Live from New York, it’s Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost’s glamorous date night.
The couple stepped out to celebrate the premiere of Scarlett’s new movie Jurassic World Rebirth in New York City June 23.
For the outing, Scarlett looked bridal-esque in a white gown with draped ruffles, while her husband of four yearskept it simple with a matching white suit and sneakers.
In addition to posing with Colin, Scarlett also joined costars Jonathan Bailey and Mahershala Alito celebrate the latest installment in the legendary franchise. In fact, Scarlett wasn’t afraid to show some PDA with Jonathan, as she put her hands on his face and gave him a smooch at one point during their red carpet reunion.
While Scarlett and Colin turned the screening into a sweet night out for just the two of them, it was a full family affair when the Marvel alum was filming, as their son Cosmo, 3, and her daughter Rose, 10—who she shares with ex Romain Dauriac—spent time on the fictional Isla Nublar.
The fire at Hotspur House in Manchester spread to a neighbouring building
A fire that broke out at a landmark Manchester city centre building – causing it to partly collapse – spread to a neighbouring tower block.
Embers from the blaze at Hotspur House reached 1 Cambridge Street, resulting in the evacuation of residents from the building, Greater Manchester Fire And Rescue Service (GMFRS) told the BBC at the scene.
Anyone who has nowhere to go is set to be put up overnight by Manchester City Council.
The fire at the former printing press building broke out at about 17:00 GMT, forcing the cancellation of all trains through Manchester Oxford Road station.
The fire service urged the public to stay away from the area and said 20 fire engines from across Greater Manchester were on the scene.
A spokesperson said the blaze had spread to three floors of Hotspur House, and aerial units had been used to bring the fire under control.
The spokesman added: “The two apartment blocks at number 1 Cambridge Street have been evacuated.
“A cordon is in place on Cambridge Street and we ask that the public stay away from the area.
“Residents nearby should keep doors and windows closed due to smoke in the area.”
The fire service told the BBC at the scene that the fire was no longer a major incident.
Footage taken at the scene showed parts of the building had collapsed.
National Rail said all lines were blocked and warned that services running through the station may be cancelled or delayed until 21:00 BST.
It said rail replacement buses were running for Northern customers from Manchester Oxford Road at 18:20 BST and 18:25, calling at all stops to Warrington Central.
There have been no further updates on disruption to rail services.
JMG Press
Part of the former Hotspur Press appears to have collapsed due to the fire
Major fire breaks out in Manchester city centre
Buses were also leaving Warrington Central at the same times, calling at all stops to Manchester Oxford Road.
A bus will depart Manchester Oxford Road at 19:00, calling at all stops to Earlestown.
TransPennine Express said rail replacement buses had been requested for the following routes:
Manchester Piccadilly to Liverpool Lime Street in both directions
Manchester Piccadilly to Preston in both directions
East Midlands Railway said it had bus replacements services on standby at Warrington Central, Stockport and Sheffield.
TransPennine Express said customers at Liverpool Lime Street could use their ticket at no extra cost to travel on TransPennine Express services to Manchester Victoria.
It also advised customers at Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Oxford Road to use the free Transport for Greater Manchester bus link to Manchester Victoria, where they could change for connecting services towards Liverpool.
Catherine Adams
The fire at the former Hotspur Press printing works is close to Manchester Oxford Road railway station
The fire-hit building, also known as Medlock Mill, closed as a printing site in 1996.
Developer Manner’s plan to regenerate the historic building into a 36-storey student tower was given planning permission in May 2024.
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Trump takes aim at Fed as fiscal mess looms
President Trump is pushing the Federal Reserve to go beyond its legal mandate and help him manage the national debt as Republicans face growing pressure over the nation’s finances.
President Trump is pushing the Federal Reserve to go beyond its legal mandate and help him manage the national debt as Republicans face growing pressure over the nation’s finances.
In a series of remarks and social media posts, Trump has ripped Fed Chair Jerome Powell for refusing to lower interest rates, insisting he should help the White House manage the costs of servicing more than $36 trillion in national debt.
“’Too Late’ Jerome Powell is costing our Country Hundreds of Billions of Dollars. He is truly one of the dumbest, and most destructive, people in Government, and the Fed Board is complicit,” Trump wrote Thursday on Truth Social, a day after the Fed held interest rates steady.
