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Year: 2024

Glenn Youngkin ‘personally invites’ new Trump admin to settle in Virginia over Maryland and DC

Glenn Youngkin ‘personally invites’ new Trump admin to settle in Virginia over Maryland and DC

EXCLUSIVE: Virginia Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin will release a video ad Tuesday inviting the countless new workers and officials in the second Trump administration to settle in his state, versus the District of Columbia and neighboring Maryland. Youngkin, who made education policy a pillar of his 2021 campaign against ex-Gov. Terence McAuliffe amid several school controversies in Northern Virginia, said the commonwealth has better schools than its neighbors. Youngkin cited a CNBC study ranking Virginia first in the U.S. in education, and first in the nation overall for business – displacing its neighbor in 2023, first-place North Carolina. “To the new members of President Trump’s administration moving to the area, I want to personally invite you to make Virginia your home,” Youngkin said. DOJ ONCE OK’D KAINE-ERA LAW AT CENTER OF YOUNGKIN VOTE CULLING ORDER FEDS NOW SUING TO BLOCK “Virginia is right across the Potomac. We offer a great quality of life, safe communities, award-winning schools where parents matter, and lower taxes than D.C. or Maryland.” Maryland was listed 31st in best-for-business, and the District of Columbia was unranked, according to the study. The ad flashed through several scenes in the Old Dominion, from the capital, Richmond, to the King Street Trolley slinking through Old Town Alexandria.  “It’s why so many people choose Virginia as the best place to live, work and raise a family,” Youngkin said. Youngkin has called education the “bedrock of attaining the American dream,” and the CNBC study credited both Youngkin and the Democratic state legislative majority for compromising on $2.5 billion in new K-12 funding and 3% raises for teachers. When asked about Virginia being pitched as a new home for the new administration, Trump transition team spokesman Brian Hughes said Youngkin’s performance speaks for itself as its own advertisement. CLIMATE PROTESTERS INTERRUPT YOUNGKIN’S 9/11 SPEECH “With the amazing job Governor Youngkin has done bringing common sense, low taxes, and high quality of life to his state, it’s no wonder that he has a compelling case to make to people who are exploring next steps in the region.” Hughes said. Youngkin was swept into office in 2021 after a major political upset of McAuliffe – as Republicans had been out of power in Richmond for about a decade. The last Republican governor, Bob McDonnell, reappeared on the political scene during President-elect Donald Trump’s various legal trials, as he, too, had been subject to prosecution by now-special counsel Jack Smith. In McDonnell’s case, the once-rumored 2012 running-mate candidate’s political future imploded during his own corruption litigation, but the Supreme Court later unanimously threw out Smith’s conviction. Now-Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, ultimately chose then-Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis. to run with him that cycle. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP With Virginia being the rare state that does not allow its governor to run for consecutive terms, Youngkin’s deputy, Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears, has launched a 2025 gubernatorial campaign she said seeks to build on the Youngkin-Sears record. The prominent Democrat in the upcoming contest thus far is Rep. Abigail Spanberger, who gave up her seat in launching her bid. Spanberger will be replaced in Congress by Rep-elect Yevgeny “Eugene” Vindman, D-Va., – the twin brother of Trump impeachment witness Col. Alexander Vindman.

Incoming border czar Homan to join Texas Gov. Abbott at key border point, serve meals to troops

Incoming border czar Homan to join Texas Gov. Abbott at key border point, serve meals to troops

