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Interstellar comet that zoomed past Earth could be oldest and coldest object ever seen in solar system, astronomers say

June 22, 2026 / 1:03 PM EDT / CBS/AFP

An interstellar comet that blazed past the sun and swung by Earth last year could be nearly three times older than our solar system and is unlike anything ever before seen in our cosmic backyard, astronomers said Monday.

The comet 3I/ATLAS is just the third visitor from beyond our solar system that humanity has ever observed, its unusual brightness offering scientists an unprecedented opportunity to study something that came from elsewhere in the galaxy.

After being spotted in July last year, the space rock prompted excitement online, with one prominent Harvard researcher speculating it could be an alien spacecraft — a theory that NASA shot down.

Now, observations by the world’s most powerful telescopes are revealing more about the unique comet.

According to a new study published Monday in the journal Nature, 3I/ATLAS could be up to 12 million years old. Our solar system is believed to have formed around 4.5 billion years ago.

Lead study author Martin Cordiner of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center told AFP that “maybe it’s the oldest object to have been observed in our solar system.”

This image, provided by NASA, shows the interstellar comet 3I/Atlas captured by the Hubble Space Telescope on Nov. 30, 2025, about 178 million miles from Earth. NASA, ESA, STScI, D. Jewitt (UCLA), M.-T. Hui (Shanghai Astronomical Observatory), J. DePasquale (STScI) via AP

However, there could be “edge-case scenarios” that offer other explanations for the comet’s unusual chemical composition, he added.

The new research is based on the comet’s ratio of chemical elements, called isotopes, detected by the James Webb space telescope and the ALMA observatory in Chile.

These measurements “reveal an elemental composition unlike any solar system body,” the study said.

Possible relic from “cosmic noon”

Compared to comets in our solar system, 3I/ATLAS has 10 times more deuterium, a type of hydrogen commonly seen in heavy water, according to the study.

“That high abundance of heavy water can only really happen, according to our understanding of astrochemistry, in a very cold environment,” Cordiner explained.

This means the comet is also likely among the coldest objects ever seen in our solar system, the isotopic evidence suggesting it formed in an environment that was minus 243 degrees Celsius.

Exactly where this comet came from within the Milky Way remains a mystery.

But these interstellar objects are thought to form in a similar way to the comets in our Solar System — being flung out during the violent formation of a new planet.

Untethered to any star, 3I/ATLAS likely spent billions of years on “vast unimaginable trajectories around our galaxy,” Cordiner said.

The scientists also detected a strange lack of chemical enrichment on the comet, which suggests it formed relatively close to stars being born.

It could even be a “relic” from an era called “cosmic noon” when many stars were forming around 10 billion years ago, Cordiner said.

The previous interstellar objects — 1I/’Oumuamua, which was spotted in 2017, followed by 2I/Borisov in 2019 — were not bright enough to gather isotopic evidence.

NASA has released several images of 3I/Atlas, including one in November showing it move through space about 180 million miles from Earth.

Last October, images taken by two Mars orbiters showed a bright, fuzzy white dot of the comet, appearing to move against a backdrop of distant stars as it was about 18,641,135 miles away from Mars. The month before that, an image showed the growing tail of 3I/ATLAS streaking across our solar system.

This image provided by NASA/European Space Agency shows an image captured by Hubble of the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS on July 21, 2025, when the comet was 277 million miles from Earth. NASA/European Space Agency via AP

Harvard professor Avi Loeb, who had previously sparked controversy by suggesting ‘Oumuamua could be an alien spacecraft, made similar suggestions about 3I/ATLAS.

“We should put all possibilities on the table that it’s a rock, a comet, or something else until we get the evidence, the data that will tell us what it is,” Loeb said in an interview with CBS Boston.

However NASA has dismissed the possibility of alien life. The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute (SETI) said last month it had found “no evidence of extraterrestrial technology” on the comet.

“Just the beginning”

Several astronomers who have studied 3I/ATLAS, but were not involved in the new research, hailed the unprecedented results.

“Until these measurements we could only really dream about” getting this kind of information for an interstellar object, Darryl Seligman of Michigan State University told AFP.

He cautioned that the comet’s age remained uncertain, adding it was “a safe bet that it’s older than anything that formed in the solar system.”

Astronomer Peter Veres, who was involved in identifying the comet at the International Astronomical Union’s Minor Planet Center, called the research “exciting.”

“The comet is now leaving the solar system and will never return, so future observations will become increasingly difficult,” he told AFP.

However astronomers expect to spot many more interstellar objects in the coming years, particularly via the new Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile.

“This is just the beginning of an exciting new field, we’ve got a lot more to learn about these things —and what they can tell us about our galaxy,” Cordiner concluded.

US judge shuts down DOJ immigration probe into Walz, Minnesota officials

2026-06-22 16:52:03 / Reuters

[1/2]Minnesota Governor Tim Walz attends the House Oversight and Accountability Committee hearing investigating fraud in Minnesota state social services, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 4, 2026. REUTERS/Ken Cedeno Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

• Summary

• Judge quashes DOJ subpoenas to Walz, other officials
• Trump administration demanded info in probe examining interference with immigration surge
• Judge finds justification for investigation “risible”

WASHINGTON, June 22 (Reuters) – A U.S. judge found ​that the Trump administration unlawfully demanded information from several Minnesota officials at the height of its immigration crackdown in the state ‌earlier this year, ruling that the Justice Department had abused the investigative process.

