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Judge issues injunction blocking administration’s ‘Anti-Weaponization Fund’

June 12, 2026 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — A federal judge on Friday issued an injunction blocking the Trump administration from establishing its $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” after expressing concerns that senior officials have not put in their commitment to not move forward with the fund in writing.

U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema repeatedly cited acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s refusal to commit to not moving forward with the fund under penalty of perjury, as well as President Donald Trump’s own words suggesting he was disappointed that the government might not establish the fund so that those charged in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol attack could be compensated.

“If it was up to me, I’d pay them the kind of money that they deserve. People have been destroyed. Lives have been destroyed,” Trump said during an interview with NBC’s Meet the Press that aired over the weekend.

The fund, which was announced last month by the DOJ to compensate those who allege they were wrongly targeted under the Biden administration, was proposed in exchange for Trump agreeing to drop his $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS as well as two civil claims for $230 million related to the Russia collusion investigation he faced during his first term in office and the 2022 search of his Mar-a-Lago estate — sparking accusations of self-dealing and a bipartisan uproar over the possible use of taxpayer money to pay rioters who attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Lawyers with the Department of Justice have argued that the case is now moot, writing in a court filing last week that they would not move forward with the fund. During Friday’s hearing, Judge Brinkema repeatedly pressed DOJ attorney Andrew Block on whether he knew why Blanche hasn’t simply rescinded his previous order establishing the fund.

“Your honor, I don’t,” Block responded, saying he doesn’t have the ability to speak for Blanche.

Brinkema said she “couldn’t believe,” given the significance of the case, that Block wouldn’t have even attempted to get an answer, and said the government’s unwillingness on that score created a “huge gap in the record” of the case.

Brinkema said she didn’t believe there was any injury to the government if there was an injunction in place, and gave them one week to respond with a formal declaration, under penalty of perjury, stating no “Anti-Weaponization Fund” would be established — which she said would potentially clear the way to dismissing the case.

Judge Brinkema pointed repeatedly to President Trump’s own shifting statements in recent weeks about the fund, including his pointed attack on Brinkema herself after she had temporarily paused the fund earlier this month, in which he referred to her as a “radical left judge.”

“When the president of the United States says he’s disappointed that something is not going forward,” Brinkema said, that would only add to the evidence that the fund might “rear its head” in the future.

Brinkema said at one point during the proceedings that just this week an unidentified individual had send an application for money from the fund directly to the court.

“We had to send it back,” Brinkema said.

Later in the hearing, Brinkema expressed doubt about the legality of Trump’s settlement that established the fund, noting a judge’s order in Florida that recently asked Trump’s lawyers to respond to claims they may have committed a fraud on her court.

“You think this is lawful business?” Brinkema asked Block.

At one point, Brinkema read into the record an amicus brief submitted in the lawsuit by Sen. Cory Booker and Sen. Bill Cassidy that urged her to permanently block the fund over the potential it could compensate individuals who attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Brinkema said the brief showed that public interest in preventing the establishment of such a fund “is very strong,” and questioned the concept of nearly $1.8 billion being directed to such a small subset of individuals that a significant number of Americans would strongly object to.

Friday’s injunction came two days after another federal judge denied a governmental watchdog group’s request for a temporary restraining order to block the establishment of the fund.

U.S. District Judge Richard Leon denied the request from the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, ruling that the watchdog group failed to demonstrate a likelihood of success.

‘Grateful’ Taylor Swift inducted into Songwriters Hall of Fame: ‘Songwriting is the easiest thing I ever did’

June 12, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Steven Spielberg’s new movie, Disclosure Day, opened at midnight Thursday, but at that time he was busy inducting Taylor Swift into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in New York City.

Spielberg’s speech during the annual gala was preceded by sombr performing her songs “Cardigan” and “Dear John.” Inside the ballroom, Taylor sat with fiancé Travis Kelce, her mother, Andrea Swift, Travis’ mother, Donna Kelce, and Spielberg and his wife, Kate Capshaw.

