Ajay Kumar, former defence secretary, appointed UPSC chairman
The post of Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) chairman fell vacant after the completion of Preeti Sudan’s tenure on April 29.
‘Eager to get rid of the judge in me’: Justice Sanjiv Khanna retires as 51st CJI; check his landmark verdicts
CJI Khanna addressed perceptions of being a “conservative” judge, citing data that showed he overturned convictions in 33-35% of cases at his farewell ceremony held by the Supreme Court Bar Association.
Buttigieg says ‘right now I’m not running for anything’ during Iowa stop
CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA – Pete Buttigieg pushed back against criticism from President Donald Trump on the job he did as transportation secretary in former President Biden’s administration and declined to say if Biden experienced cognitive decline during his final years in the White House, as he took questions from reporters on Tuesday night. Buttigieg, speaking with reporters after headlining a town hall with veterans in this eastern Iowa city that sparked more speculation that the 2020 Democratic presidential contender is mulling another White House run in 2028, told Fox News that ‘right now I’m not running for anything.” Buttigieg won the 2020 Iowa presidential caucuses and came in a close second in the New Hampshire presidential primary before Biden surged to claim the party’s nomination and later the White House. While Iowa’s caucuses for half a century kicked off both major political parties’ presidential nominating calendars, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) demoted the Hawkeye State on their 2024 schedule, and it’s unclear if Iowa will regain its early state status in the 2028 calendar. LESS THAN FOUR WEEKS INTO TRUMP’S SECOND TERM, DEMOCRATS ALREADY EYEING 2028 PRESIDENTIAL RACE But Buttigieg’s visit, along with his announcement in March that he would pass on a 2026 run for a Democrat-controlled open Senate seat in battleground Michigan, his adopted home state, are seen as signals of his interest in a potential 2028 national run. Buttigieg told a Substack author in a live interview hours before the town hall that when it comes to 2028, he would consider “what I bring to the table.” But asked by Fox News if the trip to Iowa – where he also gathered with staffers from his 2020 campaign and was followed around by a videographer from his political group Win the Era – was the beginning of an assessment period, Buttigieg said “right now, I’m not running for anything and part of what’s exciting and compelling about an opportunity like this is to be campaigning for values and for ideas rather than a specific electoral campaign. So that’s what I’m about.” Told that audience members who said they voted for him in 2020 and would be interested in backing him again if he runs in 2028, Buttigieg said “of course it means a lot to hear that people who supported me then continue to believe in what I have to say.” The Cedar Rapids event was hosted by VoteVets, a progressive group that represents veterans and military families in the political process. The group told Fox News that 1,800 people attended the event. WATCH: TRUMP TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY LAYS OUT NEW PLAN TO UPGRADE AGING AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL SYSTEM The trip by Buttigieg came as he’s faced incoming fire in recent days from Trump and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy over a surge in flight delays and cancellations at New Jersey’s Newark Liberty International Airport, which is one of the three major airports that services the New York City metropolitan area. Duffy blames his predecessor at the Department of Transportation and the Biden administration for what he claims was a failure to upgrade the busy airport’s air traffic control system. And Trump, last week, also chimed in, claiming that during his tenure as transportation secretary Buttigieg “didn’t have a clue. And this guy is actually a contender for president?” Trump added. “I don’t think he’s going to do too well.” The president’s jabs came a few days after Buttigieg, pointing to Trump’s underwater approval ratings in national polling, said in a social media post that “Donald Trump is the most unpopular 100-day-mark president in modern American history.” WATCH: TRUMP TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY LAYS OUT NEW PLAN TO UPGRADE AGING AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL SYSTEM The Trump administration argues that Buttigieg oversaw a rocky transition of the Newark airport’s airspace to the Philadelphia Terminal Radar Approach Control (Tracon) last July. And Duffy, who earlier this week unveiled a major plan to overhaul the nation’s aging air traffic control system, claims the Biden administration is to blame for the recent problems, including air traffic control equipment outages. “Maybe when you work from home, or maybe