The Latest: As Trump goes to NATO, DHS says US remains at heightened risk

President Donald Trump sought to maintain a ceasefire between Israel and Iran and said while traveling to a two-day NATO summit at The Hague that he's not seeking regime change in Tehran.

The summit is laden with uncertainty over Iran's response to U.S. airstrikes, the fate of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the future of U.S. troops based in NATO countries. NATO leaders are expected to endorse a goal of spending 5% of their gross domestic product on their security. Trump last week suggested the U.S. should not have to abide by the spending pledge, although he appeared to soften those comments on Tuesday.

The administration also postponed classified congressional intelligence briefings on the U.S. strikes. A Senate briefing is rescheduled for Thursday so Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio can attend. The House will be briefed Friday, according to Speaker Mike Johnson.

Here's the latest:

The U.S. and Iran are in early discussions about resuming negotiations over Iran's nuclear program, Trump envoy says

Trump's special Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, says the U.S. and Iran are engaged in both direct talks and through intermediaries about getting back to the table after Israeli and U.S. strikes against Iran's nuclear facilities.

''The conversations are promising. We're hopeful,'' he said in an interview with Fox News.

Witkoff did not provide details but said the weekend U.S. airstrikes achieved their objectives: eliminating Iran's ability to convert any weapons-grade uranium it might have had or produce in the future into an actual weapon; and setting back Iran's ability to enrich uranium to that point by years.

JD Vance says Trump's actions in Iran avoided ‘another protracted war'

The vice president told a crowd of fellow Republicans in his home state of Ohio that Trump's actions in Iran represent a middle ground between defending American interests abroad and entering a war.

Vance told about 900 people at a fundraiser in the working-class city of Lima he empathizes with those who voted for Trump because they don't want another lengthy war abroad.

''And so what I call the Trump Doctrine is quite simple,'' Vance said.

''Number two, you try to aggressively, diplomatically solve that problem.

''And, number three, when you can't solve it diplomatically, you use overwhelming military power to solve it, and then you get the hell out of there before it ever becomes a protracted conflict.''

Speaker Johnson says delayed House briefing on Iran will be Friday

The Louisiana Republican made the announcement on social media.

The Trump administration postponed classified briefings for Senate and House members as lawmakers look for answers about the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities over the weekend.

The briefings were to be led by CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, along with Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and deputy secretaries of state Christopher Landau and Steve Feinberg.

Congress has not received any new intelligence since Gabbard told lawmakers in March that the U.S. believed Iran was not building a new nuclear weapon, according to two people familiar with the intelligence. The people insisted on anonymity to share what Congress has been told.

—By Mary Clare Jalonick and Kevin Freking

A GOP plan to sell more than 3,200 square miles of federal lands is found to violate Senate rules

The plan has been ruled out of Republicans' big tax and spending cut bill after the Senate parliamentarian determined it the proposal would violate the chamber's rules.

The Trump administration said Monday it will move to rescind a 2001 rule that blocked logging on national forest lands. The so-called roadless rule has angered Republicans, especially in the West where forests sprawl across vast mountainous terrain and the logging industry has waned.

▶Read more about the plan's fate

Court orders Trump administration to facilitate another deported man's return from El Salvador

A federal appeals court in New York issued the order in a case involving Jordin Alexander Melgar-Salmeron, who was deported roughly 30 minutes after the court suspended an order to remove him from the U.S.

The ruling marks at least the fourth time this year that the Trump administration has been ordered to facilitate the return of somebody mistakenly deported.

The judges gave the administration a week to specify what steps it will take to facilitate his return.

Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whose mistaken deportation in March became a flashpoint in Trump's immigration crackdown, was returned from El Salvador this month to face human smuggling charges in Tennessee.

▶Read more about the court order

A key Republican calls for delay of scheduled first meeting of a controversial vaccine panel

Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana posted on X that many panel members "do not have significant experience studying microbiology, epidemiology or immunology'' and says a Wednesday meeting of the vaccine advisers should be postponed.