Incoming border czar Tom Homan will join Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday at a key border area in Texas, and will serve meals to troops stationed there over Thanksgiving – ahead of what is expected to be significant cooperation between the Trump administration and Abbott’s team next year. Homan and Abbott will greet and serve meals to Texas National Guard soldiers and Texas Department of Public Safety troopers in Eagle Pass, Texas. Homan was appointed “border czar” by President-elect Trump this month after Trump’s election win. WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT THOMAS HOMAN, TRUMP’S INCOMING BORDER CZAR  “​​I’ve known Tom for a long time, and there is nobody better at policing and controlling our Borders. Likewise, Tom Homan will be in charge of all Deportation of Illegal Aliens back to their Country of Origin. Congratulations to Tom. I have no doubt he will do a fantastic, and long awaited for, job,” Trump said on Truth Social. Homan, a former acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) director, will be one of the most high-profile figures in terms of the mass deportation operation the incoming administration has planned. Abbott, meanwhile, has clashed repeatedly with the Biden administration over border security as his state bore the brunt of the historic migrant crisis at the southern border.  Abbott caused controversy by bussing migrants to “sanctuary” cities like New York City, Chicago and others as a way to relieve the pressure on the state. His administration has also built its own border wall, set up buoys in the Rio Grande and deployed troops to provide additional border security. Abbott, a Republican, is likely to find an alliance with the incoming administration with aligned views on additional border security, the ending of “catch-and-release” and tougher penalties on those entering the U.S. illegally. Speaking on “Fox & Friends” on Tuesday, Homan said the incoming administration is not waiting until Jan 20 to get to work. TRUMP’S ‘BORDER CZAR’ WARNS DEM GOVS REJECTING TRUMP DEPORTATION PLAN: ‘GET THE HELL OUT OF THE WAY’ “We’re already planning what we’re going to do to lock down the state of Texas,” he said. “Gov. Abbott’s in a great job so far. Illegal crossings in Texas are down over 80% because of the great work by Gov. Abbott, and he’s been successful because he has taken the Trump policies and put them to work.” “We’re going to partner up and help him do 100% security on his border, and we’re going to do that across the southwest border,” he said. On Monday, Abbott announced that Texas recently installed more buoy barriers in the Rio Grande. “Texas continues our historic border security mission to stop illegal entry and safeguard our nation,” he said. CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF THE BORDER SECURITY CRISIS “We’ll use every tool and strategy available to hold the line,” he said. Later Monday, he told Fox News’ Sean Hannity that he was thankful for the incoming administration and the role Homan will play in it. “I’m thankful that we have Tom Homan as the incoming border czar who is going to help execute those laws and enforce those laws and make sure that we get back to restoring order.”

NYC elementary school blasted for teaching ‘gender identity’ course to kindergarteners

NYC elementary school blasted for teaching ‘gender identity’ course to kindergarteners

A New York City elementary school is being called out for teaching a gender identity class to kindergartners after a copy of the course began circulating on social media. Hillside Elementary School, part of the Hastings-on-Hudson Union Free District, has been teaching a “gender curriculum” to elementary-level children in an effort to promote “inclusion” in the school, according to the course description reviewed by Fox News Digital. The course includes showing kindergarten students photos of other children which are used to “introduce vocabulary to describe characters of different identities,” including teaching them about the terms “cisgender, transgender, and non-binary,” according to a message to parents regarding the curriculum. “Our gender curriculum focuses on Hillside’s core value of respect and aims to center discussions on gender identity. The students will learn and discuss that there is a lot you can’t tell about a person by simply looking at them,” the kindergarten level course description reads.  PA EDUCATION DEPARTMENT AGREES TO CANCEL REQUIREMENT FOR TEACHERS TO ADOPT GUIDELINES DEEMED ‘WOKE’ “The students will look at pictures of children and talk about what they notice and what they think they know about the children just from the pictures. Using their observations, we will then take the opportunity to introduce vocabulary to describe characters of different identities,” the school writes. GOP SENATOR DEBUTS BILL TO ABOLISH DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION FOLLOWING TRUMP CAMPAIGN PROMISE The “identity” being taught to children includes discussing “gender and the pronouns that you use,” and that “as we learn and grow, the words we use to describe our gender identity can grow too,” as described by the school. When asked by Fox News Digital about the curriculum, the Hastings-on-Hudson Union Free District communications team said that the lessons have been in place for several years and are rooted in “Hillside’s core values of respect and fostering dignity for all students.” “One 30-minute gender lesson is taught in each class one time per year. The classes are led by a certified educator, following a specific set of lessons designed to help students value the full diversity of their classmates,” Superintendent William S. McKersie said in a message to faculty and parents. “The lessons have been created in alignment with the NYS Culturally Responsive-Sustaining Education Framework,” he wrote. The school noted that the lessons do not address sex education or sexuality. The school district said that while they usually have the courses posted publicly online, the gender lesson description has been taken off the website since going viral.  LibsofTikTok, a social media account known for posting content geared toward calling out the far-left, posted a copy of the message to parents, which quickly received millions of views. “Our kids can’t read or write or even possess a basic understanding of history, yet the gender communism indoctrination of kindergartners continues unabated,” New York City Councilwoman Vickie Paladino said in a repost of the curriculum. “This won’t stop until these people face real consequences.” Kemberlee Kaye, managing editor of Critical Race Training in Education, a database that allows viewers to see which schools identified have been practicing critical race theory teachings, responded on X to “get your kids out of government schools.”

