Former Rep. Mike Waltz (R-FL) challenged the United Nations over policy positions that coddle Communist China and unfairly attack Israel, saying that if he is confirmed as U.S. Ambassador to the UN, he will work to change that and “make the UN great again.” Waltz delivered his opening statement on Tuesday before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and he argued — among other things — that the United Nations should no longer treat China as a “developing nation” when it boasts the world’s second-largest economy. WATCH: U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nominee @michaelgwaltz‘s opening statement before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee: “I’m confident under @POTUS‘ leadership, we can continue to spread peace and prosperity — and I’m confident we can Make the U.N. Great Again.” pic.twitter.com/Ao1uE8pQp9 — Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) July 15, 2025 After offering thanks to his family and military colleagues for their support, Waltz jumped immediately to how his experience as a Green Beret veteran would inform his ability to work within the United Nations and advance President Donald Trump’s agenda and vision within the global body. Referencing his prior field experience with non-governmental organizations (NGOs), Waltz noted that often the money and resources were mismatched — and said that he would direct efforts toward correcting those imbalances wherever possible. Waltz went on to say that many Americans had become disillusioned with the United Nations, arguing that it had “drifted from its core mission” — and that a refocusing was in order. “We must return to the UN’s charter and first principles … and focus on peacekeeping, not nation-building.” “Countering China, absolutely … is critical,” he continued, promising to work alongside Secretary of State Marco Rubio to “challenge” China’s influence. “It’s absurd that the world’s second-largest economy is treated as a developing nation in most UN agencies that gives China favorable status.” Waltz concluded by saying that it was equally important to push back against the “pervasive” antisemitism in the United Nations, pointing out the fact that in just the last decade alone, the General Assembly had passed “154 resolutions against Israel versus 71 against all other nations combined.” “I’m confident under [Trump’s] leadership, we can continue to spread peace and prosperity — and I’m confident we can Make the U.N. Great Again,” he said.

Ana Navarro dismissed a fellow CNN panelist’s opinion because he was a “white man,” and then immediately attempted to claim that it wasn’t racist at all when he interrupted her to point out what she had done. The panel discussion, which occurred during Monday’s broadcast of “NewsNight” with host Abby Phillip, began to disintegrate sometime after conservative commentator Brad Polumbo suggested that Ana Navarro was being “hyperbolic” when she claimed that President Donald Trump’s second term was a “reign of terror.” WATCH: Ana Navarro dismisses opinion of CNN panelist because he is a white man. “It might be hyperbolic for you as a white man.” pic.twitter.com/dVlVw6gTUb — Thomas Hern (@ThomasMHern) July 15, 2025 “Also, I want to respond to you saying that I was hyperbolic when I talked about a reign of terror,” Navarro began. “Because that is hyperbolic,” Polumbo asserted. “It might be hyperbolic for you as a white man, it’s certainly not hyperbolic for me as a Latino,” Navarro replied. “Oh, okay, so we’re being racist now,” Polumbo’s reaction was immediate. “No, I’m not being racist,” Navarro insisted. “To dismiss my opinion for being a white man is racist,” Polumbo interjected. “I’m not dismissing your opinion,” Navarro attempted to regain her footing. “I’m telling you that what the Latino community, the brown community, in America — a lot of them disagree with you.” Polumbo pointed out that the Latino community was not a monolith, prompting Navarro to ask whether he thought she was insulting him when she identified him as a “white man.” “When you invoke it to dismiss my opinion,” Polumbo pushed back. Host Abby Phillip jumped in then, running to Navarro’s defense as she “hit pause” on the discussion. “I just want to make a point that, Brad, all she’s saying is that her view of the situation is different from yours. I don’t think that’s an insult.”