The new advisers were handpicked by U.S. health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., himself a vaccine skeptic.

Last month, Kennedy abruptly dismissed the existing 17-member expert panel, which makes recommendations for the nation's vaccine schedule. He named eight replacements, including several anti-vaccine voices.

Early intelligence report suggests US strikes only set back Iran's nuclear program by a few months, AP sources say

That's according to two people familiar with the early assessment. The people were not authorized to address the matter publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The early intelligence report issued by the Defense Intelligence Agency contradicts statements from Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the status of Iran's nuclear facilities.

The White House strongly pushed back on the assessment, calling it ''flat-out wrong.''

—By Michelle Price and Mary Clare Jalonick

Treasury imposes sanctions on fugitive leader of Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang

Giovanni Vicente Mosquera Serrano is a leader of the gang that originated in a Venezuelan prison.

Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control says Mosquera Serrano is involved in the organization's drug trafficking and financial operations.

A Treasury news release states that Treasury worked with the FBI, Justice Department and the State Department to come up with the sanctions.

Who's sitting where at the NATO summit dinner

Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy are having dinner together at the Dutch royal palace — but they're placed at separate tables.

Trump is seated next to like-minded Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni. Their table is shared by Dutch King Willem-Alexander and NATO Secretary-General Rutte.

Zelenskyy has a prominent dinner seat too, but at a different table with Dutch Queen Maxima.

Oil prices eased further on hopes that Israel's war with Iran will not damage the global flow of crude.

The S&P 500 climbed 1.1%, following up on big gains for stocks across Europe and Asia, after Trump said late Monday that Israel and Iran had agreed to a ceasefire. The main measure of Wall Street's health is back within 0.8% of its record set in February.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 507 points, or 1.2%, and the Nasdaq composite rallied 1.4%.

The strongest action was again in the oil market, where a barrel of benchmark U.S. crude fell 6% to settle at $64.37. Brent crude, the international standard, had a similar drop.

What's for dinner at NATO

Topped off with a chocolate tart with soft caramel and vanilla sauce.

That's according to the menu spotted by photographers at the royal dinner for NATO leaders including Trump on Tuesday night, hosted by the Dutch royal couple.

Dutch king welcomes NATO leaders including Donald Trump to pre-summit dinner

Dutch King Willem-Alexander has welcomed NATO leaders to a dinner in his Huis Ten Bosch palace on the eve of a historic summit of the 32-nation alliance.

The monarch singled out Trump, who is staying at the palace after the dinner.

Willem-Alexander mentioned a recent visit he paid to an American World War II cemetery in the Netherlands, where all the graves have been ''adopted'' by locals, who tend to them in an enduring expression of gratitude for the fallen troops' role in liberating the Dutch from Nazi occupation.

Trump poses for photo, attends dinner at palace

Trump was (nearly) front and center as NATO leaders took the traditional leaders' photo on the steps of the Dutch royal palace.

Trump stood to the right of Dutch King Willem-Alexander. On his other side was Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Wearing a blue suit and tie, Trump broke out into a wide grin as the photo was snapped. He and other world leaders then went inside for dinner.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent met with Republican senators during their weekly luncheon on Tuesday and said afterward the Senate is ''on track'' for votes by the end of the week on Trump's tax and spending cuts package.

''I think we are on track for — hopefully for a vote this Friday for July 4 for the tax bill,'' Bessent told reporters.

Trump and Republican Senate leaders have repeatedly said the massive bill must be passed by July 4. But senators are still resolving some outstanding disagreements, including whether to include a higher cap on state and local tax deductions that was included in the House bill.

Most Republican senators oppose that increase.

Bessent said he believes that the House will quickly pass any bill passed by the Senate, despite some outstanding differences.

The U.S. House voted overwhelmingly to table the Trump impeachment effort, for now.

