The Dictatorship
Gunman in deadly Old Dominion University shooting had past ISIS ties, sources say
A gunman killed one person and injured two others in a shooting on Thursday at Old Dominion University in Virginia, Norfolk police said.
Authorities have identified the shooter as Mohamed Bailor Jalloh, a U.S. citizen who pleaded guilty in October 2016 to attempting to provide material support to the extremist militant group ISIS, two U.S. officials familiar with the matter told MS NOW.
In that 2016 case, Jalloh, a former member of the U.S. Army, admitted to attempting to donate money to the terror group and carry out a domestic attack in its name, the U.S. officials said.
The FBI is investigating the shooting as an act of terrorism. The bureau said members of the school’s ROTC program “terminated the threat” but did not shoot the gunman.
The U.S. Army Cadet Command (ROTC) confirmed in a statement Thursday evening that three victims were members of the university’s ROTC program, one of whom died. “We are deeply saddened by the loss of a member of the U.S. Army ROTC team,” the statement said.
Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger, in an X post Thursday night, identified the deceased victim as Lt. Col. Brandon Shah. “Lt. Col. Brandon Shah was killed today in his classroom at Old Dominion University. A devoted ROTC instructor, Lt. Col. Shah didn’t just lead a life of service to our country, he taught and led others to follow that path,” the governor said.
“The shooter is now deceased thanks to a group of brave students who stepped in and subdued him — actions that undoubtedly saved lives along with the quick response of law enforcement,” FBI Director Kash Patel said.
Shortly before 11 a.m. ET, Old Dominion University and Norfolk police, as well as emergency personnel, responded to reports of a shooter at a building that houses the university’s business school, the university said. The injured were taken to a hospital, where their conditions weren’t immediately known.
“Old Dominion University has canceled classes and operations on main campus for the remainder of the day,” a spokesperson for the school said in a statement shortly after the campus went on lockdown. “Please avoid the area in and around Constant Hall where emergency personnel continue to work.”
Spanberger said in a statement that she is monitoring the investigation into the shooting.
“Adam and I are praying for the victims, their families, and every Virginian who has been touched by this terrifying shooting,” Spanberger said. “I encourage community members to continue following guidance from the university and local emergency officials.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Erum Salam is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW, with a focus on how global events and foreign policy shape U.S. politics. She previously was a breaking news reporter for The Guardian.
Lawmakers are pressing major corporations for details on tens of millions of dollars pledged to a planned Donald Trump presidential library, after the nonprofit originally meant to receive the funds was dissolved quietly last year.
Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., along with Rep. Melanie Stansbury, D-N.M., sent letters to executives at companies including ABC, Meta, Paramount and X, seeking details on at least $63 million in commitments those companies made as part of legal settlements with Trump or his allies. The letters seek to clarify whether the funds were ever transferred, and if so, how they have been used.
The Donald J. Trump Presidential Library Fund Inc., the nonprofit originally designated to receive the money, was dissolved in 2025. A successor organization, the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library Foundation Inc., has reported receiving $50 million, but has not confirmed the source of those funds, leaving it unclear whether the settlement pledges were fulfilled or redirected.
The inquiry comes amid growing scrutiny over the flow of money and assets tied to Trump’s presidency and post‑presidential plans, including reports that a luxury Boeing 747‑8 jumbo jet — valued at about $400 million and offered by the Qatari government for use as Air Force One — could potentially be transferred to the Trump library foundation after he leaves office.
The congressional investigation was first reported by The Washington Post.
Lily Becker is a producer on “The Weeknight” for MS NOW.
David Rohde
David Rohde is the senior national security reporter for MS NOW. Previously he was the senior executive editor for national security and law for NBC News.
Today’s edition of quick hits.
* Today’s shooting at a university in Virginia: “A shooter at Old Dominion University in Virginia sent the campus into lockdown Thursday morning, leaving at least two people injured and the shooter dead, the school said.”
* Today’s shooting at a synagogue in Michigan: “A suspect drove a car into a synagogue near Detroit on Thursday, dying after a confrontation with security, the county sheriff said. One security officer at Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Michigan, was hit by the vehicle and hospitalized but is expected to recover, and no one else inside was injured, Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said.”
* A revised target tally in Iran: “U.S. Central Command today released an updated report on the war with Iran, raising the number of targets struck by U.S. military forces to approximately 6,000.”
