WASHINGTON — As President Donald Trump returns to the United States from his weeklong trip to the Middle East, leaders of almost 50 companies praised the president for securing over $2 trillion in deals.
The president&#8217;s trip to the Middle East resulted in a number of deals, including a $600 billion investment commitment from Saudi Arabia, $200 billion in commercial deals between the U.S. and United Arab Emirates, $1.2 trillion economic exchange agreement with Qatar, and $243.5 billion in U.S.-Qatar commercial and defense deals, according to the White House.
The administration is touting the trip as not only historic, but also one that strengthened safety and stability in the Middle East.
“The numbers don’t lie,&#8221; White House Assistant Press Secretary Taylor Rogers told The Daily Wire. &#8220;President Trump secured trillions of dollars in great deals, and his first foreign trip was a huge success. These historic investments and landmark agreements are a direct result of the economic climate President Trump has quickly developed.”
Business leaders who are benefitting from the deals were vociferous in their praise of the president&#8217;s efforts on Friday afternoon. That includes leaders from Lockheed Martin, Palantir, Qualcomm, Amazon, Google, and more.
“We appreciate President Trump and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman convening business leaders in Saudi Arabia to strengthen economic ties and drive innovation between our two countries,&#8221; Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said of the U.S. Saudi deals. &#8220;Amazon is excited to partner with HUMAIN, Saudi Arabia’s newly created AI innovation company, to collectively invest more than $5 billion to build a groundbreaking ‘AI Zone’ there, which will bring multiple innovative AWS AI capabilities to Saudi Arabia along with skills training for 100,000 citizens from the Kingdom.”
Ruth Porat, Alphabet and Google President and Chief Investment Officer, also expressed gratitude to Trump for the Saudi deals, praising the &#8220;engagement and policies of the Trump Administration and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, who are enabling strong execution to accelerate AI innovation in both countries.&#8221;
&#8220;Together,&#8221; she said, &#8220;we will create highly-skilled jobs and deliver AI training programs to open new, rewarding career pathways.”
DataVolt CEO Rajit Nanda argued that the Saudi partnership was &#8220;made possible in large part due to the enabling technology and trade frameworks advanced during the Trump Administration—policies that championed high-tech exports, strengthened U.S.-Saudi strategic ties, which have empowered entrepreneurial collaboration in the digital era.”
<div id="attachment_921533" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/top-business-leaders-jubilant-over-trumps-economic-success-in-middle-east/president-trump-makes-first-middle-east-trip-of-his-second-term-7" rel="attachment wp-att-921533"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-921533" class="wp-image-921533 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2215290920-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2215290920-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2215290920-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2215290920-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2215290920.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" /></a>ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES &#8211; MAY 15: U.S. President Donald J. Trump tours the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)</div>
And Oracle CEO Safra Catz thanked Trump for his leadership and &#8220;decisive actions,&#8221; actions that allow Oracle to provide &#8220;the world’s most advanced cloud and AI technology to Saudi Arabia.&#8221;
&#8220;Our expanded partnership with the Kingdom will create new opportunities for its economy, deliver better health outcomes for its people, and fortify its alliance with the United States, which will create a ripple effect of peace and prosperity across the Middle East and around the world,&#8221; Catz said.
As for the Quatar deals, Boeing President and CEO Kelly Ortberg touted a historic order, the &#8220;largest-ever for Boeing&#8217;s widebody planes.&#8221;
&#8220;Thank you to President Trump for supporting the agreement, which grows our longstanding partnership with the airline,&#8221; Ortberg said. &#8220;As one of America&#8217;s top exporters, Boeing is proud that our aircraft sales to global customers strengthen U.S. manufacturing and sustain jobs in our factories and at suppliers across the United States.”
Lockheed Martin President and CEO Jim Taiclet promised that &#8220;thanks to President Trump’s leadership, we will help accelerate Qatar’s next-generation air and missile defense capabilities, enabling a more secure and stable region, sustaining American manufacturing jobs, and reinforcing our defense industrial base.”
A spokesman for Northrop Grumman, celebrating Trump&#8217;s deals with the United Arab Emirates, promised: “Just as we have invested in the UAE, such as Northrop Grumman’s grant to the American Community School in Abu Dhabi, we welcome increased partnership and investment by the UAE in our world-class defense sector. This historic trip will increase U.S. jobs and economic strength.”
Parsons President Carey Smith said that his corporation is &#8220;proud to be a part of President Trump’s initiatives to strengthen strategic relations in the UAE,&#8221; and Baker Hughes CEO Lorenzo Simonelli congratulated the president, calling the trip to the United Arab Emirates, &#8220;A key moment that underscores the enduring partnership between two nations committed to innovation, progress, and shared prosperity.&#8221;
&#8220;As we look to the future, energy will remain central to economic growth and broader cooperation that supports stability and opportunity for both countries, and Baker Hughes remains steadfast in our dedication to help both nations meet their goals,&#8221; Simonelli promised.

