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Year: 2025

Blue states blasted for funneling millions in SNAP cash for fast food meals

Blue states blasted for funneling millions in SNAP cash for fast food meals

FIRST ON FOX: U.S. taxpayers are footing nearly $250 million a year in SNAP benefits spent on fast-food meals across just nine states, most of which are blue states, according to Republican Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst. Nine states, including Arizona, California, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, Rhode Island, and Virginia — all of which are Democrat-run states except for Virginia — are opted into a SNAP program called the Restaurant Meals Program (RMP), which has spent nearly $250 million a year on hot meals, including fast food, Ernst’s office found.  The modern day Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program was established in 1964 under the Food Stamps Act to provide basic food needs such as meats and fruits and vegetables to financially vulnerable Americans. Hot foods or foods ready for immediate consumption were not eligible for purchase under the program as its main mission was to provide staple foods to be prepared at home.  A 1977 loophole, however, allowed states to opt into a program called the Restaurant Meals Program, which was established to allow homeless individuals who do not have a kitchen to purchase prepared meals using SNAP benefits, according to Ernst’s office. The eligibility for the program expanded in the following years to include disabled individuals, the elderly and their spouses, according to the office.  FOOD-STAMP FRAUD NUMBERS EXPOSE WHICH STATES ARE DRAINING THE MOST TAXPAYER DOLLARS Nine states are opted into the program, which requires participating restaurants to sign an agreement with the state that is then authorized by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees the SNAP program writ large. Restaurants that participate in the program were historically a small group but have since expanded, most notably in California in the Biden era, Ernst’s office said.  California expanded its program statewide, for example, in 2021 that allowed restaurants to accept CalFresh benefits via SNAP at a swath of top fast-food chains stretching from McDonald’s to Domino’s Pizza to Jack in the Box.  Ernst’s office found that from June 2023 to May 2025, more than $475 million in taxpayer dollars funded Restaurant Meals Program meals at fast-food establishments. During that same time period, $524 million in taxpayer funds were spent through the Restaurant Meals Program overall, meaning California accounted for more than 90% of the nation’s total Restaurant Meals Program funds from June 2023 to May 2025, according to the office.  “The ‘N’ in SNAP stands for nutrition not nuggets with a side of fries,” Ernst told Fox News Digital. “I wish I was McRibbing you but $250 million per year at the drive-through is no joke and a serious waste of tax dollars. I hate to be the one to say McSCUSE ME, but something needs to be done because taxpayers are not lovin’ it.” TRUMP SAYS SNAP BENEFITS WILL ONLY RESUME WHEN ‘RADICAL LEFT DEMOCRATS’ OPEN GOVERNMENT The data found that between June 2023 and May 2025 $41.4 million funds went through Restaurant Meals Program in Arizona, $3.6 million in New York, $1.3 million in Michigan, $995,900 in Rhode Island, $649,000 in Massachusetts, $479,000 in Illinois, $308,500 in Virginia, and $8,600 in Maryland.  TRUMP ADMINISTRATION CITES WIDESPREAD MISUSE OF SNAP AS FUNDING LAPSES DURING SHUTDOWN Ernst’s introduced legislation Thursday, dubbed the McSCUSE ME Act, to rein in the scope of Restaurant Meals Program. Specifically, the bill would continue allowing homeless, elderly and disabled individuals to continue using the program, but ending spousal eligibility.  CHARTS ILLUSTRATE THE SCALE OF SNAP AS MILLIONS FACE POTENTIAL BENEFIT LAPSE The legislation also would reel in which vendors are able to participate in the program, specifically restricting fast-food vendors in favor of grocery stores that have hot bars to better ensure availability of healthy prepared food options. The legislation would also require states to produce public annual reports showing how many vendors participate in the Restaurant Meals Program, the number of participating beneficiaries and total costs for the program, Fox News Digital learned.  The report and legislation comes after the U.S. government just emerged from the longest government shutdown in history, at 43 days, that included putting the food assistance program under heightened scrutiny over fraud and concern as recipients saw disruptions to their access.  Upon the reopening of the government, the Trump administration is requiring all SNAP beneficiaries to reapply for the program in an effort to prevent fraud.  Federal spending on SNAP overall climbed to record highs under the Biden administration, Fox News Digital previously reported, at $128 billion in 2021 and $127 billion in 2022 during the pandemic. By the Biden administration’s final year, SNAP cost $99.8 billion. Fox News Digital’s Amanda Macias contributed to this report.

