Hegseth orders sweeping Army overhaul and consolidation aimed at countering China and Golden Dome capabilities
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday ordered a top-down transformation of the Army in a sweeping directive aimed at reorienting the service toward great power competition. With a sharp focus on countering China, developing space and counter-space capabilities, and accelerating the Pentagon’s new Golden Dome strategy, the aggressive modernization effort directs the Army to cut aging legacy systems, restructure headquarters commands and more rapidly field new technologies. The memo ordered a merging of Army Futures Command, based in Austin, Texas, with Training and Doctrine Command, headquartered in Fort Eustis, Virginia, and merging Forces Command, U.S. Army North and U.S. Army South. “To build a leaner, more lethal force, the Army must transform at an accelerated pace by divesting outdated, redundant, and inefficient programs, as well as restructuring headquarters and acquisition systems,” Hegseth wrote. NEW ARMY SECRETARY PRAISES TRUMP, HEGSETH FOR CREATING ‘A LANE FOR CHANGE’ AS HE ZEROES IN ON CUTTING WASTE “Simultaneously, the Army must prioritize investments in accordance with the Administration’s strategy, ensuring existing resources are prioritized to improve long-range precision fires, air and missile defense including through the Golden Dome for America, cyber, electronic warfare, and counter-space capabilities.” Hegseth wants the Army to be able to field long-range missiles capable of striking moving land and sea targets and achieve electromagnetic and air-littoral dominance by 2027 as the potential for conflict looms in the Indo-Pacific theater. The memo calls for reducing manned attack helicopter formations in favor of inexpensive drone swarms and the reduction of general officer positions to focus command structures on the warfighter. HEGSETH SENDS STRONG MESSAGE TO IRAN AND HOUTHIS: ‘YOU WILL PAY’ Hegseth ordered the Army to enable AI-driven command and control at theater, corps and division headquarters by 2027 and expand 3D printing for weapons. The memo also calls for bulking up the Army’s presence in the Indo-Pacific and more joint exercises with allies in the region. The procurement of obsolete systems will be ended, per the memo, and “redundant or ineffective” programs will be canceled or scaled back, including manned aircraft and excess ground vehicles like the Humvee. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The Army will review and cancel inefficient contracts and work to shift from program-centric funding to capability-based funding, and add right to repair provisions in all contracts, as well as implement performance-based contracting to reduce waste. The defense secretary also calls for reforms to hiring and firing systems, and reduced spending on climate initiatives, legacy sustainment initiatives and excess travel.
User’s manual to Waltz’s departure and its reverberations on Capitol Hill
Some context on National Security Advisor Michael Waltz being bounced. He served for a little more than 100 days in that role after giving up a safe House seat in Florida. Keep in mind that former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., gave up his safe seat as well when he was nominated to become attorney general. Gaetz then withdrew his name from consideration. Republicans later sweated two special elections in GOP-leaning districts as their House majority waned. MEET THE TRUMP-PICKED LAWMAKERS GIVING SPEAKER JOHNSON A FULL HOUSE GOP CONFERENCE So both former Florida House members never served in the Trump administration, or did so for a short period. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump yanked the nomination of Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., to be U.N. ambassador because there was concern about losing those Florida seats. Stefanik never got a confirmation vote and was forced to stay in the House – without a formal leadership position or a committee chairmanship.
