President Trump, South African President Ramaphosa clash during meeting at White House

Tensions flared during a meeting in the Oval Office between President Donald Trump and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Wednesday afternoon, with the two leaders at odds over allegations of so-called White genocide in South Africa.

The meeting between Ramaphosa and Trump was described as discussions about relations, both trade and diplomatic. Ramaphosa posted to his X account on Tuesday that “the trade relations between South Africa and the United States will be the focus of my working visit. We aim to strengthen and consolidate relations between our two countries.”

The visit began cordially, with Trump welcoming Ramaphosa by saying it was a “great honor” to host him and offered a backhanded compliment that Ramaphosa was “highly respected in some circles, and less so in others—just like all of us.” Ramaphosa opened his remarks by expressing hope for improved relations between the two nations: “we’re here today to recalibrate the partnership between South Africa and the United States.”

The visit between the two leaders was attended by South African-born billionaire Elon Musk, taking place amid a diplomatic strain following the U.S. government’s recent decision to grant refugee status to 59 White Afrikaners. Musk has also been vocal about the plight of South African landowners, amplifying claims of “white genocide.” Afrikaners are a White ethnic group in South Africa descended from Dutch settlers. Afrikaans, their native language, is rooted in Dutch and is one of South Africa’s 12 official languages.

Ramaphosa answer a question posed to Trump about what might convince him that White genocide is not occurring in South Africa. He said, referring to golfing legends Ernie Els and Retief Goosen, as well as billionaire Johann Rupert, who accompanied him: “it’s going to require President Trump to truly hear the voices of South Africans—some of whom are his friends, like the guests with me today. We’ll need to sit down and have honest conversations. I don’t intend to repeat myself on this issue.”

Trump has consistently claimed that White farmers in South Africa are facing genocide—a characterization that both Ramaphosa and the South African government have firmly denied. During the meeting, Trump remarked that “Elon wanted” the Afrikaners to be admitted to the U.S. as refugees, though Musk remained silent throughout the session.

Trump stated there are “thousands” of reports and documentaries highlighting violence against White South Africans — at which point he directed his staff to lower the lights in the Oval Office and played a video depicting what he claimed were scenes of attacks and burial sites involving White farmers. As the video ended, the discussion between the two leaders clashed – with Ramaphosa saying he hadn’t previously seen the footage presented by Trump’s team and stressed that the content of the video did not reflect official government policy. He also condemned the narrative used in the video.

Ramaphosa and members of his delegation also clarified that violent crime in South Africa is a widespread issue impacting people of all races, not just white citizens: “there’s definitely criminal activity in our country, but those affected are not only White individuals. In fact, the majority of the victims are Black South Africans.”

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Dallas Stars rally to defeat Oilers 6-3 in Game 1 of Western Final

The Dallas Stars defeated the Edmonton Oilers 6-3 in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final at American Airlines Center on Wednesday.

The Stars rallied from a two-goal deficit, scoring five goals (three straight on the power play) in the third period to clinch the win. Tyler Seguin scored twice and had an assist and Miro Heiskanen and Mikael Granlund each had a goal and an assist for Dallas. Heiskanen said after the game: “It doesn’t matter if we’re down two goals, however many goals, we never quit. There’s always a chance to come back and we feel like if we play like that, pressure the [defensemen] and play in their zone more, it’s always a chance to win … Great third. If we keep doing that, it’s going to be good.”

Game 2 is scheduled for Friday in Dallas.

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Pentagon accepts Qatar’s gift of a luxury megajet to use as Air Force One

The U.S. Department of Defense said on Wednesday that they have officially accepted of a high-end Boeing jet aircraft from Qatar, which may be repurposed for use as Air Force One. The New York Times was first to report the news that the Pentagon had accepted the jetliner from the government of Qatar.

Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth accepted the Boeing 747 “in accordance with all federal rules and regulations. The Department of Defense will work to ensure proper security measures and functional-mission requirements are considered for an aircraft used to transport the President of the United States.”

In addition, a spokesperson for the Air Force said in a statement: “As directed by the Secretary of Defense, the Air Force is preparing to award a contract to modify a Boeing 747 aircraft for executive airlift. Details related to the contract are classified.”

The acceptance of the plane from comes days after sources confirmed that the Qatari royal family would be donating aircraft for Mr. Trump’s use. Valued at $400 million, the jumbo jet — which has been described as a “flying palace” — will be donated to Mr. Trump’s future presidential library just before he leaves office.

During a Senate hearing on Tuesday, Air Force Secretary Troy Meink explained that the Air Force has been tasked with overseeing the jet’s adaptation to meet the stringent security standards necessary for carrying President Donald Trump: “the secretary of defense has instructed the Air Force to begin planning the aircraft’s modifications. We’re prepared to move forward with that.”

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Indiana Pacers beat NY Knicks 138-135 in OT of Eastern Conf. finals Game 1

The Indiana Pacers rallied to beating the New York Knicks 138-135 on Wednesday night in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals.

