TV News LIES

President Trump will ask countries that want to join his “Board of Peace” to oversee Gaza to pay $1 billion for membership, according to reporting from Bloomberg and The Atlantic on Saturday.

A draft charter seen by both outlets showed that Trump will serve as the executive board’s inaugural chairman, who will approve which member states can join on the board. The board will become official after three member states agree to the charter.

“Each Member State shall serve a term of no more than three years from this Charter’s entry into force, subject to renewal by the Chairman,” the draft reads, according to Bloomberg. “The three-year membership term shall not apply to Member States that contribute more than USD $1,000,000,000 in cash funds to the Board of Peace within the first year of the Charter’s entry into force.”

Member states will be able to vote on board decisions, but Trump will have sole authority to approve them, the outlets reported.

What the $1 billion for membership will fund remains unclear. The Atlantic reported that the draft charter does not address where membership fees go, only that funding for board expenses will be “through voluntary funding from Member States, other States, organizations, or other sources.”

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The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. changed America for the better by helping our nation make progress toward achieving his dream of ending racism and ensuring equality for all. But as we honor King with a national holiday, President Trump is doing all he can to reverse the great civil rights leader’s historic accomplishments. 

Unfortunately, King’s dream, which he eloquently expressed in his speech at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in 1963, has yet to come true. Systemic racism has been diminished but still exists. Black Americans are suffering unjustly as a result.

For example, according to federal statistics, about 20 percent of Black households lived in poverty in 2024, compared with about 9 percent of white households. The median Black household annual income was about $56,000 in 2024, compared with about $88,000 for white households. The Black unemployment rate in November was 8.3 percent, compared with 3.9 percent for whites.

Yet instead of trying to narrow the gaps separating Black and white Americans, as King advocated, Trump is focused on eliminating supposed discrimination against white people — especially white men.

Trump issued three executive orders at the start of his second term declaring diversity, equity and inclusion programs to be “illegal and immoral discrimination.” This ended such programs in the federal government and successfully pressured many businesses, nonprofits and colleges to scale them back or end them.

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President Donald Trump on Jan. 17 announced tariffs against eight European countries as the latest pressure tactic for the United States to purchase Greenland.

In a Truth Social post, Trump said Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Finland will have a 10% tariff on all goods sent to the United States effective Feb. 1. The tariff is set to increase to 25% on June 1, Trump said.

Trump has repeatedly said Greenland is vital to American security due its strategic location and large mineral deposits. He hasn't ruled out using force to take the island, which is a semiautonomous part of Denmark. 

European countries recently sent military personnel to Greenland at the request of Danish officials. Top European officials have backed Denmark, warning the Trump administration’s attempts to seize Greenland can upend the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the group created for members to jointly defend each other.

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At least three Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks across Gaza since dawn, including a 10-year-old girl, a 16-year-old boy and an elderly woman.

Israeli forces have continued deadly attacks across Gaza despite a United States announcement about the launch of the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement.

At least 463 Palestinians have been reported killed since the ceasefire took effect in October last year.

At least 71,455 people have been killed and 171,347 wounded by Israeli forces across Gaza since October 2023. A total of 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the October 7, 2023, attacks, and about 200 were taken captive.

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King Charles III on Friday praised Ukraine’s “most valiant strength in the face of such appalling hardship and pain” in a message marking the first anniversary of the century-long partnership agreement between the UK and Ukraine.

“I do pray that the flourishing bonds between our two countries may bring some hope and moral support at this most difficult time,” the King’s heartfelt message read.

He described Ukraine as an “extraordinary example to the world” and said “I am constantly impressed by the sheer bravery, courage and resilience shown by the Ukrainian people.”

The King has been an outspoken advocate for Ukraine for several years. In September, it was reported that he was “very close” to the negotiations being brokered by the US between Ukraine and Russia.

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Manhattan’s top federal prosecutor said Friday that a judge lacks the authority to appoint a neutral expert to oversee the public release of documents in the sex trafficking probe of financier Jeffrey Epstein and British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell.

Judge Paul A. Engelmayer was told in a letter signed by U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton that he must reject a request this week by the congressional cosponsors of the Epstein Files Transparency Act to appoint a neutral expert.

U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna, a California Democrat, and Rep. Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican, say they have “urgent and grave concerns” about the slow release of only a small number of millions of documents that began last month.

In a filing to the judge they said they believed “criminal violations have taken place” in the release process.

Clayton, though, said Khanna and Massie do not have standing with the court that would allow them to seek the “extraordinary” relief of the appointment of a special master and independent monitor.

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Since September, 16 major drug companies have inked deals with the Trump administration to lower prices. But in January — the time of year when pharmaceutical companies typically roll out price hikes — all 16 companies released higher list prices for some of their drugs.

The agreements, nicknamed "most favored nation" deals, were aimed at getting lower prices for American consumers and pushing other wealthy countries to pay higher prices for new drugs.

But drug companies, including the 16 that made deals, raised the prices of 872 brand-name drugs in the first two weeks of 2026, according to a new analysis by 46brooklyn, a drug price research firm.The drugs with price hikes included medicines to treat cancer, heart failure and Type 2 diabetes. The price of some COVID shots also went up.

"The real truth serum is what's happening in the marketplace after those deals occur," says Antonio Ciaccia, CEO of 46brooklyn, a nonprofit that tracks the list prices of prescription medications. "January is prime time for list price changes on brand-name drugs. So in examining where we are today, we're pretty much in line with the last few years."

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Donald Trump’s so-called “board of peace” has been announced as the US president seeks to manage the reconstruction of Gaza and its transitional administration amid a fragile ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.

The seven-member board includes US secretary of state Marco Rubio, former British prime minister Tony Blair, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, Trump special envoy Steve Witkoff and World Bank president, Ajay Banga. Trump himself will serve as chair, with further appointments expected in the coming weeks.

Donald Trump’s so-called “board of peace” has been announced as the US president seeks to manage the reconstruction of Gaza and its transitional administration amid a fragile ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.

The seven-member board includes US secretary of state Marco Rubio, former British prime minister Tony Blair, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, Trump special envoy Steve Witkoff and World Bank president, Ajay Banga. Trump himself will serve as chair, with further appointments expected in the coming weeks.

Each board member will manage “a defined portfolio critical to Gaza’s stabilization and long-term success, including, but not limited to, governance capacity-building, regional relations, reconstruction, investment attraction, large-scale funding, and capital mobilization”, a White House statement said.

Since the ceasefire, Israel has also demolished thousands of structures that survived the war, including homes and greenhouses, in the part of Gaza is still controls.

Hamas has yet to publicly commit to full disarmament – a key Israeli demand and one of the most contentious elements of the longer-term settlement.

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