Trump DHS pick Noem pledges to end controversial app used by migrants on ‘day one’
Kristi Noem, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Homeland Security, told lawmakers that she will end the controversial CBP One app, and a related migrant parole program that has allowed nearly 1.5 million immigrants into the US. “Yes, Senator, if confirmed and I have the opportunity to be secretary, on day one CBP One will be shut down,” Noem told Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., at her confirmation hearing before the Senate Homeland Security Committee. Noem was first asked by Hawley if the southern border was secure. NOEM BOASTS OUTPOURING OF POLICE, BORDER UNION SUPPORT FOR DHS CHIEF “Senator, no, the southern border is not secure today. But in just three days, we will have a new president in this country, President Donald J. Trump. And he will secure our border,” she said. She was then asked about the use of the CBP One app, which allows immigrants to be paroled into the U.S. The app was created during the first Trump administration to assist with scheduling cargo inspections. However, it was controversially expanded in 2023 to allow migrants to make an appointment at a port of entry to be allowed in, initially due to an exception from the Title 42 public health order and then, since May, to be paroled into the U.S. as part of the Biden administration’s expansion of “lawful pathways.” WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT KRISTI NOEM, THE ‘BORDER HAWK’ NOMINATED BY TRUMP TO LEAD DHS As of the end of December, more than 936,500 individuals had made appointments to be paroled through the app, according to Customs and Border Protection. Connecting to that was a parole process for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans (CHNV), which allows up to 30,000 nationals a month from those countries to receive travel authorization to enter the U.S. after a vetting process. As of the end of December, about 531,000 nationals had been allowed in through the program. It was first applied to Venezuelans in October 2022 and expanded to the other three nationalities in January 2023. While the Biden administration said it was a part of an effort to encourage legal, rather than illegal, immigration and had been part of a slowing down of nationals entering illegally from those groups, opponents condemned it as a “concierge service” for otherwise illegal mass migration. TRUMP DHS PICK NOEM LIKELY TO FACE SCRUTINY OVER DEPORTATION, BORDER PLANS AT CONFIRMATION HEARING Noem said she would end CBP One on the first day in office, although the agency will keep some information. “There’s data and information in there that we will preserve so that we can ensure we know who’s coming into this country and who’s already here, that we need to go find,” she clarified. She then pointed to CHNV, “where our federal government actually paid to fly people into this country directly from other countries without any vetting or knowing who they are.” “So there’s several of these programs that need to be eliminated, and we need to ensure that we’re following legal immigration laws,” she said. Hawley followed up, asking if she would put an end to “abuse” in the parole system. “We will go back to case by case evaluation of these parole cases and ensure that we have more resources, if you will partner with us, to make sure that our legal immigration system is fully utilized, that we have more judges, more immigration courts, so that we can process people legally and make sure that they are, going through that process rather than, like Joe Biden has done, use this as an excuse to allow people to come into our country with no consequences,” she said. Noem, if confirmed, will oversee DHS at a time when the agency is expected to launch a historic mass deportation operation targeting illegal immigrants within the U.S., while also attempting to expand border security at the southern and northern borders. She will work with “border czar” Tom Homan, who was picked by Trump in November to head the operation and border security efforts.
Activist dragged out of Blinken’s final press conference: ‘you’re hurting me!’
