Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, a Republican, is battling pneumonia complicated by ash exposure from the 9/11 terrorist attacks that destroyed the World Trade Center. Giuliani spokesman Ted Goodman, who announced on Sunday that “America’s Mayor” had been hospitalized and was in “critical but stable condition,” explained the situation in more detail in a statement posted Monday morning via X. Mayor Rudy Giuliani is recovering from pneumonia. On September 11th, Mayor Giuliani ran toward the towers to help those in need, which later led to a diagnosis of restrictive airway disease. This condition adds complications to any respiratory illness, and the virus quickly… — Ted Goodman (@TedCGoodman) May 4, 2026 “Mayor Rudy Giuliani is recovering from pneumonia,” Goodman posted — and then explained how such a diagnosis could be far more dangerous to someone whose respiratory system was already compromised due to exposure to the dust and ash that blanketed New York in the aftermath of the 2001 Islamic terror attacks. Giuliani, who was mayor of New York City at the time, earned the nickname “America’s Mayor” as he shepherded the city through the weeks that followed the attacks. “On September 11th, Mayor Giuliani ran toward the towers to help those in need, which later led to a diagnosis of restrictive airway disease,” he continued. “This condition adds complications to any respiratory illness, and the virus quickly overwhelmed his body, requiring mechanical ventilation to maintain adequate oxygen and stabilize his condition.” The good news, Goodman added, was that Giuliani had stabilized somewhat and was able to breathe without medical intervention. “He is now breathing on his own, with his family and primary medical provider at his side,” Goodman said. “Mayor Giuliani is the ultimate fighter — as he has demonstrated throughout his life — and he is winning this battle. His family deeply appreciates the outpouring of love and support. The mayor believes in the power of prayer, and we are feeling that strength today. He remains in critical but stable condition. Please keep the prayers coming.” When the news broke on Sunday that Giuliani had been hospitalized, President Donald Trump was quick to send out a statement on behalf of his longtime friend and ally: “Our fabulous Rudy Giuliani, a True Warrior, and the Best Mayor in the History of New York City, BY FAR, has been hospitalized, and is in critical condition. What a tragedy that he was treated so badly by the Radical Left Lunatics, Democrats ALL — AND HE WAS RIGHT ABOUT EVERYTHING! They cheated on the Elections, fabricated hundreds of stories, did anything possible to destroy our Nation, and now, look at Rudy. So sad!”

As the conflict with Tehran has reached a stalemate, it is up to the United States to declare victory, but first, it must define what victory means. Three outcomes qualify. First, degrading Iran’s ballistic missile arsenal to the point that it no longer poses a credible threat to U.S. bases, allies, or the Strait of Hormuz. Second, dismantling its nuclear program by ending uranium enrichment and subjecting all facilities to inspections. Third, a systemic transfer of power in Tehran that establishes a pro-West government that represents the Iranian people rather than the current theocratic order.  The third option is not only the most desirable but also the only plausible avenue, resolving the other two while reshaping the world. Eliminating Iran’s military capabilities would be costly and prolonged, and even then reversible so long as the regime remains in power. Islamic Republic leaders refuse to even negotiate missile ranges, and the new Ayatollah sees enrichment as a red line, a stance that hardens as the regime weakens. While regime change remains taboo to discuss, President Donald Trump is already bearing its costs without securing its outcome. Every American president since 1979 has tried either to contain the Iran problem or to manage it through appeasement. Trump broke from that approach by seeking to resolve it. To do so, he must avoid a core miscalculation: the regime is structurally incapable of changing its behavior. Tehran’s missile arsenal and nuclear program are its primary points of leverage, and the premise that a durable diplomatic settlement can neutralize both ignores the historical reality that agreements tend to defer rather than remove the threat. An Islamist system built on anti-Americanism and the export of terrorism cannot abandon the very tools that sustain it.  The nuclear file remains the lingering issue. Despite long-standing differences among the regime’s pillars, they remain aligned on preserving uranium enrichment to retain a pathway to weapons-grade material and maintain leverage. Late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei drew that lesson from Muammar Gaddafi, who gave up his nuclear program and was later overthrown. His successor, Mojtaba, is following his father’s logic. Tehran has chosen war twice rather than budge on enrichment and will do so again, while Trump cannot settle for another version of the deal he withdrew from. On missiles, the campaign has dealt the most severe blow to Iran’s primary military asset, not only its arsenal but also its manufacturing base. More than 20,000 targets across Iran were struck jointly by the U.S. and Israel, including missile bases, stockpiles, launchers, and key personnel tied to their development. Before the April 7 ceasefire, Iran was launching significantly fewer medium-range ballistic missiles, the systems it relies on to strike more distant targets such as Israel. Without a doubt, the regime is significantly weaker than before the war, but it remains lethal. That is due to its cheaply produced yet extensive stockpile of short-range missiles and drones that can still strike targets across the Persian Gulf, paired with hundreds of thousands of ideologically devoted personnel willing to fight to martyrdom.  