Donna Kelsey is reportedly renovating her home, and social media is having a meme field day because of it.

It all started on March 7, when TMZ shared a post with X about the Kelce patriarch’s apparent renovation plans.

The post received a lot of attention, especially from people who took notice of the mundane nature of the story. Shortly after, both of the Kelsey brothers’ podcasts, Jason Kelsey and New Heights, weighed in on the news regarding X.

Daron Lee, 31, was charged with first-degree murder and tampering with evidence in Hamilton County, Tennessee, and remains in custody without bail. Lee appeared at a preliminary hearing March 9, where a judge ordered his case to be referred to a grand jury.

Lee, who last played for the Buffalo Bills in 2020 during a five-year NFL career, is accused of killing his girlfriend, Gabriella Perpetuo, 29, inside the house the couple had moved into 10 days before she was found dead on February 5.

Chattanooga’s WDEF-12 News reported that a preliminary autopsy revealed that Perpetuo suffered multiple injuries that led to death, including an extracted front tooth, a fractured jaw, a cerebral hematoma, shallow stab wounds, and a fractured neck.

At a press conference on Monday, March 9, President Trump answered a question about whether the Iranian government had activated a secret organization, or cell, within the country.

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“They’ve been trying for a long time, and we’re making pretty good progress,” Trump said.

“We are monitoring each and every one of them, yes. We know a lot about them,” the president added. He argued that the Democratic-led shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security is hampering the administration’s efforts to address these concerns.

The FBI is the leading agency in investigating and preventing acts of domestic and international terrorism. The Department of Homeland Security’s funding failure primarily affected FEMA, the Transportation Security Administration, and Customs and Border Protection. However, much of the Department of Homeland Security’s normal operations, including ICE operations, continues.

more: Trump Justice Department asks Supreme Court to take down gun control laws

Justice Department officials listed nearly 20 names in the Federal Register in late February. Their crimes ranged from non-violent drug crimes to bribery and fraud. Among them are many who have previously applied for pardons or reductions, and others who have recently sued the department.

In one notable case, the Justice Department restored the rights of Arizona Sen. Jake Hoffman, who was accused of a 2020 sham election scheme in that state to keep President Trump in the White House. Trump has already pardoned Hoffman on federal charges, but he faces state charges in Arizona and is barred from purchasing new firearms by the federal government. Hoffman declined to comment when contacted by USA TODAY.

Federal law generally prohibits felons from possessing firearms. It would also block the sale of guns to anyone convicted of a misdemeanor domestic violence offense. The Trump administration is currently strengthening a relief process that has been dormant since 1992 to make it easier for nonviolent felons to regain their gun rights. Adam Kraut, executive director of the Second Amendment Foundation, said firearms organizations are eager to get the program started.

“Millions of people have been disenfranchised from nonviolent crimes for years,” Kraut said. “We have supported a series of lawsuits showing that lifetime bans are unconstitutional.”

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The slow drip-in of gun rights restoration is a preview of what the department says could result in as many as 1 million applications a year under a new protocol proposed last summer. Last February, President Trump signed an executive order aimed at expanding gun rights, and in July, the Justice Department proposed a process for felons and other prohibited purchasers to petition to have their gun rights restored.

The move is supported by gun rights groups such as the National Rifle Association and the National Gun Rights Association. Gun violence prevention groups like Everytown and the Risk-Based Firearms Policy Consortium condemn this.

“Who are these people and why should their right to purchase a firearm be restored? The Trump administration, once again believing itself to be above the law, is sloppily restoring people’s gun rights without completing the rulemaking process,” said Chris Brown, president of the gun control group Brady. “It means public comment about what this new restorative process entails – potentially arming domestic abusers and harming communities – is being blatantly ignored.”

Comments that generally agree with the proposal

Justice Department officials are still reviewing more than 3,400 comments they received on a proposal to hire more staff, open an online portal and restore gun rights more broadly. The agency plans to issue a final rule soon, but declined to answer questions about it.

Last summer, the department outlined plans to allocate up to 50 full-time employees to review the high volume of applications that cost applicants $20 each.

The department said a stronger system was needed following the Supreme Court’s Bruen decision, which led to further challenges to laws banning felons from owning guns. A landmark 2022 case ruled that the Second Amendment protects an individual’s right to carry a loaded handgun in public, opening the door to challenges to laws banning certain firearms, prohibiting individuals, and restricting gun possession in sensitive areas.

The proposed rule outlines several “presumptive disqualifying crimes,” including felony sex crimes and other violent crimes. The report proposed a 10-year waiting period after the end of a sentence for serious crimes and a five-year waiting period for all other crimes.

USA TODAY analyzed 3,400 comments and found that roughly 90% were in favor of the proposal. Some comments argued for fewer limits, no waiting period, and called for an appeals process.

A small number of comments, including those by survivors of the violence, were directly opposed to the restoration.

One woman wrote, “I was a victim of domestic violence and am deeply concerned that my abuser would regain ownership of a gun.” “If you leave things like this, women will die. Their blood will be on your hands.”

Lawsuits help felons get their guns back

Of the 22 people appointed by the attorney general in February, the majority had their rights restored after applying for full pardons from the ministry.

These amnesty applications are still pending for 14 people who are currently able to possess firearms. A man named James Michael Cross was pardoned by President Trump in 2005 for possessing an unregistered firearm.

Another route to quicker recovery of rights appears to be litigation. That’s the path taken by at least two people on the list announced in February.

