Latest news with #ElizabethWarren
Fox News
an hour ago
- Politics
- Fox News
WATCH: Dem senators blame Trump for Iran crisis as GOP urges him to stand firm with Israel
While Democratic senators are blaming President Donald Trump for the ongoing Iran-Israel conflict, Republicans are urging the president to continue standing in support of Israel as it attempts to eliminate Iran's nuclear weapon capabilities. This comes as Israel and Iran, two major powers in the Middle East, are locked in a heavy missile war. Israel, a U.S. ally, has been targeting Iranian nuclear facilities with the intent of keeping Iran from utilizing nuclear weapons, something Trump has long advocated. Following intense speculation that Trump would join the conflict by launching a U.S. strike on Iran, the White House issued a statement from the president in which he said there is a "substantial chance" for renewed negotiations to end the conflict. In the statement, Trump said he would decide which path to take in the next two weeks. The White House has said that any deal with Iran would have to include a full commitment to not developing nuclear weapons, including no uranium enrichment, a necessary step to developing nuclear weapons. Iran has said it will not accept an agreement with a zero enrichment provision. Speaking with Fox News Digital in the halls of the Capitol, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., slammed Trump for pulling the U.S. out of a nuclear agreement of which Iran was a part during his first term. "The way to keep Iran from having a nuclear weapon is through negotiation," she said. "We actually had that deal, and Donald Trump threw it out the window." "That means we lost our inspectors, we lost the plans that had been made," she continued. "Right now, we need more deconfliction in the area. We need to bring down the temperature between Israel and Iran. That's what's best for Israel and Iran, it's what's best for the region and for the whole world," said Warren. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., also blamed Trump, saying, "He's the one who put us out the deal in the first place," which she said "very much so" contributed to the ongoing conflict. While he said the U.S. should not be involved in bombing missions or any other military action against Iran, Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., said, "What we should do is continue to provide Israel with all the tools they need to defend themselves." "I hope the president will continue to promote a diplomatic solution that we had until he tore it up," said Kaine. Meanwhile, Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, who caucuses with the Democrats, told Fox News Digital that the "question is can it be resolved without our involvement." He said he hopes Iran "will see the light and decide they don't need to keep developing nuclear fuel." On the other side of the aisle, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, told Fox News Digital that he believes Trump "standing unshakably with the nation of Israel" is the right move to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon. "Israel is being incredibly effective with their military strike against Iran. They've taken out the senior military leadership, the leaders who would wage a war have been one after the other after the other surgically taken out by Israel. They are also taking out missile launch sites, and they're taking out nuclear research sites, the sites where Iran is working to develop a nuclear weapon," Cruz explained. "Deterrence is always the key," said Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Ohio. "This president has been very clear he's all about peace, and he doesn't want to use the might of the United States unless we absolutely have to. I believe deterrence is the best foreign policy, because it shows peace through strength." That being said, Mullin said Trump has he's been "very clear for over a decade: In no way are we going to allow the Iranian regime, who is the number one sponsor of terror around the world, to have a nuclear weapon." "So, we need to be prepared to back up Israel if they're not able to do the job, then we need to be able to finish it," he said. "Look, he has said this for 10 years. He has said Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon, full stop," said Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala. "So, it is not just about [uranium] enrichment, which absolutely should have never happened and cannot happen, but it is also complete and total dismantlement of the nuclear program."
