DHS chief Kristi Noem’s purse stolen with thousands of dollars in DC restaurant: sources
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s purse was stolen with thousands in cash on Sunday night at a restaurant in Washington D.C., multiple sources from the agency confirmed to Fox News Digital. The purse was taken by a White man wearing a mask, and the bag contained $3,000 in cash as well as personal documents including her passport, keys, driver’s license and a DHS badge, an agency spokesperson confirmed. “Her entire family was in town including her children and grandchildren – she was using the withdrawal to treat her family to dinner, activities, and Easter gifts,” the spokesperson said. Crime in the capital city continues to be a major issue, including theft. When it comes to violent crime, it hit a 30-year low last year, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office at the time. TOP DEM ASKS NOEM HOW TSA WILL PREVENT ‘MAJOR DISRUPTIONS’ AS MANY TRAVELERS STILL LACK REAL ID President Donald Trump has put the pressure on Democratic Mayor Muriel Bowser to not only increase law enforcement presence but to clean up homeless encampments in the city itself. The president created a task force will the goal of improving public safety and making it “the pride of every American to whom it belongs.” “Washington, D.C., must become CLEAN and SAFE again! We need our Great Police back on the street, with no excuses from the Mayor, or anyone else. The House should take up the D.C. funding “fix” that the Senate has passed, and get it done IMMEDIATELY,” Trump posted to Truth Social last month. DC TO BEGIN RECONSTRUCTING BLACK LIVES MATTER PLAZA “We need to clean up our once beautiful Capital City, and make it beautiful again. We will be TOUGH ON CRIME, like never before. I will work with the Mayor on this and, if it does not happen, will have no choice but to do it myself. Washington, D.C., will be better, safer, and more beautiful than ever before!” he added. The task force includes various law enforcement goals, including aiming to “keep dangerous criminals off the streets by strengthening pre-trial detention policies.” DRUGGED SUSPECT IN ‘ALTERED MENTAL STATE’ STABS SIX, ALONG WITH HIMSELF, DURING DC RAMPAGE: POLICE As for Noem and DHS, they continue to make waves for the major crackdown on illegal immigration, including sending suspected gang members to a prison in El Salvador. Fox News’ Landon Mion contributed to this report.
Iran to brief China as it accuses Israel of ‘undermining’ US nuclear talks
Iran says it will brief China this week in advance of a third round of talks with the United States on its nuclear programme, as Iranian officials separately accused Israel of seeking to “undermine and disrupt the diplomatic process”. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will visit Beijing on Tuesday to discuss the latest talks with the administration of US President Donald Trump on the country’s nuclear programme, spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said on Monday. The trip echoes “consultations” Iran held with Russia last week, before the second round of direct US-Iran talks was held over the weekend. A third round of talks between Araghchi and US envoy Steve Witkoff is scheduled to take place in Oman on Saturday. Araghchi has previously said Tehran always closely consults with its allies, Russia and China, over the nuclear issue. “It is natural that we will consult and brief China over the latest developments in Iran-US indirect talks,” Baqaei said. Russia and China, both nuclear-armed powers, were signatories to a now-defunct 2015 deal between Iran, the US and several Western countries intended to defuse tensions around Tehran’s nuclear programme. Advertisement The 2015 deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), from which Trump withdrew in 2018, saw Tehran curtail its nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief. The US and Israel have accused Iran of seeking to use the programme to develop nuclear weapons. Tehran has staunchly denied the claim, saying the programme is for civilian purposes. On Monday, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs stressed close ties between Beijing and Tehran, but did not confirm the Iranian minister’s planned visit. “China and Iran have maintained exchanges and contacts at all levels and in various fields. With regard to the specific visit mentioned, I have no information to offer at the moment,” Guo Jiakun, spokesperson for the ministry, said. Strengthened alliance Israel’s war in Gaza has seen Iran pull closer to Russia and China. Recent diplomatic moves surrounding the US-Iran talks have further underscored the strengthened ties. Araghchi met his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, last week, just before his second round of negotiations with Witkoff. On Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed off on a 20-year strategic partnership treaty agreed earlier this year with his Iranian counterpart, Masoud Pezeshkian. Meanwhile, Iran’s already fraught relations with Israel and its “ironclad” ally, the US, have nosedived amid the war. Since taking office, Trump has reinstated a “maximum pressure” sanctions campaign against Tehran, while repeatedly threatening