While Trump has spent most of his two White House stints berating Powell to cut rates, only recently has he tied those demands to the country’s deteriorating fiscal health.
“We’re beginning to see what I think are the early warning signs that the Fed is going to be increasingly called upon to keep the government solvent,” said David Beckworth, senior research fellow and monetary policy director at the Mercatus Center, a libertarian-leaning think tank at George Mason University.
“When you begin to see this type of rhetoric, it’s a clear sign that people are beginning to get nervous,” Beckworth explained. “And how else can we save money? Well, let’s turn into the Fed and put pressure on them.”
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) ordered the state’s public power utility this week to start working on a zero-emissions advanced nuclear energy site that would be the nation’s first major nuclear plant project in nearly two decades.
Hackers aligned with Iran have claimed responsibility for a cyberattack on President Trump’s Truth Social platform, according to the cyber nonprofit Center for Internet Security (CIS).
Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) introduced legislation Monday seeking to bar public officials, including the president and his family, from certain cryptocurrency-related activities amid growing concerns about President Trump’s involvement in the industry.
Thune says senators will stay in DC to wrap tax law
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) announced Monday that the upper chamber will remain in Washington until it is able to pass President Trump’s ambitious tax cut package, raising the chances of scuttling a planned recess next week.
“Senators return to Washington today and we will remain here until this reconciliation bill is passed,” Thune said in an op-ed.
“By placing it on President Trump’s desk by the 4th of July, we will be ensuring that future generations of Americans can live in safety and prosperity,” he added.
Senators are scheduled to be on recess during the week of July 4, which has been the party’s deadline to pass Trump’s “one big, beautiful bill.” Thune, though, had made clear to lawmakers in recent weeks he will nix that plan if they need the week to secure passage of the massive proposal.
At this point, it is looking increasingly likely that the Senate GOP’s work will spill into next week as it struggles to win over the requisite 51 votes as a number of holdouts remain.
— Al Weaver
Tax Watch is a regular feature focused on the fight over tax reform and extending the 2017 Trump tax cuts this year. Email a tip
The Supreme Court on Monday lifted judge-imposed limits on the Trump administration’s deportations to countries where migrants have no ties over a scathing dissent from the court’s liberal justices. Read more
Former U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul offered warnings on Saturday of how U.S. strikes on Iran could influence U.S. adversaries around the world. Read more
What People Think
Opinions related to business and economic issues submitted to The Hill:
Apple’s first macOS Tahoe 26 developer beta introduced a big change to the Finder icon that I really didn’t like, but thankfully, the company has reversed it with the second beta released today.
A big feature of macOS 26 is Apple’s new Liquid Glass design language, which it has applied across the operating system to give it a new look. But for some reason, for the initial version of the updated Finder icon, Apple bucked tradition and flipped the location of its blue and white elements. An outrage!
Fortunately, Apple has seen reason and shifted the colors back to their rightful places with the Finder icon in developer beta 2. 9to5Mac has a handy comparison.
The second macOS 26 developer beta also includes an option to add a background back to the menu bar, 9to5Mac reports, which should help make it more legible. The second iOS 26 developer beta got a good change to Control Center to help improve legibility, too.
There will be 59 selections over two rounds, with the draft being held across two nights for the second time ever.
Two big questions heading into the draft: Where will Rutgers star Ace Bailey go if the Philadelphia 76ers pass on him at No. 3? How will teams such as the Brooklyn Nets, who have four first-rounders, use their multiple picks to build around their stars?
With insights and analysis from ESPN draft experts Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo, we provide you with a one-stop shop for everything you need to know: times, locations, draft order, top prospects, rankings, mock drafts, stats and more. Read about the draft’s best players and what to expect this week.
Round 1: Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET (ABC, ESPN and the ESPN app) Round 2: Thursday at 8 p.m. ET (ESPN and the ESPN app)
Five additional players have received invitations to attend the draft in New York and sit in the green room, adding to the 19 top prospects already invited previously.
The green room is a staging area in front of the NBA draft podium where players, their families and agents await commissioner Adam Silver’s announcement of players’ names upon selection. Players are allowed to invite six people to sit at their tables.
