President Donald Trump says he’s in “deciding mode” on Iran as Tehran lays out conditions for renewed negotiations and the U.S. weighs its next move in the war.
Plus, an ICE officer shoots and seriously wounds a Venezuelan DoorDash driver in Austin, prompting overnight protests and calls from city leaders for a broader investigation.
And Trump heads to Gracie Mansion for his third meeting with New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, putting the two face-to-face for the first time in New York.
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Trump weighs Iran strike, warns he could ‘blow the entire nation up’
Trump has said he’s in “deciding mode” on Iran, using some of his strongest language yet about where this war could go next.
To Fox News on Sunday, he said “very big things” could happen soon, then asked, “If and when do I blow the entire nation up?” CBS News reported that the president also described other possibilities under consideration, including reaching a deal.
Those comments come as Iran’s president and foreign minister prepare to come to New York for the UN General Assembly. The Trump administration approved visas for both despite the ongoing war.
New signs of diplomatic movement have also emerged. An Iranian official said Qatar and Pakistan have relayed Tehran’s conditions to the U.S. for returning to negotiations. Those include an end to the war, the release of frozen Iranian funds and an end to the U.S. naval blockade.
However, the U.S. has not confirmed that new negotiations are underway.
The Strait of Hormuz remains closed. Iran said it will not reopen the key shipping route until its conditions are met.
ICE shooting of Austin DoorDash driver prompts calls for independent investigation
An ICE officer shot and seriously wounded a man in Austin, Texas. Overnight, police used tear gas and pepper spray to disperse protests that followed. Police declared an unlawful assembly near the scene, then moved in on demonstrators, using pepper balls and making several arrests.
The man who was shot has been identified by an immigration attorney as 28-year-old Wilber Rafael Garcés Perez, a Venezuelan DoorDash driver. DHS said Garcés Perez entered the country illegally during the Biden administration and had a final order of removal. His attorney says he entered through a parole program and was seeking asylum.
Austin’s police chief said the shooting happened during a foot pursuit but cautioned that information is still preliminary. It’s unclear whether Garcés Perez was the target.
He was shot in the torso and taken to a hospital in serious but stable condition. DHS said he is now in federal custody pending removal.
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson wants city police and the Texas Rangers involved in the investigation.
“Austinites also, because they have a right to feel safe in their city when you have a shooting on their streets, it makes people feel less safe. And ICE, with the fear that it’s created, is on their streets. And by just being on their streets, it creates some fear in our city. And if there’s nothing to fear from this being done the way it was done. If there’s nothing wrong with that, they should welcome an investigation.”
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson
Right now, DHS and the FBI are leading that investigation. ABC reported Austin police were not allowed to conduct their own crime-scene investigation.
A city council member says he’s working with city officials to keep the ICE officer who fired the shots from leaving Texas.
Trump to visit Mamdani at Gracie Mansion as talks focus on New Yorkers
Trump heads to Gracie Mansion on Monday to meet with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. If that sounds like an unlikely invitation, remember, the two have gotten along much better in private than their politics might suggest.
This will be their third face-to-face meeting and their first in New York. The first was at the White House last November, just after Mamdani was elected. They met again in February, when Mamdani pitched Trump on a massive Queens housing project.
Mamdani said they’ve stayed in touch since then.
The mayor’s office hasn’t said much about Monday’s agenda, only that they’ll discuss issues affecting New Yorkers.
Immigration could come up. Just last week, Mamdani announced a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s expansion of its “public charge” rule, which can make it harder for some immigrants to get green cards.
And then there’s where they’re meeting. Presidential visits to Gracie Mansion are rare. Harry Truman was there in 1949. John F. Kennedy visited in 1962 to speak to a gathering of U.S. mayors. Ronald Reagan went in 1981 and presented Mayor Ed Koch with a giant prop check for a Manhattan infrastructure project.
Trump will be in New York for the U.N. General Assembly and is scheduled to address it Tuesday.
US, China discuss AI warning system for emerging security threats
The U.S. wants a new warning system with China to alert when something goes wrong with AI and becomes a national security threat. The idea emerged during talks in New York between top U.S. and Chinese officials ahead of President Xi Jinping’s visit to Washington this week.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. is proposing what he calls a “notification mechanism” to allow the world’s two biggest AI powers to alert each other to serious incidents.
“Well, the notification for, whether there are incidents, whether there has been something that rises up to a national security level from AI, because we think that, just like when any cross-border activity moves from opaque to more transparency between the number one and the number two AI powers in the world, is very important.”
Scott Bessent, U.S. Treasury Secretary
The two sides agreed to keep the AI conversation going.
Chinese state media confirmed AI was discussed but did not mention the U.S. proposal. They also agreed to set up a new “Board of Trade.”
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said they’re discussing lower tariffs on some non-sensitive goods, potentially including Chinese consumer products and U.S. energy, agricultural goods and medical devices.
Trump’s Triumphal Arch plan now includes drones and rooftop snipers
Trump’s 250-foot arch near Arlington National Cemetery is getting a new purpose. He announced Sunday it will also serve as a military complex with drones, snipers and ammunition.
Trump said the change came at the U.S. military’s “strong request” and was needed for national security. He said the arch would store large numbers of drones and allow them to be deployed quickly. Snipers would be positioned on the roof and in plaza areas, with sniper ammunition stored inside.
Trump has been discussing this arch for months. The plan calls for a 250-foot structure near the Arlington Memorial Bridge, across the Potomac from the Lincoln Memorial and near Arlington National Cemetery.
The arch has already faced legal challenges. This month, a federal judge ordered the administration to provide 48 hours’ notice before any work at the site.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) cleared the 250-foot structure Friday, determining it would not pose a hazard to flights at nearby Reagan National Airport.
One military expert told Reuters he questions the need for the new facility, noting that Fort Myer is about a mile away and the Pentagon about two miles away. The Pentagon hasn’t offered any details beyond Trump’s post.
Fastest-known Milky Way star races around galaxy’s central black hole
Astronomers have found the fastest known star in the Milky Way. And this star moves.
It’s called S301, and it’s orbiting the supermassive black hole at the center of our galaxy. At its fastest, the star moves at about 15,000 miles per second, more than 8% of the speed of light.
It gets extremely close to that black hole, about ten times closer than the star scientists have previously used to study it. That gives astronomers a chance to measure gravity there much more precisely.
“Our measurements will be better because we come closer to the black hole. We get closer to the object of interest. And so if we feel better the forces of the black hole, we can more precisely see the gravitational effects. And this is why this star is so wonderful.”
Stefan Gillessen, study author
Scientists said S301 could now help them do something they’ve been trying to do for years: measure how fast that black hole is spinning. They think they could have that answer within the next decade.
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Modern farms are adopting to high-tech tools. Can they afford the price?
A walk through the Jones family’s farm in northern Ohio feels like a glimpse into the future of agriculture.
Solar arrays supply the bulk of the farm’s electricity. Drones and robotic cultivators monitor crops and pull weeds. And a greenhouse lighting system replicates the sunshine in any geographic location, enabling the farmers to grow crops from regions outside Ohio.
It saves money and turbocharges efficiency, but comes at a cost. The drone system alone costs tens of thousands of dollars, not to mention ongoing maintenance costs, which means the family must be judicious.
“We have a process of evaluating technology,” said Bob Jones, CEO of the farm, called Chef’s Garden, which grows vegetables and edible flowers for high-end restaurants. “What are we going to gain from the technology and what is it going to cost us?”
Pouring over numbers is now a vital part of his job, he told Straight Arrow.
