Speaker Johnson talks 2024 with Trump at Mar-a-Lago as Haley vows to stay in GOP primary
House Speaker Mike Johnson marked President’s Day by meeting with former President Trump about the 2024 election cycle at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, Fox News Digital has learned. It comes as Trump’s last major primary opponent, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, announced Tuesday that she was staying in the race despite losing every contest to Trump so far. “Speaker Johnson met with President Trump in Florida on Monday to discuss growing the majority and securing Republican victories up and down the ballot in November,” Johnson campaign spokesman Greg Steele told Fox News Digital. TRUMP BLASTS ‘CLUBHOUSE POLITICIAN’ JUDGE AFTER BEING FINED $350M, DEFENDS THE ‘GREAT COMPANY’ HE BUILT Attending the meeting with Johnson was Rep. Richard Hudson, R-N.C., chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), the House GOP’s campaign arm. They were in Florida for the House GOP leadership’s annual retreat. The NRCC did not respond to a request for the group’s own readout of the meeting. A Trump spokesperson also did not respond to a request for comment. House Republican leaders have made an unprecedented show of unity around Trump as he seeks the GOP nomination for president. Johnson released a video earlier this month calling on fellow Republicans to coalesce around Trump. TRUMP HOLDS LARGE DOUBLE-DIGIT LEAD OVER HALEY AHEAD OF CRUCIAL SHOWDOWN “Following victories in Iowa, New Hampshire, the US Virgin Islands, and Nevada, it is time for Republicans to unite behind President Trump, so we can focus on ending the disastrous Biden presidency and growing our majority in Congress,” he said in the short clip. “I am convinced he’s going to be the next president of the United States, and I am very much looking forward to that happening.” Johnson endorsed Trump for president in November last year, days after he won the speaker’s gavel. Hudson endorsed him in November 2022. In addition to being a call for unity, the speaker’s video also appears to be a veiled shot at Haley for staying in the race. LAST RIVAL STANDING: HALEY FACES BIG CHALLENGE IN HER HOME STATE AGAINST TRUMP The former South Carolina governor and Trump administration official was defiant during a speech in Greenville, South Carolina, on Tuesday, days before her home state’s primary election. “Some of you, perhaps a few of you here in the media, came here today to see if I’m dropping out of the race. Well, I’m not – far from it,” Haley said. “I’m running for president because we have a country to save.” Fox News Digital reached out to Haley’s campaign for comment on Trump’s meeting with Johnson and Hudson but did not immediately hear back.
Idaho files emergency motion asking Supreme Court to allow ban on transgender drugs, surgeries for minors
Idaho filed an emergency motion asking the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday to allow the state to enforce its ban on transgender procedures and medical intervention for minors. Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador, with the assistance of attorneys from Alliance Defending Freedom and Cooper & Kirk, asked the nation’s highest court to narrow a lower court’s order to cover only the two transgender teens and their families challenging the state’s ban. They asked the Supreme Court to allow Idaho to otherwise enforce its law to protect the roughly 2 million other minors in the state from what they deemed “harmful and experimental drugs and procedures.” Although the lawsuit by the transgender teens and their families, filed with the help of the American Civil Liberties Union, only challenged certain parts of the law known as the Vulnerable Child Protection Act, a lower court stopped Idaho from enforcing its entire law state-wide, prohibiting the state “from even protecting children under age five from drugs and surgeries that disfigure their bodies and stop their natural development,” Labrador’s office noted. “I’ve witnessed firsthand the devastating consequences of drugs and procedures used on children with gender dysphoria, and it’s a preventable tragedy,” Labrador said in a statement announcing the emergency motion Monday. “The state has a duty to protect and support all children and that’s why I’m proud to defend Idaho’s law that ensures children are not subjected to these life-altering drugs and procedures. Those suffering gender dysphoria deserve love, support, and medical care rooted in biological reality. Denying the basic truth that boys and girls are biologically different hurts our kids. No one has the right to harm children, and, thankfully, we as the state have the power – and duty – to protect them.” OHIO BANS ‘GENDER-AFFIRMING CARE’ FOR MINORS, RESTRICTS TRANSGENDER ATHLETES DESPITE GOP GOVERNOR VETO In the motion for a stay in Labrador v. Poe, the attorney general said the district court’s sweeping injunction “hamstrings Idaho’s ability to protect its citizens from well-recognized harms.” “Every day Idaho’s law remains enjoined exposes vulnerable children to risky and dangerous medical procedures and infringes Idaho’s sovereign power to enforce its democratically enacted law. These procedures have lifelong, irreversible consequences, with more and more minors voicing their regret for taking this path,” the motion said. “The Plaintiffs