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Tulsi Gabbard has bold plans to reform US intelligence as DNI

January 30, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — If she is confirmed as director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard would be the youngest-ever in that role, the first millennial, the first Asian American, and only the second woman to hold the position.

But she is expected to face questions in her confirmation hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee about statements she has made that appear to support U.S. enemies and dictators as well as having no significant experience in intelligence. Gabbard can only afford to lose the votes of three Republicans and sources tell ABC News the vote on her nomination is expected to be a close one.

In excerpts from her opening statement, Gabbard confronts her critics.

“The truth is: what really upsets my political opponents is my consistent record of independence, regardless of political affiliation, and my refusal to be anyone’s puppet. You know who else is committed to defending our country and reforming Washington with a fierce and unparalleled independence, President Donald J. Trump who ran and won with a mandate for change this November,” she says in the excerpt.

For most of her career, Gabbard has broken barriers. She was the youngest woman ever elected to a state house of representatives and the first to graduate from the Accelerated Officer Candidate School at the Alabama Military Academy as a distinguished honor graduate. In Congress, she was the first Samoan American, the youngest woman elected at the time, and the first combat veteran to serve — a distinction she shares with Illinois Sen. Tammy Duckworth.

Gabbard has prepared extensively over the past two months for her hearings, meeting with former DNI leaders, including John Negroponte, the first DNI, and Michael Allen, who led Negroponte’s confirmation hearing preparations. She also has consulted with former CIA Director Gen. Michael Hayden, along with Trump allies Morgan Ortagus, deputy special presidential envoy for Middle East peace, and FBI director nominee Kash Patel.

She has sought input from a broad range of intelligence experts, former government officials and lawmakers across the aisle. She has participated in policy roundtables with lawyers, ex-intelligence officials, and national security negotiators, including figures involved in the Abraham Accords.

She also held a full-scale mock confirmation hearing ahead of Thursday’s Senate Intelligence Committee proceedings. Former Republican Sen. Richard Burr, who chaired the committee from 2015 to 2020, will introduce her.

Sources on both sides of the aisle on Capitol Hill tell ABC News Gabbard will likely face scrutiny over her past stances on Russia, Ukraine, Syria, and Iran, as well as her defense of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who reached a plea deal with the Justice Department over disseminating classified documents he had obtained illegally. Gabbard said last year on “Real Time With Bill Maher” that “the charges against him are one of the biggest attacks on freedom of the press that we’ve seen and freedom of speech.”

As a member of Congress, Gabbard introduced a bill in 2020 calling for the federal government to drop all charges against Edward Snowden, the former NSA contractor who leaked information in 2013 about how the U.S. government surveils the American public.

She’s also expected to face question on her reversal on Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), a key surveillance tool she voted against reauthorizing in 2020, her last year in Congress.

Gabbard argued that Americans shouldn’t be forced to choose between security and liberty, saying that the Patriot Act and FISA have “been allowing for the abuses of our civil liberties and overreach by our own intelligence and law enforcement agencies through doing things like warrantless sweeping collection of our data, violating our Fourth Amendment constitutional rights.”

Gabbard is also expected to face questions past statements about former President Donald Trump including her decision to vote present on Donald Trump’s.

Over the last two months, Gabbard has met with more than 50 senators, primarily Republicans. The meetings have largely served as an introduction — an opportunity to explain her past positions and assuage concerns about her political evolution. A source close to her told ABC News, “They know they can’t put her in a box. She’s not a Democrat. She’s a new Republican. She has very similar, if not 100% aligned, views with President Trump on ‘America First’ foreign policy. That makes people uneasy because they can’t quite figure her out.”

Gabbard, like Trump, is a former Democrat whose policy views have shifted significantly. Her evolution has been shaped by her 22 years in the Army, including deployments to Iraq, Kuwait, and Djibouti. If confirmed, she will be the first female DNI to have served in the military. She plans to continue serving in the Army Reserve, which is permitted under ODNI regulations.

Behind the scenes, Gabbard has earned bipartisan support within the intelligence community for her willingness to engage with a range of stakeholders. Earlier this month, the families of two former ISIS and al-Qaeda hostages publicly endorsed her nomination in a letter shared with ABC News. The parents of Kayla Mueller, who was killed by ISIS, and Theo Padnos, a former al-Qaeda hostage, argued that the radicalization of individuals — such as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, who drove his truck into a crowd of New Orleans New Year’s revelers — underscores the need for Gabbard’s swift confirmation.

The letter of support came under scrutiny by some lawmakers after rebels toppled Syria’s Bashar al-Assad. Gabbard met with Assad in Syria in 2017, which remains a point of controversy. She has previously defended the trip as a “fact-finding mission” and has maintained that U.S. intervention in Syria empowered extremist groups.

Gabbard warned in the same year that she was concerned that toppling Assad’s regime could lead to groups like ISIS and al-Qaeda to step in to fill the void and “completely massacre all religious minorities there in Syria.”

“I had no intention of meeting with Assad, but when given the opportunity, I felt it was important to take it,” Gabbard said in a 2017 statement. “We should be ready to meet with anyone if there’s a chance it can help bring about an end to this war.”

