Trump proven right as Iran missile lies are exposed by strike attempt, experts say
The Islamic Republic of Iran significantly escalated its war effort against the U.S. with its launch of two intermediate-range ballistic missiles on Friday toward Diego Garcia, a key U.S.-U.K. military base in the Indian Ocean.
The targeting of Diego Garcia, roughly 2,500 miles from Iran, means Tehran’s missile capabilities appear to have exceeded previously acknowledged limits.
In the period leading up to Operation Epic Fury Feb. 28, Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi claimed, “We intentionally kept the range of our missiles below 2,000 kilometers so we don’t have that capability. And we don’t want to do that because we do not have hostility against the United States people and all Europeans.”
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On Saturday, Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said, “Just yesterday, Iran launched a two-stage intercontinental ballistic missile with a range of 4,000 kilometers [2,500 miles] toward an American target on the island of Diego Garcia. These missiles were not intended to hit Israel. Their range reaches the capitals of Europe — Berlin, Paris and Rome are all within direct threat range.”
IDF spokesman Nadav Shoshani blasted the alleged Iranian deception on X, writing, “Just 3 days before the war, the Iranian regime said they don’t obtain long-range missiles. Today, their lies were exposed once again, when missiles were fired 4000km away from Iran. They hoped to lie their way into becoming a force that can terrorize the world. We didn’t buy it.”
Jason Brodsky, the policy director of United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), told Fox News Digital, “The Trump administration, in citing Iran’s missile threat as a rationale for Operation Epic Fury, was therefore justified in its decision to undertake military action as Iran has consistently refused to negotiate over its missile program.
“It also shows how dangerous it is to solely rely on Iranian nuclear weapons fatwas and the supreme leader’s public rhetoric in formulating U.S. policy. As long as Iran retains the technical capability beyond public pronouncements, it is a threat.”
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“I think it’s a message that the IRGC is in charge in Iran after Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s death,” Brodsky said. “When Khamenei was alive, he limited the range of Iran’s missile program to 2,000 kilometers. Khamenei recounted in 2018 how he had rejected overtures from IRGC commanders seeking to increase the range to as much as 5,000 kilometers.
“But now that he has died, those voices in the IRGC seeking to increase the range are likely driving the agenda. The launch of the missiles was likely meant as a signal of the IRGC’s capabilities to threaten U.S. allies beyond the Middle East. For example, this threatens Europe.”
The two long-range Iranian missiles did not hit the base, but the attempted attack marked a significant expansion of Iran’s reach beyond the Middle East and toward a major U.S. strategic hub. One missile reportedly failed in flight, while a U.S. warship launched an SM-3 interceptor at the other, officials said. It was not immediately clear whether the interception was successful. The remote base is a critical launch point for U.S. bombers, nuclear submarines and other strategic assets.
Ilan Berman, vice president of the American Foreign Policy Council in Washington, D.C., told Fox News Digital, “The launch hammers home the president’s point about Iran being an imminent threat. It’s easy for casual observers to ignore, but the increasing maturity of Iran’s strategic programs, plural, has been exponentially expanding the threat that the Islamic Republic poses beyond the Middle East.
“That is what Epic Fury is seeking to address. The administration believes, absolutely correctly in my view, that these types of capabilities cannot be left in the hands of a radical, predatory regime.
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“Despite its public denials, it’s been clear that the Iranian regime has been working on expanding the range of its ballistic missile capabilities for years. The launch toward Diego Garcia confirms that it has made real progress toward that goal and is already able to put targets in the same range as Central and Eastern Europe at risk. Moreover, it’s clear that the regime is seeking still greater capabilities and that, if left intact, Iran’s ballistic missiles would attain intercontinental range soon.”
Berman, the author of “Iran’s Deadly Ambition: The Islamic Republic’s Quest for Global Power,” added, “The parallel development Iran has been carrying out on its space program is significant. The booster used to put payloads into orbit can be married onto a medium-range missile to create intercontinental range capabilities. Before the war, we were seeing a clear convergence of the regime’s strategic programs: its ballistic missile work, its space capabilities and its nuclear program.”
