Top Stories for the Week of May 24

These are the top stories for this week

Attorney General Ken Paxton won the Republican primary runoff for U.S. Senate Tuesday, ending over three decades of Sen. John Cornyn's electoral dominance in what amounts to a watershed moment for GOP politics in Texas; the AP called the race for Paxton shortly after 8 p.m., about an hour after most polls closed. As of 9:45 p.m., Paxton led with about 64% of the vote, compared to roughly 36% for Cornyn, with more than 1 million Texas Republicans participating in the race. Link

The Department of Justice has reportedly launched a criminal investigation into E. Jean Carroll, who accused President Trump of sexual assault; CNN was first to report that the DOJ's probe focuses on whether Carroll committed perjury while speaking at a deposition as part of her two civil lawsuits against Trump; prosecutors are reportedly focused on Carroll telling Trump attorney Alina Habba in a 2022 deposition that she received no outside funding for the lawsuit, when in fact billionaire Reid Hoffman's nonprofit had covered some of her legal fees. See Details

NASCAR star Kyle Busch died from severe pneumonia that progressed into sepsis, according to a statement released Saturday by his family; the 41-year-old two-time Cup Series champion, the all-time leader in NASCAR national series wins with 234, died Thursday after collapsing at a GM simulator facility in Concord, North Carolina, the day before. A 911 call obtained by CBS News revealed that the day before his death, Busch was experiencing shortness of breath, felt he was overheating, and was coughing up blood while lying on the bathroom floor of the facility. See Details

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth revealed at the West Point commencement ceremony Saturday that the U.S. Army met its 2026 recruiting goals four months early — a second record year in a row — meaning the graduating cadets will lead 61,500 new soldiers; Hegseth also said the Army will grow further in size next year. See Details

A prosecutor working with a grand jury in Fulton County told a federal judge on May 19 that once the Justice Department has names and addresses of 2020 election workers, federal investigators would try to interview them; the prosecutor said: "We are not sure what charges can be brought — that's the whole point of the investigation." Fulton County is fighting the subpoena, calling it "outrageous federal overreach." Source

During the Cabinet meeting, Trump touted the Republican primary wins of candidates he has endorsed, including Paxton in Texas, and disparaged Somalis living in the U.S. as "crooks." Trump at one point appeared to say the U.S. would neither lift sanctions nor unfreeze Iranian assets — "No sanctions, no money, no nothing" — then immediately added the U.S. might release "their money," leaving the shape of a potential deal deeply unclear. See Details

The U.S. strikes on Iran on Memorial Day — coming just days after the House postponed a war powers vote and the Senate passed a resolution to limit Trump's military authority — immediately reignited the debate on Capitol Hill, with Democratic leaders calling for an emergency session and Rand Paul calling the strikes "exactly the kind of unchecked action Congress must stop." See Details

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez says she hasn't decided whether to run for president, but the New York congresswoman is making new moves toward a possible White House bid, Axios reports, launching a national tour in recent weeks without calling it one. According to Axios, Ocasio-Cortez is busy raising her profile and making new moves as she crosses the country to support progressive candidates — in recent weeks, going to Philadelphia, Alabama, Georgia, and soon Montana. Read More

Replenishing advanced weapons stockpiles used in the Iran war will take years, according to an analysis published by The Hill and flagged by Roll Call on Wednesday, raising long-term military readiness concerns even as Trump administration officials claim the Iran conflict is nearing resolution through diplomacy. See Details

Federal ICE agents and protesters continued clashing Tuesday morning outside Delaney Hall detention facility in Newark as a reported hunger strike continued inside, N.J. Gov. Mikie Sherrill said: "When you pepper spray a United States senator, you're not working to keep people safe." Attorneys say detainees have been given expired food and meals with worms in them; DHS denied the claims, saying "there is no hunger strike at Delaney Hall." Source

Tiger Woods resurfaced on social media with an emotional Memorial Day message nearly two months after his DUI arrest and rehab treatment announcement; the golf legend posted a patriotic tribute honoring fallen service members while also paying special respect to his late father, Earl Woods, who served in the U.S. Army Special Forces and completed two tours in Vietnam. See Details

The Sandy Fire burning in Simi Valley's Ventura County reached 50% containment Saturday evening, allowing thousands of evacuated residents to return to their homes ahead of the holiday weekend, though fire officials warned that some evacuation orders remain in effect in the most severely threatened zones. Read More

Tens of millions of Americans observed Memorial Day Monday in what the Veterans Administration reported was the highest-attended national cemetery event since 2006, with renewed public focus on military sacrifice driven by the ongoing Iran war and the recent deaths of 13 service members in Operation Epic Fury. See Details

The Town of Rutland in Massachusetts announced it was canceling its planned July 4th celebration for America's 250th birthday after residents voted to cut funding for police and firefighters. Source

Shares of SK Hynix jumped as much as 11% on Wednesday, lifting the South Korean chipmaker's market capitalization above $1 trillion; the rally extended a blistering run that has seen SK Hynix shares skyrocket about 250% since the start of the year, fueled by surging demand for high-bandwidth memory chips used in AI servers. See Details

Negotiators from the U.S. and Mexico began trade talks to revamp the USMCA, the agreement from President Trump's first term that replaced NAFTA. Find out More

