NEWS - WEDNESDAY, MAY 20, 2026 - NEWS
Despite handwringing among Democrats about being shut out of the governor's race, a new poll suggests the two candidates most likely to emerge after the June primary are Republican Steve Hilton and Democrat Xavier Becerra. LA Times
VOA VIEW: Hilton is the right choice.
Shakira has maintained her innocence for eight years as Spain filed three separate tax fraud cases against her. With an acquittal on Monday, she cleared her name. LA Times
The friendly skies just got a little friendlier. New York Post
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The shooting left two other people dead. New York Post
President Trump said he was “an hour away” from striking Iran on Monday when he called off the military strike at the request of Middle East leaders — and warned another “big hit” could still be coming as senior military leaders told Congress US troops are poised to take action. New York Post
VOA VIEW: Trump has dodged the game.
The United States and Europe were at odds over the Trump administration’s decision to ease oil sanctions on Russia. New York Times
VOA VIEW: No deal should be made with Russia.
After President Trump’s threats to seize the island, Gov. Jeff Landry’s offers of MAGA hats and chocolate chip cookies fall flat. New York Times
The finding effectively paves the way for continued use of atrazine, a widely used herbicide that has been linked to birth defects and cancer in humans. New York Times
A House transportation bill introduced this week would require owners of electric cars to pay $130 to cover the cost of road repairs. New York Times
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After invading more than four years ago, Moscow has usually been the one causing ecological disaster. But Kyiv’s strikes, intended to cut into the Kremlin’s oil revenue, have flipped the script. New York Times
VOA VIEW: Russia should incur losses.
After months of uncertainty, President Donald Trump has revealed that he is backing state Attorney General Ken Paxton in the race to be the next Senator of Texas. OANN
President Donald Trump reiterated his support for Representative Barry Moore’s U.S. Senate candidacy Monday night during a tele-rally ahead of Tuesday’s primary. The last-minute pitch came as three Republicans remained neck and neck in the battle for Senator Tommy Tuberville’s open seat, which became vacant after he launched his campaign for Alabama governor. OANN
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent strongly urged the Group of Seven (G7) nations and other international allies to forcefully disrupt Iran’s global financing networks, emphasizing that a unified front is crucial to dismantling Tehran's "war machine." OANN
VOA VIEW: As they all should.
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The defense team for Tyler Robinson, the 22-year-old man accused of assassinating Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, intends to block the public from viewing parts of his upcoming hearing and evidence. OANN
The NAACP is calling on Black athletes and fans to boycott the athletic programs of public universities in states that are taking steps that the nation's oldest civil rights group says are restricting Black voting rights. Washington Times
VOA VIEW: More suppressive black tactics.
Federal agents can no longer make arrests without exceptional circumstances in and around three Manhattan buildings where immigration proceedings occur, a judge ruled. Washington Times
VOA VIEW: The liberal judge is breaking the law.
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A California woman has admitted to trolling Los Angeles' Skid Row to find homeless people she could register to vote and get to sign petitions -- and paying them a few bucks to get them to cooperate. Washington Times
VOA VIEW: She should go to jail.
Three people were killed in a shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego, and two suspected shooters were found dead inside a vehicle nearby, police said. CBS
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said the MTA and LIRR unions reached "a fair deal" to end the strike after three days. CBS
VOA VIEW: As we predicted.
The Trump administration has placed intense pressure on Cuba's communist leadership. CBS
Pete Hegseth hit the campaign trail Monday, an unusual move for a defense secretary, stumping in Kentucky for Ed Gallrein, a Trump-backed challenger to Republican congressman and frequent Trump critic Thomas Massie. Ed O'Keefe has more. CBS
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U.S. wage growth is lagging inflation for the first time since 2023, eroding consumers' purchasing power. CBS
VOA VIEW: Theses are not good timed, but they will improve.
At issue in the cases was who can bring lawsuits in federal court to address potential violations of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. CBS
AI-driven hiring slowdowns are hitting some entry-level jobs for college graduates as companies like Ford and AT&T ramp up recruiting for skilled trade workers. CNBC
VOA VIEW: Time will tell.
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Trump said he is increasing the number of products on the platform by nearly seven times, adding more than 600 generic drugs to the site. CNBC
Oil prices fell after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would postpone a planned military strike on Iran following requests from key Middle Eastern leaders. CNBC
Trump, at a White House event Monday, is expected to announce an expansion of the number of discounted prescription drugs offered through TrumpRX. CNBC
Austin police arrested two juveniles after 12 random shootings across the city injured four people, struck a fire station and prompted a shelter-in-place. FOX News
Foreign influence from China, dark money billionaires and activist networks is fueling opposition to American AI data center projects. FOX News
A central Maine county's HIV outbreak has reached 43 cases, with nearly all infections linked to injection drug use or homelessness. FOX News
The United States has issued temporary Russia sanctions relief for a third straight month, extending a waiver allowing the sale of Russian oil. UPI
At least 118 people in the Democratic Republic of Congo have died of suspected Ebola infections, said health officials as the outbreak spreads. UPI
Alex Saab, a Colombian businessman and longtime ally of ousted Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, appeared in a Miami federal courtroom on Monday. UPI
VOA VIEW: He will go down.
Officials in the Trump administration on Monday moved to weaken and change key parts of federal guidelines that dealt with "forever toxins" in water. UPI
Close advisers to Trump warned after last week's U.S.-China summit that likelihood of China invading Taiwan within next 5 years has increased. UPI
VOA VIEW: It would be foolish.
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As about a dozen cases involving missing or deceased American nuclear scientists have come to light, a retired high-level FBI official says some of them fit a pattern that he considers suspicious. The disappearances are highly suspect.
"The missing [and] disappearance thing is suspicious inherently," said Chris Swecker, who served as assistant director of the FBI. "What they were working on would certainly, without a doubt, be a target of a hostile foreign intelligence service like Russia or China. It could be Iran, could be Pakistan." Swecker believes the six deaths that have been widely reported don't have much in common, and he doesn't believe they're connected.
While Swecker isn't convinced that there's a conspiracy afoot even among the missing scientists, he agrees that authorities should be looking for links in the disappearances, given the high-value, sensitive technology that they all worked with or near. The disappearance of retired Air Force Maj. Gen. William Neil McCasland earlier this year set off the cascade of theories about the missing and dead scientists. He was the former commander of the Air Force Research Laboratory, and had connections to the Los Alamos National Laboratory, where top-secret nuclear research is conducted.
He vanished in New Mexico after leaving his home with only a pair of boots and a handgun. He left his phone, keys and glasses behind. "I'm just saying that ... the FBI would have interest in anything that happened to them because of what they were working on," he said. "And, in fact, [with] McCasland, the FBI showed up uninvited that very afternoon. '
