Gov. Greg Abbott deploys DPS to “prevent spillover” of Mexican cartel violence
The increase in public safety operations along the border comes after the Mexican army killed “El Mencho,” a powerful cartel leader.
Xcel will replace high-risk power poles after attorney general sues over 2024 wildfires
A damaged Xcel pole owned sparked the Smokehouse Creek fire, the largest in state history.
Texts show Rep. Tony Gonzales asked for explicit photos from aide who later died by suicide
Additionally, a police report shows that the aide, Regina Santos-Aviles, told responding officers she set herself on fire because her husband was romantically involved with her best friend.
Trump expected to visit Corpus Christi on Friday, days before Texas primary
The president’s visit could be heavy on political overtones, as he has endorsed dozens of Republicans in their March 3 congressional and legislative primaries.
Dan Patrick seeks to block Camp Mystic’s summer reopening pending inquiry into July 4 flood deaths
The lieutenant governor’s request to delay renewing the camp’s license came hours after parents who lost children in the July 4 flood sued the state for its alleged failure to enforce an evacuation plan requirement.
California allocating $35M to support illegal immigrants amid Trump’s mass deportation agenda
California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the allocation of $35 million in state funding to support illegal immigrants as the Trump administration carries out its massive deportation agenda. Newsom’s office is releasing the money that the legislature set aside in the state budget to help philanthropic partners support immigrant families with food assistance and other resources, according to a press release. These funds are on top of funds the state already allocated to provide legal resources to those facing deportation. “While the federal government targets hardworking families, California stands with them – uniting partners and funding local communities to help support their neighbors,” Newsom said in the release. “The urgent need grows as the Trump Administration accelerates mass detention, tramples due process, and funds authoritarian enforcement with over $170 billion. As the Trump Administration chooses cruelty and chaos, California chooses community.” DOJ SUES NEWSOM OVER CALIFORNIA MEASURE GIVING ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS COLLEGE TUITION BENEFITS A spokesperson for Newsom said he has been speaking with immigrant families and community leaders about the federal government’s immigration crackdown. “People are afraid to leave their homes, afraid to go to school or work, and unable to afford groceries,” the spokesperson told CalMatters. California allocated the money despite significant budget constraints, as Newsom’s office anticipates a $2.9 billion deficit in the coming budget year, according to CalMatters. The state also limited health care for illegal immigrants this year to help make up for a larger deficit last year. “When federal actions create fear and instability, our responsibility is to show up for families. This investment strengthens local partners who are helping people access legal services and meet basic needs during an incredibly difficult moment,” Kim Johnson, secretary of the California Health and Human Services Agency, said in the release. Democrat state Sen. Lena Gonzalez, chair of the California Latino Legislative Caucus, said the funding shows her party will “continue to stand in solidarity with our immigrant families.” TRUMP TO CUT FEDERAL PAYMENTS TO SANCTUARY CITIES STARTING FEB. 1 OVER IMMIGRATION POLICIES “The federal government is waging a war on our communities – and we won’t stand for it,” Gonzalez said. “We are putting money behind an effort to stop the fear, stop the separation of our families and stop violating our basic rights.” Assemblymember Carl DeMaio, a Republican, blasted the funding as “absurd.” “If you were audited by the IRS and found to owe money and back taxes, as a citizen, you couldn’t say, ‘Well, I want a free lawyer to fight the federal government,’” DeMaio told CalMatters. President Donald Trump campaigned on a major immigration crackdown and has since followed through with that promise through mass deportations. In June, Trump signed a budget bill that included $170 billion for immigration enforcement, detention and deportation, an investment that aims to remove up to 1 million immigrants from the U.S. per year over four years. FEDERAL OFFICIALS TO HALT MORE THAN $10B IN FUNDING TO 5 STATES OVER NON-CITIZEN BENEFIT CONCERNS: REPORT California state funds set aside for immigration legal services prevent money from being used to help people with serious or violent felony convictions fight against deportations, CalMatters reported. California laws do not block state corrections staff from moving illegal immigrants who have been convicted of serious or violent felonies to Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody. “California will never be silent in the face of Trump’s cruel and unlawful immigration raids. We will meet fear and intimidation with courage and action,” Speaker of the Assembly Robert Rivas, a Democrat, said in the release.
