(WASHINGTON) -- Texas state Rep. James Talarico, the Democratic nominee in the pivotal U.S. Senate race in Texas, appeared on Wednesday to walk back some of his past comments on religion that have become a major line of attack in the race against Republican state Attorney General Ken Paxton. 

When asked about his comments in 2021 during floor debate in the legislature that "God is non-binary" in an interview on ABC News Live, Talarico replied that "Ken Paxton is clipping my past cringey comments to distract from his career of corruption," as part of a "playbook" of "distraction and division."

When pressed on his comments, Talarico replied that they were "meant to be deliberately provocative" and that he believes "you can't use human categories to define God." He said that Republicans are seizing on the comments "to try and distract from the corrupt system that Ken Paxton embodies."

ABC News reached out to Paxton's campaign for response to Talarico's comments.

Talarico's comments along with other statements on transgender rights and immigration were highlighted in Paxton's first general election ad, which ends with the tagline "Radical Talarico: too low-T for Texas." "Low-T" is a reference to levels of testosterone that is used to insult men for a lack of masculinity. 

Republicans have used transgender rights as a major line of attack, including in the 2024 presidential race. The DNC's after-action report on the election identified the Trump campaign's attack ads labeling his opponent, then-Vice President Kamala Harris, as "for they/them" as one of the most effective ads of the cycle. 

Democrats think Talarico's potential to reach beyond the Democratic base and appeal to independents and Republicans disaffected by Paxton's candidacy could be enough to win the seat and possibly control of the Senate next year.

Paxton faced ethical and personal questions during the primary. He was acquitted in an Republican-driven impeachment trial in 2023. Paxton’s wife filed for divorce last year, citing “biblical grounds.”

Republican leadership, which had encouraged President Donald Trump to back Paxton's opponent in the primary, Sen. John Cornyn, as more electable in the general election, have begun to coalesce around Paxton as the Republican nominee.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said in a radio appearance Wednesday that Republicans were going "all-in" on Paxton and attacked Talarico as a "far left liberal."

The National Republican Senate Committee, which backed Cornyn in his primary race, has taken down past press releases and ads attacking Paxton and has issued a statement opposing Talarico without mentioning Paxton by name.

Talarico has made explicit overtures to Trump voters and Cornyn voters, who are necessary to win any statewide election in Texas, saying, "There is a lot of disillusionment among the president's supporters here in Texas, and I'm extending an open hand to those Trump voters. So that they know they have a place in our campaign."

While Cornyn has not explicitly endorsed Paxton in the election, he has said that he will "support the Republican ticket."

Editor's note: This story has been corrected to clarify Texas State Rep. James Talarico's comments. It has also been corrected to note that the National Republican Senate Committee, not the Senate Majority PAC, has taken down Paxton its attack ads and opposes Talarico.

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(WASHINGTON) -- President Donald Trump said during a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday that he isn't concerned about making a deal soon with Iran, adding that he doesn't "care about the midterms" in what he said he thinks is the regime’s calculation that he has to negotiate a deal before what are expected to be highly-competitive elections in November.

"They thought they were going to out-wait me, you know. 'We'll out-wait him. He's got the midterms.' I don't care about the midterms. Look what happened last night, that was a prelude to the midterms. People understand it," Trump said, likely referencing his endorsed candidate, Ken Paxton, winning the Senate Republican runoff in Texas.

With tensions escalating with Iran and gas prices still up across the country, Trump said he feels no urgency to end the war.

"Mr. President, you've said that you're in no rush to make a deal, but with gas prices that are still high across the country, people are paying more for travel. Does that give you more urgency to make a deal? Why doesn't it?" ABC News Senior Political Correspondent Rachel Scott asked Trump during the Cabinet meeting.

"Well, I'll tell you, the primary urgency, I've said this, it wasn't covered properly, but the primary urgency is that we can't let Iran have a nuclear weapon," Trump responded.

The president also appeared to issue a new threat against Oman, a key American ally in the Middle East.

Trump said he would not accept a short-term deal that allows Iran and Oman to control the Strait of Hormuz -- as reported in Iranian state media, and that the critical shipping lane will be "open to everybody."

"Oman will behave just like everybody else or we'll have to blow them up. They understand that," Trump said.

Trump on Wednesday was asked whether he would consider easing any sanctions on Iran. He said no.

"No, we're not talking about any easing of sanctions or giving money. No sanctions, no money, no nothing," Trump said. "We have control of money that they claim is theirs. We'll keep control of that money. And when they behave properly and when they do what's right, we'll let them have their money. But right now, we're not doing that ... One thing is not contingent on the other."

The comments come after a senior administration official told reporters over the weekend that Iran could be rewarded with a lifting of sanctions and unfreezing of assets in exchange for a deal on its nuclear program.

On the status of negotiations, Trump said on Wednesday he's "not satisfied" and that Iran is "negotiating on fumes."

"We're not satisfied with it, but we will be. We will be. Either that or we'll have to just finish the job," Trump said.

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(WASHINGTON, D.C.) -- Former President Joe Biden filed suit against the Justice Department on Tuesday in an effort to block the release of recordings and transcripts from interviews he gave for his memoir that were central to a special counsel probe regarding his handling of classified materials after his time as vice president.

The lawsuit follows an intervention by Biden in a separate lawsuit brought by the conservative Heritage Foundation over a FOIA request that sought records from the investigation by former special counsel Robert Hur.

The audio recordings and transcripts stem from interviews Biden did with ghostwriter Mark Zwonitzer for his 2017 memoir "Promise Me, Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship, and Purpose."

The materials were obtained by the DOJ as part of the special counsel's probe, which ended in February 2024, finding that Biden "willfully retained and disclosed" classified materials but recommending no criminal charges.

Biden's lawsuit seeks to further bolster his demands that the materials not be shared with the conservative think tank or congressional Republicans, citing his right to privacy as well as allegations against DOJ that it is acting unlawfully in seeking an avenue to release the records.

"President Biden—like every American—has a right to privacy in personal conversations he had within his own home," the lawsuit said. "That is particularly true here, where the Department obtained this information through a criminal investigation."

Biden's lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., said the DOJ has indicated it will release the audio recordings and transcripts to both the Heritage Foundation and the House Judiciary Committee on June 15 unless a court order blocks the release.

The lawsuit details a frenzied effort and communications between Biden's counsel and DOJ in recent weeks to walk through potential redactions and other issues surrounding release of the audio and transcripts.

While the DOJ and career attorneys during the Biden administration had taken the position that release of the materials was a clear departure from department norms, Biden's attorneys said the current DOJ reversed its position without any formal explanation beginning in February. 

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(COLUMBIA, S.C.) -- The South Carolina Senate on Tuesday effectively killed a proposed congressional map that could have allowed Republicans to flip the seat held by Democratic Rep. Jim Clyburn, a major rebuff to a mid-decade redistricting effort promoted by President Donald Trump.

The Republican-controlled state Senate voted Tuesday afternoon to adjourn their special legislative session until June 10, after the state holds its June 9 primaries, without nearing a final vote on the map.

The adjournment means that possible redistricting in the state before the 2026 midterms appears all but dead.

Early voting in the primaries began Tuesday, which opponents of the map argued meant it was too late to redistrict without running into major legal issues. 

