Leland Vittert’s War Notes: On Message 💬

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NewsNation Chief Washington Anchor and On Balance host Leland Vittert was a foreign correspondent for four years in Jerusalem. He gives you an early look at tonight's 9 p.m. ET show, delivered straight to your inbox.

Nancy Guthrie🚨: The search for Savannah Guthrie's mom is entering its fourth day, and there is still no suspect.

⁉️Who goes and attacks an 84-year-old woman?
Is it a random cartel hit, a Trump supporter who is mad at Savannah, or is it a family member?
- 📝Investigators are now examining a possible ransom note sent to TMZ and local Arizona news stations.
- True?
Watch tonight 📺: NewsNation's Brian Entin joins us from Tucson, Arizona
- ➕Plus, Ashleigh Banfield with exclusive reporting about who might be the prime suspect.

Goodbye, gifted students📚: Here is a way to make New York City's schools better … eliminate the talented and gifted programs so all the schools suck.

❌Mayor Zohran Mamdani pushing to end the city's gifted and talented programs tracks with the socialist demand that everybody end up in the same terrible spot (equity of outcome) rather than equality of opportunity.
- New York's talented and gifted programs were the envy of America's public school system and a merit-based ticket out for even the poorest in NYC.
  - Bill DeBlasio and now Mamdami don't like them in the name of "anti-racism" -– to them meritocracy is racist.
🤦Since Mamdani has already solved the city's trash problem by not picking it up, now he's onto the schools.
Watch tonight📺: Maud Maron, co-founder of PLACE NYC, joins us about her piece in the Free Press, "No More Gifted Students in Mamdani's New York City"

U.S.-Iran nuclear talks 🗣️: Diplomatic efforts with Iran are teetering — Axios now reports a possible collapse in nuclear talks with the U.S.

Screw me once 🤦: The idea that we can talk our way out of the Iran problem is the same mistake President Obama made.
Watch tonight📺: Retired Gen. Philip Breedlove and retired Vice Admiral John W. "Fozzie" Miller

Bipartisan Buffoonery 🤪

🤪 Tonight's buffoonery from the Right and the Left.

🐘The winner on the Right tonight is rapper Nicki Minaj in her interview with Katie Miller
- 🎤Miller: "You know, like other conspiracy theories, like did we actually land a man on the moon?"
- 🎤Minaj: "No, I don't think we landed on the moon."
- 🎤Miller: "You don't?"
- 🎤Minaj: "No."
  - I guess that's not where she got the inspiration for her hit song "Starships"
🫏And on the Left: Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott's response after being asked about allegedly spending $163,000 in taxpayer funds on a luxury SUV.
- 🎤Mayor Scott: "A vehicle that was purchased in 2023 is not the same price as 2025, right?... I'm talking! ... Let me talk, please"
- 🎤Reporter: "Governor Hogan's car costs $70,000 ... you didn't answer the question."
- 🎤Scott: "I did answer the question, just because you didn't get the answer that you wanted ... and your racist slant is one thing."
  - 🤦Baltimore has a long history of its leaders accusing anyone who questions them of racism — I should know. Here is the thing — Baltimore keeps getting worse, even though it's run exclusively by African Americans — is that racist too?

Talking Points 🗣️

✅The pivot to sanctuary cities we predicted a week ago is fully complete.

‼️Today, border czar Tom Homan announced the withdrawal of 700 ICE officers from Minnesota, but he's demanding more cooperation from local Minnesota officials in detaining illegal aliens who commit crimes.
🤷We've told you this would happen— what's different now is how Republicans are talking about it.
- They are trying to personalize it:
  - 🎤Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio: "Abraham Gonzalez—who we used in a committee hearing last year as an example. He committed crimes, he attempted to steal a car, he beat someone up, he was in jail in Denver, Colorado … And they actually stamped on the form, release to the streets."
  - 🎤Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.: "Y'all won't tell the American people about Laken Riley. It's a one-sided debate. For four years, our border was obliterated."
Sad but true‼️: They are banking on someone being released and committing some awful crime that they can then blame on Democrats.
- Be fair⚖️: That is very likely to happen if Democrats don't change their sanctuary city policies.

Look back 🔙: Republicans have tried to make sanctuary policies the issue since a drunk driving illegal alien killed two teenagers in Virginia Beach — it hasn't worked.

📺Watch Bill O'Reilly and Geraldo Rivera go at it nearly 20 years ago

Tonight📺: Shelby Talcott with NewsNation's Chris Cillizza and Kurt Bardella join.

WATCH ON BALANCE WEEKNIGHTS AT 9P/8C

Every night during On Balance, Leland Vittert asks "why?" about the most pressing matters of the day, with an intellectual, balanced and sometimes irreverent take on the news.

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