A lone Democrat, Rep. Al Green of Texas, forced the sudden vote, arguing Trump abused his power without authorization from Congress for the military action. It quickly divided his party.

Most Democrats joined Republicans to shelve the matter, but dozens voted with Green. The tally was 344-79.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez tells Trump to take his anger out on someone else

The New York Democrat responded to the president's earlier social media post in which he dared her to pursue his impeachment.

''Trump should take it out on whoever convinced him to betray the American people and our Constitution by illegally bombing Iran and dragging us into war,'' she wrote in a fundraising appeal.

Trump arrives in Amsterdam on his way to the NATO summit

Air Force One landed just after 7 p.m. local time.

Trump has just a few appearances scheduled for the rest of the evening, including a courtesy call at The Hague with Dutch King Willem-Alexander and his wife.

Trump is also scheduled to attend a dinner for leaders of NATO's 32 member countries.

Trump calls CNN and MSNBC ‘scum' and says they should apologize to pilots who bombed Iran

Trump sounded especially peeved over reporting that cast doubt on his claim that the U.S. military strikes had ''completely and totally obliterated'' Iran's key nuclear enrichment facilities.

Damage assessments are underway.

Trump said the B-2 bomber pilots that dropped powerful explosives on the nuclear sites ''should be given credit'' for doing ''an unbelievable job'' and that both cable news networks ''ought to apologize'' to them.

Trump has harbored disdain for the two networks and some of their correspondents for a long time over their tough reporting on him and his administrations.

''These networks, these cable networks are real losers,'' Trump said at the White House.

Rutte plays down Trump airing message from the NATO secretary-general

If NATO chief Mark Rutte was upset that Donald Trump publicized a message he sent to the U.S. President, he wasn't showing it Tuesday.

''I have absolutely no trouble or problem with that because there's nothing in it which had to stay secret,'' the unflappable Rutte told reporters Tuesday.

Rutte was speaking hours after Trump, while flying to the NATO summit in Rutte's hometown of The Hague, published a screenshot of a private message from Rutte that said: ''Donald, you have driven us to a really, really important moment for America and Europe and the world. You will achieve something NO American president in decades could get done.''

Trump telegraphs potentially tough discussions with NATO allies over defense spending

Trump shared on his social media site a chart showing how much each of NATO's 32 member countries spends — in dollars and as a percentage of GDP — on defense.

The U.S. is approaching the $1 trillion mark and spent around 3.2% of its gross domestic product in 2024, according to recent NATO estimates.

''This is incredible!'' Trump posted. ''Will be discussing it soon with the Members of NATO.''

Trump wants every country to increase defense spending to 5% of GDP. But Spain says it won't get there, and Slovakia says it reserves the right to decide for itself.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer is voicing anger with the Trump administration's postponement of a classified briefing Tuesday for senators on the U.S.'s military strike in Iran, calling the delay ''outrageous'' and ''evasive.''

''Senators deserve full transparency. There is a legal obligation for the administration to inform Congress about precisely what is happening,'' Schumer said.

The Senate briefing has been rescheduled for Thursday so Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio can attend. Schumer said he didn't believe they would be informing senators of much compared to the witnesses for the previously scheduled briefing.

''I think Hegseth is probably just going to give us talking points,'' Schumer said, adding that he preferred to hear from Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Dan Caine, who was scheduled to brief lawmakers.

Trump administration postpones classified briefings for lawmakers on Iran

Both briefings were canceled and the Senate briefing rescheduled for Thursday so Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio can attend, according to multiple sources who requested anonymity ahead of an official announcement. It is unclear when the House will be briefed.

Mike Johnson, defending Trump, suggests War Powers Act is ‘unconstitutional'

Speaker Mike Johnson said that the ''strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities were clearly'' within President Trump's powers and questioned the constitutionality of the War Powers Act itself.