Lawmakers adjourned after a procedural vote to limit debate on the map failed, and after multiple Republican state senators spoke out against the map on the Senate floor, with some citing the start of early voting as why it was too late to redistrict.

"The deadline has passed, voting has begun. It is time to conclude the matter," Republican state Sen. Richard Cash said on the Senate floor on Tuesday. "Now I know there is going to be a lot of anger and frustration that we did not get the job done. I get it. Many of us are also frustrated and disappointed at what is a very unsatisfying outcome, but we need to face it. The time clock for getting this done ran out, and the time clock for in-person voting started at 8:30 this morning."

A subsequent statement attributed to the South Carolina Senate Republican Caucus blamed South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster, a Republican, for calling a special session too close to the primaries and cited the possibility that ballots cast today would be thrown out as the reason the legislature adjourned.

The proposed congressional map could've helped the Republican Party flip the state's 6th congressional district, held by Clyburn, the longtime Black representative who is the state's lone Democrat in Congress.

Clyburn slammed the redistricting effort in a press conference earlier Tuesday.

"As I stand here, our state senate is debating whether or not to recreate this congressional district in order to fulfill orders from the White House to say to the 29% of African Americans in South Carolina, the 43% of Democratic voters in South Carolina, irrespective of your presence, you are not deserving of a single member of Congress of the seven that we have," Clyburn said.

"That is a challenge to the goodness of South Carolinians, and nothing has made me more incensed than to see this kind of imposition on the people of South Carolina," Clyburn said.

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(WASHINGTON) -- President Donald Trump is expected to hold a Cabinet meeting at Camp David on Wednesday, a White House official confirmed to ABC News.

Sources told ABC News that the plans are subject to change due to possible inclement weather in the Washington, D.C., area. 

According to the White House official, all Cabinet members are expected to attend, and the meeting will "highlight recent successes of the administration including economy and small business wins, Task Force to Eliminate Fraud highlights, and foreign policy updates."

The travel to the presidential retreat was first reported by the New York Post. 

The trip would be Trump's first return to Camp David in almost a year.

Trump previously visited the retreat in Catoctin Mountain Park in Frederick County, Maryland, last June in what the White House described at the time as "a regular off campus retreat of principals attended by the President and Vice President."

The decision to hold an official Cabinet meeting at Camp David marks a departure from typical practice, though it is not unprecedented. Trump held a Cabinet meeting there in September 2017, as well, which was closed to the press.

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(WASHINGTON) -- Construction on the Ultimate Fighting Championship Octagon is underway on the White House South Lawn ahead of President Donald Trump’s planned fights this summer to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the United States.

The event, dubbed "UFC Freedom Fights 250," will take place on June 14 -- coinciding with the president’s birthday and Flag Day -- and feature a lightweight title matchup between undisputed champion Ilia Topuria and interim title holder Justin Gaethje alongside four other fights.

"Selected fighters" will take home prize money -- some of which will come from Crypto.com, according to UFC.

The scaffolding -- which will frame and light the cage where the fight is occurring, according to renderings shared by UFC -- is visible from the White House North Lawn, cresting over the historic West Wing and Oval Office. 

Trump has repeatedly touted the popularity of the fight, claiming at the congressional picnic earlier this month that he had "never seen anybody want anything so much as people want those tickets."

In an Oval Office event featuring some of the fighters earlier this month, including Topuria and Gaethj, Trump claimed that tickets would be free to attendees and that tens of thousands of people would be able to congregate on the South Lawn and surrounding parks to witness the event.

"Our country is invited to this, it's free," Trump told reporters, claiming that the Ellipse would be able to house 75,000 to 100,000 fans beyond the main stage on the South Lawn. "They're going to set up eight big screens and they're going to have the fight. And then out here, we're going to have 4,000 seats right in front of the front door of the White House."

On Saturday, UFC shared new renderings to social media of what the event is expected to look like. The images featured a large fighting cage surrounded by stadium seating as well as an overview of the "UFC Freedom 250 Fan Fest" in Ellipse Park.

In a statement, White House spokesperson Davis Ingle said the event "will be one of the greatest and most historic sports events in history."

"President Trump hosting it at the White House is a testament to his vision to celebrate America’s monumental 250th anniversary," he said.

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(WASHINGTON) -- A three-judge panel in a federal court in Alabama ruled unanimously on Tuesday that state Republicans are still blocked from using their 2023 congressional map, which would have potentially helped Republicans in November.

Alabama had moved forward with using the 2023 map after state lawmakers had said the Supreme Court's historic decision in Louisiana v. Callais in late April cleared the way for it.

The judges, including two appointed by President Donald Trump, concluded that the high court's recent ruling on Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act has no bearing on this case, in which lower courts found the 2023 map represents a constitutional violation.

"Ultimately, we cannot see our way clear to requiring Alabamians to cast their votes in the 2026 elections under a districting plan tainted by intentional race-based discrimination," the judges wrote in their ruling.

In 2024, Alabama had been required to use a map with two majority-Black districts, one of which was won by Democratic Rep. Shomari Figures. But in the wake of the Supreme Court decision, some state lawmakers and the governor delayed some of Alabama's House elections, although others were held on May 19 as scheduled.

As of now, Alabama must move forward with the 2024 map, unless, the court noted on Tuesday, lawmakers want to attempt to enact a new congressional district plan at this late hour, which it is free to do. 

Figures, in a statement to ABC News, said that he also expected further legal battles. The 2023 map was expected to potentially help Republicans flip Figures' seat in November. 

"I am pleased with the Court's decision, but this case is still not over," Figures said. "Although we expected the Court to reach this decision given the overwhelming evidence, we fully expect the State to immediately appeal the decision to the Supreme Court. This is a significant step in the right direction, but there is still a long way to go before this fight is settled."

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall said he is "disappointed" by the decision and said there will be an appeal effort.

“I am disappointed, but not at all surprised, that the three-judge panel has again struck down Alabama’s blandly unobjectionable congressional map that has been in place for decades. I find nothing in the U.S. Supreme Court’s vacatur order of May 11 that would provide a basis for this outcome; thus, we will immediately appeal this decision to the Supreme Court," Marshall said in a statement.

"This is a very fluid situation, and I will do my best to keep the People of Alabama apprised of our efforts. Know this—in my mind, it is not a matter of whether we win this case, only when.”

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(WASHINGTON, D.C.) -- Voters in Texas go to the polls on Tuesday to decide the Republican nominee in a pivotal Senate race that could decide control of the Senate -- and serves as a test of President Donald Trump's influence.

Also on the ballot are several member-on-member matchups and a candidate, Maureen Galindo, who has already been condemned by top Democrats for her campaign's controversial comments.

Trump weighs in on Texas Senate race

Trump’s last-minute endorsement in the Texas Senate primary runoff race of Attorney General Ken Paxton over incumbent Republican Sen. John Cornyn has shaken up a race that could become critical for the fight to control the Senate next year.

Cornyn narrowly led the field in March's primary with 42% of the vote, followed by Paxton's 40%, to make the runoff over GOP Rep. Wesley Hunt.

This comes after Trump's endorsement power was proven to prevail in recent primaries -- with the president successfully ousting non-endorsed incumbent Republicans this month, including Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie and Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy.