Padnos, who was kidnapped by the al-Nusra Front in 2012 and held for nearly two years, said Gabbard’s willingness to engage with hostage families compelled him to speak out.

“This is a woman with deep compassion for the victims of terrorism and the courage to get things done,” he told ABC News. “Nobody else has offered their help — except Tulsi.”

Gabbard told ABC News that she was “honored and humbled by that statement of support.”

She has also received backing from law enforcement. The National Sheriffs’ Association endorsed her nomination, citing her commitment to bridging intelligence gaps between federal agencies and local authorities. In a statement, the group praised Gabbard’s pledge to give sheriffs “a seat at the table” in national security discussions.

Sheriff Kieran Donahue, president of the National Sheriffs’ Association, wrote “Gabbard has demonstrated a commitment to addressing the critical disconnect between our intelligence agencies and local law enforcement in preparing for sophisticated and pervasive threats.”

A source close to Gabbard told ABC News that her focus as director of national intelligence will be on restoring trust in the intelligence community and reforming what is and isn’t classified. Specifically, she aims to ensure that the intelligence provided to the Senate and White House is not information already available to lawmakers through media outlets. On Capitol Hill, lawmakers have expressed concern about the overclassification of information.

The source added that Gabbard intends to provide more accurate, raw intelligence to help lawmakers make informed decisions, rather than relying on overclassified data. She also plans to streamline the process for security clearances and return ODNI to its original mission — leading the intelligence community by fostering integration, collaboration and innovation.

Her allies argue that her outsider perspective will help modernize the intelligence community — though critics remain skeptical of her lack of traditional experience.

Thursday’s hearing will test whether Gabbard can win over skeptics — or if her controversial past will derail her bid to become the nation’s top intelligence officer.

Trump and Medicaid: Everything to know about the low-income health insurance program

January 30, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — When the White House budget office released a memo this week that instructed all federal agencies to cease spending on any financial assistance programs pending internal review, the fate of the nation’s largest public health insurance program was propelled into question.

Medicaid is a joint federal and state program that provides health care coverage to low-income individuals and families. There were over 79 million Americans enrolled in the program as of October 2024.

The online Medicaid reimbursement portal accessible by every state was reportedly down following Tuesday’s freeze announcement, despite the White House Office of Management and Budget saying in an updated memo that the program would not be affected.

On Wednesday, after being temporarily blocked by a federal judge and already facing a legal challenge from 22 state attorneys general, the freeze was rescinded.

While federal administrators and private individuals alike scramble to understand which programs could be affected by President Donald Trump’s sweeping executive orders, experts say Medicaid’s role in America cannot overstated.

“It’s really the backbone of many aspects of our health care system,” Joan Alker, executive director of Georgetown University’s Center for Children and Families, told ABC News.

From birth to elder care, Medicaid covers newborns, children, low-income individuals and families, people with disabilities and substance abuse issues, and nursing home residents, among others, according to Alker.

“I think we all need to really pay attention to what’s going on here, both in the administration but, more importantly, in Congress, where they are contemplating these very large cuts,” Alker said.

What is Medicaid?

Medicaid, which turns 60 this year, was established in 1965 as amendments to Social Security by President Lyndon B. Johnson. The program was meant to provide health insurance to individuals and families who could not afford or were not provided private insurance through employment.

Now, it’s a nearly $900 billion program funded by both the federal government and individual states, with each state administering its own eligibility, benefits and payment rates based on federal guidelines, according to the program’s website.

The federal government reimburses states for a portion of Medicaid costs through the Federal Medical Assistance Percentage program, which covers hospitals, doctors, clinics, pharmacies and nursing homes with little to no copayments by the beneficiaries, according to Medicaid.

“Medicaid serves a key role in the health insurance market, and for many people, there is no alternative,” Eric Seiber, Ph.D., a professor in the College of Public Health and director of the Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Evaluation Studies at Ohio State University, told ABC News.

“This affects Medicaid beneficiaries, but also Medicaid providers. What is often overlooked is one person’s healthcare expense is another person’s healthcare income,” Seiber added.

How many Americans are on Medicaid?

As of October 2024, the program reported that 79.4 million people were enrolled in Medicaid across the U.S. That includes 41.7 million adults enrolled in Medicaid and 37.6 million Medicaid child and Children’s Health Insurance Program enrollees.

Medicaid enrollment is on the rise, with the program seeing a 20% increase in applications since October 2023 and a 66% increase since October 2022, according to the program.

Who is eligible for Medicaid?

Eligibility for Medicaid coverage is based on income, family size, disability status and age, and can vary from state to state.

The expansion of Medicaid through the Affordable Care Act made adults with incomes of up to 138% of the federal poverty level, or about $20,783 for an individual, eligible in 2024, according to the program.

Not everyone to enrolls in Medicaid remains on it indefinitely, according to Seiber.

“Medicaid often serves as a trampoline, not a safety net. People land on Medicaid and often bounce right back off,” Seiber told ABC News of Medicaid’s role in the American health care system.

“I would say that Medicaid protects people’s health, but also their future,” Seiber added.

