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‘Obscene’ amounts spent at Indian billionaire Ambani’s son’s wedding

Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s son marries on Friday in a lavish ceremony that has been a hot talking point at home and abroad, with his father’s $260bn-conglomerate Reliance taking to social media to heavily publicise the event. Reliance’s efforts, coupled with posts from a host of Bollywood stars and coverage in media, have helped whip up public interest in the wedding, overshadowing some critical social media posts that have questioned the opulence at a time of growing inequality in India. Ambani’s youngest son Anant, 29, is marrying his longtime girlfriend Radhika Merchant, 29, in a star-studded ceremony in Mumbai that will be attended by celebrities and politicians, such as Kim Kardashian, Mike Tyson, Tony Blair and Boris Johnson. Three days of celebratory receptions will follow. One unnamed executive at Reliance called the event a “powerful symbol of India’s growing stature on the global stage”. “The presence of esteemed individuals highlights India’s economic, political, intellectual, and scientific prowess,” the note, shared with reporters, said. Ambani, Asia’s richest person, is famous for hosting lavish parties, especially for his three children Akash, Isha and Anant. International artists perform and a host of Bollywood stars usually attend the gatherings, whose price tag runs into the millions. This promises to be the most extravagant of Ambani’s galas so far, although it is not known how much was spent. ‘Ostentatious expenditure’ Some, such as opposition politician Thomas Isaac, have called the amount of spending “obscene”. “Legally it may be their money, but such ostentatious expenditure is a sin against mother earth and [the] poor,” he said in a post on X. The wedding functions have been deemed a public event, leading to traffic restrictions in a key Mumbai business district for four days, also raising public ire. With access limited and details closely guarded, information meted out to the eager public has been done partly through Reliance’s official Facebook page, which has 2.3 million followers. The account shared video clips of dance performances and photographs to give a peek into the private celebrations. One post on Reliance’s Facebook account this week, which received 54,000 likes, showed the Ambani family at a private music function, dancing to a Bollywood song, a common practice in Indian marriages. It was promoted with hashtags such as #ARWeddingCelebrations. Media access to the wedding venue was restricted on Friday night, with only a limited number of photographers and TV crew allowed to capture incoming guests. Onlookers stood with umbrellas in the rain outside the venue, some clicking pictures, with the sound of Bollywood audible from inside. A foreign company executive in India, who is due to attend the Ambani wedding function this weekend, told Reuters that the function organisers will likely put tape on the phone camera of entering guests to ensure no pictures are taken. Most of Ambani’s celebrations are closely guarded. The wedding events started in March with a three-day pre-wedding party with 1,200 guests and a performance by superstar Rihanna, followed by a European luxury cruise with 800 guests in May. Days later, several Bollywood actresses posted photos on Instagram, sporting luxury designer labels, to their millions of followers, without any details of the Ambani cruise celebrations. Such is the interest, that Indian TV news channels are tracking the wedding minute-by-minute. “The world descends … Guest list to what’s there to eat. Every minute detail on Times Now,” the TV news channel’s tickers said on Friday evening. Adblock test (Why?)

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Yearslong tensions boil over as ex-Obama staffers gang up on Biden: ‘Clooney was exactly right’