The Knicks, led by Jalen Brunson with 43 points and Karl-Anthony Towns with 35 points and 12 rebounds, were ahead 14 points with under 3 minutes remaining in regulation, until Aaron Nesmith helped the Pacers comeback. Tyrese Haliburton tied the game as time expired in regulation, and Andrew Nembhard made the go-ahead basket with 26 seconds remaining in OT to clinch the win for Indiana.

Game 2 is scheduled for Friday at 8 p.m. ET in New York.

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Reba McEntire, Miranda Lambert & Lainey Wilson team up for ‘Trailblazer’

Reba McEntire, Miranda Lambert and Lainey Wilson shared their new collaboration, teaming up for the hit song “Trailblazer.”

The trio debuted the ballad — which is a tribute to the women country legends who paved the way for them — at the 60th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards. Since its debut, McEntire has marked a personal-best streaming record with the song which garnered an impressive 2.6 million on-demand streams in its first week.

The song names influences like Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn, Patsy Cline, and Tammy Wynette. Says Wilson, who titled the track: “We were just having a conversation about how both [Lambert and McEntire] have influenced me and [about] passing the torch and blazing trails for each other. Generation after generation, it’s going to continue, but we got to keep blazing those trails for the next one.”

It’s a busy year for Reba — she will be kicking-off the three-day Music City Rodeo event at Bridgestone Arena on May 29th; and will also be pulling double-duty on NBC as she begins filming season two of her new sitcom, Happy’s Place, as well as returning as a coach on Season 28 of The Voice.

Listen to ‘Trailblazer’ – HERE.

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Leslie Odom, Jr. returning to ‘Hamilton’ on Broadway this fall

Leslie Odom, Jr. will return to Broadway‘s Hamilton this fall in a reprise of his Tony Award-winning role as Aaron Burr.  Odom, a member of the original cast, returns to Hamilton nine years after he took his final bow in July 2016.

Odom Jr. originated the role of Burr in Hamilton in 2015 and has since portrayed Dr. Arbuthnot in the 2017 film Murder on the Orient Express, Draemond in the TV series Abbott Elementary, and Victor Fielding in the 2023 movie The Exorcist: Believer.

Hamilton posted on X: “Welcome back to the inimitable, original, Aaron Burr: Leslie Odom Jr! See him on Broadway September 9th – November 23rd.”

The actor and singer, 43, wrote on social media: “I kinda feel like I was born onstage at the Richard Rodgers theater. Hamilton, opened on my actual birthday a decade ago. For twelve weeks this fall, starting on 9/9/25, I’ll return to the place of my birth. Gonna feel so good to be home. See you soon! #HappyBirthday #BornAgain”

Odom begins performances on Tuesday, September 9, for a strictly limited engagement through Sunday, November 23 at Broadway’s Richard Rodgers Theatre.

The Hamilton cast presently includes Nicholas Christopher as Burr, Trey Curtis as Alexander Hamilton and Tamar Greene as George Washington. The musical also stars Jacob Guzman, Colby Lewis, Jarrod Spector, Ebrin R. Stanley, Cherry Torres, Stephanie Umoh, Morgan Anita Wood, Reanne Acasio, Adam Ali-Perez, Lauren Boyd, Amanda Braun, Jonathan Butler-Duplessis, Chloe Campbell, Marc Delacruz and Alexander Ferguson.

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Tim Allen’s ‘Shifting Gears’ gets Season 2 on ABC

Tim Allen’s Shifting Gears has been renewed for a second season on ABC. Allen wrote on X“Well well well……Back to work.” 

Shifting Gears’s pilot episode logged almost 17M cross-platform viewers over its first week for ABC’s biggest new series launch in more than six years.  In addition to Allen, the main cast of Shifting Gears includes Kat Dennings, Seann William Scott, Daryl “Chill” Mitchell, Lucas Neff, Maxwell Simkins and Barrett Margolis.

Per Deadline, the show follows widower Matt (Allen), who owns a high-end garage where he, Stitch (Mitchell) and Gabriel (Scott) restore and repair classic cars. Matt’s life and workplace are disrupted when his estranged daughter Riley (Kat Dennings) shows up on his doorstep with her two kids — Carter (Simkins) and Georgia (Margolis) — after leaving her husband Jimmy (Neff).

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Snoop Dogg joins ERNEST in the video for his song “Gettin’ Gone”

Ernest has teamed with rap superstar Snoop Dogg for the new song “Gettin’ Gone,” marking the first release from an upcoming project on Ernest’s newly-minted DeVille Records, which he launched in partnership with Big Loud Records.

“Gettin’ Gone” was written by Ernest, Snoop Dogg, Ben Hayslip, Rhett Akins and Mark Holman, with production by Jacob Durrett, and previews what fans can expect on Ernest’s upcoming Cadillac Sessions mixtape-style compilation, out May 9 – featuring two new original songs and a cover song from artists Chandler Walters, Cody Lohden and Rhys Rutherford.

