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It looks like Melania Trump's trying to cool things down between Russia and Ukraine ... because she apparently helped eight children reunite with their families.

The First Lady said she wrote a letter about establishing peace between the warring countries and had  President Donald Trump hand-deliver the letter to Vladimir Putin when they met in Alaska in August, reports the Associated Press.

Melania claimed the Russian president responded to her letter in writing, and they began communicating about the well-being of children displaced during the country's ongoing war with Ukraine.

Ukrainian children have been taken by Russian forces, who've attempted to raise the children as Russians. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has raised the alarm multiple times.

Three of the kids were taken from their families and brought to Russia during the fighting. The other five were reportedly separated across borders.

Melania also said plans to get more kids back with their families were currently underway.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology won't be getting extra cash from President Donald Trump anytime soon ... because its president just turned down the Trump administration's education agenda.

MIT President Sally Kornbluth sent a letter to the Department of Education on Friday to let them know the school was okay without preferential consideration for federal funds, as they'd have to agree to several terms set down by 47's administration, according to NBC News.

The institution would have had to agree to various conditions, like freezing tuition rates for American students for the next five years and skipping out on prospective students who held "hostility" toward the United States.

Kornbluth argued MIT had already caught up with most of the standards set out by the Trump administration -- and added the school is a big proponent of freedom of expression.

She noted the institution believes funding for scientific activities "should be based on scientific merit alone."

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. says there's another link between autism rates and Tylenol use ... and he says it involves pain treatment for circumcisions.

President Trump's Health and Human Services Secretary made the claim Thursday during a cabinet meeting ... saying there are multiple studies that show children who are circumcised early in life have double the rate of autism.

RFK Jr. says it's "highly likely" the use of Tylenol in these infants is the reason for elevated autism rates. He did not cite a specific study or research.

President Donald Trump's been big on promoting his own view of American history -- just ask the folks over at the Smithsonian.

47 signed a proclamation Thursday to honor historic Italian explorer Christopher Columbus -- Monday, October 13, 2025, will be Columbus Day.

Trump, reacting positively to the applause following the signing of the proclamation, quipped, "We're back, Italians."

FYI ... Columbus Day's been a federal holiday for several decades, and it's been especially celebrated in the Italian-American community.

But, the holiday and Columbus himself came under closer scrutiny in recent years, given Columbus documented misconduct of indigenous people, and several states and cities have celebrated Indigenous Peoples' Day either alongside or in place of Columbus Day.

Katie Porter -- the Democratic frontrunner for California governor in 2026 -- is seen losing her cool once again ... caught on camera yelling at a staffer to get out of her "f***ing shot."

The newly resurfaced video, obtained by POLITICO, shows a convo between Porter -- then a member of Congress -- and former Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm in July 2021.

Check out the video ... midway through the convo, Porter snaps at a staffer who steps into frame to fact-check one of her comments about electric vehicles.

Jimmy Kimmel's still on the air despite President Donald Trump's protestations ... but, if he wants to tell Kimmel's whole audience exactly what he thinks of the host, Jimmy's willing to give him a chance.

The comedian sat down for an interview with Bloomberg Radio ... and, he was asked if he or his team had reached out to Trump or Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr about appearing on his show since his temporary suspension was lifted.

Kimmel says he wouldn't want to have Carr on the show -- though he doesn't give a specific reason for that ... however, Kimmel adds he's super interested in putting President Trump in the hot seat.

Immigration and Customs Administration agents may have to atone for their sins ... after one agent was caught on video shooting a reverend in the head with a pepper ball during an ICE protest -- but the feds say the footage doesn't show the full story.

The icy confrontation between federal agents and protesters went down at an ICE detention facility in Broadview, Illinois on September 19 ... but the video is only now making the rounds.

Watch the clip ... you can see Reverend David Black on the sidewalk, pleading with arms open toward three agents in combat gear standing on the roof ... The agents start firing pepper balls at the crowd during the demonstration -- one of many over the past weeks protesting the detention and deportation of undocumented immigrants.

After watching the intense, personal showdown between House Majority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Rep. Mike Lawler, we can now answer the question Rodney King asked decades ago -- "Can't we all just get along." The answer is NO.

Jeffries, a Democrat, was speaking to reporters when Lawler, a Republican, approached and confronted him ... asking why he wouldn't sign on to a bill that would reopen the federal government.

That triggered 4-minutes of personal attacks and insults. It's not even so much what they said as how it was said. Each talks over the other -- they both represent New York -- and at one point Jeffries wags his finger right at Lawler's chest.

Interviews can be pretty big newsmaking events for politicians ... and this one with former Democratic Representative for California Katie Porter didn't disappoint.

Porter -- who's currently running for Governor of California -- went viral Tuesday after a clip from an interview with CBS News investigative reporter Julie Watts began making the rounds on social media.