George Manousis, 63, a Philadelphia real estate developer, sued the Justice Department and ATF in 2023 for gun rights. He was convicted in 2005 of bribery charges in what his lawyer called a “low-level pay-to-play scheme” involving a local building inspector.

After President Trump’s executive order, Justice Department officials contacted Manousis about the remediation process.

Manosis previously owned a .380 Colt Mustang and plans to replace it with a modern model. He said he was taking responsibility for his crimes and giving people who were convicted of being landlords a second chance.

“As a real estate developer, I go into dangerous neighborhoods in Philadelphia to improve them, so I want them to be protected,” Manousis said, adding that he has no ties to the Trump administration.

John Mastrangelo, 45, of Parkland, Florida, obtained his gun rights in February. He was invited to sue the Department of Justice in 2024 and apply for the recovery process.

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Mr. Mastrangelo was convicted in 2001 of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute narcotics and sentenced to 47 months in prison.

“He is the perfect candidate to have come back and built a business, and he should not be permanently prohibited from owning a firearm,” said attorney Pat Wilson, who is representing Mr. Mastrangelo. “He was into hunting even before he was disarmed. That was his main motivation.”

Nick Sabatine, 74, an attorney from Wind Gap, Pennsylvania, has had his firearms privileges restored. He was indicted in 2013 on tax evasion charges for filing false returns in connection with a Ponzi scheme run by another man.

Mr. Sabatine remained a licensed attorney after his indictment and cooperated with federal authorities regarding the case. He said he filed the restitution petition to regain possession of the firearms he surrendered in 2014.

“It’s unfortunate. I made a mistake. I regret it. It’s my fault. But I never thought this was a just punishment for people who don’t pose a threat to society,” Sabatine said, adding that she wanted to protect her two schnauzers from the black bears that roamed her yard.

Sabatine said he had no ties to the Trump administration but ran for Congress on the Reform Party ticket in 1996. He is active in the conservative rock band “The Patriot All Stars” and sings the song “Don’t Blame Me (I Voted for Trump).”

Gibson is a freak, pardon lawyers still fighting

The issue became a flashpoint in the early days of the Trump administration, and nine people, including Academy Award-winning director and actor Mel Gibson, had their gun rights restored in April 2025.

Liz Oyer, the Justice Department’s pardon attorney, refused to add Mr. Gibson to the pilot program because he had a 2011 domestic violence conviction that differed from other nonviolent crimes reviewed in the FBI’s background process.

In January 2025, President Trump appointed Gibson a “special ambassador” to Hollywood, along with fellow conservative actors Jon Voight and Sylvester Stallone.

Mr. Oyer was fired on March 7 and was greeted by security guards with a termination memorandum signed by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche. She was not given a formal reason for her termination and appealed to the Merit Systems Protection Board.

Meanwhile, Oyer is seeking documents related to his termination in a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit. So far, no pre-termination documents from Blanche and others have been released.

Mr. Oyer’s lawyer argued that it was impossible for Mr. Blanche to order his dismissal without any written documentation. While the FOIA case is ongoing, internal chatter about Gibson is occurring among pardon attorneys.

“He is exactly the kind of person I would not recommend for this type of remedy,” Oyer told his attorney, Kira Gillespie.

“I very much agree. I wouldn’t say no to someone with a history of (domestic violence), but I think it’s very rare,” Gillespie said, according to records released in the FOIA lawsuit.

USA TODAY’s John Heasly contributed to this report.

The award-winning actress and “Fifty Shades of Grey” star is seen naked in front of the cameras once again as the star of Calvin Klein’s spring campaign, in new photos released on Monday, March 9.

The campaign, directed and photographed by Gordon von Steiner, included several revealing shots of Johnson, 36, on a “relaxing day at home,” with an aesthetic intended to showcase the iconic fashion house’s “sophisticated, less-is-more philosophy of confidence and sensuality.”

“The images and videos oscillate between subtle sensuality and cheeky humor, stripping away the excess and highlighting Calvin Klein’s latest denim fits and underwear innovations,” according to a Calvin Klein press release. “At the heart of this story is a clear vision of living with confidence.”

Johnson poses topless in several campaign photos, including one in which she leans against a pool table and another in blue jeans while perched on top of a piano.

Toronto Police Deputy Chief Frank Barredo said in a press conference that the shooting occurred around 4:30 a.m. on March 10, and officers were called to respond about an hour later. Police responded and found evidence of gunfire, including shell casings and damage to the exterior of the building.

There were people inside the consulate at the time of the shooting, but no one was injured because the structure is “highly secured and heavily fortified,” Barredo said. Toronto police said in a statement that there was damage to the building’s glass and doors.

Witnesses said a white Honda CR-V pulled up outside the consulate, and two men got out and fired handguns at the building, then returned to their cars and left the scene, Barredo said. Anyone with information about the suspect or relevant dashcam footage is asked to contact Toronto Police.

“We will take a break at 11 o’clock to allow Dr. Means to take care of our children,” committee chairman Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana) said in his opening remarks.

Means, President Donald Trump’s nominee for surgeon general, was originally scheduled to testify in October. However, around that time she went into labor and the hearing was postponed.

This was perhaps the most notable recent example of the administration’s baby boom boom.

Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kansas, introduced Means at the February hearing, saying, “I’m especially pleased to be able to convene this long-overdue meeting, but labor is one of the best excuses to delay a hearing. So, congratulations to the family. We hope that baby Phoenix, who is 17 weeks old today, is doing well.”

President Trump has said publicly that he wants a baby boom. Are you here? That certainly seems to be the case within his administration. But more broadly, experts say the question is complex.