Hegseth Battles Dems on Capitol Hill, Showdown at SCOTUS, Artemis II Crew at WH: AM Update 4/30

Summary

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The Megyn Kelly Show – AM Update 4/30/26

Episode Theme:
This episode delivers a fast-paced “AM Update” covering major U.S. legal, political, and national security developments: the Supreme Court’s hearing on Temporary Protected Status for immigrants, a contentious congressional hearing with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth over the war in Iran, and President Trump’s White House celebration for the Artemis II moon mission crew.

Host Emily Jasinsky steers the segments, bringing in expert voices and clips from officials and President Trump.

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Supreme Court Showdown: The Fate of Temporary Protected Status

Segment Start: 02:36

• The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments regarding whether the Trump administration followed proper procedure in ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for immigrants from Haiti and Syria.

  • TPS Defined: Grants temporary legal status to foreign nationals from countries suffering severe crises (war, disaster, etc.).
  • Case Background:
    • Syria TPS: Initiated in 2012 due to the Assad regime’s crackdown; covers ~6,000 Syrians.
    • Haiti TPS: Initiated after the 2010 earthquake; covers ~350,000 Haitians.
  • Both were extended for years, until former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem sought to end the designations, arguing improved conditions.

• Legal Battle:

  • Lower courts blocked the administration, citing procedural lapses under federal administrative law.
  • Solicitor General John Sauer, arguing for the government, claimed federal law completely shields DHS’s TPS decisions from judicial review—even concerning procedural steps.
  • Attorneys for immigrants argue that while courts can’t review the substance of TPS decisions, they can ensure proper process was followed.

• Key Quotes:

  • “The provision thus bars judicial review of both the secretary's ultimate decision whether to designate, extend or terminate, and of each antecedent step along the way to that determination.”
    — President Donald Trump quote read by Emily Jasinsky [04:53]
  • “Would you be kind enough to say what else is reviewable under [the law] despite the jurisdiction stripping provision? Because it seems pretty broad. ... Determination is a very broad word.”
    — Unnamed Supreme Court Justice [05:22]
  • “If it's just kind of a box checking exercise, why would Congress permit review of the procedural aspect, when really what everybody cares about much more is the substance?”
    — Legal Analyst [05:58]

• Racial Motivation Allegations:

  • The Haitian plaintiffs claim the policy shift was racially motivated, referencing statements by President Trump and Secretary Noem.
  • Justice Kagan is skeptical: “The injection of this racial component ... I don't quite see how that operates.” [06:32]

• Expert Analysis (Andrew Arthur, Center for Immigration Studies):

  • “What this comes down to is this is a temporary protection ... yet immigrants advocates have managed to turn it into a quasi permanent form of protection by challenging every determination that the Trump administration has made.” [07:03]
  • On race claims: “The argument basically goes as follows ... TPS is based upon the idea that Haiti is temporarily a bad place, and therefore it almost defeats their argument to bring up the fact that the President has talked about issues in Haiti.” [08:03]
  • Prediction on outcome: The Supreme Court will likely uphold the administration’s actions and send a clear message to lower courts about Congressional intent regarding judicial review. [08:59]

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Capitol Hill Clash: War in Iran and Pentagon Budget

Segment Start: 11:35

• Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, the acting Pentagon comptroller, and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff faced the House Armed Services Committee. Lawmakers grilled them over the cost, progress, and strategy of the ongoing war with Iran (Operation Epic Fury).

  • The Pentagon requests $1.45 trillion for 2027; wartime costs so far: $25 billion.

