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Sept. 24, 2025, 5:17 PM EDTBy Peter Nicholas and Dan De LuceWASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is suddenly bullish when it comes to Ukraine’s chances of repelling Russia’s invasion and regaining all its territory, yet the shift in rhetoric means little unless he is prepared to ramp up pressure on the Kremlin, diplomats and foreign officials say.Thus far, Trump hasn’t taken these essential steps, they added.Trump’s social media post Tuesday upended the conventional thinking about his view of the war, now in its fourth year. Back in February, he told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that he didn’t have the “cards” in a peace negotiation and that his country was in “big trouble.”Now, Trump says that Russia is the one that is in “big economic trouble” and that its failure to swiftly conquer its smaller neighbor has revealed it to be a “paper tiger.”“After getting to know and fully understand the Ukraine/Russia Military and Economic situation and, after seeing the Economic trouble it is causing Russia, I think Ukraine, with the support of the European Union, is in a position to fight and WIN all of Ukraine back in its original form,” he wrote in his post Tuesday. “Russia has been fighting aimlessly for three and a half years a War that should have taken a Real Military Power less than a week to win,” Trump added. “This is not distinguishing Russia.”Trump’s aim in releasing the statement was to exert “maximum public pressure on Russia to get them to the table for a deal” to end the war, according to a senior Trump administration official.Next steps will depend on how Russia responds, said the official, who did not lay out any specific policy changes happening now.There are different ways to construe Trump’s statement. One is that he’s grown tired of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s persistence in shelling Ukraine and is prepared to step up coercive measures aimed at getting Russia to pull back.“Trump concluded Putin is not interested in peace,” Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a Trump confidant, said in an interview Wednesday. Calling Trump’s post and his speech to the United Nations General Assembly a “game-changer,” Graham added, “There was a belief in Moscow that Trump is on their side, but the president made it clear that Ukraine will have all it needs as long as it needs.”Another interpretation is that Trump is done with what’s proved a futile effort to midwife a peace deal. Instead, Trump is leaving it to the combatants and European nations to resolve the war as best they can. “Good luck to all!” Trump wrote at the end of his post.Nothing in Trump’s post committed the U.S. to more aggressive action on Ukraine’s behalf. He did not say he would impose secondary sanctions on China for its economic support of Russia. Nor did he pledge to slap new sanctions on Russia. Rather, he said the U.S. would continue something it is already doing: selling weapons to NATO that the alliance is in turn supplying to Ukraine.Trump’s message was accurate in that he noted that Russia’s economy is under strain from international sanctions while endorsing Ukraine’s territorial integrity, said Evelyn Farkas, executive director of the McCain Institute think tank. But there was no indication that the president was ready to take measures bolstering Ukraine’s position, either by squeezing Russia or stepping up U.S. military aid to Ukraine, she said.“In terms of concrete action, that’s the missing thing,” Farkas said. “He hasn’t changed anything he’s doing.”Trump’s Truth Social post appears to reflect his growing frustration over what he sees as Russia’s intransigence, and his recognition of what European governments have been saying for some time: that Moscow is struggling to turn the tide in a grinding conflict.“But I don’t think he’s willing to do much about it,” one source close to Zelenskyy’s government said.In a further sign that America’s posture remains largely the same, there was no indication that the White House had notified allies or Ukraine that U.S. policy had changed, according to three Western officials and a source close to Ukraine. At present, allies do not anticipate that Trump’s new assessment will result in concrete action such as a weapons package for Ukraine, the sources said.One Western official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the message to Europe seemed to be: “Over to you.”“I read it [Trump’s social media post] as him trying to back out of this whole thing,” said John Bolton, who was White House national security adviser in Trump’s first term and has become an outspoken critic of the president. “He’s not saying the U.S. is doing anything new or different from what it’s doing now, i.e., selling weapons and ammunition and things to Europe.”“This is not, ‘I’m going to sanction Russia. I’m going to arm Ukraine. I’m going to do this or that.’ This is, ‘I’m sure glad the Europeans and NATO are going to help out,’” Bolton added. (The FBI searched Bolton’s home last month as part of an investigation into classified records. An attorney for Bolton has said that the former official did not keep or store anything improper.)It would be a mistake to discount the import of Trump’s statement, others said. A president who has long called for warmer relations between Washington and Moscow is now publicly belittling Russia’s military machine. Those living in Russia’s shadow welcomed Trump’s affirmation of Ukraine’s sovereignty.“This is remarkable,” said Marko Mihkelson, chairman of the Estonian parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee. “I see it probably as the first time that the U.S. president said that Ukraine should win the war and this victory means the liberation of the occupied territories.”One Western official whose country is a member of the so-called Coalition of the Willing that supports Ukraine said: “We have always been saying that Russia has been weaker than anyone thought. We have been saying they have been weakened by the sanctions and weaker than what some think and weaker than even Putin thinks. We fully agree with this analysis.”Heartening as Trump’s message was to Ukraine’s allies, an about-face could come at any point. Trump has a history of making pronouncements that don’t always hold up.Heading to a summit meeting with Putin in Alaska last month, Trump said he wanted a ceasefire. He emerged from the meeting with no ceasefire, saying the new goal was a broader peace agreement — an outcome that is not in sight. Moscow has expanded its drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian cities, killing a record number of civilians.Since taking office, Trump has threatened to impose new sanctions on Russia if it doesn’t negotiate in good faith, and issued two deadlines to Moscow that have come and gone without consequences.The president mentioned a new deadline on Tuesday at a bilateral meeting at the United Nations with Zelenskyy. When reporters asked Trump if he still trusts Putin, he said, “I’ll let you know in about a month from now.”Daniel Fried, a former U.S. ambassador to Poland and a fellow at the Atlantic Council think tank, said in an interview: “I’m pleased by the sentiment of support” for Ukraine.He added: “I don’t want to be snarky or cynical, but we’ve seen for many months Trump tiptoe up to the line of action, and then slide away from it.”“We see a lot of words from Trump. We need to see an actual decision.”Peter NicholasPeter Nicholas is a senior White House reporter for NBC News.Dan De LuceDan De Luce is a reporter for the NBC News Investigative Unit. Julie Tsirkin, Garrett Haake and Gordon Lubold contributed.