He warned about the serious Iranian threat to continental Europe.
“Europe is absolutely at risk as the recent launch makes clear,” Berman said. “I wouldn’t say that a failure to recognize this to date has been due to a grand deception by Tehran, though. It is more attributable to willful blindness on the part of European elites about the extent of the threat that the Iranian regime poses as well as undue faith in diplomacy and arms control in containing it.”
On Saturday, the United Kingdom condemned the attack.
“Iran’s reckless attacks, lashing out across the region and holding hostage the Strait of Hormuz, are a threat to British interests and British allies,” the U.K. Ministry of Defense said in a statement. “RAF jets and other U.K. military assets are continuing to defend our people and personnel in the region.
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“This government has given permission to the U.S. to use British bases for specific and limited defensive operations.”
Stephen A Smith explodes over Trump’s Army-Navy game executive order
President Donald Trump signed the “Preserving America’s Game” executive order Friday, which promises to keep the annual Army-Navy game a standalone event during the college football season.
Trump signed the order during the Midshipmen’s visit to the White House on Friday to celebrate their Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy victory, which is given to either Army, Navy or Air Force if one of the teams goes 2-0 against the other opponents during the season.
Stephen A. Smith was not fond of the move.
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“It’s stuff like this from the president of the United States that p—– me off. And he’s sticking his nose in places that I don’t believe the president of the United States should be sticking their nose in,” Smith said during his Friday afternoon SiriusXM show on Mad Dog Sports Radio, via Awful Announcing.
“Who the hell does this man think he is? Every single time I try to be fair and fair-minded to this president, he pulls some BS like this. It really p—– me off. It really p—– me off. Who the hell does he think he is?
“If the Army-Navy game is on NBC, FOX and CBS should be excluded from having its own content on its networks? Because the president issued some executive order that he doesn’t want anything competing with Army-Navy, that he wants the focus of the sports world on Army-Navy. Well, what if they don’t want that? What if they don’t want to watch Army-Navy? Who the hell is he to tell the broadcast world, ‘Nah, not at this time.’
“Who the hell does he think he is? It’s that kinda BS that’s got our country in a tizzy right now. That right there. Because you overstepping your damn bounds. Don’t you got enough things to be focused on? Now you trying to tell us what damn football games we should watch?! Who the hell does he think he is?”
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With the current College Football Playoff schedule, the Army-Navy game sits between conference championship weekend and the first weekend of the 12-team playoff. However, potential expansion could lead to earlier games. The Army-Navy game will be broadcast on CBS until 2038.
Navy defeated Army in a thrilling 17-16 game to win the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy in December during a historic season that saw the program finish 11-2 for the team’s first back-to-back 10-win seasons in program history.
“The annual Army-Navy game is truly one of the most special occasions in all of sports, but in recent years, the College Football Playoff expansion has encroached on this sacred four-hour time slot traditionally reserved for Army-Navy,” the president said during his speech Friday.
“I’m going to sign an executive order to ensure that the second Saturday in December is preserved exclusively. Nobody’s playing football — not Ohio State against Notre Dame, not LSU against Alabama. Nobody’s going to play football for four hours during that very special time of the year in December. It’s preserved forever for the Army-Navy game.”
Earlier this month, Trump held a roundtable to try to combat the effects of NIL in college sports.
Trump joked that the ramifications of signing the executive order might result in a lawsuit.
“Of course, we’ll probably get sued at some point. We will get sued, but we win those suits, and we’ll win this one.”
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Trump first signaled his intentions to sign the executive order in a Truth Social post in January, saying at the time, “This incredible Tradition is now at risk of being pushed aside by more College Playoff Games, and Big TV Money. NOT ANYMORE!”
Senate Republicans block Schumer effort to fund TSA workers in shutdown
Senate Republicans blocked an attempt by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., to only pay Transportation Security Administration (TSA) workers as the Homeland Security shutdown drags on.
Despite being in the minority and not controlling the Senate floor, Schumer used an arcane tactic to force a procedural vote to allow the Senate to get onto the bill in Democrats’ move to shift the narrative of the ongoing Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown.