The

ruling, opens new tab
by Minnesota-based U.S. District Judge Patrick Schiltz quashed subpoenas to the office of the state’s Democratic Governor Tim Walz and five other local and state offices, according to an order made public on Monday.

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It effectively halts a probe by President Donald Trump’s Justice Department into whether ​Democratic officials had impeded immigration enforcement in their public resistance to the deployment of thousands of agents to conduct deportation roundups.

Schiltz, an appointee of Republican ​President George W. Bush, wrote that the Justice Department’s legal justification for the investigation was “risible.”

“The Court finds that the ⁠dominant purpose of the challenged subpoenas is to coerce Minnesota officials into assisting the federal government with enforcing civil immigration law and to harass ​and retaliate against them for failing to do so,” Schiltz wrote. The order issued on June 17 was unsealed on Monday.

A Justice Department spokesperson said the ​department “takes the unlawful obstruction of federal law enforcement operations extremely seriously and will continue to act in full compliance with the law to investigate these matters.”

SUBPOENAS TIED TO IMMIGRATION SURGE

The immigration surge led to numerous violent confrontations with residents and activists in the Minneapolis area, including the killings of two U.S. citizens by federal agents in January.

The ruling is ​the latest to find that the Trump Justice Department conducted a politically motivated investigation aimed more at harassing opponents than examining potential crimes. A ​judge in Washington, D.C., made a similar finding in halting a probe into then-Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell in March.

The Trump Justice Department sought a wide range of information on ‌state ⁠and local policies and directives related to federal immigration operations. The subpoena recipients included Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Walz, whom Trump has frequently derided and who served as Democrat Kamala Harris’ vice presidential nominee in 2024.

Walz said in a written statement that the decision was “a victory for the rule of law and our democracy.”

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, a Democrat whose office was also subpoenaed, applauded the ruling. In a written statement he said, “In America, we ​settle our political differences at the ​ballot box, and it should disturb ⁠every American that Donald Trump is weaponizing the criminal justice system against people he disagrees with.”

The Justice Department issued the subpoenas in January as Trump administration officials accused Walz and other officials of deliberately stoking interference with Immigration ​and Customs Enforcement operations in the state.

Walz openly encouraged citizens to record video of ICE arrests and lauded ​protesters opposed to the ⁠Trump administration’s crackdown.

DOJ lawyers said the investigation was focused on whether state and local officials had violated laws barring obstructing federal operations and harbored migrants living illegally in the United States.

Recipients challenged the subpoenas in court, arguing they were issued for the improper purpose of retaliating against political opponents and coercing cooperation with ⁠the federal ​government.

Schiltz found that the DOJ put forward little evidence that state and local officials had ​violated any laws.

“The fact that connections between the information sought in the subpoenas and any possible criminal violation range from extremely weak to nonexistent only adds to the overwhelming evidence that ​these subpoenas were not issued to investigate, but to harass, coerce, and retaliate,” the judge wrote.

Reporting by Andrew Goudsward; Editing by Daphne Psaledakis and Bill Berkrot

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Judge blocks Trump’s use of revamped immigration database for voter checks

2026-06-22T17:54:05.394Z / Reuters

A poll worker holds a roll of ‘I voted’ stickers at an El Dorado County polling station during California’s special election on Proposition 50 in El Dorado Hills, California, U.S., November 4, 2025. REUTERS/Fred Greaves/File Photo

• Summary

• U.S. District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan sets aside Trump’s revamp of DHS’s SAVE system
• Voting-rights groups argued states’ use of the system disenfranchised U.S. citizens
• Ruling comes ​as Trump seeks to boost federal government’s role in elections

June 22 (Reuters) – A federal judge on Monday blocked the ‌Trump administration from using a revamped version of an immigration database for checking the accuracy of state voter rolls, dealing a blow to U.S. President Donald Trump’s efforts to boost the role of the federal government in elections ahead of the midterm elections in November.

Last year, the Department of Homeland Security revamped a system it uses ​to verify individuals’ citizenship and immigration status to make it easier for state and local officials to use it to make ​sure voters were U.S. citizens.

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In a

75-page decision
on Monday, U.S. District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan in Washington, D.C., sided with ⁠voting rights and privacy advocates who argued that the overhaul of the system, known as SAVE, made it less accurate and risked ​disenfranchising eligible voters.

“The federal government has knowingly trampled on the privacy rights of American citizens in a manner that threatens the sacred right to ​vote,” wrote Sooknanan, an appointee of Democratic President Joe Biden. “This Court cannot stand idly by while that happens.”

Neither DHS nor the Justice Department, which represents the administration in court, immediately responded to requests for comment.

TRUMP SEEKS TO BOOST FEDERAL ROLE IN ELECTIONS

Trump’s Republicans are locked in a fierce battle to maintain control of both ​houses of Congress in the November 3 midterm elections.

In the U.S., federal elections are administered by individual states. Trump and his allies have long ​asserted that states are not doing enough to prevent voter fraud, even though audits and academic studies have found that it is rare. Trump argues, falsely, ‌that ⁠his loss in the 2020 presidential election was due to fraud.

His administration’s efforts to boost the federal government’s control over elections have largely been stymied by the courts.

Three federal judges in separate cases have blocked Trump’s 2025 executive order requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote and restricting the counting of mail ballots.

A March 2026 executive order restricting mail-in voting has also drawn legal challenges. Federal judges have also rejected nine of the ​lawsuits the administration has brought against ​30 states and the District ⁠of Columbia for refusing to hand over their complete voter rolls.