when you work from Michigan as a secretary, maybe you’re not focused on the real issues that are taking place throughout the airspace,” Duffy said, as he took aim at Buttigieg, who lives in Michigan. Buttigieg, responding, told reporters on Tuesday night that “when you’re the secretary of transportation, you have a tough job and your responsibility is to fix tough problems. You don’t have time to indulge in trying to point fingers or blame other people.” “What I can tell you is we inherited a shrinking air traffic control workforce. We turned it into a growing air traffic control workforce,” he added. “My successor is, of course, not asking for my advice, but my advice would be to making sure that it grows and actually delivering the technological change that’s needed.” Buttigieg’s Iowa trip also came on the same day that excerpts from a new book offered details on Biden’s supposed mental and physical decline during his last two years in the White House. Asked whether Biden experienced cognitive decline, Buttigieg would only say that “every time I needed something from him from the West Wing, I got it.” But he said “maybe” when asked whether the Democratic Party would have been better off if Biden had not run for re-election in 2024. “Right now with the benefit of hindsight, I think most people would agree that that’s the case.” Biden dropped out of the race last July, one month after a disastrous debate performance with Trump sparked a chorus of calls from fellow Democrats for the then-81-year-old president to end his re-election bid. He was replaced at the top of the ticket by then-Vice President Kamala Harris, who ended up losing in November to Trump.
House Republicans face down Dem attacks, protests to pull all-nighter on Trump’s ‘big, beautiful bill’
Three key committees in the process of putting together President Donald Trump’s “one big, beautiful bill” are expected to work through the night to advance their respective portions of the Republican agenda. The House Agriculture Committee, the Energy & Commerce Committee and the Ways & Means Committee are all holding meetings aimed at advancing key parts of Trump’s bill. Sources told Fox News Digital they expected the Energy & Commerce and Ways & Means meetings, which began on Tuesday afternoon, to last upwards of 20 hours each. The Agriculture panel’s markup is also expected to last into Wednesday. Democrats on each committee, meanwhile, have prepared a barrage of attacks and accusations against GOP lawmakers looking to gut critical welfare programs. ANTI-ABORTION PROVIDER MEASURE IN TRUMP’S ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’ COULD SPARK HOUSE GOP REBELLION Sparks flew early at the Energy & Commerce Committee meeting with protesters both inside and outside the room repeatedly attempting to disrupt proceedings – with 26 people arrested by Capitol Police. Protesters against Medicaid cuts, predominately in wheelchairs, remained outside the budget markup for several hours as representatives inside debated that and other critical facets under the committee’s broad jurisdiction. Inside the budget markup, Democrats and Republicans sparred along party lines over Medicaid cuts. Democrats repeatedly claimed the Republican budget proposal will cut vital Medicaid services. Many Democrats shared how Medicaid services have saved their constituents’ lives and argued that millions of Americans could lose coverage under the current proposal. Meanwhile, Republicans accused Democrats of lying to the American people about Medicaid cuts – a word Kentucky Republican Rep. Brett Guthrie, Chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, deterred his colleagues from using. Tensions arose when the word was repeated as Democrats called it a mischaracterization of their testimonies. Republicans have contended that their bill only seeks to cut waste, fraud, and abuse of the Medicaid system, leaving more of its resources for vulnerable populations that truly need it. That committee was tasked with finding $880 billion in spending cuts to offset Trump’s other funding priorities. Guthrie told House Republicans on a call Sunday night that they’d found upwards of $900 billion in cuts. Democrats have seized on Republican reforms to Medicaid, including heightened work requirements and shifting more costs to certain states, as a political cudgel. At one point late in the evening, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., made an appearance at the Energy & Commerce panel’s meeting. “I just want to mention our Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries is here because of his concern about Medicaid. Thank you,” the committee’s top Democrat, Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J., said. But tensions remain between moderate Republicans and conservatives about the level of cuts the committee is seeking to the former Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act green energy tax subsidies. The