Nominees for the 77th Emmy Awards were announced Tuesday morning, with Apple TV+ series “Severance” leading the pack with 27 total nominations. Not far behind was another Apple TV+ series, “The Studio,” which brought in 23 total noms, a leader in the comedy series category. On the drama side, the HBO Max drama series “The Penguin,” which is based on the “Batman” universe, scored big in the limited series category with 24 total nominations. In the female-led categories, fans were surprised that Elisabeth Moss was not nominated for her starring role in the final season of “The Handmaid’s Tale.” Best Actress nods in the drama category included Kathy Bates (“Matlock”), Sharon Horgan (“Bad Sisters”), Britt Lower (“Severance”), Bella Ramsey (“The Last of Us”), and Keri Russell (“The Diplomat”). The HBO Max drama series “The White Lotus” took home 23 nominations including supporting actress noms for female stars Carrie Coon, Parker Posey, Natasha Rothwell, and Aimee Lou Wood, but they snubbed actress Leslie Bibb, who played the show’s token conservative. In the Supporting Actor category, nominations were split evenly between “Severance” and “The White Lotus,” with three each and Jason Isaacs, Walton Goggins, and Sam Rockwell all being nominated for “Lotus” and Zach Cherry, Tramell Tillman, and John Turturro being recognized for “Severance.” Jeremy Allen White is up for Best Lead Actor in a comedy series, and so is Martin Short for “Only Murders in the Building.” The 77th annual Primetime Emmy Awards are scheduled for Sunday, September 14, live on CBS at 8:00 p.m. ET/5:00 p.m. PT. Comedian Nate Bargatze will serve as the host for the evening. Below is a list of the major category nominations: Outstanding Talk Series “The Daily Show”  “Jimmy Kimmel Live”  “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert”  Outstanding Reality Competition Program “The Amazing Race”  “RuPaul’s Drag Race”  “Survivor” “Top Chef” “The Traitors” Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Javier Bardem, “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” Bill Camp, “Presumed Innocent” Owen Cooper, “Adolescence” Rob Delaney, “Dying for Sex” Peter Sarsgaard, “Presumed Innocent” Ashley Walters, “Adolescence” Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Erin Doherty, “Adolescence” Ruth Negga, “Presumed Innocent” Deirdre O’Connell, “The Penguin” Chloë Sevigny, “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” Jenny Slate, “Dying for Sex” Christine Tremarco, “Adolescence” Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Colin Farrell, “The Penguin” Stephen Graham, “Adolescence” Jake Gyllenhaal, “Presumed Innocent” Brian Tyree Henry, “Dope Thief” Cooper Koch, “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Cate Blanchett, “Disclaimer” Meghann Fahy, “Sirens” Rashida Jones, “Black Mirror” Cristin Milioti, “The Penguin” Michelle Williams, “Dying for Sex” Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series “Adolescence” “Black Mirror” “Dying for Sex” “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” “The Penguin” Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series Zach Cherry, “Severance” Walton Goggins, “The White Lotus” Jason Isaacs, “The White Lotus” James Marsden, “Paradise” Sam Rockwell, “The White Lotus” Tramell Tillman, “Severance” John Turturro, “Severance” Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series Patricia Arquette, “Severance” Carrie Coon, “The White Lotus” Katherine LaNasa, “The Pitt” Julianne Nicholson, “Paradise” Parker Posey, “The White Lotus” Natasha Rothwell, “The White Lotus” Aimee Lou Wood, “The White Lotus” Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series Kathy Bates, “Matlock” Sharon Horgan, “Bad Sisters” Britt Lower, “Severance” Bella Ramsey, “The Last of Us” Keri Russell, “The Diplomat” Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series Noah Wyle, “The Pitt” Sterling K. Brown, “Paradise” Adam Scott, “Severance” Pedro Pascal, “The Last of Us” Gary Oldman, “Slow Horses” Outstanding Drama Series “Andor” “The Diplomat” “The Last of Us” “Paradise” “The Pitt” “Severance” “Slow Horses” “The White Lotus” Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series Ike Barinholtz, “The Studio” Colman Domingo, “The Four Seasons” Harrison Ford, “Shrinking” Jeff Hiller, “Somebody Somewhere” Ebon Moss-Bachrach, “The Bear” Michael Urie, “Shrinking” Bowen Yang, “SNL” Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series Liza Colón-Zayas, “The Bear” Kathryn Hahn, “The Studio” Hannah Einbinder, “Hacks” Janelle James, “Abbott Elementary” Catherine O’Hara, “The Studio” Sheryl Lee Ralph, “Abbott Elementary” Jessica Williams, “Shrinking” Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series Jason Segel, “Shrinking” Martin Short, “Only Murders in the Building” Jeremy Allen White, “The Bear” Seth Rogen, “The Studio” Adam Brody, “Nobody Wants This” Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series Kristen Bell, “Nobody Wants This” Jean Smart, “Hacks” Uzo Aduba, “The Residence” Ayo Edebiri, “The Bear” Quinta Brunson, “Abbott Elementary” Outstanding Comedy Series “Abbott Elementary” “The Bear” “Hacks” “Nobody Wants This” “Only Murders in the Building” “Shrinking” “The Studio” “What We Do in the Shadows”

