The Latest: Federal judge blocks Trump administration decision to bar foreign students at Harvard

White House conducting massive overhaul of National Security Council, officials say

The overhaul Trump is ordering will shrink the NSC’s size, lead to the ouster of some political appointees and return many career appointees to their home agencies, according to two U.S. officials and a person familiar with the reorganization.

The move is expected to significantly reduce the number of staff at the NSC, according to the officials, who requested anonymity to discuss the sensitive personnel matter. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has been serving as national security adviser since early this month following the ouster of Mike Waltz, who was then nominated for ambassador to the United Nations.

The NSC has been in a continual state of tumult early in Trump's second term. Waltz was ousted weeks after Trump announced the firing of several NSC officials, a day after far-right activist Laura Loomer raised concerns directly to him about staff loyalty.

— Matthew Lee, Aamer Madhani and Seung Min Kim

Venezuelan workers at Disney put on leave after losing temporary protective status

The 45 employees were placed on leave after the Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to strip their legal protections.

The move aims to ensure that the employees are not violating the law, Disney said Friday. The workers will continue to get benefits.

“We are committed to protecting the health, safety, and well-being of all our employees who may be navigating changing immigration policies and how they could impact them or their families,” the company said in a statement.

About two-thirds of the workers are in union jobs. The contract for Walt Disney World service workers in Florida allows them to be reinstated without loss of seniority or benefits once they provide proper work authorization within one year, according to union official Julee Jerkovich.

“It’s very distressing,” Jerkovich said. “Disney is being made to be the bad guy, but they didn’t have any choice.”

▶ Read more about the workers

Bruce Springsteen’s lyrical view of America has long included politics — even more so as he ages

Even as his fame and wealth have soared over the decades, Springsteen has retained the voice of the working class' balladeer, often weighing in on politics. This month, though, his music and public statements have ended up as particularly pointed and contentious.

At a concert in England, Springsteen denounced Trump's politics, calling him an "unfit president" leading a "rogue government" of people who have "no concern or idea for what it means to be deeply American."

"The America I love, the America I've written about that has been a beacon of hope and liberty for 250 years is currently in the hands of a corrupt, incompetent and treasonous administration," Springsteen said in words he included on a digital EP released a few days later.

Trump shot back and called Springsteen highly overrated. "Never liked him, never liked his music or his Radical Left Politics and, importantly, he's not a talented guy — just a pushy, obnoxious JERK," he wrote on social media.

▶ Read more about Springsteen lyrics that ventured into current events and the plights of people caught up in them

Apple has had few incentives in the past to start making iPhones in US

Lashing out at Apple's plans to make most of its U.S. iPhones in India, the president threatened to slap a 25% tariff on the popular device unless the tech giant starts building the product in its home country — a move that still seems unlikely to happen any time soon, if ever.

For decades Apple has been building most of its devices in China, where it has invested tens of billions of dollars in massive factories that rely on a vast network of local suppliers. The company’s reliance on a crucial pipeline outside the U.S. thrust the technology trendsetter into the crosshairs of Trump’s trade war.

In response to Trump's tussle with China, Apple CEO Tim Cook said this month that most iPhones sold in the U.S. during the March-June period would come from India. Although Trump decided in late April to temporarily exempt the iPhone and other electronics from most of his initial tariffs, Cook said the trade war would end up costing Apple an additional $900 million during the March-June period.

▶ Read more about Apple's production

Judge orders restoration of research removed from federal website for using ‘LGBTQ’ and ‘transgender’

The U.S. District judge issued his order Friday. He said the plaintiffs in a lawsuit, two Harvard Medical School doctors, were likely to succeed because the removal of their articles “was a textbook example of viewpoint discrimination.”

On his first day back in the White House, Trump signed an order for agencies to use the term "sex" and not "gender" in federal policies and documents.

That has led to multiple health-related webpages and datasets being removed, including from the Patient Safety Network, a website for doctors and medical researchers to share information about medical errors. The website is run by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, which is under the Department of Health and Human Services.