meeting at the Ways & Means Committee, the House’s tax-writing panel, had relatively little fanfare but was equally contentious as Democrats attempted to offer amendments to preserve Affordable Care Act tax credits and changes to the state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap. At one point, Reps. Beth Van Duyne, R-Texas, and Tom Suozzi, D-N.Y., got into a heated exchange over SALT, with Suozzi pushing Van Duyne on whether she’d ever been to New York. Van Duyne earlier called Texas a “donor state” in terms of taxes, arguing, “We should not have to pay to make up for the rich folks in New York who are getting raped by their local and state governments.” Suozzi later pointed out Van Duyne was born and went to college in upstate New York – leading to audible gasps in the room. Van Duyne said there was “a reason” she left. BROWN UNIVERSITY IN GOP CROSSHAIRS AFTER STUDENT’S DOGE-LIKE EMAIL KICKS OFF FRENZY “We’re sorry you left New York, but in some ways it may have worked out better for all of us,” Suozzi said. The SALT deduction cap, however, is still a politically tricky issue even as House lawmakers debate what Republicans hoped would be the final bill. The legislation would raise the $10,000 SALT deduction cap to $30,000 for most single and married tax filers – a figure that Republicans in higher cost-of-living areas said was not enough. Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., threatened to vote against the final bill if the new cap remains. As the committee’s marathon meeting continued, a group of blue state Republicans are huddling with House GOP leaders to find a compromise on a way forward. Rep. Nick LaLota, R-N.Y., hinted at tensions in the meeting when he posted on X that Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., a member of the SALT Caucus and Ways & Means Committee, “wasn’t involved in today’s meeting” because her district required “something different than mine and the other most SALTY five.” Malliotakis had told Fox News Digital she was supportive of the $30,000 cap. She’s also the only member of the SALT Caucus on the critical tax-writing panel. The Agriculture Committee, which began its meeting on Tuesday evening, saw Democrats waste no time in accusing Republicans of trying to gut the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), colloquially known as food stamps. Rep. Adam Gray, D-Calif., accused Republicans of worrying that “somebody is getting a meal they didn’t deserve or kids are getting too fat” instead of more critical issues. Republicans, like Rep. Randy Feenstra, R-Iowa, touted the bill’s inclusion of crop insurance for young farmers, increasing opportunity for export markets, and helping invest in national animal disaster centers aimed at preventing and mitigating livestock illness. He also said Republicans were working to “secure” SNAP from waste and abuse. House and Senate Republicans are working on Trump’s agenda via the budget reconciliation process, which allows the party in power to sideline the minority by lowering the Senate’s threshold for passage to a simple majority, provided the legislation at hand deals with spending, taxes or the national debt. Trump wants Republicans to use the maneuver for a sweeping bill on his tax, border, immigration, energy and defense priorities. Two sources familiar with
Trump clarifies ownership of aircraft in defense of Qatar’s gift
The Boeing 747 offered to the United States by Qatar will be given to the Department of Defense, President Donald Trump said Tuesday, responding to questions about the legality of accepting a gift from a foreign power. Qatar’s royal family offered to donate a $400 million jumbo jet that could serve as Air Force One. The White House has pushed back against criticism of Trump, saying any gift from a foreign power is always accepted in full compliance with all laws. TRUMP TEASES ‘VERY, VERY BIG ANNOUNCEMENT’ AHEAD OF MIDDLE EAST TRIP, CARNEY SAYS HE’S ‘ON EDGE OF MY SEAT’ “The Boeing 747 is being given to the United States Air Force/Department of Defense, NOT TO ME!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform in the middle of his visit to Saudi Arabia. “It is a gift from a Nation, Qatar, that we have successfully defended for many years. It will be used by our Government as a temporary Air Force One, until such time as our new Boeings, which are very late on delivery, arrive.” Some Democrats have called for an ethics investigation over the gift. On Sunday, Rep. Ritchie Torres, D-N.Y., wrote to the Government Accountability Office, deriding the deal as a “flying grift,” arguing it violates the emoluments clause of the U.S. Constitution, which “explicitly prohibits any person holding public office from accepting ‘any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.’” HOUSE DEMOCRAT CALLS FOR ‘IMMEDIATE’ ETHICS PROBE OF QATARI PLANE GIFT TO TRUMP “I am writing to express alarm over reports that President Donald Trump is poised to accept a luxury aircraft — a Boeing 747-8 — from the government of Qatar. The plane, so opulent it has been described as a ‘palace in the sky,’ is set to be made available to President Trump for official use as Air Force One and then for private use once he leaves office,” Torres wrote. Trump questioned why taxpayers should foot the bill for the aircraft when the U.S. can get one at no cost. “This big savings will be spent, instead, to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” Trump wrote. “Only a FOOL would not accept this gift on behalf of our Country. