Republicans vouch for Fed chair, creating a rare schism with Trump

WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump has spent his second term bulldozing elected and appointed officials who resist him or refuse to bend to his demands. But he may have met his match in Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

CIA director meets Venezuela's acting president in Caracas

WASHINGTON (AP) – CIA Director John Ratcliffe has traveled to Venezuela to meet with acting President Delcy Rodríguez, becoming the highest-ranking Trump administration official to visit the South American country after the U.S. raid that captured former leader Nicolás Maduro.

Mother of Elon Musk's child sues his AI company over sexual deepfake images

The mother of one of Elon Musk’s children is suing his AI company, saying its Grok chatbot allowed users to generate sexually exploitive deepfake images of her that have caused her humiliation and emotional distress. Ashley St. Clair, 27, alleges in a lawsuit against xAI that the images have included a photo of her fully dressed at age 14 that was altered to show her in a bikini.

Editorials from New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Washington Post

Excerpts from recent editorials in the United States and abroad:

New research bolsters evidence that Tylenol doesn't raise risk of autism

A new review of studies has found that taking Tylenol during pregnancy doesn’t increase the risk of autism, ADHD or intellectual disabilities – adding to the growing body of research refuting claims made by the Trump administration. President Donald Trump last year promoted unproven ties between the painkiller and autism, telling pregnant women: “Don’t take Tylenol.”

Israel objects to leaders who will help oversee next steps in Gaza

NAHARIYA, Israel (AP) – Israel’s government is objecting to the White House announcement of leaders who will play a role in overseeing next steps in Gaza. The rare criticism from Israel of its close ally in Washington says the Gaza executive committee “was not coordinated with Israel and is contrary to its policy,” without details.

How abortion coverage threatens congressional deal on health care subsidies

WASHINGTON (AP) – There is broad bipartisan support in the House and Senate for reviving federal health care subsidies that expired at the beginning of the year. But long-standing disagreements over abortion coverage are threatening to block any compromise and leave millions of Americans with higher premiums.

Trump thanks Iran for not executing political prisoners

WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump took the unusual step on Friday of thanking the Iranian government for not following through on executions of what he said was meant to be hundreds of political prisoners.

Trump confidants, former British leader at forefront of US Gaza plan

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) – Two of President Donald Trump’s closest confidants, a former British prime minister, an American general and a collection of top officials from Middle Eastern governments are at the forefront of the U.S. Gaza ceasefire plan.