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“There is no doubt that even the greatest musical geniuses have sometimes worked without inspiration.”

— Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Ivan Pentchoukov
National Editor

Good morning! It’s Friday. Here are today’s top news:

• President Donald Trump on April 30 signed legislation ending the Department of Homeland Security shutdown after 11 weeks.
• Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine faced numerous pointed questions about the Iran conflict in their first set of public hearings since the fighting began on Feb. 28. Here are four takeaways from the two days of testimony.
• President Trump suggested that he may consider pulling out some U.S. troops from Spain and Italy, citing their lack of support throughout the now two-month U.S.–Israeli war with Iran.
• The highest-ranking U.S. general on Thursday signaled that the Russian government is assisting the Iranian regime in its war with the United States.
• 🍵 Health: An enlarged prostate is the most common prostate condition in aged men. Learn about its causes, treatment options, and discover tips to lower the risks.

President Donald Trump signs an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House on April 30, 2026. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Trump Signs DHS Funding Bill, Ending Shutdown

President Donald Trump, on April 30, signed legislation ending the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)  shutdown after 11 weeks.

The department had been partially shuttered for 76 days since Feb. 14, resulting in long Transportation Security Administration (TSA) lines at airports nationwide.

“After 76 days, the longest government shutdown in history is over,” DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin posted on X.

“[DHS] is back open, [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] and [Customs and Border Protection] will be funded through reconciliation (with NO Democrat votes) so liberals can’t play games with federal law enforcement funding. To be clear, this Democrat shutdown NEVER should have happened.”

Calls to pass the bill—and secure funding for presidential protection, which the Senate had already unanimously approved twice—intensified after the April 25 shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner in Washington, where prosecutors say a man attempted to assassinate Trump.

The legislation provides funding for all of DHS except Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection. This includes funding for agencies including the TSA, the U.S. Coast Guard, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the Secret Service.

Federal employees in these agencies who had been furloughed and who have mostly gone without pay for the duration of the shutdown will return to work and receive back pay.

Funding for immigration enforcement has been separated from the main DHS funding bill, and Republicans instead plan to pass immigration funding via the reconciliation process.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) had dismissed the legislation as a “joke” in March.

Johnson, on April 30, defended the decision ⁠to delay consideration of the broader DHS bill, saying that House Republicans first wanted to see progress on funding for ICE and Border Patrol.

“We held the [DHS] bill, the underlying funding bill, because we had to ensure that they could not isolate and eliminate those two critical agencies,” he said. “We are getting those done now.”

In a late vote on April 29, House Republicans approved the budget resolution for ICE and Border Patrol in a near party-line 215–211 vote. The measure would provide $70 billion for immigration enforcement and deportations through the remainder of Trump’s term, which ends in January 2029, while shielding the funding from Democratic obstruction.

Afterward, Johnson acknowledged his earlier criticism of the bill and said separating immigration enforcement money into its own budget track made the proposal acceptable, allowing it to pass “with no controversial Democratic provisions.” (More)

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche speaks during a press conference about the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting, at the Justice Department in Washington on April 27, 2026. (Madalina Kilroy/The Epoch Times)

POLITICS

• The Department of Justice released a 500-page report detailing alleged anti-Christian bias on the part of the Biden administration.
• President ‌Trump has signed an executive order authorizing a proposed project to transport Canadian oil into the United States, reviving part of the canceled Keystone XL pipeline.
• Louisiana will postpone its U.S. House primaries in order to allow time for lawmakers to redraw and pass a new congressional map, according to an executive order signed by Republican Gov. Jeff Landry on April 30.
• A Republican gubernatorial candidate and current U.S. senator from Tennessee called on lawmakers to change the state’s congressional map in the wake of a landmark Supreme Court decision that reversed a section of the Voting Rights Act that was used to create race-based districts.
• A bipartisan group of senators has introduced legislation aimed at strengthening a U.S. government ban on Chinese automakers accessing the U.S. market, citing national security concerns.
• In his latest action targeting Minnesota fraud, Dr. Mehmet Oz, administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, said his agency would delay paying $91 million in Medicaid claims to the state.

