President Donald Trump is making it crystal clear he doesn't think Stephen A. Smith belongs anywhere near the Oval Office ... doubling down on his "low IQ" jab and turning their war of words up another notch.
In a fiery Truth Social post Wednesday, Trump unloaded on the ESPN personality, calling him everything from an "arrogant fool" to "dumb as a rock" while insisting Smith is completely unqualified to run for any political office.
Trump didn't stop there ... claiming Stephen would get demolished in a debate by even the most incompetent politicians and suggesting former President Joe Biden would look sharp by comparison.
President Trump's administration says it won't tap out on UFC Freedom 250 -- the cage match set to take place on the White House lawn this weekend -- insisting a lawsuit seeking to block the event came in way too late to stop the fight.
Here's the deal ... earlier this week, two Virginia residents filed a lawsuit against the National Park Service and the Department of the Interior, hoping to get a judge to put the event in a chokehold and force a submission ... calling UFC Freedom 250 "deeply corrupt."
Now, the Trump administration has filed its response, which is mainly focused on timing ... pointing out the fight's been in the works for about a year and the plaintiffs waited until the last minute to file.
Rep. Nancy Mace's bid to become South Carolina's next governor is officially over after the outspoken Republican failed to land an endorsement from President Trump and survive a GOP primary ... and she says the Epstein Files were a factor in her defeat.
Mace conceded the race Tuesday night less than 2 hours after polls closed. She ended up in 5th place with only 12% of the vote, while Trump-backed Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette advanced to a runoff against state Attorney General AlanWilson.
Mace, the first Republican woman from South Carolina elected to Congress, was once a top contender in the race for governor ... but a series of scandals and lack of support for Trump doomed her.
She also blamed backlash from her push to release the Epstein Files ... but said she had no regrets about her work in Congress.
8:57 AM PT --Spencer Pratt hit back at Jimmy Kimmel on X -- saying, "Jimmy Kimmel i guess you missed the part of the story i don’t need a U-Haul … I have nothing left to pack."
Jimmy Kimmel is doing some major trolling of Spencer Pratt after Spencer lost the Los Angeles mayoral race ... renting a U-Haul for the former reality star to drive him out of town for good!
Jimmy did his Spencer-bashing routine during the opening monologue of his Tuesday late-night show -- and the host didn't pull a single punch.
Check out the video ... Jimmy starts off by bringing up that Spencer promised to move out of L.A. if he lost to incumbent mayor Karen Bass and city council member Nithya Raman.
Rep. Rashida Tlaib says the government can find money "out of nowhere" to fund wars, and it's even lining some Congress members' pockets -- something she desperately wants to change.
Charlie caught up with the Congresswoman from Michigan Tuesday to talk about the latest retaliatory strikes on Iran ... attacks made without Congressional approval, which didn't exactly shock her, at this point.
Rep. Tlaib told us she can't get her colleagues to care or "move with the same sense of urgency" when it comes to other issues impacting Americans day-to-day.
Some Trumpsupporters are pissed the President got so little airtime at the NBA Finals compared to stars at MSG -- and it turns out that wasn't an accident.
ESPN sources tell TMZ ... Trump got due attention for this historical moment ... but he was also in a bulletproof box -- which ain't as easy to film as all the stars sitting courtside.
And we're told even if some of those stars have been critical of Trump -- they are also die-hard fans and fixtures at big games, so they're getting more exposure. Bottom line -- it wasn't political!
The United States military is firing back at Iran ... after President Trump said the Iranians shot down a U.S. military helicopter and vowed to retaliate.
U.S. forces began launching "self-defense strikes" against Iran at 5 PM ET Tuesday ... according to an X post from U.S. Central Command.
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Central Command says the strikes are being launched at Trump's direction in response to his claim that Iran downed a U.S. Army Apache helicopter Monday as it flew over the Strait of Hormuz.
Avery Wilson has no issue with President Trump being mercilessly booed at the NBA Finals while he sang the national anthem -- but his feelings have nothing to do with politics!
