作者： root

Trump says he fired Bondi, appoints Blanche as acting US attorney general

2026-04-02 17:25:47 UTC / Reuters

By Reuters

April 2, 2026 5:25 PM UTC Updated 2 hours ago

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U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche participates in the 2026 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Grapevine, Texas, U.S. March 26, 2026. REUTERS/Callaghan O’Hare Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

April 2 (Reuters) – President Donald ​Trump ‌on Thursday confirmed ​U.S. ​Attorney General ⁠Pam ​Bondi was ​removed from her ​post ​and said she ‌was ⁠being replaced by ​deputy ​Attorney ⁠General Todd ​Blanche ​in ⁠an acting ⁠capacity.

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Reporting ​by ​Bhargav Acharya ​in Toronto;

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Man charged in connection with deaths of 2 women found in “Texas Killing Fields”

April 2, 2026 / 12:57 PM EDT / CBS/AP

Prosecutors have charged a man allegedly connected to some of the deaths linked to the “Texas Killing Fields,” an area near Houston where the bodies of dozens of women were found beginning in the 1970s, saying they have solved a piece of a tragic mystery that has inspired a Netflix documentary and been featured on CBS News’ “48 Hours.”

A Galveston grand jury has indicted 61-year-old James Dolphs Elmore Jr. for his alleged role in the deaths of 16-year-old Laura Miller and 30-year-old Audrey Cook, whose bodies were found in the infamous area off a desolate dirt road in League City in 1986, Galveston County District Attorney Kenneth Cusick said Wednesday.

Tim Miller, the father of Laura Miller, said that he has met with Elmore 30 times in the last four years. He said Elmore had shared information but declined to elaborate out of fear of jeopardizing the case.

Elmore made his first appearance before a judge on Thursday morning, CBS affiliate KHOU reported. He has been charged with manslaughter and felony tampering with evidence in Miller’s death, and with tampering with evidence in Cook’s killing. His bond was set at $3 million, KHOU reported, including $1.5 million for the manslaughter charge and $750,000 for each tampering with evidence charge.

This photo provided by the Galveston County Sheriff’s Office shows James Dolphs Elmore Jr. Galveston County Sheriff’s Office via AP

Elmore is being held in the Galveston County Jail. At Thursday’s hearing, he was assigned a court-appointed attorney, KHOU reported.

A trial date is set for August 31.

“A perfect place (for) killing”

Since the 1970s, over 30 young women and girls have disappeared or been found murdered in the 50-mile stretch of land that has been nicknamed the “Texas Killing Fields.” Federal agent Don Ferrarone told “48 Hours” that the region is “a perfect place (for) killing somebody and getting away with it.”

Cook and Miller were two of four bodies found in the same area between 1984 and 1991. All four sets of remains were found in a field off a dirt road, according to KHOU.

The first victim found was Heidi Fye-Villareal, a 25-year-old bartender who disappeared in 1983 and whose body was found in 1984, according to KHOU. Miller’s remains were found at the site in 1986, two years after her disappearance. Another unidentified body was found in the field at the same time. A second unidentified woman was found there in 1991, KHOU reported.

In 2019, the two unidentified sets of remains were determined to belong to Cook, a mechanic who disappeared in 1985 before her body was found in 1986, and Donna Prudhomme, 34, a young mother who vanished in 1989.

Elmore has not been charged in the deaths of Villareal or Prudhomme.

Tim Miller, father of Laura Miller, hugs his wife Georgeann as they look at one of 50 billboards dedicated to unidentified murder victims along Highway 3 in League City, Texas, on May 11, 1998. Buster Dean/Houston Chronicle via AP

Alleged accomplice dies by suicide

Cusick said prosecutors had also presented evidence to a grand jury seeking indictments against Clyde Hedrick, who authorities allege was the person responsible for the deaths of the four women and had been Elmore’s longtime friend. But Hedrick, 72, died by suicide before the grand jury came back with a decision in his case.

Hedrick was previously convicted of manslaughter in 2014 in the death of Ellen Beason, a young woman who vanished in 1984 and whose body was found in 1985. He was released on parole in 2022, and was still on parole at the time of his death, according to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

Miller, who founded a nonprofit missing persons organization called EquuSearch, said it was “inexcusable that Clyde Hedrick had the opportunity to die without never been indicted, convicted.”