The ACLU says the two articles at question in the lawsuit included one on commonly missed and delayed diagnosis involving endometriosis that had one sentence about diagnosis in transgender and gender-nonconforming people. The second focused on suicide risk oversights in emergency and primary care settings that included a sentence on heightened risk in LGBTQ communities.

Trump approves FEMA disaster relief for 8 states

The president green-lit disaster relief for eight states Friday, assistance that some of the communities rocked by natural disasters have been waiting on for months.

The major disaster declaration approvals allow Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Mississippi, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas access to financial support through the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Several states requested the aid in response to damage from a massive storm system in mid-March.

“This support will go a long way in helping Mississippi to rebuild and recover. Our entire state is grateful for his approval,” said Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves, whose state experienced 18 tornados between March 14 and 15.

Mississippi residents in the hard-hit Walthall County expressed frustration earlier this month over how long they had been waiting for federal help. The county's emergency manager said debris removal operations stalled in early May when the county ran out of money while awaiting federal assistance.

Trump’s latest tariff threats knock Wall Street, European stocks and Apple lower

U.S. stocks fell after the president threatened 50% tariffs on the European Union that could begin in a little more than a week.

The S&P 500 lost 0.7% to close out its worst week in the last seven, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 256 points, or 0.6%, and the Nasdaq composite sank 1%.

Trump threatened the tariffs before the U.S. stock market opened, saying on his Truth Social platform that trade talks with the European Union “were going nowhere” and that “straight 50%” tariffs could take effect June 1.

Apple dropped 3% and was the heaviest weight on the S&P 500 after Trump went after the company specifically. He said he's been pushing Apple CEO Tim Cook to move production of iPhones to the United States, and he warned a tariff "of at least 25% must be paid by Apple to the U.S." if it doesn't.

Trump later clarified his post to say that all smart phones made abroad would be taxed and the tariffs could be coming as soon as the end of June.

Privacy and hunger groups sue over USDA attempt to collect personal data of SNAP recipients

Privacy and hunger relief groups and a handful of people receiving food assistance benefits are suing the federal government over the administration's attempts to collect the personal information of millions of U.S. residents who use the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

The lawsuit filed in Washington, D.C., on Thursday says the U.S. Department of Agriculture violated federal privacy laws when it ordered states and vendors to turn over five years of data about food assistance program applicants and enrollees, including names, birth dates, addresses and Social Security numbers.

The lawsuit “seeks to ensure that the government is not exploiting our most vulnerable citizens by disregarding longstanding privacy protections,” National Student Legal Defense Network attorney Daniel Zibel wrote in the complaint. The Electronic Privacy Information Center and Mazon Inc.: A Jewish Response to Hunger joined the four food assistance recipients in bringing the lawsuit.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Trump administration sues 4 New Jersey cities over ‘sanctuary’ policies

The administration sued over the cities’ policies aimed at prohibiting police from cooperating with immigration officials, saying the local governments are standing in the way of federal enforcement.

The Justice Department filed the suit in federal court Thursday against Newark, Jersey City, Paterson and Hoboken. The lawsuit seeks a judgment against the cities and an injunction to halt them from enacting so-called sanctuary city policies.

“While states and local governments are free to stand aside as the United States performs this important work, they cannot stand in the way,” the suit says.

Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, who is seeking the Democratic nomination for governor, decried the lawsuit and said people are more likely to report crimes when they are not living in fear of deportation.

“The lawsuit against Newark is absurd. We are not standing in the way of public safety,” Baraka said.

The administration previously sued Chicago, Denver, the state of Colorado, and Rochester, New York.

Trump administration takes first steps in easing sanctions on Syria

The administration granted Syria a six-month waiver from one crippling set of sanctions and eased restrictions on businesses as a first step in his pledge to end a half-century of penalties.

The moves follow Trump's announcement last week that the U.S. would ease heavy financial penalties targeting Syria's former autocratic rulers — in a bid to give the new interim government a better chance of survival after a 13-year civil war.

