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PULSE POINTS:
❓ What Happened: President Donald J. Trump announced a ceasefire with Yemen’s Houthi rebels, who have agreed to halt attacks on Red Sea shipping after intense U.S. airstrikes. Oman mediated the deal, ensuring mutual non-aggression and safe passage for international trade.
👥 Who’s Involved: President Trump, the Houthis, Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi.
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📍 Where & When: Yemen’s Red Sea coast and the White House, announced May 6, 2025.
💬 Key Quote: “[The Houthis] just don’t want to fight, and we will honour that and we will stop the bombings, and they have capitulated,” Trump said.
⚠️ Impact: The agreement restores stability to a critical global trade route, potentially easing economic pressures, but skepticism remains about the Houthis’ compliance.
IN FULL:
President Donald Trump has secured a significant geopolitical win, securing a ceasefire with Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis to halt their attacks on Red Sea shipping. Speaking alongside Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney in the White House, Trump revealed that the Houthis had “capitulated” after relentless U.S. airstrikes, which targeted 1,000 sites in Yemen since March 2024. The deal, mediated by Oman, ensures neither side will target the other, safeguarding a vital artery for global trade.
“[The Houthis] just don’t want to fight, and we will honour that and we will stop the bombings, and they have capitulated,” Trump said, adding that the group “say they will not be blowing up ships anymore”—and that securing such an undertaking was the purpose of the strikes.
The America First leader underscored the importance of the agreement, noting it aligns with U.S. objectives to secure freedom of navigation. Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi confirmed the deal, stating it guarantees “the smooth flow of international commercial shipping” through the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait.
The Houthis’ campaign of violence began in late 2023, ostensibly in solidarity with Palestinians amid Israel’s military operations in Gaza following Hamas’s October 2023 terror raid against the Jewish State. Their barrage of missiles and drone strikes sank two vessels, and they seized another, killing or kidnapping a number of sailors and forcing major shipping firms to reroute around southern Africa. This disrupted nearly 15 percent of global seaborne trade, spiking costs and straining supply chains.
Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth greatly intensified U.S. military pressure on the group, culminating in their decision to stand down.
Following recent discussions and contacts conducted by the Sultanate of Oman with the United States and the relevant authorities in Sana’a, in the Republic of Yemen, with the aim of de-escalation, efforts have resulted in a ceasefire agreement between the two sides. In the…
— Badr Albusaidi – بدر البوسعيدي (@badralbusaidi) May 6, 2025
PULSE POINTS:
❓What Happened: A Virginia judge acquitted former Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) finance director Ryan McGowan of wrongdoing in a $14,000 payout dispute, rejecting claims he overpaid departing staffers’ unused vacation time.
👥 Who’s Involved: Ryan McGowan, Alexandria Circuit Court Judge Kathleen Uston, CPAC executive Lynne Rasmussen, former CPAC general counsel David Safavian, former executive director Dan Schneider, and CPAC chairman Matt Schlapp.
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📍 Where & When: Alexandria Circuit Court, Alexandria, Virginia, May 6, 2025.
⚠️ Impact: The ruling exposes CPAC leadership’s inconsistencies, potentially weakening its influence while strengthening McGowan’s rival conservative group amid ongoing fallout from the Schlapp scandal.
IN FULL:
A Virginia court has cleared former Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) finance director Ryan McGowan of allegations he improperly paid $14,000 in unused vacation time to five departing staffers, delivering a sharp rebuke to the Matt Schlapp-led outfit. The decision, handed down in Alexandria Circuit Court, highlights internal dysfunction at CPAC, which has also been rocked by homosexual scandals involving Schlapp for years.
Judge Kathleen Uston, in a 30-minute evidence review, pointed to glaring contradictions in the testimony of CPAC executive Lynne Rasmussen and former general counsel David Safavian.
Rasmussen claimed she emailed staff about a paid time off (PTO) limit but failed to produce the emails, and a text exchange showed her asking McGowan’s deputy for a 15 percent salary increase while keeping McGowan in the dark—contradicting her testimony that the deputy lacked such authority. The judge also noted the frustration of the Alexandria detective investigating the case, who was blindsided by details Rasmussen withheld.
The case, long followed by The National Pulse, was more to do with Schlapp pursuing a vendetta at those he perceived to undermine his leadership than any actual wrongdoing.
McGowan’s new conservative group, which grades lawmakers, has also drawn CPAC’s ire, though a civil suit against them was dismissed earlier this year.
Testimony also revealed McGowan had flagged a $50,000 legal bill CPAC paid for Schlapp during the scandal, reigniting scrutiny of Schlapp’s leadership.
CPAC and its parent organization, the American Conservative Union (ACU), has now shelled out vast swathes of donor cash, staff time, and attracted mountains of negative publicity as a result of Schlapp’s numerous escapades.
For years, The National Pulse has been at the forefront of exposing the corruption inside the organization, including contributions from Soros-linked groupsSoros-linked groups, as well as extreme financial improprieties.
The organization is now a shell of its former self, once hosting the largest annual conservative conference, now relegated to an afterthought.
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