President Trump Makes First Middle East Trip Of His Second Term

Top Business Leaders Jubilant Over Trump’s Economic Success In Middle East

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During his Middle East trip, President Donald Trump says he might be close to making a deal with Iran on nuclear weapons, the Supreme Court hears arguments on Trump’s efforts to end birthright citizenship, and football coaching legend Nick Saban has been tapped to bring order to big-money college sports.
It’s Friday, May 16, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
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<h2>U.S.-Iran Nuclear Deal</h2>
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Topline: President Trump says the United States is close to a nuclear deal with Iran.
After months of tense negotiations, President Trump says America is on the verge of signing a historic nuclear deal with Iran. Iran has been working for decades to build nuclear weapons. Iranian leaders refer to America as “the great Satan,” and its government spends billions of dollars annually sponsoring terror groups like Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis.
Over the last four years, President Joe Biden attempted to revive the Obama-era nuclear deal with Iran, waiving sanctions as a show of goodwill, but the Iranians refused to meet for formal negotiations, and no agreement was ever reached. But now, after four rounds of formal talks between the White House and Iran, President Trump says they’re ready to cut a deal.
The general idea is that Iran will agree to never produce nuclear weapons in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions — and peace. A top adviser to the country’s Supreme Leader told <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/iran-enriched-uranium-nuclear-deal-trump-rcna206833">NBC</a> they would commit to never making nuclear weapons, hand over their existing stockpiles of enriched uranium, only enrich uranium to low levels consistent with civilian use, and allow third-party inspectors to supervise the entire process. In exchange, they want the United States to lift all economic sanctions, which have hobbled the country’s economy for years. President Trump has said he also wants to see them cut funding to the terror groups they support — it remains to be seen if that part will be included in the final deal.
Critics say there’s no way to ensure Iran will hand over its existing nuclear materials and allow inspectors to see the full scope of their operation. Fifty-two GOP Senators and 178 GOP House members signed a letter to President Trump saying the &#8220;scope and breadth of Iran&#8217;s nuclear buildout have made it impossible to verify any new deal that allows Iran to continue enriching uranium.&#8221; Many Republicans want a deal, but not one that allows Iran to enrich any uranium, even low levels for civilian use.
<h2>SCOTUS Hears Arguments On Birthright Citizenship, National Injunctions</h2>
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Topline: The Supreme Court hears oral arguments challenging birthright citizenship.
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Thursday in a case challenging President Trump’s efforts to end birthright citizenship. The pivotal case calls into question whether the lower courts have the power to block executive branch actions.
The case hinges on three lower courts issuing nationwide injunctions blocking Trump’s executive order on birthright citizenship. Trump’s EO interprets the 14th Amendment to deny automatic citizenship to children who are born in the U.S. if their mother was unlawfully in the country and if the father isn’t a U.S. citizen or a permanent resident. That order is currently on hold while the Supreme Court considers it.
“ Since January 20th, district courts have now issued 40 universal injunctions against the federal government, including 35 from the same five judicial districts,” U.S. Solicitor General John Sauer <a href="https://x.com/GuntherEagleman/status/1923020348624187655">told</a> the court. “This is a bipartisan problem that has now spanned the last five presidential administrations. Universal injunctions exceed the judicial power granted in Article 3, which exists only to address the injury to the complaining party.”
The liberal justices appeared to disagree with the Trump administration’s arguments – they believe Trump’s order is at odds with many years of Supreme Court precedent.
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson <a href="https://www.npr.org/2025/05/15/nx-s1-5398025/supreme-court-birthright-citizenship">said</a> that the Trump administration seemed to turn the justice system into “a kind of catch me if you can regime … where everybody has to have a lawyer and file a lawsuit in order for the government to stop violating people&#8217;s rights … I don&#8217;t understand how that is remotely consistent with the rule of law.”</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Justice Sonia Sotomayor <a href="https://x.com/BehizyTweets/status/1923031636301709591">argued</a> that the Trump administration was violating precedent and the “plain meaning of the 14th Amendment.”</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Meanwhile, Justice Elena Kagan pointed out that <a href="https://x.com/Tyler2ONeil/status/1923038011966562374">many</a> lower courts are ruling against Trump’s executive order. &#8220;This is not a hypothetical. This is happening. Every court ruled against you.&#8221;</li>
</ul>
Most of the conservative justices also seemed skeptical of the Trump administration’s stance, but Justice Clarence Thomas pointed out that the United States “survived until the 1960s” without nationwide injunctions.
<h2>Trump Drafts Nick Saban To Save College Sports</h2>
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Topline: Trump drafts college football coaching legend Nick Saban to bring some order to big-dollar collegiate athletics.
President Trump plans to create a commission to study “ailing issues” in college athletics, with the possibility of signing an executive order. Collegiate sports have been experiencing a bit of turmoil the last few years, with the schools adjusting to a new climate now that student-athletes have name, image, and likeness (NIL) rights and are on the road to receiving direct compensation from their respective universities.
The president announced that he was creating a commission to “deeply examine the unwieldy landscape of college sports, including the frequency of player movement in the <a href="https://www.on3.com/transfer-portal/">transfer portal</a>, the unregulated booster compensation paid to athletes, the debate of college athlete employment, the application of Title IX with regards to revenue sharing and, even, conference membership makeup and conference television contracts.”
Trump has named Nick Saban, who won seven national titles as a college football coach, as co-chair of the commission, with the other co-chair being Cody Campbell – the chairman of Texas Tech’s Board of Regents and NIL collective founder. Many people believe Saban is the best person to lead this initiative, given the on-field success, but there have also been accusations of hypocrisy given how much money Saban himself made from college athletics.
Hanging over all of this is the pending settlement of House vs. NCAA, a class-action, antitrust lawsuit that would allow collegiate athletes to participate in revenue sharing from TV rights deals once a settlement is complete. That settlement is expected within the coming weeks, or even days. The plaintiffs&#8217; attorney, Steve Berman, blasted Saban and Trump’s discussions, accusing them of “meddling.”
“College athletes are spearheading historic changes and benefitting massively from NIL deals,” Berman said. “They don’t need this unmerited interference from a coach only seeking to protect the system that made him tens of millions.”

MorningWire-0428_V1

Morning Brief: SCOTUS Hears Birthright Citizenship Case & Trump Drafts Legendary Football Coach

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Companies have announced billions in new investments in the United States while President Donald Trump has been traveling and signing deals in the Middle East this week.
The president has traveled to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates so far this week to sign agreements and receive commitments that will generate roughly $2 trillion in trade and investment. At the same time, major companies have announced plans to invest billions more dollars into the United States.
Those corporate investments include: at least $20 billion over the next five years from the medical company <a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sanofi-to-invest-at-least-20-billion-in-the-us-through-2030-growing-investments-in-science-and-expanding-domestic-manufacturing-302455566.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sanofi</a>, $3 billion by Kraft Heinz to <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/ketchup-maker-kraft-heinz-investing-3-billion-upgrading-us-manufacturing-2025-05-14/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">upgrade</a> its U.S.-based manufacturing, a $1 billion investment from the energy company Carrier that will <a href="https://www.corporate.carrier.com/news/news-articles/202505_carrier-announces-additional-1-billion-investment-us-manufacturing-footprint-advanced-cuttingedge-rd-workforce-expansion.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">create</a> an estimated 4,000 new jobs, a $300 million investment from Anheuser-Busch to <a href="https://www.anheuser-busch.com/newsroom/anheuser-busch-announces-new-300-million-investment-in-manufacturing-operations-across-the-US" target="_blank" rel="noopener">improve</a> the beer-maker’s manufacturing facilities, and a $150 million investment from Siemens Healthineers to <a href="https://www.siemens-healthineers.com/en-us/press-room/press-releases/us-investments" target="_blank" rel="noopener">expand</a> production and relocate some manufacturing from Mexico to the United States.
The White House touted the new investments in a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/05/president-trumps-policies-keep-paying-off/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">press release</a>.
“While the President is securing historic investments on his trip in Middle East, billions of dollars’ worth of investments on the home front are pouring in. America is returning as the world’s manufacturing powerhouse thanks to President Trump’s leadership, brilliant economic agenda, and willingness to put America first,” White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers told The Daily Wire in a statement.
The recent wave of investments comes as Trump has hopped around the Middle East signing and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-announces-200-billion-in-commercial-deals-with-uae-bringing-total-gulf-investments-to-massive-sum?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Announces+%24200+Billion+In+Commercial+Deals+With+UAE%2C+Bringing+Total+Gulf+Investments+To+Massive+Sum" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announcing</a> massive economic commitments between the United States and some of the Gulf states.
On Thursday, Trump announced over $200 billion in commercial deals between the United States and the United Arab Emirates. The deals include a commitment from Etihad Airways to purchase $14.5 billion worth of aircraft from Boeing and GE Aerospace. Emirates Global Aluminum plans to spend $4 billion to build an aluminum smelter in Oklahoma, the first of such plants built in the United States in 45 years.
On Wednesday, Trump was in Qatar to announce a new defense agreement in which the United States will sell billions-worth of U.S. weaponry to Qatar. Trump also signed an agreement to “generate an economic exchange worth at least $1.2 trillion,” according to the White House.
Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/hours-into-middle-east-trip-trump-announces-largest-defense-sales-deal-in-u-s-history" target="_blank" rel="noopener">began</a> his Middle East tour with a visit to Saudi Arabia on Tuesday with a $142 billion defense sales deal, the largest weapons deal in history. Saudi Arabia made a commitment to invest $600 billion in the United States.

