A House Republican is sounding the alarm over how the Transportation Security Administration screens agents from foreign countries following a hearing on TSA’s relationships with America’s adversaries.

TSA uses the passports and information provided by foreign countries, including state sponsors of terrorism, to vet agents flying directly into the United States, Melanie Harvey, TSA’s executive assistant administrator for security operations, testified at Tuesday’s House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Transportation and Maritime Security hearing.

Subcommittee Chairman Carlos Gimenez (R-FL) described the TSA policy as “insane & reckless” in a post on X and expanded on what he called a “national security concern” in an interview with the Washington Examiner.

“It’s ridiculous,” Gimenez said. “How do you trust anything that comes from a nation that’s on the list of the state sponsors of terrorism? How do you allow them into our facilities when [TSA’s] job originated as a result of a terrorist attack?”

The Florida Republican expressed skepticism that nations on the list of state sponsors of terrorism would act in good faith or abide by the rules and said, for example, “You can always tell the Cuban officials, look, you’re on the state sponsor of terrorism. You’re not going to see our systems” even if the U.S. continued to access Cuba’s systems.

There are only four countries on the Department of State’s State Sponsors of Terrorism list: Cuba, North Korea, Syria, and Iran. Of those countries, Cuba is the only one with direct flights into the U.S., according to TSA testimony at the hearing.

TSA did not comment on how the agency is able to protect the safety of U.S. citizens while using information provided by state sponsors of terrorism to vet agents from those countries. TSA press secretary Robert Langston told the Washington Examiner, “During the hearing itself, both leaders addressed the rationale for security exchanges with those nations that have direct flights into the United States.”

National security experts weigh in on the TSA policy

The Washington Examiner consulted with three national security experts for insight on how TSA is able to protect people despite having to trust information being received from state sponsors of terrorism.

“I would think TSA would use any information available,” John Bolton, national security adviser during the Trump administration, told the Washington Examiner. “Doesn’t mean they trust it or believe it, but consider it for what it may be worth.”

Javed Ali, who served in senior roles at the National Counterterrorism Center, National Security Council, and FBI under the Trump administration, explained to the Washington Examiner that TSA works with law enforcement and intelligence agencies through organizations such as the Terrorist Screening Center and National Vetting Center “to ensure the timely and proper review of all inbound individuals into the United States.”

He said the agencies use “a variety of databases and screening processes” and that people attempting to come from countries designated as state sponsors of terrorism “would almost certainly receive a higher level of screening prior to their arrival.”

Despite the coordination between agencies, Ali explained that if government agents from state sponsors of terrorism used false or altered information to get into the country, “that would potentially make it harder to determine their actual identities. … This is the challenge of counterintelligence.” He mentioned an example of Russian illegal immigrants who were arrested and deported in 2010, all of whom had entered the U.S. using false biographic information.

On the other hand, the security expert also noted that all 19 9/11 hijackers came into the country using their real names with U.S. visas stamped at embassies overseas. “The problem in that case,” Ali said, “is that the terrorism links to most of those individuals (except the first who arrived in January 2000) were not known to the U.S. government at the time.”

Lee Kair, principal and head of transportation and innovation practice at the Chertoff Group, explained in an interview with the Washington Examiner why it is important for the U.S. and other countries to be able to “communicate effectively to understand each other’s protocols so that they can ensure the security of all passengers.”

Kair, who has served as TSA regional director for Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, as well as the Department of Homeland Security attache to Germany, shared that he was the one responsible for the TSA response to the 2009 Christmas Day attempted airplane bombing when an al Qaeda member tried to detonate an explosive on final approach.

He explained that the “relationship that the U.S. government had with its European counterparts was critical,” in this case because TSA had inspectors who had been to the airport and had seen their operations, “so we were able to very quickly understand what caused the security incident and what mitigations we needed to immediately put into place to thwart other similar attacks that might be underway at the time.”

“To the extent any country starts to restrict access to other countries observing their [last point of departure] operations, that’s a very dangerous precedent to set,” Kair warned. “Because then other countries might start limiting our access as well.”

A ‘slap in the face’ to Cuban Americans

Tuesday’s hearing came in response to what Gimenez called a “security breach” when the State Department and TSA hosted Cuban agents for a May 20 tour of Miami International Airport. They reportedly did not coordinate with or notify the airport authority, state and local officials, Congress, or senior TSA leaders such as Administrator David Pekoske about the visit.