Whitmer sounds off on Trump’s ‘constitutional crisis’ day after diplomatic appearance with him
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, D-Mich., said the United States is in a “constitutional crisis” after appearing alongside President Donald Trump in Michigan on his 100th day as president. Jon Favreau, former President Barack Obama‘s speechwriter turned “Pod Save America” host, asked Whitmer in a social media clip posted Wednesday if the U.S. is in a “constitutional crisis” – just one day after she greeted Trump on the tarmac in Michigan before his speech to National Guard members. “We are,” Whitmer said. “I think that no one is above the law. The thought that we’ve got an administration that is just blatantly violating court orders should, I think, scare everybody. This is a very serious moment.” Democrats have consistently described the country’s current political moment as a “constitutional crisis” since Trump returned to the White House about 100 days ago. While Whitmer has warned of the “peril” Trump’s tariffs will have on Michigan’s auto industry and urged him to deliver disaster relief to her constituents impacted by ice storms, the Democratic governor and potential 2028 presidential candidate has struck a more diplomatic tone than her colleagues in the past 100 days. WHITMER EXPLAINS HER OVAL OFFICE FOLDER FIASCO “Trump is currently investigating Michigan colleges and universities for their diversity policies. He’s already tried to kick dozens of Michigan foreign students out of the country. He’s threatening to unlawfully freeze federal funding for Michigan public schools, as he’s already doing that in Maine, because Governor Mills spoke up in a meeting. Have you asked the president to stop targeting people and institutions in your state?” Favreau challenged Whitmer in a subsequent social media clip posted Wednesday. GOV. GRETCHEN WHITMER DIVIDES DEMOCRATS AFTER APPEARANCES WITH TRUMP IN MICHIGAN AND AT WHITE HOUSE “I have not had that direct conversation on this subject yet, but I’m not afraid to do that,” Whitmer said. “Isn’t it worth speaking up for the rights and the freedoms of those people when you’re at an event with him, or you are in a meeting with him?” Favreau asked, articulating the criticism Whitmer has faced within the Democratic Party for her treatment of Trump. “Whenever I get the opportunity, I use every minute of that to cover a lot of different issues. So this is, I think, a very important one that you’re raising. There’s no question. And I will continue whenever I have opportunities to make sure that I’m covering as much as I can. No question,” Whitmer said. BLUE STATE GOVERNOR MAKES ANOTHER APPEARANCE WITH TRUMP BEFORE HIS 100-DAY SPEECH: ‘HAPPY WE’RE HERE’ Returning to the question of a “constitutional crisis,” Whitmer said, “Many of us are fighting the fights we can,” but it’s the court of law that should “have the last word.” “I hope that we finally see some backbone out of some of the Republicans in Congress to stand up to the courts to enforce their orders. There are a lot of people that aren’t doing their jobs to protect the foundations of this country,” Whitmer added, shifting blame onto congressional Republicans for not standing up to Trump. The clips were posted one day after Whitmer appeared alongside Trump ahead of his 100th day rally in Michigan. Whitmer successfully lobbied Trump to retire an A-10 Warthog aircraft based out of Selfridge Air National Guard Base in Michigan with 21 brand-new F-15EX Eagle II fighter jets. Trump thanked Whitmer for bringing the issue to his attention and once again applauded her job as governor. Whitmer’s diplomatic moves seemed to put her out of step with her party on Tuesday as Democratic governors, many similarly rumored to harbor 2028 presidential ambitions, instead hosted a counter-programming event to Trump’s speech slamming his first 100 days in office. WHITMER DITCHES DEM PLAYBOOK ON TRUMP’S TARIFFS AMID 2028 SPECULATION Earlier this month, Whitmer hid behind a folder in the Oval Office in an image that went viral and earned her the ire of Democrats discontent with her diplomacy. The Michigan governor found herself in the corner of the Oval Office for a press conference where Trump praised her, after consistently ridiculing her on the 2024 campaign trail. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The Michigan governor’s trip to Washington last month brought her 2028 presidential ambitions into the national conversation as she directly engaged with Trump. Whitmer’s office explained that she was meeting with Trump to discuss recovery aid for the northern Michigan ice storm, investing in Michigan’s defense assets and building the American economy for everyday Michiganders. The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
White House deputy chief of staff rails against reporters over MS-13, TdA coverage
President Donald Trump had to “shame” most media into covering stories of MS-13 and Tren de Aragua violence in the U.S., White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller said Thursday, accusing some outlets of trying to “shill” for one accused MS-13 member. Miller railed against reporters during a scheduled White House briefing when he was asked about Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the suspected MS-13 gang member being held in El Salvador after the Trump administration deported him from the U.S. Miller said evidence has shown Abrego Garcia has a history of violence, including “repeated threats and assaults against his spouse” and “had repeated documented human trafficking and human smuggling offenses.” He cited an MS-13 tattoo on Abrego Garcia’s knuckles as some evidence of his “extensively documented membership in MS-13.” Miller blasted the Biden administration for “importing” violent “illegals” into the country, saying the former president let two Tren de Aragua members go on supervised release before they were arrested in the sexual assault and murder of 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray in June 2024. VENEZUELAN GANGSTERS NABBED AT NORTHERN BORDER GATEWAY BY THE DOZENS SINCE TRUMP INAUGURATION “Most of your papers never covered her story when it happened, to the extent that you covered it at all, it was because President Trump forced you to cover it by highlighting it repeatedly over and over again,” Miller said. “He had to shame you into covering it.” “And each and every one of you that sides over and over again with these MS-13 terrorists, to the extent that you had the financial means to do so, you all choose to live in condos or homes or houses as far away from these kinds of gangbangers as you possibly can,” he continued. WH SAYS ‘NO DISPUTE’ DEPORTED SUSPECTED GANG MEMBER HAD MS-13 TATTOOS DESPITE PHOTOS TO THE CONTRARY Miller said that if he had offered the reporters present at the briefing a rent-free home with no taxes, but next-door to MS-13, Mexican Mafia or Sinaloa Cartel members, he believed the reporters would pass. “I couldn’t pay you to live there,” Miller said. “But yet you, with your coverage, are trying to force innocent Americans to have these people as their neighbors and that one day their daughter may be abducted from their home and raped and murdered,” he continued. “So you’re not going to get an ounce of sympathy from this administration or President Trump for the terrorists who’ve invaded our homes in our country.”
