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04.09.2025

04.09.2025The day RFK Jr. battled the Senate on vaccines and Trump renamed the Pentagon

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This page is an archive of main headlines from the US for 04.09.2025.

It displays 277 headlines from many sources chronologically, as they appeared throughout the day, accompanied by AI overviews that were written in real time.

04.09.2025The day RFK Jr. battled the Senate on vaccines and Trump renamed the Pentagon
US media extensively covered Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s combative Senate hearing, where lawmakers from both parties rigorously questioned him on CDC turmoil, vaccine policies, and his performance, with calls for his resignation intensifying throughout the day. Concurrently, President Trump's administration continued its legal battle over tariffs, escalating the case to the Supreme Court. Later in the day, a prominent new development emerged as President Trump directed the renaming of the Department of Defense to the "Department of War," signaling a shift in federal posture. Further administrative actions included the Department of Justice suing Boston over "sanctuary city" policies and continued efforts by Republicans to change Senate rules to speed Trump's nominees. Washington D.C. also challenged the administration with a lawsuit over the National Guard's deployment.
04.09.2025
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Republicans have been talking about options for changing the rules since early August, when the Senate left for a monthlong recess after a breakdown in bipartisan negotiations over the confirmation process. Democrats have blocked nearly every single one of Trump’s nominees, forcing majority Republicans to spend valuable floor time on procedural votes and leaving many positions in the executive branch unfilled. [Full Story]
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Republicans have been talking about options for changing the rules since early August, when the Senate left for a monthlong recess after a breakdown in bipartisan negotiations over the confirmation process. Democrats have blocked nearly every single one of Trump’s nominees, forcing majority Republicans to spend valuable floor time on procedural votes and leaving many positions in the executive branch unfilled for months. [Full Story]
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Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo announced on Wednesday that the Sunshine State will move to eliminate all vaccine mandates, a move that has sparked sharp criticism from some "public health experts" while earning support from parents who argue they shouldn't be forced to vaccinate their healthy children.
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01:34Epstein's Missing Minute Revealed

US media maintains its intense focus on the Jeffrey Epstein case, with new details emerging about a "missing minute" from jail video and victims sharing "brags" involving Trump (CBS, Newsweek). This continues to fuel demands for full file disclosure, despite Trump dismissing the files as "irrelevant" (ABC News). Concurrently, a national consensus on vaccines is unraveling, leading states like Florida to eliminate mandates amidst calls for accountability and employee demands for Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s resignation (Boston Globe, Breitbart, One America News Network, The Blaze).
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U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement experts said they’re used to dealing with illegal immigrants resisting their own arrest, but said the growth of American saboteurs attempting their own guerrilla war on ICE is a new extreme.
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The president and his sons made $5 billion on paper as their cryptocurrency started trading — highlighting the extraordinary degree to which they are personally profiting from Trump's return to the Oval Office.
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08:47Trump's Tariff Appeal to Supreme Court

US media reports extensively on the Trump administration escalating its tariff dispute, asking the Supreme Court to quickly reverse a ruling that deemed sweeping import taxes illegal (Washington Post, AP News, HuffPost). This development continues the legal challenges surrounding presidential authority on tariffs. Separately, national discussions persist regarding the fragmented consensus on vaccine mandates across states (Boston Globe), while President Trump also addressed a Russia-Ukraine peace deal and family crypto earnings (CBS, NPR).
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Democratic lawmakers and more than a thousand current and former HHS staff say Kennedy's actions are endangering America's health. Kennedy says he came to clean house and he's delivering.
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U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement experts said they’re used to dealing with illegal immigrants resisting their own arrest, but said the growth of American saboteurs attempting their own guerrilla war on ICE is a new extreme.
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11:25Trump's Assertive Global Posture

US media continues to report on the Trump administration's ongoing legal battle over tariffs, with the case now before the Supreme Court as billions in duties hang in balance (Fox News, AP News, Washington Post, HuffPost). Concurrently, President Trump's strong stance on international relations is highlighted, including a warning to Venezuela following a Caribbean strike (NBC News, Common Dreams, The Atlantic) and engagement in the Russia-Ukraine conflict amidst European leader meetings (ABC News, NYTimes, CBS).
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13:36Trump Administration's Legal and Power Moves Dominate

