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Trump pushes $5,000 'dividend' pledge
but GOP candidates don't join in
Republicans running for Congress should campaign on President Donald Trump's promise to pay adult Americans $5,000 if the GOP wins the midterm elections. So says the party.
It's just that candidates seem to be taking a different approach. It's been about a week since the president first promised the "Trump dividend" at the Republicans' unusual midterm convention in Dallas, and there is little evidence that GOP candidates running in contested districts have incorporated the pitch into their campaigns. The Republican National Committee views the pledge as part of Trump's overall economic approach and says the party should campaign on his ideas.
Cuba hit with another blackout as
millions across island lose electricity
HAVANA -- Cuba's power grid has collapsed, leaving millions of people across the island without electricity.
The Ministry of Energy and Mines announced the blackout on its official X account without mentioning the cause and added that officials had begun "activating service-restoration protocols."
Power grid collapses have become increasingly common over the past two years because of the severe economic crisis gripping the island. They have worsened since January, after the United States imposed an energy blockade aimed at forcing a change in Cuba's political system. The two most recent nationwide blackouts occurred in early August, following others in July and March, as well as several regional outages.
Iran reports it attacked oil tanker
in strait over illegal try at passage
Iran said it struck the Togo-flagged oil tanker Trend over what it described as an "illegal attempt" to pass through the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday night, according to the state broadcaster, which cited the Revolutionary Guard Corps.
The Associated Press could not immediately confirm the report.
The Guard's navy warned that vessels attempting to pass through the strait without authorization would face "destruction," the broadcaster said. Tehran has asserted control over much of the waterway since the U.S. and Israel launched the war on Feb. 28.
Separately, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which alerts about attacks or military operations, said another tanker was struck Wednesday by an "unknown projectile" while transiting out of the strait, with the crew reported safe. No other details were available.
Hundreds of thousands rally in Tehran
in support of ongoing war against US
CAIRO -- Hundreds of thousands of Iranians have rallied in the biggest government-organized show of defiance since the war began.
Those in Friday's march in Tehran pledged readiness to take up arms after the United States and Israel attacked in February. The rally and weapons display come as the U.S. applies new measures to increase Iran's economic pain. State media had encouraged Iranians to join the campaign, and Tehran's Revolutionary Guard chief says over 600,000 registered to participate.
The events also suggest that hard-liners in Iran's leadership will be more prepared to suppress any future demonstrations against the theocracy.
New Trump deal keeps Greenland
in control of the Arctic territory
WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump says he has a deal with Denmark to bolster the U.S. military presence in Greenland.
The announcement Friday came after months of threatening to take the island by force from the NATO ally. The agreement also keeps the Arctic territory in Denmark's hands.
Trump says in a social media post that the agreement "gives the United States permanent control over security, and all other needs, in Greenland, completely addressing ALL of our many U.S. concerns." The office of Denmark's prime minister says the deal will be signed by all three governments next week during the United Nations General Assembly, but parliamentary action is still needed by the Danish and Greenland governments.
Bolivia OKs deal to stabilize economy
LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) -- In a key victory, Bolivia's conservative government has secured lawmakers' backing for a major international loan as unions threaten fresh protests. The Senate approved the $1.9 billion deal with the International Monetary Fund on Friday. President Rodrigo Paz's government says the money will help stabilize the economy and attract more financing. But the agreement requires spending cuts and an end to fuel subsidies.
Unions warn those measures will drive up living costs for families already struggling to get by. The dispute threatens to revive the unrest that paralyzed much of Bolivia earlier this year, when demonstrators blocked roads and demanded that the president resign.
The Associated Press