''The framers of our Constitution never intended for the president to seek the approval of Congress every time he exercised his constitutional authority'' as commander in chief, Johnson said. ''I'm not even sure it's constitutional,'' Johnson said of the War Powers Act.

Johnson, a constitutional lawyer, said that ''the framers did not explicitly set restrictions on the president when it comes to using military force.'' Still, Johnson said Trump followed the requirements of the War Powers Resolution, a law enacted in 1973.

Whistleblower claims Justice official suggested ignoring court orders

The government lawyer who was fired after conceding that a Salvadoran man was deported by mistake has filed a whistleblower complaint.

Erez Reuveni is accusing Principal Assistant Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove of suggesting the Trump administration might have to ignore court orders as it prepared to deport Venezuelan migrants it accused of being gang members.

The complaint seeking an investigation was made public Tuesday, just as Bove prepares to face lawmakers Wednesday for his confirmation hearing to become a federal appeals court judge. It was first reported by The New York Times.

Reuveni was fired after conceding to a federal judge that Kilmar Abrego Garcia should not have been deported to El Salvador.

▶ Read more about the whistleblower complaint against Bove

Iran still faces ‘tactical capability' to threaten US, military official says

A top U.S. military official says Iran still possesses ''significant tactical capability'' despite an American strike over the weekend on three of the country's nuclear sites.

Vice Admiral Brad Cooper told lawmakers Tuesday that that capability was demonstrated by Iran's limited retaliatory missile strike on a U.S. military base in Qatar.

In response to a question about whether Iran still poses a threat to U.S. troops and Americans around the world, he replied, ''They do.''

Trump says it was ‘my great honor' to destroy Iran's nuclear facilities

But the extent of the damage hasn't been fully determined, despite Trump's claim that Iran's key nuclear enrichment facilities have been ''completely and totally obliterated.''

In a fresh social media post, Trump said Israel and Iran wanted to stop the war equally. A ceasefire is in effect after 12 days of hostilities between the enemy countries.

''It was my great honor to Destroy All Nuclear facilities & capability, and then, STOP THE WAR!'' Trump posted.

Trump urges no vacation for Congress until lawmakers finish his ‘big beautiful' bill

The Senate is currently working on the tax and spending cuts measure after the House passed it near the end of May.

Trump offered senators some unsolicited advice in another social media post sent during his flight to Europe.

''To my friends in the Senate, lock yourself in a room if you must, don't go home, and GET THE DEAL DONE THIS WEEK. Work with the House so they can pick it up, and pass it, IMMEDIATELY,'' Trump said. ''NO ONE GOES ON VACATION UNTIL IT'S DONE.''

Anti-NATO protesters chant slogans, sing karaoke near summit

Outside a super-tight security perimeter, hundreds of people have turned out to protest at the NATO summit site in The Hague.

The 65-year-old traveled from her native Pakistan to join various demonstrations opposed to NATO. Tuesday's event, held around 2 miles away from where the leaders are meeting, included anti-imperialist karaoke and a clothing upcycling workshop.

A handful of environmental activists from Extinction Rebellion tried Monday to blockade the highway that delegations would use to reach The Hague from Amsterdam's airport, but were thwarted by police. On Sunday, hundreds of people protested NATO and the war in Gaza, and Iranians held up banners saying ''No Iran War.''

Trump to have a sleepover fit for a king

Trump was expected to stay at a swanky hotel while visiting The Hague for a summit of the 32 leaders of NATO on Wednesday. Now he's gotten a significant upgrade.

On arrival Tuesday night, he'll be whisked by motorcade along closed-off highways to the Huis Ten Bosch palace, nestled in a forest, for a dinner with alliance leaders hosted by Dutch King Willem-Alexander.

▶ Read more about Trump's royal sleepover

Trump dares Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez to ‘MAKE MY DAY' with impeachment call

Trump's challenge came in a lengthy and invective-filled response to her call for him to be impeached for striking Iran without approval from Congress.

