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Homeschooling mom running to lead North Carolina schools has message for parents as posts stir controversy

Homeschooling mom running to lead North Carolina schools has message for parents as posts stir controversy

Michele Morrow, a homeschooling mother who recently won the GOP nomination to lead public schools in North Carolina, pledged the return of “sound, basic public education” in an interview with Fox News Digital. And her general election contest against Democrat Mo Green figures to be one of the most watched and politically charged races nationally this year.   A supporter of former President Trump who attended a rally outside the U.S. Capitol Jan. 6, 2021, Morrow was no stranger to controversy when she ran in the March 5 GOP primary and defeated current North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction Catherine Truitt.  As she advances to the general election, Morrow outlined her promise to parents while her past social media posts that once roiled her unsuccessful 2022 campaign for the Wake County School Board once again resurface during her 2024 bid for statewide office.  NORTH CAROLINA SCHOOLS CHIEF LOSES REPUBLICAN PRIMARY TO HOMESCHOOLING PARENT CRITICAL OF ‘RADICAL AGENDAS’ “I want to get back to sound, basic education. I want our children to be able to think, to be able to solve problems, to be able to overcome obstacles,” she told Fox News Digital. “If we talk to any of our neighbors that have come from other countries where they’ve lived under radical regimes, they understand the incredible benefit and blessing that it is to live in a nation where we have our religious freedoms. “And we also have the freedom as parents to choose education, to choose our medical decisions and everything within the school for our children. I will be an advocate for that. And people across the state understand that. “I have a great appreciation for the opportunities in the United States of America, and I am proud to be a citizen of this great country,” she added. “I want that to be true of every person, every child, to understand the true history of our country as well as world history, to understand what an incredible blessing and responsibility it is to be a citizen in a free nation.”  She also criticized Green, the former superintendent of Guilford County Schools and general counsel for the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education, over his work as executive director of Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, which reportedly has invested $627 million in educational grants and other initiatives in North Carolina.  “It appears that there has been funding for very radical groups like Antifa and potentially BLM, as well as we are looking into the fact that he may have been funding drag queen story hours and things that have been divisive, even antisemitic protests,” Morrow said, adding her campaign was continuing its research into the funding.  “We cannot have somebody who does not believe that every person has the religious freedom to practice their religion as they desire, as well as believes that people should be divided by the color of their skin or defined by the color of their skin. That is not going to be helpful, and it’s going to be actually traumatic and going to cause more division and problems in North Carolina,” she added.  “And I would tell the voters, ‘If you are ready for a change in our school system, if you want to see academics put first, if you want our spending to start at the classroom and move its way up to the boardroom, and if you want politics out of our schools, then I am your only candidate. Because if you vote for my opponent, it’s going to be more of the same,’” she said.  “It’s going to be somebody that comes from the system that has broken the system. And so we need somebody that comes in with new ideas and fresh perspective and who’s going to be a hard worker that’s going to fight for the families of North Carolina.”  Fox News Digital reached out to Green’s campaign Thursday about the allegations but did not immediately hear back.  Morrow charged that the public school system has been increasingly “pushing a political agenda” that has divided children by race, religiously and politically, “impeding the unity that our children should experience in being in a school situation. It’s also impeding their understanding of using their gifts and talents in order to improve whatever community they end up in after they’ve graduated,” she said.  Morrow vowed to transition to a strong civics education in North Carolina public middle schools and high schools and praised Ben Carson’s curriculum, developed for kindergarten through fifth graders, “that talks about just the history of the United States, and that is to talk about all of the history.”  “I think we need to talk about the things that we have done well, as well as the things that we have done very poorly and learn from those,” Morrow said. “I believe that no one should be defined. Nor should their future be determined by the color of their skin. “I want to get back to focusing on math and reading and science and history,” she said. “I want to raise the bar of expectation, whether that’s in conduct or whether that’s in academic performance. And I have a plan to do that. I want to see that our schools, as I said, are incredibly safe, that they’re places of peace and order and civility, where our young people actually learn self-control, and they learn to be hard workers and to overcome, with help from others, the obstacles that lie in their path. I think that the people are going to see that I bring a message of hope. I bring solutions to a broken system.”  VOTERS IN 2020 BATTLEGROUND STATE LEAN TOWARDS TRUMP IN 2024: POLL On concern about diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and critical race theory (CRT) trickling down into the public education system, Morrow said she believed the “role of the educational system should be to help every single student to reach their fullest potential, and, really, it shouldn’t have anything to do with their culture or