“It is unacceptable for workers and travelers and entire airports to get taken hostage in political games,” Schumer said on the Senate floor.
“But that’s what the Republicans are doing. It is unacceptable to say we will only pay TSA workers if it is attached to a bill that funds ICE with no reforms, but that’s what the Republicans have been doing.”
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The shutdown entered its 36th day Saturday and is heading toward matching the record-breaking full government shutdown from last year. Schumer’s failed gambit follows increasingly long wait times at airports as thousands of TSA agents go without pay.
Senate Democrats have dug in deep in their demands for stringent reforms to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and have so far refused to reopen the agency or temporarily extend funding to end the closure until they get what they want.
Senate Republicans and the White House made a new compromise offer to Democrats on Friday night after an open letter from the administration on several reforms to immigration operations was revealed earlier this week. The letter prompted a pair of back-to-back meetings on Capitol Hill with Republicans, Democrats and administration officials.
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Whether they accept that offer or counter remains in the air for now. Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., who was in the meeting, said that she hoped there would be another soon.
“That will be up to them, but I hope so,” Britt said.
Still, Republicans tried and failed for a fifth time to fully reopen the agency on Friday. In the background, there have been several attempts by Senate Democrats to move forward with standalone funding bills — like Schumer’s gambit — to open parts of DHS, save for immigration enforcement.
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Time is also running out for lawmakers to find middle ground on reopening the agency, given that they will leave Washington, D.C., for a two-week break at the end of next week.
At a news conference earlier Saturday, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told Fox News Digital it would be “very, very hard to explain if we leave town this next week without having funded the Department of Homeland Security.”
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“At some point, the Democrats are going to be held accountable for this,” Thune said.
“I know they think it’s, as has been described by one of their leaders, ‘very serene, very serene’ with their position,” he continued. “Well, I’m telling you something. The people who are sitting in those lines at the airports right now don’t see it as very serene. This needs to be resolved.”
Spade rips California leadership over Hollywood collapse after studio bankruptcy
David Spade is calling out California’s leadership for the collapse of Hollywood.
During a recent episode of his podcast, “Fly on the Wall,” which he co-hosts with Dana Carvey, the 61-year-old actor and comedian said “the Hollywood industry is dying” and that he’s “just trying to put the blame somewhere.”
“Dude, I’m so old,” he said. “I was on the lot at, uh, CBS Radford when we were doing ‘Just Shoot Me.’ … And also they were doing ‘Seinfeld,’ and I’d see him on his bike. It was the greatest lot. Of course, just filed for bankruptcy, the lot. Terrifying in LA Thanks, [LA Mayor] Karen Bass. Thanks, [Gov.] Gavin [Newsom].”
Carvey agreed that “the Hollywood studio system is dying” and insisted changes need to be made to revive it.
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“The amount of productions is dying, and so they have to do something so more production comes back, and that starts with negotiating with the union and also subsidizing the industry tax breaks to compete with Romania,” Carvey said.
The mayor’s press office responded to Spade’s claims, telling Fox News Digital in a statement, “Mayor Bass has championed the entertainment industry because it’s a bedrock of our middle class.
“The fact of the matter is that Mayor Bass oversaw the creation of California’s first Film and TV Tax Credit Program as speaker of the State Assembly and backed its expansion last year,” the statement added.
“This year alone, she slashed filming fees at Griffith Observatory and reopened the LA Central Library to film production for the first time in over a decade. Under her leadership, more than 3 million square feet of studio and creative office space have been approved, and over 120 sound stages are now under construction across Los Angeles.”
Spade and Carvey are not the only celebrities concerned with the current state of Hollywood and the growing trend of producing movies and TV shows not only in other states, but also in other countries.
Stars Jon Voight, Sylvester Stallone and Mel Gibson were named special ambassadors to Hollywood by President Donald Trump in January 2025, with the hope of bringing the city “BACK—BIGGER, BETTER, AND STRONGER THAN EVER BEFORE!” according to Trump’s post on Truth Social at the time.
