Sen. Joe Manchin tells GOP colleagues: ‘When you get a chance to secure the border, take it’
Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., on Monday had some words for his Republican colleagues who may be on the fence about voting on another border bill later this week. Asked whether he would vote on a second attempt at passing a border bill, Schumer said he would always vote to secure the border “better than what it is today.” “I would encourage my Republicans friends to — no matter what games you think that might be being played — when you get a chance to secure the border, take it. Take it because we need it that bad,” Schumer said. GOP SENATE CANDIDATE IN CRUCIAL STATE RIPS SCHUMER’S IMMIGRATION PUSH AFTER BORDER TRIP: ‘HEIGHT OF CYNICISM’ His comments come a day after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., told his colleagues that the Senate will once again vote on a bipartisan border security bill this week. An effort in February collapsed after Republicans withdrew their support at the behest of former President Donald Trump. VULNERABLE HOUSE DEM FLIP-FLOPS ON IMMIGRATION AFTER DISMISSING BORDER WALL AS ‘SILLY’ The bill failed a test vote in February, by a vote of 49-50, short of the 60 votes needed to proceed. Schumer blamed Republicans for acquiescing to the GOP frontrunner in the presidential race. Republicans, meanwhile, objected to tying the bill to U.S. foreign aid for Ukraine and Israel. Schumer said the bill to be voted on this week would stand alone. Republicans in both chambers of Congress have signaled they will band together to block any hope of a Democrat-backed border bill getting to the finish line. Record numbers of migrants have been caught crossing the U.S.-Mexico border since President Biden took office in 2021, and border security has become one of the leading issues in the presidential campaign. Fox News Digital’s Adam Shaw and Reuters contributed to this report.
Biden rejects ICC allegations against Israel: ‘What’s happening is not genocide’
President Biden on Monday said he rejects allegations by the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Israel’s conduct amid its war against Hamas as the ICC seeks to pursue arrest warrants for Israeli leaders and the top echelon of the terrorist group. Biden was speaking in the White House Rose Garden with Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff during a celebration for Jewish American Heritage Month when he addressed the ICC arrest warrant request for Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, military commander Mohammed Deif, as well as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes during the ongoing conflict. “We reject the ICC’s application for arrest warrants against Israeli leaders,” Biden said. “Whatever these warrants may imply. There is no equivalence between Israel and Hamas. And it’s clear Israel wants to do all it can to ensure civilian protection.” “But let me be clear,” he added. “Contrary to allegations against Israel made by the International Court of Justice, what’s happening is not genocide. We reject that. We’re going to always stand with Israel and the threats against their security.” ICC REQUESTS ARREST WARRANTS FOR NETANYAHU, HAMAS LEADERS OVER ‘WAR CRIMES’ Critics of Israel have accused its leaders of committing genocide against Palestinians living in the Hamas-governed Gaza Strip and failing to ensure the protection of innocent civilians during military operations. Hamas routinely embeds its terrorist fighters in civilian population centers and uses civilian structures to launch attacks, Israel has said. DEMOCRATS DIVIDED OVER ICC PROSECUTOR SEEKING ARREST WARRANTS The ICC has accused Hamas of a range of crimes, including hostage-taking, murder and crimes of sexual violence. Israel has also committed crimes, including “starvation as a method of warfare, murder, persecution and extermination,” said Amal Clooney, the wife of actor George Clooney, who advised ICC prosecutors in seeking the arrest warrants. Biden’s remarks came after weeks of anti-Israel protests on college campuses across the country. He also noted that antisemitism has increased since Israel was attacked on Oct. 7. “On our streets, our social media and college campuses,” he said. “It’s amazing it’s happening. It’s absolutely despicable. It’s wrong. And it must stop.”
