AI Summary
5 min readThe Pentagon disclosed that the Iran War has cost $25 billion so far, a figure that emerged during Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s first sworn testimony on Capitol Hill since the conflict began. Hegseth was defending the administration’s proposed $1.45 trillion defense budget, which focuses on rebuilding U.S. military industry, but Democratic Representative Adam Smith pressed him on a contradiction: President Trump ordered the attack after claiming last year to have destroyed Iran’s nuclear weapons program. Hegseth responded that the weapons were “underground, they’re buried, and we’re watching them 24/7,” but Smith countered, “We had to start this war, you just said, 60 days ago, because the nuclear weapon was an imminent threat. Now you’re saying that it was completely obliterated?” Hegseth also named Democrats and some Republicans who criticize the war as his biggest adversaries.
Supreme Court ruling on Louisiana’s congressional map draws backlash
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What you'll learn
- 1 (00:03) **Iran War Cost and Pentagon Testimony** - Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth defends a $1.45 trillion defense budget under oath for the first time since the Iran War began.
- 2 (01:05) **Supreme Court Strikes Down Louisiana Congressional District** - The Congressional Black Caucus chair, Yvette Clark, calls the ruling an "outright power grab" that could aid Republican efforts to retain control of the House.
- 3 (01:25) **Jerome Powell to Remain on Fed Board** - The Federal Reserve chair says he will stay on for an undetermined period after his term ends, citing unprecedented legal attacks by the Trump administration.
- 4 (02:15) **Tariff Refund Process Faces Challenges** - Importers have submitted claims for tens of millions of shipments, but roughly a third did not meet technical requirements from U.S. Customs.
- 5 (02:49) **Washington State Governor Orders Immigration Detention Center Inspections** - Governor Bob Ferguson is ordering one of the country's largest detention centers to allow state health inspectors in after three years of refusal.
- 6 (03:56) **Louisiana Grand Jury Indicts Sheriff Over Inmate Escape** - Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hudson faces 30 felony counts, and her CFO faces 20, linked to last year's escape of ten inmates.
- 7 (04:26) **King Charles and Queen Camilla Wrap Up U.S. Visit** - After spending Wednesday in New York City, the royal couple will visit Virginia and participate in a formal farewell event with President Trump at the White House.
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