TV News LIES

Tom Cruise has reportedly turned down the opportunity to be among one of the recipients of the Kennedy Center Honors, which were to be given out by the United States President, Donald Trump.

The Hollywood icon was supposed to be a part of the ceremony taking place a few months from now on December 7th, but is apparently too busy to attend.

As per a report put out by The Washington Post, a number of former and current employees for the Kennedy Center have revealed that the Top Gun: Maverick actor has politely backed away.

The reason for Cruise’s absence is said to be “scheduling conflicts,” and although the 63-year-old has not confirmed or denied this as of yet, other honorees such as the band KISS have spoken out about their gratitude about being selected.

KISS, along with George Strait, Michael Crawford, Gloria Gaynor and Sylvester Stallone have been chosen by Trump, who has admitted to being “about 98 percent involved.”

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New York Gov. Kathy Hochul endorsed Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani in the New York City mayoral race on Sept. 14, saying on social media that the city "deserves a mayor who will stand up to Donald Trump and make life more affordable for New Yorkers."

The governor's endorsement was announced in a New York Times op-ed, in which Hochul — a moderate Democrat — detailed what led to her decision and her conversations with the state assemblyman. She is the latest high-profile Democrat to endorse Mamdani, 33, following his upset victory in the June Democratic primary.

Mamdani's shocking primary win against former Gov. Andrew Cuomo had sent shockwaves among New York's Democratic establishment. Hochul initially declined to endorse Mamdani, who has been working to get endorsements from party leaders, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.

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On the coastal road heading south from Gaza City, thousands of people have begun an arduous journey to what they hope will be relative safety. Israel has told them to flee as it prepares to take over the city.

It is a dangerous journey through stifling heat and battered landscapes. Those who own a car or can afford a taxi are at an advantage. They cram into beat-up vehicles, some of which are missing windows or windshields.

The cars are piled high with mattresses, suitcases and buckets. But many more people flee the city on foot, taking only what they can carry.

As they walk down the coastal road, some stop to watch the pillars of smoke rising from the city behind them. The booms of Israeli airstrikes are never far away.

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A series of Israeli airstrikes killed at least 32 people across Gaza City on Saturday as Israel expanded its offensive and urged Palestinians to leave the area, medical staff reported.

Among the dead were 12 children, according to the morgue at Shifa Hospital, where the bodies were brought.

In recent days, Israel has escalated strikes across Gaza City, destroying several high-rise buildings it accused Hamas of using for surveillance. On Saturday, the military said it targeted another tower used by Hamas in the city. It has ordered civilians to evacuate as part of an operation aimed at seizing control of Gaza’s largest urban center, which it says is the group’s last stronghold. Hundreds of thousands of residents remain in the city, many already facing famine conditions.

Overnight and into Saturday morning, one strike in the Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood killed 10 members of a single family, including a mother and three children, health officials said. The Palestinian Football Association confirmed that Mohammed Ramez Sultan, a player for Al-Helal Sporting Club, was killed along with 14 members of his family in the strikes. Images showed explosions followed by thick plumes of smoke.

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The University of California, Berkeley has given the Trump administration the names of 160 faculty members and students as part of an investigation into “alleged antisemitic incidents”, a move a targeted scholar likened to a “practice from the McCarthy era”.

UC Berkeley, a top-ranked public institution, sent a letter to affected members of campus last week disclosing that university lawyers had included their names in reports to the Department of Education’s office for civil rights (OCR). The education department has been targeting colleges across the country as part of Donald Trump’s aggressive crackdown on pro-Palestinian activism, international students and academic freedom.

Judith Butler, a prominent feminist philosopher and queer theorist, received the letter from David Robinson, UC Berkeley’s chief campus counsel, which said OCR was investigating “allegations of antisemitic harassment and discrimination” and “required production of comprehensive documents”.

Butler, a Jewish scholar who has been critical of Israel, said on Friday that they had questioned Robinson about the disclosures and said he provided no information on the specific allegations.

“We have a right to know the charges against us, to know who has made the charges and to review them and defend ourselves,” they said. “But none of that has happened, which is why we’re in Kafka-land … It is an enormous breach of trust.”

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Inflation rose slightly in August as companies continued to push the cost of tariffs on to consumers.

The newest update to the consumer price index (CPI), which measures a basket of goods and services, showed that prices increased 2.9% over the last year – the highest since January. Core CPI, which excludes energy and food costs, stayed stable at 3.1% after going up in July.

Despite this slight uptick in inflation, Wall Street remains optimistic that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates at the central bank’s board meeting next week. The Fed is under intense pressure from Donald Trump to cut rates, but the decision looks likely to be led by fears that the US jobs market is weakening.

Investors are anticipating a quarter-point rate cut. Rates currently stand at a range of 4.25% to 5.5%.

US stocks shot up on Wednesday after the producer price index, which tracks wholesale prices, showed a slight dip in August after a steep rise in July, making investors hopeful that inflation – while still rising – is going up at a slow pace.

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President Trump reupped his call for NATO members to stop buying Russian oil amid a wider sanctions push in hopes of forcing Russian President Vladimir Putin to halt the war in Ukraine. 

The president said Saturday morning he is “ready” to impose “major” sanctions on Russia when other NATO nations do the same — and when all of them halt their purchases of Moscow’s oil.

“As you know, NATO’S commitment to WIN has been far less than 100 percent, and the purchase of Russian Oil, by some, has been shocking! It greatly weakens your negotiating position, and bargaining power, over Russia,” the president wrote on Truth Social. 

“Anyway, I am ready to ‘go’ when you are. Just say when? I believe that this, plus NATO, as a group, placing 50 percent to 100 percent TARIFFS ON CHINA, to be fully withdrawn after the WAR with Russia and Ukraine is ended, will also be of great help in ENDING this deadly, but RIDICULOUS, WAR,” he added. 

Trump indicated in a Friday “Fox and Friends” interview that his patience with the Russian leader is “running out fast.”

Also on Friday, Canada hosted a meeting of G7 finance ministers. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reiterated Trump’s call for G7 nations to slap tariffs on countries buying Russian oil if they are “truly committed” to ending the three-and-a-half-year conflict in Eastern Europe. 

Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer also welcomed “commitments” to increase sanctions pressure and “explore using immobilized Russian sovereign assets to further benefit Ukraine’s defense.”

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Palestinian Oscar-winning director Basel Adra said that Israeli soldiers conducted a raid at his West Bank home on Saturday, searching for him and going through his wife’s phone.

Israeli settlers attacked his village, injuring two of his brothers and one cousin, Adra told The Associated Press. He accompanied them to the hospital. While there, he said that he heard from family in the village that nine Israeli soldiers had stormed his home.

The soldiers asked his wife, Suha, for his whereabouts and went through her phone, he said, while his 9-month-old daughter was home. They also briefly detained one of his uncles, he said.

As of Saturday night, Adra said he had no way of returning home to check on his family, because soldiers were blocking the entrance to the village and he was scared of being detained.

Israel’s military didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Adra has spent his career as a journalist and filmmaker chronicling settler violence in Masafer Yatta, the southern reaches of West Bank where he was born. After settlers attacked his co-director, Hamdan Ballal, in March, he told the AP that he felt they were being targeted more intensely since winning the Oscar.

As of Saturday night, Adra said he had no way of returning home to check on his family, because soldiers were blocking the entrance to the village and he was scared of being detained.

Israel’s military didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

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