Primary ballots give Montana voters a chance to re-think their local government structures
Montana primary ballots up for consideration this year will offer voters a unique opportunity to audit the structures and powers of their city and county governments. This local government review appears as a “study commission question” toward the end of ballot forms. Most urban voters will see two entries — one for city and one for county governments. JUSTICE KAGAN BLOCKS EFFORT TO STOP MONTANA FROM MAILING BALLOTS TO ALL VOTERS Set forth in the Montana Constitution, this voter-initiated review is offered every 10 years in all 56 counties and 127 incorporated municipalities. Any jurisdiction where voters approve the review in the June 4 primary election will kick off a two-year process examining the ways that cities and counties define their governments. Reviews focus on legislative powers, which are held by a city council, county board of commissioners or similar elected group. Also up for review are executive branch functions, which includes hiring staff and running daily operations of the city or county. Perhaps most importantly, reviews can shift the balance of power between the two branches. “This is all an experiment,” said Dan Clark, director of the Local Government Center at Montana State University. “There’s no right or wrong. If this isn’t working as well as they’d like it to, what might work better? And let’s try it.” A review can lead to small changes, like setting new terms for elected officials or designating ward-by-ward versus at-large representation. It can also restructure the top tier of the government operation, laid out in state statute as “forms.” Variations of those forms include a commission-executive, in which a city council and mayor serve legislative and executive functions, respectively. An alternative is the commission-manager form, in which the elected legislative body appoints a city manager to handle executive functions. A charter form of government is also an option, giving governments more latitude to define the details and duties of the government and its staff. There is also a town meeting form, which is only available to towns with less than 2,000 people. The residents of voting age make up the legislative branch, and a quorum is reached if 10 percent of that population attends a meeting. Clark said that Pinesdale, with fewer than 1,000 residents in the Bitterroot Valley, operates this way. If voters approve a review for a particular government on June 4, a study commission will be elected this November to review potential changes to local governance and suggest solutions. Residents who are eligible to hold elected office in their jurisdiction can file to join the commission. After nearly two years of study, the commission suggests changes, and voters have the chance to accept or reject the commission’s proposals. The process is funded by a property tax levy, usually collecting an amount in the low six figures. Local governments were required to approve a suggested funding level earlier this year. Any unused funds return to the government’s general fund. Historically, Montana cities and counties going through change, such as population growth, are more likely to undergo a local government review as their needs evolve. “Some communities will be content with their form of government. They haven’t experienced a lot of change,” Clark said. “Other communities might feel the need to make that change. There’s growth. They’re getting bigger, more complex, and maybe looking to different structures that might meet the challenges they might make into the future.” One recent example came out of a review that Bozeman voters approved in 2004. After the two-year study, voters approved a city charter in 2006 that created the city charter, formalized neighborhood councils, and approved the direct election of the mayor. Another proposal that came out of this review, a suggestion to bring the number of City Commission members to seven, failed in a subsequent vote in 2010. This year, Bozeman is the site of some organizing in support of a city government review. An effort by a group called Represent Bozeman has the support of former Mayor Carson Taylor, as well as current Deputy Mayor Joey Morrison. In a public forum earlier this week, Morrison told an audience that he supports a change in the pathway to the mayor’s office, according to the Bozeman Daily Chronicle. The current city charter has elected mayors to serve two years as deputy before taking over the mayoral position. Morrison is currently in his first year of that process after being elected in 2023. Represent Bozeman is led by Bozeman Tenants United, which supported Morrison’s mayoral bid. Organizer Emily LaShelle said the group supports a vote in favor of local government review with a few goals. The first is ward elections and representation for city commission members rather than at-large positions. She said the group hears from renters in northeast Bozeman who don’t feel seen by commissioners who often come from the more affluent neighborhoods. “In a lot of ways, the reason the tenants union took this on is that so many of the working-class Bozemanites feel deeply unrepresented by the local government,” she said. Represent Bozeman also supports full-time City Commission positions, which she said would support more working-class representation. LaShelle said the group also wants to shift the power dynamics between elected officials and appointed city staff. This stems in part from the troubled exit of former City Manager Jeff Mihelich, who accepted severance earlier this year after a leaked video showed him making disparaging comments about commissioners and their work. Bozeman’s city charter directs city staff to carry out much of the legislation that comes from the City Commission, which LaShelle said leaves too little room for elected officials to carry out their work and creates a barrier against public accountability. “It makes it harder for regular people to make change,” she said. “There are so many incredible groups in Bozeman to make change. But the current system is outdated and makes it really hard for the people in Bozeman for real democracy to happen.” A similar effort pushing for local government
