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UFO sleuths want fewer secrets in Trump-era investigations

June 4, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — After generations of stigma and secrecy around sightings of unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAPs), or what the public calls UFOs, investigators probing hundreds of unsolved cases say the second Trump administration could be a turning point for transparency.

“We’re trying to get as much of the raw evidence out as we can without putting our partners’ equities at risk,” said Jon Kosloski, director of the Pentagon’s All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office, the government-wide task force leading research into mysterious sightings.

“The office has hired additional personnel and we’re investing in automated security review software that can redact the sensitive information from videos,” he said of an effort to release more currently classified material related to the probes.

Congress established the Resolution Office in 2022 to “detect, identify and attribute” mysterious objects of interest in the air, outer space, and underwater, with special focus on mitigating potential threats to military operations and national security.

More than 1800 cases have been reviewed by the Pentagon so far, with the vast majority ultimately resolved as likely balloons, drones, debris or animals based on a comprehensive review of available data.

Kosloski says “several dozen” cases remain anomalous even after rigorous analysis of evidence. They continue to receive new reports of anomalies by military service members and the general public every month.

“It’s a potential problem, a national security problem, safety of flight issue,” Kosloski told ABC News. “We seem to have the full support of the administration” in pursuing answers.

Trump vows greater transparency

President Donald Trump has famously been a UFO skeptic. “It’s never been my thing. I have to be honest,” he told podcaster Joe Rogan in an October 2024 interview. “I have never been a believer.”

But the president, who has full access to all government secrets as commander in chief, has also hinted on several occasions that there may be more information than has previously been revealed about alleged extraterrestrial life and unusual technological capabilities.

“I won’t talk to you about what I know about it but it’s very interesting,” Trump told his son, Donald Trump Jr., in an online video during the 2020 campaign. “But Roswell’s a very interesting place with a lot of people that would like to know what’s going on.”

Since taking office a second time, Trump has vowed “radical transparency” across government. Last month, he ordered the release of all remaining classified files related to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy Jr.

Some UFO enthusiasts across the political spectrum are pushing for a similar release of government files related to extraterrestrial mysteries.

“When you have only certain information that’s shared with the American people, that’s when conspiracy theories happen. And it’s, in my opinion, that conspiracy theories can be detrimental,” said Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., in April as she opened the House Task Force on the Declassification of Federal Secrets.

Lawmakers from both parties have proposed legislation to force government agencies to disclose more information on UAPs, but Congress has yet to pass it.

“The issue is when we mix secrecy with a stigma, and that we create such a stigma around a phenomenon that it becomes difficult, if not impossible, for agencies, for people to look at the issue seriously,” said former Associate NASA Administrator Mike Gold, who served on the agency’s UAP Independent Study Team.

Gold, who is now part of the UAP Disclosure Fund, an independent group of scientific and national security experts, says Congress must fund more aggressive analysis of troves of existing government data.

“If we study UAP, not only can we help with national security,” Gold said, “but even if we don’t discover something exotic, what’s the worst case scenario? We discover an incredible new physical phenomenon?”

Whistleblowers, advocates allege secret evidence long denied

Critics of the Pentagon effort led by Kosloski say it has been hobbled by “staffing shortfalls,” bogged down by “bureaucratic confusion,” and mired in “excessive secrecy.”

In recent testimony before Congress, whistleblowers insist the government is still hiding evidence of non-human intelligence, which top officials have long denied.

Kosloski has accelerated the release of intensive investigations, publishing unclassified resolution reports for some of the most high-profile cases, detailing the technical and intelligence analysis behind the conclusion.

“Our hope is to be able to triage them, identify those that have the best scientific data, the nexus with national security interests and the true anomalies behind them, and focus our attention on those really anomalous cases,” Kosloski said.

Last year, the Pentagon completed a historic review of 80 years of records related to unidentified anomalous phenomena, concluding there is “no evidence that any U.S. government investigation, academic-sponsored research, or official review panel has confirmed that any sighting of a UAP represented extraterrestrial technology.”