Medicaid during Trump’s first administration

Trump’s first administration saw threats to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act that were ultimately rejected, perhaps most dramatically in 2017 when Sen. John McCain, who died of brain cancer the following year, returned to Washington, D.C., to vote against the so-called “skinny repeal” of the ACA and hundreds of billions in cuts to Medicaid.

Trump was attempting to replace the ACA with the American Health Care Act, which would have repealed the individual mandate and the employer mandate, amended Medicaid eligibility and weakened protections for patients with pre-existing conditions.

In December 2017, a Republican tax reform law was passed that eliminated individual mandates, which Gallup later said may have reduced participation in the insurance marketplace.

At the end of 2019, 13.7% of adults were without health insurance, the highest level seen since early 2014, according to Gallup data.

Fast-forward to the 2024 election cycle: Trump made little mention of Medicaid amid various campaign trail comments about possible changes to Medicare and Social Security.

In March, Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social that he was “not running to terminate” the ACA but said he wanted to make it “better” and “less expensive.”

During the September presidential debate, he said he had “concepts of a plan” and said it would be “better health care than Obamacare,” but offered few details.

“Medicaid will be turning 60 this year, so we are very concerned that that proposal may arise again,” Alker said of possible cuts to federal Medicaid funding.

“So our future is really at stake here, and I think with an aging population, with a growing need for long-term care, there’s no way that states can manage this,” she added.

‘Devastated’: Figure skaters, coaches aboard flight that collided with Black Hawk over DC

January 30, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — Figure skaters and coaches returning from the recent U.S. national championships were aboard the American Airlines flight that collided with a Black Hawk helicopter near Reagan National Airport on Wednesday, officials said.

The U.S. Figure Skating organization confirmed that “several members” of the skating community were aboard American Airlines Flight 5342 which took off from Wichita, Kansas, and crashed approaching Reagan National Airport after colliding with a helicopter shortly before 9 p.m.

“These athletes, coaches, and family members were returning home from the National Development Camp held in conjunction with the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas,” the organization said.

“We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims’ families closely in our hearts,” the organization said. “We will continue to monitor the situation and will release more information as it becomes available.”

There were 60 passengers and four crew members aboard the jet and three personnel aboard the Army helicopter, which officials said was on a training flight at the time of the crash.

Officials have not publicly confirmed the number of fatalities in the crash.

At an early Thursday morning news conference, officials said they were continuing search-and-rescue operations in the icy Potomac River but did not say whether anyone had been pulled from the water alive, or confirm any deaths.

Meanwhile, Russian media reported that two Russian figure skaters were on board the American Airlines flight, and the presidential spokesman expressed condolences to the families and friends of those killed in the plane crash.

“There were other of our fellow citizens there. Bad news from Washington today,” Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday morning.

Earlier, several Russian state media outlets reported that the 1994 world figure skating champions in pairs, Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, were on board the plane, though U.S. authorities have not confirmed these reports.

Guantanamo could be used to hold up to 30,000 migrants

January 30, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — According to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the Naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, is “a perfect place” where the Trump administration could hold up to 30,000 migrants while they await being deported from the United States to their home countries.

On Wednesday, President Donald Trump signed a memorandum directing the Defense Department and the Department of Homeland Security to prepare the base to hold what he had earlier said might be 30,000 migrants described as “high-priority criminal aliens unlawfully present in the United States.”

Hegseth, who at one time served as a junior Army officer at the detention facility at Guantanamo that housed enemy combatants from the war on terror, explained that deported migrants would not be housed at that location.

“That’s one part of Guantanamo Bay. The other part of Guantanamo Bay, Will, is a naval station where it has long been, for decades, a mission of that naval station to provide for migrants and refugees and resettlement,” Hegseth said in a live interview on Fox News’ “The Will Cain Show”

Over the last week, U.S. military aircraft have been been used to carry out deportation flights, taking deported migrants back to their home countries. The military flights are in addition to the chartered flights that Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has undertaken for years. However, the pace of those flights can be slow as the U.S. has to secure commitments from countries that they will agree to take back their citizens.

“We want somewhere else to hold them safely in the interim,” Hegseth said. “Guantanamo Bay, Will, is a perfect place.”

Hegseth described how the base could be used to house deportees on their way to their home countries or a third country “and it’s taking a little time to move with that process and with the paperwork.”

He said that as that process drags on, it is “better they be held at a safe location like Guantanamo Bay, which is meant and built for migrants. Meant and built to sustain that away from the American people as they are processed properly, to where they came from.”

“This is a temporary transit which is already the mission of Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, where we can plus up thousands and tens of thousands, if necessary, to humanely move illegals out of our country where they do not belong, back to the countries where they came from in proper process,” he added.

Hegseth described the grounds of the Navy base’s golf course as a place that could possibly house as many as 6,000 migrants.

“So this is a plan in movement, but not in movement because we’re behind, but because we’re ramping up for the possibility to expand mass deportations, because President Trump is dead serious about getting illegal criminals out of our country,” Hegseth said. “And the DOD is not only willing to, he’s proud to partner with DHS to defend the sovereignty of our southern border and advance that mission.”