Critics say Republicans are driven less by concerns over election security than by an effort to gain political advantage by narrowing the electorate, risking the disenfranchisement ​of eligible, often Democratic-leaning voters.

DATABASE REVAMP RAISES PRIVACY CONCERNS

Last year’s SAVE revamp allowed users to search ​many records at a ⁠time and gave them access to individuals’ Social Security numbers.

Since then, several Republican-led states have compared their voter lists to the database and cancelled the registrations of registered voters flagged as noncitizens.

The advocacy groups who brought the lawsuit, including the League of Women Voters, said that has resulted in ⁠people who ​were wrongfully identified as noncitizens being kicked off voter rolls.

Voting-rights advocates argue that SAVE ​can be outdated, meaning immigrants who have been naturalized and are thus eligible to vote are sometimes labeled as noncitizens.

Sooknanan ruled that the revamp also violated privacy laws restricting ​the federal government’s disclosure of Social Security numbers and other information.

Reporting by Luc Cohen in New York; Editing by Noeleen Walder and Matthew Lewis

Albania protests sparked by Jared Kushner-backed luxury resort plans snowball into anti-corruption movement

June 22, 2026 12:23 PM EDT / CBS News

By
Emmet Lyons Producer

Thousands of Albanians have taken to the streets of the country’s capital Tirana for 21 consecutive days in protests sparked by concerns over a Jared Kushner-backed luxury tourism development in an area rich in natural beauty.

Anger over the construction plans for the historically protected Pishë Poro-Narta area on the country’s coast have expanded into a wider movement against alleged corruption in the Albanian government and the country’s ruling elite.

Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law, is among a group of investors seeking to build a luxury tourism complex on Albania’s Sazan Island and along the country’s Adriatic coastline. Early planning documents reviewed by CBS News show the project could include 800 guest rooms and suites, luxury villas, a golf course, a casino, a water park, and townhouses and apartments.

Protesters gather in front of Albania’s Prime Minister’s Office during a demonstration against plans for a luxury resort development near a protected natural area, in Tirana, June 20, 2026. Adnan Beci/AFP/Getty

CBS News sought comment from Kushner’s firm Affinity Partners earlier this month to confirm his involvement in the project. The company referred CBS News to Sazan Real Estate Development, and a spokesperson for that firm said it represented all investors in the project “who are involved in their personal capacity.”

“This project is still in its design and iterative phase, with our team continuing to refine scope, approach, and vision through a deliberate process that prioritizes environmental stewardship and showcases the country’s natural beauty. We look forward to continued engagement about the potential of this project and its potential to make Albania even more of a global destination,” a Sazan Real Estate spokesperson said in a June 18 statement to CBS News.

The planning documents also shed light on who else is financially backing the deal. Among the parties involved is the Qatar-based Assets Group, run by brothers Moutaz and Ramez Al Khayyat, Syrian-born billionaires with ties to the Qatari royal family, and to Washington.

They attended President Trump’s inauguration, and according to the New York Times, their brother Mohamad Al Khayyat previously lobbied U.S. lawmakers to lift sanctions on Syria and pitched the idea of developing a Trump-branded golf course in the country.

A representative for Sazan Real Estate confirmed the involvement of the Al Khayyat brothers in the project to CBS News on Thursday.

Corporate filings reviewed by CBS News on Monday appear to show Sazan Real Estate was initially registered and formed in Qatar. The documents cite the Al Khayyat’s Assets Group as a partner of the company.

The filings also appear to show that Sazan Real Estate is the parent company of Zvërnec South Adriatic Development. According to local reporting, Zvërnec South Adriatic Development is the firm that holds the development permit to build on the land in Sazan island and along the Pishë Poro-Narta coastline.

The documents reviewed by CBS News also reveal that Zvërnec South Adriatic Development is controlled by a complicated structure of five different shell companies registered and formed in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Albanian activists have told CBS News that a lack of transparency from the government — both over this project and wider issues related to alleged corruption — are driving the outrage behind the protests, which have become some of the largest seen in Albania since the fall of communism in the country in 1991.

Protesters gather in front of Albania’s Prime Minister’s Office during a demonstration against a luxury resort development near a protected natural area, in Tirana, June 20, 2026. Adnan Beci/AFP/Getty

“There was no public consultation whatsoever,” Aleksandr Trajce, executive director of the country’s leading conservation group, Protection and Preservation of the Natural Environment in Albania (PPNEA), told CBS News earlier this month. “There was nobody who was informed. Just one day, we saw bulldozers entering outside, opening up roads, cutting trees, destroying the dunes, and so on. So the public knew nothing.”

Prime Minister Edi Rama, who has led Albania since 2013, has insisted the project will go ahead despite the mounting public pressure.

He championed the development as a potential economic boon for the country, which has one of the lowest rates of GDP per capita in Europe.

A sign denouncing Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama is seen as protesters demonstrate against the government, following weeks of protests sparked by plans for a luxury resort backed by a company linked to Jared Kushner on an environmentally sensitive part of the Adriatic coast, in Tirana, Albania, June 21, 2026. Valdrin Xhemaj/REUTERS

Rama’s socialist administration has been embroiled in a corruption scandal since charges were filed late last year against Deputy Prime Minister Belinda Balluku, a close ally of the leader. The country’s parliament, led by a socialist majority, has blocked her arrest, however.

A spokesperson for Albania’s independent anti-corruption body SPAK confirmed to CBS News last week that it had opened an investigation into a planned development, but they said the investigation does “not concern any company associated with Mr. Kushner.”

