Trump Wants Normalized Relations Between Israel and Saudi Arabia

WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump has not been subtle about how badly he wants to see Saudi Arabia and Israel normalize relations. Correspondent Bernie Bennett has details.

VERBATIM:
The President has talked up his push to extend his first term Abraham Accords – the project that formalized commercial and diplomatic ties between Israel and a trio of Arab nations – as key to his plan for bringing long-term stability to the Middle East as the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza continues to hold.

The normalization push is expected to be high on the agenda when Mr. Trump hosts Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Tuesday for talks during a pomp-filled White House visit.

Bernie Bennett, Washington.

Border Patrol Arrests in North Carolina

A top Border Patrol commander touted dozens of arrests in North Carolina’s largest city on Sunday as Charlotte residents reported encounters with federal immigration agents near churches, apartment complexes and stores. Reporter Bernie Bennett has details.

VERBATIM:
The Trump administration has made the Democratic city of about 950,000 people its latest target for an immigration enforcement surge it says will combat crime, despite fierce objections from local leaders and downtrending crime rates.

Gregory Bovino, who led hundreds of U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents in a similar effort in Chicago, took to X to document a few of the more than 80 arrests he said agents had made.

Bovino, head of a Border Patrol sector in El Centro, California, and other Trump administration officials have called their actions appropriate for growing threats on enforcement agents.

Bernie Bennett reporting.

Simpson Estate Settles Suit with Fred Goldman

The O.J. Simpson estate has taken a key step toward paying Fred Goldman nearly 58 million dollars – nearly three decades after Goldman won a wrongful death judgment in a civil case against Simpson. More from Correspondent Bernie Bennett.

VERBATIM:
Malcolm LaVergne, executor of Simpson’s estate, has accepted Goldman’s creditor claim for $57,997,858.12, plus 30 years of accumulated interest, TMZ first reported Saturday.

Goldman’s son, Ron, was killed alongside Nicole Brown Simpson – O.J. Simpson’s ex-wife – on June 12, 1994. Simpson was acquitted of the murders in what became known as the “Trial of the Century.”

Bernie Bennett reporting.

The Dolphins Beat the Commanders

MADRID (AP) – Jack Jones had a fitting celebration after his overtime interception in the first NFL regular-season game in Spain. More from Correspondent Bernie Bennett.

(POSSIBLE OUTCUE: It was the seventh – and final – international game this season, the most in one year for the NFL as it continues to expand globally.

VERBATIM:
The Miami Dolphins cornerback ran toward the sideline and stretched his arms wide after a twisting jump in front of his teammates. Jones was imitating Cristiano Ronaldo, the soccer great who used to celebrate like that at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium when he played for Real Madrid.

Jones intercepted Marcus Mariota on the first offensive play of overtime and Riley Patterson kicked a 29-yard field goal to give the Dolphins a 16-13 victory over the Washington Commanders.

Bernie Bennett reporting.

Senate Votes to End the Shutdown

WASHINGTON – The Senate has voted 60 to 40 to end the longest running government shutdown in U.S. history. This update from Correspondent Bernie Bennett.

VERBATIM: ((STORY BEGINS WITH THE VOTE ANNOUNCEMENT))
The shutdown could last a few more days as members of the House, which has been on recess since mid-September, return to Washington to vote on the legislation. President Donald Trump has signaled support for the bill, saying Monday that “we’re going to be opening up our country very quickly.”

The Senate voted 47-53 along party lines not to extend “Affordable Healthcare Act” subsidies for a year. Majority Republicans allowed the vote as part of a separate deal with Democrats to speed up votes and send the legislation to the House.

Bernie Bennett, Washington.

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The Senate Plans a Vote to End the Shutdown

WASHINGTON (AP) – The Senate is drawing closer to a vote on legislation to end the shutdown on Monday.
Correspondent Bernie Bennett explains.

VERBATIM:
It is unclear when the Senate will hold final votes on the bill, but Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he hopes passage will take “hours not days.”

Thune said Monday morning as the Senate opened, “The American people have suffered for long enough. Let’s not pointlessly drag this bill out.”

The legislation would still need to clear the House before the government could reopen. Speaker Mike Johnson urged lawmakers to start returning to Washington “right now” given travel delays, but he said he would issue an official notice for the House’s return once the Senate passes the legislation.

Bernie Bennett, Washington.

