VIDEO: Banks tells fired government worker he ‘probably deserved it’ because he seems ‘like a clown’
Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind., told an individual who said he had been fired from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that he likely deserved to be dismissed because he seemed “like a clown.” The GOP senator has not backed away from his comments, which were captured on camera. Retweeting a post that featured video of the exchange, the lawmaker’s @SenatorBanks X account declared, “Hard truth!” Banks is also using a screenshot of himself from the video as his new profile photo on that account. HHS DOWNSIZING BEGINS AMID RFK JR. ‘MAKE AMERICA HEALTHY AGAIN’ PUSH: ‘WIN-WIN FOR TAXPAYERS’ In the video, an individual who is not on camera can be heard saying that he was an HHS worker who had been illegally fired on February 14. The individual went on to claim that many have not been getting social services, particularly individuals with disabilities, and then asked Banks if he is going to “do anything to stop what’s happening?” Banks responded by saying, “You probably deserved it.” HHS SAYS IT WILL CUT WORKFORCE BY 10K, SAVING $1.8B ANNUALLY When the questioner asked Banks why he deserved it, the senator replied, “Because you seem like a clown.” Fox News Digital reached out to a Banks spokesperson who provided a comment from the senator. “Factory workers, mechanics, police officers, teachers and all hard working people in Indiana don’t deserve to see their tax dollars going to pay for woke and wasteful programs in Washington DC. Thank you President Trump for draining the swamp,” Banks said in the statement. GOP SENATOR THREATENS ‘REAL CONSEQUENCES’ IF UNIVERSITIES HIRE ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The individual who confronted Banks in the video was Mack Schroeder, reports indicate. “It felt very childish to hear someone in a leadership position whose constituents rely on these programs to say that,” Schroeder said, according to USA Today. “I hope a lot of people in his state see the callousness that he demonstrated.” Banks, who previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives, won election to the Senate last year and joined the upper chamber early this year.
DNA Verified: Old video from Bangladesh falsely shared as unrest in West Bengal’s Malda
A X user claimed the video is from Malda, where people from a particular faith attacked Hindus with stones and set their vehicles on fire.
Love, intimate relations and blackmail!: School principal extorts lakhs of rupees from student’s father, Startling REVELATIONS here
In a bizarre incident, the principal of a pre-school developed intimate relationship with the father of a student and extorted money from him. Know in details here.
Wisconsin, Florida elections get spin treatment with fingers pointed at Trump and Musk
MILWAUKEE, Wis. — Democrats are celebrating a larger-than-expected victory in a high-profile and historically expensive election in battleground Wisconsin, in the first statewide ballot box contest since President Donald Trump’s return to power in January. Liberal-leaning Judge Susan Crawford topped conservative-leaning Judge Brad Schimel by roughly 10 percentage points – with some votes still being tabulated – to preserve the liberal majority on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, which is likely to rule going forward on crucial issues like congressional redistricting, voting rights, labor rights and abortion. With a massive infusion of money from Democratic-aligned and Republican-aligned groups from outside Wisconsin, which turned the race into the most expensive judicial election in the nation’s history, the contest partially transformed into a referendum on Trump’s sweeping and controversial moves during the opening months of his second tour of duty in the White House. Also front and center in the technically nonpartisan showdown was someone who, along with Trump, was not on the ballot: billionaire Elon Musk, the president’s top donor and White House advisor, who inserted himself into the race. LIBERAL-LEANING CANDIDATE WINS FIRST MAJOR STATEWIDE ELECTION OF THE YEAR “The people of Wisconsin squarely rejected the influence of Elon Musk, Donald Trump, and billionaire special interests,” Democratic National Committee chair Ken Martin claimed. And the DNC, looking ahead to next year’s bigger contests in the 2026 midterm elections, called the showdown in Wisconsin a “bellwether race.” But Republicans came out on top in