Arpaio verdict reportedly costing taxpayers some $314 million
Seven years after Joe Arpaio was ousted as sheriff of Arizona’s most populous county, taxpayers are still footing the bills from a racial profiling verdict over his signature immigration crackdowns – and those costs have been getting heavier since. The tab for the legal and compliance costs in overhauling the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office is expected to reach $314 million by mid-summer 2025, including $41 million approved Monday by county officials — the most expensive for Maricopa County taxpayers since the lawsuit was filed in 2007. Nearly 11 years ago, a federal judge concluded sheriff’s deputies had racially profiled Hispanics in Arpaio’s traffic patrols that targeted immigrants. Consequently, the judge ordered costly overhauls of the agency’s traffic patrol operations and, later, its internal affairs unit. ARIZONA AG CONFIRMS RUDY GIULIANI SERVED IN ELECTIONS CASE AMID FORMER TRUMP ASSOCIATE’S 80TH BIRTHDAY PARTY The taxpayer spending is expected to continue until the sheriff’s office attains full compliance with the court-ordered changes for three straight years. Though progress has been made on some fronts, the agency hasn’t yet been deemed fully compliant. The money being spent on turning around the sheriff’s office looms large in law enforcement and political circles in Arizona. Earlier this year, the heavy compliance costs were cited by critics who said the city of Phoenix should resist entering a consent decree with the U.S. Justice Department, which is investigating the city’s police department. In recent weeks, the financial toll was brought up by immigrant rights advocates as they criticized a proposed ballot measure before the Arizona Legislature that would draw local police into immigration enforcement. Raul Piña, a longtime member of a community advisory board created to help improve trust in the sheriff’s office, has criticized the efforts by Arpaio and his immediate successor, Sheriff Paul Penzone, to comply with the court-ordered changes. But Piña said the agency might finally be turning the corner under the leadership of Penzone’s replacement, Sheriff Russ Skinner. While pointing out his comments shouldn’t be considered an endorsement of Skinner, Piña said he was impressed when seeing the current sheriff squarely acknowledge the agency’s failures at a community meeting. “For the first time that I’ve been involved, the sheriff finally said, ‘We own this, we have to fix this,’” said Piña. Skinner’s office didn’t respond Monday to a request for comment. The overwhelming majority of the spending goes toward hiring employees to help meet the court’s requirements and a separate staff working on the court’s behalf to monitor the sheriff office’s compliance with both overhauls. Arpaio led 20 of the large-scale patrols targeting immigrants from January 2008 through October 2011. Under Arpaio’s leadership, the agency continued immigration enforcement in smaller, more routine traffic patrols until spring 2013. That led to Arpaio’s conviction for criminal contempt of court for disobeying a judge’s 2011 order to stop the patrols. He was spared a possible jail sentence when his misdemeanor conviction was pardoned by then-President Donald Trump in 2017. Arpaio, who turns 92 next month and is running for mayor of the affluent suburb where he has long resided, said he has no regrets about launching immigration crackdowns. He blamed the judge’s ruling for the ongoing taxpayer costs and said Arizona’s 2005 immigrant smuggling ban gave him authority to conduct the patrols. “I did what I was supposed to do,” Arpaio said. Around the time that the anti-smuggling law was passed, advocates for tougher immigration enforcement said cracking down on the problem would help reduce the financial losses that Arizona suffers from its porous border with Mexico. In an interview Wednesday, Arpaio dodged a question about whether compliance costs from the profiling case would exceed any savings that the public might have gained from such enforcement efforts. Instead, he focused on the influx of people crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in recent years. “And you’re complaining about me – that I cost taxpayers money?” Arpaio said. “Start adding up what’s going on today.” Traffic-stop studies conducted since the profiling verdict show deputies often treat drivers who are Hispanic and Black differently than other drivers, though the reports stop short of saying Latinos were still being profiled. While the profiling case focused on the agency’s traffic patrols, the judge presiding over the lawsuit later ordered changes to the sheriff’s internal affairs operation, which critics alleged was biased in its decision-making under Arpaio and shielded sheriff’s officials from accountability. Penzone, who served as sheriff from 2017 until his resignation effective in January, was found in civil contempt of court in November 2022 for taking too long to close internal affairs investigations. The internal affairs unit has faced criticism for having a crushing backlog of open cases. Over the last year, the backlog has been reduced from about 1,900 to 1,600 cases. The agency’s compliance percentages are near or at 100% on two of the three court orders issued in the case. But its scores on the third court order, issued in November 2022, are more modest.
Biden’s DOJ threatens another GOP state with lawsuit over anti-illegal immigration efforts