Receiving an invitation is considered a positive sign for a player’s draft stock. However, there have been instances of prospects falling to the second round while sitting in the green room, including Johnny Furphy and Kyle Filipowski in 2024.
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Why there’s a lot of uncertainty around Ace Bailey in the draft
Jonathan Givony and Brian Windhorst analyze the significance of Ace Bailey canceling his visit to the 76ers.
There will be 59 picks in this year’s draft: 1-30 on the first night and the rest on the second. The Mavericks had just a 1.8% chance to win the lottery and jumped 10 spots to grab the top pick, the biggest move by any team in lottery history, according to ESPN Research.
The Nets have the most picks with five, including four in the first round (Nos. 8, 19, 26, 27 and 36). Eight teams (Suns, Nets, Spurs, Wizards, Hawks, Thunder, Jazz and Pelicans) have multiple first-round picks. The Spurs are the only franchise with multiple lottery picks (No. 2 and No. 14).
The New York Knicks‘ second-round pick was rescinded by the NBA after an investigation into Jalen Brunson‘s free agency signing in the summer of 2022.
This class is strong, led by a clear franchise-caliber talent at the top, Cooper Flagg, followed by a potential All-Star, Dylan Harper, at No. 2.
There is some uncertainty after that, with a group of six players — VJ Edgecombe, Ace Bailey, Kon Knueppel, Tre Johnson, Jeremiah Fears and Khaman Maluach — expected to follow.
The first round is considered deep, particularly with wings and forwards likely to dominate much of the remainder, interspersed with a handful of big men and guards.
Historically, the best players in the draft rarely go in any specific order at the top. NBA executives expect this trend to continue this year, providing an opportunity for teams with elite talent evaluators and intel gatherers to distinguish themselves from those that weren’t paying close enough attention during the season and might easily become distracted in the predraft process.
The second round of this year’s class took a significant hit, as at least 15 draftable players chose not to enter by the deadline or withdrew from consideration at the NCAA and international deadlines. Though there is talent to be found in the first half of the second round, especially in the 30s, many teams believe the value of their second-round picks has been severely diminished, even compared with last year, which was not seen as a robust draft.
Financial implications surrounding the salary cap and luxury tax apron rules, which will heavily impact this summer, are likely to cause numerous trades both days. — Givony
Former Duke star Cooper Flagg, a 6-foot-9 forward, has been considered the front-runner to be the top pick in the draft since August 2023, when he announced his decision to graduate high school a year early and enroll in college as a 17-year-old.
With Flagg and Harper seemingly locked in at Nos. 1 and 2, the real intrigue starts at No. 3. The 76ers are coming off a challenging season going from championship contenders to one of the worst teams in the NBA (24-58), and they face important decisions in a pivotal offseason.
Do the 76ers select Edgecombe or Bailey, or do they trade down a few spots and try to better position their salary books and pick up additional assets?
Bailey canceled a visit to the 76ers, sources told ESPN. He was slated to fly to Philadelphia on Friday for dinner with the team’s front office and a private workout, but elected to cancel Wednesday, according to the sources.
Bailey’s predraft strategy has perplexed NBA teams over the past month, as he is currently the only U.S.-based prospect yet to visit any clubs. He has declined invitations from multiple teams in his draft range, which is considered to be anywhere from No. 3 to No. 8. Sources say Bailey’s camp has informed interested teams that they believe he is a top-three player in the draft, but also that he seeks a clear pathway to stardom, perhaps feeling comfortable that a franchise will trade up to get him at Nos. 3 or 4 should he drop.
The Sixers have not ruled out selecting Bailey despite his refusal to visit, sources told ESPN.
Teams such as Washington, New Orleans and Brooklyn, drafting 6-7-8, are surely monitoring the situation closely, as they have ample minutes and opportunities to offer, potentially making them attractive to Bailey’s camp. — Givony and Shams Charania
How is the projected talent-rich top of the 2026 draft affecting this year’s, if it is at all?
With 30 of the top 40 picks in the draft concentrated in the hands of just 12 teams, we’re expecting significant movement on both nights of the draft as clubs look to position their books and maintain flexibility with roster spots, contract guarantees and salary and luxury tax considerations.
