Trump Says Wars Can Last "Forever" — Then the Bomb Squad Shows Up at Trump Tower

Overseas, the news landed hard. Trump also directed **a blistering critique at UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer**, calling Britain "unrecognizable" in comments that drew significant attention across the Atlantic.

Back home, the day took an unexpected detour when the NYPD bomb squad was called to Trump Tower in Manhattan after a suspicious package was found in the mailroom, according to Newsweek.

No injuries were reported. But it was one more jarring image on a day already packed with them.

Meanwhile, Elon Musk's **Department of Government Efficiency dropped a bombshell of its own** — a different kind.

DOGE released seven full years of Medicaid spending data to the public. Every dollar. Every transaction. 2018 through 2024, searchable and open. The stated goal: let ordinary Americans see for themselves how much fraud exists in the program.

Critics say it's a setup — a way to build public support for cutting Medicaid. Supporters say it's exactly the kind of radical transparency the government has needed for decades.

You can decide which it is. But either way, the data is out there now. And it's not going back.

On Capitol Hill, something genuinely surprising happened.

**17 Republicans crossed the aisle** and voted with House Democrats to restore Affordable Care Act tax credits that expired on January 1. The bill passed. Rep. Maxwell Frost of Florida posted on X that it's now up to the Senate to follow through.

That number — 17 — is the one that has Republican leadership quietly unsettled. As one observer noted on X: "I don't know how you do anything real when 17 members think their political careers are in jeopardy if they don't vote for the Democrats' top priority."

That's a crack in the wall. Small, maybe. But visible.

In the legal world, Jack Smith's 165-page brief on the 2020 election case remained a topic of heavy discussion on X. Judge Tanya Chutkan unsealed the document — partially redacted — as prosecutors work to determine how much of the original indictment survives the Supreme Court's 2024 immunity ruling.

The revised approach narrows the focus on Trump's use of the DOJ to advance election fraud claims, stripping out the conduct now protected by that ruling.

**The case is still alive.** Just reshaped.

On the economy, the debate over who's responsible for grocery prices kept boiling. Multiple members of Congress pointed to tariffs as a driver of food cost increases. Others pushed back, arguing that Biden-era inflation was the real culprit and that some prices have actually come down.

The honest answer — as economists would tell you — is that it's complicated. Tariffs raise prices on imported goods. They also raise prices on domestic goods that compete with imports. The consumer pays either way.

Finally, keep an eye on Gaza.

Reports surfaced that the Trump administration is planning a large military base in Gaza capable of housing 5,000 international troops — with Indonesia, Morocco, Albania, Kosovo, and Kazakhstan among the countries potentially contributing forces. Questions remain about whether U.S. troops would be involved, and notably, whether anyone asked the people of Gaza themselves.

**Today was not a quiet day.** Not even close.

Wars fought forever. Medicaid data dumps. A bomb scare at Trump Tower. Seventeen Republicans breaking ranks on healthcare. A reshaped federal indictment. And a Gaza base that could reshape the entire Middle East equation.

The TrumpMeter is high tonight. Read every story. Connect every dot. This is a lot to absorb — and it's only Monday.

Browse all past Trump news briefings in the archive