Syrian President Visits White House

WASHINGTON – Ahmad al-Sharaa (ahk-MAWD al SHAH-rah) will be the first Syrian president to visit Washington since the country’s independence in 1946. Reporter Bernie Bennett has details.

VERBATIM:
Since rebel forces ousted former Syrian President Bashar Assad in December, al-Sharaa has gone on a charm offensive to establish new ties with countries that had shunned Assad’s government after its brutal crackdown on protesters in 2011 spiraled into a 14-year civil war.

Al-Sharaa met with President Donald Trump in Saudi Arabia in May, where Mr. Trump announced that he would lift decades of sanctions.

The two men will meet again on Monday in Washington, where Syria is widely expected to officially join the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State group.

Bernie Bennett in Washington.

Senate Advances Procedural Vote to End the Government Shutdown

WASHINGTON – The Senate voted 60-40 to proceed to a House-passed continuing resolution to reopen the government, taking a big first step toward ending the government shutdown. Details from reporter Bernie Bennett.

VERBATIM:
Democrats are coalescing around a bipartisan agreement to fund the government. Some, however, are still resisting.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer emerged from an evening caucus meeting telling reporters, “I’m voting no” on the new shutdown deal, as he walked on the Senate floor.

SENATE VOTE-schumer-a3-SUNpm (:03) “vote no”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune says the time has come to put the shutdown behind us.

SENATE VOTE-thune-a2-SUNpm (:13) “is now”

Bernie Bennett, Washington.

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President Trump Attends Regular Season NFL Game

LANDOVER, Md. (AP) – President Donald Trump has become the first sitting president in nearly a half-century at a regular-season NFL game when he attended the Washington Commanders’ contest against the Detroit Lions on Sunday. Details from Reporter Bernie Bennett.

VERBATIM:
House Speaker Mike Johnson was among those who joined President Trump in a suite at Northwest Stadium. Before the president’s arrival, he flew over the stadium in Air Force One. Only two other times did a president go to an NFL game during the regular season while in office: Richard Nixon in 1969 and Jimmy Carter in 1978. Mr. Trump became the first president at a Super Bowl while residing in the White House last February.

Bernie Bennett, Washington.

Speeding Car in Tampa Kills Pedestrians

A speeding car fleeing police slammed into a crowded bar early Saturday, killing four people and injuring 11 in a historic district of Tampa, Florida.

OUTCUE: Correspondent Bernie Bennett with that report.

VERBATIM:
The Florida Highway Patrol attempted to stop the vehicle but failed. The driver fled and eventually lost control and slammed into people outside the bar. Three people died at the scene, and a fourth died at a hospital. A 22-year-old suspect was arrested and faces multiple charges including vehicular homicide.

BBC Leaders Resign After Editing President Trump’s Remarks

The head of the BBC resigned Sunday after criticism of the broadcaster’s editing of a speech by President Donald Trump.
Reporter Bernie Bennett has details.

VERBATIM: The BBC said that director-general Tim Davie and head of news Deborah Turness both announced their resignations on Sunday.

Britain’s public broadcaster has been criticized for editing a speech then-President Trump made on Jan. 6, 2021, before protesters attacked the Capitol in Washington.

Critics said that the way the speech was edited for a BBC documentary was misleading and cut out a section where Mr. Trump said that he wanted supporters to demonstrate peacefully.

Bernie Bennett reporting.

Former NFL Commissioner Tagliabue Passes Away

NEW YORK (AP) – Paul Tagliabue, who helped bring labor peace and riches to the NFL during his 17 years as commissioner but was criticized for not taking stronger action on concussions, died Sunday from heart failure. Reporter Bernie Bennett has details.

VERBATIM:
NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said Tagliabue’s family informed the league of his death in Chevy Chase, Maryland.
Tagliabue, who had developed Parkinson’s disease, was commissioner from 1989, when he succeeded Pete Rozelle, to 2006. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame as part of a special centennial class in 2020. Current Commissioner Roger Goodell succeeded Tagliabue.

News of Tagliabue’s death came shortly before seven games kicked off Sunday. The Miami Dolphins and Minnesota Vikings held a moment of silence for Tagliabue and Marshawn Kneeland, the Dallas Cowboys’ defensive tackle who died on Thursday.

Tagliabue died Sunday from heart failure at 84 years old.