Early on, teams are reporting the market for selections outside the top 10 has proved to be softer than anticipated, with more franchises open to moving picks and players than ones looking for them. The Indiana Pacers are swapping the No. 23 selection to reacquire next year’s first-rounder, giving them added flexibility this summer to aggregate more picks in a bigger trade without violating the NBA’s Stepien rule.
Things can, and likely will, change on draft night once teams are on the clock and get to see who is on the board at different slots.
Though the 2026 draft is loaded at the top — with several potential franchise-caliber talents available in Darryn Peterson, A.J. Dybantsa, Cameron Boozer and Nate Ament — teams still have a lot to learn about the rest of the lottery and first round, as this is not considered a particularly deep high school senior class currently enrolling in college, nor the most exciting (2007-born) group of international players about to become NBA draft eligible for the first time.
With that said, a significant number of players elected to either not enter this year’s draft or withdrew at the deadline, adding quite a bit of “older” depth in the college ranks that doesn’t normally exist. Teams will have to weigh how to value future picks with that in mind, something that has become a joint venture between traditional scouts, strategy analysts and analytics departments. — Givony
The Nets have five picks inside the top 40. How will they approach this draft?
Brooklyn has been one of the most active teams in the lead-up to the draft out of necessity. With the No. 8, No. 19, No. 26, No. 27 and No. 36 picks, the Nets have the levers and the incentive to optimize their return on draft night, considering it’s unlikely they’ll roster five rookies next season. They are also the only team with meaningful salary cap space, giving them optimal flexibility to not only make their own moves, but also to facilitate things for other teams.
What exactly that means for the Nets is still playing out in real time behind the scenes. Can they combine their picks to move up from No. 8? Do they select at No. 8 and instead try to move from No. 19 into the late lottery? Do they use both, and then look to trade some of the later selections? The number of picks they have in different areas of the draft has allowed them to cast a wide net (no pun intended) and bring in the majority of prospects for meetings and workouts.
No matter what it ultimately does, Brooklyn is viewed by player agents as a desirable landing spot, due to the developmental minutes it has available that not many other teams can concretely offer. The Nets are looking through a long-term lens and prioritizing talent over NBA readiness, with a strong 2026 lottery class on the horizon before they start angling to flip the switch toward competing for the postseason. — Woo
How do the prospects rank?
For a full list of the top 100 prospects (including strengths and weaknesses), check out the complete rankings compiled by Givony and Woo.
Any suspense as far as Flagg was concerned was put to rest on lottery night, with the Mavericks shockingly winning the right to select him.
Expect Flagg to be up for the challenge, as he has held down the top spot on our draft board largely unchallenged, and continues to get better at an impressive rate. He’ll be an impactful defender and versatile option for Dallas immediately, with room to grow and increase his comfort as a scorer and playmaker over time. At this point, the question is more about what heights he’ll ultimately reach, with a promising future awaiting.
ESPN’s top 10 prospects: 1. Cooper Flagg, SF/PF, Duke 2. Dylan Harper, PG/SG, Rutgers 3. Ace Bailey, SG/SF, Rutgers 4. VJ Edgecombe, SG, Baylor 5. Tre Johnson, SG, Texas 6. Kon Knueppel, SG/SF, Duke 7. Khaman Maluach, C, Duke 8. Jeremiah Fears, PG, Oklahoma 9. Noa Essengue, PF, Ratiopharm Ulm (Germany) 10. Kasparas Jakucionis, PG, Illinois
Givony and Woo will be tracking news and team and player information until the Mavericks go on the clock Wednesday, with this version of the mock draft undergoing updates until draft time, based on our latest intel.
Walter Clayton Jr.‘s landing spot?: Clayton has showcased his dynamic shotmaking in workouts and worked his way up boards in a first round that has shaped up somewhat light on point guard options. Considering the Heat’s need for a proper point guard and the way Clayton seems to fit their mold, this fit makes sense on paper.
Suns’ plans with their new pick at No. 10?: With the Suns desperately needing to upgrade their frontcourt — especially after losing their starting power forward in Kevin Durant — Collin Murray-Boyles is likely someone the team will consider heavily if they keep the pick.
