‘Our Revolution’: Far-left lawmakers host event taking aim at ‘anti-peace’ pro-Israel group
A group that’s backing leftist candidates for Congress who want to place conditions on U.S. aid to Israel is hosting a Monday night event aimed at bashing the pro-Israel lobby and “building progressive power in Congress.” Our Revolution, an organizing group founded by self-described “democratic socialist” Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., is hosting a town hall featuring Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., along with Reps. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., and Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., according to a press release sent Monday morning. The group’s new campaign is “Committed to Countering the Rise in Rightwing, Anti-Peace Lobbying, Including AIPAC’s $100 Million Campaign to Unseat Candidates Calling For a Permanent Ceasefire,” the release said. AGITATOR BEHIND ‘DEATH TO AMERICA’ CHANTS IN CHICAGO CONTRIBUTES TO IRAN STATE TV, HEZBOLLAH-LINKED CHANNEL Monday night’s event is part of “a strategic effort to shore up defenses against well-funded corporate lobbyists,” specifically naming the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) – an organization that works along bipartisan lines to promote the traditional U.S.-Israel relationship. AIPAC has been in the crosshairs of progressive lawmakers in recent months, particularly as it has ratcheted up criticism of those lawmakers for not supporting Israel’s response to Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack. Israel’s ensuing ground invasion and airstrikes in Gaza have served to bring long-simmering fractures within the Democratic Party to the surface, with a growing number of young leftists in Congress calling for a harsher stance against Israel, including conditioning military aid on its treatment of civilians in Gaza. IVY LEAGUE ANTI-ISRAEL AGITATORS’ PROTESTS SPIRAL INTO ‘ACTUAL TERROR ORGANIZATION,’ PROFESSOR WARNS Our Revolution is backing candidates who, among other things, have called for a permanent cease-fire in Gaza. But Republicans and more moderate Democrats warn that a permanent cease-fire will only help Hamas, and could endanger the lives of dozens of Israeli hostages still being held by anti-Israel terrorists since October. The group said AIPAC is “targeting some of our most ardent advocates for peace in Congress.” Fox News Digital reached out to AIPAC for comment. AIPAC is expected to funnel millions of dollars into primary and general election candidates to unseat those progressive lawmakers, including Bowman, who is appearing at the Monday night event. “The candidates Our Revolution is backing have been on the forefront of advocating for a cease-fire in Gaza, as well as voicing their intent to condition U.S. funding of the far-right Netanyahu regime,” the press release said, referencing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. COLUMBIA STUDENT RECOUNTS HAVING ‘FRONT-ROW SEAT TO THE MADNESS’ OF ANTI-ISRAEL PROTESTS “They have also been at the forefront of the fight for critical progressive issues that will be crucial to driving voter turnout in the 2024 general election, including climate action, student loan relief, affordable housing, comprehensive immigration reform, and racial justice.” Asked for a response to the Monday event, AIPAC told Fox News Digital, “We are proud to engage in the democratic process to help elect pro-Israel candidates, and we will not be deterred by an extremist, anti-Israel fringe. We believe that it is entirely consistent with progressive values to stand with the Jewish state as it confronts aggression from Iran and its terrorist proxies.” A spokesperson for the group also told Fox News Digital that AIPAC is “the largest PAC contributor” to Democratic candidates.