US media continues its focus on President Trump's administration, highlighting ongoing legal challenges with the Supreme Court siding with the administration and federal judges expressing safety concerns (Fox News, Reason). Discussions also detail potential permanent power grabs by Trump (MSNBC, The Atlantic) and Republican efforts to change Senate rules for nominees (Newsmax). A significant new development sees RFK Jr. testifying before the Senate amid widespread concern over CDC turmoil and vaccine policy changes, driving a wedge between states (ABC News, CBS, AP News, NPR, Washington Post).
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Donald Trump has offered Eric Adams a job in his administration, apparently to convince him to drop out of New York’s mayoral race. It’s now official and out in the open: Andrew Cuomo is allying with Trump to beat Zohran Mamdani.
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President Donald Trump said Thursday that Chicago's crime problems could be solved quickly if local officials sought his help, declaring he could "fix it in one month." [Full Story]
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14:55RFK Jr. Confronts CDC Chaos

The US media is primarily focused on Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s heated Senate testimony. He is being grilled over CDC turmoil, defending his actions, and attacking the agency's work and former officials amidst vaccine policy backlash (ABC News, Boston Globe, CBS, The Hill, AP News, USA Today, Washington Post). Concurrently, President Trump's administration faces scrutiny over moves to end TPS for Venezuelans and potential funding cuts for the UC system (Common Dreams, LA Times), while Republicans eye Senate rule changes to speed up his nominees' confirmations (Washington Times).
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16:16RFK Jr. Challenged in Senate

The US media's primary focus remains on Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s combative Senate hearing. Senators are intensely questioning him regarding CDC turmoil, COVID vaccine policies, and accusations of dishonesty, with some lawmakers urging his resignation (Boston Globe, CNN, Fox News, NPR, Newsweek, The Hill, Washington Post, AP News, USA Today, Washington Times, ABC News, CBS). Meanwhile, federal judges criticize the Supreme Court's handling of Trump cases (NBC News), and President Trump seeks to influence New York City's mayoral election (NY Post, Jacobin).
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17:19RFK Jr. Senate Hearing Intensifies

US media continues its extensive coverage of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s heated Senate hearing. Lawmakers from both parties are fiercely questioning him about CDC turmoil, vaccine policies, and accusations of dishonesty, with some outlets highlighting the combative exchanges and calls for his resignation. Separately, federal judges express safety concerns as the Supreme Court sides with the Trump administration, while Washington D.C. challenges the administration over federal presence.
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19:15Kennedy's Senate Crossfire

US media extensively covers Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s rancorous Senate hearing. Lawmakers from both parties are intensely questioning him about COVID vaccine policies, CDC leadership changes, and his performance, with some outlets highlighting his combative responses (ABC News, AP News, Boston Globe, Breitbart, CBS, CNN, Fox News, HuffPost, The Daily Beast, The Hill, Washington Post, Washington Examiner). Concurrently, Washington D.C. is suing the Trump administration over the National Guard deployment, deeming it federal overreach (Common Dreams, One America News Network).
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The health secretary is showing this week what he’s willing to do with his power.
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20:50RFK Jr. Faces Senate Fury

US media largely focuses on Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s contentious Senate hearing. Both Republican and Democratic senators rigorously questioned him on his vaccine stance and CDC leadership, with reports detailing combative exchanges and calls for his resignation (MSNBC, NPR, The Hill, One America News Network, Washington Post). Separately, President Trump asserts a claim of power to summarily kill suspected drug smugglers and renews threats regarding state crime crises (NYTimes, Fox News). Massachusetts has also set its own vaccine coverage rules (Boston Globe).
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22:25RFK Jr. Hearing Fallout

US media remains fixated on Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s contentious Senate hearing, with new coverage detailing bipartisan concerns regarding CDC turmoil and vaccine policies, and offering various takeaways (ABC News, AP News, The Hill, MSNBC, Slate). Simultaneously, President Trump's administration is noted for rebranding the Pentagon (Fox News), his DOJ suing Boston over sanctuary city policies (Boston Globe), and a university ending DEI programs (One America News Network).
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In a dramatic escalation of the federal government’s war on transnational drug cartels, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) reported the seizure of a record-breaking shipment of illicit drug precursor chemicals en route from China to drug cartels in Mexico — before they could be weaponized and unleashed on American streets.
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Newsmax

Trump Will Seek 'Department of War' Rebrand for Pentagon

President Donald Trump plans to sign an executive order Friday to rebrand the Department of Defense as the Department of War, his latest effort to project an image of toughness for America's military. [Full Story]
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The executive order will instruct Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to propose legislative and executive actions to make “US Department of War” the official name of the DOD.
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23:52Trump Orders 'Department of War' Renaming

US media continues to report on Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s contentious Senate hearing concerning CDC turmoil and vaccine policies (ABC News, AP News, The Hill, NPR). A prominent new development involves President Trump's directive to rename the Department of Defense to the 'Department of War' (Fox News, NY Post, Newsweek, USA Today). Further administration actions include the DOJ suing Boston over 'sanctuary city' policies (Boston Globe) and an escalated federal focus on combating drug cartels (Breitbart).