Watch now   BREAKING: Iran Threatened to Unleash Sleeper Cells in the United States if Trump Attacked Aaron Parnas Jun 22 Good evening everyone. Right now, the primary thing dominating the headlines is the United States strikes in Iran and Iran’s response. As a result, this update will list everything you missed over the past several hours. I am going to try to go live later tonight as well. If you believe in independent journalism that speaks truth to power, now’s the time to support it. A subscription helps keep this work going—unfiltered, relentless, and accountable. With that, here’s the news: Iran Threatens Terror Attacks Inside U.S. Iran sent a communiqué to Trump before last night’s attacks, threatening to activate sleeper-cell terror inside the U.S. if Iran were attacked (NBC News sources). State Department Issues Worldwide Security Alert U.S. citizens advised to exercise increased caution globally. Iran-Backed Militias Preparing to Attack U.S. Bases American military and intelligence officials detect signs that Iran-backed militias are preparing attacks on U.S. bases in Iraq and possibly Syria (NYT source). Trump Endorses Regime Change in Iran Trump: “If the current Iranian regime is unable to MAKE IRAN GREAT AGAIN, why wouldn't there be a regime change?" Israeli Air Force Strikes Iranian Air Defenses at U.S. Request Israeli Air Force targeted multiple Iranian air defense systems in the 48 hours prior to U.S. strike on Fordow nuclear facility (per Trump administration request). France Sends Evacuation Aircraft to Israel France dispatches A400M military aircraft to Israel to fly out French citizens to Cyprus (AFP). UK, France, Germany Issue Joint Statement Call for Iran to engage in negotiations on its nuclear program. Urge Iran to avoid further destabilizing actions. Reiterate that Iran must never acquire a nuclear weapon or threaten regional security. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio Comments No planned military operations against Iran at this time. States “no one will know for days” whether Iran moved nuclear materials before the strikes (CBS interview). IAEA Confirms Damage to Isfahan Nuclear Complex Entrances to underground tunnels at Iran’s Isfahan nuclear complex were hit in U.S. strikes (IAEA statement via Reuters). Oil Markets React to Escalation Oil markets respond sharply to Washington’s surprise attack on Iranian nuclear sites, escalating Iran-Israel tensions and raising concerns over global crude supply. Iran produced ~3.3 million barrels per day in May (OPEC report, independent estimates). Risk to broader Middle East oil shipments if Iran or its proxies attempt to block the critical Strait of Hormuz. Abrego Garcia Ruling Magistrate judge rules Abrego Garcia should not be detained on his criminal charges. Despite the ruling, he is still likely to remain in ICE custody. Florida Abortion Law Controversy One month into Florida’s six-week abortion ban, Rep. Kat Cammack says she struggled to obtain ER care for an ectopic pregnancy. Cammack blames the political left for the healthcare difficulties (WSJ). See you this evening again probably. — Aaron

Today in Politics, Bulletin 143. 6/2/25 Ron Filipkowski Jun 2 ∙ … Stephen Miller summoned 50 senior ICE officials from around the country for a bonkers emergency meeting about deportation numbers, according to a new report from the conservative Washington Examiner. One official after the meeting: “They’ve been threatened, told they’re watching their emails and texts and Signals. That’s what is horrible about things right now. It’s a fearful environment. Everybody in leadership is afraid. There’s no morale. Everybody is demoralized.” … “Miller came in there and eviscerated everyone. ‘You guys aren’t doing a good job. You’re horrible leaders.’ He just ripped into everybody. He had nothing positive to say about anybody, shot morale down. Stephen Miller wants everybody arrested. ‘Why aren’t you at Home Depot? Why aren’t you at 7-Eleven?'” … One official stood up and told Miller that DHS and the WH said they were only supposed to be focused on migrants who had criminal records: “Miller said, ‘What do you mean you’re only going after criminals?’ Miller got into a little bit of a pissing contest. ‘That’s what Tom Homan says every time he’s on TV: ‘We’re going after criminals,'” the ICE official told Miller.” … Apparently what they say to the public is not the same as what they are saying internally to senior ICE officials. … The Richmond Times-Dispatch reported that DHS’s controversial list of “sanctuary jurisdictions” for immigrants has been taken down from their website. … Immigration expert Aaron Reichlin-Melnick: “The amateurs running DHS put up a list of ‘sanctuary jurisdictions’ which included county governments which don't exist, misspelled cities, and sheriffs' departments which say they DO fully collaborate with ICE. The list has already been taken down after intense pushback.” … Reuters reported that Trump’s new FEMA chief David Richardson stunned his own staffers today when he said during a briefing that he had not been aware the country has a hurricane season. Reuters: “The US hurricane season officially began on Sunday and lasts through November. