*By Justin Chermol & Megan Pratz*
After Iran's Revolutionary Guard seized a foreign tanker accused of smuggling oil through the Strait of Hormuz Thursday morning, President Trump announced a Navy ship has shot down an Iranian drone.
"The \[USS\] Boxer took defensive action against an Iranian drone," Trump said in a flag presentation ceremony at the White House with Prime Minister Mark Rutte of the Netherlands.
"The drone was immediately destroyed," Trump added.
Those escalations have made officials, including Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) nervous about potential U.S. military action in the Middle East, as Tehran and Washington continue to [spar over the strait](https://cheddar.com/media/iran-escalations-will-likely-wipe-out-recent-decline-in-gas-prices), one of the most important passageways for oil shipping in the world.
"Iran has about .55 percent of global GDP, we're at 24 percent, China is at 15 percent, the entire Middle East is at 3.5 percent, it's just not in our strategic interest to spend trillions of dollars on another war that could be better spent on broadband here, on education, on infrastructure," Khanna told Cheddar Thursday.
Last week, Khanna and Rep. Matt Gaetz's (R-Fla.) bipartisan amendment to the annual National Defense Authorization Act in order to prohibit funds from being used with a war against Iran passed 251-170. Khanna called the amendment's sweeping victory in the House "historic", adding: "It will really show that our nation has learned its lesson."
It will now move on to the Senate, where he hopes it will be added to the defense funding bill.
"This amendment affirms what President Trump knows and believes: unfocused, unconstitutional, unending wars in the Middle East make America weaker, not stronger," Gaetz [said in a statement](https://khanna.house.gov/media/press-releases/release-rep-khanna-and-rep-gaetz-introduce-bipartisan-amendment-prohibit-funds).
In May of last year, President Trump announced the U.S. exit from the 2015 Iran Nuclear Deal. Trump has called the deal, brokered by President Obama, the "worst deal ever."
Khanna says, were it up to him, he would immediately get back into the agreement: "That's what helped prevent Iran from going nuclear," he said, adding: "Even Secretary Mattis and General Dunford all said that Iran was complying with that."
A new report finds the Department of Government Efficiency’s remaking of the federal workforce has battered the Washington job market and put more households in the metropolitan area in financial distress.
A new poll finds U.S. adults are more likely than they were a year ago to think immigrants in the country legally benefit the economy. That comes as President Donald Trump's administration imposes new restrictions targeting legal pathways into the country. The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research survey finds Americans are more likely than they were in March 2024 to say it’s a “major benefit” that people who come to the U.S. legally contribute to the economy and help American companies get the expertise of skilled workers. At the same time, perceptions of illegal immigration haven’t shifted meaningfully. Americans still see fewer benefits from people who come to the U.S. illegally.
Shares of Tylenol maker Kenvue are bouncing back sharply before the opening bell a day after President Donald Trump promoted unproven and in some cases discredited ties between Tylenol, vaccines and autism. Trump told pregnant women not to use the painkiller around a dozen times during the White House news conference Monday. The drugmaker tumbled 7.5%. Shares have regained most of those losses early Tuesday in premarket trading.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Tuesday signaled a cautious approach to future interest rate cuts, in sharp contrast with other Fed officials who have called for a more urgent approach. In remarks in Providence, Rhode Island, Powell noted that there are risks to both of the Fed’s goals of seeking maximum employment and stable prices. His approach is in sharp contrast to some members of the Fed’s rate-setting committee who are pushing for faster cuts.
President Donald Trump’s efforts to reshape the American media landscape have led to the suspension of late-night comedian Jimmy Kimmel.
Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Jerry Greenfield is leaving the ice cream brand after 47 years. He says the freedom the company used to have to speak up on social issues has been stifled
The Federal Reserve cut its key interest rate by a quarter-point Wednesday and projected it would do so twice more this year as concern grows at the central bank about the health of the nation’s labor market. The move is the Fed’s first cut since December and lowered its short-term rate to about 4.1%, down from 4.3%. Fed officials, led by Chair Jerome Powell, had kept their rate unchanged this year as they evaluated the impact of tariffs, tighter immigration enforcement, and other Trump administration policies on inflation and the economy. The only dissenter was Stephen Miran, the recent Trump-appointee.
After a late-night vote and last-minute ruling, the Federal Reserve began a key meeting on interest rate policy Tuesday with both a new Trump administration appointee and an official the White House has targeted for removal.
The Trump administration has issued its first warnings to online services that offer unofficial versions of popular drugs like the blockbuster obesity treatment Wegovy.
Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama says his new Cabinet will include an artificial intelligence “minister” in charge of fighting corruption. The AI, named Diella, will oversee public funding projects and combat corruption in public tenders. Diella was launched earlier this year as a virtual assistant on the government's public service platform. Corruption has been a persistent issue in Albania since 1990. Rama's Socialist Party won a fourth consecutive term in May. It aims to deliver EU membership for Albania in five years, but the opposition Democratic Party remains skeptical.