military action if a new nuclear deal is not reached. Advertisement Speaking on Monday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Baqaei accused Israel of trying to disrupt the nascent negotiations to open the way for military action. In comments carried by the AFP news agency, he declared that Israel is behind efforts from a “kind of coalition” to “undermine and disrupt the diplomatic process”. “Alongside it are a series of warmongering currents in the United States and figures from different factions,” the spokesman said. Last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated that Israel would not allow Iran to acquire nuclear weapons. His statement came a day after The New York Times reported that Trump had dissuaded Israel from striking Iran’s nuclear sites in the short term, saying Washington wanted to prioritise diplomatic talks. ‘Consultations must continue’ Baqaei added that “consultations must continue” with countries that were party to the JCPOA. Iran has gradually breached the terms of the treaty since Trump abandoned it, most notably by enriching uranium to levels higher than those laid out in the deal. The International Atomic Energy Agency says Iran has enriched uranium to 60 percent, close to the 90 percent level needed to manufacture weapons. The JCPOA had restricted it to 3.67 percent, the level of enrichment needed for civilian power. Speaking last week, Witkoff sent mixed messages on what level Washington is seeking. He initially said in an interview that Tehran needed to reduce its uranium enrichment to the 3.67 percent limit, but later clarified that the US wants Iran to end its enrichment programme. Advertisement Adblock test (Why?)
US VP Vance arrives in India for four-day visit as US tariff threat looms
Visit will include talks with PM Modi as New Delhi is seeking to avoid sweeping 26 percent Trump tariffs. United States Vice President JD Vance has arrived in India for a four-day visit as New Delhi looks to avoid US tariffs, negotiate a bilateral trade deal with Washington and strengthen ties with the administration of President Donald Trump. Vance was meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, the first day of his largely personal visit. He was greeted with a hug by the Indian leader at his residence in New Delhi, photos released by the Indian government showed. Over the visit, the two leaders were expected to hold discussions on bilateral ties outlined in February when Modi met Trump at the White House in Washington, DC. The US is India’s largest trading partner, and the two countries have been holding negotiations aimed at sealing a trade agreement this year. The talks had started before Trump early this month announced sweeping tariffs on all trade partners, including 26 percent levies on India. Trump later paused the country-specific tariffs for 90 days. His administration framed the move as part of a grand negotiating tactic aimed at leveraging better deals with partners like India. Advertisement Under the current plan being discussed, India and the US have set the ambitious target of more than doubling their trade to $500bn by 2030. Dancers wearing traditional attire perform upon Vance’s arrival in New Delhi [Kenny Holston/Reuters] Vance’s first visit to New Delhi since becoming vice president in January also coincides with a rapidly intensifying trade war between Washington and Beijing, which is New Delhi’s main rival in the region. Modi and Vance are expected to “review the progress in bilateral relations” and “exchange views on regional and global developments of mutual interest”, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said. On Monday, ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said Vance’s visit will “further deepen the India-US comprehensive global strategic partnership”. Countering China Washington has long viewed India as an important strategic ally in combating the rising influence of China in the Asia Pacific region and has sought to strengthen ties in recent years. India is part of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue with the US, Japan and Australia and is seen as a counterbalance to China’s expansion. Trump is expected to attend a summit of Quad leaders in India later this year. Modi had personally sought to establish a strong working relationship with Trump during the US president’s first term in office from 2017 to 2021. The Indian leader was then among the first leaders to visit the US and hold talks with Trump after he returned to the White House for a second term on January 20. Advertisement During his visit, Modi hailed a “mega partnership” with the US. The two leaders announced plans to expand their defence partnership with India signalling its willingness to comply with several of the Trump administration’s demands, including purchasing more US oil, energy and defence equipment. Modi has also cooperated with Trump’s campaign to deport people living in the US without documentation. India has accepted many of its citizens expelled from the US in the past few months with the prime minister’s office batting away criticism of how some deportees have been treated. Despite the increased coordination, Trump has continued to call India a “tariff abuser” and “tariff king”. Adblock test (Why?)