CBS News traveled with protesters earlier this month to the Zvërnec area on Albania’s southern coast, where some of the development is planned. There was no trace of bulldozers or building equipment beyond some tire tracks on the beach.

Demonstrators attributed that to an effort by the Albanian government to quell public anger over the project, but they also told CBS News that initial work toward the development plans had already caused environmental damage.

A local environmental officer with PPNEA told CBS News the group had documented the destruction of at least one sea turtle nest in the area by bulldozers.

As protests continue, Sazan Real Estate Development told CBS News the development’s “future will ultimately be determined by Albania and the Albanian people.”

Trump threatens serious criminal penalties for those he says ‘vandalized’ the Reflecting Pool

2026-06-22T19:23:42.216Z / https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/22/politics/reflecting-pool-trump-vandalism

President Donald Trump called Monday for those he accused of vandalizing the newly renovated, and now quickly deteriorating, Reflecting Pool on the National Mall to face serious criminal charges that could result in lengthy prison sentences.

In a Truth Social post, the president lamented the state of the pool, which he said had been “Vandalized.”

“Please remember that there is a 10 year prison sentence for the destruction, or even the attempted destruction, of such things – Which will be fully enforced!” the president wrote on Truth Social.

While prosecutors in Washington, DC, haven’t yet formally brought charges, the Justice Department will need to decide in the coming days how aggressively it will pursue people who were arrested and cited over the weekend as the pool’s bottom blue layer was peeling off. The recent $14 million renovation is one of many architectural projects in the nation’s capital that Trump has boosted.

Meanwhile, National Guard members, Park Police and other law enforcement were present around the Reflecting Pool on Monday.

The violations cited by the US Park Police, at least initially, are misdemeanors in DC’s local Superior Court – for vandalizing, disorderly conduct or defacing public property.

But Trump’s post suggested that the cases could be charged as more serious crimes if US Attorney Jeanine Pirro decides they should be.

The US attorney’s office for the District of Columbia says it is still reviewing a handful of citations issued over the weekend but hasn’t yet brought any charges in court.

Pirro, speaking on Fox News over the weekend, said those who vandalized or tried to vandalize the pool will “face the criminal justice system in DC.”

“There are several citations that have been handed out to individuals, and these are cases that will be prosecuted to the full extent,” Pirro said. “If there are more serious products that are put into the Reflecting Pool to create more algae or a bigger problem, then we’ll consider more serious charges.”

A destruction of government property offense could be charged as a felony in federal court if the damage is pricey. That type of federal criminal charge carries a maximum fine of up to $250,000 or 10 years in prison, though maximum sentences are exceedingly rare in practice.

So far, one person, David Hearn, a former Olympic canoeist, told CNN police arrested him after he touched a flap of blue material that partially detached from the bottom of the pool, which reopened earlier this month following the multi-million-dollar renovation.

Hearn said a National Park Service worker warned him not to reach into the water before he was handcuffed by Park Police. He denied vandalizing the pool and said he was simply curious. His first court appearance is set for July 9.

A Department of Interior spokesperson told CNN that five people had been arrested for vandalism, while an additional five people were issued federal citations. Fourteen police reports have been filed for vandalism, the spokesperson said.

“The U.S. Park Police will continue to carry out their number one duty of upholding law and order in our nation’s capital,” the spokesperson added.

The Park Police didn’t respond on Monday to further inquiries, including about the identities of the people accused of vandalizing the pool.

The ongoing saga has become a sort of a political Rorschach test: For Trump supporters, the vandalism alleged by the president is the latest example of Trump opponents stopping at nothing to wreck the president’s efforts to beautify the nation’s capital.

For the president’s critics, the back-and-forth demonstrates yet another way in which Trump seems to be preoccupied with his multiple renovation projects despite the war with Iran and the resulting high prices for gas and groceries.

Lawyers for a nonprofit suing over how the administration carried out the pool renovation also told the DC judge overseeing the case that the recent algae blooms and peeling bottom reinforce the need for him to require the administration to follow certain procedural steps that they’ve been bypassing to get the renovation done quickly.

“The public is now witnessing what happens when, instead, agencies barrel ahead with ill-conceived plans in a hasty manner to meet an arbitrary deadline imposed by the White House,” the lawyers wrote in court papers filed Monday. “As Defendants determine how to get out of their self-created mess, and restore the Reflecting Pool, Defendants can and should do what the law requires: Engage with experts and the public, and make an informed decision about what is best based on the consultations mandated by the law, instead of once again rushing ahead with half-baked ideas.”

Trump’s stance on the destruction of federal property also contrasts with his pardoning of over 1,000 participants in the January 6, 2021, insurrection – including those who vandalized the US Capitol – in one of the first official acts of his second term.

In the same post on Monday the president, without providing evidence, said there was a 300-foot “gash” into the pool and “illegally placed” chemicals in the water. Trump had previously said the gash was 250 feet long.

As CNN has reported, National Park Service workers last week dumped gallons of hydrogen peroxide into the pool to help combat an algae issue that had been plaguing the body of water.

Trump also complained about a giant depiction of “8647” that was etched into a patch of grass near the Reflecting Pool earlier this month. The Trump administration has interpreted that phrase as a threat against the president’s life, while Trump opponents say it is merely meant to signal opposition to the 47th president.

CNN’s Devan Cole contributed to this report.