The criticism from ex-Obama staffers aimed at President Biden, including calls for him to exit the 2024 presidential race, serve as a stark reminder of the well-known tensions between the former White House duo that go back nearly two decades. The often testy relationship between Biden and Obama reportedly began shortly after the latter’s election to the Senate in 2004, when both men served on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Obama, according to The New York Times, wasn’t fond of Biden’s often-long-winded speeches to the point where, on one occasion, he passed a note to a colleague reading, “Shoot. Me. Now.” The two eventually found themselves facing off for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination, where Biden, while announcing his campaign, controversially referred to Obama as “the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy.” BIDEN, HARRIS DEFY CRITICS BY LAUNCHING FULL OFFENSIVE AIMED AT TYING TRUMP TO PROJECT 2025 The intense blowback from the comment led to an apology from Biden, and Obama telling reporters, “I have no problem with Joe Biden.”  Biden eventually dropped out of the race after a dismal showing in the Iowa caucuses, but was subsequently picked by Obama to be his running mate. The two ultimately defeated Republican nominees John McCain and Sarah Palin. The first few months of their administration reportedly saw frequent disagreements between the two, including a clash over Obama publicly diminishing Biden while speaking to reporters — which he later agreed with an upset Biden to avoid doing — and eye rolls from the former while the latter spoke during meetings. Biden was reportedly frustrated with Obama’s cautious decision-making process, and disagreed with him on a number of issues, including sending more troops to Afghanistan at the request of military leadership. Despite the disagreements, the two eventually developed a close partnership, and even friendship, before Obama reportedly dismissed a suggestion by close advisers to replace Biden in the 2012 re-election campaign with then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. GROWING LIST OF OBAMA ALLIES, FORMER ADVISERS LOOK TO SINK BIDEN RE-ELECTION BID Obama was close to Biden and provided strength and support for his family in the lead up to, and following, the death of his son, Beau Biden, from a form of brain cancer, but later worked to convince his vice president not to seek the 2016 Democratic nomination in favor of Clinton. “The president was not encouraging,” Biden later acknowledged, according to The New York Times. He never publicly expressed disappointment in Obama favoring Clinton, but did reportedly feel he would have been a stronger opponent to then-Republican nominee Donald Trump. When Biden did eventually launch another presidential campaign in 2019, Obama decided not to endorse him, and instead opted to let the primary process play out. He did eventually offer his endorsement in August 2020 after Biden had secured the nomination. The tension between the two, despite being friends, appeared to have gone nowhere throughout the campaign when Obama reportedly expressed doubts about Biden’s fitness for office. “Don’t underestimate Joe’s ability to f— things up,” a Democratic source recalled Obama saying on one occasion, according to Politico. ‘OBAMA BROS’ GANG UP ON BIDEN AS LONGSTANDING RUMORS OF TENSION LINGER: ‘HARD TO WATCH’ Biden has often compared himself to Obama throughout his presidency, even to the point of frequently using the phrase, “Obama would be jealous,” when talking about an accomplishment, according to a report from Axios earlier this year. Biden’s disappointing showing in the first presidential debate last month drove many former Obama advisers and allies to call for his exit from the race, despite the former president initially defending him. Those calls included former adviser Jon Favreau, widely known as one of the “Obama bros” during his time at the White House. Favreau, who attended the same Los Angeles fundraiser that actor George Clooney referenced in his damaging New York Times guest essay calling on Biden to drop out of the presidential race, said during an appearance on CNN earlier this week that “Clooney was exactly right.” Clooney wrote in his guest essay that the Biden who showed up at the fundraiser was “not the Joe ‘big F-ing deal’ Biden of 2010. He wasn’t even the Joe Biden of 2020. He was the same man we all witnessed at the debate.” Ex-Obama adviser David Axelrod has also repeatedly criticized Biden, saying Friday while appearing on CNN that Biden “really needs a royal flush to win this race” against former President Trump. “There are certain immutable facts of life,” Axelrod said in a separate CNN interview while discussing Biden’s age and leadership. “Those were painfully obvious on that debate stage. The president just … hasn’t come to grips with it. He’s not winning this race.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Reports have also surfaced that Obama has been working “behind the scenes” to force Biden out of the race. Multiple media outlets reported Thursday morning on Obama’s alleged efforts, including Politico, which stated that the former president had been given a “heads-up” by Clooney about his guest essay. A source close to Obama declined to comment on the reports but pointed Fox News Digital to the former president’s statements in support of Biden, both at the Los Angeles fundraiser that became the subject of Clooney’s op-ed and following the debate. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Friday responded to a recent claim by Trump that Obama “never respected” Biden throughout their time in office. She said Biden and Obama have “a close relationship,” but couldn’t speak to the details of any recent call or conversation between the two. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