Tuesday’s other marquee contests, holding control of two vacant congressional seats in twin special elections in red state Florida. The double-digit victories by the Republican candidates will give the GOP a little bit of breathing room in the House of Representatives, where the party is holding onto a very fragile majority as it aims to pass Trump’s agenda. REPUBLICANS HOLD CONTROL OF TWO VACANT CONGRESSIONAL SEATS IN THIS RED STATE “The American people sent a clear message tonight: they want elected officials who will advance President Trump’s America First agenda, and their votes can’t be bought by national Democrats,” Republican National Committee chair Mike Whatley argued. The Democratic candidates in the two special congressional elections vastly outraised their Republican counterparts – a sign that the party’s base is angry and energized – which forced GOP-aligned outside groups to pour money and resources into the races during the final stretch. And the Democratic candidates ended up losing by 15 and 14 points in districts that Trump carried by 37 and 30 points in last November’s presidential election. Democrats quickly spotlighted how the party “overperformed” in Florida. And the House Majority PAC, the top super PAC supporting House Democrats, touted that the results showed “that the political headwinds are firmly at our backs heading into 2026.” But Mike Marinella, spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee, argued that “Democrats just lit over $20,000,000 on fire in a doomed-to-fail effort to make two deep-red Florida districts competitive – and got blown out of the water in the most embarrassing way.” But the results in Florida, and especially Wisconsin, will likely give the Democrats a jolt, and validate their efforts to target Musk. Musk, the chief executive of Tesla and SpaceX, who has taken a buzz saw to the federal government workforce as he steers Trump’s recently created Department of Government Efficiency, dished out roughly $20 million in the Wisconsin race through aligned groups in support of Schimel. And Musk, in a controversial move, handed out $1 million checks at a rally in Green Bay on Sunday evening to two Wisconsin voters who had already cast ballots in the contest and had signed a petition to stop “activist judges.” “I never could have imagined that I’d be taking on the richest man in the world, for justice in Wisconsin. And we won,” Crawford said in her election night victory speech. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, the top Democrat in the chamber, argued that Wisconsin voters “sent a decisive message to Elon Musk, Donald Trump, and DOGE by rejecting an extreme Republican for their Supreme Court: our democracy is not for sale.” “Anyone who counted Democrats out was dead wrong,” he emphasized. But Democrats have a serious brand issue right now. The party’s favorable rating sank to all-time lows in separate national polls conducted last month by CNN and NBC News. Those numbers followed a record low for Democrats in a Quinnipiac University survey in the field in February. Additionally, the latest Fox News National poll indicated that congressional Democrats’ approval rating is at 30%, near an all-time low. And Democratic activists are irate over their party’s inability to blunt Trump’s agenda. And when it comes to normally low-turnout off-year elections and special elections, the party in power – which in the nation’s capital is clearly the Republicans – often faces political headwinds. “We’ll get up to fight another day. But this wasn’t our day,” Schimel said in his concession speech. And Wisconsin GOP chair Brian Schimming noted that “coming off a successful November, we knew the April elections would be challenging.” Republicans note that Democrats enjoyed a slew of special election victories in 2023 and 2024 before suffering serious setbacks in last November’s elections. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “Special elections are special for a reason, and not always useful canaries in the coal mines for what lies ahead,” veteran Republican strategist Colin Reed told Fox News Digital. “While they can be used as a barometer for energy, they are also a reflection of the individual candidates whose names are on the ballots.” Reed argued that “the bigger challenge for the Democrats looking ahead is the lack of a vision or governing agenda beyond reflexive and blanket opposition to the White House and their continued positioning way outside the mainstream on a slew of commonsense issues.”
