Explore every episode of the podcast NTD News Today

According to the National Retail Federation, a record 183 million people are expected to shop in-store and online between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday this year. Despite the convenience and ease of online shopping, about two-thirds of black friday shoppers surveyed plan to shop in stores on Friday.

At least six Democratic members of Congress from Connecticut said they were targeted by bomb threats on their homes, including Sen. Chris Murphy and all five House members — Reps. Jim Himes, Joe Courtney, John Larson, Jahana Hayes and Rosa DeLauro. Police who responded said they found no evidence of explosives on the lawmakers' properties.

The UK parliament gave initial support to a new bill to legalize assisted dying on Friday, opening the way for months of further debate. The bill would provide for mentally competent, terminally ill adults in England and Wales who doctors assess to have six months or less left to live the right to choose to end their lives with medical help.

The White House announced on Wednesday that three American citizens imprisoned for years in China have been released and are returning to the United States in a prisoner swap negotiated by the Biden administration. Mark Swidan, Kai Li, and John Leung had been designated by the U.S. State Department as wrongfully detained.

The Thanksgiving holiday rush is in full swing as the TSA expects to screen 18.3 million people at U.S. airports between Tuesday, Nov. 26 and Monday, Dec. 2. However, an Arctic blast in the Midwest and wet weather in the Eastern United States could disrupt travel over the next several days.

Ohio's Republican Gov. Mike DeWine signed a bill on Wednesday requiring the use of bathrooms aligning with one's biological sex at birth. The rule applies to bathrooms, locker rooms, and overnight accommodation at public and private schools, colleges, and universities.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s security cabinet was scheduled to convene on Tuesday to discuss a proposed cease-fire with the Lebanon-based Hezbollah terrorist group. Among the remaining issues was Israel's demand to reserve the right to take military action should Hezbollah violate its obligations under the emerging deal.

Mexico and Canada reacted on Tuesday to President-elect Donald Trump's threat to impose 25 percent tariffs on all Mexican and Canadian goods if they don't stop what he described as the flow of drugs and illegal immigrants across their respective borders. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum suggested that Mexico could retaliate with tariffs of its own, while Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he would meet the premiers of Canada's 10 provinces this week to discuss the country's relations with the United States.

Former New York City mayor and former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani appeared in court in Manhattan on Tuesday for a hearing in a case over the handover of property to two Georgia election workers he was found to have defamed. Giuliani’s trial is scheduled for Jan. 16, 2025, but he asked for a delay in the proceedings to allow him to attend President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20.

The Israeli ambassador to the U.S. said on Monday that a ceasefire deal to end fighting between Israel and the Lebanon-based Hezbollah terrorist group could be reached “within days.” Among the issues that remain is an Israeli demand to reserve the right to act should Hezbollah violate its obligations under the emerging deal.

President Joe Biden tapped into his presidential pardon power Monday, granting clemency to a pair of lucky turkeys and kicking off the holiday season at the White House. Weighing in at 41 and 40 pounds, respectively, “Peach” and “Blossom” were hatched in Minnesota by John Zimmerman, chairman of the National Turkey Federation and a second-generation farmer.

Macy’s reported weaker-than-expected sales for the third quarter and said it’s delaying the release of its full quarterly results after it discovered an employee intentionally hid up to $154 million of expenses over several years. The department store chain said Monday that it identified an issue related to delivery expenses in one of its accrual accounts earlier this month.

New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan on Friday postponed sentencing in President-elect Donald Trump’s business records case indefinitely in light of Trump's election win. Merchan also granted Trump’s request to file a motion to dismiss the case, given that his team submit paperwork by Dec. 2.

A second powerful wind storm is on track to hit the Pacific Northwest Friday, bringing strong winds and heavy rain. This is while the region is still dealing with hundreds of thousands of power outages from an earlier storm this week. 

NATO and Ukraine will hold emergency talks next Tuesday after Russia attacked a central Ukrainian city with an experimental, hypersonic ballistic missile on Thursday. Ukraine’s parliament canceled a session as security was tightened following Russia's launch of the intermediate-range Oreshnik missile.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants on Thursday for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his former defense minister Yoav Gallant, as well as top Hamas leaders, over the Israel-Hamas war. Netanyahu condemned the arrest warrant against him, saying Israel “rejects with disgust the absurd and false actions.”

Ukraine claimed Thursday that Russia launched an intercontinental ballistic missile overnight at one of its cities, without providing any evidence. But American officials said an initial U.S. assessment indicated the strike was carried out with an intermediate-range ballistic missile, not an ICBM.