The IDF announced Wednesday it had struck approximately 550 Hezbollah targets across Lebanon since the beginning of the week; the Israeli military issued an immediate evacuation order for the southern Lebanese city of Tire, nearby refugee camps, and surrounding areas ahead of expanded operations. Read More

Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard vowed Tuesday to "respond decisively to any violation of the ceasefire" and said U.S. forces had "entered Iran's airspace in the Persian Gulf region"; the IRGC claimed to have shot down an American MQ-9 drone and fired at another U.S. aircraft following Monday's self-defense strikes in Bandar Abbas. Find out More

Russia struck Kyiv with hypersonic missiles for the third time. The missiles struck water supply infrastructure, a market, and damaged dozens of residential buildings. Source

An Israeli airstrike on the village of Mashghara in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley killed 12 people, state media reported Tuesday, as an Israeli official said the military had called up more troops to Lebanon. It was the latest in a series of Israeli strikes in eastern Lebanon as Hezbollah continued rocket and drone attacks on Israeli positions. See Details

'Storage Wars' star Darrell Sheets' autopsy report shows the toxicology report came back negative; his blood was tested for cocaine, fentanyl, and other drugs, but officials determined Sheets had no drugs in his system at the time of his death; he was found dead in his Arizona home last month with what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, and police are investigating cyberbullying claims made by co-stars. See Details

Spider-Noir, starring Nicolas Cage, drops on Prime Video today, May 27, after premiering Monday on MGM+. The noir-style live-action Marvel spinoff based on Cage's voice role in "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" has been generating strong early buzz as one of the most anticipated Marvel streaming debuts of the year. Read More

Disney confirmed that "The Mandalorian and Grogu" earned $100 million domestically over the Memorial Day weekend. The film took in a softer-than-expected $63 million internationally. Source

Taylor Swift was shutout of winning any awards at at the American Music Awards despite receiving nomination in 8 categories. See Details

The Mandalorian and Grogu received praise from audiences, but opened to a Star Wars franchise record-low $33 million on Friday, with a projected domestic opening weekend haul under $100 million. Source

Police arrested Green Bay Packers star running back Josh Jacobs on charges of battery (domestic abuse, criminal damage to property), domestic abuse, disorderly conduct (domestic abuse, strangulation and suffocation), and intimidation of a victim. Link

The New York Knicks donated 250 tickets to underprivileged youth for each game to the NBA Finals, as tickets to games at Madison Square Garden surge to record levels. Two courtside tickets for a potential NBA Finals Game 3 at Madison Square Garden have sold for a combined $279,804 on StubHub; Steve Popper of Newsday noted two courtside tickets are available for Game 3 for $595,000, while TickPick confirmed these are "the most expensive NBA Finals tickets on record," with get-in prices for Games 3 and 4 starting at $3,745 and $3,464 respectively. Find out More

No. 1 Seed Jannik Sinner Stunned in the Second Round of the French Open by an Unseeded Argentine. For the first hour and 53 minutes of their second-round clash, top-seeded Jannik Sinner was in complete control against No. 56 Juan Manuel Cerundolo, with a 6-3, 6-2, 5-1 edge — but then he leaned over in apparent cramps while serving for the match, left the court for more than nine minutes, and lost 18 consecutive points and seven straight games, ultimately falling 3-6, 2-6, 7-5, 6-1, 6-1. See Details

FIFA ruled it will allow Iran to remain in Mexico to continue World Cup preparations despite the ongoing war, rejecting demands from several nations that Iran be expelled from the tournament. Iran is in Group C alongside the U.S., England, and Australia — setting up an extraordinarily charged geopolitical group-stage showdown in July. See Details

U.S. Soccer announced the final 23-man roster for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which the United States is co-hosting with Canada and Mexico; Christian Pulisic will captain the team for the first time in a World Cup, with the roster including several MLS players and a number of young European-based talents making their first World Cup squad. Read More

The Supreme Court declined to hear the NFL's appeal, allowing Brian Flores to proceed with his racial discrimination lawsuit; Flores and other Black coaches say the league has engaged in systematic racism in hiring and promotion decisions. The ruling allows one of the most significant civil rights cases in professional sports history to move toward trial. Find out More

A dog sitting in a parked car in a convenience store lot accidentally triggered a shotgun, setting off a blast that hit another car and injured a female bystander. Source

A New Jersey resident shared footage of a black bear wandering up to a doorbell camera and triggering the bell with its snout, which has since gone viral, garnering more than 12 million views. Neighbors are reportedly unsure whether to be terrified or to start leaving Amazon packages for the bear. Find out More

135th-ranked tennis player Arthur Gea took a bathroom break in the middle of his French Open match against 13th-seeded Karen Khachanov. Gea pleaded with the umpire for an early bathroom break; normally, they are only permitted between sets, when he trailed 4-2. Khachanov won 6-3, 7-6 (3), 6-0 Link

Gold Star Widow Sharrell Shaw's post requesting a photo of her husband's grave at Arlington National Cemetery went viral. Shaw wrote: "This is probably a long shot, but if anybody happens to be in DC this weekend and plans on visiting Arlington, I would love to see a fresh photo of my husband's grave in Section 60. There's just something about knowing people still stop by, still say his name, still remember." Her post drew over 6 million views; Trump officials, military families, and complete strangers flooded Section 60 with flowers and photos. Shaw posted afterward: "This right here is the America Alan knew and loved enough to fight and die for." Link