Gimenez pointed to the date of the tour, Cuban Independence Day, and said, “I don’t consider that to be coincidental” and that holding the visit in Miami, which has a large Cuban population, “was really kind of slap in the face of the Cuban community there, and we took it as such.”

“Maybe the people from TSA didn’t know what it meant,” he said. “But the Cuban officials who were visiting, they knew what it meant, and so they did it gladly on that day. I wonder who set it up [for] that day. Was it us or was it them?”

Gimenez introduced a bipartisan bill after the May 20 visit to prevent agents from state sponsors of terrorism from gaining access to TSA facilities at American airports, called the Secure Airports From Enemies Act.

Co-signed by Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL), Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), and Jared Moskowitz (D-FL), the bill would bar people representing or acting on behalf of countries on the State Department’s list of state sponsors of terrorism from the secured area of an airport, the security identification display area of an airport, the sterile area of an airport, and the air cargo area of an airport.

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“I don’t know what the president is going to do,” Gimenez said of the bill. “I don’t know what the Senate is going to do, but I’m pretty sure we’re going to pass it here [in the House].”

The Washington Examiner reached out to DHS for comment.

President Joe Biden’s poor showing at the first presidential debate has ignited tensions between the president‘s relatives and his staff, Biden aides claimed on Saturday.

Thirteen sources familiar with the situation told NBC News that Biden’s debate performance exacerbated long-standing hostilities between his family and staff, with all parties pointing fingers in different directions.

“I believe the family has witnessed blunder after blunder by key staff personnel, and the debate is likely the straw that broke the camel’s back,” one source said.

Blame game

Biden’s staff members blamed the president for his debate performance, which agitated the first family, according to the source.

“Post-debate, the supposed loyal staff, instead of taking responsibility, pointed the finger back at the president and said: ‘His fault,’” the source revealed. “I can think of no other singular action that would agitate the Biden family more.”

Biden himself took responsibility for his performance in an interview with ABC News that aired Friday. He said his poor showing was “nobody’s fault but mine.”

The president’s family, on the other hand, allegedly blames Biden’s staff and has discussed firing senior White House adviser Anita Dunn and her husband Bob Bauer, Biden’s personal lawyer. There are reportedly no plans to make any personnel changes.

White House chief of staff Jeff Zients said in a statement that there is “absolutely no truth to these unfounded and insulting rumors” about the Bidens considering firing Dunn and Baur.

“The president and first lady have full confidence in their team, including Anita and Bob,” Zients said.

Advisers believe Biden is at his best when he is unscripted, but when asked why he is not in those situations more often, they continue to point fingers.

Some people aligned with the Biden family have reportedly blamed what they call “the firm” for overly managing the president. Meanwhile, advisers have suggested that the family and longtime staff members who are considered family are too protective of Biden.

‘It’s not helpful’

According to the report, Biden staffers are unhappy with the dynamic shift following the debate. Some staffers have been angered by the hostilities and believe the blame game is getting in the way of the unified approach necessary to help steer him through a public relations crisis over his mental condition.

“It’s not helpful,” one Biden campaign staffer said.

A source close to the president reportedly said his family is not seeing the political reality clearly and characterized the dynamic between family and staff members as “Shakespearean.”

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Some in Biden’s inner circle are allegedly concerned about internal disagreements playing out in public as pressure on the president to drop out of the 2024 election continues to grow. The family has had discussions on how to continue to support him moving forward, according to the report.

The Washington Examiner reached out to the White House for comment.

Minnesota Vikings rookie cornerback Khyree Jackson and two others were killed in a car crash involving three vehicles in Upper Marlboro, Maryland.

Jackson, 24, and Anthony Lytton, Jr., 24, were passengers in a Dodge Charger being driven by Isaiah Hazel, 23, when their vehicle was struck by a silver Infiniti Q50 attempting to change lanes at a high speed, according to Maryland state police. All three Upper Marlboro natives died in the collision early Saturday morning.

“We are deeply saddened by the news of Khyree’s passing,” Vikings owners Mark and Zygu Wilf said in a statement. “Khyree had an extremely bright future ahead of him as a player, and it was clear he was dedicated to being a tremendous person who made a positive difference in people’s lives.”

Police said investigators believe alcohol may have contributed to the crash. After the silver Infiniti Q50 collided with the Dodge Charger carrying Jackson, Lyrron, and Hazel, it proceeded to hit a silver Chevrolet Impala. There were no injuries to the passengers of the Q50 or Impala.

