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Senior U.S. and Chinese diplomatic and trade officials held a series of calls ahead of a planned summit between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping.

Former U.S. Six-Party Talks envoy Joseph DeTrani said N. Korean leader Kim Jong Un still wants to normalize relations with the United States.

DOJ Probes 36 Illinois School Districts Over Sexual Orientation Content In Pre-K–12 Classes

Authored by Naveen Anthrappully via The Epoch Times,

The Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Civil Rights Division has launched multiple investigations into 36 Illinois public school districts to assess whether sexual orientation and gender ideology content is being taught in pre-K-12 grade classes.

If the districts are determined to be teaching sexual orientation and gender ideology-related content, “the investigations will examine whether the schools have notified parents of their right to opt their children out of such instruction,” the DOJ said in an April 30 statement.

“The investigation will also assess whether the Illinois School Districts limit access to single-sex intimate spaces (such as bathrooms and locker rooms) and girls’ sports teams based on biological sex.”

The probe will cover whether the districts violated Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, which explicitly prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in education programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance. The districts are “recipients of hundreds of thousands of dollars of taxpayer funding,” the DOJ said.

The investigations will also look into whether the school districts adhere to the U.S. Supreme Court’s “extensive precedents on parental rights” as affirmed in Mirabelli v. Bonta and Mahmoud v. Taylor cases.

In the Mirabelli v. Bonta case, the Supreme Court blocked a California policy on March 2 that prohibited school personnel from informing parents when their children requested changing their preferred gender identity at schools.

“The State argues that its policies advance a compelling interest in student safety and privacy,” the court wrote in its decision. “But those policies cut out the primary protectors of children’s best interests: their parents.”

In the Mahmoud v. Taylor lawsuit, the U.S. Supreme Court sided with Maryland parents, who, for religious reasons, wanted to opt their children out from getting exposed to school storybooks promoting LGBT lifestyles.

Commenting on the DOJ’s probe into 36 Illinois school districts, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the department’s Civil Rights Division said, “This Department of Justice is determined to put an end to local school authorities keeping parents in the dark about how sexuality and gender ideology are being pushed in classrooms.”

“Supreme Court precedent leaves no doubt: parents have the fundamental right and primary authority to direct the care, upbringing, and education of their children,” he said. “This includes exempting their children from ideological instruction that contradicts their values or decisions about their children’s health and best interests.”

The Illinois school districts under investigation include Bloomington Public Schools District, Lick Creek Community Consolidated School District, O’Fallon Community Consolidated School District, and Pembroke Community Consolidated School District.

The Epoch Times reached out to these school districts for comment but did not receive a response by publication time.

The full list of school districts being probed was posted on the DOJ website.

Gender Ideology Investigations

On April 17, the Department of Education said it found four school districts in Kansas to have violated Title IX and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.

These districts had policies “that were likely to prevent schools from notifying parents of their child’s so-called ‘gender transition,’ even if the parent requested their child’s records,” the department said.

In August 2025, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) asked 46 states and territories to remove gender identity references from teaching materials, failing which they would face penalties, including the termination or suspension of federal funding.

This was met with a legal challenge by a coalition of 16 states and the District of Columbia, which filed a lawsuit in September 2025, arguing that terminating funding would harm “the very populations Congress intended to help.” The plaintiffs said complying with the order would conflict with their own laws and policies that require “inclusive” sex education curricula.

“The federal government’s far-reaching efforts to erase people who don’t fit one of two gender labels is illegal and wrong—and would deny services to millions more in the process,” Washington Attorney General Nick Brown said in a statement. The case is still ongoing in the court.

The HHS justified its order by citing a Jan. 29, 2025, executive order signed by President Donald Trump—Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling—which said that no federal dollars should go towards indoctrinating children in “radical, anti-American ideologies.”

At the time of the HHS order, Andrew Gradison, acting assistant secretary for the department’s Administration for Children and Families, said that “federal funds will not be used to poison the minds of the next generation or advance dangerous ideological agendas.”