And while Trump has praised Cornyn as a "good man," he made clear that he feels the senator was "not supportive" enough in the past. Cornyn is also backed by the campaign arm of Senate Republicans and many of his Senate colleagues have stood by his side despite the president's endorsement, citing their belief that Paxton’s past controversies could put this safe Republican seat at risk.

The bitter Republican battle is also the most expensive primary runoff, according to AdImpact, after the race already made history as the most expensive Senate primary election in March. According to AdImpact, $100 million has been spent in the primary and $25 million has been spent for the runoff.

Texas House races

The Houston-area 18th Congressional District is no stranger to showing up to vote -- this House seat has seen six elections in the last two years.

The deaths of the last two members to represent the district, Reps. Sheila Jackson Lee and Sylvester Turner, left the district without representation for large swaths of time. Rep. Christian Menefee, the current representative for the district, has only served in office for a few months after winning the seat in a special election.

He faces off against Rep. Al Green, a longtime member of Congress, who represents the neighboring 9th District, which has been redrawn to favor Republicans.

In Dallas, another contentious Democratic primary pits a current member against a former one. Redistricting of nearby districts has drawn top candidates into the primary for the state's 33rd Congressional District: Rep. Julie Johnson, who currently represents the neighboring Texas’ 32nd Congressional District, and Former Rep. Colin Allred, who left that seat in 2024 to run for Senate.

Texas’ 35th Congressional District features competitive runoffs on both the Republican and Democratic sides. The district was redrawn to favor Republicans, but Democrats hope low approval for Trump and a strong candidate could give them a fighting chance.

Galindo, who came in first in the March Democratic primary for the 35th District with 29% of the vote, has been the subject of major controversy for her campaign's social media posts. A now-deleted Instagram post from her campaign read that Galindo will turn an ICE detention center "into a prison for American Zionists." She has previously called for all candidates who take campaign contributions from Israel to be "tried for treason.” While she has not denied the comments, she has added that "putting billionaire Zionists in prison does not mean putting all Jews in internment camps."

She was condemned by Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chair Suzan DelBene, who said Galindo's "vile language" is "disqualifying and has no place in American Politics."

The largest financial backer of Galindo's campaign is a newly created Super PAC called "Lead Left." Democrats have condemned Lead Left’s involvement in the race and accused Republicans of being behind the PAC -- with House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries and DelBene last week calling on House Republican leaders to stop "propping up" Galindo and "forcefully condemn" her comments.

ABC News has reached out the National Republican Congressional Committee for comment.

Galindo's campaign did not respond to requests for comment. She will face off against former Bexar County Sheriff's Department Spokesman Johnny Garcia.

State Rep. John Lujan and Trump-endorsed Air Force veteran Carlos De La Cruz are facing off in the Republican runoff for the 118th Congressional District. They received 32% and 26% of the vote in March’s primary, respectively. Victory for Lujan could mark the first Trump-endorsed candidate to lose their primary this cycle. 

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(WASHINGTON) -- Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard is resigning from her post.

Gabbard is stepping down after her husband of 11 years, Abraham Williams, was recently diagnosed with “an extremely rare form of bone cancer,” according to a resignation letter she posted to social media.

In the letter to President Donald Trump, Gabbard said Williams "faces major challenges in the coming weeks and months."

"At this time, I must step away from public service to be by his side and fully support him through this battle," Gabbard wrote.

Her resignation is effective June 30, 2026, according to the letter.

Trump confirmed in a social media post that Gabbard will be resigning from her position, praising her for having done an “incredible job” and adding that the administration will “miss her.” 

The president added that Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence Aaron Lukas will serve as acting DNI. 

The news of Gabbard's departure was first reported by Fox News.

Her departure marks the latest Cabinet-level shakeup of Trump's second term after departures by former Attorney General Pam Bondi and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem earlier this year.

Gabbard ends a tenure marked by two major conflicts abroad, politically charged election-related investigations at home and the unresolved tension between the anti-war message that first defined her rise in politics and the national security office she later came to hold. 

Gabbard was an unconventional pick to lead the sprawling network of 18 intelligence agencies with a $100 billion budget.

The former Democratic congresswoman from Hawaii and onetime Democratic presidential candidate broke with her party, moved into Trump’s orbit during his 2024 campaign and joined the Republican Party.

Gabbard leaves office after months of scrutiny over the Iran war, the administration’s military escalation in Venezuela, the resignation of National Counterterrorism Center Director Joe Kent over Iran and continuing fallout from the administration's 2020 election investigations, including the Fulton County, Georgia, probe.

In the position, Gabbard played a critical role in determining what material is included in the president's daily intelligence briefings.

But months into the administration, rifts began to form.

Gabbard posted a video in June to her personal account on X issuing a stark warning about the threat of nuclear war.

Opposition to U.S. intervention 

The administration's military action against Venezuela stood in tension with her earlier opposition to U.S. intervention in other countries and her past criticism of regime-change efforts aimed at Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.

Gabbard's departure also follows the March resignation of Kent, the Trump administration's top counterterrorism official, who reported directly to her at ODNI and announced he could not "in good conscience" support the Iran war. 

In a resignation letter posted publicly on social media, Kent said Iran posed "no imminent threat" to the U.S. and argued the administration had been pulled into war by Israel. Since leaving office, Kent has continued to say publicly that "Israel drove the decision" to strike Iran. 

Gabbard also leaves office amid continuing fallout from the administration’s investigations into the 2016 and 2020 elections, including the investigation in Georgia, where her role drew sharp scrutiny. 

Gabbard arranged for FBI agents who searched the Fulton County Elections and Operations Hub in January to have a phone call with Trump, according to multiple sources familiar with the situation. 

The president, according to multiple sources, addressed the agents on speakerphone and said they were doing great work in searching and investigating Georgia’s elections. 

Fulton County officials say FBI agents removed 700 boxes containing ballots and other materials associated with the 2020 election after obtaining a search warrant approved by a federal magistrate judge. 

As part of the probe, investigators have gone ballot by ballot, searching for any irregularities, sources have told ABC. 

The Iran war is now in its 12th week after Trump announced in February that the U.S. and Israeli forces launched attacks on Iran with the goal of eliminating Iran's ambitions to obtain a nuclear weapon.

Gabbard’s 2025 congressional testimony came under renewed scrutiny this year as Democratic lawmakers pressed her on the intelligence community’s assessment of Iran’s nuclear program and Trump’s public pushback last summer. 

In that testimony, Gabbard said the intelligence community assessed that Iran was not “building” a nuclear weapon and that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei had not authorized the nuclear weapons program he suspended in 2003.

Last that summer, ahead of the war’s start, Trump was asked to weigh in on Gabbard’s assessment.

"I don't care what she said," Trump replied at the time. "I think they were very close to having a weapon."

Later, Trump again rebuked Gabbard and the intelligence community as "wrong" on Iran's nuclear capability.

Gabbard came out after and said she and Trump were "on the same page" regarding Iran's nuclear timeline and said her testimony was being misconstrued.

After the second time Trump said she was "wrong," Gabbard posted on X, "America has intelligence that Iran is at the point that it can produce a nuclear weapon within weeks to months, if they decide to finalize the assembly. President Trump has been clear that can't happen, and I agree."