Nina Jager, the niece of Fye-Villareal, celebrated Elmore’s indictment but said it was “bittersweet” because her grandfather had long suspected Hedrick was responsible for the killings. He had long investigated the case, but she said his efforts were ignored by authorities.

Tim Miller in his office in Dickinson, Texas, on April 2, 2012. Steve Ueckert/Houston Chronicle via AP

“Maybe today is a result of all the work that he put in, all the searching the fields, going and talking to people and doing his own investigation because he just didn’t feel supported,” she said.

Most cases remain unsolved

Most of the deaths associated with the “Texas Killing Fields” remain unsolved. Investigators believe multiple perpetrators may be responsible for the killings. The remains found in the area have mostly been that of young women and girls.

In 2022, William Reece, an Oklahoma death row inmate, pleaded guilty to three murders in Texas, including those of 12-year-old Laura Smither and 17-year-old Jessica Cain in Galveston County, and 20-year-old Kelli Cox, who was from Denton in North Texas but whose body was found hundreds of miles away in Brazoria County, located next to Galveston County. He received life sentences for all three murders.

Galveston County District Attorney Kenneth Cusick holds a news conference, in Galveston, Texas, on Wednesday, April 1, 2026. Jennifer Reynolds /The Galveston County Daily News via AP

After his appointment as district attorney, Cusick said he would take a harder look at cases linked to the area. He said work was slowed by how much time has passed since the killings, but said he is committed to working on the case. He also said there are active leads that can be pursued “to bring to justice some people who may have escaped justice thus far.”

“Due to the concerted efforts of the law enforcement agencies in this county, this 40-year cycle of violence by these defendants against women, we’re trying to make headway on it, and I think we made significant headway yesterday in getting a charge against Mr. Elmore and having him arrested,” he said.

HHS announces $144 million program to study effect of microplastics on the human body

April 2, 2026 / 3:41 PM EDT / CBS News

By Kerry Breen News Editor
Kerry Breen is a news editor at CBSNews.com. A graduate of New York University’s Arthur L. Carter School of Journalism, she previously worked at NBC News’ TODAY Digital. She covers current events, breaking news and issues including substance use.

Read Full Bio

The Department of Health and Human Services will is introducing a first-of-its-kind program to study microplastics and the effect they have on the human body, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced Thursday.

Kennedy said the $144 million national program will be called STOMP, which stands for “Systemic Targeting of MicroPlastics.” The program will bring toxicologists, data scientists and other experts together to create standardized tools capable of detecting and quantifying microplastics in the human body, research the effect they have on humans, and develop targeted strategies to remove them from the body, Kennedy said.

“We are not dealing with a distant or theoretical risk. We are dealing with a measurable, growing presence inside the human body,” Kennedy said, after citing research that showed microplastics present in human organs, blood and the placenta. The program’s research will prioritize those at greatest risk, he said, including pregnant people, children and workers with high exposure rates.

Microplastics are tiny particles from larger plastic items that have been detected in the human body and external sources. They enter the water supply through littering, storm runoff, and more. The particles, which are less than five millimeters in size, cannot be fully removed by traditional water filtration methods, according to the World Health Organization.

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin also announced that the agency has added microplastics to its contaminant candidate list for the first time, opening the door for future regulations.

The contaminant candidate list is a list of substances that are not subject to proposed or existing drinking water regulations, but are “known or anticipated to occur in public water systems,” according to the EPA’s website. Adding a substance to the list does nothing to regulate it or limit its use, but prioritizes funding, research and information collection to learn more about how these products affect drinking water.

“This is a direct response to the concern of millions of Americans who have long demanded answers about what they and their families are drinking every day,” Zeldin said.

Dr. Celine Gounder, CBS News medical contributor and KFF editor-at-large for public health, said adding microplastics to the CCL is “the beginning of a long timeline, not the end of one.”

“Researchers have found that microplastics are widespread in water and the human body, which suggests potential health risks, but we don’t yet have the kind of evidence regulators require to set legal limits,” Gounder said.

Complicating efforts to set legal limits is a lack of standardized measuring system for microplastics, and no national data showing how much microplastics are actually affecting drinking water. Gounder said there also needs to be “clearer evidence linking typical exposure levels to specific health outcomes.”

The contaminant candidate list that Zeldin announced, or CCL 6, is a draft. There will be a 60-day public comment period before it is finalized. The CCL is updated every five years.

