Politics

Katharine McPhee and her husband David Foster teamed up to stump for Spencer Pratt and trash his political opponents as he runs for Los Angeles mayor ... they did it in song form, and it's all on video.

The "American Idol" alum grabbed the mic and started singing at a campaign fundraiser for Spencer at the home she shares with David, who played the piano as Katharine put a political twist on Tina Turner's "The Best."

Check out the clip ... Katharine switches up the lyrics and sings, "Spencer you're simply the best / Better than all the rest / Better than Karen Bass / And Nithya Raman / You're stuck in our hearts / We'll hang on every word you say / We've been torn apart / He's gonna fix this broken L.A."

Billionaire businessman Stephen Cloobeck has been arrested on a felony charge of attempting to prevent or dissuade a victim or witness from testifying ... TMZ has learned.

Cloobeck was handcuffed and taken into custody by Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputies in West Hollywood Tuesday morning ... though he was released a few hours later after posting a $300,000 bond. It's unclear what case Cloobeck's arrest relates to.

Cloobeck is the former CEO of Diamond Resorts International and a prominent Democratic donor who pulled his support for disgraced and now-resigned Congressman Eric Swalwell's suspended campaign for California Governor. The pair are -- or at least, were -- longtime friends ... until Swalwell was accused of sexual assault by several women earlier this year.

Kash Patel pulled out some schoolyard-level debate tactics on Tuesday when he was grilled about allegedly drinking on the job.

During a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing Tuesday, Democratic Senator from Maryland Chris Van Hollen raised concerns about reports of the FBI director's alleged excessive drinking.

Patel tried to flip the script on Van Hollen ... talking over him, slamming him for meeting with Kilmar Abrego Garcia -- the Salvadoran man wrongfully deported by the U.S. government last year -- and accusing him of "slinging margaritas" and running up a $7K bar tab "on taxpayer dime."

President Donald Trump tore into reporter Akayla Gardner during a White House press event ... calling her a "dumb person" while defending the soaring cost of his new ballroom project.

Watch the clip ... Trump insisted the ballroom is still "under budget" and is ahead of schedule ... explaining he's doubled the size of it. But when a reporter pointed out the cost had doubled too, Trump unloaded.

"I doubled the size of it, you dumb person," Trump snapped ... before adding, "You are not a smart person."

A city mayor in Southern California has resigned from her position after being federally charged as an illegal agent accused of working for China ... and is potentially facing prison time.

Eileen Wang stepped down as mayor of Arcadia after the Justice Department slapped her with one count of acting in the United States as an illegal agent of a foreign government.

According to a DOJ announcement released Monday ... Wang is expected to plead guilty to the charge as part of a deal with the feds.

Roman Rozhavsky -- Assistant Director of the FBI’s Counterintelligence and Espionage Division -- said Wang admitted she "secretly served the interests of the Chinese government," saying ... "Let this serve as a clear warning: Individuals who act on behalf of foreign governments to influence our democracy will be identified, investigated, and brought to justice."

The plea deal says Wang allegedly pushed pro-China propaganda from late 2020 through 2022, alongside Yaoning "Mike" Sun.

Together, they allegedly operated U.S. News Center ... a website described as a news source for the local Chinese American community. The DOJ says Wang and Sun posted pro-China content on the page.

The Justice Department cites a few alleged instances in 2021, including one where an official of the People's Republic of China sent Wang and other people pre-written news articles in the encrypted messaging app WeChat.

Wang allegedly posted the article on her website "minutes later" ... and the DOJ claims she messaged the official back on WeChat to show she'd done it.

The charge against Wang comes with a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison ... and the Justice Department says she's agreed to plead guilty in the coming weeks.

Another day, another dollar ... or, in this case, the $100 bill with Donald Trump's face on it. At least, that's just one of the wild A.I. images the president just shared.

DT posted a slew of them on Truth Social Tuesday ... including a pic of himself on the $100 bill, the U.S. military shooting Iranian vehicles with missiles and lasers, and insane images of Democrats.

One shows Barack Obama, Joe Biden, and Nancy Pelosi swimming in the Lincoln Memorial's Reflecting Pool ... except it's filled with sewage.

Sir Rod Stewart didn't hold back on the red carpet while greeting King Charles and Queen Camilla after their recent U.S. trip to see President Donald Trump!