both want access to a single procedure, but the injunction applies to all 20+ procedures that the VCPA (the Vulnerable Children Protection Act) regulates,” the motion added. “The Plaintiffs are two minors and their parents, and the injunction covers 2 million.” Idaho Gov. Brad Little signed the Vulnerable Child Protection Act into law last April, making it a felony punishable by up to a decade in prison and $5,000 in fines for doctors and other health care providers to administer treatments including puberty blockers, hormones and surgeries to young people. The state attorney general’s office said the law would be, “protecting children from dangerous and often irreversible drugs and procedures that block natural development and remove healthy body parts.” IDAHO’S REPUBLICAN GOVERNOR SIGNS BILL TO MAKE IT A FELONY TO PROVIDE HORMONES, PUBERTY BLOCKERS TO MINORS Two transgender teens and their families sued the state, arguing the legislation violates the 14th Amendment’s guarantee of equal protection and “overrides medical decisions made by parents in consultation with their children’s doctors, about the care of their children.” ACLU of Idaho Executive Director Leo Morales said when the bill was signed into law that it is “discriminatory,” and “criminalizes safe, effective, and necessary healthcare for Idaho youth.” In December, U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill granted a preliminary injunction, blocking the law from taking effect on Jan. 1. Winwill cited the World Professional Association of Transgender Health and the Endocrine Society as having said such medication intervention “is safe, effective, and medically necessary for some adolescents,” The Hill reported. The Idaho Attorney General’s Office appealed to the Ninth Circuit Court in January, arguing that the law be allowed to take effect while the case proceeds, but the Ninth Circuit denied the request in two orders. A three-judge panel denied Labrador’s first request in just one sentence. Labrador asked for the full court to review the matter, but the same panel shot him down a second time. Idaho is now appealing to the Supreme Court.
Migrants caught on new video streaming down remote California mountainside to illegally cross the border
Stunning video recorded by Fox News showed what appeared to be a trail of illegal immigrants streaming down a mountainside into a rural area of Southern California. About an hour’s drive east of San Diego, anywhere from dozens to possibly over 100 migrants were captured on both Fox News ground and drone cameras tediously walking down a crevasse in the mountain range in Jacumba, California. To cross the border illegally, it appeared the migrants climbed the mountain from the Mexican side. A steady stream of illegal immigrants was then seen trekking to the bottom alongside Interstate 8 to be greeted by just two Border Patrol agents at the scene. Three men who made it down the mountain told Fox News they were from Kazakhstan. Fox News correspondent Bill Melugin said a larger group of Chinese migrants were also at the location, watching and filming on their iPhones the stream of other migrants coming down the mountainside. LARGE MAJORITY OF ILLEGAL BORDER CROSSINGS SHIFT TO ARIZONA AND CALIFORNIA, PIVOTING AWAY FROM TEXAS Fox News observed a mixture of adults and families with young children. An elderly woman was seen carrying a baby in her arms down the mountain. The scene was atypical, as migrants often take the path of least resistance – through holes in the border wall on the ground level not far from where he was in California. Along the interstate, cameras captured a makeshift camp of migrants from around the world – including Africa, China and Turkey – watching the other migrants climb down from the mountain. The two Border Patrol agents at the scene appeared to be outmanned. Not many U.S. Border Patrol agents were at the scene throughout the day to process the flow of migrants. Texas, under Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, has taken measures to deter migrants from crossing its border illegally, including by increasing the National Guard presence, erecting razor wire despite the disapproval of the Biden administration and kicking federal agents out of a park in Eagle Pass, known to be a hot spot for illegal crossings. Amid Texas’ unwelcoming posture to migrants, sources have told Fox News that more illegal immigration has shifted west to the border of the blue states of California and Arizona, where there is less resistance. IMMIGRANT FROM HONG KONG BECOMES FIRST NON-US CITIZEN APPOINTED TO SAN FRANCISCO ELECTION COMMISSION The San Diego border sector continues to be inundated with migrants from China and around the world. In recent months, cartels have begun pushing massive amounts of Chinese nationals across the border in the remote area of Jacumba. Sources also told Fox News Chinese national have been flying into Baja California Sur. Typically, Chinese nationals fly into South American countries with looser visa regulations and country hop until getting to Mexico, where they are granted humanitarian visas and allowed to travel throughout the country. Eventually, they board trains or buses to head north to the U.S. border. California became the first state in the country to start offering tax-payer-funded healthcare to illegal immigrants at the start of this year.
