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BREAKING: U.S. House approves bill to end the government shutdown, sending it to President Trump’s desk for signing.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed Wednesday that discussions are underway in the Trump administration about setting income limits for the president’s proposed $2,000 tariff dividend, potentially restricting the payments to households earning under six figures.

“Well, there are a lot of options here that the president’s talking about a $2,000 rebate and those — that would be for families making less than, say, $100,000,” Bessent said on Fox & Friends. When asked whether the administration had finalized that threshold, he clarified, “We haven’t. It’s in discussion.”

The idea of a tariff-funded dividend gained traction after President Trump, still facing legal scrutiny over his “reciprocal tariffs,” floated the $2,000 proposal following a tense Supreme Court hearing last week. While the president has continued to tout the plan as a way to return tariff proceeds directly to Americans, he has yet to outline the mechanics of how such payments would be distributed.

Bessent elaborated on ABC’s This Week that the initiative “could come in lots of forms” and “could be just the tax decreases that we are seeing,” referencing the tax cuts included in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed earlier this year. He emphasized that the administration’s tax measures have already led to “no tax on tips, overtime, Social Security, and the big refunds you’re going to see are a result of that.”

The Treasury secretary also highlighted a lesser-known element of the new tax law — “Trump accounts” — automatic savings accounts the government will create for all minors between 2025 and 2028, seeded with a one-time $1,000 deposit.

The $2,000 dividend plan has drawn widespread attention and skepticism. On Sunday, Trump hinted at the idea again, posting, “a dividend of at least $2000 a person (not including high income people!) will be paid to everyone.” But such a sweeping initiative would require congressional approval, something far from guaranteed.

“It’ll never pass,” said Sen. Bernie Moreno of Ohio, who was backed by Vice President JD Vance in his Senate race. “We have a $37 trillion debt.”

Funding remains a major hurdle. The tariffs enacted under Trump’s authority via the International Emergency Economic Powers Act — currently being reviewed by the Supreme Court — have generated only about $90 billion since they were implemented, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data through September 23.

For comparison, pandemic-era stimulus proposals that included $2,000 checks were estimated to cost approximately $464 billion. Even if the payments were restricted to individuals earning less than $100,000, the plan would still carry a roughly $300 billion price tag, according to Erica York, vice president of federal tax policy at the Tax Foundation.

Complicating matters further is the possibility that a Supreme Court ruling could force the administration to refund importers if the justices strike down Trump’s use of IEEPA tariffs.

Data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows that total tariffs collected — including those outside IEEPA authority — amounted to $195.9 billion in fiscal year 2025 as of August 31. Because tariff rates have fluctuated throughout the year as part of Trump’s ongoing negotiations with trade partners, that figure could rise substantially in fiscal year 2026.

The debate over the proposed dividend comes amid mounting voter anxiety over living costs, an issue that played a decisive role in last week’s Democratic victories in several state elections.

“We inherited this affordability mess. It was the worst inflation, 40, 50 years,” Bessent said. “Imagine two lines. There is the inflation line; we’ve got that under control. It’s leveled out. That is going to start turning down.”

He continued, “And there’s the income line, which under Biden, because so many of the jobs were government jobs, you can’t get real wage growth from a government job, real wages are going to increase.”

{Matzav.com}

Newly released photos from inside Israel’s high-security prisons reveal a chilling reality: Hamas Nukhba terrorists—those responsible for some of the worst atrocities of October 7—are continuing to wage war, even from behind bars. The images, taken during routine cell inspections, show an arsenal of improvised weapons meticulously crafted from ordinary objects: sharpened screws, bed springs, […]

U.S. Border Patrol immigration surge expected in Charlotte, report says.

NEW: Pres. Trump scheduled to sign legislation to reopen the government at 9:45 PM ET in the Oval Office

Under the direction of HaGaon R’ Yaakov E. Forchheimer shlit”a and HaGaon R’ Noach Issac Oelbuam shlit”aThe Refuah B’Halacha center is a vital resource that bridges the worlds of Torah and medicine. Staffed by experienced Rabbanim together with medical professionals, our halacha line assists callers facing complex medical situations that require halachic guidance. Whether it’s […]

Hamas officials have acknowledged facing serious challenges in their efforts to locate the bodies of captives still held in the Gaza Strip, according to a report by Saudi media.

The officials reportedly told the outlet that “there are significant difficulties in searching for the remaining bodies in Gaza.” The statement comes as both Hamas and Red Cross teams are said to be preparing to enter the so-called “yellow zone” to search for the remains of hostages, according to Israel’s i24NEWS.

Earlier, Al Jazeera also reported that joint teams from the Red Cross and Hamas were planning to enter the “yellow zone” east of Gaza to carry out similar recovery efforts.