Kash Patel, Trump’s controversial pick for FBI director, set to face Senate grilling

January 30, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — As Kash Patel, President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the FBI, appears Thursday for his Senate confirmation hearing, some of the rhetoric he has espoused for years to defend Trump and promote Trump’s reelection is sure to elicit sharp questions about whether he is fit to lead one of the nation’s premiere law enforcement agencies.

Patel has derided the FBI as the “Federal Bureau of Insanity.” He’s announced “a mission to annihilate the ‘Deep State'” — what he calls a “cabal of unelected tyrants” inside government, undermining Trump. He’s said the conspiracy theory QAnon, claiming a secret global plot to traffic children and take down Trump, is right in many ways and “should get credit for all the things” it has accomplished. And he once promised to “come after” and prosecute “the conspirators not just in government, but in the media” who “helped Joe Biden rig the presidential election.”

On a podcast two years ago, Trump adviser Roger Stone told Patel his critics are right about one thing: “You are a Trump loyalist.”

Patel chuckled and nodded affirmatively.

But that’s just what Democrats — and even some Republicans — on the Senate Judiciary Committee may wonder about most: If confirmed, is Patel so loyal to Trump that he would use the FBI to push Trump’s political agenda and target Trump’s perceived enemies?

‘An existential threat’

According to Patel, the FBI has already become a political weapon — especially with its multiple investigations of Trump, including the unprecedented search of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in 2022 — and that’s what he wants to change.

“The rot at the core of the FBI isn’t just scandalous, it’s an existential threat to our republican form of government,” Patel wrote in his book, published two years ago, titled “Government Gangsters.”

Trump, on social media, called Patel’s book “the roadmap to end the Deep State’s reign” when it came out.

Many of Trump’s allies in Congress have lauded Patel’s nomination, touting him as the change agent needed at the top of an embattled agency. Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, has called Patel’s career “a study in fighting for unpopular but righteous causes, exposing corruption, and putting America First.”

Democrats, however, not only point to what they see as Patel’s concerning rhetoric — but also what they’ve described as his relative lack of experience for such a significant position.

After meeting with Patel last week, the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said he has “grave concerns” about Patel’s nomination, declaring, “Mr. Patel has neither the experience, the temperament, nor the judgment to lead the Federal Bureau of Investigation.”

‘I just got to my breaking point’

Now in his mid-40s, Patel grew up on New York’s Long Island, ultimately deciding to attend law school after caddying for a group of criminal defense attorneys at the Garden City County Club. By his own account, in 2005, he graduated from Pace University Law school in the bottom third of his class — something he was “very proud of,” he once joked.

After law school, he spent nine years as a public defender, and in late 2013 he moved to Washington, D.C., to join the Justice Department’s National Security Division as a terrorism prosecutor, helping U.S. attorneys’ offices around the country prosecute their cases.

He was involved in Justice Department cases all over the world, including ones stemming from the 2012 attack on the U.S. mission in Benghazi and the 2010 World Cup bombings in Uganda.

But in his book and in media interviews, he said he grew frustrated with his time at the Justice Department, especially after a dust-up with a federal judge that made national headlines.

In early 2016, while Patel was in Tajikistan for work, the judge presiding over one of his cases in Texas called for an in-person hearing back in the United States. Patel didn’t have a suit or tie with him in Tajikistan, and after racing halfway around the world to make the hearing, the judge badgered him to “dress like a lawyer” and “act like a lawyer,” according to a transcript of the exchange.

“You don’t add a bit of value, do you?” the judge added.

As Patel recounted in his book, his bosses at the Justice Department privately expressed support for him, but when the Washington Post wrote a story about it two weeks later, the Justice Department, in Patel’s telling, refused to defend him publicly, so the newspaper “dragged my name through the mud.”

Patel has also described how he grew upset over the Justice Department’s handling of the Benghazi case following the 2012 attack by Islamic militants, believing that “terrorists went free” despite his disputed assertion that the Obama administration had enough evidence to charge even more people for the attack.

“I just got to my breaking point,” Patel once recalled. So in 2017, he left the Justice Department to become a senior investigator on Capitol Hill, where he helped lead the House Republicans’ probe of “Russiagate” — which, as he describes it, exposed FBI wrongdoing in its 2016 investigation of alleged ties between Trump’s presidential campaign and Russia.

‘Not a credible witness’

Patel’s work on the Russia probe led to him joining the Trump administration in 2019, and in the final year of Trump’s presidency he was appointed acting deputy director of national intelligence — the second-in-command of the entire U.S. intelligence community — and then chief of staff to the acting U.S. defense secretary, a position that critics claimed he was unqualified to hold even for just the 10 weeks he was there.

After Trump’s first administration ended, Patel regularly appeared on conservative media outlets, frequently praising Trump and criticizing the Justice Department for investigating and then prosecuting Trump for his alleged mishandling of classified documents after leaving office and his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

Patel has claimed — despite the Justice Department’s inspector general finding otherwise — that the FBI played a part in pushing pro-Trump protesters to attack the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. And he has claimed in media interviews and court testimony that Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser and then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi deserve blame for the attack — not Trump — because, Patel insists, Trump days earlier had authorized up to 20,000 National Guard to secure the Capitol.

