Top Homeland Security officials defend immigration enforcement at House hearing

After federal prosecutors failed to indict Democrats involved in the “illegal orders” video, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., did not answer directly when he was asked tonight whether he thought the six lawmakers should be indicted.

“I’m going to reserve comment on this until I review that. That’s the first I’ve heard of it,” Johnson said as he was walking onto the House floor this evening.

Johnson went on to say he thought the Democrats “went further” than restating the law that members of the military do not need to obey illegal orders. He said they “crossed a line,” adding that he hoped they “straighten up their act.”

The House failed to adopt a procedural rule that would make it impossible for it to overturn Trump's tariffs for the next six months.

Three Republicans opposed the measure in the 214-217 vote. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Kevin Kiley of California and Don Bacon of Nebraska voted with Democrats to block the rule.

The language in the rule would prevent the House from voting to overturn Trump’s tariffs at least through the end of July. Republicans had passed similar language, but it expired at the end of January.

Without the language, Democrats will be able to introduce measures to terminate the national emergencies Trump declared when he implemented tariffs. That could happen as soon as tomorrow, with a resolution led by Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y.

The Trump administration tried and failed today to secure an indictment in connection with a video featuring six Democratic lawmakers urging members of the military and intelligence communities not to comply with unlawful orders, three sources familiar with the matter told NBC News.

It was not clear how many of the lawmakers the Trump administration tried to indict or whether the failed attempt will be addressed at a future court hearing.

The indictment, pursued by the office of the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, Jeanine Pirro, is the latest example of the Justice Department’s targeting Trump’s perceived political opponents. The government attorneys assigned to the case are political appointees, not career Justice Department prosecutors, according to a source familiar with the investigation.

A Justice Department spokesman and a spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment this evening.

Read the full story here.

A federal judge today shut down the Justice Department’s efforts to obtain personal voter information from elections officials in Michigan, the third time a court has tossed out lawsuits by the Trump administration in its efforts to obtain voter registration lists from the states.

U.S. District Judge Hala Jarbou, the chief judge for U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan, granted a request from Michigan officials, including Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, to dismiss the Justice Department lawsuit.

In a 23-page order, Jarbou said federal voting laws cited by the Justice Department do not require the state to turn over the voter information. The Justice Department had cited the Help America Vote Act, the National Voter Registration Act and the Civil Rights Act in its lawsuit.

Jarbou, a Trump appointee, wrote: “As explained below, the Court concludes that (1) HAVA does not require the disclosure of any records, (2) the NVRA does not require the disclosure of voter registration lists because they are not records concerning the implementation of list maintenance procedures, and (3) the CRA does not require the disclosure of voter registration lists because they are not documents that come into the possession of election officials.”

Trump has instructed the CIA and other spy agencies to provide intelligence about the 2020 election to his former campaign lawyer who led efforts to try to overturn that year’s election, a U.S. intelligence official and a person with knowledge of the matter said today.

The administration last year hired Kurt Olsen, who took part in the “Stop the Steal” campaign more than five years ago that promoted baseless claims of widespread voter fraud, to investigate the 2020 election.

“The president has asked Mr. Olsen to look at intelligence related to the 2020 election and the agency is ensuring that he has the access necessary to do his work,” a CIA official said in an emailed statement.

The Wall Street Journal first reported on Olsen’s hiring last year and that he was seeking intelligence reports from U.S. spy agencies. Politico first reported that Trump had directed intelligence agencies to cooperate with Olsen’s efforts.

Read the full story here.

Trump made disparaging remarks in an interview today about Somalis in Minnesota and Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., adding to his ongoing criticism of her.

“Somalia has come in here, what they’ve done to our country, these people, they’ve come into our country, and what they’ve done with that fake congresswoman, she’s so bad,” Trump told Larry Kudlow on Fox Business in an apparent reference to Omar, who was attacked at a town hall in Minneapolis last month.

Trump made the comments about Somalia, where Omar was born, as he was talking about efforts to root out fraud, saying he's still looking at Minnesota. The state is home to the largest Somali population in the U.S.

The FBI raided a Georgia election hub near Atlanta and seized ballots and voter records at the urging of a lawyer who had worked with Trump to try to overturn the results of the 2020 election, a newly released court record revealed today showed.