Maryland state police confirmed to the Washington Examiner that an investigation into the incident is ongoing and that “no charges have been placed against anyone involved at this point.”

After the Charger was struck, it “traveled off of the right side of the roadway and struck multiple tree stumps where the vehicle came to rest,” according to police.

Jackson was a standout cornerback for the Oregon Ducks drafted in the fourth round by the Vikings in the 2024 NFL draft. His former college head coach Dan Lanning expressed his grief in a post online. He said he was “at a loss for words” that he will miss Jackson’s smile, and that he was a “great player better person.”

News of the tragedy also prompted several in the Vikings organization to send their condolences.

Head coach Kevin O’Connell said he is “absolutely crushed by this news” and that Jackson “brought a contagious energy” to the team. He added, “It was evident Khyree was going to develop into a tremendous football player, but what was more impressive was his desire to become the best person he could be.”

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Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah said, “I am heartbroken by the loss of Khyree … I’m devastated that his life and everything he had in front of him has been cut short.”

The police arrived at the scene of the crash at 3:14 a.m., and roads reopened at 10:20 a.m. Charges are contingent on the results of the investigation being led by the Maryland State Police Crash Team, as well as consultation with the Prince George’s County State’s Attorney’s Office.

If President Joe Biden succumbs to growing pressure to drop out of the 2024 race, vice president Kamala Harris may not be a shoe-in to take over.

A group of Democratic donors has pledged $2 million for a “mini primary” to ensure an open competition for the nomination, according to the Washington Post. The group led by former Paypal and Intuit CEO Bill Harris would help fund presidential debates for the leading Democratic candidates to participate in, with the hopes of drawing public attention to Biden’s replacement. Other Democrats have already started preparing for Harris to take over.

“Televised debates with such a powerful cast will grip the country and instantly catapult at least some of them into the public imagination,” Harris told the Washington Post.

While he characterized the vice president as “a very strong candidate,” the business mogul stressed the importance of a “mini primary” that would allow other candidates to get exposure.

One roadblock to replacing Biden is that the money donated to the Biden-Harris campaign cannot be directly transferred to a new campaign, so the easiest way to keep the money raised if the president dropped out of the race would be for Harris to replace him at the top of the ticket.

Harris, the Democratic donor, said he did not donate to the Biden-Harris campaign in 2024 despite doing so in 2020 due to concerns about the president’s age. It was Biden’s performance at the first presidential debate that catalyzed the effort, according to Harris.

“The voters have been there for a long time,” Harris said, noting that the average citizen is aware of Biden’s mental condition. “It’s the Democratic establishment and the Beltway community that has been so slow and reluctant to face reality.”

Harris set up a super PAC called Democrats for the Next Generation, which highlights 10 Democrats under 60 years old who have been mentioned as potential candidates to replace Biden: The vice president, Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Ro Khanna (D-CA), and Govs. Gavin Newsom, Gretchen Whitmer, J.B. Pritzker, Josh Shapiro, and Andy Beshear.

Aside from those identified by Harris’s super PAC, other prominent Democrats whose names have been floated to replace Biden include Gov. Wes Moore (D-MD), Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), and former first ladies Hillary Clinton and Michelle Obama.

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Despite calls from many prominent Democrats to drop out of the race, Biden declared, “I am running and going to win again” at a Friday rally in Madison, Wisconsin.

“It’s not that we have to protect ourselves from chaos and drama,” Harris, the Democratic donor said. “We need drama and a little chaos. I think it can be refreshing and energizing.”

President Joe Biden’s physician met with a top Washington, D.C., neurologist who specializes in Parkinson’s disease earlier this year, according to White House visitor logs.

The logs show that Parkinson’s disease expert Dr. Kevin Cannard of the Walter Reed Medical Center met with Biden’s physician Kevin O’Connor and two others at the White House residence clinic on Jan. 17. Cannard’s name shows up in the visitor logs 10 times since Nov. 15, 2022.

“It’s highly likely they were talking about Biden,” Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-TX) told the New York Post, who first reported on the Jan. meeting. “He should only be [regularly] treating the president and the first family.”

Jackson served as physician to the president under the Obama and Trump administrations from 2013 to 2018. He has issued a number of warnings about Biden’s declining mental health, and accused O’Connor and first lady Jill Biden of having “led the cover up” to hide the president’s well-being from the public.

In all but two of Cannard’s visits dating back to late 2022, he is listed as having visited Megan Nasworthy, a liaison between Walter Reed Medical Center and the White House. Aside from the January meeting with O’Connor, he met with someone listed as “Dr. Joshua Simmons” on Nov. 15, 2022.