The Biden administration is threatening to sue yet another Republican-led state over its efforts to crack down on illegal immigration — after suing two other states over their respective anti-illegal immigration bills. The Department of Justice has written to Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt and Attorney General Gentner Drummond about HB 4156 — legislation that makes it a state crime to be in the state illegally and gives local law enforcement the ability to arrest illegal immigrants, and require them to leave the state within 72 hours following conviction or release from custody. The law was signed by Stitt this month and is due to go into force on July 1. It is similar to laws passed and signed into law in Iowa and Texas — and those laws have subsequently both been hit by lawsuits from the DOJ, which argues that it infringes on federal authority over immigration law and enforcement. The Texas law is currently on hold amid the ongoing lawsuit there. ANOTHER RED STATE MOVES A STEP CLOSER TO ENACTING TEXAS-STYLE ANTI-ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION BILL “HB 4156 is preempted by federal law and violates the United States Constitution,” Principal Deputy Assistant AG Brian Boynton said in the letter to Oklahoma officials. “Indeed, the Oklahoma law is similar to Texas’s Senate Bill 4, which has been preliminarily enjoined.” He argued that Congress has implemented a “comprehensive scheme governing noncitizens’ entry and reentry into the United States, including penalties for unlawful entry and reentry.” “HB 4156, however, seeks to create a separate state immigration scheme by imposing state criminal penalties for violating the federal prohibitions on unlawful entry and reentry. HB 4156 therefore intrudes into a field that is occupied by the federal government and is preempted,” he said. “The United States intends to file suit to enjoin the enforcement of HB 4156 unless Oklahoma agrees to refrain from enforcing the law. The United States is committed to the processing of noncitizens consistent with the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). HB 4156 is contrary to that goal,” he said. Texas passed its own law making illegal immigration a crime last year, and other states including Iowa and Oklahoma have since followed this year. A measure in Arizona was vetoed by the governor, and there are now efforts to get the measure on the ballot in November. FORMER TOP ICE OFFICIAL SIDES WITH TEXAS GOV. ABBOTT OVER BIDEN IN ONGOING BORDER BATTLE Oklahoma responded to the DOJ threat days later, with AG Drummond promising to “vigorously defend” the law if the administration sues, while blaming the Biden administration for the crisis at the southern border. “Your misguided demands ignore that Oklahoma has not only the sovereign right, but also the solemn legal obligation, to protect its own borders and its own citizens,” Drummond said. “Acquiescence to this intolerable situation is not in my state’s DNA; neither is surrender,” he said. “As such, HB 4156 represents a meaningful, common-sense, and legally permissible step toward addressing and correcting that which the Biden Administration has willfully refused to enforce the last 3.5 years.” CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF THE BORDER SECURITY CRISIS Meanwhile, other states may soon have their own versions of the law. In addition to the Arizona ballot measure, lawmakers in Louisiana are moving forward with legislation similar to the Texas, Iowa and Oklahoma bills. There, the state’s attorney general has also pledged to protect the state if any lawsuit would follow. “We’re following the bill as it moves through the Legislature,” Lester Duhe, press secretary of Attorney General Liz Murrill told Fox News Digital. “The Attorney General is committed to protecting the people of Louisiana from the dangers of illegal immigration, caused by Joe Biden’s open border policies.”
Trump says Judge Merchan has way to gain back ‘respect’ despite presiding over ‘witch hunt’ trial
Former President Donald Trump said the judge presiding over the NY v. Trump trial, Juan Merchan, can earn back “respect” if he rules to dismiss the case. “This case should be dropped by the judge. I think the judge, if he did, that … could gain the respect back. The appellate court has to step in, something has to happen. Think of it, the Republican Party, one of the two great parties, nominates somebody to be their candidate. And that candidate now has been sitting here for almost five weeks in a freezing cold icebox listening to this stuff,” Trump said Monday following a whirlwind day in court. “I think the case is going very well. We’ve asked for termination of the case. This case should be terminated. This shouldn’t go anywhere. It should be terminated right now. And New York State has to build up its system again. New York State can’t let this happen. We can’t let this happen. There were no crimes. We did nothing wrong. And I want to get back to campaigning. I’m representing millions and millions, hundreds of millions of people,” Trump later added. Trump defense attorney Todd Blanche on Monday motioned for an order of dismissal, citing that there has been no evidence any of the business records or filings related to the case were false. The case itself focuses on 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree. DA Alvin Bragg’s office must prove to the jury that not only did Trump falsify the business records related to payments to Stormy Daniels, but that he did so in furtherance of another crime – conspiracy to promote or prevent election. COHEN’S BOMBSHELL ADMISSION COULD LEAD TO HUNG JURY, IF NOT ACQUITTAL: EXPERT The prosecution team argues that Trump falsified business records to conceal a $130,000 payment to former pornography star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election to quiet her claims of an affair with Trump. Trump has pleaded not guilty in the case and has repeatedly denied any affair with Daniels. NY V TRUMP: MICHAEL COHEN ADMITS TO STEALING TENS OF THOUSANDS FROM FORMER PRESIDENT’S BUSINESS Blanche said there were “absolutely no false business filings” and no evidence of connection to Trump. “How on earth is keeping a false story from voters criminal?” Blanche said. “There is no way the court should let this case go to the jury with Mr. Cohen’s testimony,” he added, referring to former Trump attorney Michael Cohen. Merchan told the court