Friday’s two measures by the State and Treasury Departments waive a tough set of sanctions imposed by Congress in 2019 and expand rules for what activities foreign businesses can do in Syria. The administration did not say how long it would waive the congressional sanctions, but the law itself limits any presidential waiver to six months.

▶ Read more about Syria and sanctions

Federal judge permanently blocks enforcement of Trump executive order against Jenner & Block

A federal judge has permanently blocked another of the president’s executive orders targeting a major law firm.

U.S. District Judge John Bates said in a ruling Friday that the order against the law firm of Jenner & Block violates the Constitution and cannot be enforced.

The ruling comes just weeks after a different judge blocked a similar order against the Perkins Coie law firm.

The spate of executive orders from Trump sought to impose identical consequences against firms out of favor with the president, including by mandating the suspension of lawyers who worked there.

Bates said the orders seek to “chill legal representation the administration doesn’t like, thereby insulating the Executive Branch from the judicial check fundamental to the separation of powers.”

Trump says US Steel will keep HQ in Pittsburgh as part of $14B ‘partnership’ with Japan’s Nippon

The president said Friday that the iconic American steelmaker will keep its headquarters in Pittsburgh as part of what he called a “planned partnership” with Japan-based Nippon Steel.

Nippon's nearly $15 billion bid to buy U.S. Steel was blocked by former President Joe Biden and, after Trump became president, subjected to another national security review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.

Trump said in a statement that “after much consideration and negotiation, US Steel will REMAIN in America, and keep its Headquarters in the Great City of Pittsburgh.”

The partnership will create at least 70,000 jobs and add $14 billion to the U.S. economy, he said, although it wasn’t clear what the terms of the deal would be or who would own U.S. Steel under the arrangement.

The companies did not immediately comment.

▶ Read more about U.S. Steel

Gold watches and field greens: Entrepreneur’s video offers a glimpse inside Trump’s crypto dinner

Chinese-born cryptocurrency entrepreneur Justin Sun has posted a video of his experience at Trump's crypto dinner.

The 37-second presentation features a soaring instrumental soundtrack and professional-quality camera work.

It shows off a menu that included “Trump organic field green salad,” and an investor leaderboard autographed by those whose names were on it -- with Sun at the top.

There are also shots of attendees taking selfies and tossing baseball caps skyward, as Sun being awarded a flashy gold watch that attendees investing the most in the meme coin received from the Trump Organization, the Trump family’s business.

Trump doesn't appear in the video. But the president addressed the dinner which was held Thursday night at his gold club outside Washington for the top 220 investors in his meme coin.

The top investor was Sun, who is famous for buying a piece of conceptual art consisting of a banana duct-taped to a wall, for $6.2 million, and later eating the banana.

Former professional basketball player and reality TV star Lamar Odom also attended. Odom has recently launched his own meme coin.

Justice Department and Boeing reach deal allowing airplane giant to avoid prosecution over 737 Max crashes

The Justice Department has reached a deal with Boeing that will allow the company to avoid criminal prosecution for allegedly misleading U.S. regulators about the 737 Max jetliner before two of the planes crashed and killed 346 people, according to court papers filed Friday.

The Justice Department said in a court filing that it had reached an “agreement in principle” that will require the company to pay and invest more than $1.1 billion. In return, the department will dismiss the criminal case against the aircraft manufacturer. The deal still needs to be finalized.

Paul Cassell, an attorney for many of the families in the long-running case, had previously said said his clients strongly oppose dropping the criminal case.

Many relatives of the passengers who died in the crashes, which took place off the coast of Indonesia and in Ethiopia less than five months apart in 2018 and 2019, have spent years pushing for a public trial, the prosecution of former company officials, and more severe financial punishment for Boeing.

Trump says of foreign students at US universities, ‘we don’t want troublemakers here’

Asked if he was considering restrictions on other universities, Trump said, “We’re taking a look at a lot of things.”

“Harvard’s going to have to change its ways. So are some others,” the president told reporters in the Oval Office.