California sues US EPA over sending emissions rules to Congress for potential reversal

2026-06-22T16:08:43.964Z / Reuters

Car traffic is seen during rush hour in downtown San Francisco, California, U.S., July 29, 2025. REUTERS/Carlos Barria Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

WASHINGTON, June 22 (Reuters) – The state of California sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Monday after the agency earlier ‌this month sent the Republican-controlled Congress landmark state vehicle emissions rules for potential repeal.

The EPA said waivers under the Clean Air Act for California environmental regulations approved under prior Democratic administrations should have been sent to lawmakers under the ​Congressional Review Act.

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California said the action was illegal and should be blocked by the U.S. ​District Court for the District of Columbia, arguing that the EPA was seeking ⁠to “wave a magic wand” and turn a waiver into a rule.

“These latest illegal actions would mean more ​pollution, poorer air quality, more market uncertainty, and greater health risks for communities already overburdened by emissions,” ​said California Attorney General Rob Bonta, noting the state has received more than 75 waivers for environmental actions.

The EPA did not immediately comment.

The Trump administration has mounted a multi-pronged effort to deny California the ability to require cleaner vehicles and ​more electric vehicles. The EPA has also enacted rules making it easier for automakers to sell more ​gasoline-powered cars and trucks, while making it more expensive to buy EVs.

The four waivers sent to Congress for review ‌granted ⁠California authority to enact its own emission standards for cars and trucks as well as lawn and garden equipment. The rules have prodded companies to produce cleaner electric models to reduce emissions.

California won approval in 2022 under then-President Joe Biden’s EPA for the state’s current vehicle emissions rules.

California’s rules require automakers to sell a rising ​number of electric vehicles ​and meet increasingly stringent ⁠limits on tailpipe emissions.

Those rules are much stricter than those imposed by the Trump administration, which plans to roll back federal fuel economy rules.

Trump signed legislation ​last year to overturn California’s rules that aim to phase out new ​gasoline-powered cars by ⁠2035. California contends the fuel savings for consumers from the rules far exceed the higher upfront costs of EVs.

Congress rescinded authority for California to outlaw traditional gasoline-powered vehicles after 2035 after Toyota, GM and other ⁠automakers lobbied ​for relief from California’s emissions regulations.

That came after the EPA ​sent Congress the waiver for that program for review. Many Democratic lawmakers contended the waivers are not reviewable under the CRA. California has ​also challenged that waiver submission to Congress.

Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Mark Porter and Deepa Babington

Polymarket launches probe after Wall Street Journal report alleges deceptive marketing

2026-06-22T12:59:00-0400 / CBS News

By

Updated on: June 22, 2026 / 2:39 PM EDT / CBS News

Polymarket told CBS News that it is auditing its promotional content after a Wall Street Journal investigation found the prediction market paid online content creators to produce videos that the newspaper said falsely showed customers winning a total of $1.9 million.

The WSJ’s findings, published Saturday, are based on interviews with social media content creators and an analysis of more than 1,100 TikTok videos from 10 creators. Most of the videos featured phony trades executed on dummy sites designed to resemble Polymarket, according to the Journal, which said the company’s actions were part of a campaign to lure users to its offshore, unregulated platform.

Polymarket also hired a marketing contractor to instruct so-called clippers, people who redistribute videos from creators to extend their reach, to repost the content, according to the media outlet’s investigation.

One social media video shows a college-aged student winning $100,000 after placing a $1,000 bet that President Trump would say the word “McDonald’s” publicly sometime that month, according to the WSJ. But the actual trade on Polymarket’s website shows 50 accounts bet that Mr. Trump would use the restaurant chain’s name and that all of them lost, the paper reported.

Other videos also misrepresented the earnings users could have made on parallel bets, the Journal’s report found. The outlet reported that 118 videos — approximately 10% of the ones it analyzed — depicted creators winning almost $900,000, when in reality, if they had placed identical bets, they would have lost more than $166,000.

“As the world’s leading prediction market, we are committed to maintaining accurate, fair and transparent markets. We are part of a rapidly growing industry and are constantly evaluating ways to improve how we’re engaging and earning the trust of our audience,” a Polymarket spokesperson said in a statement to CBS News. “As part of that commitment, we are conducting a comprehensive audit of active promotional content to ensure it complies with our standards, as well as applicable regulatory and legal disclosure requirements.”

Existing scrutiny on Polymarket

Like other prediction markets, Polymarket allows users to place wagers on the outcomes of future events, such as sports, elections, weather and many other activities.

The company has faced scrutiny in recent months over allegations of insider trading. In one recent case, federal prosecutors in May alleged that a Google employee made more than $1.2 million on Polymarket using confidential business information.

Earlier this year, a data analyst also told “60 Minutes” he has spotted other cases of Polymarket accounts raking in millions by correctly betting on U.S. military operations, sometimes achieving a suspiciously high win rate.

Polymarket has said insider trading is prohibited on its platform. The company updated its rules in March to prohibit trades based on “stolen confidential information” or illegal tips.

Regulators banned Polymarket from operating in the U.S. in 2022 after the company settled allegations that it was operating an unregistered options exchange.

Last year, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the government agency that oversees prediction markets, granted the company permission to launch a U.S.-regulated platform. However, that service is invite-only and accessible only on an iPhone, sources have told CBS News. As a result, much of Polymarket’s trading volume remains concentrated in its overseas markets.

The CFTC did not respond to a request for comment on whether it plans to examine the Journal’s findings about Polymarket.

Truth in advertising

According to the Federal Trade Commission, “Federal law says that ads must be truthful, not misleading, and, when appropriate, backed by scientific evidence.”

