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The cruise ship linked to a deadly Hantavirus outbreak arrived early Sunday off the Spanish island of Tenerife, where the evacuation of passengers is expected to begin.

Passengers will be tested by Spanish health authorities to ensure they are asymptomatic before being transported ashore in small boats, Spanish officials said, according to Reuters.

Evacuation is expected to begin between 7:30 a.m. and 8:30 a.m. local time, with Spanish nationals disembarking first, followed by passengers of other nationalities, Reuters reported.

They are then expected to be taken to the island’s main airport and flown back to their home countries. Multiple Americans are believed to be aboard the MV Hondius.

AMERICANS TO BE EVACUATED FROM HANTAVIRUS CRUISE SHIP AS GLOBAL HEALTH CHIEF TRAVELS TO QUARANTINE ISLAND

Fox News Digital previously reported that the U.S. government is planning to transfer American passengers to a military base in Nebraska for quarantine and monitoring.

The ship set course for Spain on Wednesday from the coast of Cape Verde after the WHO and European Union requested assistance in managing the outbreak.

The ship’s arrival comes hours after World Health Organization Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus arrived on the island.

The WHO said Friday that eight people aboard the ship had fallen ill, including three who died. Six cases have been confirmed, with two others suspected.

HANTAVIRUS DEATHS ON CRUISE SHIP HIGHLIGHT DANGERS OF RODENT-BORNE DISEASE

In a statement Saturday, Ghebreyesus said the public health risk remains low.

"I know you are worried. I know that when you hear the word 'outbreak' and watch a ship sail toward your shores, memories surface that none of us have fully put to rest," he said.

"The pain of 2020 is still real, and I do not dismiss it for a single moment. But I need you to hear me clearly: this is not another COVID-19. The current public health risk from Hantavirus remains low. My colleagues and I have said this unequivocally, and I will say it again to you now," he continued.

ARGENTINA INVESTIGATORS ZERO IN ON POSSIBLE ORIGIN POINT OF HANTAVIRUS IN DEADLY CRUISE OUTBREAK

Ghebreyesus noted that the virus identified aboard the ship is the Andes strain of hantavirus, which can be severe.

"Three people have lost their lives, and our hearts go out to their families," he wrote, reiterating that the public health risk posed by the virus remained low.

About 30 crew members are expected to remain on board as the vessel continues to the Netherlands, where it will be disinfected.

Fox News Digital's Robert McGreevy and Reuters contributed to this report.

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As fraud concerns ramp up across the country, particularly involving Medicaid, North Carolina State Auditor Dave Boliek tells Fox News Digital that the problem is very real in his state, especially when it comes to autism therapy, an area that has been highly scrutinized in Minnesota.

Boliek is sounding the alarm on potential waste, fraud, and abuse within the state’s Medicaid program, specifically calling out in an interview with Fox News Digital a 47,000% explosion in autism therapy billings that he has flagged since taking office last year. 

"Those are vital services to folks and individuals that need that therapy," Boliek said. "But when you have, like in North Carolina, a system that went from $1.4 million or so in total billings for autism therapy to more than $660 million a year in billings on autism therapy within a five-year range, that begs an audit from the state auditor, who in North Carolina, we are the top watchdog agency for taxpayer waste, fraud, and abuse prevention. So we've dug down into that or in the middle of that."

Boliek, who was speaking to Fox News Digital from the State Financial Officers Foundation annual conference in Orlando, says his office is "hand-in-hand" with Vice President JD Vance’s focus on eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse to "make sure that the people who need the services and deserve those services get the services" without "wasting money."

NORTH CAROLINA AUDITOR EXCITED FOR 'REAL EFFECT' OF STATE-LEVEL DOGE: 'KEEPING GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABLE'

One of the core problems, Boliek explained, is that the system is oftentimes designed in a way that fails to properly safeguard against waste and abuse.

"What we’ve got is we’ve seen examples where there might be three different clinical providers billing during the same tranche of time on an autism therapy client and that is because of poor rulemaking," Boliek explained. "Some of it is possibly illegal and probably illegal, and we’re going to point that out, and we’re going to try to put people in cuffs because of it."

