Daily Caller
‘Special Day’: Trump Provides Big Update On Israeli Hostages

From the Daily Caller News Foundation
Hamas said it is ready to release the rest of the hostages and relinquish power as part of Trump’s proposed ceasefire, but only if Palestinian groups reach a joint position and regional Arab and Muslim nations endorse the move. Calling the moment “unprecedented,” Trump said the development is a turning point in efforts to end the conflict in the Middle East.
“I just want to let you know that this is a very special day, maybe unprecedented in many ways. It is unprecedented, but thank you all and thank you all to those great countries that helped! We were given a tremendous amount of help. Everybody was unified in wanting this war to end and seeing peace in the Middle East. And we’re very close to achieving that,” Trump said.
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“I want to thank the countries that helped me put this together. Qatar, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, and so many others. So many people fought so hard. This is a big day,” Trump added. “We’ll see how it all turns out. We have to get the final word down in concrete. Very importantly, I look forward to having the hostages come home to their parents and having – some of the hostages, unfortunately, you know the condition they’re in.”
Trump issued an ultimatum to Hamas on Friday, warning on Truth Social that the group must accept his ceasefire framework by Sunday at 6 p.m. Eastern or lose the deal entirely.
“If this LAST CHANCE agreement is not reached, all HELL, like no one has ever seen before, will break out against Hamas,” Trump wrote.
Palestinians in Gaza have pleaded with the group to accept the terms in hopes of ending years of instability. More than 33,000 Palestinians have been displaced by Israeli operations, with nearly a quarter of Gaza’s population on the brink of famine as daily mass casualty events mount, according to United Nations data.
Trump’s initiative requires Hamas to immediately release all captives and transfer Gaza’s authority to an “International Stabilization Force,” where Trump and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair would take charge. The plan also calls for Palestinian experts to participate in governing under the new international body.
Business
Pfizer Bows to Trump in ‘Historic’ Drug Price-Cutting Deal

Under the agreement, New York-based Pfizer will charge most-favored-nation pricing to Medicaid and guarantee that pricing on newly launched drugs, Trump said. That involves matching the lowest price offered in other developed nations.
In a landmark announcement, President Trump revealed a deal with Pfizer that slashes drug prices for Americans on Medicaid on a massive scale.
Under this agreement, Pfizer will offer its medications to Medicaid at “most favored nation’s prices.”
Under the agreement, New York-based Pfizer will charge most-favored-nation pricing to Medicaid and guarantee that pricing on newly launched drugs, Trump said. That involves matching the lowest price offered in other developed nations.
“It’s going to have a huge impact on bringing Medicaid costs down like nothing else,” the president said.
“I can’t tell you how big this is,” he added.
The conference opened with Trump telling Pfizer CEO to his face that he is “surprised” he is agreeing to massive price cuts to his company’s drugs.
Albert Bourla smiled and stood silently as Trump announced devastating news for his company’s profits in America.
RFK Jr. heaped praise on President Trump for several minutes after he struck a deal that other politicians said was impossible.
Kennedy called it something “Democrats have wanted for 20 years, Republicans have wanted for 20 years,” but said no president had ever been able to make it happen until Trump pushed drug companies to the table.
“All we could see was all the reasons this couldn’t happen. Everybody tried. Nobody could make it happen. And it was President Trump alone who, with his doggedness and persistence, saw this clearly in a way that none of us [did],” Kennedy said.
“I can’t think of any other president in the United States that could have done this in our history.”
Dr. Oz couldn’t hide how proud he is to work for the White House — calling it a “cool place to work” after Trump did the impossible in a “historic” deal that forced pharmaceutical giants to stop ripping Americans off on drug prices.
He said the team had been working “24/7 nonstop with industry, with Albert [Bourla], with his great team at Pfizer” to get them to sell prescription drugs to Medicaid at the lowest global rate.
“We’re going to finally deliver on the fair drug prices that President Trump has been speaking about for two terms. We’re going to celebrate this historic day. I predict this historic day [will have a positive impact] in the medical field for generations to come,” Dr. Oz declared.
When Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla got his chance to speak, he revealed that President Trump made four specific requests to lower drug prices in America — and Pfizer’s deal today meets ALL of them.
Bourla admitted America was in an “unfair situation” while “other rich nations refused to pay their fair share for the medical innovation.”
That’s changing. Under the new agreement, Medicaid sale prices will drop significantly. Meanwhile, other countries that have long paid rock-bottom prices will see modest increases.
The big winner in this deal, Bourla said, was “the American patient.”
“Who else is a winner here?” he asked. “It is American innovation and American economy.”
Trump suggested that the breakthrough on drug prices could also translate to lowering health insurance.
In terms of real-world results, Trump called it “massive.” He explained how a drug that sells for $137 in America will drop to just $15 to $18.
In other countries, the same drug is sold for only $10, and they will now have to raise the price slightly.
But America is no longer footing the bill, so the rest of the world can get cheap drugs. And finally — in a move once thought impossible — Americans on Medicaid will be paying a fair price.
Business
Over $2B California Solar Plant Built To Last, Now Closing Over Inefficiency

From the Daily Caller News Foundation
By Hailey Gomez
The partially taxpayer-funded Ivanpah Solar Power Facility in California’s Mojave Desert is set to shut down in 2026 due to inefficiency in generating solar energy, according to the New York Post.
The $2.2 billion plant, which features three 459-foot towers, was greenlit in 2010 and completed in 2014. According to the New York Post the closure stems from the site being “outpaced by solar photovoltaic technology” and proving both inefficient and costly. The shutter of the site comes more than a decade ahead of its original 2039 end date, according to the Associated Press.
Speculation about Ivanpah’s early closure began in January, when Pacific Gas & Electric announced an agreement with the plant’s owners to terminate its contracts.
“Ivanpah Solar was built when developers were investing in many different types of clean energy. The goal was to find efficient and affordable technologies to reduce the need for greenhouse gas-emitting fossil fuels,” PG&E wrote in a January press statement.
“The technology had worked on a smaller scale in Europe. Spain had several concentrating solar projects of up to 20 megawatts. In the 2000s and 2010s, various private companies invested in large-scale concentrating solar power in the United States. But over time, solar photovoltaic technology raced ahead of its rival in affordability,” the press statement continued.
Funds for the massive plant partially came from former President Barack Obama’s Department of Energy, which in 2011 issued $1.6 billion in three federal loan guarantees under former Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz. At the 2014 opening, Moniz touted federal support for the project, calling it “a shining example” of America’s leadership in solar energy.
“The Ivanpah project is a shining example of how America is becoming a world leader in solar energy,” said Secretary Moniz, as reported by PBS. “As the President made clear in the State of the Union, we must continue to move toward a cleaner energy economy, and this project shows that building a clean energy economy creates jobs, curbs greenhouse gas emissions, and fosters American innovation.”
In recent years, California has faced mounting problems with solar energy and refineries. In August 2024, major rooftop solar company SunPower filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Delaware after struggling with issues like California’s rooftop solar subsidy programs and high interest rates.
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