The Latest: Trump pardons Giuliani and others who tried to overturn 2020 election, official says

Meanwhile, the administration has demanded that states “undo” full benefits paid under SNAP during a one-day window between when a federal judge ordered full funding and a Supreme Court justice put a temporary pause on that order. A federal appeals court is now considering whether to impose a longer halt to the full benefits, and funding SNAP is part of a proposal to end the government shutdown.

The Latest:

Trump administration announces latest strike on alleged drug boat

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the latest in a series of strikes on boats accusing of ferrying drugs killed six people two vessels in the eastern Pacific Ocean.

The dual strikes on Sunday bring the total number of known attacks to 19 and the death toll to at least 75 people since the Trump administration launched a campaign against drug trafficking in South American waters that many see as a pressure tactic on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

“These vessels were known by our intelligence to be associated with illicit narcotics smuggling, were carrying narcotics, and were transiting along a known narco-trafficking transit route,” Hegseth posted Monday on social media.

China tightens export control of chemicals used to make fentanyl

China announced Monday that a license would be required to export 13 chemicals to the United States, Canada and Mexico. The announcement did not mention fentanyl, but at least some of the chemicals on the list can be used in the production of the synthetic opioid.

Trump agreed recently to reduce a 20% tariff he had imposed on imports from China to 10% after the Chinese government said it would take more steps to control the flow of what are known as precursor chemicals for fentanyl.

The chemicals help fuel the illegal production of the powerful pain reliever that has become a major cause of drug addiction and overdose deaths in the U.S. They can still be exported without a license to other countries besides the three named in the Chinese Commerce Ministry announcement.

US Secretary of State to attend G7 foreign ministers meeting in Canada

Marco Rubio will meet his counterparts from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan in southern Ontario on Tuesday and Wednesday at a time of rising tensions between the Trump administration and the Canadian government.

“Secretary Rubio will advance U.S. interests in peace and security, strategic cooperation, and global stability,” the State Department said Monday.

U.S. priorities for the meeting include pushing Trump’s peace plan for Gaza, efforts to end the Russian-Ukraine war and fighting in Sudan along with improving conditions in Haiti.

Canada is hosting the G7 this year, a chairmanship marked by rising tensions between Washington and Ottawa over numerous issues, predominantly trade and Trump’s imposition of tariffs on Canadian imports.

BBC faces leadership crisis after bosses quit over Trump bias claims

The BBC was facing a leadership crisis and mounting political pressure on Monday after its top executive and its head of news both quit over the editing of a speech by Trump.

The resignation of BBC Director-General Tim Davie and news chief Deborah Turness over accusations of bias was welcomed by Trump, who said the way his speech had been edited was an attempt to “step on the scales of a Presidential Election.”

BBC chairman Samir Shah apologized Monday for the broadcaster’s “error of judgment” in editing the speech Trump delivered on Jan. 6, 2021, before a crowd of his supporters stormed the Capitol in Washington.

“We accept that the way the speech was edited did give the impression of a direct call for violent action,” Shah said in a letter to lawmakers.

In a letter to staff, Davie said: “There have been some mistakes made and as director-general I have to take ultimate responsibility.”

Turness said the controversy was damaging the BBC, and she quit “because the buck stops with me.”

As she arrived Monday at the BBC’s central London headquarters, Turness defended the organization’s journalists against allegations of bias.

▶ Read more about the resignations

A deal to end the government shutdown is on track, but faces hurdles

A legislative package to end the government shutdown appears on track Monday after a handful of Senate Democrats joined with Republicans to break the impasse in what has become a deepening disruption of federal programs and services, the longest in history.

What’s in and out of the bipartisan deal drew sharp criticism and leaves few senators fully satisfied. The legislation provides funding to reopen the government, including for SNAP food aid and other programs, while also ensuring backpay for furloughed federal workers the Trump administration had left in doubt.

But notably lacking is any clear resolution to expiring health care subsidies that Democrats have been fighting for as millions of Americans stare down rising insurance premiums. That debate was pushed off for a vote next month, weeks before the subsidies are set to expire.

The Senate could wrap up passage as soon as Monday. The bill cleared a procedural hurdle, 60-40, late Sunday, with eight Democrats joining most Republicans.

It would next go to the House, where lawmakers have been away since September but were being told to prepare to return to Washington this week. Then, it’s to Trump’s desk for his signature.

▶ Read more about the deal as it moves through Congress

Donald Trump booed as the 1st sitting US president at a regular-season NFL game since Carter in 1978

Trump became the first sitting president in nearly a half-century at a regular-season NFL game, attending the Washington Commanders’ 44-22 loss to the visiting Detroit Lions on Sunday.

There were loud boos from some spectators in the stands when Trump was shown on the videoboard late in the first half — standing in a suite with House Speaker Mike Johnson — and again when the president was introduced by the stadium announcer at halftime.

The jeering continued while Trump read an oath for members of the military to recite as part of an on-field enlistment ceremony during the break in the game.

“I’m a little bit late,” Trump told reporters earlier when he got off Air Force One after landing at Joint Base Andrews, following a flyover of Northwest Stadium during the game. He then got in his armored car for the drive to the arena.

“We’re gonna have a good game. Things are going along very well. The country’s doing well. The Democrats have to open it up,” he said — a reference to the government shutdown.

▶ Read more about Trump’s appearance at the game

Trump is hosting Syria’s al-Sharaa for a first-of-its-kind meeting at the White House

By SEUNG MIN KIM

Trump is hosting Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa at the White House on Monday, welcoming the once-pariah state into a U.S-led global coalition to fight the Islamic State group.

It’s the first visit to the White House by a Syrian head of state since the Middle Eastern country gained independence from France in 1946 and comes after the U.S. lifted sanctions imposed on Syria during the decades the country was ruled by the Assad family. Al-Sharaa led the rebel forces that toppled former Syrian President Bashar Assad last December and was named the country’s interim leader in January.

In this photo released by the Saudi Royal Palace, President Donald Trump, right, shakes hands with Syria’s interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, May 14, 2025. (Bandar Aljaloud/Saudi Royal Palace via AP)

Trump and al-Sharaa — who once had ties to al-Qaida and had a $10 million U.S. bounty on his head — first met in May in Saudi Arabia. At the time, the U.S. president described al-Sharaa as a “young, attractive guy. Tough guy. Strong past, very strong past. Fighter.” It was the first official encounter between the U.S. and Syria since 2000, when former President Bill Clinton met with Hafez Assad, the father of Bashar Assad.

▶ Read more about the upcoming meeting

Trump pardons Rudy Giuliani and others who backed efforts to overturn 2020 election, official says

Trump has pardoned his former personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, his former chief of staff Mark Meadows and others accused of backing his efforts to overturn the 2020 election, a Justice Department official says.

Ed Martin, the government’s pardon attorney, posted on social media a signed proclamation of the “full, complete, and unconditional” pardon, which also names conservative attorneys Sidney Powell and John Eastman. The proclamation, posted online late Sunday, explicitly says the pardon does not apply to Trump.

Presidential pardons apply only to federal crimes, and none of the Trump allies named were charged in federal cases over the 2020 election. But the move underscores President Donald Trump’s continued efforts to rewrite the history of the election he lost to Democrat Joe Biden. It follows the sweeping pardons of the hundreds of Trump supporters charged in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, including those convicted of attacking law enforcement.

The White House didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment Monday.

▶ Read more about the pardons