Politics

Senate hearings sometimes look like WWE matches ... and Linda McMahon's confirmation hearing on Thursday was no exception, 'cause Stephanie McMahon and Triple H were in the building to support the Secretary of Education hopeful on Capitol Hill!

McMahon was in D.C. to answer questions from U.S. Senators ... as she hopes to soon be confirmed as President Donald Trump's Secretary of Education.

Seated behind Linda was her daughter, Stephanie, and son-in-law, WWE executive and Hall of Famer, Triple H. McMahon's son, Shane McMahon, was also there.

President Trump is sending a strong message to the media ... kiss my executive orders, or pay the price -- and his press secretary is laying down the law in no uncertain terms.

Sounding very much like the new sheriff in town, Karoline Leavitt barked at reporters Wednesday when someone raised the topic of the administration pulling the Associated Press' access to the Oval Office, because the outlet still refers to the Gulf of Mexico by that label, and not the one POTUS decreed in one of his first executive orders.

Leavitt said, "I was very upfront in my briefing on day 1. If we feel that there are lies being pushed by outlets in this room, we are going to hold those lies accountable."

Jeffrey Toobin says Joe Biden tarnished his legacy by pardoning his son, and Donald Trump cemented one of the knocks against him with his own slew of presidential pardons.

The lawyer, author and legal analyst joined us on "TMZ Live" Wednesday and he told us how presidents reveal their true colors when it's time to hand out pardons.

Jeffrey wrote a new book on the subject, "The Pardon: The Politics of Presidential Mercy," and says pardons are one of the few powers a president has that are free from checks and balances -- and that's why they tell so much about the men giving them out.

Cardi B is blaming President Trump for some serious wear and tear on the fancy heels she wore to the Super Bowl ... and she wants her deported uncle returned to the country as payback.

The "I Like It" rapper says Trump's presence at Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans created a super tight security situation, which she says forced her to walk a long way in her $3,000 Christian Louboutin heels.

Cardi says Trump and his Secret Service detail resulted in the VIP golf cart transportation courtesy service being cut off early ... so she had to walk further than she anticipated, and her red-bottom heels took a beating.

Elon Musk might be the king of making headlines, but even he couldn’t outshine his son, X Æ A-12, who also managed to snatch the spotlight from Donald Trump.

Little X wasn’t bothered with the high-stakes political drama during the Oval Office hangout Tuesday -- he was too busy living his best life chilling on dad's shoulders while Trump tried to soak in the excitement of the tiny guest.

The Oval Office ain't just for big decisions ... it’s also prime playtime territory as X demonstrated by trying to disappear behind the Resolute Desk like it was the best hiding spot ever.

D.L. Hughley is railing against everyone critical of Kendrick Lamar's halftime show ... coming to his defense in a major way!

TMZ caught up with the outspoken comedian on the heels of the rapper's multi-layered performance, which some detractors dissed as boring ... but D.L. sees the whole conversation as a win win for Lamar.

D.L. feels white Americans only pay attention to Black Americans when they speak up as athletes or entertainers -- y'know, running, singing, dancing, or telling jokes.

President Donald Trump has arrived at Super Bowl LIX.

The President arrived at Caesars Superdome an hour before the 3:30 PM PT kick-off for the big game in The Big Easy.

Trump is wearing a suit and a red tie (makes you wonder if he's rooting for the KC Chiefs) and he's got a massive Secret Service presence with him.

President Donald Trump and Tiger Woods met up for a round of golf before Trump heads to New Orleans to attend the Super Bowl.

The 47th President, Tiger and his son, Charlie played a round of golf at Trump International Golf Club in Palm Beach on Sunday morning ahead of Trump flying to New Orleans for Super Bowl LIX at Caesars Superdome.

Video shared on social media showed Trump, Woods and his son out on the range in the sunny Florida sun. As we reported ... 47 is attending the big game in NOLA so it's safe to assume after leaving the golf course he made his way to Air Force One to make the 2 hour flight to The Big Easy.

French Montana and Lara Trump are out here once again making everyone scratch their heads over their unlikely friendship -- this time hanging out in Miami while jamming to their musical collab.

