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Year: 2026

Bill Barr says Todd Blanche isn’t ‘a toady,’ urges senate to confirm Trump’s AG pick

Bill Barr says Todd Blanche isn’t ‘a toady,’ urges senate to confirm Trump’s AG pick

Former Attorney General Bill Barr is calling on Senate Republicans to confirm Todd Blanche as attorney general, arguing the former Trump defense lawyer’s close relationship with the president should be viewed as a strength — not a conflict of interest. In a Wall Street Journal opinion column, Barr, who served as attorney general under the first Trump administration, said Blanche should be confirmed, calling him well-qualified and saying he “will run the department as effectively as anyone could under President Trump, providing much-needed leadership and stability.” Barr’s appeal comes as Blanche faces a potentially difficult confirmation process in the Senate. Republicans hold a 53-seat majority, but several GOP senators have not committed to supporting the nomination. A large part of Barr’s argument centered on countering criticism that Blanche’s past as President Donald Trump’s personal defense attorney makes him too conflicted to lead the Justice Department. ACTING AG TODD BLANCHE BELIEVES TRUMP ‘ABSOLUTELY’ FACED PRISON WITHOUT 2024 ELECTION WIN “Critics say that Mr. Blanche, having served as the president’s personal defense lawyer, won’t confront the president with hard truths. Exactly the opposite is true,” Barr wrote. “A successful criminal-defense lawyer like Mr. Blanche isn’t a toady who sugarcoats the truth to his client,” Barr continued. “The job demands regularly confronting strong-willed clients with harsh reality. This necessarily involves clashes, but the lawyer’s dogged willingness to anchor his client to reality is what builds trust and makes the relationship effective.” Barr wrote that Blanche’s established relationship with Trump should be viewed as an advantage rather than a liability. TODD BLANCHE ‘HONORED AND HUMBLED’ BY TRUMP’S AG NOMINATION AFTER EXPLOSIVE WEEK OF FEDERAL ARRESTS “The president takes hard advice best from those whom he recognizes have his best interests at heart,” Barr wrote. “Having helped the president through the crucible of his legal battles, Mr. Blanche is likely in the best position of anyone in the country to deliver strong counsel to the president and have him accept it. Senators should view a trusting relationship as a positive, not a negative.” Barr further dismissed claims that Blanche would simply carry out Trump’s wishes without independent judgment. “The left has portrayed Mr. Blanche as a man who will docilely carry out the president’s desires,” Barr wrote. “But Mr. Blanche doesn’t shy away from giving the president straight-from-the-shoulder advice and, where warranted, pushing back on bad ideas. He doesn’t always prevail, but, frankly, no one has a better chance of getting through to Mr. Trump.” TRUMP’S DOJ PICK IN TROUBLE AS GOP CONCERNS THREATEN CONFIRMATION Since stepping into the role as acting attorney general following Pam Bondi’s departure, Blanche has been heavily scrutinized for leading prosecutions against some of Trump’s biggest foes, including the newest indictment against former FBI Director James Comey. He’s also faced pushback over the Justice Department’s aborted effort to create an Anti-Weaponization Fund. The controversies have contributed to uncertainty over Blanche’s confirmation, with several Republican senators publicly acknowledging reservations about his nomination. Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has said he remains undecided and has tied his support in part to concerns surrounding the scuttled fund. TILLIS PUTS ONUS ON TRUMP TO AVOID BOASBERG PICKING US ATTORNEY AFTER MARTIN’S NOMINATION APPEARS SUNK “It’ll be an issue if the weaponization fund isn’t effectively dead by the confirmation hearing,” Tillis said. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, another Judiciary Committee member, has likewise withheld his support, saying he wants additional information before making a decision. According to the Houston Chronicle, Cornyn said he plans to wait until after receiving a full briefing and hearing Blanche’s testimony before deciding whether to support the nomination. Senate Judiciary Committee hearings on Blanche’s nomination are scheduled for mid-July as Republicans weigh whether to advance Trump’s nominee to the full Senate. Barr served as attorney general under both President George H.W. Bush and President Trump. While he was a key figure in Trump’s administration and defended many of the president’s policies, he later became one of Trump’s most prominent critics over his claims of widespread voter fraud following the 2020 election.