Democrats join Republicans in condemning antisemitism at Columbia University
A number of Democrats in the Senate have joined their Republican colleagues in denouncing discrimination against Jewish students at the prestigious Ivy League Columbia University, where an anti-Israel solidarity encampment persists on campus, prompting the institution to move classes online on Monday. “Every American has a right to protest,” Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a statement. “But when protests shift to antisemitism, verbal abuse, intimidation, or glorification of Oct. 7 violence against Jewish people, that crosses the line.” “Campuses must remain safe for all students.” FETTERMAN HAMMERS ‘A–HOLE’ ANTI-ISRAEL PROTESTERS, SLAMS OWN PARTY FOR RESPONSE TO IRANIAN ATTACK: ‘CRAZY’ Schumer, who represents New York City, where Columbia is located, is the first Jewish majority leader in the Senate and also the highest ranking Jewish elected official in U.S. history. Last week, the anti-Israel demonstration sprang up on Columbia’s campus, with students camping out in tents and demanding that the university divest from all companies with ties to Israel. Since then, the protest has grown in size and presented a safety threat to Jewish students. This has mushroomed into such a concern that an Orthodox rabbi at the school advised Jewish students to leave campus because “Columbia University’s Public Safety and the NYPD cannot guarantee Jewish students’ safety.” New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, another Democrat, also denounced the display of antisemitism at the university, saying she was “appalled.” GOP PREPS ATTACKS ON VULNERABLE DEM SENATORS OVER MAYORKAS IMPEACHMENT TRIAL DISMISSAL “Threats of violence against Jewish students and the Jewish community are horrible, despicable and wholly unacceptable,” she said. “Using the rhetoric of terrorists has no place in New York, where we pride ourselves on tolerance and the right of every group to practice their religion in peace.” Others who joined their party members in addressing the encampment were Sens. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., and John Fetterman, D-Penn. “I’m outraged by the vile displays of antisemitism at Columbia University, including threats of violence,” read a post on X from Rosen, who faces a tough re-election battle in November in swing state Nevada. Fetterman, who has emerged as one of Israel’s strongest supporters in his party, compared the demonstration to “Charlottesville for these Jewish students.” Fetterman referenced the 2017 “Unite the Right” rally in Virginia that drew hundreds of white supremacists and ultimately turned violent, resulting in the death of one woman. “President Minouche Shafik: do your job or resign, so Columbia can find someone who will,” Fetterman added. FETTERMAN HIGHLIGHTS NEED FOR ‘SAFE, PURE, TAXED’ MARIJUANA IN 4/20 PUSH TO LEGALIZE WEED While a number of Democrats have chosen to make public statements on the events unfolding at Columbia, Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., blamed the party for allowing it to happen in the first place. “The radical anti-Israel protestors have always been part of the Democratic Party’s base,” he wrote on X. “Now Joe Biden is using them as an excuse to undermine Israel and appease Iran.” White House spokesperson Andrew Bates said the administration condemns “echoing the rhetoric of terrorist organizations” in the “strongest terms.” Republicans in the Senate were quick to condemn the encampment at Columbia, and Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., even suggested, “Any student on a visa that is arrested for supporting Hamas needs to be deported immediately.” Many GOP members in the upper chamber have reinforced their support for Israel and the Jewish people frequently throughout the war between Israel and terrorist group Hamas in Gaza. Democrats have been more measured and careful with their commentary on the war and Israel as the party’s divide on the issue expands, making the statements from them regarding Columbia particularly significant. President Biden and Democrats have faced criticism from their Republican counterparts for pulling back from Israel, a major U.S. ally in the Middle East. Biden recently warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that U.S. policy in support of the country could change depending on the actions it takes to minimize civilian casualties in Gaza. Additionally, in the wake of Iran’s recent direct attack on Israel, Republicans quickly blamed Biden and other Democrats, accusing them of emboldening Israel’s adversary to undertake such an audacious attack.
SCOTUS to take up challenge to Biden admin’s ghost gun rule that group deems ‘abusive’
The Supreme Court announced Monday that it will hear a challenge to the Biden administration’s regulation on so-called “ghost guns” next term. The rule in question was issued in 2022 by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to regulate “buy build shoot” kits that are available online or in stores that allow any individual to assemble a working firearm without a background check or the usual serial numbers required by the federal government. The Fifth Circuit late last year struck down the rule, but the Justice Department appealed to the Supreme Court. The DOJ argued that the Gun Control Act of 1968 permits the rule because it defines a “firearm” to include “any weapon…which will or is designed to or may readily be converted to expel a projectile by the action of an explosive,” as well as “the frame or receiver of any such weapon.” However, gun rights groups say that the rule is “unconstitutional and abusive.” SUPREME COURT ALLOWS CONTINUED REGULATION OF SO-CALLED ‘GHOST GUNS’ Firearms Policy Coalition President Brandon Combs, who is challenging the rule in court, said the group is “delighted that the Supreme Court will hear our case and decide this important issue once and for all.” “The Fifth Circuit’s decision in our case was correct and now that victory can be applied to the entire country,” he said. The ATF’s rule requires unfinished parts of a firearm, like the frame of a handgun or the receiver of a long gun, to be treated like a completed firearm. These parts need to be licensed and must have serial numbers. The rule also requires manufacturers to run background checks before selling these parts, as they are required to do for whole commercial firearms. The Biden administration argued the rule is necessary to respond to rising numbers of untraceable guns. GUN GROUPS SLAM BIDEN ADMIN OVER NEW ATF RULE: ‘WEAPONIZING EVERY TOOL’ The Justice Department had argued in court that local law enforcement agencies seized more than 19,000 ghost guns at crime scenes in 2021, a more than tenfold increase in just five years. The Supreme Court had previously allowed the regulation to remain in effect while the lawsuit continued through the courts, with Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Amy Coney Barrett voting with the three liberal members of the court to form the majority. TENNESSEE LAWMAKERS PASS BILL ALLOWING TEACHERS TO CARRY GUNS AT SCHOOL 1 YEAR AFTER DEADLY NASHVILLE SHOOTING Justices Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Clarence Thomas said they would have kept the regulation on hold while the case made its way through the appeals process. Arguments in the case Garland v. Jennifer VanDerstok will be heard this fall. The Associated Press and Fox News’ Bill Mears and Shannon Bream contributed to this report.