he would rule on the motion to dismiss at a later time. NY V. TRUMP: MICHAEL COHEN TESTIFIES HE’S CONSIDERING CONGRESSIONAL RUN Monday was another action-packed day in court, including the prosecution team’s star witness, Cohen, admitting in testimony that he stole thousands of dollars from the Trump Organization. Cohen said that he stole $30,000 from the Trump Organization by overstating how much he paid a tech company that provided services for the company. Cohen said he told former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg in 2017 that he had paid tech firm Red Finch $50,000 out of his own pocket, and that he still needed to be reimbursed for the payment. Weisselberg and Cohen in 2017 calculated a $420,000 repayment to Cohen for his $130,000 payment to Daniels, as well as the alleged $50,000 payment to Red Finch. Cohen said Monday before the court, however, that he only paid Red Finch $20,000 – meaning he pocketed $30,000 when he was reimbursed. TRUMP SLAMS NY COURT SYSTEM, BOASTS HE’S GOING ‘TO WIN’ EMPIRE STATE “You stole from the Trump Org, right?” Trump attorney Todd Blanche asked Cohen Wednesday morning. “Yes, sir,” Cohen responded. Cohen said taking the funds was “almost like self help,” claiming he took the funds because he was “angry” that his yearly bonus had been slashed. Legal experts sounded off that Cohen’s admission to stealing has further torpedoed his credibility. The comments Monday come after Cohen had already repeatedly been labeled a “grifter” and liar by legal experts. Cohen is a disbarred attorney who was sentenced to three years in prison in 2018 after he pleaded guilty to charges such as campaign finance fraud and lying to Congress. NY V. TRUMP TO RESUME WITH CONTINUED CROSS-EXAMINATION OF MICHAEL COHEN AS TRIAL NEARS CONCLUSION Amid his testimony Monday, Cohen also said he’s mulling a potential congressional run, citing he has the “best name recognition out there.” Cohen was the prosecution team’s final witness, with the defense team now calling their witnesses in the case. The defense team first called Daniel Sitko, a paralegal in Blanche’s law firm, and then Robert Costello, a former legal representative of Cohen who testified before a grand jury last year that Cohen is a “serial liar.” The courtroom became tense during Costello’s testimony, with Merchan ordering the media and jurors out of the room after Costello audibly and visibly disapproved of the judge’s rulings sustaining multiple objections from the prosecution team. “I want to discuss proper decorum in my courtroom,” Merchan said after the jury left. “You don’t say strike it because I’m the only one who can strike it.” MICHAEL COHEN ONCE SWORE TRUMP WASN’T INVOLVED IN STORMY DANIELS PAYMENT, HIS EX-ATTORNEY TESTIFIES Merchan reprimanded Costello to not roll his eyes or react to his rulings. Before the jury came back into the courtroom, Merchan asked Costello: “Are you staring me down?” Costello will resume his cross-examination testimony Tuesday. Closing arguments in the case are anticipated to be held next Tuesday. FLASHBACK: TRUMP-MANHATTAN DA CASE: BOB COSTELLO TESTIFIES TO GRAND JURY, SAYS MICHAEL COHEN IS A ‘SERIAL LIAR’ Trump has consistently maintained his innocence in the case, calling it a “sham” and “witch hunt” promoted by the Biden administration and Department of Justice ahead of the 2024 election. “It’s an attack on [President Biden’s] political opponent. That’s all it is. All of the things you saw over the last four weeks, most of it should have never even been brought up. And then on top of
‘Satanic minds’: NAACP leader who gave Biden award invited notorious antisemite to his church multiple times
FIRST ON FOX: The NAACP leader who introduced President Biden in Detroit on Sunday night was previously slammed by the Anti-Defamation League for inviting notorious antisemite Louis Farrakhan to speak at his church where the controversial minister lashed out at Jewish people and referred to them as “satanic.” Rev. Wendell Anthony, President of the Detroit Branch of the NAACP, stood on stage with Biden in Detroit on Sunday night at the NAACP Detroit Branch’s 69th annual Fight for Freedom Fund Dinner, where the president gave a speech repeating his talking point about bringing people together and slammed former President Trump for being too divisive. Anthony, who presented Biden with a lifetime achievement award on Sunday night, has a long history of associations with Farrakhan, who leads the Nation of Islam group, including being slammed by the Anti-Defamation League in 2013 for inviting the minister to speak at his church where he espoused antisemitic rhetoric. Farrakhan spoke at Anthony’s Detroit-based church, Fellowship Chapel, at least three times in 2005, 2013, and 2015. The Michigan Chronicle reported in 1994 that Anthony was a guest speaker at the Nation of Islam’s 64th annual “Saviour’s Day.” WHITE HOUSE VISITOR LOGS CONTRADICT BIDEN SPOKESMAN’S VOW TO BAN DC OFFICIAL WHO PRAISED NOTORIOUS ANTISEMITE “The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today expressed deep disappointment with the members of Detroit City Council and local clergy who met with and embraced the anti-Semitic and racist leader of the Nation of Islam, Louis Farrakhan, during his visit to the city last week,” the May 2013 press release stated. “During his visit to Detroit, Minister Farrakhan was invited by Rev. Wendell Anthony, President of the Detroit Branch of the NAACP, to address the Fellowship Chapel on May 17. His speech, which was attended by U.S. Rep. John Conyers and Detroit City Councilmember JoAnn Watson, among other prominent city leaders, invoked hateful anti-Semitic canards and open racism. Thus far, none of the leaders present for his remarks have publicly condemned Minister Farrakhan’s anti-Semitic rhetoric, and several have praised him.” The ADL statement alleges that during the speech, Farrakhan “spewed hateful anti-Semitic invective, referring to ‘Satanic Jews’ and the ‘Synagogue of Satan’ supposedly controlling major institutions.” “He expressed his love for President