Secretary of State Antony Blinken‘s final press conference quickly devolved into chaos Thursday after reporters had to be forcibly removed from the event, including one, an activist, who was physically carried out. The men were upset that a cease-fire deal between Hamas and Israel had not been reached sooner, accusing Blinken of “genocide” and being a “criminal.” Writer and activist Sam Husseini had to be dragged out of the event by security. Another reporter, Grayzone News’ Max Blumenthal, left more peacefully but still had to be escorted out after shouting questions at Blinken about why he had kept “the bombs flowing when we had a deal in May?” ISRAEL-HAMAS CEASE-FIRE, HOSTAGE RELEASE DEAL REACHED: ‘Americans will be part of that’ “You pontificate about a free press?” Husseini erupted. “I’m asking questions after being told by Matt Miller that he will not answer my questions, and so I ask them. Wasn’t – wasn’t the point of the May 31st statement to block the ICJ orders? You blocked the ICJ orders!” Blumenthal questioned Blinken on why he had allowed “the Holocaust of our time,” as he was escorted out, but that didn’t stop the uproar. Blinken kept trying to get back on course amid the interruption, at one point asking people to “respect the process,” but Husseini refused. “Oh, respect the process?” Husseini yelled as he was being carried away. “Respect the process while everybody – everybody from the International – from Amnesty International to the ICJ’s saying that Israel’s doing genocide and extermination, and you’re telling me to respect the process. Criminal! Why aren’t you in The Hague?” Three security guards ultimately had to grab Husseini in an attempt to remove him from the room. Husseini shouted as he clasped the table he was sitting at while he continued shouting at Blinken: “You are hurting me. You are hurting me!” The United States, Egypt, Qatar, Israel and Hamas agreed this week to a cease-fire deal – the basis of which was proposed by President Joe Biden in May. Israel still has to fully ratify the agreement, but it is a three-phase process that is expected to commence as early as Sunday. The deal marks the first reprieve in fighting since a short truce took place in November 2023, but fighting resumed several days later with both sides arguing violations of the agreed upon deal. HAMAS USES BODIES AS ‘NEGOTIATION CHIPS,’ SAYS FATHER OF AMERICAN HOSTAGE IN GAZA “Three hundred reporters in Gaza were on the receiving end of your bombs. Why did you keep the bombs flowing when we had a deal?” Blumenthal shouted at Blinken, after the secretary of state thanked members for their “hard questions” during the past four years of his tenure. “You all knew we had a deal. Everyone in this room knows we had a deal, Tony, and you kept the bombs flowing.” HAMAS’ GAZA DEATH TOLL QUESTIONED AS NEW REPORT SAYS ITS LED TO ‘WIDESPREAD INACCURACIES AND DISTORTION’ A spokesperson for the State Department told Fox News Digital that it is committed to advancing press freedom and values the opportunity to regularly communicate with members of the press. But they said the State Department also follows agency norms, which posit that anyone attending department press briefings must act in a professional manner, observe restrictions that may be laid out in advance and not impede other speakers. Blinken defended the Biden administration’s policy approach to the fighting in Gaza during his final press conference as Ssecretary of state on Thursday. He did acknowledge that the war in Gaza posed a “uniquely challenging situation” due to the humanitarian issues that Palestinians faced after Hamas launched their attack on Oct. 7, 2023. He also acknowledged that the U.S. had “real differences with Israel on the way it’s gone about the necessary defense of its people and its country.” But, according to President Joe Biden’s National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, the Biden administration does “not believe what is happening in Gaza is a genocide,” he said earlier this year. The deal reached this week hit a quick snag when Hamas sought to push last-minute demands into the deal. Additionally, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has faced pressure from far-right politicians not to go through with it. Still, on Friday morning, Netanyahu said that, pending approval by Israel’s security cabinet and government, the proposed cease-fire and hostage deal was still on and expected to commence on Sunday.
DNA TV Show: Case of attack on Saif Ali Khan still shrouded under mystery?
Over 42 hours have passed since the attack on Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan at his Bandra West-based apartment in Mumbai. Yet, the case is going entangled with a series of questions.
