China enters Iran talks as diplomacy grows; Trump refuses apology to pope
Peace talks widen as China steps in alongside the U.S. and Iran. Both sides remain split Tuesday morning on limits to Iran’s nuclear program.
Plus, Rep. Eric Swalwell resigns from Congress after multiple misconduct accusations. And he’s not the only lawmaker leaving office Tuesday.
And Camp Mystic moves to reopen after the flood that killed 27 people last year, as families continue pressing for answers in court.
These stories and more highlight your Unbiased Updates for Tuesday, April 14, 2026.
Nations move to broker Iran deal before ceasefire ends
Diplomatic efforts are intensifying as the U.S. continues to block the Strait of Hormuz. Multiple countries are now stepping in, trying to jumpstart talks before the current ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran runs out.
China is openly pushing back on the U.S. blockade. A foreign ministry spokesperson called it “dangerous and irresponsible.”
President Xi Jinping said Beijing will play what he calls a “constructive role,” laying out a four-point plan focused on sovereignty, security and regional stability.
Pakistan is also moving to host another round of talks between the U.S. and Iran before the ceasefire expires next week. The first round in Islamabad ran 21 hours and ended without a deal.
Vice President JD Vance said there was some progress, but Iran has still not agreed to give up its nuclear program.
“The president of the United States has said he would be very happy if Iran was treated like a normal country, if it had a normal economy, if its people were able to prosper and thrive. But in order for Iran to be a normal country economically, it’s going to have to be a normal country from the perspective of not pursuing a nuclear weapon. And it’s going to have to be a normal country from not pursuing terrorism.”
— Vice President JD Vance
The U.S. has proposed a long-term pause on uranium enrichment, reportedly for at least 20 years. The New York Times reported Iran countered with a shorter window, up to five years, and that offer was rejected.
Meanwhile, oil prices are easing as markets await signs that these talks could move forward. U.S. crude fell about 1.7% early Tuesday to around $97 a barrel. Brent crude dropped just under 1% to about $98.
Rep. Eric Swalwell resigns from Congress after sexual assault allegations
Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., announced his resignation from Congress following allegations of sexual misconduct by at least four women, including former staffers. The decision comes just days after the allegations first surfaced last week.
Swalwell has denied any wrongdoing, but dropped his bid for California governor on Sunday. Now, after growing calls from lawmakers in both parties to step down, he said he will give up his House seat.
“Expelling anyone in Congress without due process is wrong. But it’s also wrong for my constituents to have me distracted from my duties,” Swalwell said.
Not long before that announcement, his longtime ally, Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., publicly called on him to step down.
In a statement, Gallego wrote, “I trusted someone WHO I believed was a friend, but it is now clear that he is not the person I thought I knew.”
In a post late last night, FBI director Kash Patel jumped in, writing that Swalwell “has maintained that none of the allegations against him are true, and now that he’s resigned, we would welcome him to sit down with the FBI and share any information he has.”
Attorney Lisa Bloom said a Swalwell accuser will hold a press conference Tuesday morning in Beverly Hills.
Rep. Tony Gonzales resigns from Congress as expulsion vote looms
Another member of Congress is stepping down, and this one plans to make it official Tuesday.
Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, said he will resign from the House when Congress returns Tuesday morning, after weeks of pressure from both parties. He had already said he wouldn’t run for reelection after admitting to an affair with a staff member — a violation of House rules.
Gonzales was under investigation by the House Ethics Committee and facing a possible expulsion vote later this week. Instead, he announced on social media he would “file my retirement from office,” calling it a privilege to serve Texas.
The staff member involved later died by suicide.
It’s not yet clear exactly when Gonzales’ resignation will take effect.
Trump refuses to apologize to Pope Leo, defends Iran stance after Vatican criticism
Trump is refusing to apologize to Pope Leo XIV, doubling down on his criticism of the pontiff’s opposition to the war in Iran.
The president said he’s responding to the pope speaking out first, arguing his approach is about preventing a nuclear-armed Iran.
The dispute grew after Trump posted — and then deleted — an image of himself in a robe, laying hands on a sick man. The image drew backlash from religious and political figures, including conservative Christians who called it blasphemous.
