descano recently deleted a page on his campaign site declaring that, as the sanctuary county’s top prosecutor, he will take a lenient approach to prosecuting illegal immigrants. According to the now-nixed statement, Descano would weigh "immigration consequences" during the charging process and plea deals with illegal immigrants, pledging to mitigate or outright avoid the "collateral" consequences for illegal immigrants when possible. "Steve’s office will take immigration consequences into account when making charging and plea decisions," Descano’s campaign website previously read. "Although prosecutors typically refer to immigration consequences as ‘collateral consequences,’ avoiding the unnecessary destruction of families and communities will be a top priority for Steve as Commonwealth’s Attorney. Wherever possible, Steve will make charging and plea decisions that limit or avoid immigration consequences.". Descano accused Jordan of wrongly conflating his policy position as a candidate with his official policy as Fairfax County’s chief prosecutor.

AP [5/15/2026 12:02 AM, Valerie Gonzalez, 34146K] reports that, until recently, young children ran in and out of their public housing homes in this Gulf Coast town, playing on sun-dappled lawns as mothers looked over their shoulders for the school bus to drop off their older kids. Suddenly, couches, dressers and refrigerators started appearing curbside for movers or garbage collectors. Within weeks, the neighborhood was a ghost town and the playground was empty. What prompted the mass exodus was a bungled message from the housing authority in Port Isabel, a South Texas community of 5,000 people, many of whom are immigrants working at hotels and restaurants on the beaches of nearby South Padre Island. The Port Isabel Housing Authority indicated a Trump administration proposal was about to take effect that would end housing assistance to families with at least one member in the country illegally. The events that followed provided a glimpse of what could happen in communities across the U.S. if the proposed rule is actually finalized. "The impact was not limited to undocumented immigrants, but really to immigrants who are here legally as well as people within their families who are citizens," Marie Claire Tran-Leung, senior staff attorney at National Housing Law Project, said. For decades, families with at least one legal or eligible resident have been allowed to live in public housing provided those who are here illegally or are otherwise ineligible due to their immigration status pay a full, unsubsidized share of rent. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Department wants to reverse that. Advocates estimate up to 80,000 people would be kicked out of their homes nationwide under the measure that is part of President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown. They include U.S. citizens, many of them children born in this country but whose parents were not. On Feb. 3, the Port Isabel Housing Authority sent residents a letter saying that the Trump administration wanted every household member to prove legal status within 30 days or face eviction. Three weeks later, the agency sent a note of "clarification" that no such proof was required. Half of residents living in Port Isabel public housing left within a month of receiving the first letter. The occupancy rate plunged from 91% in January to 43% in May, far below the national average of 94%. The proposed rule from HUD still has not taken effect. The housing authority gave no explanation for the initial misunderstanding and officials did not respond to repeated requests for comment from The Associated Press. Fears about eviction and rumors that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement might get involved prompted panic among some residents.

CNN [5/14/2026 11:31 PM, John Fritze, 612K] reports Justice Clarence Thomas lamented the heightened security that has become necessary for members of the Supreme Court in recent years, telling an audience in Florida on Thursday that it is now far more difficult for him to take part in activities outside the courthouse. The observation, which he repeatedly returned to as he spoke to a group of lawyers and judges gathered outside Miami, came as the court has sought millions of dollars in additional security funding from Congress amid increasing physical and cyber threats aimed at the judiciary. "The security concerns now are much different from the way they were when I first became a circuit justice," Thomas told the conference, which was organized by the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals. "That’s really one of the big changes since I’ve been on the court — that it’s become very, very dicey.” Thomas, the most senior associate justice and a member of the court’s conservative wing, made similar remarks earlier this year at an event at American University in Washington. He had been scheduled to attend that event in person, but switched to a remote appearance. He explained the change at the time as a response to security concerns. Thomas said then that he didn’t want to "endanger anyone by my mere presence.” "The reason we’re sitting here, I think, unfortunately, shows a direction — and rather than sitting with these good people — shows a direction that we have traveled … demonstrates how far we have come," he said at the time. "We have come a long way in the wrong direction.” For years, judiciary officials and others have warned about a dramatic increase in the number of threats aimed at federal judges and prosecutors. The danger was driven home for the Supreme Court in 2022 when a person attempted to kill Justice Brett Kavanaugh following the leak of a draft decision from the court overturning of Roe v. Wade. Thomas’ full remarks to the judicial conference were mostly breezy and avoided controversy or much discussion of the current court. He noted, as he has in the past, that he misses the justices he served with when he joined the Supreme Court in 1991. He talked about the significance of celebrating the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and professed his love for barbecue — pulled pork, specifically. While he ripped on the nation’s capital briefly, his remarks were far less acerbic than two years ago, when at the same conference, he described Washington as a "hideous place.” Thomas, whose wife, Virginia "Ginni" Thomas is an Omaha native, briefly discussed his support for University of Nebraska sports but noted he didn’t get to games as much as he wanted to these days. "And as I said, because of the security concerns, I’m not able to move around as much as I used to," he said.

Wall Street Journal [5/14/26 2 2:13 PM, Marcus Weisgerber, 646K] reports Pentagon leaders say they could start running out of money for operations this summer unless Congress passes a new wartime spending bill, warning that the services will have to cut back on training exercises and other priorities because of the war in Iran and troop deployments along the U.S. southern border. The Defense Department has been paying for the Iran war and other unplanned deployments out of its annual operations and maintenance budget, which wasn’t built with the additional missions in mind. Republicans and Democrats have pushed defense officials to submit an emergency supplemental spending request to replenish depleted coffers to avoid any disruptions, but the Pentagon has yet to do so. “I will have to start making decisions to change training, operations, certification events, those type of things we do to generate our force in the July time frame,” Adm. Daryl Caudle, the chief of naval operations, told members of the House Appropriations defense subcommittee this week. The entire military is exploring ways to conserve money, including holding back training for units and denying flying hours for pilots, officials said. During congressional hearings in recent weeks, defense officials have said they intend to request money for the war, but they haven’t said when. The White House referred questions about the timing of a potential supplemental and the possible impact on military training to the Pentagon, which declined to comment.

Blaze [5/14/2026 6:00 AM, Mike Howell, 1556K] reports Florida Rep. Maria Salazar (R) and her some 20 Republican co-sponsors of a massive amnesty bill have put President Trump in a terribly awkward position. In truth, it is more than just awkwardness; it is political malpractice. The fanfare around the amnesty bill, the Dignity Act, has begun a process of division and distraction going into a crucial midterm cycle. The Dignity Act is dominating conversations surrounding the trajectory of immigration enforcement under the Trump administration and forcing the question of whether the administration supports it. Last week, CBS News peppered border czar Tom Homan with loaded questions about the supposed need for providing legal status for illegal aliens in the United States. After trying to put the question away, Homan responded, "There’s discussions going on. I’m involved with some and not others, but I’m not going to get ahead of the president on this." Discussions of amnesty in the Trump administration? The internet exploded, and it’s largely still exploding. Given the low level of deportations conducted to date, some 340,000 in FY2025 according to recent estimates, many political observers are starting to question whether the mass deportation program will be fulfilled at the scale advertised.

Washington Examiner [5/14/2026 7:00 AM, Duggan Flanakin, 1147K] reports the near-assassination of President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, opened America’s eyes to major problems with the United States Secret Service. The nation — indeed, the world — watched in shock as bullets flew from an unguarded rooftop, killing former Army reservist and volunteer firefighter Corey Comperatore, mortally wounding two other onlookers, and miraculously only barely nicking the ear of the then-former commander in chief. The 20-year-old assassin had been observed acting suspiciously and using a rangefinder at least 25 minutes before he aimed and fired multiple shots. But the Secret Service did nothing. Only later did we learn that senior-level USSS officials did not share “classified threat information” received 10 days before the assassination attempt with the team assigned to protect the president or with local law enforcement. In releasing his final report on the Butler incident, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) stated that “What happened in Butler was not just a tragedy — it was a scandal. The USSS failed to act on credible intelligence, failed to coordinate with local law enforcement, and failed to prevent an attack that nearly took the life of a then-former president.” USSS headquarters had denied multiple requests for additional staff, assets, and resources to protect Trump.

Washington Post [5/14/2026 5:23 PM, Douglas MacMillan, 24826K] reports the Department of Homeland Security is moving forward with its plan to convert warehouses around the country into immigration detention centers, despite mounting legal challenges and a government watchdog probe into the agency’s purchases of the buildings. In meetings this month, officials at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said the agency was preparing to award contracts to oversee construction and operations at warehouses it acquired earlier this year in San Antonio and near El Paso, according to two people briefed on the discussions, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the plans are confidential. Additionally, ICE staffers are exploring what work can be done at a warehouse near Hagerstown, Maryland, without violating a preliminary injunction barring most construction at the site, according to an internal memo distributed this week. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin called for a review of the $38 billion warehouse plan, which had been initiated by his predecessor, Kristi L. Noem, shortly after his appointment in March.

NewsMax [5/14/2026 11:06 AM, Charlie McCarthy, 3760K] reports Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers will not be at this summer’s World Cup to "round up mass" illegal migrants, Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin said. Mullin told CBS News that ICE personnel may be present at FIFA World Cup events in the United States as part of broader security operations, but stressed that the agency’s primary role will be public safety, not sweeping immigration raids. "We’re not there to go round up mass individuals," Mullin said. "But we are always looking for the worst of the worst." The 2026 FIFA World Cup, which will feature matches across the United States, Canada, and Mexico, is expected to draw millions of international visitors. Homeland Security officials said federal agencies are coordinating with local law enforcement to secure stadiums, transportation systems, and surrounding venues.