Members of the FBI Evidence Response Team outside the Fulton County Election Hub and Operation Center after the FBI executed a search warrant there in relation to the 2020 election on Jan. 28, 2026. Alyssa Pointer / Reuters

FBI Special Agent Hugh Raymond Evans wrote in the affidavit that the investigation “originated from a referral sent by Kurt Olsen, Presidentially appointed Director of Election Security and Integrity.”

Olsen, who took part in the “Stop the Steal” campaign more than five years ago and promoted baseless claims of widespread voter fraud, was previously sanctioned by federal judges for making "false, misleading and unsupported factual assertions."

The administration hired him last year to investigate the 2020 election.

Read the full story here.

Karoline Leavitt said that she didn’t know whether a call occurred between Trump and Palm Beach’s police chief about Jeffrey Epstein but that if it did, it corroborates Trump’s previous comments about Epstein.

“It was a phone call that may or may not have happened, in 2006,” Leavitt told reporters. “What President Trump has always said is that he kicked Jeffrey Epstein out of his Mar-a-Lago club because Jeffrey Epstein was a creep, and that remains true, and this call, if it did happen, corroborates exactly what President Trump has said from the beginning.” 

The newly released batch of Epstein files includes a summary of a 2019 FBI interview with former Palm Beach Police Chief Michael Reiter, who said Trump had contacted him about the Epstein investigation when he led the department, though it’s not clear exactly when the call took place. Reiter was police chief from 2001 to 2009; Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008.

“Trump called the [Palm Beach Police Department] to tell him ‘thank goodness you’re stopping him, everyone has known he’s been doing this,’” the summary of Reiter’s interview said. “Trump told him people in New York knew Epstein was disgusting. Trump said Maxwell was Epstein’s operative, ‘she is evil and to focus on her.’”

A reporter asked White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt whether the administration stands behind Lutnick in light of new information about his communication with Epstein, as well as his 2012 visit to Epstein's island.

"Secretary Lutnick remains a very important member of President Trump's team, and the president fully supports the secretary," she said before she pivoted to talking about other subjects.

Lutnick has not been accused of any wrongdoing related to Epstein.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska became the first Republican senator to speak out against the SAVE Act, a sweeping election bill backed by Trump that would require proof of citizenship to vote nationwide.

She reminded her colleagues today that they roundly claimed to oppose new federal election laws as recently as Joe Biden’s presidency.

“When Democrats attempted to advance sweeping election reform legislation in 2021, Republicans were unanimous in opposition because it would have federalized elections, something we have long opposed,” Murkowski said in a statement. “Now, I’m seeing proposals such as the SAVE Act and MEGA that would effectively do just that. Once again, I do not support these efforts.

“Not only does the U.S. Constitution clearly provide states the authority to regulate the ‘times, places, and manner’ of holding federal elections, but one-size-fits-all mandates from Washington, D.C., seldom work in places like Alaska,” she added.

Read the full story here.

Former Rep. Tom Malinowski today conceded the special Democratic primary for New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s old district in Congress, with progressive activist Analilia Mejia leading the vote count for the seat. 

NBC News has not yet projected a winner with ballots still left to be counted. But Mejia’s narrow advantage has been expanding with nearly every vote update. She had 29.1% of the Democratic primary vote to 27.7% for Malinowski by this morning. 

Mejia ran with support from prominent progressive leaders, including Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., raising her profile in a crowded field of 11 Democratic candidates in the primary Thursday. 

Malinowski conceded to Mejia in a statement five days later as the party prepares to take on Republican Joe Hathaway, the mayor of Randolph township, in an April 16 special general election for the blue district.

Read the full story here.

Facing bipartisan criticism over his ties to Epstein, Lutnick said today that he had no personal relationship with Epstein but acknowledged having visited the late sex offender’s island while on a family vacation.

Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick on Feb. 10, 2026, in Washington, D.C. Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images

“I did not have any relationship with him. I barely had anything to do with that person, OK?” Lutnick said at a Senate Appropriations subcommittee hearing focused on broadband funding. 

Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., the subcommittee’s ranking member, made it clear in his opening statement that he wanted to question Lutnick about his ties to Epstein after his name appeared several times in files newly released by the Justice Department. Lutnick has not been accused of wrongdoing in connection with Epstein, but he has faced criticism for not having been more transparent about their interactions.

“Mr. Secretary, the issue is not that you engaged in any wrongdoing in connection with Jeffrey Epstein, but that you totally misrepresented the extent of your relationship with him to the Congress, to the American people and to the survivors of his despicable criminal and predatory acts,” Van Hollen said.