Check out this clip TMZ got -- French was living it up with Lara Friday, snappin' photos and playing pool together while their upbeat track "No Days Off" played in the background.

We're told the pair were introduced by music executive LJ Fino and Jake Lecce. Our sources say Fino has been producing Lara’s music since she started creating it last year, and  accompanied her to the hangout session with French.

Ben Affleck scored some major dad points Thursday night ... not only did he snag himself and his kid some better seats than Kamala Harris for the Lakers game -- he also got Steph Curry to swing by for a meet-and-greet!

Ben and little Samuel Garner Affleck scored some courtside chairs for L.A.'s home tilt vs. the Golden State Warriors ... and the two seemed to have a blast as Curry and LeBron James duked it out on the floor.

The guys were seen cheering often ... with the young Affleck even animatedly celebrating a few 3-pointers in his James jersey.

Ben Stiller is setting the record straight about his humanitarian trip to Ukraine ... denying he ever received any payment from USAID to visit the war-torn country.

Elon Musk pushed out a purported E! News video on X yesterday, which alleged a number of celebrities -- including Stiller, Angelina Jolie, Orlando Bloom and Sean Penn -- were sent to Ukraine, paid for with American taxpayers' money. The video has been proven fake.

But the fake video picked up steam on social media thanks to countless retweets from Trump supporters, including Donald Trump Jr. and Scott Baio

Folks looking to snag a suite for the Big Game are hoping to get a GREAT view ... but forget the action on the field -- they wanna peep Taylor Swift and President Trump!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... those willing to drop a fat check on a Super Bowl box are requesting spots that will put them near or in eyesight of the two biggest names that'll be at the Superdome on Sunday -- Travis Kelce's girlfriend and No. 47.

Mike Zandman, president and CEO of Entertainment Access -- a company assisting high-profile clients with luxurious hospitality for the weekend -- told us his clients' desires are no surprise ... but info on celebs' expected whereabouts is "sacred," so there's no way to grant their wishes.

Selena Gomez stepped back into the spotlight alongside Jennifer Aniston at a beauty event -- her first public outing since tearing up over recent mass immigration arrests.

The "Only Murders in the Building" star stepped out for her Rare Beauty Galentine’s Day bash alongside Jen’s LolaVie haircare brand Wednesday … and while the vibe was chill, Selena kept it real, doubling down on her message that women should always have each other’s backs.

SG had her girl Jen right by her side -- sticking close and even holding hands as "The Morning Show" star added it had been a rough couple of weeks and hoped everyone was staying safe.

The singer who had boos rain down on her during her rendition of the national anthem at the Canucks game will have the chance to perform once more without the jeers -- as she tells TMZ Sports the NHL team wants her back ASAP!

The uncomfortable scene all unfolded just before the Vancouver vs. Detroit tilt at Rogers Arena on Sunday night ... as Canadians voiced their displeasure with recent Donald Trump tariffs while Agasha Mutesasira was crooning "The Star-Spangled Banner."

Mutesasira told us, fortunately, she didn't take anything personally ... revealing the team and others had told her there was a strong possibility it could all happen following Trump's decision.

Candace Sublett and Marisela Aramino, members of the Tarrant County Democratic Party in Texas, are issuing a stern warning as President Donald Trump orders crackdowns on illegal immigration ... noting recent mass arrests could have a dire ripple effect.

The women, who've coordinated rallies in Texas against ICE's increase in raids, tell TMZ ... there's a misconception about who is being targeted, explaining it's not just blue-collar laborers being arrested, but key economy contributors, too -- including teachers, doctors, bank tellers, and engineers.

As Candace puts it ... the raids go against the "fabric of the Constitution," which encourages people to come to the United States of America in order to build a better life.

Donald Trump just took a huge step toward barring biological men from competing in women's sports ... signing an executive order Wednesday that he said will end the era of watching "men beat and batter female athletes."

POTUS put his pen to the "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports" mandate at a ceremony at the White House ... promising it will stop transgender athletes from competing against females going forward.

"It's going to end, and it's ending right now," Trump said emphatically to a room full of his supporters as he signed the document. "And nobody's going to be able to do a damn thing about it, because when I speak -- we speak with authority."