Walter Reed Medical Center cardiologist John E. Atwood was also in the meeting, according to the logs.

Cannard published a paper in the Parkinsonism & Related Disorders journal that focuses on the “early stage” of Parkinson’s disease in August 2023, just months before the meeting.

When asked about the visit, the White House pointed to the wide range of personnel and jobs doctors visiting are responsible for.

“A wide variety of specialists from the Walter Reed system visit the White House complex to treat the thousands of military personnel who work on the grounds,” the White House told the Washington Examiner in a statement Saturday.

In Biden’s interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos, released on Friday, he declined to commit to taking an independent cognitive test. Biden claimed his “bad” debate performance was “no indication of any serious condition.”

The president also admitted at a meeting with Democratic governors that he had recently met with his doctor before the first presidential debate, despite the White House repeatedly denying he had any medical examination done. He also revealed that he would try to curtail his schedule to have fewer events after 8 p.m. 

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Biden aides told Axios last week that the president is functional and engaged from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Outside of that time period, or while traveling abroad, aides said, the president is more likely to have miscues.

After his rough showing at the first debate, Biden has faced mounting pressure to drop out of the 2024 presidential race. Political heavyweights on both sides of the aisle have criticized his performance, and many prominent members of his own party have called on him to let someone else take on Trump in November.

President Joe Biden’s debate performance on Thursday night has sparked serious concerns on both sides of the aisle about his mental acuity and physical well-being. Some have gone as far as calling for a new candidate to replace Biden on the Democratic ticket.

While former President Donald Trump’s performance did not draw overwhelming praise, that was overshadowed by the concerns prompted by Biden’s showing. Many are questioning if the president voters saw at the debate is the same one running the country on a daily basis.

Here is what some of the most influential people in politics are saying about Biden and his campaign after the debate.

Kellyanne Conway

Former Trump aide Kellyanne Conway blasted Biden and his team Friday, calling his performance a “disgrace.” She said the nation has been “gaslit” on Biden’s mental well-being, suggesting his team knows more than being made public.

“There is no breaking news in what we saw last night,” she said on Fox’s Hannity. “It is an unforgivable, inexcusable disgrace that we as a nation have been gaslit.”

Biden aides told Axios on Saturday that he is functional and engaged from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., which coincides with the hours many of his on-camera events are held. Outside of that time period, or while traveling abroad, aides said, the president is more likely to have miscues.

Barack Obama

Former President Barack Obama admitted his once-vice president had a rough night, but said that “last night didn’t change” the choice people have to make “between someone who has fought for ordinary folks his entire life and someone who only cares about himself.”

“Bad debate nights happen,” Obama said. “Trust me, I know.”

Glossing over Biden’s performance, he shifted focus to framing the election as a choice between “someone who tells the truth; who knows right from wrong and will give it to the American people straight — and someone who lies through his teeth for his own benefit.”

John Fetterman

Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) said Biden had a “rough debate,” but refused to pounce on him for it like the “Democratic vultures on his shoulder” following the Thursday night showdown.

Reacting to a Politico article about Democrats looking for Biden alternatives, he said, “No one knows more than me that a rough debate is not the sum total of the person and their record.”

James Carville

Longtime Democratic strategist James Carville said he never thought Biden running again “was a nifty idea.” He offered one reason that sentiment may not have gotten through to the octogenarian president: There are very few people Biden actually listens to.

“He doesn’t have advisers,” Carville said. “He has employees.”

Axios reported that ultimately, the “only Biden deciders” are a small circle of the president’s closest allies, featuring his wife Jill Biden, his sister Valerie Biden, and longtime friend Ted Kaufman.

Mitch McConnell

Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) blamed the first lady in particular for the president’s unwillingness to drop out of the race, despite the growing public concern for his mental acuity.

“Joe Biden is going to be the nominee,” McConnell said. “Joe Biden is not going to give it up. Why? Because Jill does not want to give it up either.”

McConnell said that from their time together in the Senate, he learned that “you can’t negotiate with him … you have to negotiate with staff.”

Kamala Harris

Vice President Kamala Harris admitted that Biden had a “slow start” and argued that “for the last 3 1/2 years, up until today” the president had performed well at his job.

“It was a slow start,” she said. “That’s obvious to everyone — I’m not going to debate that point.”

