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Family of little girl killed by illegal immigrant shares emotional story, aims to take action in Congress

Family of little girl killed by illegal immigrant shares emotional story, aims to take action in Congress

EXCLUSIVE: The family of a little girl who died at the hands of an illegal immigrant in October is fighting to prevent similar tragedies in the future by making a change at the highest levels of government. Three-year-old Maddie Hines was killed when Gabriel Arteaga, who was being sought by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and did not have a driver’s license, allegedly ran a stop sign and plowed into the side of the family’s SUV. Maddie’s death is what’s driving her godfather, Republican state Rep. Stewart Jones, to run for Congress and take action to fix the border crisis, including deporting the millions of people residing in the U.S. illegally. His run is being backed by Maddie’s mother, Chelsey, who credits God for providing peace to her family in the aftermath of the tragedy. ‘LOW AND VILE’: WIFE OF WOUNDED VETERAN IN BITTER SENATE PRIMARY UNLEASHES ON GOP OPPONENT’S ‘DISGUSTING’ ADS “The main reason I am running for the 3rd Congressional District, is because my goddaughter, Maddie Hines, died senselessly and needlessly due to the actions of an illegal alien,” Jones, who has served in the state legislature for five years, told Fox News Digital in an interview alongside Chelsey. “This is really a personal issue to me. I’m going to go to Washington and fix this problem and secure our border.” Jones and his wife have a nearly two-decade-long relationship with the Hines family, who also serve as godparents to their children. He says that, although “Heaven forbid” anything happen to him and his wife, he knows his children will be taken care of. Chelsey described to Fox what unfolded on the day of the crash, including how Maddie told her she loved her from the back seat right before their vehicle was struck, killing the child instantly. She said Stewart, who she calls “Stew,” was the first to arrive at the scene after the first responders, and that he rode in the ambulance with Maddie and prayed over her.  “It’s been really hard, but very peaceful. I feel like God has been with us through it all,” she said. “I just felt like that day, time stood still. It literally stood still. People talk about that all the time, but I immediately felt God’s love, his peace. It was like an eerie — You just can’t explain it unless you go through it.” BIDEN CAMPAIGN HIGH ON DOJ’S MARIJUANA SHIFT, ‘SMOKES’ TRUMP FOR INACTION DURING HIS TERM “To go through something like that and to have someone like them by our side has been amazing. Stew has gone above and beyond, and I feel like that’s his type of personality. Stew, when he sets his mind and his heart on something, and he sees that it needs to change, or he sees that something needs to get done, he gets the job done,” she said.  “And so to think that he is running for Congress, I’m like, of course you’re running for Congress, and of course you’re going to be amazing at it. I have no doubt in my mind,” she added. Arteaga, 25, was charged with one count of reckless homicide and not having a driver’s license. The judge presiding over the case revoked his $50,000 bail after he was informed ICE was looking to take him, ensuring he would be available to stand trial, the Clinton Chronicle reported. Both Chelsey and Stewart lamented the situation at the southern border that led to Maddie’s death, and said there were too many stories just like theirs going untold. They also blasted politicians and others who’ve dismissed any notion of there being a border crisis. TRUMP’S POTENTIAL RUNNING MATES TO COMPETE FOR APPROVAL AT MAJOR CHRISTIAN CONFERENCE AS SPECULATION SWIRLS “I’ve seen interviews where people are laughing, and they are saying the border is not an issue,” Chelsey said. “It’s not an issue because it doesn’t apply to you, and you have not become that statistic yet. And until your family goes through what we have gone through, the loss of a child — it’s something we deal with every single day.”  Jones vowed that, if elected, he would work to deport all illegal immigrants in the U.S., as well as end the programs and benefits he says are driving many of them to come. “We’ve got to go after any kind of nonprofit, any kind of program that’s supporting and encouraging this illegal activity,” he said. “Second and probably most importantly, we’ve got to complete the wall.”  “The third piece to this puzzle is we’ve got to work with local law enforcement in order to identify and deport those who are here illegally,” he added. “I want to make sure that those who have committed crimes stand trial, and the ones that haven’t, that are here illegally, we need to get them out of here.” ‘SQUAD’ MEMBER DEFENDS ‘RIVER TO THE SEA’ PHRASE INTERPRETED AS CALLING FOR ‘EXTERMINATION’ OF JEWS Jones faces a crowded GOP primary field, where the winner will likely become the next member of Congress representing the district considering its strong Republican leanings. Chelsey says Jones’ integrity and character are what make him the best choice among the candidates, and that she gave the approval for him to take Maddie’s story and use it to make a difference. “I completely believe that God has blessed him and God has put him here … I feel God has orchestrated everything up to this moment, because he knew that Stew would be the only one that could carry this all the way, and he could get the job done,” she said.  “Maddie, even though she’s not here, this legacy, and what we stand for, will continue to keep going. And I feel like Stew’s the one who can carry that,” she added. The primary will be held Tuesday, June 11. If no candidate reaches a majority, the top two candidates will head to a runoff to be held on June 25. Get the latest

