The Latest: Trump says ‘Nobody knows what I’m going to do’ about Iran

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told senators on Wednesday that the Pentagon is providing options to President Donald Trump as he decides next steps on Iran but would not say whether the military was planning to assist with Israeli strikes, an action that could risk dragging America into a wider war in the Middle East.

Trump — whose online demand for Iran’s “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER” prompted Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to warn of “irreparable damage” to the United States — told reporters at the White House that he may or may not order an airstrike on Iran — saying “nobody knows what I’m going to do.”

The Supreme Court, meanwhile, dealt a huge setback for transgender rights by upholding Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for kids, which is similar to laws in 26 other states.

Here is the Latest:

Hegseth says rulings by federal judges shouldn’t apply to military

Hegseth said he doesn’t believe U.S. district courts should be able to issue rulings that apply to the entire military.

He was responding to questions about from senators about whether he would comply with rulings on the use of the National Guard to respond to protests in Los Angeles.

“I don’t believe district courts should be determining national security policy,” Hegseth said. “When it gets to the Supreme Court we’ll see.”

Hegseth clashes with Democratic senator, tells her her time to speak is up

The defense secretary refused to answer when Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nevada, asked whether far right activist Laura Loomer convinced Donald Trump to fire the four-star general who oversaw the NSA and the Pentagon’s Cyber Command.

Loomer took credit after Trump abruptly fired Gen. Tim Haugh, a move that alarmed many national security experts.

During a heated back-and-forth at a hearing Wednesday, Rosen asked Hegseth if he believed it was appropriate “for any social media personality to influence personnel decisions in your department, yes or no?”

Hegseth did not answer and told Rosen her allotted time to speak was over — a caution usually reserved for the committee chair, and not a testifying witness.

“I believe your time is up senator,” Hegseth said.

“It is not up to you to tell me when my time is up,” Rosen said in response. “And I’m going to say Mr. Secretary, you’re either feckless or complicit.”

Trump says Iranians want a White House visit. Iran denies it

Trump said that Iranian officials continue to reach out to the White House as they’re “getting the hell beaten out of them” by Israel, and that there’s a “big difference between now and a week ago” in Tehran’s negotiating position.

“They’ve suggested that they come to the White House— that’s, you know, courageous,” Trump told reporters.

Iran’s mission to the United Nations refuted Trump’s claim in a statement on social media.

“No Iranian official has ever asked to grovel at the gates of the White House. The only thing more despicable than his lies is his cowardly threat to ‘take out’ Iran’s Supreme Leader. ”

Trump is having lunch Wednesday with Pakistan’s army chief

Trump spoke to reporters at the White House about recent tensions between nuclear-armed neighbors India and Pakistan that could have spiraled into war, and his role in calming the strife.

Trump said Asim Munir, the Pakistan army chief, was “extremely influential in stopping it from the Pakistan side.”

He also gave credit to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who he said is “fantastic.”

Trump said he and Modi spoke Tuesday night and that he’s pursuing a trade deal with India.

Trump: ‘Nobody knows what I’m going to do’

Hegseth told senators Wednesday that “maximum force protection” is being provided for U.S. troops in the Middle East and Trump will decide whether to support Israel by dropping a ”bunker buster” bomb on the core of Iran’s nuclear program — a strike that would require U.S. pilots flying a B-2 stealth bomber.

Israel has struck multiple Iranian nuclear facilities in the last several days but one of its key uranium production sites, Fordo, requires the deep penetrating munition.

Trump would not say Wednesday whether he has decided to order a U.S. strike on Iran, which Tehran has warned would provoke stiff retaliation.

“I may do it, I may not do it,” Trump said in an exchange with reporters at the White House. “I mean, nobody knows what I’m going to do.”

▶ Read more on what Trump and Hegseth are saying about Iran

Plans to evacuate Americans from Israel by air and sea

The U.S. State Department is making plans to evacuate American citizens from Israel by flights and cruise ships, the U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said on Wednesday.

In a post on X, Huckabee said Americans interested in leaving Israel should enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) for details and updates on the evacuation.

Huckabee’s post comes just a day after the State Department said it had stood up a special task force to assist Americans wanting to leave Israel and other Mideast countries.

There are some 700,000 Americans, many of them dual U.S.-Israeli citizens, now in Israel and thousands more in Iran and other Mideast countries.