‘Father of the poor’: Argentinians mourn compatriot Pope Francis
Argentinians are mourning the death of their compatriot Pope Francis, who served as the archbishop of Buenos Aires and was known for working with the poor in the city before ascending to the top of the Roman Catholic Church. The Argentinian government has announced seven days of mourning for Francis, who died on Monday at age 88. “As Argentinians, we are orphaned,” street sweeper Javier Languenari told the AFP news agency outside the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Cathedral early on Monday. “He endured as much as he could.” Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in 1936 to Italian parents, Francis became the first Latin American pontiff in 2013 after his predecessor Pope Benedict stepped down. As he navigated the church through controversies, Francis emphasised compassion for the less fortunate. “The pope of the poor has left us, the pope of the marginalised,” Jorge Garcia Cuerva, the archbishop of Buenos Aires, said on Monday. “He insisted on building bridges, he insisted that we live in universal brotherhood. The pope was our father, the father of the poor, the father of mercy. The best tribute we Argentinians can pay to Francis is to unite.” Advertisement Argentinian President Javier Melei – who previously clashed with Francis and called him an “imbecile” and “the representative of evil on Earth” – also paid tribute to the late pope. “Despite differences that seem minor today, having been able to know him in his goodness and wisdom was a true honour for me,” Milei wrote on X. “I bid farewell to the Holy Father and stand with all of us today dealing with this sad news.” Melei’s right-wing libertarianism was at odds with Francis’s message of empathy and embrace of social justice causes. Still, Francis phoned Melei to congratulate him after his election victory in 2023, and the Argentinian president visited the pope last year, hailing what he described as their “positive relationship”. On Monday, former Argentinian President Mauricio Macri called the pope a religious figure of “unparalleled stature”. “His life was marked by the teachings he gave through his words, his commitment, and his actions,” Macri wrote in a social media post. “He himself, through his career, is a lesson for everyone.” Reporting from Buenos Aires, Al Jazeera’s Teresa Bo noted that many were unhappy that Francis never visited Argentina while pope, even though he visited other countries on the continent. “He never made it to Argentina, and for many, there was a political message there. He did not want to be used politically,” she said. Bo said Argentinians took pride in Francis when he was first elected pope, but his embrace of progressive causes – including allowing priests to bless same-sex couples – made him a “polarising figure” and angered traditionalists in the church. Advertisement “Even though the most progressive people in this country liked that message against injustice, against inequality, against capitalism, among other things, many others did not like that,” Bo said. Regardless, Bo added, his death will be felt across the country. “For many of the people I have spoken to, he was a man who tried to open up the church, who spoke about inclusiveness and humility, and that’s something many people in this country will remember,” she said. Buenos Aires resident Nicolas Cordoba told the Reuters news agency that the pope’s death will “really leave a mark of pain in people’s hearts”. In a politically divided Argentina, some recalled the late pope’s call for the country to come together. “Francis’s message was always for us to unite, to reach out to those most in need,” Agustin Hartridge, a 41-year-old lawyer, told AFP. “That candle I lit is a tribute to all he taught us.” Adblock test (Why?)
Ex-Pentagon aide urges Trump to fire Hegseth, citing ‘full-blown meltdown’ and ‘total chaos’
A recently departed top Pentagon aide goaded President Donald Trump to remove Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth from his Cabinet, describing “total chaos” and “dysfunction” within the top brass of the military. “The dysfunction is now a major distraction for the president – who deserves better from his senior leadership,” John Ullyot, a former senior communications official for the Pentagon, wrote in an op-ed for Politico published on Sunday. “Trump has a strong record of holding his top officials to account. Given that, it’s hard to see Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth remaining in his role for much longer.” Ullyot departed the Pentagon’s public affairs office last week because he did not want to be second-in-command to chief spokesperson Sean Parnell. AXED PENTAGON AIDES CLAIM THEIR CHARACTER WAS ‘SLANDERED,’ LITTLE DETAILS WERE SHARED ABOUT LEAK INVESTIGATION On Friday, the Pentagon fired three Hegseth aides – Dan Caldwell, Colin Carroll and Darin Selnick – three of the secretary’s “most loyal” advisers, according to Ullyot. He called the purge “strange” and “baffling.” Following them out the door is chief of staff Joe Kasper, who the three men frequently found themselves at odds with, three defense officials confirmed to Fox News Digital. “In short, the building is in disarray under Hegseth’s leadership.” He called himself a “strong backer” of Hegseth, but admitted: “The last month has been a full-blown meltdown at the Pentagon – and it’s becoming a real problem for the administration.” The shake-ups came just as reports broke about a second Signal chat where Hegseth discussed plans to strike Houthis in Yemen, this one allegedly including his wife, brother and personal lawyer. That chat reportedly discussed flight schedules for the F/A-18 Hornets targeting the Houthis in Yemen – similar information to that shared in the chat of Trump Cabinet members where national security advisor Mike Waltz unintentionally added The Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg. “Another day, another old story,” Parnell said in a statement after the