USA Today [5/14/2026 9:18 AM, Natassia Paloma, 70643K] reports Immigration and Customs Enforcement will be at the 2026 FIFA World Cup as the tournament is slated to make several stops in the United States, confirmed Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin in an interview with CBS News. Mullin confirmed ICE would be at the global sporting event in an interview released by CBS News on May 13. Mullin said agents would not be there "enforcing mass immigration" but rather to "enforce the law." When asked what ICE would do if it found a "criminal" at the World Cup, Mullin replied that the person would be arrested. "ICE always does immigration enforcement," Mullin said. "We’re always going to do that — but we’re not there for solely that purpose. We’re in there to do our job: immigration custom enforcement.". When pressed further, Mullin said agents would not be there to "round up mass individuals.".

FOX News [5/13/2026 2:34 PM, Staff, 37576K] reports Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons revealed that Homeland Security Investigations officers uncovered potentially thousands of fraudulent foreign workers. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Telemundo [5/14/2026 4:57 PM, Lourdes Hurtado Epstein, 2524K] reports last summer, Oscar Hagelsieb received an urgent request from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the agency to which he dedicated more than two decades of his life as a special agent and from which he retired in 2023: “Your country is calling you to serve once more,” the email, sent on behalf of the Trump Administration, stated, inviting him to join “Operation Return to Mission.” It offered retired immigration officers the opportunity to return to their positions in exchange for up to $50,000 in bonuses and the retention of their pension in addition to the new salary. Despite having voted for President Donald Trump in the last three elections and being a proud Republican, Hagelsieb rejected the offer. The 52-year-old former agent views the Border Patrol’s deployment in the large-scale immigration operations of recent months with bewilderment and condemns the way this administration has used the resources of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). It also alleges that the rushed hiring of thousands of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, which experienced a historic 120% increase in its staff during 2025, could jeopardize national security by softening the rigorous requirements for recruiting agents and weakening their training program. Hagelsieb sees a high risk that drug cartels will exploit weaknesses in recruit background checks to infiltrate the agency. The speed at which the Trump administration is hiring agents opens “the possibility that cartels will take advantage of this to bring in people they know will help them with their illicit activities,” Hagelsieb told Telemundo News. In his experience, criminal groups are always on the lookout for these opportunities. Other former agents and former directors of immigration agencies who spoke with Noticias Telemundo share these concerns and warn that the effects of hiring unqualified people could be seen for several years. And despite the warnings, the hiring of immigration agents under the Trump Administration is proceeding at an unprecedented scale and in record time.

Axios [5/14/2026 12:56 PM, Issac Avilucea, 17364K] reports that Philadelphia immigration activists are preparing for possible federal immigration enforcement during the World Cup amid uncertainty over ICE’s role at the tournament. Why it matters: Mixed messaging from the Trump administration has fueled confusion over whether and how ICE could operate during the competition, which kicks off next month in Philadelphia and 10 other host cities. State of play: ICE acting director Todd Lyons told Congress in February that the agency’s Homeland Security Investigations division — which investigates transnational crimes such as human trafficking — will have a presence in World Cup host cities. A FIFA host committee co-chair in Miami said last week he was personally assured by Secretary of State Marco Rubio that ICE would not have a presence inside stadiums, per The Athletic. Driving the news: Host committee Philadelphia Soccer 2026 tells Axios that World Cup security planning is outside its "authority and jurisdiction," directing questions about ICE’s role at the tournament to the city. Philadelphia has "received no indication from ICE that it plans to have a presence specifically at World Cup events," police spokesperson Sgt. Eric Gripp tells Axios. The other side: In a statement, the Department of Homeland Security said international travelers who enter the U.S. legally "have nothing to worry about." "At the same time, foreign visitors MUST be proactive and should start working on their travel plans and documents well ahead of time to ensure a smooth travel experience."

CBS Baltimore [5/14/2026 7:25 PM, Dennis Valera, 51110K] Video: HERE reports the company that tried to renovate an Elkridge, Maryland, office building into a U.S. Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE) facility made its case in federal court Thursday. Genesis GSA Strategic One LLC sued Howard County, claiming county leaders illegally revoked its permits for the building. Genesis is also arguing that the county is obstructing the federal government’s authority. The situation over this building resulted in a new law banning privately owned detention facilities in Howard County. In Thursday’s hearing, Genesis’s lawyers argued for a preliminary injunction: to get the permits reissued and to declare the ban unconstitutional.

Univision [5/14/2026 4:57 PM, Staff, 4937K] reports a Guatemalan father residing in Upper Marlboro is facing deportation proceedings after missing a court hearing related to a traffic violation , a situation that resulted in an arrest warrant and subsequently his detention by immigration authorities. The family of 38-year-old Reginaldo Juárez claims he confused the date of his court date for a speeding ticket. After he failed to appear, authorities issued an arrest warrant. “This is a nightmare,” said his wife, Yaneth López. López welcomed N+ Univision Washington DC into her home in Upper Marlboro, where she stated that she remains hopeful that her husband can return home. According to his account, Juárez later appeared before authorities regarding the traffic case and was granted unsupervised probation. However, agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained him immediately afterward. “They hadn’t said they were going to put him in immigration. They had requested to put him under review,” López stated. The arrest has deeply affected the family. Juárez’s eldest son, 18, is due to graduate from high school on May 18, 2026, and his father will not be able to attend the ceremony. “We used to hear the news and sometimes you think it’s a lie, but now that it has happened to us, we have felt it and we are very devastated,” said Antulio López, brother-in-law of the detainee. Juárez has lived in the United States for 12 years , according to his family, and does not have immigration documents. He has four children with López, who is also four months pregnant. Through N+ Univision Washington DC , López sent a message to her husband. “He is not alone. We will fight for him until the last day to get him out of there,” he said. Immigration attorney Jaime Barrón , who is not involved in the case, explained that these types of situations are common when a person fails to appear in court for minor fines or infractions. “If someone receives a citation and fails to appear in court, pay the citation, or resolve the case, they can end up with an arrest warrant,” Barrón said. “That gives the police an excuse to arrest them, and unfortunately, for someone without legal status in the country, it’s the most direct way for immigration to find out about you.” Barrón recommended that families seek specialized legal representation before making decisions about immigration processes. “ICE will try to intimidate them into signing a voluntary departure, but they should not do so without first speaking with a lawyer who defends against deportation,” he said. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Univision Chicago WGBO [5/14/2026 12:59 PM, Staff, 4937K] reports Ricardo Esteban Hernández Navarrete dreamed of graduating from high school and continuing to grow as a soccer player. The young Colombian says that sports have become the most important driving force in his life since he arrived in the United States. However, his plans changed suddenly in March of this year, when he was arrested by ICE agents along with his mother while attending an immigration court related to his asylum process. Since his arrest, Ricardo has been transferred to multiple detention centers, including one in Kentucky, from where he spoke about how difficult it has been to miss important moments of his senior year of school. The young man’s defense team believes that a recent ruling by the Sixth District Court of Appeals could benefit his case. The decision establishes that detained immigrants who entered the country without documents have the right to due process and bail hearings, rejecting the government’s "no bail" policy as unconstitutional and without legal basis. The ruling applies in states under the jurisdiction of the Sixth Circuit, including Kentucky, where Ricardo is currently being held. The young man’s next hearing is scheduled for May 19, while his defense continues to gather documentation to formally request bail.

Daily Signal [5/14/2026 12:52 PM, Tyler O’Neil, 474K] reports that a protester prominently displayed lewd materials outside a St. Paul, Minnesota, church in the presence of children, saying she intends to prevent kids from attending services. Protests have dogged Cities Church, an evangelical Reformed congregation affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention, since Immigration and Customs Enforcement surged to the Twin Cities. In January, agitators opposing Immigration and Customs Enforcement took over the sanctuary during a service, chanting, "Who shut this down? We shut this down." A federal grand jury indicted 38 people on charges of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act and the Ku Klux Klan Act for that incident. Yet protests outside the church have continued. Photos of a protest outside the church on Mother’s Day reveal that a protester’s car had two dildos attached to the windows. One of the church members confronted the protester about the sex toys, and the protester responded by telling church members not to bring their children to church. The church’s pastor claims the protester "harasses" the church weekly. Anti-ICE activists have targeted Cities Church, saying that one of its pastors also worked for ICE. Yet the protester did not name any alleged rape or pedophilia in relation to the church itself. Some ICE agents have pleaded guilty to sex crimes involving detainees, but no case directly implicates the pastor or the church. Cities Church Senior Pastor Jonathan Parnell noted that the woman in the video "harasses our church every Sunday."

FOX News [5//14/26 4:49 PM, Peter D’Abrosca, 37576K] reports the Department of Homeland Security on Thursday released a scathing statement after two illegal immigrants in Dallas were charged with capital murder in relation to the shooting death of an unborn child. "These monsters shot multiple people and killed an unborn baby," Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said in the statement. "They now face multiple felony charges, including homicide and aggravated assault. This is an unspeakable crime, and these criminal illegal aliens should never have been in our country in the first place." "Thankfully, Dallas cooperates with ICE, so together with our partners we will ensure these criminals can never again terrorize our communities," the statement said. Yeremy Alexander Zapata Aleman, 17, of Honduras, and Keyner Ariel Calero Jiron, 20, of Nicaragua, who both crossed the border illegally, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), are accused of the murder after an argument in a 7-Eleven parking lot led to a drive-by shooting and later a police chase, KDFW reported. The incident occurred May 3, around 12:40 a.m. The pregnant teen was riding with another person who confronted Zapata Aleman and Calero Jiron from a vehicle before leaving the 7-Eleven. The victims reported that, shortly thereafter, the two suspects followed them from the parking lot. Calero Jiron was allegedly driving the car when the shots rang out, striking the victim and her unborn child. Another vehicle was also struck by gunfire, but the driver was uninjured. When the victim, who was 22 weeks pregnant, told police she was carrying a child, she was taken to nearby Baylor Hospital where a cesarean section was performed. The baby did not survive.

