Friday morning news: May 1, 2026

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Iran's supreme leader vows to stay nuclear course » Iran’s purported Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, reportedly vowed Thursday that Iran will not give up its nuclear or missile programs and that it intends to keep its grip on the Strait of Hormuz.

According to Iranian state TV, Khamenei said Americans belong, in his words, "at the bottom" of the Persian Gulf, and called the U.S. the "Great Satan."

Khamenei took over after his father was killed in February's U.S. and Israeli airstrikes. But no one has seen him in public since that time.

President Trump made his position clear once more on Thursday, telling White House reporters:

TRUMP:  Can't let Iran have a nuclear weapon. And their economy is crashing, the blockade is incredible. 

The White House says the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports will stay in place until Tehran agrees to end its nuclear pursuit.

Iran, meantime, is still terrorizing the Strait of Hormuz, driving up global energy prices.

President Trump is working to build support among allies for a coordinated push to reopen the waterway.

DHS funding » On Capitol Hill:

CHAIR: And the Senate amendment is agreed to. Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table [gavel slams].

With that, the House passed a bill to fund most of the Department of Homeland Security.

WORLD’s Harrison Watters has more from the nation’s Capitol:

HARRISON WATTERS: One month after the Senate voted to fund portions of DHS not involved in immigration law enforcement, the House held a voice vote to send that bill to the President’s desk. Democrats did not object.

For weeks, House Speaker Mike Johnson faced Republican opposition over a plan to separate funding for ICE and Customs and Border Protection from the rest of DHS.

But on Wednesday, the House narrowly approved that plan in a resolution that puts committees to work drafting legislation to fund those agencies through reconciliation. That process allows both chambers to pass budget legislation through a simple majority vote.

Thursday’s voice vote ends a record-setting partial government shutdown that lasted 76 days.

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Harrison Watters in Washington.

FISA 702 » Congress has bought itself more time on a controversial U.S. spying program.

The Senate and House on Thursday passed a six-week extension of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act just hours before its authorization would have expired. That sent it to President Trump’s desk, who had vowed to sign it.

Lawmakers will now have through June 12 to debate its long-term fate.

Speaker Mike Johnson said passing it was essential:

JOHNSON:  To ensure that the administration is armed with the best possible intelligence to continue eliminating terrorists and defending our homeland.

U.S. intelligence and law enforcement officials have also called it an invaluable tool, but critics have serious privacy concerns. 

Section 702 It lets the CIA, NSA, and FBI collect emails and phone calls of foreign targets—without a warrant. But Americans on the other end of those conversations can sometimes get swept up too, and agencies can search through them without ever going to a judge.

Republican Congressman Thomas Massie calls even a short-term extension of the program an "infringement of the Constitution."

Zelenskyy seeking details on Putin ceasefire proposal » Russia may soon announce a ceasefire proposal in Ukraine. 

That's the word from President Trump after a phone call with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

TRUMP: I had a long talk with President Putin. I suggested a little bit of a ceasefire, and I think he might do that. He might announce something having to do with that...even if it's a little ceasefire, there's so many people being killed, it's so ridiculous.

Reports are that Putin is considering a May 9th ceasefire to coincide with celebrations for Victory Day in Russia: that's the event marking the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany.

Meantime, European officials say that Ukraine peace talks have actually stalled and that Putin’s comments only serve to muddy the waters.

EU Foreign Policy Chief Kaja Kallas:

KALLAS: Russia does not want to engage in any kind of dialogue. We should not humiliate ourselves by being the demandeurs, that 'please, you know, I would beg you to talk to us', but we should put them in a position where they actually go from pretending to negotiate to actually negotiating.

And Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he has not yet seen a ceasefire proposal, and even if Moscow makes such an offer, Ukraine would prefer something more long-term.

U.S. debt reaches 100% of GDP » The national debt has hit an alarming milestone. The U.S. government now owes more money to investors, banks, foreign governments, and the Federal Reserve than the entire American economy produces in a year.

WORLD's Benjamin Eicher has more: 

BENJAMIN EICHER: A budget watchdog group reported the threshold Thursday. That outside debt adds up to $31 trillion dollars.

Add in what Uncle Sam has borrowed from Social Security and Medicare trust funds, and the grand total hits $39 trillion.

That’s nearly $290,000 per American household.

Interest on that debt now costs more than the entire U.S. military.

And experts say the growing debt means tougher choices ahead: higher taxes, less spending, or both.

The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office expects the debt to keep growing. And as a share of the entire U.S. economy, it will surpass the all-time high reached right after World War II in just four years, hitting 120% by 2036.

For WORLD, I’m Benjamin Eicher.

And I'm Kent Covington.

Coming up, a review of a new film adaptation of Animal Farm. Plus, George Grant is here for Word Play.

This is The World and Everything in It.

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