Mamdani vows NYPD will ‘never’ go back to Adams-era cooperation with ICE enforcement

Mamdani vows NYPD will ‘never’ go back to Adams-era cooperation with ICE enforcement

New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani said that the New York City Police Department will not be helping with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) measures under his watch, shortly after border czar Tom Homan announced federal immigration officials would be ramping up its enforcement measures soon in the Big Apple.  The commitment follows through on Mamdani’s campaign promise that the NYPD will not assist federal immigration officials, such as ICE, under his watch.  “We can never go back to the days where Eric Adams would go on national television and open the door to the NYPD handling civil immigration enforcement. That can never even be entertained,” Mamdani said during an interview with local television station PIX11 News. “People are living in fear.” The mayor-elect continued, “And what we will ensure is that the NYPD will be delivering public safety, not assisting ICE in their attempts to fulfill the administration’s goal of creating the single largest deportation force in American history.” MAMDANI FORCED TO ADDRESS UNEARTHED VIDEO EXPOSING VILE NYPD COMPARISON Mamdani’s response on whether he would have the NYPD cooperate with ICE came in the context of NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch and the fact she was “tipped off” about an earlier raid. When asked how he would handle a similar situation, Mamdani said he would tell the commissioner “to ensure no officers are assisting with the actions of ICE.”  Under the incumbent Adams administration, the NYPD was reportedly permitted to help with criminal immigration enforcement operations, but according to an Adams spokesperson, they were not directed to assist with civil immigration enforcement.  Meanwhile, on Wednesday, following months of speculation, Mamdani announced Tisch would be staying on as police commissioner despite questions about the pair’s ideological differences.  MAMDANI’S TOP INCOMING AIDE WAS ‘CHIEF ARCHITECT’ OF RADICAL PROPOSAL OVERHAULING NYPD One example of their differences was whether to keep the city’s Strategic Response Group, a group within the NYPD focused on rapid-response for large-scale events, like protests and mass shootings. Mamdani said during his interview with PIX11 that the Strategic Response Group will not exist anymore under his mayorship. When asked if Mamdani “gave anything up” to coax Tisch to stay on as commissioner, he did not indicate one way or the other. “I spoke to the commissioner about the fact that I am looking to keep her in this position because of the work that she has done, not because of the idea that I have of overhauling all of it. It’s about building that together,” Mamdani said. “There’s also a real shared alignment – both the commissioner and I have a shared agreement on the fact that the police should not be asked to handle the fact that our social safety net is coming apart at the seams – that is a responsibility for city government.” During the talk about Tisch, Mamdani also doubled down on his promise that the NYPD headcount will not rise under his tenure, even if it is something Tisch wants.   “I will be the one who has the final decision,” Mamdani said when asked about how he would approach shared governing responsibilities with Tisch.

Trump secures release of American trapped in Saudi Arabia for years over online posts

Trump secures release of American trapped in Saudi Arabia for years over online posts

A U.S. citizen jailed in Saudi Arabia for criticizing the royal family online was freed Wednesday by Saudi authorities, ending a four-year ordeal in the country, according to media reports. Saad Almadi’s release came just a day after President Donald Trump met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Washington, D.C., per the New York Post. Almadi, 75, a retired engineer and U.S. resident since 1976, was detained in 2021 during a family visit to Riyadh and later sentenced to more than 19 years in prison on terrorism charges tied to a series of posts online. US AND QATAR SECURE RELEASE OF AMERICAN CITIZEN AMIR AMIRY FROM AFGHANISTAN DETENTION The charges were reduced to cyber crimes, and although he was released from prison in 2023, Almadi was held in the country under an exit ban which prevented him from going back home to the U.S. The Almadi family issued a statement Wednesday celebrating the good news and thanking Trump. “Our family is overjoyed that, after four long years, our father, Saad Almadi, is finally on his way home to the United States!” they said. “This day would not have been possible without President Donald Trump and the tireless efforts of his administration. We are deeply grateful to Dr. Sebastian Gorka and the team at the National Security Council, as well as everyone at the State Department.” TRUMP DESIGNATES SAUDI ARABIA AS MAJOR NON-NATO ALLY DURING CROWN PRINCE WHITE HOUSE VISIT A third portion of the statement expressed appreciation to others who had supported the case over the years. “We extend our thanks to the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh for keeping our father safe, and to the nonprofit organizations and members of Congress who fought for his freedom,” the statement read. Almadi’s case also drew attention from human rights groups and U.S. lawmakers after he was accused of terrorism over 14 social media posts. SAUDI ARABIA’S 40-YEAR-OLD DISRUPTOR: HOW MBS REWIRED THE KINGDOM IN 10 SHORT YEARS One suggested that a street in Washington be renamed after Jamal Khashoggi, who was murdered in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul in 2018. U.S. pressure to lift Almadi’s exit ban had also intensified since Trump’s May visit to Saudi Arabia. The president’s national security advisor, Sebastian Gorka, also met with Almadi’s son at the White House. The Foley Foundation, which advocates for Americans detained overseas, praised the news Wednesday, saying it was “so excited” the family’s fight had finally succeeded. Per reports, Almadi was flying to the U.S. from Riyadh on Wednesday, according to his family, after Trump and the crown prince set foot on stage at a forum in Washington. Fox News Digital has reached out to Sebastian Gorka, the Department of State and The White House for comment.

