TMC to launch its LS polls 2024 campaign with mega rally in Kolkata today
The rally’s overarching theme revolves around the alleged withholding of the state’s financial dues by the central government, a contentious issue that has dominated state politics for the past two years.
Farmers’ bodies call ‘rail roko’ protest today; trains to face disruption in…
The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha have called for a “rail roko” protest on Sunday over their various demands.
Dueling Georgia rallies provide sharp contrast between Biden, Trump amid Laken Riley murder
Dueling campaign appearances in Georgia Saturday and a high-profile murder that has become a symbol of the border problem provided a sharp contrast between President Joe Biden and his presumptive Republican challenger, former President Donald Trump. The death of Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student allegedly killed by an illegal migrant on the campus of University of Georgia, has become a rallying cry for Republicans, a tragedy that they say encompasses the Biden administration’s handling of the border crisis. While Biden botched her name in Thursday’s State of the Union speech, Trump on Saturday met with her family. “I met her beautiful mother and family backstage,” Trump told rallygoers in Rome, Georgia on Saturday. “They said she was like the best. She was always the best to us. They admit that she was the best, and she was the first in her class. She was going to be the best nurse. She was the best nursing student. She was always the best. She was the brightest light in every room, they told me.” He added, “She was the whole world to her parents and to her sister and just to the whole family.” TRUMP MET WITH LAKEN RILEY’S BACKSTAGE BEFORE GEORGIA RALLY: ‘PROFOUNDLY HONORED’ Trump said that he was “profoundly honored” to have Riley’s family and friends at the rally. “They’re so incredible,” he continued. “The hearts of hundreds of thousands and indeed millions and millions of Americans and people worldwide, they’re shattered alongside of your beautiful hearts. We share your grief. We share your grief. Thank you, darling. Thank you. Thank you very much. We appreciate it.” LAKEN RILEY’S MOTHER BLASTS BIDEN AS PATHETIC FOR GETTING DAUGHTER’S NAME WRONG DURING SOTU In a viral picture, the former president is seen hugging Riley’s parents before the rally. Riley’s stepfather, John Phillips, was seen wearing a bright red, “Make America Great Again” hat at the rally. Meanwhile, Biden, who also held a campaign event Saturday, told MSNBC in a pre-recorded interview that he regrets using the term “illegal” during his State of the Union address to describe Riley’s suspected killer. The term “illegal immigrant” angers liberals who prefer to call people who enter the country illegally “undocumented.” “I shouldn’t have used illegal, it’s undocumented,” he told MSNBC’s Jonathan Capehart. “When I spoke about the difference between Trump and me, one of the things I talked about on the border was his – the way he talks about vermin, the way he talks about these people polluting the blood,” Biden said. “I talked about what I’m not going to do, what I won’t do. I’m not going to treat any, any, any of these people with disrespect. Look, they built the country. The reason our economy is growing, we have to control the border and more orderly flow. But I don’t share his view at all.” When asked if he regrets his word choice, Biden replied “yes.” His remorse came after an off-the-prompter moment at his State of the Union address got him in hot water with some in his party. Biden first mistakenly referred to Riley as “Lincoln Riley,” and then called her alleged killer an “illegal.” Biden initially defended his use of “illegal” before eventually retracting it during a conversation with Capehart. Fox News Digital’s Brie Stimpson contributed to this report.