In his speech, Spielberg noted that Taylor is the youngest female songwriter to ever be inducted into the Hall, and said that her “place in our culture” rivals the likes of John Lennon and Paul McCartney, Carole King, James Taylor and Stevie Nicks.

“I love making movies,” he concluded. “But I don’t think I will ever fill stadiums of multigenerational fans who want to recite the dialogue from Indiana Jones. So thank you, Taylor, for the gift of your stories and for insisting on being an authentic voice in a world where the line between real and fake is increasingly blurred. You are our mirror ball.”

When Taylor took the stage, she noted that in her entire 23-year career, “Songwriting was the easiest thing I ever did.” She said, “I think what I mean is that it was instinctual. No one taught me how to do it. I had to be taught how to entertain the crowd and learn choreography and be less annoying. … But songwriting for me, it’s pretty much the only thing I ever just naturally did.”

She concluded her speech by addressing the Hall of Fame organization: “I wanna thank the voters for celebrating and honoring the best and truest parts of my life. I’ll be forever grateful.”

Also inducted Thursday night was Alanis Morrissette, who performed acoustic versions of her songs “Mary Jane” and “You Oughta Know.” She was inducted by Brandi Carlile, who performed Alanis’ song “Uninvited.”

Another inductee was Kenny Loggins. He was ushered in by Gavin DeGraw, who performed Kenny’s hit “Danny’s Song” and joined him for “Celebrate Me Home.” And Goo Goo Dolls singer John Rzeznik helped induct KISS members Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, teaming up with The Smashing Pumpkins singer Billy Corgan to perform their hit “Shout It Out Loud.”

‘Adults’ dropping surprise prequel episode ahead of second season

June 12, 2026 by WDNY Radio

The FX comedy series Adults is dropping a surprise prequel episode.

The show screened the episode, titled “Marathon Day,” to a sold-out crowd at the Tribeca Festival Thursday night. It focuses on the origin story of Jack Innanen’s character Paul Baker.

“We’re so excited for the opportunity to show fans how this friend group came to be,” said series creators Ben Kronengold and Rebecca Shaw, who also wrote the episode. “We love a good origin story, and we can’t wait for you to see where the radioactive spider bit Paul Baker.”

The episode will be available to watch on July 31 on FX and Hulu at 1 p.m ET/10 a.m. PT.

Adults, about a group of twenty-somethings living in New York, debuts its second season on Aug. 27.

Meanwhile, Innanen revealed on the Tribeca red carpet that he turned down a role on the highly anticipated second season of Heated Rivalry. He was rumored to be in the running for the characters of either Troy Barrett or Wyatt Hayes.

While he didn’t say which role he was offered, the Canadian actor told CBS Mornings, “I think it’s such an incredible show, and it didn’t work out. But I love Jacob [Tierney], I love everyone involved. I’m just, I’m excited to see what they do for the second season.”

Disney is the parent company of FX, Hulu and ABC News.

It may be Last Call for touring, but Alan Jackson’s museum & distillery is coming soon

June 12, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Alan Jackson’s Silverbelly Whiskey Distillery and Museum will open June 25 in downtown Nashville, just days before his June 27 touring finale at Nissan Stadium.

Located at 121 3rd Ave. South, the museum will focus on “The Music, The Stories, The Legacy” and follow Alan on his journey from Newman, Georgia, to try to share his paper sack full of songs with the world.

“For over four decades, Alan has had an amazing career where his music has told stories of his life, creating the foundation of the legacy that we’re excited to share with his fans,” his longtime manager Debbie Doebler says. “We’re proud to be creating a new way for Alan and his music to be part of all that Nashville offers to residents and visitors alike, day-in and day-out.”

The distillery will trace his whiskey from “barrel to bottle” and showcase how it’s blended, proofed, bottled and labeled on site.

AJ’s Good Time Bar remains on nearby Lower Broadway, with the four-story honky-tonk preparing to celebrate a decade of business in 2026.