Trump dismissed that criticism.
“I did post it, and I thought it was me as a doctor and had to do with the Red Cross, as a Red Cross worker there, which we support,” Trump said. “And only the fake news could come up with that ONE. So I had just heard about it. And I said, ‘How did they come up with that?’ It’s supposed to be me as a doctor making people better. And I do make people better, I make people a lot better.”
Vice President JD Vance called the post a joke and said it was taken down after people didn’t see it that way.
Before that, Pope Leo said the Vatican’s calls for peace come from the gospel and that he will keep speaking out against war.
Camp Mystic director testifies he missed critical weather alerts before deadly flood
New testimony has spotlighted what Camp Mystic leaders knew before the flood that killed 27 campers and counselors last year in the Texas Hill Country.
The camp director, Edward Eastland, testified Monday as part of an ongoing court fight over lawsuits brought by victims’ families and over whether parts of the camp must be preserved as evidence. He told the court he did not see the multiple flood warnings issued in the days leading up to the July Fourth disaster.
According to the Associated Press, Eastland said there were no staff meetings about the incoming weather threat before the storm and torrential flooding hit. He said he never saw a flash flood warning sent overnight and slept through another alert on his phone.
Attorneys for the families pushed back in court, citing National Weather Service warnings issued in the days before the flood.
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Eastland also confirmed that the camp has already received deposits from more than 800 families for this summer’s return, according to CBS Austin.
The hearing is expected to continue through the week.
Camp operators are trying to reopen part of the property later this summer, even as the legal fight continues.
Pride flag returns to Stonewall site permanently, restoring symbol of LGBTQ+ history
The Pride flag is going back up at Stonewall after the Trump administration reversed course. The government agreed Monday to restore the rainbow flag to the federal flagpole at the Stonewall National Monument in New York.
The move settles a lawsuit filed after the flag was removed in February under new federal guidance limiting which flags could fly at national park sites.
The deal requires the Pride flag to fly permanently alongside the American flag and the National Park Service flag.
The removal triggered backlash nationwide and protests at the site.
Local leaders raised their own flag days later, and it stayed up even as the legal fight moved forward.
“Let’s be clear. Trump backed down, and because of that, the flag is going to continue to fly here at Stonewall,” Brad Hoylman-Sigal, the Manhattan borough president, wrote on X.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani called the agreement a victory for the LGBTQ+ community and the city. He wrote on X that the reversal is “a reminder that New Yorkers won’t let our history be rewritten.”
Trump uses Oval Office McDonald’s delivery to push tax plan, tip deductions
The White House received a special delivery to the Oval Office. Trump had McDonald’s delivered right to his door Monday.
It was a staged moment built around his push to eliminate taxes on tips.
Under his new tax law, some workers can deduct up to $25,000 in tips.
The delivery driver, Sharon Simmons, an Arkansas grandmother of 10, said she saved about $11,000 this year.
More from Straight Arrow News:
His case inspired the #MeToo movement. Now Harvey Weinstein’s going on trial for rape — again
NEW YORK — The legal saga of Harvey Weinstein, the disgraced Hollywood mogul whose sexual misconduct sparked the global #MeToo movement, is entering yet another chapter.
Jury selection begins Tuesday in downtown Manhattan for Weinstein’s third trial on charges that he raped aspiring actress Jessica Mann in 2013. A jury found him guilty of the assault in 2020, but an appeals court overturned the conviction, ruling that the trial judge had erred by allowing testimony from women who were not part of the formal charges.
Jurors failed to reach a verdict during a retrial in 2025, and now prosecutors are bringing the case back to court once again.
The charge carries a maximum sentence of four years in prison if Weinstein, 74, is again convicted. He was also sentenced to 16 years on another rape conviction in California.
Public attention to Weinstein’s legal status has waned in recent years. But the cases against him — and the larger #MeToo movement that forced a reckoning for sexual misconduct by powerful men — inspired new laws that reduce secrecy around civil cases, weaken arbitration over abuse claims, and give survivors more time and space to file sexual abuse lawsuits.
Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