Verstappen wins F1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix to extend winning streak
The Dutchman made it nine wins in as many races as he cruised to a comfortable victory at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. Max Verstappen won the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix from pole position as Red Bull continued their dominant start to the Formula One season with a second one-two in as many races. Mexican Sergio Perez was runner-up on Saturday under the Jeddah Corniche floodlights, last year’s winner taking the chequered flag 13.643 seconds behind his triple world champion teammate. It was the first time Verstappen, winner of a record 19 of 22 races last year, has won the first two races of a season. Charles Leclerc finished third for Ferrari, taking a bonus point for the fastest lap and earning his first podium of the season. The victory was a ninth in a row for Verstappen, dating back to Japan last September, and the 56th of the 26-year-old Dutch driver’s career. It was also his 100th career podium while Red Bull’s 115th win lifted them ahead of Williams in fourth place on the all-time list. “Overall, a fantastic weekend for the whole team and myself. I felt really good with the car and it was the same in the race,” Verstappen said. The United Kingdom’s Oliver Bearman, making his F1 race debut as Ferrari’s youngest-ever rookie at 18 years and 305 days old after Spaniard Carlos Sainz was sidelined by appendicitis, finished seventh and was voted Driver of the Day. “Today he’s been incredible,” said Leclerc of his temporary teammate. “It’s hugely impressive and I’m sure he’s extremely proud. Everybody has noticed how talented he is and I’m sure it’s just a matter of time before he’s in F1.” Oscar Piastri finished fourth for McLaren ahead of Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin, George Russell of Mercedes and Bearman, with two more Britons, Lando Norris and seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton, taking eighth and ninth for McLaren and Mercedes, with Nico Hulkenberg taking the final point for Haas. Verstappen, Leclerc and Alonso in action with drivers at the start of the race [Hamad I Mohammed/Reuters] ‘One of the more physical races’ After his ninth consecutive victory, Verstappen said it was “one of the more physical races, a tough one”. The safety car was deployed on lap seven after Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll hit the wall and then crashed into the barriers at turn 22. The Canadian walked away unhurt as all but four drivers, including Norris and Hamilton, dived into the pits. Norris, who was later cleared of a suspected jumped start off the grid, led when the new Aston Martin Vantage safety car returned to the pits on lap nine but Verstappen was back in front by lap 13 and pulling away. Perez was handed a five-second penalty for an unsafe release from his first pitstop and Haas’s Kevin Magnussen collected a 10-second penalty for causing a collision with Williams’ Alex Albon. The Dane was later handed another 10-second penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage but his main role was to create a sufficient gap behind Hulkenberg for the German to be able to pit and still finish with a precious point. Alpine’s Pierre Gasly was told to pit and park on the opening lap due to a suspected gearbox issue, becoming the first retirement of the season after all 20 cars finished the opener in Bahrain a week earlier. Adblock test (Why?)
Why can’t Nigeria stop the kidnapping of schoolchildren?
About 300 schoolchildren are missing after the latest mass kidnapping in Nigeria. It is every parent’s nightmare: the kidnapping of their children. It happens all too often in Nigeria. In the second mass abduction within a week, gunmen kidnapped what some reports say are about 300 school children. Many viewers may remember the Chibok schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram fighters 10 years ago. Kidnappings remain common – with thousands of Nigerians seized in the past few years. The government has promised to improve security, but the army is spread thin. So why are the attacks still happening? And what needs to be done to make them stop? Presenter: Hashem Ahelbarra Guests: Kemi Okenyodo – Founder and executive director, Partners West Africa Bulama Bukarti, Senior fellow, Tony Blair Institute for Global change Sadeeq Garba Shehu – Security and defence consultant Adblock test (Why?)
Trump says he met with Laken Riley’s family backstage before Georgia rally: ‘Profoundly honored’
Former President Donald Trump said he met with the family of Laken Riley backstage before speaking at a rally in Georgia on Saturday. “I met her beautiful mother and family backstage,” Trump told the crowd in Rome. “They said she was like the best. She was always the best to us. They admit that she was the best, and she was the first in her class. She was going to be the best nurse. She was the best nursing student. She was always the best. She was the brightest light in every room, they told me.” He added, “She was the whole world to her parents and to her sister and just to the whole family.” Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student in Georgia, was allegedly killed by a Venezuelan migrant in the country illegally while she was on a jog on Feb. 22. LAKEN RILEY’S MOTHER BLASTS BIDEN AS PATHETIC FOR GETTING DAUGHTER’S NAME WRONG DURING SOTU Trump laid the blame for Riley’s death on President Biden. “Biden has implemented a formal policy that illegal aliens who intrude into the United States are granted immunity from deportation,” Trump said. “Thus, when this monster showed up at our border, he was set free immediately under the program. That crooked Joe created it.” He added that they were “profoundly honored” to have Riley’s family and friends at the rally. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “They’re so incredible,” he continued. “The hearts of hundreds of thousands and indeed millions and millions of Americans and people worldwide, they’re shattered alongside of your beautiful hearts. We share your grief. We share your grief. Thank you, darling. Thank you. Thank you very much. We appreciate it.”
