Salem News Channel

Iran & U.S. To Hold Nuclear Talks Soon

Iran and the United States will resume nuclear talks on Friday in Turkey, Iranian and U.S. officials told Reuters on Monday, while a regional diplomat said representatives from countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt would participate. U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi will meet in Istanbul in an effort to revive diplomacy over a long-running dispute about Iran's nuclear program and dispel fears of a new regional war. Turkey and other regional allies have sought de-escalation. "Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Egypt, as well as some other countries, will attend the Istanbul meeting. There will be bilateral, trilateral and other meetings," the diplomat said. Tensions are running high amid a U.S. naval buildup near Iran, following a violent crackdown against anti-government demonstrations last month, the deadliest domestic unrest in Iran since its 1979 revolution. U.S. President Donald Trump, who stopped short of carrying out threats to intervene during the crackdown, has since demanded Tehran make nuclear concessions and sent a flotilla to its coast. He said last week Iran was "seriously talking", while Tehran's top security official Ali Larijani said arrangements for negotiations were under way. Iranian sources told Reuters last week that Trump had demanded three conditions for resumption of talks: Zero enrichment of uranium in Iran, limits on Tehran's ballistic missile program and ending its support for regional proxies. Iran has long rejected all three demands as unacceptable infringements of its sovereignty, but two Iranian officials told Reuters its clerical rulers saw the ballistic missile program, rather than uranium enrichment, as the bigger obstacle. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said Tehran was considering "the various dimensions and aspects of the talks", adding that "time is of the essence for Iran as it wants the lifting of unjust sanctions sooner". A Turkish ruling party official told Reuters that Tehran and Washington had agreed to re-focus on diplomacy and possible talks this week, in a potential reprieve for potential U.S. strikes. Witkoff was expected to visit Israel to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israel's military chief, two senior Israeli officials said separately on Monday. The Iranian official said "diplomacy is ongoing. For talks to resume, Iran says there should not be preconditions and that it is ready to show flexibility on uranium enrichment, including handing over 400 kg of highly enriched uranium, accepting zero enrichment under a consortium arrangement as a solution". However, he added, for the start of talks, Tehran wanted U.S. military assets moved away from Iran. "Now the ball is in Trump's court," he said. Tehran's regional sway has been weakened by Israel's attacks on its proxies - from Hamas in Gaza to Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen and militias in Iraq - as well as by the ousting of Iran's close ally, former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. In June last year the United States struck Iranian nuclear targets, joining in at the close of a 12-day Israeli bombing campaign. Since then, Tehran has said its uranium enrichment work has stopped. Recent satellite imagery of two of the targeted sites, Isfahan and Natanz, appears to show some repair work since December, with new roofing over two previously destroyed buildings. No other rebuilding was visible, according to the imagery provided by Planet Labs and reviewed by Reuters. Washington-based think tank ISIS said satellite images from late January showed construction work on tunnel entrances at Isfahan that could "indicate a preparation for additional military strikes" as was seen ahead of last year's U.S. strikes. It could also signal the movement of assets from other facilities, it added. After five rounds of talks that have stalled since May 2023, several hard-to-bridge issues remained between Tehran and Washington, including Iran's insistence on maintaining uranium enrichment on its soil and refusal to ship abroad its entire existing stockpile of highly enriched uranium. The U.N. nuclear watchdog has called on Iran repeatedly to say what happened to the highly enriched uranium stock since the June attacks. Western countries fear Iran's uranium enrichment could yield material for a warhead. Iran says its nuclear program is only for electricity generation and other civilian uses. The Iranian sources said Tehran could ship its highly enriched uranium abroad and pause enrichment in a deal that should also include the lifting of economic sanctions.

Johnson Says No Quick House Vote To End Partial Shutdown

House Speaker Mike Johnson says it'll be a few days before a government funding package comes up for a vote in the House. That all but ensures the partial federal shutdown will drag into the week. Democrats are demanding changes to rein in the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement operations. Johnson tells “Fox News Sunday” that he's relying on help from President Donald Trump to ensure passage, possibly Tuesday. Trump struck a deal with senators to separate the homeland security funding from a broader package. That gives two weeks for Congress to debate and vote on new restrictions on Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations.

Don't Forget About The Fraud!

Josh Hammer addresses the anti-ICE protests in Minnesota while underscoring that the underlying Somali fraud scandal is driving the broader political fallout. He breaks down the Texas special election upset that flipped a seat to Democrats and assesses what Republicans should take away as November nears. As Second Amendment concerns come back into focus following the death of Alex Pretti, Josh argues that conservative voters expect clear leadership, not silence. The program concludes with an analysis of a significant "detransitioner" malpractice ruling and its potential impact on transgender medical practices going forward.