Trump scoffs at the Russian president’s offer to help mediate with Iran

The president said Vladimir Putin offered this week to serve as a mediator with Iran as the U.S. presses Tehran to give up its nuclear program. But Trump said he told Putin to keep focused on finding an endgame to his own conflict with Ukraine.

“I said, ‘Do me a favor, mediate your own,’” Trump said he told Putin. “I said, ‘Vladimir, let’s mediate Russia first. You can worry about this later.’”

Senators weigh in on how Trump should handle Israel-Iran conflict

1. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, (D) Connecticut: “A nuclear-armed Iran is a threat to the world, not just to Israel. It’s a threat to the United States. ... I am hopeful that diplomacy will work. I support the president’s efforts to bring the parties to the table and to avoid escalation or widening the conflict.”

2. Sen. Eric Schmitt, (R) Missouri: “I trust President Trump on this. I think he’s reoriented American foreign policy in a positive way. I think Israel is doing everything that they need to do to defend themselves.”

3. Sen. Dick Durbin, (D) Illinois: “The danger, of course, is the escalation could involve the United States interest. We’ve got to be extremely careful.”

Hegseth says Iran ‘should have made a deal’

The defense secretary said Trump gave Iran a chance to strike a deal on its nuclear program but that time has run out.

Speaking before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Wednesday, Hegseth said leaders in Tehran should have taken Trump’s offer to avoid conflict.

“He said 60 days.” Hegseth said, referencing Trump’s deadline for Iran to reach an agreement.

“They had an opportunity to make a deal. They should have made a deal. President Trump’s word means something. The world understands that.”

Trump said at the White House earlier Wednesday that “nothing’s too late,” when asked whether direct U.S. involvement in Israel’s military operations against Iran was becoming inevitable.

Some fact checking as Trump pressures the Fed

Trump complained that the European Central Bank has cut its key rate “ten times,” while the Fed hasn’t cut at all. That’s not entirely true — the ECB has cut eight times in the past 12 months, while the Fed did implement three reductions during that time frame, at the end of last year.

Trump has repeatedly attacked Powell, complaining recently that the Fed is costing the U.S. government hundreds of billions of dollars in interest payments by keeping rates elevated.

Trump also said Wednesday that if the Fed cuts rates by two and a half percentage points, it could save the government $800 billion.

Yet while the Fed’s rate influences longer-term borrowing costs for Treasury notes and bonds, the central bank doesn’t directly control those rates. Economists say that if the Fed cut its rate deeper than justified by the economy, it could spook financial markets and push Treasury yields higher.

Trump calls Jerome Powell ‘stupid’ as Federal Reserve nears rate decision

Trump criticized the Federal Reserve chairman for not cutting interest rates while the Fed wraps up a two-day policy meeting Wednesday.

The Fed’s policymakers are almost certain to keep their key short-term interest rate unchanged at about 4.3% when they release a statement Wednesday afternoon. They are also expected to signal whether they will to cut rates later this year and by how much.

“So we have a stupid person frankly at the Fed,” Trump said at the White House. “He probably won’t cut today.”

Nippon Steel and US Steel finalize Trump’s ‘golden share’ deal

Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel said Wednesday they have finalized their “historic partnership,” a year-and-a-half after the Japanese company first proposed its deal to buy the iconic American steelmaker for nearly $15 billion.

“Together, Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel will be a world-leading steelmaker, with best-in-class technologies and manufacturing capabilities,” the companies said.

National security concerns and presidential politics forced Nippon Steel to add a so-called “golden share” provision that gives the federal government a say in some matters. The deal’s full terms and a national security agreement struck with Trump’s administration weren’t released.

But their statement said the federal government can appoint an independent director and have “consent rights” on specific matters including any reductions in Nippon Steel’s capital commitments, closing or idling of U.S. Steel’s existing domestic facilities and changing U. S. Steel’s name and headquarters.

▶ Read more about the steel deal

Defense secretary demurs on Iran plans, says decision to attack is Trump’s

Hegseth won’t say whether the U.S. military is planning to actively assist Israel’s attacks on Iran and says the decision lies with Trump.

Hegseth told senators his job is to provide the president with military options, and that he couldn’t discuss questions about military plans in an open hearing.