TSA expects a potentially record-breaking Thanksgiving travel season, with some of the busiest travel days in US history next week. TSA Administrator David Pekoske said Thursday, the Sunday after Thanksgiving, Dec. 1, is expected to be the busiest day of the year with over 3 million air passengers nationwide.

President-elect Donald Trump has chosen former acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker to serve as U.S. ambassador to NATO. In a statement, Trump said Whitaker was "a strong warrior and loyal Patriot." He said Whitaker would advance and defend the interests of the United States while strengthening existing relationships with America's NATO allies.

The man accused of killing Georgia nursing student Laken Riley has been convicted of murder, according to a ruling today.

Air raid sirens sounded in Kyiv after the United States shut its embassy there due to "specific information of a potential significant air attack." It told U.S. citizens in Ukraine to be ready to seek shelter.

Moscow on Tuesday said Ukraine fired six American-supplied longer-range missiles at Russia’s Bryansk region, in what would be Kyiv's first use of the weapons inside Russia in 1,000 days of war. The reported use of the Army Tactical Missile System, known as ATACMS, marked a worrying new escalation in the conflict.

Leaders of the world's 20 major economies gathered in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Tuesday for the second day of the G20 summit. The leaders called for more aid for Gaza, the end of the war in Ukraine, reform of the U.N. Security Council, a global pact to combat hunger, and a future global tax on billionaires.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg faces a deadline Tuesday to propose the next steps in President-elect Donald Trump's New York criminal case. The case in which Trump was convicted of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records is in limbo following his election victory.

Opening statements began Friday in the trial of the man accused of killing 22-year-old Georgia nursing student Laken Riley in February. Jose Ibarra, an illegal immigrant from Venezuela, is charged with murder and other crimes in a case that helped fan the immigration debate during the last election cycle.

The family of Malcolm X, a civil rights leader who was assassinated in 1965, filed a $100-million federal lawsuit on Friday that accuses the FBI, the CIA, and the New York Police Department of allowing his murder to be carried out. The lawsuit alleges the law enforcement agencies concealed evidence that they had known of the plot to kill him, but did nothing to stop it.

Jeffrey Tucker, the founder and president of the Brownstone Institute, is weighing in on President-elect Donald Trump's pick of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. Tucker explores what U.S. health policy will be like under Kennedy, and what challenges the former independent presidential candidate will face.

Russia's ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva told reporters on Thursday that Moscow is open to negotiations on ending the war in Ukraine if initiated by President-elect Donald Trump. However, he added that any such negotiations would need to be based on what he said were the realities of Russian advances on the ground.

The satirical news publication The Onion won the bidding for Alex Jones's Infowars at a bankruptcy auction on Thursday, backed by families of Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims whom Jones owes more than $1 billion in defamation judgments for calling the massacre a hoax. Jones vowed to challenge the sale and the auction process in court.

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody sued FEMA officials on Thursday for conspiracy to discriminate against hurricane victims who expressed support for Trump in the presidential election. According to whistleblower reports, FEMA workers in parts of Florida were directed to ignore storm victims in households that displayed Trump signs or flags.

President-elect Donald Trump made a victor’s return to Washington on Wednesday, visiting the White House for an Oval Office meeting with President Joe Biden. The two men committed to a smooth transition of power in a meeting that is seen as a traditional courtesy.

Republicans have elected Sen. John Thune of South Dakota as the next Senate Majority Leader on Wednesday, replacing long-time leader Sen. Mitch McConnell as President-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House. In a secret ballot vote, Thune beat out two other competitors, Sens. John Cornyn of Texas and Rick Scott of Florida.

A U.S. government worker has been charged with leaking classified information assessing Israel's earlier plans to attack Iran, according to court papers filed Wednesday. The man, identified as Asif William Rahman, was arrested by the FBI this week in Cambodia and was due to make his first court appearance in Guam.

New York State Justice Juan Merchan has paused proceedings in President-elect Donald Trump's already-decided criminal case, according to a document made public on Tuesday.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog met with President Joe Biden at the White House on Tuesday to discuss the crises in Gaza and Lebanon.

The 118th Congress returned on Tuesday for its final session after a long recess that began in September. It is the first time the legislature has met since the Nov. 5 election, in which Republicans gained control of the Senate. The House Republican leadership, led by House Speaker Mike Johnson, held a news conference at the U.S. Capitol.

President-elect Donald Trump has chosen Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) to serve as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Trump said in a statement on Monday. The House Republican Conference chair, 40-year-old Stefanik has been a fierce Trump ally.

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris participated in a Veterans Day wreath-laying ceremony on Monday at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery. Biden also delivers remarks at the Memorial Amphitheater in Arlington.