Biden interrupted by pro-Palestinian protester at Atlanta rally: ‘I don’t resent the passion’
President Biden was interrupted at an Atlanta rally on Saturday by a pro-Palestinian protester who called him “genocide Joe.” At the Pullman Yards rally in Georgia’s capital city, Biden was quickly interrupted shortly after he began his speech by a screaming protester. “What are you going to do, genocide Joe,” the protester yelled. “Tens of thousands of Palestinians are dead.” SOCIAL MEDIA ROILED AS BIDEN ADMITS TO OLD AGE IN BRAND NEW CAMPAIGN AD: ‘I’M NOT A YOUNG GUY’ Before Biden was able to deliver a response to the protester, rally-goers began chanting, “Four more years! Four more years!” TRUMP-BIDEN: THE GREAT GRUDGE REMATCH According to FOX 5, the protester was dragged out by Secret Service personnel. After the crowd settled down, Biden said that he does not “resent his passion.” “Look, I don’t resent his passion,” the president said about the protester. “There’s a lot of Palestinians who are being unfairly victimized.” The protesters’ comments come after Biden came out in support of a two-state solution in his State of the Union Address on Thursday. In his address, Biden asserted that “as we look to the future, the only real solution is a two-state solution.” “I say this as a lifelong supporter of Israel and the only American president to visit Israel in wartime,” he said. “There is no other path that guarantees Israel’s security and democracy. There is no other path that guarantees Palestinians can live with peace and dignity. There is no other path that guarantees peace between Israel and all of its Arab neighbors, including Saudi Arabia,” Biden said.
Federal court blocks Biden admin from diverting funds from border wall
A federal court on Friday temporarily blocked the Biden administration from diverting $1.4 billion in funding appropriated by Congress away from border wall construction, one of a number of legal battles between Texas and the federal government. The ruling stems from a January 2021 proclamation by President Joe Biden that terminated the Trump-era national emergency at the southern border, and ordered a pause on the construction of the border wall. The funds obligated to go to border wall funding in fiscal 2020 and 2021 appropriations were put on pause while agencies reviewed the matter. “It shall be the policy of my administration that no more American taxpayer dollars be diverted to construct a border wall. I am also directing a careful review of all resources appropriated or redirected to construct a southern border wall,” Biden said. MAYORKAS CITES ‘IMMEDIATE NEED’ TO WAIVE REGULATIONS, BUILD BORDER WALL IN TEXAS AS IMMIGRATION SURGES In June of the same year, the Department of Homeland Security issued a plan canceling most border wall projects and would in 2022 amend the same plan to include remediation and the addition of barrier system upgrades such as lighting, cameras and detection. Missouri and Texas sued, arguing that the reappropriation of funding was illegal and violated the separation of powers, also arguing also that the states will be harmed by more illegal immigration into their states and leading to more costs to them. Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush also sued, and the two lawsuits eventually consolidated. MAYORKAS CALLS POLICY TO LET 30K MIGRANTS FLY IN EACH MONTH A ‘KEY ELEMENT’ OF BORDER PLAN AFTER LEGAL WIN DHS argued that Texas had not established that the failure to build more wall would result in more illegal immigration, claiming that migration increases can be caused by social, economic and political factors.” U.S. District Judge Drew Tipton, a Trump appointee who had found in favor of the Biden administration in a separate case, ruled in favor of Texas and Missouri and put a temporary injunction on the redirecting of funds. “Texas has shown injury-in-fact through costs that it has incurred in administering driver’s licenses, education, and healthcare to a rising number of illegal aliens,” he wrote in his ruling. “Traceability is met because Texas has sufficiently demonstrated that the failure to build more physical barriers will reduce the number of apprehensions that otherwise would have occurred. And finally, this controversy is redressable because it is likely that a favorable judicial decision would reduce the