"But some of it might be technically legal because of the lax oversight from a Democrat-led Department of Health and Human Services," Boliek said, referencing the top state health agency in North Carolina.

In a March 10, 2026, hearing of the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Medicaid, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services presented data that matches Boliek's narrative of exponential growth in the autism therapy space.

TRUMP ELECTION INTEGRITY PUSH EXPOSES MASSIVE AMOUNT OF DEAD PEOPLE ON NORTH CAROLINA VOTER ROLLS

The report confirmed that Medicaid spending on ABA (Applied Behavior Analysis) therapy grew by 347% between 2022 and 2025 alone and that total spending is projected to hit $842 million in state fiscal year 2026 and $1.14 billion by state fiscal year 2027.

Medicaid fraud has been a hot-button issue across the United States when a scandal in Minnesota gained widespread attention last fall and spreading to places like California and Ohio, the latter being the subject of a recent Daily Wire exposé examining seven medical buildings in Columbus, Ohio, that house 288 Medicaid companies and bill the government $250 million.

The key issues with Medicaid and the ease with which it can be abused both illegally and legally, according to Boliek, are the "minutia of rulemaking" that is "built in by government."

"For example, how individual entities, whether they are a provider of clinical medical services or whether they're a provider of daycare services or other services that can be paid for through departments of Health and Human Services, how those rules are set up and what the billing rules are," Boliek explained.

GOP SENATOR LAUNCHES EFFORT TO CLOSE MEDICAID LOOPHOLE ALLOWING FRAUDSTERS TO RAKE IN MILLIONS

"It really is minutiae, but in North Carolina, for example, we still have some services that are delivered on a fee-for-service basis, and they lack transparency and lack accountability with respect to who can bill and how much can be billed for particular services. That's why we've taken a deep dive into some particular fee-for-service areas in North Carolina and are looking at provider data on exactly how those services are billed. That's where the flaws are."

During the developing fraud scandal in Minnesota, federal agents discovered that one suspected scammer defrauded the state’s autism-treatment program of roughly $14 million and allegedly billed Medicaid for fake therapy sessions, used untrained staff and paid parents $300 to $1,500 a month to keep their kids in the program. 

The state’s autism program’s budget jumped from $3 million in 2018 to nearly $400 million in 2023, according to Dr. Mehmet Oz, the administrator of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

"The fraud is so obvious, just simply looking at the exponential growth in some of these social services programs, that anybody kind of looking at how fast this was growing should have known that a fraud was a major reason why," Minnesota state Sen. Michael Kreun, a Republican, told Fox News Digital in December about social services fraud in his state.

In terms of next steps in North Carolina, Boliek says his office is working with lawmakers to strengthen fraud enforcement by increasing financial accountability, expanding investigative and Medicaid audit resources and investing in staff and technology to recover misused funds. 

Boliek explained that one important tool to crack down on fraud is artificial intelligence. 

"Look, we've got to pour jet fuel on artificial intelligence in the area of state auditing because the fraudsters are using AI and if we're not using AI to combat the fraud, then we're going to be on our heels and the taxpayer isn't going to be protected."

He emphasized that these steps, especially enhancing oversight of programs like Medicaid, are aimed at holding individuals accountable and returning taxpayer dollars for more effective use. 

The State Financial Officers Foundation, a group of financial officers that collectively oversees more than $3 trillion in state funds, released a report earlier this year outlining how the organization safeguarded more than $28 billion of waste, fraud, and abuse in 2025 alone.

"Every wasted dollar is a dollar that can't be spent on a person who actually needs service," Boliek said.

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House Democrats are staying far away from questions about whether former Vice President Kamala Harris should run for president again in 2028.

"I have no idea," Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., the former House majority whip, told Fox News Digital.

"I have no idea who's running, and we'll focus on 2028 after 2026," Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., answered, referring to the November midterms.

Although the slate of presidential candidates has ample time to settle, the responses hint at party uncertainty about whether Harris is the strongest figure who could represent the party in 2028 and underscore reluctance from lawmakers to project what their party might look like two years down the road.

KAMALA HARRIS TEASES SHE 'MIGHT' RUN FOR PRESIDENT AGAIN IN 2028

"I won't comment until I know whether she really actually is or not," Rep. Judy Chu, D-Calif., said.

