Thursday morning news: June 11, 2026

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New U.S. strikes on Iran » The U.S. launched another round of airstrikes against multiple targets in Iran Wednesday. U.S. Central Command says the strikes were defensive and being carried out “in response to Iran’s unwarranted and continued aggression.”

Pentagon Chief Pete Hegseth says the end goal is to get Iran’s leadership serious about negotiating an end to the war.

HEGSETH: The War Department is prepared to set the terms to ensure that we get the kind of deal President Trump expects.

The president says Iran can expect to get hit hard until there’s a deal.

TRUMP: All they have to do is they have to start signing a piece of paper. It’s fully negotiated. We have a fully negotiated [deal], but they’re tapping and tapping.

Iran’s president called Trump’s threats a sign of desperation.

The flare-up in fighting started when, according to the White House, Iran took down a U.S. Apache helicopter over the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week.

ICE/CBP funding bill becomes law » A bill funding U.S. immigration enforcement for the foreseeable future is now law.

President Trump made it official by signing the legislation Wednesday at a ceremony in the Oval Office. The bill ensures uninterrupted funding through the end of Trump’s term.

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin:

MULLIN: Now we won’t have the Democrats threatening to shut down Immigration & Customs Enforcement, which is ICE, or shutting down our Customs & Border Protection, which is… you know… protects our borders. They can’t do that anymore. They can’t use that as leverage against the American people and against President Trump.

Mullin talking to Fox News.

Democrats held up the legislation for months, demanding changes to immigration tactics, after two U.S. citizens died in conflicts with immigration enforcement agents earlier this year.

Trump defends Pulte » As a key foreign surveillance program hangs in the balance, President Trump is defending his choice for acting director of national intelligence, Bill Pulte.

TRUMP: He's going to be there for a short while while we pick somebody else. We're interviewing five different people. They're all very good, very different, and we'll put somebody there.

Pulte already heads the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Democrats object to Pulte’s appointment, saying he lacks national security experience and will only be in the role because he’s a Trump ally. They’re holding up reauthorization of a key section of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, FISA, unless Trump picks someone else for the interim role.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune:

THUNE: It’s very, very concerning when you have the Democrats here in the United States Senate essentially saying ‘We are not interested in reauthorizing this program,’ which will go dark at midnight on Friday if we don’t take action.

FISA Section 702 lets the federal government analyze foreign texts, calls, and emails without a warrant.

Pulte is slated to take over as acting DNI on June 19. But as you heard, the president says he’s getting close to nominating a longer-term pick for the job.

A deeper dive on this story is just a few minutes away.

Inflation highest in more than 3 years » Prices for the products, goods, and services you buy are rising at their highest level in three years.

According to the latest numbers from the Labor Department, consumer inflation in May rose 4.2 percent from a year earlier. That’s the highest it’s been since April 2023. And for several months in a row now, inflation has outpaced wage growth.

Gas prices, which have spiked because of the conflict in Iran, are fueling the overall inflation increase. David Anderson of the Texas A & M Department of Agricultural Economics explains.

ANDERSON: If we think about all of our food, we gotta get it from where we produce it to where we consume it and that requires diesel and gasoline and rail traffic trucking, you name it.

Recent numbers also show consumer confidence declining and more Americans falling behind on their credit card bills.

SBC advances formal ban on women pastors » The Southern Baptist Convention has overwhelmingly voted to advance a formal ban on women pastors.

The SBC already rejects the appointment of women pastors in its core statement of belief -the Baptist Faith and Message- and has expelled churches in violation from its membership before.

But Wednesday’s 3-to-1-margin vote is a first step toward enshrining the belief in the denomination’s Constitution. The amendment will need to pass again next year with at least a two-thirds majority for that to happen.

Southern Baptist Theological Seminary President Dr. Albert Mohler sponsored the amendment, and says it’s a key line dividing liberal and biblical evangelicalism.

MOHLER: Southern Baptists want this issue clarified. The vast majority of Southern Baptists, and by that I mean the overwhelming majority of Southern Baptists, are absolutely clear and have been all along that the office of pastor is restricted to men.

That’s Mohler in a video he produced this spring leading up to this week’s Southern Baptist Convention in Florida.

Mohler is the editor of WORLD Opinions.

Canada introduces bill to ban social media for kids » Canada has introduced legislation to ban children younger than 16 from having social media accounts.

The law would create a new government regulator to monitor and strengthen social media safety protections. Social media companies would be able to get exemptions and allow younger children onto their platforms if they’ve put sufficient safeguards in place.

Canadian Identity and Culture Minister Marc Miller:

MILLER: We’re failing our children. Enough is enough. Our parents cannot face these challenges alone, and the safety of children can’t be an afterthought.

If this passes, it’ll make Canada part of a growing global movement. Australia, Brazil, and Indonesia have all introduced aged-based social media restrictions, while other countries like Britain, Denmark, and Thailand are considering them.

I’m Mark Mellinger.

Straight ahead: What would happen if a key section of FISA is not renewed? And later, a key sign that the gender transition wave is subsiding.

This is The World and Everything in It.

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