Biden’s intel community circulates DEI newsletter highlighting cross-dressing, inclusive language

Biden’s intel community circulates DEI newsletter highlighting cross-dressing, inclusive language

The executive arm of the U.S. intelligence community, which includes the CIA and several top military spy agencies, recently circulated a diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) newsletter that features a secret agent who reveals he is a cross-dresser.  According to a Fox News Digital review of the document, the internal newsletter, The Dive, highlighted several left-wing initiatives and was circulated throughout the U.S. spy apparatus by the Intelligence Community Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility Office.  It is housed in the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), a Cabinet-level position that oversees the intelligence community. The document’s theme is “the importance of words,” focusing on ways spy agencies can be more inclusive. “This issue of The Dive highlights some … initiatives to improve the accuracy of the language we use on other topics; these are a sampling and are not comprehensive of all the great work being done across our agencies,” the newsletter’s unnamed editor-in-chief wrote in the document. BIDEN’S MAJOR SEMICONDUCTOR PUSH IS QUIETLY RIDDLED WITH DEI INITIATIVES “This edition also has articles that speak to inclusivity more broadly, exploring gender identity, advances in accessibility, and diversity in leadership.” The newsletter includes six articles — one about changing terminology related to counterterrorism, one about “linguistics diversity,” another about reimagining how “we talk about Africa,” a fourth highlighting an intelligence officer’s gender expression, one about accessibility in the combat zone and a final article about the 6th Annual African American & Hispanic Leadership Summit. The first article features the perspective of an intelligence official who notes how some training and presentations previously conflated Islamic beliefs with terrorism. The author states that such a use of language “is offensive and alienates our Muslim-American colleagues.” The author further details an effort to revise intelligence presentations to weed out problematic language. ARMY SEES DECLINE IN WHITE RECRUITS AMID CULTURE WAR ATTACKS: REPORT A similar effort is separately highlighted by the newsletter’s editor-in-chief, who explains how new Asian and Pacific Islander employee resource groups have been successful in “creating a new framework and language guidelines for how we talk about the People’s Republic of China.” The article about “linguistics diversity” includes a chart of examples of removing biased language. It says officials should refrain from using the term “blacklisted” because it implies “black is bad and white is good,” the terms “cakewalk” or “grandfathered” because of their ties to slavery and the term “sanity check” because it suggests people with mental illness are inferior. The article about gender identity is written by an anonymous intelligence officer who says cross-dressing has sharpened his skills.  TOP ARMY OFFICIAL BLAMES ANTI-WOKE RHETORIC OF RIGHT FOR SEVERE RECRUITING CRISIS “I am an intelligence officer, and I am a man who likes to wear women’s clothes sometimes,” the author wrote. “I think my experiences as someone who crossdresses have sharpened the skills I use as an intelligence officer, particularly critical thinking and perspective-taking. “It is challenging for some people to understand crossdressing, and non-binary or genderfluid people because gender is a part of overall identity,” he added. “Many of us think of our identities as fixed, and some find this approach to gender threatening to their own identity.” The officer said cross-dressing has helped him understand foreign actors, clandestine assets and how to better support his female and LGBTQIA+ colleagues. In a statement to Fox News Digital, the ODNI confirmed its efforts to “build a diverse and inclusive workforce” through the newsletter. “The Intelligence Community Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility Office manages the IC’s efforts to build a diverse and inclusive workforce, and as part of their work, they distribute The Dive, a quarterly magazine, to each IC element’s DEIA office and/or Equal Employment Opportunity office,” an ODNI spokesperson said. AMERICA’S MILITARY AND OUR COUNTRY WON’T SURVIVE IF WOKEISM CONTINUES TO RULE The newsletter was first received via public information request by the Daily Wire and later obtained by Fox News Digital. In producing the document, ODNI redacted the names of all the newsletter’s authors, citing confidentiality and personal privacy exemptions in the Freedom of Information Act. In response to the document, Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., a member of the Armed Services Committee, questioned the Biden administration and the intelligence community’s priorities. “The Biden administration putting DEI above national security is deeply concerning,” Cotton told Fox News Digital in a statement. “Intelligence officers should spend their time finding terrorists, not worrying about whether they will offend them.” And Jeremy Hunt, a former Army intel officer and the chairman of the national security-focused group Veterans On Duty, expressed concern about the newsletter’s emphasis on altering language to make the intelligence community more inclusive. “Rather than our primary focus being on protecting the homeland, these absurd attempts to police the language of intelligence assessments to make them politically correct will undoubtedly result in lower quality, imprecise and confusing intelligence reports that leave lawmakers and decision makers less informed and unable to make reasoned judgments,” Hunt said.