While Trump Pulls In Investments In Middle East Trip, White House Touts Investments On ‘Home Front’

President Donald Trump praised American troops as the &#8220;tip of the spear&#8221; in the fight against the &#8220;enemies of civilization&#8221; in a Thursday speech at an American military base in Qatar.
Trump made the comments to troops at the Al Udeid Air Force Base, the largest American military facility in the Middle East, before departing Qatar for the United Arab Emirates. In his speech, Trump laid out his priorities for the Middle East and promised that American troops would soon get a raise through his proposed budget bill.
“All of you are the tip of the spear, you&#8217;re the finest we have, anywhere in the world, you’re the finest we have, you’re the finest anyone has in the fight against the enemies of civilization,&#8221; Trump said. &#8220;You’re the people that are defeating chaos, combating terror, defending our interests, supporting our allies, securing our homeland, and making America incredibly proud, and you know what, making America great again.”
Trump also promised the troops that he would make the U.S. military &#8220;bigger, better, stronger, and more powerful than ever.&#8221;
“You are without a doubt the greatest fighting force in the history of the world. That&#8217;s the way it is. I said it last night. I said it&#8217;s strong. We have the strongest military in the world. It&#8217;s not even a contest. We have the best equipment, nobody has equipment like us, nobody has the planes or the missiles or anything else,&#8221; he said. 
Echoing his speech on Tuesday in Saudi Arabia, Trump said he was focused on keeping the peace by projecting American strength.
&#8220;As president, my priority is to end conflicts, not start them — but I will never hesitate to wield American power if it&#8217;s necessary to defend the United States of America or our partners. And this is one of our great partners right here,&#8221; Trump told the troops on Thursday.
The day before his speech, Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-signs-major-defense-deal-with-qatar-despite-past-accusations-of-terror-financing?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Signs+Major+Defense+Deal+With+Qatar+Despite+Past+Accusations+Of+Terror+Financing" target="_blank" rel="noopener">signed</a> a defense agreement with Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, where the country signed a letter of intent to purchase $2 billion worth of MQ-9B Reaper drones and $1 billion in counter-drone technology. At the same time, Trump has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-defends-400-million-flying-palace-offered-as-gift-from-qatar" target="_blank" rel="noopener">faced criticism</a> over his acceptance of a $400 million luxury jet from Qatar.
In attendance at Thursday&#8217;s speech to the troops were comedian Theo Von and country music singer Lee Greenwood, who sang &#8220;God Bless America&#8221; before Trump took the stage.
Throughout his Middle East trip, Trump has signed defense agreements with Saudi Arabia and Qatar, announced billions of dollars worth of business deals with both countries, and met with the president of Syria, marking the first time the leaders from the two countries have met since 2000. Trump is now headed to the United Arab Emirates to meet with President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and other top officials.

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Trump Praises American Troops In Qatar: ‘Tip Of The Spear’ Against ‘Enemies Of Civilization’

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President Donald Trump touched down in Qatar on Wednesday, where he was greeted by the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, making him the first American president to visit the oil-rich Gulf nation.
Upon arrival in Doha, Trump’s motorcade — escorted by Qatari police using <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1922619883935637726" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tesla Cybertrucks</a> — was given a lavish ceremonial welcome by Qataris riding ceremonial horses and camels upon arriving at the Amiri Diwan, the official workplace of the Amir.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> arrives at the Amiri Diwan in Doha 🇺🇸🇶🇦 <a href="https://t.co/CZt28tCBid">pic.twitter.com/CZt28tCBid</a>
&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1922621220089983248?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 14, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Trump saluted as the American National Anthem played inside the Amiri Diwan shortly after his arrival, <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1922622194544169390" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a video posted</a> to the White House’s Rapid Response X account shows. Trump then greeted the Qatari officials while <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1922622908767023235" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Al-Thani greeted</a> the American delegation.
“We’ve been friends for a long time,” Trump said while sitting down with Al-Thani. “We’ve liked each other and we’ve worked with each other and now we can work in the highest capacity and we will bring peace not only here, but I know you’re very much involved in helping us in other regions, like what’s happening with Russia and Ukraine.”
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/heres-what-you-need-to-know-about-trumps-middle-east-trip?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Here%E2%80%99s+What+You+Need+To+Know+About+Trump%E2%80%99s+Middle+East+Trip" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT TRUMP’S MIDDLE EAST TRIP</a>
He added that he thinks there is “good news” coming out of the negotiations between <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/zelensky-tells-ben-shapiro-hes-open-to-an-audit-on-how-ukraine-spends-u-s-taxpayer-dollars?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Zelensky+Tells+Ben+Shapiro+He%E2%80%99s+Open+To+An+Audit+On+How+Ukraine+Spends+U.S.+Taxpayer+Dollars" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Russia and Ukraine</a>.
Touting his history in construction, Trump complimented the Amiri Diwan, pointing out its “perfect marble.”
“This is what they call perfecto,” Trump said. “Just a great job you’ve done and what a beautiful place.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> to the Emir of Qatar: &quot;It&#39;s been a very loyal, great, beautiful friendship&quot; 🇺🇸🇶🇦 <a href="https://t.co/JKvOYBEkru">pic.twitter.com/JKvOYBEkru</a>
&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1922623673795592500?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 14, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Trump also thanked the Qataris for the warm greeting, saying that he appreciated the camels and hadn’t “seen camels like that in a long time.”
“That was some greeting. We appreciate it very much.”
Al-Thani welcomed Trump, and pointed out that Trump is the first American president to visit Qatar.
“We are extremely honored to have you here,” he said. “It’s a historic visit and I don’t know if you know, you are the first American president officially to visit Qatar so we are very honored.”
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/how-trump-and-rubio-put-america-first-in-100-days?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=How+Trump+And+Rubio+Put+America+First+In+100+Days" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HOW TRUMP AND RUBIO PUT AMERICA FIRST IN 100 DAYS</a>
Trump’s trip initially got off to a controversial start following reports that the president is preparing to accept a $400 million Boeing 747 jumbo jet from Qatar, which would be available for Trump to use in lieu of Air Force One. Shortly before he leaves office, the plane would then be transferred to the Trump presidential library foundation.
The gift has caused <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/schumer-moves-to-inflict-pain-on-trump-over-400-million-flying-palace-from-qatar" target="_blank" rel="noopener">bipartisan uproar</a> with critics who say it’s a signal that Qatar — a massive funder and enabler of terrorist groups — is trying to gain influence in the Trump administration.
Trump defended the gift as an affordable way to replace the 40-year-old Air Force One.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-calls-on-saudi-arabia-to-join-abraham-accords-my-fervent-hope?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Calls+On+Saudi+Arabia+To+Join+Abraham+Accords%3A+%E2%80%98My+Fervent+Hope%E2%80%99" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TRUMP CALLS ON SAUDI ARABIA TO JOIN ABRAHAM ACCORDS: ‘MY FERVENT HOPE’</a>
“So the fact that the Defense Department is getting a GIFT, FREE OF CHARGE, of a 747 aircraft to replace the 40-year-old Air Force One, temporarily, in a very public and transparent transaction, so bothers the Crooked Democrats that they insist we pay, TOP DOLLAR, for the plane,” <a href="https://x.com/TrumpDailyPosts/status/1921734060923142301" target="_blank" rel="noopener">he posted</a>. “Anybody can do that! The Dems are World Class Losers!!!”
The warm visit stands in contrast to Trump’s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/qatar-doesnt-give-things-away-for-free" target="_blank" rel="noopener">June 2017 views</a> on Qatar, when he accused the country of backing terrorism.
“The nation of Qatar, unfortunately, has historically been a funder of terrorism at a very high level, and in the wake of that conference, nations came together and spoke to me about confronting Qatar over its behavior,” Trump said. “So we had a decision to make:  Do we take the easy road, or do we finally take a hard but necessary action?  We have to stop the funding of terrorism.”