The Republican president called the Democratic politician from New York ''stupid'' and attributed her ''rantings'' to ''all of the Victories that the U.S.A. has had under the Trump administration.''

''The Democrats aren't used to WINNING, and she can't stand the concept of our Country being successful again,'' Trump wrote.

Powell says tariffs likely to push up inflation, slow economy

The Federal Reserve chairman said Trump's sweeping tariffs may still push up prices and slow growth later this year, even though so far the duties haven't worsened inflation.

Powell is testifying before the House Financial Services Committee after coming under sharp criticism from Trump for not cutting the Fed's key interest rate. Powell said the Fed will take time to evaluate the economy's evolution before deciding whether to reduce borrowing costs.

Powell said '' increases in tariffs this year are likely to push up prices and weigh on economic activity.'' He said the bump to inflation could be temporary, or it could lead to a more persistent bout of inflation.

The Fed's ''obligation,'' Powell said, is ''to prevent a one-time increase in the price level from becoming an ongoing inflation problem.''

Americans' view of the U.S. economy worsened in June, resuming a downward slide that had dragged consumer confidence to its lowest level since the COVID-19 pandemic five years ago.

The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index slid to 93 in June, down 5.4 points from 98.4 last month, which represented a brief uptick. In April, American consumers' confidence in the economy sank to its lowest reading since May 2020, largely due to anxiety over the impact of President Donald Trump's tariffs.

A measure of Americans' short-term expectations for their income, business conditions and the job market fell 4.6 points to 69. That's well below 80, the marker that can signal a recession ahead.

▶ Read more about the Consumer Confidence survey

Trump posts private message from NATO Secretary-General

''Congratulations and thank you for your decisive action in Iran,'' Rutte wrote in the message, which appeared to be on the secure messaging platform Signal. ''That was truly extraordinary, and something no one else dared to do. It makes us safer.''

Rutte also wrote to Trump that he was ''flying into another big success in The Hague this evening,'' noting that other countries had signed onto the new pledge for NATO member countries to spend 5% of their gross domestic product on defense.

NATO confirmed that the post was a message that Rutte had sent to Trump earlier Tuesday.

Major crypto players and their ties to Trump

President Donald Trump took office in January pledging to ''make America the crypto capital of the world.'' He has since harnessed wide swathes of the federal government to bolster the industry — all while raking in huge sums of money for his family's business.

Many have seen their profits and political standing soar, while investigations of potential wrongdoing and other legal entanglements led by the administration of Trump's predecessor, Democratic President Joe Biden, have largely fallen away.

▶ Read more about the crypto industry's top leaders and their ties to Trump

Homeland Security warns of ‘heightened threat environment'

The warning followed the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear sites. The deputy FBI director says the bureau's ''assets are fully engaged'' to prevent retaliatory violence, while local law enforcement agencies in major cities like New York say they're on high alert.

No credible threats to the homeland have surfaced publicly in the days since the stealth American attack. It's also unclear what bearing the tentative ceasefire between Israel and Iran might have on potential threats, or how lasting such an arrangement might be.

The DHS warns of an increased likelihood that a ''supporter of the Iranian regime is inspired to commit an act of violence in the Homeland.

Truckers fear job loss as new English language rules take effect

Brushing up on English has taken on new urgency for truck drivers in the United States. Trump issued an executive order saying truckers who don't read and speak the language proficiently would be considered unfit for service.

Federal guidelines for applying the order are going into effect. They call for enhanced roadside inspections to decide if truckers can reply to questions and directions in English, as well as understand highway traffic signs and message boards. Some truckers worry they may lose their jobs if they make a mistake or speak with a heavy accent.

''A driver who can't understand English will not drive a commercial vehicle in this country. Period,'' Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said last month while announcing enforcement guidelines that take effect on Wednesday.