Were Wisconsin, Florida elections referendum on Trump, Musk? And what they mean for the 2026 midterms
MILWAUKEE, WI – Democrats are celebrating a larger-than-expected victory in a high-profile and historically expensive election in battleground Wisconsin, in the first statewide ballot box contest since President Donald Trump’s return to power in January. Liberal-leaning Judge Susan Crawford topped conservative-leaning Judge Brad Schimel by roughly ten points – with some votes still being tabulated – to preserve the liberal majority on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, which is likely to rule going forward on crucial issues like congressional redistricting, voting and labor rights, and abortion. With a massive infusion of money from Democrat-aligned and Republican-aligned groups from outside Wisconsin, which turned the race into the most expensive judicial election in the nation’s history, the contest partially transformed into a referendum on Trump’s sweeping and controversial moves during the opening months of his second tour of duty in the White House. Also front and center in the electoral showdown was someone who, along with Trump, was not on the ballot: billionaire Elon Musk, the president’s top donor and White House adviser, who inserted himself into the race. “The people of Wisconsin squarely rejected the influence of Elon Musk, Donald Trump, and billionaire special interests,” Democratic National Committee chair Ken Martin claimed. And the DNC, looking ahead to next year’s bigger contests in the 2026 midterm elections, called the showdown in Wisconsin a “bellwether race.” But Republicans came out on top in Tuesday’s other marquee contests, holding control of two vacant congressional seats in twin special elections in red state Florida. The double-digit victories by the Republican candidates will give the GOP a little bit of breathing room in the House of Representatives, where the party is holding onto a very fragile majority as it aims to pass Trump’s agenda. “The American people sent a clear message tonight: they want elected officials who will advance President Trump’s America First agenda, and their votes can’t be bought by national Democrats,” Republican National Committee chair Mike Whatley argued. The Democrat candidates in the two special congressional elections vastly outraised their Republican counterparts – a sign that the party’s base is angry and energized – which forced GOP-aligned outside groups to pour money and resources into the races during the final stretch. And the Democrat candidates ended up losing by 15 and 14 points in districts that Trump carried by 37 and 30 points in last November’s presidential election. Democrats quickly spotlighted how the party “overperformed” in Florida. And the House Majority PAC, the top super PAC supporting House Democrats, touted that the results showed “that the political headwinds are firmly at our backs heading into 2026.” But Mike Marinella, spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee, argued that “Democrats just lit over $20,000,000 on fire in a doomed-to-fail effort to make two deep red Florida districts competitive — and got blown out of the water in the most embarrassing way.” But the results in Florida, and especially Wisconsin, will likely give the Democrats a jolt, and validate their efforts to target Musk. Musk, the chief executive of Tesla and SpaceX, who has taken a buzz saw to the federal government workforce as he steers Trump’s recently created Department of Government Efficiency, dished out roughly $20 million in the Wisconsin race through aligned groups in support of Schimel. And Musk, in a controversial move, handed out $1 million checks at a rally in Green Bay on Sunday evening to two Wisconsin voters who had already cast ballots in the contest and had signed a petition to stop “activist judges.” “I never could have imagined that I’d be taking on the richest man in the world, for justice in Wisconsin. And we won,” Crawford said in her election night victory speech. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, the top Democrat in the chamber, argued that Wisconsin voters “sent a decisive message to Elon Musk, Donald Trump, and DOGE by rejecting an extreme Republican for their Supreme Court: our Democracy is not for sale.” “Anyone who counted Democrats out was dead wrong,” he emphasized. But Democrats have a serious brand issue right now. The party’s favorable rating sank to all-time lows in separate national polls conducted last month by CNN and NBC News. Those numbers followed a record low for Democrats in a Quinnipiac University survey in the field in February. Additionally, the latest Fox News National poll, indicated that congressional Democrats’ approval rating is at 30%, near an all-time low. And Democrat activists are irate over their party’s inability to blunt President Donald Trump’s agenda. And when it comes to normally low-turnout off-year elections and special elections, the party in power – which in the nation’s capital is clearly the Republicans – often faces political headwinds. “We’ll get up to fight another day. But this wasn’t our day,” Schimel said in his concession speech. And Wisconsin GOP chair Brian Schimming noted that “coming off a successful November, we knew the April elections would be challenging.” Republicans note that Democrats enjoyed a slew of special election victories in 2023 and 2024 before suffering serious setbacks in last November’s elections. “Special elections are special for a reason, and not always useful canaries in the coal mines for what lies ahead,” veteran Republican strategist Colin Reed told Fox News Digital. “While they can be used as a barometer for energy, they are also a reflection of the individual candidates whose names are on the ballots.” And Reed argued that “the bigger challenge for the Democrats looking ahead is the lack of a vision or governing agenda beyond reflexive and blanket opposition to the White House and their continued positioning way outside the mainstream on a slew of common sense issues.”