QATAR-US-DIPLOMACY

Trump Welcomed In Qatar With Parade Of Camels And Teslas: ‘This Is What They Call Perfecto’

President Donald Trump travels to the Middle East, where he inks massive arms and investment deals, Sean Combs’ sex trafficking trial brings shocking testimony, and the Left is outraged as Trump welcomes Afrikaner refugees.
It’s Wednesday, May 14, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
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<h2>Trump Secures Massive Saudi Investment</h2>
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Topline: President Trump secures a $600 billion investment in the U.S. from Saudi Arabia.
President Trump and an entourage of his top officials were in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, where the president secured a $600 billion investment in the United States and the largest arms deal in history. Trump arrived in Qatar on Wednesday morning and plans to visit the United Arab Emirates while negotiating economic deals and signaling a new approach to American foreign policy in the Middle East.
“Far too many American presidents have been afflicted with the notion that it&#8217;s our job to look into the souls of foreign leaders and use U.S. policy to dispense justice for their sins,” Trump said. “It is God&#8217;s job to sit in judgment — my job to defend America and to promote the fundamental interests of stability, prosperity, and peace.&#8221;
Trump also celebrated a recent ceasefire with the Houthis, who agreed to suspend attacks on American shipping in the Red Sea after months of intense aerial bombardment by U.S. military forces. The president announced the cessation of sanctions on Syria, to give the new government, which ousted the Russian- and Iranian-backed Bashar al-Assad last December, “a chance at greatness.&#8221; Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa, formerly known by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, is a former Al-Qaeda fighter who fought against American forces in Iraq. He has been Syria&#8217;s president since January and has attempted to rebrand himself as a moderate figure focused more on Syrian interests than jihad.
“In Syria, which has seen so much misery and death, there is a new government that will hopefully succeed in stabilizing the country and keeping peace. That’s what we want to see,” Trump said.
However, Trump’s rhetoric was not entirely dovish – he issued a stern warning to Iran, a longtime regional adversary of the United States that has come perilously close to developing nuclear weapons. “Iran CAN have a much brighter future — but we will NEVER allow them to threaten America and our allies with terrorism or a nuclear attack. The choice is theirs to make.”
<h2>Did Diddy Do It?</h2>
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Topline: Eight months after his arrest, the federal trial of music mogul Sean &#8220;Diddy&#8221; Combs kicked off this week in Manhattan. The charges Combs faces — including sex trafficking, coercion, and racketeering — have sent shockwaves through the entertainment industry.
The trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs began on Monday. Prosecutors painted a dark picture, alleging that Combs used his fame, wealth, and multimedia empire to orchestrate a decades-long scheme involving sex trafficking and violence. They claim he lured women with promises of romance or career opportunities, only to force them into “freak offs” — drug-fueled sexual performances involving male prostitutes, some recorded to blackmail victims into silence. They also claim it was particularly during these “freak offs” where women, including his former girlfriend, R&amp;B singer Cassie Ventura, were abused and manipulated.
Combs has been charged with five felony counts: one count of racketeering conspiracy, two counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion, and two counts of transportation for prostitution. If convicted, he could face life in prison, with a minimum of 15 years for the sex trafficking charges alone.
On Tuesday, Ventura took the stand and said Combs “too frequently… mashed in [her] head, dragged [her] along the floor, kicked [her], stomped on [her] head.&#8221; She also said he characterized these drug and alcohol-fueled “freak-offs” as part of her “job” and that they increased in frequency over the course of their relationship. She said that in the final years she was with Combs, these sex sessions became “all-consuming” and she spent most of her time engaging in the freak-offs or recovering from them while enduring abuse from Combs.
The jury also heard from Daniel Phillip, a former male escort. He gave graphic testimony about being paid to have sex with Ventura at the Gramercy Park Hotel in 2012 while Combs watched from the corner, masturbating and directing the encounters. He also recounted a disturbing incident where Combs allegedly forced him to urinate into Ventura’s mouth. Phillip also said he witnessed Combs’ physical abuse when he threw a liquor bottle at Ventura, dragged her into a bedroom, and slapped her as she screamed, “I’m sorry!” Phillip said he was “terrified” to intervene, citing Combs’ power and nearby bodyguards.
Combs’ defense admitted their client is a “complicated man” with flaws, including a history of drug use and domestic violence, but stressed that domestic abuse is not a federal crime and insisted this isn’t a racketeering or trafficking case. Teny Geragos, one of Combs’ attorneys who is the daughter of celebrity lawyer Mark Geragos, told jurors, “This is about Sean Combs’ private sex life,” emphasizing that the women involved, including Ventura, were “strong, capable, and in love with him,” making consensual choices.
<h2>Afrikaner Refugees Arrive In The United States</h2>
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Topline: The first group of white Afrikaners who were granted refugee status by the Trump administration arrived in the United States this week, <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/05/12/trump-afrikaners-refugees-immigration-00342029?utm_source=chatgpt.com">sparking outrage</a> on the Left.
Afrikaners are a South African ethnic group. Fifty-nine Afrikaner men, women, and children arrived in America this week, many of them farmers. They were vetted and granted refugee status very quickly, within a matter of months – the refugee vetting process ordinarily takes years. President Trump, who has been outspokenly opposed to the treatment of white South Africans by their government, signed an <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/02/addressing-egregious-actions-of-the-republic-of-south-africa/">executive order</a> in February to end aid to South Africa over its discriminatory racial policies, specifically pertaining to white farmers. The order notes that South Africa has taken “aggressive positions” toward the U.S. and her allies, including Israel, and also notes the recently enacted Expropriation Act, which the order said enables the South African government “to seize” Afrikaners&#8217; agricultural property without compensation.”
The State Department said Afrikaners face unjust racial discrimination in South Africa, and added that no one should be subject to “violent attacks because of their ethnicity.” One refugee said that she was attacked on her farm four different times. She said that Afrikaners are being blamed and targeted for the past apartheid in South Africa. Hundreds of people have been killed on farms in just the last four years or so. Not all of those people were white, but many were.
“What’s happening in South Africa fits the textbook definition of why the refugee program was created,” White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller said. “This is persecution based on a protected characteristic, in this case, race. This is race-based persecution. The refugee program is not intended as a solution for global poverty.”
The Left has argued that Trump is favoring these refugees because they’re white – they’ve cited the president’s moves to halt most of the refugee programs established under Joe Biden from nations like Afghanistan, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela. Trump argues that those programs did not vet refugees properly, especially from those nations that are considered high-risk.