FOX 7 Austin [5/14/2026 12:05 PM, Elizabeth Evans, 37576K] reports a man accused in two Central Texas murders six years apart has been flagged by ICE. ICE has placed a detainer on Luis Benítez-González, the man accused of killing Alba Jenisse Aviles in Bastrop County in 2018 and Alyssa Ann Rivera in Austin in 2024. "This illegal alien from Mexico is accused of murdering two women in Texas," said Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis in a May 13 release. "He has also been arrested for charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and possession of dangerous drugs. Alba Jenisse Aviles and Alyssa Ann Rivera should still be alive today. ICE asked officials in Dallas to not release this MURDERER. Because Dallas cooperates with ICE law enforcement, we will work with local law enforcement to ensure this criminal is NEVER loose in American neighborhoods again." ICE says that it is unknown when or where Benítez-González first illegally entered the U.S. but he was arrested by Border Patrol in Texas in 2020 and was deported to Mexico. At some point after that, ICE says he once again illegally entered the U.S.

FOX News [5/14/2026 9:00 AM, Kelsie Cairns, 37576K] reports Immigrations and Customs Enforcement arrested a Vietnamese illegal immigrant after he was released from prison for murdering a Texas woman 30 years ago. Nahn Tu Hoang killed then-32-year-old Sarah "Kathy" Arceneaux at her home in Port Arthur, Texas, on Feb. 29, 1996 when he shot her five times, according to ICE. She was killed when Hoang and a group of friends went out drinking and decided to rob homes in the Port Arthur area, the agency said.

NewsMax [5/14/2026 4:42 PM, Solange Reyner, 3760K] reports a Mexican national living in Texas illegally was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for his role in a methamphetamine trafficking conspiracy that moved large quantities of drugs from Mexico into East Texas and other parts of the United States, federal prosecutors announced Wednesday. Mauricio Diaz-Abraham, 37, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to manufacture and distribute methamphetamine and was sentenced Monday by U.S. District Judge Amos L. Mazzant in the Eastern District of Texas, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Prosecutors said Diaz-Abraham had been living in Arlington and participated in a drug trafficking operation beginning in 2020 that distributed methamphetamine throughout the Eastern District of Texas and beyond. According to court information, Diaz-Abraham admitted responsibility for distributing at least 4.5 kilograms of methamphetamine as part of the conspiracy. Federal officials said the investigation was conducted under the Homeland Security Task Force initiative, a multi-agency effort created under Executive Order 14159, titled "Protecting the American People Against Invasion."

FOX News [5/14/2026 4:51 PM, Louis Casiano, 37576K] reports the former mayor of a small Kansas town who pleaded guilty last month in connection with illegally voting in several elections turned himself in to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Wednesday. Jose Ceballos-Armendariz, a Mexican green card holder, appeared at the ICE office in Wichita, FOX4KC reported. He is being held in the ICE’s detention facility in Chase County. Ceballos, who formerly served as mayor of Coldwater, Kansas, for two terms, pleaded guilty in April to three counts of disorderly election conduct following a prosecution by Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach’s office. He was issued a green card in 1990 and applied for U.S. citizenship in February. Ceballos also has a prior conviction for battery from 1995. On his citizenship application, Ceballos allegedly falsely claimed that he had never previously claimed to be a U.S. citizen. He stated he thought his status as a green card holder with legal permanent residency gave him the right to vote in U.S. elections, FOXKC reported.

Breitbart [5/13/2026 10:03 PM, Christian K. Caruzo, 2238K] reports the Spanish public broadcaster RTVE is debuting a documentary on "ICE List," a reportedly Europe-based website with a database purporting to contain identifying information of thousands of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. The documentary, titled, ‘ICE: Digital Resistance Against Trump’ is centered around what RTVE described as the "citizen resistance against the anti-immigration campaign" launched in response to President Donald Trump’s anti-illegal migrant crackdown policies. The documentary is set to launch through RTVE’s online streaming platform RTVE Play on Thursday, May 14, at 06:00 p.m. (local time). "ICE List" is a website founded by Dominick Skinner that claims to compile names and photographs of ICE agents through crowdsourced efforts. The Guardian described Skinner in February as a Netherlands-based Irish national. Skinner affirmed to RTVE that while the information submitted to the website is verified by a team of voluntaries, the majority of the information hosted by the website comes from a purported leak containing information on over 4,500 ICE agents. Skinner claimed that the leak allegedly came from an "anonymous email from someone who works at the Department of Homeland Security."

New York Times [5/14/2026 6:37 PM, Madeleine Ngo, 148038K] reports the Department of Homeland Security is seeking to deport at least 50 green card holders through a new unit dedicated to revetting thousands of immigrants with permanent residency across the country, according to internal data obtained by The New York Times. Those cases represent a small fraction of the total number of green card holders who have been reviewed so far. About 2,890 cases had been reviewed or were still being assessed as of May 7. Eighty percent of those cases were deemed as requiring “no further action.” More than 500 green card holders were still under review. The figures reveal the early results of the Trump administration’s efforts to screen green card holders suspected of committing fraud or posing threats. The recent creation of the unit also underscores how aggressively administration officials are trying to root out immigrants they believe should be stripped of their legal status and removed from the country. It is the latest sign that the administration is broadening its immigration crackdown beyond those living in the country illegally to those who have gained lawful status. Officials have launched campaigns to try to revoke the statuses of refugees and naturalized citizens in recent months, provoking fear among many longtime residents that their status is not secure. The Trump administration has said it is necessary to revet broad groups of immigrants because of lax screening standards under the Biden administration. But the effort is coming under criticism by some former homeland security officials under Democratic and Republican administrations who have questioned the use of resources and pointed out that the internal figures show only about 2 percent of green card holders reviewed were deemed potentially deportable. Zach Kahler, a spokesman for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, which oversees the immigration system, said the agency was “evolving through organizational realignments to better protect American citizens and support our mission priorities.”

Breitbart [5/14/2026 5:30 PM, Olivia Rondeau, 2238K] reports a bill that would revoke existing visas from the close family members of terrorists and prohibit future ones from being obtained has been introduced by Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) following reports that Iranian regime officer Qasem Soleimani’s niece and grandniece were legally living in the U.S. While the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) arrested both the niece and grandniece of the notorious Iranian general in April, the agency revealed that 47-year-old Hamideh Soleimani Afshar and 25-year-old Sarinasadat Hosseiny had both been granted asylum by immigration judges in 2019. On Thursday, Cotton introduced the "No Safe Haven for Terrorist Families Act," which would end the allowance for close relatives of such terrorist figures to live in the U.S. The bill’s text outlines a new, permanent ground of inadmissibility that prevents spouses, parents, children, siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, nieces, and nephews of dangerous foreign adversaries from receiving any American visa or otherwise being allowed to move to the country. If the bill passes, it would also require the secretary of state to revoke any existing visa held by one of the aforementioned family members within 30 days of discovering their inadmissible status.

USA Today [5/14/2026 1:45 PM, Ramon Padilla, George Petras, and Sara Chernikoff, 70643K] reports that President Donald Trump is pushing for changes to birthright citizenship that would affect a large portion of the U.S. population. According to 2024 data from the U.S. Census, more than 25 million foreign-born U.S. residents were naturalized citizens. Since 1868, birthright citizenship has made anyone born in the United States a citizen – whether the child of citizens, foreign nationals living legally in the United States, or unauthorized immigrants. Now the U.S. Supreme Court will decide the issue. In a May 10 post on Truth Social, Trump predicted the justices would strike down his effort to limit who qualifies for automatic U.S. citizenship: "They will be ruling against us on Birthright Citizenship, making us the only Country in the World that practices this unsustainable, unsafe, and incredibly costly DISASTER," he wrote. In January the Supreme Court ruled against Trump’s tariffs and this summer will reveal if Trump’s prediction is correct. Trump, who signed the order shortly after taking office in January 2025, attended the Trump v. Barbara hearing on April 1, the first time a sitting president has been present for oral arguments. April’s hearing was the second time the Supreme Court has considered Trump’s citizenship order. On June 27, 2025, the justices voted 6-3 to partially stay temporary restraints by district courts that blocked Trump’s order from taking effect. The court said the district courts had likely exceeded their authority.

Chicago Tribune [5/14/2026 6:00 AM, Allison Kiehl, Laura Rodríguez Presa, and Gregory Royal Pratt 5209K] reports men and women who were brought to the United States as children are at risk of being deported by the Trump administration as federal officials delay processing their immigration paperwork, creating backlogs that are causing people to lose their jobs and fear deportation, federal officials and advocates said this week. The government has been slower to approve renewal applications for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which provides a work permit and protection from deportation. The issue, first spotlighted by the Tribune earlier this year, emerged as the focus of a Senate spotlight forum on Capitol Hill on Tuesday morning. “Let’s be clear — the cruelty is the issue here,” U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin said during the opening remarks of the forum. “These are people who have lived in the U.S. for years, graduated alongside our kids, married and had their own U.S. citizen children, and are good contributors to our community.” More than 260 “Dreamers,” or children who were brought to the U.S. at a young age and stayed under the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, were arrested by the Department of Homeland Security in 2025, according to a Feb.11 letter from former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem to Durbin, which he referenced in the May 12 focus hearing. Of those individuals, at least 86 were deported from the U.S. to countries where the “Dreamers,” now adults, may have no familiarity. In the letter, Noem said 241 of them had criminal histories, which the Tribune was unable to verify.

Bloomberg [5/14/2026 2:47 PM, Daniel Seiden Senior, 763K] reports that Posillico Civil Inc. says the Department of Homeland Security unfairly funneled a majority of work under a $37 billion maximum value border infrastructure contract to two companies, and denied opportunities to other contractors. Posillico should get bid and preparation costs because of the department’s failure to provide "genuine competitive opportunities" to win task orders, the company said in a Wednesday complaint with the US Court of Federal Claims. Approximately 73% of task order award value to date involves awards to Fisher Sand & Gravel Co. and Barnard Construction Co. Inc., Posillico says, which is incompatible with the premise of the... [Editorial note: consult extended commentary at source link]

Washington Post [5/14/2026 11:53 AM, Andrea Sachs, 24826K] reports two duffels appeared on a baggage carousel in Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, looking as unremarkable as the hundreds of other pieces of luggage arriving on that afternoon’s Seoul flight. But Merla’s nose knew differently. uring her Feb. 24 shift, the little hound, a federal employee with the Beagle Brigade, got a whiff of the bag and immediately sat on the floor, alerting her handler to potential contraband inside. After a secondary screening involving a hand search, Customs and Border Protection officers confirmed Merla’s hunch: The two passengers were carrying 100 pork sandwiches from Thailand, all illegal. “Merla earned what her canine handler likes to call the Jackpot Award,” said Eric Trelstad, a CBP agriculture specialist. “It’s multiples of favorite treats all at once.” Despite her big bust, Merla’s snout was still on the clock. So, with a belly full of treats, she trotted back to work in search of the next piece of forbidden fruit or meat. “We have three beagles in the passenger environment who work diligently to find any kind of prohibited or restricted agriculture material, whether it be foreign animal, plant, soil or insects coming into the United States,” Trelstad said.