• Committee Concerns

  • Chairman Mike Rogers warned America’s defense spending and capacity are lagging adversaries, citing shipbuilding and supply chain reliance on potential enemies.
    “China builds 47% of the world's ships. The US builds 1/10 of 1%.” [12:24]

• Fiery Exchanges:

  • Hegseth lambasted critics:
    “The biggest challenge ... are the reckless, feckless and defeatist words of congressional Democrats and some Republicans. Two months in, I remind you ... this is an existential fight. Iran cannot have a nuclear bomb. We are proud of this undertaking.” [13:24]

  • Heated back-and-forth with Democrats, especially Adam Smith and John Garamendi:

    • Decrying Hegseth and Trump’s public claims as misleading.
    • “You have been lying to the American public about this war from day one and so has the president.” — Rep. John Garamendi [15:18]
    • Hegseth fired back:
      “Don't say I support the troops on one hand and then a two month mission is a quagmire. That's a false equivalent. Who you cheering for here?” [15:43]

• Public Sentiment:

  • Support for the war is slipping: Reuters poll shows only 34% approve of the conflict (down from 38%). President Trump responds with bravado on social media, posting an AI-generated action image of himself with the text “no more Mr. Nice Guy.” [16:09]
  • Ongoing diplomatic wrangling: Iran offers to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and postpone nuclear talks; Secretary of State Rubio rejects the plan, highlighting nuclear issues as the paramount concern.

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White House Spotlight: Artemis II Crew and UFO Disclosure Tease

Segment Start: 17:49

• President Trump welcomed the Artemis II astronauts back from their successful mission around the moon.

  • Warm, congratulatory remarks to the crew:
    “It takes people like this to make our country great. ... They have unbelievable courage.” [18:04]
  • Trump jokes about his own fitness for space:
    “Maybe a little bit of a problem. ... Is a president allowed to go up in one of these missions?” [18:04]

• Briefly, Trump teased forthcoming disclosure on UFO sightings, referencing interviews with credible pilots:

  • “I think we're going to be releasing as much as we can in the near future ... people ... want to find out about the UFOs ... I think some of it's going to be very interesting to people.” [18:56]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On Judicial Review of TPS

• “This is a pretty straightforward statute. Congress plainly intended that there wouldn't be any judicial review.”
  — Andrew Arthur [07:03]

On the War in Iran Debate

• “The biggest challenge, the biggest adversary we face at this point are the reckless, feckless and defeatist words of congressional Democrats and some Republicans.”
  — Pete Hegseth [13:24]
• “You have been lying to the American public about this war from day one and so has the president.”
  — Rep. John Garamendi [15:18]

On Artemis II & National Pride

• “It takes people like this to make our country great. ... We're very proud of these people.”
  — President Trump [18:04]

On UFO Disclosure

• “You're going to be reading about it.”
  — President Trump, promising imminent information releases [18:56]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 02:36 – Supreme Court hears TPS arguments
• 07:03 – Andrew Arthur criticizes judicial intervention
• 11:35 – Congressional hearing on Iran war budget
• 13:24 – Hegseth’s sharp rebuke to war critics
• 15:18 – Rep. Garamendi accuses administration of lying
• 17:49 – Artemis II crew welcomed at the White House
• 18:56 – Trump hints at coming UFO disclosures

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Summary curated with direct quotes and analysis to keep the brisk, no-nonsense tone of The Megyn Kelly Show. All critical content preserved; promotional and non-content sections omitted.

Transcript

[Supreme Court Justice]

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[Emily Jasinsky]

Good morning everyone. I'm Emily Jasinsky, host of Afterparty and the Megyn Kelly Wrap up show on Sirius XM channel 111. It's Thursday, April 30, 2026, and this is your AM update.

[Legal Analyst/Commentator]

Why would Congress permit review of the procedural aspect, when really what everybody cares about much more is the substance?

[Emily Jasinsky]

The Supreme Court weighing whether the Trump administration can end temporary protected status for hundreds of thousands of migran underground.

[Secretary of War Pete Hegseth]

They're buried and watching 247 so we know where any nuclear material Reclaiming my

[Emily Jasinsky]

time Secretary of War Pete Hegseth in a fiery Hill hearing offering lawmakers their first opportunity to publicly question the secretary on the ongoing war with Iran, and a White House welcome for the Artemis 2 crew after their successful mission around the moon. All that and more coming up in just a moment on your AM update.