Woo shares his list of the top prospects based on skills and traits in 20 categories. Here are notable names who stand out:
Best pull-up shooter: Ace Bailey, F, Rutgers No player in this draft class is more dangerous in a tight window than Bailey, whose ability to rise and fire over defenders at difficult angles and knock down tough shots off the bounce make him a tantalizing scoring prospect.
Best intangibles: Khaman Maluach, C, Duke Maluach is expected to be the first center off the board because of his impact for Duke as one of college basketball’s premier paint deterrents, but his appeal as an NBA prospect also has much to do with who he is as a person and what he’ll bring to a locker room.
Best rim protector: Joan Beringer, C, Cedevita Olimpija (Adriatic League) Beringer’s draft stock skyrocketed this season as scouts gradually made the trip to see him in Europe, as his excellent defensive abilities and shot-blocking chops at 18 years old were on display.
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Joan Beringer’s NBA draft profile
Check out some of the highlights that have made Joan Beringer a top NBA draft prospect.
The goal here isn’t to draw a perfect comparison for each of the 14 projected lottery picks — we’d be guaranteed to be wrong. This exercise serves as a lens to think about a prospect’s future role, examine his range of potential outcomes, and consider which areas of development are most critical to long-term success.
Here are a couple of notable comps and excerpts from Woo’s recent story:
VJ Edgecombe, SG, Baylor High end: Victor Oladipo Low end:Jaden Ivey
The elevator pitch with Edgecombe centers largely around the possibility that he develops into a capable on-ball creator, where his speed, strength and elite explosiveness could best create problems for defenses. Getting him the reps he needs to make that leap will be step one wherever he lands, but the downhill, hyperathletic slashing mold he fits makes Oladipo a valid point of comparison.
Tre Johnson, SG, Texas High end: Michael Redd Low end:Cam Thomas, but taller
Johnson is a fairly simple prospect to understand. He’s likely going to shoot it well; he’s probably going to shoot a lot; and whatever else he ends up giving his future team will be gravy, not necessarily baked into their expectations. If Johnson can come close to the type of career Redd put together (although Redd’s peak in the early 2000s was eventually hampered by serious knee injuries in 2009), that would be a pretty outstanding result, and there are some similar components here.
ESPN Research: Five things to know about this draft
1. Assuming they make the pick, the Mavericks will become the fourth team in the modern draft era (since 1966) to make the No. 1 pick in the draft within a year of reaching the NBA Finals. The others: The Bulls won the NBA Finals in 1998 and drafted Elton Brand with the No. 1 pick in 1999. The Lakers won the NBA Finals in 1982 and drafted James Worthy with the No. 1 pick in 1982. The Trail Blazers won the NBA Finals in 1977 and drafted Mychal Thompson with the No. 1 pick in 1978.
2. Flagg, who reclassified, will be 18 years and 186 days old on draft night, making him the second-youngest No. 1 pick in draft history, behind LeBron James (18 years, 178 days old) in 2003. Also, Flagg will give Duke its fifth player selected first in the draft, the most top selections of any school. The Blue Devils already had the most with four: Elton Brand (1999), Kyrie Irving (2011), Zion Williamson (2019), Paolo Banchero (2022).
3. Based on ESPN’s latest mock draft, the first eight picks are projected to be freshmen. If that happens, it will mark the most consecutive freshmen selected in a row at any point in a single draft. The previous most came in 2017, when the first seven picks were freshmen. In all, 12 of the 14 lottery picks are projected to be freshmen, which would set a record for most selected in the lottery era. It would mark the third time double-digit freshmen were picked in the lottery (11 in 2017 and 10 in 2018).
4. Kentucky does not have a player projected to go in Round 1, which would snap a streak of 15 consecutive drafts with a first-round pick, the longest in the modern draft era (since 1966). The last time Kentucky didn’t have a player selected in the first round was in 2009, John Calipari’s final season at Memphis before taking over at Kentucky. Cooper Flagg had yet to turn 3 years old.
5. Based on ESPN’s latest mock draft, five Frenchmen are projected to be selected in the first round (Joan Beringer, Noa Essengue, Nolan Traoré, Noah Penda and Stanford’s Maxime Raynaud). This comes one year after four players representing France were selected in the 2024 draft, which tied Canada (2019) for the most players from a non-U.S. country taken in the first round of a single draft. France has had at least one player selected in the first round in each of the past three NBA drafts, including the past two No. 1 picks.