Read the full story here.

New York Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado has suspended his gubernatorial bid, which had him running against the Gov. Kathy Hochul while the two remained in office together.

Delgado, who recently tapped progressive activist India Walton as his running mate, said in a statement that he's suspending his campaign because "there simply is no viable path forward." Hochul selected Delgado, a former congressman, to be her second-in-command when she took over the governorship in 2022; in his bid, he had sought to distance himself from the Hochul administration despite serving in it.

But Hochul has locked up endorsements from a who's who of prominent New York Democrats and navigated an alliance with progressive New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani that shored up her political position ahead of a potential primary. A recent Siena College poll found her with a 49% favorability rating in the state, the highest Siena has recorded for her, and with her sporting a 53-percentage-point lead over Delgado in the Democratic primary.

The House Homeland Security Committee's hearing on oversight of the Department of Homeland Security has concluded after nearly 3½ hours.

Rep. Delia Ramirez, D-Ill., called for the Department of Homeland Security to be "dismantled" during her questioning time at the oversight hearing.

Rebecca Noble / Bloomberg via Getty Images file

"I'm going to say it loud and clear, and I'm proud to stand by what I say: DHS cannot be reformed," she said. "It must be dismantled, and something new must take its place.

"Because if we let DHS persist, it will continue to be a weapon that can be pointed at anyone the government considers the public enemy," she added.

Ramirez's comments go further than those of several of her progressive colleagues, who have called for abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a component of the broader department.

Democrats in Congress are in negotiations with Republicans to overhaul ICE and have said they will oppose legislation to fund the department until their demands have been met. The department faces a funding deadline of the end of the week or it will need to shut down.

During his questioning time at the DHS oversight hearing, Rep. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., slammed Immigration and Customs Enforcement as "outright fascist" and criticized acting ICE Director Todd Lyons' opening remarks.

Rep. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y. Anna Moneymaker / Getty Images

"You said in your opening statement that references to ICE as the Gestapo or the secret police encourages threats against ICE agents," said Goldman, a former U.S. prosecutor.

"100%," Lyons said.

"The problem is, you have it backwards, sir," Goldman said. "People are simply making valid observations about your tactics, which are un-American and outright fascist. So I have a simple suggestion: If you don't want to be called a fascist regime or secret police, then stop acting like one. But people are simply just observing what they are seeing, and that's why people are making those comments."

Rep. Seth Magaziner, D-R.I., repeatedly pressed Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott on whether agents were using proper force.

Federal law enforcement officers use pepper spray on a demonstrator during a protest in St. Paul, Minn., on Jan. 17. Victor J. Blue / Bloomberg via Getty Images

Magaziner played a clip of a driver and his young child being hit with an irritant spray and a separate clip of someone being sprayed in the face at close range while pinned down by officers.

Asked whether it was proper procedure to spray pepper spray into a moving vehicle, Scott said no, but questioned whether the spray was intentionally aimed into the car. Asked after the second video was played whether it depicted proper use of pepper spray, Scott said that he could not provide a comment because the video was just a limited clip.

"The intended use is to try to avoid escalating; it's to de-escalate a situation," Scott added.

Magaziner asserted that there has been "no accountability" for CBP in the Trump administration.

"Your agency has repeatedly been caught on tape using unnecessary violence against civilians, and you can't even tell me if any of these agents have been investigated or disciplined," the congressman said. "You are supposed to be making people safer, and instead your agents are being unnecessarily violent, and that is why the Trump administration has lost the trust of the American people on immigration."

Acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Todd Lyons denied during questioning at the House oversight hearing this morning that his agency has kept a database of protesters.

High school students protest against ICE outside the Minnesota Capitol in St. Paul on Jan. 14.  Octavio Jones / AFP - Getty Images

Pressed by Rep. Lou Correa, D-Calif., Lyons said, "There is no database for protesters."

Border czar Tom Homan had said in an interview last month with Fox News that "we’re going to create a database where those people that are arrested for interference, impeachment, assault. We’re going to make them famous."

Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., pressed acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Todd Lyons on whether any ICE agents have been fired for their conduct during aggressive immigration enforcement operations.

“How many ICE agents have been fired for their conduct under your leadership?” Swalwell asked.

Lyons declined to answer directly, saying he could not discuss personnel actions, but would provide the data to the committee.