Federal judge blocks Biden labor protections for foreign farmworkers

Federal judge blocks Biden labor protections for foreign farmworkers

A federal judge in Kentucky rejected expanded protections implemented by the Biden-Harris administration for foreign farmworkers who come to the U.S. under H-2A visas.   On Monday, U.S. District Judge Danny Reeves granted an injunction siding with Kentucky farmers and Republican attorneys general in Kentucky, Ohio, West Virginia and Alabama who argued that the new rules constituted granting foreign farmworkers collection bargaining rights. Reeves said that Congress, not the Biden-Harris administration, would have to determine whether to allow H-2A visa-holders the right to unionize.  Those new rules, implemented by the U.S. Department of Labor in April, expanded protections for H-2A visa-holders, including requiring employers to ensure they would not intimidate, threaten or otherwise discriminate against foreign farmworkers for “activities related to self-organization” and “concerted activities for the purpose of mutual aide or protection relating to wages of working conditions.”  “In perhaps its most blatant arrogation of authority, the Final Rule seeks to extend numerous rights to H-2A workers which they did not previously enjoy through its worker voice and empowerment provisions,” Judge Reeves wrote. “The DOL justifies this attempted regulatory expansion as an effort to prevent the alleged ‘unfair treatment’ of H-2A workers by employers to protect similarly situated American workers.” FARMERS ‘BRUTALIZED’ AS COSTS ‘GO THROUGH THE ROOF’ IN LAST DAYS OF BIDEN’S AMERICA “The Final Rule not so sneakily creates substantive collective bargaining rights for H-2A agricultural workers through the ‘prohibitions’ it places on their employers,” Reeves wrote. “Framing these provisions as mere expansions of anti-retaliation policies, the DOL attempts to grant H-2A workers substantive rights without Congressional authorization.”  Under a prior preliminary injunction issued by a federal judge in Georgia, the new rules had already been blocked in 17 states. Reeves’ decision does not apply nationwide.  TRUMP TAPS TEXAN BROOKE ROLLINS AS AGRICULTURE SECRETARY Congress created the H-2A temporary agricultural visa program in 1986 through the Immigration Reform and Control Act, allowing employers to hire foreign farmworkers on a temporary, seasonal basis, when there is a shortage of U.S. workers to fill the needed positions. It includes protections for American workers, including setting a minimum wage rate for foreigners coming to work under the program.  Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman argued that the Biden-Harris administration rules could have caused “serious and irreversible damage to farmers who are just trying to get by and bring food to Kentucky’s dinner tables.”  “We should be working to help Kentucky’s farmers, not put them out of business. This unlawful and unnecessary rule from the Biden-Harris Administration would have made it harder to get farmers’ products to grocery store shelves and would have increased already high prices for families,” Coleman said in a statement. “We will continue to do what’s right to stand up for Kentucky’s farmers.”

With Trump pledging endorsement, Florida CFO will run for Matt Gaetz’s former House seat

With Trump pledging endorsement, Florida CFO will run for Matt Gaetz’s former House seat

Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis plans to run for U.S. Congress, he indicated in a resignation letter circulating online. In the letter to Sunshine State Gov. Ron DeSantis and Florida Secretary of State Cory Byrd, Patronis said, “… this letter is to give you notice of my resignation from the role as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the State of Florida in order to become a candidate in the 2025 Special Election for Florida’s First Congressional District. “Because the primary election for CD 1 is currently scheduled for January 28, 2025, with the general election scheduled for April 1, 2025, I hereby irrevocably resign as CFO effective March 31, 2025.” FLORIDA CFO REQUESTS REPORT ON POTENTIAL FOR INVESTING SOME STATE RETIREMENT SYSTEM FUNDS INTO DIGITAL ASSETS In a post on Truth Social on Monday, President-elect Donald Trump urged Patronis to run for the House seat. “I hear that Jimmy is now considering launching a Campaign for Congress in Florida’s 1st Congressional District!” Trump said in the post.  “Should he decide to enter this Race, Jimmy Patronis has my Complete and Total Endorsement. RUN, JIMMY, RUN!” Trump declared. TRUMP BEGINS ENDORSING REPLACEMENTS TO REPLENISH GOP MAJORITY IN HOUSE AS CABINET PICKS SHRINK LEAD Patronis shared a screenshot of Trump’s post and wrote in a post on X, “Put me to work, Mr. President! @realDonaldTrump I am here to serve.” Fox News Digital reached out to Patronis and the Florida Department of Financial Services, but has not yet received a response. Former Rep. Matt Gaetz won re-election to the House seat earlier this month, but resigned after Trump tapped him for attorney general.  FLORIDA CFO SHARES EMOTIONAL STORY OF RETIREE’S INSURANCE DISASTER IN MILTON AFTERMATH: ‘HEARTBROKEN’ Gaetz later withdrew from consideration for the role, noting in a post on X, “… it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition. There is no time to waste on a needlessly protracted Washington scuffle, thus I’ll be withdrawing my name from consideration to serve as Attorney General.”