In an interview with Variety in May 2025, Voight spoke about the importance of bringing these jobs back to California and showed his support for Trump’s decision to place 100% tariffs on filming overseas.
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“It’s come to a point where we really do need help, and thank God the president cares about Hollywood and movies,” Voight said. “He has a great love for Hollywood in that way. We’ve got to roll up our sleeves here. We can’t let it go down the drain like Detroit.”
When speaking to the outlet, Voight explained that “every studio has a lot of smart people” who have made use of the many benefits “and the gifts that are being given out throughout the world to lure people to different countries.”
He explained that rather than just “level[ing] the playing field,” Hollywood “need[s] to be competitive” to get people back.
“This shouldn’t be political,” Voight added. “I don’t know the political identities of the people we’ve talked to. We’ve talked to a lot of people here. I don’t distinguish them on their party affiliation. And If we can come up with [a plan that can be executed], he’ll back us. He wants us to be the Hollywood of old. If we all come together, I believe we have a bright future.”
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In a previous statement to Fox News Digital, Voight said he has been in the business long enough to see the “slow deterioration” of Hollywood through the years.
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“I’m old enough to have touched some years of the Golden Age of Hollywood, and I’ve seen its slow deterioration since,” he said.
“Today, we are in pretty bad shape. Very few films are made here now, but we are fortunate to have an incoming president who wants to restore Hollywood to its former glory, and, with his help, I feel we can get done.”
Newsom’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
ABS challenge system embarrasses MLB umpire who forgot his mic was on
Major League Baseball’s Automated Ball-Strike System (ABS) had arguably its best moment on Saturday afternoon in spring training.
In a game between the Cleveland Guardians and San Francisco Giants in Scottsdale, Arizona, Robbie Ray was facing Sean Mooney, who was at the plate as the tying run in a 3-0 game and an 0-2 count with two outs in the top of the fourth.
Mooney took a low sinker that was called a ball by home plate umpire Bill Miller, but catcher Patrick Bailey challenged the call.
Only a batter, catcher or pitcher can challenge calls, and the challenge must be almost immediate. Each team gets two and retains correct challenges.
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Miller announced to the crowd that the Giants were challenging the call to get out of the inning, but he accidentally left his mic on, providing a hilarious misstep.
“Please be a strike,” Miller said, before quickly realizing that everyone had just heard him. Bailey, too, had a pretty hysterical reaction.
Miller was actually rooting for his call to be wrong, but it was over 100 degrees in Scottsdale, so maybe Miller wanted to simply cool down.
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Miller did not get his wish. His call was correct by three-tenths of an inch. Two pitches later, Mooney struck out swinging, and everyone was able to cool down for a moment.
The ABS system was implemented in last year’s spring training after years of experimentation in the minor leagues and Arizona Fall League, and it will finally be brought to the regular season this year.
The system provides some interesting nuances because the strike zones will be based on each batter’s exact height, prompting many changes in several players’ listed measurements.
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The Giants will host the New York Yankees on Wednesday, while all other 28 teams will open their seasons the next day.
Long-term alcohol habit may be tied to a troubling cancer trend, doctors warn
Colorectal cancer is now officially the leading cause of cancer-related death among men and women 50 and younger, according to research from the American Cancer Society.
While some risk factors — like age, family history and genetics — can’t be controlled, there are some lifestyle behaviors that can increase the chances of the disease.
One of those is drinking alcohol, which has been linked to an increased risk of at least six different types of cancer.
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The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classifies alcoholic beverages as a Group 1 carcinogen, which means there is strong, sufficient evidence that it causes cancer in humans.
Dr. Tereza Cristina Sardinha, chief of colon and rectal surgery services at Catholic Health on Long Island, New York, confirmed that alcohol is a well-known risk factor for all cancers, but particularly those of the gastrointestinal tract.
“The alcohol, or ethanol, will metabolize and break down into acetaldehyde,” she shared with Fox News Digital. “This metabolism of alcohol is very toxic to the DNA of the cell, which over time can lead to the development of cancer.”
Alcohol also changes the microbiome of the gut, which is another strong factor in cancer risk, according to Sardinha.
