The U.S. Supreme Court has issued a significant ruling affecting how veterans’ disability claims are reviewed by federal courts. In the case Bufkin v. Collins, the Court decided, by a 7-2 majority, that appellate courts are not required to independently reassess how the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) applies the “benefit-of-the-doubt” rule when evaluating disability claims.
This decision has wide-reaching implications for both veterans and legal professionals, especially in how disability appeals are handled through the federal judicial system.The Role of the Benefit-of-the-Doubt Rule
The benefit-of-the-doubt standard is a key component in the VA’s process for evaluating disability claims. It requires that when the evidence for and against a veteran’s claim is evenly balanced, any uncertainty should be resolved in favor of the veteran.
This principle exists to help veterans who may face difficulties in proving service-related health conditions, often due to limited or inconclusive medical documentation from their time in service.
Prayer Vigil Set for 6-Year-Old Boy Battling Cancer
A prayer vigil will take place on July 21 at Monticello Baptist Church in Georgia. The event honors 6-year-old Axyl, who faces a non-treatable form of ca**er.
Rapid Spread and Hospice Care
Axyl’s cancer quickly spread from his brain to the rest of his body within weeks. Doctors have given him only weeks to a few months to live. Now, his family is bringing him home from the hospital to receive hospice care. There, he will be surrounded by loved ones and comforted during his final days.
Family’s Heartfelt Message
Axyl’s mother, Augusta Womack, shared their heartbreaking journey through a GoFundMe campaign. She wrote, “No kid should ever have to go through this. There is nothing else they can do but make him comfortable now. Yes, he’s in pain, but they are doing what’s best for him.”
Community Support and Compassion
Reporter Kaitlyn Ross of WXIA-TV described Axyl as a jokester with a sparkle in his eyes and an unforgettable smile. The family asks for continued compassion and space as they navigate this unimaginable time.
Remembering Axyl’s Spirit
Despite the devastating diagnosis, Axyl remains his silly self, Womack shared. “If you ever met Axyl, you’d know what a cool little dude he is,” she said. “He will be greatly missed. It’s hard to wrap your head around this—wrap your arms around our family and remember our sweet Axyl.”
A Community Coming Together
The vigil offers a moment for friends, neighbors, and strangers to support Axyl’s family with prayers and kindness. Monticello Baptist Church has yet to comment on the event.
A new poll puts Donald Trump in second place among 21st-century US presidents, just behind Barack Obama. He came in ahead of both George W Bush and Joe Biden.
The poll came from Quantus Insights and surveyed 1,000 registered voters between June 30 and July 2. Obama got 47 percent, Trump had 37, Bush landed at 12, and Biden only got 4 percent.
Obama led among women, Black voters, college grads, and people under 30. In fact, 85 percent of Democrats said he was their favorite president of the century.
The poll was run by a group connected with a right-leaning site and has gotten praise for its accuracy in past swing state results. Newsweek also mentioned they made a top 20 list last year for valuable polling firms.
Trump’s support came mostly from Republicans and older rural voters. Among Republicans, 75 percent picked him, while only 8 percent chose Obama.
Seniors also leaned toward Trump, with 50 percent saying he was their pick compared to 36 percent for Obama. Among white voters, the numbers were close, with Trump at 43 percent and Obama at 41.
Men were split too, with Trump just ahead at 43 percent versus Obama’s 40. But women leaned heavily toward Obama.
Trump got solid support from non-college voters at 39 percent and was only 11 points behind Obama with independents, 33 to 44. That gap might not seem huge for a group that tends to swing.
Even with his high ranking in the historical poll, Trump’s current approval numbers are lower. The same group gave him a net approval rating of -2.
That might have to do with recent moves like the Liberation Day tariffs, military action in Los Angeles, and airstrikes in Iran. Those were major decisions that got a lot of criticism.
Other polls like CNN/SSRS and Reuters/Ipsos said Americans were uneasy after the Iran strikes. His approval rating in June stayed mostly steady at 41 percent, but his foreign policy numbers dropped to 35.
The New York Times pointed out that drops like that aren’t unheard of. Still, it’s not great timing for someone trying to keep momentum.
Jason Corley told the news that “Voters distinguish between past leadership identity and current performance judgments.”
He said: “Favorability is rooted in identity politics, grievance alignment, and movement loyalty,” but approval ratings respond more to whatever is happening now.
Corley also said: “This is not mere partisanship. It reflects a deeper loss of faith in national direction, shared across ideological lines.” He added that the biggest pessimism is showing up among rural Americans and older voters, who are still the core of Trump’s base.