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” Trump reportedly toured the plane in February when it was on the tarmac of the West Palm Beach Airport in Florida, ABC News reported over the weekend. The gift has reportedly been tied up with legal reviews as the White House counsel’s office and the Department of Justice review the legality of the president accepting such a pricey gift from a foreign nation. The current Air Force One fleet includes two planes, and Trump awarded Boeing a $3.9 billion contract in 2018, during his first term, to manufacture two new jets. The construction of the jets, however, is not expected to be completed until 2029. Fox News Digital’s Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.
ICE says it deported more than 500 people in the Houston area in one week
The agency did not offer details about the types of crimes or immigration violations the majority of the people were accused of.
Bill requiring Texas hospitals to report the citizenship status of patients killed in House
It is unclear whether the House bill could come back as an amendment to another measure before the legislative session ends June 2.
Texas lawmakers debating DEI ban in K-12 schools ask: Do students benefit from teachers who look like them?
Conservative lawmakers say DEI efforts are discriminatory and push liberal ideologies on children. Critics point to research showing a diverse teacher body helps students succeed academically.
GOP lawmakers target online pornography, propose interstate ban on obscene content
Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, introduced a bill aimed at criminalizing pornography and defining what is obscene and what is not. Lee and Rep. Mary Miller, R-Ill., introduced the Interstate Obscenity Definition Act (IODA) for all states, which, if passed, would make it illegal to transmit obscene content across state lines while also making it easier to prosecute. “Obscenity isn’t protected by the First Amendment, but hazy and unenforceable legal definitions have allowed extreme pornography to saturate American society and reach countless children,” Lee said in a news release. “Our bill updates the legal definition of obscenity for the internet age so this content can be taken down and its peddlers prosecuted.” The IODA attempts to clarify the definition of obscenity in all states and gives updated descriptions that are suited to modern content. LAWS PROTECTING CHILDREN FROM ONLINE PORN ARE WINNING IN SOME STATES AS ACTIVISTS PUSH NATIONWIDE SOLUTION Specifically, the new definition removes the current law’s dependence on ever-changing and elusive public opinion and replaces it with practical standards that make obscenity identifiable, according to Lee’s team. Lee and Miller could not be reached by Fox News Digital for comment on their proposed bill. The current legal definition of obscenity originated from a 1973 Supreme Court case, and the standards are subjective and vague, making it difficult to apply to any material. PORNHUB SHUTS DOWN WEBSITE IN TEXAS AFTER GETTING SUED UNDER AGE VERIFICATION LAW Because the pre-internet standards are so vague, they often present challenges in court when it comes to defining what is obscene and ultimately allow “criminals to evade prosecution,” the press release said. Lee’s IODA defines “obscenity” within the Communications Act of 1934 and “appeals to the prurient interest in nudity, sex, or excretion.” PORNHUB PARENT COMPANY SUED BY TEXAS AG FOR FAILING TO VERIFY USERS’ AGES The bill also “depicts, describes or represents actual or simulated sex acts” intended to “arouse, titillate or gratify” a person’s sexual desires. Adding to that, the bill identifies obscene material as that which “lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value.” The IODA also removes the “intent” requirement, which only prohibits the transmission of obscene material for the purpose of abusing, threatening or harassing an individual. “The Interstate Obscenity Definition Act equips law enforcement with the tools they need to target and remove obscene material from the internet, which is alarmingly destructive and far outside the bounds of protected free speech under the Constitution,” Miller said. “I’m proud to lead this effort in the House with Sen. Lee to safeguard American families and ensure this dangerous material is kept out of our homes and off our screens.”