“Most of what I can or should say would be reserved for a classified setting,” Hegseth said in response to a question from Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-New Hampshire. “Obviously any decisions on this matter are at the presidential level.”

Hegseth is appearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee in open session before lawmakers close the hearing to discuss sensitive defense issues.

Trump says it’s not ‘too late’ for Iran to give up nuclear program

“Nothing’s too late,” Trump said when asked about whether direct U.S. involvement in Israel’s military operations against Iran was becoming inevitable.

“I can tell you this. Iran’s got a lot of trouble” Trump added during an event on the White House South Lawn to watch the raising of a new flagpole.

Iran’s supreme ruler, the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, ruled out Trump’s call for an unconditional surrender, and warned earlier Wednesday that any U.S. strikes targeting the Islamic Republic would “result in irreparable damage” for the United States.

“I say good luck,” Trump said when asked about the supreme leader’s statement.

Supreme Court deals stunning setback to transgender rights in Tennessee case

The Supreme Court has upheld Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for transgender minors, a stunning setback to transgender rights.

The justices’ 6-3 decision effectively protects from legal challenges the many efforts by Trump’s Republican administration and state governments to roll back protections for transgender people. Another 26 states have laws similar to the one in Tennessee.

It comes amid other federal and state efforts to regulate the lives of transgender people, including which sports competitions they can join and which bathrooms they can use. In April, Trump’s administration sued Maine for not complying with the government’s push to ban transgender athletes in girls sports.

▶ Read more about the Supreme Court ruling

No mention of Iran in Hegseth’s opening remarks to Congress

Hegseth has kicked off another day of testimony on Capitol Hill with remarks about his priorities for the military – but no mention of the threats posed by Iran.

Hegseth is testifying Wednesday before the Senate Armed Forces Committee, where he is expected to face questions about the Pentagon’s $1 trillion budget proposal as well as the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran.

He said he’s worked to eliminate wasteful spending while restoring American military dominance, and cited China as a key threat, saying the U.S. military must respond to Beijing’s rapid military buildup in recent years.

The U.S. has positioned significant numbers of refueling tanker and fighter aircraft to be able to respond if needed to the conflict between Israel and Iran, such as possible evacuations or airstrikes to protect U.S. personnel and air bases.

Hegseth may also face questions over the Trump administration’s use of the National Guard and 700 active-duty Marines to respond to protests in Los Angeles.

Steve Bannon says MAGA skeptical of ‘forever wars’

The former Trump adviser’s comments come amid a schism between some in Trump’s base and national security conservatives over potential U.S. involvement in the Israel-Iran conflict.

Speaking to journalists Wednesday at a Christian Science Monitor breakfast in Washington, Bannon said bitter feelings over Iraq were a driving force for Trump’s first presidential candidacy and the MAGA movement.

Terming Fox News “pure propaganda” and saying people are skeptical of the kind of drumbeat that led to the Iraq invasion, Bannon called the sentiment a “huge issue” for a MAGA movement that relies on veterans and parents of veterans.

“Where were they in the darkest days of the MAGA movement?” Bannon asked of Fox. He accused the network of turning its back on Trump after the 2020 election and laying the groundwork for war now.

A split forms in MAGA world as Trump weighs next steps on Iran

A schism has opened among Trump’s most devout MAGA supporters and national security conservatives over the Israel-Iran conflict, as some longtime defenders of the president’s America First mantra call him out for weighing direct U.S. military involvement. Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said Trump should “go all-in” in backing Israel and destroying Iran’s nuclear program. However:

4. Conservative firebrand Charlie Kirk: “The last thing America needs right now is a new war.”

5. Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene: “foreign wars/intervention/regime change put America last, kill innocent people, are making us broke, and will ultimately lead to our destruction.”

6. Commentator Tucker Carlson: “You’re not going to convince me that the Iranian people are my enemy.”

7. Former Trump aide Steve Bannon: “It’s going to not just blow up the coalition ... It’s also going to thwart what we’re doing with the most important thing, which is the deportation” of immigrants in the U.S. illegally.

▶ Read more on the growing schism in MAGA world

Businesses hope to recover after military response to Los Angeles protests

With an overnight curfew lifted but military troops still guarding the the downtown federal detention building, boarded-up businesses in the adjacent Little Tokyo district hope customers will return quickly.