Univision [5/14/2026 10:41 PM, Staff, 4937K] reports a federal judge on Thursday blocked four provisions of Texas’ SB4 immigration law, which has been criticized by civil organizations that consider it an anti-immigrant measure. This law would allow state and local police to arrest people suspected of illegally crossing the border. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) reported that the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas granted a preliminary injunction motion blocking four key provisions of the bill that was set to take effect on May 15. In his ruling, the judge noted that SB4: "Could open the door for each state to pass its own version of immigration laws. The effect would render uniform regulation of immigration across the country irrelevant and force the federal government to navigate a patchwork of inconsistent regulations." The suspended measures are related to deportations and reentry. The court decision keeps several provisions related to immigration and criminal proceedings on hold. Although some provisions were blocked, the part of the law related to illegal entry will come into effect on May 15 , because that section is not a direct part of this lawsuit. SB4 states that a person commits the crime of illegal entry if they enter or attempt to enter Texas directly from another country through a location other than a lawful port of entry. In practical terms: the law makes that act a state crime, not just a federal immigration matter. he law classifies the first illegal entry as a Class B misdemeanor. If the person has already been convicted of that same crime, the case may be upgraded to a felony punishable by state jail, according to the text of the law. SB4 also creates the crime of illegal reentry. This applies to people who enter, attempt to enter, or are found in Texas after having been deported, removed, excluded, or after having left the United States with an outstanding deportation order. The law does not authorize arrests in all locations. An officer cannot arrest or detain a person to enforce these provisions if they are in a public or private elementary or secondary school for educational reasons. It also prohibits such arrests in churches, synagogues, or other established places of religious worship. The limit includes medical centers when the person is there to receive treatment, and certain centers where survivors of sexual assault receive forensic examinations and care. SB4 expands the role of state and local authorities, but also includes specific restrictions in some areas. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Telemundo 48 El Paso [5/14/2026 1:37 PM, Staff, 19K] reports a man was sentenced to more than three years in federal prison for his involvement in a human smuggling ring that used cross-border tunnels and storm drains to bring migrants into the United States. According to federal authorities, Ricardo Guadalupe Domínguez, 54, a resident of Ciudad Juárez, received a 42-month prison sentence after being found guilty of conspiracy to smuggle people into the country. Court documents indicate that Domínguez was part of a human trafficking organization that operated through an underground passage and drainage system connected between Mexico and the United States. His role included providing vehicles and tools used to modify and damage the drainage infrastructure, thus facilitating the passage of migrants. Furthermore, he was linked to the construction of an artificial cross-border tunnel, which was discovered on January 10, 2025, according to authorities. Dominguez was arrested while attempting to enter the United States through the Paso del Norte International Bridge, and subsequently pleaded guilty on December 17, 2025. In the same case, co-defendant Oscar Iván Carrillo was sentenced in January to 33 months in federal prison for conspiring to use the tunnel. According to the investigation, he and other members guided migrants through the tunnels. The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the U.S. Border Patrol, while the prosecution was led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mathew Engelbaum.

NBC News [5/14/2026 4:16 PM, Alicia Victoria Lozano, 42967K] reports all six people whose remains were discovered in a boxcar in South Texas died from heatstroke before they were found by law enforcement, Laredo Mayor Victor Treviño said at a news conference Thursday. The victims were previously identified as five males and one female, ranging in age from 14 to 56, according to the Webb County Medical Examiner’s Office. Authorities have not released their names. Three of the people were from Mexico and three were from Honduras, police said. The train had departed from Long Beach, California, on May 7 and arrived in Del Rio, Texas, on May 9, Laredo Police Chief Miguel Rodriguez said. It was there that the six people were loaded into the boxcar, according to the preliminary investigation. The train traveled from Del Rio through San Antonio and onward to Laredo. Local police said they presume the deaths were tied to a human smuggling operation and have contacted the Department of Homeland Security. Federal officials are leading the investigation, Rodriguez said. A seventh person was found dead near railroad tracks in San Antonio on Monday. That investigation remains ongoing. Officials have not determined whether that death is related to the Laredo case, Rodriguez said.

Reuters [5/14/2026 6:38 PM, Steve Gorman, 38315K] reports the six people found dead inside a sweltering railroad boxcar in Laredo, Texas, over the weekend were stowaway migrants from Mexico and Honduras who fell victim to the ​perils of human smuggling, officials said on Thursday. Preliminary medical reports determined that all ‌six died from severe heat stroke hours before the freight train they were riding on arrived on Sunday in Laredo, the largest inland port on the U.S.-Mexico border, according to Mayor Victor Trevino. "They did not pass away ​in our city but were discovered here after hours of suffering and eventually dying ​several hours before arriving," Trevino told reporters at a news conference. A Union Pacific ⁠railroad worker found the bodies on Sunday afternoon and alerted law enforcement, touching off an ​investigation that federal authorities leading the probe are treating as a human smuggling case, officials said. Temperatures ​in Laredo reached a high of 97 degrees Fahrenheit on Sunday, according to Texas Public Radio. Police Chief Miguel Rodriguez Jr said the southbound train originated in Long Beach, California. Investigators believe the six migrants were loaded into ​the boxcar on Saturday in Del Rio, Texas, north of Laredo along the Rio Grande border. The ​chief said three of the victims were from Mexico and three from Honduras. The youngest of the group ‌was ⁠a 14-year-old boy. One of the six was a Mexican woman. The rest were adult males. No survivors were found with them. "We are demanding justice for these lives lost," the mayor said. "It doesn’t matter where they came from. Those responsible for trafficking and placing human beings in such dangerous ​and inhumane conditions must ​be held accountable." Trevino warned ⁠that migrants put themselves at grave risk by placing their lives in the hands of unscrupulous human traffickers.

Univision [5/14/2026 5:02 PM, Staff, 4937K] reports the Laredo Police Department reported at a press conference on Thursday, May 14, 2026, that the six people found dead inside a Union Pacific freight train car did not die in Laredo, but during the journey. Laredo Police Chief Miguel Rodriguez Jr. explained that, according to preliminary medical reports, the victims had already died before the train arrived in the city, after suffering for hours inside the train car. Authorities stated that the investigation remains active in coordination with state and federal agencies, so it is not yet possible for them to provide further details. The police chief emphasized that the case is a priority and that they will continue working to clarify the facts, but assured that they will soon have results and justice for the victims’ families. Finally, authorities reiterated their call for the public not to risk their lives on these types of journeys. They warned that these are dangerous routes that can lead to inhumane conditions and, as in this case, death before reaching the destination.

AP [5/14/2026 5:47 PM, Ed White and Valerie Gonzalez] reports six people who were found dead in a rail yard shipping container in Laredo, Texas, were from Honduras and Mexico and included a 14-year-old boy, all part of a human smuggling effort on a freight train, authorities said Thursday. Police released more details about the discovery made Sunday in Laredo, near the U.S. border with Mexico, but said federal authorities were leading the investigation. The bodies were discovered by a Union Pacific employee. The Webb County medical examiner suspects the deaths were caused by hyperthermia, or heat stroke, a conclusion repeated by the mayor on Thursday. The six people were put in the shipping container on Saturday in Del Rio, Texas, two days after the train departed from Long Beach, California, Laredo Police Chief Miguel Rodriguez Jr. said. Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar said he believes a seventh person in the group also died. The body of a 49-year-old Mexican man was found Monday in the San Antonio area, about 150 miles (240 kilometers) north of Laredo.

Univision Chicago WGBO [5/14/2026 5:53 PM, Verónica Guzmán, 4937K] reports the family of Bacilio Garcia, a 56-year-old man, is experiencing moments of grief after confirming that the Mexican man died inside a freight car on May 10 in Laredo, Texas. Garcia is the latest of the seven migrants identified in one of the most recent tragedies recorded on the southern border of the United States. Everything changed on October 30 of last year, when he was arrested during the immigration operations known as Midway Blitz and deported in November. Separated from his family, he made the difficult decision to try to return. On Sunday, May 10, 2026, a Union Pacific rail yard worker reported finding six lifeless bodies inside a shipping container, as well as another one on the side of the tracks. The train car was located in Laredo, Texas, approximately 100 miles from where the victims are estimated to have boarded the train, with temperatures exceeding 36 degrees Celsius (89°F). Webb County, Texas, Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Corinne Stern determined that at least one of the victims, a 29-year-old woman, died from hyperthermia, a catastrophic failure of the body’s thermoregulation system caused by extreme heat, commonly known as heat stroke. Furthermore, the police chief added that the people had likely died hours earlier. Federal and Texas state authorities are investigating the case as a human trafficking incident.

Federal News Network [5/14/2026 1:31 PM, Michele Sandiford, 1297K] reports that House lawmakers are pushing to bolster the Transportation Security Administration’s budget by ending the diversion of airline ticket fees. Lawmakers on the Homeland Security Committee this week introduced a bill that would require the 9/11 Passenger Security Fee to be solely dedicated toward aviation and airport security. Since 2014, roughly $15 billion in fees have been diverted to the Treasury for deficit reduction. TSA officials have said allowing the agency to use all of the fee revenue would speed up airport security technology upgrades.