In March, Rep. Jimmy Gomez pressed Gabbard on remarks she made last year that Iran was not building a nuclear weapon and Trump’s public pushback at the time.

Gabbard said in the exchange that "context matters” and she "stand[s] by the intelligence community assessment."

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(WASHINGTON) -- President Donald Trump attacked outgoing Republican Sen. Thom Tillis on Friday, calling him a "RINO" -- an acronym for "Republican in Name Only" -- and a "quitter" as he appeared to acknowledge the ongoing revolt among some in his own party.

"I called him a 'Nitpicker,' always fighting against the Republican Party, and ME, mostly on things that didn't matter," Trump wrote in a social media post.

"Now he can have all the fun he wants for a few months, with some of his RINO friends, screwing the Republican Party. In the end it will only get bigger, and better, and stronger, than ever before!!!" Trump said.

Tillis is among several Republican lawmakers to criticize aspects of Trump's agenda, most recently the creation of a nearly $1.8 billion so-called "Anti-Weaponization Fund" to compensate those who allege they were wrongly targeted under the Biden administration. The fund was created as part of a settlement agreement in President Trump's $10 billion lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service.

Tillis slammed the fund as the "payout pot for punks." Critics have said that those who committed violence against police, including Jan. 6 rioters, might be eligible for compensation in addition to Trump's political allies.

"These people don't deserve restitution, they -- many of them deserve to be in prison," Tillis said on Thursday. "Some of them deserve the pardon because they were over prosecuted, but this is, I mean, this is just stupid on stilts." 

Congressional Republicans on Thursday punted plans to advance a $70 billion immigration bill as Senate Republicans were poised to try to rein in spending for the so-called anti-weaponization fund, as well as Trump's East Wing expansion and White House ballroom construction project.

Several Republicans who Trump has spurned have become the fund's most outspoken critics, including Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy. Cassidy lost his primary race last week after Trump endorsed his opponent.

"People are concerned about paying their mortgage or rent, affording groceries and paying for gas, not about putting together a $1.8 billion fund for the President and his allies to pay whomever they wish with no legal precedent or accountability," Cassidy wrote on X.

Trump on Friday suggested that Tillis' choice to not run for reelection was in some part because Trump declined to give him an endorsement. 

"When I told him that I would not, under any circumstances, endorse him for another run, too much work and drama (he couldn't have won, anyway!), he immediately quit the race and publicly announced that he was going to 'retire.' I said, 'Wow, great news, that was easy!'" Trump wrote in the post. 

When Tillis announced last year that he wouldn't run for reelection, he said is a statement that it was "not a hard choice" to rule out running for a third term as he was finished with "navigating the political theatre and partisan gridlock in Washington."

Tillis was asked by reporters on Thursday what he thought of Trump going after some Republican incumbents in primary races. 

"Be careful what you ask for," Tillis responded.

In defense of the fund, which has also drawn legal challenges, Trump on Friday claimed he "gave up a lot of money" by allowing it to move forward and that he could have made an "absolute fortune" if he hadn't made the IRS settlement.  

"Instead, I am helping others, who were so badly abused by an evil, corrupt, and weaponized Biden Administration, receive, at long last, JUSTICE!," Trump wrote in another social media post.

ABC News' Isabella Murray and Allison Pecorin contributed to this report.

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(WASHINGTON) -- Republicans are punting on plans to advance a $70 billion immigration bill, retreating after meeting with Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche to address concerns about the administration's anti-weaponization fund.

The move pushes the process until at least after their weeklong Memorial Day recess after the House and Senate were sent home Thursday afternoon.

Earlier, Senate Republicans were poised to try to rein in two of President Donald Trump's controversial spending wishes: $1 billion for the East Wing expansion and nearly $1.8 billion for an "Anti-Weaponization Fund," two people familiar with the matter confirmed to ABC News.

Blanche canceled pre-scheduled travel to go up to Capitol Hill to attempt to quell the growing Republican outrage over the "anti-weaponization fund," which would be used to compensate allies who say they have suffered injustices at the hand of the Biden administration. But Blanche's meeting seems to have completely backfired.

There was yelling in the room, multiple sources told ABC News, with some senators -- even some vocal Trump supporters -- telling Blanche they believed they'd lose the Senate majority over the fund.

Blanche even tried to placate Republican senators by releasing a fact sheet earlier Thursday that stated they themselves can apply to receive money from the fund.

Republicans are looking at ways to use the bill to impose guardrails on Trump’s "anti-weaponization" fund.

On Wednesday afternoon, some Republicans told reporters that the $1 billion for White House security -- including funding for the ballroom -- would likely be removed from the bill because there was a lack of GOP support.

Because the text of the new bill hasn't been made public, it’s not yet clear exactly what restrictions Republicans may try to impose on the "Anti-Weaponization Fund," the core of the settlement between the Department of Justice and Trump to resolve his $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS.

The taxpayer-funded pool of money will be administered by a five-person commission appointed by the acting attorney general with little oversight aside from the president, who could remove members. 

Senators were working on potential provisions to address their concerns on the fund, but by Thursday afternoon, those discussions still appeared to be very far apart.

Republican Sen. Susan Collins said "no," Blanche did not change her mind about the weaponization fund.

Republican Sen. John Hoeven said the "consensus building process" on the matter is "going to require more work."

"We just don't have the right configuration where we know we have 50 votes," he said. 

Republicans could try to embed guardrails for the fund in the actual bill, or they could instead try to offer an amendment addressing the fund once the bill is on the Senate floor.

However, if Republicans don’t do something, it is widely expected that Democrats will certainly try to.

Senate Republicans are aiming to muscle the $70 billion immigration enforcement package through using a budget tool called reconciliation, which will allow them to pass the bill with a simple majority of votes in the Senate instead of the usual 60 votes that it takes to approve most legislative matters.

But before the bill can pass, there will be a voting marathon known as a vote-a-rama, during which lawmakers are able to offer unlimited amendments to the bill.

Democrats are powerless to block this package from passing if Republicans stick together, but Democrats could put forward a number of amendments that force Republicans to take politically tricky votes.

If Republicans do not come up with a clear way to address the "anti-weaponization" fund in their underlying bill or in an amendment that is popular with Republicans who oppose the fund, Democratic-led amendments that look to restrict the fund could very well get the necessary GOP support to pass on the Senate floor.

Some Senate Republicans who Trump has publicly scorned in recent weeks have become the fund's most outspoken critics, including Sen. Bill Cassidy, who lost his primary race in Louisiana after Trump endorsed his opponent.

Cassidy spoke out on Wednesday night, bashing the fund.

“People are concerned about paying their mortgage or rent, affording groceries and paying for gas, not about putting together a $1.8 billion fund for the President and his allies to pay whomever they wish with no legal precedent or accountability. This is adding to our national debt. If there needs to be a settlement, the administration should bring it to Congress to decide,” Cassidy wrote in a post on X.

Regardless of what Republicans do, Democrats are expected to use the vote-a-rama to force a number of votes that they hope will pin down Republicans on the fund.

Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal told ABC News on Wednesday that he intends to force votes on amendments to “stop this illegal abhorrent slush fund” during the vote-a-rama.

With enough GOP support, Democrats could have a real chance of putting restraints on -- or even eliminating -- this fund as part of the massive package. Depending on how Democrats craft their amendments surrounding the IRS fund, it could take as few as four Republican supporters to pass some of them.