Another challenge in assessing a military victory is how the U.S. and Israel present data on the regime’s missile and drone stockpiles. Both share percentage reductions to illustrate damage rather than providing baseline figures and what remains, making the true scale of degradation harder to gauge. The war against the regime, despite the Islamic Republic being a nation-state, still reflects an asymmetric balance. The munitions used to destroy Iranian military sites are far more expensive than the targets they hit, while Tehran can disrupt the global economy with relatively cheap drones and missiles in the Strait of Hormuz. The regime’s bar is survival, while Trump is, and should be, pursuing a far more ambitious definition of victory. This leaves a systemic transfer of power in Tehran as the only viable path to a historic breakthrough. The key is to level the playing field between regime forces and their only true existential threat: the Iranian people. The war has already set in motion most of the components required for regime collapse, tightening economic pressure, degrading the repression apparatus, and pairing both with direct messaging so Iranians are prepared to shape what follows. Hyperlocal strikes on internal security personnel proved a turning point, forcing these fighters to fear for their lives as much as ordinary Iranians do. The abrupt ceasefire cut short these dynamics before they could produce a decisive outcome. The window for regime change remains open, as Iranians still await the call from the president to take to the streets, a step Washington has signaled more than once. The naval blockade has already alarmed Tehran’s leadership, which faces the prospect of renewed unrest and growing difficulty paying its supporters. Washington should be prepared to press further while sustaining the economic pressure that is constraining cash flow and deepening public resentment. Expanded support would require strikes not only on repression forces and military figures but also on the regime’s political leadership. In parallel, select dissident networks in major urban areas should be equipped to confront their oppressors. As mid- and lower-level personnel see leadership either eliminated or in hiding, while dissident cells operate across key cities, it reinforces the sense that the regime’s end is near and forces a choice between holding the line at great risk or defecting. The conditions are in place. Iranians are overwhelmingly anti-Islamist, the region’s most pro-American and pro-Israeli population, highly educated compared to their neighbors, and anchored by a strong national identity rooted in their ancient monarchy. They mobilized in the millions in January 2026 behind Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, the only viable transition figure. The Iran war presents Trump with an opportunity more transformative than the collapse of the Soviet Union. A shift in power in Tehran would eliminate the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism and a global arms proliferator that has fueled conflicts from Europe to Africa and supplied oil to China. Achieving this historic shift runs through the Iranian people. Born and raised in Tehran, Janatan Sayeh is the Iran analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Previously, he held various research roles at the International Republican Institute, Washington Institute for Near East Policy, and the American Enterprise Institute. Sayeh studied Hebrew and Arabic at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and received his BA in political science from the University of California, Berkeley.

The suspect accused of starting one of the largest wildfires in Los Angeles history, fixated on Luigi Mangione weeks before starting the blaze out of resentment for the rich, according to federal prosecutors.  Federal prosecutors said in a trial memorandum that 30-year-old Jonathan Rinderknecht demonstrated an obsession with Mangione in the days before he started the Lachman and Palisades Fires on January 1, 2025. Mangione has developed a cult following among the Left after he was arrested for gunning down Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare. “On January 24, 2025, when investigators asked defendant why someone might commit arson in the Pacific Palisades, he responded that it would be out of resentment of the rich enjoying their money as ‘we’re basically being enslaved by them’ and compared such an act of ‘desperation’ to the murder for which Mangione was charged,” the memo said.  The memo added that Uber passengers who rode with Rinderknecht on December 31 and January 1 recounted him being “angry, intense, driving erratically, and ranting about being ‘pissed off at the world’ and Luigi Mangione, capitalism, and vigilantism.” Prosecutors described Rinderknecht becoming “fixated” on Mangione in the weeks leading up to the fires, saying his internet search history revealed queries like “free Luigi Mangione,” “lets take down all the billionaires,” and “reddit lets kill all the billionaires.” Rinderknecht has been charged with destroying property by fire, arson affecting property used in interstate commerce, and setting timber afire. Facing over forty years in prison, he has pleaded not guilty.  “Millings of people in this country are fascinated with Luigi Mangione. To suggest that is a connection to the crime of ours is ridiculousarson is ridiculous [SIC],” Steve Haney, Rinderknecht’s lawyer, told The Daily Wire. “These are the depths that the government are going to in the absence of any evidence of my client committed a crime.” The memo said that Rinderknecht had an obsession with fire and had previously burned a Bible.  “A few months before the fire, defendant asked ChatGPT — an AI system that he used as a confidant and diary — to generate and then modify images of a ‘burning forest’ next to ‘a bunch of people running away,’” prosecutors said. “Defendant also confided to ChatGPT that he had burned a bible and that it felt ‘liberating.’ Later, after he knew he was under investigation for the fire, defendant threatened to burn down his sister’s house.” Mangione is currently facing charges related to the assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December 2024. While a judge dismissed federal murder charges against Mangione, he still faces second-degree New York murder charges. In the wake of Mangione’s arrest, leftist activists have called for his release, claiming he was targeting an exploitative corporation.

Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger would not rule out supporting multiple new taxes, including on gym memberships, streaming services, and dry cleaning.  The Democrat, who won comfortably last November on a message focused on affordability, said the tax bills proposed in the state legislature are worth considering to add to state revenue streams. “I think there are worthy conversations to be had about what revenue generation looks like in the future as our economy changes in so many ways,” Spanberger told a local ABC affiliate. A lot has been made of taxes proposed by Democrats that never passed the General Assembly, including a bill to tax streaming services and more. Republicans, including President Trump, have attacked Governor Abigail Spanberger over that bill and others. Spanberger has pushed… pic.twitter.com/KBWUnIy66W — Tyler Englander (@TylerEnglander) April 29, 2026 Earlier this year, Virginia Democrats introduced bills to expand state sales tax coverage to various services, including gym memberships, storage facility use, pet care, counseling, vehicle and home repair, digital subscriptions, and more. Gym membership Storage facility use Dog walking Dog grooming Counseling Vehicle repair Home repair Dry cleaning Cosmetic services Software application services Computer-related services Website hosting and design Data storage, and Digital subscription services Democratic lawmakers have also introduced bills that would tax gun and ammunition sales, along with levies on delivery drivers for services like DoorDash and Uber Eats. The bills never came up for a vote and have since stalled in the state’s General Assembly, according to the governor’s office. Spanberger, however, appeared to sympathize with the intention of the proposed taxes. “But I also want to recognize that many of the patrons who brought forth different ideas about how to bring out revenue that’s necessary, I think every idea, as long as it’s reasonable and makes some amount of sense, should be entertained and should be discussed,” Spanberger said. “The one on streaming services, you know, you used to buy a DVD, there’d be a sales tax. Streaming is different. And so I recognize that there’s value in having these conversations,” she added. The liberal governor’s willingness to consider new revenue sources comes amid pressure from the White House. “I can’t believe what this new Governor, Spanberger, has done to the Commonwealth — So sad!” President Trump wrote in a Truth Social post last month. “This went from a thriving and powerful place, one envied by all, to a Commonwealth run by a person who has no concept of Low Taxes and Economic Strength.” Spanberger’s office forcefully pushed back, insisting that none of the proposed taxes have been enacted and criticizing what it described as “the volume of misinformation — spread across social media and repeated in press coverage.” “The array of taxes that the President asserts move forward in Virginia is sort of ludicrous,” Spanberger said in the interview. “But whether I would ever sign a bill is wholly dependent on, I think, as evidence from my recent actions, is wholly predicated on what is actually in the bill, and how it is outlined.”

A leftist mounting a long-shot campaign against Pennsylvania Democratic Senator John Fetterman was arrested after he called on his senator to assassinate President Donald Trump, according to the FBI.  Raymond Chandler III was arrested Friday after law enforcement said he left several disturbing calls threatening the president. Chandler is also accused of leaving a message for the senator describing how he and his daughter would have their throats slit by a mob of people upset about their wealth.  “They pull you out of your house and they slit your throat and they slit your daughter’s throat and they slit everyone’s throat,” Chandler said in a message to an unnamed member of Congress, according to an FBI affidavit. “That you know, sir, that is the future. It’s not a future I want, it’s not a future I’m advocating for, but wealth concentration has gotten so bad in this country.” It’s unclear from the affidavit if Chandler left the messages for Fetterman or for Republican Pennsylvania Senator Dave McCormick.  Chandler, who supports abolishing ICE and wants to go after billionaires, describes himself as a Quaker-Buddhist who wants everyone to be treated with “empathy, kindness,” and respect.  “The greed has gotten so bad. People are suffering so much, sir, that that is what is in our future,” he added in the call, according to the FBI. “You will not escape their wrath. We must redistribute the wealth away from people like you.” He was charged with multiple counts related to threats against federal officials and their families. In another phone call, Chandler is accused of calling for his senator to assassinate President Donald Trump.  “Sir, I’m calling this evening because what I want you to do is I want you to take a firearm. I want you to put it in your hand,” he allegedly said. “I want you to walk into the Oval Office. I want you to put that firearm to the President’s head, and I want you to pull the trigger and I want you to kill him.” He said that Trump was “awful,” “a liar among all liars,” and the “antichrist.”  “I want you to put it to his temple, and I want you to pull the trigger. That is what I want you to do as my agent,” Chandler said, according to the affidavit. “That’s what I want you to do as my elected official. That’s what I am petitioning you to do with my free speech. I want you to kill the President. I want you to assassinate the President. That’s what I want you to do.” Chandler previously left messages advocating for “armed resistance” to ICE alongside his willingness to “go to war and to ‘personally kill,’” according to the FBI. A lawyer appointed to represent Chandler declined to comment. A hearing is set for May 8 to determine whether to keep Chandler in federal custody. Trump has faced a number of major assassination attempts, including most recently at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner when a gunman attempted to storm into the ballroom where he sat alongside other top government officials.