“That stands true,” said Kosloski.

Government and private UAP investigators say it will take substantially more data to resolve the most persistent mysteries on file.

As for whether he can categorically rule out the existence of an intact spacecraft or part of a spacecraft in government possession, Kosloski said he has not been able to corroborate any claims but promised to push for public release of any likely findings of non-human intelligence.

“There’s no precedent for that, obviously, but I think that we would take that up through the Secretary of Defense and allow him to make that decision.”

‘Danger zone’: Top companies weather uncertainty as Trump’s tariffs fluctuate

June 4, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Executives at major corporations, including Target, Goldman Sachs and Pepsi, have invoked the same one-word boogeyman on recent earnings calls: “Uncertainty.”

Concern among companies big and small about the unsteady business environment has centered on President Donald Trump’s tariff policies, which the White House has altered numerous times since Trump took office.

A pair of court rulings last week thrust Trump’s steepest tariffs into limbo, adding another layer of uncertainty as federal appeals court judges determine whether a major swath of the policies pass legal muster.

In response to the tariff shifts, many U.S. companies have opted to put hiring and investment plans on hold out of fear that a fresh levy could otherwise spark regret, experts told ABC News.

That paralysis risks sapping momentum from the economy and tipping the U.S. into a downturn, they added, while acknowledging the ultimate outcome remains unclear.

“These pretty significant policy changes – whether they’re coming out of the administration or the courts – can have a big financial impact on companies,” Gregory Brown, a finance professor at the University of North Carolina, told ABC News. “Profits can turn to losses, and vice versa.”

“It has to be nerve-racking for people on the front lines of this in terms of having their businesses or jobs highly affected,” Brown added.

The Trump administration has rebuked criticism of its on-again, off-again tariff approach, saying the flexibility affords White House officials leverage in trade negotiations with countries targeted by the levies.

Speaking to ABC News’ “This Week” in April, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent described the posture as “strategic uncertainty.”

“You’re not going to tell the person on the other side of the negotiation where you’re going to end up. And nobody’s better at creating this leverage than President Trump,” Bessent said.

In the meantime, a host of major companies have warned that they may suffer losses due to the lack of clarity.

Target CEO Brian Cornell last month warned of “massive potential costs” due to tariffs, lamenting difficulties posed by “the rates we’re facing and the uncertainty about how these rates in different categories might evolve.”

In April, Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon voiced alarm about possible damage that could result from the murky outlook.

“This uncertainty around the path forward and fears over the potentially escalating effects of the trade war have created material risks to the U.S. and global economy,” Solomon told analysts.

A survey of CEO confidence fell to its lowest level since 2022, the Conference Board found last month. More than half of CEOs expect conditions to worsen over the next six months, the survey said.

The policy uncertainty puts businesses in a bind because they cannot evaluate the costs and benefits of important long-term decisions, such as investment and hiring, Brett House, a professor of professional practice at Columbia University and former deputy chief economist at Scotiabank, told ABC News.

“Companies always have risks ahead of them. They can price those risks in terms of the cost of lending or borrowing and the prices of goods or services,” House said. “In a period of uncertainty, it’s hugely chilling of business activity because there’s almost now way to anticipate what the price of an activity should be.”

The uncertainty facing businesses has coincided with an anxious moment for consumers. Consumer attitudes have soured for four consecutive months as tariffs have taken hold, according to a survey conducted by the University of Michigan.

Consumer spending, which accounts for about two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, could weaken if shopper appetites diminish. In theory, a slowdown of spending could hammer some companies at the same time they attempt to navigate the ever-shifting business environment, some experts said.

“If consumption starts coming down and companies are not investing, that’s when you start to see little parts of gross domestic product come down,” Jadrian Wooten, a professor of economics at Virginia Tech University, told ABC News. “We’re in that danger zone.”

The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis released a study in April that found a sudden surge of economic uncertainty could set the conditions for an economic recession.

