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A vice president turned on a war his boss still defends, and bank workers streamed out of a Florida campus as hundreds of deputies swarmed in. Elsewhere, two tech names stumbled after the bell, a pair of star pitchers met a jury, and Texas elected an attorney general with an anime past. Plus, a monster movie is primed to stomp the box office, and a police helicopter accidentally doodled something in the night sky it really shouldn’t have.

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House Speaker Mike Johnson will step aside from Republican Party leadership after the midterm wipeout, declining to seek the minority leader job in the new Congress. The Louisiana Republican, who just won a sixth term in his Shreveport-area district, is expected to remain a rank-and-file member after a swift rise and fall.

Majority Leader Steve Scalise said the election was "far worse than any of us expected," while Jim Jordan called himself "battle-tested" in launching a rival bid. House Republicans are expected to pick their new leader when members-elect gather in Washington next week, likely reviving a familiar showdown between the two veteran lawmakers.

JD Vance publicly broke from President Trump's defense of the Iran war Wednesday, blaming the unpopular conflict for his party's deep midterm losses in a lengthy post. "If you'd like to argue it was worth it, that losing the Senate for the next 6 years was worth it, then do so," Vance wrote.

Trump said he spoke with Vance and called the post "fine," acknowledging he "knew the war was going to impact" the midterms while defending his actions. Democrats signaled they intend to make Vance own the war, with a spokeswoman asking why, if he felt this way all along, he never spoke out.

Two people, including the suspect, died Wednesday after witnesses reported a shooting at Citibank's sprawling office complex near Tampa, home to thousands of the bank's employees. More than 360 deputies swarmed the campus as long lines of workers streamed out, while the sheriff's office said it had responded to an active threat.

Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said investigators believe the shooting was targeted, and it was not immediately known whether anyone else was hurt in the attack. Officers searched floor by floor, finding employees sheltering in locked rooms and closets before carefully escorting them out, while Citigroup said it was cooperating with authorities.

A body camera worn by a slain Ukrainian police officer captured the moments between two Russian bomb strikes that killed at least 40 people at an aid center and shelter.

Hungary threw open its archives Wednesday, releasing communist-era secret police files to the public on the anniversary of the 1956 Soviet crackdown, though critics say the files are incomplete.

Britain moved to ban new North Sea oil and gas exploration licenses through an Energy Independence Bill, though the decision on the largest untapped Rosebank field off Shetland stays separate.

An explosion at a Mississippi chemical plant sent black smoke over Greenville Wednesday morning, with officials reporting no immediate injuries and preliminary information pointing to a herbicide-related fire.

Idaho prosecutors have charged at least 30 people with fentanyl trafficking without dealing evidence under a 2024 law lawmakers pitched as a crackdown on dealers, not users.

New York's attorney general tapped a former prosecutor who oversaw the Sean Combs case to lead a reopened investigation into gang rape allegations at a Cornell fraternity party.

The Dow surged more than 1,500 points as stocks soared after the midterms, with the S&P 500 jumping 1.6% and hospital owners and budget-focused retailers leading the broad rally.

Qualcomm shares slid 6% after hours as the chipmaker topped estimates but forecast lighter earnings, guiding to $2.15 to $2.35 a share for the current quarter.

Snap shares sank more than 10% after the Snapchat parent missed on revenue and daily active users, even as quarterly sales climbed 14% from a year earlier.

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Ancient DNA from more than 4,700 people is helping trace the origins of Celtic and Germanic languages, pointing to a migration into Sweden roughly 4,000 years ago.

A battery-free toothbrush from Beijing researchers kills bacteria with its own charge, using bristles that generate electricity when they bend and create reactive oxygen in saliva.

An anthrax outbreak in Congo's Virunga National Park has killed at least 30 hippopotamuses in the past month, though no human cases have been reported so far.

The Baltimore Ravens are finalizing a trade for Cardinals quarterback Jacoby Brissett after losing Lamar Jackson to a thumb injury that will require surgery and could end his season.

The Golden State Warriors have stopped paying Kristaps Porzingis on his $20 million salary, ruling the absent veteran center is not rendering services while they shop his contract.

Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz were branded "cheaters" by a prosecutor as their fraud trial opened, with Clase allegedly tipping pitches that let gamblers reap at least $460,000.

Deontay Wilder will face Jai Opetaia on the Fury-Joshua card in Cardiff on Dec. 11, a heavyweight co-main event at Principality Stadium that will stream on Netflix.

Maya Hawke will lead a live-action "Magic: The Gathering" card game movie, with longtime fan Matt Johnson directing and co-writing the adaptation set across a fantasy multiverse.

Texas' newly elected attorney general, Nathan Johnson, once scored 67 "Dragon Ball Z" episodes and five movies, a résumé he says earned him street cred with his kids.

"Godzilla Minus Zero" is set to stomp toward a $30 million opening from 3,254 theaters, while "The Cat in the Hat" aims for $20 million to $25 million.

What it is: Democrats' new control of both congressional chambers could reshape household budgets, touching everything from student loan bills and health insurance premiums to housing costs and federal taxes. Trump can still veto bills they pass, and projections show Democrats lacking the numbers to override him, so campaign promises may not become changes families feel.

The detail: House Democrats plan to bring bills reinstating expired enhanced health insurance subsidies to the floor in their first 100 hours, along with reversing last year's Medicaid cuts. Temporary tax breaks on tip income, overtime pay, seniors and auto loan interest expire after 2028, and several newly elected senators campaigned on expanding the child tax credit.

Why it matters: Costs were "a real concern of the electorate," said Tax Foundation president Daniel Bunn, while the White House said it has delivered "tangible wins to make life more affordable." The fiscal 2026 budget deficit ballooned to nearly $2 trillion, so lawmakers weighing tax-break extensions or new subsidies will also have to address the federal deficit.

What to watch: Broad federal student loan forgiveness looks unlikely, but restoring tax-free treatment of forgiven debt, raising new borrowing caps and expanding repayment options could draw bipartisan support. Trump has also floated capping federal student loan interest rates, while Democrats are expected to explore first-time homebuyer help, though Congress has little direct sway over mortgage rates.

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A police helicopter's late-night flight path over England appeared to sketch male genitalia across the sky, and the National Police Air Service insists the masterpiece was completely unintentional.

A deer that tumbled into a partially drained Michigan pool got a ladder from Livonia firefighters and, in the department's words, "successfully rescued itself" before running off.

A park worker taking out the trash in Glendale found a 4-foot ball python curled up inside the can, which is one way to make garbage day memorable.

The National Security Agency was formally established on this day in 1952. Which president created the nation's codebreaking and signals intelligence agency?

Franklin D. Roosevelt · Harry S. Truman · Dwight D. Eisenhower · John F. Kennedy · Lyndon B. Johnson

Build this as a native poll — every vote is a click.

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