SURPRISE PAUSE: Trump announced a pause to Project Freedom, the U.S. operation to guide ships through the Strait of Hormuz, on Tuesday to see if an agreement with Iran can be reached and finalized.
He said in a post on Truth Social that he made the decision following a request from Pakistan and other countries. The president added that the U.S. blockade of the strait would remain in place.
The operation had caused cracks in a ceasefire that had largely held since it was announced a month ago. The U.S. and Iran have exchanged fire in the Strait of Hormuz, and Tehran resumed drone and missile strikes Monday against the United Arab Emirates, a key U.S. ally.
But Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth argued Tuesday morning that the ceasefire was still intact, and officials expected “some churn” at the beginning of Project Freedom.
And Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters during a press briefing later in the day that “something needs to be done” about Iran’s chokehold on the Hormuz Strait, which he called a blatant violation of international law.
Project Freedom was off to a halting start. Two U.S.-flagged commercial ships passed through the contested waterway on Monday, but none followed on Tuesday, as global shipping companies continued to say they were not prepared to take the risk.
Hegseth said hundreds of ships were lining up to make the journey, but Rubio sounded a note of caution during his remarks, saying the operation would take time.
▪ The Hill: U.S. to propose U.N. resolution calling to reopen strait.
▪ The Hill: Iran has attacked U.S. forces more than 10 times since ceasefire began.
VATICAN BOUND: Rubio is heading to Vatican City today for a meeting with Pope Leo XIV as Trump reignited his attacks on the pontiff.
Rubio told reporters that the trip was scheduled weeks earlier and that he would be talking about multiple topics with Leo, including the pope’s recent trip to Africa and U.S. humanitarian aid for Cuba.
But the president doesn’t appear ready to set aside his beef with the pontiff. Trump issued his latest attack on the pope in an interview Monday with Hugh Hewitt, accusing him of “endangering a lot of Catholics and a lot of people.”
“But I guess if it’s up to the pope, he thinks it’s just fine for Iran to have a nuclear weapon,” he said.
Trump and Leo engaged in a back-and-forth starting in late March after the pontiff criticized the administration’s war in Iran, though he didn’t name the president directly. The president slammed the pope as “weak on crime and terrible on foreign policy” in a post on Truth Social in response.
After the president coupled his attacks on Leo with an AI-generated image that depicted him as Jesus, which he later took down, Trump faced pushback — even from some members of his own conservative base.
Brian Burch, the U.S. ambassador to the Holy See, told journalists Tuesday that Rubio’s visit will include a “frank conversation” about disagreements between the administration and the Vatican. He rejected the idea that there is a “deep rift” between the two.
“Nations have disagreements, and I think one of the ways that you work through those is … through fraternity and authentic dialogue,” he said.
The meeting is set to take place Thursday.
▪ The Hill: Rubio gets presidential tryout in briefing room.
▪ Reuters: Pope rejects latest Trump attack.
HOT SEAT: Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick will testify before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee today as part of the panel’s probe into Jeffrey Epstein.
Lutnick agreed to appear before the committee in March following bipartisan calls for him to do so over revelations of his ties with the disgraced financier. The Cabinet member had indicated he cut off contact with Epstein by 2005, but documents released by the Department of Justice as part of the Epstein files showed he communicated with Epstein’s assistant about visiting him in 2012.
Lutnick confirmed meeting Epstein on his private island during testimony before a Senate Appropriations subcommittee in February but said he didn’t witness any illegal activity.
Lutnick hasn’t been accused of any wrongdoing over his relationship with Epstein. But he has faced calls from Democrats to resign over his apparent dishonesty.
▪ ABC News: Federal prosecutors support releasing purported Epstein suicide note.
▪ PBS: Lutnick’s connection to Epstein.
SECURITY BOOST: The reconciliation package released by Senate Republicans on Monday includes $1 billion for the Secret Service to allow for security upgrades for the compound tied to constructing a ballroom at the White House.
The funding makes up just a part of the $72 billion legislation released by the Senate Judiciary and Homeland Security committees on Monday night. The bill is set to cover U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol through 2029.
The text of the legislation states that the $1 billion in security funding cannot be used for any non-security element of the ballroom and nearby attached facilities.
Even though the reconciliation process will allow the bill to get through Congress without any Democratic support, it still faces hurdles as almost all Republicans must back it for the bill to be approved, a challenge for party leaders in both chambers.
“Just flagging that now everyone gets an up or down vote on the ballroom,” Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) said Monday in a post on the social platform X.
▪ The Hill: House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) faces tough road ahead.
▪ The Hill: GOP opposition grows to third reconciliation package.
INDICTED: A federal grand jury has indicted the alleged gunman accused of disrupting the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner late last month.
Cole Thomas Allen faces four charges of attempting to assassinate the president, assaulting an officer or employee of the United States with a deadly weapon and two other firearms-related counts. He has agreed to remain detained ahead of trial but hasn’t yet entered a plea.
If convicted of attempting to assassinate Trump, Allen could be sentenced to life in prison.