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecast last week that this year's season is expected to bring as many as 10 hurricanes.” … Trump fired his first FEMA chief Cameron Hamilton last month, one day after he testified to Congress that he doesn’t think his agency should be abolished. Richardson is the upgrade. What could go wrong? … TACO Trump is caving to Iran on negotiations over their nuke program, based on new reporting from both Axios and Reuters. First, a senior diplomat close to Iran’s negotiators told Reuters that the country was about to reject the Trump admin’s nuke proposal: "Iran is drafting a negative response to the US proposal, which could be interpreted as a rejection of the US offer." … “After 5 rounds of discussions between Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi and US envoy Steve Witkoff, several obstacles remain. Trump's revival of ‘maximum pressure’ against Tehran has included tightening sanctions and threatening to bomb Iran if the negotiations yield no deal. During his first term in 2018, Trump ditched Tehran's 2015 nuclear pact with 6 powers. Iran responded by escalating enrichment far beyond the pact's limits.” … But then Axios reported that Witkoff is offering Iran a new proposal that is much more favorable to Iran and is likely to infuriate other countries in the region such as Israel since it would allow limited uranium enrichment by Iran. Both Witkoff and Sec of State Marco Rubio have said publicly that the US would not allow Iran to enrich uranium and would demand that they completely disband their nuke facilities. … Axios: “Iran has consistently said it won't sign any deal that bans enrichment for civilian purposes — a red line that is irreconcilable with the US public posture. By making this offer, the Trump admin is risking backlash from its allies on the Hill and in Israel. PM Netanyahu's govt and dozens of Republican senators have pushed the admin to maintain red lines on zero nuclear enrichment and the full dismantlement of Iran's nuclear program.” … At least 11 major companies have cut ties with the law firms that surrendered to Trump’s executive order extortion attempt. A WSJ report notes that some of those companies have moved their business over to the specific firms who are fighting Trump’s orders in court. Businesses who have left the weak appeasers include Oracle, Morgan Stanley, an unnamed airline, a pharmaceutical company, and McDonald’s. … The trial for Dominion’s defamation lawsuit against pillow-man Mike Lindell started today. Lindell to Rolling Stone: "Of course I'm gonna testify at my own trial! I have nothing to hide. I am a former crack addict. I've always been open about that. I've always been open about everything! I'm as transparent as they come. So I have nothing to hide at this trial." Lindell also claimed that he is broke so they can’t get any money from him. … Outside the courthouse, Lindell was asked who masterminded the alleged theft of the 2020 election from Trump: “Who’s behind it all? Satan. This is a nation that’s turn its back on God.” He then claimed that he is being railroaded because the state of Colorado deleted all the evidence that he needed to prove his innocence. Things are going well. … CNBC reported that Trump’s announcement on Friday that he is going to increase tariffs on steel imports 25-50% this Wed shocked US businesses who rely on imported steel. Steel market analyst Josh Spoore: "This was an absolute surprise. Already steel prices in the US are higher than anywhere else, and it is a net importer which needs to have volumes coming in. All this does is raise prices there. Autos, construction products and appliances are all products that are going to feel the impact." … US companies import steel from Canada, Mexico, Brazil, South Korea and Germany. We will see if TACO Trump makes an appearance before Wednesday to cave on this too after hearing from his CEO friends. … Many of Trump’s own MAGA supporters are outraged about the recent report in the NYT about his plans to develop a massive database of private data on Americans. The Trump admin is using the tech firm Palantir, which was co-founded by Musk’s former mentor Peter Thiel. WH spokesman Taylor Rogers to Newsweek: "President Trump signed an executive order to eliminate information silos and streamline data collection across all agencies to increase govt efficiency and save hard-earned taxpayer dollars." … Jason