VOUX MAG

Twowildfiresin southeasternGeorgiacontinue tothreatenhomes andlives, with officials warning Saturday that strong winds could rapidly spread the flames.

Brantley County Manager Joey Cason called it a "dynamic situation" in a social media video, urging residents to "please evacuate" if ordered.

"This fire is going to move rapidly, once these winds get here later today," he stated.

The Highway 82 Fire, burning since Monday, has already destroyed at least 87 homes. Georgia Gov.Brian Kempsaid Friday this marks the most for a singlewildfirein the state's history.

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The fire was started by a foil balloon hitting live power lines. That created an electrical arc that ignited combustible material on the ground. An infrared flight that detects heat was conducted overnight Friday, helping officials to better map the fire. A Saturday news release said the fire's perimeter is more than 14.8 square miles, and it is only about 10% contained.

Meanwhile, a second fire about 70 miles (113 kilometers) to the southwest in Clinch and Echols counties, near theFloridastate line, has burned more than 46.9 square miles and destroyed at least 35 homes. Started by sparks from a welding operation, that wildfire was also about 10% contained as of midday Saturday.

Firefighters have been battling more than 150 other wildfires in Georgia and Florida that have sent smoky haze into places far from the flames, triggering air quality warnings for some cities.

An unusually large number of wildfires are burning this spring across the Southeast. Scientists say the threat of fire has been amplified by a combination of extreme drought, gusty winds, climate change, and dead trees still littering some forests after being toppled by Hurricane Helene in 2024.

In northern Florida, the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office volunteer firefighter James “Kevin” Crews died on Thursday evening after he suffered an unspecified medical emergency while suppressing a brush fire. No fire deaths or injuries have been reported in Georgia.

LONDON, April 26 (Reuters) - Britain's government remains in close cooperation with U.S. security services ‌ahead of King Charles' visit to the ‌United States this week, a senior minister said on Sunday, ​after a shooting at the White House correspondents' dinner.

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump were rushed out of the dinner in Washington ‌by Secret Service ⁠agents on Saturday night after a man opened fire on security personnel ⁠nearby.

Asked about the incident on Sky News, Darren Jones, chief secretary to Prime Minister Keir Starmer, ​said the ​British government and ​Buckingham Palace took the ‌security of King Charles "very seriously", with extensive discussions already underway that would continue over the coming days.

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"In respect of His Majesty's visit to the United States next week ... our security services ‌obviously remain in close cooperation ​in advance of that," Jones ​added.

King Charles and ​his wife, Camilla, are due ‌to arrive in the United ​States on ​Monday for a four-day trip that includes a private meeting with Trump and an address ​to Congress, ‌marking 250 years since the U.S. declaration ​of independence from British rule.

(Reporting by Sam ​Tabahriti;Editing by Helen Popper)

A woman was shot in the leg on the campus of Arkansas State University early on Sunday morning, the campus said.

Law enforcement responded just after midnight to a 911 call reporting shots fired at a gathering at Unity Park, the campus said, adding that investigators from Jonesboro Police Department and ASU Police Department were on the scene.

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"One female victim has been confirmed with a non-life-threatening gunshot wound to the lower leg," the university said in a statement. "Additional reports indicate minor injuries, including scrapes and scratches, as the crowd dispersed."

Police said the shooting appeared to be an isolated incident and there was "no broader threat to the campus community," the university said.

President Donald Trump is set to attendWhite House Correspondents’ Association Dinner forthe first time as commander-in-chief, surrounded by the journalists he routinelyberatesandthreatens.

Until now, Trump had been the only president in the event’s century-long history not to attend at least once while in office. In years past, presidents have typically endured a light roasting from the dinner’s headliner, typically a comedian.

This year, the correspondents’ association opted to book mentalist Oz Pearlman. The association also didn’t have a comedian perform last year, instead focusing on its journalism awards.

The dinner comes amid the backdrop ofwar with Iran,which has led to higher gas prices around the world and volatility in the stock market. It also comes as Trump’s approval rating hit a new low in arecent NBC News poll, with 37% of respondents approving of his job performance and 63% disapproving. Trump was well underwater on his handling of inflation and the cost of living, with 68% saying they disapproved of his policies. The slide also extends to Trump’s handling of the Iran war, with 67% of respondents disapproving.

