Maduro Confirms “Respectful” Call With Trump, Signals Openness to Diplomatic Dialogue 
U.S. Justice Department Orders Intensified Probe Into Antifa and Domestic Extremist Groups 
Australia Progresses AUKUS Review as U.S. Affirms Strong Support 
Pentagon Probe Finds Hegseth’s Use of Signal Risked Exposing Sensitive Yemen Strike Details 
Hong Kong Faces Low Turnout in “Patriots-Only” Election Amid Public Grief After Deadly Fire 
UN Chief Says Gaza Operation “Fundamentally Wrong” as Concerns Over War Crimes Grow 
Taiwan Signals Openness to Renew Ties with Honduras as Election Unfolds 
UN General Assembly Demands Russia Return Ukrainian Children Amid Ongoing Conflict 
IMF Deputy Dan Katz Visits China as Key Economic Review Nears 
California Launches Portal for Reporting Alleged Misconduct by Federal Immigration Agents 
Taiwan Opposition Criticizes Plan to Block Chinese App Rednote Over Security Concerns 
Honduras Election Turmoil Deepens as Nasralla Alleges Fraud in Tight Presidential Race 
Honduras Election Turmoil Intensifies as Nasralla Blames Trump for Shift in Results 
New Orleans Immigration Crackdown Sparks Fear as Federal Arrests Intensify 
Cuba Reaffirms Anti-Drug Cooperation as Tensions Rise in the Caribbean 
U.S.-Russia Talks Leave Ukraine Peace Efforts Uncertain 
China’s Expanding Maritime Military Presence Alarms Taiwan and Japan 
The congressional committee investigating the January 6 insurrection at the Capitol is making more progress as it zeroes in on those close to former President Donald Trump. The panel has now requested one Trump aide who was present in the meeting the night before the riots to voluntarily testify.
The House Select Committee has requested that former Trump White House assistant press secretary Jalen Drummond voluntarily testify. Maggie Haberman of the New York Times reported that Drummond was present in a meeting between Trump and staff on January 5, the night before the insurrection.
What the committee intends to find out from Drummond remains to be seen, but the probe into the riots has also extended into the efforts Trump and his allies made to overturn the 2020 election results. The panel has also been looking into the pressure campaign Trump and his allies engaged with then-vice president Mike Pence.
Pence was among the targets of the mob during Capitol insurrection for ultimately refusing to reject the electoral results to send them back to the states. Several former Trump administration officials have testified among the dozens of witnesses the committee has interviewed. Pence’s former aides such as Marc Short and Greg Jacobs have also testified before the committee.
The House Committee was granted another legal victory against the former president, who recently sued the panel in an effort to block access to records of his White House. The Supreme Court has rejected the former president’s appeal for the second time, granting the archives to turn over White House logs to the committee. President Joe Biden has already waived executive privilege against Trump by authorizing the records to be released to the panel and urging the Archives to fast-track the turnover of records to the committee.
The committee has already obtained the first set of records from the Trump White House, except for the records that have reportedly been destroyed by Trump during his presidency or flushed down the White House toilets.
The Supreme Court struck down Trump’s claim of executive privilege, citing that he is not the current president to make such a claim.