Barack Obama, but added that the president ‘surrounded himself with Satan…members of the Jewish community,’” the ADL said. LEFT-WING ACTIVIST WHO HIRED ONE OF FARRAKHAN’S ‘TOP SOLDIERS’ HAS VISITED BIDEN WHITE HOUSE 7 TIMES Congressman John Conyers, Jr., a Democrat who passed away in 2019, ultimately apologized for attending Farrakhan’s speech saying that the minister made “unacceptable racist, anti-Semitic, and homophobic statements” which “I condemn in the strongest possible terms.” Fox News Digital could not confirm what Rev. Anthony said in his introduction of Farrakhan when he spoke at his church, but a tweet from “Brother Abdul Qiyam Muhammad,” whose Linkedin says he is a “staff writer” for the Nation of Islam’s Final Call newspaper, said Rev. Anthony’s introduction was “phenomenal” and said he was on the “witness stand” for Farrakhan. Another disciple of Farrakhan tweeted out a quote attributed to Anthony from the 2013 appearance at Fellowship Chapel, saying, “Don’t get mad with Farrakhan for striking a match, get upset with yourself for not keeping the fire going.” “The enemy that owns [reality TV] is the same people that own Hollywood, the same people that control your press, the same people that control your media, the same people who are the publishers, the same people who are the distributors, the same Synagogue of Satan, and they put you before the world in this disgraceful matter,” Farrakhan said in May 2013 at Fellowship Chapel, according to the ADL. “What are you feeding filth to your people, you’re popular in filth, but they pay well. See, because you’re Satan’s man. He gives you money, that’s what you want. They print it all day long now next to the Holocaust place in Washington…These are not good people, these are Satanic minds,” he continued. “Whatever God says thou shalt not do, they make sure that they tell you it’s all right and then publicize it.” BIDEN GIVES INTERVIEW TO RADIO SHOW THAT PROMOTED NOTORIOUS ANTISEMITE WHO COMPARED JEWS TO ‘TERMITES’ In addition to the visits to Anthony’s church, Farrakhan was also a guest speaker at a “Religious leaders’ breakfast” in 2004 for a “Freedom Weekend” hosted by Freedom Institute for Economic, Social Justice and People Empowerment, a think tank founded by Anthony. The think tank’s website lists Farrakhan along with other activists as “the best and brightest in their respective fields.” In 1995, Anthony was quoted as praising Farrakhan as “the only man with the vision to envision” the Million Man March, saying, “He is the only leader speaking to the moral issues of decay in our community, and that’s why people are responding to his call.” Anthony wasn’t the only person with ties to Farrakhan at the dinner. A Facebook social media post shows that Troy Muhammad, who also goes by Troy X and is a “State Representative for Minister Louis Farrakhan and as Minister of Muhammad Mosque #1, was in attendance. The long Facebook post thanked Anthony and Kamilia Landrum, whose Facebook bio says she is the executive director of the NAACP’s Detroit branch, for “their efforts” in organizing the dinner. One of the pictures he included was a placard that said, “Michigan Representative of the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan.” Troy X also noted he walked out of the building when Biden was being introduced and said he was just attending to support the NAACP. The White House has previously faced criticism for its ties to Farrakhan’s network including a left-wing activist who hired one of Farrakhan’s ‘top soldiers’ visiting the White House 7 times. Last fall, President Biden sat down for a radio interview with a show that has actively promoted Farrakhan’s teachings. The White House previously told Fox News Digital, “For decades, President Biden has unequivocally condemned Louis Farrakhan and the repugnant Antisemitic hate he represents.” Andrew Bates, who was
State Department offers condolences for death of Iran’s president in ‘baffling’ move, human rights lawyer says
The State Department offered its condolences Monday following the deaths of two Iranian leaders, including the Islamic Republic’s president – a “baffling” move considering Iran’s well-known human rights abuses, a human rights lawyer said. In a statement, the agency expressed “its official condolences for the death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Amir-Abdollahian, and other members of their delegation in a helicopter crash in northwest Iran.” “As Iran selects a new president, we reaffirm our support for the Iranian people and their struggle for human rights and fundamental freedoms,” agency spokesperson Matthew Miller said. Raisi and Amir-Abdollahian were killed Sunday when the helicopter crashed in the Dizmar forest in Iran’s East Azerbaijan province. Raisi was returning to Tehran after traveling to Iran’s border with Azerbaijan to inaugurate a dam with Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev. IRANIAN PRESIDENT EXPERIENCES ‘HARD LANDING’ IN HELICOPTER: IRANIAN MEDIA Iran’s state-run news agency, IRNA, said the crash killed eight people, including three crew members aboard the Bell helicopter, which Iran purchased in the early 2000s. Raisi was nicknamed the “Butcher of Tehran” for his oversight of mass executions of political prisoners in 1988, which forced Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to install interim leadership for Iran’s executive branch. “He’s been responsible for the incarceration, torture, rape and murder of tens of thousands of people over the last few decades,” Gerard Filitti, senior counsel with The Lawfare Project, which provides pro bono legal services to protect the civil and human rights of Jewish people worldwide, told Fox News Digital. “Raisi is not a man who will be missed.” “While it is understandable for the State Department to issue condolences when there is the death of a foreign head of state, it’s baffling that someone who has such an atrocious record of violating human rights, supporting global terrorism, targeting the United States and allies, is someone who is receiving