Sources familiar with the issue of the deceased hostages told Kan News that Hamas is believed to possess detailed information on each of the four deceased captives whose bodies remain in Gaza. They added that the terrorist organization also holds information on bodies in the possession of Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

Officials have emphasized the need for continued international pressure on Hamas to return all four bodies, insisting that “there must be no compromise until the last body is brought home.” The joint Hamas–Red Cross search operations are expected to continue in the coming days.

{Matzav.com}

The organization Emet L’Yaakov B’Yisrael on Wednesday filed an urgent petition to the Supreme Court on behalf of a young Chareidi man who was arrested at the recruitment office despite suffering from a severe chronic illness that entitles him to a permanent medical exemption (Profile 21). The petition, filed against the Defense Minister, the IDF, […]

Mossad Director David Barnea has informed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he plans to step down from his position in June, according to a Wednesday report by Channel 12. The Prime Minister’s Office later confirmed that preparations are underway to initiate the process of finding his replacement in the coming weeks.

Three figures are said to be in contention for the prestigious role. Two of them—identified only as A. and H.—are senior Mossad officials, with one currently serving as Barnea’s deputy and the other holding a top-level strategic position. The third contender is Maj.-Gen. Roman Gofman, who presently serves as Netanyahu’s military secretary.

The process of choosing the next Mossad chief is expected to be extensive, involving multiple interviews and a comprehensive assessment of each candidate’s background, leadership qualities, and operational expertise. Netanyahu will personally oversee the evaluations before making his final selection.

Once a successor is chosen, an orderly handover period will follow, allowing Barnea to brief the incoming director and ensure a seamless transition of command and responsibilities within Israel’s intelligence apparatus.

From the outset of his leadership, Barnea made clear that he did not intend to extend his service beyond the standard five-year term. His tenure has been defined by significant operational milestones, including the Mossad’s “Pager Operation” against Hezbollah and a series of daring missions conducted deep inside hostile territories.

{Matzav.com}

House Democrats ignited a media storm Wednesday by selectively unveiling three emails from the massive Jeffrey Epstein archives that referenced President Trump. The excerpts included one in which Epstein wrote that “Victim 1 spent many hours at my house with him.” Yet in a glaring omission, Democrats withheld the identity of “Victim 1” — Virginia Giuffre, who before her death this year had made clear that Trump never engaged in any misconduct and was always respectful toward her.

News outlets such as CNN and The New York Times rushed to publicize the limited release, appearing to have received early access to the material.

Republicans immediately accused Democrats of staging a political setup designed to create false impressions rather than transparency.

“The Democrats selectively leaked emails to the liberal media to create a fake narrative to smear President Trump,” said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt in a statement to The NY Post.

Leavitt continued, “The ‘unnamed victim’ referenced in these emails is the late Virginia Giuffre, who repeatedly said President Trump was not involved in any wrongdoing whatsoever and ‘couldn’t have been friendlier’ to her in their limited interactions. These stories are nothing more than bad-faith efforts to distract from President Trump’s historic accomplishments, and any American with common sense sees right through this hoax and clear distraction from the government opening back up again.”

The partisan release came from Democrats on the House Oversight Committee, whose ranks include Robert Garcia of California, Jasmine Crockett of Texas, and Ro Khanna of California. Republicans on the same panel countered by publishing the full cache of roughly 20,000 files, including references to Bill Clinton and journalist Michael Wolff — correspondence Democrats had chosen not to reveal.

Giuffre’s story dates back to 2000, when, as a 16-year-old working at Mar-a-Lago, she met Epstein’s associate Ghislaine Maxwell, who recruited her. In her memoir Nobody’s Girl, released after her death, Giuffre recalled being introduced to Trump by her father, who was a maintenance manager at Mar-a-Lago.

“Trump couldn’t have been friendlier,” she wrote, “telling me it was fantastic that I was there.” She further described how Trump even helped her earn extra money babysitting for guests staying at his Palm Beach properties — a depiction utterly at odds with the insinuations in the Democrats’ selective release.

The broader trove includes a January 31, 2019, email in which Epstein told Wolff that Trump had confronted Maxwell. “[T]rump said he asked me to resign,” Epstein wrote. “[I was] never a member ever.” He added, “[O]f course he knew about the girls as he asked [G]hislaine to stop.”

Trump has consistently said the renewed push to tie him to Epstein is a politically motivated “hoax.” Federal investigators concluded years ago that Epstein acted alone and that there was no secret “client list” implicating others — a determination that hasn’t stopped political opponents from attempting to resurrect the scandal.

Speaking in July, Trump explained how Epstein’s access to his staff led to a permanent ban from Mar-a-Lago. “Everyone knows the people that were taken, and it was the concept of, taking people that work for me is bad,” he told reporters. “But that story has been pretty well out there, and the answer is yes, they were.”

