News – Page 303 – 105.7 WDNY

‘I am your voice’: Trump relaunches on TikTok with White House account

August 20, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — Rally highlights, White House glamour shots and his signature moves. President Donald Trump made a surprise return to the popular video app TikTok with three montages posted to a new official @whitehouse account Tuesday night.

“America we are BACK,” the first post was captioned. Trump pledged “I am your voice” as the video played.

The account isn’t Trump’s first foray with the Chinese-owned app. Both he and his 2024 rivals, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, signed up for TikTok in an effort to reach the 170 million users the company claims it has in the U.S. Trump last posted to his 15 million-plus followers from his former account @realdonaldtrump on Election Day. Candidates especially hoped to court young voters on the platform.

But TikTok has faced scrutiny from the U.S. government since Trump’s first administration. In August 2020, he released an executive order calling for “aggressive action” against TikTok to protect national security. One Republican-introduced bill that became law in 2022 banned most federal employees from downloading the app on government devices.

U.S. authorities have listed concerns about possibilities of stolen U.S. user data and a potentially manipulative and addictive algorithm.

Trump threatened to ban the app in his first term, but has thrice in his second term delayed the enforcement of a 2024 bipartisan law requiring TikTok’s Chinese-owned parent company, ByteDance, to sell it in the U.S. or be banned.

In anticipation of the initial ban deadline, TikTok briefly left app stores in the U.S. the day before Trump’s second inauguration and went dark for 14 hours. A pop-up message crediting him appeared when the app started working again, reading, “As a result of President Trump’s efforts, TikTok is back in the U.S.!”

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew was among many tech leaders who Trump invited to his inauguration.

The company offered various alternatives to divesting, including increased oversight and data protection. The latest pause on the ban is set to end on Sept. 17, though Trump repeatedly vowed to cut a deal for TikTok, even suggesting the sovereign wealth fund he created in February could be used to keep TikTok operating in the U.S.

Despite security concerns, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement to ABC News that TikTok will be a powerful tool for the president.

“The Trump administration is committed to communicating the historic successes President Trump has delivered to the American people with as many audiences and platforms as possible,” Leavitt said. “President Trump’s message dominated TikTok during his presidential campaign, and we’re excited to build upon those successes and communicate in a way no other administration has before.”

Leavitt also appeared in a clip on the White House account.

The account racked up more than 140,000 followers by Wednesday afternoon, still catching up to Trump’s more than 10 million Truth Social followers and more than 108 million followers on his less frequently used X account.

Israel to call up thousands of reservists for invasion, occupation of Gaza City, military official says

August 20, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(LONDON) — Israel will send call-ups to 50,000 to 60,000 reservists as part of its plans to invade and occupy Gaza City, according to an Israeli military official.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz approved on Wednesday the Israel Defense Forces’ military plan, codenamed “Gideon’s Chariots II,” to invade and occupy the city, according to the official.

The call-ups will begin immediately, the official said.

Meanwhile, at least 58 Palestinians were killed in the past 24 hours in Israeli strikes on Gaza, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.

This comes after Hamas said it agreed to a ceasefire proposal from Qatar and Egypt on Monday. The proposal is said to be based on the framework put forward by the U.S. in June.

Israel has not commented on Hamas’ decision to accept the proposal.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt attributed, at least in part, Hamas’ decision to accept the proposed ceasefire to President Donald Trump’s social media post saying that the remaining hostages will only be returned “when Hamas is confronted and destroyed!!!”

“I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Hamas accepted this proposal after the president of the United States posted a very strong statement about this conflict on Truth Social yesterday,” Leavitt said Tuesday, referring reporters back to Trump’s post.

ABC News has not confirmed the exact details of the proposal or what Hamas agreed to.

Earlier this month, Israel’s security cabinet approved plans by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the Israeli military to occupy Gaza City, in an expansion of military operations that comes amid international condemnation of the deteriorating humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.

Israel’s planned Gaza City military offensive “must be immediately halted,” United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said on Aug. 8, warning of “more massive forced displacement.”

“This further escalation will result in more killing, more unbearable suffering, senseless destruction,” Turk said.

Last month, 115 organizations described the dire food shortage in Gaza as “mass starvation,” as the “Israeli government’s siege starves the people of Gaza.”

Israel has blamed shortages on Hamas with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying on Aug. 20, “If we had a starvation policy, no one in Gaza would have survived after two years of war. … In the last few months, Hamas has violently looted the aid trucks meant to get to Palestinian civilians. They deliberately created a shortage of supply.” Hamas, however, has denied those claims.