Pressing further, Swalwell asked, “Can you tell us if at least, God, I hope at least one person has been fired for their conduct since these operations have begun? Are you telling us you can’t even say one person’s been fired?”

Lyons again declined to speak about personnel actions, repeating that he would follow up with the committee.

Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., pressed acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Todd Lyons on the killings of Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti, asking if he would apologize for top administration officials' labeling her a "domestic terrorist."

"No, sir," Lyons responded.

Asked why not, Lyons said that he would "welcome the opportunity to speak to the family in private, but I'm not going to comment on any active investigation."

Shortly after Good’s shooting, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem used the term "domestic terrorist" to describe Good, without providing evidence, prompting broad criticism. Trump initially accused Good of having “viciously ran over the ICE officer,” though video evidence and eyewitness accounts disputed this.

Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said he would provide the House Homeland Security Committee with the reports into Renee Good and Alex Pretti's killings once the investigations are done.

Posters of Alex Pretti and Renee Good, in Minneapolis, on Jan. 29. Stephen Maturen / Getty Images

"Once concluded, will you commit to providing the reports and findings of each investigation to this committee?" Committee Chairman Andrew Garbarino, R-N.Y., asked.

"Yes, Mr. Chairman," Lyons responded. "We're fully committed to giving you the full and unabridged investigation in the outcome."

Asked for the same commitment, Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott also agreed to provide a full report.

Former Rep. Tom Malinowski conceded the special Democratic primary in New Jersey's 11th Congressional District to progressive activist Analilia Mejia today, amid a protracted vote count following the Feb. 5 primary.

NBC News has not yet projected a winner in the primary for New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill's old seat. Mejia has 29.1% of the vote to 27.7% for Malinowski in the current count.

In a statement, Malinowski congratulated Mejia and decried spending from an AIPAC-aligned super PAC, saying he would campaign against any candidate the group backs during the regularly scheduled Democratic primary later this year.

Rep. Andrew Garbarino, the chair of the House Homeland Security Committee, said in his opening remarks at the DHS oversight hearing that there must be a "complete and impartial" investigation into the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.

A protest outside the office of Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., in Minneapolis, on Jan. 26. Adam Gray / AP

"We have seen state and local jurisdictions refuse to protect federal law enforcement officers, and obviously, we have now seen the deaths of two American citizens in Minnesota," Garbarino, R-N.Y., said. "This is all unacceptable and preventable."

"The safety of law enforcement and the communities they serve and protect must always come first," he continued. "When officials or elected leaders rush to conclusions about law enforcement or their fellow Americans, public trust suffers. There must be a complete and impartial investigation."

Administration officials, including Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, initially sought to frame Good and Pretti as agitators trying to harm law enforcement. Videos contradicting those claims have since sparked protests.

A vigil at a memorial near the site where Renee Good was killed on Jan. 14. Stephen Maturen / Getty Images

A since-deleted message on the vice president’s X account today that referred to the Armenian genocide was “posted in error by staff,” a Vance official said.

Vance and his wife, second lady Usha Vance, visited the Armenian genocide memorial in that nation’s capital and participated in a wreath-laying ceremony. The original post said they did so “to honor the victims of the 1915 Armenian genocide.”

Congress and the Biden administration formally recognized the Armenian genocide, but most American presidents have stopped short over concerns about what that might do to the U.S. relationship with NATO ally Turkey.

Vice President JD Vance with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in Yerevan, Armenia, today. Kevin Lamarque / Pool via Getty Images file

The original post was removed and instead the account reposted Vance press secretary Taylor Van Kirk, who wrote, “.@VP and @SLOTUS lay flowers at the eternal flame and sign the guest book on the final day of their visit to Armenia.” 

The Vance official said the deleted message was posted by “staff who are not part of the delegation” on the trip to Armenia and Azerbaijan.

The Justice Department again defended Attorney General Pam Bondi’s appointment of former Trump personal lawyer Lindsey Halligan as an interim U.S. attorney in an appeal of a judge’s dismissal of the indictments against New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey.

New York Attorney General Letitia James; former FBI Director James Comey.  Getty Images file

 The filing yesterday argued U.S. District Judge Cameron Currie was wrong to dismiss the criminal indictments based on her finding that Halligan was unlawfully appointed.