Police in Amsterdam said on Friday that five people were hospitalized and 62 arrested after anti-Semitic rioters attacked Israeli supporters after a soccer match. Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof said he was "deeply ashamed" about the attacks, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the Dutch government must ensure the well-being of all Israelis in the Netherlands.

Following President-elect Donald Trump's electoral victory, top European leaders, including European Council President Charles Michel and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, called on Trump to continue aiding Ukraine in its conflict with Russia. Other European leaders, however, such as Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, expressed their hope for Trump to broker a peace deal that would bring an end to the conflict.

Southern California firefighters have made progress against a wildfire that has destroyed 132 structures, allowing some people to return to sort through the charred remains of their homes. The Mountain Fire started on Wednesday morning in Ventura County, and had grown to 32 square miles. It was 7 percent contained by Friday morning.

President Joe Biden addressed the nation on Thursday for the first time since President-elect Donald Trump's electoral victory. Biden promised a smooth and orderly transition of power to the second Trump administration on Jan. 20, 2025.

Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.), who won reelection in his congressional district, announced to his colleagues on Wednesday that he will run for the position of speaker of the House in the new Congress. Control of the House currently hangs in the balance.

Germany’s ruling coalition collapsed on Thursday, paving the way for new elections. Chancellor Olaf Scholz sacked his finance minister, Christian Lindner, over budget disputes, leaving the government without a legislative majority.

Vice President Kamala Harris's campaign zooms in on the key battleground state of Pennsylvania on the final day before the Nov. 5 election. She makes five stops across the state Monday in Scranton, Allentown, Reading, Pittsburgh, and Philadelphia.

Former President Donald Trump wraps up his campaign Monday with rallies in three key swing states. He speaks in Raleigh, North Carolina, Reading and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Former independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. broke his campaign's no endorsements rule to endorse Republican U.S. House candidate Lily Tang Williams of New Hampshire. Williams's campaign highlights the horrors of living under communism and socialism.

With 4 days left until Election Day, former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are making dueling appearances in the Midwest. Trump will rally in Warren, Michigan, and Milwaukee, Wisconsin, while Harris will hold campaign events in Janesville, Little Chute, and West Allis, Wisconsin.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics has released the last jobs report before next week's presidential election, showing the U.S. economy added just 12,000 new jobs in October. This represents the smallest monthly gain in employment since December 2020.

A Pennsylvania state judge said on Thursday that he would not immediately move forward with a lawsuit that seeks to stop Elon Musk's $1 million giveaway to swing state voters. Judge Angelo Foglietta said he would place the lawsuit on hold while a federal court considers whether to take up the case. Musk's bid to move the case to federal court frees him to continue the giveaway because the matter likely won't be resolved until after Tuesday's election.

Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are headed west on Thursday, with dueling events in Nevada and Arizona. Trump will rally in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Henderson, Nevada, before joining a hurricane relief benefit in Glendale, Arizona. Harris will rally in Phoenix, Arizona, before moving on to Las Vegas and Reno, Nevada.

A House subcommittee is set to refer former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to the Department of Justice on Thursday for potential prosecution. The House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis alleges Cuomo lied to Congress in a state health department report from 2020 on COVID-19 nursing home deaths.

With 6 days left until Election Day, former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are holding dueling events on Wednesday in two battleground states. Trump will rally in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, and Green Bay, Wisconsin. Meanwhile, Harris will speak in Raleigh, North Carolina, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and Madison, Wisconsin.

The Supreme Court decided on Wednesday to allow Virginia to remove suspected noncitizens from its voter registration rolls, siding with Gov. Glenn Youngkin's administration in one of its first significant decisions associated with next week’s election. Virginia has removed some 1,600 voter registrations that it said came from self-identified noncitizens.

The U.S. economy grew at a 2.8 percent annual rate from July through September, with consumers helping drive growth despite the weight of still-high interest rates. Wednesday’s report from the Commerce Department is the last major piece of economic data to come in before the November election.

With just one week to go until Election Day, former President Donald Trump delivered remarks to the press at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on Tuesday. He's heading to Pennsylvania later for a Building America's Future event in Drexel Hill and a rally in Allentown.

Vice President Kamala Harris will deliver her campaign’s “closing argument” on Tuesday from the Ellipse near the White House, where Trump spoke ahead of the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol breach. Harris's campaign said her speech is designed to lay out her vision for the future.

Longtime Trump ally Steve Bannon was released from prison early Tuesday after serving a four-month sentence for defying a subpoena from the now-defunct House Jan. 6 Committee. Bannon returned to his podcast and online show, saying he was focused on helping Trump win the presidential election.

Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner sued Elon Musk and his pro-Trump America PAC on Monday to stop their $1 million lottery aimed at registered voters in swing states, including Pennsylvania. Krasner accused Musk and his PAC of “running an illegal lottery” that tries to influence voters.