“The microbiome has a significant effect on many pathogens in the colon and rectum, and diet and alcohol definitely affect the types of bacteria in your gut.”
When the gut’s “first line of defense” is disrupted, it can trigger a series of changes, particularly DNA damage, inflammation and oxidative stress within cells, the doctor said.
“These processes are closely linked to cancer development, which is why alcohol is considered a carcinogen.”
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The relationship between alcohol and colorectal cancer risk is “dose-dependent,” she said.
“Patients who drink regularly for a long period of time, meaning at least 10 years, will have a lifetime increase in the development of colorectal cancer.”
Research shows that for those who drink at least two drinks per day — which is considered “moderate consumption,” the doctor said — the lifetime risk of colorectal cancer will increase by at least 25%.
A heavier drinker, consuming more than two drinks a day, will have an exponentially greater risk.
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“What really makes the difference is not only the volume but the frequency,” Sardinha said. “I just saw one of my patients who I operated on last week, and she drinks six beers a day, and she developed colon cancer. She’s not morbidly obese, she’s not a smoker. The only risk factor she has is alcohol.”
The doctor advises her patients to avoid alcohol “or at least minimize intake.”
“What really makes the difference is not only the volume but the frequency.”
If someone stops drinking, the risk won’t disappear immediately, the doctor noted.
“It takes about an average of 10 years to know if cancer risk decreased or not,” she said. “But we do know that if you continue drinking, your risk will definitely increase.
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“That’s why we recommend that patients stop drinking or exponentially decrease their intake in the same way we tell them to exercise and increase fruits and vegetables in their diet.”
Sardinha pointed out that alcohol isn’t the only culprit.
“Not all heavy drinkers develop cancer, so there has to be some other mechanism that plays a role,” she said.
And not all types of alcohol are equal in terms of colorectal cancer risk, according to Dr. Nathan Goodyear, integrative medicine physician at Williams Cancer Institute in California.
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“The negative impact of spirits (hard liquor) is greater than beer, which is more than wine,” he told Fox News Digital.
A Danish study also found that wine consumption was associated with a lower risk of death, while beer and spirits were not, Goodyear pointed out. Spirits had the highest risk, especially at three to five drinks per day.
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“The effects of wine, beer and spirits were independent of each other,” the doctor said.
The context in which alcohol is consumed can also play a role, he noted.
“In the U.S., alcohol is often used in the context of addiction — another hit to keep the high,” Goodyear said. “But in some communities, such as Sardina, Italy, and Ikaria, Greece, wine is part of the culture, social connections and community.”
“Wine is taken outside the context of addiction and taken within the context of a plant-based diet, social settings, daily movement, faith, community and life.”
Other ways to minimize risk
In addition to stopping or limiting alcohol intake, Sardinha shared other healthy lifestyle behaviors that have been shown to decrease the chances of colorectal cancer.
One “huge and well-established” factor is regular exercise, she said.
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“If you don’t exercise, if you don’t move, you definitely increase your risk of colorectal cancer,” she told Fox News Digital. “Even for patients who have been diagnosed with cancer, once they have surgery and are able to exercise, that will improve their long-term prognosis.”
Smoking is another highly carcinogenic habit, and it’s a common myth that it’s only associated with lung cancer.
“We do know that if you continue drinking, your risk will definitely increase.”
“Smoking is a risk factor for most cancers, and colorectal cancer is one of them,” Sardinha said.
Taking steps to address and prevent obesity is also a well-established way to minimize risk, as is adopting a healthy, high-fiber diet to promote proper bowel function, according to the doctor.
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“Diets that are lower in fiber are often more constipating, and, therefore, if there’s anything in the food that is carcinogenic, that is going to have more direct, prolonged contact with the bowel wall, with the cells, and increases the chances of DNA damage,” she said.
“Obviously, we cannot change our family history, but those good lifestyle habits will make a difference in the risk of colorectal cancer.”
11th-seeded Texas stuns college powerhouse to advance to March Madness Sweet 16
Most of March Madness seemed to lacking big upsets in the early going, but the tournament has its first Cinderella.