Congressional bypass: Many Democrats elusive on Biden issue

Republican House and Senate members eluded questions from the Congressional press corps for years when former President Trump said or did something outrageous – or at least just made news. “I don’t read the tweets,” was a famous reply from former House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., when a reporter posed a tough question about comments the former President posted to Twitter. Others would provide boilerplate answers. Or some might just avoid answering altogether. WHAT THEY’RE THINKING: FOR MANY DEMOCRATS, SILENCE SPEAKS VOLUMES ON THE BIDEN ISSUE “Call my office,” is a refrain you’ll hear from Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Tex., to this day. Others made themselves scarce to reporters. But if you spoke frankly to those GOP members – circa 2016-2022, many would say they candidly they didn’t like former President Trump or didn’t support him. But they had to finesse the politics in public. Suddenly congressional Democrats face a similar dilemma. Most Democrats LOVE President Biden. But privately, many just believe he’s no longer up to the task. It’s significant that two Democrats with major foreign policy portfolios – Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee and Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., the ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee – both called on Mr. Biden to hang it up. But many others are left in a state of political purgatory. Even if their own political future might depend on it. So they give opaque statements about President Biden. Or, they don’t directly endorse Mr. Biden’s bid but declare “I’m with Joe.” Such was the case in recent days when Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., deployed that phrase three times in less than a minute. Even when asked different questions which didn’t pertain to “who” Schumer may “be with.” Art of the deflection is one tool. Another option is to not respond to questions at all. Such was the case when Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., strolled from the Capitol to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) Thursday. That’s where aides and officials close to President Biden huddled with panicked Democratic senators about the state of the race and the campaign. I asked Whitehouse what he needed “to hear” in the session. “I’m not going to discuss the meeting,” replied Whitehouse. “Are you concerned about the president?” I followed up. REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: BACKLASH IN THE HALLS OF CONGRESS “I’m not going to discuss the issue until I’ve had the meeting,” responded Whitehouse. “What’s the level of tension you’re hearing from Democrats right now? I queried. “I can’t respond to that either,” said Whitehouse. I continued peppering Whitehouse with questions as we walked in the punishing, sun of a 95-degree day in Washington with nary a cloud. “Why are members being so elusive on this? Are they worried? If they were foursquare behind him, would people be more willing to talk?” I asked. “Oh yeah. That’s what you say,” said Whitehouse as he crossed the street near the Supreme Court. It wasn’t just what I said. Political actions speak louder than words. What was noticeable is how few Democrats ambled the 200 yards or so from the Capitol, across First St., NE, and into the meeting at the DSCC. It wasn’t that senators didn’t attend (more on that in a moment). It’s about a 200 yard jaunt from the Senate wing of the Capitol to the DSCC. You must first cross the congressional lawn then the street. The DSCC is in a nondescript building which looks like an old apartment building. Former Vice President Al Gore once lived in the building. Same with former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., and former Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wisc. The building itself is wedged into a triangular block between the Dirksen Senate Office Building and the Supreme Court. Some of the Democrats just slid out of a side entrance of the Dirksen Building, dodged traffic and popped into the DSCC across the street. After all, there’s a reason the DSCC is just steps from Dirksen. But many senators had drivers chauffeur them from the Capitol over to the DSCC. Some of that was the intense heat and unforgiving Washington sun. But much of that was evasion. Some Democrats, like Whitehouse, just didn’t want to say anything, considering the sensitivity of the matter. Or, they didn’t want express their true feelings in public – considering the political weight. DEMOCRATS FACE A RECKONING ON BIDEN CAMPAIGN AS LAWMAKERS RETURN TO CAPITOL HILL Along with Whitehouse, Sens. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., John Hickenlooper, D-Colo., Chris Murphy, D-Conn., Mark Warner, D-Va., Chris Coons, D-Del., and Joe Manchin, D-W.V., were the only senators Fox saw or spoke with as they walked to the meeting. But the Democrats’ two most vulnerable members, weren’t at the huddle. Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., told Fox he would not attend. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, was also absent. Tester and Brown potentially have the most to lose in their races this fall. The same with Sens. Bob Casey, D-Penn., and Tammy Baldwin, D-Wisc. That’s why you didn’t see anyone with a close race making the outdoor trek from the Capitol to the DSCC. They either took a car or skipped across the street from the Dirksen Building. The Democratic senators stayed out of public view – much the same as some GOP lawmakers hid from the press corps when they knew tough questions were coming regarding former President Trump.  None of this is new. Especially when grappling with such a delicate subject as the health of a President. It’s augmented when the issue centers around whether a President that Democrats generally like is the one they may ask to go. The House and Senate are now out of session for more than a week, so Republicans can attend their convention in Milwaukee. On this occasion, the schedule works in the favor of Democrats. It’s better for Democrats to make critical statements or call on the president to bow out when they are back in their districts or home

