White House meetings
President Donald Trump met separately with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday, discussing the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Iran. Zelensky reported a “good” meeting, including a discussion of licenses for Patriot missile interceptors on Ukrainian soil. He emphasized the importance of the diplomatic process and his gratitude for U.S. support. Netanyahu reported the meeting was “one of the best conversations I’ve had” with Trump. Leftmedia outlets have eagerly reported on a seeming rift between the two close allies as Trump publicly expressed frustration after Netanyahu announced his desire to discuss Iranian excavation at Pickaxe Mountain, likely an attempt to retrieve buried nuclear material. Pickaxe Mountain was not one of the topics discussed yesterday, nor was the reported sale of F-35s to Turkey; rather, the men discussed Saudi Arabia’s possible induction into the Abraham Accords.

Fauci’s corrupt connections, Fifth pleading
Among a trove of recently released material from Anthony Fauci is an apparent corrupt quid pro quo for award submissions he solicited. Specifically, a significant funding kickback to two immunology researchers for their nominating Fauci for awards that carried substantial cash prizes. One of the researchers who nominated Fauci for a prize that awarded $1 million was later granted roughly $1.8 million in NIAID funding. Senator Rand Paul titled the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee’s 136-page document of Fauci’s communication files “Fauci’s Side Hustle.” Meanwhile, Fauci sat before a Senate hearing today, where he directly attacked Paul for wanting to put him “behind bars.” Despite his Biden autopen pardon, Fauci repeatedly invoked the Fifth Amendment, and the hearing went nowhere.

Lindsey Graham’s funeral
The memorial service for Senator Lindsey Graham, who died earlier this month, was held in the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, followed by a funeral at the National Cathedral. The burial will take place today. Graham was remembered and eulogized by the president, vice president, and Senate majority leader. Reverend William Graham III was among those who gave readings at the funeral. Both the Ukrainian president and Israeli prime minister attended the memorial for the foreign policy giant. Graham’s niece described his effect on her mother, his sister, after the death of their parents: “Lindsey became brother, father, and mother to my mother overnight.” President Trump referred to Graham as “a true American original who left us much too soon.”

Kentucky governor hits McConnell
Democrat Governor Andy Beshear has called on Senator Mitch McConnell to prove his “capacity to serve,” to “directly and verbally address the people of Kentucky … or resign.” The 84-year-old senator has been absent for nearly two months while recovering from a fall, including 43 days in the hospital. Should McConnell step down, it would trigger a special election rather than allow the governor to appoint someone to fill the seat temporarily. This law was recently adopted in Kentucky to prevent Beshear from filling a Senate vacancy, though Beshear has indicated he would challenge it. Given that reality, is Beshear’s actual motive to replace McConnell with a Democrat? McConnell, who is not seeking reelection, will exit office at the end of his term on January 3, 2027.

Senate confirms Clayton for DNI director
The Senate confirmed Jay Clayton as the new director of national intelligence in a 51-47 party-line vote. Clayton replaces Acting Director William Pulte, who has filled the post since Tulsi Gabbard’s departure to care for her husband after a cancer diagnosis. Pulte has reduced the Office of the Director of National Intelligence by 30% in five rounds of layoffs, leaving Director Clayton a significantly smaller office. Republicans hope that Democrats may drop their blockade of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, a provision that allows the surveillance of foreign targets without a warrant now that Clayton has replaced Pulte. Democrats blocked the FISA provision in protest of Pulte, whom they viewed as a Trump loyalist. Clayton has previously served as SEC chairman and U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York.

U.S. intercepts Iran’s surprise attack in Iraq
President Trump ordered a pause in attacks on Iran last week to create space for negotiations. On Tuesday afternoon, for the first time since then, Iran fired multiple missiles at American targets. U.S. Central Command released a statement saying, “All Iranian missiles were successfully intercepted. U.S. forces remain vigilant and at a high state of readiness.” U.S. and Saudi forces counterattacked with precision strikes against Iran-aligned terrorists located in Iraq. The strikes came just hours after Trump’s first in-person meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu since the war with Iran began. Iran’s proxy forces in Iraq still have missiles and drones. Earlier on Tuesday, Saudi Arabia shot down drones that targeted Saudi petroleum facilities.

Immigrants sue over Mamdani’s grocery stores
Steamrolling ahead with socialist policies, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is building five tax-subsidized grocery stores in the city next year. He says the groceries will be 30% off retail price. In protest, an immigrant business group plans to sue Mamdani for unfairly driving their stores out of business. The Multicultural Business Coalition, a nonprofit formed earlier this year, aims to raise $1 million to protest the policy and represent Asian, African, Hispanic, and Middle Eastern immigrants. Frank Garcia, the nonprofit’s chairman, seeks to garner public sympathy. Though Mamdani claimed he didn’t want competition, small-business owners won’t be able to compete with his subsidized prices. Additionally, the new supermarkets will be built on municipal property and won’t have to pay rent.

China shipped coronavirus to U.S. in 2018
For years, Anthony Fauci maintained that COVID-19 was not the result of a laboratory leak. But researchers at the Wuhan Institute of Virology were conducting experiments involving a bat coronavirus as far back as 2018. A Chinese military scientist, Yusen Zhou, then sent sample vials to Li Fang, a professor at the University of Minnesota. The three vials were seized at the Detroit airport, and the FBI later determined they had 96% similarity to COVID-19. A 2021 study found that COVID-19 could infect humans but not bats, further contradicting the bat-origin claim. Declassified documents from a Senate committee reveal Li Fang researched how coronaviruses enter cells and collaborated with Chinese military secret projects. China has yet to disclose details about weaponized diseases and offensive biological arms.

Headlines

• Trump administration formally bans gain-of-function research (Just the News)

• Talarico may be in a bit of legal trouble in his Texas Senate race (RedState)

• DOJ settles with pro-life father of 11 arrested in a predawn raid (Christian Post)

• Georgia teen school shooter is sentenced to life without parole (WSJ)

The Executive News Summary is compiled daily by Jordan Candler, Thomas Gallatin, Sterling Henry, Jacob Geoffrey, and Sophie Starkova. For the archive, click here.