Vice President Kamala Harris will travel across Michigan on Monday to highlight her support for manufacturing jobs and union workers, with a rally featuring singer-songwriter Maggie Rogers. Former President Donald Trump is in Georgia for two events in the Atlanta area, including a rally and an appearance at the National Faith Advisory Summit.

The Israeli military announced on Monday that it captured around 100 Hamas terrorists during a raid on the Kamal Adwan hospital in northern Gaza. The Israel Defense Forces said they also found weapons, terror funds, and intelligence documents inside the hospital.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Friday that 75 people have been infected by the E. coli outbreak linked to McDonald's Quarter Pounder hamburgers. One person has died and 22 others have been hospitalized. The FDA and the CDC identified onions as the likely source of the contamination.

Presidential nominees Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump will center their attention on Texas on Friday. Harris will team up with entertainer Beyoncé Knowles for a rally in Houston, while Trump will hold a news conference in Austin before sitting down with podcaster Joe Rogan.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claimed on Friday that North Korean troops are poised to be deployed by Russia on the battlefield in Ukraine as early as this Sunday. He didn’t provide any further details, including where the North Korean soldiers might be sent, but called the deployment “an obvious escalating move by Russia.”

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris will be joined by rock singer Bruce Springsteen and former President Barack Obama at a rally in Atlanta on Thursday. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump will hold rallies in the battleground states of Arizona and Nevada.

A Colorado man has filed the first lawsuit against McDonald’s related to the recent E. coli outbreak linked to the company's quarter pounders. The lawsuit accuses McDonald’s of product liability, negligence, and breach of implied warranties.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced another $135 million in aid to the Palestinians on Thursday. He was in Doha to meet with Qatari officials who have been key mediators for Hamas, as the United States struggles to break the logjam of cease-fire negotiations between Israel and the terrorist group.

The Turkish government said four people were killed and 14 others injured on Wednesday in an attack on the Turkish Aerospace Industries' (TUSAS) headquarters near Ankara. The state-run company is Turkey's largest aerospace manufacturer. The Turkish Interior Minister said two attackers were killed in what he called a terrorist attack, adding that three of the injured are in critical condition. No group has yet claimed responsibility.

Vice President Kamala Harris will hold a town hall before a live audience of undecided Pennsylvania voters on CNN on Wednesday. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump will headline a rally in Duluth, Georgia, with guests Tucker Carlson and Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

McDonald’s said on Wednesday that it wants to restore confidence following a deadly E. coli outbreak linked to its Quarter Pounders. McDonald’s U.S. president Joe Erlinger said that the company has removed the Quarter Pounder from its menu in the 10 states where dozens of people were infected, as well as in several other states.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel on Tuesday on his 11th visit to the region since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war. He met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with hopes of reviving ceasefire talks following the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.

Former President Donald Trump will rally in Greensboro, North Carolina Tuesday night as he zooms in on the key swing state following devastations caused by Hurricane Helene. Vice President Kamala Harris will sit down for an interview with NBC News airing at 6:30 p.m. Eastern time.

The bipartisan House panel investigating the July 13 assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump released its interim report on Monday, finding that the event was “preventable and should not have happened.” Lawmakers on the panel noted “stunning security failures”—including a lack of planning and coordination between the Secret Service and its law enforcement partners.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Monday that the U.S. military has rushed its advanced anti-missile system to Israel, and confirmed that it is now "in place." THAAD, or the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system, is a critical part of the U.S. military's layered air defense systems and adds to Israel's anti-missile defense capabilities.

Austin announced $400 million in new arms for Ukraine on Monday during a visit to Kyiv, in a show of solidarity just two weeks ahead of the U.S. presidential election. As the Biden administration winds down, Austin signaled continuity in U.S. support for Ukraine and announced there would be no changes as yet to U.S. policy.

Both Israel and the Hamas terrorist group said Friday they will continue fighting in Gaza in the wake of Israel's killing of top Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar. This came while the Biden administration expressed its optimism about the situation, saying Sinwar's death represents an "inflection point" for a possible cease-fire.

President Joe Biden met with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin on Friday for discussions on the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine. Biden said Sinwar's death creates an opportunity to seek a path to peace and a better future in Gaza without Hamas.

Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris will campaign in the key battleground state of Michigan on Friday. Harris will make campaign stops in Grand Rapids, Lansing, and Oakland County, while Trump has activities in Oakland County and Detroit.

The Israeli military said Thursday it was looking into whether Hamas’s top leader Yahya Sinwar has been killed in a military operation in Gaza. The Israel Defense Forces said three terrorists were killed, and while their identities have so far not been confirmed, the IDF is “checking the possibility” that one of the three was Sinwar.