latest Signal chat reporting. “There was no classified information in any Signal chat, no matter how many ways they try to write the story.” PENTAGON’S WEEK OF POWER STRUGGLES: LEAK FALLOUT AND SHOUTING MATCHES HIT HEGSETH’S INNER CIRCLE “Unfortunately, after a terrible month, the Pentagon focus is no longer on warfighting, but on endless drama,” Ullyot wrote. “The president deserves better than the current mishegoss at the Pentagon. Given his record of holding prior Cabinet leaders accountable, many in the secretary’s own inner circle will applaud quietly if Trump chooses to do the same in short order at the top of the Defense Department.” Trump allies eviscerated Ullyot on social media after the op-ed was published. “This guy is not America First,” Donald Trump Jr. wrote on X. “I’ve been hearing for years that he works his ass off to subvert my father’s agenda. That ends today. He’s officially exiled from our movement.” “If you’re echoing Democrat talking points, you no longer support President Trump or his administration. There’s no gray area here,” added Trump advisor Jason Miller. The White House, meanwhile, “stands strongly” behind Hegseth, press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News on Monday. “The President stands strongly behind Secretary Hegseth, who is doing a phenomenal job leading the Pentagon,” she said. This is what happens when the entire Pentagon is working against you and working against the monumental change that you are trying to implement.” Hegseth also brushed off the reporting on the Signal chat Monday, blaming it on “disgruntled employees” and “anonymous smears.” “This is why we’re fighting the fake news media,” he said when pressed on the chat by reporters at the White House Easter Egg roll. “This group right here is full of hoaxsters.”
Religious liberty or government overreach? Oklahoma AG fights own party in SCOTUS battle over Catholic school
The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments later this month over what would be the first religious public charter school in the United States, in a case that finds Republican Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond at odds with his own party. While Drummond argues a “state-sponsored and taxpayer-funded religious public charter school” is unconstitutional, conservatives have rallied in support of St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School. “It’s no secret that parents want to educate their children in line with their values. And a public good shouldn’t be denied to anyone based on their religion. The outcome of this case will be revolutionary for religious liberty and education freedom, and Oklahoma is at the forefront,” a spokesperson for Gov. Kevin Stitt, R-Okla., told Fox News Digital in a statement. As Stitt champions Oklahoma’s leadership in creating the first religious public charter school, Drummond has been steadfast in rejecting taxpayer funding for St. Isidore, arguing for the separation of church and state as outlined in the First Amendment. LGBTQ CHRISTIANS CRUSADE AGAINST TRUMP’S RELIGIOUSLY ‘HOSTILE’ POLICIES DURING HOLY WEEK Last month, Stitt joined over 50 elected officials in affirming his support for the Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board and St. Isidore, two cases that have been consolidated by the U.S. Supreme Court for review. SUPREME COURT POISED TO MAKE MAJOR DECISION THAT COULD SET LIMITS ON THE POWER OF DISTRICT JUDGES Sens. James Lankford, R-Okla., Josh Hawley, R-Mo., Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., Ted Budd, R-N.C., and Ted Cruz, R-Texas, filed an amicus brief to the U.S. Supreme Court. In the brief, the Republican senators flipped Drummond’s First Amendment argument on the attorney general, arguing Oklahoma violated the First Amendment by denying St. Isidore a charter because it’s a religious school. “Upholding the Oklahoma Charter Schools Act with the included exclusion of religious organizations would set a dangerous precedent, signaling that religious organizations are not welcome in public projects. This would not only violate the First Amendment, but it would also deprive society of the valuable contributions that these organizations make,” the Republican senators wrote. When asked by Fox News Digital why Drummond, who is campaigning to be the next governor of deep-red Oklahoma, is at odds with conservatives on the issue, Drummond’s communications director, Phil Bacharach, told Fox News Digital, in part: “AG Drummond doesn’t make decisions based on what other politicians think.” “Attorney General Drummond isn’t guided by political pressure – he’s guided by the law,” Drummond’s gubernatorial campaign manager, Stephanie Alexander, added in a statement to Fox News Digital. “His constitutional duty is to defend Oklahoma statutes, and state law is clear: public funds cannot be used for religious indoctrination. As the state’s top legal officer, he’s fulfilling his obligation, and will ultimately abide by whatever decision the U.S. Supreme Court makes.” The debate began in June 2023, when the Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board approved St. Isidore’s contract request, which would have allowed public funding for the religious charter school for the first time. Drummond filed a lawsuit against the Statewide Virtual Charter School Board that October, and his position was later affirmed by the Oklahoma Supreme Court. Stitt and Drummond have once again found themselves feuding over this landmark case, as the two continue a long-standing clash over policy and politics in Oklahoma, including debates over constitutional authority and local policy initiatives. Stitt, who serves as vice chair of the National Governors Association (NGA), is term-limited as Oklahoma governor in 2026. Earlier this year, Drummond announced his campaign for governor, running a conservative platform touting his leadership as attorney general against the “Biden Administration’s radical overreach” and promising to stand “strong with President Trump.”
