A Democrat just flipped a House seat in New Jersey. Analilia Mejia, a progressive backed by Bernie Sanders and AOC, won Mikie Sherrill's old seat 60-40 last night. Republicans now have a 218-214 working majority with three seats still vacant — the fifth special election in a row where Democrats have overperformed their 2024 numbers.

Politico published a major report this morning that Ghislaine Maxwell's lawyer believes Trump will pardon her. Her attorney has direct ties to acting Attorney General Todd Blanche — they've done podcasts together, they almost worked the classified documents case together, and Blanche personally flew to interview Maxwell in Tallahassee last July. We break down what that pardon push actually looks like behind the scenes.

Singer d4vd was arrested yesterday for the murder of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, whose body was found in the trunk of his Tesla last September. Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings announced he's leaving the board after 29 years. The acting director of ICE resigned. And an 86-year-old French widow was deported back to France yesterday after her stepson allegedly used his federal job to have her arrested by ICE during an inheritance dispute.

The BDN War Room airs live right after this show — today we're covering Iran reopening the Strait of Hormuz and where the blockade stands. Subscribe to The Brief with Brandon Doggett and The BDN War Room so you don't miss anything.

Season 2, Episode 3 of The Brief with Brandon Doggett.Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax shot and killed his wife overnight, then turned the gun on himself. Their teenage son called 911. The couple was in the middle of a brutal divorce — and Fairfax's political career had already been destroyed by sexual assault allegations years ago.The Daily Mail dropped new financial disclosures showing Kristi Noem and her husband Bryon racked up over $2.6 million in debt since 2020 — while he was secretly spending tens of thousands on OnlyFans models. A former CIA officer says this is a textbook blackmail scenario for a DHS Secretary's spouse.Boston Mayor Michelle Wu is backing a program giving $250–$500 "wellness vouchers" to LGBTQ+ migrants for massages, yoga, haircuts, and acupuncture — while the city faces a $48 million deficit and teachers face layoffs.And an ICE agent has been charged with two counts of assault for pulling a gun on two people during a traffic dispute on Highway 62 in Minneapolis during Operation Metro Surge.The BDN War Room, daily weekday coverage of the Iran war, airs right after The Brief. Subscribe to both shows so you don't miss a thing.

Vance spoke at a Turning Point USA event at UGA last night and got heckled twice, once over Gaza and once over the Iran war. The arena holds 8,000 people. Maybe 1,200 showed up. Erika Kirk canceled last minute citing threats. Vance actually admitted that young voters don't love the administration's Middle East policy, which is a rare concession.

Italy's PM Meloni, who was one of Trump's closest allies in Europe, suspended her country's defense pact with Israel after the IDF fired warning shots at Italian UN peacekeepers in Lebanon. Trump fired back and called her "unacceptable." She also backed the Pope over him earlier this week.

The IMF cut its global growth forecast and warned we could be heading toward recession if the war drags on. Inflation is going back up. WTI crude is at $91, Brent at $94.55. This one hits your wallet.

A new Pew survey shows Americans' favorable view of China has nearly doubled since 2023, especially among young people. And we're still waiting on Alix Earle's response to Alex Cooper.

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