Trump to be inaugurated inside: Last ceremony held indoors was Reagan’s in 1985
President Donald Trump’s inauguration will now take place inside the U.S. Capitol due to cold weather forecast for Monday, the first indoor inauguration since Ronald Reagan’s second inauguration in January 1985. On that frigid January 20th 40 years ago, the air temperature was 7 degrees, with a windchill of -40. Monday’s forecast is a high of 23 degrees and a low of 10, but brutal winds are expected to whip across the city, making the temperature feel more like single-digit temperatures. President Thomas Jefferson was inaugurated inside the Capitol in 1801, as was custom in the nation’s early history. Organizers moved President James Monroe’s inauguration outside, because the Capitol was so badly damaged after the War of 1812 when the British burned it, which kicked off the custom of swearing in a president outside in front of the National Mall. TRUMP SWEARING-IN TO MOVE INDOORS DUE TO COLD WEATHER President John F. Kennedy’s inauguration in 1961 had similar temperatures – a high of 26 and a low of 19. It was held outside, even after a storm dumped eight inches of snow the previous day. “The weather forecast for Washington, D.C., with the windchill factor, could take temperatures into severe record lows,” Trump posted on Truth Social, addressing the expected cold. “There is an Arctic blast sweeping the Country. I don’t want to see people hurt, or injured, in any way. It is dangerous conditions for the tens of thousands of Law Enforcement, First Responders, Police K9s and even horses, and hundreds of thousands of supporters that will be outside for many hours on the 20th (In any event, if you decide to come, dress warmly!).” Trump said D.C.’s Capital One Arena will be open Monday for live viewing of his inauguration “and to host the Presidential Parade.” “I will join the crowd at Capital One, after my Swearing in,” Trump wrote.
Saif Ali Khan attacked: Another photo of accused surfaces, had changed clothes after attack, seen at…
Another CCTV grab of the accused who attacked Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan at his Mumbai-based apartment has surfaced, NDTV reported citing sources.
Midwest state’s DEI department nixed in new governor’s 1st major act
Only days after Indiana Gov. Mike Braun was sworn-in in Indianapolis, the former Republican senator officially rid the state government of its Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) apparatus. Instead, Braun – who grew a small Jasper truck-body business called Meyer Distributing into a major player with 700 product lines – said on Friday it takes a politician who “signed the front side of a paycheck” to understand what economic priorities actually matter, and DEI is not one of them. “At the [Indiana] inaugural, which was over the weekend for me, there was so much excitement knowing something is afoot even in a good red state like Indiana, mostly because of what’s going to happen out in D.C. and the partnership that can happen between enterprising states like ours has always been,” Braun said on “Fox & Friends.” “We’ve never really had somebody from Main Street… be our own governor here.” BRAUN DEMANDS FULL AUDIT OF MEDICARE AFTER FRAUD DISCOVERY Braun contrasted the conservative economic vision with that of President Biden and other Democrats, whose platform is “built on big government.” “Rahm Emanuel said ‘never let a crisis go to waste’,” he said in that respect, referring to the former President Barack Obama confidant’s motto during the 2008 financial crisis. The line was seen as a suggestion to use tough moments to force through tenets of one’s personal agenda. In comments to Fox News Digital, Braun said that in nearly 40 years of running a business, he knows what works and what does not. Instead of DEI, Indiana needs “MEI” – or Merit, Excellence and Innovation – to be a priority, he said. “Government should be laser-focused on one thing: getting results for the people they serve. We’re replacing the divisive DEI ideology with a level playing field of MEI — the same reason we’re eliminating college degree requirements where they’re not essential and adding key performance metrics for accountability,” Braun said. “[That is] because everyone should be judged on what they do, not who they are.” Braun noted his business background and reiterated how his guiding principle of growing Meyer into the expansive business it is today has been “results – above everything else.” DEMS TRYING TO CONVERT ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS INTO VOTERS WAS A ‘BIG MISCALCULATION’: MIKE BRAUN “That’s exactly what we’re putting first in my administration.” In his order, Braun cited the Supreme Court’s ruling in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard – which found affirmative action programs violate the Equal Protection Clause – and said state resources would not be used to “support [DEI] positions, departments, activities, procedures or programs if they grant preferential treatment based upon one person’s particular race…” It also bans requirements of Indianans to have to disclose their personal pronouns or for employers to mandate job applicants to provide a DEI-related statement. “We’ve grown the federal government to a place that I hope DOGE… brings it down because you’ve got a lot of anxious governors that want to double down on [DOGE] – we’re going to do it anyway,” Braun said separately on Fox News Channel. Braun said that since COVID-19, too many Indiana bureaucrats are still teleworking and that the DEI-nixing effort is also another way to streamline government to be more effective, just like Meyer. The state’s DEI office had been established by Braun’s predecessor, Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb. After the George Floyd incident in Minnesota, Holcomb addressed Indianans on the issue of “getting to the root causes of inequities and not just reacting to the symptoms.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Holcomb, who first ascended to the governorship when Mike Pence became vice president in 2017, appointed then-University of Notre Dame public affairs director Karrah Herring to lead the new DEI department. Braun also received some pushback on his decision: The Indiana legislature’s minority leader said he respects Braun’s right to position his new administration how he wants but questioned his chosen hierarchy. “Thinking of the myriad issues Hoosiers are facing, though, I can’t understand why this is a top priority,” State Rep. Phil GiaQuinta, D-Fort Wayne, said in a statement. GiaQuinta added a recent caucus meeting with the DEI office was “insightful and helpful” to their work addressing Indianans’ needs, and called the department’s sunset a “distraction from the real issues.”