US VP JD Vance arrives at PM Modi’s official residence, set to begin bilateral talks
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday welcomed US Vice President JD Vance, his wife Usha Vance and their three children at his official residence in the national capital. The Vance family arrived at the PM’s 7, Lok Kalyan Marg in the national capital.
More than 500k immigrants missed their court hearings on Biden’s watch: analysis
More than half a million immigrants failed to show up for their immigration court hearings under former President Joe Biden. Between Fiscal Year 2022, the first full year of the Biden administration, and the end of December 2024, immigration judges issued more than 507,000 in absentia removal orders, or removal orders for those who failed to show up for their immigration hearings, according to an analysis by the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS). The number represented a 45% increase in such cases compared to the previous seven years under former President Barack Obama and President Donald Trump’s first term, the analysis found, despite that period being more than double the timeframe. ALITO BLASTS ‘UNPRECEDENTED’ SCOTUS MOVE TO HALT TRUMP’S VENEZUELAN DEPORTATIONS: ‘LEGALLY QUESTIONABLE’ “Those 500,000-plus no-shows are a symptom of the Biden administration’s effort to deliberately break our immigration system, and it will now take years to get that system back on track,” said CIS’s Andrew R. Arthur in the report. At issue, according to Arthur, was the Biden administration’s “refusal” to detain illegal immigrants when they were initially encountered at the border by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), releasing the “vast majority” of them with a Notice To Appear in immigration court. But such migrants are the most likely to skip out on court proceedings, Arthur argued. “It is axiomatic under immigration law that aliens who aren’t likely to merit relief are less likely to appear in court if they are released — which is why Congress required DHS to detain the ones encountered by CBP at the border and the ports,” Arthur said. ACLU APPEALS TO SUPREME COURT TO STOP VENEZUELAN DEPORTATIONS; BOASBERG HOLDS EMERGENCY HEARING FRIDAY NIGHT Under current immigration law, immigrants encountered by CBP officers and Border Patrol agents that do not have proper admission documents are subject to expedited removal, which does entitle those immigrants to a hearing in front of an immigration judge, unless they show a credible fear of harm if they were to be returned to their country of origin, the CIS report notes. Those subject to expedited removal are required to be detained by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the report adds, something that was not happening under the Biden administration. Such disregard for that rule led to “inevitable” results, Arthur argued, including the massive number of missed immigration court hearings. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “The half-million-plus aliens who failed to appear in immigration court over the past four years are just one more inevitable result of the Biden administration’s refusal to comply with our immigration laws,” Arthur said. “They are a symptom of a deliberately broken system, one that will linger on the courts’ dockets for years to come.”
