作者： root

5 takeaways from the grueling Senate funding battle that just ended

June 5, 2026 at 5:10 p.m. EDT / The Washington Post

What happened during the 18-hour vote-a-rama on the immigration enforcement package?

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina) on Capitol Hill in April. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call/Getty Images)

By Jarrell Dillard

Early Friday morning, the Senate finally managed to pass a bill to fund immigration enforcement agencies, bringing a four-month clash with Democrats over sending money to the agencies one step closer to conclusion.

FBI fires analysts who worked on “Richmond memo” about Catholic extremist ideology, sources say

2026-06-05T17:56:00-0400 / CBS News

By

Updated on: June 5, 2026 / 6:01 PM EDT / CBS News

The FBI has fired at least five analysts who were involved in the creation of a withdrawn internal 2023 intelligence memo on “Radical Traditionalist Catholic” ideology that drew the ire of President Trump’s allies, multiple sources familiar with the matter told CBS News.

The analysts’ firings were reported earlier by MS Now.

The FBI declined to comment on the firings.

The so-called “Richmond Memo,” which was a product of the FBI’s Richmond field office, explored links between ethnically motivated violent extremists and radical Catholic views.

An internal investigation of the memo, which was withdrawn under former FBI Director Chris Wray, determined there was no evidence of malicious intent by those who drafted it, but found that it failed to adhere to proper standards and contained some errors in professional judgment.

As a result of the internal review, the FBI instituted a number of corrective actions to bolster approval processes for intelligence products. The employees involved were also admonished.

A separate review by the Justice Department’s then-inspector general also did not find any evidence that anyone had ordered or directed the analysts to find linkages between violent extremists and certain religions. There was also no evidence to suggest that the analysts made any discriminatory or inappropriate comments.

Nevertheless, the missteps over the memo have long been a focal point for Mr. Trump’s allies, who have said it represents evidence of bias against Christians with conservative values.

The memo was featured in a report released earlier this year by the Task Force to Eradicate Anti-Christian Bias, which was created by one of Mr. Trump’s executive orders.

The FBI “investigated, monitored, tracked and scrutinized traditional Catholics who had engaged in no criminal misconduct,” the report claims.

The report also alleged that the FBI Richmond office showed a “misplaced reliance” on the Southern Poverty Law Center in its analysis.

That nonprofit now separately faces criminal charges over allegations by the Justice Department that it lied to donors and banks when it paid informants to infiltrate hate groups. The SPLC has denied wrongdoing and alleged the prosecution is vindictive.

The latest FBI firings, which have continued since last year, mark the latest in a string of removals of bureau employees who were involved in cases or other matters opposed by the Trump administration.

The FBI also earlier fired everyone involved in both criminal prosecutions of Mr. Trump over his retention of classified records and his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

The Justice Department also earlier this year fired several prosecutors who worked on FACE Act cases involving defendants accused of hindering access to reproductive health clinics.

Democratic activist withdraws Platner endorsement amid latest revelations

2026-06-05 7:21 PM EDT / CNN

Democratic activist withdraws Platner endorsement amid latest revelations

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Trump says he’s considering government stake in top AI companies

June 5, 2026 at 5:53 p.m. EDT / The Washington Post

Industry leaders will soon gather at the White House to discuss the idea, the president said. The comments come as SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI prepare to go public.

President Donald Trump, seen aboard Air Force One on Friday. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)

By Ian Duncan and Riley Beggin

President Donald Trump said on Friday that he is considering taking a government stake in leading artificial intelligence companies.

The suggestion follows previous deals in which the Trump administration has taken stakes in major companies including chipmaker Intel, breaching traditions that previously protected American firms from government intervention.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/06/05/tech-leaders-will-discuss-government-stakes-top-ai-firms-trump-says/

Reporter’s Notebook: GOP bets on fraud crackdown as economic woes surge ahead of midterms

Lisa McClain cited Biden-era spending on Sesame Street in the Middle East and transgender mice research as examples of waste

June 5, 2026 4:28pm EDT / Fox News

By Chad Pergram

Lawmakers to vote on anti-fraud bill amid probe on Ohio’s Medicaid program

Fox News chief congressional correspondent Chad Pergram has the latest on new bills up for vote amid concerns about Somalian Medicaid fraud on ‘America Reports.’

NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles!

The GOP’s campaign message about a porous border resonated with voters in 2024. Voters routinely listed border security as the first or second most important issue to them in multiple polls ahead of the last election.

But how about ahead of the midterms?

Well, the border is sealed. The nation’s economic outlook is shaky as the war in Iran drags on. Gas prices are skyrocketing. And the hallmark of President Donald Trump’s legislative agenda — The One Big Beautiful Bill — hasn’t materialized as a campaign juggernaut.

HEALTHCARE, ECONOMY AND THE ‘ONE BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL’: WELCOME TO THE MIDTERMS

President Donald Trump speaks to the press in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., on June 3, 2026.(Mandel Ngan/AFP)

So Republicans are seeking an issue they hope will connect with voters this fall.

They may have settled on fraud. And returned to a favorite old punching bag.

“I’m just going to give you a couple facts,” declared House Republican Conference Chairwoman Lisa McClain, R-Mich., at the GOP’s weekly press conference Wednesday morning. “The Biden Administration thought it was really important to spend $20 million for Sesame Street in the Middle East. They gave $8 million to make mice transgender.”

McClain continued about the Biden Administration providing “free housing and cars for illegals,” adding that “under Biden federal agencies handed out taxpayer dollars with weak oversight, loose control and almost no accountability.”

The government weaponization fund waylaid Congressional Republicans. They’re still trying to figure out what to shove into some sort of an economic package which they can pitch to the voters this fall. So for now, Republicans are focusing on fraud.

“Crazy says fraudsters should be protected. Crazy says the American people’s hard earned tax dollars should be given to criminals who are stealing their money. That’s crazy,” said McClain.

TRUMP SAYS ANTI-FRAUD EFFORTS ARE UNCOVERING BILLIONS IN WASTE, CLAIMS SAVINGS COULD BALANCE BUDGET

Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Mich., leaves a House Republican Conference meeting at the Capitol Hill Club on Feb. 28, 2023.(Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)

House Republicans planned debate on three bills this week to root out fraud in government programs. One bill would enhance oversight over childcare block grants. Another bill would help prevent people from bilking a program which provides emergency aid to society’s most needy. A third measure would target “ghost students” and crack down on fraud in student aid programs.

“The integrity of the programs matter because the taxpayers are not going to support them when they’re filled up with fraud. And it doesn’t matter if it’s child care or SNAP. The American citizens want the fraud eliminated from the system,” argued Rep. Austin Scott, R-Ga.

Some Democrats found the anti-fraud message to be a little absurd.

“They’re not dealing with affordability. The President is saying he’s not concerned. Second, all of us are against fraud. I’ve yet to meet any politician who, when asked ‘Are you for fraud?’ says ‘Yes.” We’re all against it,” said Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vt.

Another Democrat believes Republicans are focusing on the wrong things with fraud.

“What I would love to see is an investigation of fraud and corruption involving the Trump administration, and the Trump family. There’s not a day that goes by that there’s another story about Trump kids benefiting from some government contract,” said Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va.

On Wednesday, Republicans launched a hearing probing alleged Medicaid fraud in Ohio. This came after they unearthed various forms of fraud in Minnesota. Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, claims that bad actors from the Somali community operate in both states.

I’M OHIO’S STATE AUDITOR — MEDICAID FRAUD IS NOT JUST A WASHINGTON PROBLEM

Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, leaves a House Republican Conference meeting in the U.S. Capitol on June 4, 2025.(Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

“You’ve got the largest Somali population in the United States is in Minnesota. The second largest in the United States is in Ohio. Now, it’s not politically correct to say, but the reality is this fraud is coming predominantly from that community,” said Gill.

At the hearing, Gill charged that Somalis “are moving from Ohio to Minnesota and back to Ohio.” He added that “it certainly seems to have some overlap.”