Earlier this week, the IDF said it is appealing to “Jewish communities abroad” to deal with a severe shortage of soldiers, according to a senior IDF official.

The shortage of soldiers — estimated at 10,000 to 12,000 soldiers — and the lack of Haredi recruitment from the ultra-orthodox community are pushing the IDF to exhaust every other possibility to replenish its ranks, the senior IDF official said.

The IDF intends to turn to the largest Jewish communities in the Diaspora, with the aim of encouraging the recruitment of young Jews of military age to come to Israel for several years to serve in the army, the official added. The main communities where efforts will be focused are the United States and France.

The recruitment potential among those aged 18 to 25, of draft age, in the largest Jewish communities exceeds 10,000 in each annual cohort, according to studies conducted by the IDF’s Manpower Division on this subject, the senior official said.

“The goal we intend to set is to increase the recruitment of approximately 600 to 700 additional soldiers each year from Jewish communities abroad,” a senior IDF official told ABC News.

Protesters heckle Vance, Hegseth, Miller as they get photo op with DC National Guard

August 20, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — As President Donald Trump’s deployment of National Guard troops continued, protesters lashed out at three of his top officials who took time for a photo op with the guardsmen on Wednesday in Washington, D.C.,’s Union Station.

Protesters booed and jeered Vice President JD Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller as they came to the station, located blocks from the U.S. Capitol, to thank the troops. The crowd’s chants drowned out the voices of the officials.

“Free DC,” the protesters shouted as three officials arrived in their motorcade.

Vance, Hegseth and Miller stopped by at the station’s Shake Shack and bought and ate lunch for the guard members.

Vance and Miller dismissed the jeers of the protesters, which drowned out their press gaggle, calling them “crazy” and “communists.”

“They appear to hate the idea that Americans can enjoy their communities,” Vance said.

Vance was asked why the troops were stationed at Union Station instead of parts of the city with higher crime rates. The vice president claimed that the station was being overrun with homeless people and visitors didn’t feel safe.

“This should be a monument to American greatness,” he said.

Vance added that he believed that crime statistics do not report the full scope of crime on the streets, however he declined to talk about evidence that backed his claim up and told a reporter to “You just got to look around.”

The event happened at the same time that D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser was giving a news conference on Wednesday.

Target CEO to step down as sales remain sluggish

August 20, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Target CEO Brian Cornell will step down early next year after more than a decade at the helm of the $107 billion retail giant, the company said on Wednesday.

In recent years, Target has suffered sluggish sales as the company weathered consumer boycotts over its Pride collection and a rollback of its diversity, equity and inclusion policies.

Michael Fiddelke, who currently serves as chief operating officer, will assume the role of CEO on Feb. 1. Cornell will become executive chair of the company’s board of directors.

“With the board’s unanimous decision to appoint Michael Fiddelke as Target’s next CEO, I want to express my full confidence in his leadership and focus on driving improved results and sustainable growth,” Cornell said in a statement on Wednesday.

“Michael brings a deep understanding of our business and a genuine commitment to accelerating our progress,” Cornell added.

The announcement came as the company reported slow sales over a three-month period ending in August. Sales dropped slightly compared to the same period a year earlier, though revenue picked up from the previous quarter. Net income, meanwhile, plunged 21%, the company said.

In a statement, Cornell acknowledged a “challenging retail environment,” but he touted “encouraging signs of recovery, including improved traffic and sales trends.”

“As we enter the critical back-to-school and holiday seasons, our team remains focused on consistent execution and building momentum as we look ahead to the new year,” Cornell said.

Shares of Target fell nearly 8% in early trading on Wednesday.

The retail giant, which operates nearly 2,000 stores, has struggled to grow sales and outperform competitors in the aftermath of a pandemic-era shopping boom.

Speaking on an earnings call on Wednesday, Chief Commercial Officer Rick Gomez said the company is negotiating prices with suppliers and other partners in an effort to stave off tariff-related price increases.

“What we’ve said, and continues to be our position, is that we’ll take price as a last resort, but our commitment is to offer everyday good value and to have competitive pricing as we think about going forward,” Gomez said.

US Attorney Pirro tells prosecutors no felony charges for carrying registered rifles, shotguns in DC

August 20, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — The U.S. Attorney for Washington, D.C., Jeanine Pirro, has instructed prosecutors in her office to not seek felony charges for individuals who carry registered rifles and shotguns in the district, sources familiar with the matter confirmed to ABC News.