Minnesota Republican announces campaign for governor, vows to ‘fix’ what Tim Walz ‘broke’
FIRST ON FOX: Army veteran and business executive Kendall Qualls has officially launched his campaign to challenge former Democrat vice presidential nominee Gov. Tim Walz to be the next governor of Minnesota. While Walz has not yet formally announced a third consecutive gubernatorial bid, Qualls, who also ran for governor in 2022, framed the race for Minnesota’s highest office as an opportunity to fix the problems Walz created. “I’m running because, after a 16-year reign of failed leadership, the citizens of Minnesota are looking for a different direction. They’re looking for new leadership, and I’m here to make sure they get it,” Qualls told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview ahead of his campaign launch on Tuesday night. In a statement shared first with Fox News Digital, Qualls said he is the only candidate who can help Minnesota reach its potential. WALZ SAYS HARRIS PICKED HIM FOR VP TO ‘CODE TALK TO WHITE GUYS’ “I don’t need to tell you that Minnesota is at a crossroads,” Qualls said in a statement. “Tim Walz took us further down the road of lost jobs, fleeing companies, rising crime and cratering education. Now, he’s spending more time outside the state on a vanity tour than he is trying to move Minnesota forward. That’s not leadership.” WHITE HOUSE TORCHES TIM WALZ’S SPEECH ABOUT TRUMP’S ‘GULAGS,’ ‘CHAOS’: ‘HIS LARGEST CITY BURNED TO THE GROUND’ Qualls explained that Minnesotans want to build the economy, feel safe in their communities and improve education, but “we’re not going to get any of those changes from Tim Walz.” “I’m the only candidate who can help Minnesota live up to its potential. If we are going to fix the budget Tim Walz broke, we need a proven leader with real-world business experience. If we are going to take back our streets and our classrooms, we need a candidate with a conservative backbone and law and order credentials,” Qualls said. Qualls said the only way to create the change that Minnesotans are asking for is to bring in a political outsider like himself. “Much like President Trump with his experience in business and leadership, my background has been in business. And before that, I was an officer in the United States Army. And even before that, I grew up in dire poverty. I know that there’s a formula for success in this country, even if we don’t come from a background of privilege,” Qualls said. The gubernatorial candidate said he wants Americans to know there is a pathway forward in the United States for anyone to succeed, regardless of their background or where they went to school. But Qualls said the government has a responsibility to get out of the way of those pathways to success. “There are pathways out. And unfortunately, what I’m finding with the Democrats is that they have been closing those doors of prosperity. When I turned 18 years old, I registered as a Republican, and I never looked back. I didn’t know any Republicans. I didn’t have a country club membership, but what I did know was what the Democrats were doing in the Black community was something I didn’t want to be a part of. They weren’t helping. They were making things worse,” Qualls said, who grew up in poverty in Harlem in New York and in a trailer park in Oklahoma. While Qualls is presenting his campaign as the only alternative to what he describes as the destruction of Minnesota’s current Democrat rule, it’s not his first time running for the state’s highest office. “In this last election, I finished number two out of seven candidates in the Republican endorsement process. I agreed to abide by the endorsement. I actually endorsed. The candidate that won. But unfortunately, in that election in 2022, we lost everything, the governorship, Senate, House, attorney general, everything. And a lot of people felt that maybe we had the wrong candidate at the top of the ticket,” Qualls said. But Qualls said this time is different. “I worked around the state for four years helping candidates raise money, just rallying the troops,” Qualls said. “There’s a sense of true leadership that people haven’t seen before.” Leaning on his increased name recognition this time around, Qualls said he is focused on building a grassroots coalition of Minnesota Republicans who are ready for change. Walz did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.