Gill tangled with Democrat Ohio State Sen. Nickie Antonio.

“Would you like to see more immigration from Somalia?” Gill asked the state lawmaker.

“As far as I’m processing your question, I have to say that I was almost brought to tears just now,” replied Antonio.

The two yelled over one another.

“Seventy percent of Somali immigrants are on welfare,” said Gill.

“The rate and the level of hateful rhetoric is based on false information is shocking to me,” responded Antonio.

“They’re defrauding your state at an astounding rate. Most Ohioans have a problem with that,” piled on Gill.

But Antonio pushed back, arguing that Republicans have controlled key positions of power in the Buckeye State for the past 15 years.

“[Republicans] hold the House, the Senate, the governor’s office and four statewide offices. If there is fraud in Medicaid, it has happened on the Republican majority’s watch. Perhaps it’s time to clean Ohio’s house,” rebutted Antonio.

MINNESOTA FRAUD HEARING SPARKS IMMIGRATION CLASH AS GOP LAWMAKER SPOTLIGHTS SOMALI WELFARE DATA

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, joined by House Majority Whip Tom Emmer and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, holds a news conference after a House Republican Conference meeting at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 13, 2026.(Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

A recent Fox poll found that more than 70 percent of those surveyed believe fraud is “very common” in government welfare programs. Since it’s an election year, Republicans hoped to dare Democrats to oppose their anti-fraud efforts when the bills hit the floor.

“For some of the Democrats who might vote against the fraud bills today, will you guys try to weaponize and boomerang those on members who vote no today?” yours truly asked House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La.

“I think their own voters are going to be questioning that,” replied Scalise. “If Democrats vote no on that, it’s going to a hard vote to explain.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y, opposed the GOP’s anti-fraud efforts. But he gave Democrats from battleground districts a wide berth to decide what to do.

“Democrats are going to make a decision based on what’s the right thing to do for the district that they represent. And I trust every single Democrat, particularly those who are in swing districts, to do the right thing for the people that they’re privileged to represent,” said Jeffries.

On Wednesday afternoon, the House passed the childcare fraud bill. Only four Democrats voted yea.

GOP MUST RACE FOR NEW ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’ TO SLASH COSTS BEFORE MIDTERMS, TOP HOUSE REPUBLICANS WARN

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries holds a news conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on March 19, 2026.(Daniel Heuer/Bloomberg)

But Republicans yanked the bill focused on fraud in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) bill. The reason? One senior House GOP leadership source said the bill lacked the votes and “needed a little work.” Another Republican source said attendance issues among Republicans might inhibit passage of the bill.

So what about the ghost student bills? Well, that measure was a legislative phantasm. The House didn’t conduct votes until Wednesday this week. The House then ghosted everyone on Friday, leaving the Capitol a day earlier than planned.

This trio of fraud measures are “messaging” bills in Congress. It’s doubtful that these plans will become law. But the leadership believes it’s important to “message” a subject like this to voters. And also point to votes where Democrats opposed such efforts.

But for all of the focus on fraud by House Republicans, they only managed to pass one of their three messaging bills this week.

That’s a .333 average. Baseball old-timers Paul Waner and Eddie Collins both boasted .333 batting averages for their career. They’re in the baseball Hall of Fame. But a .333 average isn’t Cooperstown-worthy on Capitol Hill.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

That said, Republicans will tee up several other anti-fraud measures next week. So there’s a reprieve. However, if the GOP doesn’t bat 1.000 on their fraud bills next week, some voters may designate them for assignment.

Or maybe ghost them at the polls.

Chad Pergram currently serves as Chief Congressional Correspondent for FOX News Channel (FNC). He joined the network in September 2007 and is based out of Washington, D.C.

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6397457752112

Heightened security for Trump attending NBA Finals includes ban on all bags at Madison Square Garden

2026-06-05 6:56 PM EDT / CBS News

As President Trump prepares to watch his hometown New York Knicks take on the San Antonio Spurs at Madison Square Garden next week, local and federal officials are planning for a heightened security posture, according to law enforcement sources familiar with the planning.

