Evening Brief: Vance pins midterm losses on Iran war; Alaska and Mississippi Senate counts still razor-thin; Alito says he is not retiring
IRGC reports tanker fires in Hormuz as Tehran sends a nuclear proposal; Melania Trump hosts Russia and Ukraine envoys; Hegseth expands D.C. Guard equipment as Democrats push a pullout; Scalise warns of House 'retribution.'
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I'm Nora Vale with your 5 PM World Brief for Thursday, November 5. Alaska: Peltola +637. Mississippi: Colom lead past 1,000. Decoy Dan: 3,600. Vance: Iran war cost midterms. Trump: largely true; would do it again. IRGC: tanker fires in Hormuz. Tehran sends nuclear proposal via Qatar. Melania hosts Russia and Ukraine envoys after Oleshky ceasefire. Alito: not retiring. Monday: Nielsen v. Watanabe. In national weather, from the National Weather Service: Snow will develop over parts of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. There is a Slight Risk of excessive rainfall over parts of the Mid-Atlantic and New England Coasts. Our opinion. Count every lawful vote. End Iran war with real limits. Pressure Moscow. Full stories and sources at WorldBriefNow.com. I'm Nora Vale.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said Thursday that two oil tankers and a tugboat caught fire after attempting unauthorized routes through the Strait of Hormuz, with one tanker striking a mine south of the strait and another catching fire while exiting an eastern route, Fox News reported, citing Reuters. Fox News also reported that Tehran submitted a formal nuclear proposal to the United States through Qatari intermediaries, making further talks contingent on Washington addressing seven demands that include compensation for war damages, an end to sanctions and the naval blockade of Iranian ports, release of frozen assets, a reduced U.S. military presence, and a permanent end to the war. Iranian Supreme National Security Council chief Mohsen Rezaei met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow to deliver a message from Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, Reuters reported via Fox News.
First Lady Melania Trump gathered Russian and Ukrainian officials at the White House on Thursday to mark follow-up diplomacy after the Oleshky ceasefire, the White House said. Mrs. Trump said her role as Exclusive Intermediary was set out in written agreements signed by both sides on Oct. 23, 2026, and that the operation helped deliver humanitarian aid and evacuate nearly 800 people. Ukrainian representatives presented her with Ukraine's Order of Princess Olga, First Class, on behalf of President Zelensky, the White House said; Russian Special Envoy Kirill Dmitriev and Ukrainian Servant of the People faction leader David Arakhamina were among those she addressed.
Fox News, citing the AP, reported Thursday morning that Democrat Scott Colom led Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith 464,926 to 463,788 in Mississippi (about 1,138 votes) with 95.6% counted, and that Democrat Mary Peltola led Sen. Dan Sullivan in Alaska by less than 700 votes with roughly a quarter of ballots still outstanding. ABC News's live results table Thursday showed Peltola at 102,962 (48.2%) to Sullivan's 102,325 (47.9%) — a 637-vote edge with 74% reporting — and Colom at 466,775 to Hyde-Smith's 464,962 with 96% reporting. Fox News said Daniel J. Sullivan, the so-called 'Decoy Dan' candidate under a Justice Department investigation, had 3,600 votes, more than five times the Alaska margin, and that President Trump posted on Truth Social that those votes 'should be immediately given to the REAL Dan Sullivan.'
Vice President JD Vance wrote on X that 'the reason we lost is the war,' arguing any honest post-mortem of Tuesday's midterms must start there and listing tasks that include ending the Iran war, focusing on cost of living, putting America first, and changing the U.S. relationship with Israel, Fox News reported. President Trump told reporters he thinks Vance's assessment is 'largely true because it drove the gasoline up a little bit short term,' while adding that if he had it to do again he would, because 'you can't let Iran have a nuclear war.' Fox News also reported Tehran submitted a formal nuclear proposal to Washington through Qatari intermediaries on Thursday, and that War Secretary Pete Hegseth urged Congress to approve at least $350 billion in defense funding while pushing back on impeachment efforts.
War Secretary Pete Hegseth authorized National Guard members in Washington, D.C., to use marked police vehicles, Humvees, light tactical vehicles and boats through year-end to support law enforcement, including drug operations, under an Oct. 29 memo obtained by Politico and reported by the Daily Wire; Guard members remain barred from making arrests, and federal officers must be aboard Guard boats. D.C. Councilmember Brooke Pinto said Thursday she will urge incoming Democratic governors in Georgia, Iowa, Nevada, Ohio and Texas — states that together account for about 628 Guard members now in the capital — to withdraw those troops once they take office, the Washington Examiner and Daily Wire reported. The Daily Wire said the D.C. mission, first ordered after a crime emergency declaration in August 2025, is currently expected to run through Inauguration Day 2029 and has been estimated at about $1.4 billion through the end of 2028.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) sent a letter Thursday to all House Republican committee chairmen warning them to prepare for investigations once Democrats retake the House next year, the Washington Examiner reported. Scalise wrote that Democrats will enact 'retribution' and launch 'countless witch hunts' in the name of oversight, and that they 'will weaponize every single gavel to appease their radical base,' according to a copy obtained by the Examiner. He directed chairmen to map likely Democratic probes, identify administration officials and allies who may be targeted, and maximize remaining days in the majority; House Republicans hold leadership elections Nov. 10, with Democrats set for Nov. 18-19.
Justice Samuel Alito confirmed to Fox News on Thursday that he has no plans to retire and is committed through at least the current term, which ends in late June, amid speculation that Democrats' new Senate majority could block a Trump replacement for him or Justice Clarence Thomas. SCOTUSblog said the justices meet in private conference Friday, with orders expected Monday at 9:30 a.m. EST, and that oral argument in Nielsen v. Watanabe remains set for Monday, Nov. 9. Fox News also reported Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis arguing the chance of confirming a 'worthy successor' to Thomas or Alito during Trump's remaining term is 'zero,' and legal commentator Ed Whelan saying Trump is effectively blocked from appointing justices for the final two years of the term.
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