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier held a press conference Tuesday demanding U.S. Masters Swimming rescind its policy allowing biological males to swim in female events or face legal action. “Today, we called on U.S. Masters Swimming, a Florida-based nonprofit, to immediately cease allowing any men to compete against women,” Uthmeier said in a statement to The Daily Wire. “We will always fight to protect women and girls from being subjected to men trying to compete in female sports — it’s our moral obligation to do so,” the attorney general said. U.S. Masters must “quickly certify in writing” that they will ensure no men participate with women, Uthmeier said. “If they don’t do so then we will pursue additional legal action,” he said. The amateur sports organization for adult swimmers is headquartered in Sarasota, Florida, and has 60,000 members. U.S. Masters Swimming recently updated its policy after the attorney general of Texas launched an investigation when a trans-identifying male swimmer blew his female competitors away at this year’s Spring Nationals in San Antonio. The 47-year-old man who identifies as a woman, Ana Caldas, won five women’s events, sparking angry calls for U.S. Masters Swimming to change its rules. The organization’s old policy allowed trans-identifying males to compete on the women’s team as long as they had been on estrogen for a year and had testosterone below a certain level. Males who did not meet these requirements were also allowed to swim in the women’s races, but their performance did not count in the competition. However, on July 1, U.S. Masters Swimming enacted a new “interim eligibility policy,” which bars trans-identifying males from competing in the women’s category, but they may still swim in the women’s races. Uthmeier says the new policy “purports to protect women’s sports, but it does not get the job done.” “This is not acceptable. It does not fly with Florida law,” he said. “We will use every tool at our disposal from our civil rights laws to our anti-discrimination laws to our consumer protection laws to ensure that we are protecting women and girls.” Besides fairness in competition, another issue is safety in the locker rooms, the attorney general said. “As these ladies can tell you later, the other aspect here is the safety issues of having men in women’s locker rooms,” Uthmeier said. “We will not tolerate it. We will hold you accountable if you are going to endanger our women and girls.” “This is not right. It still seems insane to me that we’re having this conversation in this country, but we will always fight for what’s right in Florida. We’re the state where woke goes to die,” the attorney general said. “I believe this is a moral cause, and more importantly what’s happening is unlawful under state law.” Several athletic organizations have backed down and changed their policies after President Donald Trump, surrounded by smiling young girls wearing sports uniforms, signed an order banning trans-identifying males from girls’ sports. One of those was the NCAA, which changed its policy to ban trans-identifying males on women’s teams less than 24 hours after Trump’s order. The NCAA attracted controversy for its swimming competitions when trans-identifying male swimmer Lia Thomas defeated the University of Kentucky’s Riley Gaines, who has become an advocate for women’s sports. U.S. Masters Swimming has several events coming up in Florida, including the 2025 Rob Curry Pancake Pentathlon in September in the Orlando area.

Comedian Bill Maher and leftist actor John Leguizamo argued about immigration on a recent episode of his podcast. Leguizamo accused White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller of being a racist for his role as “the architect” of Trump’s deportation policies, but Maher argued that the Biden administration is to blame for inviting the masses to enter unlawfully. “Part of this is a backlash to how badly Biden handled the immigration situation. It can’t just be like ‘Come one, come all,’” he said during the new “Club Random with Bill Maher” episode that aired on Monday. “There’s plenty of room here,” Leguizamo complained. “There’s plenty of room in America, come on. There’s no lack of room in America.” “It’s never about room. It’s about resources,” Maher shot back. “Countries have to have a border,” he went on. “I mean, they’ve done surveys and something like 200 million people around the world when asked, ‘Would you come to America if you could?’ ‘Yes, I would.’ Why wouldn’t they? Lots of countries, excuse me, are sh**holes, and they would love to be here.” “The places aren’t sh**holes,” Leguizamo said in response. “Well, they are,” Maher replied. “That’s why they want to come.” Leguizamo goes on to say that immigrants are “building the country” and doing all the jobs no one wants to do, which Maher agreed with, but says when it comes to immigration, “there has to be some order to it.”  Leguizamo also discussed meeting Trump before his political career took off and said he took offense to being called “articulate.” The actor said he found Trump to be “meek.”   “I wouldn’t call it meek,” Maher said. “What I would call it is knowing how to make everybody – it’s ironic because he’s known as the greatest egomaniac, and he is quite an egomaniac – but to make the person you’re talking to feel like they’re the ones who are important and you’re interested in what they’re saying. He’s good at that.” Maher also said he didn’t believe that Trump was racist but just a “product of his time.” “Some of us overcome our times,” Leguizamo said. “That is true and fair to say,” Maher replied. Maher, a Democrat, made headlines earlier this year for having dinner with Trump and sharing some of the more surprising aspects of their conversation. While Larry David whined about Maher accepting an invitation from “Hitler” and actor Sean Penn said he likely would have never agreed to the meeting, Maher kept an open mind and was pleasantly surprised. He’s much more self-aware than he lets on in public,” the podcast host said at the time.