Will US support India if New Delhi targets terrorist hideouts in Pakistan? Secretary of State Pete Hegseth said this…
While talking to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, US Secretary of State Pete Hegseth expressed deep condolences for the Pahalgam terrorist attack, while India said that Pakistan had been supporting, training, and funding terrorists.
Preparations in full swing as doors of Kedarnath Dham set to open tomorrow for devotees, check details
As the doors of the Kedarnath Dham are set to open on Friday, the security forces have been deployed for the security and safety of the devotees, the officials said on Thursday. Superintendent of Police (SP) Akshay Prahlad Konde said that devotees’ safety is their priority.
Former terrorist urges government to take tough action against Pak: ‘If war breaks out, I’ll be the first one to fight’
On April 22, terrorists reportedly associated with The Resistance Front (TRF) unleashed horror on tourists who were merely exploring the beauty of Kashmir- once renowned as the ‘heaven on the earth’. As many as 26 people including one local were killed in the deadly attack.
SCOOP: Republicans discuss defunding ‘big abortion’ like Planned Parenthood in Trump agenda bill
EXCLUSIVE: House Republicans are discussing measures that could potentially end federal funding of groups like Planned Parenthood as cost-savings in their multitrillion-dollar bill advancing President Donald Trump‘s agenda. Two sources close to the House Energy & Commerce Committee told Fox News Digital that the move was being floated as lawmakers look to find at least $1.5 trillion in spending cuts to offset the cost of Trump’s tax priorities. It comes after House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said earlier this week that Republicans would target “big abortion” in the budget reconciliation process. “We are working on a lot of different options, but that’s been discussed,” Committee Chairman Brett Guthrie, R-Ky., told Fox News Digital when asked directly about Planned Parenthood. “Yeah, it’s been discussed.” CHINA IS ‘CAVING’ TO TRUMP’S TRADE WAR STRATEGY, EXPERT SIGNALS The House Energy & Commerce Committee alone is tasked with finding $880 billion in spending cuts under its jurisdiction, while intra-GOP disagreements over how to handle potential Medicaid cuts persist. Republicans are working to use the reconciliation process to pass a vast bill with Trump’s priorities on the border, immigration, taxes, defense, energy and the debt limit sometime this spring or summer. By lowering the Senate’s threshold for passage from 60 votes to 51, it allows the party controlling both houses of Congress and the White House to pass sweeping legislation while entirely sidelining the opposition, in this case Democrats. The first major hurdle, passing a framework with “instructions” for various committees to find spending cuts or ways to enact a small increase, was passed earlier this year. The Energy & Commerce Committee has a wide jurisdiction that includes health, energy, telecommunications and other policies. Democrats and other critics of Republicans’ reconciliation plans have accused them of trying to slash critical programs like Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security while trying to pay for Trump’s other priorities. However, Republicans have consistently said they will not touch Medicare, and Trump is pushing them to drop taxes on retirees’ Social Security as part of the bill. How deeply to cut Medicaid, however, has been the subject of fierce debate between fiscal hawks and Republican lawmakers in blue states. Defunding Planned Parenthood directly is impossible under reconciliation rules, but Republicans can target groups like it that provide abortions and receive federal Medicaid funds. It could provide some extra wiggle room, but could also be a similarly tricky vote for those front-line members. One House Republican who asked to remain anonymous told Fox News Digital, “I don’t even know what they’re defunding, because you already can’t use federal funds for abortion.” They noted the longstanding Hyde Amendment prevents the use of federal dollars on abortions. Planned Parenthood gets Medicaid dollars for the other health services it provides, not abortion, but critics say those federal dollars are helping prop up the abortion industry. Rep. Mary Miller, R-Ill., told Fox News Digital at an anti-abortion rally in late March, “Congress holds the power of the purse, and President Trump has begun the defunding of Planned Parenthood.” TRUMP WAGERS US ECONOMY IN HIGH-STAKES TARIFF GAMBLE AT 100-DAY MARK “So when we pass the reconciliation bill, we can include defunding Planned Parenthood, and I will do anything possible to make that happen,” Miller said. No final decisions have been made, and it is possible that such provisions do not make it into the final bill. However, the Energy & Commerce Committee is expected to advance its portion of the legislation next week, meaning its plan could be revealed within days. Additionally, while it was not clear before that the conversations had reached the committee level, defunding Planned Parenthood in the reconciliation process has been something that groups like Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America have been pushing for months. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., alluded to Republicans’ plans in a speech at the interest group’s gala earlier this week. Johnson said Republicans’ reconciliation bill would redirect funds from “big abortion” to “federally qualified health centers” on Tuesday night. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP When reached for comment, a spokesman for the House Energy & Commerce Committee told Fox News Digital, “Chairman Guthrie, along with other Energy and Commerce Republicans, have been and are continuing to work with members across the Republican Conference to deliver on President Trump’s agenda through the reconciliation process.” “The committee is not yet ready to comment on any policy-specific items that may or may not be included in the final bill text. Energy and Commerce is examining a full menu of options from the committee’s broad jurisdiction such as energy, environment, health, telecommunications, and more,” the spokesman said.