House Dem compares Trump’s illegal immigration crackdown to ‘terrorism,’ vows to abolish ICE
Rep. Maxine Dexter, D-Ore., compared U.S. enforcement of immigration law to “terrorism” during a Saturday town hall and promised to dismantle the chief U.S. immigration enforcement agency if Democrats regained power. “The frank terrorism that is being invoked – when we call that out and stand together, I think people will continue to not want to do that work,” Dexter told an audience at Wy’east Middle School in Oregon. “I’m not supposed to get political, but if there’s a change in political will, then we can absolutely dismantle and abolish ICE altogether,” Dexter said, referring to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Dexter, a freshman progressive lawmaker, is one of many Democrats who have called for reforms to the agency in the wake of public unrest in Minnesota over President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown. JEFFRIES CLASHES WITH LEFT-WING PODCAST HOST OVER DEMAND TO LEAD PUSH TO ‘ABOLISH ICE’ When two civilians in Minneapolis were shot and killed in separate confrontations with immigration officials in January, Dexter was among the first lawmakers who promised to vote against any spending legislation for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that didn’t also include major reforms to ICE, which operates under DHS. Although the vast majority of Democrats eventually adopted Dexter’s stance over DHS funding, the idea first began as a position held by the Congressional Progressive Caucus and was championed by members like Reps. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., and Ilhan Omar, D-Minn. PROGRESSIVE DEM JASMINE CROCKETT TARGETS TRUMP DEPORTATION FLIGHTS WITH NEW ‘TRACK ICE’ BILL Gridlock over DHS funding has led to a partial government shutdown which began on Feb. 14, when Democrats in the Senate also refused to advance DHS funding over a set of 10 reforms to ICE. Among those demands, Democrats want to impose new operational limits to the agency, such as an end to roaming patrols, a ban on masks, a requirement for visible identification and stiffer warrant requirements for detaining illegal aliens in public. Those changes would represent the most direct intervention into the agency’s operation since its creation in 2003. Republicans have rebuffed those demands, arguing they would severely limit the administration’s immigration goals. Dexter’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday about the nature of her comments — including whether she had made a campaign promise at a town hall or who had funded the event.
Abbott surges Texas troopers to border after cartel kingpin’s killing sparks violence in Mexico
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced he is surging state troopers to the border and across the state to enhance public safety operations following a spike in cartel violence after the killing of kingpin “El Mencho” over the weekend. On Monday, Abbott, a Republican, directed the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) to “enhance public safety and homeland security operations” across Texas. He said the surge is in response to escalating cartel violence in Mexico that he believes poses a growing threat to American civilians. “Mexican drug cartels pose a significant threat to public safety and national security,” said Abbott. “By increasing proactive efforts to defend against cartel violence, Texas will continue to utilize every tool and strategy to protect our state and our nation.” He vowed that in the face of increased cartel violence, “We will not cower to criminals who impose terror on our fellow Texans and Americans.” TRUMP’S ‘TOTAL ELIMINATION’ STRATEGY PAVED WAY FOR FALL OF CARTEL KINGPIN ‘EL MENCHO’ At the governor’s direction, the state is surging Texas Highway Patrol, Texas Rangers, Criminal Investigations Division, and Special Operations Group resources to the border region to “detect, interdict, and apprehend criminals, and to prevent spillover activity from transnational threats.” Texas is also increasing its Tactical Marine Unit and Aircraft Operations Division presence along the border to detect and apprehend criminals. Further, Texas is activating additional personnel from its Homeland Security Division and Texas Fusion Center to monitor social media and reports of suspicious activity 24/7. This comes as cartel violence that erupted across Mexico left 25 Mexican National Guard troops and more than two dozen criminal suspects among the dead following the killing of Jalisco New Generation (CJNG) cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, who was also known as “El Mencho.” The cartel reacted to its leader’s death with violence across Mexico, placing roadblocks and setting vehicles on fire throughout Sunday. CRUZ WARNED MEXICO OFFICIALS ‘PRESIDENT TRUMP WAS GOING TO’ ACT IF THEY DIDN’T FIGHT CARTELS Multiple American tourists vacationing in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, also told Fox News Digital they unexpectedly found themselves in the middle of a violent cartel retaliation. As airlines canceled flights and authorities issued shelter-in-place orders, stranded visitors reported cars set ablaze, suspected cartel members blocking major roads, and stores ransacked by looters — scenes some witnesses said made parts of the popular resort city feel like “a war breaking out in the streets.” Witnesses said they were forced to evacuate their rooms, manage with limited hotel food, and even venture outside in search of meals while waiting for Mexican authorities to regain control of the city. Staying at an Airbnb near a main road, Eugene Marchenko, 37, of Charleston, South Carolina, told Fox News Digital he woke up to blaring horns and saw six cars completely engulfed in flames just outside his balcony. He and his wife, who had arrived in Mexico only a day earlier, were forced to evacuate for several hours, fearing that a nearby fuel tanker, also ablaze, could explode. EX-NAVY SEAL PUTS ‘DERANGED’ MEXICAN DRUG CARTEL ON NOTICE AFTER VIOLENT WEEKEND: ‘MORE LIKE ISIS’ Abbott urged Texans in need of immediate assistance to call the U.S. Department of State or the Texas Fusion Center, the state’s primary tactical intelligence hub. He said the state is “closely coordinating” with the State Department and FBI as the situation unfolds.
