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  • At its Juneteenth celebration, Philly’s African American Museum unveiled exhibit on the woman who escaped slavery at the President’s House

    At its Juneteenth celebration, Philly’s African American Museum unveiled exhibit on the woman who escaped slavery at the President’s House

    The line to enter Philadelphia’s African American Museum stretched a full block up Arch Street on Juneteenth Friday morning and never let up all day — not through performances by the West Powelton Steppers and not even when Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick took the stage.

    History, whether from these hip-hop legends or the Black ancestors summoned by the crowd during the ritual pouring of libations, was all around.

    Tahirah Barnett, of Southwest Philadelphia, with Order of Eastern Stars Prince Hall Adopted Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, (Center right) raises her finger in the air with fellow crowd members as Mayor Cherelle L. Parker speaks at the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    “It’s important for me to be out and show my kids how we connect to our ancestors, how we connect to the present as well, and to be with community,” said Velena Flores, 47, an administrator at Jefferson Hospital. “My grandmothers, they all passed away. My father passed away, my uncles. So all the ancestors are gone.”

    Walene White of Northeast Philadelphia came with her aunt, Tiffany White, and her 13-year-old daughter and niece. As she waited to enter the museum, she reveled in the energy of the day.

    “We’re just breaking down Black history, breaking down the day of Juneteenth — the significance— and letting them come and see and enjoy the environment,” White said.

    The Marian Anderson Scholar Artists and Choral Ensemble performing at the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    Inside the museum, Ronald Holmes, 66, of Oxford Circle wore his Josh Gibson No. 20 jersey and Homestead Grays cap, honoring the great Negro Leagues catcher.

    On the first floor, Holmes encountered a new exhibit on Ona Judge, the young woman enslaved by George and Martha Washington who escaped the presidential mansion in Philadelphia on May 21, 1796. She later settled in Portsmouth, N.H.

    Shirley Taylor, 65, and Ronald Holmes, 66, of Oxford Circle, inside the African American Museum of Philadelphia on Juneteenth, 2026.

    A few blocks away, at the site of the President’s House, controversy over how that history is presented continued. A federal appeals court ruling issued Thursday said the Trump administration can install its own slavery exhibits over the objections of the city of Philadelphia.

    Inside the AAMP, though, Judge’s story was on full display. Created in collaboration with the Ona Judge Coalition, the exhibit includes video featuring some of the panels that the Trump administration fought to remove.

    “Why would they fight so hard for that?” Holmes said. “And it’s our money they use to fight to take these things down, think about that, too. It’s mind boggling. But that tells you, the struggle is not over. We celebrate where we got to right now, but you know it’s not that final celebration.”

    Mayor Cherelle L. Parker attending the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    Founded in 1976 during the nation’s Bicentennial, the African American Museum in Philadelphia was the first institution funded and built by a major municipality to preserve, interpret, and exhibit the heritage of African American history and culture.

    The Juneteenth Jubilee kicks off the 16-day Wawa Welcome America festival, which culminates in the city’s celebration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

    The Juneteenth holiday, which former President Biden made a federal holiday in 2021, celebrates the day in 1865 when a Union general arrived in Galveston, Texas, and informed enslaved African Americans that the Civil War had ended and they were free — more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation.

    Aquil Dantzler, 26, of West Philadelphia, Pa., Singer and Song writer, poses for a portrait at the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker, attending the block party, said the museum played a “super huge role” in preserving the city’s history and that she remains committed to raising enough money to move the museum to the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. There’s currently $50 million set aside for that move, she said.

    Slick Rick performing at the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    After posing for photos with 6-year-old Salani Williams, the Little Miss Black America Ambassador, Parker she said the city would continue the legal fight to determine what is displayed at the President’s House site.

    “We do need to think about what it looks like telling the true story of the birthplace of our nation,” she said.

    Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro stopped by the museum in the afternoon and, after touring its exhibits, told reporters he would coordinate with Parker on the city’s response to the President’s House ruling.

    “Look, it is unfortunate the president continues to try and whitewash our history,” Shapiro said. “I am not going to back down in the face of these attacks coming from the federal government against understanding our freedom, even the painful parts of it.”

    The museum is also hosting “Ruth E. Carter: Afrofuturism in Costume Design,” a touring exhibition featuring more than 80 original designs from the two-time Academy Award-winning costume designer from films including Black Panther, Sinners, Do the Right Thing, Coming 2 America, and Malcolm X.

    Costumes from the movie Sinners from the exhibit “Ruth E. Carter: Afrofuturism in Costume Design” exhibition at the African American Museum of Phiadelphia.

    By afternoon, an exuberant, old-school block party had taken over the space behind the museum as thousands danced to performances by Doug E. Fresh, Slick Rick, Leah Jenea, and DJ Jazzy Jeff.

    “There’s only one Philly baby,” Doug E. Fresh told the crowd before recounting the history behind Juneteenth. “A long time ago, when slavery existed, it was supposed to be ended and they extended it 2 1/2 years more. It was a crime. It was disrespectful. But as usual, Black people survived. And thrived.” .”

    Aaron McCord, of Morrisville, Pa., is with his daughter Charli, 5, and son Bryson, 9, at the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    There were local performers, artists, food trucks, children’s activities, and a vendor village of jewelry and crafts.

    Tyshia and Joseph Ingram displayed their “ABC Affirmations” flash cards from their business, Liberated Young, they started for their daughter.

    “The day historically, but also what we’re going through in our country right now, is really important,“ Tyshia said. ”One of our favorite affirmations is F is for free.”

    Ashley Jordan, the museum’s president and CEO, said she was excited about the museum’s role in the 250th celebration and its future.

    The Ona Judge exhibit and the President’s House dispute, she said, “show why Black museums matter.”