Avery tells TMZ ... it was an instant pop culture moment ... and that's all he really cares about -- because his fantastic rendition of the anthem is all over social media today.
As you know ... a chorus of MSG boos rained down for DT during game 3 while the Broadway star performed ... Trump told reporters afterward he heard plenty of cheers, too.
The government's biggest UFO whistleblower says there are a bunch of folks who know what's going on behind closed doors ... they're just too scared to go public.
Jacobcaught up with David GruschTuesday in D.C. and asked him if people inside the Pentagon are afraid to speak out about UFOs and extraterrestrials.
David says the fallout from his own whistleblower experience has had a chilling effect on current and former federal employees ... and they don't want a similar fate.
'Scary Movie' star Anna Faris says a joke she liked about Melania Trump was cut from the film ... which had some folks wondering if politics were in play amid a major Hollywood merger ... but TMZ is told that's NOT the case.
Here's the deal ... Anna said in a recent interview there was a moment in the new 'Scary Movie' where her character mocked Melania's “Be Best” initiative to combat cyberbullying.
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Production sources tell TMZ ... the Melania joke was among several filmmakers cut in post-production for pacing ... and it's as simple and routine as that.
It's Lesley Groff's turn to testify in a Congressional investigation into Jeffrey Epstein's crimes ... and it sounds like his former assistant said she never saw the late pedophile do anything illegal.
Groff appeared before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on Tuesday to begin her testimony, and a source familiar with the matter told MS NOW that Groff told the committee ... "I never saw anything improper."
The report said Groff's been answering questions, but sometimes responds by saying she doesn't know or doesn't remember.
Michelle Obama says "The Traitors" is the only reality show she'd ever sign up for ... and Congresswoman Sarah McBride is giving the idea a strong endorsement.
Charlie caught up with McBride on Capital Hill, and she told TMZ DC ... Michelle entering the castle as a Faithful would make for the greatest reality TV season of all time!!!
Pittsburgh Mayor Corey O'Connor is pushing back on Morgan Wallen's excuse for scrapping a concert in his town ... and he says Morgan's full of it.
The country music star claims he consulted Pittsburgh officials before calling off his Saturday performance due to a bad weather forecast ... but Mayor O'Connor says Morgan never actually talked to them and was acting on his own.
O'Connor told KDKA Radio ... "There was no contact to Public Safety or my administration so however the artist and his team picked to not have the show, that was on them, there was no consulting for Public Safety or the City of Pittsburgh."
President Trumpsays the United States is preparing to respond after Iran shot down a U.S. military helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump made the announcement Tuesday in a Truth Social post ... claiming Iranian forces brought down a "highly sophisticated Apache Helicopter" during an overnight patrol mission.
POTUS say two American pilots were aboard the airship ... and, fortunately, both escaped unharmed.
Trump says he's already been briefed by military officials .. and it sounds like retaliation is squarely on the table.
Rep. Thomas Massiesays election fraud is real ... but not in the way most people think.
The Kentucky congressman stopped to chat with Charlie on Capitol Hill Monday ... and while plenty of politicians are focused on voting machines and ballot counts, Massie pointed the finger somewhere else entirely.
In his conversation with TMZ DC, Massie offers a pretty unconventional take on how elections get "stolen" in America ... and it has less to do with what happens at the polls and more with what happens after lawmakers arrive in Washington.
The Knicks' 13-game playoff win streak was snapped Monday night, and many fans are blaming President Trump ... but is that fair?? Charles Barkley says hell no!
"No, s*** no. That had nothing to do with it. I thought the Spurs outplayed them," the Hall of Famer told Adam Glyn in New York City, shortly after Game 3 ended.
Of course, Trump became the first sitting president to attend an NBA Finals game, pulling up to the Garden for the highly anticipated game, watching with his friend, Knicks owner James Dolan, as the team lost 115-111, with the Spurs pulling within one game of New York.
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POTUS's presence meant hella increased security around the World's Most Famous Arena. Fans were told to arrive hours before the game, and were subjected to airport-like security. Barriers were also installed around MSG to keep fans away from the building perimeter, and watch parties were banned.