Pharmaceuticals are also set to be added to the contaminant candidate list, Zeldin said. Medications enter the water supply through human waste and improper disposal, Zeldin said. The EPA has also released human health benchmarks for 374 pharmaceuticals, giving authorities a “critical new tool to assess risk and take action when drug residues are found at concerning levels,” Zeldin said.

The existing list, CCL 5, includes 66 chemicals, 12 microbes and three chemical groups: Pre- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, disinfection byproducts and cyanotoxins. The draft list for CCL 6 includes 75 chemicals, nine microbes and four chemical groups: PFAS, disinfection byproducts, pharmaceuticals and microplastics. CCL 6 removes cyanotoxins, or compounds produced by some algae, as a chemical group.

CCL 6 is expected to be signed by November 17, 2026, after the public comment period ends and after the EPA consults with its independent Science Advisory Board.

To reduce exposure to microplastics, Gounder recommends avoiding bottled water, not heating food in plastic containers, and improving indoor air quality, since water and air are the major exposure routes. But it is impossible to entirely avoid microplastics because of their prevalence, Gounder said.

Edited by Stephen Smith

Markwayne Mullin has started making policy changes at DHS. Some GOP lawmakers want him to do more

2026-04-02 19:09:16 UTC / CNN

By Annie Grayer, Michael Williams

28 min ago
PUBLISHED Apr 2, 2026, 3:09 PM ET

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin listens during a Cabinet meeting at the White House on March 26, 2026.

Alex Brandon/AP

During his confirmation hearing last month, Markwayne Mullin promised to make changes at the Department of Homeland Security if he were to be confirmed as its next secretary.

He called the controversial policy under outgoing Secretary Kristi Noem that required her approval of contracts exceeding $100,000 “micromanaging.” He said Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers would be taken off the “front lines” and revert to relying on more restrictive judicial warrants to enter someone’s home or a private business. Ideally, he said, DHS would not be in the headlines nearly every day as it was under Noem’s leadership.

Nine days after being sworn in, Mullin has delivered on some of those promises.

But some lawmakers, including Republicans who broadly support President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda, want Mullin to go further as he attempts to right an agency that experienced a year of chaos under his predecessor.

Changes for contracts, detention centers and ICE tactics

The $100,000 contract-review policy, which under Noem was blamed for creating a bottleneck of funding during several natural disasters last year and causing bipartisan resentment in states which were seeking much-needed disaster relief, was rescinded on Wednesday, according to a copy of a new memo signed by Mullin and reviewed by CNN.

The new policy now requires all contracts exceeding $25 million be approved by the DHS deputy secretary. Leaders of individual components within DHS are now responsible for greenlighting contracts below $25 million.

Mullin’s team is also reviewing all immigration detention warehouse projects across the country, a source familiar told CNN. The effort to install mega warehouses for migrant detention is being paused pending further review, the source added.

An exterior view of a warehouse that is the site for a planned US Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Williamsport, Maryland, on March 23, 2026.

Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

The move comes after significant pushback from local leaders and even some Republican lawmakers who supported the detention effort in theory, but were concerned about the strain such massive facilities would put on local infrastructure and communities.

Some of those local leaders told CNN that meetings that had previously been scheduled with DHS officials about those warehouses have been paused due to the review of DHS processes under the new leadership.

While they’ve expressed some optimism about how a Mullin-led DHS would change how it interacts with local communities where the agency wanted to place these warehouses, the local leaders remain cautious considering their experiences with DHS under Noem.

“Until DHS/ICE proves me wrong, I will work under the notion that their past behavior is an indication of their future performance,” said B.R. White, the city manager of Oakwood, Georgia, where DHS had planned to build a sprawling detention facility with little notice and no public hearings.

“I do desire to be proven wrong,” White added. “Just maybe the new DHS Secretary will logically discover the same flaws and issues with the program as the communities impacted by DHS purchases and proposed purchases.”

Mullin is also weighing further rule changes related to how ICE operates — a key sticking point as the funding standoff embroiling his agency nears its 50th day, one source familiar with the discussions told CNN.

A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment about these policy changes.

Then-Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem testifies during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on oversight of the Department of Homeland Security, on March 4, 2026.

Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images

‘Review everything’

Taken together, these changes signify a broader effort from Mullin to pull back on some of Noem’s policies and rebuild trust with the public and key allies on the Hill, who under Noem’s tenure often felt in the dark on major developments happening in their own backyard and concerned about her priorities.