What happened to the ballroom funding?

The $1 billion that was intended for White House security, including the security aspects of Trump’s ballroom, is being scrapped by Republicans, according to some GOP lawmakers. The Republican lawmakers are saying there isn’t enough support in their conference to move forward with the funding.

The Senate’s rule keeper said over the weekend that $1 billion could not be included in the bill under the Senate rules. Even though some Republicans initially said they’d redraft the measure, a number of GOP senators came out forcefully against the $1 billion allocation and threatened to tank the entire bill if it was not removed.

Democrats were expected to call up a number of amendment votes to try to strip the ballroom funding out of the bill. Those amendments only would have needed the support of four Republicans and likely would have passed.

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(WASHINGTON) -- In a rare move on Thursday, the Supreme Court spared the life of an "intellectually disabled" death row inmate, dismissing an appeal by Alabama officials who claimed the man's multiple IQ scores show he is competent and eligible for execution.

The justices were narrowly divided, 5-4, in allowing a lower court ruling to stand that determined death for Joseph Clifton Smith, a convicted first-degree murderer, would violate the Eighth Amendment prohibition of "cruel and unusual" punishment.

The high court did not formally explain its decision.

More than 20 years ago, the high court outlawed the execution of intellectually disabled people convicted of capital crimes.

The heart of the Smith case involved a dispute over who qualifies as intellectually disabled and how to analyze conflicting intelligence quotient – also known as IQ – test scores in making the determination.

The decision on Thursday left that question unanswered.

“The court is not equipped in this case to provide any meaningful guidance on how courts should assess multiple IQ scores,” wrote Justice Sonia Sotomayor in a concurring opinion joined by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson.

While state officials had asked the court to set out a clear standard, Sotomayor suggested a case-by-case approach, considering legal precedent and “the views of medical experts,” should continue.

“If a conflict among the states or lower courts emerges and a case properly presents the issue, it may be appropriate for this court to weigh in with more specific guidance,” she wrote. “The court rightly decides it is inappropriate to do so in this case.”

Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch and Chief Justice John Roberts dissented.

"The court shies away from its obligation to provide workable rules for capital cases," Justice Alito wrote in a dissent joined by Thomas, Gorsuch and Roberts. "In doing so, the court disserves its own death-penalty jurisprudence, states' criminal justice systems, lower courts, and victims of horrific murders."

Justice Thomas wrote separately to call for a reinstatement of the death penalty for intellectually disabled people.

Smith, who will now spend life behind bars, confessed to a 1997 murder during a robbery, but challenged his death sentence on ground he has had "substantially subaverage intellectual functioning" since a young age.

He has taken five separate IQ tests over nearly 40 years, scoring 75 in 1979, 74 in 1982, 72 in 1998, 78 in 2014, and 74 in 2017.

People below 70 are generally considered to have an intellectual disability, but major American medical groups urge a holistic assessment that also looks at social and practical skills.

The groups note that standardized test scores alone should not be conclusive. Smith's score of 72, for example, could be 69 when factoring the 3-point margin of error.

Smith, who alleges he suffered physical and verbal abuse as a child, consistently functioned at two grade-levels below his placement in school, according to court documents. Smith's school classified him as "Educable Mentally Retarded" in 7th grade before he eventually dropped out.

Two lower federal courts ruled that a holistic analysis of Smith’s IQ scores and other evidence, including his behavioral history and school records, proved he is intellectually disabled.

"Joseph Smith is not intellectually disabled, and the Eighth Amendment does not override the death sentence he earned for murdering Durk Van Dam," Alabama argued in its brief to the court. "Whether and how to weigh multiple IQ scores is left to state discretion."

The state argued intellectual disability can only be proven by an IQ score of 70 or less by a preponderance of the evidence.

By one estimate, as many as 20% of the 2,100 people on death row in the U.S. may have some degree of intellectual disability, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.

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(WASHINGTON) -- A group of mostly Democratic strategists and power players are rebuilding a political action committee meant to fortify election-defense infrastructure ahead of 2028 by focusing on often overlooked state offices that control election administration, litigation and certification.

The group, Democracy Defenders, which previously worked to support legal efforts and help with post-election planning in partnership with the Harris presidential campaign, tells ABC News exclusively that they’re re-launching their political arm. It plans to spend upwards of $10 to 15 million by “protecting democracy and rule of law” in races for Attorneys General, Secretaries of State and state Supreme Court in presidential battleground states– places they see critical to safeguarding against escalating threats from Trump and his allies to subvert the 2028 election.

"The goal right now is to sabotage-proof the electoral system for 2028," former Wisconsin Democratic Party Chair and Democracy Defenders operative Ben Wikler told ABC News.

In the aftermath of his attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, Trump and his administration have made moves since the start of his second term to retool future elections.

They seized boxes of 2020 election records from a Fulton County, Georgia, election site in January and Tump called Virginia's special election on a new congressional map last month "rigged" without evidence.

They've also called for Republicans to "nationalize" and "take over" elections.

Focusing on down-ballot races

The down-ballot races the PAC will focus on could determine certification disputes, election litigation, voting rules and redistricting at a time when many voting-related laws are being actively challenged in the courts, Norm Eisen, a top Democratic attorney who was a co-counsel for the House Judiciary Committee during Trump's first impeachment, told ABC News in an interview. Eisen is pro-bono, outside counsel for the group.

"If it once again, as it did in 2020, comes down to the integrity of a handful of AGs and secretaries standing up for the genuine results, you must have pro-democracy leaders as AGs and secretary of state," Eisen said.

Jim Messina, who was campaign manager for President Barack Obama's 2012 re-election campaign who will now chair the advisory board, told ABC that state office races targeted by the PAC are often "way underfunded," even though they handle "the block and tackling" of running elections.

Also on the board is former Republican Rep. Barbara Comstock, former Secretary of Labor Tom Perez and Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers.

The day-to-day operations will be overseen by TJ Ducklo, who worked for Joe Biden in 2020 and 2024, along with Wikler and former Michigan Democratic Party Chair Lavora Barnes.

Ramping up fundraising

Democracy Defenders is ramping up its fundraising efforts, too, with planned events with former President Joe Biden and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Harris' 2024 running mate.

Their work is starting in Wisconsin, Michigan, Arizona, Nevada and North Carolina, according to the group, and likely expand to other states. They're also focused on some off-year elections in 2027, including another Wisconsin Supreme Court race. They put "several hundred thousand dollars" into the Georgia Supreme Court race on Tuesday, though those candidates were unsuccessful, PAC organizers said.

Last year, Elon Musk dumped $20 million into the high-stakes Wisconsin Supreme Court race through his own PAC. Democracy Defenders is attempting similar work on a smaller scale. Ahead of the Georgia Supreme Court race on Tuesday, the group placed money behind former state Sen. Jen Jordan and attorney Miracle Rankin. Both lost their races, though Rankin came within 2 percentage points of beating the incumbent, according an Associated Press projection.

PAC organizers say election denialism in the Republican Party has become more sophisticated, highlighting that down-ballot candidates in key states are no longer always running on "Stop the Steal" messaging like in the aftermath of the 2020 election. But they still support voting restrictions and even law-enforcement involvement around voting.