Democrats suffered a blistering defeat in 2024, losing the popular vote nationally as Republicans stormed to a governing trifecta across the White House, Senate and House of Representatives.

Harris, who did not outperform former President Joe Biden’s 2020 election performance in any county across the U.S., raised eyebrows when she passed up an opportunity to run for governor of California, freeing her up for another shot at the White House.

"In recent months, I have given serious thought to asking the people of California for the privilege to serve as their Governor," Harris said in a statement posted to Instagram last July.

"I love this state, its people and its promise. It is my home. However, after careful reflection, I’ve decided not to run for Governor in this election."

But — even if Harris decides to throw her name in the ring — she likely won't be the only candidate with a national profile looking to flip Democratic fortunes in 2028.

KAMALA HARRIS REVEALS TIMETABLE FOR MAKING MAJOR POLITICAL DECISION IN DEEP BLUE STATE

Alongside Harris, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer are all names being floated as potential presidential contenders, each of whom has made a name for themselves by opposing President Donald Trump.

Rep. John Larson, D-Conn., believes that Democrats will have choices — and not just among governors either.

"I think that's her decision," Larson said of Harris. "But I believe there should be a wide-open Democratic primary, and I think there'll be a lot of contenders; you know, governors, senators. But I also think people outside of government will be interested in running too."

"It’ll be a healthy experience, and that anyone who's interested ought to run," Larson added.

Larson did not list any specific names he would support or expect to be a frontrunner in that picture.

HERE ARE THE DEMOCRATS WHO MAY EVENTUALLY RUN FOR PRESIDENT IN 2028

Although he declined to definitively say whether he believes Harris ought to lead the Democratic ticket, at least one Democrat, Rep. Glenn Ivey, D-Md., said he wouldn’t rule Harris out.

"I think there's definitely a lot of support still out there for her. And she seemed real sharp on the issues still. So, we'll see how it goes. But there's gonna be a lot of people jumping in that one," Ivey said.

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On May 1, President Donald Trump sent letters to congressional leaders declaring that hostilities with Iran "have terminated." The statement was legally timed. The ceasefire imposed on April 7 has held — no exchange of fire between U.S. and Iranian forces since that date. Trump’s letter cited that record to sidestep the War Powers Resolution’s 60-day clock, which would have required congressional authorization or withdrawal of forces by May 1 — Day 62 of the conflict.

The legal argument is thin. The constitutional argument is weaker. But the deeper problem is strategic: declaring the war "terminated" and ending it are not the same thing.

As of this writing, the U.S. Navy is blockading Iranian ports. Project Freedom — Trump’s initiative to guide hundreds of stranded commercial vessels out of the Strait of Hormuz — launched Monday, May 4, with guided-missile destroyers, more than one hundred land- and sea-based aircraft, and 15,000 service members.

Iran’s military launched drones and small boats at U.S. ships on the first day of the mission. The IRGC declared that any vessel transiting the strait must coordinate with Tehran first. A nation at peace does not deploy 15,000 troops to force merchant ships through a contested waterway.

TRUMP AIMS TO RESET WAR POWERS CLOCK WITH CONTROVERSIAL BID TO BYPASS CONGRESS

This is not the end of a war. It is the beginning of a more dangerous phase.

Trump told reporters May 1 he would not seek congressional authorization because "nobody’s ever asked for it before." History doesn’t support that. The letter itself is the tell — it concedes "the threat posed by Iran to the United States and our armed forces remains significant." The administration declared victory and warned of danger in the same paragraph.

WHY TRUMP’S WAR SPEECH FAILED: DECLARING VICTORY BUT STILL BOMBING IRAN BACK TO THE ‘STONE AGES’

Wars end when the political objective is secured. That is the standard Clausewitz set, and it is the standard I applied throughout this conflict — from the night Operation Epic Fury began on February 28 to last week’s legal maneuver. As I argued at the one-month mark, the administration still had no coherent political end state. Nothing since has changed that assessment.

There is no ambiguity about what U.S. forces accomplished. Iran’s navy was gutted, its air defenses wrecked, its missile production disrupted. American men and women executed with precision and discipline under fire. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the U.S.-Israeli campaign had struck more than 15,000 targets across Iran since the war began.

