A federal judge ordered a Venezuelan couple, accused by the Trump administration of being members of the Tren de Aragua gang, to be released, delivering a stinging rebuke of the government's evidence in the case.
Earlier this week, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday was making an announced trip to the southern border -- without reporters -- as he faces new scrutiny in Washington.
ABC News has confirmed that, in at least two separate meetings, Hegseth accused top-ranking military officers of leaking to the news media and threatened to polygraph them.
Hegseth also used the Signal app on a personal computer in his office that was connected to the internet on an unsecured commercial line, what's known as a "dirty line," two sources confirmed to ABC News Thursday. A Pentagon spokesman called that report "fake news."
Trump to deliver commencement addresses at University of Alabama and West Point
President Trump will deliver commencement addresses at the University of Alabama and the United States Military Academy at West Point, he announced on Truth Social late Monday night.
“I have agreed to do the Commencement Address at two really GREAT places, the University of Alabama and, WEST POINT. Stay tuned for times and dates!!!”
Commencement at the University of Alabama takes place the weekend of May 2 and West Point will hold a graduation ceremony on May 24.
Trump previously delivered the West Point commencement address on June 13, 2020 during the pandemic.
-ABC News' Justin Gomez
Apr 22, 2025, 12:01 AM EDT
ICE must reinstate legal status of 133 international students on Tuesday
President Donald Trump's administration has until 5 p.m. on Tuesday to reinstate the legal statuses of 133 international students, according to an order granting temporary restraining orders on behalf of those plaintiffs filed in a U.S. District Court in Georgia on April 18.
The federal judge overseeing the case, Victoria M. Calvert, issued a TRO requested on behalf of students, all of whom claimed their student statuses had been unlawfully revoked.
The lawsuit, filed by the ACLU and other groups in the Northern District of Georgia, is among several that claim Immigration and Customs Enforcement "abruptly and unlawfully" terminated records on the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System, a database that the Department of Homeland Security uses to monitor non-immigrant students.
A Department of Homeland Security seal on a podium at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) headquarters, Mar. 13, 2024.
Luke Barr/ABC News
The lawsuit claimed that by terminating these records, ICE is ending a student’s status and making them deportable.
"DHS’s act of unlawfully terminating SEVIS records appears to be designed to coerce students, including each Plaintiff, into abandoning their studies and 'self-deporting' despite not violating their status," the lawsuit said.
Some of the students represented in the lawsuit are nearing graduation or are enrolled in work programs.
Many of the plaintiffs had been charged with traffic violations, and in some cases minor misdemeanors, but later had their charges dropped. Others, including "Jane Doe #12," have never been arrested or cited for any traffic violation.
Government lawyers had argued that granting any relief to the students would affect the executive branch’s "control over immigration."
But the judge was not convinced — and ordered the administration to notify the court when it has complied. Calvert also ordered the government not to use the identities of the plaintiffs for any reason outside of the lawsuit.
A hearing is set for Thursday.
-ABC News' Armando Garcia
Apr 21, 2025, 10:11 PM EDT
Fired Pentagon official denies leaking to the press
Dan Caldwell, a former top adviser to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth who was fired from the Pentagon last week allegedly as part of a leak investigation, gave a 90-minute interview with Tucker Carlson in which he denied leaking anything the press.
Caldwell has known Hegseth for more than a decade and worked closely with him as an adviser at Concerned Veterans for America and was seen as a key member of Hegseth’s inner circle.
When Carlson asked him, “Did you leak classified information against the wishes of your superiors to media outlets?” Caldwell responded, “Absolutely not."
He also denied taking photos of classified information and texting them to a specific media outlet, saying he had never spoken to a reporter from that media outlet.
Caldwell blamed leaks at the Pentagon on “career staff who don't like what the president and the secretary and vice president want to do.”
He added that “there's people on the Joint Staff that I kind of respect, but a lot of them are incredibly hostile to the secretary to the president and the vice president's worldview."
-ABC News' Luis Martinez
Apr 21, 2025, 5:49 PM EDT
Hegseth chief of staff moving to new role at the Pentagon
Joe Kasper, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s chief of staff, is moving to a new role working on special projects at the Pentagon, according to a senior defense official.
“Joe Kasper will continue to serve President Trump as a Special Government Employee (SGE) handling special projects at the Department of Defense,” the official said. “Secretary Hegseth is thankful for his continued leadership and work to advance the America First agenda.
The Pentagon is seen from the air in Washington, Mar. 3, 2022.
Joshua Roberts/Reuters
The move is the latest in a number of staff changes at the Pentagon. Three close advisers to Hegseth were pushed out last week amid allegations of leaking to the media, which they denied in a joint statement.
A fourth senior staffer, John Ullyot, said he resigned from the Pentagon, suggesting the building has devolved into “total chaos.”
