Cecilia Ley (2:35)

Yes, sir. We went through the legal processes. Did it correct?

Senator John Kennedy (2:40)

Yes, he did. Yes.

Cecilia Ley (2:42)

Noem claimed that the ads had been effective, but Kennedy said they were only good at building up Noem's own name recognition.

Senator John Kennedy (2:50)

I mean, to me, it puts the President in a terribly awkward spot. And I just. I'm not saying you're not telling the truth. It's just hard for me to believe Noam, the president, as I do that you said, Mr. President, here's some ads I've cut and I'm going to spend $220 million running them that he would have agreed to that.

Cecilia Ley (3:13)

After the testimony, Trump told Reuters that he didn't know anything about the ad campaign. A watchdog at DHS is reportedly investigating the contract and whether it went through the standard bidding process. But the ads were just one issue. Over the course of Trump's second term, Noem emerged as one of Trump's most prominent senior officials, often attracting negative press attention and criticism from her own party's senators. After the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Preddy in Minnesota, some Republicans called for her to go. Her management of DHS personnel came under scrutiny too. In particular the role of her top advisor, Corey Lewandowski, who's also expected to leave dhs.

Michelle Hackman (3:56)

And he's sort of been her enforcer, her chief of staff. He's been a source of fear and frustration across the Department of Homeland Security.

Cecilia Ley (4:03)

The Journal and others have reported that the two were in a relationship. When she was asked about it during this week's hearing, she dismissed the question as, quote, tabloid garbage. But scrutiny of the pair has heightened this past year, especially over department spending

Michelle Hackman (4:19)

she spent $70 million on. It was a luxury 737 Max with a private room in back. And when this became public, it was sort of earmarke for high profile deportations. But it was something that actually Noam was using for her and her top advisor, Corey Lewandowski to just travel around the country.

Cecilia Ley (4:36)

Then there were announcements that raised significant security concerns, like the implementation of an airport policy where people without TSA PreCheck were permitted to keep their shoes on as they passed through security.

Michelle Hackman (4:49)

And those machines actually don't fully have the ability to scan shoes. And so she inadvertently created this new security gap in the system. That was something that the IG investigated and found. And when Kristi Noem's office heard about it, instead of actually addressing the problem, they basically forbade the findings of the IG from being released. They gave it a higher level of classification and fought us tooth and nail from publishing it.

Cecilia Ley (5:15)

Noem is being demoted to a new role that is part of a security initiative. Trump said he wants Republican Oklahoma Senator Mark Wayne Mullen to fill the role as head of dhs. And the change would be effective at the end of the month and Mullen would require Senate confirmation. Six days into so called Operation Epic Fury and the conflict in the Middle east keeps escalating and the death toll keeps rising. Late on Thursday and into the early hours of Friday, Israel unleashed a major bombardment in Lebanon, heard above the skies of Beir. The IDF targeted a Hezbollah stronghold after the Iran proxy group sent rockets into Israel. According to the Lebanese health ministry, over 100 people have been killed since Hezbollah entered the war late Sunday. Meanwhile, Iran continues to take heavy fire. The Washington Post reports satellite imagery showing extensive damage to Iran's missile production complex. And the Israelis say they've knocked out 80% of the country's air defenses. Speaking at a press conference yesterday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth dismissed concerns about possible shortages of munitions and said that firepower over Iran was, quote, about to surge dramatically.

Shakar Saman (6:41)

If you think you've seen something, just wait. The amount of combat power that's still flowing, that's still coming, that we'll be able to project over Iran is a multiples of what it currently is right now.

Cecilia Ley (6:51)

As Iranians endure more bombings, uncertainty looms over who will run the country next. President Trump wants to have a say on who that might be. Yesterday, he told Axios he has to be involved in the appointment of any successor, like he was with the leadership change in Venezuela this past week. Though, Trump's position on the matter has seemingly evolved. At first, after the initial strikes, he called for revolutionaries to seize their country.

Donald Trump (7:19)

When we are finished, take over your government, it will be yours to take. This will be probably your only chance

Cecilia Ley (7:27)

for generations later, he suggested a moderate from inside the government could be acceptable, showing little enthusiasm for the former shah's son who currently lives in the US

Donald Trump (7:38)

it would seem to me that somebody from within maybe would be more appropriate. I've said that.

Cecilia Ley (7:44)

But he also acknowledged that most of the people from within who he thinks could be suitable were now gone.

Donald Trump (7:50)

We had some in mind from that group that is dead, and now we have another group. They may be dead also.

Cecilia Ley (7:58)

One person Trump did take a hard line on yesterday was the man currently seen as the front runner, Ayatollah Khamenei's son, Moshtabah Khamenei. Trump said it would be unacceptable, but also conceded it was the most likely outcome. For now.

Parisa Hafezi (8:13)

In the complex political system of the Islamic Republic, major decisions are often made behind the scenes before any formal announcement.

Cecilia Ley (8:22)

Parisa Hafezi is the Iran bureau chief for Reuters. She told us that Mojtabak Khamenei has worked behind the scenes rather than holding an official position.

Parisa Hafezi (8:32)

He's young, in late 50s. He has always worked behind the scenes. He's one of the most influential people in the Islamic Republic.