Trump blasts NY criminal case as ‘Biden trial’ meant to hurt him in November election
Former President Trump blasted President Biden on Monday ahead of opening statements in his New York criminal trial and said he wants the American people to “understand” that his criminal trial is taking place “for the purposes of hurting the opponent of the worst president in the history of our country.” Trump arrived in court in Manhattan Monday morning before prosecutors for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office and his defense attorneys deliver their opening statements in the trial. TRUMP TRIAL: OPENING ARGUMENTS TO BEGIN AS TRUMP FLOUTS GAG ORDER AND ATTORNEY PREVIEWS DEFENSE Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, has been charged by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg with 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree. The charges are related to alleged hush money payments made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election. Trump has pleaded not guilty to all counts. He has blasted the trial as pure politics, a “political persecution” and maintains his innocence. The former president, and the first ever to be a defendant in a criminal trial, vowed to “tell the truth” if he takes the stand. “I just want to say before we begin — these are all Biden trials,” Trump said before opening statements were delivered Monday. “This is done as election interference. Everybody knows it.” “I’m here instead of being able to be in Pennsylvania and Georgia and lots of other places campaigning, and it’s very unfair. Fortunately, the poll numbers are very good,” Trump continued. “They’ve been going up because people understand what’s going on.” TRUMP WARNS THAT IF HE LOSES PRESIDENTIAL IMMUNITY, SO WILL ‘CROOKED’ JOE BIDEN Trump again blasted the case as a “witch hunt,” and said its impetus is in Washington. “It’s in coordination with Washington — everything — including the DA’s office,” Trump said. “I just want people to understand that this is done for the purposes of hurting the opponent of the worst president in the history of our country.” Trump has argued that the cases against him in all jurisdictions — Bragg’s; Special Counsel Jack Smith’s election interference charges; Smith’s classified records charges; and Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ charges — have been brought against him for the purposes of election interference and in coordination with President Biden. Trump attorney Will Scharf told Fox News Channel on Sunday that the case should never have been brought, and that the facts are on his client’s side. “While the prosecution and the media are hell-bent on sensationalizing this case, we’re focusing on the facts because the facts show that President Trump did absolutely nothing wrong,” Scharf said. “This is a business records case, those business records accurately reflected payments to one of President Trump’s lawyers as legal retainer fees. Additionally, those records weren’t actually entered by President Trump. He was busy running the country from the White House while all this was happening in Trump Tower in New York.” Shifting from Bragg’s case and charges against him, Trump on Monday morning also pointed to New York Attorney General Letitia James’ case, in which he was forced to post a $175 million bond and found liable for fraud by New York Judge Arthur Engoron after a months-long civil trial without a jury. “[Letitia James] campaigned on the fact that ‘I will get Trump. I’m going to get Trump,’” Trump said, pointing to James’ campaign videos. Trump said James had a problem with the bond company he used and is arguing in court Monday that “she doesn’t know the collateral is good.” “I put up 175 billion in cash and she’s questioning the bonding company,” Trump said. “Well, when you put up cash and the number is 175, which is what we’re supposed to be putting up, but I give it in cash. She shouldn’t be complaining about the bonding company.” TRUMP HUSH MONEY TRIAL: MEET THE JURORS WHO WILL HEAR BRAGG’S CASE AGAINST THE 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE Trump added that “nobody is going to be putting up with this.” “Nobody is going to be listening or coming to New York anymore — business are going to be fleeing because people are treated so badly — it’s got to be the most unfriendly place to do business,” Trump said. “And that’s why businesses are leaving and people are leaving as migrants come in and take over our parks and our schools and everything else.” Lawyers for James are arguing Monday that the court should void Trump’s $175 million bond in his civil fraud case, questioning whether Knight Specialty Insurance, the company who fronted Trump’s bond, could pay the bond if they had to. If the judge