So far, key measures of the economy have largely defied fears of a downturn.

The unemployment rate stands at a historically low level and job growth remains robust, though it has slowed from previous highs. In recent months, inflation has cooled, reaching its lowest level since 2021.

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, or OECD, forecast on Tuesday continued growth for the U.S. economy in 2025 and 2026, albeit at a slower pace than last year. Recession forecasts on Wall Street faded in recent weeks after Trump rolled back some tariffs.

Brown, of the University of North Carolina, said the uncertainty facing businesses is unmistakable, but its precise economic effect remains to be seen.

“The uncertainty is real,” Brown said. “How much of it really comes to fruition and really shows up in the data — that’s a different question.”

Democrats accuse McMahon of stonewalling Department of Education IG

June 4, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — Congressional Democrats are demanding that Department of Education Secretary Linda McMahon cooperate with the agency’s Office of Inspector General review of the Trump administration’s efforts to overhaul the agency.

In a letter first obtained by ABC News, a group of Democrats on the Education, Oversight, Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, and Appropriations committees in the House and Senate sent the secretary a letter accusing her of stonewalling the agency’s inspectors general.

“The OIG must be allowed to do its job,” they wrote.

“We urge the Department to immediately meet its obligation under the law to fully comply with the OIG’s review,” the letter said. “Congress and the public need to understand the full extent and impact of the Administration’s actions on the Department and the students, families, and educational communities it may no longer be able to serve.”

ABC News reached out for comment from the Department of Education on the allegations but did not receive an immediate reply.

McMahon will face these questions in person when she testifies before the House Education and Workforce Committee on Wednesday.

The letter stems from what McMahon calls her “final mission” as the 13th education secretary to shutter the department, and the administration’s first steps to diminish the agency through a reduction in force that slashed nearly half its staff in early March. The lawmakers are requesting a response no later than Friday. After several attempts to conduct its review over the last two months, an OIG letter said the prolonged had resulted in “unreasonable denials” and “repeated delays” to its work.

According to a recent OIG letter sent to the House and Senate committee members, the Education Department blocked it from “timely access to all records, reports, audits, reviews, documents, papers, recommendations, or other materials available to the department.” House Education and Workforce Committee ranking Democrat Bobby Scott told ABC News, “I think the fact that they have indicated that there is a lack of cooperation ought to be concerning to people when inspectors general can’t do their jobs.”

The OIG contends its “statutory mission” to oversee the changes at the department under the Inspector General Act have been impeded.

“Our review has been delayed by the refusal of the Department to provide the OIG with a majority of the information and documents requested or direct access to staff for interviews,” acting Inspector General René L. Rocque wrote last month in a letter fulfilling her dual reporting requirement.

The department has canceled scheduled OIG interviews with its staff and insists that an Office of the General Counsel lawyer be present for any rescheduled interviews, according to the OIG. The OIG alleges those requests from the department are unprecedented and contrary to the OIG’s longstanding practice.

The OIG office is the statutory, independent entity within the department responsible for identifying fraud, waste, abuse and criminal activity involving department funds, programs, and operations, according to its website. By denying the federal watchdog access to the department’s records, the lawmakers believe McMahon is failing to meet her obligation as an agency head. There is no basis to withhold department documents from the OIG regardless of the privileged nature of the information or if it’s subject to litigation, the OIG said.

The news comes as McMahon testifies before Congress on the agency’s priorities and policies, specifically calling for a $12 billion cut to education under President Donald Trump’s fiscal year 2026 budget outline. McMahon has stressed she will continue all statutory functions of the agency and work to abolish it in a “lawful fashion.”

Ahead of his committee’s hearing with McMahon, Scott said, “We hear all these pronouncements about what’s going to happen. What is the plan? They’ve acknowledged they can’t get rid of the Department of Education without legislation. Are they supporting legislation?”