    Crowd Pleaserz Donnie “Nyce” Thompson, of North Philadelphia, his daughter Aniyah, 8, and son Jaden, 16, performing on the street for folks attending the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    “There was a time when the complete story wasn’t being told,” she said. “Entities like us matter so stories can be told unimpaired. It lives here as its own story, its own entity, complete with its own panels.”

    Marquez Efferson, of Northeast Philadelphia, Mlanjeni Magical Touring Theater, making balloons for folks attending the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    The museum’s exhibit “Audacious Freedom” has been expanded to include modern Philadelphia heroes, she said. “You don’t have to look far for history,” she said. “There’s Leon Sullivan, Cecil B. Moore, and Patti LaBelle.”

    Tiffany White and her niece, Walene White, in line outside the African American Museum of Philadelphia on Juneteenth 2026.

    Waiting in line, Tiffany White, 37, reflected on the holiday’s significance. “I can’t believe that it took so long to become a holiday,” she said. “And then people didn’t know, and two years later, they were still slaves? It’s crazy.”

    Alaina Gibbs, an innovation strategist at Main Line Health, attended with about 50 colleagues through the health system’s Belonging and Inclusion employee resource group.

    Many gather for this years Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    Gibbs and colleague Michelle Johnson, 47, said the visit was part of an effort to engage more with the community.

    “Today was the perfect place to do that,” Johnson said.

    Juneteenth is “really about how you look back at your roots, find your cultural connection, and it’s about observing the freedom that we all enjoy and celebrate,” Gibbs said. “It’s progress.”

    Noting the communication breakdown at the heart of the Juneteenth story, Gibbs added: “It brings the community back together to celebrate the freedom and the communication that’s needed to keep community connections.”

    Monty-G, of South Philadelphia, Pa., seen out in the crowd as Mayor Cherelle L. Parker speaks at the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    “I like seeing the positivity and the togetherness right now in the city, this is the first time we’re coming together as a group from our organization,” Johnson said.

    Flores, meanwhile, said she was mindful of the news surrounding the President’s House and other national debates but focused on the day’s celebration.

    “I tell my kids we can get inundated with negative stuff every day,” she said. “The happiness and the love — that’s what I look for.”

    Kids playing a basketball game at the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.
    Alexis Nixon, of Salt Lake City, Utah, is checking out GG Afrikan Elganz clothes during her visit to see her brother Daeshawn Nixon, of Brynmawr, Pa., at the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.
    Kingkilliam Kato, 5, of Camden, N.J., is with his mom Annagjid Kato, for this years Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.
  • Two Deptford High School students created a Jalyx Hunt fan account. Then he showed up at their graduation.

    Two Deptford High School students created a Jalyx Hunt fan account. Then he showed up at their graduation.

    Following the Eagles’ Super Bowl LIX win, Deptford High School students Hunter Thomas and Dominic Alia made an Instagram fan page for then-rookie edge rusher Jalyx Hunt, who played a key role in wrecking Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ night.

    Just over a year later, Hunt showed up to the high school graduation of the “Jalyx Hunt enthusiasts.”

    On Thursday, while waiting to receive his diploma, Thomas received a text from his mother. Hunt, whom Thomas invited, was sitting in the away stands of Deptford’s football stadium. He waved to the Eagle, who signaled right back at Thomas and his friend, Antoine Sims.

    “After that, my head starts spinning,” Thomas told The Inquirer. “There’s no freaking way that he actually came.”

    Thomas first met Hunt at last year’s Eagles Autism Challenge. There, he showed the edge rusher the fan page called @jalyxhunt_enthusiast. Hunt loved it and followed the account back. Since then, Thomas and Alia have exchanged direct messages with Hunt, wishing him happy birthday and sending him messages throughout the season.

    Before the Eagles’ final regular-season game this past season, a 24-17 loss to the Washington Commanders, Hunt met Thomas and Alia above the tunnel to sign Thomas’ jersey. “Always love,” Hunt, who recognized the pair, signed. “Go birds!”

    When graduation came around, Thomas had an extra ticket, so he thought to text his favorite player first. To his surprise, Hunt responded that he would be able to come. Immediately, Thomas employed his sister to decorate his graduation cap, complete with Hunt’s No. 58 and a throwback Eagles logo.

    The biggest Eagles questions after offseason workouts

    In a post to his Instagram story on Thursday, Hunt shared a photo of his view from the Deptford stands. “I’m locked,” he wrote, tagging the fan account which now sits at roughly 1,000 followers.

    “I get my diploma, and my mom, because she’s a teacher, she gives it to me,” Thomas said. “I hug her, and when I walk back to my seat, I point out to Jalyx. He points back. When I did it, I was just thinking, ‘I got to show him some love.’”

    Jalyx Hunt with Hunter Thomas at Thomas’ high school graduation.

    After all his classmates’ names were called and his cap was thrown, Thomas made his way over to Hunt, who was now sitting with Thomas’ father. Hunt caught up with Thomas, telling him that he was cheering loudly when Thomas received his diploma. Eventually, Thomas found Alia on the field and the three posed for photographs.

    “There’s a lot of NFL players with all this clout, and their heads are so big, and then he’s just the most down-to-earth [person],” Thomas said. “He’s like, ‘Yes I play football, but I’m still a normal guy at the end of the day.’

    “He’s one of the nicest people I’ve ever met in my life. Me and Dom said, after we were like, ‘This is like a memory that we’re going to have forever.’”

  • Daveigh Chase, ‘Lilo & Stitch’ voice actor and ‘The Ring’ villain, dies at 35

    Daveigh Chase, ‘Lilo & Stitch’ voice actor and ‘The Ring’ villain, dies at 35

    Daveigh Chase, an actor known for voicing the character of Lilo in the hit animated film Lilo & Stitch and for her deeply unnerving turn as the child villain Samara in the horror movie The Ring, died on Tuesday in Los Angeles. She was 35.

    Her death, in a hospital, was confirmed by her father, John David Schwallier, who said the cause was complications of bacterial meningitis and a blood infection. Schwallier said his daughter had been homeless and living in Los Angeles with her boyfriend near the hospital where she died.