Republicans hope that they will find a more willing and accessible partner in Mullin, a former senator, to enter a new era of immigration enforcement that creates less controversy.

Some Republicans are pushing Mullin not to take a piecemeal approach and instead revisit everything Noem touched. They want a course correction to refocus the agency to only go after violent criminals and those with active deportation orders as the party has faced backlash against its sweeping crackdown on unauthorized immigration under Noem.

“Review everything that was being done under Secretary Noem” GOP Rep. Carlos Gimenez, who serves on the House committee that oversees DHS, told CNN about his message to Mullin. “I think a lot of things need to change and hopefully he will be the agent of change.”

GOP Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, who leads a bipartisan caucus of moderate House members, introduced a bill on Thursday with Democratic Rep. Thomas Suozzi to significantly change how the administration conducts removal operations, including mandating agents to remove their masks in most cases and requiring judicial warrants for criminal arrests— adopting some of the reforms that Democrats have been pushing for in negotiations over DHS funding.

Masked federal agents stand in a hallway at the New York Federal Plaza Immigration Court inside the Jacob K. Javitz Federal Building in New York on March 6, 2026.

Charly Triballeau/AFP/Getty Images

Fitzpatrick, a former FBI agent who worked with Mullin when he was in the House, told CNN that he supports strong border security, but believes there has been an “over enforcement” of immigration laws in the US and wants Mullin to approach the job with more empathy and compassion.

“What has been lacking in immigration enforcement in recent months is empathy. And I think we need to approach the job with empathy. These are human beings, regardless of how you view immigration, we always need to treat human beings like human beings,” Fitzpatrick told CNN.

Fitzpatrick has discussed his bill with GOP Sen. Susan Collins, who chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee and has been critical to DHS negotiations, but the path to this bill’s passage remains unclear.

Even before Mullin took over, President Donald Trump’s border czar Tom Homan had begun enacting changes to ICE amid the fallout of federal officers killing protesters Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis.

Upon arriving in that city, and replacing Greg Bovino, a controversial Border Patrol official whose tactics were widely blamed for ratcheting up tensions between federal officers and protesters, Homan ended roving patrols of agents and deployed body cameras for all ICE officers while working with local leaders to smooth tensions before pulling back on the agency’s foothold in the city.

Unlike Noem, Mullin has quickly formed a close relationship with Homan.

CNN’s Gabe Cohen and Andy Rose contributed to this report.

Trump to reduce steel, aluminum tariff rates for derivative products, sources say

2026-04-02T16:15:57.856Z / Reuters

By Reuters

April 2, 2026 4:15 PM UTC Updated 3 hours ago

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Aluminum cans are shown during a production run before being filled with craft beer at Black Plague Brewery in Oceanside, California, U.S., March 14, 2025. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

April 2 (Reuters) – The Trump administration plans to reshape its steel and aluminum tariff regime, keeping a 50% tariff for commodity steel and aluminum imports while reducing duties ​on derivative products made from the metals to 15% or ‌25%, depending on the product, two sources familiar with the plans said.

The details could change and will be subject to a tariff proclamation from President Donald Trump, ​which is expected as early as Thursday.

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A White House spokesperson ​did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment. The ⁠tariff adjustment plan was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.

The ​sources told Reuters that the change is being made to simplify an overly ​complicated tariff regime put in place last year when Trump doubled the rate of his Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum to 50%.

That increase also added ​the tariffs to thousands of derivative products made with the metals to encourage ​domestic production, from tractor parts to stainless steel sinks and gas ranges. But the 50% ‌duty ⁠only applied to the steel and aluminum content of the product, creating a compliance headache for importers to calculate that figure.

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The latest change will apply the lower tariff on the total value of the imported derivative ​product, making it ​easier to comply, ⁠the sources said.

Trump’s proclamation is expected to include a revised annex listing products subject to the tariffs and ​duty rates. The sources said that steelmaking equipment may ​qualify for ⁠the lower 15% rate, as the Trump administration imposed the higher tariff rates last year to encourage more investment in domestic steel production.

Such equipment is ⁠often ​imported from Germany and Italy, such as ​furnace ladles and rolling-mill machinery, and made from sophisticated heat-resistant alloys.