MorningWire-0428 V2

Morning Brief: Trump Lands Huge Saudi Investment & Diddy Faces The Music

Courts

Crime

Refugees

Sean 'Diddy' Combs

South Africa

Speaking from Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, President Donald Trump issued a firm warning to foreign leaders: his priority is defending the United States of America, and he will do so using &#8220;overwhelming strength&#8221; and &#8220;devastating force&#8221; if necessary.
&#8220;In recent years, far too many American presidents have been afflicted with the notion that it&#8217;s our job to look into the souls of foreign leaders and use U.S. policy to dispense justice for their sins,&#8221; Trump said during the U.S.-Saudi investment forum in Riyadh. &#8220;They loved using our very powerful military. And now it&#8217;s really the most powerful it&#8217;s ever been &#8230; we&#8217;re getting the greatest missiles, the greatest weapons.&#8221;
Trump emphasized that the United States believes in peace through strength, arguing that &#8220;bad things could happen&#8221; if the United States was not powerful and in a position to defend itself.
&#8220;It is God&#8217;s job to sit in judgment, my job to defend America, and to promote the fundamental interests of stability, prosperity, and peace,&#8221; he said Tuesday. &#8220;That&#8217;s what I really want to do.&#8221;
Trump also announced plans to lift sanctions on Syria, sharing that he made the decision after he discussed the matter with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
<p class="paragraph inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph" data-uri="cms.cnn.com/_components/paragraph/instances/cmampz0yb000a3b6r62d85ei0@published" data-editable="text" data-component-name="paragraph" data-article-gutter="true">“Syria, they’ve had their share of travesty, war, killing in many years,&#8221; he said. &#8220;That’s why my administration has already taken the first steps toward restoring normal relations between the United States and Syria for the first time in more than a decade.&#8221;
<p class="paragraph inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph" data-uri="cms.cnn.com/_components/paragraph/instances/cmampz0yb000a3b6r62d85ei0@published" data-editable="text" data-component-name="paragraph" data-article-gutter="true">Secretary of State Marco Rubio will meet with Syria&#8217;s foreign minister in Turkey this week, Trump noted, sharing: “The sanctions were brutal and crippling and served as an important — really an important function — nevertheless, at the time. But now it’s their time to shine.&#8221;
<p class="paragraph inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph" data-uri="cms.cnn.com/_components/paragraph/instances/cmampz0yb000a3b6r62d85ei0@published" data-editable="text" data-component-name="paragraph" data-article-gutter="true">He added: &#8220;So I say, ‘Good luck, Syria.’ Show us something very special.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
🚨 <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a>: &#8220;After discussing the situation in Syria with the Crown Prince and also with President Erdogan of Turkey&#8230; among others in the Middle East, I will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria, in order to give them a chance at greatness.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/JG3gx3Nn6D">pic.twitter.com/JG3gx3Nn6D</a>
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1922327334863946039?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2025</a></blockquote>
<p class="paragraph inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph" data-uri="cms.cnn.com/_components/paragraph/instances/cmamq2wvn000c3b6rc8aqrbs2@published" data-editable="text" data-component-name="paragraph" data-article-gutter="true">During his remarks, the president outlined his vision for the future of the Middle East and how he seeks to create a more stable region and peaceful world. He contrasted the path taken by Gulf nations to the path taken by the Iranian regime, offering Iran a different path to a brighter future.
<p class="paragraph inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph" data-uri="cms.cnn.com/_components/paragraph/instances/cmamq2wvn000c3b6rc8aqrbs2@published" data-editable="text" data-component-name="paragraph" data-article-gutter="true">&#8220;I am here today not merely to condemn the past choices of Iran’s leaders, but to offer them a new and a better path toward a much more hopeful future,&#8221; Trump argued, adding, &#8220;As I have shown repeatedly, I am willing to end past conflicts and forge new partnerships for a better and more stable world, even if our differences may be profound.&#8221;
The president also praised some Middle Eastern leaders and touted &#8220;the transformation that has occurred under the leadership of King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed&#8221; in Saudi Arabia, calling it &#8220;truly extraordinary.&#8221;
According to the White House, Trump secured a $600 billion commitment from Saudi Arabia for investments in the United States, including a defense partnership worth about $142 billion.
<p class="paragraph inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph" data-uri="cms.cnn.com/_components/paragraph/instances/cmamq2wvn000c3b6rc8aqrbs2@published" data-editable="text" data-component-name="paragraph" data-article-gutter="true">&#8220;If the responsible nations of this region seize this moment, put aside your differences and focus on the interests that unite you,&#8221; the president said, &#8220;then all of humanity will soon be amazed at what they will see right here in the geographic center of the world &#8230;  and the spiritual heart of its greatest faiths.&#8221;

SAUDI-US-DIPLOMACY-ECONOMY-FORUM

From The Middle East, Trump Vows To Defend America With ‘Devastating Force’

Syria

Shortly after arriving in Saudi Arabia on the first day of his high-stakes <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-to-visit-saudi-arabia-qatar-and-uae-in-first-middle-east-trip-this-term" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Middle East trip</a>, President Donald Trump announced that Saudi Arabia committed to investing $600 billion in the United States.
“President Trump is the dealmaker in chief, and he has once again secured a historic deal that strengthens America’s economic dominance and global influence,” the White House said in a statement, adding that the investment will build “economic ties that will endure for generations to come.”
The investment will initially focus on deals that strengthen energy security, the defense industry, technology leadership, and access to global infrastructure and critical minerals.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/heres-what-you-need-to-know-about-trumps-middle-east-trip?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Here%E2%80%99s+What+You+Need+To+Know+About+Trump%E2%80%99s+Middle+East+Trip" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT TRUMP’S MIDDLE EAST TRIP</a>
“The deals celebrated today are historic and transformative for both countries and represent a new golden era of partnership between the United States and Saudi Arabia,” the White House said. “From day one, President Trump’s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-to-announce-major-trade-deal-with-united-kingdom" target="_blank" rel="noopener">America First Trade</a> and Investment Policy has put the American economy, the American worker, and our national security first.”
The Trump administration also announced that the two countries signed the largest defense sales agreement in history, totaling $142 billion, providing Saudi Arabia with air force advancement and space capabilities, air and missile defense, maritime and coastal security, border security and land forces modernization, and information and communication systems.
The first deals in the investment include Saudi company DataVolt investing $20 billion in AI data centers and energy infrastructure in the United States, and Shamekh IV Solutions, LLC will invest $5.8 billion, including in a Michigan high-capacity IV fluid facility. Other multinational companies, including Google, Oracle, Salesforce, and Uber, have committed to investing $80 billion in “cutting-edge transformative technologies” in both the United States and Saudi Arabia.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-bring-wrath-iranians-over-renaming-body-water-says-iranian-official" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TRUMP WILL ‘BRING THE WRATH OF ALL IRANIANS’ OVER RENAMING BODY OF WATER, SAYS IRANIAN OFFICIAL</a>
American companies are expected to boost exports to Saudi Arabia and build $2 billion worth of infrastructure in the country. American companies are also slated to build over $14 billion in gas turbines and energy solutions, and Boeing will manufacture nearly $5 billion of 737-8 passenger aircraft for the Saudi company AviLease.
“The United States and Saudi Arabia celebrate these and many other deals today as a result of the growing momentum of the last four months,” the White House <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/05/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-secures-historic-600-billion-investment-commitment-in-saudi-arabia/">said</a>. “The total package has quickly built to more than $600 billion–the largest set of commercial agreements on record between the two countries.”
Investment partnerships will include several sector-specific funds with a strong emphasis on American deployment — such as the $5 billion Energy Investment Fund, the $5 billion New Era Aerospace and Defense Technology Fund, and the $4 billion Enfield Sports Global Sports Fund — each channeling substantial capital into American industries, driving innovation, and creating high-quality jobs across the United States.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/how-trump-and-rubio-put-america-first-in-100-days?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=How+Trump+And+Rubio+Put+America+First+In+100+Days" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HOW TRUMP AND RUBIO PUT AMERICA FIRST IN 100 DAYS</a>
Saudi Arabia is one of the United States’ largest trading partners in the Middle East, with the United States exporting $13.2 billion in goods in 2024 and importing $12.7 billion from Saudi Arabia, making a trade surplus of $443 million.
During his first term, Trump<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/picture-trump-saudi-arabia-glowing-orb-setting-aaron-bandler" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> built strong ties</a> with several Gulf states, which led to the signing of the Abraham Accords between the UAE, Israel, and Bahrain. Trump has expressed interest in expanding the agreement to include Saudi Arabia, but the ongoing war in Israel has complicated those efforts.