Jonathan Givony is an NBA draft expert and the founder and co-owner of DraftExpress.com, a private scouting and analytics service used by NBA, NCAA and international teams.
Jeremy Woo is an NBA analyst specializing in prospect evaluation and the draft. He was previously a staff writer and draft insider at Sports Illustrated.
“I feel like my privacy has been violated in more ways than one,” Joe said in a press conference, per Sports Illustrated. “Way more is already out there than I would want out there and that I care to share, so that’s all I got to say about that.”
“We live a public life and one of my least favorite parts of that is the lack of privacy,” he continued. “That has been difficult for me to deal with my entire career. Still learning. But I understand it’s the life that we choose. Doesn’t make it any easier to deal with.”
Last month, Joe and Olivia had a low key outing at a Formula One event in Miami, though the pair weren’t photographed together.
While Joe and Olivia’s date night in New York City was a big move, read on to see other stars who have taken big steps in their relationships this year.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to meet a new Nato target to spend 5% of the UK’s GDP on national security by 2035.
At a Nato summit in the Netherlands, 32 member countries including the UK are expected to agree the 5% goal, with 3.5% to go on core defence and the remaining 1.5% on defence-related areas such as resilience and security.
The split target is aimed at placating US President Donald Trump, who has urged Nato allies to spend more, while giving cash-strapped EU countries flexibility over how they meet the target.
Downing Street has argued measures on energy and tackling smuggling gangs could be classified as security spending.
Speaking ahead of the two-day summit, Sir Keir said the UK had to “navigate this era of radical uncertainty with agility, speed and a clear-eyed sense of the national interest”.
“After all, economic security is national security, and through this strategy we will bring the whole of society with us, creating jobs, growth and wages for working people.”
Nato (the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) is made up of 32 member countries who agree to defend each other if attacked.
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and Trump’s re-election as US president last year, members of the organisation have faced increased pressure to boost their defence spending.
Countries had been expected to spend at least 2% of their national income – or GDP – on defence, although last year, only 23 hit that target – an increase from three in 2014.
In January, Trump said 2% was “not enough” and that Nato allies should be spending 5%.
And speaking last year before his re-election, he said he would “encourage” aggressors to “do whatever the hell they want” to European allies who don’t pay their way.
In February, Sir Keir set out plans to increase the UK’s defence spending, as opposed to national security spending, to 2.5% by April 2027 and expressed a “clear ambition” to reach 3% by 2034 if economic conditions allowed.
On Monday, the government said it expected to reach the target of spending 4.1% of GDP on national security by 2027.
The 1.5% element of the 5% Nato target is for what is described as “resilience”, such as border security and protection against cyber attacks.
For the UK, this latter element is expected to be met by the year after next, with core defence spending reaching 2.6% by then.
Getting core defence spending to 3.5% isn’t expected until 2035 – two general elections away – and Downing Street hasn’t said how it will be paid for.
Alongside the spending commitment, the government published its National Security Strategy which said the UK needed to be more “competitive and robust” in science, education, trade and frontier technology.
It also sought to stress that investment in defence would be felt “directly in the pockets of working people” pointing to new jobs that would be created.
The summit will be Mark Rutte’s first as secretary general of Nato. Speaking at a press conference on Monday, the former Dutch prime minister said the 5% spending commitment was “a quantum leap that is ambitious, historic and fundamental to securing our future”.
However, it is unclear how nations will meet the target or whether they will at all.
On Sunday evening, Spain claimed it had secured an opt-out, something later denied by Rutte.
Ukraine is not a member of Nato and although President Volodymyr Zelensky has been invited to the summit dinner he will not be taking part in discussions of the North Atlantic Council.
Last week, Ed Arnold from the defence think tank Rusi told the BBC contentious issues – including a new Russia strategy – had been removed from the summit’s agenda.
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Trump administration uses social media for visa vetting
The Trump administration is increasingly turning to social media as a national security tool to vet immigrants, stoking concerns the move could have a chilling effect on political speech in the U.S.
The State Department announced last week it is restarting interviews and processing foreign student visas, and applicants will now be required to make their social media accounts public for vetting or face potential denial.