(This story has been refiled to change the headline)

Reporting by David Lawder in Washington ​and Carlos Méndez in Mexico City; Editing by Chris Reese and Andrea Ricci

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Mortgage rates are surging, foiling homebuyers’ best-laid plans

2026-04-02 15:32:06 EDT / CBS News

By

April 2, 2026 / 3:32 PM EDT / CBS News

Surging mortgage rates are threatening to wash out the spring homebuying season.

The rate on a conventional 30-year home loan rose to 6.46%, its highest level since September 2025, Freddie Mac said Thursday. Borrowing costs have jumped sharply in recent weeks after having dipped below 6% in late February. The Iran war is exerting further upward pressure on rates by stoking inflation concerns and driving up government bond yields, according to economists. Mortgage rates tend to track the 10-year Treasury bond.

For aspiring homeowners, the upsurge in borrowing costs is a major headache.

“Before this war, it was like, it could be a good buyer’s time now,” said Rachel Marks, a 41-year-old Brooklyn, New York, resident who recently started searching for a home. “Now it’s like, nope, stay away because everything is just going up, up, up.”

As of Thursday, the 10-year Treasury yield was 4.26%, up from 3.96% just before the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on February 28.

“When inflation goes up, investors in bonds — and that includes mortgage-backed securities — demand a higher return to compensate them for that increase,” explained Mike Fratantoni, chief economist at the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), a trade group.

The direction of monetary policy is also weighing on the housing market, Fratantoni said. With inflation seemingly stuck above the Federal Reserve’s 2% annual target, a growing number of economists and Wall Street analysts now predict that the central bank will refrain from lowering its benchmark rate for all of 2026.

“Mortgage rates will remain elevated, above 6%, in part because markets are pricing higher expected inflation into long-term rates,” economists with PNC Financial Services predicted in a report this week.

$84,000 difference

Prospective homebuyers are now grappling with the impact of an unexpected jump in mortgage rates.

Devan Post, a 36-year-old corporate controller in Minnesota who’s in the market for a home offering more space for her family, in February thought she had found a property that ticked all the boxes.

A lender initially quoted her a rate of 5.85% for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, she told CBS News. But before she and her husband could jump on the offer, the Iran war erupted. The lender’s latest quote: 6.49%.

Post and her husband recently put in an offer on another home. While they’re one step closer to buying, she said the additional mortgage costs they face are discouraging,

“You feel like you’re finally going to be entering the market when things are going your way. Like, rates are finally going down, we can actually afford a nice house,” she said. “And then it’s like, oh, wait, never mind.”

If the couple locks in at 6.49% and put 20% down, they would pay an extra $265 per month compared with the lower rate offer last month — that comes to $84,600 over the life of a 30-year loan, according to Realtor.com.

A weaker spring season?

Higher mortgage rates coincide with the start of the spring homebuying period, when demand normally starts to pick up. Experts had predicted a strong season, pointing to a modest increase in inventory, momentum in new construction and lower year-over-year listing prices.

The housing market was also eager to turn the page from last spring’s buying season, when President Trump’s “liberation day” tariffs sparked inflation and recession fears, according to Jake Krimmel, a senior economist at Realtor.com.

“This was going to be the year that the market rebounded in a noticeable way,” he told CBS News. “Conditions were forming for improved affordability.”

However, higher mortgage rates have muddied the picture, with Oxford Economics noting in a recent report that the Iran war’s effect on the housing market “will likely send many buyers and sellers to the sidelines.”

The Mortgage Bankers Association recently downgraded its outlook for home sales because of what it expects to be softer demand.

“A month ago, our forecast for 2026 was for an 8% increase in home sales compared to 2025. Now we’re looking for a 5% increase,” Fratantoni said.

Krimmel said it’s too soon to tell if higher mortgage rates will chill demand for housing, noting that “nothing is flashing red yet.” In some cases, rising mortgage rates could even encourage people to jump on an offer to lock in a better deal before costs rise, he added.

Still, some signs point to a slight slowdown in demand. The MBA’s seasonally adjusted purchase index, which tracks the volume of mortgage loan applications for new and existing homes, fell 3% on April 1 from a week earlier.

