2026 – Page 52 – Texas Weekly Online

GOP accelerates Trump judge confirmations as pressure builds to kill Senate blue slip

Senate Republicans confirmed half a dozen of President Donald Trump’s judicial nominees last week, continuing a quick pace to green-light as many of his picks as possible. While the Senate GOP is moving fast to confirm Trump’s judicial nominees, the president and some of his allies want to eviscerate an over-century-old tradition in the Senate that provides bipartisan guardrails to the judicial nomination process. They contend that the blue slip tradition is slowing down Republicans from being able to confirm picks, and that Democrats are holding the process hostage. TRUMP DELETES ‘RACIST’ POST AFTER WAVE OF REPUBLICAN BACKLASH, WHITE HOUSE SAYS HE DIDN’T KNOW “Nuking the blue slip would be a huge mistake,” Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., told Fox News Digital. Tillis, like several other Republicans, has argued that the blue slips are a valuable tool of the minority, and that inevitably, the GOP would need to use the tradition to their advantage when Democrats regain control of the upper chamber. The Senate has confirmed 33 judges since the start of Trump’s second term, a figure that dwarfs the number of total judicial nominees, including U.S. attorneys, district and circuit court judges, moved through the upper chamber during his first go-round in the White House. TRUMP TAKES AIM AT SENATE ‘BLUE SLIP’ TRADITION AS GOP RESISTS CHANGE During the first year of his first term, the Senate confirmed 19 Article III nominees, including Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch. Though Republicans are far ahead of Trump’s first time clip, Democrats under former President Joe Biden still outpaced them in this metric. Biden clocked 42 total judicial nominees confirmed during the first year of his term. Whether the Senate can outpace Trump’s final total of 234 judicial nominees from his first term remains to be seen, but for now the blue slip appears to be safe. Still, Trump sounded off on the practice late last year in the Oval Office, arguing that the GOP should “get rid of blue slips, because, as a Republican President, I am unable to put anybody in office having to do with U.S. attorneys or having to do with judges.” REPUBLICANS BLAST DEMOCRATS’ TRUMP ELECTION MEDDLING CLAIMS AS HYPOCRITICAL ‘CONSPIRACY THEORY’ Much of his frustration with the tradition, which has been around for over 100 years in the upper chamber, likely stemmed from the nominations of Alina Habba and Lindsey Halligan getting derailed by blue slips last year. He’s taken his frustrations out on Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, a vocal proponent of the practice, and other Republicans that want to maintain the tradition. Notably, Grassley modified the tradition in 2017 to allow for circuit court judges to skirt the process, further boosting the number of judges Republicans were able to confirm under Trump despite Democratic objections. When asked if the Senate’s pace in confirming judicial nominees further affirmed that the blue slip was here to stay, Grassley told Fox News Digital, “It doesn’t need to be a present question.” “Because it’s a question of 110 years, and everybody in the Senate wants to maintain the blue slip,” Grassley said.

Federal judge orders Fulton County election raid documents to be unsealed

A federal judge in Georgia has ordered the unsealing of documents tied to an FBI raid that seized 2020 election ballots from a Fulton County facility, potentially shedding new light on the bureau’s investigation. Judge J.P. Boulee, who was nominated by President Donald Trump in 2019, gave the government until Tuesday to file the documents, including the search warrant affidavit with redactions. “Although Petitioners originally filed this case under seal, both parties have now indicated to the Court that they do not oppose unsealing the docket or the motions filed by Petitioners,” Boulee wrote in the order. “Moreover, Respondent has stated that it does not oppose the unsealing of the search warrant affidavit and any other papers associated with the warrant subject to the redaction of the names of nongovernmental witnesses,” the order continued. GEORGIA’S FULTON COUNTY FILES MOTION SEEKING RETURN OF 2020 ELECTION MATERIALS SEIZED BY FBI The FBI raid took place Jan. 28 at Fulton County’s main election facility in Union City, near Atlanta, and focused on records connected to the 2020 general election. A warrant cover sheet provided to the county listed items agents sought, including ballots, tabulator tapes, electronic ballot images and voter rolls. Last week, Fulton County officials filed a motion seeking the return of around 656 boxes of original 2020 election materials that the FBI had seized. TRUMP DOJ DEMANDS MINNESOTA VOTING RECORDS OVER SAME-DAY REGISTRATION ‘VOUCHING’ CONCERNS The heavily Democratic Fulton County has come under scrutiny following President Donald Trump’s 2020 election loss to former President Joe Biden. Biden carried Georgia, but Trump has insisted that widespread voter fraud contributed to him losing the state. Fox News Digital’s Louis Casiano contributed to this report.