this outpouring of condolences, effectively from the United States government,” he added. WHAT HAPPENS IN THE EVENT OF RAISI’S DEATH? AN IRAN EXPERT WEIGHS IN Fox News Digital has reached out to the State Department for further comment, but has not yet heard back. Gabrielius Landsbergis, Lithuania’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, said condolences to Raisi would be inappropriate given Tehran’s alliance with Russia. “I don’t feel comfortable sending condolences while Iran is sending drones that are used against civilians in Ukraine,” he wrote on social media. Iran, an Islamic theocracy, has long cracked down on dissent from its citizens and has been known for its human rights abuses, including jailing people for dancing, social media activity and women who break the country’s strict dress code. “There’s no secret that Iran violates human rights. It’s a matter of its practice to rule according to its interpretation of religious law and that leaves little room for what we understand as civil rights or human rights in the western democratic context,” Filitti said. He noted that the Biden administration has embarked on a strategy of trying to appease Tehran with regard to nuclear deal negotiations and freeing up billions of dollars that Iran uses to conduct terror attacks and abuse its citizens. “It’s really troubling that now we’re seeing, effectively, a continuation of that. Both in offering condolences for the loss of Raisi, but mostly likely, continuing to work with the next regime on the same failed strategy of appeasement,” said Filitti. The United Nations Security Council also honored Raisi Monday with a moment of silence. The observation came after a request from Russia, China and Algeria, Iran’s Permanent Mission to the U.N. said. State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller was asked by a reporter during a press briefing why the U.S. participated in the moment of silence for Raisi at the U.N. meeting. “We have been quite clear that Ebrahim Raisi was a brutal participant in the repression of the Iranian people for nearly four decades. He was involved in numerous horrific human rights abuses, including playing a key role in the extrajudicial killing of thousands of political prisoners in 1988. Some of the worst human rights abuses occurred during his tenure as president, especially the human rights abuses against the women and girls of Iran,” Miller explained. “That said, we regret any loss of life. We don’t want to see anyone die in a helicopter crash. But that doesn’t change the reality of his record, both as a judge and as the president of Iran.” “The Iranian government & people express gratitude for the UNSC’s condolences & solidarity,” the mission posted on X. U.S. Senate Chaplain Barry Black also acknowledged Raisi’s death during his invocation. “And Lord, we pray for the Iranian people who mourn the death of their president,” he said.
Progressive senator backs potential ICC arrest warrant for Netanyahu: ‘Unprecedented war’
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., deviated from some of his Democratic colleagues and jumped on board with International Criminal Court prosecutor Karim Khan’s move Monday to file applications for arrest warrants against Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Hamas leaders for allegedly committing “war crimes” during the conflict in Gaza. “The ICC prosecutor is right,” Sanders said in a statement Monday afternoon on X. “These arrest warrants may or may not be carried out, but it is imperative that the global community uphold international law. Without these standards of decency and morality, this planet may rapidly descend into anarchy, never-ending wars, and barbarism.” Sanders’ comments come hours after Democratic lawmakers came out largely divided over ICC’s petition. NETANYAHU RIVAL THREATENS TO QUIT WAR CABINET OVER GAZA STRATEGY Sanders also said that in the last several years, ICC issued arrest warrants for multiple political leaders who violated human rights laws and international war policies, including Russian President Vladimir Putin for the Ukraine invasion and Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar for the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks in Israel. Now included on that list is Netanyahu, “who, in response, has waged an unprecedented war of destruction against the entire Palestinian people, which has killed or injured more than 5 percent of the population.” ICC REQUESTS ARREST WARRANTS FOR NETANYAHU, HAMAS LEADERS OVER ‘WAR CRIMES’ Khan said in a statement Monday that based on evidence collected and examined by his office, he has “reasonable grounds” to believe Netanyahu and Gallant “bear criminal responsibility for… war crimes and crimes against humanity committed on the territory of the State of Palestine.” He said those alleged crimes include “starvation of civilians as a method of warfare” and “intentionally directing attacks against a civilian population.” NETANYAHU ARREST WARRANT CALLED ‘GIFT TO TERRORISTS’ AS PRO-ISRAEL LAWMAKERS VOW REVENGE Meanwhile, House GOP lawmakers called the ICC’s petition for arrest warrants “a gift to terrorists around the globe.” “The ICC’s decision to equate Israel with Hamas as a war criminal is a gift to terrorists around the globe and a slap in the face to the only free-standing democracy in the Middle East,” House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., the No. 3 House GOP lawmaker, told Fox News Digital. “There is no comparison between the deliberate killing, raping, and torturing of thousands of innocent civilians and those who are rightfully defending themselves against it.” Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said in a statement, “In the absence of leadership from the White House, Congress is reviewing all options, including sanctions, to punish the ICC and ensure its leadership faces consequences if they proceed. If the ICC is allowed to threaten Israeli leaders, ours could be next.” Fox News Digital’s Greg Norman and Liz Elkind contributed to this report.