Bassler, co-founder of The Free Thought Project: “This Palantir database isn't like the others. It will combine: Tax filings, Student debt, Social Security, Bank accounts, Medical claims, Immigration status. No previous database system has ever centralized this much personal info across various federal agencies." … Rep. Warren Davidson (R-OH), a staunch Trump supporter, doesn’t like it: “Tolkien was a genius. Lord of the Rings conveys inevitable truths. We cannot allow one ring to rule them all to be built - or, having been built, it must be defeated and destroyed. No digital ID. No CBDC. No surveillance state.” Forgot to report on my Rhode Island trip. Newport Gilden Age mansions were cool, but the highlight was the Providence food tour. Guide was a theater grad from Brown who is now a chef and food tour guide. 4th Gen Providence and 100% Italian. She took us to local seafood shack, a vegan place, an African place, a local brewery, a pastry place, and a Mexican place. All local owners, some immigrants, great history and food. If you missed yesterday’s Bulletin, you can find it here. Thank you for supporting and sharing my work! … China accused the US today of violating the terms of their 90-day trade truce that partially reduced the draconian tariffs put in place after Trump took office. Conversely, Trump is claiming that China “totally violated” the agreement. … NBC: “The Chinese Commerce Ministry said that while China had implemented and actively upheld the deal, the US had introduced a series of ‘discriminatory and restrictive measures against China’ that ‘severely undermine’ the agreement. The ministry said those measures included AI chip export controls, a reported pause on the sale of chip design software to China, and the announcement of US plans to revoke the visas of Chinese students.” … China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs also issued a statement about SecDef Pete Hegseth’s recent remarks in the region, which it says were “filled with provocations and intended to sow discord. Hegseth deliberately ignored the call for peace and development by countries in the region, and instead touted the Cold War mentality for bloc confrontation, vilified China with defamatory allegations, and falsely called China a ‘threat’.” … Putin-loving Trump supporters continue to complain about Ukraine destroying a big chunk of Russia’s long-range bombers. Steve Bannon claimed that Zelensky is trying to escalate the war: “Something is very, very wrong here. If the WH was unaware of this Ukrainian drone attack, they should condemn this attack today and pull all support for Ukraine today. If we did not know about it, that’s dragging us into it.” … Putin finally responded to the attack: "Ukraine attacked our air bases where Russian strategic bombers are located. They proved that there can be no peaceful solution. They have prepared their own end with this action, there is no more red line, they will regret what they did." … Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE): “The idea that Ukraine's strike on Russian military assets this weekend is an escalation is ridiculous. Russian bombers have been launching attacks on Ukrainian soil for years. If Putin wants to protect his bombers from Ukraine, he shouldn't use them to attack Ukraine.” … Multiple news agencies are reporting huge traffic jams in Russia as they are stopping and checking every truck on major roadways to search for possible Ukrainian drones hidden inside. … The latest round of talks between Russia and Ukraine took place in Turkey today, and the meeting ended after just over an hour with very little getting done. Ukraine provided Russia with a detailed blueprint for peace a few days before the meeting, but Russia had no interest in discussing it. Russia showed up and handed Ukraine negotiators a list of preposterous demands that are virtually the same as those they presented last month for total surrender. … The Economist reported that both sides agreed to return 6,000 dead bodies of soldiers to each other, another 1,000-1,200 POWs will be exchanged, and all seriously wounded prisoners will be exchanged. Also: “Ukrainian side passed on list of 100s of children deported to Russia. A source with knowledge of the exchanges says head of Russian delegation Vladimir Medinsky responded: ‘Don’t put on a show for bleeding-heart European old ladies with no children of their own.’” … Independent journalist Jay in Kyiv: “The result of talks in Istanbul further demonstrates that Russia is now engaged in a series of pointless meetings that give appearance of ‘negotiations’ so that Trump continues blocking new sanctions.” … Democratic State Rep. J.D. Scholten announced that he is running against Sen. Joni Ernst after her flippant and callous comment at a town hall where she downplayed cuts to Medicaid