In her November ruling, Currie determined that Halligan’s appointment ran afoul of a 120-day time limit for a U.S. prosecutor to serve in the role without Senate confirmation. Bondi picked Halligan to replace Erik Siebert, then the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, who had not been confirmed by the Senate within the 120-day period and who ultimately resigned after resisting pressure to prosecute Comey and James. 

Comey’s and James’ lawyers argued that under the law, federal judges of the Eastern District of Virginia held responsibility for naming Siebert’s replacement at that point, not Bondi. Currie ultimately agreed and then ruled that because Halligan was the only prosecutor to present the cases and sign the indictments against Comey and James, those indictments needed to be voided.

Read the full story here.

Nuclear talks with the United States allowed Tehran to gauge Washington’s seriousness and showed enough consensus to continue on the diplomatic track, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson said today.

U.S. and Iranian diplomats held talks through Omani mediators in Oman last week in an effort to revive diplomacy, after Trump positioned a naval flotilla in the region, raising fears of new military action.

“The Muscat meeting was not a long meeting. In our view, it was to gauge the seriousness of the other side and how to continue this path,” Esmail Baghaei said.

“After the talks, we felt there was understanding and consensus to continue the diplomatic process.”

Read the full story here.

Top Trump administration immigration officials are set to testify before House members this morning in a high-profile Department of Homeland Security oversight hearing following the shooting deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by immigration enforcement agents in Minneapolis last month.

Lawmakers on the House Homeland Security Committee will hear testimony from Todd Lyons, the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Rodney Scott, the commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection; and Joseph Edlow, the director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

The killings of Good and Pretti and the administration's handling of the aftermath sparked sharp criticism from both sides of the aisle. Democrats have vowed to vote against Department of Homeland Security funding unless it makes changes to its immigration enforcement policies. The department will enter a shutdown this weekend if a funding bill is not passed.

The United Democracy Project, a super PAC affiliated with the pro-Israel AIPAC, has begun spending on ads in Illinois' 7th Congressional District aimed at boosting Chicago Treasurer Melissa Conyears Ervin.

Democratic Rep. Danny Davis' decision to retire has opened up a crowded Democratic primary in the safe blue seat that includes Conyears Ervin, businessman Jason Friedman, physician Thomas Fisher, state Rep. La Shawn Ford, former Cook County Commissioner Richard Boykin, local labor leader Anthony Driver Jr. and activist Kina Collins, whom the United Democracy Project opposed during her unsuccessful primary challenge to Davis in 2024.

The new ad is a positive spot that highlights Conyears Ervin's biography, and comes just days after a high-profile UDP misstep in a New Jersey special House election and after Illinois progressives accused pro-Israel groups, without direct evidence, of wading into other Chicago-area races.

The House Rules Committee tucked language into a rule for floor procedures that would prevent the House from voting to overturn Trump’s tariffs at least through the end of July. 

That rule is scheduled for a vote in the House at 1:30 p.m. It is a required procedural step to bring up other bills this week, but Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., had the Rules Committee insert the language about tariffs as well. 

Johnson told NBC News last night that he thinks he has the votes to delay any action on tariffs “for a bit longer.”

Rule votes are almost always along party lines, so Republicans will have a very tight margin to approve the rule to block the House’s ability to overturn tariffs.

Republicans had previously passed language like this, but that expired at the end of January, meaning Democrats would soon be able to introduce measures to reverse tariffs.

Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, is officially running for re-election, formalizing an expected decision to seek a sixth term and protect a vulnerable Republican seat.

Collins had already said she was likely going to run but had not formally entered the race. Democrats see Maine as a potential pickup in November, and Collins is the only Republican senator from a state Kamala Harris carried in 2024.

But Collins has shown herself to be resilient in the past, including her last re-election in 2020, when she won by almost 9 points even as Trump lost Maine by 9 points.

Collins posted a new video this morning showing her unboxing running shoes, looking to the camera and saying, “This is perfect for 2026, because I’m running.”

The United Nations said yesterday it’s waiting to find out how much of the nearly $4 billion the United States owes the world organization the Trump administration intends to pay and when the money will arrive.

U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres warned last week that the world body faces “imminent financial collapse” unless its financial rules are overhauled or all 193 member nations pay their dues, a message clearly directed at the United States.

The U.S. owes $2.196 billion to the U.N.’s regular operating budget, including $767 million for this year, according to a U.N. official. The U.S. also owes $1.8 billion for the separate budget for the U.N.’s far-flung peacekeeping operations, and that also will rise.