Democrats, including Scott, have decried the administration’s work force reductions, particularly the impact the layoffs could pose to the department’s critical responsibilities such as administering Federal Student Aid services and ensuring students’ civil rights. Their three-page letter to McMahon claims states have experienced delays in accessing relevant portals to receive federal funding, college financial aid advisors have experienced significant delays in getting answers from FSA personnel, parents with pending Office for Civil Rights OCR cases have been left in the dark.

“When they have all these cases of discrimination in the Office for Civil Rights enforcing Title VI, including anti semitism, how is the job going to get done if you fired most of the staff in the Office of Civil Rights?” Scott said.

“If the inspector general can’t get an answer, then oversight is lost,” he added.

Immigration courts dismissing cases of Venezuelan migrants sent to El Salvador: Attorneys

June 4, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(DALLAS) — The immigration cases of some of the Venezuelan migrants who were deported to El Salvador under the Alien Enemies Act in March have been dismissed, their attorneys said, raising concern from advocates and lawyers who say the move is a violation of due process.

For more than two months, John Dutton, a Houston-based immigration attorney, fought to keep one of his client’s immigration case open. Henrry Albornoz Quintero, who was detained in Dallas in January after showing up to a routine check-in with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, was deported to the notorious CECOT prison in El Salvador in March.

After Quintero was deported, Dutton continued to show up to his client’s immigration hearings where he says the government attorneys declined to answer questions about his client and pushed for dismissal. Quintero’s case was dismissed “due to a lack of jurisdiction,” Dutton said.

“There’s just nothing [the judge] could do,” Dutton said. “Henrry is not here because the president shipped him out of the country. What’s an immigration judge going to do to stop that?”

Dutton previously told ABC News that Quintero’s wife, who entered the U.S. with him last year, had a baby in April.

Michelle Brane, the executive director of the immigration support group Together and Free, told ABC News that her team has tracked at least 15 immigration cases of migrants who were sent to CECOT that were recently dismissed. Some of the cases include active pending asylum applications.

Brane said she believes immigration courts should “administratively close” the cases, which would allow them to be reopened “if and when” the person is brought back.

“Dismissing as opposed to administratively closing is sort of making an assumption that these people will never come back,” Brane said. “And I think that’s premature and certainly based on the court decisions, so far, they should be brought back to receive some kind of due process.”

If the Venezuelan migrants were to be brought back, there is no process for reopening their immigration cases, Brane said.

The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to ABC News’ request for comment.

Mark Prada, an attorney representing a 24-year-old Venezuelan, said he was able to have his client’s case administratively closed.

“I was able to cut the head off the snake before it could poke out of its hole,” he told ABC News.

Isabel Carlota Roby, an attorney for the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights organization, told ABC News that at least seven of the 10 men her group represents had some form of legal protection in the U.S., including Temporary Protected Status or pending asylum applications before being deported to CECOT in El Salvador.

Roby said her group represents them internationally — filing habeus petitions in El Salvador and other types of advocacy — but does not represent them in U.S. immigration court. However, she said many of them have had their cases dismissed recently. She told ABC News that most of the migrants her group represents do not have immigration attorneys.

“They basically represented themselves in court and presented their own asylum cases,” Carlota Roby said. “Most of them simply were deported and their cases were just left behind and that was it.”

“They were denied due process, they are disappeared, and they are now in this legal limbo where they remain in a prison with no legal protections, excluded from the protection of the law, and they don’t know if they’ll ever have a chance at a fair trial,” she added.

The Trump administration invoked the Alien Enemies Act — an 18th century wartime authority used to remove noncitizens with little-to-no due process — to deport more than 200 alleged migrant gang members to CECOT by arguing that the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua is a “hybrid criminal state” that is invading the United States.

An official with the ICE acknowledged that “many” of the men deported on March 15 lack criminal records in the United States — but said that “the lack of specific information about each individual actually highlights the risk they pose.” Many of their families have also denied gang involvement.