The president is expected to travel to New York City to watch Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Monday, according to the official White House schedule. Mr. Trump said he was invited by Knicks owner James Dolan, and described himself as a “big fan” of the team.

As a result, the security footprint will look very different from the first two games of the series in San Antonio, with hundreds of U.S. Secret Service officers and agents deployed on Monday, along with thousands of New York Police Department personnel, sources said.

A hard closure is expected around the entirety of Madison Square Garden. Officials are planning for no watch parties, no vehicle access and no pedestrian travel through the secured area, which sits in a busy part of Midtown Manhattan and is above a major transit hub.

The Seventh and Eighth Avenue corridors around the arena are expected to be closed.

Only ticketed fans will be allowed to enter Madison Square Garden, and they will go through Secret Service-level screening before entering — similar to the Transportation Security Administration’s screening process at airports. No bags will be permitted, and attendees are advised not to bring purses, backpacks or totes of any size, law enforcement sources said.

Checkpoints are expected to open at 6:30 p.m., two hours prior to the scheduled tipoff, and fans are encouraged to arrive early. Magnetometers can screen roughly 300 people per hour, and officials expect to have dozens operating to process tens of thousands of attendees.

“It’s the first president that’s ever come in to go to a basketball playoff game. So you can imagine the Garden is gonna have 50,000 fans, now you’ve got a presidential motorcade coming in, streets sealed off,” former NYPD Deputy Commissioner Rich Esposito told CBS New York.

Penn Station — which sits directly underneath the arena — will remain open, and officials do not expect any impact on service in the nation’s busiest train station.

Mr. Trump will be the first sitting president to attend an NBA game since 2015, when former President Barack Obama watched the season opener between his hometown Chicago Bulls and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is also planning to go to Game 3, but he told reporters he “will be in a very different section of the stadium” from Mr. Trump.

The security surrounding the president has drawn intense scrutiny over the last two years, following two assassination attempts during the 2024 campaign and a third alleged attempt on his life during last month’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner.

The Secret Service has a long history of operating in Manhattan, which is home to the president’s former primary residence at Trump Tower. And Mr. Trump last visited Madison Square Garden for a campaign rally in 2024.

Since returning to the White House, he has attended several sporting events, including the Super Bowl last year in New Orleans, the College Football Playoff National Championship game in Miami earlier this year and the FIFA Club World Cup Final in New Jersey last year.

Aaron Navarro and Ali Bauman contributed to this report.

https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/video/president-trump-attending-game-3-of-nba-finals-in-nyc-poses-big-security-challenge/

特朗普：伊朗剩两成导弹 最终只能与美国达成协议

2026年6月6日 07:19 / 联合早报

特朗普：伊朗剩两成导弹 最终只能与美国达成协议

特朗普指伊朗人“坚强和自豪”，但他们最终别无选择，只能与美国达成协议。 （路透社）

美国总统特朗普说，伊朗还剩下21%至22%的导弹。伊朗领导人之所以还不与美国达成结束战争的协议，是因为他们“坚强”和“自豪”，但他们最终“别无选择”，只能与美国达成协议。

特朗普星期五（6月5日）接受美国全国广播公司（NBC）“会见媒体”节目专访时说：“伊朗还一些导弹和无人机。我估计，大概还有21%到22%的导弹，数量相当多，但跟我们最初发动攻击时的情况相比，已经大不相同了。”

特朗普说：“他们是坚强和自豪的，有些事情他们过去完全不会考虑，但现在他们不得不考虑了。他们别无选择，但这需要一点时间。”

在特朗普接受NBC专访时，美伊战争已进入第四周，双方仍在持续谈判。

在专访中，特朗普批评那些敦促他尽快与伊朗达成协议以结束战争的人，他说：“谈这些事需要很多年时间。”

中期选举压力使共和党人开始与特朗普唱反调
特朗普: 美国无须与伊朗达成协议即可获取浓缩铀

特朗普说：“他们（伊朗）已经战斗了47年。他们一直在杀害美国人，导致一些美国人断腿断臂，还有可怕的毁容。”