White House doctor pressured to convince Biden to take cognitive exam, publicize results

FIRST ON FOX: Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., is urging the White House doctor to convince President Biden to take cognitive and neurological exams and make the results public after his poor debate performance and intensifying scrutiny.  “Urging the White House Physician to recommend President Biden undergo a cognitive exam is in the best interest of the American people,” Graham said in a statement to Fox News Digital.  “Prominent physicians have recommended the same, and the overwhelming majority of American people have concerns about President Biden’s cognitive fitness. I am hoping President Biden’s physician will see the need and wisdom for this and act accordingly. President Trump has indicated he will take a cognitive exam. President Biden should too.”  BIDEN DRAGS DOWN MICHIGAN SENATE RACE AS COOK POLITICAL REPORT DECLARES ‘TOSS UP’ The South Carolina Republican made the request in a letter Friday to Biden’s physician, Dr. Kevin O’Connor.  “The deep public concern with President Biden’s mental acuity is well known,” Graham wrote.  BLUMENTHAL SAYS SOME CONCERNS ‘DEEPENED’ AFTER MEETING WITH BIDEN CAMP ADVISERS He referred to Biden’s comment from Thursday night suggesting he would take another exam if his doctors said he should.  “You have an obligation to request that he take such an exam and share the results. Our national security, the welfare of the American people, and our country’s standing in the world demands it,” Graham told O’Connor.  DEM SENATOR HELPS BLOCK BIDEN JUDICIAL NOMINEE AMID CONTROVERSY OVER TRANSGENDER INMATE The letter comes as Democrats continue to turn against the leader of their party, asking him to step aside so someone else can face former President Trump in the November election.  Despite calls for him to step down, Biden has claimed repeatedly that he intends to remain in the race, to the chagrin of some in his party.  Additionally, the increased skepticism of Biden has been followed by a downward trend in the polls for the president as well as down-ballot races being rated more competitive and within reach for Republicans. On Thursday, the nonpartisan political handicapper, the Cook Political Report, shifted a Senate race in Michigan from “Lean Democratic” to “Toss Up,” specifically citing the potential for Biden to be a drag on other Democrats.  The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment on Graham’s letter.

