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Israel’s ambassador to the United Nationsn Danny Dannon, is calling the incident “a depraved act of anti-Semitic terrorism”

MORE: The shooter in the attack in DC shouted “Free Palestine!” before being detained by police, according to initial reports. The FBI is at the scene and investigating.

BREAKING: Two people have been killed in a shooting outside the Jewish Museum in Washington, DC. An event for Israeli diplomats was taking place at the venue tonight, and Israeli embassy staff are reported to be injured.

Treasured artifacts associated with President Abraham Lincoln were on the auction block Wednesday, separated from a collection that was intended to be available for public display forever but wound up in the middle of an interagency feud amid a lingering $8 million debt. The blood-stained leather gloves that were in Lincoln’s pocket the night he was assassinated were among the 144 items up for bid, 136 of which sold. They were auctioned to pay off the remainder of a two-decade-old loan that the Lincoln Presidential Foundation used to buy a one-of-a-kind cluster of Lincoln artifacts from a California collector. The auction at Freeman’s/Hindman in Chicago raised $7.9 million, but that includes buyers’ premiums of roughly 28% tacked onto each sale to cover the auction house’s administrative costs. The gloves were the top-selling items, bringing in $1.52 million including the premium. One of two handkerchiefs Lincoln had with him April 14, 1865, the night he was shot, went for $826,000. A “Wanted” poster featuring photos of three suspects in the assassination conspiracy, led by John Wilkes Booth, sold for $762,500, far higher than the top estimated price of $120,000. And the earliest known sample of the 16th president’s handwriting, from a notebook in 1824, fetched $521,200. Phone and email messages seeking comment were left for the foundation. Its website said proceeds from the auction would be put toward retiring the debt and “any excess funds will go toward our continued care and display of our extensive collection.” The foundation purchased a 1,540-item assemblage in 2007 from Louise Taper for the fledgling Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, which opened in 2005 in the city where he established a law practice and lived while serving in the Illinois Legislature and briefly in Congress. The artifacts were supposed to give the library and museum, which was rich in Lincoln-related manuscripts, a boost in what it lacked — the meaty kind of curios that draw tourists. But fundraising was slow, forcing the sale of non-Lincoln portions of the collection and threats by the foundation to sell more before it finally extended the loan. In 2012 a controversy arose over what had been the crown jewel of the group — a stovepipe hat, appraised at $6 million, that Lincoln was said to have given as a gift to a southern Illinois supporter. That story came under intense scrutiny, as reported by the Chicago Sun-Times, resulting in a 2019 study that found there was no evidence the hat belonged to Lincoln. It was not part of Wednesday’s auction. (AP)

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Tech and music industry leaders testified about the dangers of deepfakes made with artificial intelligence on Wednesday, urging lawmakers to pass legislation that would protect people’s voices and likenesses from being replicated without consent, while allowing use of the tech responsibly. Speaking to members of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s panel on privacy, technology, and the law, executives from YouTube and Recording Industry Association of America as well as a country music singer, championed the bipartisan No Fakes Act, which seeks to create federal protections for artists’ voice, likeness and image from unauthorized AI-generated deepfakes. The group argued that Americans across the board — whether teenagers or high-profile music artists — were at risk of their likenesses being misused. The legislation, reintroduced in the senate last month, would combat deepfakes by holding individuals or companies liable if they produced an unauthorized digital replica of an individual in a performance. “AI technology is amazing and can be used for so many wonderful purposes,” the country singer told the panel. “But like all great technologies, it can also be abused, in this case by stealing people’s voices and likenesses to scare and defraud families, manipulate the images of young girls in ways that are shocking to say the least, impersonate government officials, or make phony recordings posing as artists like me.” The No Fakes Act would also hold platforms liable if they knew a replica was not authorized, while excluding certain digital replicas from coverage based on First Amendment protections. It would also establish a notice-and-takedown process so victims of unauthorized deepfakes “have an avenue to get online platforms to take down the deepfake,” the bill’s sponsors said last month. The bill would address the use of non-consensual digital replicas in audiovisual works, images, or sound recordings. Nearly 400 artists, actors and performers have signed on in support of the legislation, according to the Human Artistry Campaign, which advocates for responsible AI use. Suzana Carlos, head of music policy at YouTube, added that the bill would protect the credibility of online content. AI regulation should not penalize companies for providing tools that can be used for permitted and non-permitted uses, she said in written testimony, prior to addressing the subcommittee. The legislation offers a workable, tech-neutral and comprehensive legal solution, she said, and would streamline global operations for platforms like YouTube while empowering musicians and rights holders to manage their IP. Platforms have a responsibility to address the challenges posed by AI-generated content, she added. “YouTube largely supports this bill because we see the incredible opportunity to of AI, but we also recognize those harms, and we believe that AI needs to be deployed responsibly,” she said. (AP)