The government is temporarily barred from removing migrants under the proclamation after the Supreme Court extended its injunction last month and remanded the case to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to resolve the question of how much time should be afforded for detainees to contest their removals.

Some attorneys told ABC News they are appealing the dismissals.

The lawyer for Jose Franco Caraballo Tiapa, a 26-year-old Venezuelan migrant who was seeking asylum in the U.S., and was detained after showing up to his routine check-in with ICE, filed an appeal after his client’s case was dismissed.

“The dismissal results in what can be construed as a violation of due process, as he was not given the opportunity to be heard on his asylum claim,” said Martin Rosenow.

Lindsay Toczylowski, the attorney who represents Andry Hernandez Romero, a gay makeup artist who was sent to CECOT in El Salvador, said in a statement that her client was denied due process.

“DHS is doing everything it can to erase the fact that Andry came to the United States seeking asylum and he was denied due process as required by our Constitution,” Toczylowski said. “The idea that the government can disappear you because of your tattoos, and never even give you a day in court, should send a chill down the spine of every American.”

In the statement posted by Immigrant Defenders Law Center, the group said the dismissal of Hernandez’s dismissal is “not the end.” The group said it will file an appeal and continue its advocacy to bring the 32-year-old back to the U.S.

Zimbabwe to kill dozens of elephants and distribute meat to people

June 4, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(LONDON) — Zimbabwe has announced that dozens of its elephants will be killed to control the population size and the meat from the carcasses will be distributed to people.

The Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, also known as ZimParks, said it has issued permits to Save Valley Conservancy, a large private game reserve in the southeast, “for an elephant management exercise.”

“The management quota is meant to address the growing elephant population in the region and will initially target 50 elephants,” the agency said in a statement Tuesday. “According to the 2024 aerial survey, there are 2,550 elephants against an ecological carrying capacity of 800 elephants in Save Valley Conservancy.”

The reserve has translocated 200 elephants to other areas in the southern African nation over the past five years “to manage the elephant population and protect the wildlife habitat,” according to ZimParks.

“Elephant meat from the management exercise will be distributed to local communities while ivory will be State property that will be handed over to the ZimParks for safekeeping,” the agency added.

A global ban on ivory trade bars Zimbabwe from selling its stockpile of elephant tusks.

ZimParks spokesperson Tinashe Farawo told ABC News on Wednesday that the “management exercise” is “not culling,” as the latter “involves wiping [out] the whole herd in huge numbers.” He did not respond to a question about how many elephants in total will be killed in this instance and over what period of time.

ABC News has reached out to Save Valley Conservancy for comment.

Zimbabwe is home to the second-largest population of elephants in the world, after neighboring Botswana.

ABC News’ Liezl Thom contributed to this report.

Russia says no damage to Crimea Bridge as Ukraine pushes for US sanctions on Moscow

June 4, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(LONDON) — Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told journalists on Wednesday that Tuesday’s explosion at the Kerch Strait Bridge caused no damage, after the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) claimed responsibility for the latest attack on the structure.

“Well, there was an explosion, nothing was damaged, the bridge is working, the Kyiv regime continues its attempts to attack the objects of peaceful infrastructure,” Peskov said at a briefing. “The Russian side takes appropriate precautions.”

The SBU said it attacked the bridge — which links occupied Crimea to Russia’s Krasnodar Krai region and is a prominent symbol of Moscow’s control over the occupied peninsula — with underwater explosives early on Tuesday, in an operation that “lasted several months.”

The SBU claimed that the explosion “severely damaged” the “underwater supports of the piers.” The official account for the bridge said the structure was “temporarily closed” after the explosion.

Meanwhile, with U.S.-brokered Ukraine-Russia peace talks still floundering despite another round of negotiations in Istanbul, Turkey, on Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his top officials are applying more pressure on President Donald Trump to increase the cost of what they see as Russian obfuscation.

Trump returned to office in January having vowed to end the war in 24 hours. But months of failed talks — with Kyiv and Moscow clearly still far apart on their peace demands — has left the president and his administration publicly frustrated.