The judge who listened to his court testimony in a case about Trump’s eligibility to be on Colorado’s ballot in the November election ruled that Patel “was not a credible witness,” saying his testimony was “not only illogical” but “completely devoid of any evidence in the record.”

After Trump left office, Patel launched a tax-exempt charity, now known as the Kash Foundation, which made national headlines in 2023 with revelations that it provided thousands of dollars to at least two so-called “FBI whistleblowers” who helped House Republicans push disputed claims of corruption inside the Justice Department.

Patel has said his charity helps fund defamation lawsuits, supports whistleblowers, buys meals for families in need over Christmas, supports Jan. 6 families, and more recently funds “rescue operations” out of Israel.

But he has refused to offer specifics about who is benefiting from his charity, and, as ABC News previously reported, experts have questioned whether it was following the law. At the time, Patel declined to speak with ABC News about its reporting.

After Trump announced his latest presidential campaign, Patel traveled the country to promote Trump’s reelection, saying that Trump would fire “thousands and thousands and thousands” of government employees to root out the “Deep State.”

Three weeks after Trump was reelected president, he named Patel as his pick to lead the FBI.

DC plane crash marks first major commercial crash in US since Buffalo crash in 2009

January 30, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — The crash involving a regional aircraft and a Black Hawk helicopter near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Wednesday marks the first major commercial crash in the United States since 2009.

The last crash took place on Feb. 12, 2009, when Colgan Air Flight 3407 crashed during landing near Buffalo Niagara International Airport, killing all 49 people onboard.

There have been other deadly incidents in the U.S., such as the Asiana runway crash at San Francisco International Airport in 2013. Three people died when Flight 214 came in to the airport too low and too slow, hit a seawall and sheared the tail section and left engine off the plane as it spun down the runway.

One of the three who was killed was run over by an emergency vehicle responding to the crash.

Nearly 200 people were also injured in that crash, which was blamed on the Asiana Airlines pilots mismanaging the autopilot system, according to the National Transportation Safety Board.

The last fatality on a plane in the U.S. came in 2018 when a woman was partially sucked out of a Southwest Airlines window.

Passenger Jennifer Riordan died in that incident, when Flight 1380 suffered engine failure and had to make an emergency landing in Philadelphia.

What to know about the deadly American Airlines and Black Hawk helicopter collision

January 30, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — A regional American Airlines passenger jet and a Black Hawk military helicopter collided over Washington, D.C., on Wednesday night in the nation’s first major commercial airline crash since 2009.

There are confirmed fatalities from the collision, law enforcement sources familiar with the ongoing operation told ABC News. Several bodies have been pulled from the Potomac River, and so far, no survivors have been rescued, sources said.

There were 60 passengers and four crew members aboard the jet, which can hold up to 70 passengers. It departed from Wichita, Kansas, according to the FAA.

“I know that flight. I’ve flown it many times myself,” Jerry Moran, a senator from Kansas, said at a press briefing on Thursday morning.

“I lobbied American Airlines to begin having a direct, nonstop flight service to DCA,” he said of the route, which has been operating for about one year.

“It is certainly true that in Kansas and in Wichita in particular, we’re going to know people who are on this flight, know their family members, know somebody. So this is a very personal circumstance, as well as an official response,” Moran added.

Three Army soldiers were aboard the Black Hawk helicopter at the time of the crash. Army officials confirmed that no senior military leaders were onboard.

The Black Hawk helicopter was on a training flight at the time, according to Heather Chairez, spokesperson for Joint Task Force-National Capital Region.

It was based at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, according to an Army official. “We are working with local officials and will provide additional information once it becomes available,” the official said.

The collision involved American Airlines Flight 5342, the airline said. The flight was operated by PSA Airlines.

“Our concern is for the passengers and crew on board the aircraft,” the airline said. “We are in contact with authorities and assisting with emergency response efforts.”

The Federal Aviation Administration said preliminary information indicates that a PSA Airlines Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet collided in midair with a Sikorsky H-60 helicopter while on approach to the airport.

A multi-agency search-and-rescue operation is underway, authorities said. About 300 responders were on the scene as of late Wednesday night, according to D.C. Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly.

The operation will continue overnight as divers and boats are searching the dark, frigid waters of the Potomac River.

Officials have not provided an update on whether anyone had been pulled from the water or taken to the hospital but three emergency care providers in the Washington, D.C. region have confirmed with ABC News that they have not yet received any patients from the crash.

“At this time, we have not received any patients,” VHC Health, formerly the Virginia Hospital Center, said in a statement at midnight on Wednesday. “The crash at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is a sad and shocking tragedy and our thoughts are with all those impacted by this incident. We are working directly with the Arlington and Metropolitan Police Department, Fire, and EMS teams and all authorities,” VHC Health said, adding, “VHC Health is prepared to assist and support first responders as these agencies continue their emergency response.”

The water temperature in the Potomac River is approximately 36 degrees, and the air temperature at the time of the crash was 50 degrees with winds gusting 25 to 30 mph.

This is the first major commercial airplane crash in the United States since the Colgan Air crash near Buffalo, New York, in 2009.