HUD Secretary Scott Turner lays out agency wins during first 100 days, shares priorities for next 100
Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Scott Turner sat down with Fox News Digital to discuss the agency’s biggest wins during the Trump administration’s first 100 days, and shared HUD’s top priorities for the next 100. Some of those wins, according to Scott, include rescinding Biden and Obama-era regulations to spur innovation and creativity in the housing market. Other actions have included reforms focused on ensuring American citizens are the primary beneficiaries of HUD’s resources, and ensuring HUD’s resources can be accessed in a fair and safe manner. Looking to the future, Turner said implementing work requirements for those in HUD-funded housing programs will be a priority, among others. “We are very focused, we’re very detailed, and we’re very deliberate about what we do here,” Turner said. “Progress and success doesn’t just happen. You have to be very intentional about it. You have to be very focused about it. One thing we did on the first day when we came in here is we said we’re going to restore the mission-minded focus of HUD… We’re called to a specific mission to serve the most vulnerable people of our country, as it pertains to housing, as it pertains to homelessness, as it pertains to disaster recovery, the development of communities, forming public-private partnerships.” PROMISES MADE, PROMISES KEPT: HOW TRUMP’S FIRST 100 DAYS STACK UP AGAINST INAUGURATION DAY PLEDGES Part of restoring that “mission-minded focus,” according to Turner, has been to tear down “burdensome regulations,” such as the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing rule established under the Obama administration and revived by the Biden administration. “We took this rule down in order to restore flexibility and restore the power back to localities. Because every city, every community, is unique,” Turner said, noting that under the now-rescinded rule, bureaucrats in Washington had the power to pick “winners and losers” in local communities. Turner also highlighted a new partnership between HUD and the Department of Homeland Security, aimed at ensuring noncitizens do not take away much-needed HUD resources from American citizens. ‘TOO FAST’ OR ‘EXCELLENT’? AMERICANS GRADE FIRST 100 DAYS OF PRESIDENT TRUMP’S SECOND TERM “We are ensuring that American people live in HUD-funded housing,” Turner said. “Also with this partnership, it’s a data collection emphasis to understand who’s living in housing that’s funded by HUD and our FHA insurance, our FHA-backed mortgages, which is also backed by American taxpayers. We took out the non-permanent residence category out of the FHA, which the Biden administration turned a blind eye to.” Turner also touted one of his first actions as HUD secretary, which rescinded the Obama-era equal access rule, requiring HUD-funded programs and shelters to determine eligibility based on a person’s self-identified gender. “We wanted to take this rule down to protect the women of America and ensure that when people enter into a HUD-funded facility, they are entering in after sex at birth,” Turner said of the reform. Looking to the future, Turner said efforts aimed at helping those receiving public assistance become more self-sufficient, such as through work requirements for those in HUD-funded housing, will be a priority for the agency over the next 100 days. “Social safety nets were never meant to be a hammock or a resting place. Social safety nets were meant to be a trampoline, if you will, a tool to project people into a life of self-sustainability and longevity, and so that’s something that we will be concentrating on going here forward these next 100 days, if you will,” Turner said. “Our heart here at HUD is not to grow the amount of people on subsidies, but it is to reduce the number of people on subsidies and help people to live a life of self sustainability, really, to change the trajectory of people’s lives.” HUD PUTS HALF-OCCUPIED HEADQUARTERS BUILDING IN DC UP FOR SALE “We don’t want to grow the size of government,” Turner added. “We want to shrink the size of government.” Turner also said the agency will focus on increasing public-private partnerships to help improve housing affordability and the homelessness epidemic, noting local entities on the ground doing the actual work to affect change are pivotal to HUD completing its mission. When asked about any pushback Turner has received over his slew of policy changes during the Trump administration’s first 100 days, the secretary said part of being a strong “servant leader” is to make hard decisions that everybody may not agree with. “But, I consider them to be healthy decisions for our country,” Turner said. “At the end of the day, our job is one, to be stewards over taxpayer dollars, but also to be stewards over the lives of Americans as it pertains to entering in HUD-funded facilities.”