At Monday’s 50th anniversary celebration for The King's Trust at London's Royal Albert Hall, Rod congratulated the King on the royal couple's recent 4-day U.S. trip ... before twisting the knife, adding, "May I say, well done in the Americas. You were superb, absolutely superb ... put that little ratbag in his place!"

Charles appeared to laugh it off while discussing the trip ... even referencing a speech where he poked fun at America's colonial history with a cheeky French joke.

Donald Trump is heading back to the doc ... for his 4th publicized appointment since taking office again in 2025 ... amid rabid speculation his health is in decline.

The White House announced Monday the prez has a scheduled medical and dental checkup on May 26 at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. No further information was given, though this is described as an annual physical exam.

As you know, the 79-year-old president's health is often a topic of debate, considering his widely publicized love of fast food -- namely McDonald's -- and lack of exercise.

Marjorie Taylor Greene is parting ways with more than just Congress ... because the former firebrand lawmaker has officially sold her sprawling Georgia estate amid a major personal and political reset.

According to records, obtained by TMZ, the ex-U.S. Representative sold her Rome, GA property for $1.1M on March 19. The sale comes after MTG made headlines resigning from Congress following a public fallout with President Donald Trump and Republican leadership.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Greene and her fiancé Brian Glenn are in the process of buying a new home in Georgia, where MTG has always lived. But for now, she's cashed in on the sprawling estate sitting across more than 10 acres -- enough land to keep political drama at a distance.

Pete Davidson is catching heat over a controversial joke aimed at slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk during "The Roast of Kevin Hart" ... and now one of Charlie's close friends says the whole thing left him seriously disgusted.

Andrew Kolvet -- a Turning Point USA producer -- said Monday he thought the joke was wildly distasteful considering Charlie was murdered in such a brutal and public way ... adding he physically cringed hearing it land during the Netflix special -- much like the audience's reaction inside the room.

During the roast, Pete was talking about fellow comic Tony Hinchcliffe when he dropped the line, "Tony reminds me of Charlie Kirk, in that he’s definitely been on camera letting a guy unload in his throat," ... before adding, "Please somebody f***ing kill Tony" ... a reference to Hinchcliffe's own podcast, "Kill Tony."

President Donald Trump is apparently making a strong case for the McDiet ... 'cause he's out here claiming junk food might actually be the secret sauce to looking good!

Speaking from the White House, Trump -- who's famously been loyal to McDonald's for decades -- bragged he feels exactly the same as he did 50 years ago ... joking that maybe greasy burgers and fries are actually the way forward, not all that rabbit food stuff.

Still hungry to make his point ... Trump McDoubled down by saying he knows plenty of super healthy people who hit fancy restaurants and munch on celery sticks all day ... while he's over here ordering steak -- and "everything else" -- and somehow still feeling fantastic.

Spencer Pratt is sharing a deeply emotional Mother’s Day message for Heidi Montag, posting a video of her with their kids in the aftermath of the devastating Palisades fires that destroyed their home.

Check the clip, Spencer highlights tender family moments between Heidi and their children, reflecting on life after the blaze that wiped out the family’s house in the Pacific Palisades and adding the caption "Mother’s Day is every day in my LA."

The post struck a more somber tone than his usual social media presence, focusing on gratitude, resilience, and family bonds during a difficult chapter -- including intimate moments between Heidi and their two boys, Gunner and Ryker Pratt, as they revisit their once beloved family home.

Spencer Pratt brought his political ambitions to the hardwood last night ... showing up courtside at a Lakers game and turning the NBA spotlight into a very public campaign moment.

The reality star–turned–mayoral candidate was spotted soaking up the action at the arena ... chatting with fans and treating the high-profile game like an unofficial campaign rally.

At one point, Pratt appeared to be chatting it up in the crowd more than watching the court, all while wearing a "Los Angeles Pratt" hat that resembles the L.A. team's famous yellow logo.

"Saturday Night Live" returning host Matt Damon made a comeback as beer-loving Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh during the cold open ... and the sketch turned into a full-on MAGA boys’ night out.

Damon’s Kavanaugh linked up with 'SNL' regular Colin Jost -- doing his infamous Pete Hegseth impression -- at a bar, where the two puffed up their political resumes ... joking about ending abortion rights and casually "starting wars" like it was no big deal.

But Kavanaugh quickly got emotional over what he called the country’s real emergency ... lonely dudes with nobody left to crush drinks with.