[Legal Analyst/Commentator]

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[Emily Jasinsky]

The US Supreme Court hearing oral arguments yesterday considering whether the Trump administration properly revoked temporary protected status of Syrian and Haitian immigrants. Temporary protected Status or TPS claim grants certain foreign nationals the legal right to live and work in the US Avoiding deportation if their home country faces war, natural disaster or extreme circumstances. TPS issued for set periods, but can be renewed as it reaches expiration. If the government does not announce whether it will extend or end a designation at least 60 days before it expires, the status is automatically extended for an additional six months. Yesterday's arguments centering on the status of immigrants from two countries, Syria and Haiti. Syrians originally granted TPS in 2012 under then DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano due to a brutal crackdown waged by dictator Bashar al Assad. The status continually renewed, providing about 6,000 Syrians with legal status in the U.S. haiti granted TPS in 2010 following a devastating earthquake that killed hundreds of thousands of people and caused major damage throughout the country. That status, too, renewed regularly in the years since. Approximately 350,000 Haitians in the US are here under TPS. Last year, former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem moving to end temporary protected status for Haiti and Syria, arguing conditions in each country had improved and that continuing the program was no longer in the national interest. Haitian nationals then filing suit in Washington, D.C. while a group of Syrians challenged the move in New York. In both cases, federal judges blocked the Trump administration from ending the protections, finding the decisions likely violated federal administrative law, with appeals courts citing against the administration. Trump's DOJ taking both cases to the Supreme Court. In yesterday's oral arguments, Solicitor General John Sauer arguing for the government, attorney Jeff Pipoli arguing for the Haitians and Alian T Arulin Otham arguing for the Syrians, Sauer arguing the law shields the DHS secretary's TPS decisions from court review entirely, including the steps leading up to them.

[President Donald Trump]

The provision thus bars judicial review of

[Emily Jasinsky]

both the secretary's ultimate decision whether to designate, extend or terminate, and of each antecedent step along the way to that determination. Both challengers agreed that federal law prevents courts from second guessing the merits of a TPS decision, but they argue the administration failed to follow the required consultation process before trying to end the program. Conservative Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Amy Coney Barrett pressing that position.

[Supreme Court Justice]

Would you be kind enough to say what else is reviewable under despite the jurisdiction stripping provision? Because it seems pretty broad. It says there is no judicial review of any determination of the Attorney General. We have to say, look, determination is a very broad word.

[Andrew Arthur]

It's used all the time by in

[Supreme Court Justice]

many different statutory provisions.

[Andrew Arthur]

It's used all the time by this court. If we apply ordinary meaning of that term here, I really don't understand how you can prevail.

[Legal Analyst/Commentator]

I mean, if it's just kind of a box checking exercise, I mean, why would Congress permit review of the procedural aspect when really what everybody cares about much more is the substance?

[Emily Jasinsky]

The lawyer for the Haitians also arguing race was a driving factor in ending TPS for the country. Liberal Justice Elena Kagan questioning how that component fits into this case. You can argue that there was just like, across the board, we have to get rid of all these tps and the statutory requirements weren't followed and, and all of that, but the injection of this racial component into it, I guess

[Secretary of War Pete Hegseth]

I don't quite see how that operates.

[Emily Jasinsky]

When all of these programs went. The lawyer pointing to statements from President Trump and former Secretary Noem and contrasting them with policies favoring white migrants, arguing that pattern shows the decision was driven by racial bias. A decision is expected by early July. We spoke with the center for Immigration Studies fellow in Law and Policy Andrew Arthur, who says this is a clear cut case and the government is right.

[Andrew Arthur]

What this comes down to is this is a temporary protection. The word temporary appears 42 different times in the statute, and yet immigrants advocates have managed to turn it into a quasi permanent form of protection by challenging every determination that the Trump administration has made attempting to end temporary protected status regardless of the country. You know, this is a pretty straightforward statute. Congress plainly intended that there wouldn't be any judicial review. And unfortunately, it's reflective of the highly politicized times in which we live that district court judges think that they have the ability, let alone the obligation, to interpose themselves in political decisions that Congress has placed outside of their jurisdiction.

[Emily Jasinsky]

As for the Haitian plaintiff's claims that race factored into the decision, Arthur points out a flaw in that argument.