US vetoes another UN Security Council resolution urging Gaza war ceasefire
Majority of members voted to call for an immediate ceasefire in Israel’s war on Gaza that has killed more than 29,000 people. The United States has vetoed another United Nations Security Council draft resolution on Israel’s war on Gaza, blocking a demand for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Arab nations, led by Algeria, put the draft resolution to a vote on Tuesday with the expectation that it would not pass after the US – Israel’s key ally – had warned it would not back the text and proposed a rival draft instead. The US was the only country to vote against the draft text while the United Kingdom abstained. The UN Security Council’s 13 other member countries voted in favour of the text demanding a halt to the war that has killed more than 29,000 people in Gaza, according to Palestinian authorities, and displaced more than 80 percent of the population. For a UN Security Council resolution to be adopted, it requires at least nine votes in favour and no vetoes by any of the five permanent members: the US, UK, France, Russia or China. Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US ambassador to the UN, said her country was vetoing the resolution over concerns it would jeopardise talks between the US, Egypt, Israel and Qatar that seek to broker a pause in the war and the release of hostages held by Hamas. She rejected claims that the veto was a US effort to cover for an imminent Israeli ground invasion into the southernmost Gazan city of Rafah, where some 1.4 million displaced people are sheltering. In introducing the resolution on Tuesday, Amar Bendjama, Algeria’s ambassador to the UN, said the Council “cannot afford passivity” in the face of what is unfolding in Gaza, and that silence is “not a viable option”. “This resolution is a stance for truth and humanity, standing against the advocates for murder and hatred,” he said. “Voting against it implies an endorsement of the brutal violence and collective punishment inflicted upon them [the Palestinians].” Algeria, the current Arab member of the Security Council, put forward an initial draft resolution more than two weeks ago. The US said on Monday that it had proposed a rival draft resolution calling for a temporary ceasefire and opposing a major ground offensive by Israel in Rafah. Palestinians gather near the ruins of houses and buildings destroyed in Israeli strikes, in Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, in November 2023 [File: Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/Reuters] ‘Softening’ of language “The Algerian draft had been negotiated for weeks,” said Al Jazeera’s James Bays, reporting from the UN headquarters in New York. “So people were rather surprised that the US came up with its own draft.” Bays said the US draft had not yet been formally presented to Council members, and it was unclear if or when it would be put to a vote. However, he added that in the draft text, seen by Al Jazeera, “there is a softening of the US language … and for the first time the US is using that word ‘ceasefire’, [previously] controversial for the US”. Until now, Washington has been averse to the word “ceasefire” in any UN action on the war, but the draft resolution text echoes language that US President Joe Biden said he used last week in conversations with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The US draft resolution would see the Security Council “underscore its support for a temporary ceasefire in Gaza as soon as practicable, based on the formula of all hostages being released, and calls for lifting all barriers to the provision of humanitarian assistance at scale”. The US draft also warns Israel not to launch a ground offensive in Rafah, saying: “The Security Council should underscore that such a major ground offensive should not proceed, under the current circumstances.” The Algerian-drafted resolution, vetoed by the US, meanwhile called for an “immediate” humanitarian ceasefire, based on last month’s interim order by the International Court of Justice, which obliges Israel to take measures to prevent acts of genocide in the territory. It also separately demanded the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages. Washington traditionally shields Israel from UN action and has previously vetoed two other Security Council resolutions since the war began on October 7. Adblock test (Why?)