The Guardian
7 hours ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Senator Elizabeth Warren demands answers from Marco Rubio about Gaza aid contract
Elizabeth Warren has confronted the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, over reports that the state department is considering redirecting $500m from USAID to the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF). In a letter addressed to Rubio and USAID's acting administrator, Kenneth Jackson, the Massachusetts senator argued that the GHF, a self-proclaimed aid organisation that is backed by the Israeli and US governments, 'marks an alarming departure from the professional humanitarian organizations that have worked on the ground, in Gaza and elsewhere, for decades'. 'The questions surrounding GHF – its funding sources and connection to the Trump Administration, its use of private contractors, its ability to serve and be seen as a neutral entity, its abandonment by its founders, and its basic competence in providing aid – must be answered before the State Department commits any funding to the organization,' Warren wrote in the letter, a copy of which was provided exclusively to the Guardian. The letter from Warren requested answers by 2 July on whether USAID is considering awarding any funds to the GHF, the terms of a possible agreement and the GHF's connections to the Boston Consulting Group, which reportedly helped set up the group's operations. BCG canceled its cooperation with the GHF after the organisation was embroiled in controversy following a series of shootings by Israeli forces at its food distribution sites. Reuters first reported that funds directed to USAID, which is being rolled into the state department, could be rerouted to the GHF in an important boost to a troubled organisation that opened food distribution centres in Gaza last month. The GHF has struggled to partner with major aid organisations, even as Israeli and US officials have put pressure on NGOs to route their humanitarian through the GHF or face having no access to Gaza at all. Major aid organisations have boycotted the GHF, which was forced to temporarily close some of its food distribution centres shortly after its launch last month due to security concerns. Israeli forces have opened fired into crowds near the food distribution sites several times in mass casualty events that Israeli officials have said took place in self-defence. Hundreds of Gazans have been killed. Jake Wood, the former executive director of the GHF, resigned last month shortly before operations began. He said that he could not guarantee the organisation's 'independence' from political influence. Critics have argued that the GHF is a tool for the Israeli and US governments to politicise humanitarian aid and to distribute it in ways that will depopulate sectors of Gaza in apparent violation of international law. The Guardian has approached the state department for comment.
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
BofA Raises PT on Meta Platforms, Inc. (META), Maintains Buy Rating
Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) is on our list of the 10 best marketing stocks to buy right now. 16 Best Franchises to Open With $10K in 2023 On June 12, 2025, BofA raised the price target for Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) from $690 to $765, maintaining a buy rating. The analyst cited macroeconomic uncertainties that have eased and the growing optimism surrounding the company's ability to monetize its platform with AI-assisted marketing and innovative ad strategies. This comes amid META's growing strategic focus on strengthening its AI capabilities to help marketers. On Thursday, June 12, Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) finalized an agreement with ScaleAI to acquire a 49% non-controlling stake in it for $14.8 billion. Scale AI, which is a rapidly growing startup specializing in data infrastructure for AI, develops large language models through advanced data labelling services. The deal is META's second-largest, under which Scale AI's 28-year-old Alexandr Wang has been brought onboard and will remain on Scale AI's board. In response to the deal, Google, the biggest client of Scale AI, severed its ties with the company. Meanwhile, there are concerns regarding the deal's impact on market competition. While META's non-controlling stake doesn't require review by U.S. antitrust regulators, it could lead to an investigation if the regulators believe the deal was structured with the intent to harm competition. U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren commented on the deal: 'Meta can call this deal whatever it wants – but if it violates federal law because it unlawfully squashes competition or makes it easier for Meta to illegally dominate, antitrust enforcers should investigate and block it.' Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) is one of the best advertising agency stocks to buy right now. While we acknowledge the potential of META as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 10 Undervalued Quantum Computing Stocks to Buy Now and 10 Low Risk High Reward Stocks Set to Triple by 2030. Disclosure: None.
Mint
a day ago
- Business
- Mint
$90 million gone: Who hacked Nobitex, Iran's largest cryptocurrency exchange?
