U.S. forces safely rescued the missing F-15E crew member of a two-seat fighter jet that went down over Iran on Friday with the help of a CIA deception campaign officials said.
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President Donald Trump threatened major strikes on Iran’s energy infrastructure and bridges Sunday morning ahead of his latest deadline to open the Strait of Hormuz.
He used an expletive, referred to Islam and described Iran’s leadership as “crazy bastards” on Truth Social, repeating past threats if Iran misses the deadline.
Responding to Trump’s post on NBC News’ “Meet the Press,” Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., said rhetoric from the administration had been “embarrassing and juvenile.”
He told moderator Kristen Welker: “People see this president as having blundered into a war with no clear rationale, and there’s no amount of cursing or boasting or tough talk that will cover up for the fact that this president didn’t have a rationale and he doesn’t really have a plan.”
Kaine expressed skepticism about the Trump administration’s 2027 budget plan, which includes a request of $1.5 trillion from Congress to fund the Defense Department, 44% more than was appropriated this year.
He also described the ongoing war as “illegal and unwise” and called for Congress to vote on a formal declaration of war. In a separate interview, Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., argued that the war is legal and said he would support a congressional vote on a war powers resolution if the conflict lasts beyond 60 days.
More news on the Iran war:
- Pope’s first Easter message: Pope Leo XIV warned the world was becoming “accustomed to violence” in his Easter message from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, delivering a rallying cry against war and hatred to tens of thousands as conflict rages in the Middle East.
- Betting on war: The prediction market platform Polymarket issued an apology for allowing users to place bets on the fate of American pilots aboard the U.S. fighter jet downed over Iran.
Politics in brief
- Deposing Bondi: In an interview with “Meet the Press,” Rep. Ro Khanna D-Calif., said former Attorney General Pam Bondi should still go before Congress over the Epstein files, saying that if Congress “could chase Hillary Clinton” for testimony, then Bondi should appear, as well.
- Looking ahead: Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., said he’s considering a 2028 presidential run, citing his appeal to Latinos among the reasons.
UCLA dominates South Carolina for first NCAA women’s basketball national championship
In a stunning rout, UCLA cruised past South Carolina 79-51 to win its first NCAA women’s basketball national championship.
UCLA took a 30-15 lead midway through the second quarter, and at halftime its lead stood at 36-23.
The Gamecocks were seeking their fourth national title but struggled both offensively and defensively while making just three of their first 18 shots. The Bruins were unrelenting, with UCLA star Gabriela Jaquez scored 21 points with 10 rebounds and five assists in an impressive performance
It was South Carolina’s second consecutive blowout loss in the NCAA final after last year’s 82-59 loss to Connecticut.
In the men’s final Monday, Connecticut and Michigan will play for the national championship after both roundly defeated their opponents in the semifinals. The Huskies dispatched Illinois 71-62, while the Wolverines blew out Arizona 91-73.
What’s your biological age? Experts explain the benefits and risks of at-home tests
You may think you know how old you are, but your body doesn’t follow a calendar.
That is, your chronological age, which measures how many years have passed since you were born, may not match your biological age, which reflects wear and tear on your body at a cellular level.
Scientists have developed a number of ways to estimate biological age, including so-called epigenetic clocks that measure changes to DNA at the molecular level. These clocks, often created for clinical research purposes, are becoming mainstream in the form of direct-to-consumer test kits.
But not all tests are created equally, and there are limits to the health insights they provide.
“The measurement of epigenetic age is not prime-time yet for general consumers,” said Dr. Douglas Vaughan, director of the Potocsnak Longevity Institute at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine.
Young people in China have found a digital lucky charm in Kris Jenner
Young people in China hoping to boost their chances of success have a new digital good luck charm: American reality TV star Kris Jenner.
Gen Z social media users are channeling the wealthy Kardashian-Jenner matriarch’s “momager” energy to manifest their own prosperity in a tough economy.
Images of Jenner, 70, have been proliferating across Chinese platforms such as Weibo, Xiaohongshu and Douyin, most commonly in profile pictures or wallpapers.
Digitally transformed into a CEO in a suit, a doctor in a white coat or a Ph.D. student in a graduation gown, Jenner is a shape-shifting symbol reflecting users’ varying career goals.
Notable quote
We are just people trying to get by. For example, we might go look at the far side of the moon and take in its awesomeness and then go, ‘Hm, maybe I should change my socks.’
astronaut Christina Koch on life in the orion space capsule
The Artemis II astronauts are more than halfway to the moon and have caught their first glimpses of the lunar far side. In an interview with NBC News from the Orion capsule, they described seeing the moon from a new angle, feelings of awe and humility and their very human concerns in space.
In case you missed it
- At least 13 people were hospitalized after an impaired driver struck pedestrians at a parade celebrating the Buddhist new year in Louisiana, officials said.
- Taiwan’s opposition leader seeks to win friends in China with a high-stakes visit, but it is unclear how Cheng Li-wun’s embrace of China sits with Taiwan’s public.
- The Writers Guild of America reached a tentative deal with major studios a month before its contract was set to expire.
- Pressure was mounting on Kanye West to be pulled from his headline role at a London music festival this summer after criticism from U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
- Videos captured a small airplane making an emergency landing on a Pennsylvania interstate.
- Blake Lively vowed to keep fighting after a federal judge dismissed most of her claims in her sexual harassment lawsuit against Justin Baldoni.
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