Trump wants to revive the lagging US shipbuilding industry. Here are the hurdles he faces
President Donald Trump is turning his attention to the U.S. shipbuilding industry, which is leagues behind its near-peer competitor China, and recently signed an executive order designed to reinvigorate it. Trump’s April 10 order instructs agencies to develop a Maritime Action Plan and orders the U.S. trade representative to compile a list of recommendations to address China’s “anticompetitive actions within the shipbuilding industry,” among other things. Additionally, the executive order instructs a series of assessments regarding how the government could bolster financial support through the Defense Production Act, the Department of Defense Office of Strategic Capital, a new Maritime Security Trust Fund, investment from shipbuilders from allied countries and other grant programs. But simply throwing money at the shipbuilding industry won’t solve the problem, according to Bryan Clark, director of the Hudson Institute think tank’s Center for Defense Concepts and Technology. “It is unlikely that just putting more money into U.S. shipbuilding – even with foreign technical assistance – will make U.S. commercial shipbuilders competitive with experienced and highly-subsidized shipyards in China, Korea, or Japan,” Clark said in a Monday email to Fox News Digital. “In the near to mid-term, the government will need to also drive higher demand for U.S.-built ships.” US RISKS PUSHING EUROPEAN ALLIES INTO CHINA’S ARMS WITH NEW TARIFFS, EXPERTS WARN Clark also said the executive orders appear to complement the SHIPS for America Act, a series of legislative measures introduced in December 2024 in both the House and Senate aimed at fostering growth within the U.S. shipbuilding industry and strengthening the U.S. Merchant Marine fleet that is capable of transporting military materials during times of conflict. Specifically, the SHIPS Act includes provisions establishing a Strategic Commercial Fleet Program, which would seek to develop merchant vessels that could operate internationally, but are American-built, owned and operated. The legislation would also seek to beef up the U.S.-flag international fleet by roughly 250 ships in 10 years. “If we implement the EO and the SHIPS Act together, the government would create incentives to flag and build ships in the U.S. and provide capital to the shipbuilding industry so it could meet the increased demand with greater efficiency and lower costs,” Clark said. “This will not result in the U.S. surpassing China, Korea or Japan as shipbuilders, but it would provide the U.S. more resilience.” The U.S. is drastically behind near-peer competitors like China in shipbuilding. China is responsible for more than 50% of global shipbuilding, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, compared to just 0.1% from the U.S. However, Trump has indicated interest in working with other nations on shipbuilding, and suggested working with Congress to pass legislation authorizing the purchase of ships from foreign countries when signing the orders. Specifics were not provided. US RISKS PUSHING EUROPEAN ALLIES INTO CHINA’S ARMS WITH NEW TARIFFS, EXPERTS WARN But doing so could upend a century-old law known as the Jones Act – a controversial law fundamental to the current U.S. shipbuilding environment that requires that only U.S. ships carry cargo between U.S. ports and stipulates that at least 75% of the crew members are American citizens. It also requires that these ships are built in the U.S. and that U.S. citizens own them. Proponents of the Jones Act assert it is key to national security and prevents foreigners from gaining entry to the U.S. But experts claim the law has significantly hampered U.S. shipbuilding, and is undercutting competition while keeping shipbuilding costs high. Efforts to repeal the legislation have failed amid bipartisan support in Congress. But some experts claim eradicating the law is a first step in changing the shipbuilding industry in the U.S. “Anyone who is serious about reviving the shipping industry should basically start by getting rid of the Jones Act,” Veronique de Rugy, a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, told Fox News Digital Thursday. “It’s not everything, but it’s a start.” Colin Grabow, an associate director at the Cato Institute’s Center for Trade Policy Studies, said shipbuilding issues in the U.S. are multifaceted, but the Jones Act is a major part of the problem. Still, he doubts efforts to repeal it will prove successful. “I think the bar has been set so low, it is hard not to think that, absent the Jones Act, that we’d be doing any worse,” Grabow said. “And in fact, I think we’d do better. And why do I think we’d do better? It’s because… fundamentally, I think an industry that doesn’t have to compete will become uncompetitive. I think it’s just kind of axiomatic.”