Why does an archipelago off the coast of Argentina belong to the UK?
The British foreign secretary arrived in the Falkland Islands on Monday to “reiterate the UK’s commitment to uphold the Islanders’ right of self-determination” in the face of Argentinian claims of sovereignty over the archipelago. Lord David Cameron, who was prime minister of the UK from 2010 to 2016 when he resigned following the Brexit referendum, is the first UK foreign secretary to visit the British Overseas Territory in the South Atlantic in 30 years. He was visiting ahead of his participation in the G20 Foreign Ministers meeting in Brazil on Wednesday. Cameron’s visit included a helicopter tour of the islands and the 1982 Falklands War battle sites. Despite being very nearly 13,000 kilometres (8,000 miles) from UK shores, with a population of only 3,200 people, the Falklands have occupied a weighty place in the British psyche ever since the islands became a 10-week battleground between British and Argentinian troops 42 years ago. Before his trip to the territory, Cameron made clear that British jurisdiction over the Falklands, the two major islands of which are East Falkland and West Falkland, is non-negotiable, “The Falkland Islands are a valued part of the British family, and we are clear that as long as they want to remain part of the family, the issue of sovereignty will not be up for discussion.” So why are the Falklands a British Overseas Territory and could they ever be handed over to Argentina? David Cameron, UK foreign secretary, right, on the opening day of the Munich Security Conference in Munich, Germany, on Friday, February 16, 2024, days before visiting the Falkland Islands where he stated that British sovereignty of the archipelago is ‘not up for discussion’ [Alex Kraus/Bloomberg via Getty Images] How did the Falklands become a British Overseas Territory? Several powers have laid claim to the islands since Englishman Captain John Strong made his landing there in 1690, naming the territory after his patron, Viscount Falkland. Over the centuries since then, the United Kingdom, Argentina, France and Spain have all established settlements on this nearly treeless group of islands where some one million penguins nest each summer. The UK has governed since 1833 and bases its claim to the islands on its longstanding presence there, as well as on the political will of the overwhelmingly pro-British islanders themselves. What is the basis of Argentina’s claim to the Falklands? Argentina has long disputed the UK’s right of sovereignty over the islands. The South American state maintains that it inherited the islands, known in Argentina as Las Malvinas, from the Spanish crown in the early 1800s, and that their close proximity to the Argentinian mainland is reason enough for its claim. Alasdair Pinkerton, associate professor in geopolitics at Royal Holloway, University of London, told Al Jazeera that Argentinian claims of sovereignty over the Falklands remain “deeply ingrained within Argentine politics and society, inculcated through the education system, street signage, banknotes and the Argentina constitution”. The dispute between Argentina and the UK reached a crisis point on April 2, 1982, when Argentina invaded the islands in a bid to take control of the archipelago. After a UK military task force was dispatched by then-British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher to win back the territory, 74 days of conflict ensued. The UK prevailed, but 655 Argentinian and 255 British servicemen were killed in the conflict. A sign for the Malvinas Argentinas stands in the Los Cardales National Park in Valles Calchaquies, Salta, Argentina on March 22, 2023 [Ricardo Ceppi/Getty Images] What do the islanders want? In a bid to push back against intensifying Argentinian claims over the territory, Falklanders went to the polls on March 10 and 11, 2013 to vote on the following question, “Do you wish the Falkland Islands to retain their current political status as an Overseas Territory of the United Kingdom?” More than 90 percent of those eligible to vote turned out. Out of the 1,517 votes cast, 1,513 voted in favour of remaining a British territory. But Alicia Castro, the then-Argentinian ambassador to London, dismissed the referendum as “a ploy that has no legal value”. “Negotiations are in the islanders’ best interests,” she told an Argentinian radio station following the result. “We don’t want to deny them their identity. They’re British, we respect their identity and their way of life and that they want to continue to be British. But the territory they occupy is not British.” Could there be another war over the Falklands? During a TV election debate last year, Argentina’s far-right populist President Javier Milei, elected in November 2023, dismissed any notion of a future war, “It is clear that the war option is not a solution. We had a war – that we lost – and now we have to make every effort to recover the islands through diplomatic channels.” However, Pinkerton said, “In reality, I suspect