Donald Trump stood before the United Nations General Assembly today and asked the world’s leaders whether he should drive Iran “into hell.”
He framed it as a choice between a deal and the decision to “annihilate the Islamic Republic,” and told the room the deal would probably come “right after the election.” Iran, he said, is “waiting to see how I do in the midterm election.”
By afternoon, his son-in-law Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff had spent three hours trading messages with Iran through mediators, and Trump was calling it “a very good meeting.” Then he sat down with leaders from Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Jordan and told them, “I don’t think about the election at all when I think about ending the nuclear threat from Iran.”
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Federal appeals court reinstates Missouri's Trump-backed map favoring Republicans in seven of eight House seats, delaying it a week as absentee voting begins.
Today’s GovBrief News
Trump tells UN the US will use military force "if necessary" against threats in the Western Hemisphere, calling Cuba an "absolutely failed state."
Source: Axios
September 22, 2026
Trump tells UN he must choose between an Iran deal and driving Iran "into hell," as US and Iranian envoys hold indirect talks.
Source: CBS News
September 22, 2026
HHS moved $12 million from its minority health office to pay for Health Secretary Kennedy's security, then canceled 16 grants citing "limited" funding, WSJ reports.
Source: The Wall Street Journal [gift link]
September 22, 2026
Trump administration cancels Affordable Care Act coverage for more than 760,000 people in enrollments it calls unauthorized, cracking down on insurance brokers.
Source: UPI
September 22, 2026
New Jersey regulators fine Vineland data center $1.07 million for allegedly running 62 unpermitted natural-gas generators after residents complained of noise and air pollution.
Source: New Jersey Spotlight News
September 22, 2026
Nine states sue to block Trump administration deals paying wind developers to cancel offshore leases and invest in fossil fuel projects instead.
Source: The Maritime Executive
September 22, 2026
Trump tells UN government documents will now call artificial intelligence "super intelligence," a name picked after polling followers on X and Truth Social.
Source: The Washington Post [gift link]
September 22, 2026
Federal grand jury indicts Utah postal worker accused of dumping over 300 mail ballots in a church parking lot dumpster before June's primary.
Source: KTBX Salt Lake City
September 22, 2026
Trump tells UN-credentialed CNN correspondent Kaitlan Collins "you should not be here covering me," a day after CNN sued over his White House ban.
Source: The Hill
September 22, 2026
Defense Secretary Hegseth replaces career-record promotion boards for new generals and admirals with a "battlefield-style" test, without saying how it will be scored.
Source: UPI
September 22, 2026
Trump names Rubio full-time national security adviser after more than a year acting, the first to also serve as secretary of state since Kissinger.
Source: USA Today
September 22, 2026
Hackers claim they stole home addresses and spouses' details for all FBI employees and applicants, then deface the bureau's jobs site.
Source: 404 Media
September 22, 2026
ProPublica reveals FBI agents sought a pay-to-play probe of Maine Sen. Collins' dealings with a defense contractor donor before Trump's purge killed it.
Source: ProPublica
September 22, 2026
Federal judge permanently blocks Trump rule barring visa holders, Dreamers and other immigrants from Head Start and health clinics, saying it skipped required public input.
Source: The Associated Press
September 22, 2026
Federal judge temporarily blocks deportation of Austin man shot by ICE agent, his lawyer says, as Travis County's district attorney calls him a material witness.
Source: KEYE Austin
September 22, 2026
Trump administration proposes a refugee ceiling "primarily" for white Afrikaners, after South Africans made up over 99% of this year's refugees.
Source: Reuters
September 22, 2026
Type 1 diabetic Costa Rican man dies in Louisiana ICE custody after complaining of missed insulin, family says, third death there in under six months.
Source: The Associated Press
September 22, 2026
Cleveland TV stations air Democratic challenger's ad on domestic abuse allegations against Ohio Rep. Max Miller despite his lawyer's defamation threat.
Source: Politico
September 22, 2026
Republican Sen. Curtis asks Senate Judiciary Committee to investigate Trump Jr. after ProPublica reports a Putin-allied Russian oligarch bankrolled his Bahamas wedding weekend.
Source: The Washington Sun
September 22, 2026
Treasury Secretary Bessent reported at least $100,000 of his husband's JPMorgan stock as bank cash, and his department's inspector general finds no "knowing violation."
Source: Politico
September 22, 2026
Connecticut funds about 28,000 free bus passes for high school students in 73 districts, allocated by free and reduced-price meal eligibility.
Source: The Connecticut Mirror
September 22, 2026