RNC chair Whatley vows to be ‘tip of the spear’ to protect Trump after coasting to reelection victory
The members of the Republican National Committee, in a vote that was never in doubt, on Friday re-elected chair Michael Whatley to continue steering the national party committee. “This organization has got to be the tip of the spear. And as your chairman, I promise this organization will be the tip of the spear to protect Donald Trump,” Whatley said, as he spoke after the unanimous voice vote at the RNC’s annual meeting, which was held this year in the nation’s capital ahead of Monday’s inauguration of President-elect Trump. Whatley, a longtime Trump ally and a major supporter of Trump’s election integrity efforts, who was serving as RNC general counsel and chair of the North Carolina Republican Party, was named by Trump last March as chair as the former president clinched the 2024 GOP presidential nomination. Whatley succeeded longtime RNC chair Ronna McDaniel, whom Trump no longer supported. In an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital on the sidelines of the RNC’s winter meeting, Whatley says his job going forward in the 2025 elections and 2026 midterms is straight forward. RNC CHAIR REVEALS WHAT ROLE TRUMP WILL PLAY ON CAMPAIGN TRAIL GOING FORWARD “It’s really critical for us to make sure that the Trump voters become Republican voters,” Whatley told Fox News Digital on the sidelines of the RNCs’ winter meeting, which is being held in the nation’s capital. Republicans enjoyed major victories in November’s elections, with President-elect Trump defeating Vice President Kamala Harris to win back the White House, the GOP flipping control of the Senate from the Democrats, and holding on to their razor-thin majority in the House. Whatley, who was interviewed on Thursday on the eve of the formal RNC chair vote, said the GOP needs “to cement those gains” made in the 2024 elections. “We’re going to go right back to the building blocks that we had during this election cycle, which is to get out the vote and protect the ballot,” Whatley emphasized. The RNC chair pointed to “the lessons that we learned” in the 2024 cycle “about going after low propensity voters, about making sure that we’re reaching out to every voter and bringing in new communities,” which he said helped Republicans make “historic gains among African American voters, among Asian American voters, among Hispanic voters, young voters and women voters.” Speaking a couple of days before the president-elect’s inauguration, Whatley emphasized that once Trump’s in the White House, “we’re going to go right back to the RNC. We’re going to roll up our sleeves and get to work. We’ve got a couple of governor’s races…that we’re going to be working on in ‘25.” HOUSE GOP CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE CHAIR MAKES 2026 PREDICTION But Whatley said “everything is focused on ‘26,” when the party will be defending its majorities in the House and Senate, “because that is going to determine, from an agenda perspective, whether we have two years to work with or four. And America needs us to have a four-year agenda.” “What we’re going to be doing is making sure that we are registering voters,” Whatley said. “We’re going to be…communicating with the folks that we need to turn out.” Pointing to the 2024 presidential election, he said “it’s the same fundamentals.” But he noted that “it’s not just seven battleground states” and that the 2026 contests are “definitely going to be a very intense midterm election cycle.” While Democrats would disagree, Whatley described today’s GOP as “a common sense party…this is a party that’s going to fight for every American family and for every American community.” SENATE REPUBLICAN CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE CHAIR SPELLS OUT HIS 2026 MISSION Referring to former Democrats Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, whom