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Nicki Minaj may sing about starships ... but when it comes to real science, D.L. Hughley says she's better off trusting Dr. Anthony Fauci -- and taking a look at the president she supports instead.

We got the comedian at Cedric the Entertainer's 13th annual celebrity golf tournament on Monday ... and we had to ask about Nicki roasting Dr. Fauci for his role in the Covid-19 pandemic.

D.L. says Nicki shouldn't go after the dude who tried to inject some scientific method into America's COVID response ... specifically mentioning when President Donald Trump said the virus could be cured by injecting disinfectant into our veins.

The box Jeanine Pirro wheeled out of the White House wasn't from cleaning out her desk ... it was apparently evidence showing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool damage was the result of a crappy renovation, and not a vandal.

Sources familiar with the matter told CBS News Tuesday the U.S. Attorney for D.C. brought a box full of evidence that exonerated ex-Olympian David Hearn and other individuals from criminal vandalism charges, which she dropped.

The sources said Pirro brought the box to the White House on Monday in an attempt to prove to President Trump that her reversing course on prosecuting Hearn and others didn't mean she "choked."

The outlet reports the private meeting got heated at times ... but Pirro still has her job ... at least for now.

Thanksgiving is still on the calendar ... but Wisconsin gubernatorial candidate Francesca Hong can't say whether she wants it to stay there.

CNN's Kaitlan Collins asked the Democratic socialist Monday if she still believes the holiday should be canceled -- and Hong cooked up a 46-second response without ever serving a yes or no.

Hong leaned on her background as a chef and restaurant owner, saying bringing people around a table is "always a good thing" ... but added Thanksgiving is "incredibly painful" for many communities.

Collins raised the issue because Hong called for Thanksgiving to be scrapped in a since-deleted 2021 post, writing ... "Cancel Thanksgiving. Should have done this in 1621."

8/3/2026 5:04 PM PST -- According to CNN Jeanine Pirro was not fired today when she was at the White House, but she was there for what could have been an "awkward meeting" with Donald Trump. Trump is still mulling over her removal.

Jeanine Pirro's leaving the White House with her tail between her legs ... this hours after Donald Trump ripped into her for walking back the Reflecting Pool vandalism charges against David Hearn.

She rolled up not long after Trump ripped into her for dropping the vandalism case against the ex-Olympian ... he says she "choked."

It's unclear why exactly the U.S. Attorney was at the White House, but remember ... sources told CNN DT is furious with her and is considering giving her the boot.

President Trump just threw Jeanine Pirro under the bus ... saying she folded like a cheap suit when her office dropped the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool vandalism case against former Olympian David Hearn.

Trump tore into the U.S. Attorney on Monday ... arguing Hearn and others deliberately cut the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool's waterproof liner ... despite Pirro saying on Friday that faulty installation was actually to blame.

POTUS blamed a hostile judge for the case unraveling ... but said Pirro ultimately buckled under the pressure -- "Frankly, I think she choked."

8/2/2026 2:28 PM PST -- A spokesperson for CNN tells TMZ ... Dana Bash is a veteran journalist who conducted a newsmaking interview with Secretary Kennedy in which he stated that he supports parents getting their children vaccinated against measles and addressed President Trump’s push for further study into autism and vaccines. Asking tough, substantive questions to those in power is the job of every journalist, and Dana did hers incredibly well today. We stand behind Dana, her reporting, and CNN’s overall coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Dana Bash turned CNN’s "State of the Union" into a heated debate Sunday, with the HHS secretary and the anchor clashing over COVID, vaccines, public health, and autism research.

Watch the clip, as things got tense when Bash pressed Kennedy about his criticism of Dr. Anthony Fauci and asked how he would handle a future pandemic. RFK Jr. said protecting constitutional rights would be his top priority ... arguing that one of the mistakes made during COVID was “suppressing” those rights.

Bash pushed back, saying she was asking about a public health crisis -- not a constitutional rights debate -- that’s when Kennedy fired back saying “Because you were part of the problem.”