Latest Republican primary results signal who has grip over GOP: ‘This is Trump’s party’

Latest Republican primary results signal who has grip over GOP: ‘This is Trump’s party’

Former President Donald Trump was a big winner this week, not only in the presidential primaries in a handful of states across the country, but also in a number of highly contested down-ballot showdowns. And victories by Trump-endorsed candidates in some high-profile Senate and House primaries delivered further proof of the former president’s immense sway over the GOP. “An endorsement from Donald J. Trump is the most powerful endorsement in modern political history,” Bernie Moreno emphasized in an exclusive Fox News interview minutes after he won the Republican Senate primary in Ohio. “There’s never been anything like it before – probably won’t be anything like it afterwards.” Moreno, a Cleveland-based business leader and luxury auto dealership giant, rode Trump’s endorsement to victory in Tuesday’s primary in a costly and contentious battle. “I want to thank President Trump for all he did for me, for this campaign, for his unwavering support,” Moreno said in his victory speech. “I wear with honor my endorsement from President Trump.” Moreno’s victory in a bruising nomination fight over state Sen. Matt Dolan and Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose propelled him into a general election showdown against longtime Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown in a race that may determine if Republicans win back the Senate majority in November. The Senate primary in its closing days was framed as a showdown between Trump and the MAGA/America First wing of the party, which rallied around Moreno, vs. the conservative establishment, which supported Dolan. And it was also viewed as a test of Trump’s clout over the Republican Party. Trump returned to Ohio three days ahead of the primary, after Dolan surged in the polls and landed the endorsement of two-term Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and former Sen. Rob Portman, part of the state’s Republican old guard. Headlining a rally for Moreno outside Dayton, Trump claimed that Dolan was a “weak RINO” [a derogatory acronym which stands for “Republicans in name only”]. Trump, who earlier this month clinched the GOP nomination as he became his party’s presumptive 2024 nominee, easily cruised to victory in Ohio’s Republican presidential primary on Tuesday. However, Moreno’s nearly 20 point win in the competitive Senate contest was arguably a bigger victory for Trump than his presidential primary romp. Moreno told Fox News Trump’s backing “was probably decisive” in his primary victory.  “I think it was a victory for the [Trump] agenda. For the America First agenda,” he added. Dolan, who did not seek Trump’s support, told reporters after conceding that “I think it’s pretty self-evident that Donald Trump’s endorsement for Bernie Moreno was a key factor for Bernie winning.” Moreno was not the only Ohio Republican boosted by Trump. Last weekend, the former president endorsed state Rep. Derek Merrin in the GOP primary in Ohio’s 9th Congressional District. On Tuesday, Merrin topped former state Rep. Craig Riedel by 18 points. With the departure of controversial candidate J.R. Majewski from the primary earlier this month, Republicans are hoping Merrin can defeat veteran Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur in November. “Donald Trump is the most important endorsement in Ohio, bar none,” longtime Republican strategist and 2016 Trump campaign veteran Mike Biundo told Fox News on the eve of the Ohio primary. Biundo, who has worked on multiple campaigns in Ohio, emphasized that “Trump moves numbers and helps to hand victories to those he endorses. It’s just a fact.” The Trump endorsed candidate also came out on top in a contested GOP House primary in Illinois, where Rep. Mike Bost edged past former state lawmaker and 2022 gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey, who was popular with many in the MAGA base. And Vince Fong, endorsed by Trump and former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, came out on top in a special election to fill McCarthy’s vacant congressional seat in California. But with Fong under 50%, that contest is now headed to a runoff. Trump’s endorsement record in contested Republican primaries is not perfect. “This is Trump’s party and his endorsement in contested primaries has proven to be helpful, but it’s not a lock,” veteran Republican strategist and communicator Ryan Williams noted. An Ohio-based Republican consultant, who asked to remain anonymous to speak more freely, last week called the Republican Senate primary “a litmus test” of Trump’s sway over the GOP. “The real question is whether President Trump’s endorsement still carries weight with Republican primary voters in Ohio,” the consultant said. “It’s that simple and straight forward, and I think ultimately the answer is yes.” Fox News’ Jamie Vera, Deirdre Heavey and Brooke Curto contributed to this report. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