An independent panel investigating the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump at a Butler, Pennsylvania campaign rally in July said the Secret Service needs fundamental reform, and that “another Butler can and will happen again” without major changes in how candidates are protected. The review faulted the Secret Service for poor communication that day and for failing to secure the building from which the shooter opened fire.

President Joe Biden has departed for Germany for a short visit that includes a meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. They plan to discuss the war in Ukraine, European Union relations, democratic values, trade and technology issues, global supply chains, tensions in the Middle East, and security issues in the Indo-Pacific region.

Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are making dueling appearances on Fox News on Wednesday, with Trump's town hall airing in the morning and Harris's interview airing in the evening. At his town hall, Trump took questions from an all-women audience, addressing issues from the economy to child care and public safety.

Nebraska’s Supreme Court has ruled that the state's top election official had no authority to strip voting rights from people convicted of a felony. The decision could add hundreds of new voters to the rolls and potentially help tip the balance on Nov. 5, since Nebraska apportions its electoral college votes by congressional district.

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney ruled Tuesday that county election officials in Georgia must certify election results. The judge ruled that election board members should be able to receive any documents and information they need in order to inspect elections as long as those documents are allowed to be disclosed, but that officials could not refuse to certify results simply for not having received those documents.

Former President Donald Trump turned his town hall in Pennsylvania into an impromptu concert on Monday night, after the event was interrupted twice due to medical emergencies in the crowd. He sat down for an interview with the Economic Club of Chicago and Bloomberg News on Tuesday, before heading to Georgia to campaign.

NASA launched a spacecraft to one of Jupiter's moons on Monday, with Europa considered one of our solar system's most promising locations to search for life beyond Earth. The robotic solar-powered Europa Clipper spacecraft will learn whether this ice-encased world—believed to harbor a vast underground ocean—is habitable.

Both Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump have campaign events in the key battleground state of Pennsylvania on Monday, with Harris holding a rally in Erie and Trump participating in a town hall near Philadelphia.

The United States will send a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense battery to Israel, along with the troops needed to operate it, at the direction of President Joe Biden. The Pentagon said the anti-ballistic-missile system will help bolster Israel's air defenses following Iran’s ballistic missile attacks on Israel in April and October.

At least 16 people have been confirmed dead in Florida due to Hurricane Milton as of Friday, including those killed by tornadoes, fallen trees, and downed power lines. According to PowerOutage.us, more than 2.2 million customers remain without power across the state.

Former President Donald Trump is scheduled to campaign in Aurora, Colorado, with a focus on illegal immigration and gang violence. He will make another campaign stop in Reno, Nevada, while Vice President Kamala Harris is returning to Washington after her campaign event in Arizona.

At least nine deaths related to Hurricane Milton have been confirmed in Florida as of Thursday. The storm made landfall on Wednesday night along Florida's Gulf Coast, dropping more than 18 inches of rain on St. Petersburg, representing a more than one-in-1000-year rainfall event for the area. The hurricane also cut out power for more than 3.4 million customers statewide. President Joe Biden said help is on the way.

Former President Donald Trump is set to address the Detroit Economic Club, while Vice President Kamala Harris is scheduled to speak in Phoenix, Arizona, as part of their presidential campaigns. Former President Barack Obama will campaign for Harris with an event in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Steady rain fell and winds began to strengthen in the Tampa Bay area on Wednesday as Hurricane Milton's outer bands started impacting Florida. Officials sounded urgent warnings for residents to flee inland as Milton is set to make landfall along Florida's Gulf Coast on Wednesday night or early Thursday morning.

Early voting has begun in the key swing state of Arizona. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump is scheduled to hold two rallies in Pennsylvania, while Vice President Kamala Harris is set to travel to Nevada.

President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held their first call in weeks on Wednesday at a time when Israel is expanding its ground incursion into Lebanon and considering how to respond to Iran’s recent ballistic missile attack.

More than 1 million Florida residents have been ordered to evacuate as of Tuesday, with Hurricane Milton on track to make landfall on the state's Gulf Coast between Wednesday night and early Thursday morning. President Joe Biden has postponed his upcoming trip to Germany and Angola to oversee preparations for, and the response to, Hurricane Milton.

The District of Columbia and 13 states filed separate lawsuits against the Chinese-owned social media platform TikTok, accusing the app of harming and failing to protect young people. The states are accusing TikTok of using intentionally addictive software designed to keep children watching as long and as often as possible, and of misrepresenting its content moderation effectiveness.

