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Welcome to The Hill's Defense & NatSec newsletter {beacon} Defense &National Security Defense &National Security   The Big Story Trump’s blockade bet President Trump’s new blockade in the Strait of Hormuz took effect Monday as talks with Iran faltered over the weekend, with the president betting he can get Tehran to come back to the...

President Trump is putting the squeeze on Iran’s economy with a U.S. blockade in the Strait of Hormuz, a move he hopes will break deadlocked negotiations with Iran. The naval blockade is also meant to raise pressure on Iran's allies like China, who rely on its oil exports. China played a major behind-the-scenes role in...

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni criticized President Trump’s Sunday rant against Pope Leo XIV as “unacceptable.” “I find President Trump’s words toward the Holy Father unacceptable,” said Meloni, the head of the right-wing Brothers of Italy party, said Monday in a statement. “The Pope is the head of the Catholic Church, and it is right...

The Trump administration will allow an LGBTQ pride flag to fly at the Stonewall national monument after the removal of a flag sparked uproar and a lawsuit. According to court documents, the administration agreed to hang a rainbow pride flag at the New York City monument, which commemorates the struggle for LGBTQ rights. The agreement ends a lawsuit filed...

Republican Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) on Sunday criticized the Trump administration’s proposed cuts to NASA. “I think it would be a mistake to put money only in the missions related to exploration and not into science and the others. I wouldn’t start with the premise that exploration is the only important aspect of the budget,”...

Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) announced Monday that he is resigning from Congress as he faces allegations of sexual assault and sexual misconduct. “I am deeply sorry to my family, staff, and constituents for mistakes in judgment I’ve made in my past,” he wrote. “I will fight the serious, false allegation made against me. However, I...

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) is probing athletic wear company Lululemon on “forever chemicals” — which the company says are not in its products. Paxton on Monday announced that he was issuing a Civil Investigative Demand to Lululemon as part of an investigation into whether the company “has misled consumers” about its products. The...

The Baltimore City Department of Public Works (DPW) announced Monday that it will be temporarily reducing the amount of fluoride in its municipal water beginning this week due to national supply disruptions brought on by the war in Iran. "Fluoride levels will be lowered from approximately 0.7 milligrams per liter to 0.4 milligrams per liter...

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton took President Trump to task on Monday for a spate of “unhinged” social media posts and slammed his administration’s approach to negotiations with Iran. Speaking to hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski on MS NOW’s “Morning Joe,” the former first lady and senator said Trump should be held “accountable”...

Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) said Monday that “rapists should be hung” in the wake of Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) recently facing sexual assault allegations, but he insisted he wasn’t talking about the California Democrat. “Rapists should be hung, period. No questions. And so — now I’m not — I don’t want the Secret Service to...

The Cook Political Report shifted four Senate races to the left on Monday but noted that the GOP is still favored to maintain its majority in the upper chamber this November.  “With an increasingly sour national environment for Republicans, the Senate battlefield is shifting in Democrats’ favor,” wrote Jessica Taylor, the Senate and governors editor...

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) said she thinks there is enough support in the House to expel Reps. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) and Tony Gonzales (R-Texas), both of whom have been accused of sexual misconduct. Luna said she would file a motion to expel Swalwell, who has been facing bipartisan calls to step down after a...

The House Ethics Committee has launched an investigation into Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) as he faces allegations of sexual misconduct. The probe follows explosive accusations from a former aide that Swalwell sexually assaulted her on two occasions — charges that were first made public on Friday in The San Francisco Chronicle. That article was followed by a...

Facing backlash from his supporters President Trump removed a controversial social media post on Monday that portrayed him as Jesus in an AI-generated image. The post landed as he lashed out against Pope Leo XIV, who has registered his opposition to the war in Iran since the conflict began in February. Trump on Sunday night...