Edited by Alain Sherter

Pam Bondi already fired as attorney general, Cabinet official teed up as replacement: sources

April 2, 2026 12:33pm EDT / Fox News

EPA Director Lee Zeldin is reportedly being considered as Bondi’s replacement after a White House meeting Tuesday

By Katelyn Caralle, Emma Colton Fox News

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6391339993112

Lee Zeldin breaks down Iran conflict’s impact on oil, US energy policy

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin discusses how the Iran conflict is driving oil price volatility, U.S. efforts to stabilize energy costs and the Trump administration’s ‘energy dominance’ strategy on ‘Fox News Live.’

NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles!

FIRST ON FOX —President Donald Trump fired Attorney General Pam Bondi Wednesday, according to two sources familiar with the matter who spoke with Fox News Digital.

Trump confirmed the ouster in a Truth Social post Thursday, underscoring that he views her as “a Great American Patriot and a loyal friend” as she moves into an undisclosed role in the private sector.

“Pam did a tremendous job overseeing a massive crackdown in Crime across our Country, with Murders plummeting to their lowest level since 1900,” he continued. “We love Pam, and she will be transitioning to a much needed and important new job in the private sector, to be announced at a date in the near future.”

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche will serve as interim attorney general, Fox News reported Thursday.

HOUSE OVERSIGHT SUBPOENAS AG BONDI IN PROBE OF EPSTEIN CASE ‘MISMANAGEMENT’

President Donald Trump reportedly has already fired Attorney General Pam Bondi, according to two sources familiar with the matter who spoke with Fox News Digital.(Getty Images)

“Our Deputy Attorney General, and a very talented and respected Legal Mind, Todd Blanche, will step in to serve as Acting Attorney General,” Trump added in his post. “Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

Bondi met with Trump in the Oval Office Wednesday night ahead of his speech to the nation on the war in Iran, according to two sources familiar with the meeting who spoke to Fox News Digital ahead of Trump’s announcement.

Bondi departed for Florida Thursday morning, Fox News reported, where she is filming an NFL-affiliated child safety initiative.

The president is reportedly considering replacing Bondi with Environmental Protection Agency Director Lee Zeldin, according to the sources familiar with the matter. Trump held a meeting with Zeldin at the White House Tuesday to discuss wildfire and prevention, where talks of the transition also unfolded, according to an individual familiar with the meeting.

That source relayed to Fox News Digital that Zeldin would be a plausible replacement, adding that Trump could change his mind at any point.

President Donald Trump is reportedly considering replacing Pam Bondi with Environmental Protection Agency Director Lee Zeldin, pictured here, according to the sources familiar with the matter.(Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

The ouster follows a recent New York Times report detailing that Trump was preparing to replace Bondi with Zeldin as the president had become increasingly dissatisfied with her performance in the role.

WHY KRISTI NOEM’S FIRING TOOK SO LONG AS SHE WRECKED DHS AND DAMAGED DONALD TRUMP

When initially asked about the meetings and Bondi’s ouster Wednesday evening, the White House directed Fox News Digital to the same comment defending Bondi that the office provided to the Times.

“Attorney General Pam Bondi is a wonderful person and she is doing a good job,” Trump’s comment states.

Attorney General Pam Bondi met with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office Wednesday night ahead of his speech to the nation on the war in Iran, and she reportedly was informed of her ouster, according to two sources familiar with the meeting.(Alex Wong/Getty Images)

The ouster came the same day Bondi accompanied Trump to the U.S. Supreme Court Wednesday morning for oral arguments on the high-stakes birthright citizenship case.

Sources confirming to multiple outlets Zeldin’s potential ascension to her former role comes as he prepares for an event with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Thursday afternoon to make an announcement on addressing rising instances of microplastics in drinking water.

Bondi’s entire tenure at the DOJ has been riddled with public scrutiny, especially as it relates to her promise to release the entirety of the Jeffrey Epstein files.

She told Fox News at the onset of taking her role at the helm of the Justice Department in February that the files were “sitting on my desk right now to review.”

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The trickle of information from her agency over the ensuing year and the lack of new information left Americans frustrated that she was reneging on the promise of releasing the the files.

Fox News’ Aishah Hasnie and Peter Doocy contributed to this report.

Editor’s note: This article was updated to clarify that Bondi was out as AG before Trump’s address Wednesday night, and left Washington, D.C., the following morning.

Katelyn Caralle is an editor on the politics team.