financial harms that Texas otherwise would incur.” In a statement, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton accused Biden of acting improperly “by refusing to spend the money that Congress appropriated for border wall construction, and even attempting to redirect those funds.” “His actions demonstrate his desperation for open borders at any cost, but Texas has prevailed,” he said. Fox reached out to DHS and the White House for comment. HOUSE REPUBLICANS ZERO IN ON BORDER CHAOS WITH VIDEO SERIES ON ‘FACES OF BIDEN’S STATE OF THE UNION IN CRISIS’ The administration has consistently said it disapproves of border wall construction, although it has engaged in a number of wall-related projects. In October, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas waived regulations in order to go ahead with projects appropriated in FY 19 funding. “We have repeatedly asked Congress to rescind this money, but it has not done so and we are compelled to follow the law,” Mayorkas said. “This Administration believes that effective border security requires a smarter and more comprehensive approach, including state-of the-art border surveillance technology and modernized ports of entry. We need Congress to give us the funds to implement these proven tools.”
GOP effort to stop illegal immigrants being counted for House districts, Electoral College shot down in Senate
An effort by Senate Republicans to stop non-citizens, including illegal immigrants, from being counted on the census for the purposes of apportionment for House seats and the Electoral College was shot down later Friday after the measure failed to gain the support of a single Democrat. Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn., moved to include an amendment, attached to the $460 billion spending package, that would require the Census Bureau to include a citizenship question in any future census, and then bar anyone who isn’t a U.S. citizen from being counted for purposes of congressional district and Electoral College apportionment. While the bill would also exclude legal immigrants on temporary visas and green cards from the census, the move has been undertaken explicitly to stop illegal immigrants from being counted amid millions of new arrivals at the southern border. It’s similar to a Trump-era effort to include a citizenship question on the 2020 census. Trump’s effort sparked widespread criticism and condemnation from Democrats and left-wing immigration groups who argued that a citizenship question was unlawful and was designed to help Republicans in future elections. SEN HAGERTY SAYS DEMS ENGAGING IN ‘SHEER POWER GRAB’ BY TOLERATING BORDER ‘CARNAGE’ Hagerty told Fox News Digital last month that he believes that Democrats in “sanctuary” cities and elsewhere are accepting of the effects of the migrant surge because they are hoping to gain greater representation in the House of Representatives and Electoral College by redistricting. “They are seeing people leave their state. They’re seeing the potential of the next census to lose congressional districts and electoral votes. I think most people in America are shocked to find out that we count the presence of illegal immigrants in determining the allocation of congressional districts and electoral votes,” Hagerty said. “But if you think about the motives for the crime that’s taking place at our southern border, that is it. That’s what the Democrats are trying to do,” he said. “And it’s a sheer power grab. It’s cynical as hell, and it’s actually the most straightforward explanation of why they would tolerate this carnage and mayhem. It’s in order to retain and gain power.” Some conservative experts have warned about the potential of the migrant surge on House apportionment in particular. The Heritage Foundation’s Lora Ries published an essay alongside R.J. Hauman, the president of the National Immigration Center For Enforcement, warning that illegal immigration is triggering a “warped representation” in Congress. WHITE HOUSE CALLS FOR SANCTUARY CITIES TO COOPERATE WITH ICE AMID FUROR OVER ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT CRIMES “Barring the Census from including non-citizens in apportionment is critical in making sure that American citizens — the only population who can and should vote in U.S. elections — are picking America’s leaders,” Ries and