Trump has nominated to serve in his second administration’s cabinet, Whatley touted “the fact that we have two former Democratic presidential candidates who are going to be serving in the president’s cabinet. That shows you that this is a commonsense agenda, a commonsense team, that we’re going to be moving forward with.” In December, Trump asked Whatley to continue during the 2026 cycle as RNC chair. “I think we will be able to talk when we need to talk,” Whatley said when asked if his lines of communication with Trump will be limited now that the president-elect is returning to the White House. “We’re going to support the president and his agenda. That does not change. What changes is his ability from the White House to actually implement the agenda that he’s been campaigning on.” VANCE HOSTS TOP-DOLLAR FUNDRAISER AHEAD OF TRUMP INAUGURATION The winter meeting included the last appearance at the RNC by co-chair Lara Trump. The president-elect’s daughter-in-law is stepping down from her post. She stressed that it’s crucial the RNC takes “the opportunity the voters have given us” to “continue to expand the Republican brand.” The elder Trump is term-limited and won’t be able to seek election again in 2028. Vice President-elect Sen. JD Vance will likely be considered the front-runner for the 2028 GOP nomination. Whatley reiterated what he told Fox News Digital in December, that the RNC will stay neutral in the next race for the GOP nomination and that the party’s “got an amazing bench.” “You think about the talent on the Republican side of the aisle right now, our governors, our senators, our members of Congress, people that are going to be serving in this administration. I love the fact that the Republican Party is going to be set up to have a fantastic candidate going into ’28,” he highlighted. Unlike the DNC, which in the 2024 cycle upended the traditional presidential nominating calendar, the RNC made no major changes to their primary lineup, and kept the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary as their first two contests. Asked about the 2028 calendar, Whatley reiterated to Fox News that “I have not had any conversations with anybody who wants to change the calendar, so we will wait and see what that looks like
Trump swearing-in to move indoors due to cold weather, source tells Fox News
The swearing-in ceremony for President-elect Trump’s inauguration will be moved inside because of cold temperatures forecast for Washington, D.C., Fox News has learned. Trump announced Friday that he had ordered that his inaugural address and other ceremonial prayers and speeches be held in the United States Capitol Rotunda due to expected winter conditions. “The weather forecast for Washington, D.C., with the windchill factor, could take temperatures into severe record lows,” Trump posted on Truth Social, addressing the expected cold. “There is an Arctic blast sweeping the Country. I don’t want to see people hurt, or injured, in any way. It is dangerous conditions for the tens of thousands of Law Enforcement, First Responders, Police K9s and even horses, and hundreds of thousands of supporters that will be outside for many hours on the 20th (In any event, if you decide to come, dress warmly!).” Brutal cold and ferocious winds are expected for the D.C. region on Monday, with temperatures expected to fall to the upper 20s, FOX Weather reported. With the wind chill, it will feel more like single digit temperatures. There is also a possibility of snow from a storm forecast on Sunday. Trump said the Capital One Arena will be open Monday for live viewing of his inauguration “and to host the Presidential Parade.” “I will join the crowd at Capital One, after my Swearing in,” Trump wrote. The three Inaugural Balls on Monday will proceed as scheduled. The Inaugural Committee has yet to comment on Trump’s decision. Fox News’ Chad Pergram contributed to this report.