Lawmakers rip Army brass over training slides suggesting pro-life groups could be tied to terrorism

EXCLUSIVE: More than two dozen members of the House Armed Services Committee demanded answers from the U.S. Army after it acknowledged the veracity of slides in a domestic counterterrorism training module that referenced pro-life groups. Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., chairman of the Subcommittee on Military Personnel, led the letter to Army Secretary Christine Wormuth expressing outrage and calling for a more thorough explanation for the use of the teaching tools at Fort Liberty, formerly Fort Bragg, in North Carolina. The letter said the slides indicated members of pro-life organizations could be threats to the safety of military installations and that regalia of such groups, like a pro-life license plate, could potentially indicate terrorism. “This is truly shocking for an organization that insists on treating everyone with ‘dignity and respect’,” Banks wrote of the slide deck, which was used as part of a larger training for military police tasked with manning base access points. LAWMAKERS DEMAND ANSWERS OVER SCANT PROGRESS ADDRESSING SQUALID BARRACKS CONDITIONS Banks told Fox News Digital Friday the slides date back to the summer of 2023, suggesting they’re not a case of sudden mistaken entry. “For over a year, someone at Fort Liberty has been teaching our troops that pro-life Americans are terrorists, and the Biden Pentagon didn’t stop it until House Republicans and the public raised the alarm,” Banks said. “I’m an Afghanistan war veteran, and it sickens me to see far-left radicals poisoning our military with this extremist hate. We must get woke activists out of our Armed Forces so that we have a military that’s focused on countering foreign terrorists overseas and not on targeting conservative Americans.” When reached by Fox on Friday afternoon, a public affairs officer at the Fayetteville, N.C., garrison said the person using the slides is “no longer employed.” The situation was subject to a formal commander’s inquiry, he said, adding the slides were “not vetted by the proper authorities.” “The slides do not reflect the views of the 18th Airborne Corps, Fort Liberty, the U.S. Army or Department of Defense,” the officer added. In their letter, the lawmakers said the slide usage “confirmed our fears” about a recent protest and extremism-related directive from Army brass. CHINESE MILITARY AI IN FOCUS AS LAWMAKER SOUNDS ALARM OVER THREAT FROM RIFLE-WIELDING ROBOT DOGS “That is, the Army is utilizing an overly broad policy to police the speech of conservative servicemembers, quiet dissent, and require servicemembers who believe in conservative ideals to hide their identities for fear of retaliation from their commands,” the letter states. “But because the Army has yet to provide the training materials to Congress in contravention of their obligation, we can only assume that the training interpreted the Army’s definition of extremist activities to include pro-life organizations as ‘advocating or engaging in unlawful force or violence to achieve goals that are political, religious, or discriminatory or ideological in nature.’” The letter went on to claim the use of such slides belies past testimony from defense officials that all viewpoints, including those on the political right, are welcome in the military. Banks and the signatories demanded Wormuth’s branch immediately issue corrections to service members who received the slide-deck briefing. In light of the response by Fort Liberty that the vetting process was conducted incorrectly, Banks’ letter asked Wormuth to explain what the proper procedures actually are. The lawmakers also asked whether the Army believes pro-life activism or “abortion-related counseling” is considered terrorist activity. “It is crucial that our military maintains political neutrality and respect for diverse viewpoints within the bounds of the law,” they wrote. Also on Friday, an official from National Right to Life, which is mentioned on one of the slides, said in a statement that only under the current federal leadership could law-abiding activism be considered terrorism. “One must wonder how a license plate that raises funds for pregnancy resource centers could be construed as a symbol of terrorism,” President Carol Tobias said. “When in doubt, blame an underling,” a blog post on National Right to Life’s site said after U.S. military officials acknowledged the slides’ veracity and said they were incorrectly added to the program. After the garrison previously acknowledged the authenticity of the slide decks, Banks said that even if the module wasn’t approved, it still exposed the Pentagon for creating a “politicized environment where far-left whack jobs feel they can get away with teaching our troops that conservative Americans are their adversary.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP In June, the U.S. Army revised some of its policies, with Wormuth announcing that “active participation in extremist activities can be prohibited even in some circumstances in which such activities would be constitutionally protected in a civilian setting.” Service members are now prohibited from liking, sharing or engaging with content supporting extremism, according to the American Legion. Chairman Mike Rogers, R-Ala., signed the letter with representatives Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla.; Clay Higgins, R-La.; Rob Wittman, R-Va.; Matt Gaetz, R-Fla.; Cory Mills, R-Fla.; and Richard Hudson, R-N.C. among others. Hudson represents the base.