sides with James’ office, Trump will need to file a new bond. James wants to give Trump seven days to file that new bond, if the ruling is in her favor. The decision will be left, again, to Judge Arthur Engoron. TRUMP POSTS $175M BOND IN NY CIVIL FRAUD CASE, AVERTS ASSET SEIZURE Trump, on Monday, blasted James as “the worst attorney general in this country,” and slammed Judge Engoron as an “extremely crazed judge who is the most overturned judge in New York State.” As for criminal trial stemming from Bragg’s investigation, Trump said: “It’s a very, very sad day in America, I can tell you that.” The former president is subject to a gag order in Bragg’s criminal case, which Judge Juan Merchan imposed upon him last month before the trial began. Merchan ordered that Trump cannot make or direct others to make public statements about witnesses concerning their potential participation or about counsel in the case — other than Bragg — or about court staff, DA staff or family members of staff. Merchan also ordered that Trump cannot make or direct others to make public statements about any prospective juror or chosen juror. But on Saturday, he let loose with an all-caps rant on his social media platform. “THIS SCAM ‘RUSHED’ TRIAL TAKING PLACE IN A 95% DEMOCRAT AREA IS A
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NYC mayor hammers ‘professional’ Columbia anti-Israel agitators, says NYPD ‘ready’ to move in
New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Sunday warned that the New York City Police Department “cannot have a presence” at Columbia University’s campus “unless specifically requested by senior university officials,” decrying “professional agitators” and “antisemitism being spewed” at the Ivy League School. “I am horrified and disgusted with the antisemitism being spewed at and around the Columbia University campus,” Adams said, citing the example of a young woman holding a sign with an arrow pointing to Jewish students stating “Al-Qasam’s Next Targets.” The Al-Qassam Brigade is the military wing of Hamas. The mayor noted another instance where a woman is literally yelling “We are Hamas,” and another where groups of students are chanting “We don’t want no Zionists here.” “I condemn this hate speech in the strongest of terms. Supporting a terrorist organization that aims to kill Jews is sickening and despicable. As I have repeatedly said, hate has no place in our city, and I have instructed the NYPD to investigate any violation of law that is reported. Rest assured, the NYPD will not hesitate to arrest anyone who is found to be breaking the law,” Adams continued. “We will not be a city of lawlessness, and those professional agitators seeking to seize the ongoing conflict in the Middle East to sow chaos and division in our city will not succeed.” Adams specifically said, “I do, however, want to be abundantly clear: Columbia University is a private institution on private property, which means the NYPD cannot have a presence on campus unless specifically requested by senior university officials. The NYPD has an increased presence of officers situated around the campus to protect students and all New Yorkers on nearby public streets, and they stand ready to respond if another request is made by the university, as they did on Thursday, when the NYPD successfully cleared encampments on Columbia’s South Lawn without any injuries.” COLUMBIA RABBI TELLS JEWISH STUDENTS TO LEAVE CAMPUS, WARNS THAT SCHOOL, NYPD ‘CANNOT GUARANTEE YOUR SAFETY’ The mayor’s statement came hours before Columbia University President Dr. Nemat “Minouche” Shafik, who was hauled before Congress to address the school’s inaction on antisemitism, broke her silence overnight. Shafik canceled classes on Monday, calling for a “reset” as “tensions have been exploited and amplified by individuals who are not affiliated with Columbia who have come to campus to pursue their own agendas.” Instead of bringing in police to disperse the “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” that has persisted for days on the South Lawn, Shafik promised a “working group of Deans, university administrators and faculty members will try to bring this crisis to a resolution” in the coming days, including through “continuing discussions with the student protestors and identifying actions we can take as a community to enable us to peacefully complete the term and return to respectful engagement with each other.” “I know that there is much debate about whether or not we should use the police on campus, and I am happy to engage in those discussions,” Shafik said. “But I do know that better adherence to our rules and effective enforcement mechanisms would obviate the need for relying on anyone else to keep our community safe. We should be able to do