特朗普接着将伊朗战争的持续时间与越南战争进行比较，“我的速度非常快。我才打了三个月。你知道，越南战争长达19年。我现在是第三个月，他们却只会问，‘你几时才能取得胜利？’ 如果我是民主党人，就没有人会这么说，但这对我来说无关紧要。我已经习惯了。”

美国国务卿3日出席众议院听证会时说，被特朗普政府称为“史诗狂怒”的这场军事行动“已经结束”。

Trump visits Wisconsin in bid to reassure farmers squeezed by surging costs

2026-06-05T23:03:25.012Z / The Washington Post

Besides higher fertilizer and fuel prices, the president also talked at length about D.C.’s fountains and his border policies.

June 5, 2026 at 7:03 p.m. EDT 27 minutes ago

President Donald Trump visits Custer Farms in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, on Friday. (Nathan Howard/Reuters)

By Isaac Arnsdorf and Cat Zakrzewski

CHIPPEWA FALLS, Wisconsin — Fertilizer is up more than 25 percent this year, diesel is close to a record high, and farmers are still reeling from billions in crop losses from last year’s trade war. And as President Donald Trump spoke inside a packed barn on a corn and soybean farm here Friday, he acknowledged that prices have soared even as he promised they would come down soon.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/06/05/trump-visits-wisconsin-bid-reassure-farmers/

In a visit to farm country, Trump extols ‘beautiful fountains’ back in Washington

2026-06-05 7:20 PM ET / CNN

By Jeff Zeleny

10 min ago

PUBLISHED Jun 5, 2026, 7:20 PM ET

Donald Trump Agriculture

President Donald Trump walks past tractors as he arrives to participate in a roundtable on “American Agriculture” at Custer Farms in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, on Friday.

Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

Summary

• President Donald Trump spent much of his visit to Wisconsin farm country discussing Washington fountain renovations.
• Trump told farmers their lives are better than his and said rising fertilizer costs from the Iran war are temporary.
• The visit comes as Republican Rep. Derrick Van Orden faces a competitive midterm race in a district where Trump’s trade policies have created economic unease.

AI-generated summary was reviewed by a CNN editor.

Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin—

As President Donald Trump took his seat Friday for a roundtable conversation on agriculture, speaking beneath a green sign with a giant slogan, “Fighting for American Farmers,” he quickly moved on to other matters on his mind.

“We’re very proud of Washington,” Trump said. “We had 22 fountains that didn’t work – all of the fountains, not one fountain in Washington worked – and now they’re clean and beautiful.”

It’s about 1,025 miles from Custer Farms in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin to the White House. The relative silence of the audience seemed to suggest that his supporters may not have shared the same enthusiasm over his projects, or at least the priority that he has placed upon them.

He held up images of the reflecting pool and other projects he’s been shepherding around the nation’s capital. Yet the piece of paper was so small, it could barely be seen in the crowd. He seemed to notice, so he said with a smile: “I’m too cheap to put up a projector.”

For Trump, it was a rare return to the campaign trail – his first visit back to Wisconsin since winning the state in 2024. And he was stepping into one of the biggest battlegrounds of the midterm elections, where Republican Rep. Derrick Van Orden is locked in one of the most competitive races in the country in the GOP’s effort to hold the House majority.

There was little doubt Trump’s supporters were happy to see him again – they waited for hours, as a baking sun turned into a driving rainstorm – but it was less clear how eager Trump was to be there.

“I don’t need this,” Trump said with a laugh. “I got elected.”

A general view of Custer Farms during a roundtable on agriculture with President Donald Trump on Friday in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin.

Samuel Corum/Getty Images

Supporters listen during a roundtable on agriculture with President Donald Trump at Custer Farms on Friday in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin.

Samuel Corum/Getty Images

He juxtaposed the burdens of his life to those facing farmers, saying they have it far easier than the leader of the free world.

“Your life is much better than my life,” Trump said. “You have a nice, safe beautiful life.”