Don Tahara, the owner of Far Bar, said the historic Japanese American neighborhood has lost business and suffered some vandalism and break-ins after thousands of protesters took to the streets in response to Trump’s immigration crackdown.

But Tahara, a third-generation Japanese American immigrant, said the protests are a necessary response, and compared the Trump administration’s immigration raids to the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II.

“The problems that Little Tokyo had 75 years ago was basically the federal government coming in and imprisoning all of them in concentration camps,” Tahara said. “They were uprooted from their homes and businesses, their churches ... we’re seeing a repeat of that.”

Job growth suggests Trump’s trade policies are weighing on economy

So far this year, employers are adding a decent but far from spectacular 124,000 jobs a month, down from an average 168,000 last year and an average of nearly 400,000 from 2021 through 2023.

The slowdown is partly the drawn-out result of 11 interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve in 2022 and 2023. But Trump’s aggressive and often-erratic trade policies — including 10% taxes on imports from almost every country on earth — are also weighing on the economy, paralyzing businesses and worrying consumers who fear they’ll mean higher prices.

The Fed, satisfied that an inflation was coming down, cut rates three times last year. But the central bank has turned cautious in 2025, worried that Trump’s tariffs will rekindle inflationary pressures. The Fed is expected to leave rates unchanged as it wraps up a two-day meeting Wednesday.

Unemployment claims dip amid signs economy is decelerating

The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits dipped to 245,000 last week, hovering at historically low levels, while the Labor Department said the four-week average rose to 245,500, the highest since August 2023.

Weekly unemployment claim are a proxy for layoffs and mostly have stayed within a healthy band of 200,000 to 250,000 since the economy recovered from a brief but painful COVID-19 recession in 2020, which temporarily wiped out millions of jobs.

In recent weeks, however, claims have stayed at the high end of range, adding to evidence that U.S. job market is decelerating after years of strong hiring.

▶ Read more on the latest Labor Department numbers

Hegseth faces more grilling from Congress as Iran-Israel conflict escalates

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is returning to Capitol Hill on Wednesday for the last in a series of often combative hearings before lawmakers, who have pressed him on everything from a ban on transgender troops to his use of a Signal chat to share sensitive military plans.

The questions — which also have touched on his firings of top military leaders and even some of his inner circle of advisers — may be dominated by the escalation of airstrikes between Iran and Israel that threaten a potentially devastating regional war. But he is still expected to face sharp questions about his chaotic tenure, his opposition to women in combat jobs and efforts to shift funding from troop housing to border security.

The U.S. has shifted significant numbers of refueling tankers and fighter aircraft to position them to be able to respond if needed to the conflict, such as possible evacuations or airstrikes. Hegseth said this week that was done to protect U.S. personnel and airbases.

▶ Read more about Hegseth’s upcoming hearing

Trump says new ‘magnificent’ flagpoles to be installed at White House

Trump says that the two new flagpoles he’s paying for will be installed Wednesday on the White House grounds.

The White House broke ground last week on construction projects ordered by Trump to pave over the grass in the Rose Garden and install flagpoles on the north and south lawns.

The projects are part of a series of personal touches that Trump, a real estate developer turned politician, has added or is adding to the Executive Mansion and its grounds since he opened his second term in January.

“These are the most magnificent poles made,” Trump said in a social media posting “They are tall, tapered, rust proof, rope inside the pole, and of the highest quality. Hopefully, they will proudly stand at both sides of the White House for many years to come!”

36 countries face Wednesday deadline to commit to addressing US travel concerns

A weekend diplomatic cable sent by the State Department instructs embassies and consulates in the 36 countries, mostly in Africa, to gauge willingness to commit to improving their citizens’ travel documentation and take steps to address the status of their nationals in the U.S. illegally.

Countries that fail to address the concerns within 60 days risk being added to the U.S. travel ban.

The cable says the countries should reply by Wednesday 8 pm ET. There is no specific consequence outlined for countries that do not respond or commit.

State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce declined to comment on the specifics in the cable, which was described to The Associated Press, but said the administration wanted nations to improve their own vetting processes for passport-holders, accept their nationals deported from the U.S. and take other steps to ensure their citizens are not a threat to the U.S.

The Washington Post first reported on the cable.