‘Pam did a tremendous job’: Trump announces Bondi ouster in Truth Social post

Published 1:56 PM EDT, Thu April 2, 2026 / CNN Politics

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‘Pam did a tremendous job’: Trump announces Bondi ouster in Truth Social post

President Donald Trump has ousted Pam Bondi as attorney general, a source familiar with the matter told CNN. She will be replaced for now by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who will serve as acting attorney general, Trump said.

0:43 • Source: CNN

‘We’re not going to fund a lawless ICE and a lawless CPB”: Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer on partial DHS shutdown

2026-04-02T17:59:22.148Z / CNN Politics

By Wolf Blitzer and Pamela Brown, CNN

Published 1:59 PM EDT, Thu April 2, 2026

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“We’re not going to fund a lawless ICE and a lawless CPB”: Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer on partial DHS shutdown

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer joins CNN’s Wolf Blitzer and Pamela Brown to discuss the latest developments in the apparent deal struck between Republican leadership in the House and Senate to partially reopen the DHS, saying that the GOP was “hardly unified” as President Trump touted.

8:03 • Source: CNN

Colorado appeals court orders resentencing for former county clerk Tina Peters in election fraud scheme

Published Apr 2, 2026, 12:53 PM ET / Associated Press

Tina Peters listens during her trial in Grand Junction, Colorado, on March 3, 2023.

Scott Crabtree/The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel/Pool/AP/File

AP—

A Colorado appeals court ruled Thursday that a former county clerk convicted in a scheme that attempted to find proof of fraud in the 2020 presidential election should be resentenced.

Tina Peters is serving a nine-year prison term after being convicted of state crimes for sneaking in an outside computer expert to make a copy of her county’s election computer system during a software update in 2021. A photo and video of confidential voting system passwords were later posted on social media and a conservative website.

Judges on the Colorado Court of Appeals upheld her conviction, but said that a judge should not have considered Peters’ continued promotion of election fraud conspiracies when he sentenced her in 2024. The court sent Peters’ case back to a lower court for a judge to issue a new sentence.

Calls for Peters’ release have become a cause celebre in the election conspiracy movement. President Donald Trump has sought unsuccessfully to pardon Peters and pressured Colorado to set her free.

Peters was unapologetic when she was sentenced by Judge Matthew Barrett and insisted that she tried to unearth what she believed was fraud for the greater good. He ripped into her, calling her a “charlatan” who had used her position to “peddle snake oil.”

Peters was the former clerk in Mesa County, in the far western part of Colorado, and convicted by jurors in the Republican stronghold that has supported Trump.

Trump has threatened to take “harsh measures” against Colorado unless the state releases her. In February, Trump said Colorado was “suffering a big price” for refusing to release her.

Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, a Democrat, has accused the Trump administration of waging a “revenge campaign” by choking off funds and ending federal programs over the state’s refusal to free Peters.

The appeals court found that the sentence punished Peters for maintaining that there was fraud in the 2020 election.

“For these reasons, we conclude that the trial court obviously erred by imposing sentence at least partially based on Peters’ protected speech,” the court said in its ruling Thursday.

Weiser said in response to the ruling that the original sentence had been “fair and appropriate.”

“Whatever happens with her sentence, Tina Peters will always be a convicted felon who violated her duty as Mesa County clerk, put other lives at risk, and threatened our democracy. Nothing will remove that stain,” Weiser said in a statement.

Weiser, a Democrat who is running for governor, noted that the court affirmed Trump’s attempt to pardon Peters was “meaningless” since presidential pardons don’t extend to state crimes.

The Justice Department inserted itself into Peters’ bid to be released while her state appeal was considered. The federal Bureau of Prisons tried to get Peters moved to a federal prison. After both efforts failed, Trump in December announced a pardon for Peters that was considered symbolic since Colorado says it doesn’t apply to her state convictions.

But in January, the state’s Democratic Gov. Jared Polis said he was considering granting clemency for Peters, calling her sentence “unusual and harsh“ for a first-time, non-violent offender.

Peters was convicted of three counts of attempting to influence a public servant and one count each of conspiracy to commit criminal impersonation, first-degree official misconduct, violation of duty and failure to comply with the requirements of the secretary of state.

Peters’ lawyers didn’t deny that she used the security badge of a local man she pretended to hire to allow the an associate of MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell to make a copy of the Dominion Voting Systems election computer server during an annual software update in 2021.

But they said she only wanted to preserve election data and find out whether any outside actor had accessed the system while ballots were being counted. They said she didn’t want the information made public.