Mohamed Bahi, a former aide to New York City Mayor Eric Adams, was arrested on Tuesday and charged with witness tampering and destroying evidence. In recent weeks, more than half a dozen of the mayor’s top aides have resigned, including Philip Banks, the deputy mayor for public safety, and Winnie Greco, the director of Asian affairs.

Hurricane Milton intensified into a Category 5 storm on Monday. Hurricane and storm surge watches and evacuation orders were issued for parts of Florida as Milton is on course to make landfall somewhere between Tampa and Naples on Wednesday night.

President Joe Biden will mark the first anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel with an event at the White House. Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump will also commemorate the anniversary at separate events.

Top cases are due before the Supreme Court as it begins a new 9-month term. The justices will decide on cases involving gun rights, online adult content, nuclear waste storage, the death penalty, disputes involving Nvidia and Facebook, and more.

The number of U.S. jobs grew much more than expected last month. Hiring accelerated by 254,000 jobs and the unemployment rate declined 0.1 percent from August. The figures come from a closely watched report released on Friday by the Labor Department.

Former President Donald Trump won’t be in Butler, Pennsylvania alone on Saturday, as SpaceX CEO Elon Musk says he will be there to lend a helping hand. Musk replied on Thursday to a post by Trump on X saying he was returning to Butler this Saturday, with Musk posting that would be there in support. Trump's rally will be held at the same site where Trump was shot in the ear in an assassination attempt on July 13.

A majority of European Union member states agreed on Friday to impose tariffs of up to 45 percent on imports of Chinese-made electric vehicles. However, the EU’s executive arm, the European Commission, said it would continue to negotiate with Beijing to find an alternative solution.

Israel’s military urged residents in more than 20 towns in southern Lebanon to evacuate their homes immediately on Thursday, as it continues its ground operation. Israel is continuing its attacks aimed at further weakening the Hezbollah terrorist group. Three explosions were heard in the south of Lebanon’s capital, Beirut, and several large plumes of smoke were visible after Israeli strikes overnight. The south of the city is a Hezbollah stronghold, and Iran also has a strong influence there.

Former President Donald Trump will hold a rally in Michigan at Saginaw Valley State University on Thursday. On Friday, the Trump campaign will kick off a bus tour through Georgia. Meanwhile, former congresswoman Liz Cheney will join Vice President Kamala Harris in Wisconsin on Thursday. The vocal Trump critic says the former president poses a threat to the U.S. Constitution. Cheney’s father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, has also endorsed Harris.

President Joe Biden is heading to Florida and Georgia to survey storm damage caused by Hurricane Helene. Biden will make stops in Tallahassee and Perry, where he will also take an aerial tour of the devastation. Helene has caused at least 190 fatalities since it made landfall in Florida a week ago, with more than half of the deaths occurring in North Carolina. Hundreds remain missing, and officials are facing challenges in identifying some of the victims.

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are set to tour areas devastated by Hurricane Helene. Biden will visit both North and South Carolina, starting out in Greenville for an aerial survey of storm damage, then to Raleigh for a briefing, and he will later take a tour of Asheville. Harris will visit Georgia. Former President Donald Trump visited the state on Monday. Federal efforts are focused on restoring power, clearing debris, and repairing communication networks in impacted states.

Iran's supreme leader made his first appearance on Wednesday since Iran’s attack on Israel. He did not directly talk about the strikes, but blamed Israel for the fighting in the Middle East. He also criticized the United States and some European countries. Meanwhile, Israel said it is continuing its ground operation in southern Lebanon. Israel's foreign ministry banned U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres from entering the country. Guterres issued a brief statement on Tuesday referencing the latest escalation in the Middle East but he didn't call out Iran for the attack. Israel said anyone who can't unequivocally condemn Iran's attack doesn't deserve to set foot on Israeli soil.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams was back in court on Wednesday, this time for a status conference, after his federal indictment last week. District Judge Dale Ho is set to oversee his criminal trial on corruption charges. Adams pleaded not guilty to the federal charges last week.

The Israeli military said Iran launched missiles into Israel on Tuesday. It said sirens sounded all across central Israel and that all Israeli civilians are in bomb shelters. The attack came after the White House earlier warned in a statement that Iran is preparing to imminently launch a ballistic missile attack on Israel. The statement said the U.S. is supporting defensive preparations to defend Israel against the attack and added that a direct attack against Israel will carry severe consequences for Iran.

The death toll from Hurricane Helene continues to rise. At least 137 people have been killed. In western North Carolina entire communities are under feet of water. Hundreds of people are yet to make contact with loved ones as cellphone towers are still down across the region. Power is still out for more than 1.5 million homes and businesses - from Florida to West Virginia. President Biden said he will travel to North Carolina on Wednesday.