An FTC spokesperson declined to comment on whether the agency plans to investigate Polymarket in light of the Wall Street Journal’s findings.

“The whole point of an exchange is that the order book is real and anyone can audit it,” Jason Trost, CEO of Smarkets, a U.K. prediction market and Polymarket competitor, said in an email. Smarkets recently filed for a license with the CFTC to operate in the U.S.

“Regulated exchanges keep settlement records and answer to the CFTC for exactly this reason,” Trost added.

Kalshi, Polymarket’s main competitor, did not respond to a request for comment on whether it has used similar marketing tactics to promote its services.

Edited by Alain Sherter

Chicago mayor ridiculed for touting trans violence ‘state of emergency’ amid murder-plagued Juneteenth weekend

2026-06-22T14:31:37-04:00 / Fox News

The mayor’s office reupped the 2024 “Transfemicide State of Emergency,” drawing mockery from commentators online

By Peter D’Abrosca Fox News

Published June 22, 2026 2:31pm EDT

Trump slams Illinois governor over Chicago crime

President Donald Trump slams Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker after a violent Chicago weekend saw dozens of people shot and several killed. Trump, offering federal help, questions why Pritzker refuses assistance. The Community Roundtable director Cata Truss strongly urges both the mayor and governor to accept federal intervention.

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Chicago’s mayor has become the subject of ridicule after promoting his transgender violence state of emergency amid a deadly Juneteenth weekend where dozens of people in his city were shot and six were killed.

“Since declaring a Transfemicide State of Emergency, our administration has strengthened the City’s capacity to support LGBTQ+ Chicagoans,” a Sunday X post from Mayor Brandon Johnson said. “This framework builds on that work by centering the voices and lived experiences of trans Chicagoans to chart a path toward a safer, more connected city.”

“Transfemicide” is defined as the “targeted killing of a transgender woman motivated by transphobic and misogynistic hatred.” Critics were quick to point out that Johnson appears focused on promoting on Juneteenth weekend the fight against an obscure transgender violence category rather than the killing of black Chicagoans.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson speaks during a press conference on the fifth floor of City Hall in Chicago on Jan. 27, 2026.(Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune)

CHICAGO’S DEADLY JUNETEENTH WEEKEND LEAVES 7 DEAD AS TRUMP SHAMES DEM GOV FOR INACTION

Johnson’s office reupped the state of emergency on Sunday after it was first implemented in 2024.

A report on the subject suggests that violence against transgender women, particularly black, indigenous people of color (BIPOC) transgender women, is endemic in Chicago.

But the report does not mention how many transgender women have been killed in the city, and admittedly includes suicides in the “transfemicide” category despite the term’s definition. An image at the top of the paper features 21 people and their photos, presumably transgender women who have died in Chicago.

Online critics lambasted Johnson for focusing his administration’s energy on the transgender issue, and many noted that the timing of the post coincided with a weekend where 39 people were shot and six killed while the city celebrated Juneteenth.

FOUR DEAD AND 29 SHOT IN CHICAGO WEEKEND VIOLENCE AS LEADERS TOUT CRIME PROGRESS

“Nobody knows what a ‘Transfemicide State of Emergency’ is,” said Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, on X. “This is what the Mayor of Chicago is focused on.”

“Black Chicagoans are dying in the streets by the dozens every month in gang violence, drive-bys, and retaliation,” one X user said in part. “That’s the real emergency crushing families in Roseland, Englewood, Austin, and beyond. Not niche identity reports.”

A mural on Chicago’s South Side encourages residences not to commit acts of violence. Photo taken on June 21, 2026.(Peter D’Abrosca/Fox News Digital)

“‘Transfemicide state of emergency.’ Beyond parody. And delusional,” said a post from conservative commentator Matt Walsh in part.

“Everyone is dunking on this but I think it’s NICE that Mayor Johnson finally found a type of murder he doesn’t like. Baby steps,” said X personality Jarvis Best.

“‘Transfemicide State of Emergency,’” former White House Deputy Chief of Staff James Blair parroted. “We are running out of sentences.”

President Donald Trump blasted Democratic Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker for the violence on Saturday, and offered federal help to quell the chaos.

Police said 25 people were shot in Chicago over Memorial Day weekend.(Fox News)

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“Lots of Killing going on in Chicago,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Why isn’t Governor Pritzker calling me for help. I could make Chicago a safe City in ONE MONTH, in ONE YEAR, it would be one of the safest!!!”

He touted success in slowing violent crime in Washington, D.C. by bringing in National Guard troops and federal law enforcement.

Johnson’s office did not return a request for comment.

Peter D’Abrosca is a reporter at Fox News Digital covering politics.

Follow Peter on X at @pmd_reports. Send story tips to peter.dabrosca@fox.com.

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6399101112112

The scale of Trump’s political blunder in Iran is coming into focus

2026-06-22T16:52:01.039Z / https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/22/politics/trump-iran-deal-poll

• A new CBS News-YouGov poll reveals Americans overwhelmingly want the Iran war to end now — but because they want to be finished with it, not because they think the US has won.
• Only 22% of those polled believe the Trump administration’s agreement favors the United States over Iran.
• Most Americans think the war has created more problems than it solved.

AI-generated summary was reviewed by a CNN editor.

The first major poll conducted since the Trump administration signed a memorandum of understanding with Iran has a point that seems like good news for Trump: Americans overwhelmingly agree he should end the war rather than push for more concessions.

But it’s not because they actually like the agreement; it’s because they think the war is a debacle, and they just want to be done with it.