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Veteran journalist and Washington Post columnist Sally Quinn has accused former First Lady Jill Biden of “elder abuse” for supporting her husband, former President Joe Biden, in his 2024 re-election campaign despite concerns about his health and cognitive decline. Quinn, a well-connected D.C. insider, blasted Jill Biden for not discouraging her husband from seeking another term, particularly after his widely criticized performance in the June 2024 presidential debate against President Donald Trump. “I blame Jill Biden for this. Jill Biden is his wife. And if Jill Biden had stood up and gone to him and said, ‘Joe, you can’t do it’… He wouldn’t have run,” Quinn told journalist Tara Palmeri. “She clearly was in favor of his running, and I just think it was a terrible disservice to the country.” The debate, described by Quinn as “hideous,” amplified public and political concerns about Biden’s ability to serve another four years, with many pointing to apparent signs of cognitive decline. Quinn, who has long been embedded in Washington’s elite circles, said Biden’s worsening health was an “open secret” among the establishment, with widespread distress over his decision to run. “Everybody thought he shouldn’t run,” she said. “People were just distraught that he was running and terrible for the party.” The accusations come in the wake of Biden’s recent diagnosis with advanced prostate cancer, which has spread to his bones, announced on Sunday. The diagnosis has raised questions about whether the former president’s health issues were concealed during his campaign. “The president of the United States has the best medical care in the world, or should, and it should’ve been diagnosed a long time ago,” she said, speculating that the Biden administration may have delayed revealing the diagnosis. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

Defying opposition within his ranks, House Speaker Mike Johnson insisted late Wednesday that Republicans would march ahead on their multitrillion-dollar tax breaks package after a lengthy White House meeting with GOP holdouts refusing to back the bill. Johnson and his GOP leadership team appeared confident they would be able to stick to their schedule and shore up GOP support for final passage late Wednesday or Thursday following last-ditch talks to salvage the “big, beautiful bill.” But next steps are highly uncertain. “We’re excited that we’re going to land this airplane,” Johnson, R-La., said back at the Capitol. But as evening hours set in, the upbeat tone stood at odds with the unwieldy scene at the Capitol. The Rules Committee has been grinding through a marathon session, passing its 18th hour, as the process chugs along. Another Republican, Tennessee Rep. John Rose, announced his opposition to the GOP bill. And Democrats, without the votes to stop Trump’s package, are using all available tools and impassioned speeches to press their opposition and capitalize on the GOP disarray. “We believe it’s one big, ugly bill that’s going to hurt the American people,” said House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York as he and his team testified before the committee. “Hurt children, hurt families, hurt veterans, hurt seniors, cut health care, cut nutritional assistance, explode the debt,” he said. It’s a make-or-break moment for the president and his party in Congress. They have invested much of their political capital during the crucial first few months of Trump’s return to the White House on this legislation. If the House Republicans fall in line with the president, overcoming unified Democratic objections, the measure would next go to the Senate. Trump had implored the lawmakers a day earlier at the Capitol to get it done, but the holdouts endured. It’s not at all clear what, exactly, was agreed to — or not — during Wednesday’s lengthy meeting at the White House. However, Johnson indicated afterward that Trump himself may be able to accomplish by executive actions some of the goals that Congress is unable to agree to in the legislative process. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the meeting was productive and moved the ball in the right direction. One big problem has been the tentative deal with GOP lawmakers from New York and other high-tax states to boost deductions for local taxes to $40,000. But that costly provision, running into the hundreds of billions of dollars, alarmed the most conservative Republicans, worried it will add to the nation’s $36 trillion debt. For every faction of the slim House majority that Johnson appeases, he risks losing others. Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md., the chairman of the hard-right House Freedom Caucus, said earlier he did not believe the package could pass in a House vote, but “there is a pathway forward that we can see.” A fresh analysis from the Congressional Budget Office said the tax provisions would increase federal deficits by $3.8 trillion over the decade, while the changes to Medicaid, food stamps and other services would tally $1 trillion in reduced spending. The lowest-income households in the U.S. would see their resources drop, while the highest ones would see a boost, the CBO said. At its core, the package is centered on extending the tax […]

iPhone users who’ve recently experienced WhatsApp bugs—like mismatched images and captions on statuses or voice notes not showing when played—should update the app. WhatsApp released a new update tonight that fixes these issues. Simply head to the App Store and install the latest version to resolve the glitches. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