The agency said it is looking for those “who pose a threat to U.S. national security,” but critics say the criteria is broad and blurs the line between national surveillance and public expression, especially on private social media accounts.
“This is new, it’s unprecedented,” said Greg Nojeim, the senior counsel and director of the Security and Surveillance Project at the Center for Democracy and Technology.
“It’s never before been the case that a person who had set their social media account to private would have to set it to public in order to be admitted to the United States,” he said.
The U.S. government has expanded its monitoring of social media over the past decade, but the Trump administration’s latest focus on student visas marks a new escalation of this practice.
Social media checks have “become more pervasive and ideologically driven over time,” the think tank Brennan Center for Justice wrote in a report this year.
Under the new guidance, visa applicants will be required to list all social media usernames or handles of every platform they used in the past five years, the spokesperson said. Omission of social media information could result in denial or ineligibility for future visas.
It is not clear the specific content State Department consular officers will be looking for, though some believe the change comes amid the Trump administration’s recent arrests of pro-Palestinian campus activists this year.
Some observers fear that vague criteria could confuse applicants and serve as a way for the government to stifle speech critical of the administration or misaligned with U.S. policy.
“Censoring the speech of non-citizens on social media seems to be a purpose of this requirement,” Nojeim told The Hill, adding users will likely be “more hesitant” to express themselves on social media.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) ordered the state’s public power utility this week to start working on a zero-emissions advanced nuclear energy site that would be the nation’s first major nuclear plant project in nearly two decades. “The industries of the future — advanced manufacturing, artificial intelligence . . . semi-conductor manufacturing — they don’t run on dreams, they need to be powered,” Hochul …
The United States is warning of a “heightened threat environment” after President Trump ordered strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites on Saturday evening. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS) bulletin on Sunday, alerting the public to the potential of cyberattacks carried out by those who support Iran or are affiliated with the Iranian government. “The ongoing Iran conflict …
Hackers aligned with Iran have claimed responsibility for a cyberattack on President Trump’s Truth Social platform, according to the cyber nonprofit Center for Internet Security (CIS). The Iran-aligned hacking group 313 Team took credit for a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack on Truth Social within hours of U.S. strikes on several Iranian nuclear facilities Saturday, a CIS spokesperson confirmed. Truth Social reportedly …
Welcome to Crypto Corner, a daily feature focused on digital currency and its outlook in Washington.
Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) is taking aim at President Trump’s increasing involvement in the crypto industry.
The California Democrat introduced legislation Monday to bar public officials, including the president and his family, from certain cryptocurrency-related activities.
The Curbing Officials’ Income and Nondisclosure (COIN) Act would prohibit the president, vice president, high-ranking executive branch employees, special government employees and members of Congress from issuing, sponsoring or endorsing digital assets.
These restrictions also would extend to the immediate family members of public officials.
Trump and his family have increasingly expanded their footprint in the crypto space, as his administration has pushed to create a more favorable regulatory environment for the industry, including through legislation.
The president and his sons launched a crypto venture, World Liberty Financial, last fall, which has since released a stablecoin. Trump has earned about $57 million from the venture, according to a recent financial disclosure.
He also launched a meme coin shortly before his inauguration and held a dinner with the top investors in the $TRUMP token last month.
Trump Media & Technology Group, the parent company of Truth Social, has raised $2.5 billion to create a bitcoin reserve and has taken steps toward launching several crypto-related financial assets.
Meanwhile, lawmakers have taken up the mantle of crypto legislation, with several Senate Democrats, including Schiff, joining Republicans to pass a bill creating a regulatory framework for payment stablecoins.
In Other News
Branch out with other reads on The Hill:
Senate parliamentarian allows GOP to keep ban on state AI rules
The Senate parliamentarian concluded the controversial push to ban state regulation of artificial intelligence for the next 10 years can remain in President Trump’s sweeping tax and spending bill. The decision, announced by lawmakers over the weekend, followed weeks of speculation from both parties over whether the provision would overcome the procedural hurdle known as the Byrd Rule. The parliamentarian’s decision …
The Supreme Court on Monday lifted judge-imposed limits on the Trump administration’s deportations to countries where migrants have no ties over a … Read more
Iran has launched an attack on the Al Udeid U.S. Air Force base in Qatar following strikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities over the weekend. A … Read more