On This Day, June 12, 2003: Queen, Phil Collins & more inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame

June 12, 2026 by WDNY Radio

On This Day, June 12, 2003…

Phil Collins, Van Morrison and the members of Queen — Brian May, Roger Taylor, John Deacon and the late Freddie Mercury — were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame at a gala in New York City.

Little Richard was also inducted, and Jimmy Webb was awarded the Johnny Mercer Award, the Songwriters Hall of Fame’s highest honor.

Among the night’s performances, Queen teamed with up Wynonna to perform “Crazy Little Thing Called Love.” The band also performed “We Will Rock You,” with May on lead vocals.

Both Collins and Van Morrison would later receive the Johnny Mercer Award as well — Collins in 2010 and Van Morrison in 2015.

The Songwriters Hall of Fame’s 2026 class was inducted on Thursday. This year’s performer inductees included Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley of KISS, Taylor Swift and Kenny Loggins. John Fogerty, who was inducted into the SHOF in 2005, received the Johnny Mercer Award.

Suspects at large after armed robbery at kids’ lemonade stand in Boston: Police

June 12, 2026 by WDNY Radio

(BOSTON) — Boston police are searching for two suspects wanted for committing an armed robbery at a lemonade stand.

Two kids were running a lemonade stand in South Boston when, at about 4:45 p.m. Wednesday, the “unknown suspects made several passes by the stand,” Boston police said.

The suspects — described as boys about 14 and 11 years old — then went up to the kids and asked if Apple Pay was accepted, police said.

Before the children could answer, the suspects grabbed a box of cash, and the older suspect showed a gun in his waistband, police said.

The suspects fled the scene, police said.

The cash box had about $50 inside, police said.

Police ask anyone with information to call the detectives 617-343-4742 or submit a tip anonymously at 1-800-494-TIPS.

Hear all six bonus tracks off blink-182’s ’Take Off Your Pants and Jacket’ with 25th anniversary reissue

June 12, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Blink-182 has released a deluxe reissue of their 2001 album, Take Off Your Pants and Jacket, in honor of its 25th anniversary.

Those who picked up Take Off Your Pants and Jacket when it first released a quarter-century ago may remember that it was available in three configurations, each corresponding to one of the images on the cover artwork — the red airplane, the yellow pants or the green jacket. Each edition included its own set of bonus tracks.

The 25th anniversary Take Off Your Pants and Jacket edition marks the first time all those bonus tracks have been collected in a single package. It also marks the songs’ streaming debut. The reissue is out now via digital outlets and is available now to preorder on vinyl.

Take Off Your Pants and Jacket, which was released on June 12, 2001, marked the fourth blink-182 album and the follow-up to their massive 1999 breakout effort, Enema of the State. It spawned the singles “First Date,” “The Rock Show” and “Stay Together for the Kids,” and became the first blink album to hit #1 on the Billboard 200.

Sam Bankman-Fried loses appeal of fraud conviction in FTX case

June 12, 2026 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — A federal appeals court on Friday upheld the cryptocurrency fraud conviction of FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried.

The opinion came the same week Bankman-Fried submitted his application for a presidential pardon.

Bankman-Fried was convicted of masterminding one of the largest financial frauds in history stemming from the collapse of the crypto-exchange FTX. He is serving a 25-year prison sentence.

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

Carly Simon returns with ‘Comes in Waves’, first album of new material since 2008

June 12, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Carly Simon is back with new music.

The “You’re So Vain” singer/songwriter is set to release the new album, Comes in Waves, on Aug. 14. The record is Simon’s first album of original music since 2008.

Fans are getting their first taste of her new music with the release of the album’s opening track “Howl,” which she co-wrote with songwriter David Spencer.

“‘Howl’ lives in that space between betrayal and forgiveness, where anger has to be voiced before it can be released,” says Simon. “It’s about letting the frustration out so it doesn’t sit and simmer. The song begins in anger, but it moves toward forgiveness, and speaks to any situation where trust has been broken.”

“Howl” is available now via digital outlets.

Simon wrote and recorded much of Comes in Waves at her home in Martha’s Vineyard. It features contributions from his son, Ben Taylor, and her daughter, Sally Taylor, whose dad is singer James Taylor.