A highly-anticipated White House report about childhood diseases has provoked a tug-of-war pitting farmers and some prominent Republican lawmakers against health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his “Make America Healthy Again” movement ahead of its release. President Donald Trump promised a review within 100 days that would analyze the ramifications that U.S. lifestyle — from the medications prescribed for children to the food served on their school lunch trays — has on childhood diseases like obesity, depression or attention deficit disorder. The report, led by a so-called “MAHA Commission,” is expected to be released on Thursday. Farmers and Republicans are nervous about what the report might say about glyphosate, the ingredient commonly used in pesticides sprayed on crops. Kennedy has denied the report will be unfavorable to farmers. Speaking on the Senate floor on Wednesday, Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley warned that farmers have reached out to him, upset they have not been able to provide input on the MAHA report ahead of its release. “I hope there is nothing in the MAHA report that jeopardizes the food supply or the livelihood of farmers,” Grassley said. Last month, a group of 79 Republicans — including several senators who represent farming states — echoed similar concerns about the report saying in a letter to Kennedy that without the products agricultural “yields and quantity are negatively impacted.” Glyphosate has been available for about 50 years and some farmers say it remains essential for controlling weeds without excessive tilling, helping to conserve both soil and fuel. “There’s a reason why we still use: It works,” said Blake Hurst, a Missouri farmer who is past president of the Missouri Farm Bureau. Kennedy, though, has built a sizable following over many decades, in part, because of the lawsuits he’s waged against corporations, including the company that produced weedkiller Roundup. The World Health Organization has labeled that product’s key ingredient, glyphosate, as a probable carcinogen for humans. On Wednesday a large group of his supporters sent Kennedy a letter calling on the commission to “hold the chemical industry” accountable in the report, noting that pressure is mounting. “Evidence is piling up and the risks from pesticide exposure are undeniable,” the letter, signed by 360 self-proclaimed MAHA supporters that include farmers, former Kennedy campaign staffers and those who worked with him at his anti-vaccine nonprofit. Dave Murphy, a fundraiser for Kennedy’s failed presidential bid, said that he submitted studies and comments on pesticides to Trump administration officials for inclusion in the MAHA report but said that there’s “a lot of pressure within Washington” over what the final report says on the issue. During a senate hearing on Wednesday, Kennedy rebutted concerns from Mississippi Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith that the report would “unfairly” target farmers. “There’s not a single word in them that should worry the American farmer,” Kennedy said of his report. “We are not going to do anything to jeopardize that business model.” Kennedy was appearing before the Senate Appropriations Committee to discuss the White House’s proposed budget, which would give a $500 million boost for Kennedy’s “Make America Healthy Again” initiative. That same proposal also makes deep cuts, including to infectious disease prevention, maternal health and medical research programs. In February, Trump signed an executive order establishing a Make America Healthy Again Commission tasked […]