Youngkin vetoes slew of Virginia bills, including contraception access measure

Youngkin vetoes slew of Virginia bills, including contraception access measure

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin vetoed several bills late Friday from the final batch of the year’s regular legislative session, including legislation that focuses on protecting access to contraceptives, as well as a measure that would have allowed small businesses to host skill games, which are similar to slot machines. The vetoes came after Youngkin, a Republican, first proposed amendments that the legislature rejected. In a nighttime statement, he said he was willing to keep working with the Democratic-controlled General Assembly on the issues but was vetoing measures that were “not ready to become law.” In total, Youngkin signed seven bills into law and vetoed 48, including the Right to Contraception Act, which was approved by the Democrat-controlled Virginia Senate and House of Delegates.  “I support access to contraception. However, we cannot trample on the religious freedoms of Virginians,” Youngkin said in a statement, adding that access to contraception is already protected under the Constitution.  PROTECTION OF CONTRACEPTION ACCESS ADVANCES IN VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE The bill defined contraception, prevented any restrictions and established enforcement by civil penalty, according to WRC-TV.  Youngkin already sent back a substitute measure that was not a new law but a policy statement that Virginians have a right to access contraception under current Supreme Court precedents. But his motion expired and the original bill was sent back to the governor, which he then vetoed. “Quality health care for women is essential and contraception remains a crucial component of reducing abortions and fostering a culture of life, making Virginia the best place to raise a family,” Youngkin said. “As the issue continues to be deliberated by the Legislature, and recognizing the diverse religious, ethical, and moral beliefs of Virginians, any contraception-related changes must be coupled with robust conscience clause protections for providers and also must uphold the fundamental right of parents to make decisions concerning their children’s upbringing and care.” He said that the measure created an “overly broad cause of action against political subdivisions and parents, as well as medical professionals acting in their expert judgment and within their scope of practice.” VIRGINIA DEMS ADVANCE BILL THROUGH SENATE TO PROVIDE TAXPAYER-BACKED HEALTH INSURANCE TO ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS Youngkin also said the bill fails to include adequate conscience clause protections for providers and also undermines the fundamental right of parents to make decisions concerning their children’s upbringing and care. Democrats criticized the veto, with state party chair Susan Swecker saying in a statement, “Youngkin just proved to Virginians that once again, he does not care about their health or rights.” Youngkin’s veto of the skill games measure, one of the year’s most contentious issues, was widely expected. The governor sought to overhaul the bill that was sent to him, but the Legislature overwhelmingly rejected his changes. Youngkin wanted a higher tax rate and far stricter limits on where the machines could be located, carving out a 35-mile radius around any casino, racetrack or gambling “satellite facility” where they would have been banned. The governor also vetoed a measure that would have eliminated both a recordation and a property tax exemption for the United Daughters of the Confederacy, the Richmond-based women’s group that helped erect many of the country’s Confederate monuments. Proponents have argued that the group’s priorities were out of line with 21st century values. The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Biden called out for past desegregation remarks after praising 1954 landmark Supreme Court ruling

Biden called out for past desegregation remarks after praising 1954 landmark Supreme Court ruling