A new CBS News-YouGov poll shows that even as Americans get their first glimpse — however tentative — of the finish line, it hasn’t improved their views of the war one iota.

And as the administration enters a new phase in this process, it’s worth a check-in on where the politics stand and how they could impact what comes next.

The poll shows 78% of Americans said they’d prefer to end the war now, while just 22% wanted to hold out — to “continue … until Iran gives up more.”

At least one Trump political adviser was celebrating that finding on Sunday. He suggested it showed the American people were on Trump and Vice President JD Vance’s side on the accord with Iran.

But the rest of the poll makes it abundantly clear that’s not true.

When asked to actually review the agreement, just 22% of Americans said it’s better for the United States than Iran, while significantly more — 37% — said it’s better for Iran. (The other 41% said it was about equal.)

The percentage who said it’s better for the US included just 39% of Republicans. So just to underscore, only about 4 in 10 members of Trump’s own party think his administration negotiated a win here.

Americans also said 45%-29% that the war hasn’t been successful from a strategic standpoint.

But that last finding might undersell how much of a strategic defeat Americans see this as.

Perhaps nothing drives that home like polling on the nuclear issue — Trump’s most critical goal.

While Trump has repeatedly asserted his aim was to permanently stop Iran’s nuclear program, the CBS poll shows 69% of Americans and even 45% of Republicans said this agreement, if finalized to bring the war to a conclusion, won’t accomplish that.

This echoes a Fox News poll conducted the weekend the framework was being negotiated in mid-June. It showed registered voters said 64%-35% that it was unlikely a peace agreement would stop Iran from producing nuclear weapons.

Notably, the agreement leaves many details for later, so there are still plenty of issues to iron out on the nuclear front.

But the Trump administration appears to be walking back some of its goals, and these findings get at the rank pessimism that exists in the American public.

The new CBS poll also shows:

• 68% said the agreement, if finalized, won’t have stopped Iran from threatening other countries. Nearly half (48%) of polled Republicans agreed with that statement.
• 79% said it hasn’t made Iran’s leaders more pro-US.
• 74% said it hasn’t made Iran’s people safe and free, which Trump had said was one of his goals earlier this year.

A striking and consistent detail in polling on the Iran war are findings that suggest the war is not only viewed as a failure, but as counterproductive.

And that continues today.

Trump claims the war has destroyed Iran militarily and pulverized its nuclear program. But just 37% of Americans say Iran is weaker today than before the war began.

More than 6 in 10 say Iran is as strong as it was before (38%) or stronger (25%).

While Iran has surely suffered major military losses, it has also demonstrated significant leverage via its now-proven ability to lock down the Strait of Hormuz and jeopardize the world economy.

Speaking of which, Americans think the war is likely to continue exacting a toll in the months and years to come.

A clear 57% majority said the war has actually “created more problems than it solved.” That’s nearly three times the 21% who said it had solved more problems than it created.

And when it comes to that impact, Americans seem to think Trump simply didn’t understand what he was getting himself into.

The poll asked whether people thought the Trump administration understood the impact the war would have on the world economy.

Fully 64% thought the war impacted the world economy more than the administration expected. That includes 51% of polled Republicans.

Of course, there’s plenty to back that up — both from Trump’s own public comments as well as reporting. CNN reported in March that the administration underestimated Iran’s willingness to try and close the Strait of Hormuz.

Americans are just anxious for it to be over — and think Trump is, too

The last big lesson is that Americans are on the same page with Trump in a way: They just want it to be over, and they think Trump does, too.

The Fox News poll in mid-June had shown 70% of registered voters said they were concerned the war would become a long-term commitment. And 87% said it was important to avoid a prolonged war.

That likely helps explain why people might be willing to accept a suboptimal agreement. The administration said the war was likely to last about four to six weeks, and it’s now dragged on for nearly four months.

Americans haven’t seen many deliverables during that time. And given they didn’t see much reason to go to war in the first place, it’s not a big logical leap that they would decide to cut bait.

And perhaps most tellingly, that’s what they think Trump is doing right now — trying to cut bait.

The CBS poll asked whether Americans thought the Trump administration was reaching this agreement because it had met all of its goals, or because it “wants the conflict to be over.”

Two-thirds of Americans said it was because the administration just wants to wrap it up.

Who is Andy Burnham, the man likely to replace British Prime Minister Keir Starmer after his resignation?

2026-06-22T12:55:00-0400 / CBS News

London— British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on Monday that he was resigning, less than two years after he led his center-left Labour Party to a commanding general election victory.

Starmer vowed an “orderly transition” that should see a new prime minister in place by September, if not much sooner, after months of mounting public dissatisfaction over the economy and perceived slow progress in tackling illegal immigration.

Attention quickly shifted onto the man seen widely as Starmer’s likely replacement. While it’s still possible that there will be a leadership contest within the Labour Party, senior members appeared keen to avoid the spectacle and momentum was building fast around Andy Burnham.

Until last week, Burnham had been the Mayor of Manchester, Britain’s fifth largest city, for about a decade. He stepped down from that role to stand in a local by-election last week, easily clinching the seat in Makerfield, Greater Manchester, to become the local Member of Parliament in the House of Commons.

Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham speaks as he celebrates his victory in a Makerfield by-election on June 19, 2026 in Ashton in Makerfield, England. Ryan Jenkinson/Getty

While not required by law, British party leaders have long been chosen from among sitting elected lawmakers.