“I have a great spa, one of the best spas in the world, at Mar-a-Lago,” he added. “And people were taken out of the spa, hired by him. When I heard about it, I told him, I said, ‘Listen, we don’t want you taking our people,’ whether it was spa or not spa, I don’t want him taking people. And he was fine. And then not too long after that, he did it again. And I said, ‘Out of here.’”

Epstein’s death in 2019 ended his criminal trial but not the controversy surrounding his connections. Though he and Trump had once been friendly in the 1990s, they reportedly split over a real estate dispute years before Epstein’s downfall.

Michael Wolff also reappears in the cache, exchanging messages with Epstein ahead of a 2015 Republican debate. “I hear CNN planning to ask Trump tonight about his relationship with you–either on air or in scrum afterward,” Wolff wrote. Epstein replied, “[I]f we were able to craft an answer for him, what do you think it should be?”

“I think you should let him hang himself,” Wolff responded. “If he says he hasn’t been on the plane or to the house, then that gives you a valuable PR and political currency. You can hang him in a way that potentially generates a positive benefit for you, or, if it really looks like he could win, you could save him, generating a debt. Of course, it is possible that, when asked, he’ll say Jeffrey is a great guy and has gotten a raw deal and is a victim of political correctness, which is to be outlawed in a Trump regime.”

Meanwhile, a bipartisan House petition to compel the Justice Department to release its Epstein files reached the necessary 218 signatures Wednesday. Once Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva of Arizona is sworn in, the measure can advance to the floor within seven legislative days. If approved, the bill would still require passage in the Republican-led Senate and President Trump’s signature to become law.

{Matzav.com}

AOC: “It is unconscionable that what we are debating right now is legislation that will give 8 senators over $1M a piece & we are robbing people of their food assistance and of their healthcare to pay for it. How is this even on the floor?!”

A school bus careened onto the sidewalk and slammed into a storefront on Avenue J between East 13th and East 14th Streets on Wednesday evening, narrowly a sidewalk packed with pedestrians. Flatbush Scoop reported that the driver, who was not injured, said he accidentally shifted the bus into reverse while turning onto the street and […]

Jack Schlossberg, the only grandson of President John F. Kennedy, officially launched his campaign Wednesday to succeed retiring Rep. Jerry Nadler in New York’s 12th Congressional District, reviving one of America’s most storied political dynasties in one of the country’s bluest strongholds. In an email to supporters obtained by Politico, the 32-year-old Kennedy heir announced, […]

President Donald Trump’s plan to rebrand the Department of Defense as the “Department of War” could come with a staggering price tag—potentially reaching $2 billion—according to six individuals familiar with early cost projections, NBC News reports.

The renaming effort, which still requires congressional approval, would demand a sweeping overhaul across all branches of the U.S. military. Thousands of signs, ID badges, letterheads, plaques, and digital assets featuring the Department of Defense name would need to be redone worldwide, said multiple senior congressional aides from both parties briefed on the estimates.

Of that sum, about half could go toward replacing printed materials and physical signage alone, insiders said. One major financial burden stems from rewriting computer code across the Pentagon’s internal and external systems, both classified and public-facing. Software updates would be necessary to align digital infrastructure with the new name, the aides noted.

Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said that an official cost figure has not yet been finalized. “The Department of War is aggressively implementing the name change directed by President Trump, and is making the name permanent,” he wrote in an email. “A final cost estimate has not been determined at this time due to the Democrat shutdown furloughing many of our critical civilians. A nod to our proud heritage, this change is essential because it reflects the Department’s core mission: winning wars. This has always been our mission, and while we hope for peace, we will prepare for war.”

The White House deferred all cost-related questions to the Pentagon. Nonetheless, the potential multibillion-dollar expense stands in contrast to Trump’s ongoing pledge to rein in federal spending. His administration has already slashed budgets across numerous agencies, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has vowed to cut Pentagon personnel to prioritize what he calls “lethality” and a “warrior ethos.”

Speaking at Arlington National Cemetery on Veterans Day, Trump declared, “Under the Trump administration, we are restoring the pride and the winning spirit of the United States military. That’s why we have officially renamed the Department of Defense back to the original name Department of War.”

At present, “Department of War” serves only as a secondary title under law. The official designation remains Department of Defense, and any formal renaming must pass through Congress. Still, Trump told the crowd that the new name more accurately communicates America’s readiness “to fight to win.”

Trump first revealed his intention to restore the old name in September, when he issued an executive order authorizing Secretary Hegseth to use the title “secretary of war” in all public and internal correspondence. That order gave the Pentagon a 30-day window to initiate the transition and another 60 days to submit the required documentation to the National Security Council for congressional review.

White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly declined to say whether those deadlines have been met. “Under President Trump’s leadership, the now aptly-named Department of War is refocused on readiness and lethality — and its title now reflects its status as the most powerful fighting force in the world,” she said. “The White House is working hand-in-glove with the Department of War on implementation of the Executive Order.”