- Latest News - September 24, 2025

Donald Trump is suddenly bullish when it comes to Ukraine’s chances of repelling Russia’s invasion and regaining all its territory.

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Sept. 24, 2025, 3:47 PM EDTBy Tyler KingkadeAfter dozens of school districts and colleges fired employees or placed them on leave over social media posts about Charlie Kirk’s assassination, some of those employees are turning to federal courts to get their jobs back. A former Ball State University staff member is suing the Indiana school’s president after she was fired for posting on Facebook: “Charlie Kirk’s death is a reflection of the violence, fear and hatred he sowed. It does not excuse his death, AND it’s a sad truth.”An art teacher in central Iowa filed a suit last week after the Oskaloosa school board voted to fire him for posting “1 Nazi down” about Kirk’s assassination.An elementary school teacher assistant is suing her Spartanburg County, South Carolina, district over what her lawsuit calls an unconstitutional social media policy. According to the suit, she was fired for posting a quote from Kirk in which he said it’s worth having “some gun deaths every single year” to protect the Second Amendment, and then adding the phrase “thoughts and prayers.” And on Wednesday, an art professor will plead his case before a federal judge in Sioux Falls, hoping to stop the University of South Dakota from firing him for posting on Facebook: “Where was all this concern when the politicians in Minnesota were shot? And the school shootings? And capital police? I have no thoughts or prayers for this hate spreading nazi. A shrug, maybe.”The schools have not yet responded in court. The universities and two districts declined to comment on pending litigation.The lawsuits are among the first actions educators have taken to combat a campaign propelled by conservative influencers and Republican lawmakers who urged schools and other employers to fire people who they say made light of or celebrated Kirk’s death. Those pushing for the firings have argued that teachers and professors with abhorrent views shouldn’t be allowed to influence students. Liberal-leaning critics have accused conservatives of embracing so-called cancel culture, which they had long condemned. Death of Charlie Kirk raises questions about future of free speech in America02:00Civil liberties groups have warned that some of the firings could violate the First Amendment, regardless of whether they simply criticize Kirk or openly celebrate his death. The legal challenges filed over the past two weeks will be important test cases on whether public employees can post statements deemed offensive, said Adam Goldstein, vice president of strategic initiatives at the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression.“It’s an unfortunate necessity that the courts will have to weigh in here,” Goldstein said. “There’s no option here other than a number of cases where courts hopefully reinstruct us on how the First Amendment is supposed to work.”In the days after Kirk was shot earlier this month, Vice President JD Vance and other top Republicans urged citizens to report people who mock Kirk’s assassination to their employers. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon told Fox News last week that she’d “like to see more” college faculty who celebrate Kirk’s death fired or suspended.Some Democrats have shared similar sentiments. In Iowa, a leading Democratic gubernatorial candidate echoed calls to remove the Oskaloosa teacher. “I’d be pretty uncomfortable with my kids having teachers that celebrated someone’s murder,” Rob Sand, the candidate and current state auditor, told the Des Moines Register this week. Because the cases involve public employees, the employers have a higher bar to meet before firing them for speaking out, legal experts say. They will have to show the staff members’ posts created a disruption that interfered with classes, for instance, or the operation of a school. Goldstein said generating controversy or complaints is typically not enough to warrant a firing. Michael Hook, the University of South Dakota art professor, deleted his remarks after a few hours, and shared an apology that stated he regretted the original post. Through his lawyer, Hook declined to be interviewed.Hook filed a motion Tuesday to get an emergency order to block the university from moving forward with the next step in his termination process. He alleges his firing stems from angering “the wrong people,” noting that the governor and speaker of the state house had called for his termination. “When I read this post, I was shaking mad,” Gov. Larry Rhoden, a Republican, posted on X.An online petition to reinstate Hook has over 8,000 signatures.In many cases, Goldstein said, the teachers’ punishment seems disproportionate to their alleged offense, noting that an inappropriate post could be flagged without termination.