US forces hunt down and board tanker ship defying Trump admin quarantine

The War Department announced on Monday morning that the U.S. military boarded a vessel overnight “without incident.” The department’s post on X noted that the U.S. had “hunted” the ship, called the Aquila II, “from the Caribbean to the Indian Ocean.” “When the @DeptofWar says quarantine, we mean it. Nothing will stop DoW from defending our Homeland — even in oceans halfway around the world. Overnight, U.S. military forces conducted a right-of-visit, maritime interdiction and boarding on the Aquila II without incident in the INDOPACOM area of responsibility,” the Monday post explained. US MILITARY SEIZES TWO SANCTIONED TANKERS IN ATLANTIC OCEAN “The Aquila II was operating in defiance of President Trump’s established quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean. It ran, and we followed. The Department of War tracked and hunted this vessel from the Caribbean to the Indian Ocean,” the post continued. “No other nation on planet Earth has the capability to enforce its will through any domain. By land, air, or sea, our Armed Forces will find you and deliver justice. You will run out of fuel long before you will outrun us,” the department asserted. US FORCES SEIZE OIL TANKER IN THE CARIBBEAN SEA IN PRE-DAWN MISSION “The Department of War will deny illicit actors and their proxies the ability to defy American power in the global maritime domain,” the post concluded. War Secretary Pete Hegseth reposted the War Department’s post on X. US MILITARY SEIZES ANOTHER FUGITIVE OIL TANKER LINKED TO VENEZUELA The department’s post included footage of troops descending a rope to board the vessel from a hovering helicopter. “The successful interdiction of the Aquila II underscores the unmatched reach and resolve of the United States military under President Trump’s and Secretary Hegseth’s leadership. As we’ve publicly stated, our quarantine measures are ironclad, and no vessel defying them can evade justice, whether in the Caribbean or the far reaches of the Indian Ocean,” Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “The Department of War will continue to project power across every domain to safeguard our homeland and deter illicit actors worldwide,” Wilson added.

Hochul running mate voted to allow noncitizen voting in NYC elections

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s running mate, former New York City Council member Adrienne Adams, voted in favor of allowing some noncitizens to vote in Big Apple municipal elections. Adams voted for the measure passed by the city council in late 2021 that would have allowed lawful permanent residents and individuals authorized to work in the country to vote in the city’s municipal contests. The measure was ultimately struck down by the Empire State’s highest court, according to the New York Post. POLL FINDS CLEAR FAVORITE IN NEW YORK GOVERNOR’S RACE The outlet reported that GOP Rep. Nicole Malliotakis asserted, “Anyone trying to dilute the voices of American citizens and pushing for noncitizens to vote in our elections has no business statewide or any elected office.” Hochul announced Adams as her running mate last week. “I picked a New Yorker from Southeast Queens. Someone who grew up in a union household, just like I did. A fighter who knows how to deliver for New York,” the governor said in a post on X. HOCHUL PRIMARY CHALLENGER PICKS DEMOCRATIC SOCIALIST, ONCE ARRESTED FOR HARASSMENT, AS RUNNING MATE Hochul, who previously served as lieutenant governor, became governor in 2021 after Gov. Andrew Cuomo resigned. She won the 2022 gubernatorial election and is running for re-election this year. SOCIALIST MAYOR MAMDANI BACKS HOCHUL IN MOVE THAT COULD RESHAPE NEW YORK GOVERNOR RACE Her new running mate ran unsuccessfully in the Democratic New York City mayoral primary last year.

