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Year: 2025

Mamdani slammed for using kids in campaign videos after gloating about social media-free childhood

Mamdani slammed for using kids in campaign videos after gloating about social media-free childhood

Zohran Mamdani is taking heat for using school kids in his online campaign ads even after noting how “fortunate” he was to enjoy a childhood free of social media. The 33-year-old New York City mayoral candidate, who has built his brand on viral content, was criticized by Instagram followers after he featured interviews with two kids promoting his bid for City Hall.  The criticism also came as New York City launched a statewide classroom cellphone ban aimed at protecting student mental health, and ahead of the mayoral election. On Thursday, Mamdani appeared outside I.S. 5 in Queens, praising the new cellphone ban while welcoming families back for the first day of the school year.  On Instagram, he also shared a post and contrasted his own childhood with today’s digital reality, writing: EX-MAYOR DE BLASIO TOUTS SOCIALIST MAMDANI AS NEW YORK CITY’S ANSWER TO TRUMP POLICIES “I consider myself fortunate—when I was a student, it was before social media had cannibalized the way that kids interact with one another,” he wrote. The post was paired with a back-to-school message about “hope and new beginnings.” But just days later, Mamdani’s campaign accounts featured the two young kids speaking directly to Mamdani and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass.  MAMDANI APPEALS TO NON-DEMOCRATS WITH GENERAL ELECTION PUSH, VOWS GOVERNMENT CAN MEET VOTERS’ ‘MATERIAL NEEDS’ In one clip, a girl confidently endorsed him; in another, a boy offered support while Warren sat nearby. “How old is she? So articulate, but she’s so tiny,” one follower said about the little girl. Critics wondered why Mamdani was using children in his social media ads even as he decried the effects of cellphones and social media on children. “Why are you using kids to promote your political agenda?” complained another follower commenting on the post featuring the boy’s interview. One critic wrote: “He can express his personal opinion and promote whomever he wants, using the kids to do it is unacceptable.”  Mamdani’s posts featuring the two children also came days before New York Governor Kathy Hochul defended the new cellphone restrictions, arguing they will reduce distractions, improve mental health and even protect children during emergencies by preventing location-sharing.  Hochul discussed the state’s ban on cellphone use in public schools on “Fox News Sunday.” The new law prohibits smartphones and smartwatches during school hours, except for medical or educational use. Mamdani, who unseated a longtime incumbent in the Democratic primary, is campaigning on sweeping progressive promises, from a $30 minimum wage to a rent freeze.  Fox News Digital reached out to Mamdani for comment.

Trump backs ICE raid at Hyundai plant, but says US needs foreign experts to train Americans

Trump backs ICE raid at Hyundai plant, but says US needs foreign experts to train Americans

President Donald Trump said Sunday that while U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was right to arrest South Korean immigrants working illegally at a Hyundai battery plant in Georgia, the U.S. should consider letting foreign experts temporarily stay to train Americans in advanced industries. Homeland Security Investigations said 475 people — mostly South Koreans — were arrested at the under-construction battery plant. Hyundai said it owns the site but insisted none of the workers were directly employed by the company. When asked about the ICE operation on Sunday, Trump told reporters the U.S. needs experts who know how to build batteries to help train Americans with no such experience.  “If you don’t have people in this country right now that know about batteries, maybe we should help them along…,” Trump said, adding that industries like shipbuilding and computer manufacturing also need skilled trainers. “So, we’re going to look at that whole situation. We have a lot of industries that we don’t have any more, and we’re going to have to train people.” SOUTH KOREA REACHES DEAL WITH US TO RELEASE WORKERS DETAINED AFTER IMMIGRATION RAID He continued to explain that the best way to train people is to bring people in who know what they are doing, while also letting them stay in the U.S. for a little while to help. Still, Trump said ICE was right to arrest those in the country illegally. “We do have to work something out where we bring in experts so that our people can be trained so that they can do it themselves,” he said. Later on Truth Social, Trump urged foreign companies investing in the U.S. to respect immigration laws while pledging to make it “quickly and legally possible” for them to bring in skilled workers.  SOCIAL MEDIA FIRESTORM AFTER MASSIVE GEORGIA IMMIGRATION RAID: ‘TAKING BOLD ACTION’ “Your Investments are welcome, and we encourage you to LEGALLY bring your very smart people, with great technical talent, to build World Class products, and we will make it quickly and legally possible for you to do so,” he wrote. “What we ask in return is that you hire and train American Workers. Together, we will all work hard to make our Nation not only productive, but closer in unity than ever before. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” On Sunday, the South Korean government reached a deal with the U.S. to secure the release of hundreds of migrant workers detained at the factory. MASSIVE DHS RAID HITS GEORGIA HYUNDAI FACTORY THAT BIDEN TOUTED AS MAJOR VICTORY FOR ‘NEW AMERICAN JOBS’ President Lee Jae Myung’s office said South Korea will send a charter plane to bring the workers back to South Korea in the coming days. Still, South Korea’s government expressed “concern and regret” over the raid. Homeland Security Investigations chief Steven Schrank said some workers had crossed the border illegally, while others overstayed visas or entered under waivers that barred them from working. Many were employed by subcontractors at the site. The Georgia raid marked one of the largest workplace enforcement actions of Trump’s presidency, part of a broader crackdown on illegal immigration. Fox News Digital’s Anders Hagstrom, Cameron Arcand and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Trump delivers ultimatum to Hamas: Accept deal and release hostages or pay the consequences