Americans Think Job Market Tightens

WASHINGTON (AP) – Americans say they are increasingly concerned about their ability to find a good job, according to an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll . Reporter Bernie Bennett has the details.

VERBATIM:
High prices for groceries, housing and health care persist as a fear for many households, while rising electricity bills and the cost of gas at the pump are also sources of anxiety, according to the survey.

Some 47% of U.S. adults are “not very” or “not at all confident” they could find a good job if they wanted to, an increase from 37% when the question was last asked in October 2023.

Electricity bills are a “major” source of stress for 36% of U.S. adults. Just more than one-half said the cost of groceries are a “major” source of financial stress, and about 4 in 10 said the cost of housing and health care were a serious strain. About one-third said they were feeling high stress about gas prices.

Bernie Bennett in Washington.

Trump’s Approval Rating on Israel Soars

WASHINGTON (AP) – More U.S. adults support President Donald Trump’s handling of the conflict in Israel after he brokered a ceasefire deal in Gaza, a new AP-NORC poll finds. Correspondent Bernie Bennett has more on this.

VERBATIM: The survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research reveals that Preisent Trump’s apparent success on the world stage has not yet improved his overall standing at home. In interviews, even some of his voters said he needs to do more to address issues such as the economy, health care and immigration.

The poll was conducted Oct. 9-13, before the hostages and prisoners were freed in Israel, but after the ceasefire deal was announced.

In the new poll, about 4 in 10 U.S. adults approve of the way Mr. Trump is handling his job as president overall, unchanged from September.

Bernie Bennett, Washington

The GOP Leads Congressional Approval Rating

WASHINGTON – Congressional Republicans’ approval rating outperformed their Democratic counterparts for the second time this year, according to the latest Fox News national survey. Bernie Bennett has this report.

VERBATIM:
Thirty-three percent of registered voters approve of the job Democrats in Congress are doing (66% disapprove), up 3 points from a near record-low 30% in March.

While their Republican colleagues garner a higher 38% approval rating (61% disapproval), that’s down 5 points from a record-high 43% six months ago.

The decline in congressional Republican approval comes from within: 76% of self-identified GOPers approve, but that’s down from 88% in March. And while congressional Democrats earn the approval from just 58% of self-identified Democrats, that’s up from 49% six months ago.

Bernie Bennett reporting.

Russian Earthquake

MOSCOW (AP) – The U.S. Geological Survey reported a powerful 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck early Saturday near the east coast of Russia’s Kamchatka region. Bernie Bennett has this report.

OUT CUE: That’s correspondent Bernie Bennett reporting.

VERBATIM:
The quake’s epicenter was 69.3 miles east of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, and had a depth of 39 kms, according to the USGS.

There were no immediate reports of injuries of major damages.

Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula was hit by five powerful quakes – the largest with a magnitude of 7.4 – on July 20, 2025.

House-Defense Bill

On Wednesday, The House passed its version of the National Defense Authorization Act, with a bipartisan amendment to repeal two laws authorizing the use of military force in Iraq. Bernie Bennett has details.

VERBATIM:
The legislation, which authorizes funding and sets policy for the U.S. military, passed 231 to 196. Four Republicans opposed the bill while 17 Democrats joined the rest of the GOP in voting for it.

The AUMF amendment would repeal the 2002 Iraq War and 1991 Gulf War authorizations… as well as make it more difficult for presidents to bypass Congress on military actions.

Lawmakers voted 261 to 167 to pull the AUMFs, which critics say have been abused by presidents as they grant the commander-in-chief authority to use military force without issuing a formal declaration of war.

Bernie Bennett in Washington.

DC Changes Gun Laws

WASHINGTON (AP) – Federal prosecutors in the nation’s capital will no longer bring felony charges against people for possessing rifles or shotguns in the District of Columbia, according to a new policy adopted by the leader of the nation’s largest U.S. attorney’s office.

VERBATIM:
That office will continue to pursue charges when someone is accused of using a shotgun or rifle in a violent crime or has a criminal record that makes it illegal to have a firearm. Local authorities in Washington can prosecute people for illegally possessing unregistered rifles and shotguns.

U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said in a statement that the change is based on guidance from the Justice Department and the Office of Solicitor General and conforms with two Supreme Court decisions on gun rights. The new policy also coves large-capacity magazines, but does not apply to handguns.

Bernie Bennett, Washington.