    Lilo & Stitch, released in 2002 when Ms. Chase was almost 12, told the story of an orphaned Hawaiian girl, Lilo, who brings home an impish blue space alien, Stitch, from the dog pound. Much wackiness ensues.

    The Disney film was a hit, grossing more than $274 million worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo (roughly $500 million when adjusting for inflation). And Ms. Chase, who had brought the plucky Lilo to life, won a Young Artist Academy Award for best performance in a voice-over role, age 10 or younger.

    Her breakout role, however, was in the live-action thriller The Ring, released in the United States roughly four months later, alongside Naomi Watts. Ms. Chase played Samara, a longhaired mystery girl who terrorized unsuspecting viewers of a certain VHS tape.

    The film, a remake of a Japanese film, Ringu, received mixed reviews, but the image of Samara crawling through a blurry television screen became seared in the cultural memory, and Ms. Chase won the award for best villain at the 2003 MTV Movie Awards.

    That year she returned to Lilo in the sequel Stitch! The Movie and in the Lilo & Stitch TV series, which ran from 2003-06.

    She then transitioned to her biggest TV role yet. In HBO’s Big Love — which chronicled the trials and tribulations of Mormon polygamists — she starred as Rhonda Volmer, a cunning 14-year-old bride in waiting, in 32 episodes between 2006 to 2011.

    Daveigh Elizabeth Schwallier was born July 24, 1990, in Las Vegas. Her father was a cook and helped to build motor homes. Her mother, Cathy Annette (Chase) Schwallier, went to nursing school but did not work a regular job.

    The family moved to Albany, Ore., where Ms. Chase would grow up, a few weeks after her birth. Ms. Chase was homeschooled, and at age 6 she won the Little Miss Oregon beauty pageant.

    She starred in a Campbell’s Soup commercial soon after, and then landed the voice-over role in Lilo & Stitch. She would go on to star as Samantha Darko, the younger sister of Jake Gyllenhaal’s Donnie, in Donnie Darko (2001) and in a little-noted sequel, S. Darko (2009). She also voiced Chihiro Ogino in Hayao Miyazaki’s 2001 animated classic, Spirited Away.

    After 2016, she largely stopped acting, and troubles with the law soon followed. In 2017, she was charged with riding in a stolen BMW, according to TMZ; in 2018, she was charged with possession of a controlled substance, according to the New York Post.

    Schwallier, 61, said in an interview Wednesday that Ms. Chase had struggled with drugs since the age of 13. He said that he hadn’t spoken with her since she was 19 and that she had a terrible falling-out with her mother around the same time. Her parents divorced 32 years ago.

    Schwallier had been in touch with Ms. Chase’s boyfriend, Roy Hernandez, and arrived at Los Angeles General Medical Center, where she was being treated, just before she died.

    “Him and her were destitute,” he said, describing the couple’s living conditions.

    In one of at least three GoFundMe pages set up to support Ms. Chase in recent days, Hernandez described her worsening condition: “The doctors say she may not survive, and when she leaves the hospital, we have nowhere to go. My hope is to raise enough money to find a place where we can be together and make her comfortable during her last days.”

    At the premiere of Lilo & Stitch in 2002, the Honolulu Star-Bulletin asked an 11-year-old Ms. Chase if she thought she could handle all the publicity that was sure to come her away after the movie’s release.

    “Well, it is just my voice,” she demurred. “But some people who worked for Disney have recognized me already. I don’t think people will really know who I am. I guess I’ll have to deal with it!”

    This article originally appeared in the New York Times.

  • A year after smashing a locker, Wyndham Clark finds himself leading at another U.S. Open

    A year after smashing a locker, Wyndham Clark finds himself leading at another U.S. Open

    SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. — The smashed-up locker at Oakmont last year is as much a part of Wyndham Clark’s resume as the U.S. Open title he won two years before that.

    Such is life in a world teeming with cell phone cameras and viral video. Such is life in professional golf, a sport built on managing failure and harnessing emotions — and where success one week, or one year, doesn’t always carry over to the next.

    Clark’s spot at the top of the U.S. Open leaderboard after his second round at Shinnecock on Friday brought up expected reminders of his emotion-filled journey through a sport — a life, really — that Clark himself acknowledged nobody truly conquers.

    “I was on top of the world in my game, at least when I won the U.S. Open, and then had some good years,” the 32-year-old said. “Then, next thing you know, I’m apologizing for breaking a locker.”

    Much as tennis great John McEnroe will always have “You cannot be serious!” alongside the seven grand slam singles titles he won in another of sports’ biggest pressure cookers, Clark will always have the broken locker at Oakmont. He will always have the underhanded fling of the driver that smashed an advertising board and snapped off the clubhead at the PGA Championship, a few months before the locker debacle.

    Because of that, he’ll probably also always have his share of detractors and critics — people watching for some brilliance on the golf course, but also waiting for the next big blowup.

    “I’m fierce, competitive, love the game, respect the game, and I just had a bad moment,” Clark said. “Hopefully I can win those people back.”

    His breakthrough three years ago at LA Country Club was tinged with tears and stories of the personal growth Clark had to make to reach that point.

    Much of it had to do with the emotional residue left from his mom’s death in 2013 — a family tragedy that he conceded had left him spiraling.

    “I didn’t show any emotion off the course,” Clark explained after his victory that day. “But when I was on the golf course, I couldn’t have been angrier.”

    The easy way for the armchair psychologists (and sports pundits) to explain things after that win was to conclude that Clark’s victory proved he had harnessed the emotion, turned the page and beaten back all the demons.

    It’s never that simple.

    “For any of us, this is a process,” Clark’s sports psychologist, Julie Elion, wrote in her new book ’Mastering Your Mental Game.” “Golfers don’t reach the top and then stay there forever.”