6 populist leaders facing lawfare around world
Vice President JD Vance condemned European countries last month for a lack of commitment to democracy as many of them lash out with lawfare attacks against populist leaders. Vance’s critique applies to more than just Europe, however, as populist leaders across the globe are facing legal troubles from outright election bans to criminal convictions. Here are the top populist leaders facing the most pressure. Right-wing French politician Marine Le Pen and several members of her ascendant National Rally party were convicted of embezzlement on Monday, and she herself has been banned from running in the 2027 presidential election. Populist leaders from across Europe condemned the verdict, pointing to her significant lead in the polls. “Those who fear the judgment of voters often seek reassurance from the courts. In Paris, they have condemned Marine Le Pen and would like to remove her from political life,” Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini said following Le Pen’s verdict. “We are not intimidated,” he added. “Full speed ahead, my friend!” ROMANIA ANNULS FIRST ROUND OF PRESIDENTIAL VOTE WON BY RIGHT-WING CANDIDATE Brazil’s Supreme Court accepted charges against former President Jair Bolsonaro last week over an alleged attempt to remain in office after his 2022 election defeat, ordering the former leader to stand trial. All five justices ruled in favor of accepting the charges leveled by Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet, who accused Bolsonaro and 33 others of attempting a coup that included a plan to poison his successor, current President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and kill a Supreme Court judge. The former president has repeatedly denied wrongdoing and says he’s being politically persecuted. Under Brazilian law, a coup conviction carries a sentence of up to 12 years. When combined with the other charges, it could result in a sentence of decades behind bars. Calin Georgescu won the first round of Romania’s presidential elections earlier this year, only for the election to be canceled due to allegations of Russian collusion in Georgescu’s favor. Georgescu was then taken into custody and has since been banned from running in the election, despite leading in polls. ROMANIAN FAR-RIGHT PRESIDENTIAL FRONTRUNNER TAKEN INTO CUSTODY AFTER JD VANCE’S REBUKE OF EUROPEAN ELECTIONS Italian Vice Premier Matteo Salvini faced years of legal trouble due to accusations that he had illegally detained roughly 100 migrants during his term as interior minister in 2019. GERMANY BRACES UNDER COLLAPSING GOVERNMENT AND LOOMING TRUMP TRADE WAR The 2019 incident saw migrants held offshore on a humanitarian rescue ship. Italian courts dropped the charges against Slavini in December. “Protecting our country’s borders from smugglers is not a crime,” Salvini said shortly after the verdict. “This is a victory for the League and for Italy.” Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan was jailed last month on corruption charges, though many of his supporters have compared his situation to that of President Donald Trump and the charges he has faced. A Pakistani court sentenced Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, to 14 and seven years in jail after finding them guilty of corruption. They were convicted for allegedly accepting land as a bribe through the Al-Qadir Trust, which they had set up while Khan was in office. Khan, however, maintains his innocence, describing the events as a “witch hunt” in exclusive comments to Fox News Digital. It is just one of the more than 100 cases he is facing. Khan’s plight has also been highlighted by longtime Trump ally and adviser Richard Grenell, who took to social media late last year when he tweeted, “Free Imran Khan!” President Donald Trump has faced waves of legal trouble from his political opponents stretching back nearly a decade to his first administration. First he faced down the now-discredited Russia collusion claims before once again facing impeachment for negotiating aid for Ukraine. Once out of office, federal and state governments targeted his business dealings with investigations, eventually resulting in his conviction for falsifying business records, a verdict his allies say was bogus. Trump has acknowledged that populist leaders like him are facing challenges across the globe. He remarked on Le Pen’s “very important” situation in a statement Tuesday. “She was banned for five years and she was the leading candidate,” Trump said. “That sounds like this country, that sounds very much like this country.” Fox News’ Avi Kumar, Benjamin Weinthal and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