New House Member Sworn In

WASHINGTON – Fairfax County Virginia Supervisor James Walkinshaw was sworn in to the House on Wednesday, further narrowing House Speaker Mike Johnson’s razor-thin majority. More on this from reporter Bernie Bennett.

VERBATIM:
Walkinshaw said Wednesday in a post on X, “Honored to be sworn in today to represent VA-11 in Congress. Fairfax families will always come first. Grateful to my wife Yvette and our son Mateo for their love and support every step of the way.”

With Walkinshaw, the former chief of staff of late Democrat Congressman Gerry Connolly sworn in, Speaker Johnson’s majority has narrowed 219-213, meaning he can only afford to lose two GOP votes on any party-line bill.

There are three vacant seats.

Bernie Bennett reporting.

Hurricane Kiko Approaches Hawaii

HONOLULU (AP) – Hurricane Kiko has weakened into a tropical storm but still could create life-threatening surf and rip currents in Hawaii. More details from reporter Bernie Bennett.

VERBATIM:
The storm was forecast to pass to the north of the Hawaiian Islands on Tuesday and Wednesday as it continues to weaken. The threat of direct impacts on the islands has decreased, though people in Hawaii are asked to monitor the storm’s progress in case circumstances change.

With maximum sustained winds around 45 mph, Kiko was centered roughly 215 miles north-northeast of Hilo, Hawaii, and about 300 miles east-northeast of Honolulu.

The storm was traveling west-northwest at 14 mph.

Bernie Bennett reporting.

Texas Elections Investigation

HOUSTON (AP) – Nine people have pleaded not guilty to felony charges brought forth in a rural Texas county by Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton as part of a widening elections investigation.
Correspondent Bernie Bennett has details.

VERBATIM:
The probe is being criticized by Latino rights activists as being politically driven.

The nine people, who were indicted in June, appeared either in person or by Zoom during a court hearing on Wednesday in Pearsall, Texas, before state District Judge Sid Harle.

Those indicted include a former mayor and city council member and the chief of staff to a state representative. The indictments are the latest development in an investigation Paxton started to root out voter fraud, which is rare.

In May, six other people were indicted as part of Paxton’s investigation.

Bernie Bennett reporting.

Deputies Shot in Virginia

GRETNA, Virginia (AP) – Three sheriff’s deputies who were shot while executing warrants in southern Virginia were “shaken up” but doing well. Bernie Bennett has this report.

VERBATIM:
Pittsylvania County Sheriff Michael Taylor says the warrants were for brandishing a firearm and trespassing. The depubites were also serving a protective order.

After the all clear, Sheriff Taylor told reporters there was an hour-long standoff, but it ended peacefully and with the suspected shooter in custody.

Republican Congressman John McGuire, who represents Virginia’s 5th congressional district, said in a post on X that his thoughts and prayers were with deputies and he also extended his thoughts and prayers to their families.

Pittsylvania County is located along the state’s southern border with North Carolina, about 98 miles northwest of Raleigh.

Bernie Bennett reporting.

Mayor Bowser DIscusses President Trump

As National Guard troops deploy across her city as part of President Donald Trump’s efforts to clamp down on crime, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser is responding with relative restraint.

VERBATIM:
She’s called President Trump’s takeover of the city’s police department and his decision to activate 800 members of the guard “unsettling and unprecedented” and gone as far as to cast his efforts as part of an “authoritarian push.”

But Bowser has so far declined to respond with the kind of biting rhetoric and personal attacks typical of other high-profile Democratic leaders.

She even suggested the surge in resources might benefit the city and noted that limited home rule allows the federal government “to intrude on our autonomy in many ways.”

Bowser is in her third term as mayor of the Capital City.

Bernie Bennett, Washington.

Radio News Shows Profits after a 30 Year Low

Radio news profitability rises after a 30-year low. Details from Correspondent Bernie Bennett.

VERBATIM:
The latest RTDNA/Newhouse School at Syracuse University Survey found that radio news profitability rose to 13% in 2025. That has a rebound from last year’s 30-year Survey low of 10.1%.

Clear patterns of profitability are hard to identify. Stations in major markets are just as likely to profit from news as those in smaller markets, and the same holds true regardless of staff size. For whatever reason, stations in the South and Midwest are more likely to show a profit from news than stations in the Northeast or West.

Bernie Bennett, Washington.

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