Tyler Durden
Fri, 05/01/2026 – 21:25

Joe Biden on Friday announced he is backing failed Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms for Georgia Governor in his first endorsement since leaving office.
Because getting an endorsement from a former president who was forced off the 2024 presidential ticket by his own party is a huge win!
Keisha Lance Bottoms served as the Mayor of Atlanta until 2021, when she joined Joe Biden’s administration as a senior advisor (DEI hire).
As Atlanta Mayor, Keisha Lance Bottoms destroyed the city by imposing strict COVID policies – as she marched with Black Lives Matter militants during the George Floyd riots.
In one of her more memorable moments as Biden’s advisor, Keisha Lance Bottoms was unable to say why Joe Biden hadn’t visited the southern border amid an invasion of illegal aliens.
“Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms… I’ve known her for a long time, and she’s something special,” Biden said in a low-energy video.
“As mayor of Atlanta, Keisha faced every challenge a leader could face, and then some… a global pandemic, a major cyberattack on the city system, economic uncertainty that tested every community across Georgia,” Biden said.
“And then she came to the White House, served as a senior adviser. And I’ll tell you, those same colleagues that made her a great mayor made her invaluable to our administration,” he said.
“Smart, focused, gets things done. Georgia, she’s ready. She’s been ready,” Biden said.. “Let’s get this thing done.”
WATCH:

BREAKING NEWS: President Joe Biden just endorsed Keisha Lance Bottoms for governor!
From her time as mayor to serving in the Biden Administration, Keisha has a record of delivering for Georgians. #gapol pic.twitter.com/apkfp5221D
— Keisha For Georgia (@KeishaForGA) May 1, 2026

A staffer for Joe Biden fired off a tweet pushing the endorsement.

Let’s go win this thing, @KeishaBottoms https://t.co/TgJut6CN7H
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) May 1, 2026

Biden’s endorsement is the kiss of death.

Imagine being endorsed by the guy who got forcibly kicked off the ballot by his own party less than 2 years ago.
— Damani Felder (@TheDamaniFelder) May 1, 2026

The fact that you let this guy sit in the White House for four years and now still prop him up as a valid endorsement is pathetic. But I guess all you cared about was being able to control the puppet.
— Ben Bergquam – Real America’s Voice (RAV-TV) News (@BenBergquam) May 1, 2026

LOL! Who wrote this post?
We know it wasn’t Joe, it has more than 3 words.
— Gunther Eagleman (@GuntherEagleman) May 1, 2026

Joe Biden shuffles out of retirement to endorse Keisha Lance Bottoms: “Let’s go win this thing” – because the party that ditched him two years ago clearly needs more of his golden touch.
— Joel Fischer (@realJoelFischer) May 1, 2026

The post WATCH: Biden Shares Low-Energy Video Endorsing Failed Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms for Georgia Governor appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

A look back at a decade of changes after the Pulitzer-Prize winning investigation sent a shock through the offshore world.

N. Korea has transferred missile technology to Iran over more than 40 years, from early Scud missile supplies to intercontinental ballistic missiles.

President Donald Trump appeared to joke during remarks at the Forum Club of the Palm Beaches in Florida on Friday that the U.S. would be “taking over” Cuba “almost immediately,” while recognizing attendees including former Rep. Dan Mica.”And he comes from originally a place called Cuba, which we will be taking over almost immediately,” Trump said.”Cuba’s got problems. We’ll finish one first. I like to finish a job,” he continued.TRUMP AIMS TO RESET WAR POWERS CLOCK WITH CONTROVERSIAL BID TO BYPASS CONGRESSTrump then riffed on a hypothetical show of American force.”On the way back from Iran, we’ll have one of our big — maybe the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier — the biggest in the world,” he said. “We’ll have that come in, stop about 100 yards offshore, and they’ll say, ‘Thank you very much, we give up.’”CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APPThe president did not elaborate further.The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for clarification if the remarks were hypothetical or outlining policy plans.