The video for “Gettin’ Gone” features Snoop Dogg and Ernest driving around Nashville in Ernest’s Cadillac DeVille, as well as footage of the pair outside of Williamson County, Tennessee’s Castle Recording Studios, where “Gettin’ Gone” was produced.

Check out the video for “Gettin’ Gone” – HERE.

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President Trump unveils $175 billion plans for ‘Golden Dome’ Missile Defense System

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump unveiled a sweeping proposal from the White House for a new missile defense initiative aimed at shielding the United States from potential threats posed by nations such as North Korea. The concept, dubbed the “Golden Dome,” bears similarities to Ronald Reagan’s once-abandoned “Star Wars” missile defense strategy.

Trump made the announcement flanked by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and General Michael Guetlein, currently serving as the Pentagon’s deputy chief for space operations. Trump touted $25 billion in initial funding for the “Golden Dome” and put Guetlein in charge of realizing the hemispheric missile shield. Trump said: “The Golden Dome will be integrated into our current national defense framework and is expected to be up and running before the end of my next term. We’re looking at roughly a three-year timeline. Once completed, this system will be capable of intercepting missiles, no matter where they’re launched—even from space.”

Trump said the project will cost around $175 billion and be built over the next three years, though those are both only initial estimates. The initial $25 billion will be included in the massive bill working its way through Congress.

Key details still remain undecided, including whether the Golden Dome would cover the entire nation or focus primarily on protecting major population centers. Congressional analysts note that, even with advancements in remote sensing, drone technologies, and image processing, a project of this scale could require many years to fully develop and deploy.

Earlier this month, the Congressional Budget Office projected that constructing and deploying a space-based missile interception system could cost between $161 billion and $542 billion over two decades. While the costs of launching spacecraft have decreased, CBO attributed the high estimates to North Korea’s technological improvements and the ambitious nature of Trump’s defense goals.

Israel’s Iron Dome was developed to defend against short- and medium-range missile threats, acting as a protective barrier over the country. The system gained global attention for its role in intercepting around 300 Iranian missiles and drones during a large-scale retaliatory attack in April 2024 following an Israeli strike that killed a high-ranking Iranian military leader.

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New Orleans jail worker arrested for allegedly assisting in escape of 10 inmates

A maintenance employee at a New Orleans jail has been taken into custody for allegedly aiding in the escape of 10 inmates late last week, officials confirmed on Tuesday.  The arrest comes as the search for the six remaining fugitives continues into its fifth day. Officials identified four of those still at large—Corey Boyd, Lenton Vanburen, Jermaine Donald, and Derrick Groves—as facing second-degree murder charges.

According to Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill, 33-year-old Sterling Williams reportedly told investigators he acted under threats made by one of the inmates involved in the breakout. Williams was employed at the Orleans Parish jail operated by the sheriff’s office, was taken into custody on Monday night, and booked into jail on Tuesday morning. Williams now faces 10 counts of being a principal to simple escape and an additional charge of malfeasance in office. After his initial booking at the Orleans Parish facility, he was transferred to another location. Also in connection with the ongoing investigation, three other employees of the jail have been placed on suspension.

Murrill stated that Williams had admitted to shutting off the water supply to a jail cell at the request of an inmate, which in turn made it possible to remove a toilet — which was key to the inmates’ escape plan. Williams confessed to investigators that he had assisted in the escape, and allegedly told agents that one of the inmates instructed him to cut off the water in the cell they ultimately fled from.  In addition, court documents also revealed that Williams told agents with the Louisiana Bureau of Investigation he had been intimidated by Antoine Massey, one of the escapees. Williams claimed that Massey threatened to stab him if he didn’t cut the water supply, a move that allowed inmates to tamper with the toilet and wall structure behind it (Massey is among six inmates who have not yet been captured). Surveillance footage also showed Williams in conversation with Massey and another escapee, Derrick Groves, who also remains at large.

Security footage from inside the jail showed the inmates forcing open a cell door at around 12:22 a.m. Central Time. Investigators say the inmates managed to cut through steel bars located behind the toilet, then bent the bars enough to crawl through. By approximately 1 a.m., the escapees were captured on video making their way through a loading dock. About 20 minutes later, they were seen using blankets to scale a barbed wire fence before disappearing into a neighborhood across Interstate 10. The jailbreak wasn’t discovered until around 8:30 a.m. Friday.

Murrill said: “rather than reporting the request to authorities, Williams complied, shutting off the water and thereby enabling the inmates’ plan to proceed.” She added that “we will continue to uncover every detail surrounding this escape,” she said. “Anyone found to have played a role will be held accountable under the law. I urge anyone with knowledge of the incident—including those who may have helped—to come forward now, while they still have the opportunity to cooperate.”

Authorities initially reported 11 inmates missing, but later clarified that one had been moved to another unit and had not escaped. Three inmates were recaptured within 24 hours of the escape; among those apprehended that same day were Robert Moody, Dkenan Dennis, and Kendall Myles (who had been held on a second-degree murder charge).  The most recent arrest happened on Monday, when authorities took 21-year-old Gary C. Price into custody.

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