Hackers with possible links to Israel have wiped out more than $90 million from Nobitex, Iran's largest cryptocurrency exchange, according to blockchain analytics firms. The group that claimed responsibility for the hack revealed the 'company's full source code' on Thursday. 'ASSETS LEFT IN NOBITEX ARE NOW ENTIRELY OUT IN THE OPEN,' the hacker group announced on its Telegram account. The stolen funds were transferred to addresses carrying messages that criticised Iran's Revolutionary Guard, AP reported. The blog said the attack likely was not financially motivated, as the wallets in which the hackers had poured the money into 'effectively burned the funds in order to send Nobitex a political message'. The hackers group, Gonjeshke Darande, which translates to 'Predatory Sparrow' in Farsi, accused Nobitex of helping Iran's government evade Western sanctions over the country's rapidly growing nuclear programme. The group also alleged that Nobitex transferred money to militants. It came after the group said it had destroyed data in a cyberattack against Iran's state-controlled Bank Sepah on Tuesday. Elliptic said that relatives of Iran's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, were linked to the exchange and that sanctioned Revolutionary Guard operatives had used Nobitex. It shared evidence that the exchange had sent and received funds from cryptocurrency wallets controlled by Iranian allies, including Yemen's Houthis and Hamas, as news reports suggest. Gonjeshke Darande has previously claimed responsibility for other high-level cyberattacks against Iran, including a 2021 operation that halted the operations of gas stations and a 2022 effort against a steel mill that sparked a large fire, as per the news agency. Israeli media have widely reported that Gonjeshke Darande is linked to Israel, but the country's government has never officially acknowledged ties to the group. US Senators Elizabeth Warren and Angus King last year raised concerns about Iran's use of cryptocurrencies to evade sanctions, AP said.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Democrats should stay away from Trump's crypto bill
The Senate just handed the crypto industry the legitimacy it's been craving for years. With help from 18 Democrats, Senate Republicans passed the GENIUS Act this week, the first major piece of crypto legislation in U.S. history. The bill now heads to the House. In theory, the legislation would establish the first regulatory framework for issuers of stablecoins, which are cryptocurrencies pegged to assets such as the U.S. dollar. But in practice, it opens the floodgates to corruption and financial collapse. The bill reads more like a wish list from crypto lobbyists than a serious attempt at oversight. It would create a framework without teeth, with no real limits on who could issue stablecoins and no stringent requirements to prove issuers have the assets to secure them. In May, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., called the legislation 'a giveaway to big tech' that would 'supercharge the profitability of Donald Trump's crypto corruption.' And she's not wrong. We've grown all too comfortable with Republicans in Congress supporting this kind of ill-considered gift to Trump and his allies. But why did Democrats — members of the party of economic fairness and transparency — get behind this? It could all comes down to three words: Follow the money. In the 2024 election cycle, crypto interests poured more than $200 million into campaigns mostly funneled through the Fairshake PAC, with more than half coming directly from heavyweights Coinbase and Ripple. They were not subtle about their intentions. They wanted to shape how Washington would regulate crypto. Sen. Ruben Gallego of Arizona, a lead Democratic negotiator for the GENIUS Act, received thousands in direct donations from crypto executives and a $10 million boost from Fairshake. Same for first-term Sen. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan. Crypto-funded ads also helped to remove sitting members — just ask former Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio. Crypto groups spent $40 million to oppose Brown, who was ultimately defeated by Republican Bernie Moreno. The ads that helped take Brown down were not about crypto but were rather kitchen-table messaging crafted to appeal to disillusioned swing voters. It worked. And it sent a chilling message: Resist crypto and we'll take you out. To be clear, crypto is not inherently bad, but right now it is the Wild Wild West, and that is a problem. Cryptocurrency has become a favored tool of bad actors around the world. Terrorist groups have used it to move money outside the traditional banking system. Drug cartels and human traffickers rely on it to mask financial transactions. Ransomware gangs from North Korea to Eastern Europe have demanded billions in payments in crypto, often untraceable and unrecoverable. According to a report by the FBI, losses due to crypto fraud totaled $5.6 billion in 2024. That is exactly why the Biden administration initially approached crypto with caution. Not to stifle innovation but to protect consumers, national security and the financial system from abuse. It called for tighter 'Know Your Customer' rules, pushed back on crypto's being used as a shadow banking system and emphasized the risks of unregulated digital assets' fueling everything from tax evasion to illicit finance. But now under the second Trump administration, the posture has changed, and it is no accident. Trump was not always a crypto cheerleader. In 2019, he dismissed it as 'based on thin air' and 'not money.' But now, Trump is quietly building a crypto empire of his own. He recently hosted a private dinner with top investors in a Trump-themed meme coin and is profiting through his family stake in World Liberty Financial, a company that launched its own stablecoin, USD1. The president of the United States is now profiting off the very industry his administration is regulating, unchecked and seemingly untouchable. Unlike members of Congress, who are now barred from personally profiting off stablecoin investments, the president and his family face no such restrictions. Meanwhile, crypto groups such as Stand With Crypto are grading members of Congress the way the National Rifle Association scores gun votes. They have not endorsed candidates yet, but make no mistake: They are laying the groundwork. The House is crafting its own version of the bill called the STABLE Act, and Trump says he wants something on his desk before the August recess. So what is at stake? This is not just about digital currency. This is about power — who holds it, who pays for it and who gets to write the rules. If we learned anything from the housing crash or the rise of Big Tech monopolies, when regulations are written by the regulated, the public will certainly lose. For more thought-provoking insights from Michael Steele, Alicia Menendez and Symone Sanders-Townsend, watch 'The Weeknight' every Monday-Friday at 7 p.m. ET on MSNBC. This article was originally published on