JD Vance and Tim Walz will take the stage tonight, in the only vice presidential debate of the 2024 election. Tonight's 90-minute debate will take place at 9 p.m. Eastern Time in New York City. Watch the debate at 9 p.m. on CBS or simulcast on NTD News. Afterwards, NTD’s Steve Lance and Tiffany Meier will be providing a balanced analysis with special guests and a recap of the night’s biggest moments.

The man charged with attempting to assassinate Donald Trump, after allegedly positioning himself with a rifle outside one of the former president's Florida golf courses pleaded not guilty on Monday to five federal charges. Ryan Routh, 58, entered the plea to charges that include attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate during a hearing in federal court. He has already been ordered to remain in jail to await a trial.

Rescue operations are underway after Hurricane Helene battered the Southeast. At least 110 are dead across the nation and officials are warning the death toll may rise. Many more are reported as missing. President Joe Biden will visit some affect communities later this week. Presidential candidates Kamala Harris and Donald Trump have expressed condolences to those affected by Helene. Forecasters say a new tropical depression has formed in the Atlantic ocean, it’s still too early to know but it could become a hurricane by Wednesday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a video in English today where he addressed the people of Iran. Netanyahu says he wanted to do so directly, without filters or middlemen. "There is nowhere in the Middle East Israel cannot reach. There is nowhere we will not go to protect our people and protect our country," Netanyahu said. He said the Iranian government was bringing Iranians "closer to the abyss." Iran and Israel would be at peace when Iran is "finally free" which he said would "come a lot sooner than people think.” Meanwhile, the Hezbollah terrorist group has a new acting leader. This comes after an Israeli airstrike killed long-time chief Hassan Nasrallah. Acting leader Naim Kassem says if Israel decides to launch a ground offensive, the group's fighters are ready.

Former President Donald Trump said on Friday that he would work with both Ukraine and Russia to end their war. He made the remarks as he stood next to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at their meeting in New York City. Speaking to reporters at Trump Tower, Zelenskyy said he wanted to discuss his "victory plan" for Ukraine with Trump during their first meeting since 2019. He said he was meeting with both Trump and his Democratic rival in the Nov. 5 election, Vice President Kamala Harris, because Ukraine needs strong U.S. support in its continuing war with Russia.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the U.N. General Assembly on Friday morning amid growing concerns about the escalating conflicts in the Middle East. Netanyahu blamed Iran for the rising tensions and said Israel is winning.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams surrendered to federal authorities before a scheduled arraignment on Friday morning. He faces federal charges of accepting bribes and illegal campaign contributions from Turkish nationals.

Watch the livestream of the Task Force's hearing, "The Ongoing Investigation of the Butler, Pennsylvania Security Failure: The Secret Service’s Reliance on State and Local Law Enforcement." The hearing is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024 at 9:30 a.m. ET.

Witnesses include:

Mr. Edward Lenz: Sergeant, Adams Township Police Department, Commander, Butler County Emergency Services Unit

Mr. Drew Blasko: Patrolman, Butler Township Police Department

Mr. John D. Herold: Lieutenant, Pennsylvania State Police

Mr. Patrick Sullivan: Former United States Secret Service Agent

Dr. Ariel Goldschmidt: Medical Examiner, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.

The goal of the Task Force is to understand what went wrong on the day of the attempted assassination, to ensure accountability, and to prevent such an agency failure from ever happening again. To date, the Task Force has held multiple meetings with law enforcement officials, conducted a number of transcribed interviews, and reviewed thousands of documents.

A bipartisan Senate committee has revealed its report on the first Trump assassination attempt. It details lapses in preparation and communication the day former President Donald Trump was shot at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13. According to the report, Secret Service agents could not agree on who was ultimately responsible for decision-making in the run-up to that day. Secret Service agents and local law enforcement failed to set up visual barriers that might have blocked the shooter's view of the podium where Trump was shot. Trump's campaign said the former president was also briefed on Tuesday by U.S. intelligence officials on alleged Iranian threats to assassinate him.

Tropical storm Helene officially became a category 1 hurricane on Wednesday morning as it churned through the eastern Gulf of Mexico toward the Florida coastline. More than 40 million people in Florida, Georgia, and Alabama are under hurricane and tropical storm warnings. Evacuations are being ordered along Florida's Gulf Coast.

House Republican leadership is expected to bring a stopgap funding bill to the floor on Wednesday that would extend the deadline for a government shutdown to Dec. 20. The bill has won the approval of both the White House and Senate Democratic leadership, making it likely to pass quickly.