since “we are all going to die,” then made it worse by issuing a sarcastic fake apology video where she equated concern about losing Medicaid to believing in the Tooth Fairy. … Scholten told Politico he had been considering a run for a while, but Ernst’s Medicaid comments made the decision for him: “I just felt, you know, I have to do this. Now’s the time, and rather than being perfect with everything, I just feel like you got to do it. We’re taking them off Medicaid, so billionaires can have a second yacht, so they can have a bigger tax break. We have a system that’s geared towards and favors billionaires and huge multinational corps, and that’s not working for most of Iowa.”  1 IN 5 AMERICANS ARE ON MEDICAID … Fox’s report on the suspect in custody for the Boulder attack on Jewish-Americans: “The Boulder terror suspect is an Egyptian national in the US illegally as a visa overstay. Mohamed Sabry Soliman arrived at LAX on 8/27/22 on a B1/B2 nonimmigrant visa with an authorized stay through 2/26/23, but he overstayed and never left. On 9/29/22, he filed an asylum claim, and on 3/29/23, USCIS under the Biden admin gave him work authorization, which expired on 3/28/25.” … Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) has launched a new PAC called the American Mobilization Project, which will award $400,000 to organizations that oppose cuts to Medicaid and register young people to vote. A aide to Murphy told Politico that the PAC is expected to spend a total of $2 million in key battleground states for the midterms. … Politico: “Murphy has worked to grow his profile and staked out ground as one of the Democratic Party’s most outspoken critics of the president’s efforts to bend institutions to his will. Murphy has appeared on numerous podcasts, held town halls across the country and churned out a steady stream of content on social media. In the run-up to presidential campaigns, would-be candidates often launch new PACs or outside groups, which can be used to expand their visibility, build their email lists and cultivate political relationships.” … But Murphy says this isn’t about him running for president: “I don’t think it’s a foregone conclusion there’s going to be an election in 2026 or 2028 for anybody to run in if we don’t do the work right now. I hope that this PAC is going to act very differently than everybody else’s PAC because it’s not about banking money or using money for a political campaign or for other people’s political campaigns. It’s about mobilization.” … Both things can be true. I think he’s probably running in 2028. … Journalist Aaron Rupar, who covers Fox: “Mentions on this morning's Fox & Friends: Medicaid-1. Biden-39.” The Tapper book has provided Fox with a month of daily content. … Conservative Karol Nawrocki won a narrow victory in that country’s presidential election over Warsaw Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski. AP: “Most day-to-day power in the Polish political system rests with a prime minister chosen by the parliament. However, the president’s role is not merely ceremonial. The office holds the power to influence foreign policy and to veto legislation. Nawrocki will succeed conservative Andrzej Duda.” … Nawrocki is a strong supporter of NATO, is very anti-Russian, and most of the areas where he differed with Trzaskowski have been domestic policy. However, Nawrocki has also been critical of some of the comments Zelensky has made about Poland and said that Ukrainian war refugees in Poland have been too big of a drain on govt resources. Members of the Trump admin were vocal supporters of Nawrocki, with Kristi Noem even stating that US support for Poland could go away if he wasn’t elected. … NBC: “The Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear two major gun cases challenging a MD law that bans assault-style weapons, including the AR-15 semiautomatic rifle that has been used in high-profile mass shootings, and a RI restriction on large-capacity magazines. As a result, the two laws remain in effect. Litigation over similar bans across the country is ongoing, and the issue is likely to return to the justices.” … Justices Thomas, Alito and Gorsuch wanted to hear the Maryland case, but it takes 4 Justices to vote to accept a case. … 300 billboards from the nonprofit labor group More Perfect Union have gone up in high-traffic areas in key locations across AZ, NV, OH, PA, and FL highlighting the impacts of DOGE cuts to the federal workforce. NBC: “Not far from the glittering casino lights of the Strip, motorists pass a dire message for the upcoming summer tourism season. A billboard mimicking a postcard from one of the most extreme places on the continent reads: ‘Greetings from Death Valley National Park,’ before a more sinister warning: ‘Heat deaths rise. Safety staff cut. Made possible by DOGE’.”