Biden, Texas feud over anti-illegal immigration law as migrants rush border: What to know

Biden, Texas feud over anti-illegal immigration law as migrants rush border: What to know

Just as illegal immigrants rushed the southern border in El Paso, Texas, the Biden administration is locked in a months-long legal battle with Gov. Greg Abbott over a controversial anti-illegal immigration law. Senate Bill 4 was passed by the Texas legislature and signed by Gov. Greg Abbott in December. The law allows police to arrest those in the country illegally by making it a state crime for someone to enter or re-enter the country illegally. It also allows state judges to order illegal immigrants to be deported. The law was signed during a month in which there was a record number of encounters at the southern border, when more than 300,000 migrants hit the border. MIGRANT ENCOUNTERS AT SOUTHERN BORDER HIT NEW FEBRUARY RECORD HIGH The move was immediately targeted in a lawsuit by the Biden administration in January. The administration said the law encroached upon federal immigration enforcement. “[Texas’] efforts, through SB 4, intrude on the federal government’s exclusive authority to regulate the entry and removal of noncitizens, frustrate the United States’ immigration operations and proceedings, and interfere with U.S. foreign relations,” the Department of Justice said in its January lawsuit. But Texas says the law is necessary due to the Biden administration’s failure to handle the crisis at the southern border. MEXICO SLAMS TEXAS OVER IMMIGRATION LAW, WON’T ACCEPT REPATRIATIONS FROM STATE AFTER SCOTUS RULING “The president of the United States has a constitutional duty to enforce federal laws protecting states, including laws already on the books that mandate the detention of illegal immigrants,” Abbott said in February. “Texas has the right to defend itself because of President Biden’s ongoing failure to fulfill his duty to protect our state from the invasion at our southern border.”  The law was blocked and moved its way to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, where the court issued an administrative stay, putting it on hold. The matter then moved to the Supreme Court. This week, the court kicked the case back to the 5th Circuit, briefly allowing for S.B. 4 to become law but without ruling on the merits of the case. Hours later, however, the 5th Circuit temporarily blocked the law from going into effect ahead of oral arguments Wednesday. Now that oral arguments have been completed, the court will issue a ruling. It isn’t clear when that might happen. BIDEN ADMIN, TEXAS HEAD BACK TO APPEALS COURT OVER ANTI-ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION LAW, HOURS AFTER SCOTUS RULING When it does, there is a good chance one of the two sides will request that the Supreme Court intervene again. Justice Amy Coney Barrett had suggested such a move was likely in her concurring opinion Tuesday.  “Before this Court intervenes on the emergency docket, the Fifth Circuit should be the first mover,” Barrett wrote. “Merits briefing on Texas’s challenge to the District Court’s injunction of S. B. 4 is currently underway. If a decision does not issue soon, the applicants may return to this Court.” Texas says it still has the ability to stop and arrest illegal border crossers, even with the law on ice. That was on display in a shocking moment Thursday when over 100 migrants burst through Texas National Guardsmen blocking their entry further into the U.S. “Even without S.B. 4, Texas has the legal authority to arrest people coming across the razor wire barriers on our border, and we will continue to use our arrest authority and arrest people coming across the border illegally,” Gov. Abbott said Wednesday. He added that Texas’ Department of Public Safety has already arrested more than 40,000 for crossing illegally.