DOGE eyes suggestions to slash federal DEI programs: report
Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and tech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy’s newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is eying a proposal that would slash federal diversity and inclusion programs, according to a new report. DOGE is tasked with eliminating government spending, waste and streamlining efficiency and operations, and is expected to influence White House policy on budget matters. The proposal circulating among DOGE advisors is a 19-page report from the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, a conservative and libertarian nonprofit organization, the Washington Post reports. Specifically, the document claims that there is more than $120 billion annually spent on “diversity, equity and inclusion” initiatives like Agriculture Department grants and loans for minority farmers and ranchers – efforts the organization claims are unconstitutional. WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT DOGE AND ITS QUEST TO SLASH GOVERNMENT WASTE, SPENDING Although it’s unlikely that the entirety of those funds will face complete elimination, sources told the Post that these diversity efforts will likely face cuts to free up spending. DOGE advisors have viewed the document, and it is making its rounds through the committee, the Post reports. “That’s been sent down from on high, that all this DEI stuff has to go,” someone familiar with DOGE’s early plans told the Post. “Once all these guys get confirmed, and he’s the president on Jan. 20, this is going to happen fast and furious.” GOP REP-ELECT OUTLINES HOW DOGE, TRUMP AGENDA WILL GET COUNTRY ‘BACK ON TRACK’: ‘NO MORE BUSINESS AS USUAL’ Musk is expected to occupy space in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building which is directly beside the West Wing and where the majority of office space for White House staffers exists, the New York Times reported this week. While Musk and transition officials have discussed the nature of the billionaire’s access to Trump post-inauguration, solidified plans are pending, according to the Times, which noted that special passes are usually required in order to freely visit the West Wing. DOGE is not part of the federal government, but the committee is expected to suggest executive orders for the Trump administration and partner with the Office of Management and Budget on new initiatives. ‘EFFICIENT AND ACCOUNTABLE’: GOP-LED DOGE BILL AIMS TO SLASH OUTFLOW OF FEDERAL DOLLARS Altogether, DOGE seeks to slash $2 trillion from the federal government budget through cuts to spending, government programs and the federal workforce. Even so, that plan may be a bit ambitious. Musk recently said that eliminating $2 trillion from the federal budget might not be realistic, and cutting $1 trillion was a more likely outcome. “I think we’ll try for $2 trillion. I think that’s like the best-case outcome,” Musk said during tech trade show CES this month in Las Vegas. “But I do think that you kind of have to have some overage. I think if we try for $2 trillion, we’ve got a good shot at getting $1 [trillion].”
Trump needs ‘time to review’ SCOTUS decision to uphold TikTok ban, teases action in ‘not too distant future’
President-elect Donald Trump said on Friday that he needs “time to review” the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold a federal law banning TikTok unless it divests from its Chinese parent company before Jan. 19 – the day before Trump is set to be sworn in. Trump added that “everyone must respect” the high court’s decision. “The Supreme Court decision was expected, and everyone must respect it,” Trump said in a statement posted to Truth Social. “My decision on TikTok will be made in the not too distant future, but I must have time to review the situation. Stay tuned!” The statement came moments after Trump reportedly told a small group of journalists by phone that the law banning TikTok “ultimately goes up to me, so you’re going to see what I’m going to do” after taking office. “Congress has given me the decision, so I’ll be making the decision,” Trump said, according to CNN, which first reported the remarks. Trump’s Truth Social post appears to take a more deferential tone towards the nation’s highest court, including its decision to uphold the bipartisan divestiture law passed last April with wide bipartisan support. “There is no doubt that, for more than 170 million Americans, TikTok offers a distinctive and expansive outlet for expression, means of engagement, and source of community,” the court wrote in the unsigned ruling. “But Congress has determined that divestiture is necessary to address its well-supported national security concerns regarding TikTok’s data collection practices and relationship with a foreign adversary. “For the foregoing reasons, we conclude that the challenged provisions do not violate petitioners’ First Amendment rights. The judgment of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is affirmed.” Trump has sought to delay the law from taking force. Attorneys for the president-elect filed a brief with the Supreme Court last month, asking justices to delay any decision until after Trump’s inauguration Jan. 20. But lawmakers disagreed. Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., told the Supreme Court in a filing of his own that Congress explicitly set the Jan. 19 date for the divestiture clause to take force since it “very clearly removes any possible political uncertainty in the execution of the law by cabining it to an administration that was deeply supportive of the bill’s goals.” This is a breaking news story. Check back shortly for updates.