MTG responds to House Dem planning to hawk merchandise using ‘bleach blonde’ insult used against her
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene responded to Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, on Monday for seeking to profit off her dust-up with the Georgia Republican during a chaotic House hearing last week. Crockett’s campaign filed a trademark application on Sunday for the phrase “bleach blonde bad built butch body,” to be used for hats, hoodies, socks and T-shirts, among other things, according to a document viewed by Fox News Digital. “I’m very happy with myself. I turn 50 on Monday, and I’m so excited that I’m still alive and healthy and have done so much in life. And I think no matter what shape, size or how we look, we need to be ourselves, not telling women the only way to be attractive or accepted is to have fake boobs, fake hair, fake lashes, and injected faces,” Greene told Fox News Digital. “I mean, we all wear makeup and do lashes and stuff sometimes, but it’s out of control. Women need a better message for women.” Tensions ran high at last week’s late night House Oversight Committee meeting to advance a contempt of Congress resolution against Attorney General Merrick Garland. DOJ WILL NOT TURN OVER BIDEN’S RECORDED INTERVIEW WITH SPECIAL COUNSEL HUR TO CONGRESS At one point, Crockett criticized Greene’s line of inquiry to fellow Democrats on the committee, to which Greene responded, “I think your fake eyelashes are messing up what you’re reading.” It prompted a flurry of jeers from Crockett’s fellow Democrats, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., who forced the panel to vote on whether Greene could speak further. Just as Greene was recognized, Crockett asked Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., for clarification, “I’m just curious, just to better understand your ruling, if someone on this committee then starts talking about somebody’s bleach blonde bad built butch body, that would not be engaging in personalities, correct?” A day later, Crockett announced “A Crockett Clapback Collection” that would “feature various swag that includes random things I’ve said.” HOUSE GOP THREATENS TO HOLD AG GARLAND IN CONTEMPT OF CONGRESS OVER RECORDINGS OF BIDEN INTERVIEW IN HUR CASE “The money will go to ensuring that we have a Democratic House!” she wrote on X, formerly Twitter, accompanied by a photo of a male model wearing a black shirt emblazoned with her remarks about Greene. Greene appeared to indirectly respond with a video of herself on the platform lifting weights, lauding herself as “built and strong.” Crockett, meanwhile, accused Greene of racism during a recent CNN interview. She mentioned Greene’s comment about her eyelashes. A spokesperson for Greene said, “The only person who has made this about color is Jasmine Crockett when she attacked MTG’s hair.” The spokesperson also pointed out that Crockett’s new fundraising venture comes after multiple Democrats accused Chairman Comer of fundraising off of that hearing and other committee proceedings. SEN DURBIN MULLS REVIVING TOOL THAT COULD STYMIE TRUMP NOMINEES IN ANOTHER TERM At one point, Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., the top Democrat on the committee, said in the hearing, “There is an ethics principle that no solicitation of a campaign or political contribution may be linked to an action taken or to be taken by a member or employee in his or her official capacity. That’s just a reminder to my side. I hope that nobody is linking specific actions that you’re taking on the Oversight Committee to campaign contributions or solicitations.” The Greene spokesman accused Democrats of “pure hypocrisy.” But Crockett’s office responded to Fox News Digital, “The condemnation of Comer’s email was not merely because it referred the Committee, but rather because the content within it that clearly violates ethics rules.” “In contrast, Rep. Crockett did not engage in an official act merely by saying these six words and one would be hard pressed to find how these six words could be found as one,” Crockett’s office added. Fox News Digital reached out to Raskin’s office to ask whether his comments extended to Crockett as well. Fox News Digital also reached out to Crockett’s campaign for a response to Greene.