Military success does not automatically produce strategic success. That lesson is written in blood from Vietnam to Afghanistan. I have made this argument repeatedly in these pages. The campaign’s tactical success does not resolve what comes next.

HEGSETH DECLARES 'DECISIVE MILITARY VICTORY' OVER IRAN

Iran’s regime is intact and its leadership survived.

Its nuclear capability was set back — not eliminated. Before strikes began, Iran held roughly 440 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60% — short of the 90% purity required for weapons-grade, but sufficient starting stock for an estimated ten devices if further enriched.

ROBERT MAGINNIS: DON’T BE MISLED—IRAN ISN’T DAYS AWAY FROM A NUCLEAR BOMB

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) lost all verification access on February 28 and cannot confirm the current location or status of that stockpile. Fordow, the hardened underground enrichment facility, appears to have sustained damage but was not destroyed.

The distinction is critical: enriched uranium is not a weapon. A deliverable device requires warhead design, miniaturization and delivery system integration — capabilities whose status no inspector can now verify.

Iran’s grip on the Strait of Hormuz—the transit point for 20% of the world’s crude oil — is very real, and the regime has not relinquished control. It demands that vessels coordinate with the IRGC and pay tolls.

INSIDE IRAN’S MILITARY: MISSILES, MILITIAS AND A FORCE BUILT FOR SURVIVAL

On Monday, May 4, Iranian forces reportedly harassed U.S. naval assets and targeted a tanker affiliated with the UAE’s state oil company in what the Emirates called "acts of piracy." A regime extorting international shipping from waters it does not legally own is not a defeated adversary. It is a regime recalibrating for the next phase.

Project Freedom is necessary. Hundreds of commercial vessels are stranded in the Gulf, many running low on food, fuel and water. The International Maritime Organization estimates up to 20,000 seafarers are aboard those ships.

THE WAR HITS HOME: WHY FINANCIAL PAIN AND ECONOMIC UNCERTAINTY THREATEN TRUMP’S DRIVE TO TOPPLE IRAN’S REGIME

The operation tells you where Washington stands: the U.S. is deploying the equivalent of a small war to reopen a waterway that should never have been closed.

The first phase was kinetic — airstrikes, naval engagements, destroyed targets. The second is strategic — a contest over energy control, economic pressure, political endurance and time, measured in who outlasts whom.

FINISH THE JOB: WHY A HALF WAR WITH IRAN IS THE MOST DANGEROUS OUTCOME

Iran’s strategy is simple: survive. Tehran doesn’t need to defeat the United States — only to outlast Washington’s will. As I argued in April, if the regime endures, Iran wins. It signals that by testing maritime boundaries, resisting concessions and threatening escalation — not from strength, but from patience.

This conflict does not end in the Strait of Hormuz. China purchases approximately 90% of Iran's oil exports and holds economic leverage over Tehran that Washington does not. As Trump prepares for talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, that leverage becomes inseparable from broader great-power competition. Beijing can use it to stabilize the situation — or exploit American fatigue to deepen it. Washington should press hard now, before an open-ended ceasefire hardens into permanent ambiguity.

TRUMP DELAYS XI MEETING AS IRAN CONFLICT LETS US STRONG-ARM CHINA’S OIL SUPPLY

Washington's domestic calendar only sharpens the problem. With midterm elections less than six months away and slim Republican majorities in Congress, the administration faces mounting pressure at home. Gas prices have climbed from $2.98 a gallon before the war to $4.53 a gallon, with analysts warning of $5 a gallon if the strait does not reopen. Americans are watching those numbers. So are members of Congress who voted for no authorization and may be asked to defend that record in November.

LIZ PEEK: DO DEMOCRATS HATE PRESIDENT TRUMP MORE THEN THEY LOVE AMERICA?

There will be pressure to declare success and move on. That would be a mistake. We imposed real costs on Iran and demonstrated military dominance. But the core problem — a revolutionary regime with nuclear ambitions and a stranglehold on global energy chokepoints — was checked, not changed.

The nuclear question — enrichment levels, stockpile location, and weaponization progress — remains open and unverifiable. Declaring those hostilities "terminated" does not make them so.