Burnham’s recent victory in the Makerfield by-election was significant not only as it cleared his potential path to the premiership, however, but because he won decisively in exactly the type of constituency Labour has struggled to hold onto in recent years.

The seat is predominantly white British, traditionally working-class, post-industrial and voted heavily to leave the European Union in the 2016 “Brexit” referendum. Communities like Makerfield across the U.K. were considered Labour heartlands for decades, but they have become increasingly contested as many voters drift toward right-wing, populist parties such as Reform UK.

Reform, led by President Trump’s ally Nigel Farage, has made major gains over the last year thanks to concern among voters over immigration amid perceived declines in living standards.

Burnham outperformed expectations, however, giving Labour strategists hope that the party can reconnect with voters before the next national elections, which could change the makeup of the House of Commons and give another party a chance to take the reins.

Who is Andy Burnham?

Burnham has spent years positioning himself as a viable alternative to Starmer, criticizing Labour’s leadership at moments of weakness while carefully cultivating his own national profile.

How Burnham would differ from Starmer as a national — and international leader — isn’t exactly clear.

A lawmaker from the Conservative Party, Labour’s longtime chief rivals, recently described Burnham as “Keir Starmer with a Northern accent.”

Whether he would adopt a different approach in dealing with President Trump — after Starmer found that going out of his way to keep the American leader on-side can bring somewhat limited advantages — also remains to be seen. At least one European leader who previously appeared to be reasonable match for Mr. Trump, at least ideologically, has found herself at odds with the White House during the Iran war.

Burnham would be under pressure to maintain Britain’s most cherished alliance, but as he campaigned ahead of the recent by-election in Makerfield, he warned the U.K. against adopting American-style politics.

“Politics is getting more polarized. And the path we’re on, if we are not careful, is a path towards the politics of the United States of America,” he told supporters. “A polarized, poisonous politics where people in communities don’t work together anymore.”

Former Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham speaks as he celebrates his victory in the Makerfield by-election, on June 19, 2026. Christopher Furlong/Getty

Although he often presents himself as an outsider to London politics, Burnham’s spent much of his career in the capital, both as a member of cabinet under former Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, and during 16 years as an elected Labour member of parliament before he became Manchester’s mayor in 2017.

He has also tried and failed twice previously to win the leadership role at the top of the Labour Party.

As Greater Manchester’s mayor, however, Burnham built a reputation as a champion of northern England, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, when he publicly clashed with then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s rival Conservative Party government over financial support for his city.

The so-called “King of the North” has championed a model of regional devolution — giving city councils more power — and civic pride that is now sometimes referred to as “Manchesterism.”

This, his supporters argue, is where he differs from Starmer.

They portray him as an authentic voice for post-industrial Britain — a man who understands communities that feel neglected by London. His “everyman” presentation and his easy communication style, they argue, contrasts with the rigidness and technocratic approach to politics that former government lawyer Starmer never managed to shed.

Critics argue, however, that Burnham has failed to make clear his views on some of the most defining issues of the day. When speculation about his return to London intensified, Burnham appeared to change his position, for instance, on immigration and Britain’s post-Brexit relationship with Europe.

Earlier this year, he criticized some of the tougher immigration policies ushered in by Starmer, but then suggested he would go further to reduce legal migration and expand detention capacity for people who enter the country without permission.

He previously expressed support for Britain eventually rejoining the European Union, but he has since distanced himself from that position.

It’s not clear what policies Burnham might try to implement if he does become the country’s next leader that would really differentiate him from Starmer. He may be reluctant to make any dramatic changes as Labour will seat him, or whoever replaces Starmer, without winning a new mandate for the party through national elections.

It was Starmer that brought the party back to power with a resounding 2024 national election victory, seizing control of the House of Commons after more than a decade of Conservative rule. So, abandoning policies adopted off the back of that mandate — the things Labour was originally elected to get done — could leave Burnham open to criticism that he’s being undemocratic.

Within minutes of Starmer’s resignation announcement, the Reform party’s Farage demanded a new general election.

“Westminster wants to crown Andy Burnham off the back of a single by-election,” he said. It’s ridiculous to pretend that Andy Burnham has any kind of meaningful mandate to lead the country.”

How would Burnham become prime minister?

Britons do not directly elect their prime minister. They elect their local Members of Parliament. The leader of the party that commands a majority in the House of Commons typically becomes prime minister.

A governing party can change its leader (who is generally the prime minister) if a majority of its lawmakers believe that person has become an electoral liability and, crucially, they can do so without a general election.

Britain has seen a remarkable number of these entirely legal and constitutional but electionless leadership changes in recent years. If Burnham next inhabits the prime minister’s residence at Number 10 Downing Street in London, he will be the seventh person to do so in a decade.

Burnham’s supporters argue that with his strong support in Labour’s traditional northern heartlands and a fresh public profile, he could become a viable alternative and lead the party to a second consecutive win in the next national elections — or at least spare them the electoral disaster that polls now suggest is awaiting the party.

There must be a new national election called by 2027, but the government can call one any time before that to try and win a mandate. The risk, obviously, is the government can also lose its majority in parliament, and the premiership with it.

While widely seen as the likely replacement, Burnham is not the only name to have been bandied about by Labour as a potential successor to Starmer.

Until Monday, Wes Streeting, a former national Health Secretary and prominent figure on Labour’s centre-right, was widely regarded as an underdog, but a likely contender to challenge Burnham for Labour Party leadership.

Less than an hour after Starmer’s announcement, however, Streeting backed Burnham putting more wind in the King of the North’s sails.