President Biden spoke to Black leaders Friday on the 70th anniversary of the 1954 Supreme Court ruling that desegregated schools but was called out online for his past actions in the fight against school desegregation. Biden spoke at the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington about Brown v. Board of Education, which found that separation of schools by race was unconstitutional. “The work of building a democracy … worthy of our dreams starts with opening the doors of opportunity for everyone, without exception,” he said.  BIDEN ROASTED FOR ‘FREUDIAN SLIP’ REFERRING TO IMMIGRATION INFLUX OF ‘HISPANIC VOTERS’ Despite his remarks and his advocacy for affirmative action programs, Biden was called out for his past remarks his critics say were racist. “Remember when joe biden said segregation (sic) would turn schools into racial jungles,” one user on X wrote.  “Too bad Joe Biden kept fighting FOR Segregation (sic) decades after this wonderful decision,” another wrote. VP HARRIS CALLED OUT FOR ‘PANDERING’ TO BLACK VOTERS WITH ‘EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN’ DINNERS “Biden had spoken out, in public, in favor of segregation,” stated another.  The president was once a primary figure in the fight against school desegregation. His 2020 Democratic presidential opponents, including Vice President Kamala Harris, used it to attack his position on race.  “You also worked with them to oppose bussing,” Harris told Biden during a 2019 debate. “You know there was a little girl in California who was part of the second class to integrate public schools, and she was bussed to school every day. And that little girl was me.” In a 1975 Senate hearing, then-NAACP Legal Defense Fund Director Jack Greenberg criticized Biden for sponsoring a bill limiting the court’s power to use buses to desegregate schools. He said the legislation “heaves a brick through the window of school integration.” That year, a Delaware newspaper quoted Biden as saying he didn’t “buy the concept” that Black people have been oppressed for hundreds of years. “I do not buy the concept, popular in the ’60s, which said, ‘We have suppressed the Black man for 300 years, and the White man is now far ahead in the race for everything our society offers,” Biden was quoted as saying. “In order to even the score, we must now give the Black man a head start, or even hold the White man back, to even the race. I don’t buy that.” Biden has also been criticized in the past for remarks about segregationists and KKK members. He previously eulogized late West Virginia Democratic Sen. Robert Byrd, a former KKK member who later regretted that affiliation and described it as a mistake, and Strom Thurmond, the former South Carolina senator and “Dixiecrat” presidential candidate who supported segregation. Biden called Thurmond a “brave man, who, in the end, made his choice and moved to the good side.” In 2019, he refused to apologize for his remarks.  “Apologize for what?” Biden told reporters. “Not a racist bone in my body. I’ve been involved in civil rights my whole career. Period. Period. Period.” Fox News Digital’s Joe Schoffstall and Alex Pappas contributed to this report.  

House GOP infighting fuels bitter primary election season

House GOP infighting fuels bitter primary election season

Long-simmering tensions within the House GOP are poised to inflame as members of Congress find themselves in the throes of the election season. Ideological, political and even personal differences that have seen Republicans’ razor-thin House majority wracked with chaos in the 118th Congress are now manifesting in lawmakers endorsing primary challengers against their incumbent colleagues. “I think every member should worry about their own race and not get involved in other people’s races,” Rep. Will Timmons, R-S.C., whose own primary challenger is backed by several members of the House Freedom Caucus, told Fox News Digital. “But unfortunately, there’s a domino effect when, you know, he makes decisions to get involved in other people’s races. It’s only logical that there will be a countervailing force.” Timmons, who is being backed by Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., was referring to Freedom Caucus Chairman Bob Good, R-Va., who has endorsed several Republican challengers running to the right of current members. TRUMP ALLIES POUR INTO NYC COURTHOUSE TO ‘SUPPORT THEIR FRIEND,’ SAY THEY’RE NOT COORDINATING WITH CAMPAIGN Good himself is facing a GOP opponent who has seen support from his colleagues. A fundraiser invitation from late March, previously obtained by Fox News Digital, for Virginia state Sen. John McGuire’s campaign also included GOP lawmakers like House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers, R-Ala., and Reps. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wis., and Morgan Luttrell, R-Texas. He’s also being opposed by Defending Main Street, a super PAC affiliated with the pragmatic House GOP group known as the Main Street Caucus. “I’ll just say we can’t change Washington with the people who are here in Washington that are part of the problem,” Good told Fox News Digital when asked about the situation with his endorsements and those against him. “And I will say that the endorsements of challengers to incumbents started on the other end of the party, started with the liberal moderate members, the establishment RINOs, endorsing against me.” OHIO PURGES ‘NON-CITIZENS’ FROM STATE VOTER ROLLS, CALLS ON BIDEN ADMIN FOR DATA AHEAD OF 2024 ELECTION Another notable race where Good and Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., have involved themselves is Texas’ 23rd congressional district, where Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, is facing a runoff primary against social media influencer and Second Amendment activist Brandon Herrera. Gaetz and Good have both backed Herrera, while Gonzales has the backing of the speaker and other fellow Texas Republican lawmakers. “I won all 29 counties in the primary, and I’m gonna win all 29 counties in the runoff,” Gonzales told Fox News Digital. “Anyone who’s ever run against me has never served in public office. So bring it on.” When pressed about members endorsing his opponent, he said, “If Matt Gaetz spent as much time trying to defeat the Democrats as he does on his eyebrows, we would be in a great position.” Gaetz responded in a statement to Fox News Digital, “I would love to spend all of my time fighting only the Democrats, but if Republicans like Tony Gonzales are going to vote like Democrats and act like Democrats, I’ll fight them too. And anyone who gets close to me sees that my eyebrows are quite unkempt.” FOX NEWS POLL: ABORTION, ECONOMY, AND BORDER SECURITY ARE TOP DEAL-BREAKERS IN 2024 ELECTIONS Other GOP lawmakers who spoke with Fox News Digital expressed dismay at their colleagues’ infighting.  “I find it outrageous. As somebody from the business world, you go out of business doing things that way,” Rep. Dan Meuser, R-Pa., told Fox News Digital. He said of Gonzales’ race, “That’s a difficult district for Republicans to win. I mean, Tony is like the perfect guy for it. So the idea that we’re trying to out-red him in a primary, I think is just foolish because you’re gonna lose Tony, and then you’re gonna get someone who doesn’t fit with the district, and we’re gonna lose that.” “And then, you know, going after Good, I mean, I don’t think that’s right, either,” Meuser added. Rep. Greg Murphy, R-N.C., told Fox News Digital of the infighting, “I think it’s very unfortunate.” “I think it’s very, very sad that we have Republicans caring more about fighting against Republicans than the real true challenge we have because of what Democratic rule is,” he said.