WINNING THE BATTLES, LOSING THE WAR? AMERICA MUST DEFINE THE ENDGAME IN IRAN

The Iran conflict has not concluded. It has evolved. Converting military success into lasting strategic gain requires three things Washington has not yet done.

First: a verifiable nuclear settlement — not a pause on enrichment but a monitored accounting of Iran’s stockpile and a permanent answer on weaponization. A ceasefire that leaves 440 kilograms of enriched uranium behind closed IAEA doors is not a strategic victory. It is a delayed crisis.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE FOX NEWS OPINION

Second: real pressure on China. Beijing absorbs Iranian oil and extends the regime’s endurance. Every barrel China buys is leverage Washington surrenders.

Third: a defined end state in political terms, not kinetic metrics. What condition must Iran meet? Our men and women in uniform deserve an answer. So does the country.

Project Freedom’s first day told us everything about the second phase: Iran fired on our ships, denied the transit happened, and demanded the world route its commerce through IRGC checkpoints. The harder fight has already begun. This time, we need a plan to finish it.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM ROBERT MAGINNIS

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Amid the swirl of charges and counter charges, investigations and prosecutions, one thing is clear:

It’s good to be a lawyer in the Trump era.

TUNING OUT: WHY MANY AMERICANS ARE SICK OF THE NEWS – ESPECIALLY TRUMP NEWS

A federal judge just dismissed a case that attempted to force Hunter Biden to register with the Justice Department as a foreign agent for Ukraine and China. The suit was brought by a group founded by top White House official Stephen Miller, which was found not to have standing.

The former president’s son needed a lawyer – just as he did during criminal proceedings that led to his guilty plea, until his dad broke his word and pardoned him.

The DOJ plans to ask the Supreme Court to intervene in Trump’s appeal of an $83-million verdict in a defamation case brought by writer E. Jean Carroll. She needed a lawyer. Trump is represented by lawyers for the Justice Department, which often seems to function as his private firm. His appeal could end her case.

WHY TRUMP, GOP ARE COURTING JOHN FETTERMAN, WHO INSISTS HE’LL REMAIN A DEMOCRAT

And, of course, he needed lawyers when he was out of office and subjected to four criminal investigations.

Washington has long been a magnet for those with a law degree, given the vast sprawl of federal agencies, Capitol Hill staff and lobbying groups.

But it’s never been like this.

Trump needed attorneys to defend him during two impeachments – and the House investigating committees lawyered up as well.

The president engineered charges against fired FBI chief James Comey, who had to hire a lawyer until the case was thrown out of court. Now Trump has triggered a second indictment–over the 86*47 seashell photo–and Comey needs a lawyer again. The same goes for New York Attorney General Letitia James, whose indictment was also tossed out.

LINE IN THE SAND: WHY TRUMP IS DRAWING FLAK FOR THE JAMES COMEY INDICTMENT OVER SEASHELLS

Trump yesterday declared that "lunatic" Hakeem Jeffries be "charged with INCITING VIOLENCE," seeming to suggest the minority leader’s rhetoric was linked to the third assassination attempt at the White House Correspondents Dinner. Jeffries had called for "maximum warfare," which he described as an effort to secure more seats in the redistricting wars.

Trump has sued the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, CBS and ABC, among other media outlets, requiring heavy-duty legal representation.

HOW TRUMP SURVIVES: BATTLING THE MEDIA, FORMER ALLIES AND ASSASSINATION ATTEMPTS

It isn’t only Trump. When FCC Chairman Brendan Carr announced a review of local station licenses tied to Desney/ABC – just after calling for Jimmy Kimmel’s firing – he created an opening for lots of billable hours. The review could drag on for years and is unlikely to succeed.

FBI Director Kash Patel filed a $250-million suit against the Atlantic for a negative profile that questioned his conduct in office and alleged drinking habits – but no hint of classified information.

Two House members who resigned over sexual misconduct allegations, Eric Swalwell and Tony Gonzales – rather than face certain expulsion–certainly needed legal advice.

A third, Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, resigned after being convicted of stealing $5 million in FEMA funds.