The gala is meant to celebrate the nation’s most dogged White House reporting, but Trump’s turn as guest of honor will give him another opportunity to air his grievances with the journalists who cover him. He has clashed with reporters during his time in office, though he's takenmore aggressive stepsduring his second term by limiting access for traditional media while boosting conservative and pro-Trump outlets.

Trump feuded with The Associated Press last year over its refusal to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America in its stories. The White House then barred the AP from major presidential events, prompting a lawsuit from the news agency. In June 2025,a U.S. appeals court ruledthat Trump could ban the AP from some media events as the case proceeded.

Trump also filed a $15 billion defamation lawsuit against the New York Times over its coverage of his 2024 campaign;a federal judge tossed the lawsuitin September, but he refiled itweeks later.

Earlier this month, a judgetossed a $10 billion lawsuitTrump filed against The Wall Street Journal over its publication of a bawdy 50thbirthday card he is alleged to have sent to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in 2003. Trump has denied writing the letter.

Now, Trump could be present as Journal reportersreceive an awardSaturday night for their reporting on Epstein’s birthday card.

The Trump White House’s adversarial relationship with the press extends down the management chain. Earlier this month,FBI Director Kash Patel filed a lawsuitagainst The Atlantic over a story alleging he drank to excess and had unexplained absences from the bureau's headquarters. In his lawsuit, Patel denied the allegations.

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The FBI in Januarysearched a Washington Post reporter's home andseized her phone and laptopsas part of an investigation into a government contractor accused ofmishandling classified information.A judge in Februaryblocked the DOJfrom using material it found on the reporter's devices as part of its case.

In March, the Defense Departmentremoved media officesfrom the Pentagon after a federal judge sided with The New York Times, which had sued over new rules requiring journalists to sign a pledge restricting their ability to gather reporting. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth hasdescribed U.S. media as “incredibly unpatriotic.”

A fixture of Washington’s spring social calendar, the dinner raises funds for the correspondents’ association, as well as several journalism scholarships.

Hundreds of journalists and their guests attend each year, but the gala has drawn criticism from others. This year, a coalition of journalism groups, as well as journalists like former CBS News anchor Dan Rather and former CNN White House reporter Jim Acosta,signed a letterto the correspondents' association calling on it to "forcefully demonstrate opposition to President Trump’s efforts to trample freedom of the press.”

"There is a long tradition of presidents attending the White House Correspondents Association Dinner," the letter said. "But these are not normal times, and this cannot be business as usual with the press standing up to applaud the man who attacks them on a daily basis."

WhenTrump announcedin March that he would attend the 2026 dinner, the correspondents' association said it was "happy" the president accepted the invitation.

"For more than 100 years, the journalists of the White House Correspondents’ Association have enjoyed an evening with the president, a dinner that celebrates the First Amendment while supporting the work we do including awards honoring excellent journalism and scholarships to help the next generation of reporters who someday will be the ones asking the questions at the White House,” the group's president Weijia Jiang said in astatementat the time.

Trump's attendance appears to give the green light for others in his orbit to go to the dinner as well. Taylor Budowich, a longtime Trump adviser and former deputy chief of staff at the White House, is set to attend with The Associated Press, despite the AP's ongoing legal battles with the administration.

"As a fan or irony, I'll be with The Associated Press," Budowichsaid Friday at an eventhosted by Axios.

Trump may be attending the dinner for the first time as president, but he's been in the audience before.

In 2011, then-President Barack Obama and comedian Seth Meyersfamously ribbeda stone-faced Trump over his fixation on Obama’s long-form birth certificate. Less than a month later, Trump announced that he wouldn’t run in the 2012 presidential election, but the incident isseen as a markerin the political transformation that culminated in his 2016 electoral victory.

A U.S. special forces soldier involved in the military operation thatcaptured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Madurowas arrested on Thursday after allegedly betting on Maduro's removal from office before news of the raid was made public, a law enforcement source and a senior military official told CBS News.

Federal investigators believe U.S. Army Master Sgt. Gannon Ken Van Dyke made bets of more than $33,000 on the prediction market Polymarket within hours of President Trump's announcement in January that Maduro had been captured, the source said. The bets hit and resulted in winnings of more than $409,000.