AG Bondi Announces 2 More Arrests In St. Paul Church Protest

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi on Monday announced two more arrests following a protest at a Minnesota church against the immigration crackdown, bringing the number of people arrested to nine. The nine were named in a grand jury indictment unsealed Friday. Independent journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort were among four people arrested Friday. Three others were arrested earlier in the week, including prominent local activist Nekima Levy Armstrong. A grand jury in Minnesota indicted all nine on federal civil rights charges of conspiracy and interfering with the First Amendment rights of worshippers during the Jan. 18 protest at the Cities Church in St. Paul. A pastor at the church is also a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement official. The protest generated strong objections from the Trump administration, In a social media post Monday, Bondi named the latest two arrestees as Ian Davis Austin and Jerome Deangelo Richardson. She gave no details of their arrests. Lemon, who was fired from CNN in 2023 following a bumpy run as a morning host, has said he had no affiliation to the group that disrupted Sunday service by entering the church. He has described himself as an independent journalist chronicling protesters. The indictment alleges that Richardson traveled to the church with Lemon while he was streaming and that Richardson told Lemon they needed to catch up to the others. It also alleges that Austin stood in the aisles of the church and loudly berated a pastor with questions about Christian nationalism. Online jail records show Austin was arrested Friday. It wasn't immediately clear when Richardson was taken into custody. Austin's attorney, Sarah Gad, did not immediately return a call seeking comment. Court records don't list an attorney for Richardson who could comment on his behalf. The Justice Department began its investigation after the group interrupted services by chanting “ICE out” and “Justice for Renee Good,” referring to the 37-year-old mother of three who was fatally shot by an ICE officer in Minneapolis. Cities Church belongs to the Southern Baptist Convention and lists one of its pastors as David Easterwood, who leads ICE’s St. Paul field office.

Trump To Lower Tariffs On Indian Goods After India Agrees To Stop Buying Russian Oil

President Donald Trump said Monday that he plans to lower tariffs on goods from India to 18%, from 25%, after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi agreed to stop buying Russian oil. The move comes after months after Trump pressing India to cut its reliance on cheap Russian crude. India has taken advantage of slacked Russian oil prices as much of the world has sought to isolate Moscow for its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Trump to create strategic reserve for rare earth elements

The Trump administration plans to deploy nearly $12 billion to create a strategic reserve of rare earth elements. This stockpile could counter China's dominance in these metals, which are crucial for various industries. The White House confirmed “Project Vault” on Monday. It would be funded by a $10 billion loan from the US Export-Import Bank and $1.67 billion in private capital. The reserve aims to protect manufacturers from supply chain disruptions. China controls about 70% of the world’s rare earths mining and 90% of processing, giving it significant leverage in trade talks.

GOP chair rejects Clintons' offer in Epstein investigation

The Republican chair of a House Committee rejected an offer Monday from former President Bill Clinton to conduct a transcribed interview for a House investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, pushing the threat to hold both Clintons in contempt of Congress closer towards a vote. The impasse comes as the full House is headed towards potential votes this week on criminal contempt of Congress charges against the Clintons. If passed, the charges threaten both Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton with substantial fines and even incarceration if they are convicted. Rep. James Comer, the chair of the House Oversight Committee, said on social media that he would insist on both Clintons sitting for a sworn deposition before the committee in order to fulfill the panel's subpoenas. A letter from the committee to attorneys for the Clintons indicates that they had offered for Bill Clinton to conduct a transcribed interview on “matters related to the investigations and prosecutions of Jeffrey Epstein” and for Hillary Clinton to submit a sworn declaration. “The Clintons do not get to dictate the terms of lawful subpoenas,” Comer, a Kentucky Republican, said. The Republican-controlled Oversight panel had advanced criminal contempt of Congress charges last month. Nine of the committee’s 21 Democrats joined Republicans in support of the charges against Bill Clinton as they argued for full transparency in the Epstein investigation. Three Democrats also supported the charges against Hillary Clinton. Bill Clinton’s relationship with Epstein has re-emerged as a focal point for Republicans amid the push for a reckoning over Epstein, who killed himself in 2019 in a New York jail cell as he faced sex trafficking charges. Clinton, like a bevy of other high-powered men, had a well-documented relationship with Epstein in the late 1990s and early 2000s. He has not been accused of wrongdoing in his interactions with the late financier. After Bill and Hillary Clinton were both subpoenaed in August by the House Oversight Committee, their attorney had tried to argue against the validity of the subpoena. However, as Comer threatened to begin contempt of Congress proceedings, they started negotiating towards a compromise. Still, the Clintons remained highly critical of Comer’s decision, saying that he was bringing politics into the investigation while failing to hold the Trump administration accountable for delays in producing the Department of Justice’s case files on Epstein.

Partial Government Shutdown Could Last Until At Least Tuesday

The partial government shutdown could last longer than first thought. The government funding package passed by the Senate on Friday requires a House vote because of changes made to homeland security funding. The expectation was that House lawmakers would approve the measure after returning to Washington on Monday, but House Speaker Mike Johnson said a vote likely won’t take place until Tuesday as Democrats and Republicans debate restrictions for the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement operations.

Will The U.S. Strike Iran Soon?

Savannah Guthrie's Mother Reported Missing In Arizona

The 84-year-old mother of U.S. journalist and television host Savannah Guthrie was reported missing over the weekend after vanishing from her home near Tucson, Arizona, the Pima County sheriff's department said on Monday. Nancy Guthrie was last seen at her home on Saturday night, when she was visited by her children, and was reported missing on Sunday afternoon. She has limited mobility and could not have left her home unaided, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos told reporters. He and her family were especially worried because she needs to take daily medication. "She's 84, she needs her meds, her family needs her too," Nanos said, imploring the public to send in tips. "This is not dementia-related, she is as sharp as a tack. The family wants everybody to know this isn't somebody who just wandered off." Nanos says the homicide team is also involved, which isn't standard for such cases. Savannah Guthrie did not appear in her usual seat on NBC's "Today" show on Monday morning, which broadcasts from New York City. "Right now, our focus remains on the safe return of our dear mom," the presenter said in a statement read out by her colleagues.