4 more Dems travel to El Salvador to push for Abrego Garcia’s return to US
Four more Democratic lawmakers traveled to El Salvador to visit an illegal immigrant and suspected MS-13 gang member deported by President Donald Trump’s administration. Reps. Robert Garcia of California, Maxwell Frost of Florida, Yassamin Ansari of Arizona, and Maxine Dexter of Oregon announced in a press release Monday that they had arrived in El Salvador “to pressure the Trump Administration to abide by a Supreme Court order to facilitate the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia.” The four Democrats described Garcia as “a Maryland man with protected legal status who was unlawfully deported by the Trump Administration.” Their visit comes after Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., flew to El Salvador last week to visit Abrego Garcia, who had been transferred from the country’s notorious mega prison, Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo (CECOT), in Tecoluca to the detention facility “Centro Industrial” in Santa Ana days earlier. DEPORTED ILLEGAL ALIEN AND SUSPECTED MS-13 GANG MEMBER TRANSFERRED FROM NOTORIOUS EL SALVADORAN MEGA-PRISON In their press release, the four Democrats said their trip was not being financed by taxpayer dollars after House Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., denied Garcia and Frost’s request for an official congressional member delegation (CODEL). They argued the Trump administration’s removal of Garcia constituted “kidnapping” or him being “disappeared” – a term used to describe abducted and murdered prisoners and dissidents during Argentina’s “Dirty War.” Meanwhile, Trump weighed in on Abrego Garcia’s case in another TRUTH Social post on Sunday. “Radical Lunatic Democrats and their Comrades in the Fake News Media are falsely making Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia out to be a very sweet and innocent person, which is a total, blatant, and dangerous LIE,” Trump wrote. “Garcia has been found by two separate Courts to be a member of the violent, killer gang MS-13, was in our Country illegally, and is under a Deportation Order.” “It is despicable and unAmerican for Liberals and the Mainstream Media to hate our Country so much, and be obsessed with protecting criminals, instead of working to keep our Border, streets, and families safe,” he added. “Those lying to the American People on behalf of violent criminals have to be held responsible by the Agencies and the Courts. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” The four Democrats demanded the Trump administration bring Abrego Garcia back to the United States, arguing his deportation constituted a “constitutional crisis.” SEN. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN, DEMOCRAT AT CENTER OF KILMAR ABREGO GARCIA SAGA, RESPONDS TO GRIEVING ANGEL MOM’S CRITICISM “While Donald Trump continues to defy the Supreme Court, Kilmar Abrego Garcia is being held illegally in El Salvador after being wrongfully deported,” Garcia said. “That is why we’re here – to remind the American people that kidnapping immigrants and deporting them without due process is not how we do things in America. We are demanding the Trump Administration abide by the Supreme Court decision and give Kilmar and the other migrants mistakenly sent to El Salvador due process in the United States.” “Donald Trump and his Administration are running a government-funded kidnapping program – illegally arresting, jailing, and deporting innocent people with zero due process. Kilmar Abrego Garcia is Trump’s latest victim,” Frost said in a statement. “As Members of Congress it is our responsibility to hold the President and Administration accountable for defying the constitution of the United States. Donald Trump and ICE are not above the law. Today it’s Kilmar, but tomorrow it could be anyone else. We cannot and will not let Donald Trump get away with this.” “My parents fled an authoritarian regime in Iran where people were ‘disappeared’ – I refuse to sit back and watch it happen here, too. Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s illegal abduction and President Trump’s complete disregard of due process and a unanimous Supreme Court ruling are deeply disturbing. We should all be appalled by this treatment by the United States government,” Ansari said. “What happened to Kilmar Abrego Garcia is not just one family’s nightmare – it is a constitutional crisis that should outrage every single one of us,” Dexter said. “We will not rest while due process is discarded, and our constitutional rights are ignored.” The Trump administration deported Abrego Garcia, 29, to El Salvador in what it described in court filings as an “administrative error,” and has since said that it is up to El Salvador whether Abrego Garcia returns to the U.S. Meanwhile, a federal court and the Supreme Court have instructed the Trump administration to coordinate Abrego Garcia’s return so that proper deportation hearings can occur. The Justice Department unveiled documents on Wednesday detailing domestic violence allegations that Abrego Garcia’s wife, Jennifer Vasquez, included in a court filing in 2021. Vasquez alleged in the filing that Abrego Garcia beat her and that she had documentation of the bruises he left on her. Additionally, a 2022 Homeland Security Investigations report obtained by Fox News claims that Abrego Garcia was suspected of partaking in labor and human trafficking. The report said a Tennessee Highway Patrol trooper pulled Abrego Garcia over in 2022 after swerving. The patrol officer found eight other individuals in the car with Abrego Garcia, who had just begun driving three days prior. The officer originally believed the incident qualified as a human trafficking case because no luggage was found in the car, but the officer ultimately only wrote up Abrego Garcia for driving with an expired license. Fox News’ Diana Stancy, David Spunt, Rachel Wolf and Greg Norman contributed to this report.