DOJ DANGLES MASSIVE SIGNING BONUSES FOR LAWYERS READY TO FIGHT ‘LAWLESS’ CITIES FAR BEYOND DC

But wrongdoing is not required. DOGE had lawyers. Think tanks have lawyers. Unions have lawyers. Environmental groups have lawyers.

Big Tech giants, which are increasingly cozying up to the Trump administration, have stepped up their legal game in Washington.

The ousted Labor secretary, Lori Chavez-DeRemer, is under investigation by the department’s inspector general.

Trump keeps firing prosecutors he deems insufficiently aggressive and replacing them with new lawyers.

Pro-life groups have sued to stop allowing mail-order access to the abortion pill mifepristone, but failed for now to get anything but a temporary procedural ruling from the Supreme Court.

And then there are the endless appeals that drag on through seemingly endless rounds.

The District of Columbia is a place where everyone wants something. And that usually requires legal firepower. 

I’m sure most of these lawyers do a fine job. This is not a knock on the profession. But like the gold prospectors of yore, they go where the glitter is,

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Secretary of State Marco Rubio previewed a high-profile trip to Rome from the White House briefing room Tuesday, delivering sharp warnings to Iran and flashing easy command of the podium that drew praise from conservative allies online.

"The trip is really not tied to anything other than the fact that it would be normal for us to engage, and other secretaries of State have done that in the past," Rubio said at the White House press conference on Tuesday of his trip to Italy. 

The briefing came two days before Rubio is set to visit the Vatican and Italy for meetings amid heightened tensions between President Donald Trump, Pope Leo and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni over the U.S.-Iran conflict. Rubio used the briefing to defend the administration’s posture toward Tehran, downplay the timing of the Italy visit and signal that Washington is not backing off its pressure campaign.

RUBIO TO VISIT ITALY, VATICAN AMID TROOP DRAWDOWN CALL, TENSION WITH TRUMP, POPE LEO: REPORTS

"The message to Iran ... these guys are facing real catastrophic destruction to their economy, generational destruction to their economy, generational destruction to the wealth of their country imposed on themselves by the actions that they're taking," said Rubio of Iran on Tuesday. 

"They should check themselves before they wreck themselves in the direction that they're going," Rubio quipped, referencing Ice Cube's rap song, "Check Yo Self." 

Rubio, a Catholic, is expected to meet with Pope Leo on Thursday morning, at a time when the pontiff has criticized the Trump administration’s Middle East peacemaking efforts.

RUBIO OVERHAULING 'BLOATED' STATE DEPARTMENT IN SWEEPING REFORM

"There has also been this threat against the entire people of Iran, and this is truly unacceptable," the pope said in April. "There are certainly issues of international law here, but even more so a moral issue for the good of the whole entire population."

RUBIO’S TRUMP ADMIN JUGGLING ACT GROWS AS MEME-WORTHY ROLE LIST BECOMES REALITY

The comments were seemingly in reference to one of Trump's Truth Social posts, where he wrote, "A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will... God Bless the Great People of Iran!"

Trump told reporters on Wednesday in the Oval Office he only has one message for the Pope.

"I can tell you this, that as far as the Pope is concerned, and it's very simple. Whether I make him happy or I don't make him happy, Iran can not have a nuclear weapon. And he seemed to be saying that they can. And I say they cannot, because if that happened, the entire world would be hostage. And we're not going to let that happen," he said.

TRUMP MEETS WITH ITALIAN PM GIORGIA MELONI AT HIS MAR-A-LAGO RESORT

Rubio will also meet with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who has been distancing herself from the U.S. amid mounting domestic and political pressure over the widening Middle East conflict.

The meeting comes as President Donald Trump intensifies pressure on NATO allies to align with the U.S. against Iran, including ordering the withdrawal of 5,000 troops from Germany — a drawdown expected to unfold over the next six to 12 months.

Meloni said Tuesday she would not support any effort to reduce the U.S. military presence in Italy, drawing a contrast with Trump’s broader push to reposition American forces in Europe.

Italy remains a key U.S. security hub in Europe, hosting nearly 13,000 active-duty American troops across six bases as of the end of 2025.