South Korea’s proposed platform law could cost U.S. states $525B over the next decade, model estimates

South Korea’s proposed platform law could cost U.S. states 5B over the next decade, model estimates

A new model shows devastating economic losses for U.S. companies if South Korea adopts controversial legislation that would regulate transactions with some American firms as lawmakers warn that the country’s leadership is now “closely aligned with China.” The Online Platform Fairness Act, which is spearheaded by the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC), has gained steam in in the Asian nation and is backed by far-left South Korean President Lee Jae-myung. A Competere Foundation model estimates a $525 billion loss in economic activity in U.S. states over the next decade, including a $123 billion loss for California, a $48.7 billion loss for Texas, a $33.9 billion loss for New York and a $27.4 billion loss for Washington. “South Korea is an American ally and an economic success story, which is why its recent and continuing actions restricting American companies — like its 20-year ban on Google Maps — are so troubling,” Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., told Fox News Digital. “I remain concerned that its current trade commission resembles the worst of Lina Khan’s FTC, not the free market tradition that has helped to bring Seoul and Washington together.” OVER 50 HOUSE MEMBERS ACCUSE SOUTH KOREA’S NEW LEFT-WING GOVERNMENT OF ATTACKING US COMPANIES, FAVORING CHINA Issa told Fox News Digital in April that South Korean leadership and the nature of the Democratic majority in the country is “closely aligned with China.”  Yoon Suk-yeol, a conservative from the People Power Party, was elected president of South Korea in 2022, but was impeached in December 2024. His decision to impose martial law was a key factor in his ouster.  Jae Myung narrowly lost to Yoon in the 2022 presidential election, but won the presidency in 2025. The Democratic Party in South Korea already holds a substantial majority in the National Assembly. The country is now operating at a full Democratic majority. SOUTH KOREA FLIPS LEFT IN PRESIDENTIAL RACE; LEE SECURES VICTORY AFTER CONSERVATIVE OPPONENT CONCEDES The Democratic Party is the main liberal force party in the country, and favors progressive domestic policies as opposed to the conservative beliefs that have previously reduced political engagement with North Korea and promoted relations with the U.S. The proposed bill, which remains pending in South Korea’s assembly, would broaden the power of the KFTC – the same agency members of Congress are criticizing for unfairly treating U.S. companies.  Shanker Singham, international trade and competition economist and CEO of the Competere Foundation, said that “Korea is already an increasingly unfriendly place for U.S. companies to do business” and that the “looming regulations will make that environment even worse.” SOUTH KOREA’S NEW LEFTIST PRESIDENT PULLS A FAST ONE ON DONALD TRUMP Former Utah Republican Rep. Chris Stewart also warned of South Korea’s posture to increase regulatory burdens for U.S. companies, telling Fox News Digital it could be devastating for more than just tech companies.  “South Korea’s campaign against American companies isn’t just a trade issue – it’s a strategic mistake that benefits China,” Stewart said. “Every time Korean regulators make it harder for U.S. innovators like Coupang, Google, or Meta to compete, they create more room for Chinese companies to gain market share and influence in one of the world’s most important digital economies.”  Stewart noted that the cost would affect more than just Silicon Valley, tying the economic losses to a Chinese win – since Beijing would likely take up lost market share in South Korea if American companies were to reduce investment. BEYOND MISPERCEPTION: A RENEWED KOREAN DEMOCRACY AND A RENEWED ALLIANCE In early June, foreign policy experts Nicholas Eberstadt and Lawrence Peck published an editorial in the Wall Street Journal titled, “South Korea Takes a Hard Left Turn Against America,” which alleged that South Korean officials “stormed” U.S. air force bases as part of a domestic investigation.  The investigation surrounded Coupang, a U.S. tech company similar to Amazon. In early June, South Korea fined Coupang roughly $410 million for a data breach – the largest fine the country has ever issued for a similar charge.  South Korea’s science ministry said that a Chinese national and former Coupang employee stole data and customer information from the American company, including information about South Korean citizens. WILL SOUTH KOREA EXPEL THE US? “The investigation into the case of Coupang is proportionate to the nature of the data breach and consistent with those applied to Korean companies in comparable cases,” South Korean embassy spokesperson Minseong Seo told Semafor. In April, 50 members of the House of Representatives expressed their concern in a letter to Republic of Korea (ROK) Ambassador to the United States Kyung-wha Kang over what they deemed to be “discriminatory” business practices. The letter referenced a previous report from Competere that also addressed economic losses in the U.S. as a result of tighter regulations from South Korea.  “Many American tech companies have faced a range of regulatory actions that seek to punish them while shielding Korean domestic competition,” the letter reads. “Recent research by think tank Competere shows such regulatory actions by the ROK government will cost $1 trillion in combined economic damage to the U.S. and Korean economies over the next 10 years, with the U.S. economy losing $525 billion and American households losing nearly $4,000 each.”