Trump Secures ‘Historic’ Investment Deal From Saudi Arabia On First Day Of Middle East Trip

Attacks between India and Pakistan move the two nuclear powers closer to war, President Donald Trump and Republicans sue Democrat-led states over restrictive energy laws, and live sports programming dominates viewing trends.
It’s Thursday, May 8, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
 
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<h2>India Strikes Pakistan, World Holds Breath For Response</h2>
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Topline: Attacks between India and Pakistan continue to escalate, causing fears of an all-out nuclear war.
In late April, a group of Islamic militants crossed from Pakistan to Indian-controlled Kashmir and slaughtered 26 tourists. India accused the Pakistani government of being involved in the attack, and responded Wednesday with military strikes on Pakistan’s heavily populated Punjab region, killing more than two dozen and injuring 46 others. India says it targeted “terror camps,” while Pakistan says civilians were killed, including worshippers at two mosques. 
Pakistan has said it is mounting a military response to the strikes, but it remains to be seen if that’s saber rattling or a declaration of war.
The Trump administration has largely avoided picking a side, despite their long-running mutual enmity, and both countries are considered U.S. allies.  The White House said it would engage the two in finding a “peaceful solution.” 
Meanwhile, President Trump is preparing for a highly anticipated visit to the Middle East as tensions rise. For security reasons, the White House has yet to release Trump&#8217;s full itinerary, but from what we’ve been told, this trip will emphasize economics. Trump is reportedly focused on securing financial deals and solidifying his relationship with Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates — three of America&#8217;s most important allies in the region who often serve as middlemen to the rest of the Middle East, at times helping broker negotiations with U.S. adversaries.
This week, the president also announced that the Houthis “don’t want to fight anymore” and have agreed to a deal to end hostilities. The Houthis, the terror group backed by Iran, have disrupted international shipping in the Red Sea, with missile and drone attacks on countless vessels — some of them American. In response, the Trump administration launched hundreds of airstrikes on Houthi facilities in Yemen. Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, has been holding negotiations with Iran on a potential nuclear deal — this ceasefire with the Houthis could be a part of that larger process. 
<h2>DOJ Files Climate Lawsuits Against Blue States</h2>
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Topline: President Trump and Republicans in Congress are making moves against state climate rules that they say infringe on federal authority. The fight has sparked political and legal battles between Republicans in Washington, D.C., and Democrat-led states.
Last week, the Department of Justice filed multiple lawsuits against state governments over their climate and energy policies. Two complaints against Hawaii and Michigan aim to block lawsuits those states filed against oil and gas companies. On Thursday, the federal government filed two more lawsuits against Michigan and New York over changes to state “climate superfund” laws. Each DOJ lawsuit focuses on the Clean Air Act, which the Trump administration says the states have violated with their attempts to punish emissions.
“These burdensome and ideologically motivated laws and lawsuits threaten American energy independence and our country’s economic and national security.” Attorney General Pam Bondi said.
“The Constitution specifically solely delegates the power to regulate interstate commerce to the Congress of the United States of America,” H. Sterling Burnett, the director of the Arthur B. Robinson Center on Climate and Environmental Policy at The Heartland Institute, told The Daily Wire. “Not to California, not to New York, only to Congress…California, New York, Hawaii. Some other states…think Congress should regulate interstate commerce differently than they&#8217;ve done, and so they&#8217;re trying to use the courts to ignore the interstate commerce clause.”
Hawaii Attorney General Anne Lopez said in a statement that the federal lawsuit filed by the DOJ “attempts to block Hawaiʻi from holding the fossil fuel industry responsible for deceptive conduct that caused climate change damage.” Hawaii Democratic Governor Josh Green went a step further and suggested that climate change, exacerbated by fossil fuel companies, is responsible for the 2023 Lahaina wildfire that killed 102 people. For context, Hawaii’s utility company <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/aug/28/maui-wildfires-hawaiian-electric-company">said</a> that electrical equipment damaged by high winds caused the fire, but officials have all made accusations against fossil fuel companies.
<h2>Sports Dominate New Nielsen Ratings</h2>
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Topline: The next evolution of TV ratings has arrived, and sports is the overwhelming winner. We break down the data on viewing trends.
Nielsen ratings have long been a guide to help gauge TV viewership, but new technology is delivering more accurate information. It shows that sports programming absolutely dominates the market. The rise of streaming and an increasingly fragmented media market has made it harder than ever to track how many people are actually watching programming, but a new method – Big Data + Panel – is able to synthesize and analyze disparate viewership data more quickly and accurately.
Nielsen’s CEO, Karthik Roa, announced that the Big Data + Panel tech will be used for all its clients starting this year, calling it “a massive change in measurement, at scale.”
Sports programming already dominates much of America’s media landscape. For instance, the NFL<a href="https://frontofficesports.com/the-nfl-had-70-of-top-100-live-tv-events-in-2024-down-from-93/"> delivered 70 of the top 100 broadcasts</a> across all genres in 2024, 70% for just that one league. This new analysis tool is already signaling even higher audience totals going forward. And that’s, of course, very good for sports leagues. The NFL knows it’s poised to benefit – and has publicly cheered the introduction of Big Data + Panel, calling it a move to “modernize measurement.”
The domination of sports is changing how many platforms think about programming. Amazon Prime and Netflix have spent <a href="https://www.mediaplaynews.com/ampere-streaming-services-spending-on-live-sports-rights-in-2025/">billions</a> of dollars on streaming rights for live sports. Amazon has been among the early adopters of Big Data + Panel, and said its 2024 audience for Thursday Night Football reached an average viewership of 14.2 million, 8% higher than the <a href="https://frontofficesports.com/amazons-nfl-ratings-rose-13-in-2024-a-playoff-game-is-next/">traditional, panel-based audience count of 13.2 million</a>. The tool was also the basis for Super Bowl LIX, reaching a total of 182.8 million viewers.
One of the issues Nielsen is working through is reducing the turnaround time for reporting results. The enhanced numbers typically take several days to tabulate for each broadcast. Nielsen is working to reduce that turnaround to one day, similar to how quickly traditional viewership totals now arrive.