that Milei is not hugely motivated by the Falklands/Malvinas as an issue – it’s a distraction from his economic libertarian project – but feels the political need to perform an interest to assuage public demand.” But, while Pinkerton could not “envisage another 1982-style conflict any time in the foreseeable future” either, he added, “You can’t fully eliminate the possibility of some kind of confrontation if the conditions were right and there was a distinct trigger event, especially as the world becomes increasingly multipolar.” Pinkerton explained that issues such as the “growing challenge of overfishing” in the so-called Blue Hole – a disputed area of water close to the Falklands, and the uncertain future of the Antarctic Treaty’s Environmental Protocol when it comes up for review in 2048, “all bring challenges for diplomacy and security in the South Atlantic in coming decades”. 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‘Israel’s apartheid must end,’ South Africa says at ICJ hearing
The International Court of Justice will hear from 52 countries on the legality of Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories. South Africa told the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague that Israel is responsible for apartheid against the Palestinians and its occupation is “inherently and fundamentally illegal”. South African representatives opened the second day of hearings at the ICJ on Tuesday and spoke on a request by the United Nations General Assembly for a nonbinding advisory opinion on the legality of Israel’s policies in the occupied Palestinian territories. “We as South Africans sense, see, hear and feel to our core the inhumane discriminatory policies and practices of the Israeli regime as an even more extreme form of the apartheid that was institutionalised against Black people in my country,” said Vusimuzi Madonsela, South Africa’s ambassador to the Netherlands, where the ICJ is based. “It is clear that Israel’s illegal occupation is also being administered in breach of the crime of apartheid. … It is indistinguishable from settler colonialism. Israel’s apartheid must end,” Madonsela said. He added that South Africa had a “special obligation” to call out apartheid wherever it occurs and ensure it is “brought to an immediate end”. South Africa, which has a long history of support for the Palestinians and has compared their struggle with its history under an apartheid system, has launched a separate case at the ICJ accusing Israel of “‘genocide” in its bombardment of Gaza. More than 50 countries are to present arguments to the ICJ on the legal implications of Israel’s occupation. On Tuesday, representatives from Algeria, Saudi Arabia, the Netherlands, Bangladesh, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil and Chile presented their positions. The 15-judge panel has been asked to review Israel’s “occupation, settlement and annexation, … including measures aimed at altering the demographic composition, character and status of the Holy City of Jerusalem, and from its adoption of related discriminatory legislation and measures”. Israel has pushed on with building illegal settlements across the occupied West Bank, now home to more than 500,000 Jewish settlers and three million Palestinians. Israeli settlers have become increasingly more violent. Their actions have been condemned by world leaders, especially in the past few months, as Israel attacks Gaza. But South African representative Pieter Andreas Stemmet told the court that the settlements have extended the “temporary nature of the occupation into a permanent situation in violation of the Palestinian right to self-determination”. (Al Jazeera) On Monday, Palestinian representatives asked the UN’s highest court to declare the occupation illegal. They said such an advisory opinion could contribute to a two-state solution and lasting peace. Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki called on the court in an emotional speech to treat Palestinian children as children, adding that “the identity of the group to which we belong does not diminish the human rights to which we are all entitled”. Israel has declined to attend the hearings and said in a written statement that an advisory opinion would be harmful to achieving a negotiated settlement with the Palestinians – even as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeatedly rejects the idea of a Palestinian state. On Monday, Netanyahu said Israel does not recognise the legitimacy of discussions at the ICJ, calling the case “part of the Palestinian attempt to dictate the results of the political agreement without negotiations”. While judges are expected to take about six months to deliver an opinion in the case, political analyst Gideon Levy told Al Jazeera he’s “afraid” that the ICJ case will have little impact on Israeli policies but it “depends a lot on the international community”. “The only question is if the world will be able to move from recrimination and condemnation into actions,” he said. Adblock test (Why?)