Trump says he thinks he'll see Volodymyr Zelenskyy during NATO summit

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's bid to join the 32-nation alliance has been put in deep freeze by Trump. In a telling sign of Ukraine's status at the two-day summit, neither leader mentioned NATO by name during brief remarks to reporters Tuesday.

Zelenskyy and Trump's relationship has been strained since a very public Oval Office bust up earlier this year. But they both are expected to attend a dinner hosted by Dutch King Willem-Alexander Tuesday evening for leaders attending the summit.

''Yeah, probably I'll see him,'' Trump said aboard Air Force One when he was asked about the possibility of seeing Zelenskyy during the summit.

▶ Read more about NATO Summit developments

Trump did not answer directly when asked Tuesday whether he would abide by Article 5 of the NATO treaty, which outlines the alliance's mutual defense guarantees.

''Depends on your definition,'' he told reporters traveling on Air Force One en route to The Netherlands. ''There's numerous definitions of Article Five, you know that, right? But I'm committed to being their friends.''

Asked later to clarify, Trump said he is ''committed to life and safety'' but did not clarify further, saying he did not want to go into further details in the back of an airplane.

Democratic leader: Thousands of American lives could be at risk

The classified intelligence briefings could turn contentious as many lawmakers feel they have been left in the dark on what led to the strikes and amid escalating tensions between the White House and Congress over the role of the United States internationally — disagreements that don't always fall along party lines.

▶Read more about congressional responses to Trump's airstrikes on Iran

Intelligence leaders are set to brief Congress on Trump's Iran strikes

Members of Congress will get classified briefings directly from intelligence leaders three days after Trump directed strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities and a day after Iran struck a U.S. base in Qatar.

Separate House and Senate briefings will be led by CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, along with Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and deputy secretaries of state Christopher Landau and Steve Feinberg.

Democrats and some Republicans have questions about the unilateral decision to launch military action, arguing that the president should have gone to Congress for approval — or at least provided more justification for the attacks.

Jerome Powell said Tuesday that the Federal Reserve will continue to wait and see how the economy evolves before deciding whether to reduce its key interest rate, a stance directly at odds with President Donald Trump's calls for immediate cuts.

''For the time being, we are well positioned to wait to learn more about the likely course of the economy before considering any adjustments to our policy stance,'' Powell said in prepared remarks he will deliver early Tuesday before the House Financial Services Committee.

Powell is facing two days of what could be tough grilling on Capitol Hill, as Trump has repeatedly urged the Fed to reduce borrowing costs. Trump lashed out early Tuesday, posting: ''I hope Congress really works this very dumb, hardheaded person, over. We will be paying for his incompetence for many years to come.''

Read more about Powell's appearance before Congress

NATO leaders are expected to endorse a new defense spending pledge

Trump's first appearance at NATO since returning to the White House was supposed to center on how the U.S. secured a historic military spending pledge of 5% GDP from each nation in the defensive alliance — with some exceptions.

''NATO has no opt-out, and NATO does no side deals,'' NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte told reporters in The Hague. ''It is critical that each ally carries their fair share of the burden.''

However, Spain said that it has reached a deal with NATO to be excluded from the 5% target, while President Donald Trump said the figure shouldn't apply to the United States, only its allies.

But the spotlight is now on Trump's attempts to broker a ceasefire between Iran and Israel. The sharp U-turn in hostilities just hours before he departed for the summit is sure to dominate the discussions in The Hague, Netherlands.

▶ Read more about the NATO summit

While the president has authority as the commander in chief of the U.S. armed forces to order specific military actions, any prolonged wartime footing would traditionally need authorization from Congress.

The House and Senate authorized actions in Iraq, Afghanistan and beyond after the Sept. 11, 2001, attack.

Trump faces a vote in Congress as soon as this week on a war powers resolution from Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., that would ''direct the removal of United States Armed Forces from hostilities against the Islamic Republic of Iran that have not been authorized by Congress.''

Another resolution has been introduced by lawmakers from both parties in the U.S. House.