AP [5/14/2026 4:20 PM, Matthew Brown, 1323K] reports that in less than three minutes, an intruder exploited a security gap at one of the nation’s busiest airports and stepped into the path of an airplane hurtling down a Colorado runway with 231 people aboard. The 41-year-old man slipped unnoticed past motion detectors in a remote corner of Denver International Airport, which sprawls across open plains and covers an area twice the size of Manhattan. He quickly scaled an 8-foot perimeter fence topped with barbed wire, then walked unobstructed onto the runway where he was fatally struck by a Frontier Airlines jet as it attempted to take off late Friday night. Surveillance video showed the man getting pulled into an aircraft engine that instantly burst into flames, forcing the pilot to abort the takeoff and evacuate the 224 passengers and seven crew members. Twelve people had minor injuries. Aviation and risk experts said the Denver runway collision represents a clear security failure. They noted it could have been far worse if the pilot didn’t safely stop the aircraft that was traveling 150 miles per hour (241 kph). “People ought to be concerned. This was really an unprecedented risk. But now there is precedent,” said Eric Chaffee a law professor at Case Western Reserve University and an expert on risk, including in the aviation industry. “The individual ended up with a bad result. But having somebody basically damage a plane is really quite concerning because of all those lives aboard any given aircraft,” Chaffee added. “There ought to be new measures put into place to prevent this type of tragedy.” Some aviation experts disagreed that new regulations were needed.

San Diego Union Tribune [5/14/2026 1:59 PM, Karen Kucher, 1257K] reports that flight operations at San Diego International Airport were halted for nearly two hours Thursday morning after a security breach at Terminal 1 involving three passengers who left the terminal for a “smoke break,” a Harbor Police official said. The passengers had already been screened and were waiting to board a flight to San Jose when they went out an exit to smoke cigarettes around 6:30 a.m. When they were done, they came back into the terminal through the same doorway, bypassing the security check. They then boarded their Southwest Airlines flight, said Harbor Police Sgt. Jose Torres. The passengers’ re-entry into the terminal triggered an alarm and prompted a “ground stop” at the airport, halting all operations while officials checked out the security breach. Torres said all the passengers who had boarded the Southwest flight were taken off the plane and told to go through the security screening again. Officers also reviewed security footage of the smokers’ exiting and re-entering the terminal. The three smokers responsible for the security breach were issued misdemeanor citations and were not allowed to reboard their flight, he said.Normal operations at the airport resumed at 8:17 a.m., Torres said. According to an airport spokesperson, a security hold on the Southwest flight was lifted at 8:30 a.m.

USA Today [5/14/2026 10:26 AM, Sarah Perkel, 70643K] reports wildfire season in Florida will last further into the summer this year, extending "dangerous" conditions, according to the Florida Forest Service. Wildfire season in Florida will last further into the summer this year, extending "dangerous" conditions beyond what’s usually considered the state’s dry period, according to the Florida Forest Service. "While drought-like conditions have plagued the state since late 2025, Florida’s peak wildfire season usually encompasses April, May, and June," reads a post by the Florida Forest Service. The agency wrote that, based on outlooks released by the National Interagency Fire Center, Florida is expected to "see more above-average wildfire potential in July and even August." Since the beginning of the year, 25,560 fires have burned over 1.88 million acres nationwide, according to the National Interagency Fire Center, which is above the 10-year average for acres burned to date. Florida has already seen significant fire activity this year — nearly 2,000 wildfires have started since January, cumulatively burning more than 120,000 acres. The drought in the state, one of the worst in years, has acted as a contributing factor.

Houston Chronicle [5/14/2026 2:05 PM, R.A. Schuetz, 2493K] reports that Houston’s housing authority was planning to redevelop Irvinton Village, a public housing development not far from White Oak Music Hall, using the same grant it is using to catalyze the $671 million redevelopment of Cuney Homes and the surrounding Third Ward. Then came the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s draft of its updated flood maps, which placed 85% of the public housing in the 100-year flood plain. On Thursday morning, the housing authority announced that it was ending its redevelopment plans. Instead, it will ask the federal government for permission to shutter the public housing. If permission is granted, residents would be given housing vouchers and relocation services to move before demolition begins. The housing authority, which rebranded this year as Housing Alliance HTX, said it anticipated the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to take until the end of the year to grant approval to close down Irvinton Village. Then relocation services would start in the first quarter of 2027. Residents would be given flexibility to move as late as the summer of 2027, so that families with school-aged children would not interrupt their school year. In a release, the authority’s president, Jamie Bryant, said he recognized a move was a "significant change" for residents, "which is why we wanted to inform everyone now rather than waiting until later in the process… The flood risk at this site is too serious to ignore long-term, and we have to act on that reality before us."

News Max [5/14/2026 1:41 PM, Sandy Fitzgerald, 3760K] reports that Republican lawmakers are reportedly heading to the White House on Thursday afternoon for another classified briefing with the Secret Service as the Trump administration intensifies its push to salvage a controversial $1 billion security funding request facing growing Republican skepticism on Capitol Hill. A source familiar with the meeting told the Washington Examiner that lawmakers will hear directly from Secret Service Director Sean Curran, Secret Service Chief Operating Officer Christopher Toms, and other senior members of the Secret Service leadership team about why the money is needed. The closed-door meeting marks the third high-level briefing this week centered on the White House security funding request. The administration is working to shore up support for the funding ahead of President Donald Trump’s self-imposed June 1 reconciliation deadline. The White House has spent much of the week lobbying lawmakers behind the scenes. White House and Secret Service officials briefed Senate Republicans during a luncheon on Tuesday and House Republicans on Wednesday. The lobbying effort has not yet secured enough support, however, as several Republicans in both chambers remain opposed to the request because part of the funding is tied to Trump’s planned White House ballroom project.

Washington Examiner [5/14/2026 8:41 AM, Emily Hallas, 1147K] reports Washington, D.C., officials outlined sweeping security preparations on Wednesday for the city’s upcoming events, as it gears up for major celebrations marking the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. July 4, the centerpiece of America 250 festivities, has been designated a National Special Security Event by the Department of Homeland Security, allowing the Secret Service to lead operations, according to district leaders. NSSE is the highest level of security clearance, typically reserved for high-profile events such as the State of the Union address and presidential inaugurations. "Right now, there is no specific credible threat toward any of the events that are out there," interim Chief Jeffery Carroll said during a public safety briefing. "But even with that being said, MPD, of course, has taken a heightened posture with our partners." Aside from the July 4 announcement, officials noted that security preparations are underway for a number of additional events, including this weekend’s Rededication Prayer Jubilee on the National Mall, next weekend’s Memorial Day Parade, Freedom 250’s "Great American State Fair" and free IndyCar race, and the White House UFC fight, which has also been deemed a high-security occasion. Carroll urged the public to take mass transit, warning they should expect traffic delays due to road closures and wide security perimeters. In the wake of the attack on the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, where a suspect was charged with attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump, officials said recent incidents are shaping how agencies coordinate security efforts. D.C. Homeland Security Director Clint Osborn, Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice Lindsey Appiah, and others emphasized that such events require coordination between federal, state, and local partners.

Washington Post [5/14/2026 7:21 PM, Joe Heim, 24826K] reports the bangs and booms will echo longer and louder into the night at Washington’s official Fourth of July celebration this year if event planners can achieve their goal of presenting the world’s largest ever fireworks display. Freedom 250, a public-private partnership launched by the White House in December, says the fireworks on the National Mall will “shatter” world records, according to a statement provided to Axios, which first reported the news. A typical Fourth of July fireworks show on the Mall lasts about 17 to 20 minutes and the number of fireworks set off in recent years has ranged from approximately 10,000 to 20,000 shells. But that’s just a handful of sparklers compared to the world record set in Manila in 2016 when organizers launched about 809,000 fireworks. That’s the record organizers for the upcoming celebration hope to break. (Dog owners take heed. The Manila show lasted a little over an hour.). This year’s "breathtaking fireworks" will "stand as the most spectacular firework display the world has ever seen," Freedom 250 spokesperson Rachel Reisner said in the group’s statement. Freedom 250 did not immediately respond to an email from Washington Post seeking confirmation that it planned to exceed the 809,000 fireworks record, how long the show would last or how much it would cost. A spokesperson for Lindsey Appiah, D.C.’s deputy mayor for public safety and justice, said all questions about fireworks should be directed to event organizers. The person did not respond to questions about whether the District was aware of the expanded fireworks plan or who would be paying for it. Appiah announced Wednesday that this year’s Fourth of July celebration in the District had been designated a National Special Security Event, the nation’s highest security designation. The decision, made by the Department of Homeland Security, means Washington will be flooded with law enforcement personnel and equipment around the series of events planned by the Trump administration and affiliated groups to mark America’s 250th birthday. The NSSE designation is typically given to events deemed potential targets for terrorism or other criminal activity, such as the State of the Union address, presidential inaugurations or visits by world leaders. "The decision is based, in part, on the event’s significance, size and attendees," a Secret Service spokesperson said in an email. "Designating an event an NSSE allows for considerable resources from the federal government, as well as vital assistance from state and local partners, to be used to force multiply all available security resources.".

The Hill [5/14/2026 1:40 PM, Julia Manchester, 4464K] reports that Chinese security blocked a U.S. Secret Service agent from entering Beijing’s Temple of Heaven with their weapon during President Trump’s bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday. According to the White House press pool, entry into the event site was delayed nearly an hour and a half by “intense discussion” between U.S. and Chinese officials after the security team refused to allow a Secret Service agent into the temple with their weapon. A compromise between both sides was eventually reached, according to the pool. Reports of the tensions come as Trump wraps the first full day of his whirlwind two-day China trip, marking his first visit to the country in nearly nine years. Trump and Xi came face-to-face for the first time since October for a bilateral meeting. The White House said in a readout of the meeting that the two leaders discussed business and trade, along with the Iran war and the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, Chinese officials said Xi warned Trump about the U.S. stance on the self-governing island of Taiwan. Trump and Xi wrapped the day at a state banquet where the president invited his Chinese counterpart to visit Washington on Sept. 24.