Wisconsin lawmakers vote on tax cuts, veto powers and hunting fees in final session push
The Wisconsin Legislature was racing to finish its work for the session by voting Tuesday on everything from a massive tax cut to raising out-of-state hunting fees. The Assembly was also voting for the first time on a constitutional amendment that would curb the veto powers of Wisconsin’s governor, which are the broadest in the country. That proposal would ultimately need to be approved by voters statewide. The Senate was also expected to vote to reject one of Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ appointees to the Department of Natural Resources policy board. The moves come as the Assembly was planning to finish its work for the session on Thursday, with the Senate wrapping up next month. Lawmakers will then quickly turn to campaigning for the fall election under new maps Evers signed into law on Monday. WISCONSIN GOV. EVERS SIGNS NEW LEGISLATIVE MAPS INTO LAW AFTER REPUBLICANS PASS THEM The Senate was slated to give final approval to a package of bills that would cut taxes about $2 billion in the first year and $1.4 billion every year after that. Evers has not said whether he will sign the package, or veto it like he has other similar Republican-backed tax cut proposals. The centerpiece of the package is a measure that would expand the state’s second income tax bracket so more income would be subject to a lower rate. Currently, the second bracket covers individuals earning between $14,320 to $28,640 and married couples making between $19,090 to $38,190. Under the bill, earnings up to $112,500 for individuals and $150,000 for married couples would be subject to the 4.4% rate, down from 5.3% now. Other measures would increase the income tax credit for married couples, expand the state’s child care tax credit and increase the amount of retirees’ income exempt from the state income tax. The Senate was expected to reject the appointment of Todd Ambs to the state’s Natural Resources Board. Ambs was the only one of four Evers appointees rejected by a GOP-controlled Senate committee following a tense public hearing last year. All four appointees were forwarded by Evers after the Senate in September rejected four DNR board appointees. Ambs served as deputy secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources before retiring in December 2021. Ambs was questioned by GOP lawmakers at a December hearing about his online criticism of the Republican Party. Ambs said at that hearing that he would make “no apologies” for speaking out against former President Donald Trump. LAWMAKERS ADVANCE BILL REQUIRING UNIVERSITIES OF WISCONSIN TO ADMIT ALL TOP-PERFORMING HIGH SCHOOLERS The state Assembly was set to approve a bill that would raise bow and crossbow license fees for out-of-state deer hunters for the second time in less than a year in an attempt to shrink a gaping deficit in the state’s wildlife management account. The Republican-authored proposal would raise out-of-state fees for bow and crossbow licenses from $165 to $200, the current cost of a nonresident gun deer license. The $35 increase is projected to generate an additional $409,000 for the account annually, according to DNR estimates. The move comes as the state Department of Natural Resources looks for ways to shore up its fish and wildlife account. The fund covers a wide host of projects ranging from fish stocking and habitat restoration to paying farmers’ wolf depredation claims. The account was built with revenue from hunting and fishing license sales, timber sales and tribal gaming payments.