What’s next for this popular Republican governor after he leaves office?

What’s next for this popular Republican governor after he leaves office?

NEWFIELDS, N.H. – After eight years in office, Republican Gov. Chris Sununu of New Hampshire is in his final weeks steering New England’s only swing state. Sununu announced last year that he wouldn’t seek an unprecedented fifth two-year term as governor. New Hampshire and Vermont are the only two states in the nation to hold gubernatorial elections every two years. And he’s leaving office on a high note, with his approval ratings remaining firmly in positive territory. So what’s next for the 50-year-old Sununu, who eight years ago, when first elected, was the nation’s youngest governor? IS THERE STILL ROOM IN THE GOP FOR TRUMP SKEPTICS? “I’m excited to get back to the private sector. I like businesses, I like deal sourcing,” the governor said in a Fox News Digital interview. “I’m not sure exactly what the private sector is going to bring, but I think it’s going to be pretty exciting.” New Hampshire, a perennial swing state, will likely have a competitive Senate contest in 2026 when longtime Democrat Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, a former governor, is up for re-election. And Sununu is likely to be courted by national Republicans to run for the Senate. EXCLUSIVE: WHAT THE NEW REPUBLICAN GOVERNORS CHAIR TOLD FOX NEWS But Sununu reiterated what he told Fox News Digital in July. “Definitely ruling out running for the Senate in 2026. Yeah, definitely not on my dance card,” he said. But the governor predicted that Republicans will “have a good candidate. There’s no question about it. A couple of different folks that might be interested in running. I think that’d be fantastic. We’ve had an all-Democrat [congressional] delegation for a long time. I think the people in the state… would love a different voice, would love just some sort of change.” Sununu, one of the more recognizable governors nationwide thanks to his regular appearances the past few years on the Sunday talk shows and cable news networks, mulled a Republican presidential nomination run before announcing a year and a half ago that he wouldn’t seek the White House in 2024. Asked if there’s another run for office in his future, the governor said he’s “not thinking about that at all, excited for the private sector. And that’s all… that’s in my windshield.” But he didn’t entirely shut the door, adding, “We’ll see what political chapters write themselves down the road.” Sununu will be succeeded as New Hampshire governor by Gov.-elect Kelly Ayotte, a fellow Republican and former state attorney general and former U.S. senator. REPUBLICAN GOVERNORS SAY WITH TRUMP ELECTION, ‘WE’VE GOT A FRIEND IN THE WHITE HOUSE’ The governor was a top surrogate on the campaign trail and on the airwaves for Ayotte, who pledged to continue the Sununu agenda. Asked if Ayotte’s nearly nine and half point win over former Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig, the Democratic Party gubernatorial nominee, was also a victory for him, Sununu said, “It was a victory for New Hampshire.” “Kelly’s going to be phenomenal. She has that experience as an attorney general, as U.S. senator. She understands how the systems work,” Sununu emphasized. “Our transition is already going incredibly smoothly; discussions virtually every single day about all aspects of government, where it’s going, how to build good teams and, most importantly… the opportunities to listen to what’s happening in the communities.” Asked if he’d be offering advice to his successor, Sununu said “she’ll have my cell number. I don’t know if she’ll need it, because I think she’s going to be fantastic on her own, but she’ll always have my cell number.” Sununu pointed to John Lynch and now-Sen. Maggie Hassan, his Democratic predecessors as governor, who Sununu said shared their cellphone numbers with him. He noted, “We want New Hampshire to be successful. So, it’s not just me helping Kelly out. It is always a team effort. She’s going to have a host of people that she can lean on for any advice when she needs it.”