News Max [5/14/2026 12:13 PM, Staff, 3760K] reports that a tense security standoff between U.S. Secret Service agents and Chinese officials overshadowed part of President Donald Trump’s meeting Thursday with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, highlighting the sensitive dynamics surrounding the summit. According to White House press pool reports, Chinese security officials initially blocked a U.S. Secret Service agent from entering Beijing’s Temple of Heaven with a firearm while accompanying the presidential press pool to Trump’s bilateral meeting with Xi. The dispute delayed entry into the complex for roughly an hour and sparked what reporters described as an "increasingly intense discussion" between American and Chinese officials before a compromise was finally reached. "The Trump-Xi bilat has wrapped," AFP reporter Danny Kemp wrote in a White House pool report, noting the talks lasted approximately two hours and 15 minutes. The Hill reported that Chinese security officials refused to permit the armed Secret Service agent into the venue, forcing lengthy negotiations between the two sides. Another White House pool report later said U.S. staff members and reporters again had a "spirited discussion" with Chinese officials, who at one point attempted to stop them from leaving and joining the motorcade after the meeting. Despite the friction, Trump appeared upbeat following the talks.

Washington Times [5/14/2026 3:21 PM, Staff, 1323K] reports the U.S. Coast Guard and Air Force helped rescue 11 people from a life raft this week after the plane they were on crashed off the east coast of Florida. The plane was flying between two Bahamian islands — from Great Abaco to Grand Bahama — at about 11 a.m. Tuesday when it crashed due to engine failure, the Coast Guard said in a release. At the time of the crash, a combat search and rescue helicopter from Patrick Space Force Base, 60 miles southeast of Orlando, was already in the air on a training mission, the Air Force said in a release. The Coast Guard sent out its own air crew, and Patrick sent out additional personnel to help with the search. An Air Force helicopter spotted the crash scene in the Atlantic Ocean about 80 miles east of Melbourne, Florida, and lifted the 11 survivors, all Bahamian adults, the Air Force said. Three of the plane passengers suffered minor injuries, according to The Associated Press. After hoisting the survivors, the Air Force helicopter flew them to emergency medical services at Melbourne Orlando International Airport. They’re in stable condition, the Air Force said.

Reported similarly:
NBC News [5/14/2026 2:04 PM, Matt Lavietes, 42967K]

FOX News [5/13/2026 11:53 AM, Staff, 37576K] reports the vessel ‘Soulmate,’ owned by Brian Hooker and his missing wife Lynette Hooker, is being processed in Fort Pierce, Florida. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Federal News Network [5/14/2026 6:34 PM, Justin Doubleday, 1297K] reports growing concerns about artificial intelligence-driven cyber attacks are driving new debates around how quickly organizations should patch software vulnerabilities, including whether federal agencies should be required to meet patch deadlines in days rather than weeks. Cyber experts say faster patching will be needed in many cases, especially considering recent advancements in AI. But many also say shortening deadlines is unlikely, by itself, to drive speedier remediation and could have the reverse effect in some cases. In response to Anthropic’s Claude Mythos preview, Trump administration leaders have reportedly considered cutting the standard deadline for agencies to patch Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs) that are posted to the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency’s Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog. Reuters reported that CISA and Office of the National Cyber Director leaders have discussed cutting the standard KEV deadline to three days, instead of two to three weeks. CISA didn’t respond to a request for comment on deliberations surrounding KEV catalog deadlines. But all four entries CISA has made to the KEV catalog from May 6 through May 14 have had a three-day deadline. Any acceleration of patching deadlines will likely be a challenge for many federal agencies. Hemant Baidwan, former chief information security officer at the Department of Homeland Security, said shifting to a three-day deadline "is not going to be an easy thing," but added "it does need to happen.". "I don’t think we have the luxury to wait and follow legacy remediation cycles, to wait for 30 days, 60 days, 120 days to really go after mitigating a security weakness," Baidwan, who is now executive CISO at security firm Knox Systems, told Federal News Network. The urgency has been driven by the Claude Mythos preview. But Rob Joyce, former cybersecurity director at the National Security Agency, said "even before Mythos, the risk environment changed dramatically" due to large language models.

CyberScoop [5/14/2026 4:10 PM, Derek B. Johnson, 122K] reports as AI becomes more integrated into federal IT (and attacker toolsets) government agencies will need to focus their resources on regulating and monitoring the identities that access their network, a top White House cybersecurity official said Thursday. Nick Polk, branch director for federal cybersecurity in the Executive Office of the President, said that while AI models will present unique threats to federal networks, they will still generally require trusted access first, something defenders can use to their advantage. “I think the important thing is that in many cases in order to use and exploit the vulnerabilities that [AI] might find, or use them in a manner…that could be malicious or adversarial, the first thing you have to do is get into the network,” Polk said at the Rubrik Public Sector Summit presented by FedScoop. “There are some cases where your software is facing the internet, there’s a little bit of an easier solution there, but most times you have to get into the network.” That often means exploiting the access an employee, contractor or third-party vendor has to your systems and data. Even in an AI-powered future, the network security boundary still matters, providing organizations with meaningful control over who gets access to their systems and data and how. “That’s really where strong identity is still really critical in order to [first] repel an attempted exploitation before it can happen or, [second,] identify very quickly that this person or this machine really shouldn’t be on the network” or is behaving anomalously,” Polk said. However, even before large language models emerged, cybercriminals and foreign adversaries were increasingly compromising organizations not with malware or sophisticated exploits, but by gaining network access through stolen accounts, credentials, and other trusted assets. Federal identity security, already a concern, is now set to become more critical in the age of AI.

CyberScoop [5/14/2023 10:05 AM, Matt Kapko, 122K] reports Foxconn, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of electronics sold by major tech vendors, is recovering from a cyberattack that disrupted some of the company’s factories in North America. Nitrogen, a ransomware group that’s known for targeting organizations in the manufacturing, construction and technology sectors, claimed responsibility for the attack on its data leak site and said it stole 8 terabytes of data spanning more than 11 million files. The threat group posted screenshots of some of the allegedly stolen data and claimed it compromised “confidential instructions, projects and drawings from Intel, Apple, Google, Dell, Nvidia and many other projects.” Foxconn is famously known as the primary assembler of Apple iPhones. Apple and the other companies allegedly impacted by the attack did not respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for Foxconn confirmed some of its factories in North America suffered a cyberattack, and said its cybersecurity team immediately responded to the breach by implementing additional “measures to ensure the continuity of production and delivery.” The spokesperson did not answer questions about when the attack occurred or what systems or data was impacted, but noted that “affected factories are currently resuming normal production” as of Tuesday.

CyberScoop [5/14/2026 3:10 PM, Tim Starks, 122K] reports advanced artificial intelligence models will “fundamentally change warfare as we know it,” a top cyber official at the Defense Department said Thursday, saying it represents “not evolutionary warfare, but revolutionary warfare.” Paul Lyons, principal deputy assistant secretary for cyber policy, said the development of frontier AI models like Mythos amounted to a “watershed moment,” speaking at Rubrik’s Federal Cyber Resilience Breakfast produced by FedScoop. Such models will “change both offense and defensive posture within the Department of War to something that’s close to you for critical infrastructure,” he said. “This is the ability to hunt and speed across the domain and outside the fence line in critical dependencies with water, power, compute.” The advent of the technology is forcing the department to address difficult questions, but it’s a great opportunity as well for the United States given that it’s being developed by American companies, Lyons said. It’s something his department is optimistic about, he said.

FOX News [5/14/2026 6:39 PM, Louis Casiano, 37576K] reports the highest-ranking member of Tren de Aragua to face justice in the United States has been extradited from Colombia and will appear in a Houston federal courtroom to face terrorism and drug charges, the Justice Department said. Jose Enrique Martinez Flores, 24, who also goes by "Chuqui," allegedly oversaw criminal activities in Colombia, including drug trafficking, extortion, prostitution and murder. Federal prosecutors stated that he is a high-ranking leader of the designated foreign terrorist organization in Bogota and is part of the inner circle of senior TdA leadership. He was arrested on March 31 on a warrant requested by the U.S., and according to the DOJ, he has arrived in Houston and will appear in court on May 15. "Today’s extradition sends a clear message: under President Trump’s leadership, foreign terrorist organizations like Tren de Aragua will be hunted down and brought to justice," FBI Director Kash Patel said in a statement to Fox News Digital. He added that the FBI will continue using every tool available to dismantle violent criminal networks, stop the flow of drugs into communities, and protect the American people. "This is the highest ranking TdA member we’ve ever brought to justice," Patel added. Flores is charged with one count of conspiring to provide material support to TdA in the form of personnel, including himself, and one count of providing material support to the organization.

AP [5/14/2026 3:21 PM, Staff, 35287K] reports a U.S. federal grand jury on Thursday expanded the charges against the second-in-command of Mexico’s Jalisco New Generation Cartel, accusing him of methamphetamine trafficking and conspiracy to launder money. Mexican drug kingpin Audias Flores Silva was arrested on April 27 in the western state of Nayarit in an operation by Mexican Navy special forces based on information provided by U.S. agencies. He was originally charged with trafficking cocaine and heroin in an August 2020 indictment. The capture of Flores Silva, alias “El Jardinero” or “The Gardener,” was considered a major blow to the leadership of the cartel, known by its Spanish initials CJNG. He was identified by Mexican authorities as a possible successor to leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, alias “El Mencho,” who was killed in February in the western state of Jalisco in an army operation. Flores Silva, 45, served as Oseguera Cervantes’ head of security, according to Mexican authorities. He later assumed control of some of the cartel’s operations in the states of Nayarit, Jalisco, Mexico and Zacatecas, overseeing drug production and trafficking, as well as the operation of clandestine laboratories. He is also linked to fuel theft and extortion. If convicted, he could face between 10 years and life in prison.