GOP Senate candidate in battleground state rails against vulnerable Dem incumbent: ‘Out of touch’
Ohio State Sen. Matt Dolan, who is running for Senate to try to unseat vulnerable Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, told Fox News Digital that he is the candidate best positioned to beat the longtime senator who he says has not represented the values of most Ohioans during his time in the Senate. “Last night I was in Cincinnati with a group, and it’s very clear we need to beat Sherrod Brown,” Dolan, who has served as a Republican state senator in Ohio since 2017, told Fox News Digital. “Sherrod Brown does not represent Ohio, and I think what they see in me is a conservative who’s gotten things done that have helped Ohio and can also put up my record against Sherrod Brown, who has a Washington record of just nothing but liberal agenda.” Dolan, who is running in a tight race in the GOP primary against businessman Bernie Moreno and Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, told Fox News Digital that Brown acts like he is “Mr. Ohio,” but champions issues that are out of step with Ohioans. “I only have to go back 12 months where he went on Meet the Press and said when he travels Ohio he doesn’t hear anybody talk about immigration or the border except for the far right,” Dolan said. “So two things with that. He is completely out of touch about how much the open border under the Biden and Brown agenda is really hurting Ohio. It’s hurting Ohio directly by killing some of our citizens with fentanyl. Human trafficking is up in the United States and it’s hurting us economically because we’re spending government dollars to take care of these illegals at the expense of helping United States citizens, and he doesn’t even want to acknowledge it.” VULNERABLE DEM SENATOR FLIP-FLOPS ON SUPPLYING ENERGY TO CHINA IN MIDDLE OF RE-ELECTION CAMPAIGN “Second, he’s doing what every politician does, both sides of the aisle, instead of tackling and taking ownership of the problem, he’s blaming other people. It’s always other people’s fault why something doesn’t get done and that’s why I’ve been laser focused. We have to secure and seal the border, stop people from coming in because we’re not going to change anything until we do that.” On the economy, Dolan explained that both President Biden and Brown want to “talk about how there’s improvement in numbers” but the reality on the ground is different when you travel across the Buckeye State. “People don’t feel secure,” Dolan said. “It’s $11,000 more per Ohio family since Biden took office and Brown’s doing nothing about it. Our interest rates, causing people not to buy homes, causing people not to build homes, and we need that to happen here, that we’re no longer energy independent in Ohio. That’s a big deal because we have the chance to be a leading state in energy independence.” Dolan added that Ohio has the potential for an “economic revolution,” but Biden and Brown have “shut it down.” OHIO DEMOCRAT EARMARKED A 6-FIGURE AMOUNT TO GROUP THAT PROMOTED ‘DRAG QUEEN SONG AND STORY TIME’ “They see Sherrod Brown and Joe Biden trying to expand the size of government and saying, ‘don’t worry, government will solve these problems,’ and people are sick of it, and they don’t feel secure. We got to change.” The Ohio Senate race is one of just a few states expected to be a toss-up in November, and the GOP primary field shows a close race as well, with several polls showing the three Republicans all within striking distance of each other. An Emerson College poll in late January showed Moreno, who is endorsed by former President Trump, at 22%, Larose at 21%, and Dolan with 15%. Over the past few weeks, the three Republicans have been making their case to voters on which of them is the most conservative in the race, including in heated exchanges on the debate stage. Dolan, who told Fox News Digital he has the most cash on hand and a strong ground game roughly a month from the primary on March 19, says he is in the “best position” as the most conservative candidate in the race who can then put up his record against Brown’s. OHIO GOP SENATE HOPEFUL MAKES CAMPAIGN TRAIL PITCH AS CANDIDATE DEMS ‘MOST AFRAID OF’ IN TIGHT RACE “Unlike my two opponents in the Republican primary, I can point to a conservative record of achievement,” Dolan said. “These aren’t my words. My budgets are called the most conservative budgets in Ohio history, yet we get Democrats to vote for it because we understand that the conservative agenda helps all Ohioans and that’s the message I can take.” Dolan continued, “Let’s face it, Sherrod Brown only wins 16 counties. That’s it. And I can do very well in those counties. Let’s take one, Cuyahoga County, Sherrod Brown got 72.5% of the vote. In that same county, I outperformed President Trump by 11 points, which means I’m the guy that can enact The Trump agenda, the policies that we all know will help America, will help Ohio, and I can appeal to those independents and say, ‘look, put us in charge and we will put an agenda together that helps you.’” In a statement to Fox News Digital, Friends of Sherrod Brown spokesperson Reeves Oyster said, “Sherrod is leading the fight with Republicans and Democrats to stop the flow of fentanyl across the southern border, and his bill targeting the chemical suppliers in China and the drug cartels in Mexico was a part of the border security bill backed by border patrol agents.” “While Sherrod is working to secure our southern border, protect Ohioans, and stand with law enforcement – his opponents are nowhere to be found.”
