News From Around the Web
#1 Trump’s Proposal to Cut Thousands of TSA Jobs - Chad de Guzman for TIME, Linus Fan, Susan, WI AFL-CIO, Praise 94.5 CLE, and Rod D. Martin/Paul bass
When thousands of Transportation Security Administration workers called out of work in recent weeks as Congress was stuck in a standoff that withheld their pay, Americans saw how vital a well-staffed TSA is to smooth travel. But recent budget documents show the Trump Administration wants to cut a number of TSA jobs, replacing some with a private workforce, in an effort to reduce costs. The White House requested, according to a Department of Homeland Security budget congressional justification document released on March 31, a TSA budget of $11.7 billion for the next fiscal year, which would represent reductions of almost 8,400 positions and about 9,400 full-time equivalents (FTEs). This includes the reduction of 2,462 Transportation Security Officer (TSO) positions and 4,351 TSO FTEs. Such officers are known as airport frontliners, performing passenger screening and searches. The proposal also includes the reassignment of more than 800 TSA posts for staffing exit lanes, which the White House says would save some $97.3 million....#2 Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche Announces Crackdown on Fraudsters — With $1T in Taxpayer Programs on the Line - Josh Christenson for New York Post, Homolander, Brandon Straka #Walkaway, Diamond and Silk®, David Burke and Bradley Ingram/Emerald Robinson on X
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche on Tuesday revealed that the Department of Justice is currently probing thousands of cases of fraudsters bilking taxpayer-funded federal programs, with more than $1 trillion potentially vulnerable per year. In his first press conference since being elevated to the role of acting AG, Blanche touted recent prosecutions that had resulted in guilty pleas — including a half-billion dollars “in health care and COVID fraud” — as the DOJ is handling more than 8,000 fraud cases. A South Florida insurance brokerage firm pleaded guilty to an Affordable Care Act enrollment scheme totaling more than $160 million, and a California man pleaded guilty to submitting $270 million in fraudulent claims through California’s Medicaid program for costly prescription drugs, among others...
#3 Man Who Stole $1M in Feeding Our Future Scheme Pleads Guilty - CBS News, Andy Ngo, Jay Gatling, RockyMtMama, U.S. Department of Justice, and Fox News Politics on X
A man who stole $1.1 million in federal funds in the Feeding Our Future fraud scheme pleaded guilty to money laundering on Thursday. Gandi Yusuf Mohamed had two companies — GAK Properties LLC and GIF Properties LLC — that he used to receive and launder the proceeds of the fraud scheme, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. Between March 2021 and July 2022, he received more than $1.1 million in Federal Child Nutrition Program money that was meant to feed hungry children during the COVID-19 pandemic. Gandi Mohamed is the brother of Ikram Yusuf Mohamed, who opened several food sites and enrolled them in the federal program under the names of her family members and friends...
#4 Pharmacy Owner Pleads Guilty in $1.9 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme - Dearborn Heights Today, You Wish/FBI Director Kash Patel, Global Pulse, Tired of being politically correct/FBI, Mike Lee/Katie Miller, John Solomon, and Fitzgerald Kennedy John Jr. on X
A business owner from Dearborn Heights, Michigan, pleaded guilty this week to conspiring to commit healthcare fraud, resulting in a $1.9 million loss to Medicare, Medicaid, and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan. Rabih Hamdan, 41, admitted to creating and operating a scheme to submit false and fraudulent claims for prescription drugs that were medically unnecessary or not actually dispensed. This case is part of the federal government's ongoing crackdown on healthcare fraud in Michigan, which has been a major focus for law enforcement agencies like the FBI and HHS-OIG. Schemes like this one can have a significant financial impact on public and private insurance programs, as well as undermine public trust in the healthcare system...
#5 RFK Jr. Has Stopped Talking About Vaccines. A Memo Shows Why - Rachel Cohrs Zhang and Jessica Nix for Bloomberg/MSN, Jessica Nix, Anna Matson, MJTruthUltra, The HighWire/vanjansch, and Lauren Lee on X
The Trump administration is putting Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on a low-risk messaging diet ahead of the midterm election. The Secretary of Health and Human Services has publicly and notably swallowed his trademark vaccine skepticism in recent weeks, even in front of the friendliest audiences. At last month’s Conservative Political Action Conference in Texas — one of the biggest gatherings for the right on the calendar — Kennedy insisted President Donald Trump had an “encyclopedic, molecular knowledge” of Broadway and claimed he saw him draw a map of the Middle East from memory — but offered nary a mention of his one-time signature issue. Across five hours of podcast appearances this spring, Kennedy gabbed freely about controversial issues: recalling when he “used to snort cocaine off of toilet seats” in the throes of addiction, likening Froot Loops cereal to “cyanide” and comparing some antidepressant prescriptions to a “life sentence.”