NewsMax [5/14/2026 8:32 PM, Solange Reyner, 3760K] reports a Georgian national described by federal prosecutors as a leader of an international neo-Nazi extremist group was sentenced Thursday to 15 years in prison for soliciting hate crimes and distributing instructions for making bombs and poisons, including ricin, according to the Justice Department. Michail Chkhikvishvili, also known as "Commander Butcher," was sentenced in federal court in Brooklyn by U.S. District Judge Carol Bagley Amon after pleading guilty in November, prosecutors said. Federal officials said Chkhikvishvili was a leader of Maniac Murder Cult, also known as MKY, an international racially motivated violent extremist organization that promotes neo-Nazi ideology and violence against minorities and Jewish communities. Authorities said Chkhikvishvili recruited individuals online to carry out violent attacks and planned a mass casualty plot targeting New York City. Prosecutors said he was extradited from Moldova to the United States in May 2025. "Chkhikvishvili, a leader of the ‘Maniacs Murder Cult,’ repeatedly called for the murder of innocent civilians, including children, and schemed to attack and terrorize Jewish communities and racial minorities in the United States," Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg said in a statement. According to court filings, Chkhikvishvili communicated through Telegram and other online platforms to encourage violent hate crimes beginning in 2022. Prosecutors said he unknowingly worked with an undercover FBI employee while planning attacks involving bombings, arson and poisonings. Federal authorities said one of the plots involved having an individual dress as Santa Claus and distribute poisoned candy to minority children in New York City during the holiday season. Prosecutors later said the plan shifted to specifically target Jewish schools and Jewish children in Brooklyn. Officials said Chkhikvishvili distributed manuals explaining how to produce lethal poisons and gases, including ricin. Prosecutors also alleged he circulated a document known as the "Hater’s Handbook," which encouraged mass violence and school shootings. The Justice Department linked Chkhikvishvili and his extremist propaganda to violent attacks overseas and in the United States, including a January 2025 school shooting in Nashville and a stabbing attack outside a mosque in Turkey in 2024. "The defendant is a hate-mongering menace who intended to hurt and kill children in the Jewish community and in other minority communities in New York City," U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. said.

CNN [5/15/2026 3:09 AM, Diego Mendoza, 19874K] reports a "grenade-type" explosive device was safely detonated after being found in an Alabama reservoir that supplies drinking water to the city of Mobile and its surrounding area, officials said. The device was discovered Wednesday by divers surveying the Converse Reservoir dam in Mobile County for routine repair and maintenance, prompting a notification to the sheriff’s office and a multi-agency response, including the FBI, according to the Mobile Area Water and Sewer System (MAWSS). It is unclear where the device originated, how it ended up in the reservoir and whether it was intentionally placed there or mistakenly discarded. "Our top priority is keeping your drinking water safe," said MAWSS Director Bud McCrory in a statement. "This is an unprecedented threat, and we are fortunate that this device was discovered before it could cause serious damage to our water supply or harm to individuals.” Officials have notified the Department of Homeland Security about the incident because the reservoir and dam are federally designated critical infrastructure, according to MAWSS. CNN has reached out to MAWSS and DHS for more information. The Converse Reservoir, also known as Big Creek Lake, is a 3,600-acre manmade watershed providing drinking water to 350,000 people in the city of Mobile and surrounding areas, according to the MAWSS website. Parts of the reservoir are accessible for recreational activities, such as fishing, boat rentals and picnics, its website says. The agencies involved in Wednesday’s response included the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office, FBI Bomb Squad, Mobile Police Department Explosive Ordinance Detail, ALEA Bomb Squad, and the Daphne Search and Rescue Team, MAWSS said. In response to the discovery, MAWSS said it would work with relevant law enforcement to enhance security at the reservoir and dam.

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New York Times [5/14/2026 9:43 PM, Pooja Salhotra, 148038K] reports federal prosecutors have filed charges against a former Army serviceman they accused of distributing instructions on how to build explosives that were used by a man who conducted a deadly attack in New Orleans on New Year’s Day last year. The former serviceman, Jordan A. Derrick, a 40-year-old from Missouri, was charged with one count of engaging in the business of manufacturing explosive materials without a license; one count of unlawful possession of an unregistered destructive device; and one count of distributing information relating to manufacturing explosives, according to a criminal complaint unsealed on Wednesday. The three charges together carry a maximum sentence of 40 years in federal prison. Starting in September 2023, the authorities said, Mr. Derrick was using various social media sites to share videos of himself making explosive materials, including detonators. His videos provided step-by-step instructions, and he often engaged with viewers in comments, sometimes answering their questions about the chemistry behind the explosives. The authorities said that Mr. Derrick’s videos were downloaded by Shamsud-Din Bahar Jabbar, 42, who was accused of ramming a pickup truck into a crowd on Bourbon Street in New Orleans on Jan. 1, 2025, in a terrorist attack that killed 14 people and injured dozens. Mr. Jabbar was killed in a shootout with the police. Before the attack, Mr. Jabbar had placed two explosives on Bourbon Street, the authorities said, but they did not detonate. The authorities later recovered two laptops and a USB drive in a house that Mr. Jabbar had rented. The USB drive contained several videos created by Mr. Derrick that provided instructions on making explosives. The authorities said the explosives they recovered were consistent with the ones Mr. Derrick had posted about. Mr. Derrick’s lawyers did not respond to requests for comment. Mr. Derrick was a combat engineer in the Army, where he provided personnel and vehicle support, the authorities said. He also helped supervise safety personnel during demolitions and various operations. He was honorably discharged in February 2013. The authorities did not say whether Mr. Derrick had any communication with Mr. Jabbar, or whether the men had known each other. In some of Mr. Derrick’s videos and comments, he indicated that he was aware that his videos could be misused. “There are a plethora of uh, moral, you know, entanglements with topics, any topic of teaching explosives, right?” he asked in one video, according to the affidavit. “Of course, the wrong people could get it.” The authorities also said that an explosion occurred at a private residence in Odessa, Mo., on May 4, and the occupant of the residence told investigators that he had manufactured explosives after watching online tutorials from Mr. Derrick.

Houston Chronicle [5/14/2026 7:37 PM, John Wayne Ferguson, 2493K] reports a Venezuelan man accused of being a leader of Tren de Aragua has been extradited to the United States and will appear Friday in a Houston federal court to face drug trafficking and terrorism-related charges. Jose Enrique "Chuqui" Martinez Flores was recently transferred from Bogota — where he had been jailed since last year — to Houston, the Justice Department announced late Thursday afternoon. His arrival marked the "first time a TdA member charged with terrorism-related crimes" has been extradited to the U.S., the FBI’s Houston Field Office said in a post on X. Martinez Flores, 24, is accused of overseeing the gang’s criminal activities in Colombia, according to a press release. Last year, he was indicted on two counts related to providing material support to Tren de Aragua. Those charges were added to an earlier indictment in which Martinez Flores was accused of helping distribute five or more kilograms of cocaine in the United States. Three other alleged TdA leaders were named in the same indictment but weren’t in custody as of Thursday. A fifth man charged in the case, Jesus Miguel Barreto Lezama, last month pleaded guilty to a charge of cocaine distribution and is awaiting sentencing. If convicted of the terrorism-related charges, Martinez Flores could face life in prison. Tren de Aragua has never been blamed for a large-scale terrorist attack in the U.S., and nothing in the charging documents in Martinez Flores’ case mentions specific acts of violence connected to him or the other men. Tren de Aragua has never been blamed for a large-scale terrorist attack in the U.S., and nothing in the charging documents in Martinez Flores’ case mentions specific acts of violence connected to him or the other men. Tren de Aragua, which means "Train of Aragua," started as a prison gang in Venezuela in the 2000s. The group took control of Tocorón Prison in northern Venezuela and used it as a base to expand its influence over drug smuggling and other illicit crimes. As migrant crossings swelled at the U.S.-Mexico border in 2023, then-candidate Donald Trump declared the group an existential threat and accused Venezuela of emptying its prisons and sending gang members to the United States.After Trump retook office, the White House also proclaimed that the gang was supporting Venezuela’s then-President Nicolas Maduro’s goal of "destabilizing democratic nations in the Americas." However, an April 2025 memo from U.S. intelligence agencies downplayed connections between the gang and the government.

New York Times [5/15/2026 3:20 AM, Julian E. Barnes and Maria Abi-Habib, 330K] reports the C.I.A. provided intelligence and planning support for a recent operation against a cartel operative inside Mexico, but was not on the ground when Mexican authorities killed the man, according to a former official and others briefed on the operation. On Tuesday, CNN reported that the C.I.A. had been involved in the assassination of Francisco Beltran, a midlevel cartel operative, in March in what the outlet called an “expanded” C.I.A. campaign inside the country. The operative was killed when an explosive ripped through his car on the outskirts of Mexico City, which was widely reported at the time. But CNN’s report said the incident “was a targeted assassination, facilitated by C.I.A. operations officers.” The report also said that the C.I.A. has participated in multiple “deadly attacks” on Mexican cartel members since last year, with the agency’s level of involvement varying. The former official and others briefed on the operation said the C.I.A. provided intelligence on the cartel operative’s location and was involved in the planning of the assassination. It is not clear to what extent the C.I.A. participated in the planning. But C.I.A. officers were not present on the site of the attack and were not advising the Mexicans in person when the operation was carried out, the former official and those briefed said. They spoke under the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive operation and intelligence collection. The CNN story comes at a particularly sensitive time in the countries’ ties, amid mounting pressure from the Trump administration on Mexico to do more to combat cartels and drug trafficking. President Trump has threatened unilateral military action inside Mexico unless the Mexican government does more to counter the criminal groups. But President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico has dismissed such threats, insisting that American boots on the ground would violate her country’s sovereignty. Instead, she has said, Mexico welcomes American assistance in the form of intelligence sharing and training — nothing more. During her Wednesday morning news conference, Ms. Sheinbaum strongly denied that C.I.A. agents were operating in Mexico, let alone working there to kill someone. “Imagine the scale of the fabrication and the lies,” she said. She also denied that Mexican authorities had used an explosive against a cartel operative, but she did not explain how the man was killed. She insisted that the Mexican government has “always” acted within the framework of the law. “How absurd, as if there were a special area of ​​the Mexican government dedicated to planting bombs to eliminate criminal groups,” she said. The Mexican government was swift to deny the story on Tuesday evening. “The Government of Mexico categorically rejects any version that seeks to normalize, justify, or suggest the existence of lethal, covert, or unilateral operations by foreign agencies on national territory,” Omar García Harfuch, Mexico’s security secretary, posted on X.