Trump has threatened both — Ukraine with the withdrawal of all aid and Russia with more sanctions — with punishment if his peace-making efforts fail. Both Ukraine and Russia have sought to frame the other as the main impediment to a peace deal.

Ukraine aligned itself with Trump’s May appeal for a full 30-day ceasefire, a proposal President Vladimir Putin has refused. In the weeks since, Zelenskyy has pushed Trump to meet Russia’s obstinance with sanctions.

Following Monday’s talks — which lasted just over an hour — Kyiv embarked on a renewed push.

“I want to thank all Americans, all Europeans who support this approach of pressuring Russia into peace — it is extremely important,” Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram on Tuesday night, following the latest round of deadly Russian drone and missile attacks on his country — and after two headline-grabbing attacks by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) on Russia’s strategic bomber fleet and the Kerch Strait Bridge.

“Putin does not change his behavior when he does not fear the consequences of his actions,” Zelenskyy added. “Russia must feel what war truly means. Russia must bear the losses from the war. They must really feel that continuing the war will have devastating consequences for them.”

The two sides did agree to further prisoner exchanges during the latest Istanbul talks. But both Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha and Andriy Yermak — the influential head of Zelenskyy’s presidential office — pushed back on the notion that the negotiations moved the needle toward a lasting ceasefire agreement.

Yermak said in a post to social media that he spoke with Trump’s Special Envoy Steve Witkoff about the talks, telling him, “Russia’s position remains unconstructive.”

“I emphasized that Russia is stalling and manipulating the negotiation process in an attempt to avoid American sanctions and has no genuine intention of ceasing hostilities,” Yermak said. “Only strong sanctions can compel Russia to engage in serious negotiations.

Sybiha said Russia “has not responded to our document outlining Ukraine’s vision for ending the war,” in a post on X summarizing Ukraine’s official conclusions from the second round of talks.

“Instead of responding to our constructive proposals in Istanbul, the Russian side passed a set of old ultimatums that do not move the situation any closer to true peace,” he said.

“This contradicts Russia’s previous promises, including to the United States, that it would put forward something realistic and doable this week in Istanbul,” Sybiha added, also calling for new U.S. sanctions on Moscow.

Trump is also facing pressure at home. Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham — long influential in advising the president’s foreign policy — is among those pushing a sanctions bill through the Senate that would slap 500% tariffs on any country that buys Moscow’s energy products.

On Sunday, following a visit to Kyiv with Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal, Graham wrote on X, “Russia indiscriminately kills men, women and children. It’s time for the world to act decisively against Russia’s aggression by holding China and others accountable for buying cheap Russian oil that props up Putin’s war machine.”

The Kremlin urged patience. “It would be wrong to expect any immediate decisions or breakthroughs here,” spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday of the latest talks. “But work is ongoing. Certain agreements were reached in Istanbul, and they are important. Indeed, first and foremost, it is about people. These agreements will be implemented.”

But Dmitry Medvedev — the former Russian president and prime minister now serving as the deputy chairman of the country’s Security Council — gave a darker read on the negotiations. The talks, he wrote on Telegram, “are not meant to achieve a compromise peace based on some imaginary and unrealistic conditions invented by others, but rather to secure our swift victory and the complete destruction” of Zelenskyy’s government.

Meanwhile, the long-range strikes that have unsettled Trump continued. Ukraine’s air force reported 95 Russian drones launched into the country overnight, of which 61 were shot down or neutralized. Impacts were recorded in seven locations, the air force said.

Russia’s Defense Ministry, meanwhile, said its forces downed seven Ukrainian drones overnight.

ABC News’ Ellie Kaufman, Oleksiy Pshemyskiy, Nataliia Popova and Will Gretsky contributed to this report.

