Salem News Channel

Trump responds to questions on Iran strikes: 'I may do it, I may not do it'

President Trump won't say if he has decided to order a U.S. strike on Iran.

SCOTUS Upholds Tennessee Ban On Gender-Affirming Care For Transgender Minors

The Supreme Court has upheld Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for transgender minors, a stunning setback to transgender rights. The justices’ 6-3 decision Wednesday effectively protects from legal challenges many efforts by President Donald Trump’s Republican administration and state governments to roll back protections for transgender people. Another 26 states have laws similar to the one in Tennessee. Chief Justice John Roberts writes for a conservative majority the law does not violate the Constitution’s equal protection clause, which requires the government to treat similarly situated people the same. Justice Sonia Sotomayor writes in a dissent joined by her liberal colleagues that the majority “abandons transgender children and their families to political whims.”

Hegseth On Capitol Hill For Another Senate Armed Services Committee Hearing

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is returning to Capitol Hill on Wednesday for another potentially combative hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee as airstrikes between Iran and Israel threaten a potentially devastating wider war. President Donald Trump has demanded Iran’s “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER,” and Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned that joining the Israeli strikes will “result in irreparable damage” for the United States.” Trump is expected to sign yet another order extending the deadline for TikTok’s Chinese owner to divest the popular video-sharing app.

Hegseth Says U.S. Military “Prepared To Execute” Any Trump Decisions On War And Peace

What Does Escalation Between Israel & Iran Mean For America?

What Does Escalation Between Israel & Iran Mean For America? With Col. Kurt Schlichter.

Fake IDs From China, Hearings On Who Was Running Biden Admin, Israel-Iran War

Fake IDs From China, Hearings On Who Was Running Biden Admin, Israel-Iran War With Senator, Eric Schmitt.

Christianity And The Israel-Iran Conflict

Christianity And The Israel-Iran Conflict With Pastor, Lucas Miles.

Trump himself has NOT called for regime change

President Trump has not personally called for a regime change in Iran. Yet.

Does Anyone Care About The Democrats Crashing ICE Offices Anymore?

Volcanic Eruption In Indonesia Forces Evacuations And Flight Cancelations

Indonesia's Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki erupted with giant ash and smoke plumes again Wednesday after forcing evacuations of villages and flight cancelations, including to and from the resort island of Bali. Several eruptions sent ash up to 5,000 meters (16,400 feet) into the sky Tuesday evening to Wednesday afternoon. An eruption Tuesday afternoon sent thick, gray clouds 10,000 meters (about 32,800 feet) into the sky that expanded into a mushroom-shaped ash cloud visible as much as 150 kilometers (nearly 93 miles) away. The eruption alert was raised Tuesday to the highest level and the danger zone where people are recommended to leave was expanded to 8 kilometers (about 5 miles) from the crater. Officers also evacuated from the Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki monitoring post 7 kilometers (4.3 miles) from the crater to avoid falling gravel released in the eruption. No casualties have been reported. Ash and debris fell in a number of places outside the danger zone, including the villages of Boru, Hewa and Watobuku. Some residents from Nurabelen village in Ile Bura subdistrict fled to evacuation sites in Konga to avoid the impact of the eruption, the National Disaster Management Agency said in a statement. “Some residents have also evacuated to Nileknoheng village, which is 12 kilometers (7.4 miles) from the crater,” said Abdul Muhari, the National Disaster Management Agency’s spokesperson. Dozens of flights Wednesday were canceled, including those connecting Bali to cities in Australia, Malaysia, India and China, according to the website of Bali's I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport. Volcanic ash can pose a risk to plane engines. Flights also were canceled to and from the international airport in Labuan Bajo another tourist destination in Flores Island, East Nusa Tenggara province. The airport is still operating. The cancelations and delays affected thousands of travelers. Australian carrier Jetstar, which flies daily between the tourist hotspot and several Australian cities, said the ash cloud was forecast to clear by late Wednesday and its services would be rescheduled. Air New Zealand cancelled one return trip to Auckland and would rebook customers on the next available service, the airline said in a statement Wednesday. Flights to New Delhi, Singapore and Pudong, China, were also cancelled due to the volcano, according to information on the website for Denpasar airport in Bali. The 1,584-meter (5,197-foot) Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki is a twin volcano with Mount Lewotobi Perempuan in the district of Flores Timur. The volcano has had several eruptions, and its danger level and no-go zone have changed several times before being raised again to the highest level Tuesday. An eruption of Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki in November killed nine people and injured dozens. It also erupted in March. Indonesia is an archipelago of 270 million people with frequent seismic activity. It has 120 active volcanoes and sits along the “Ring of Fire,” a horseshoe-shaped series of seismic fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.