Washington Post [5/14/2026 9:44 PM, Alex Horton, Ellen Francis and Noah Robertson, 24826K] reports the Pentagon has abruptly withdrawn thousands of soldiers from a planned deployment to Poland, officials said Thursday, part of a larger troop reduction that comes as President Donald Trump has expressed anger over Europe’s refusal to aid in the war with Iran. Soldiers and equipment from the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, had already arrived in Poland to start a planned nine-month deployment on a mission to deter Russian aggression in Europe, U.S. defense officials said, prompting a scramble to halt soldiers departing from Fort Hood in Texas and arrange the return of hundreds of personnel who reached Poland. Long scheduled deployments are rarely canceled and fewer still after they begin. Some U.S. military leaders in Europe were caught off guard with the decision after learning about it through a Defense Department memo distributed earlier this week, two U.S. defense officials said, who like others spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing decisions and military movements. About 4,000 soldiers plus heavy vehicles such as Abrams tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles were expected to be deployed for exercises in the region, serving as training and a message to Moscow. There are tens of thousands of U.S. troops stationed on the continent, a significant portion of which serve on rotational deployments from the United States and elsewhere. Trump earlier this month said that he was instructing the Pentagon to slash 5,000 U.S. troops from Germany amid an ongoing feud with Chancellor Friedrich Merz and other European allies over what he has said is inadequate support for the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran, which is now in a tenuous ceasefire. Trump vowed he would reduce the U.S. military presence by “a lot more” than the initial 5,000 troops, a process expected to take six months to a year. Germany has served as a vital hub for U.S. operations against Iran, including its hospitals at U.S. bases in country for severely injured personnel evacuated from the Middle East. Pentagon spokespeople declined to comment on the Poland troop cancellation. The Defense Department has said in a variety of strategic planning policy documents that it intends to increase troop presence in the Western Hemisphere and the Pacific and offload much of its responsibility of European defense to NATO allies.

Wall Street Journal [5/14/2026 7:27 PM, Vera Bergengruen and José de Córdoba, 646K] reports Central Intelligence Agency Director John Ratcliffe flew to Havana on Thursday for a rare meeting with Cuba’s interior minister and the head of the country’s intelligence service, as the country grapples with extreme fuel shortages and growing street protests. Cuba’s government said the meeting took place at the request of the U.S. Ratcliffe said Cuba needed to make fundamental changes to work with the U.S. on economic and security issues, a CIA official said. Ratcliffe told Cuban officials they have a limited window to stabilize the island’s economy and engage with the Trump administration, the official added. Ratcliffe warned his Cuban counterparts that President Trump should be taken seriously, the official said. To make the point, he referred to the U.S. military raid that deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro in January. Photos released by the CIA show American officials meeting with Cuban officials—who wore black suits instead of the usual white guayaberas—over a long, white table decorated with bouquets of red roses and baby’s breath. In January, Trump declared Cuba “an unusual and extraordinary threat” to U.S. national security, invoking emergency powers to escalate pressure on Havana. Since then, Trump has often warned that Cuba “will be next” in his campaign against hostile regimes in the hemisphere. Havana said it provided information to the U.S. delegation that “categorically showed that Cuba isn’t a threat to the national security of the U.S. There are no reasons to include Cuba on the U.S. list of countries that sponsor terrorism.” Cuban officials told the U.S. team that there are no foreign military bases on the island. Cuba “doesn’t support, doesn’t finance or permit terrorist or extremist organizations,” the government said.

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CNN [5/14/2026 1:23 PM, Kaanita Iyer, 19874K] reports that the FBI is offering $200,000 for information that could lead to the arrest of a former Air Force intelligence specialist who was charged in 2019 with spying for Iran. In an announcement Thursday, the FBI said it is still trying to locate Monica Witt, who it believes defected to Iran in 2013. The agency said it believes she "likely continues to support (Iran’s) nefarious activities." "The FBI has not forgotten and believes that during this critical moment in Iran’s history, there is someone who knows something about her whereabouts," Daniel Wierzbicki, special agent in charge of the FBI Washington Field Office’s Counterintelligence and Cyber Division, said a statement, likely referring to the US’ ongoing tensions with Iran. "The FBI wants to hear from you so you can help us apprehend Witt and bring her to justice," it said. Witt was a former counterintelligence officer for the Air Force Office of Special Investigations. From 2003 and 2008, Witt’s work involved counterintelligence assignments that took her to the Middle East. In 2019, then-Assistant Attorney General John Demers alleged that Witt was targeted and recruited by Iran, and after she defected, she allegedly revealed to Iran the existence of a "highly classified intelligence collection program" and the identity of a US intelligence officer, "thereby risking the life of this individual." The indictment also charged four Iranians with conspiracy, attempts to commit computer intrusion and aggravated identity theft.

New York Times [5/14/2026 2:54 PM, Anton Troianovski, 148038K] reports President Trump wants China to do more to persuade Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, and he discussed the issue with President Xi Jinping of China at their summit on Thursday, the White House said. But it was not immediately clear whether the United States had secured any new commitments from China on helping restore shipping out of the Persian Gulf. The White House released a statement after the summit’s first meeting saying that the two had “agreed that the Strait of Hormuz must remain open to support the free flow of energy.” But there was no signal from China that Mr. Xi’s government would grow more assertive in pressuring Iran to allow more ships through the strait, let alone to agree to a peace deal that would suit Mr. Trump. Guo Jiakun, a spokesman for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs speaking at the ministry’s daily briefing on Thursday, after the two leaders had met, said only that the Middle East was among the topics they discussed and that the country’s policy regarding the strait had been “consistent and clear.” China has previously criticized the American blockade, although not recently, and has called for a cease-fire. Before the summit, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in an interview with Fox News’s Sean Hannity that the United States hoped to “convince” China “to play a more active role in getting Iran to walk away from what they’re doing now and trying to do now in the Persian Gulf.”

Reuters [5/15/2026 2:18 AM, Staff, 38315K] reports U.S. President Donald Trump said his patience with Iran is running out and he had agreed in talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping that the Islamic republic cannot be allowed to have a nuclear weapon and must re-open the Strait of Hormuz. "We’ve settled a lot of different problems that other people wouldn’t have been able to solve," Trump said on Friday after he met Xi in Beijing on the second day of talks ‌which included the Iran war, Taiwan, trade and other issues. Iran effectively shut the strait to most shipping traffic in response to U.S.-Israeli attacks which began on February 28, causing an unprecedented disruption to global energy supplies. China is close to Iran and the main buyer of its oil. The U.S. paused its attacks on Iran last month but began a blockade of the country’s ports. Talks aimed at ending the conflict have stalled with Iran refusing to end its nuclear program or relinquish its stockpile of enriched uranium. Tehran denies it intends to build a nuclear weapon. Xi did not comment on his discussions with Trump about Iran, although China’s foreign ministry issued a blunt statement outlining Beijing’s frustration with the Iran war. "This conflict, which should never have happened, has no reason to continue," the ministry said. Trump said of Iran in an interview aired on Thursday night on Fox News’ "Hannity" ⁠program: "I am not going to be much more patient. They should make a deal." On the key issue of Iran’s hidden stockpile of enriched uranium, Trump suggested it only needed to be secured by the U.S. for public relations purposes. "I don’t think it’s necessary except from a public relations standpoint," Trump said in the interview. "I just feel better if I got it, actually. But it’s, I think, it’s more for public relations than it is for anything else." After talks between Trump and Xi on Thursday, the White House said the leaders had agreed that the strait should be open and that Xi made clear China’s opposition to the militarisation of the waterway and any effort to charge a toll for its use, as Iran has threatened to do. Trump said Xi also promised not to send Iran military equipment. "He said he’s not going to give military equipment, that’s a big statement," Trump said on "Hannity". Xi also expressed interest in purchasing more American oil to reduce China’s future dependence on the strait, the White House readout of the talks said. Trump is keen to elicit Chinese support to end a war that has become an electoral liability as it drags on towards key U.S. midterm elections in November. But analysts doubt Xi will be willing to push Iran hard or end support for its military, given its value as a strategic counterweight to the U.S. In an interview with CNBC from Beijing on ‌Thursday, U.S. Treasury ⁠Secretary Scott Bessent said he believed China would "do what they can" to help open the strait, something "very much in their interest." Before the war, about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies passed through the waterway. But diplomacy has been on hold since last week when Iran and the U.S. each rejected the other’s most recent proposals.

New York Times [5/14/2026 1:43 PM, David E. Sanger and Dustin Volz, 148038K] reports that the word from the White House went out to senior U.S. officials months before President Trump landed in Beijing on Wednesday: Avoid unnecessary confrontations with China, large or small, that could interfere with Mr. Trump’s effort at rapprochement with America’s largest military, economic and technological competitor. It did not work out that way. Over the past few weeks, the Treasury Department has put new sanctions on Chinese firms it said provided targeting data to Iran that enabled strikes on bases across the Middle East that did billions of dollars in damage to American facilities. The White House has accused China of stealing artificial intelligence models from U.S. tech companies. And just this week, federal prosecutors said they had charged a California mayor with illegally working for Beijing. There have been actions against midsize oil importers in China for secretly buying up Iranian oil. The only big step that the administration delayed was final approval of a $13 billion military aid package for Taiwan, which the White House designed but will not fulfill until Mr. Trump is back. That leaves President Xi Jinping time to voice his objections. It is not clear why there has been such a sudden deluge of China measures, other than the fact that the Trump administration has been in office for nearly a year and a half.

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