Trump threatens more strikes on Iran, as back-and-forth attacks threaten truce deal

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump is threatening more airstrikes on Iran. The U.S. military says it launched strikes on Iranian military sites Wednesday. Tehran fired back at countries in the region. Trump told reporters at the White House hours later that “we’re going to hit them again hard today.” The escalating attacks threatened to derail efforts to end the war. Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan came under Iranian fire. It was the second time this week that back-and-forth strikes have tested a two-month ceasefire. Iran and Israel targeted each other on Monday. Shortly after Trump spoke, the U.S. military said it had fired on an oil tanker trying to transport oil from Iran in violation of its blockade on Iranian ports.

Trump signs bill giving nearly $70B to his immigration enforcement agenda through end of his term

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s immigration and deportation agenda is getting a nearly $70 billion boost through the end of his term. Trump signed a bill into law in the Oval Office on Wednesday giving $38 billion to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and $26 billion to the Border Patrol. An additional $5 billion would cover unforeseen costs. The Republican president signed it a day after House Republicans pushed the measure through by a 214-212 vote. His signature ended a nearly six-month fight over Department of Homeland Security funding that began with shooting deaths in January of two U.S. citizens during federal immigration enforcement operations in Minneapolis.

Bill Gates tells lawmakers meeting Epstein was a ‘grave error in judgment’ in closed-door hearing

WASHINGTON (AP) — Bill Gates says he made an error in judgment by ever meeting with Jeffrey Epstein as the Microsoft co-founder faces questions behind closed doors from lawmakers about his relationship with the disgraced financier. In an opening statement provided Wednesday to The Associated Press, Gates said he should never have met with Epstein, but that he never had any indication that Epstein was engaged in criminal activity. The tech billionaire became the latest powerful figure linked to Epstein to testify before the House Oversight Committee. As Gates arrived at the Capitol, he noted that he was there voluntarily.

Ukraine launches long-range strikes on military and energy sites in Russia

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A series of long-range Ukrainian attacks hit targets deep inside Russia, part of Kyiv’s efforts to raise the costs of the war for the Kremlin by striking energy facilities and military industries. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukrainian forces struck several military and energy infrastructure sites on Wednesday, including a military factory in the city of Cheboksary, that he said supplied components for Russian drones and missiles. Zelenskyy also said a refinery in Russia’s Samara region and two oil infrastructure facilities in the Vladimir region had been targeted. The increasingly deep and audacious Ukrainian strikes have cast a challenge to Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, defying his claim that Moscow was winning the war now in its fifth year.

US households, businesses stung by higher energy prices that have pushed inflation above 4%

WASHINGTON (AP) — Rising gas prices pushed inflation to its highest level in three years last month, a headache for the Federal Reserve and a potential political challenge for the Trump administration as midterm elections near. New data showed Wednesday that consumer prices rose 4.2% in May from a year earlier, the third straight monthly increase. Prices have now risen faster than wages for several months. Families are dipping into savings to maintain their spending, and more people are falling behind on their credit card bills. Large retailers say they have also noticed changes in customer behavior, like buying smaller amounts of gas during visits to the pump.

Tuesday’s takeaways: Platner’s big night, Clyburn carries on and Trump’s support gets mixed results

WASHINGTON (AP) — Nevada, South Carolina and North Dakota have hosted primary elections, but much of the political world is focused on Maine’s high-stakes U.S. Senate contest. The Maine results were never in question. Neither Republican Sen. Susan Collins nor Democratic challenger Graham Platner faced serious opposition for their party’s nomination. Yet Tuesday marked an especially significant moment for Platner, a veteran and oyster farmer who’s fighting to rebuild his credibility in a campaign rocked by controversy. Elsewhere, President Donald Trump’s clout within the Republican Party was tested anew in states like South Carolina and Nevada. Democrats hoped to build momentum in Nevada in their broader push to reclaim key governor’s seats.

FBI seizing evidence at California plant where chemical tank overheated and forced evacuations

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Federal authorities served a search warrant on Wednesday at a Southern California aerospace facility where a chemical tank overheated last month, forcing 50,000 residents to evacuate. The warrant signed by a federal judge last week approved the seizure of documents and records related to the “storage, use, or disposal” of methyl methacrylate, the chemical inside the affected tank. The FBI confirmed its agents were searching GKN Aerospace Transparency Systems in the Orange County city of Garden Grove. A GKN spokesperson told the AP the company is cooperating with authorities.

Nancy Mace’s unpredictable career is up in the air after finishing last in South Carolina primary

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Rep. Nancy Mace has finished a distant fifth in South Carolina’s Republican primary for governor, leaving her political future uncertain. Her campaign mirrored her unpredictable career. She courted President Donald Trump’s support after previously criticizing him. She pushed for releasing Jeffrey Epstein investigation files over some Republican objections. And in the final days of her campaign, she advocated for banning people who aren’t born in the U.S. from holding political office or being judges. Mace’s campaign struggled with fundraising and relied heavily on social media. In her concession speech, she didn’t indicate her plans now.

Scientists discover a deep whale graveyard that is teeming with life

NEW YORK (AP) — Scientists have unearthed marine communities thriving on a millions-year-old whale graveyard. These graveyards form when whale carcasses fall to the sea floor, becoming a sustaining snack for nearby critters. Researchers used a submersible to explore the remains in the southeastern Indian Ocean and found bones dating back 5.3 million years, as well as living creatures like jellyfish and tubeworms. The researchers say many factors likely conspired to preserve the bones, including the bones’ high density, their location deep underwater and a special coating of minerals. The new study was published Wednesday in the journal Nature.

AI stocks keep swinging sharply and drag Wall Street with them

NEW YORK (AP) — AI stocks are yo-yoing, as the former superstars of Wall Street continue to face scrutiny for their success, and they’re dragging the U.S. market with them. The S&P 500 fell 0.9% Wednesday after bouncing between a modest gain and a loss of 1.3%, and it’s heading toward its first back-to-back drop in three weeks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 631 points, and the Nasdaq composite sank 1.1%. Wall Street has been shaky since last week, when AI stocks went from roaring to records to suddenly turning lower. Among the worries is that their prices have simply shot too high, too fast. Oil prices rose.