It was a heartfelt day on the set of Live with Kelly and Mark, as the beloved daytime show recorded its final episode at its longtime Upper West Side studio before relocating to a new home downtown. The last episode was recorded in the old studio on April 1.
For 37 years, 7 Lincoln Square — located at 67th Street and Columbus Avenue — served as the iconic backdrop for the show. Over the decades, it’s been home to a rotating cast of beloved hosts, beginning with Regis Philbin and Kathie Lee Gifford.
Kelly Ripa joined the show in 2001 and has remained a constant presence through various co-host changes, including Michael Strahan and Ryan Seacrest following Philbin’s departure in 2011. She now shares hosting duties with her husband, Mark Consuelos, who officially joined the show in April 2023.
Although Consuelos is a more recent addition to the co-host lineup, the couple told PEOPLE that the studio holds deep sentimental value for them, marking the end of an era and the beginning of a new chapter.
“Our kids grew up here,” Consuelos told PEOPLE. “They’d come visit mom here a lot — they were always backstage, even when they were babies.”
Ripa and Consuelos, both 54, are proud parents to three children: Michael, 27, Lola, 23, and Joaquin, 22.
“You have to remember, I had my kids back in a time when maternity leave was not really a thing; we didn’t really know how to negotiate that or navigate that,” she said. “But the good news is you could bring your kids to work with you. And because they’re very mindful of our hours here — as it is a live morning television show — I was able to be a full-time working woman and a full-time mother simultaneously, which is a very rare thing and not something I take for granted at all.”
The Live studio holds an even deeper significance for Ripa and Consuelos—it played a role in bringing them back together. In 1996, before they were married, the couple had broken up. Just days later, both were scheduled to appear on Live with Regis and Kathie Lee as surprise guests for a Mother’s Day segment honoring an All My Children fan.
Even though they each tried to back out, they both ended up on stage. That unexpected reunion made them realize they had made a mistake. The encounter rekindled their relationship, and the very next day, Consuelos proposed. They flew to Las Vegas and got married.
Live with Kelly and Mark is among the final ABC programs to transition to 7 Hudson Square, the Walt Disney Company’s newly established New York City headquarters per PEOPLE.
Known as The Robert A. Iger Building, the modern facility features several studios, with The View and The Tamron Hall Show already settled into their new spaces. ABC’s other major New York production, Good Morning America, is also slated to relocate there by year’s end.
In a heartbreaking incident that has left a community in shock, a 5-month-old baby was critically injured after being struck by a stray bullet. The tragedy has reignited discussions about gun violence and public safety, with many demanding stricter measures to prevent such senseless acts.
What Happened?
According to authorities, the infant was at home with family when a gunfight erupted nearby. A stray bullet pierced through the walls of the residence, striking the baby. Emergency responders rushed the child to the hospital, where they remain in critical condition.
Witnesses reported hearing multiple gunshots before the incident, suggesting an ongoing dispute in the area. Police have launched an investigation but have yet to make any arrests.
Community Reaction
The incident has sparked outrage among local residents, with many calling for immediate action to curb gun violence.
Viewers tuned in expecting their usual dose of coffee, smiles, and weather updates—but instead, they witnessed something few will ever forget. At exactly 8:13 a.m., beloved TODAY Show personality Al Roker collapsed mid-sentence during a weather segment. The cameras quickly cut away, but the panic on set was unmistakable.
According to production insiders, Roker had just returned from a brief break in the Bahamas and seemed upbeat before the show. But halfway through his segment, witnesses say he stumbled, clutched the edge of the desk, and went down.
“He looked like he was trying to push through it,” one crew member revealed. “But his knees buckled. We knew something was wrong instantly.”
Medics were reportedly called immediately. Al was taken backstage where he remained conscious but disoriented, sources say. While NBC has not confirmed whether he was hospitalized, several outlets have reported that EMTs were seen leaving 30 Rockefeller Plaza shortly after.
President Donald Trump’s first daughter, Ivanka Trump, delighted her fans on X (formerly Twitter) with a touching new video of her son, Theodore “Theo” Kushner, spending a memorable time with his grandfather inside the White House.
President Trump says, “You’re good,” in a proud, grandfatherly tone, as he puts a hand on his grandson’s shoulder and smiles as Theo finishes his piece. The straightforward, sincere conversation swiftly won over hearts on social media, with many people complimenting the former president and his grandson on their lovely relationship.
Only a few months before his grandfather’s victory in the 2016 presidential election, Theodore James Kushner was born in March of that year. As a senior advisor in her father’s administration, Ivanka has frequently discussed the significance of striking a balance between her public responsibilities and her role as a mother to Arabella, Joseph, and Theo.