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The following is an excerpt taken from the new book &#8220;<a href="https://www.amazon.com/American-Intifada-Israel-Gaza-Antisemitism/dp/1645721043" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.com/American-Intifada-Israel-Gaza-Antisemitism/dp/1645721043&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1746710590956000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3mFFTED3ygh0ikPBCW2jlP">American Intifada: </a><a href="https://www.amazon.com/American-Intifada-Israel-Gaza-Antisemitism/dp/1645721043" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.com/American-Intifada-Israel-Gaza-Antisemitism/dp/1645721043&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1746710590956000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3mFFTED3ygh0ikPBCW2jlP">Israel, the Gaza War and the new Antisemitism</a>,&#8221; by Uri Kaufman. (Republic Book Publishers/Simon &amp; Schuster, April 29, 2025)
* * *
<h3>Bill Clinton, George Mitchell, and a Tale of Two Peace Processes</h3>
Prime Minister Netanyahu assumed office on June 18, 1996, and immediately set out to do the job the Israeli public elected him to do. When forced to choose, Rabin and Peres always made sure the cart was in front of the horse. First, one had to implement the two-state solution, and then Israel would (hopefully) get security. Under Netanyahu, the cart and the horse were put back into their rightful places. First, Israel had to get security, and then he would implement the two-state solution. In Netanyahu’s words, “One of the key goals in my first term as prime minister was to change the Palestinian perception that ‘terrorism pays’ to ‘terrorism doesn’t pay.’ I did this by insisting on security and reciprocity.”<a href="#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1">[1]</a>
He was tested almost immediately. On September 24, 1996, Netanyahu gave authorization to unseal the door to a tunnel that ran along the outer rim of Jerusalem’s Temple Mount. The door was nowhere near any mosque and opened into the Christian Quarter of the Old City. But Arafat, a human mushroom cloud, ordered his men to go on the attack using the very guns the Israelis had given them as part of the Oslo Accords, ostensibly to fight terrorism.<a href="#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2">[2]</a> By the time the mini-war ended, seventeen Israelis and about a hundred Palestinians were dead.<a href="#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3">[3]</a>
Thousands of wars have been fought since mankind became cognizant of territory and the desire to control it — none were started over a door. Admittedly, this wasn’t just any door, just as the Wailing Wall isn’t just any wall. But for its American and Israeli champions, the peace process was supposed to be the forum for settling disputes, not the battlefield.
Clinton Administration officials blamed Netanyahu.
<div id="attachment_917131" style="width: 417px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/American-Intifada-Israel-Gaza-Antisemitism/dp/1645721043"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-917131" class="wp-image-917131 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/MixCollage-07-May-2025-11-37-AM-2988-407x576.jpg" alt="Cover Design: Jim Villaflores. Republic Book Publishers" width="407" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/MixCollage-07-May-2025-11-37-AM-2988-407x576.jpg 407w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/MixCollage-07-May-2025-11-37-AM-2988-212x300.jpg 212w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/MixCollage-07-May-2025-11-37-AM-2988-768x1086.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/MixCollage-07-May-2025-11-37-AM-2988-1086x1536.jpg 1086w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/MixCollage-07-May-2025-11-37-AM-2988-1448x2048.jpg 1448w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/MixCollage-07-May-2025-11-37-AM-2988-scaled.jpg 1810w" sizes="(max-width: 407px) 100vw, 407px" /></a>Cover Design: Jim Villaflores. Republic Book Publishers</div>
They called for a summit where they demanded that Netanyahu make concessions. When he resisted, Clinton went into a dark rage so loud it could be heard in the next room. In the words of Dennis Ross, “Arafat now knew that Bibi was the desperate one.”<a href="#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4">[4]</a> Violence was thus not only tolerated — it was rewarded.
When a semblance of security was eventually restored, Netanyahu advanced the peace process. He agreed to not one but two interim withdrawals — the Hebron Accords and the Wye River Memorandum — but he steadfastly insisted that progress be conditioned on Arafat fighting terrorism. American officials were outraged. After Netanyahu demanded that Arafat arrest thirteen suspected terrorists, Clinton “exploded,” according to Ross, who wrote bemusedly that he was “struck by [Netanyahu’s] belief that&#8230;he was the victim of mistreatment.”<a href="#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5">[5]</a> On another occasion, Ross writes that the Clinton Administration saw Bibi’s complaints over a bombing as “an excuse to avoid negotiations” and that Bibi was “killing any prospect of peace.”<a href="#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6">[6]</a>
Meanwhile, the stubborn insistence on that which is most basic in a peace process — namely peace — paid off for ordinary Israelis. During the long, seemingly unending terror campaign that defined the Oslo Peace Process, the lowest loss of life occurred during the premiership of Netanyahu. Only one Israeli died per month on his watch. For Peres, the figures were seven and a half times worse.<a href="#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7">[7]</a>
<div id="attachment_917179" style="width: 883px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-917179" class="size-large wp-image-917179" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-1147679-873x576.jpg" alt="President Clinton (R) and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sit on a deck along the banks of the Wye River at the Wye River Plantation where peace talks continue between Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat for the third straight day at the secluded Maryland site October 18, 1998. (photo by White House)" width="873" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-1147679-873x576.jpg 873w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-1147679-300x198.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-1147679-768x507.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-1147679.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 873px) 100vw, 873px" />President Clinton (R) and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sit on a deck along the banks of the Wye River in Maryland, October 18, 1998. (photo by White House)</div>
The Wye agreement — which required a sizeable withdrawal from West Bank territory by the Israelis — proved Netanyahu’s commitment to the peace process, at least while Israeli buses and pizzerias weren’t being blown to bits. Signed on October 23, 1998, it caused his right-wing coalition partners to bring down the government and trigger early elections.<a href="#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8">[8]</a> By now, the Israeli public felt safer and, thus, more willing to take chances for peace. On May 17, 1999, Ehud Barak defeated Netanyahu in a historic landslide. At the time, it was the widest margin ever scored by an Israeli challenger over an incumbent.<a href="#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9">[9]</a>
The Israeli peace camp was jubilant. One left-wing activist said it was as if they had been freed from a foreign occupation.<a href="#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10">[10]</a> The great obstacle to peace was removed — now they could finalize a deal with the Palestinians. The cart was finally back in front of the horse.
What happened next was probably inevitable. Barak formed his pro-peace government in July; Palestinian terrorists murdered three Israelis in August.<a href="#_ftn11" name="_ftnref11">[11]</a> Through it all, Washington pressed the Israelis to continue the peace process and all the interim withdrawals that it entailed.<a href="#_ftn12" name="_ftnref12">[12]</a>
To halt the transfer of territory to the Palestinians and end the talks would “give the terrorists what they wanted.” Israel’s intelligence service issued a classified report in late 1999 predicting that Arafat would go to war because Jerusalem would be blamed for it one way or the other.<a href="#_ftn13" name="_ftnref13">[13]</a>
* * *
Uri Kaufman is the author of  &#8220;<a href="https://www.amazon.com/American-Intifada-Israel-Gaza-Antisemitism/dp/1645721043" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.com/American-Intifada-Israel-Gaza-Antisemitism/dp/1645721043&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1746710590956000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3mFFTED3ygh0ikPBCW2jlP">American Intifada: </a><a href="https://www.amazon.com/American-Intifada-Israel-Gaza-Antisemitism/dp/1645721043" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.com/American-Intifada-Israel-Gaza-Antisemitism/dp/1645721043&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1746710590956000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3mFFTED3ygh0ikPBCW2jlP">Israel, the Gaza War and the new Antisemitism.</a>&#8221; His work has appeared in Foreign Affairs, Newsweek, The Jerusalem Post, The Independent, and numerous other publications. He lives in Lawrence, New York with his wife and four children.
This excerpt is published by permission from Republic Book Publishers/Simon &amp; Schuster.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.
* * *
<h3>FOOTNOTES:</h3>
<a href="#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1">[1]</a> See, e.g., The New York Times, February 7, 2023, p. A5; October 26, 2022, p. A4.
<a href="#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2">[2]</a> The New York Times, December 26, 2021, p. 4.
<a href="#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3">[3]</a> “Hamas In Its Own Words,” ADL website, January 10, 2024, https://www.adl.org/resources/blog/hamas-its-own-words.
<a href="#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4">[4]</a> Ambassador Mark A. Green, “Hamas: Words and Deeds&#8230;,” The Wilson Center, October 24, 2023, https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/hamas-words-and-deeds.
<a href="#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5">[5]</a> “The Truth Is Hard” brand campaign for New York Times, Droga5, https://droga5.com/work/the-new-york-times-truth-is-worth-it/.
<a href="#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6">[6]</a> Alessandra Stanley, “A Terrorist, Plain-Spoken and Cold,” The New York Times, April 18, 2010, https://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/19/arts/television/19mcveigh.html?searchResultPosition=5.
<a href="#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7">[7]</a> The New York Times, April 20, 2019, p. D6.
<a href="#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8">[8]</a> The New York Times, July 23, 2023, p. 8.
<a href="#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9">[9]</a> Jeremy Scahill et al, “Between the Hammer and the Anvil,” The Intercept, February 28, 2024, https://theintercept.com/2024/02/28/new-york-times-anat-schwartz-october-7/.
<a href="#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10">[10]</a> Dionne Searcey, “They Ordered Her to Be a Suicide Bomber. She Had Another Idea,” The New York Times, March 13, 2020, <a href="https://www.nytimes">https://www.nytimes</a>.com/2020/03/13/world/africa/Nigeria-Boko-Haram-bomber.html.
<a href="#_ftnref11" name="_ftn11">[11]</a> See, e.g., “U.S. Confirms Yemen Killing of Terrorist,” The New York Times, February 7, 2020, p. A7.
<a href="#_ftnref12" name="_ftn12">[12]</a> “CNN anchor Amanpour apologizes for calling terror attack on Dee family a ‘shootout,’” The Times of Israel, May 23, 2023, https://www.timesofisrael.com/cnn-anchor-amanpour-apologizes-for-calling-terror-attack-on-dee-family-a-shootout/.
<a href="#_ftnref13" name="_ftn13">[13]</a> Avnery, Optimi II, p. 64