“It’s very weird to live in a world where Charlie’s wife can forgive the shooter,” Goldstein said, “but we can’t forgive a teacher who quoted him.”Tyler KingkadeTyler Kingkade is a national reporter for NBC News, based in Los Angeles.

- Latest News - September 24, 2025

Charlie Kirk’s assassination prompted a wave of firings over social media posts. Now educators fired for their comments are suing to get their jobs back.

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Sept. 24, 2025, 3:40 PM EDTBy Julie Tsirkin, Monica Alba, Tara Prindiville and Alexandra MarquezPresident Donald Trump on Thursday is expected to sign a deal to facilitate the sale of TikTok from a Chinese-based company to a group of American investors, two senior White House officials told NBC News.Members of the Trump administration have for days signaled that a deal was being finalized between Chinese and U.S. officials.A senior White House official confirmed to NBC News on Wednesday that once the deal is implemented, TikTok’s U.S. operations would be run by a new joint-venture company. ByteDance, TikTok’s current China-based owner, will hold less than 20% of the stock of the new company, the official said.NBC News reached out to TikTok for comment.This structure will comply with a bipartisan law passed in 2024 that sought to ban TikTok if the platform wasn’t sold to U.S.-based owners this year. The app briefly shut down in the U.S. in January, just a day before Trump was inaugurated to his second term.The app came back online in the U.S. after Trump promised not to enforce the penalties against TikTok that were in the law and said he would seek to make a deal with China for the platform’s sale to the U.S.Trump has extended the deadline to avoid a TikTok ban several times this year. On Wednesday, a senior White House official said that he plans to extend the pause for another 120 days to allow time for the deal to go through.For years, technology experts and U.S. officials warned that TikTok, which has over 170 million U.S. users, was a national security risk and that ByteDance could give the Chinese government access to user data and to the app’s algorithm.During Trump’s first term, he signed an executive order in 2020 aimed at banning TikTok, but then-President Joe Biden reversed it the following year. Biden ultimately signed the bipartisan TikTok bill into law.On Wednesday, a senior White House official confirmed that as part of the deal, American users’ data will be stored in the U.S. and overseen by the software and cloud computing company Oracle. They added that the platform’s algorithm will be retrained and continuously monitored to ensure that U.S. content is free from any outside manipulation.On Saturday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News that the deal was almost over the finish line and that the “deal just needs to be signed.”She added that the deal would create a board to oversee TikTok with six seats reserved for American investors, but did not say who those American investors would be.On Sunday, Trump told Fox News in a separate interview that Oracle’s co-founder, Larry Ellison, would play a role in the deal. He also said that Michael Dell, CEO of Dell Technologies, and the Murdoch family, which owns a media empire that includes News Corp and Fox Corp, would also play a role.The president added that the other business leaders involved in the deal are “really great people, very prominent people.”“And they’re also American patriots, you know, they love this country, so I think they’re going to do a really good job,” he added.Julie TsirkinJulie Tsirkin is a correspondent covering Capitol Hill.Monica AlbaMonica Alba is a White House correspondent for NBC News.Tara PrindivilleTara Prindiville is a White House producer for NBC News.Alexandra MarquezAlexandra Marquez is a politics reporter for NBC News.