Social media erupts after Stephen King makes false claim about Trump’s family: ‘What is this sh–?’
Horror author Stephen King is facing backlash online Monday for a post tearing into President Donald Trump’s personal life, including a line claiming that Trump has no children. “Trump: has never had a child. Has been married 3 times. Ran several businesses into the ground. Never ran a home, couldn’t make a bed to save his a–. Calls people he works with dumb, losers, ect. Has never done sweat labor. Has never served on a local committee,” King said in a post to X. “[He] has no life experience,” King added. The post immediately began drawing criticism from accounts like Libs of TikTok. TRUMP TEARS INTO ‘AVERAGE GUY’ GEORGE CLOONEY WHO ‘COMPLAINED, CONSTANTLY, ABOUT COMMON SENSE IN POLITICS’ “Trump literally has 5 kids. What is this sh–?” Libs of TikTok posted on X. “Um… I’m pretty sure Donald Trump had children,” 1776 Project PAC founder Ryan Girdusky posted on X. “Is there a 25th Amendment for taking peoples’ phones away?” Conservative writer Bonchie wrote on X. “Donald Trump, famously childless,” conservative reporter Jerry Dunleavy jokingly wrote on X. King’s comments come as Trump, who is the father of five children and is in his second presidential term, is set to address the country on Tuesday evening in the 2026 State of the Union, a report to Congress on the administration’s work. King’s remarks mirror similar social media comments made about Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., a prominent progressive member of the House of Representatives, on Saturday. In a tweet put up by an account called “Stacy is Right,” a self-described MAGA mother of three, the author similarly disparaged elements of Ocasio-Cortez’s life and background. That post also mocks the Democrat for a lack of children, having never been married, never having run a business and never having had a “professional job.” AOC BLAMES CRITICS, TRUMP AFTER MUNICH HICCUP BACKLASH “[She] has no real life experience. Is a typical deadbeat socialist,” Stacy is Right said in her post. King reshared that post before putting up his own remarks about Trump. “You literally plagiarized an entire post…which was about AOC… and then applied it to Trump…… for whom it isn’t true and doesn’t make any sense. Why are you plagiarizing? I thought you were a writer?” Matt Van Swol, a former Department of Energy nuclear scientist, posted on X. Monday’s post isn’t the first time King has taken to X to vent his political views. Since Trump’s second term, King has used similar language to describe the president and his policies. NANCY PELOSI SWIPES AT TRUMP, ACCUSING HIM OF CROWNING HIMSELF AS ‘KING’ “Just wanted to say that Trump is a traitorous, Putin-loving dipsh–! Goes double for Elon!” King said in a post in February 2025. Earlier this year, King took to social media to compare ICE to Nazi Germany’s Gestapo. “ICE is the American Gestapo,” King wrote, referring to the secret state police in Germany. “Trump is ruining the economy with his stupid tariffs,” King said in another instance in April. King’s office did not respond to a request for comment on the message behind his post.