    Clark followed the U.S. Open win with 18 months of good golf, including a win at Pebble Beach. Last year was something different — he only had two top-10 finishes, did not make the FedEx Cup playoffs and was nowhere to be seen at the Ryder Cup.

    “Mastering our mental game in golf or reaching a state of growth or self-improvement in life isn’t always a permanent condition,” Elion wrote. “It takes more work over more years, and there are frequently hills and valleys.”

    At Shinnecock, Clark held a four-shot lead after his second round. Heading into the weekend, he finds himself back on the rise again. He recently took to social media to tell the world he had a new girlfriend, Emily Tanner, who held hands with him as they exited the 18th green after Friday’s round of 1-under 69.

    Four weeks ago, Clark won the Byron Nelson for his first victory in 28 months.

    “I kind of looked at it objectively and took a bird’s-eye view on it and said, ‘OK, I’m not hitting it good off the tee, I’m not putting as good as I was,’” he explained about his turnaround. “And I said, ‘All right, I’ve got to attack that.’”

    He hired a swing coach, Pat Coyner at Cherry Hills, near where Clark grew up outside of Denver.

    He’s been hitting his driver straighter of late. His iron game has improved dramatically (up 110 spots in the analytic-driven stat: strokes gained on approach shots). He found a new putter, which has helped him dial in dramatically over the past four weeks, during which he also finished third at the Memorial and played in the final group last Sunday at the Canadian Open.

    Never more did it look in sync than Friday on No. 18, where he sank a 33-footer to finish the day in red numbers.

    Now, a chance for another breakthrough at the U.S. Open. With a win, he would celebrate again. But he knows as well as anyone that it wouldn’t mean all the problems — or the work, both on and off the course — are behind him.

    “I just think with the mental game there’s ebbs and flows,” Clark said. “If you think of it as climbing Everest, sometimes you go up, sometimes you have to go down to go back up. I think that’s kind of what happens both on the golf course and off the golf course. Right now I’m trending back up, which is nice.”

  • U.S. intelligence warns Israel is likely to undermine Iran peace deal, officials say

    U.S. intelligence warns Israel is likely to undermine Iran peace deal, officials say

    U.S. intelligence agencies have warned the Trump administration that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is likely to take steps that will undermine President Donald Trump’s effort to reach a lasting peace deal with Iran, as the Israeli premier faces intense political pressure to continue waging his country’s war in Lebanon, current and former U.S. officials said.

    Israel appears intent on maintaining military operations against Iran’s proxy Hezbollah in Lebanon, an aim that would flout a core element of the fledgling agreement that calls for an end to hostilities in that country, according to intelligence reports, including one circulated this week, said the officials.

    The analysis comes at a moment of growing tension between Netanyahu’s government and Trump administration officials, who have publicly warned Israel against launching attacks against Hezbollah that might derail Trump’s deal.

    On Friday, Israel launched airstrikes across southern Lebanon in response to a Hezbollah drone strike that killed four Israeli soldiers. As clashes continued, U.S. and Iranian officials said they postponed talks due to begin in Switzerland on Friday. Vice President JD Vance, who was to lead the U.S. delegation, postponed his trip.

    If Netanyahu redoubles his military campaign in Lebanon, he would not only threaten the framework for an agreement signed by the United States and Iran on Wednesday, but he could rupture the relationship with an American president that has been integral to his political fortune.

    Speaking at a news conference in France on Wednesday to announce the U.S.-Iran “memorandum of understanding,” Trump said that he has a “little dispute over Lebanon” with Netanyahu and has urged the Israeli leader to not “knock down a building every time somebody walks into it that’s from Hezbollah.”

    The new U.S. intelligence report concludes that in the face of national elections this fall, Netanyahu’s political survival is linked to showing his domestic audience that he will not withdraw troops from Lebanon and that he is intent on escalating the fighting with Hezbollah, said one U.S. official familiar with the report. The official, like others interviewed, spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the matter’s sensitivity.

    The U.S. intelligence report also describes Israel’s frustration with the terms of the Trump peace memorandum, which undermine its broader objective of maintaining maximum pressure on Tehran, according to a current and former official.

    The report conveys Israel’s perception that the agreement could constrain its ability to defend itself against Hezbollah, one former official said.

    Trump administration officials insist that the terms do not prevent Israel from retaliating against Hezbollah if fired upon and that Netanyahu’s concerns pale in comparison to the need to complete a deal and reopen the Strait of Hormuz to stave off a global economic crisis.

    The report reflected that any suspension of hostilities or withdrawal from Lebanon will be seen in Israel as a defeat for Netanyahu, said the current official.

    “Israeli military activity in Lebanon is for the sole purpose of defending Israeli citizens from continuous attacks by Hezbollah,” said a senior Israeli government official, speaking on the condition of anonymity according to the government’s protocol, in response to a request for comment about the U.S. intelligence analysis.

    Popular opinion in Israel remains highly supportive of efforts to dismantle Hezbollah, the Iranian proxy group that joined its partner, Hamas, in attacking Israel with rockets in October 2023.

    Tens of thousands of Israelis displaced from their homes in the country’s north by drones and missile strikes have demanded that Netanyahu decimate Hezbollah, and he has come under withering criticism from across the domestic political spectrum for failing to eliminate the militant threat.

    Fully 70% of Jewish Israelis support intensifying the fight against Hezbollah, according to a May poll by the Institute of National Security Studies, a leading Israeli think tank, and Israeli political analysts widely say that a military pullback would be interpreted by voters as a sign of defeat.

    Even if Israel does not escalate fighting in Lebanon by bombing the southern suburbs of Beirut, Hezbollah’s seat of power, its refusal to withdraw troops from the country’s south is likely to doom the fragile accord between the U.S. and Iran, a second U.S. official said, offering an independent analysis.

    “Continuing to occupy part of Lebanon is a recipe for disaster,” said the official. “Without a full Israeli withdrawal, the likelihood of resumed hostilities between the [Israeli military] and Hezbollah is all but certain.”