Biden campaign hypes president’s foreign policy chops after high-stakes NATO press conference

The Biden campaign is taking a victory lap after President Biden’s highly anticipated NATO press conference on Thursday, claiming he not only met expectations but surpassed them. A Biden campaign official told Fox News Digital that Biden’s performance was what the American people were looking for and praised the president’s insightful responses to questions that went into great detail on foreign policy, including the Russia-Ukraine War, China and other topics dealing with foreign affairs. The campaign also believes that the performance proved Biden can handle Trump and believes that substance over style matters, and it matters to voters who will ultimately be swayed by the actual merits of what the two candidates are saying. Biden, according to the campaign, articulately laid out the economic progress under his watch and discussed complex foreign policy issues in a way that Trump is unable to do. HUNGARY’S ORBAN DITCHES NATO SUMMIT TO MEET WITH DONALD TRUMP Biden, during the press conference, was also peppered with questions from reporters who pressed him on whether he would step aside amid mounting pressure from members within his own party following his disastrous debate performance last month. Despite the glowing review, the campaign source acknowledged that one night, be it a debate or a press conference, will not significantly move the needle in terms of votes and voters will instead be moved by robust campaigning, knocking on doors, phone calls, advertisements and campaign travel, which Biden plans to do more of in the coming weeks as part of a “full bore” schedule. Biden said he is “determined” to stay in the race and maintained that he is fit to serve as president now and for the next four years.  While some Democrats rushed to defend Biden’s NATO press conference, Republicans pointed to gaffes from the day, including a response from Biden where he referred to Vice President Kamala Harris as “Vice President Trump.” Biden also introduced Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as “President Putin” shortly before the press conference before correcting himself seconds later. “President Putin? He’s going to beat President Putin. President Zelenskyy. I’m so focused on beating Putin,” Biden said. “We got to worry about it. Anyway, Mr. President.” BIDEN SAYS ‘ANYWAY’ AT LEAST 9 TIMES WHILE TRAILING OFF IN PRESS CONFERENCE The Trump campaign told Fox News Digital that it views the highly anticipated and much-scrutinized news conference as a win-win for the former president. “It appears Biden did enough to convince his apologists that he should remain on the ballot, but he also reinforced what the American people know. Their lives are being hurt by his weakness and failure on a daily basis,” a Trump campaign official, who asked for anonymity to speak more freely, told Fox News Digital. A large majority of Americans want Biden to drop out of the race, including a majority of his own supporters, according to a Thursday poll from ABC News and The Washington Post that was released ahead of his press conference.  A full 67% of respondents said Biden should drop out of the race, and 85% say he is too old to serve out a second term. Meanwhile, 60% of respondents also said former President Trump is too old for a second term, up from 44% in the spring of 2023. Biden has remained defiant in the face of calls for him to step down, and a campaign spokesperson aboard Air Force One on Friday said that donations on the night of the NATO press conference were significant. “Since last night we’ve seen a strong support across our coalition,” the campaign said. “Most importantly, we see it with our grassroots base. We had close to 40,000 donations last night alone. Donations exploded during the president’s press conference. In fact, we’ve hit 7 times our average during the press conference.” The campaign also pushed back against critics who highlight Biden’s long track record of gaffes by releasing a two-minute video highlighting Trump’s mishaps on the campaign trail in an attempt to paint him as “feeble.” Fox News Digital’s Kyle Morris, Brooke Singman and Louis Casiano contributed to this report.