NY governor hopeful vows showdown with Mamdani over socialist agenda: ‘I will stop him’

NY governor hopeful vows showdown with Mamdani over socialist agenda: ‘I will stop him’

FIRST ON FOX: Republican gubernatorial candidate is vowing to stop New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s agenda if elected in November as the state’s top leader. He warns that proposals like government-run grocery stores, tax hikes and expanded public spending would damage New York’s economy and accelerate an exodus of businesses and residents. Bruce Blakeman is seeking to unseat Democrat New York Gov. Kathy Hochul in November. Asked how he would work with Mamdani if elected, the Republican candidate rejected the premise that he would be forced to accommodate the mayor’s agenda. “First of all, let me be clear. I don’t have to work with Zohran Mamdani. He has to work with me,” Blakeman told Fox News Digital of potential relationship if he won state house. “When I become governor, I’m not going to let him destroy the fabric of New York City. I’m not going to let him destroy the economy of New York City, and I’m not going to let him make New York unsafe. Those are all things he’s doing right now, and I will stop him.” NY SOCIALIST SURGE COULD PUSH DEM VOTERS TO DEFECT, GOP GOVERNOR CANDIDATE PREDICTS The comments come as Mamdani’s political rise has fueled a broader debate over the influence of far-left policies nationwide. Three socialist candidates also won races in Tuesday’s New York primaries, adding to the attention surrounding the movement. In New York, Mamdani has championed proposals including city-owned grocery stores, free bus service and rent freezes, drawing praise from progressives and criticism from Republicans who argue the plans would expand government at the expense of taxpayers and small businesses. Blakeman singled out the mayor’s proposal to establish city-owned grocery stores, arguing that government should not compete with family-owned businesses. “I don’t want to compete with bodega owners and small grocery stores in New York. Government should not be competing with the private sector,” Blakeman said. “Many of these businesses are family-owned businesses, and I don’t want to hurt them.” FROM FREE BUSES TO CITY-OWNED GROCERY STORES, HERE ARE MAMDANI’S KEY ECONOMIC PROMISES Blakeman called the proposal “complete nonsense” and argued taxpayers would ultimately be forced to shoulder the cost. “Somebody’s got to pay for that,” he said. “These are hardworking people. They’ve created the business, and Zohran Mamdani wants to take it away from them because he’s a communist. He doesn’t believe in property rights. He doesn’t believe in capitalism.” ‘WASTEFUL DISTRACTION’: EXPERTS SLAM MAMDANI’S TAXPAYER-FUNDED GROCERY STORES Blakeman said his own agenda would focus on cutting taxes, reducing utility costs and encouraging businesses to remain in New York, framing the race as a stark contrast between competing visions for the state’s economic future. His agenda would seek to end New York’s blockade of cooperating with President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown. “So on day one, as governor, I will sign an executive order that we are no longer a sanctuary state,” Blakeman said. “I will roll out the biggest middle-class tax cut in the history of New York.” Blakeman also said single filers making $50,000 or less and joint filers making up to $100,000 would pay no state income tax on that income under his proposal. He also pledged to cut utility rates in half by ending what he called the state’s “green energy scam.” “She takes money out of their payments every month to invest in science projects that cost billions of dollars,” Blakeman said of Hochul. “That ends on day one when I become governor.” Hochul campaign spokesperson Ryan Radulovacki dismissed Blakeman’s proposals, saying, “New Yorkers know Bruce Blakeman is too busy catering to the far-right, embracing January 6 architects, and caving to Donald Trump to fight for them and their families.” “From enabling ICE’s abuses, to raising costs, to fighting to gut Medicaid, Blakeman’s proud of being ‘MAGA all the way,’ just like Trump labelled him.” Mamdani’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Firefighter brother of 9/11 victim incensed by ‘radical’ Muslims winning key Dem primaries

Firefighter brother of 9/11 victim incensed by ‘radical’ Muslims winning key Dem primaries