Former Secret Service officials warn of low-tech threats facing Trump after latest Mar-a-Lago breach
A deadly confrontation at Mar-a-Lago, Florida, Sunday is the latest in a string of high-profile security incidents threatening President Donald Trump, as former Secret Service officials warn that low-tech, lone actors now pose one of the toughest challenges to presidential protection. “It should be quite clear to all of us by now that Trump is the most threatened president in the history of the U.S.,” former Secret Service agent William “Bill” Gage told Fox News Digital Monday, pointing to multiple high-profile incidents in recent years. Unlike past presidencies, where threat levels often subsided over time, Gage said, “the longer he’s president, the more these attacks keep happening.” Gage said the most difficult cases to prevent are often the least sophisticated. The recent incidents, he noted, were “super low-tech attacks by people with zero training,” using rudimentary weapons. “If you were standing behind them in line at Starbucks, you wouldn’t have given them a second look,” he said. Gage said the threat landscape shifted over the course of his 12-year career as a Secret Service agent. When he joined the Secret Service in 2002, he said the agency was moving away from what he described as the traditional “lone gunman” model — figures like Lee Harvey Oswald, who assassinated John F. Kennedy, or international militants such as “Carlos the Jackal,” one of the world’s most wanted terrorists in the ‘70s and ’80s — and adapting to a post-9/11 world focused on coordinated terrorist networks like al Qaeda and later ISIS. ARMED MAN SHOT AND KILLED AFTER ‘UNAUTHORIZED ENTRY’ INTO MAR-A-LAGO: SECRET SERVICE “But if you look at Butler and the two incidents at Mar-a-Lago, those were super low-tech attacks,” Gage said. “The low-tech actors are the ones that tend to slip through the cracks.” He also warned of a potential copycat effect when details of such incidents become public. “If it were up to the Secret Service, they would never report any of these incidents ever,” Gage said, arguing that widespread coverage allows others to “study what happened” and attempt to refine it. In today’s hyperconnected political climate, he said, that dynamic adds another layer of complexity for agents trying to stop the next threat before it materializes. In the early hours of Sunday, a 21-year-old man identified as Austin Tucker Martin of North Carolina was shot and killed by U.S. Secret Service agents and a local sheriff’s deputy after entering the secure perimeter of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida. Authorities say Martin drove through the north gate carrying a shotgun and a gasoline can. After being ordered to drop both, he dropped the can but raised the shotgun toward officers, who fired and killed him at the scene. Trump and First lady Melania Trump were in Washington at the time. The incident marked the third highly publicized security encounter involving Trump in less than two years. In July 2024, a gunman opened fire at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, grazing Trump’s ear and killing an attendee before being shot by a Secret Service sniper. In September 2024, a man armed with a rifle was confronted by agents near Trump’s golf course while he was playing; that suspect was later convicted on attempted assassination charges. While the incidents have drawn intense attention, former senior special agent Don Mihalek said the latest Mar-a-Lago intrusion does not necessarily signal a breakdown in protective systems. “He got through an exterior gate of an active club,” Mihalek told Fox News Digital. “This wasn’t someone reaching the president’s residence.” Agents confronted the suspect within seconds, he said, describing the rapid response as evidence that overlapping security layers functioned as designed. Mihalek said presidential protection relies on multiple rings of security because outer perimeters at properties like Mar-a-Lago cannot be sealed in the same way as the White House. “If he ended up in the president’s house on Mar-a-Lago, that might be a different conversation,” he said. He also cautioned against viewing recent incidents in isolation, noting that presidents routinely face roughly 2,000 threats per year, most of which are mitigated before the public ever becomes aware of them. “These just happen to be very public instances,” Mihalek said, arguing that the social media era amplifies perceptions of escalation. GUNFIRE, ARSON AND VANDALISM: TRACKING POLITICAL VIOLENCE IN AMERICA Mihalek pointed to the 2024 rally shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania, as an example of how early intervention can be decisive, noting that local law enforcement had reportedly identified the suspect prior to the attack. “If somebody had walked up and said, ‘Hey, who are you?’ we wouldn’t be talking about Butler,” he said. As Trump prepares to address Congress at the State of the Union, both former officials said the security posture at the Capitol is unlikely to change in response to the weekend incident. The annual address is designated a National Special Security Event — the highest level of federal security planning — triggering coordination among the Secret Service, U.S. Capitol Police, FBI, War Department and other agencies. The designation allows for expanded perimeter controls, airspace restrictions and continuity-of-government planning. Gage, who previously led advance planning for State of the Union addresses, said the event operates under a well-established security “blueprint” built to account for worst-case scenarios. “There’s really no way to increase it anymore,” he said. Both former officials said the defining challenge for presidential protection today is unpredictability: individuals with minimal training, rudimentary weapons and the ability to find reinforcement online. Unlike organized extremist networks, such actors may leave few detectable signals before acting.