Cecilia Ley (8:43)

But if a large body of clerics, the so called assembly of Experts, pick Moshe Bahmane, it could be seen as a message of defiance to the US and Israel and an attempt to show that the Harmony Hardline Revolutionary Guard was still in charge. Hafezi told us he is widely seen as skeptical of engagement with Western powers and committed to maintaining the ideological foundations of the Islamic Republic. But opting for Mojtaba could cause problems with the Iranian public.

Parisa Hafezi (9:11)

Many argue that installing the supreme leader's son would resemble dynastic succession, something that runs against the revolutionary ideals that toppled the monarchy in 1979.

Cecilia Ley (9:23)

Others could see it as an attempt to maintain a status quo rule that has brought severe economic pain and bloodshed.

Parisa Hafezi (9:30)

Mujaba's elevation could also fuel anger among Iranians who are already deeply frustrated with the political system and increasingly demand fundamental change.

Cecilia Ley (9:41)

Trump acknowledged this week that there was still the distinct possibility that Iran's successor will prove to be just as hardline and uncompromising as the late Ayatollah.

Donald Trump (9:52)

I guess the worst case would be we do this and then somebody takes over who's as bad as the previous person, right? That could happen. We don't want that to happen. It would probably be the worst. You go through this and then in five years you realize you put somebody in who was no better.

Cecilia Ley (10:17)

This weekend marks the start of Formula one, so we called up Apple News sports editor Shakar Saman to talk about what to expect on the grid in 2026.

Shakar Saman (10:27)

The season's kicking off in Australia and the big thing that we need to talk about is the rule changes every few years. F1 totally overhauls all of the regulations to kind of tighten the field together. Sometimes to change the style of racing. In this case it was to allow for new teams and new engine manufacturers to come in to kind of level the playing field in a way.

Cecilia Ley (10:49)

ESPN calls this year's changes the biggest in F1's history and chief among them are new engines, which will be radically different.

Shakar Saman (10:57)

The last time we had a major engine change in 2014, Mercedes came in and won like eight straight constructors world championships 2014, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, all the way through 21. Lewis Hamilton won seven world championships in that span, right, like they were dominant.

Cecilia Ley (11:12)

Simon says. Mercedes looks strong again this year, but the engine changes put things up for grabs and we don't really know what the pecking order will look like quite yet.

Shakar Saman (11:22)

We kind of have a rough idea after the preseason testing, then there are some things that might be going on in the background, right Like Ferrari with a driver lineup as strong as anyone in Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton and a car that while definitely does not seem to have the same top end talent as say, the Mercedes as far as the engine goes, has a couple of quirks and a couple tricks up its sleeve that might put these guys in position to win a bunch of races or win a championship.

Cecilia Ley (11:50)

As for what to watch out for, Simon says the mystery of it all is what makes this season so intriguing.

Shakar Saman (11:56)

I am excited for a total reset. I'm excited to not know what's going to happen. I have an idea of the teams I think that are best. It seems like Mercedes could be the favorite going to this year. It seems like Ferrari could be frisky. McLaren Red Bull have their ups and their downs, but the really truly exciting thing is the not knowing. It's the surprise. How often do you get that?

Cecilia Ley (12:18)

To get the latest Formula One updates from every race, you can tap sports in the Apple News app. And finally, a few other stories we're following. The Justice Department released FBI documents late yesterday describing several interviews with a woman who made an uncorroborated accusation against President Trump as part of their release of Epstein files. The FBI had already released documents describing the existence of the memos, but they said these pages had previously been withheld. The notes recounted 2019 FBI interviews with the woman who said she had been sexually assaulted by Epstein and Trump. The accusations date back to the 1980s, when she was a teenager, while the FBI interviewed her four times. The Justice Department's previous release included a summary of only one of the interviews, which was related to an accusation against Epstein. On Thursday, the department said those files had been incorrectly coded as duplicative and therefore were inadvertently not published, along with other investigative documents related to Epstein. In a statement on Thursday, the White House press secretary, Caroline Levitt, described the claims from the FBI interviews as, quote, completely baseless accusations backed by zero credible evidence. The Winter Paralympics in Milan Cortina are underway, where Team USA will be looking to secure medals in games like hockey and paranordic skiing. But much like the Winter Games that just wrapped up, a curling scandal has entered the conversation. Two stones that were set to be used in the wheelchair curling event that started Wednesday have been stolen. Olympic officials are investigating the theft and two backup stones are now in play. During the Olympic Games. Last month, a cheating scandal hung over the curling competition after multiple athletes were accused of what is known as a double touch violation and United Airlines is making a rule change that could make your next flight a little more peaceful. United announced it will ban passengers who don't wear headphones while playing audio from their devices. The airline had a similar rule in place already, but the newly toughened up language tells passengers they could be removed or denied boarding if they don't comply. So for anyone hoping to treat fellow passengers to their favorite playlist, you've been warned. You can find all these stories and more in the Apple News app. And if you're already listening in the news app right now, stick around for the latest episode of Apple News In Conversation this week, guest host Sam Sanders spoke to New Yorker staff writer Susan Glasser about the conflict in Iran and the limits of presidential powers. So they let a war go on

Michelle Hackman (15:12)

for two full days without the leadership of the Pentagon speaking to the American people again. I've watched decades of national security leaders in both parties in Washington.

Cecilia Ley (15:23)

This is not how it was supposed to work in America. If you're listening in the podcast app, you can follow Apple News in Conversation to find that episode or come back to the Apple News Today feed tomorrow. All new episodes of In Conversation will be available there on Saturdays, too. Enjoy the weekend, and I'll be back with the news on Monday.