The 11th-seeded Texas Longhorns pulled off a huge upset against No. 3 Gonzaga with a 74-68 win to move on to the Sweet 16.
Gonzaga led by as many as eight points, going up 28-20 with 4:29 left in the first half, but the Longhorns ended the half on a 15-5 run to lead by two going into the locker room.
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Both teams constantly exchanged buckets and leads in the second half, and neither team led by more than four until Texas got out to its largest lead of six with a big 3-pointer with 5:30 to go in the game.
And an upset alert was officially on.
The Bulldogs cut the deficit to two with three minutes to go, but Texas answered with a massive three to go back up five. Then, up 69-66, Texas missed two 3-pointers that went in and out, and a Gonzaga dunk with around 40 seconds left made it a one-point game.
The Longhorns’ Camden Heide made the shot of his life with a corner 3-pointer with 14.7 seconds left. After Gonzaga missed a shot on the other end, Matas Vokietaitis made a layup to ice the win.
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The Longhorns went 5-for-15 from three but hit three of their final five, showing up in the clutch. Gonzaga was 4-for-16 from deep.
Vokietaitis and Jordan Pope led the way with 17 points each, and Vokietaitis grabbed nine rebounds. Graham Ike scored 25 for Gonzaga.
This is just the second time Texas has made the Sweet 16 since 2008, also doing so in 2023. As for Gonzaga, it’s back-to-back seasons of second-round exits.
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Texas will face the winner of No. 2 Purdue and No. 7 Miami, who battle on Sunday at 12:10 p.m. ET.
Denise Richards’ ‘shocking’ facelift: See the before and after transformation
Denise Richards is baring all when it comes to her facelift.
The “Wild Things” actress, 55, underwent the plastic surgery procedure in 2025, and in a new interview, she revealed details of her “shocking” transformation, a divorce-fueled recovery and the pushback she received from her daughters.
“I wanted to put things back up, where they were before,” Richards told Allure.
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The first time she had plastic surgery was when she got breast implants at just 19 years old, and she has had revision surgery since then.
But, she said, this was the first time she’s had cosmetic surgery on her face. “I was terrified,” Richards said, well aware that the world had watched her age.
“Being in the public eye since my 20s, people know what I look like — a facelift is not something that I could hide.”
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“It is night and day,” Richards said of her reflection before and after the facelift. “It’s shocking, actually.” After she had the facelift, she added, other celebrities “were more comfortable telling me about theirs, but I’m not gonna name names.”
She also made it clear there’s more to the story behind Hollywood glow-ups, noting that “it’s not just serums and working out and lasers” that make celebrities look younger.
Richards explained that she had handed over total control to her surgeon.
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“My face was in his hands,” Richards said, emphasizing the trust she placed in Dr. Ben Talei. She recalled telling him, “You’re the artist. Whatever you want to do.”
However, just days after her procedure, Richards found herself navigating a personal matter that complicated her healing.
“Unfortunately, I started going through my divorce 10 days after I had surgery. So the second week wasn’t as calm as the first week. But I still took it easy, making sure that I took care of my incisions. Each day that went by, the swelling was getting better and better. I looked like myself, but better.”
Aaron Phypers filed for divorce from Richards on July 7, citing irreconcilable differences. Ten days later, Richards’ initial request for a temporary restraining order was granted.
The “Melrose Place” star’s request for a permanent restraining order was granted in November.
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“Going through my divorce, my ex disclosed that I’d had a facelift. He had a photographer show up outside an appointment where I had some microneedling on my scars. So [my ex] told someone that I had a facelift, and said it was botched, which is really ridiculous.”
Richards added, “You know, I went back and forth about whether I was going to say anything about my facelift — um, he kind of let the cat out of the bag. I think I could have gotten away with, ‘Oh, she looks so much better after her divorce.’ I think I probably would’ve been able to get away with it — or not, I don’t know.”
The Hollywood actress also shared that her decision sparked concern within her family, particularly among her daughters.