It was hardly an I-feel-your-pain-moment — nor did it display the kind of empathy that many presidents try to express as they acknowledge economic hardships facing the American people.

Related article A farmer operates a cotton stripper during a cotton harvest on a farm near Corn, Oklahoma, US, on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025. Nick Oxford/Bloomberg/Getty Images Trump announces $12 billion farmer aid package 2 min read

The president’s trade policies – and tariff whiplash – have created deep economic unease across the nation’s farm belt. Soaring diesel and fertilizer prices, attributed to the Iran war, have added another layer of political concern for Republicans seeking reelection and trying to stay in power.

“We’ll take care of fertilizer,” Trump said, insisting that rising costs from the Iran war would only be temporary. He teased the possibility of sending more government aid to farmers, a proposition which was met with silence in the room.

“What happened here is artificial with the energy and the fertilizer,” he said, “so we’re looking at something.”

One of the loudest bursts of applause from hundreds of people in the audience came when Trump relayed a story about how a farmer once told him that fair trade was far more important than government subsidies. The room fell silent when he noted that farmers still take the aid.

“We’d rather have fair trade than the subsidies,” Brad Peterson, a farm owner and of the roundtable participants, later said.

Van Orden, who represents this swath of western Wisconsin’s dairy country and serves on the House Agriculture Committee, acknowledged the economic pain facing farmers. He urged patience, but fiercely defended the president’s policies.

US President Donald Trump speaks during the roundtable.

Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

“If anybody – anybody – you hear says that Donald Trump and this administration doesn’t care about the farmers,” Van Orden said, “you can look them straight in the eye and tell them that’s a pile of manure.”

Democratic congressional candidate Rebecca Cooke, who is the party’s preferred candidate to challenge Van Orden, grew up on a farm a few miles away from the one Trump visited. She said the voters of western Wisconsin “feel betrayed by him.”

“He’s sort of coming into the lion’s den,” Cooke told CNN. “Farmers just want stable marketplaces to be able to feed the world, they’re not looking for government handouts.”

She added: “I feel like it’s sort of a slap in the face to come here to talk about all the things that these coastal elites have passed that have actually been really a detriment to family farmers.”

CNN’s Kit Maher contributed to this report.

Colombia’s outgoing president Gustavo Petro accuses Trump of intervening in his country’s election

June 5, 2026 / 7:27 PM EDT / CBS News

In less than two weeks, Colombians will head to the polls in a runoff election to choose between a far-right outsider endorsed by President Trump, and a far-left senator who promises to deepen current President Gustavo Petro’s policies and legacy.

Days after far-right candidate Abelardo de la Espriella finished first in Sunday’s vote with 43.7% of the vote, followed by leftist Iván Cepeda with 40.9%, Petro sat down with CBS News to discuss his alternative approach to the war on drugs.

Petro defended his record on the cultivation of coca, the base material for cocaine. He called Mr. Trump’s endorsement of his opponent an act of interference and accused Washington of abandoning anti-drug mission cooperation for ideological reasons. Petro warned that if the right comes to power, Colombia will see a wave of political violence.

Human rights groups have found that under the Petro Administration, the membership, territorial control and violent power of organized crime groups have flourished.

Petro calls out Trump on political “intervention”

Mr. Trump weighed in on Colombia’s election after De la Espriella won the first round. In a social media post, he gave de la Espriella his “Complete and Total Endorsement,” and warned that “The results of this Election are very important to the future of Colombia and its relationship to the United States.”

“Our republics were founded on the principles of freedom and sovereignty,” Petro said, claiming the U.S. government is siding with narco-paramilitarism, underscoring Mr. Trump’s support of former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández, who was convicted in the U.S. of trafficking and recently pardoned by Mr. Trump.

Petro said friction between his administration and the White House has come “because we are progressives, because we are on the left, and because we disagree on issues like Gaza.”

He argued the U.S. has chosen to align against his government and back forces he identifies as complicit in the drug trade.