Child safety must be priority of TikTok negotiations, parents group urges VP Vance
FIRST ON FOX: A group of parents is urging the Trump administration to “make the safety of America’s children a top priority” as the deadline to strike a deal to save TikTok looms. “TikTok is a breeding ground for harmful content, exposing our kids to videos promoting self-harm, eating disorders, and dangerous so-called viral challenges,” Alleigh Marré, executive director of the American Parents Coalition, said in a letter sent to Vice President JD Vance on Wednesday morning. Marré wrote that the Chinese-owned platform, which has an April 5 deadline for an American buyer to take over the company, regularly promotes “gender and sexuality content to minors” as well as suicidal ideation. ‘NO BETTER DEALMAKER’: TRUMP REPORTEDLY CONSIDERING EXECUTIVE ORDER TO ‘SAVE’ TIKTOK “This is no accident. TikTok’s design is deliberate. The Chinese-owned algorithm is being used to endanger our children. TikTok’s algorithm preys on vulnerable minds by feeding a steady stream of toxic content, and it often happens without parents realizing it,” the letter reads. “In the waning days of your negotiations I ask that you ensure this app has no connection to our country’s primary adversary. We cannot allow an adversary to have power akin to controlling all children’s television programming combined. TikTok cannot be owned, controlled, or influenced by foreign adversaries, and we must not allow those who wish to see our country fail have the power to manipulate and poison our kids.” After an app blackout that lasted roughly 14 hours just days before his inauguration, Trump said he would “save TikTok” through negotiations with American buyers. So far, several high-profile groups are vying to purchase TikTok’s U.S. operations, including former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt, investor Kevin O’Leary, and a consortium featuring influencer Jimmy Donaldson, known as “MrBeast,” and entrepreneur Jesse Tinsley, the founder of Employer.com. HOSPITALS WARNED THEY MUST PROTECT CHILDREN FROM CHEMICAL AND SURGICAL MUTILATION: HHS AGENCY MEMO Perplexity, an AI firm, has also shown interest. Oracle, TikTok’s current U.S. tech partner, is also considered a top contender. ByteDance could reportedly retain a stake in TikTok, with further investments from U.S. investors like General Atlantic and Susquehanna. A bipartisan 2024 law gave TikTok nine months to either divest from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, or be removed from U.S.-based app stores and hosting services. The Supreme Court weighed in on the ban on Jan. 17, two days before the deadline, declining to strike down the law as unconstitutional. Trump’s attorneys filed an amicus brief in the case in December, urging the Supreme Court to delay any ban until Trump took office. The court did not do so and Trump subsequently issued a 75-day delay on enforcing the ban on Inauguration Day. That delay expires at the end of Saturday. Of a possible sale of TikTok, Trump said Sunday aboard Air Force One, “We have a lot of potential buyers.” “There’s tremendous interest in TikTok,” he told reporters. “The decision is going to be my decision. I’d like to see TikTok remain alive.” Trump’s push to save TikTok is at odds with many in his own party, who have introduced legislation in recent years seeking to ban the app over national security concerns. SUPREME COURT APPEARS SKEPTICAL OF BLOCKING US BAN ON TIKTOK: WHAT TO KNOW There are roughly 170 million active American users on the social media app, the company reported. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House and TikTok for comment.