    Israeli cabinet officials are standing their ground. “For every tear shed by an Israeli mother, a thousand Lebanese mothers should cry. All of Lebanon should burn,” National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said Friday on social media.

    Netanyahu is risking “huge friction” with Trump, who undertook the war with Iran on Feb. 28 at the Israeli leader’s urging and soon found himself mired in a conflict that has cost tens of billions of dollars, sent global gas prices soaring, and saw the deaths of 13 U.S. troops, said Danny Citrinowicz, a former Israeli military intelligence analyst.

    “Bibi’s in a very tough situation,” said Citrinowicz, now senior researcher at the Tel Aviv-based Institute for National Security Studies, using the nickname of the Israeli prime minister. “He’s seeing his greatest rival, the Iranian regime, being strengthened by the U.S. administration — and he cannot do anything about it.”

    On two consecutive weekends this month, Netanyahu launched airstrikes against Beirut in response to Hezbollah provocations that threatened to jeopardize Trump’s fragile deal. The strike on June 7 triggered Iran to launch ballistic missiles in retaliation, and tensions were defused only when the White House intervened. Israel struck Beirut again Sunday, hours before the Trump administration pushed through the memorandum of understanding with Tehran.

    Even after the deal was signed, Netanyahu and his allies have remained defiant, insisting they will not withdraw troops from southern Lebanon and would continue carrying out strikes even if that angered Trump.

    The White House threw a brushback pitch.

    “Donald J. Trump is the only head of state in the entire world who is sympathetic to the nation of Israel at this moment in time, and he happens to be the head of state of the world’s superpower,” Vice President JD Vance told reporters in the White House press briefing room Thursday. “If I was in the cabinet of the Israeli government, I might not be attacking the only powerful ally that I have anywhere left in the entire world.”

    The Israel Defense Forces occupy more than 200 square miles of Lebanese territory and have forced more than 1 million residents from their homes — though some have returned — to create what it calls a depopulated “security zone.” More than 3,000 people have been killed by the Israeli campaign since it began in mid-March, according to Lebanese authorities.

    “We will stay in the Lebanon security buffer zone for as long as necessary,” Netanyahu told reporters in Jerusalem this week. On some issues, “we see less eye to eye,” Netanyahu said, referring to his relationship with Trump.

    Harrison Mann, a former U.S. Army officer who served as an analyst at the Defense Intelligence Agency, said the U.S. intelligence reporting captures a key incentive driving Netanyahu’s policy decisions.

    “Permanent war — and territorial expansion — have been the animating forces of Israeli politics for years. It’s no surprise that with elections coming up, Netanyahu has to prove he can do these better than his opponent,” Mann said.

    But Trump has leverage over Israel.

    “The U.S. can cut off munitions, jet fuel, and maintenance support, limiting the scope of any Israeli offensive, freeze critical intelligence sharing, or withdraw U.S. forces currently deployed to project Israeli airspace, raising the cost of any Israeli war,” Mann said.

    U.S. presidents have largely avoided such actions, though some have taken notable steps during moments of tension with the Israeli government.

    President Dwight D. Eisenhower threatened Israel with sanctions if it didn’t remove troops from the Sinai Peninsula in 1956. President Ronald Reagan delayed the delivery of advanced F-16 fighter jets in 1981 in response to Israel’s surprise bombing of an Iraqi nuclear reactor. And President George H.W. Bush withheld housing loan guarantees in an effort to force Israel to stop building new Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza.

    “If you ask me, ‘Has an American president ever threatened to impose real costs and consequences on Israel in real time?’ the answer would be no,” said Aaron David Miller, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace who has advised both Democratic and Republican administrations.

    But if Iran does not constrain Hezbollah‘s attacks on northern Israel, “I don’t care what Trump says, Netanyahu is going to respond,” he said.

  • For the Phillies, it still comes down to Trea Turner

    For the Phillies, it still comes down to Trea Turner

    The Phillies entered the season as a team whose fate would be determined mostly by how little went wrong. That’s somewhat true for most teams, but it is especially true for a team that basically skipped a development cycle while building and retaining a roster via trades, free agency and contract extensions.

    In Major League Baseball, there are three main sources of year-to-year improvement.

    • External additions via free agency and trade.
    • Internal additions from the minor league system.
    • Internal improvement from young players who have yet to reach their peak.

    Every now and then, you’ll see a mid-career bump by a player like Cristopher Sánchez or Brandon Marsh. For the most part, though, a team’s upside is a function of its young potential breakout candidates combined with whatever payroll it adds. Otherwise, what you end up seeing will look a lot like what you’ve previously gotten, along with whatever regression occurs.

    The Phillies still need a right-handed bat. Let’s take an early dive into some options before the trade deadline.

    That tracks, right?

    Nearly halfway through the schedule, the Phillies are exactly what you’d expect to get if you took last year’s team and subbed in a leadoff hitter who is batting .223/.276/.334 instead of .304/.355/.457. Marsh’s quasi-breakout has given them enough margin for error to withstand the rookie inconsistency they’ve seen from Justin Crawford and Andrew Painter at the bottom of the lineup and the rotation. But something dramatic is going to need to change for the Phillies to stop yo-yoing back and forth between .500 and a 90-win pace. Right now, the most likely something is the aforementioned leadoff hitter.

    Trea Turner is the man with the keys to the Phillies’ offense for the rest of the season. That’s really all there is to it. You can talk about the trade deadline, talk about the pitcher Painter was supposed to be, talk about the 31-16 record under Don Mattingly … all of it is noise. The Phillies simply aren’t a team that is capable of winning 95 games when one of their megacontract hitters isn’t hitting even half his worth.

    Phillies shortstop Trea Turner entered the weekend with a .610 OPS. His career mark is .816.

