The US and Iran threaten to escalate, and Robert Mueller dies: The Weekend Rundown

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Sunday defended US and Israeli strikes on Iran’s infrastructuresaying “sometimes you have to go up to slow down.”

His comments came hours after President Donald Trump tweeted on Truth Social that he was giving the Iranian leadership 48 hours to open the Strait of Hormuz or risk strikes that “will hit and destroy THEIR POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONES FIRST!”

Bessent defended Trump’s speech, saying it was “the only language Iranians understand.”

Earlier on Sunday, a spokesman for Iran’s military headquarters warned that if the US attacks its oil infrastructure, Tehran will. respond in kind with more climbs.

“If Iran’s oil and energy infrastructure is attacked, then the oil, energy, information technology systems and desalination infrastructure used by the United States and the regime in the region will be disrupted,” said Col. Ebrahim Zolfaqari, according to the IRNA news agency.

More news on the Iran war:

• Warning: Iranian missile attack 115 people were injured in Israelofficials said, piercing air defenses in two cities near the nuclear site.
• Price increase: The war has already hit your gas budget. Here’s what comes next.
• Long range attack: Iran fired missiles in the UK-US remote areait claims the long-range abilities it previously denied.
• Power problem: The US declined Iranian oil sanctions in protest to contain energy prices, which gives power to Tehran.

Robert Mueller, the former special counsel who led the Trump-Russia investigation, dies at the age of 81

Robert Mueller III, u a longtime FBI director serving as special counsel who oversaw the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, has died at the age of 81.

Mueller took office just days before the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. He served under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, who praised him for turning the bureau around after the tragedy.

A decorated Marine, Mueller has become a frequent target of Trump after his investigation found that Russia interfered in the 2016 election in a shocking and systematic way, including efforts to boost the president’s current campaign.

‘Meet the media’

The deputy foreign minister of Cuba said on Saturday that the national army is like that preparing for “the possibility of a military attack” from the US and that it would be “foolish” for Cuban leaders to ignore the possibility of conflict.

“Our soldiers are always prepared, and they are actually preparing these days for military violence,” Carlos Fernández de Cossío told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” in an interview broadcast on Sunday.

Fernández de Cossío said the country’s leaders “really hope it won’t happen. We don’t see why it should happen, and we don’t find a reason.”

The ongoing tension between the US and Cuba comes as the island nation begins to to restore its power system On Sunday, a day after a nationwide grid failure left millions of people in the dark for the third time this month.

Politics in a nutshell

• ICE at airports: White House border chief Tom Homan said agents will do it assisting with airport security where the lines are long especially because of the Shortage of TSA and a partial government shutdown.
• ‘No work done’: Virginia Democrats have started sweat for their banning referendum again as they face challenges ahead of next month’s special election.
• The Trump administration sued: The Underground Railroad museum in New York is blaming the government canceled his grant because of race.
• If you see it you won’t believe it: AI-generated campaign ads are fueling concerns about voter fraud before the 2026 midterm elections.

Children’s entertainer Ms. Rachel has a new cause: Freeing children from ICE detention

Rachel Accurso, a popular children’s entertainer known as Ms. Rachel, has become a prominent voice speaking about the plight of children in war-torn Gaza and Sudan.

Now, he’s starting a campaign closer to home: he’s working with lawyers and immigrant rights activists. closing a family detention center in Dilley, Texasand “make sure that the children and their parents are back in their communities where they live,” he told NBC News.

Last week, Accurso heard directly from children held there, including 9-year-old Deiver Henao Jimenez, who won his school’s spelling bee and is worried he will miss the New Mexico state tournament in May.

“We’re just trying to get a kid out of jail to spell,” Accurso said. “I never thought those words would go together.”

Russia is killing Telegram, its most popular messaging app, despite fears of a backlash

The Kremlin’s tight grip on Russian life has a new target: the country’s most popular messaging app.

Ordinary Russians and pro-Kremlin hawks have offered a rare public backlash against Telegram launch campaignwarns that it may attack, not only at home but also against Russian troops in Ukraine.

The program is based on the daily lives of those who support and oppose the government alike. But the Kremlin is instead pressuring people into its new “national” proxy MAX, which many fear could be used to target them as part of a deeper crackdown on freedoms since the invasion of Ukraine.

“I can only imagine that there is a higher goal of imperializing everything, but what is happening right now is destruction,” said pro-Kremlin gamer and activist Grigory Korolyov, who uses the app to help fundraise for Russia’s military.

Two jobs, $75,000 in student debt: How a Florida woman works to make it

Some days at Rachel Jordan start at 5 am and don’t end until midnight – sometimes several days in a row.

“I’m just tired, to be honest,” she said.

The Florida resident, 43, is one of millions of Americans working two jobs to make ends meet while trying to pay off the bills they happen at a young age. With about $75,000 in student loan debt outstanding, Jordan often works 70 hours a week, but worries he’s falling behind financially.

A notable quote

A bright fireball was seen Saturday afternoon in the sky of southeast Texas confirmed to be a meteor It may have broken up in the Houston area, according to NASA.

In case you missed it

• The Guthrie family said We are “very thankful” for the Tucson community where their mother Nancy lived before her disappearance and alleged kidnapping seven weeks ago.
• The highly anticipated opening of a new bar in Washington, DC, by the prediction platform Polymarket was due to power outages.
• Chappell Roan spoke of the anger of the fans after Brazilian soccer player Jorginho Frello accused the pop star’s security team of treating his 11-year-old daughter in a way that left her in tears and “very shaken.”
• The first episode of “Saturday Night Live UK” aired, it was called by the reviewers “shockingly talented.”
• Jessi Pierce, beloved reporter for the National Hockey League’s Minnesota Wild, he died in the house and his three young children. He was 37 years old.