‘Warning signs flashing’: Biden, Trump struggle to lock up base voters ahead of first debate

‘Warning signs flashing’: Biden, Trump struggle to lock up base voters ahead of first debate

As they prepare for their face-off on the debate stage next month, warning signals are flashing for President Biden and former President Donald Trump in their 2024 election rematch – as they both appear to struggle to lock up their base voters. More than two months after she dropped out of the Republican presidential nomination race, zombie candidate Nikki Haley is still grabbing sizable support in the GOP primaries at the expense of Trump. And Biden is continuing to deal with a persistent “uncommitted” vote protesting the president’s support for Israel in its war with Hamas in Gaza. “You going to see most Democrats and most Republicans come home. But there are so many warning signs flashing in these primaries,” David Kochel, a longtime Republican consultant and veteran of numerous GOP presidential campaigns, told Fox News Digital. WHAT THE LATEST FOX NEWS NATIONAL POLL SHOWS IN THE BIDEN-TRUMP PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION REMATCH One week after Haley won 22% of the vote in Indiana’s GOP presidential primary, where independents and Democrats could vote, it was supposed to be a different story on Tuesday as Maryland, Nebraska, and West Virginia held mostly closed Republican contests. But according to unofficial results, Haley grabbed 21% support in Maryland and 18% in Nebraska. TRUMP AHEAD OF BIDEN IN THESE CRUCIAL PRESIDENTIAL BATTLEGROUND STATES  And Haley performed strongest in suburban areas in both states, as she also did in earlier primaries held after she suspended her presidential bid. It’s another potential general election problem for Trump, who is currently making history as the first former or current president to stand trial in a criminal case. “It might just be that Republicans want one last chance to express their dissatisfaction with the nominee and they’ll come home,” Kochel, who remained neutral in the 2024 GOP nomination race, said.  “But if I’m running the Trump campaign, particularly as I look towards the vice presidential nomination, I would be trying to figure out anyway I could to reassure the Haley voters that we’re going to listen to them and not just run a base only strategy,” he suggested. Biden also saw a red flag in Tuesday’s primaries, as 10% of votes in the Democratic presidential contest in Maryland were “uncommitted,” according to unofficial and incomplete tabulations. It’s the latest example of far left voters expressing their dissatisfaction with the president’s Mideast policies. TRUMP TRIES TO EXPAND THE MAP BY FLIPPING THESE BLUE STATES RED  The primaries were held on the eve of a proposal by Biden and his re-election campaign to hold presidential debates with Trump in June and early September – with a vice presidential debate over the summer – to which Trump quickly agreed. Mark Penn, the longtime Democratic pollster, former top political adviser to former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and Fox News contributor, pointed to Biden’s anemic poll numbers in the key battleground states as he argued the president’s debate proposal came out of weakness. “You don’t want to debate when you’re ahead. You want to avoid debates at all costs,” Penn said in an interview on Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom.” “Obviously it’s uphill for President Biden, or he wouldn’t be debating in the first place.” National surveys for months have indicated that many Americans are anything but thrilled with the rematch between the 81-year-old Democratic incumbent and his 77-year-old predecessor in the White House. “You’re going to put the most unpopular politicians we’ve ever seen run against each other in front of 80 million people on a debate stage. One of them is famously bombastic and toxic and loose with the facts. The other one is barely able to get out a sentence. He had six jump cuts in a 13-second video they put out today,” Kochel said as he pointed to Trump and specifically to Biden’s video proposing the debates.  And Kochel predicted that the debates may “reinforce to the country how dissatisfied they are with these choices.” Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.