A man whose life has been deeply impacted by radical Islamic terrorism is incensed as people he claims hold extreme beliefs are winning Democratic Party elections at alarming rates. “When it comes to terrorist sympathizers, I don’t really suffer fools kindly, and this guy is beyond the pale,” Don Arias said of Dr. Adam Hamawy, now the Democratic nominee for Congress in New Jersey’s blue-leaning 12th Congressional District. Arias is an Air Force veteran and former New York firefighter who witnessed the grave destruction of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. His brother, who worked on the 84th floor of the South Tower, died in the subsequent 9/11 terrorist attacks that changed the trajectory of American history. Arias spoke to his brother, Adam, the morning of the attack after the first plane had already struck the North Tower. Adam described to him the chaos, as desperate victims jumped from the burning skyscraper that once anchored the city’s skyline. AOC-BACKED DEM CONNECTED TO TWIN TOWERS BOMBING TERRORIST FACES CONGRESSIONAL PRESSURE AFTER PRIMARY WIN “So, that has stuck with me for many years,” he told Fox News Digital. Arias has since gone on to advocate for the families of victims of 9/11. Hamawy is a veteran combat plastic surgeon who now operates his own private practice in New Jersey. He won a crowded Democratic primary to replace outgoing Rep. Bonnie Watson-Coleman, D-N.J., on June 2. He emerged victorious despite heavy baggage, including ties to radical Islamic terrorism. SON OF 1993 WTC BOMBING VICTIM CALLS NJ DEMOCRAT PRIMARY WINNER ‘DISAPPOINTING’ OVER TERROR TIES In his past, Hamawy cozied up to infamous terrorist Omar Abdel-Rahman, better known as the “Blind Sheikh,” the mastermind of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing who died in federal prison in 2017. The pair met in 1991, when Hamawy was a young adult, and soon thereafter Hamawy began accompanying Abdel-Rahman to mosques. In the same year, Hamawy, the sheikh and others took a 13-hour car ride from Abdel-Rahman’s home in New Jersey to a conference in Detroit called “Towards a Global Islamic Economy.” The congressional hopeful testified on behalf of the defense in the sheikh’s trial. While Arias said it’s possible that Hamawy has some positive credentials — he is a doctor and a veteran — he doesn’t trust the candidate at all. MIKE POMPEO: THE THREAT FROM RADICAL ISLAM IS NOW INSIDE OUR GATES. BIDEN IGNORED IT. TRUMP MUST ACT “But when he’s pals with the Blind Sheikh, and he’s his translator for several years, when he testifies for him in court saying what a great guy is, when he spends that kind of time with this guy, and then says that he’s never heard him say anything about jihad, I have to question his veracity. I mean, that just doesn’t ring true,” Arias told Fox New Digital. “Show me who your friends are, and I’ll tell you who you are,” he continued. “And if this guy Hamawy is going to try and forget all about that — he wants it to go down the memory hole and say, ‘oh, I was a veteran, you know, I did good stuff’ — I’m not going to forget, and I don’t think people should forget.“ In 1994, Hamawy also went on what he describes as a humanitarian mission to Bosnia. There, he worked with the Benevolence International Foundation (BIF). In a post-9/11 terrorism crackdown, BIF was designated as a financier of terrorism by the U.S. government over its ties to al Qaeda. RELATIVE OF 9/11 FIREFIGHTER APPEARS TO CALL OUT MAMDANI FOR NOT CONDEMNING ‘GLOBALIZE THE INTIFADA’ SLOGAN “We’re not educating the voters, and the voters aren’t doing the proper research into their candidates, because I think if they knew that this guy, if it was top of mind awareness that this guy had these kinds of connections… they wouldn’t vote for him, and I think people need to bring that to the forefront.” Additionally, a socialist candidate who once suggested that the United States deserved 9/11 is likely to win a seat in the New York State Senate. Aber Kawas is the Muslim daughter of illegal aliens who is now the Democratic nominee for the New York State Senate District 12. She was backed by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, and won as part of a far-left sweep of several federal and state Democratic primaries in the city last Tuesday. DAVID MARCUS: OLD-SCHOOL DEMS OUT AS FAR-LEFT SEIZES CONTROL OF NEW YORK “The system of capitalism and racism and White supremacy… and Islamophobia have all been used to colonize lands, to take resources from other people and so this is a long trajectory, and we’re just seeing the manifestations of that continuation with 9/11,” she said in a 2017 episode of the Asian American Writers’ Association podcast titled “Islamophobia beyond 9/11 with Aber Kawas.” “The idea we have to apologize for a terror attack that a couple of people did and then there is no apology or reparations for genocides and for slavery… is something I find reprehensible,” she said. Arias condemned those comments, too. MORNING GLORY: DEMOCRATS CLIFF DIVE OVER THE FAR-LEFT EDGE OF AMERICAN POLITICS “For her to minimize 9/11 … it’s just like, ‘oh, some people had some planes,’ you know, it’s beyond the pale,” he told Fox News Digital by phone. “So, when I look at somebody like Kawas, when I look at somebody like Mamdani, I don’t see an American. I mean, you scratch the surface, you see a commie, you see a radical, and — forgive me for saying it — I see a Nazi.” He then blasted the American education system, which he views as a pipeline to far-left activism instead of actual learning. According to Arias, voters for candidates like Hamawy and Kawas are groomed in schools and in higher education to hold radical beliefs. “It’s very insidious and it’s very seductive to the young and dumb,” he said. “It’s the young, it’s the dumb, it’s the indoctrinated who