According to an indictment unsealed Thursday in the Southern District of New York, Van Dyke was charged with unlawful use of confidential government information for personal gain, theft of nonpublic government information, commodities fraud, wire fraud, and engaging in monetary transactions from unlawful activity.

In apress release,the Justice Department said that Van Dyke was involved in the planning and execution of the operation to capture Maduro.

"Prediction markets are not a haven for using misappropriated confidential or classified information for personal gain," U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York Jay Clayton said.  "The defendant allegedly violated the trust placed in him by the United States Government by using classified information about a sensitive military operation to place bets on the timing and outcome of that very operation, all to turn a profit.  That is clear insider trading and is illegal under federal law."

Van Dyke was a communications specialist supporting Joint Special Operations Command, the unit that oversees Tier 1 special mission units such as the Army's Delta Force and the Navy's SEAL Team Six, multiple officials told CBS News.

The indictment said he has been on active duty since 2008 and has been a master sergeant since 2023, and was stationed at Fort Bragg in North Carolina at the time of the alleged crime. Fort Bragg houses the headquarters of the Joint Special Operations Command.

In the early morning hours of Jan. 3, Mr. Trump announcedin a Truth Social postthat the Venezuelan president and his wife had been "captured and flown out of the Country."

Shortly before Mr. Trump's post, aPolymarket account holder placed a $32,537 beton the likelihood that Maduro would be "out by January 31, 2026."

Three additional bets were made via the same Polymarket account: a $1,000 wager on the U.S. invading Venezuela by Jan. 31; a $250 wager that Mr. Trump would invoke the War Powers Act against Venezuela by Jan. 31; and a $146 wager that U.S. forces would land in Venezuela by the end of the month.

Polymarket said in astatement on X: "When we identified a user trading on classified government information, we referred the matter to the DOJ & cooperated with their investigation."

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"Insider trading has no place on Polymarket. Today's arrest is proof the system works," the company said.

During an unrelated Oval Office event Thursday, Mr. Trump told reporters he hadn't heard about the alleged betting on Maduro's removal but would look into it.

"That's like Pete Rose betting on his own team," the president said, referring to the MLB legend who was banned from the sport for gambling. Mr. Trump has defended Rose, saying last year he would issue aposthumous pardon.

Asked about concerns that prediction markets could play host to insider trading, Mr. Trump said he's "not happy with any of that stuff."

"The whole world, unfortunately, has become somewhat of a casino, and you look at what's going on all over the world, in Europe and every place, they're doing these betting things," he said. "I was never much in favor of it. I like it conceptually, but it is what it is."

While the arrest is a first for U.S. authorities, two Israeli soldiers were charged in connection with the suspected use of classified information to place bets on the prediction platform Polymarket back in February.

In a "60 Minutes" interview last year, Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan addressed the issue of users trading on inside information.

"I think that people going and having an edge to the market is a good thing," he said. "Obviously, you need to curate them and you need to be really clear and stringent on where the line is drawn and ... ethics, and we spend a lot of time on that."

Iran seizes ships in Strait of Hormuz, Pentagon says Navy secretary is out

Parents of slain Loyola student call for accountability: "It was … preventable"

What medications are at risk as Strait of Hormuz blockade threatens supply chain

The UK government has said it is "closely monitoring" the nation's jet fuel stocks amidstgrowing concerns over a potential shortage. This comes as airlines prepare for possible disruptions to air travel.

Despite the looming threat, UK airlines have insisted they are "not currently seeing a shortage of jet fuel," according to an update issued by the Department for Transport (DfT) on Friday evening. The DfT noted that carriers typically purchase fuel in advance and airports maintain their own reserves.

However, airports are set to ease regulations, allowing airlines to cancel flights without forfeiting their allocated "slots" – the scheduled times for take-off or landing – should fuel scarcity prevent them from operating.

Passengers have been advised by the DfT to check directly with their airlines before embarking on journeys and to ensure they hold appropriate travel insurance.

The fuel crisis is unfolding as global oil prices continue to surge, a direct consequence of the US-Israel conflict with Iran and the strategic closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

“There is no current need to change upcoming travel plans,” the DfT statement said.

“Since the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, we have been closely monitoring UK jet fuel stocks and working with airlines, airports and fuel suppliers to ensure passengers keep moving and businesses are supported.