Asked if he still wanted top foreign students to study in the U.S., Trump responded, “I do. But a lot of the people need remedial math” and suggested some even go to Harvard.

“How would somebody who can’t add -- or has very basic skills -- how do they get into Harvard? Why are they there?,” he demanded. “And then, you see those same people picketing and screaming at the United States.”

Trump added: “We don’t want troublemakers here.”

Trump says tariffs coming for all foreign-made smart phones, not just Apple products

President Donald Trump said he would threaten tariffs on all smartphone makers who make their products abroad, not just Apple as he had threatened in a Friday social media post.

“It would be also Samsung and anybody that makes that product,” Trump said. “Otherwise, it wouldn’t be fair.”

Trump said the new tariffs would come out at the end of June. He said he had an understanding with Apple CEO Tim Cook that his company would not relocate production to India to avoid Trump’s tariffs on Chinese goods.

Trump said he’s confident that companies can move their factories to the U.S. because “a lot of it is so computerized now.”

An interruption in the Oval Office

Right after Trump spoke about tariffs on foreign-made smartphones, the president’s own phone started ringing.

The first time, he pretended to answer before cancelling the call.

“It’s only a congressman,” he joked with a smile.

The phone rang again almost immediately.

“It’s a different congressman,” he said.

Trump says he’s not looking for a tariff deal with EU

President Donald Trump said he’s not seeking a deal with the European Union after announcing plans to put a 50% tax on its goods in June.

“I’m not looking for a deal,” Trump told the reporters at the Oval Office. “We’ve set the deal. It’s at 50%.”

Trump said he objected to the trade deficit in goods with the EU and wanted European governments to provide greater access to American-made autos. But he defended his aggressive tariff hike by saying: “It’s time that we play the game the way I know how to play the game, you know.”

Still, Trump indicated that he could change or delay the tariff rates if European companies made commitments to build factories inside the U.S.

Trump has ambitious — and unlikely — goals for nuclear energy

The president signed an executive order that his staff said would help quadruple the amount of nuclear power generation over 25 years.

“It’s exciting, right?” Trump said as people clapped in the Oval Office.

Meeting such a goal could prove very difficult. Nuclear plants are costly and highly regulated, and only one new one has been built in the last four decades.

Nuclear energy executive appeals to Trump

Jacob DeWitte, the chief executive of Oklo, a nuclear energy company, brought a prop that might appeal to the president — a golf ball.

Holding up the ball in the Oval Office, he said that amount of uranium can power someone’s needs for their entire life.

“It doesn’t get any better than that,” he said.

“Very exciting indeed,” Trump said.

Trump prepares to sign executive orders on nuclear energy

The president kicked off an event in the Oval Office with top administration officials and energy executives. He said that nuclear is a “hot industry” and his executive orders will “make us the real power.”

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said Trump was helping to roll back decades of overregulation.

“This is a huge day for the nuclear history. Mark this day on your calendar.”

Japan will keep pushing for US to drop tariffs, PM Ishiba says after phone talks with Trump

Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Friday that he spoke by telephone with Trump and agreed to hold "productive" discussions at an upcoming round of tariff talks between the two sides.

“Investment, not tariffs,” Ishiba told reporters after the talks. He said Japan’s position to keep pushing Washington to drop all recent tariff measures is unchanged and that he stands by plans to push for Japanese investment to create more jobs in the U.S. in exchange.

The two leaders held talks just after Economic Revitalization Minister Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's chief tariff negotiator, headed to Washington for a third round of talks with his U.S. counterparts. In the earlier rounds of talks, the U.S. had not agreed to the Japanese requests.

The U.S. is charging a 25% tariff on imports of autos, a mainstay of Japan's trade with the U.S. and a key driver of growth for the economy. Trump has relaxed some of those tariffs but has kept in place higher tariffs on steel and aluminum.

Federal judge blocks Trump administration decision to bar foreign student enrollment at Harvard

The temporary restraining order stops the government from pulling Harvard’s certification in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program, which allows the school to host international students with visas to study in the U.S.

Harvard filed the lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts earlier Friday.