President Donald Trump released a statement following the crash Wednesday night.

“I have been fully briefed on the terrible accident which just took place at Reagan National Airport. May God Bless their souls. Thank you for the incredible work being done by our first responders. I am monitoring the situation and will provide more details as they arise,” he wrote.

The president followed up with a post on Truth Social that seemed to be probing for further answers regarding the cause of the crash.

“Why didn’t the control tower tell the helicopter what to do instead of asking if they saw the plane,” he wrote in the post, adding, “This is a bad situation that looks like it should have been prevented. NOT GOOD!!!”

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the Army and Defense Department would “immediately” launch an investigation into the collision.

“Absolutely tragic. Search and rescue efforts still ongoing. Prayers for all impacted souls, and their families. Investigation launched immediately by Army & DoD,” Hegseth wrote on X.

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin said “extensive resources are fully supporting the search and rescue efforts” following the crash.

“First responders from across Northern Virginia, DC and Maryland mobilized quickly,” he said on X. “I ask everyone to pray for the passengers, crews, their families, and brave first responders.”

Wichita Mayor Lily Wu discussed the reality of people from her community being on the flight — noting that the first direct flight from Wichita to the nation’s capital, which began daily service on Jan. 8, 2024, coincided with her first day in office.

“Our entire community right now is praying, hoping for better news,” Wu told ABC News. “But as a community, the entire city of Wichita, the city council members and the staff all throughout the city of Wichita are hoping that we have better news to come out of this.”

Meanwhile, in somber remarks at a news conference early Thursday morning, Kansas Sen. Roger Marshall suggested he feared the passengers and crew aboard a regional American Airlines jet and a Black Hawk helicopter that collided were lost.

“When one person dies, it’s a tragedy,” Marshall said. “But when many, many, many people die, it’s an unbearable sorrow … It’s really hard when you lose, you know, probably over 60 Kansans, simultaneously.”

Speaking of the pilots, flight attendants and military personnel, Marshall added, “All those lives are so valuable, and it is such a tragedy that we lost them.”

Officials have not publicly confirmed any fatalities.

However, U.S. Figure Skating issued a statement saying that “several members of our skating community were sadly aboard American Airlines Flight 5342,” according to the statement obtained by ABC News.

“U.S. Figure Skating can confirm that several members of our skating community were sadly aboard American Airlines Flight 5342, which collided with a helicopter yesterday evening in Washington, D.C. These athletes, coaches, and family members were returning home from the National Development Camp held in conjunction with the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas,” the statement said. “We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims’ families closely in our hearts. We will continue to monitor the situation and will release more information as it becomes available.”

Russian media also reported that two Russian figure skaters were on board the plane and expressed condolences to the families and friends of those killed in the plane crash.

“Unfortunately, we see that these sad information is being confirmed,” Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday morning. “There were other of our fellow citizens there. Bad news from Washington today.”

Earlier, several Russian state media outlets were reporting that Russian world figure skating champions in pairs (1994) Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov were on board the plane, though U.S. authorities have not confirmed these reports.

At least 19 aircraft that were in the air and due to land at Reagan National Airport had to be diverted after the mid-air collision, according to Jack Potter, president and CEO of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority. The diverted flights landed at Dulles International Airport in Virginia.

The National Transportation Safety Board is leading the investigation and the FBI Washington Field Office said in a statement that it’s sending its National Capital Response Squad “in support of our law enforcement and public safety partners.”

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport will be closed until 11 a.m. Thursday, officials confirmed first thing in the morning, rather than the original estimated reopening time of 5 a.m. Friday,

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Man wanted for killing woman, kidnapping their 2 daughters may have fled to Mexico: Sheriff

January 29, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(CALIFORNIA) — Authorities in California are searching for a man who allegedly gunned down his daughters’ mother and kidnapped the two young girls.

The suspect, 23-year-old Jonathan Alexis Maldonado-Cruz, may have fled to Mexico, the Kings County Sheriff’s Office said Wednesday.

The case began Tuesday afternoon when deputies responded to a welfare check in Hanford, about 30 miles south of Fresno, and found a woman shot dead, according to the sheriff’s office.

Authorities believe Maldonado-Cruz fled the home around 1 a.m. Tuesday with the two daughters he shares with the victim: 3-year-old Arya Maldonado and 2-year-old Alana Maldonado.

An Amber Alert has been issued for Arya and Alana, the sheriff’s office said.

Maldonado-Cruz was last known to be driving a gray 2020 Hyundai Elantra with California license plate 8LZD084, authorities said.

The sheriff’s office urges anyone with information to call Detective Tyler Haener at 559-670-9320 or 559-852-2818, or the Kings County Sheriff’s Dispatch at 559-852-2720. Information can be provided anonymously at 559-852-4554.

Federal judge signals he will block Trump administration from freezing funding despite OMB rescission

January 29, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — A federal judge signaled he will issue a temporary restraining order barring the Trump administration from freezing federal loans and grants, raising concerns the White House will try to enact the same policy described in the now-rescinded memo from the Office of Management and Budget.