Simon’s last album of new material was 2008’s This Kind of Love. In 2009, she released Never Been Gone, featuring acoustic versions of her previous material.

Comes in Waves is available for preorder now.

Here is the Comes In Waves track list:

“Howl”
“Maybe I Never Loved You”
“Peaches”
“Love Has No Ending”
“Mother Of Pearl”
“Slowly”
“Four In The Morning”
“The More I Look For You”
“Love The Way I Do”
“The Father Daughter Dance”
“Share the End”
“Do It Anyway”

Former Uvalde school police chief set to appear in court

June 12, 2026 by WDNY Radio

(UVALDE, Texas) — Former Uvalde school police chief Pete Arredondo is set to return to a Texas courtroom on Friday, as the judge overseeing his criminal trial weighs moving the case out of Uvalde and whether the whole thing might have to wait because US Customs and Border Protection has refused to cooperate.

Arredondo in 2024 was charged with 10 counts of endangering students by failing to quickly respond to the 2022 mass shooting. The criminal case has stalled due to two ongoing civil lawsuits that seek to force agents with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Border Patrol Tactical Unit — involved in taking down the gunman — to testify in the case.

Nineteen students and two of their teachers were killed when Robb Elementary School was attacked by a former student on the last day of school, May 24, 2022.

Arredondo led the response to the 2022 shooting rampage, and prosecutors allege that he ignored his training by waiting some 77 minutes before agents stormed a classroom and killed the gunman. Earlier this year, a jury acquitted former school police officer Adrian Gonzales on similar charges after a three-week trial.

Families of the victims responded to that verdict with outrage and some are looking to Arredondo’s trial as another opportunity for justice.

“We had a little hope, but it wasn’t enough,” Jacinto Cazares, whose 9-year-old daughter Jackie died in the shooting, said after Gonzales’ acquittal in January. “Again, we are failed. I don’t even know what to say.”

Arredondo has pleaded not guilty, arguing he followed his training and saying he did not consider himself as the incident commander that day, though investigators said he was just that. Arredondo’s attorney Paul Looney told ABC News that he believes the case against Arredondo is weaker than the failed prosecution of Gonzales.

“They tried the one they thought that they had the best shot at, but now they’re going to put everything they’ve got into doing this one, because they do want to win at least something,” Looney said.

Friday’s status conference comes as Judge Sid Harle weighs the future of the case. The judge has said he wants to determine how the trial against Arredondo can proceed amid the ongoing litigation with CBP and whether — as in the case of Gonzales — the trial ought to be moved out of Uvalde.

Both Uvalde District Attorney Christina Mitchell and Arredondo filed federal lawsuits to compel the federal agents to cooperate with investigators and potentially testify at trial.

“The three border patrol agents whose cooperation is now being sought by District Attorney Mitchell — two of whom participated in the actual killing of the gunman and the third who was present in the hallway during most of the incident — are essential to the pending Texas criminal prosecution,” Mitchell wrote in her lawsuit.

CBP attorneys have argued that the request for testimony is unreasonable, unnecessary and “negatively impacts CBP operations and national security” by taking up resources and potentially disclosing sensitive information.

Attorneys have argued that CBP revealed enough information through the investigative summaries prepared by the Texas Rangers and a report released by CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility.

“It is unclear from your request how testimony from the identified CBP employees is genuinely necessary to the proceedings,” an attorney for CBP said in a court filing.

Earlier this year, a new judge was assigned to the lawsuit filed by Mitchell, and this week she filed a motion to schedule a status conference in that case. Looney, who filed a separate lawsuit largely mirroring the District Attorney’s, said he anticipates the litigation will take another eight months to a year.

Friday’s hearing will be held in Uvalde, though the trial of Gonzales was held in Corpus Christi to find an impartial jury, due to the widespread impact of the shooting on the Uvalde community.

Arredondo’s lawyer said he expects Harle to grant his motion for a venue change, though he claimed there is “no sense of urgency” to resolve the venue issue while the case remains stalled by the ongoing civil litigation.

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