It wasn’t a surprising choice. Mojtaba Khamenei has been named as Iran’s new supreme leader just over a week after his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed in U.S.-Israeli strikes. A statement from the Assembly of Experts—the panel of Shia clerics responsible under Iranian law for choosing the country’s top leader—said Mojtaba Khamenei had been selected as the third leader of the Islamic Republic, according to reports from IRIB state TV and the Fars, Tasnim and ISNA news agencies.

With deep ties to the country’s security establishment, Khamenei has long been a key power broker in the regime, despite never holding a formal role or becoming a senior cleric. President Trump has said he believes he should have had a role choosing Iran’s supreme leader and that the choice of Mojtaba Khamenei would be unacceptable.

Israel Defense Forces warned Sunday before the announcement that “Israel will continue to follow any successor and anyone who seeks to appoint a successor,” saying it would “not hesitate to target” any of the dozens of members participating in the meeting.

The Assembly of Experts has already been targeted twice by Israeli airstrikes since the strikes began. One attack targeted the group’s headquarters in Tehran and another hit the group’s main building in Qom. In response, the powerful religious body decided to hold deliberations and votes on the next supreme leader virtually.

Mojtaba, Ali’s second-eldest son, was born in 1969. His childhood was shaped by both the 1979 Iranian Revolution that toppled the previous dynasty and by his father's rise to power, first as president in 1981, then as supreme leader in 1989. As a cleric, Mojtaba studied under the late Ayatollah Mohammad Taghi Mesbah Yazdi, who called for killing Iranian youths who promoted “Western immorality.”

According to Bloomberg, he reportedly oversees a massive business empire of luxury properties and investments worldwide. He doesn’t list the investments under his name but has amassed wealth despite 2019 U.S. sanctions for his role in his father's inner circle.

President Trump threatened to withhold his signature on all bills until Congress passes stricter federal voting requirements— a move that escalates his efforts to change election rules ahead of the 2026 midterms. “It must be done immediately. It supersedes everything else,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

If passed and made law, the measure would transform voter registration and voting in the U.S. It would require eligible voters to prove their citizenship with documents like a valid U.S. passport or a birth certificate and a valid photo I.D. Of course, it’s already illegal for non-U.S. citizens to vote in federal elections and this kind of voter fraud is incredibly uncommon.

The House sent the bill to the Senate last month, but it’s faced significant pushback from Democrats and faces an uphill battle. While Trump threatens to create his own gridlock, lawmakers remain at an impasse on funding the Department of Homeland Security. Even if they did reach a deal, Trump’s pledge could presumably mean he wouldn’t sign it. However, bills automatically become law if the president does not sign them within 10 days of their passing. So … this is really more of an empty threat?

The start of spring break season is not when you want to encounter problems at the airport. However, travelers are struggling with hours-long security lines at major airports as officials warned of Transportation Security Administration staffing shortages amid the partial government shutdown.

On social media, the TSA warned of waits up to three hours at some airports. Currently, TSA officers are working without regular paychecks resulting in many not showing up for shifts. According to CNBC, TSA callouts rose during the 2018-2019 government shutdown, prompting the closure of some checkpoints and leading to longer screening lines. It ended hours after a shortfall of air traffic controllers curtailed flights on the East Coast. The current shutdown, however, is affecting only Department of Homeland Security employees, including TSA officers.

Houston’s William P. Hobby Airport told customers Sunday to arrive as early as 5 hours before their flights. Long lines were also reported at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, where passengers were encouraged to arrive three hours before their scheduled departure time. Footage from CNN showed the security line stretching outside the airport and into a parking garage.