Sen. Bernie Moreno is done biting his tongue over former son-in-law Rep. Max Miller ... publicly branding the Ohio congressman "a danger" to his daughter and calling for him to leave office.

Moreno broke his silence Sunday after Miller accused his ex-wife, Emily Moreno, of struggling with "significant mental health challenges" during a video defending himself against allegations of abuse, which he denies.

Miller said Emily's alleged struggles contributed to accusations he "firmly disputes" ... insisting he raised the issue not to embarrass her, but out of concern for the former couple's young daughter.

Donald Trump just lashed out at U.S. attorney Jeanine Pirro after she decided to dismiss a felony charge against former Olympic canoeist David Hearn for allegedly vandalizing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.

Check out 47's scorching Truth Social post from Saturday morning ... he says he "100%" disagrees with Pirro and doesn't know what she was thinking when her office decided to file a motion to drop the charge.

He says he believes the damage was caused by vandalism -- including the "big 86 47 emblazoned in giant letters" on the grass near the pool ... which is an anti-Trump reference.

Bad Bunny's going to be hopping mad about the White House's new video celebrating mass deportations ... because audio from one of his hit songs underscores scenes he abhors.

In the new clip -- posted to the White House TikTok Thursday afternoon -- Bad Bunny's song "LA MuDANZA" plays over a montage of people in handcuffs being detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The video starts with President Trump waving at supporters as BB sings ... "un aplauso pa mami y papi porque en verdad rompieron" ... which translates to "A round of applause for mom and dad, because they really crushed it."

Trump's White House changed the translation to say "A round of applause for Donald J. Trump because he really crushed it" ... and they captioned the post, "We're making America great gain."

Mitch McConnell conspiracy theorists are off to the races again ... because his wife's outfit in the second proof-of-life snap looks awfully similar to the one she wore during a prior visit.

Elaine Chao wore a shirt-pants combo during a visit to see the Kentucky Senator in a rehab center on July 14 ... and she appears to be wearing the same outfit in the proof-of-life photo his office says was taken on July 26 ... 12 days after photogs snapped her.

The detail went mostly unnoticed ... until now ... and conspiracy theorists are more convinced than ever that McConnell is not as well as his office claims.

There has also been chatter that the shirt Elaine is wearing appears to be the same as one sold at Chico's -- which some think the former United States Secretary of Labor would never wear.

Nicki Minaj has a grim view of Dr. Fauci's future ... saying he'll be eating from feeding tubes and losing the ability to speak.

On Friday, the rapper posted a lengthy message on X with her bleak assessment of Fauci while also blaming the scientist for the pain and suffering that she believes he caused during the pandemic. Earlier this week, Fauci sat before the Senate to answer questions about the pandemic, but he clammed up and took the Fifth.

Nicki says Fauci -- who was the head of the White House's COVID-19 response -- was responsible for all the trauma to newborns, young children, pregnant women, the elderly and many other people who survived the global health crisis.

Dr. Anthony Fauci isn't being railroaded like alleged Communist sympathizers during the Joe McCarthy era ... so says Rep. Nancy Mace.

The Congresswoman from South Carolina joined us on "TMZ Live" Thursday to discuss the ongoing hearings ... and she pushed back on Harvey Levin's argument that this is just Red Scare McCarthyism 2.0.

Rep. Mace strongly disagrees ... saying Senator McCarthy targeted innocent people in different groups to destroy them -- whereas Congress is investigating a man who really did some serious damage.

A popular Wisconsin brewery promising free beer when President Donald Trump dies is fighting to stay open as the state plans to revoke its alcohol permit ... and the owner says he's a political target!!!

The Minocqua Brewing Company says the Wisconsin Department of Revenue is planning to shut it down by August 4 ... according to a newsletter published by owner Kirk Bangstad, a vocal Trump critic.

Bangstad -- who often shares anti-Trump sentiments on social media and touts the brewery as "the state's most progressive brewery" -- claims the government is trying to make an example out of him because of his political views.

The brewery owner says ... "They'll have to pry me out of my taprooms before I stop selling beer to thirsty progressives who come to visit us."