District Judge John McConnell Jr. has not entered the temporary restraining order given the rapidly changing circumstances, but signaled he would sign an order proposed by the 22 state attorneys general who brought the case.

McConnell had harsh words for the Trump administration and justified his future order — despite the OMB’s change of policy — based on a social post by White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.

“I think the breadth of the relief that plaintiffs are seeking is extraordinary,” argued Department of Justice attorney Daniel Schwei before McConnell cut him off.

“Respectfully, so was the breadth of the OMB directive,” McConnell said.

Earlier Wednesday, Donald Trump’s administration sent a memo rescinding its sweeping directive that sought to pause potentially trillions in loans, grants and financial assistance, according to a memo obtained by ABC News.

“OMB memorandum M-25-13 is rescinded,” the short memo from Matthew Vaeth, the acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, reads. “If you have questions about implementing the President’s Executive Orders, please contact your agency General Counsel.”

The new directive follows a tumultuous 48 hours for the White House, as states and local governments raised concerns that funding for health care, law enforcement, disaster aid and infrastructure spending could be paused or delayed during the expansive rollout of the policy.

Leavitt defended the policy on social media, saying Trump still plans to implement a funding freeze without specifying what mechanism the president plans to use.

“This is NOT a rescission of the federal funding freeze,” Leavitt posted on X. “It is simply a rescission of the OMB memo. Why? To end any confusion created by the court’s injunction. The President’s EO’s on federal funding remain in full force and effect and will be rigorously implemented.”

Amid the confusion, a federal judge on Tuesday in Washington, D.C., issued a stay of the policy through Monday as lawyers for the Department of Justice struggled to confirm the extent of the directive. The policy had been set to go into effect at 5 p.m. on Tuesday.

“Without this funding, Plaintiff States will be unable to provide certain essential benefits for residents, pay public employees, satisfy obligations, and carry on the important business of government,” 22 state attorneys general had said in the lawsuit challenging the policy Tuesday.

On Monday, the Office of Management and Budget ordered federal agencies to freeze any federal funding to activities that might be implicated by Trump’s executive orders, causing states, local governments and nonprofits to scramble to determine if their funding would be cut off. Less than 24 hours after the policy was revealed, the White House attempted to clarify the policy in a memo, saying programs that provide direct benefits to Americans — such as Social Security, Medicare and SNAP benefits — would be excluded from the freeze.

During the hearing Tuesday, the lawyer for the Department of Justice struggled to clarify exactly what would be affected.

“It seems like the federal government currently doesn’t actually know the full scope of the programs that are going to be subject to the pause. Is that correct?” U.S. District Judge Loren L. AliKhan asked.

“I can only speak for myself, which is just based on the limited time frame here, that I do not have a comprehensive list,” DOJ lawyer Daniel Schwei said, adding, “it just depends” on the type of program and funding source.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Former Sen. Bob Menendez sentenced to 11 years in prison on corruption charges

January 29, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — A federal judge sentenced a tearful former U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez to 11 years in prison Wednesday on corruption charges after being convicted of abusing the power of his office in exchange for bribes in the form of gold bars, a luxury car and other items.

“You stood at the apex of our political system,” Judge Sidney Stein said in issuing the sentence. “Somewhere along the way, you lost your way.”

Menendez, 71, was found guilty on all 16 counts last year in his federal trial, becoming the first sitting member of Congress to be convicted of acting as a foreign agent. His children, Alicia and Rob, were in court to witness the sentencing.

“The fact that he was a public office holder who held a position of great public trust has to be taken into account,” Stein said as he explained how he calculated the sentence.

Stein said Menendez “became a corrupt politician” as he ticked off the spoils of the corruption: the gold bars, the cash, the convertible.

“When there’s wrongdoing of this magnitude there are serious consequences,” Stein said.

Ahead of the former senator’s sentencing Wednesday afternoon, two New Jersey businessmen convicted of paying bribes to Menendez received lengthy prison sentences. Wael Hana was sentenced to eight years in prison and Fred Daibes to seven years.

Menendez calls prosecution a ‘witch hunt’

Outside the court following his sentencing, a defiant Menendez called the prosecution a “political witch hunt.”

“Regardless of the judge’s comments, today, I am innocent, and I look forward to filing appeals on a whole host of issues,” Menendez said.

Menendez referred to the Southern District of New York, which prosecuted the case, as the “Wild West of political prosecutions” while outlining grievances with the evidence and witnesses in the trial.

“President Trump is right — this process is political and it’s corrupted to the core,” Menendez said. “I hope President Trump cleans up the cesspool and restores the integrity to the system.”

Danielle Sassoon, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, said in a statement that Wednesday’s sentences were the result of “an egregious abuse of power” at the highest levels of the government’s legislative branch.

“Robert Menendez was trusted to represent the United States and the State of New Jersey, but instead he used his position to help his co-conspirators and a foreign government, in exchange for bribes like cash, gold, and a luxury car,” she said. “The sentences imposed today send a clear message that attempts at any level of government to corrupt the nation’s foreign policy and the rule of law will be met with just punishment.”

Menendez says he’s a ‘chastened man’

Menendez sat at the defense table in a suit and tie with hands folded across his stomach before he stood at his seat to address the judge ahead of his sentencing.

