Speculation is once again flying about the health of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, 81, after he froze up while answering a reporter’s questions – the second such incident in less than two months. During a press conference in Covington, Kentucky, McConnell halted abruptly when a reporter inquired about his potential bid for re-election. The room fell silent for over 30 seconds as McConnell seemed to freeze in thought. The incident closely resembled a similar occurrence in July, when McConnell was struck speechless for 19 agonizing seconds during a news conference on Capitol Hill. On both occasions, McConnell’s responses were delayed and required the assistance of his aides to re-engage with the questioning.

Despite being his political opponent, President Joe Biden had some warm words for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday, after he was asked about the response to Hurricane Idalia that is currently ravaging the Sunshine State. “Mr. President. Governor DeSantis is also running for president. You are running for reelection. Do you sense any politics in your conversations with him about this issue,” a White House reporter asked Biden, practically begging the president to bash DeSantis. To his credit, Biden didn’t. “No, believe it or not, I know this sounds strange, especially how the nature of politics today. But, you know, I was down there when the last major storm,” Biden responded.

Iranian weightlifter Mostafa Rajaei was banned for life by the Iranian regime for shaking the hand of Israeli weightlifter Maksim Svirsky at a sports competition in Poland on Saturday, Iranian state media reported.

Former President Donald Trump revealed in a candid conversation with conservative media personality Glenn Beck that he would pursue legal action against his political adversaries if he were to be elected president again. During a recent appearance on Beck’s BlazeTV show, Trump was reminded of his infamous 2016 campaign rallying cry, “Lock her up,” in reference to Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. Beck pointed out that after assuming office, Trump had expressed that such actions were not in line with American values. Beck questioned Trump about his change in stance, asking, “Do you regret not locking her up?

The Muslim call to prayer will ring out more freely in New York City under guidelines announced Tuesday by Mayor Eric Adams, which he said should foster a spirit of inclusivity. Under the new rules, Adams said, mosques will not need a special permit to publicly broadcast the Islamic call to prayer, or adhan, on Fridays and at sundown during the month of Ramadan. Friday is the traditional Islamic holy day, and Muslims break their fast at sunset during Ramadan. The police department’s community affairs bureau will work with mosques to communicate the new guidelines and ensure that devices used to broadcast the adhan are set to appropriate decibel levels, Adams said. Houses of worship can broadcast up to 10 decibels over the ambient sound level, the mayor’s office said.

Former US President Donald Trump launched a scathing attack on Joe Biden, calling him “dumb”, “lunatic” and “incompetent”. Trump said that the US President had gone “mad and will lead the country to World War III”. In a video, Trump could be heard saying, “Crooked Joe Biden is not only dumb and incompetent. I believe that he has gone mad – a stark raving lunatic – with his horrible country threatening environmental open borders and DOJ, FBI weaponization policies. He is a mental catastrophe that is leading our country to hell that will end up in World War III because of this man and for no reason whatsoever.” (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

Members of the right-wing Im Tirtzu organization on Wednesday morning held a “protest of shame” against a leader of the campaign of the recent relentless harassment of government officials and their families in Israel and abroad. Nava Rozolyo, a resident of Tel Aviv, manages a Whatsapp group with thousands of members with the sole purpose of stalking and harassing government officials. Members of the group are informed in real-time of the location of government members, including during their private family or vacation time, and are encouraged to storm the area. It was her actions that resulted in an angry mob storming a hairdresser in Tel Aviv in March after she informed members that Sara Netanyahu was inside.

In a recent appearance on Steve Bannon’s War Room podcast, Georgia state Senator Colton Moore (R) has sparked controversy by asserting that street confrontations could erupt if the prosecution of former President Donald Trump and his 18 alleged co-conspirators on charges related to a supposed fake elector scheme proceeds. Moore’s comments have ignited concerns about the escalating tensions surrounding the legal proceedings. During the podcast, Moore expressed his concerns, saying, “We’ve got the ability to subpoena documents, to subpoena witnesses, and at the end of the day, we’ve got the legislative authority to call in the state troopers and bring these people in,” in reference to the prosecutors.

Hurricane Idalia made landfall on Florida’s west coast as a dangerous Category 3 storm on Wednesday, threatening to unleash life-threatening storm surges and rainfall. Idalia came ashore in the lightly populated Big Bend region, where the Florida Panhandle curves into the peninsula. The result could be a big blow to a state still dealing with lingering damage from last year’s Hurricane Ian. The National Weather Service in Tallahassee called Idalia “an unprecedented event” since no major hurricanes on record have ever passed through the bay abutting the Big Bend. Florida Gov.

The FBI is investigating more than a dozen Uzbek nationals allowed into the US after they sought asylum at the southern border with Mexico earlier this year, a scramble set off when US intelligence officials found that the migrants traveled with the help of a smuggler with ties to ISIS, according to multiple US officials. While the FBI says no specific ISIS plot has been identified, officials are still working to “identify and assess” all of the individuals who gained entry to the United States, according to a statement from National Security Council spokesman Adrienne Watson. And they are closely scrutinizing a number of the migrants as possible criminal threats, according to two US officials.