Trump delivers ultimatum to Hamas: Accept deal and release hostages or pay the consequences

President Donald Trump issued his “last warning” to Hamas to accept his deal and release the remaining hostages or face the consequences. “Everyone wants the hostages HOME. Everyone wants this War to end,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “The Israelis have accepted my Terms. It is time for Hamas to accept as well.” “I have warned Hamas about the consequences of not accepting,” he continued. “This is my last warning, there will not be another one! Thank you for your attention to this matter.” Last month, Trump said the remaining hostages would only be returned when Hamas is “confronted and destroyed.” At the time, Hamas was citing alleged progress in ceasefire talks. WHITE HOUSE DEMANDS ALL GAZA HOSTAGES RETURN HOME ‘THIS WEEK’ AMID STALLED TALKS In July, the U.S. and Israel pulled negotiators from Qatar after Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff said Hamas showed a “lack of desire to reach a ceasefire” and was likely not negotiating in good faith. On Aug. 26, Witkoff told Fox News’ Bret Baier on “Special Report” that he and Trump wanted the hostages home that week.  “There’s been a deal on the table for the last six or seven weeks that would have released 10 of the hostages out of the 20 who we think are alive,” he said, noting that he believes Hamas is “100%” to blame for the hold-up. TRUMP ON WHAT IT WILL TAKE TO BRING ISRAELI HOSTAGES HOME: HAMAS MUST BE ‘CONFRONTED AND DESTROYED’ Witkoff did not elaborate on what is delaying the hostages’ return, nearly two years after they were taken in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel. Fifty hostages continue to be held by Hamas, only 20 of whom are assessed to still be alive.  Trump previously predicted in late August that there would be a “conclusive” end to the war in Gaza within the next “two to three weeks,” though he did not say how this would be accomplished.  TRUMP: HAMAS SURRENDER, HOSTAGE RELEASE IS ‘FASTEST WAY’ TO END GAZA WAR Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted that only a comprehensive ceasefire — one that ensures the return of all hostages and ends the war on Israel’s terms — will be considered. Israel is preparing a new offensive in Gaza targeting Hamas, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said, as it expanded ground operations under Operation Gideon’s Chariots II. IDF spokesperson Col. Avichay Adraee warned Palestinians in parts of Gaza City to leave ahead of an expected escalation. The warning included a map marking the area and highlighting one building the IDF planned to strike, citing “the presence of Hamas terrorist infrastructure inside or nearby.” Fox News Digital’s Rachel Wolf and Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.

Ohio donors ditch Tim Ryan, pour nearly $220K into Vivek Ramaswamy’s governor bid