Hurricane Erick Forms Off Mexico's Pacific Coast

Hurricane Erick formed Wednesday in the Pacific Ocean on a forecast track to bring heavy rain, strong winds, storm surge and possible mudslides to southern coastal Mexico, forecasters said. Up to 20 inches (51 centimeters) of rain could fall across the Mexican states of Oaxaca and Guerrero, with lighter amounts in Chiapas, Michoacan, Colima and Jalisco states, the Miami-based U.S. National Hurricane Center said in an advisory. The rainfall threatened flooding and mudslides, especially in areas with steep terrain. The Category 1 storm on Wednesday morning was located about 160 miles (257 kilometers) south-southeast of Puerto Ángel, Mexico, and had maximum sustained winds of 75 mph (121 kph). It was moving northwest at 7 mph (11 kph). Erick is expected to be at or near major hurricane status Thursday as it approaches the Mexican coast on Thursday, where it could make landfall. A major hurricane is defined as Category 3 or higher and wind speeds of 111-129 mph (180-210 kph). The storm’s projected path would take its center near the resort of Acapulco, which was devastated in October 2023 by Hurricane Otis, a Category 5 hurricane that rapidly intensified and caught many unprepared. At least 52 people died in Otis and 32 were missing, after the storm severely damaged almost all of the resort’s hotels. Guerrero state Gov. Evelyn Salgado said Tuesday that lessons were learned from that storm. She said all schools in the state would close Wednesday and said 582 shelters were prepared to receive people who might evacuate their homes. A hurricane warning was in effect for Acapulco to Puerto Ángel. A hurricane warning means hurricane conditions are expected in the area, and preparations to protect life and property should be rushed to completion, according to the hurricane center advisory.

Iran Rejects Call To Surrender, Saying U.S. Intervention Would Cause 'Irreparable Damage'

Iran's supreme leader on Wednesday rejected U.S. calls for surrender in the face of blistering Israeli strikes and warned that any military involvement by the Americans would cause “irreparable damage” to them, in an official statement read by a state TV anchor. The remarks from Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has only been seen once since the strikes began, came after U.S. President Donald Trump demanded “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER” in a social media post and warned Khamenei that the U.S. knows where he is but has no plans to kill him, “at least not for now.” Trump initially distanced himself from Israel’s surprise attack on Friday that triggered the conflict, but in recent days has hinted at greater American involvement, saying he wants something “much bigger” than a ceasefire. The U.S. has also sent more warplanes to the region. An Iranian official had earlier warned Wednesday that U.S. intervention would risk “all-out war.”

World Awaits Trump's Next Move As He Calls For “Unconditional Surrender” From Iran

Iran’s supreme leader has rejected U.S. calls for surrender in the face of blistering Israeli strikes and warned that any military involvement by the Americans would cause “irreparable damage” to them. A state TV anchor read the remarks from Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has only been seen once since the strikes began, on Wednesday. They came a day after President Donald Trump demanded Iran's “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER” in a social media post and warned Khamenei that the U.S. knows where he is hiding but has no plans to kill him, “at least not for now.” Trump initially distanced himself from Israel’s surprise attack but in recent days has hinted at greater American involvement.

Iran Warns That U.S. Involvement Would Risk 'All-Out War'

Explosions were heard in Tehran early Wednesday as Israeli warplanes pounded Iran’s capital overnight and into Wednesday. Iran launched a small barrage of missiles at Israel with no reports of casualties. A spokesman for Iran’s foreign ministry warned Wednesday that any American intervention in the ongoing Israeli strikes targeting his country would spark “an all-out war” in the region. Israel's military said the latest strikes hit a facility used to make uranium centrifuges and another that made missile components.