LATEST NEWS

• The federal agent who was injured during an alleged assassination attempt at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner was not shot via friendly fire, President Donald Trump said.
• A new video released by authorities on April 30 shows the White House press gala gunman scoping out the building and later rushing past a security checkpoint.
• The Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measure surged in March as U.S. consumers continue to face price pressures tied to the war in Iran.
• The Department of Justice announced the unsealing of an indictment charging 10 former and current Mexican officials, including a state governor, with drug trafficking and related weapons offenses.
• The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division has launched multiple investigations into 36 Illinois public school districts to assess whether sexual orientation and gender ideology content is being taught in pre-K-12 grade classes.

IN CHARTS: Communist Cuba’s Lights Dim Amid US Oil Blockade (Read)

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A U.S. Air Force B-1 bomber comes in to land at RAF Fairford in Fairford, England, on March 11, 2026. (Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

WORLD

• Amid the U.S.–Israel conflict with Iran, Chinese military analysts have turned their attention to the real-world performance of American-made weapons, according to multiple insiders in China familiar with internal discussions.
• President Trump has again criticized German Chancellor Friedrich Merz over Iran, telling Merz to stop interfering in the Middle East conflict and focus on domestic issues.
• A ship carrying grain that Ukraine says was stolen from Russian-occupied areas of the country will not unload in Israel, according to Ukrainian officials.

 

OPINION

• May Day Politics Come to Classrooms—by Corey A. DeAngelis (Read)
• 1 in 3 Dollars Earned Goes to Taxes. Why?—by Peter St Onge & E.J. Antoni(Read)
• DOGE 2.0: Can Congress Finish What Elon Musk Started?—by Ken Buck(Read)
• Marriage: The Inequality Gap We Should Be Talking About—by Veronique de Rugy (Read)
• The Political Rift Widens—by Armstrong Williams (Read)
• Planned Parenthood or Prevent Parenthood—by Mollie Engelhart(Read)

Pilots of American Airlines Flight 3599, operating from Miami International Airport to Caracas, Venezuela, wave Venezuelan and U.S. flags before departing on a nonstop flight to Venezuela, the first between the U.S. and Venezuela in seven years, at Miami International Airport in Miami, Fla., on April 30, 2026. (Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images)

 📸 Day in Photos: US to Venezuela Direct Flights Resume, Wildfire in Scotland, and Artemis II Astronauts in NYC (Look)

🎙️ Podcast: New Bill Would Create ‘Dark Skies’ Rules in NY, Force State to Go Dark After 11 PM—Facts Matter (Listen)

 🇺🇲 American Thought Leaders:Inside ‘Trump 2.0’ and the Media’s Role in Political Violence—Sean Spicer (Watch)

🍿 Film Review: The Drama (Read)

🎵 Music: Mozart – Piano Trio In D Minor (Listen)

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HEALTH

(Illustration by The Epoch Times, Shutterstock)

Enlarged Prostate: Most Common Prostate Condition in Aged Men–Here Are the Causes 

Many men notice that they need to urinate more frequently as they get older. This is often due to an enlarged prostate, a condition also known as benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).

The prostate gland naturally growsthroughout a man’s adult life. BPH occurs when it becomes enlarged beyond normal size, placing pressure on the bladder and narrowing the urethra—the tube that carries urine out of the body.

BPH is the most common prostate condition in men over 50, affecting about 5 percent of men aged 40 to 64 and rising to over 30 percent of men over 65. However, it can often be managed through lifestyle changes, medications, and, when necessary, surgery.

The prostate is a small, walnut-sized gland in men, located just below the bladder, surrounding the urethra.

An enlarged prostate occurs when the normal balance between cell growth and cell death is disrupted, causing cells to accumulate and the gland to grow larger around the urethra. The exact cause is not fully understood, but hormonal changes that come with aging are believed to play a key role.

Men naturally produce testosterone, the primary male sex hormone, along with small amounts of estrogen, the primary female sex hormone. One theory proposes that as men age, levels of active testosterone decline, leading to a relatively higher proportion of estrogen. This hormonal shift may contribute to the development of BPH, as increased estrogen activity within the prostate can stimulate cell growth and enlargement.

Another theory suggests that testosterone levels decline while levels of dihydrotestosterone, a male hormone that drives sexual development and male hair patterns, remain high and accumulate in the prostate. Because dihydrotestosterone is known to promote prostate growth, this buildup may stimulate prostate cells to multiply and contribute to the development of BPH. (More)

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Thanks for reading 🙏

Have a wonderful day!

—Ivan Pentchoukov, Madalina Hubert, and Kenzi Li.

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