“Your honor you have before you a chastened man,” Menendez said as his voice began to break. “We sat in this court room for nine weeks, but you really don’t know me.”

The once-powerful Democrat introduced himself as the son of Cuban immigrants and explained his political biography, occasionally sniffling and choking up while reading from a prepared statement with hands stuffed in his pockets.

“This is who I truly am, judge. A man devoted to service,” Menendez said, becoming emotional as he spoke of family and of constituents he helped. “I have lost everything I have cared about. For someone who spent a life in public service, every day is a punishment.”

The judge said Menendez will not have to report to prison until June 6 so he can be available when his wife, Nadine, goes on trial on similar corruption and bribery charges on March 18.

Menendez’s lawyer adjusted the defense’s request for leniency following the imposition of lengthy prison sentences for his co-defendants.

Menendez previously sought a sentence of no more than two years in prison, citing his “extraordinary public service,” but earlier Wednesday the two New Jersey businessmen convicted of paying the bribes were sentenced perhaps more harshly than the defense anticipated.

“The good outweighs the bad in the arc of Bob’s life,” defense attorney Adam Fee told the judge. “We would ask the court to sentence Bob to no more than eight years in prison.”

Prosecutor Paul Monteleoni had asked for 15 years in prison, arguing Menendez “believed that the power he wielded belonged to him.”

“The offense conduct reflects a truly grave breach of the trust placed in Menendez by his fellow senators, by the people of New Jersey,” Monteleoni told the court. “There are not many people who had power on the scale of Menendez.”

‘Rare gravity’ of the crimes

Menendez had potentially faced decades in prison. Sentencing guidelines called for more than 24 to 30 years in prison, with the U.S. Probation Office recommending 12 years’ imprisonment for Menendez, according to court filings.

Federal prosecutors have said the Democrat deserves 15 years in prison for his “naked greed” and the “rare gravity” of the crimes.

“This case is the first ever in which a Senator has been convicted of a crime involving the abuse of a leadership position on a Senate committee,” federal prosecutors wrote in a memo to the judge earlier this month. “It is the first ever in which a Senator — or any other person — has been convicted of serving as a foreign agent while being a public official.”

Prosecutors asked the court to impose a substantial prison sentence “to provide just punishment for this extraordinary abuse of power and betrayal of the public trust, and to deter others from ever engaging in similar conduct.”

Menendez’s attorneys had sought leniency, urging the court to even consider whether a non-custodial sentence — such as “home detention and rigorous community service” — would suffice.

“Probation’s recommended sentence of 12 years’ imprisonment would be draconian — likely a life and death sentence for someone of Bob’s age and condition,” his attorneys wrote in a memorandum to the judge earlier this month. “Bob is deserving of mercy because of the penalties already imposed, his age, and the lack of a compelling need to impose a custodial sentence.”

The defense noted that Menendez is helping his wife battle cancer and argued he is no longer in a position to be a repeat offender, given that he was convicted of crimes that arose from his position as a U.S. senator.

“With this case, his political and professional careers have ended; his reputation is destroyed; and the latter years of his life are in shambles. He is certain never to commit future offenses,” his attorneys wrote. “And his current state — stripped of office and living under a permanent shadow of disgrace and mockery — are more than sufficient to reflect the seriousness of the offenses and to promote respect for the law.”

The former New Jersey senator, who resigned in the wake of his conviction, has maintained his innocence.

“I have never violated my oath,” Menendez said outside the courthouse following the verdict in the nine-week trial. “I have never been anything but a patriot of my country and for my country. I have never, ever been a foreign agent.”

Menendez twice unsuccessfully bid for a new trial ahead of his sentencing, most recently last week, with Stein finding the trial was fair while denying his request.

Menendez had also tried unsuccessfully to postpone his sentencing until after his wife stands trial.

Co-defendants get lengthy prison sentences

Two New Jersey businessmen who were found guilty in the case were also sentenced on Wednesday. Hana was sentenced to eight years in prison and Daibes to seven years — significantly more than what the defendants had sought and slightly less than what prosecutors recommended.

Prosecutors said Menendez promised to use his power as a senator to help Hana, who is originally from Egypt, by preserving a halal meat monopoly granted to Hana by Egypt.

Prosecutors said the former senator also promised Daibes that he would interfere with Daibes’ federal prosecution and help the government of Qatar by supporting a Senate resolution praising the country.

Daibes’ fingerprints were found on the envelopes of cash found at Menendez’s home and serial numbers on the gold bars traced them to Daibes and Hana, according to prosecutors.

In issuing the sentences, Judge Stein called the evidence against Hana “substantial” and had strong words for Daibes.

“You are an American success story. You grew up in a refugee camp in Lebanon. But there is a dark side to what you have done,” Stein said of Daibes. “You bribed Sen. Menendez multiple times.”

Another New Jersey businessman, Jose Uribe, pleaded guilty in the case ahead of trial. Prosecutors said Uribe paid for Menendez’s $60,000 Mercedes-Benz convertible in exchange for helping disrupt a criminal investigation by the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office related to Uribe.

He is scheduled to be sentenced in April.

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