Hauman wrote, warning that the crisis is “distorting the representation that states have in the House, and how many electoral votes they have in presidential elections.” However, Hagerty’s amendment failed after 51 Democrats and Independents voted against the measure or were not present. One Republican, Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, also voted against the measure. All other Republicans either voted for the measure or were not present. The vote was 51-45 against. The mostly united Republican support for the measure suggests that it could pass in the GOP-controlled House. In a statement, Hagerty said that the Democratic opposition “confirms that they’re using illegal aliens and sanctuary cities to increase their political power.” 7.2M ENTERED US UNDER BIDEN ADMIN, AN AMOUNT GREATER THAN POPULATION OF 36 STATES The vote comes as immigration remains a red redhot political issue. President Biden visited the southern border last week and on Thursday at the State of the Union renewed his appeals for Congress to pass a bipartisan border bill. “Look, folks, we have a simple choice: We can fight about fixing the border, or we can fix it. I’m ready to fix it. Send me the border bill now,” Biden said. The bill would increase staffing to the border and funding for cities and NGOs receiving migrants. It would also place a limit on border entries, but conservatives say the 5,000-a-day trigger would normalize already-excessive levels of illegal immigration. Fox News’ Thomas Catenacci contributed to this report.
DOJ opens probe into Alaska Airlines plane blowout: report
The Department of Justice (DOJ) is reportedly opening a probe into the Jan. 5 Alaska Airlines blowout, according to a new report from The Wall Street Journal. Investigators have reportedly contacted several passengers and crew members on the Jan. 5 flight, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing “documents and people familiar with the matter.” “In an event like this, it’s normal for the DOJ to be conducting an investigation. We are fully cooperating and do not believe we are a target of the investigation,” Alaska Airlines told Fox News Digital in an email statement. The article stated the probe would “inform the Justice Department’s review of whether Boeing complied with an earlier settlement that resolved a federal investigation” as a result of two fatal incidents involving Boeing 737 Max jets in 2018 and 2019. ALASKA AIRLINES INFLIGHT BLOWOUT COULD HAVE BEEN ‘MUCH DIFFERENT’ SCENARIO, NTSB WARNS The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rescinded its grounding order for Boeing’s 737 Max jet in November 2020 after a 20-month review after crashes in 2018 and 2019 killed 346 passengers. Investigators have reportedly begun notifying passengers on the Jan. 5 flight that they are potential crime victims in the case, according to a document viewed by The Wall Street Journal. Pilots and flight attendants on the plane have already been interviewed, according to the outlet. ALASKA AIRLINES PLANE WAS A ‘TIME BOMB,’ SAYS ATTORNEY OF PASSENGERS SUING BOEING, AIRLINE Fox News Digital has also reached out to the DOJ for an additional statement. A National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) report released last month found that four key bolts were missing from the door plug. “Overall, the observed damage patterns and absence of contact damage or deformation around holes associated with the vertical movement arrestor bolts and upper guide track bolts in the upper guide fittings, hinge fittings, and recovered aft lower hinge guide fitting indicate that the four bolts that prevent upward movement of the MED plug were missing before the MED plug moved upward off the stop pads,” the report states. FAMILY WHO LOST DAUGHTER IN BOEING CRASH URGES OTHERS TO AVOID AIRCRAFT: ‘FRAUD AND PROFITS OVER SAFETY’ Alaska Airlines flight 1282 made an emergency landing Jan. 5, shortly after taking off from Oregon’s Portland International Airport when a door plug blew off the jetliner as it was ascending for a trip to California. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The blowout prompted the FAA to ground similar Boeing 737 Max 9 jetliners for inspections. The grounding resulted in thousands of flight cancellations. Fox News’ Stephany Price and Audrey Conklin contributed to this report.