From The Hill
President Trump ordered contractors working on the White House helipad to redo their work, frustrated with its appearance after weeks of construction, according to reports. Trump was dissatisfied with the result of the construction of the helipad, having made it a priority when work began in June, the Washington Post reported Tuesday, citing two people…
Chipotle said Tuesday it had removed jalapeños from its restaurants across the country after they were suspected in a salmonella outbreak that has sickened at least 110 people in Minnesota.
This post was originally published on NBC News.
It’s easy to forget two years later, but during the 2024 presidential campaign, Donald Trump claimed he would make in vitro fertilization free to Americans during his second term. With just weeks until Election Day, the Republican declared that he considered himself “the father of IVF,” which was every bit as ridiculous as it sounded.
Like too many of the president’s campaign promises, he abandoned his ostensible target after returning to the White House — Trump signed an executive order last year to expand access to IVF, but it’s still far from free — and his congressional allies continue to move in regressive directions on the issue. The New York Times reported:
Republicans in Congress have quietly blocked a proposal to expand military health coverage of in vitro fertilization treatment for service members and their families, heeding the calls of anti-abortion groups to limit access to a fertility option that President Trump vowed to make more widely available.
The move is a shift from previous years, when there was enough bipartisan support for the idea of broadening the availability of I.V.F. for members of the military that it was included in the annual defense bill that passed both the House and Senate.
In recent months, the Times’ report added, Senate Republicans “banded together to bar the measure from being added to the defense bill in the first place,” ensuring that the IVF treatments Trump had vowed to make free for everyone would not be included in the coverage plan for the troops and their families.
The broader political dynamic is obvious: On the campaign trail, GOP officials and candidates, mindful of the gender gap, talk about their support for IVF treatments. But on Capitol Hill, those same Republicans remain beholden to far-right activists who oppose the policy as part of their culture war.
“Republicans are pushing for the largest defense bill in our nation’s history to keep prosecuting an illegal war with no end in sight, yet they can’t carve out a tiny fraction to ensure our nation’s heroes have access to I.V.F. to build their families,” Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois told the Times, noting that service members have double the rate of infertility as the general population.
She added, “It’s shameful that Republicans keep enabling Trump to break his promise to cover IVF for our service members.”
What’s more, similar problems are unfolding for the party away from the nation’s capital. In mid-June, for example, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, his party’s U.S. Senate nominee, told HuffPost, “I am a strong supporter of IVF and pro-family policies that help Americans experience the wonders of parenthood.”
A week later, Paxton backed off, telling The Washington Examiner that he supports “restrictions” on IVF and adding that policymakers still “need to just examine the issue.” His reversal roughly coincided with a Republican push to ban IVF in Texas.
With three months remaining before the midterm elections, this hasn’t been a front-burner issue, though efforts to generate renewed attention on IVF are underway. As MS NOW reported two weeks ago, “With their sights set on winning control of Congress in November, Senate Democrats are reviving a legislative effort to dramatically expand access to in vitro fertilization.” Watch this space.
This post updates our related earlier coverage.
The post Republicans reject key IVF proposal, leaving Trump’s campaign promise in tatters appeared first on MS NOW.
From MS Now.
The family of a 41-year-old Salvadoran man who died Saturday at an immigration detention center in New Jersey is claiming that medical negligence is to blame for his death.
This post was originally published on NBC News.
Donald Trump is effectively running a psyop to combat political headwinds of his own creation.
While campaigning for president in 2024, the president reportedly promised oil executives that he would grant their policy wishes and help them rake in massive profits if they gave to his campaign. Some of the executives made donations, and Trump has since broadly acted in the industry’s favor.
But now, as polling shows widespread discontent with his deadly war with Iran, Trump is trying — unconvincingly — to portray himself as a foil to Big Oil while the industry makes a killing.
Sitting in the Oval Office on Monday, the president told reporters he thought Exxon Mobil and Chevron have made “too much money” from the Iran war.
“They’re going to give some of that back to the public, and they better cut the retail price, the consumer price,” he said.
There’s no reason to believe these remarks were about anything other than saving face as Trump’s war with Iran rages on and devastates the global economy with no end in sight. After all, the president has openly touted the ability for corporations and the people running them to make money from his war — as his family has done.
In June, Trump said he was “very proud” of launching the war, going on to tout the stock market and declare that “everybody’s making a lot of money.” He also recently responded to a Fox News reporter asking if he was concerned about the war’s economic impact by again touting corporate profits.
“We’re making a lot of money. The defense companies are doing great,” he said.
For the record, Trump’s two oldest sons have invested in defense companies. He has said these things while repeatedly dismissing Americans’ worries about affordability, even going so far as to call the issue “phony” and a “hoax.”
It’s also worth noting that even the “Freedom Fuel” network the White House has marketed as discounted gas at a small number of stations — effectively, a publicity stunt with minimal effect on national gas prices — has been shrouded in secrecy and marred by concerns of cronyism.
So ask yourself: Is this the behavior of someone who legitimately cares about American consumers? And is it truly believable that Trump, of all people, is averse to corporate greed?
Or is his fairly meek critique of Big Oil part of a populist charade designed to quell the political backlash he has conjured up with his warmongering ways?
The post Trump reportedly vowed to help oil executives — and now he’s whining about their profits appeared first on MS NOW.
From MS Now.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine, gua sha has always incorporated the body. Here, experts break down why you should be using the ancient technique to relieve tension, boost circulation, and give your body a radiant glow.
Source: Vogue
Jennifer Lopez is dishing out breakup advice to influencer Landon Romano … and if anyone knows how to pick up the pieces after a public split, it’s J Lo. Landon posted an emotional video revealing he and his boyfriend of two years recently called…
From TMZ.
In just six days, Sony Pictures’ “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” has now crossed $1 billion in global box office revenue.
McDonald’s just reported its slowest U.S. sales growth in over a year as its value push fell flat with customers who continue to struggle with higher prices.
This post was originally published on NBC News.
From The Hill
Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) on Tuesday lamented the situation his family is in after his daughter accused Rep. Max Miller (R-Ohio) of abuse. “I hope you guys understand — maybe I hope you never have to understand — what my daughter’s been through, what my daughter’s going through, what my wife is going through, what…
Brock Lesnar is officially hanging it up. The Beast Incarnate made the major announcement during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday and made it crystal clear — his Hell in a Cell loss to Oba Femi at SummerSlam this past weekend in…
From TMZ.
The federal crackdown over alleged threats tied to the Nolan Wells investigation is expanding … an Illinois man became the third person charged with allegedly threatening witnesses and their families, TMZ has learned. According to a federal…
From TMZ.