Ghislaine Maxwell to appear before House Oversight Committee lawmakers for Epstein probe deposition

Lawmakers on the House Oversight Committee are expected to be face-to-face Monday with Ghislaine Maxwell, the notorious accomplice of Jeffrey Epstein who was sentenced to 20 years in prison for conspiring with the late billionaire pedophile. Maxwell is due to appear virtually before the congressional panel at 10 a.m. ET while currently serving out her sentence at a Texas prison. Her deposition will be behind closed doors, meaning it will not be viewed publicly unless the committee chooses to release video footage after the fact. It’s likely to be a brief engagement, with Maxwell expected to plead the Fifth Amendment to avoid answering questions. DEMOCRATS SAY CLINTONS’ AGREEMENT TO TESTIFY UNDERCUTS SUBPOENA PUSH, WON’T BRING NEW EPSTEIN ANSWERS House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., announced lawmakers would hear from Maxwell during a meeting on holding former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in contempt of Congress for refusing to appear for his Epstein probe. “We’ve been trying to get her in for a deposition. Our lawyers have been saying that she’s going to plead the Fifth, but we have nailed down a date, Feb. 9, where Ghislaine Maxwell will be deposed by this committee,” Comer said last month. Contempt proceedings against the Clintons stalled, however, after they agreed via their attorneys to appear in person on Capitol Hill just days before the full House of Representatives was expected to vote on referring the pair to the Department of Justice (DOJ) for criminal charges. Comer’s team had been in a back-and-forth with Maxwell’s attorney for months trying to nail down a date for her to speak to committee lawyers. He agreed to delay her previous planned deposition in August after her lawyer asked him to wait until after the Supreme Court decided whether it would hear her appeal. The Supreme Court turned down Maxwell’s case in October. NEW GHISLAINE MAXWELL MUGSHOT INCLUDED IN DOJ’S LATEST EPSTEIN FILES RELEASE The former British socialite was found guilty in December 2021 of being an accomplice in Epstein’s scheme to sexually traffic and exploit female minors. The DOJ said at the time of her sentencing that Maxwell “enticed and groomed minor girls to be abused in multiple ways.” Epstein had been awaiting trial when he killed himself in a New York City jail in 2019. Her deposition is part of the House Oversight Committee’s months-long probe into how the government handled Epstein’s case.

Massie, Khanna to visit DOJ to review unredacted Epstein files

GOP Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California have each said that they will visit the Department of Justice on Monday to view unredacted documents from the Epstein files. The bipartisan duo spearheaded the push to pass the Epstein Files Transparency Act last year. “The survivors standing in front of the Capitol twice is why @RepThomasMassie & I were able to pass the Epstein Transparency Act. Tomorrow, Massie and I will go together to DOJ to see the unredacted files. We will not rest until the Epstein class is brought to justice,” Khanna declared in a Sunday post on X. REP THOMAS MASSIE RESPONDS AFTER TRUMP CALLS HIM A ‘MORON’ IN NATIONAL PRAYER BREAKFAST SPEECH Massie crowdsourced suggestions for which documents he should read. “Tomorrow I will go to DOJ to view the unredacted Epstein files. Which docs should I view?” the congressman asked in a Sunday post on X. South Carolina gubernatorial hopeful GOP Rep. Nancy Mace indicated that she was perusing the responses to Massie’s post rather than watching the Super Bowl on Sunday. KEIR STARMER’S CHIEF OF STAFF RESIGNS AFTER RECOMMENDING EPSTEIN-CONNECTED AMBASSADOR “Headed to the DOJ this week as well. Thank you @RepThomasMassie for the post below; very helpful suggestions from all those who chimed in. I am sifting through the comments now in preparation for my visit, rather than watch the Super Bowl,” Mace noted in a post. Former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who departed from office early last month, responded to Massie’s post. “Any docs talking about ‘jerky’ and ‘pizza,’” she wrote. “And FBI docs with Presidents, Sec of State, any and all government officials, and people profiting from government contracts. Foreign countries Epstein was working for. Names unredacted. No exceptions.” BILL CLINTON COMES OUT SWINGING AGAINST COMER FOR REJECTING PUBLIC EPSTEIN HEARING: ‘STOP THE GAMES’ Massie, Greene, Mace and GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado were the only four House Republicans who signed onto a discharge petition last year in a bid to push the Epstein Files Transparency Act. President Donald Trump, who is backing a GOP primary challenger running against Massie in Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District, called Massie a “moron” while speaking at the National Prayer Breakfast last week.

Centre starts work on Sawalkote Hydroelectric Project on Chenab after repealing Indus Water Treaty with Pakistan

India has started a mega project on the River Chenab in Jammu and Kashmir in a first project of such scale after the abrogation of the Indus Water Treaty. The Sawalkote Hydroelectric Project worth Rs 5,129 crore has received the green light from Centre.

Year: 2026