Mike Waltz, other National Security Council staffers out in latest Trump purge following Signal chat leak
Trump administration National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and other staffers are out at the National Security Council, sources confirmed to Fox News. Fox News confirmed Waltz and his deputy, Alex Wong, were fired Thursday. Sources said additional staffers removed from the office will likely be announced, and President Donald Trump is expected to speak publicly about the matter. Waltz, who previously served as a Florida congressman and as a decorated combat Green Beret, has come under fire from Democrats and critics since March, when the Atlantic magazine’s editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg published a firsthand account of getting added to a Signal group chat with top national security leaders, including Waltz, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and CIA Director John Ratcliffe, while they discussed strikes against Yemen terrorists. Waltz took responsibility for the inclusion of a journalist in the group chat, telling Fox News’ Laura Ingraham: “I take full responsibility. I built the group,” he said. “It’s embarrassing. We’re going to get to the bottom of it.” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News Digital earlier Monday when asked about reports claiming Waltz and others would be shown the door: “We are not going to respond to reporting from anonymous sources.” WALTZ DOUBLES DOWN ON HEGSETH PRAISE AMID ONGOING PENTAGON CONTROVERSY Trump held a meeting with members of his cabinet Wednesday, following his 100th day back in office Tuesday, with Waltz attending the meeting. Following confirmation of Waltz’s ouster, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries told Fox News: “The National Security Advisor Waltz is out. He’s the first. He certainly won’t be the last.” Wong served as Waltz’s principal deputy national security advisor, who was detailed in the Signal chat leak as the staffer charged with “pulling together a tiger team” in Waltz’s initial message sent to the Signal group chat in March, the Atlantic reported at the time. “Team – establishing a principles [sic] group for coordination on Houthis, particularly for over the next 72 hours,” Waltz wrote in the group chat.” My deputy Alex Wong is pulling together a tiger team at deputies/agency Chief of Staff level following up from the meeting in the Sit Room this morning for action items and will be sending that out later this evening.” Trump told the media April 3 that a handful of other National Security Council staffers had been let go following the Atlantic’s report on the Signal chat leak, which characterized the Trump administration as texting “war plans” regarding a planned strike on Houthi rebels in Yemen. TRUMP REVEALS WHO WAS BEHIND SIGNAL TEXT CHAIN LEAK “Always, we’re going to let go of people we don’t like, or people we don’t think can do the job, or people who may have loyalties to somebody else,” Trump said from Air Force One April 3 when asked about reports on the National Security Council firings. Trump confirmed at the time that National Security Council members had been fired, but remarked it was not many individuals. He added that he continued to trust his National Security Council team, remarking that they’ve “done very well” and “had big success with the Houthis.” The Trump administration maintained, however, that no classified material was transmitted in the Signal chat in March, with Trump repeatedly defending Waltz amid the fallout. The strikes on Houthi rebels unfolded March 15. WILL CAIN SHARES HIS TAKEAWAY ON THE ATLANTIC’S STORY ON THE TRUMP ADMIN’S ‘WAR PLANS’ TEXT Leavitt told the media in March that the White House considered the Signal group chat leak case “closed” while continuing to offer support to Waltz, whose office allegedly mistakenly added the journalist to the chat. “As the president has made it very clear, Mike Waltz continues to be an important part of his national security team,” Leavitt told the media in brief remarks during a gaggle outside the White House’s press room March 31. “And this case has been closed here at the White House, as far as we are concerned.” “There have been steps made to ensure that something like that can obviously never happen again,” she continued. “And we’re moving forward. And the president and Mike Waltz and his entire national security team have been working together very well, if you look at how much safer the United States of America is because of the leadership of this team.”