    Mattingly knows this. It’s the reason for the patience he continues to exhibit with Turner at the top of the lineup. Getting him right is the Phillies’ only hope at making a late charge at the Braves. That 31-16 record since Rob Thomson’s firing is glitter more than gold. Seven of those wins came against teams that are 12-plus games under .500. Another seven have come against the Marlins and Athletics. The Phillies are 5-7 against their four opponents who entered Thursday at least four games over .500. Series losses to the Brewers, Dodgers, and Guardians. Their 96-win pace over the last month is more representative than 113.

    Even 96 wins is overstating things. We got a little taste of what a 96-win offense looks like a couple of days ago when Turner was out of the lineup with a sore wrist. Mattingly seized the opportunity to get a little funky with his lineup. The hot-hitting Marsh took the place of Turner in the leadoff spot, giving the Phillies three straight lefties at the top of the order with Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper following Marsh.

    Mattingly’s lack of regard for convention paid dividends. Marsh reached base twice, scored two runs, and had two RBIs, which is something Turner has not done since last August. The top three hitters in the Phillies’ order combined to reach base six times and score five runs in an 8-2 win. Sometimes, different is good.

    The next day, Mattingly went back to the old drawing board. Turner went 3-for-5 with a double, his first three-hit game since May 9. It needs to be the start of something, although he left Thursday’s game after again being hit by a pitch.

    Turner is the reason everybody thinks the Phillies need to make a big splash at the trade deadline. President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski will be hard-pressed to find a hitter who would be more of an improvement than the Turner of last year returning. If he doesn’t, 87 wins is as good as it is going to get.

    What if the Phillies’ most impactful addition was a resurgent Trea Turner? He’s working to make it happen.

    The Phillies don’t have many other pathways. They are long on veterans and short on potential upside. It is a daunting position to be in at this stage of a season.

    Look at the teams that overperform their expectations and you’ll find that the differentiator is almost always someone who is at the stage of his career where improvement comes in leaps and bounds. Drake Baldwin will continue to improve for the Braves. Same goes for Andy Pages and Dalton Rushing with the Dodgers. Ben Rice with the Yankees. For all the hand-wringing about the Dodgers and their limitless payroll, they’ve also had five rookies hit 19-plus home runs since 2013.

    The Phillies don’t have any obvious candidates right now. Harper and Schwarber have been about as good as you could hope. Alec Bohm, Bryson Stott, and J.T. Realmuto have been about what you’d expect. Turner’s is the one spot in the lineup where the potential for significant improvement exists. At least, they better hope it still exists.

  • Kahleah Copper is ‘just a kid from Norf Philly.’ Now, it’s immortalized on her shoes.

    Kahleah Copper is ‘just a kid from Norf Philly.’ Now, it’s immortalized on her shoes.

    No matter where Kahleah Copper’s basketball journey takes her, she continues to carry North Philadelphia with her — even on her shoes.

    The Phoenix Mercury guard and four-time All-Star debuted a custom “Norf Philly” Adidas Harden Vol. 10 player-exclusive sneaker during Wednesday night’s game against the reigning WNBA champions Las Vegas Aces.

    The black-and-white shoe features “Just a kid from” on the left heel and “Norf Philly” on the right heel. Copper has adopted the phrase “just a kid from Norf Philly” throughout her time in the WNBA. It’s a nod to the neighborhood that helped shape her.

    Her love for basketball started on the streets of North Philadelphia. She practiced shooting by attaching a crate to a one-way sign on 32nd & Berks Streets.

    “There wasn’t a lot of opportunities for young girls to play in different leagues, so I played in a league with a bunch of guys,” she said in an interview in 2025. “The things those guys instilled in me, whether it was that toughness or that grit or just always having that chip on my shoulder because I wasn’t as strong as them … shout out the guys.”

    Kahleah Copper shares North Philly with Unrivaled teammates

    In 2021, Copper was named WNBA Finals MVP after leading the Chicago Sky to their first championship. After winning the championship, she paid it back to her Philly roots.

    “North Philly is different,” she said in a 2021 article in the Players’ Tribune. “It’s a place I love, the place where I learned how to play tough.”

    The Aces won Wednesday’s game, 86-76, and Copper, who finished with 26 points, is averaging a team-best 19.3 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 1.9 assists for the Mercury (4-12), who are 13th in the WNBA standings.

    Copper has joined the tradition of Philadelphia basketball stars using sneakers to show where they’ve come from. The Nike Kobe 4 Philly dropped on Jan. 1, 2009, with a color scheme of red, white, and blue to pay homage to Kobe Bryant’s hometown and the 76ers. A “Philly” Nike Kobe 4 Protro was released in 2024.

    Rasheed Wallace, a 2004 NBA champion with the Detroit Pistons and Simon Gratz graduate, was known for wearing high-top Nike Air Force 1s.

    “The strap was a Philly thing,” Wallace told the All the Smoke podcast in May 2025. “In Philly when we wear the high-top Air Force 1s, you keep the strap on the back.”

  • EU leaders squabble over outreach to Moscow as Ukraine war rages on

    EU leaders squabble over outreach to Moscow as Ukraine war rages on

    BRUSSELS — European Union leaders have been unable to agree on setting up a back channel with Moscow to ensure that the bloc’s interests are protected should progress be made in negotiations to end Russia’s war on Ukraine, some of them said on Friday.

    European Council President António Costa, who chaired their two-day summit in Brussels this week, had directed his office to reach out to the Kremlin and proposed a senior official to make contact. Costa said his aim was not to mediate or set up a parallel negotiating track to the one led by the United States, which is making little progress.

    “We needed to immediately establish this direct contact,” Costa said, clarifying that Brussels would not seek to mediate in negotiations but rather open communications.

    “We cannot depend only on others to interpret Russian messages and we must be able to convey directly to Russia our own messages,” he added.

    European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she supported Costa’s approach because “our entire continent is at risk, and this is why Europe must be one of the architects of a just and lasting peace.”

