Donald Trump's San Antonio rally devolved into chaos as at least half a dozen protesters interrupted his remarks, with one appearing to approach the stage and briefly forcing the president away from the microphone. Police led demonstrators out; one protester was physically assaulted by an older Trump supporter while exiting the arena. The Democratic National Committee has filed suit in federal court in Washington to block Trump from spending taxpayer funds on a series of self-promotional advertisements. Media tracking firm AdImpact puts the cost at more than $12 million so far — public money spent not on governance but on personal brand maintenance. Trump was also forced to distance himself from two top aides after reports that Chris LaCivita, co-manager of his 2024 campaign, and James Blair, a campaign adviser and White House deputy chief of staff on leave, spent the weekend assisting the pro-Russia government in Republika Srpska in the Balkans. Trump claimed ignorance — "I will terminate them, immediately" if a conflict of interest is confirmed — a disavowal that raises its own questions about oversight of senior staff. Meanwhile, a tanker was attacked off the north coast of Qatar, causing unknown casualties, as Iran declared it would close a route in the Strait of Hormuz being used to bypass Tehran's blockade. The war's domestic blowback is now explicit: Texas attorney general Ken Paxton, running as the Republican Senate candidate, was caught on a leaked audio recording admitting that rising fuel prices from Trump's Iran war are hurting his party ahead of the midterms. In diplomacy, Britain is rebranding its East Jerusalem consulate as a UK mission — a move forced by Israel as retaliation for Britain's ban on trade with illegal settlements. Internal UK debate centers on whether punitive measures could inadvertently bolster Benjamin Netanyahu's re-election prospects. The WHO said it lacks the "full picture" from Russia after the suspected plague death of 28-year-old lab worker Darya Shipilova in Siberia. Russian authorities insist she died from "pneumonia of an unknown aetiology" and deny any connection to the anti-plague research institute, even as sweeping quarantine restrictions were imposed and staff were locked inside the facility for three days. Christa Pike, who survived two lethal injections in Tennessee, has woken up "angry and confused," hospitalized with pneumonia, a blood clot, and unable to move her badly injured arms. A judge has ordered state officials to preserve all evidence from the failed execution. Separately, Margaret Hamilton — whose software powered the Apollo 11 moon landing — died at 90, and the FBI says it thwarted a terrorist attack on a Minnesota mall by an 18-year-old it had supplied with an AK-47.