President Joe Biden underscored the importance of alliances and U.S. support for Ukraine in its war with Russia in his final address to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday. Biden said the United States must not retreat from the world, as Israel and the Hezbollah terrorist organization in Lebanon edge toward all-out war and the conflict with Hamas terrorists in Gaza nears the one-year mark.

GOP presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump is holding a campaign event in Savannah, Georgia, on Tuesday, where he intends to discuss the tax code and U.S. manufacturing. Meanwhile, Vice President Kamala Harris's husband, second gentleman Doug Emhoff, will speak at campaign events in Austin, Texas. Harris is scheduled to visit Pittsburgh on Wednesday.

Tropical Storm Helene is forming in the northwestern Caribbean Sea. Residents of Florida are bracing for what could become the strongest hurricane to hit the United States so far this season.

The man accused of hiding out with a gun near Donald Trump's Florida golf course in an apparent bid to kill the former president wrote a letter months earlier describing an "assassination attempt" and offering a bounty on Trump's life, U.S. prosecutors said on Monday (September 23). Ryan Routh appeared at a hearing on Monday in which prosecutors will ask a judge to keep him in jail until his trial. In a court filing released before the hearing, prosecutors said that several months prior to the incident, Routh dropped off a handwritten letter addressed to "the world" that offered a bounty on Trump. Routh has been charged with two gun crimes. He has not yet entered a plea.

Trump said that he will not make a fourth consecutive run for the U.S. presidency if he loses the Nov. 5 election, saying "that will be it" in an interview released on Sunday. Asked if he saw himself running again in four years if he is not successful in his third consecutive bid for the White House, the former president told Sharyl Attkisson's "Full Measure" program: "No I don't. I think that will be — that will be it. I don't see that at all. Hopefully, we will be successful."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel faced "complicated days" as the armed forces shift their focus to the country's northern frontier, from where Hezbollah has been firing rockets into Israel in support of its ally Hamas. Netanyahu appealed for unity as Israel increases air strikes in southern Lebanon saying the operations were aimed at changing "the security balance, the balance of power in the north" after talking with commanders at military headquarters in Tel Aviv.

The House voted unanimously on Friday in favor of a bipartisan bill to boost security for presidential nominees. It required a two-thirds majority to pass due to an expedited process. The bill requires the Secret Service to use consistent standards to determine the number of agents needed to protect presidents, vice presidents, and major candidates.

Georgia’s election board has voted to approve a new rule that requires millions of ballots to be manually counted on election day. Critics warn it could cause delays and errors, while supporters say it will ensure ballot-scanning machines are accurate.

The Israeli military says it killed senior Hezbollah military commander Ibrahim Aqil in an airstrike on Beirut’s southern suburbs. Lebanon’s health ministry said the strike killed 9 people and wounded 59 others. The strike inflicted another blow on Hezbollah after the terrorist group suffered an unprecedented attack earlier this week in which pagers and walkie-talkies used by its members exploded.

The Israeli military said on Thursday that it hit Hezbollah infrastructure and a weapons storage facility in southern Lebanon overnight. Israel’s defense minister declared the start of a “new phase” of the war as the country redirects its focus toward the northern front against Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon.

Heightened security measures were in place as former President Donald Trump held a rally in New York on Wednesday night. Meanwhile, Vice President Kamala Harris addressed a Hispanic leadership conference in Washington.

The Senate will prepare temporary spending legislation to prevent a partial government shutdown at the end of the month, said Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer. He said lawmakers will spend the next few days trying to find a deal that both Republicans and Democrats can support.

Explosions went off in Beirut and several other parts of Lebanon on Wednesday in an apparent second wave of detonations of electronic devices used by the Hezbollah terrorist group. The country's Health Ministry said at least 9 people were killed and more than 300 wounded.

The House is scheduled to vote on Speaker Mike Johnson's (R-La.) stopgap funding bill to avert a government shutdown before Oct. 1. The bill would link with a mandate that requires proof of citizenship when people register to vote.

The Federal Reserve is poised to cut its benchmark interest rate for the first time in more than four years. The move is expected to lower borrowing costs for consumers and businesses just weeks before the presidential election.

Hundreds of handheld pagers exploded near simultaneously across Lebanon on Tuesday, killing at least eight people, including members of the terrorist group Hezbollah. More than 2,700 people, including the Iranian ambassador, were wounded in what appeared to be a sophisticated, remote attack.

According to a federal indictment unsealed in New York, music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs has been charged with racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking. The Justice Department said that for decades, Combs abused, threatened, and coerced women and others around him to fulfill his sexual desires.

House Speaker Mike Johnson said the House plans to vote on a 6-month stopgap funding bill Wednesday to avert a government shutdown before Oct. 1. The bill is linked to legislation requiring proof of citizenship for voting.