After the order was signed, the Pentagon quickly updated its online presence—changing web domains and social media handles to reflect the new name. Secretary Hegseth even replaced the sign outside his office with one reading “The Office of the Secretary of War.” But not all identifiers have been switched. The building’s main brass plaque still welcomes visitors to “The Department of Defense.”

The executive order also mandated that all federal agencies acknowledge and use the new title in correspondence, while noting that Congress must ultimately codify the change.

Republican Senators Rick Scott of Florida and Mike Lee of Utah introduced legislation in September to formally enact the new name, along with a similar House bill from Rep. Greg Steube of Florida. “Restoring the name to Department of War reflects our true purpose: to dominate wars, not merely respond after being provoked,” Scott said. Lee added, “It should always be clear to anyone who would harm our people: Americans don’t just play defense.”

Despite those proposals, the administration has yet to make a serious push to move the legislation forward. Several GOP lawmakers have privately voiced frustration, viewing the initiative as unnecessary political theater. Senator Rand Paul has gone further, publicly opposing the change as “glorifying war” and pledging to block any related funding.

Democrats have been openly dismissive. Senator Tim Kaine criticized the proposal as “cosplay,” adding, “The department is designated by congressional statute as the Department of Defense, not the Department of War. Congress has not authorized the name change … and as far as I’m concerned, there’s no effort for Congress to make the name change.”

Ten Senate Democrats formally asked the Congressional Budget Office in September to evaluate the costs of rebranding, citing expenses for signage, ceremonial items, website redesign, and digital infrastructure updates. In their letter, they called the proposal “wasteful and hypocritical,” accusing the administration of prioritizing “political theater over responsible governance.”

The Pentagon’s name has evolved several times since its founding as the Department of War in 1789. President Harry Truman changed it to the National Military Establishment in 1947 under the National Security Act, which unified the armed services under a single civilian defense secretary. Two years later, Congress renamed it the Department of Defense—a title that has remained in place ever since.

{Matzav.com}

The White House on Wednesday forcefully denied an Israeli media report claiming the United States was planning to establish a major military base in Israel near the Gaza border to support international forces enforcing the ceasefire there. “This article was based on a single piece of paper — an inquiry that somebody in the Department […]

The number of people diagnosed with tuberculosis worldwide rose again last year, eclipsing 2023’s record total, World Health Organization officials said Wednesday. About 8.3 million people across the globe were reported as newly diagnosed with TB in 2024. Not all infections are diagnosed and the new numbers represent 78% of the estimated number of people […]

TONIGHT: A strong geomagnetic storm could light up the northern U.S. skies with a rare and stunning display of the Northern Lights.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been unable to confirm the whereabouts or condition of Iran’s near weapons-grade uranium since Israel’s airstrikes on the country’s nuclear facilities during June’s 12-day war, according to a confidential report obtained by The Associated Press.

The U.N. nuclear watchdog warned that the matter “needs urgently to be addressed,” noting that without updated data from Tehran, it cannot assure member states that Iran’s nuclear material remains in peaceful use.

In its last public assessment in September, the IAEA reported that Iran possessed 440.9 kilograms (972 pounds) of uranium enriched up to 60% purity — just a short technical step from the 90% threshold required for weapons-grade material. Director General Rafael Grossi cautioned in an interview that such a stockpile could be enough for roughly 10 nuclear weapons, though he emphasized that there is no indication Iran has built one.

Iran maintains that its nuclear program is strictly civilian, while Western intelligence agencies and the IAEA assert that Tehran operated an organized nuclear weapons effort until 2003.

Under its safeguards agreement with the IAEA, Iran must issue a “special report” following significant incidents such as military attacks or natural disasters, detailing the condition and location of all nuclear material and facilities. The agency stressed that this report is “indispensable” for verifying that none of Iran’s safeguarded sites or materials have been diverted to non-peaceful purposes.

Tehran halted cooperation with the IAEA after the June conflict, which also saw U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear infrastructure. Although Grossi reached a temporary inspection deal in early September with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi during talks in Cairo, the agreement collapsed later that month when the U.N. reinstated sweeping sanctions on Iran.

The sanctions were reimposed by European powers through the U.N. “snapback” mechanism after Tehran refused to engage in direct talks with Washington, failed to restore full IAEA cooperation, and did not clarify the fate of its highly enriched uranium.

Iran remains legally bound by the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons to permit IAEA oversight of its nuclear activities.

{Matzav.com}

REPORTER: “Should U.S. citizens expect a $2,000 proposal, is the White House committed to making that happen?” PRESS SEC: “The White House is committed to making that happen, yes…I don’t have a timeline for you.”

WATCH: Horrifying moment windsurfer attacked, pulled underwater by a shark off Australia