- Latest News - September 24, 2025

President Donald Trump on Thursday is expected to sign a deal to facilitate the sale of TikTok from a Chinese-based company to a group of American investors, two senior White.

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Savewith a NBCUniversal ProfileCreate your free profile or log in to save this articleSept. 24, 2025, 12:34 PM EDTBy Daniel ArkinOscar-winning actor Jessica Chastain said Wednesday she isn’t “aligned” with Apple on the company’s decision to postpone the debut of “The Savant,” a streaming series about an investigator who infiltrates online hate groups.”I want to say how much I value my partnership with Apple. They’ve been incredible collaborators and I deeply respect their team,” Chastain said in a post on her Instagram account. “That said, I wanted to reach out and let you know that we’re not aligned on the decision to pause the release of The Savant.”The first two episodes of “The Savant” were scheduled to premiere Friday. But in a brief statement to Variety this week, an Apple TV+ spokesperson said the platform decided to postpone the show’s rollout after “careful consideration,” adding: “We appreciate your understanding and look forward to releasing the series at a future date.”Apple TV+ did not identify an exact reason for the show’s delay or specify the considerations it weighed. The decision came two weeks after the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who was fatally shot at an event in Utah. Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, a Republican, has said the suspect in Kirk’s killing was influenced by what he characterized as “leftist ideology.””The Savant” was adapted from a 2019 article published in the magazine Cosmopolitan titled “Is It Possible to Stop a Mass Shooting Before It Happens?” The miniseries stars Chastain as a woman who “infiltrates online hate groups in an effort to stop domestic extremists before they act,” according to Apple’s press materials.”In the last five years since we’ve been making the show,” Chastain said in her Instagram post, “we’ve seen an unfortunate amount of violence in the United States.” She listed examples of such violence, including the attempted kidnapping of Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer; the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol; the two assassination attempts on President Donald Trump; the assassination of a Democratic lawmaker in Minnesota; and the fatal shooting of Kirk.”These incidents, though far from encompassing the full range of violence witnessed in the United States, illustrate a broader mindset that crosses the political spectrum and must be confronted,” Chastain said. “I’ve never shied away from difficult subjects, and while I wish this show wasn’t so relevant, unfortunately it is.””While I respect Apple’s decision to pause the release for now, I remain hopeful the show will reach audiences soon,” Chastain added.Spokespeople for Apple TV+ did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment on Chastain’s post.Apple postponed “The Savant” at an especially tense moment for American media companies as they navigate political pressure, regulatory scrutiny and a polarized viewing public.Disney, for example, became embroiled in a national firestorm over its decision to suspend Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night talk show following criticism from Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr. Kimmel returned to ABC’s lineup Tuesday night, but two companies that own affiliate stations are still refusing to air his show.Apple CEO Tim Cook is also attempting to walk a fine line with the Trump administration. Apple has pledged to invest $600 billion in the U.S. over the next four years as it works to avoid tariffs on items used in iPhones and other key products.Chastain is best known for the movies “The Help,” “Zero Dark Thirty” and “Interstellar.” She won an Academy Award for best actress in 2022 for her title role in the biopic “The Eyes of Tammy Faye.”Daniel ArkinDaniel Arkin is a national reporter at NBC News.

- Latest News - September 24, 2025

Oscar-winning actor Jessica Chastain said Wednesday she isn’t “aligned” with Apple on the company’s decision to postpone the debut of “The Savant.”

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