Federal judge allows Texas AG to challenge Harris County bail reforms: ‘Unleashing criminals’

Federal judge allows Texas AG to challenge Harris County bail reforms: ‘Unleashing criminals’

A federal judge has granted Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton a key win, allowing him to intervene in a lawsuit that produced the 2019 Harris County misdemeanor bail reform consent decree. “The justice system must be dedicated to punishing the evildoer and protecting the innocent,” Paxton said in a press release on Wednesday. “But far too often, leftist judicial activists and other liberal anti-prison organizations have worked to make Texas less safe by throwing open the prison doors and unleashing criminals back onto the streets. I will do everything in my power to reverse this disastrous policy and uphold the law.” TEXAS INVESTIGATING USTA FOR POSSIBLE VIOLATION OF LAW BANNING BIOLOGICAL MALES IN WOMEN’S SPORTS The O’Donnell Consent Decree stemmed from a 2016 class-action lawsuit arguing that Harris County’s prior bail practices were unconstitutional because they detained people charged with misdemeanors simply for being unable to afford cash bail. A judge approved the decree in 2019, eliminating most cash bail for misdemeanor offenses and requiring release on unsecured bonds, while also creating an independent monitor to oversee compliance. FEDERAL JUDGE RULES LAW REQUIRING DISPLAY OF TEN COMMANDMENTS IN TEXAS CLASSROOMS UNCONSTITUTIONAL The new ruling opens the door for Paxton’s office to seek termination of the decree, arguing that it violates Texas law and endangers public safety. Paxton’s office said the decree “enabled radical judges to more easily release criminals into Harris County communities” and that liberal activists have tried to expand its reach despite state laws imposing stricter bail standards. “General Paxton seeks to vacate the decree and ensure that the rights of Harris County citizens are represented in court,” the release said.

Appeals court blocks order limiting immigration agents’ use of force in Chicago

Appeals court blocks order limiting immigration agents’ use of force in Chicago

A federal appeals court has blocked a lower-court ruling that sought to limit how immigration agents can use force during Chicago-area enforcement operations, calling the judge’s order “overbroad” and “too prescriptive.” The Seventh Circuit panel cautioned against “overreading” its stay, noting that a fast-track appeal could result in a “more tailored and appropriate” order. Earlier this month, U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis issued a preliminary injunction after media organizations and demonstrators accused federal officers of using excessive force during an immigration operation that has resulted in more than 3,000 arrests since September across Chicago and nearby communities. Justice Department lawyers argued that the order restricted law enforcement’s ability to carry out its duties and could “subvert” the constitutional structure. BLUE CITY JUDGE CITES ‘FEAR OR OBSTRUCTION’ IN BLOCKING ICE COURTHOUSE ARRESTS DURING COURT PROCEEDINGS The panel said the order was “too prescriptive” because it specified riot control weapons and other devices in a way that “resembles a federal regulation.” Ellis’ order barred agents from using physical force and chemical agents such as tear gas and pepper balls unless necessary or to prevent “an immediate threat.” The judge said the use of those tools violated the constitutional rights of journalists and protesters. Witnesses told the court they were tear-gassed, shot with pepper balls while praying, and had guns pointed at them. FEDERAL JUDGE SAYS ICE DETAINEES ‘SHOULDN’T BE SLEEPING NEXT TO OVERFLOWING TOILETS’ AT CHICAGO-AREA FACILITY Ellis found that Trump administration witnesses were “simply not credible,” including Gregory Bovino, a Border Patrol commander who led the Chicago area operation before moving on to North Carolina. Bovino has defended the agents’ use of force and oversaw about 230 officers from U.S. Customs and Border Protection in the region beginning in September. Federal border agents are expected to next be deployed to New Orleans. The immigration operation has drawn multiple lawsuits, including claims of inhumane conditions at a federal immigration facility — allegations that prompted a federal judge and attorneys to visit the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement center outside Chicago last week. DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin called the stay “a win for the rule of law and for the safety of every law enforcement officer.” The Associated Press contributed to this report.