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“My oldest daughters were not happy that I was doing it. But I think now they understand, and they see that I still look like me. I think they were just worried, in general, of [me] having surgery. They were telling me I didn’t need it. I was too young. I told them that this is something that I want to do, and you may not agree with my decision, but I just want your support. I understand that you feel the way you do, but please know that this is something that I want to do for me.”
The discussion also brought up a moment of irony within her household, as Richards reflected on a prior disagreement with one of her daughters over cosmetic procedures.
“I didn’t want [my daughter] Sami to get a nose job about two years ago. So when she said she didn’t want me to get a facelift, she said, ‘Mom, you did not want me to get a nose job.’ I said, ‘Yeah, but you were 20 years old, and that’s your nose. That could change the way you look. For me, he’s just putting things back where they were. I’m not trying to change the way I look; I’m just trying to put things back. There’s a little difference, in my opinion.’”
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The “Starship Troopers” actress shares Sami and Lola with her ex-husband, Charlie Sheen. She is also the mother to daughter Eloise, whom she adopted as an infant.
Top 5 states with the highest number of safest hospitals, according to new report
Hundreds of hospitals across the country are being recognized for keeping patients safe, and a handful of states stand out for having the highest number of top performers.
Healthgrades, a platform for finding doctors, health care providers and hospitals, released its 2026 Patient Safety Excellence Awards this month, naming 438 hospitals in 40 states that rank among the top 10% nationwide for patient safety.
The analysis highlights centers that excel at preventing serious, avoidable complications during hospital stays based on 13 patient safety indicators.
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Among all states, five had the highest number of hospitals earning the distinction: Texas, Florida, California, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
These states led the nation in total award recipients, with counts ranging from 21 to as many as 62 hospitals, according to Healthgrades data cited by MedPage Today. The concentration of high-performing hospitals in these states may be partly driven by size, the outlet noted.
“The prevalence of recipients in a particular state could be related to something as simple as that state having a large number of hospitals,” a Healthgrades spokesperson told MedPage Today.
Nonetheless, the findings point to strong safety performance across several of the nation’s most populated regions, particularly major metro areas such as Los Angeles, Dallas-Fort Worth and New York City.
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Patients treated at these hospitals saw significantly lower risks for some of the most common and serious safety events that account for the majority of in-hospital complications, according to a news release.
Compared to other hospitals, patients at award-winning facilities were 52.4% less likely to experience an in-hospital fall resulting in fracture; 57.5% less likely to suffer a collapsed lung related to procedures; 67.8% less likely to develop catheter-related bloodstream infections; and 71.9% less likely to develop pressure sores.
Those four indicators alone make up about 78% of all patient safety events, according to Healthgrades, and if all hospitals performed at the same level as this year’s recipients, more than 100,000 patient safety events could have been avoided between 2022 and 2024.
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“The data behind this year’s Patient Safety Excellence Award highlights how measurable improvements in safety can prevent thousands of complications,” Dr. Alana Biggers, a medical advisor at Healthgrades, said in a statement.
“Hospitals that prioritize evidence-based safety practices not only achieve better clinical outcomes but also cultivate a culture where patients come first,” Biggers added. “These insights give individuals and families the information they need to make confident and better informed healthcare decisions.”
The award is based on an analysis of Medicare inpatient data, evaluating outcomes such as complications, mortality and preventable safety events. To qualify, hospitals must meet strict clinical thresholds and report zero cases of certain serious errors, such as leaving a foreign object behind during a procedure.
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Overall, 250 hospitals ranked in the top 5% nationwide for safety, including facilities affiliated with major systems such as Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic and HCA Healthcare.
Ten states had no hospitals on the list: Alabama, Alaska, Delaware, Iowa, Maine, North Dakota, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming and the District of Columbia.
Experts say factors including rural hospital shortages and “care deserts” may contribute to those gaps because patients in underserved areas often face longer travel times and arrive with more advanced conditions.
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Nearly one-third of this year’s recognized hospitals were new to the list, according to Healthgrades, reflecting continued shifts in hospital performance and safety practices across the country.
The full list of hospitals that received the Patient Safety Excellence Award can be found here.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Healthgrades for additional comment.