“Government regularly meets with industry to monitor risks, understand pressures and ensure clear communication with passengers, should circumstances change.”

It added: “We recognise that families may be concerned, and that aviation and tourism businesses are operating in challenging global conditions.

“We are working hand in hand with industry to help flights keep operating.”

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The DfT said airlines will also no longer be required to follow the “use it or lose it” rule at UK airports, whereby airlines must use at least 80% of their allocated slots during a season to keep them for the following year.

“Airport Coordination Limited, the independent body that manages slot allocation at UK airports, has updated its guidance so that airlines will not lose their slots if fuel shortages prevent them from flying,” the DfT update said.

“Airlines can now apply for an exemption from the ‘use it or lose it’ rule in these circumstances.”

A spokesperson for Jet2 said its flight schedule remains unaffected for the foreseeable future.

“We remain in continual dialogue with our fuel suppliers, as is standard practice,” the spokesperson said.

“Based on the conversations we have been having, we see no reason not to look forward to operating our scheduled programme of flights and holidays as normal.”

The airline also confirmed there will be no surcharge on any booked flights or holidays to cover cost increases, including those linked to jet fuel.

“Amidst speculation that some airlines and travel companies may introduce such surcharges, which would mean their customers facing additional costs after making a booking, Jet2 has removed the surcharge provision across all flights and holidays, even though the company has never previously applied them,” the airline announced on Friday.

Steve Heapy, CEO of Jet2, said: “Holidaymakers should have every right to book their hard-earned break in the sun, without worrying about being hit with additional costs, and they can have that complete assurance when they book a flight or holiday with Jet2.

“As a result of today’s announcement, customers booking with Jet2 know that they are locking in their price without additional cost surprises later and we strongly believe that is the right thing to do by them.”

It is understood that Virgin Atlantic and easyJet are also expecting to operate as normal.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Aformer reality television staris in the sixth year of his presidency. His Cabinet includes a former wrestling executive along with a onetime “Real World” cast member who was filmed decades ago dancing in nothing but a towel. More than a half-dozen stars from the “Real Housewives” franchise just swung through Capitol Hill.

Trump

Shouldn't TMZ have been in Washington already?

The tabloid gossip site that reinvented Hollywood and celebrity gossip coverage istaking a swingat the nation's capital of late with TMZ DC, deploying staff to confront lawmakers paparazzi-style in Washington and turning to the public to capture candid images of politicians living it up on the road. The push has already created viral moments, including an image of Sen.Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., holding a wand at Disney World as chaos gripped airport security lines because of congressional inaction on a funding bill.

On Friday, TMZ put its Beltway foray on display at the Pentagon, with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth calling on the outlet and singling them out as “new members of our press group here” — a subtle dig that mirrored his not-so-subtle campaign criticism of legacy media outlets.

Washington and Hollywood have long had an awkward relationship, with players in each power center harboring insecurities and misunderstandings about the other as politics and entertainment have steadily merged into a single cultural force.

Earlier efforts by TMZ to build a Washington bureau faltered. But this time may prove different.

PresidentDonald Trump’sreturn to the White House further normalizes a particular brand of celebrity culture in the nation’s capital that made him a tabloid fixture for decades. Moreover, Congress is currently gripped by scandal, with three lawmakers resigning in April alone after varying allegations, which include sexual misconduct and fraud.

Also, Gallup polling released this week found that disapproval of Congress has climbed to 86%, tying the record high. Only 33% of U.S. adults approve of Trump's overall job performance, according toAP-NORC pollingreleased this week. That’s a decline of 9 percentage points since early in Trump’s second term.

Washington's institutions are held in low regard

With Washington's institutions held in such low regard, the bigger surprise may be that TMZ hasn't attempted such a flex here sooner.

“I am legitimately surprised they weren't already there,” said Ana Marie Cox, who wrote the Wonkette blog, which covered Washington with an irreverence that was rare in the early 2000s. “They're actually a little bit late to the game.”

A representative for TMZ did not respond to a request for comment.

TMZ was founded in 2005 and is still run by hard-charging Los Angeles lawyer and media figure Harvey Levin, who has had an off-and-on relationship with Trump. Within a decade, TMZ made its name with a combination of sleazy and sensational celebrity news. Early in its life, TMZ broke stories that included antisemitic statements made by actor Mel Gibson during an arrest and an angry voicemail message left by actor Alec Baldwin to his daughter.