Ohio donors ditch Tim Ryan, pour nearly 0K into Vivek Ramaswamy’s governor bid

EXCLUSIVE – Republican Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy is touting support from a growing list of prominent donors who once backed Democrat Tim Ryan, a development his campaign says underscores a major political shift in the Buckeye State. According to Ramaswamy’s team, nearly $220,000 of the contributions raised in his first months as a candidate came from individuals who previously gave to Ryan, the former congressman from Youngstown who is weighing a bid for governor. Ryan has not officially declared a gubernatorial bid and has said he will make a decision by the end of the year.  Some of the best-known business leaders in Youngstown and Northeast Ohio, long part of Ryan’s donor network, have now switched sides, Fox News Digital has learned.  Ramaswamy’s campaign highlights names including Caryn and Sam Covelli, a major business leader in Mahoning Valley who gave the Republican candidate $10,000 after donating more than $59,000 to Ryan over multiple cycles; and Bruce Zoldan, a Youngstown-area business leader who gave Ramaswamy $5,000 after contributing more than $53,000 to Ryan.  EXCLUSIVE: RAMASWAMY DECRIES ‘ANTI-LAW ENFORCEMENT CULTURE’ IN WAKE OF BRUTAL CINCINNATI BEATING Another business leader, Adam Thomarios, gave $10,000 and is hosting an upcoming fundraiser after contributing nearly $17,000 to Ryan. Anthony Manna contributed $10,000 after donating nearly $25,000 to Ryan between 2005 and 2021, according to Ramaswamy’s campaign. Regina Mitchell hosted a fundraiser and gave more than $13,600 to Ramaswamy after a prior $2,700 contribution to Ryan in 2017. Jeff Edwards, the president and CEO of Edwards Companies and Installed Building Products in the Columbus area, and his wife,Lisa, gave roughly $33,000 to Ramaswamy this cycle after contributing $5,800 to Ryan in 2022. Jai Chabria, Ramaswamy’s chief strategist, told Fox News Digital that the donor movement is about more than campaign finance. He said Ohioans who once trusted traditional Democratic leadership are embracing Ramaswamy’s message of economic growth and new ideas after decades of disappointment. In his view, voters are leaving behind “a tired model” that did not deliver and are backing someone who represents prosperity and reform.  “It’s a very interesting thing where people who have been – who have donated to Democrats, and especially someone like Tim Ryan, and they’re flocking to Vivek,” Chabria told Fox News Digital. “There’s actually a movement where people are actually moving over not just to Republicans, but to Vivek specifically because he’s got such a message of growth, of economic growth.”  He argued that the momentum is visible not only in financial reports but also in grassroots enthusiasm across the state. “I think, like many people in Ohio who were promised one thing under these institutions, and by institutions I mean people that have been elected over and over and over again and didn’t deliver for people, I think people are coming to see that someone else with fresh ideas is what they need to invest in rather than the tired old model that didn’t deliver for the state,” Chabria told Fox News Digital.  Ohio Republican Party Chairman Alex Triantafilou echoed that point, calling the donor shifts “impressive” and a sign of Ramaswamy’s strength as a candidate. He said former Ryan backers now see in Ramaswamy a leader committed to workers, reshoring manufacturing and strengthening Ohio’s energy independence.  Triantafilou also emphasized the GOP’s early endorsement of Ramaswamy in May – more than a year before the primary – as unprecedented. He said it helped solidify a coalition that has powered Republican victories statewide. Fox News Digital reached out to Ryan for comment. After spotlighting the defections from Ryan’s ranks, the Ramaswamy campaign is also underscoring its own financial milestones. Ramaswamy reported raising $9.7 million between February and June, which his team calls the largest sum ever collected by an Ohio gubernatorial candidate in the year before a general election. An allied super PAC has added $17 million more.  RAMASWAMY PLEDGES ‘RULE OF LAW’ REVIVAL AFTER VIRAL CINCINNATI MOB ATTACK Chabria described that first report as only the “tip of the iceberg,” predicting that the next filing will show an even bigger number. Both strategists portrayed the fundraising and donor flips as part of a broader coalition that cuts across traditional political lines. Chabria said Ramaswamy’s background in business appeals to donors because he understands their perspective, while his detailed policy agenda shows he is prepared to govern without a steep learning curve. He pointed to priorities such as energy independence, improving Ohio’s schools and tackling crime in cities as issues resonating with small and large donors alike. “The crime in our cities is – it’s appalling. And it’s something that Vivek wants to bring all leaders together to actually try to address because people need to be able to be safe in their own homes. And in too many places, they don’t feel that way,” Chabria told Fox News Digital. “I mean, Democrats, Republicans, independents, they all need to feel safe in their homes, in their cities. So it’s definitely not a partisan issue, but sometimes it becomes one. But Vivek, I think he’s gonna try to rise above it and try to bring all people together and really listen to everybody and then try to offer real concrete solutions to this issue.”  Triantafilou stressed that Ramaswamy’s agenda has broad working-class appeal, citing his proposals on manufacturing, education and eliminating the state income tax to make Ohio more competitive. He said those ideas speak directly to middle-class Ohioans, including union workers, postal employees and delivery drivers, who could benefit from lower taxes and better economic conditions. Generational change is also part of the message. At 40, Ramaswamy represents “a new era of leadership,” Triantafilou said, contrasting him with Ryan, whom he described as emblematic of Democrats focused on cultural debates rather than the economic concerns of ordinary voters. He argued that Ryan, who lost a Senate race to then-first-time candidate JD Vance in 2022, is “yesterday,” while Ramaswamy represents “tomorrow.” Republicans are already previewing the contrast if Ryan enters the governor’s race. Triantafilou criticized him as “inauthentic,”