Lawmakers warn EPA its ‘Clean Power Plan 2.0’ could have ‘catastrophic’ effect on electric grid

FIRST ON FOX: Twenty-six House lawmakers penned a letter to Environmental Protection Agency chief Michael Regan warning him and the agency against implementing their “Clean Power Plan 2.0.” Rep. Lloyd Smucker, R-Pa., led the letter to the administrator, predicting rules outlined in the plan will endanger electrical grid reliability for 65 million Americans from New Jersey to North Carolina. Smucker, whose Lancaster district is home to hydroelectric stations on the Susquehanna River, said new EPA rules target coal and gas plants and requested Regan provide evidence the restrictions won’t endanger the electric grid. The rules set limits on carbon output and differ from an Obama-era rule that instead relied on state-based targets, according to Politico. All coal plants in the U.S. are subject to the regulation, and any plants still around by 2040 would have to curb emissions nearly 90% or enable carbon-capture technology, according to the analysis. BIDEN ADMIN REBUFFS LAWMAKERS, HOMEBUILDERS’ CLAIMS NEW ENERGY STANDARDS HURT HOMEBUILDING, COSTS The letter said most of the affected area falls under the PJM, which coordinates the grid among many Atlantic coast states via 88,000 miles of transmission lines. The lawmakers cited increases in electricity usage due to artificial intelligence, electric vehicles and manufacturing projects, predicting the growth demand for power will soon double. “The forced closure of existing electric generation, coupled with a rushed transition to renewable energy sources without having the solutions in place to guarantee a reliable stream of uninterrupted power onto a grid already suffering from an interconnection backlog, will lead to both the rationing of electric power and an increase in electric costs for consumers,” the lawmakers warned. STATE DEM LEADERS RALLY BEHIND BIDEN AFTER DEBATE “We strongly urge you to reconsider these rules given their catastrophic impact on the PJM Interconnection service area.” One Democratic lawmaker also criticized the new EPA plans in prior comments. Sen. Joe Manchin, I-W.Va., suggested EPA regulators’ goal is to “stop the use of fossil fuels to produce reliable energy in the U.S. by forcing the premature closure of coal plants and blocking new natural gas plants.” Manchin’s fellow Mountaineer, Rep. Alex X. Mooney, R-W.Va., signed Smucker’s letter Thursday and attributed the new rules to the president’s “dangerous agenda.” “The liberal extremist Biden administration has made it their mission to put hardworking West Virginia coal miners out of work, which will result in higher energy prices and grid unreliability,” Mooney said Friday. Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., also joined Smucker’s demand for answers, saying the EPA is implementing a radical list of costly regulations, citing the fact that more than two-thirds of the nation’s electricity is a derivative of coal. Comer said the rules put the U.S. at risk of rolling blackouts and instability at a time when people are already facing elevated energy costs. “I am proud to join my colleagues in demanding answers from EPA Administrator Michael Regan to ensure Kentuckians and Americans across the country have access to reliable and affordable energy,” said Comer, the chairman of the House Oversight Committee. The letter calls for Regan to respond by August whether the White House or EPA consulted with PJM, energy groups or other grid operators before enacting the plan. Among the list of demands, the signatories asked the agency to note whether it also sought other stakeholder feedback from agricultural, manufacturing or technology interests that rely on a safe and substantive electric grid. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP They also asked whether the Biden administration thought rule changes that push the U.S. away from reliable coal and gas might affect its plans for “national electrification of the transportation and home heating sectors.” In exclusive comments later Friday, Smucker elaborated on the purpose of his letter, remarking “energy security is national security.” “We know that the Biden administration’s plan has already been criticized by PJM, who clearly said that ‘demand cannot be met simply through renewables.’ Yet, the administration is moving ahead with these overreaching regulations,” he said. Reached for comment, a spokeswoman for PJM provided Fox News Digital with a previous press release that commented on the importance of EPA rulemaking taking into account reliability needs of relevant electric grids. The EPA acknowledged but ultimately did not respond to a request for comment by press time.

Ambani wedding: Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant are now married, first wedding pic goes viral

First glimpses of the newlyweds show them beaming with joy.