    An unresolved disagreement over diplomacy

    Debate has been swirling around Europe in recent months about whether to appoint a mediator for talks with Russia to help get things moving again, but this has been largely rejected as many believe that Russian President Vladimir Putin would be unlikely to negotiate anyway.

    Instead, the 27 EU countries have focused on concessions that Russia should make to secure peace.

    German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stressed that peace negotiations must ultimately be conducted by Ukraine, Russia, Europe, and the U.S.

    “Who speaks for the European Union is something we don’t need to decide on today,” he said. “We will decide on that when talks come about.”

    He added that Costa has “an important to role to play” as president of the European Council, representing the EU, preparing and organizing summits, and “we don’t need to make decisions going beyond that at the moment.”

    Merz highlighted efforts to coordinate diplomacy by the so-called E3 group of countries — Germany, France, and Britain — a format that he said came about “at the explicit wish of Ukraine.”

    French President Emmanuel Macron said “Europeans are not mediators” in the negotiations but that “Costa, when the competencies are defined, will have a place.”

    Margus Tsahkna, foreign minister of Estonia — a nation on the EU’s eastern flank that has faced drone incursions and was once occupied by the Soviet Union — said that “Europe must not assume the role of a neutral mediator” but instead buttress Ukraine’s position to “force the Kremlin into serious negotiations.”

    Some nations support Costa’s backchannel proposal

    As European leaders left overnight after the summit wrapped up, Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever joked that Costa would be the envoy to Moscow.

    “I was just talking about you, António,” De Wever said while laughing and shaking Costa’s hand. “I was full of praise, saying you are the only one who can represent us and that we will send you to Moscow.”

    Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin said that “opening up a channel is not a mistake in our view, and I trust António Costa.”

    “What was very clear last evening is that any negotiations would have to be first and foremost between Ukraine and Russia, but there are no indications that Russia is coming to the table at all,” he said.

    Speaking to reporters, Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš said the leaders had failed at the summit to resolve their differences over the approach overnight. “Europe is unable to agree even on whether there will be negotiations or who will lead them,” he said.

    Russia responds publicly to the overture

    Putin has tried to cut out Europe and Kyiv from negotiations with the U.S. over Ukraine’s future. But the Kremlin said on Friday it was “ready for contact” with Europe, on the condition it abandon its desire to talk to Moscow from the position of force.

    At the same time, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov argued that the EU can not be an impartial peace broker. He again rejected Western claims that Moscow was harboring plants to attack Europe as “provocation” and “nonsense” while warning that Europe’s military buildup poses growing security threats.

    “A direct confrontation between NATO and Russia could rapidly escalate into an exchange of nuclear strikes, with catastrophic consequences,” Lavrov said in an essay released by the Russian Foreign Ministry.

  • Comedy trailblazer Tom Dreesen, Sinatra’s longtime opening act, dies at 86

    Comedy trailblazer Tom Dreesen, Sinatra’s longtime opening act, dies at 86

    LOS ANGELES — Tom Dreesen, who along with partner Tim Reid formed one of America’s first interracial stand-up comedy duos and later spent years as Frank Sinatra’s opening act, died Wednesday. He was 86.

    Dreesen died at his home in Los Angeles, according to publicist Lori De Waal. A cause of death was not provided.

    After meeting in Chicago, Dreesen and Reid, who was Black, formed “Tim and Tom” in 1969. Against a backdrop of simmering racial tension, they used humor to address social issues and promote understanding between audiences of different backgrounds. They worked together until the mid-1970s. Reid went on to solo success playing DJ Venus Flytrap on the popular TV sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati, where Dreesen was a guest star.

    “When I was a kid I found an album he and his comedy partner did called Tim and Tom and took it home and played it and it was one of the albums that changed the course of my life. So great,” comedian and filmmaker Mike Binder wrote on X.

    After splitting with Reid, Dreesen honed a solo comedy act, making over 500 national TV appearances, including 60 visits to The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. He also was a frequent guest and sometime guest host on The Late Show with David Letterman. Their friendship dated to the early 1970s when both worked at the Comedy Store in West Hollywood, Calif.

    Dreesen’s final TV appearance came last week on Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen, which replaced Stephen Colbert’s canceled CBS late-night show.

    Dreesen was Sinatra’s opening act for 14 years and became close with the entertainer.

    “If he loved you, he worshipped the ground you walked on,” Dreesen told the Desert Sun newspaper in 2014. ”In a lot of ways, he was like a father to me. I didn’t have a father that really cared that much where I was and what I did. But Frank would give me advice and counsel, and then he was a buddy in a lot of ways. I thought the world of him.”

    Dressen also toured with Sinatra’s fellow Rat Pack member Sammy Davis Jr., as well as Liza Minnelli, Smokey Robinson, Gladys Knight, and Tony Orlando.

    “He was one of the most brilliant comedians of all time. Tonight, he’ll once again be opening for Dean, Frank and Sammy,” Deana Martin, a daughter of Dean Martin, posted on X.

    In 2008, Dreesen co-wrote the book Tim and Tom: An American Comedy Act in Black and White and in 2020 he authored his memoir.

    Dreesen acted in such TV shows as Columbo, Murder, She Wrote, and Touched by an Angel. His film roles included Spaceballs, Man on the Moon, and Trouble With the Curve, as well as the HBO movies The Rat Pack and Lansky.

    Dreesen was active in charitable work, motivational speaking, and veterans’ causes, including serving as ambassador for the Gary Sinise Foundation.

    “America lost one of our great comedians and patriots, and I lost a dear friend,” Sinise posted on X.

    He was born on Sept. 11, 1939, in Chicago and raised as one of eight children in suburban Harvey. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy at age 17 and after getting out in 1960 he returned home to work a series of jobs, including selling insurance.

    Dreesen is survived by daughters Amy and Jennifer from his marriage to Maryellen Subock, which ended in divorce in 1984, as well as seven grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his son Tommy.