In the interview, which took place last month, Porter was asked what she'd do to win over voters who'd picked Trump in the past ... Porter claimed she wouldn't need their support, then chuckled a little.

Porter and Watts went back and forth ... Porter then declared she was fed up with the follow-up questions and said she was ending the session.

CBS News confirmed Porter ended up sticking around, and answered further questions after threatening to hit the road.

Porter's conduct in the interview was criticized by several other gubernatorial hopefuls, including former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, according to USA Today.

Bad Bunny has ruffled lotsa feathers on the conservative right ... and the list now includes House Speaker Mike Johnson, who thinks the singing sensation is bad for the Super Bowl -- and for kids!

Johnson gave his take on Bunny to reporters outside the House chambers in D.C. Tuesday ... and it might shock some of you to hear what the speaker had to say.

The Republican Congressman from Louisiana kicked things off telling journalists he didn't even know who Bunny was before the whole Super Bowl kerfuffle.

Kristi Noem is now taking direct aim at Zach Bryan over his new song criticizing ICE raids ... calling the track "disrespectful" to the United States.

The Homeland Security Secretary told conservative podcaster Benny Johnson she's listened to the snippet of Bryan's song -- where he sings ICE has plans to "bust down your door" -- saying ... "I hope he understands how completely disrespectful that song is, not just to law enforcement but to this country."

She goes on to say ... "To every single individual that has stood up and fought for our freedoms. He just compromised it all by putting out a product such as that, that attacks individuals who are just trying to make our streets safe.”

4:26 PM PT -- A White House spokesperson Kush Desai tells TMZ ... “Kamala Harris should listen to an audio recording of her cackle of a laugh before calling anyone crazy.”

F-bombs away! Former Vice President Kamala Harris is going full auntie mode on her book tour ... seeming to give her political opponents a piece of her mind in no uncertain terms!

Kamala's been touring, promoting her new book, "107 Days," and Monday, she had some wise words for her audience ... "There's so much about this moment that is trying to make people feel like they've lost their minds ... When, in fact, these motherf***ers are crazy!"

The crowd absolutely ate it up, erupting in cheers and applause at what appeared to be quite the cathartic moment for both the former Vice President and the people in attendance at the "Day of Unreasonable Conversation" summit in Los Angeles Monday.

President Trump can't seem to shake the curse of Jeffrey Epstein ... because U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi got into a fiery exchange over the "Epstein Files" with a senator during a congressional hearing.

Bondi faced off Tuesday with the Senate Judiciary Committee and, when it came time for Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) to ask questions of the AG, things got really heated really fast!

Check out video ... which shows perhaps the most heated back-and-forth during their 11-minute-plus confrontation. Whitehouse earlier kicked off the questioning by asking Bondi how many "suspicious activity reports" related to Trump-Epstein her team has investigated.

President Donald Trump is escalating a threat to involve the U.S. military in American cities, using a law that hasn't been activated in more three decades.

47 brought up the idea of invoking the Insurrection Act while speaking to reporters at the White House on Monday, and he claimed he'd go through with the invocation "if it was necessary," according to NBC News.

FYI ... the Insurrection Act of 1807 enables the president to deploy the military and federalize state National Guard forces in certain circumstances.

Stephen Miller's infamous for speaking his mind about various topics during his tenure as the White House Deputy Chief of Staff -- and now he's extending his attention to the subject of his height.

And all of the newfound attention to the political figure's height is thanks to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who encouraged her social media followers to mock his height in an effort to demean the Trump Administration during an Instagram Live session on Sunday, according to The Independent.

The Democratic Congresswoman from New York claimed the reason Miller "looks like he is so mad" is due to his height -- which she guessed was about 4 feet 10 inches -- and stated he's likely taking his anger about his height out on vulnerable groups.

Miller stood up to the challenge ... sitting down for a spot on Fox News' "The Ingraham Angle" show Monday evening to address AOC's comments after rewatching a clip of the Live session.

The longtime Trump ally claimed his adversary's brain and eyes don't work and described her as a "trainwreck" ... claiming he stands 5 feet 10 inches tall -- the average height for men in the USA is about 5 feet 9 inches, according to Healthline.

AOC took the whole thing in stride, posting on X that she was "crying" about the fact Miller had to rewatch the clip on live TV.

Donald Trump has finally weighed in on the upcoming Super Bowl halftime show talent pick ... he was asked on the air last night about the choice of Bad Bunny as headliner, but he says he's never heard of him!

The commander-in-chief opined on the NFL's decision during an interview with Newsmax's Greg Kelly, complaining, "I've never heard of him. I don't know who he is."

Greg Kelly asked the prez about his thoughts on this "Bad Bunny Rabbit" ... considering the singer "hates ICE, he doesn't like you" ... Trump brushed off the Puerto Rican superstar, quickly moving on to his feelings about the NFL's new kickoff rule.