The policy shift, according to the sources, followed concerns relayed by the Justice Department’s solicitor general, John Sauer, that the district’s restrictive firearm statutes infringe on the Second Amendment rights of residents as affirmed in several recent rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court.

“We will continue to seize all illegal and unlicensed firearms, and to vigorously prosecute all crimes connected with them,” Pirro said in a statement to ABC News. “And we will continue to charge a felon in possession of any of these firearms. Our resolve to prosecute crime is not lessened by defective DC code statutes, as the DOJ works to change those statutes.”

Pirro added in her statement, “If anyone is carrying a weapon illegally, they will absolutely be charged.”

The policy shift, which was first reported by the Washington Post, comes as the administration has publicly touted numbers of illegal firearms seized in its ongoing surge of federal resources intended to combat D.C. crime.

Prosecutions for those types of offenses, according to Pirro’s statement, would continue; the shift is instead related to a D.C. statute that bars people from carrying shotguns or rifles in the capital without permits, which Pirro’s office says violates the Supreme Court’s holdings in two recent Second Amendment cases in 2008 and 2022.

“Nothing in this memo from the Department of Justice and the Office of Solicitor General precludes the United States Attorney’s Office from charging a felon with the possession of a firearm, which includes a rifle, shotgun, and attendant large capacity magazine pursuant to DC Code 22-4503,” Pirro said in her statement to the Post. “What it does preclude is a separate charge of possession of a registered rifle or shotgun.”

California resident tests positive for plague

August 20, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif.) — A resident in South Lake Tahoe, California, has tested positive for plague, according to local health officials.

The person is believed to have been bitten by an infected flea while camping, officials said.

In a separate incident last month, a person in Arizona died from plague.

Plague is a disease caused by a type of bacteria that usually results in about seven cases nationally each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

It occurs naturally in areas of the western U.S., where it circulates among wild rodents and other animals. Humans usually get infected through the bite of an infected rodent flea or by handling an infected animal. Symptoms, including fever, nausea, weakness and swollen lymph nodes, usually show up within two weeks of exposure, according to health officials.

“Plague is naturally present in many parts of California, including higher elevation areas of El Dorado County,” Kyle Fliflet, El Dorado County’s acting director of public health, said in a statement. “It’s important that individuals take precautions for themselves and their pets when outdoors, especially while walking, hiking and or camping in areas where wild rodents are present.”

The disease can be cured with antibiotics, which must be given quickly to prevent serious illness or death. At least 15 people have died from plague since 2000, the latest CDC data shows.

The risk to the public of exposure as well as the risk of human-to-human transmission remains low, according to health officials.

Husband of California woman found dead in forest fled to Peru, authorities say

August 20, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(LOS ANGELES) — The husband of a missing California woman who was found dead in the Angeles National Forest has fled to Peru, according to the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department.

Sheylla Cabrera, 33, was reported missing on Aug. 12, according to police. During the subsequent investigation, investigators say they discovered video surveillance appearing to show her husband, 36-year-old Jossimar Cabrera, dragging something in a large piece of material from the apartment complex where the two lived with their three sons.

Authorities say they’re obtaining the “necessary documents to secure his return.” The case will be referred to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office for criminal charges against Jossimar Cabrera.

Investigators say they believe foul play may have been involved in Sheylla Cabrera’s disappearance. Investigative teams had been searching large areas of the Angeles National Forest, according to the sheriff’s office.

Investigators also worked with the Mexican and Peruvian general consulates with alerts for the husband. Investigators say they were informed he had already fled the United States.

Cabrera’s three children, who were initially believed to be also missing, were found safe and taken into protective custody in Peru on Saturday, according to the sheriff’s department.

The Montrose Mountain Search and Rescue Team reported finding an object similar to the material that was “seen being taken away by the person of interest over the side of an embankment” in the Angeles National Forest on Saturday, according to the sheriff’s department.

Investigators responded to the scene and Sheylla Cabrera’s body was discovered.

The official cause of her death will be determined by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office.

Texas parents who lost children in Camp Mystic flooding to speak at hearing

August 20, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(KERR COUNTY, Texas) — The parents of children who were among the 27 killed at Camp Mystic on Texas’ Guadalupe River during the historic Fourth of July flash flooding that devastated the Hill Country region are scheduled to testify on Wednesday before a state legislative committee probing the disaster.

A coalition of Camp Mystic parents are slated to testify before the Texas Senate Disaster Preparedness and Flooding Select Committee which is considering reforms to increase safety at youth camps across the state.