Still, Petro hopes to maintain amicable terms with the Trump administration, which has sanctioned Petro personally, withdrawn his U.S. visa and signaled criminal probes. According to a Colombian official working with Petro, he will no longer meet with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, as he had initially planned during his visit to the United Nations last year. CBS News reached out to the mayor’s office, but has not heard back.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in recent weeks that the current Colombian government has been “problematic,” while calling most of the region “filled with American allies.” He also said the U.S. would be “very forceful in guaranteeing that there is a free and fair election in Colombia.”

“In Colombia, hatred immediately produces deaths”

On the question of violence and who is responsible for it, Petro was defensive. He insisted that the overall homicide rate in Colombia has remained relatively stable during his government, citing figures hovering around 25 to 26 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants.

What has changed, he said, is the composition of that violence. “Sicariato” or contract killings, have increased, he said, while what he calls “social crime” or crime that “comes from society itself,” has decreased. He did not deny that criminal groups have grown stronger on his watch.

When asked whether he takes responsibility for a rightward shift in Colombia stemming from an increase in violence, due to failed peace negotiations with terrorist groups, he pointed to Colombia’s long history of polarization and to global manipulation campaigns that he says are making populations see political opponents as enemies.

“In Colombia, hatred immediately produces deaths,” he said. “Promoting a discourse of hatred, as is happening these days, ‘gut the progressives…’ is inciting a violence that could become unstoppable in this country.”

The coca proliferation problem

Under Petro, forced coca eradication collapsed. Annual data for the last year of President Iván Duque in 2022 shows Colombian authorities eradicated 130,000 hectares of coca. Under Petro, that number fell to roughly 9,000, a reduction of more than 90%, which Petro does not dispute.

“I do not want forced eradication because it doesn’t work,” he told CBS News, arguing that “the money gets stolen.”

His approach, instead, involved talking to rural communities and pursuing voluntary crop substitution.

“I stopped targeting peasant farmers in the territories,” Petro said. “I stopped bombing, burning down their homes, forcibly displacing them and imprisoning them. Instead, I started talking to them, taking advantage of the fact that they trusted me because I am a progressive. What did I achieve? I stabilized it.”

Petro walked CBS News through graphics that show a slight downward trend in total coca cultivation since 2024, but Daniel Mejía, a professor at Universidad de los Andes who has advised multiple Colombian governments on counternarcotics policy, questions the numbers.

Mejía said this is the first government in 27 years to delay publication of the United Nations coca crop census figures by more than a year. The data that has surfaced shows coca cultivation in Colombia rose by at least 9,000 hectares in 2024, reaching roughly 262,000 hectares. The data provided for the years since comes from within the government. Petro’s response was that his government uses the same methodology as the U.N.

That answer does not satisfy Mejía, and neither does Petro’s broader argument that crop substitution is working where forced eradication failed. The government never funded it, he said.

“They have a different approach; that’s fine. But do that approach,” Mejía said.

According to Mejía, budget execution for Colombia’s crop substitution and alternative development programs never exceeded 15% of allocated funds in any of the first three full years of Petro’s government. In some years, it was as low as 8%. Mejía explains Petro abandoned the stick and barely used the carrot.

What happens next?

The 1.6 million votes cast for Paloma Valencia, the mainstream conservative who finished third, are now in play. Valencia endorsed de la Espriella, though her running mate, a center-left politician Juan Daniel Oviedo, still has not.

De la Espriella outperformed his polls to capture 43.3% in the first round against Cepeda’s 40.5%. He is slightly favored heading into the runoff.

If he wins, he has promised to resume widespread aerial fumigation of coca fields, a practice that has been banned in Colombia since 2015. He promotes pursuing boat strikes against suspected drug traffickers and bringing a security doctrine to Colombia similar to that of El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele.

Petro argues that by supporting the right wing, the U.S. is “losing allies who could be powerful partners in the fight against drug trafficking.” Instead, he feels undermined by the Trump administration because of his progressive politics.

Petro on Trump, Colombia’s election

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/colombias-petro-says-without-a-doubt-trump-is-interfering-with-his-countrys-election/