President Trump

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 Alan Wilson.

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.

Some Trump supporters 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.

Here's the deal ... DT made history as the first sitting prez to attend the Finals last night -- but was only shown on ESPN twice ... and one of those times he was mercilessly booed. Meanwhile, celebs like Ben Stiller, Spike Lee, Tracy Morgan, Timothée Chalamet, Tina Fey, Fat Joe, and Larry David got plenty of network love.

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.

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.

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.

President Trump says 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.

President Donald Trump had a fiery on-air showdown during an interview on "Meet the Press" -- with things escalating to the point where he abruptly left after repeated pushback from host Kristen Welker.

The final stretch of the roughly six-minute exchange centered on Trump’s proposed $1.8 Billion "anti-weaponization" fund, a program his administration has reportedly stepped back from, and talk of elections being "rigged."

Watch the clip as the interview heated up when Welker asked whether people involved in the January 6 Capitol attack should receive taxpayer money ... which Trump responded with saying each case would need to be looked at individually, while also making claims about bias inside law enforcement -- which Welker immediately challenged.

6/4 -- 5:51 AM PT -- A CNN spokesperson tells TMZ ... "Kaitlan Collins is an exceptional journalist, reporting every day from the White House and the field with real depth and tenacity. She skillfully brings that reporting to the anchor chair and CNN platforms every day, which audiences around the world know they can trust.”

President Donald Trump treated an Oval Office policy question like batting practice ... taking a few swings at CNN's Kaitlan Collins instead of the issue she raised.

The fireworks started when POTUS was pressed about a proposed $1.8B anti-weaponization fund -- a massive compensation program for people who claimed they were victims of politically motivated government investigations -- that has since been scrapped following bipartisan criticism.

Watch the clip ... before Trump could get very far into the substance of the question, he turned his attention to Collins.

President Donald Trump is going back for seconds at the White House Correspondents' Dinner ... announcing a new date for the event after an alleged assassination attempt forced an abrupt end to the gala.

POTUS confirmed Tuesday the annual dinner -- which was cut short when a gunman opened fire on April 25 -- has been rescheduled for July 24 at the luxurious Waldorf Astoria in D.C.

In a post on Truth Social, the Prez framed the rescheduling as a show of "Strength and Fortitude" ... saying the country can't let "Lunatics" dictate schedules or disrupt traditions.

Freedom 250 performers keep dropping like flies ... and now Milli Vanilli's Fab Morvan is backing out.

Fab says he was all about performing for his country at first, but as he explained to CNN, things changed, and the event is no longer what he signed up for.

Fab says he started to get cold feet when he saw Young MC pull out ... he was worried the "Bust A Move" artist knew something he didn't.

President Donald Trump is abandoning plans to hand out nearly $2 billion to his allies -- including J6 rioters -- on the heels of judges blocking the so-called anti-weaponization fund.

TMZ has confirmed the Dept. of Justice is opting to abide by the federal judges' ruling that it could not "under any circumstances" proceed with handing out money to people who believe they'd been targeted by the DOJ.

One source told Axios, which first reported the news, "It's dead for now."

President Trump is pissed at the performers who dropped out of Freedom 250's Great American State Fair -- and now he wants to pull the plug on the whole damn concert series!

47 posted an explosive message Saturday on Truth Social, ripping "overpriced singers, who nobody wants to hear, whose music is boring, and yet who do nothing but complain."

Trump then demanded the cancellation of the Freedom 250, comparing it to "the failing and unsafe to be in Kennedy Center." More on the Kennedy Center in a bit.

Nancy Mace says she knew pursuing the infamous Epstein Files could cost her in the next election ... but she had to try anyway.

The congresswoman took to X on Friday to acknowledge President Donald Trump endorsed her opponent, Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette in the South Carolina gubernatorial race ... and, while he's not in her corner, she didn't go directly after POTUS.

She says she has tremendous respect for Trump ... but adds the state and system is corrupt -- and his choice for governor is part of that corruption.

President Trump says he is heading back to New York to watch the Knicks, but how will MSG react?? Plus, Spencer Pratt's mayoral fate will soon be decided and the controversy over Kevin Hart's roast continues. So we gotta ask ...

President Trump's name looks likes it's getting an early exit from the Kennedy Center ... and it's all because of a new ruling from a federal judge.

U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper on Friday ordered officials at the famed Washington, D.C. arts institution to remove Trump's name from the building within two weeks and temporarily halt plans to shut down the venue for a massive renovation.

The judge handed down the ruling as part of an ongoing legal fight over changes made at the Kennedy Center after Trump became chairman of the board in 2025 and slapped his name on the building.

Days after NY Giants QB Jaxson Dart sparked a full-blown locker room firestorm by introducing President Donald Trump at an event in New York -- and getting publicly side-eyed by Abdul Carter -- the two young stars were spotted embracing at practice!

All eyes were on Jaxson and Abdul at Big Blue's facility in East Rutherford, NJ, for OTAs on Friday -- the first time the players have practiced since the controversy last week -- and there was nary a sign of friction as the men came face-to-face.

Cameras were rolling as the players approached each other, first dapping each other up, and then hugging for several seconds as they shared a private word.