Like Obama, she shifted toward framing it as a “choice in November.” Harris called the 2024 election “one of the most important elections in our collective lifetime” and criticized Trump.

Bob Woodward

Journalist Bob Woodward, of Watergate reporting fame, chimed in on Biden’s debate performance, calling it “so bad, so awful,” labeling it a “political hydrogen bomb,” and demanding answers on “what happened” from his staff.

“I think the answer here is in reporting, in seeking very aggressively, an explanation — what happened here?” Woodward proposed. “We don’t want it to come out in some book or some memoir in a couple of years or a decade. We’d need to know now.”

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According to Democrats, Biden had a cold. His aides also claimed he was “over-prepared when what he needed was rest.” Biden himself blamed his old age for the poor showing, admitting, “I don’t debate as well as I used to.”

The Washington Examiner reached out to the White House for comment.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he is drawing up a “comprehensive plan” on ending the war with Russia that he would put forward in a matter of months.

Thousands have died since the war started on Feb. 24, 2022, when Russia attempted to invade Ukraine, and the two sides appear far apart on a peace agreement with no political talks between the two countries. Zelensky’s comments could signal a shift in diplomatic strategy.

“We don’t have too much time,” he said in Brussels a day earlier, pointing to the casualty count of soldiers and civilians. He first mentioned the “detailed plan” Thursday in Brussels before expanding on it at a Friday press conference.

“It is very important for us to show a plan to end the war that will be supported by the majority of the world,” Zelensky said Friday. “This is the diplomatic route we are working on.”

Former President Donald Trump said at the presidential debate Thursday that “Ukraine’s not winning that war.” Echoing similar concerns to Zelensky, he added, “They’re running out of people, they’re running out of soldiers, they’ve lost so many people. They’ve lost so many people and they’ve lost those gorgeous cities with golden domes that are 1,000 years old.”

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Trump claimed “Russia would’ve never attacked” if he were president and has promised to end the war in Ukraine if reelected.

Zelensky and President Joe Biden signed an “executive agreement” on security at the G7 summit earlier this month. The Ukrainian president praised United States leaders and civilians for being “with us in this struggle for freedom.”

Nobody has been allowed to swim in the Anacostia River for 50 years, and that streak will continue for at least a couple more weeks as Washington D.C.’s inaugural Anacostia River Splash has been postponed due to E. Coli in the water.

The event was supposed to take place on Saturday, but Anacostia riverkeeper Trey Sherard said he received test results Saturday morning confirming what organizers called results “above E. coli recreational standards.”

This marks the third time the event has been postponed, the first two coming in 2023 due to heavy rain. Sherard claimed that the levels were safe earlier in the week, but a “little storm” Wednesday night must have caused them to rise.

“There were no documented sewage overflows,” he confirmed. Sherard said he experienced no symptoms of E. Coli, which may include diarrhea, stomach pain, vomiting, fevers, and more.

He mentioned that a two-story-tall and 12-mile-long tunnel has reduced sewage going into the Anacostia River by 98%.

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Anacostia River Splash organizers said they’ll make their fourth attempt to hold the event on July 13, two weeks after the unsafe E. Coli reading. Their website promises to “provide a rare chance for residents to swim in and reconnect with the river.”

The Washington Examiner reached out to event organizers and the CDC for comment.

A South Korean robot’s “suicide” is being investigated by the Gumi City Council after the cyborg hurled itself down a two-meter, or six-and-a-half foot, flight of stairs on Wednesday.

The now-defunct robot was appointed a city council officer in August 2023 and was capable of calling an elevator and moving between floors on its own.

A city council official spotted the robot “circling in one spot as if something was there” before the incident occurred, according to French outlet Agence France-Presse. It was later found unresponsive and “smashed” to pieces.

“Pieces have been collected and will be analyzed by the company,” a Gumi City Council official relayed.

Local media headlines circulated following the robot suicide, asking things like “Why did the diligent civil officer do it?” or “Was work too hard” for the cyborg?

The robot was one of the first of its kind to join the city council and “helped with daily document deliveries, city promotion, and delivered information” according to one city council official. It worked from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and had its own civil service officer card.

The Washington Examiner reached out to Bear Robotics, the Californian robot startup that made the one in question.

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This apparent cyborg suicide comes during a renaissance of robot and artificial intelligence technology development. South Korea alone has one cyborg for every 10 employees, and Japanese researchers recently discovered a way to attach engineered skin tissue to humanoid robots.

Scientists have been additionally developing robots with “feelings” that can understand and relate to human emotion.