17-year-old golf prodigy and dentist qualify for US Open in 2 unlikely journeys

June 4, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(OAKMONT, PA) — Two unlikely golfers are making their dreams come true at this year’s U.S. Open. ABC News’ David Muir spoke with the golfers as they prepare for the national championship this month.

Among them is 17-year-old Mason Howell from Thomasville, Georgia, who will be one of the youngest competitors at the prestigious tournament. Howell, who first picked up a golf club at age three and began competing in tournaments by six, recently qualified to play alongside golf’s elite professionals.

“I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was nervous,” Howell told reporters after securing his spot, embracing his parents at the 18th green. “Hugging my mom and my dad walking off the 18th green… is just a feeling that I don’t know if I’ll feel again, but it was one of the greatest moments of my life.”

The high school junior sharing with ABC News his message to aspiring athletes: “Keep working hard, and dreams really do come true.”

But Howell isn’t the only inspiring story heading into next week’s championship. Dr. Matt Vogt, a 34-year-old dentist from McCordsville, Indiana, proved it’s never too late to chase your dreams by also qualifying for the tournament.

“I feel like I’m going to wake up from a dream,” Vogt said after his qualifying round. “This isn’t going to be real… but I’m so excited.”

Between treating patients and running on minimal sleep, Vogt hopes his journey will inspire others.

“My hope in qualifying for the U.S. Open at this stage of my life as an amateur is to really inspire others,” he told ABC News. “You can accomplish awesome things while still having a career… still having a family. It’s never too late to follow your dreams, and honestly, I hope to be an example of that.”

The U.S. Open golf tournament in 2025 will be held from June 12 to June 15 at Oakmont Country Club in Oakmont, Pennsylvania.

4-year-old from Mexico receiving ‘lifesaving medical treatment’ can remain in US: Lawyer

June 4, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(BAKERSFIELD, CA) — A 4-year-old girl receiving “lifesaving medical treatment” in the United States was granted humanitarian parole for one year, allowing her and her mother to remain in the country, the child’s attorneys announced on Tuesday.

The child and her mother, Deysi Vargas, have been living in the U.S. since 2023, but received three letters from the Department of Homeland Security in April saying their humanitarian parole was being terminated.

The young girl — who is identified by her lawyers under the pseudonym “Sofia” — suffers from “short bowel syndrome,” which prevents her from being able to properly absorb nutrients and fluid from food on her own.

Vargas received official notice from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on Tuesday that she and her daughter were granted humanitarian parole. The parole period will last for exactly one year, expiring on June 1, 2026.

The legal victory came after Vargas brought Sofia for a biometrics appointment at a USCIS field office in Bakersfield, California, on May 30.

“We are profoundly grateful that USCIS acted swiftly to grant Sofia and her mother one year of humanitarian parole. By moving quickly, the agency has ensured that a four‑year‑old girl can continue receiving her life-saving medical treatment. We commend USCIS for its responsiveness and for recognizing the urgency of this situation,” her lawyers at Public Counsel said in a statement.

Sofia began receiving life-saving medical treatment for this condition at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles when she and her parents crossed the border from Mexico in 2023 on humanitarian parole, Sofia’s lawyers said during a press conference in May.

Sofia’s medical care, which consists of her receiving specialized IV treatments for up to 14 hours a day, can only be administered in the United States, per the equipment manufacturer, her lawyers said.

Vargas said the treatment in the U.S. has allowed Sofia to “live her life” with her family, but if she and her daughter were forced to return back to Mexico, Sofia “will be at the hospital day and night,” she said during the press conference.

In their statement on Tuesday, Sofia’s attorneys said, “While we celebrate this victory, we cannot ignore the systemic challenges that brought Sofia to the brink. Her parole was terminated without warning, and for weeks there was no functional avenue to alert USCIS that a child’s life was in danger. It took an international outcry and pressure from elected officials to get a response — something that used to take a single phone call.”

“Our immigration system must protect everyone facing life‑threatening harm. We cannot let this country turn its back on our immigrant neighbors seeking safety, justice, and a fair chance at life,” her attorneys said.