President Clinton with Netanyahu and Arafat

Clinton Vs. Netanyahu: How Peace And Terror Collided In The 1990s

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United States Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee presented his credentials last week to Israel’s President, Yitzchak Herzog, and immediately demonstrated why he is the right person for this vital position at this critical time. It is true that Ambassador Huckabee has visited Israel more than 100 times, in his capacity as a Baptist preacher leading his congregation and as a politician accompanying his constituents, but even more importantly, he understands Israel, its uniqueness, its role in history, its abiding friendship with the United States, and its challenges.
Huckabee declared at the reception that he returns to Israel with “absolute joy and an overwhelming sense of awe that I am in a land where G-d Himself said, ‘This is mine, and these are My people.’” Such sentiments are not often expressed in Israel and not articulated often enough by Jews but they provide the foundation for defining the rightful place of the State of Israel, its reason for existence, and even the relentless antagonism of its enemies. The land of Israel was not only the land of the Bible in ancient times; it remains the land of the Bible and awaits the fulfillment of the prophetic vision of the future. Perceived through that prism, Israel’s struggles against implacable foes take on a new light that is visible only to someone who shares Ambassador Huckabee’s perspective.
Indeed, it is hard to imagine another ambassador having visited the country to which he was posted 100 times before assuming the role. It means that Huckabee’s commitment to Israel’s security stems from his correct understanding of America’s place in the world and its capacity to foster good and promote peace and prosperity.
So, what should be on Ambassador Huckabee’s agenda, especially mindful that he is the U.S. Ambassador who should advance American interests in the region?
The Ambassador has been outspoken in recent years as to the non-viability of a Palestinian state in the land of Israel, now rendered especially incongruous and perilous in light of the Hamas massacre of October 7, the ongoing war, and the Palestinian Authority’s reluctance to condemn that war. As ambassador, he can thwart the subtle encroachment towards a Palestinian state favored by Europe and some elements in the United States by reiterating a number of steps taken during the first Trump administration. He can again shutter the U.S. Office of Palestinian Affairs (OPA), located on Agron Street in the western part of Jerusalem, which was revived by the Biden administration in violation of U.S. and Israeli law and functioned as a quasi-diplomatic mission to the Palestinians. During the first Trump term, this office was closed, and its services provided out of the American embassy in Jerusalem to which it reported directly.
The OPA as currently constituted is an affront to Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem. Ambassador Huckabee, together with Israel’s Foreign Ministry, can use his good offices to limit or halt the activities of the several European consulates that are located in Jerusalem and operate as missions to the Palestinian Authority in defiance of Israeli and international law. The ambassador can persuade, and certainly the U.S. government can act, to support Israel’s closure of these hostile outposts in the heart of Jerusalem.
<div id="attachment_914553" style="width: 840px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-914553" class="size-large wp-image-914553" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2206862784-830x576.jpg" alt="WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 25: Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, U.S. President Donald Trump's nominee to be ambassador to Israel, testifies during his Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on March 25, 2025 in Washington, DC. Huckabee, the former governor and presidential candidate, answered questions on Israel and its campaign against Hamas. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)" width="830" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2206862784-830x576.jpg 830w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2206862784-300x208.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2206862784-768x533.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2206862784.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 830px) 100vw, 830px" />Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images</div>
The Ambassador can urge the State Department to finally designate “Jerusalem, Israel” as an official place of birth on American passports. The State Department has long embraced the chimera that Jerusalem’s status as part of Israel — as Israel’s capital, no less — is somehow still subject to the outcome of negotiations. This policy should be repudiated and U.S. citizens born in Jerusalem who so desire should have their place of birth recorded as “Jerusalem, Israel.”
Ambassador Huckabee should also encourage the Trump administration to follow through on its temporary suspension of funding to UNRWA and make that suspension permanent. UNRWA, although barred by Israeli law from operating in Jerusalem, still maneuvers behind the scenes, controlling schools and in some cases economic development while advancing the interests of Hamas, with which it was integrally linked during the Gaza War. Cutting aid and resigning from UNESCO, another UN organization that is antagonistic to Israel and the United States, is also an American interest.
Additionally, for many decades under Democratic administrations, any type of residential or commercial building in Jerusalem by Jews – not by Arabs – drew immediate condemnations from the State Department. This too must end, and the ambassador is well positioned, as is President Trump, a real estate mogul, to take the lead in supporting Israel’s plans to construct new neighborhoods in Jerusalem and even to explore the expansion of Jerusalem’s municipal boundaries to encompass satellite towns on its periphery.
To his great credit, President Trump has appointed two distinguished emissaries to Israel – David Friedman in his first term and Mike Huckabee in his current term. A person of faith, such as Ambassador Huckabee, deeply understands the centrality of Israel in the narrative of world history. But this ambassador also deeply understands the Israel of the future, and the pivotal role played by the city of Jerusalem, and even more how a secure and prosperous Israel will strengthen the United States and bring the world closer to the vision of peace on earth.
* * *
Rabbi Steven Pruzansky, Esq., is Senior Research Associate at the Jerusalem Center for Applied Policy (JCAP.ngo).
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

Mike Huckabee speaks after being sworn in as ambassador to Israel.

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A massive explosion at a strategic Iranian port killed at least 14 people and injured 750 others on Saturday, prompting authorities to declare a state of emergency in the coastal city that serves as a vital shipping hub for the Islamic Republic.
The explosion occurred at the port of Bandar Abbas in southwestern Iran, sending a massive plume of thick gray smoke into the air, with footage showing the blast originating in what appears to be a warehouse facility, according to videos <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2025/04/26/middleeast/iran-bandar-abbas-port-explosion-intl/index.html">geolocated</a> by CNN.
Iranian government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani indicated the explosion likely involved chemical containers, stating that they were stored in a “corner of the port that likely contained chemicals which exploded.”
However, she cautioned, “Until the fire is extinguished, it&#8217;s hard to ascertain the cause.&#8221;
Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni confirmed that six people remain missing as firefighters battle the blaze amid challenging high winds.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
BREAKING: Massive explosion hits the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas <a href="https://t.co/PDNvcmCVOi">pic.twitter.com/PDNvcmCVOi</a>
— BNO News (@BNONews) <a href="https://twitter.com/BNONews/status/1916063449383153959?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 26, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The state-controlled oil company denied responsibility for the explosion, with state media company IRIB reporting that the explosion took place in the chemical and sulfur section of the port.
The blast caused widespread destruction, shattering windows within a radius of several kilometers and leaving buildings at the port complex severely damaged, with reports indicating some people may be trapped in collapsed structures.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has <a href="https://x.com/drpezeshkian/status/1916111653445284183">ordered</a> an investigation into the incident and dispatched the interior minister to the region to &#8220;examine the dimensions of the accident&#8221; and conduct &#8220;a comprehensive assessment&#8221; to prevent similar incidents in the future.
Health authorities have advised citizens to remain indoors, avoid outdoor activities, and keep windows closed due to significant air pollution concerns, while many Iranians were seen lining up at health centers to donate blood for the injured.
The now-decimated facility is a critical infrastructure asset for Iran, spanning 2,400 hectares with 35 shipping berths and handling approximately 70 million tons of cargo annually, including oil shipments and general cargo, per CNN.
Regional governor Mohammad Ashouri Taziani confirmed that injured people were being transferred to local medical centers in Bandar Abbas, while the port has been closed and all maritime operations suspended until further notice.

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Massive Explosion Rocks Major Iranian Port, Killing 14 And Injuring 750

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