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Wednesday his government is talking to the U.S. about joining President Donald Trump’s future Golden Dome missile defense program. The multilayered, $175 billion system would for the first time put U.S. weapons in space. Trump said the previous day he expected the system to be fully operational by the end of his term in 2029. “Is it a good idea for Canada? Yes, it is a good to have protections in place for Canadians,” Carney said. Carney confirmed he’s had talks with Trump about it and said there are discussions with senior officials. Trump said the Canadian government had contacted his administration indicating it wants to join the program and that he will work with Ottawa to ensure it contributes its “fair share.” Golden Dome is envisioned to include ground- and space-based capabilities to detect and stop missiles at all four major stages of a potential attack: detecting and destroying them before a launch, intercepting them in their earliest stage of flight, stopping them midcourse in the air, or halting them in the final minutes as they descend toward a target. “It’s something that we are looking at and something that has been discussed at a high level.” Carney said. “But not I’m not sure one negotiates on this. These are military decisions that have been taken in that context, and we will evaluate it accordingly.” Carney warned that Canada faces potential missiles threats in the “not-too-distant future” that could come from space. “Is Canada going to be doing this alone or with the United States? Because with a Golden Dome, there will be discussions that could have an impact on Canada, but Canada wouldn’t be a part of them,” Carney said. The Pentagon has warned for years that the newest missiles developed by China and Russia are so advanced that updated countermeasures are necessary. Golden Dome’s added satellites and interceptors — where the bulk of the program’s cost is — would be focused on stopping those advanced missiles early on or in the middle of their flight. Canada and the U.S. are partners in the North American Aerospace Defense Command, the combined organization that provides shared defense of airspace over the two nations. The newly elected Carney spent much spent much of the last few months saying the old relationship with the U.S. based on steadily increasing integration is over. Trump has infuriated Canadians by saying Canada should be the 51st state. “We cooperate if necessary but not necessarily cooperate,” Carney said. (AP)

Defense Minister Yisrael Katz made a surprise visit to the Ashdod Naval Base in southern Israel on Wednesday. “I came here from a visit to the Shin Bet headquarters,” Katz said, “and all is Hamas is doing now is sitting and updating targets in yishuvim near the border through sources that provide it with information, like the Iranians and others. It is still busy planning how to continue.” “Therefore, we must win here. There is no entity that cannot be subdued. We must make sure Hamas will not stay here.” During the visit, Katz sailed off the coast of the Gaza Strip and received a briefing on the sailors’ activities during the war. (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)

Ten men who broke out of a New Orleans jail last week clogged a toilet to get the water shut off so that they could escape through a hole behind it, a lawyer for a maintenance worker who is charged with helping them said Wednesday. The worker, Sterling Williams, did not know about the men’s plan and did not allow the inmates to cut a pipe behind the toilet to create an opening for their escape, attorney Michael Kennedy told The Associated Press. Williams, 33, was arrested Tuesday. Authorities have said an inmate instructed Williams to turn off the water to a toilet, leading to one of the largest jailbreaks in recent U.S. history. Five of the men remained at large Wednesday. Williams just a ‘tool,’ lawyer says “This was clearly all part of an orchestrated plan,” Kennedy said. Williams “was nothing more than the tool they used to turn off the water which they knew would have to happen after clogging the toilet.” Kennedy told the AP that after a deputy called Williams to fix a toilet, he found it overflowing. The defense attorney’s story differs from the one from authorities. According to an arrest affidavit that made no mention of a clogged toilet, Williams told law enforcement during an interview that an inmate had threatened to “shank” him if he did not turn off the water. Williams could have reported the threat and the escape plan, authorities have said. They asserted that because Williams turned the water off, the inmates were “able to successfully make good” on their escape, the affidavit said. Kennedy addressed authorities’ statements that his client was threatened into helping the escape. “He was not aware that there was going to be an escape,” Kennedy said. “He was not conspiring with them. He had no knowledge that he was being used.” A message was left seeking comment from the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office about Kennedy’s remarks. Shanking comment was not a threat, lawyer says Inmate Antoine Massey, who approached Williams and said he would “shank” him as he was doing his maintenance work, was “just talking to talk” and not intimidating the plumber, Kennedy said. “Everyone seems to have leaped on that, saying he was acting out of fear. No,” Kennedy said. “Yes, someone said they would shank him. They didn’t say it in a particularly threatening manner. They said it more as an aside.” Kennedy said the cell with the clogged toilet was for disabled inmates and should never have been in use. “No one should have been in this cell to begin with,” he said. “This cell should have been locked down.” “It would seem obvious to me that filling up the toilet, clogging the toilet, was a portion of the escapees’ plan,” Kennedy said. “They would know that whoever the maintenance person was would have to turn off the water … because it was overflowing.” ‘A scapegoat’ Kennedy said he was only able to meet with Williams for around 30 minutes via Zoom. He did not ask Williams whether he had finished unclogging the toilet, whether he turned the water back on, or how long he was inside the cell. Williams did not know the name of the deputy who told him to fix the clogged toilet, Kennedy said. Williams is worried about his safety and his future, his […]

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