ABC News’ Matt Claiborne and Megan Forrester contributed to this report.

Trump administration rescinds Biden-era guidance requiring hospitals to perform emergency abortions

June 4, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — The Trump administration announced on Tuesday it is rescinding Biden-era guidance that uses a federal law to require hospitals to stabilize patients in need of emergency care — including by providing an abortion.

In July 2022, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued guidance that, under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA), doctors must perform abortions in emergency departments — even in states where the procedure is illegal — particularly if it serves as a “stabilizing medical treatment” for an emergency medical condition.

Emergency medical conditions included, but were not limited to, “ectopic pregnancy, complications of pregnancy loss, or emergent hypertensive disorders, such as preeclampsia with severe features.”

EMTALA, which was passed in 1986, ensures that emergency patients receive services and treatment regardless of ability to pay. Hospitals that refuse to provide “necessary stabilizing care” or “an appropriate transfer” can face civil monetary penalties.

The HHS guidance was one of the attempts of the Biden administration to preserve abortion access after the U.S. Supreme Court overruled Roe v. Wade, ending federal protections for abortion rights.

However, HHS and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) rescinded the guidance, as well as an accompanying letter from former HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, saying they “do not reflect the policy of this Administration.”

“CMS will continue to enforce EMTALA, which protects all individuals who present to a hospital emergency department seeking examination or treatment, including for identified emergency medical conditions that place the health of a pregnant woman or her unborn child in serious jeopardy,” a press release from the agency read.

“CMS will work to rectify any perceived legal confusion and instability created by the former administration’s actions,” the press release continued.

Abortion rights groups, such as the American Civil Liberties Union, criticized the administration and accused President Donald Trump of walking back on a campaign promise not to interfere with abortion access.

“By rescinding this guidance, the Trump administration has sent a clear signal that it is siding not with the majority, but with its anti-abortion allies — and that will come at the expense of women’s lives,” Alexa Kolbi-Molinas, deputy director of the ACLU’s Reproductive Freedom Project, said in a statement. “The ACLU will use every lever we have to keep President Trump and his administration from endangering our health and lives.”

The Biden administration’s guidance has faced legal challenges in the past. In January 2024, a federal appeals court ruled that Texas hospitals and doctors are not required to perform emergency abortions despite the guidance.

Meanwhile, earlier this year, the Department of Justice dismissed a lawsuit brought by the Biden administration against the state of Idaho, claiming its near-total abortion ban violated EMTALA.

Gotti grandsons accused of beating up brother-in-law in Queens family imbroglio

June 4, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Two grandchildren of notorious mob boss John Gotti have been charged with assault after allegedly beating up their brother-in-law in a family dispute in Queens.

John Gotti, 31, and Frankie Gotti, 27, were arrested in the assault on Monday, which came after an alleged Sunday break-in by their relative.

They were both charged with assault and harassment and were set to be arraigned Tuesday.

The family imbroglio began after 31-year-old Gino Gabrielli allegedly broke into a Gotti family home on 157th Avenue in Howard Beach to steal $3,300.

Gabrielli was arrested and charged with burglary, grand larceny criminal possession of stolen property

The Gotti pair then allegedly confronted their brother-in-law Monday afternoon in front of an 84th Street home after he was released from custody

Gabrielli was punched in the face. He refused medical attention, and the Gottis were arrested

John Gotti has had previous run-ins with the law, including a 2012 vehicle arson and an unrelated drug arrest. He is the grandson of the “Teflon Don” and the nephew of “Junior” Gotti

Gabrielli also has a record, having pleaded guilty to arson in December 2015 for torching a Mercedes-Benz during a dispute over a catering contract, and accidentally setting himself on fire in the process

John Gotti, the elder, the head of the notorious Gambino crime family, was known for his flash personality and expensive wardrobe and was convicted in 1992 of multiple counts of racketeering, extortion and ordering the murders of two people. He died in prison in 2002.

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