  • Friction between Trump and Republican senators is growing before the pivotal midterm elections

    Friction between Trump and Republican senators is growing before the pivotal midterm elections

    WASHINGTON — The relationship between President Donald Trump and Senate Republicans neared a breaking point this week as he upended their efforts to speedily confirm one of his own nominees and said he would not sign the renewal of a key surveillance law unless they agree to new terms.

    Trump’s overnight social media post Wednesday that he was delaying Jay Clayton’s nomination to become national intelligence director, just hours before the U.S. attorney’s confirmation hearing, further strained relations between the Senate and White House that have been worsening for weeks. Later that day, some Republican senators who have been hesitant to challenge the president directly on the Iran war were blunt in their criticism of his deal to end it.

    “This is the worst foreign policy blunder in decades,” Sen. Bill Cassidy (R.,La.) said in a post on X.

    The open tensions are an almost complete reversal from a year ago when Senate Republicans worked closely with Trump on a complicated effort to push through his massive package of spending and tax cuts.

    At the time, criticism of the president was almost nonexistent among Republicans on Capitol Hill, and they planned to highlight passage of that bill in the midterms. But as the November election draws closer and Republicans are trying to defend their majorities, Trump is instead needling Congress with his demands and reversals, driving several Republican senators to disparage his actions publicly for the first time.

    “I think somebody’s not dialing the president into the complexities of what he’s done here,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R., N.C.) said Wednesday after Clayton’s confirmation was postponed. “I mean, my God.”

    The slow unraveling of what once seemed like an airtight alliance between the executive and legislative branches in a Republican-led Washington extends to their policy priorities.

    Trump appears to have lost interest in most of the GOP agenda and has become almost singularly focused on his voting legislation to require proof of citizenship, which has almost no chance of passing. At the same time, he has asked members of Congress to fund parts of his White House ballroom project, allow a temporary intelligence director that none of them like, and cede their powers on the Iran war.

    The growing rift has brought much of the Senate’s business to a halt and put Republicans who are up for reelection this year on the defensive. It has also put pressure on Senate Majority Leader John Thune, who has been up-front with Trump about what he can and cannot do in the Senate.

    Trump pressures Thune on voting bill

    Trump has pressured Thune relentlessly to scrap the filibuster and pass the strict proof-of-citizenship legislation, called the SAVE America Act. Thune (R., S.D.) has told Trump publicly and privately that the votes are not there for either step. Still, Trump has kept up the push.

    In a social media post Thursday, Trump said he would be “the last Republican president” if the voting bill does not pass.

    “Senate Majority Leader John Thune, and the Republican Senate, must not let this ‘carnage’ happen,” Trump said. “They will go down on the wrong side of History, as will all Republicans who just stood by and watched.”

    Nonetheless, Trump has yet to go after the well-liked Republican leader on a personal basis, as he often did with Thune’s predecessor, Sen. Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.). Trump once called McConnell a ” dour, sullen, and unsmiling political hack.”

    Trump and Thune talk frequently, even as Thune is sometimes giving the president news he does not want to hear. As Trump pushed for the voting bill, Thune scheduled weeks of floor time to consider it, an effort to make clear that the Senate was supportive, even if the votes are lacking.

    Missouri Sen. Eric Schmitt, one of the president’s closest allies in the Senate, said he has never heard Trump say anything negative about Thune.

    “It’s a difficult position,” Schmitt said of Thune’s role in the Senate. “I think they have a good working relationship.”

    One of Thune’s closest allies, Republican Sen. Mike Rounds of South Dakota, said the even-keeled leader is the “right person at the right time.”

    “In the Capitol today, he is the stable force,” Rounds said. “In Washington, D.C., today, he is the stable force.”

    No signs of revolt among Senate GOP

    There were no signs of a revolt within the GOP conference for now, despite Trump’s pressure.

    Thune “has managed it better than anyone else could manage it,” said Cassidy, who has become a more frequent Trump critic since a primary loss to a Trump-backed challenger.

    Criticism of Trump has at times surfaced even among his closest Senate allies, especially with his proposed $1.776 billion settlement fund for his political allies and his pick for acting intelligence director, Bill Pulte, who has no known intelligence experience.

    But the rift with Trump has also stoked some new internal tensions.

    Several Republican senators criticized Sen. Mike Lee (R., Utah), who has waged an online campaign to eliminate the filibuster and pass the SAVE America Act, in a private conference lunch this week for stoking dissension within the party in an election year.

    Unbowed, Lee has kept up his social media campaign, including a post Friday on X in which he said that giving up because Republicans lack the votes is a “recipe for failure.”

    Texas Sen. John Cornyn, one of those who spoke out at the meeting, replied that it is Lee’s job to find the votes, “if you can.”

    “Can’t just complain about others,” Cornyn posted. “Prove us wrong.”

    Trump’s dwindling number of allies

    Some Senate Republicans have made clear they have no plans to separate themselves from Trump.

    As several of his colleagues criticized Trump’s agreement with Iran this week, first-term Sen. Bernie Moreno (R., Ohio) aggressively defended it on social media.

    “Let’s get the Nobel Peace Prize ready!” Moreno posted on X.

    But Trump has far fewer of those Senate allies than he did when they narrowly passed the tax and spending cuts legislation a year ago. That is in part because he has picked off some of the most loyal Republican votes himself.

    Both Cassidy and Cornyn lost in primaries last month after Trump endorsed their opponents. Tillis announced he was not running for reelection last year after Trump repeatedly criticized him on social media.

    Now all three have become frequent critics.

    Shortly after his election loss, Cornyn posted on social media a fable about a frog and a scorpion. The scorpion asks the frog to carry it across a river, according to the fable, and then stings the frog in the middle of the river, “dooming them both.”

    “The dying frog asks the scorpion why it stung despite knowing the consequence,” Cornyn’s post read. “To which the scorpion replies: ‘I am sorry, but I couldn’t help myself. It’s my character.’”