Courtroom combat: Inside the federal judiciary system where Trump’s agenda is under assault
The legal resistance to President Donald Trump’s second term is in full swing with more than 120 lawsuits filed since Jan. 20 by states, advocacy groups and individuals targeting his executive orders and policy agenda. As the lawsuits move through the judiciary, understanding the structure of the federal court system can help clarify how these challenges are likely to unfold. Article III of the U.S. Constitution establishes the Supreme Court along with “inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish.” The Constitution also states that judges shall hold their offices during a period of “good behavior.” The federal judiciary has three main levels: district courts (trial courts), circuit courts (the first level of appeal) and the Supreme Court (the final appellate authority). There are 94 district courts, 13 circuit courts and one Supreme Court. LAWSUIT TRACKER: NEW RESISTANCE BATTLING TRUMP’S SECOND TERM THROUGH ONSLAUGHT OF LAWSUITS TAKING AIM AT EOS To hear a case, a court must have personal jurisdiction (authority over the parties involved), subject matter jurisdiction (authority to hear the type of legal issue at hand) and proper venue (the correct geographic location for the case to be tried). Unlike state courts, which have broad authority, federal courts are courts of “limited jurisdiction,” which means they can only hear cases authorized by the Constitution or federal law. Each lawsuit filed against the Trump administration raises a federal question, giving federal courts subject-matter jurisdiction. Each district court has at least one United States district judge appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate for a life term. Plaintiffs who lose at the district court level can appeal to a federal appellate court. Appellate courts, also known as circuit courts, hear appeals from district courts within their geographic boundaries. Each circuit covers multiple states. For example, the Fifth Circuit includes Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. TRUMP’S TRANSGENDER MILITARY BAN DEALT LEGAL BLOW AFTER APPEALS COURT RULING Each circuit also has multiple judges, ranging from six total judges to 29. Appeals to the circuit courts are first heard by a panel of three judges. Parties must file briefs to the court, arguing why the trial court’s decision should either be affirmed or reversed. After briefs are filed, oral arguments are scheduled during which attorneys from both sides present their case and answer questions from a panel of judges. In some instances, the full court may hear a case in what’s called an en banc session. The Ninth Circuit, due to its size, follows a modified en banc process. A circuit court’s decision is binding on all lower courts within that circuit. As such, those courts must follow that holding. Other circuits can look to that circuit’s holding as reference, but they are not bound by it. A case can generally only be appealed once a final decision has been issued. However, some issues can be appealed before a final decision is made via what’s called an interlocutory appeal. Parties can appeal a circuit court’s decision to the U.S. Supreme Court by filing a writ of certiorari, which is a request for the court to review the case. The Supreme Court isn’t required to take the case and denies most petitions, granting review in less than 1% of appeals. When cert is denied, the lower court’s ruling remains in place. WAVE OF COURT ORDERS BLOCKING TRUMP’S AGENDA ARE ‘JUDICIAL COUP D’ÉTAT,’ GINGRICH SAYS A circuit split is when circuits disagree on a particular legal matter. This will generally prompt the Supreme Court to grant cert in a case. If cert is granted, parties must file briefs and conduct oral arguments. Each circuit is assigned to a specific Supreme Court justice who handles certain appeals from that region, such as emergency applications and administrative requests. For example, Chief Justice Roberts oversees the D.C. Circuit, the 4th Circuit and the Federal Circuit. The assigned justice may act alone or refer the matter to the full court at their discretion. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The Trump administration has already appealed various decisions to the Supreme Court via emergency appeals. On March 28, the administration asked the court to review a temporary restraining order that blocked the administration’s use of an 18th-century wartime law to deport Venezuelan nationals, including alleged members of the gang Tren de Aragua, from the United States. The appeal came shortly after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued a 2-1 ruling to uphold the district court’s decision blocking the administration. Fox News Digital’s Breanne Deppisch contributed to this report.
Much-awaited Delhi-Dehradun Expressway nears completion but there’s one house which stands in the way!
The construction work of Delhi-Dehradun Expressway – stretching from Akshardham to Uttarakhand – is almost complete. However, it is yet not operational
Kiren Rijiju blasts opposition over Waqf Amendment Bill: ‘Even the building we’re sitting in…’
Introducing the Waqf Amendment Bill, 2025, in Lok Sabha, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju on Wednesday targeted UPA government’s 2013 amendment in the Waqf Act, questioning the powers provided under section 108.