Spokane County deputy killed in domestic call shootout; Vance blames Iran war for GOP losses
Plus, Jeffries bids for House speaker as Johnson steps aside and a House GOP leadership race begins, Alaska’s Senate race stays uncalled, Joshua Wong gets 10 years, NASA’s Swift telescope re-enters, and Google ties school search to AI access.
RUSH NEWSTREAMMorningRUSH Spokane County deputy killed in domestic call shootout; Vance blames Iran war for GOP losses Photo: Fox News 01Spokane County deputy killed, second critically hurt after domestic-call shootout
A Spokane County, Washington, sheriff’s deputy was killed and another was left in critical condition after deputies answering a domestic-violence call were met with gunfire at a home in Spangle. Authorities said the suspect also died. Outlet death counts vary as updates came in.
02Vance blames Iran war for GOP midterm losses; Trump says he would do it again as Iran reacts
Vice President JD Vance said the war with Iran was the reason Republicans lost in the midterms. President Trump acknowledged the war hurt Republicans at the ballot box but said he would not have handled Iran differently. Iranian officials cast the results as a rejection of the war; Iran’s supreme leader warned that U.S. hostility would not change with party shifts.
03Jeffries bids for House speaker as Johnson steps aside and a GOP leadership race opens
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries launched a bid for speaker after Democrats won the House. Speaker Mike Johnson said he will not seek to lead House Republicans in the minority. A race for the House GOP leader post is underway, with Jim Jordan and Steve Scalise among those seeking it. Jeffries was trending on X.
04Alaska Senate race remains uncalled as ranked-choice count continues
Alaska’s U.S. Senate race between Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan and Democrat Mary Peltola remains too close to call. Neither candidate has locked up a majority of first-choice votes, so ranked-choice tabulation may decide it. State officials have pointed to mid-November for fuller ranked tabulations as overseas and remaining ballots are counted.
05Hong Kong sentences activist Joshua Wong to 10 years in national-security case
A Hong Kong court sentenced pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong to 10 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to collude with foreign forces under a Beijing-imposed national security law. Wong, 30, is already serving a separate national-security sentence.
06NASA’s Swift telescope re-enters after failed rescue attempt
NASA’s Swift Observatory re-entered Earth’s atmosphere on Wednesday after about 22 years in orbit, ending a mission that tracked cosmic explosions. A private rescue attempt to boost its orbit failed earlier this year.
07Google to disable search for schools that turn off AI tools
Google said K-12 schools that disable its AI classroom tools will also lose Google Search in student accounts. The company framed the change as giving schools more control after backlash to AI defaults; critics called it pressure to accept AI. The story trended on Bluesky.