The U.S. Mission to the United Nations confirmed that U.S. Ambassador Mike Waltz said the Trump administration planned to make a significant down payment on its arrears in a matter of weeks, with the final amount still to be determined. His comments were first reported by Reuters.

Read the full story here.

Europe should brace for more moments of U.S. hostility, French President Emmanuel Macron has warned, and should treat what he called the “Greenland moment” as a wake‑up call to push through long‑delayed reforms to strengthen the bloc’s global power.

In an interview with several European newspapers, the French leader said the European Union should not mistake a lull in tensions with Washington for a lasting shift despite a pause in U.S. threats over Greenland, trade and technology.

Macron urged E.U. leaders to use a summit in a Belgian castle this week to inject fresh energy into economic reforms to bolster the bloc’s competitiveness and strengthen its ability to stand up to China and the United States on the world stage.

“When there’s a clear act of aggression, I think what we should do isn’t bow down or try to reach a settlement,” Macron told Le Monde, the Financial Times and other newspapers in comments published today. “We’ve tried that strategy for months. It’s not working.”

Read the full story here.

A U.S. immigration court has terminated the Trump administration’s attempt to deport a Tufts University student and pro-Palestinian activist who has been critical of Israel, her lawyers said yesterday.

The court terminated the government’s removal proceedings Jan. 29, finding that the government has not met its burden in proving that Rümeysa Öztürk, a doctoral student from Turkey studying children’s relationship to social media, should be deported, the lawyers said.

The termination was noted in a filing on behalf of Öztürk with the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York City, where she is challenging her arrest and detention.

“Today, I breathe a sigh of relief knowing that despite the justice system’s flaws, my case may give hope to those who have also been wronged by the U.S. government,” Öztürk said in a statement yesterday. “Though the pain that I and thousands of other women wrongfully imprisoned by ICE have faced cannot be undone, it is heartening to know that some justice can prevail after all.”

Read the full story here.

Vice President JD Vance landed yesterday in Armenia — a country that no sitting U.S. vice president or president has visited before — offering economic opportunities as the Trump administration works to advance a U.S.-brokered deal aimed at ending a decades-long conflict with neighboring Azerbaijan.

Vance and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan signed an agreement to push forward negotiations on a civil nuclear energy deal, and Vance said the U.S. was ready to export advanced computer chips and surveillance drones to Armenia, and invest in the country’s infrastructure.

The visit comes after Pashinyan signed a deal at the White House in August with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev where the leaders signed agreements reaffirming their commitment to signing a peace treaty. The text of the treaty was initialed by foreign ministers, which indicates preliminary approval. But the leaders have yet to sign the treaty and parliaments have yet to ratify it.

Vance continued today with the next stop on his trip, Azerbaijan.

Read the full story here.

Some feel they’ve hit an appropriate retirement age. Others want to tend to their health or their families. Yet more are leaving because they don’t like the workplace.

Add it all together, and members of Congress are heading for the exit at a historically high rate ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, with two more House Republicans adding themselves to a growing roster just last week.

Rep. Barry Loudermilk, R-Ga., announced Wednesday that he was retiring from Congress, while Rep. Mark Amodei, R-Nev., announced Friday that he wouldn’t run for re-election, either. Loudermilk said he wants “to spend more dedicated time with my family,” while Amodei said it was “the right time for Nevada and myself to pass the torch.”

The latest retirements mean 60 members of Congress have decided not to run for re-election this year — 51 House members and nine senators. It’s the most retirements from both chambers combined this century, according to historical data from the Brookings Institution’s Vital Statistics on Congress.

Read the full story here.

Americans are souring on the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, complicating an already messy dynamic on Capitol Hill as emboldened Democrats draw a hard line against another short-term funding bill for the Department of Homeland Security.

Just over four days until funding runs out, key members of the Senate Democratic Caucus say they won’t support another continuing resolution, or “CR,” to prevent a shutdown of DHS beginning this weekend.

“What ICE is doing is unconscionable, and it’s got to be reined in. I can’t, in good conscience, vote for it,” Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, told NBC News. “I would feel complicit in what they are doing.”

King’s statement is significant. He was one of eight senators in the Democratic caucus who voted with Republicans to reopen the government after a historic shutdown over health care last fall. And he has been instrumental in getting the Senate over the key 60-vote hurdle for recent funding bills. Asked why he’s drawing a line now, he said the situation is different because “96% of the government is now funded.”

Read the full story here.