Rubio heads to his high-profile meetings fresh off of social media commenters and conservative leaders applauding how well he stepped in for Karoline Leavitt behind the podium after she took maternity leave late last month. The secretary joked with reporters, fielded questions in multiple languages and delivered pointed warnings to Iran, giving supporters a glimpse of the presence he will likely carry into the Rome trip.

"Marco Rubio is showing the nation & the world what we’ve known about him for decades," said Republican Florida Rep. Carlos Gimenez on X. "Rubio is one of the most eloquent, articulate, & incredibly capable statesmen of our times." 

"President Trump made an EXCELLENT choice in him. He proves it every single day," he added.

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The media are part of the problem.

What problem? Well, there’s a long list. Take your pick.

In the pre-digital era, I used to say that cable news encouraged inflammatory rhetoric by lawmakers because so many of them wanted to break through the static and get their sound bite on the air.

Things are a thousand times more complicated now with the rise of podcasts, group chats, Snapchat, TikTok, X, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, YouTube and Substack. But the principle remains the same. How, amid this deafening noise, do you get heard?

TUNING OUT: WHY MANY AMERICANS ARE SICK OF THE NEWS – ESPECIALLY TRUMP NEWS

It’s a much angrier atmosphere now, and some attribute that to President Donald Trump. But he didn’t create this environment, he just exploited it, with constant attacks on journalists, political opponents and a retribution campaign against his enemies. He is also on the receiving end of a decade of denunciations depicting him as a Nazi, fascist, dictator, danger to democracy and not a very nice person.

Another major shift is that there are so many more journalistic stars now, from legacy media to online influencers, to the point that some lawmakers have quit (or been retired) to become network and cable contributors, even anchors.

That’s why this essay in the Atlantic, by Michael Scherer, is so revealing.

WHY META AND GOOGLE ARE LOSING COURT BATTLES FOR DAMAGING KIDS BY TRYING TO GET THEM ADDICTED

Scherer, who previously reported for Time and the Washington Post, says he feels "complicit" in the new world of endless attacks. He wrote this after attending the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner that erupted in gunfire in the third assassination attempt against President Trump – and unleashed a torrent of comments from idiots who claimed the assault was somehow "staged," though we watched it unfold on live television. 

He listed a spate of political murders, from Charlie Kirk to the CEO of United Healthcare, and sees the cycle of political violence getting worse.

Scherer once co-authored an article about Trump comparing himself to Napoleon, Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar, with no hint of political violence, that triggered a wave of obscenity-filled attacks against the president. 

Here’s the formula: "The more a story taps an emotional vein—usually outrage or grievance—the more traffic it will tend to attract from social media. I am in the business of writing long and complicated stories full of nuance. Yet I am at the mercy of platforms that want to turn my words into cortisol and endorphins, often for people who will never click the link to read what I wrote. Regardless of my intentions, my work can fuel the false division I despise."

And aren’t most journalists guilty of this to some degree, whether it’s squeezing a short line onto the platform previously known as Twitter, or slapping a tendentious headline on a podcast? That’s part of the escalation. 

Meanwhile, Kash Patel’s lawsuit may be taking a troubling turn.

MS NOW reported yesterday that there is concern among FBI agents that the bureau has "launched a criminal leak investigation" aimed at the Atlantic journalist who wrote the offending piece, Sarah Fitzpatrick. 

That would be strange, because the story contained no classified information. It was a negative portrayal of his conduct in office and alleged drinking habits. This would, if accurate, mean that Patel was in charge of the alleged probe while pursuing a $250-million suit against the magazine.

A bureau spokesman denied the story, saying: "This is completely false. No such investigation like this exists and the reporter you mention is not being investigated at all." 

SUBSCRIBE TO HOWIE'S MEDIA BUZZMETER PODCAST, A RIFF ON THE DAY'S HOTTEST STORIES

"If confirmed to be true," said Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg, "this would represent an outrageous attack on the free press and the First Amendment itself. We will defend the Atlantic and its staff vigorously; we will not be intimidated by illegitimate investigations or other acts of politically motivated retaliation."

Take the denial for what it’s worth. But keep in mind that in January, the FBI, armed with a search warrant, entered the home of Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson, seized her iPhone and other devices, as part of a leak investigation and still hasn’t returned them – though they include such personal information as her wedding plans. Natanson just won a Pulitzer. 

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