this ourselves.” GOP CONGRESSWOMAN DEMANDS COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY ‘RESTORE ORDER AND SAFETY’ AMID ANTI-ISRAEL PROTESTS Before the start of Passover on Monday, Columbia and Barnard college’s rabbi warned Jewish students to return to their homes, as Columbia University’s Public Safety and the NYPD “cannot guarantee Jewish students’ safety in the face of extreme antisemitism and anarchy.” Adams on Sunday also urged Columbia’s senior administration officials “to improve and maintain an open line of communication with the NYPD to ensure the safety of all students and staff on campus, as well as for the safety of all New Yorkers.” The mayor acknowledged how “the conflict in the Middle East has left many of us grieving and angry,” and while New Yorkers “have every right to express their sorrow,” but that “heartbreak does not give anyone the right to harass or threaten others or to physically harm someone they disagree with.” “As mayor of the city with the largest Jewish community in the world outside of Israel, the pain these protests are causing Jews across the globe is not lost on me, especially as we start Passover tomorrow evening. I also see and hear the pain of those protesting in support of innocent lives being lost in Gaza,” Adams said. “In this moment of heightened tension around the world, we stand united against hate.” Shafik allowed the NYPD to come onto campus and arrest more than 100 people on Thursday, the day after her congressional testimony, but they have since been released from custody and the protest escalated.
Ilhan Omar daughter barred from campus housing, dining hall after anti-Israel protest suspension, she says
Rep. Ilhan Omar’s, D-Minn., daughter says she has nowhere to go and nothing to eat following her suspension from Barnard College after taking part in anti-Israel protests at Columbia University last week. Isra Hirsi was among more than 100 people arrested and issued a summons for trespassing on Thursday after protests at Columbia University. Hours earlier, she said she had been suspended from Barnard College for “standing in solidarity with Palestinians facing a genocide.” The 21-year-old has gone into more detail about the suspension. Along with not being able to go to classes, she said she has been evicted from campus housing and banned from using the dining hall with her meal plan. “I was a little bit frantic, like, where am I going to sleep? Where am I gonna go? And also all of my s— is thrown in a random lot. It’s pretty horrible,” she told Teen Vogue. “I don’t know when I can go home, and I don’t know if I ever will be able to.” REP. ILHAN OMAR’S DAUGHTER ARRESTED AND RELEASED AMID NYC ANTI-ISRAEL PROTESTS AT COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY The student said she reached out to campus administration, but did not hear back until 48 hours after her suspension was handed down, when she was told she could pick up a prepackaged bag of food. Barnard College is one of four Columbia undergraduate schools that has an independent admissions process, curriculum and financial structure, as well as a separate administration, according to the New York Post. The college did not immediately respond to a Fox News Digital request for comment. ARREST OF ILHAN OMAR’S DAUGHTER AT ANTI-ISRAEL PROTEST WAS POLITICAL, FELLOW ‘SQUAD’ MEMBER SAYS Dozens of anti-Israel activists began protesting at Columbia University on Wednesday morning, creating an encampment on the main lawn in protest of Israel’s war against Hamas. Protests continued into the overnight hours with calls for an intifada and the death of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Omar praised her daughter’s participation in the protests. Earlier in the week, she questioned Columbia administrators during a congressional hearing on Capitol Hill about anti-Israel activism on the Ivy League campus. During the hearing, Omar sounded the alarm about what she called an “attack” with a “toxic chemical substance” at an anti-Israel protest at Columbia University. However, according to court documents, the substance was a non-toxic flatulence spray called “Liquid A–” and “Wet Farts.” Fox News Digital has reached out to Omar’s office. Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., suggested Hirsi’s suspension was a reprisal for her mother’s questions. “The day after @IlhanMN questioned Columbia leadership’s commitment to free academic expression, the school suspended her daughter?” Bowman posted online. “It’s clear what is happening here. Our educational institutions should not be in the business of political reprisals.” Fox News’ Michael Dorgan and Louis Casiano, Alexis McAdams and Hannah Grossman contributed to this report.
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