The Pentagon will withdraw 5,000 U.S. troops from Germany, a spokesperson confirmed to Fox News Digital.The redeployment comes amid President Donald Trump’s escalating feud with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and other NATO allies after tensions over their response to the conflict involving Iran.”The Secretary of War has ordered the withdrawal of approximately 5,000 troops from Germany,” chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell told Fox News Digital. EUROPEAN LEADERS ON EDGE AS PROSPECT LOOMS OF TRUMP PULLING 20K TROOPS FROM CONTINENT”This decision follows a thorough review of the Department’s force posture in Europe and is in recognition of theater requirements and conditions on the ground.”We expect the withdrawal to be completed over the next six to twelve months.”About 38,000 U.S. troops are stationed in Germany, where U.S. European Command is headquartered at Ramstein Air Base. The base and other American installations have long served as key logistics hubs and command centers supporting U.S. military operations in Europe and the Middle East.The U.S. troop presence in Germany has been a point of political debate in recent years. In 2020, Trump ordered the withdrawal of roughly 12,000 troops from the country, but the plan faced bipartisan resistance in Congress and was not completed before President Joe Biden took office.Merz, speaking Monday in Marsberg, criticized the U.S. approach to Iran, saying Washington was being “humiliated by the Iranian leadership” and expressing hope the conflict would end “as quickly as possible.”EU PUSHES FOR END OF IRAN WAR IN A MANNER WHERE ‘EVERYBODY SAVES FACE’Trump’s comments followed those remarks, marking the latest flash point between the two leaders, who have previously clashed on issues, including tariffs and defense spending.On Wednesday, Trump said in a Truth Social post his administration was “studying and reviewing the possible reduction of Troops in Germany,” adding that a decision would be made “over the next short period of time.”He also sharply criticized Merz, saying he “doesn’t know what he’s talking about” regarding Iran’s nuclear ambitions.”The Chancellor of Germany, Friedrich Merz, thinks it’s OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post Tuesday.TRUMP’S ‘ECONOMIC FURY’ SQUEEZES IRAN — BUT CAN TEHRAN OUTLAST THE PRESSURE?”He doesn’t know what he’s talking about! If Iran had a Nuclear Weapon, the whole World would be held hostage.”I am doing something with Iran, right now, that other Nations, or Presidents, should have done long ago. No wonder Germany is doing so poorly, both Economically, and otherwise!”Fox News Digital’s Alex Koch and Peter Doocy contributed to this report.

Stephen A. Smith saying that NASCAR drivers are not athletes has been one of my favorite stories for quite some time.You’ve got someone giving a demonstrably incorrect hot take, and then just digging their heels in.It’s everything that’s both great and terrible about sports media rolled up in a single package.NASCAR DRIVER WHO WAS LEFT BLOODIED FROM HORRIFYING DAYTONA CRASH HAS HARSH WORDS FOR STEPHEN A. SMITHBut, I thought if there was one person who could break through to Stephen A. and point to the mountain of evidence why NASCAR drivers — and racing drivers in general — are not just athletes, but high-level, highly trained athletes, it would be Michael Jordan.But I would be mistaken.Stephen A. has been called out on this take by drivers like Joey Logano and Kevin Harvick, who brought his own in-car fitness tracking info as proof. So, Smith, being the savvy media personality he is, took this to his show.That’s when, according to Awful Announcing, he got a call from his Airness.ZERO BS. JUST DAKICH. TAKE THE DON’T @ ME PODCAST ON THE ROAD. DOWNLOAD NOW!Now, if you didn’t know, Jordan is a longtime NASCAR fan and co-owns one of the sport’s hottest teams right now, 23XI Racing, with current Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin.Surely, he could talk some sense into Stephen A.”You know who wanted to correct me about the NASCAR thing? Michael Jordan,” Smith said on his SiriusXM. “Michael Jordan. I argued with him! Because that’s how I feel! I’m being honest. That’s how I feel. That’s all, it’s not a crime. That’s what makes radio and sports talk.”All right, so not at all.I mean, people are entitled to their opinions, but when someone goes, “Here are several dozen reasons and examples why you’re wrong,” and you stick to your guns, you’re just being difficult.But remember, it is Stephen A. who is under attack through all of this.”Don’t you notice what we call the gang mentality?” Smith asked. “Where everybody in my line of work jumps on popular opinion so they are lumped in with the vast majority of people who feel the way they feel? That’s easy. The hard part is, ‘this is where I stand, and I genuinely feel this way, and here’s why.’”NASCAR drivers being athletes isn’t a popular opinion.It just is.

South Korea’s exports rose 48% from a year earlier in April, staying above $80 billion for the second consecutive month, government data showed.