'Different shades of authoritarians'

"You've seen here Donald Trump and Burt Jones, who is running for governor [in Georgia], who is a fake elector and actually traveled to Washington, D.C., with a letter in his pocket for Mike Pence the night before the insurrection ... he's literally on the ballot today," Georgia Democratic Party Chair Charlie Baker said in an interview with ABC News on Tuesday.

Baker continued: "Donald Trump will leave office at some point, but what he has left in his wake in the Republican Party are different shades of authoritarians, and so even when he leaves, we're not like we can't say we are safely done with those kinds of actions being perpetrated."

Jones, who did not face charges in the alleged fake elector plot, did not win his primary outright on Tuesday -- he is headed for a June runoff.

Messina said that despite the party soul-searching that came after Harris' election loss, the PAC is not trying to become another presidential super PAC or rival Democratic power centers separate from bodies like the Democratic National Committee, which is largely focused on congressional and gubernatorial races. It is not coordinating directly with the DNC, however. Instead, the group said it's working directly with state parties and candidates.

"I don't think it's at all a condemnation of anything," Messina said about the re-launch of the PAC. "What we're trying to do is bring a large checkbook and a bunch of federal money."

Messina also said the group is still trying to "figure out" its donor base. Top Democratic donors are already in the mix, but Messina highlighted that additional -- even Republican or non-partisan donors -- are interested in its efforts.

"There are new donors that I've, some of these people I've never met, and I've been in national politics for 30 years, and people are kind of rising to the top," Messina said. 

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(WASHINGTON) -- Barney Frank, the outspoken former Massachusetts congressman who championed Wall Street reform and served as one of the first openly gay members of Congress, has died at 86, sources told ABC News.

Frank's sister, Doris Breay, told ABC affiliate WCVB in Boston that Frank died Tuesday night.

"He was a wonderful brother, and I was lucky to be his sister," she said.

The Democratic lawmaker represented Massachusetts' 4th Congressional District for over 30 years and served as chairman of the powerful House Financial Services Committee from 2007 to 2011. He was a leading co-sponsor of the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act, which was enacted in response to the 2008 financial crisis.

Frank announced he would not seek reelection in 2012 due to redistricting challenges and left office the following year. He admitted that coming out as gay at age 47 would define his career.

"The best antidote to prejudice is reality because prejudice by definition is based on ignorance," Frank told reporters. "I am proud by my finally coming out – I was 47. It didn't happen in a clean sweep, but when I volunteered finally to come out in 1987, I do think it was helpful."

Born in Bayonne, New Jersey, to a Jewish family, Frank attended Harvard College and Harvard Law School and was elected as a state representative in Massachusetts in 1972. He achieved notoriety during this time for unsuccessfully sponsoring a bill to legalize prostitution in Boston's red light district.

Frank successfully ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in 1980, a seat he held for more than 30 years.

In 1987, Frank became the first sitting member of Congress to come out as gay. He continued championing LGBTQ rights throughout his time in Congress, advocating for the legalization of same-sex marriage, the right to serve openly in the military and strengthening employment discrimination laws.

He chaired the House Financial Services Committee when Democrats were in the majority from 2007 until 2011, overseeing the financial industry during one of the most turbulent economic periods of U.S. history.

Frank was key in ushering the Wall Street bailout through Congress in 2008. He, along with former Sen. Chris Dodd, had their names attached to a sweeping Wall Street reform bill that was signed into law by President Barack Obama in 2010.

The Dodd-Frank Act placed tough new rules on the financial sector as a way to avoid future mortgage crises. It also enacted a new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to protect Americans from large corporations.

The law was pilloried by Republicans as Washington overreach and in 2018, a new bill signed into law by President Donald Trump rolled back some requirements.

Prominent Democrats remembered Frank as a "trailblazing" advocate and reformer.

"We are a better Caucus and country because of Barney Frank’s relentless leadership and candor," said House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries. "Though we are blessed with many memorable quips to remember him by, the House Democratic Caucus family will miss Barney deeply and mourn with his loved ones during this difficult time."

"Barney Frank was one of a kind," Obama said in a statement. "For more than three decades in Congress, he fought tirelessly for the people of Massachusetts, helped make housing more affordable, stood up for the rights of LGBTQ+ Americans, and helped pass one of the most sweeping financial reforms in history designed to protect consumers and prevent another financial crisis. Barney’s passion and wit were second to none, and our thoughts are with his family today."

Frank is survived by his husband Jim Ready, whom he married in 2012, making him the first member of Congress to marry someone of the same sex while in office.

-ABC News' John Parkinson, Lauren Peller, Rick Klein and Luke Barr contributed to this report.

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(WASHINGTON) -- The Justice Department on Wednesday charged former Cuban President Raul Castro with murder over his alleged role in shooting down two planes that were carrying humanitarian aid in 1996, according to a newly unsealed court docket. The shootdown resulted in the deaths of three Americans.

The indictment marks a major escalation in the United States' ongoing pressure campaign to achieve regime change of the island nation's Communist-led government, though it's not immediately clear whether the 94-year-old Castro will ultimately see the inside of a U.S. courtroom.

The indictment charges Castro with seven counts including conspiracy to kill U.S. nationals, destruction of aircraft and murder for each of the four passengers aboard the planes being flown by Brothers to the Rescue, a group that conducted rescue missions for Cuban exiles who sought to flee the country.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and other senior officials are expected to speak about the charges later in Miami.

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(WASHINGTON) -- A batch of closely watched primaries in six states on Tuesday both set up some key midterm election matchups and gestured to major forces shaping the Democratic and Republican parties -- from the strength of President Donald Trump's endorsement to the road to the White House in 2028.

Here are some of takeaways from Tuesday night's results.

The strength of Trump's endorsement, again?

President Donald Trump had turned his ire on Rep. Thomas Massie, the maverick Republican representing Kentucky's 4th Congressional District, given Massie's push to release the Jeffrey Epstein files, his vote against the president's sweeping domestic tax policy legislation and his vocal opposition to the Iran war.

Trump constantly excoriated Massie and endorsed his primary opponent Ed Gallrein and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth even campaigned with Gallrein on Monday. The primary also became the most expensive House primary on record, with more than $32 million in ad spending.

Massie had held firm -- adamant that his constituents would pull through for him. But the power of Trump's endorsement was more firm, just as it had been in the Louisiana Senate primary last Saturday, where Trump-endorsed Rep. Julia Letlow and state Treasurer John Fleming advanced to a runoff after Trump had turned against incumbent Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy.

"We weren't really running against Ed Gallrein, we weren't running against Donald Trump. We were running for what we believe in," Massie told supporters on Tuesday night.

Mixed results for Trump in Georgia

But it seems Trump's endorsement could not carry his candidate of choice, Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, over the finish line outright in the Georgia Republican gubernatorial primary. Jones now heads towards a June 16 runoff against billionaire businessman Rick Jackson.

In remarks Tuesday evening, Jackson, who entered the race just three months before the primary, said his campaign sent an "earthquake" through the political establishment and called Jones a political insider.

"We have 28 days to finish it, and the choice could not be more clear or more important. Burt Jones is a political insider. I'm the opposite. I don't owe the lobbyists anything. I don't need the establishment's permission. I cannot be bought, and I will not back down," Jones said Tuesday evening.