* A serious risk of cyberattacks: “Pro-Iranian hackers are targeting sites in the Middle East and starting to stretch into the United States during the war, raising the risk of American defense contractors, power stations and water plants being swept into a wave of digital chaos that could expand if Tehran’s allies join the fray.”
* In Russia: “A Ukrainian missile strike inflicted heavy damage on a key plant supplying electronic components for the Russian war machine, Kyiv officials said. Russian officials on Wednesday sharply condemned the strike, which was carried out using British-produced medium-range missiles, saying that it was intended to derail peace talks, though negotiations seem to have hit a wall for other reasons.”
* Tapping the SPR: “The U.S. will release 172 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to help lower energy costs during the Iran war, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Wednesday evening.”
* The fight over tariffs clearly isn’t over yet: “The Trump administration took a major step toward replacing the global tariffs that the Supreme Court recently invalidated, announcing new investigations of unfair trading practices that will almost certainly result later this summer in permanent new taxes on U.S. imports.”
See you tomorrow.
Steve Benen is a producer for “The Rachel Maddow Show,” the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He’s also the bestselling author of “Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans’ War on the Recent Past.”
The Dictatorship
Farmer says he’s ‘collateral damage’ in Trump’s war in Iran, warns food prices could soar
Farmers across rural America are sounding the alarm, warning that the Iran was could cause prices at the grocery store to skyrocket.
John Bartman, a corn and soybean farmer from Illinois, joined MS NOW’s Stephanie Ruhle on Wednesday’s “The 11th Hour” to explain how the conflict, which has disrupted fertilizer shipments through the Strait of Hormuzcould affect the food supply here at home.
“Very simply, we need fertilizer in order to grow food. It’s just that simple,” Bartman told Ruhle.
More than one-third of the world’s fertilizer trade moves through the Strait of Hormuz, and fertilizer prices are already rising.
According to Bartman, this could hit America’s farmers hard. “What this really amounts to is a $4 billion tax to corn farmers in the United States — an increase, thanks to Donald Trump,” he said.
Ruhle described the situation as part of a “one-two punch” from the administration, as many farmers are still grappling with the effects of the president’s tariffs.
Bartman said many in his industry are suffering through an economic crisiswhich he expects to worsen if the war continues. “The American Farm Bureau this year said that every single commodity that we grow in the United States is unprofitable,” he told Ruhle. “And this is just adding to it.”
The farmer added: “We as farmers are suffering the collateral damage from this, and farm bankruptcies are going through the roof right now.”
With no end to the war in sight, Bartman said it’s the American people who will pay the price. “Unfortunately, the senior citizens who are sitting at home and people on fixed incomes are going to see higher prices for their food this year,” he said.
Bartman said America’s farmers “don’t want a bailout.” Instead, he said, they simply want “to take our product, put it in the market and sell it and make money off of it.”
“If they [Congress] really wanted to get something done … they would advance policies that increase our demand,” he told Ruhle.
Bartman criticized the president for gutting the U.S. Agency for International Developmentwhich historically had purchased billions in food aid from American farmers.
“Right now, there’s 33 million people in Sudan who are suffering severe hunger,” he said. “And if those people at USAID were able to take our grain that we have, that billion bushels of wheat that’s just sitting there in our ending stocks right now, and give that flour to overseas, that would make a huge difference. It would give us a leg up and [help us] be able to make some money as a farmer, and we’d be able to have soft power again.”
Bartman added: “We would be the good guys in the world again — and maybe wouldn’t be in Iran right now.”
You can watch Bartman’s full interview in the clip at the top of the page.
Allison Detzel is an editor/producer for MS NOW. She was previously a segment producer for “AYMAN” and “The Mehdi Hasan Show.”
- Getting Congress to pay for the Iran war won’t be an easy sell
- One month later, the DHS shutdown shows no signs of ending
- GOP senator proposes vote to nix filibuster amid elections bill debate
- Gunman in deadly Old Dominion University shooting had past ISIS ties, sources say
- Democrats seek answers on millions pledged to Trump presidential library
- Thursday’s Mini-Report, 3.12.26
- Farmer says he’s ‘collateral damage’ in Trump’s war in Iran, warns food prices could soar
- In second week of the Iran war, the White House emphasizes ‘fun’ and meme videos
- GOP senator proposes vote to nix filibuster amid elections bill debate
- Who’s on the Gonzales probe
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