#6 Pirro’s Powell Probe Faces a Difficult Road to Appeal, Former Prosecutors Say - Matt Peterson for CNBC, Greenpeace.BNB.probablynothing.LUNC, Scott Dworkin, Armando/Aaron Rupar, NDTV Profit, NEWSMAX, and Nick Timiraos/Ben Terris on X
Federal prosecutors in Washington are facing a decision that will help determine whether Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is swiftly replaced or lingers on while politicians fight over his replacement. If they do move ahead with a planned appeal against a recent adverse ruling, as U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro insists they will, they risk having the investigation bogged down in complex, unsettled law, former federal prosecutors with experience in appellate law say. “Regardless of the procedural vehicle they choose, the substantive road ahead of them is brutally steep,” said Sean P. Murphy, a former assistant U.S. attorney who has argued before the judge who ruled against Pirro’s probe of Powell and has briefed the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. The Trump administration’s plans to quickly confirm former Fed official Kevin Warsh as Powell’s replacement are looking increasingly likely to be a casualty of that legal battle...
#7 Millions Claimed Trump’s ‘No Tax on Overtime’ Deduction. The Treasury Calls It a ‘Home Run,’ but Congress May Not Be Able to Afford to Keep It - Vawn Himmelsbach for Moneywise, GambleRss, Michael W Smith, Governor Kathy Hochul/Kalliope/Filipino Time, Governor JB Pritzker/(rednek53), and Henry Wentz on X
So far this year, about 20 million Americans have claimed the new 'no tax on overtime' deduction, a provision in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). While it doesn't eliminate taxes on overtime pay, it does allow certain workers to deduct a portion of their overtime pay, up to a maximum of $12,500 for individuals or $25,000 for married couples filing jointly. The tax break is available for the 2025 filing season through 2028. Eligible taxpayers are also able to deduct tip income, auto loan interest, and, for seniors, an enhanced tax break as a result of the OBBBA. But it turns out the new deduction for qualified overtime compensation is particularly popular. So far, filers have claimed the 'no tax on overtime' deduction on 25% of tax returns for 2025 (around 20 million filers), Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said during an appearance on Fox and Friends. It's been so successful, he referred to the deduction as "the home run" of tax breaks...
#8 Supreme Court Blocks Candidate After Alleged GOP Infiltration Scheme Exposed - Alexandra Koch for FOX News, Diamond and Silk®, Jessie Balmert, The Washington Times, ConservativeLibrarian, and Jammies on X
The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a self-described "progressive" candidate’s bid to enter Ohio’s Republican primary, leaving in place a decision by state election officials to disqualify him for misrepresenting his party affiliation. Samuel Ronan, a former Democratic state and national candidate, attempted to run as a Republican in Ohio’s 15th Congressional District against GOP incumbent Rep. Mike Carey. To do so, he signed a declaration of candidacy — under penalty of election falsification — swearing he was a member of the Republican Party. However, court documents filed in U.S. District Court note Ronan was caught publicly admitting that his candidacy was part of a calculated strategy to run Democrats as Republicans in "deep red districts" to "get a foot in the door."
#9 Melania Trump Denies Close Ties to Jeffrey Epstein in Rare Public Statement - Ava Berger for NPR, Michael Tracey, Fox News, ABC News, Real America's Voice (RAV), SheThinksFreely/J, and Thomas Massie on X
First lady Melania Trump made a rare public statement on Thursday, denying that she had close ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and calling on Congress to allow victims to testify. "I am not Epstein's victim," Melania Trump said. "Epstein did not introduce me to [President] Donald Trump." It was not immediately clear why the first lady was addressing this issue publicly. But included in the Epstein files released by the Justice Department was a heavily redacted FBI interview that included the claim Epstein introduced the Trumps. "I have never had any knowledge of Epstein's abuse of his victims," she continued. "I was never involved in any capacity."
#10 El Niño Odds Spike to 61% as Scientists Warn of Possible ‘Very Strong’ Climate Event - Daniel Farr for New York Post, Rich Thomas, CGTN, R A W A L E R T S/Roger Price/Bryan Maxwell SW FL WX/brutal truth 77, The New Vision, and HailTrace on X
A potentially significant El Niño is taking shape in the Pacific Ocean, with forecasters now saying there’s a 61 percent chance the climate pattern will develop between May and July, according to the National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center. The latest outlook also shows a 25% probability that the system could grow into a “very strong” event, raising concerns among meteorologists watching the rapidly shifting ocean-atmosphere conditions. The update comes just after La Niña, which dominated the most recent winter, officially ended, clearing the way for a transition in the tropical Pacific tied to the broader climate cycle known as El Niño-Southern Oscillation...