Events like this serve as a reminder to the public of the Trump family’s close familial ties behind the scenes, even though they have frequently made headlines for political reasons. Well-wishers poured their best wishes into Ivanka’s post’s comments section, describing the video as “adorable,” “precious,” and “a beautiful moment in American history.”
Ivanka, who has mostly distanced herself from public politics in recent years to prioritize her family, occasionally posts updates about her kids, frequently emphasizing their accomplishments in school, outdoor activities, and musical interests.
The terrifying implication is that you and everything in the circles will be completely engulfed by enormous humpback whales.
This is because it’s their unique hunting technique, as a commenter pointed out: “This is called Bubble Net Feeding, a hunting technique used by whales. They blow bubbles as they spiral around fish, trapping them in a tightening circle. Then they surge from below to gorge on them.”
Another wrote, “Those are humpback whales, I think – they are lunge feeders.”
According to the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, a pod of whales use a cooperative hunting technique called bubble net feeding.
Each whale uses a great deal of intellect, collaboration, and communication in the highly synchronised orchestration.
In essence, it happens when whales dive far beneath schools of fish, then use their blowholes to shock and catch the fish as they approach the water’s surface.
They can then swim in spiral patterns to keep the fish trapped so they can swoop up and consume it.
According to the website, humpback whales are referred to as “gulpers” because they eat by opening their lips wide and taking in as much food as they can before shutting them.
The trapped fish will then be swallowed after they use their baleen plates to force the water out of their mouths.
Before you could even consider what was happening, you would be swallowed whole if you were in the circle.
Those who watched the movie experienced a frightening realisation about swimming at sea.
One individual declared that they would prefer to be consumed by a whale over a shark.
Fortunately, if a person accidentally swallows a whale, the whale will spit them out.
They wrote, “If I’m out in that water and see bubbles around me, I’m going to hope it’s a humpback whale because I would 100% rather end up in that thing’s ginormous toothless mouth-gullet than be chomped by a great white’s 87,000 teeth!”
According to two additional people, the video would give them nightmares.
The first wrote, “Nightmare fuel, wow Good for them, but eeeeeeeeeeek.”
Another said, “Imagine that at night. Yeah that’s nightmarefuel.”
Someone else wrote, “I mean it’s not that big a deal. They’ll spit you out. Eventually.”
One person commented, “That’s always my biggest thing. Like sure they’ll spit you out… 100m under water where you’ll instantly get crushed like an aluminum can in the pitch black.”
In any case. I’m leaving if I see bubbles.
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The appalling conditions of El Salvador’s maximum security jail were recalled by a man who was sent to the “worst prison on Earth.”
Under President Nayib Bukele’s government, the Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo (CECOT) formally inaugurated in 2023 in an effort to combat gang violence.
The most dangerous criminals in the nation are housed in this Tecoluca facility, which is regarded as one of the safest in the world and can house 40,000 people.
The compound is well guarded with 19 towers, and detainees are constantly monitored by a security crew.
In an effort to remove gang members, including Americans, from the streets, the Trump administration detained 250 Venezuelan males, including Arturo Suarez.
However, according to his family, the 34-year-old has never been convicted of a crime in the four nations where he has resided.
In March, immigration officials detained Suarez, an aspiring singer, when he was in North Carolina filming a music video.
Citing Suarez’s 33 tattoos, authorities claimed he was a member of the Tren de Aragua gang.
Arturo Suarez is freed from CECOT after nearly five months
Suarez was released through a prisoner swap with ten U.S. citizens and permanent residents who had been imprisoned in Venezuela after over five months.
“We were constantly beaten,” he told Sky News. “We suffered physical, verbal, and psychological abuse.”
“There wasn’t a day the wardens didn’t tell us that the only way we’d leave that place was if we were dead. In fact, the first words the head of the prison said to us after the first beating was ‘welcome to hell’.”
19 men sleep in one cell
“We were sleeping 19 people to a cell,” he said, adding that ‘if we spoke loudly, they would take away our mattresses, if they found us bathing more than once a day, they’d take away the mattresses from us’.
“The punishment was severe. It was beatings and humiliations and they took away our food,” he explained.
“I remember we were exercising and a cellmate, very politely, asked the prison head if we could bathe a second time that day, since we were doing exercise.”
“His words were ‘that’s your problem, it’s not my problem if you exercise’. We were also made to eat with our hands.”
“They tried to take our humanity away from us. They tried to make us lose everything.”
Suarez’s wife, Nathali, and their 10-month-old baby, Nahiara, reside in Chile, therefore his family in Venezuela is currently providing for him.
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