[Andrew Arthur]

They're going back to statements that President Trump has made in the past, denigrating statements about Haiti generally in order to say that improper racial animus has weighed into this decision. But the argument basically goes as follows. One, the President has said that, you know, Haiti is a bad place. TPS is based upon the idea that Haiti is temporarily a bad place, and therefore it almost defeats their argument to bring up the fact that the President has talked about issues in Haiti. So, you know, it may almost be too cute by half to make the argument, but in the public sphere, it's probably the most compelling argument that they could make. I just don't think it's a valid one.

[Emily Jasinsky]

On the bigger picture, Arthur predicts the justices will side with the Trump administration using this case to send a broader message to the lower courts about their role.

[Andrew Arthur]

One of the issues that the Roberts Court has contended with as long as Donald Trump has been president is immigrants advocates who have used the courts as a way to stymie the president's political decisions. And I think that the Roberts Court wants to send a message to the inferior courts, the district and the circuit courts, that when Congress says there is no review or that certain things aren't reviewable or aren't reviewable at the district court level, the Congress means what it says so that the Supreme Court doesn't have to continually return to the issue to, you know, tell inferior courts that they don't have jurisdiction or that they've gone too far. This court wants to get itself out of political questions.

[Emily Jasinsky]

Coming up, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth clashing with lawmakers on the Hill over the war in Iran. And President Trump hosts the Artemis 2 crew at the White House following their successful mission around the moon.

[Legal Analyst/Commentator]

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[Emily Jasinsky]

Secretary of War Pete Hagse, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Raisin Cain and acting Pentagon Comptroller Jules Hurst appearing in front of the House Armed Services Committee yesterday on the Pentagon's 2027 budget request. The hearing presenting the first opportunity for lawmakers to publicly question the officials since the beginning of Operation Epic Fury in Iran. Hearst testifying that the estimated cost of the war with Iran so far is $25 billion, with most expenditures covering munitions maintenance and equipment replacements. The Pentagon requesting a budget of $1.45 trillion for the fiscal year 2027, the largest ever request from the department. In his opening statement, Chairman Mike Rogers, Republican from Alabama, warning America is not keeping pace with its adversaries.

[Supreme Court Justice]

All of our adversaries are spending more of their GDP on defense than we are. Meanwhile, our defense spending as a percentage of GDP has been steadily falling since World War II. Our defense industrial base, long the envy of the world, has atrophied significantly. We're no longer capable of manufacturing for our war fighters at scale or speed. Just look at shipbuilding. China builds 47% of the world's ships. The US builds 1/10 of 1%. Our global munition stockpiles are low and we lack the capacity to rapidly restock magazine depth. Many of our defense supply chains are reliant on the very adversaries we seek to determine.

[Emily Jasinsky]

Much of the hearing focusing on US military action against Iran. Democrats and Secretary Hykseth clashing often on the financial toll, domestic impact and end goals of the mission. Secretary Hykseth blasting critics in Congress.

[Secretary of War Pete Hegseth]

President Trump, unlike other presidents, has had the courage to ensure Iran never gets a nuclear weapon, and he's ironclad in that we have the best negotiator in the world driving that deal. The biggest challenge, the biggest adversary we face at this point are the reckless, feckless and defeatist words of congressional Democrats and some Republicans. Two months in, I remind you, two months in to a conflict, lest I remind you and my generation understands how long we were in Iraq, how long we were in Afghanistan, how long we were in Vietnam. Two months in on an existential fight for the safety of the American people. Iran cannot have a nuclear bomb. We are proud of this undertaking.

[Emily Jasinsky]

Ranking member of the committee, Adam Smith, Democrat from Washington, and the secretary in

[Secretary of War Pete Hegseth]

a heated exchange, you have to stare down this kind of enemy who's hell bent on getting a nuclear weapon and get them to a point where they're at the table giving it up in a way that so they have it. So they haven't broken yet. Okay. We haven't gotten there yet for all of the well, their nuclear facilities have been obliterated underground. They're buried and watching 247 so we know where any nuclear material. Reclaiming my time. We're watching a second here. We had to start this war, you just said 60 days ago because the nuclear weapon was an imminent threat. Now you're saying that it was completely obliterated. Not given up their nuclear ambitions and they had a conventional shield of so Operation Midnight hit work. Nothing of substance. It left us at the same place we were before. So much so their facilities were bombed and obliterated. Their ambitions continued.