What Tuesday meant for potential 2028 presidential candidates

Tuesday was a good night for Pennsylvania's Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro, a rumored 2028 presidential candidate, as all four of the primary candidates he endorsed in Pennsylvania's battleground U.S. House districts -- where Democrats hope to flip seats held by GOP incumbents -- were projected by ABC News to win, although one of the four, Paige Cognetti, was unopposed.

Shapiro's success on Tuesday could bolster his standing among Democrats both in the state and nationally -- possibly helpful if he does launch a bid for the presidency -- although he still faces the general election campaign for governor against state Treasurer Stacy Garrity, and Democrats still face an uphill battle trying to flip all four seats they are targeting.

And down south in Georgia, Gov. Brian Kemp, who has not ruled out a presidential run in 2028, also played a hand in shaping the state's GOP Senate primary. Kemp backed Derek Dooley, a former football coach who is projected by ABC News to face a runoff against Rep. Mike Collins in a race that Trump did not endorse in.

Kemp, who opted out of running for Georgia's Senate seat after being recruited by Republicans, threw the full force of his political weight behind elevating Dooley from a political unknown to a candidate for one of the most-watched Senate races in the country.

Working behind the scenes, Kemp made calls to donors to build support for Dooley, and Kemp's PAC, Hardworking Americans Inc., has also invested millions in the race to support Dooley, the son of legendary former University of Georgia football coach Vince Dooley.

Kemp also campaigned heavily with Dooley in the lead-up to Georgia's primary.

Kemp has had a rocky relationship with Trump since refusing his pressure to overturn Georgia's election results in 2020. But Kemp remains popular among Georgians, winning reelection against a Trump-endorsed primary challenger in 2022.

ABC News' Emily Chang and Halle Troadec contributed to this report.

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(WASHINGTON) -- Vice President JD Vance and acting Attorney General Todd Blanche faced questions Tuesday on the $1.776 billion "Anti-Weaponization Fund" to compensate those who allege they were wrongly targeted under the Biden administration.

Both notably declined to rule out potential payouts for individuals who assaulted law enforcement, including the rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Vance insisted that requests would be analyzed on a "case-by-case" basis and that "anybody can apply." 

The fund, which was first reported last week by ABC News, was announced Monday as part of a settlement agreement in Trump's $10 billion lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service.

It has already drawn condemnation from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle amid growing questions over how the funds will be distributed and whether they could be awarded to political backers of the president.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Tuesday that he is "not a big fan" of the fund.

"And I am not sure exactly how they intend to use it. But my understanding is that was just announced. I don't see a purpose for that," Thune told reporters at the Capitol.

Vance, Blanche pressed on who will be eligible for payouts

ABC News Chief Washington Correspondent Jonathan Karl, during a press briefing on Tuesday, asked Vance about the fund.

"Why should taxpayers be paying to settle a $10 billion lawsuit that was brought by the president of the United States, and should people that attacked the Capitol building and assaulted police officers, should they be eligible, should they receive money? Should they receive money from this fund?" Karl asked.

Vance didn’t directly answer, instead claiming that none of the money would go to Trump personally, his administration or his family, but that "anybody can apply for it." Vance added that even Hunter Biden, former President Joe Biden's son, would be eligible to ask for funds.

"I understand that everybody is eligible to apply for this one. I mean, you're eligible, but I assume you're not going to apply, and you don't think you should get money out of this fund. So, isn't it just as easy to say that people that attacked police officers should not get taxpayer money from this fund?" Karl followed up.

"Well, look, Jon, we're not trying to give money to anybody who attacked a police officer. We're trying to give money -- not give money -- we're trying to compensate people where the book was thrown at them, they were mistreated by the legal system,” Vance said.

In a hearing on Capitol Hill earlier Tuesday, when pressed whether individuals who assaulted Capitol Police officers would be eligible for payments, Blanche similarly said, "Anybody in this country is eligible to apply if they believe they're a victim of weaponization."

Blanche wouldn't commit to setting a policy that bans funds being distributed to anyone who assaulted police, saying the commissioners overseeing the fund will be tasked with deciding who is eligible.

"But why not this specific issue of violent acts, convicted of violent acts against police officers? Do you feel they should get compensation after being convicted of violent acts?" Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley asked the acting attorney general.

"My feelings don't, don't matter, senator," Blanche replied.

Blanche was also questioned on whether he would rule out certain individuals from being eligible for payments, specifically Oath Keepers and Proud Boys. The acting attorney general reiterated that anyone can apply.

"The commissioners will set rules, I'm sure. That's not for me to set, that's for the commissioners. ... And whether an individual Oath Keeper, as you just mentioned, applies for compensation is -- anybody in this country can apply," Blanche said.

Blanche won't say who will be commissioners, claims there will be 'full transparency'

The acting attorney general sought to compare it to an Obama-era initiative that set up ways to settle claims brought by Native Americans who had alleged they had been subject to widespread mistreatment by the government

He also argued that the fund won't solely be used to compensate supporters of the administration. 

"It's not limited to -- to Republicans, ... it's not limited to Biden weaponization, it's not limited to in any way, scope or form to Jan. 6 or to Jack Smith," Blanche said at a Senate Appropriations subcommittee hearing. "There's no limitation on the -- on the claims."

Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen lambasted Blanche for seeking to compare the $1.776 billion fund to the Obama-era initiative for Native Americans.

Van Hollen noted that specific fund received sign off from a federal judge, whereas Monday's announcement had no judicial involvement or approval. 

Facing questions about who would be eligible for possible payouts, Blanche told lawmakers he will "commit" to "making sure that the commissioners are effectively doing their job."

Blanche, though, did not name who will be on the five-person commission -- nor did he say who he would appoint.

He also said he has "no idea" if Trump will make suggestions.

Blanche also claimed there will be "full transparency" on the fund, but with caveats.

In an exchange with Democratic Sen. Chris Coons, Blanche was questioned over whether disbursements from the $1.776 billion will be subject to public disclosure.

Blanche said he wanted to be "careful" in his answer given privacy laws that might restrict the Justice Department from disclosing certain information, but otherwise said there would be "full transparency" via regularly quarterly reports that will be released by the department regarding the commission's actions. 

"The reason why I want to be careful of my answer is because there's obviously laws that exist around privacy that would -- may prevent some of the information that commission takes in from being fully public," Blanche said. "Beyond that, there will be full transparency, and I commit to you that beyond the ... laws that exist around privacy and privileges and whatnot."

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(WASHINGTON) -- President Donald Trump on Tuesday issued an endorsement in the Texas Senate primary runoff, backing Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton over Republican incumbent John Cornyn.

Trump announced his pick in a social media post, calling Paxton "a true MAGA Warrior who has ALWAYS delivered for Texas, and will continue to do so in the United States Senate."

The president said Cornyn, who is seeking a fifth term, "is a good man, and I worked well with him, but he was not supportive of me when times were tough."

Paxton, a conservative firebrand who has become popular among the president's base despite being involved in several scandals, said he was "incredibly honored" to have Trump's endorsement and promised to promote his "America First" agenda if elected.

Trump appeared to address Paxton's past controversies in his endorsement, writing, "Ken Paxton has gone through a lot, in many cases, very unfairly, but he is a Fighter, and knows how to WIN."