“Our children’s lives were cut short because the safeguards in place were not enough,” the Campaign for Camp Safety, a group that includes the Camp Mystic parents, said in a statement released this week ahead of Wednesday’s hearing. “We are asking lawmakers to make sure no other family ever has to endure the pain we have lived with every day since July 4th.”

The parents testifying on Wednesday are expected to make suggestions on how to improve camp safety along the Guadalupe River. In its statement, the group said they want lawmakers to require campgrounds in a 100-year floodplain like Camp Mystic to equip cabins with emergency rooftop ladders and develop flash flood evacuation plans.

“The families emphasized that while they continue to grieve, they are committed to turning their pain into meaningful and urgent change for all kids, on behalf of their angels they now refer to as ‘Heaven’s 27,'” the Campaign for Camp Safety said in its statement.

Camp Mystic, one of 19 youth summer camps on the Guadalupe River near Hunt, Texas, was devastated on July 4 when torrential rains fell over a short amount of time, causing the river to overflow in the early morning hours of July 4, trapping many campers in their cabins. Officials in hard-hit Kerr County, where Camp Mystic is located, said that more than 12 inches of rain fell in under 6 hours, and that the Guadalupe River rose more than 20 feet per hour during the storm.

At least 130 people were killed in flash flooding across the Hill Country region, including 117 in Kerr County, officials said.

During an Aug. 1 hearing of the Texas House and Senate Select Committees on Disaster Preparedness and Flooding, the Kerr County emergency management director conceded that he was sick and asleep as the water rose to historic levels on the Guadalupe River.

Other Kerr County officials testified that an inadequate flash-flood warning system upstream contributed to the disaster.

Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly testified that in the aftermath of the flooding, the county commissioned an independent hydrology study that confirmed the July weather event was a 1,000-year flood.

“By the time flooding became visible downstream, upstream communities, including multiple youth camps, were already under water,” Kelly said.

When committee members asked Kelly why an evacuation order was not issued, he said, “It was too late.”

Texas House to vote on controversial redistricting plan

August 20, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(AUSTIN, Texas) — After weeks of delays and protests from Democrats, the Texas state House is slated Wednesday to consider moving forward on the controversial redistricting plan.

Republicans have put the bill for the redistricting on the agenda for when their special session convenes again today on the House floor at 10 a.m. local time.

The move came weeks after state Democrats decried the unorthodox mid-decade redistricting as blatant gerrymandering to increase the number of GOP congressional seats. The special session was delayed after Democrats left the state to avoid a quorum, despite threats of arrest from Gov. Greg Abbott and other Republican leaders.

Some Democrats returned to the statehouse on Monday and allowed the legislature to reach a quorum, but they continued to speak out against the controversial redistricting.

It is likely that the redistricting plan, which was pushed by President Donald Trump, will pass.

Texas House Democrats said they are still planning to resist the maps and call out what they say it means for their constituents. They plan on fighting the bill on the floor.

A handful of Texas House Democrats refused law enforcement escorts. It stayed overnight in the Texas House, in solidarity with state Rep. Nicole Collier, who had refused to sign a “permission slip” allowing her to leave the state Capitol with a law enforcement escort.

The Texas state Capitol also dealt with a social media threat Tuesday night that led to the evacuation of grounds and the building, but Democratic lawmakers who were already in the building remained inside.

The bill, which was newly filed for the second special session after the first one was adjourned due to not having a quorum, passed out of committee on Monday.

The Texas Senate is expected to pick up the bill once it passes the House.

Colorado police suspect park ranger stabbing was targeted: Police

August 20, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(DENVER) —A manhunt entered its second day on Wednesday for a suspect who stabbed a ranger at Staunton State Park in Colorado in what is now believed to be a targeted attack, according to police.

The stabbing unfolded around noon local time in the nearly 4,000-acre park southwest of Denver, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.

“We have reason to believe this was a targeted attack and there is no ongoing threat to the community,” the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.

A shelter-in-place order for residents near Staunton State Park has been lifted, authorities.

The victim, a seasonal Colorado Parks and Wildlife ranger, was taken by emergency aircraft to a hospital, where he underwent surgery, the sheriff’s office said. The ranger was listed in serious condition on Tuesday afternoon, officials said.

The suspect fled on foot after stabbing the ranger.

A motive for the stabbing remains under investigation. The sheriff’s office did not disclose why they believe the stabbing was targeted.

The suspect’s name has not been released.

Aerial footage on Tuesday from Denver ABC affiliate KMGH showed heavily armed officers searching the park.

Due to the ongoing search for the suspect, Staunton State Park was closed on to the public on Tuesday and police evacuated visitors from inside the park, Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials said.

+ More