[Emily Jasinsky]

Democrat Congressman John Garamendi of California accusing the secretary of lying about the war.

[President Donald Trump]

Secretary, hesitate. You have been lying to the American public about this war from day one and so has the president. You have misled the public about why we are at war. You've misled the public about the progress of the war. The strategy has been an astounding incompetence. The president has got himself and America stuck in the quagmire of another war in the Middle East.

[Secretary of War Pete Hegseth]

When I said reckless, feckless and defeatist of congressional Democrats at the beginning, that came after watching you say the same thing on CNN this morning. A quagmire. Don't say I support the troops on one hand and then a two month mission is a quagmire. That's a false equivalent. Who you cheering for here? Who you pulling for? I know the American people support that mission despite your loose talk and words like quagmire.

[Emily Jasinsky]

Polling consistently shows declining support for the war. According to a survey from Reuters released Tuesday, just 34% of Americans approve of the U.S. conflict with Iran, down from 38% in mid March. The hearing comes hours after President Trump posted an AI image to Truth Social featuring a version of himself wearing sunglasses, carrying a machine gun, walking away from explosions in the background. Text on the image reading no more Mr. Nice Guy. Mr. Trump writing Iran can't get their act together. They don't know how to sign a non nuclear deal. They better get smart soon. On Sunday, Axios reporting the Iranians presenting the US With a new plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and postpone nuclear talks until a later date. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday rejecting the idea on its face, telling Fox News Iran's nuclear program is the reason why we're in this in the first place. That fundamental issue still has to be confronted. That still remains the core issue here. From the Oval Office yesterday, President Trump saying talks are continuing via phone.

[President Donald Trump]

They make a call or I have my people make a call and you know the answer. It fits. I always like face to face. You know, I consider it better. But when you have to fly 18 hours every time you want to have a meeting and you know what the meeting is all about, and you know they're going to give you a piece of paper that you don't like before you even leave, it's ridiculous. They've come a long way. The question is whether or not they're going to go far enough. So at this moment, there will never be a deal unless they agree that there will be no nuclear weapons.

[Emily Jasinsky]

President Trump welcoming the Artemis II crew to the White House yesterday following their successful mission around the moon and back, landing safely in the Pacific Ocean earlier this month. President Trump congratulating astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen.

[President Donald Trump]

It takes people like this to make our country great. And again, I've never seen anything. Everybody I knew, they wanted to see the launch and they especially wanted to see a successful landing. We're very proud of these people. They have unbelievable courage. Unbelievable. A lot of other things, too, by the way. To get in there, you have to be very smart. You have to do a lot of things physically good. So I would have had no trouble making it. And physically, very, very good. Maybe a little bit of a problem. No, no, no, Sheriff, we'll have to try it sometime. Is a president allowed to go up in one of the. These missions?

[Emily Jasinsky]

We can get working on them.

[President Donald Trump]

We have no problem, right?

[Secretary of War Pete Hegseth]

We're gonna launch more rockets.

[Emily Jasinsky]

The opportunity.

[President Donald Trump]

We'll have to try it.

[Emily Jasinsky]

Congratulations very much on a separate but possibly related point. One reporter asking about a timeline on the release of more information about UFOs.

[President Donald Trump]

Well, I think we're going to be releasing as much as we can in the near future for some reason, and I guess it's just a reason been in the minds of people for a long time that is such they want to find out about the UFOs and anything having to do with UFO or related material. And we're going to be releasing a lot of things from that we have. And I think some of it's going to be very interesting to people. I've, I've interviewed people my first term primarily, but I interviewed some pilots, very solid people, and, and they said they saw things that you wouldn't believe. So you're going to be reading about it.

[Emily Jasinsky]

Disclosure day. Incoming. That'll do it. For your AM Update, I'm Emily Jasinsky, host of Afterparty. Catch the Megyn Kelly show live on SiriusXM, the Megyn Kelly Channel 111 at noon east on YouTube.com Megyn Kelly and all podcast platforms.

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[Emily Jasinsky]

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