Trump administration investigates border shelters for smuggling, then sends them more immigrants

The Trump administration has continued releasing people charged with being in the country illegally to nongovernmental shelters along the U.S.-Mexico border after telling those organizations that providing migrants with temporary housing and other aid may violate a law used to prosecute smugglers.

Border shelters, which have long provided lodging, meals and transportation to the nearest bus station or airport, were rattled by a letter from the Federal Emergency Management Agency that raised "significant concerns" about potentially illegal activity and demanded detailed information in a wide-ranging investigation. FEMA suggested shelters may have committed felony offenses against bringing people across the border illegally or transporting them within the United States.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement continued to ask shelters in Texas and Arizona to house people even after the March 11 letter, putting them in the awkward position of doing something FEMA appeared to say might be illegal. Both agencies are part of the Department of Homeland Security.

▶ Read more about border shelters for immigrants

Omani mediator says Iran-US talks made ‘some but not conclusive progress’

Oman’s foreign minister said Friday that the fifth round of Iran-U.S. negotiations had made ”some but not conclusive progress.”

Badr al-Busaidi made the comment on the social platform X after the talks ended in Rome.

Iranian and American officials offered no immediate comment.

“The fifth round of Iran US talks have concluded today in Rome with some but not conclusive progress,” al-Busaidi wrote. “We hope to clarify the remaining issues in the coming days, to allow us to proceed towards the common goal of reaching a sustainable and honourable agreement.”

Iran and US conclude their fifth round of nuclear negotiations in Rome with enrichment a key issue

That’s according to Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, who made the comment on the messaging app Telegram, posting a picture of him talking with Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi, who mediated the discussions.

There was no immediate acknowledgment from the American side. Iran said U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff left early to catch a flight while others stayed behind for technical talks.

▶ Read more about nuclear talks between the U.S. and Iran

Vance: Trump administration won’t be launching any more ‘undefined missions’ or ‘open-ended conflicts’

Addressing graduation at the U.S. Naval Academy, the vice president said the alternative will be quicker-hit military actions.

As an example, he pointed to the bombing Trump recently ordered — then paused — against Houthis rebels in Yemen.

“That’s how military power should be used. Decisively with a clear objective,” he said.

Vance added, “When we throw a punch, we throw a punch hard, and we do it decisively. And that’s exactly what we may ask you to do.”

Vance also criticized a Biden administration effort to build a pier in Gaza to accept aid amid Israel's war with Hamas there which he suggested never worked.

DOGE targets Census Bureau, worrying data users about health of US data infrastructure

The group launched by Elon Musk to cut federal spending in the second Trump administration is targeting some U.S. Census Bureau surveys it claims are "wasteful," worrying users of federal data who are already concerned about the health of the nation's statistical infrastructure.

The Department of Government Efficiency said on social media this week that five surveys costing $16.5 million that are conducted by the statistical agency for other federal agencies have been "terminated." It didn't specify which ones. The DOGE post said some of the questions on the eliminated surveys asked about alcohol consumption and the frequency of home internet use.

Other surveys are being reviewed “one-by-one,” said Tuesday’s post on DOGE’s X account. The Census Bureau didn’t respond this week to an inquiry seeking comment.

▶ Read more about DOGE and the Census Bureau

Trump’s team is divided on how to tackle the president’s vow to ease sanctions on Syria

Since Trump announced his intent to end a half-century of U.S. sanctions on Syria, a tug-of-war has developed in his administration over how quickly and thoroughly that should happen.

At risk could be the future of a transitional government run by those who drove Syrian leader Bashar Assad from power late last year and hopes that it can stabilize the country after a devastating 13-year civil war that has left millions dead or displaced, the economy in ruins and thousands of foreign fighters still on Syrian soil.

U.S. presidents have piled up penalties over the years on the autocratic family that previously controlled Syria, and those could be quickly lifted or waived through executive action. But Congress imposed some of the strictest measures and would have to permanently remove them.

▶ Read more about sanctions on Syria

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

Credit: AP