But the site, whose initials reference the 30-mile zone from the historic center of the television and film industry in Los Angeles, really established itself by breaking news of Michael Jackson’s death in 2009 and the drug use that led to it.

Its tactics can cross traditional journalistic boundaries, particularly when it comes to paying sources. Beyond the professional breach involved with such arrangements, the payments could run afoul of congressional ethics rules. Levin has not denied paying for story tips, which is frowned upon by traditional journalism outlets.

And TMZ has also had some high-profile failures, including reports that Beyoncé would perform at the 2024 Democratic National Convention, which didn’t happen.

Some of TMZ's work is being applauded

Yet some of TMZ's early work in Washington is being applauded.

Robert Thompson, a trustee professor of television and popular culture at Syracuse University, said the photo of Graham at Disney World was genuinely newsworthy because it showed lawmakers away from Washington during a political crisis. A representative for Graham didn't respond to a request for comment.

TMZ published images of lawmakers from both parties who left Washington during the recent congressional recess that overlapped with the ongoing Department of Homeland Security shutdown. Beyond Graham, the site published pictures of Democratic Sen.Cory Bookerof New Jersey and Rep. Robert Garcia of California.

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TMZ is not currently credentialed by the congressional press galleries. That limits its Washington coverage to walk-and-talk interviews on the sidewalks outside the Capitol or in the hallways of public office buildings — a feature of its ambush-style celebrity interviews.

Some of the interviews are entertaining for audiences who are in on the bit. In one video this week, Rep. Troy Downing, R-Mont., seemed confused by questions about a party hosted by the gay dating and hookup site Grindr ahead of this weekend's White House Correspondents' Dinner.

“I don't understand,” Downing said. “Are they a media company?”

Others go in unexpected, sometimes touchingly personal, directions. When Rep. Lateefah Simon, D-Calif., was asked how lawmakers celebrate the 4/20 marijuana holiday, she spoke of how the day marked the anniversary of her father's death.

“4/20 is the day that my daddy died,” she said. “My dad was an amazing man in San Francisco. I think about him every single time there's 4/20.”

And sometimes the gotcha nature of the reports backfires. Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., was among the lawmakers whose image was captured away from Washington during the DHS shutdown. He was shown at his son’s basketball game, prompting defense from colleagues, including Republicans, who said he shouldn’t be shamed for being a present father.

At Friday’s briefing, TMZ’s Charlie Cotton eagerly played into Hegseth’s branding of “the Department of War,” and the Trump administration’s claim that the war in Iran is necessary. “Would you consider changing the name again to the Department of Peace since that’s what we’re all after?” Cotton asked.

Hegseth gushed over the “great question” and declared that “the one institution that should win the Nobel Peace Prize every single year is the United States military.”

The long history of the ambush interview

The TMZ approach isn't particularly new. Longtime CBS correspondent Mike Wallace made a habit of the so-called ambush interview, catching unprepared subjects on camera.

Before he broke the news of an extramarital affair that would doom Democrat Gary Hart's 1988 presidential campaign, Tom Fiedler confronted the Colorado senator in a Washington alley. A reporter for the Miami Herald at the time, Fiedler said he “didn't set out to do that.”

“We simply found ourselves in that situation,” he recalled this week. “At that point, we knew that he knew we were there to observe what he was doing. Our feeling was we needed to let him know who we were so he wouldn't think there was, in the worst case, an attempted assassin stalking him.”

Nearly 40 years later, journalism in Washington is drastically different.

The Washington Postcut nearly a third of its staffin February in a brutal blow to the legendary newsroom. Other outlets are growing. The website NOTUS is rebranding as The Star, with ambitions to fill the gap left by the Post, particularly in local and sports coverage.

Cox, the former Wonkette blogger, is now a writer living in Austin, Texas. Reflecting on her time in Washington, she said her goal was to “demystify politics and show that these are people who don't necessarily deserve our respect.”

But she expressed concern about coverage whose tone reinforces the eye-rolling aspects of Washington. If she were starting Wonkette today, she said, “I don't think I'd be as funny.”

“Funny is how we got here,” she said. “Making fun of Donald Trump did not work.”

AP Media Writer Dave Bauder and Bill Barrow contributed to this report.