Despite not receiving Trump's endorsement, Cornyn on Tuesday reiterated his commitment to the race and emphasizing his "trust" in Texas Republican voters.

Cornyn did not explicitly address Trump's comments about him, but insisted that he stands firmly by the president's side.

"I have worked closely with President Trump through both of his Presidential terms and voted with him more than 99% of the time. He has consistently called me a friend in this race," Cornyn wrote in a post on X after Trump's Paxton endorsement.

Early voting is already underway in the Republican primary runoff, set for May 26.

The winner will face Democrat James Talarico in November. Talarico, a Texas state representative, defeated Rep. Jasmine Crockett in the March 3 primaries.

"As I said on primary night, it doesn't matter who wins this runoff. We already know who we're running against: the billionaire mega-donors and their corrupt political system," Talarico said in a statement on Tuesday responding to Trump's endorsement.

"For decades, John Cornyn and Ken Paxton have embodied a broken politics that enriches wealthy donors while costs skyrocket for the rest of us," Talarico said. "Our movement to take back Texas for working people rises above party politics -- because the biggest fight in this country is not left versus right, it's top versus bottom."

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(WASHINGTON) -- President Donald Trump, over the noise of drills and hammers, showed off the construction site for his controversial White House ballroom in a tour with reporters on Tuesday.

Trump described the massive project, which started with a demolition of the White House East Wing, as a fortress for himself and future presidents.

"This is a shield that protects everything that's inside, everything that's on top," Trump said. He also said that it would be the "safest building ever built, in my opinion."

With poster board mock-ups in hand of what the finished product will look like, Trump spoke above the hollowed construction site. The underground complex, Trump said, will be six stories deep and include a military hospital, research facilities and meeting rooms. 

"Impenetrable steel" and window glass that is "approximately four inches thick" are among the security features, according to Trump. The roof, he said, will have "massive drone capacity" and will act as a "drone port" so "it protects all of Washington."

Asked for additional detail about a "drone port," the White House offered no additional explanation, referring ABC News to Trump's comments Tuesday morning.

In March, a judge rules that Trump can't build the ballroom without authorization from Congress, though he said security-related work could go on. An appeals court then stepped in to allow all construction of the project for now while they consider the case more fully. A hearing in the case is set for June 5.

Trump on Tuesday appeared to argue that the entire building was interconnected.

"The roof goes with the ground floor; the ground floor goes with the roof. The roof also goes down into the basement. Everything is connected. Intertwined, elevators, heating, air conditioning. It's one building. That's why we're trying to explain that this is one well-knit building," Trump said.

During the tour, Trump also maintained his claims that the White House ballroom itself will not cost any taxpayer money.

"So, all of this was paid for by myself. And because I keep hearing like I'm not. We are making a gift of this. This is a gift. This is not going to be paid for by the taxpayer," Trump said. 

The president, who has said that he is one of the people paying for the project, has not publicly released how much he has donated. The White House also said they aimed to raise the funds for the ballroom, the cost of which jumped to $400 million, through private donations.

"This is a gift to the United States of America, and more than a gift. It's going to be one of the most beautiful buildings that's ever been built in the country or in Washington, D.C.," Trump said on Tuesday.

His comments come as some congressional Republicans seek $1 billion in funding, some of which would go to the building project. Democrats have panned the proposal.

"Congress is approving money for security ... But this building, I mean, I -- I put up the money to build this building, along with a lot of great patriots," Trump said.

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(WASHINGTON) -- Donald Trump might not have been in attendance at the Atlanta Press Club Republican primary debate for U.S. Senate last month, but his presence filled the room.

“I am running for the United States Senate so that I can go to the Senate and be a warrior for Donald Trump and his ‘America First’ policies,” said U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter in his opening statement.

When Carter’s House colleague and opponent in the Senate primary, U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, was asked about the direction in which the Republican Party should go once President Trump is no longer in office, Collins told the moderator “we need to continue Donald Trump's ‘America First’ agenda,” adding, “it's one of the reasons that I ran.”

In a midterm cycle where Trump’s endorsement power has taken down incumbents, plucked winners out of crowded special elections, and fueled intra-party spending wars, the president has not yet backed a candidate in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate in Georgia.

The absence of a Trump endorsement in the race has led both Carter and Collins to focus their campaigns around winning over Trump’s base – and maybe even Trump himself – as they both vie for the president’s backing in what is expected to be one of the most competitive states on the map this year, one that could decide the balance of power in Congress.

Incumbent Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff is one of the most vulnerable Senate Democrats up for re-election in 2026, and Tuesday's primary could decide who goes head-to-head with the rising star in the Democratic Party in November.

Brian Kemp, the two-term Republican governor of Georgia who turned down calls to run for the Senate seat himself this year, is supporting neither congressman. Kemp has instead thrown his political weight behind former college football coach Derek Dooley, the son of legendary University of Georgia football coach Vince Dooley.

Kemp has made calls to donors to rally support for Dooley, a Kemp advisor told ABC News. Kemp’s PAC, Hardworking Americans Inc., has also poured millions in the race to help support Dooley, who calls himself a “political outsider.”

Kemp has had a rocky relationship with the president himself, after contesting Trump’s claims of election fraud in the 2020 election. However, Kemp remains popular among Georgians, winning reelection against a Trump-endorsed primary challenger in 2022.

Tuesday's primary races in Georgia will be a test of Kemp’s own political power in the state; the outgoing Georgia governor has not ruled out a potential 2028 presidential run.

The real test of Trump’s influence in Georgia will come in the Republican primary to replace term-limited Kemp as governor, where the president’s early endorsement of current Lt. Governor Burt Jones failed to clear the field and instead set the stage for a competitive primary battle against billionaire businessman Rick Jackson, who is neck and neck with Jones in the polls.  

But unlike Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr – who are also running in the Republican primary for governor but are making appeals to more traditional GOP voters – Jackson is not shying away from running in the “Make America Great Again” lane, even without Trump’s backing.

“I'm a conservative outsider and a businessman that wants to bring business solutions to Georgia, just like President Trump did,” Jackson said at the primary debate for governor.

Trump hosted a tele-rally for Jones earlier this month, where he reiterated his endorsement for the longtime Trump loyalist.

“There's a lot of confusion. Everyone's saying I endorsed them. I didn't. I endorsed a man named Burt Jones,” Trump told supporters on the call.

On the other side of the aisle, the Democratic candidates for governor are also talking about Trump – in how best to fight his policies.

“Unlike some people, I'm not running for governor to be Donald Trump; I'm running to stand up to him,” said former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms in the latest ad from her campaign, which calls out Jackson and Jones over their courting of Trump’s favor.

Bottoms is endorsed by former President Joe Biden and is widely considered the frontrunner in the Democratic primary race, but it is unclear whether she will meet the vote threshold to avoid a runoff. Democratic opponents that Bottoms could face in a potential runoff include former DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond, former Republican Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, and former Georgia state Sen. Jason Esteves.

In Georgia, if one candidate does not receive 50% of the vote, the top two finishers will advance to a runoff election on June 16. And with so many well-known contenders for office this year, runoffs may be more likely on both sides of the aisle, up and down the ballot.

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