Who is Arthur Engoron, the judge who ordered Trump to pay $350M in NY civil fraud case?
New York Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron, who presided over former President Trump’s contentious civil fraud trial, is a longtime judge who once pursued a career in music, drove a yellow taxi and still authors an alumni newsletter about his high school. Engoron was born in Queens, New York, in the late 1940s before his family moved to Long Island, where he attended The Wheatley School, a public high school in Old Westbury, New York. Engoron was active at the school, running track and contributing to the school newspaper before graduating from the school in 1967. Years after his graduation, Engoron founded the Wheatley Alumni Association and still authors the group’s online newsletter. Engoron published the most recent newsletter entry on Monday, boasting of increased traffic on the blog, listing the compliments the newsletter had received and detailing life updates of past Wheatley graduates. “Please send me your autobiography before someone else sends me your obituary,” he concluded, as he does in every post before signing off as “Art.” TRUMP BLASTS ‘CLUBHOUSE POLITICIAN’ JUDGE AFTER BEING FINED $350M, DEFENDS THE ‘GREAT COMPANY’ HE BUILT After high school, he attended Columbia University in Manhattan and even drove a yellow taxi cab while pursuing his undergraduate degree. While hearing a case in 2012 related to New York City taxi cabs, Engoron stated he loved his time as a cab driver because he learned “how to drive like a maniac without being caught,” according to ABC News. Years later, he attended the New York University School of Law, graduating in 1979. Immediately after receiving his law degree, he joined the law firm Olwine, Connelly, Chase, O’Donnell & Weyher as an associate, crossing paths with the late Judith Kaye, who served as chief judge of the State of New York Court of Appeals. Engoron departed the firm to join another firm, Pryor, Cashman, Sherman & Flynn, as an associate in 1981. TRUMP VISITS MANHATTAN COURT TO BLAST NYAG CASE, PRAISES APPELLATE RULING IN HIS FAVOR Engoron, though, left that firm in 1983 to pursue a career in the music industry, ABC News reported. For years, he worked as a musical instructor. “I have had a lot of lawyers who got to another firm, but he’s the only one who told me he was leaving to pursue music,” James Janowitz, a partner at Pryor, Cashman, Sherman & Flynn, told ABC News last year. He ultimately returned to the law profession when, in 1991, he became a principal law clerk for New York Supreme Court Justice Martin Schoenfield. He remained in that position for 11 years. In 2003, Engoron became a judge on the New York City Civil Court and, a decade later, he was appointed to be an acting justice of the state’s trial court. In 2015, he ran unopposed for a permanent spot on the court. According to his official New York court biography, Engoron remains a member of the New York County Lawyers Association, the American Civil Liberties Union, Brehon Law Society, Columbia College and NYU Law Alumni Associations, Jewish Lawyers Guild and New York Women’s Bar Association. TRUMP’S GAG ORDER CHALLENGE IN NEW YORK AG LETITIA JAMES’ CIVIL SUIT REJECTED Meanwhile, last week, in his most high-profile case, Engoron barred Trump from operating his business in New York for three years and ordered the former president to pay $355 million in damages. The case was initiated after Democratic New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit alleging Trump inflated his assets and committed fraud. In a 92-page decision, Engoron ruled that Trump and the defendants were liable for “persistent and repeated fraud,” “falsifying business records,” “issuing false financial statements,” “conspiracy to falsify false financial statements,” “insurance fraud,” and “conspiracy to commit insurance fraud.” Engoron took time in the ruling to criticize Trump and his participation in the trial, stating that he “rarely responded to the questions asked, and he frequently interjected long, irrelevant speeches on issues far beyond the scope of the trial.” ERIC TRUMP CONDEMNS NY ‘SET-UP’: MY FATHER BUILT NYC SKYLINE AND THIS IS HIS THANKS “His refusal to answer the questions directly, or in some cases, at all, severely compromised his credibility,” Engoron wrote. Over the course of the trial late last year, Trump and his allies repeatedly criticized Engoron — who throughout his career has exclusively donated to Democrats — over his handling of the case. “We shouldn’t be having a case here because we have a disclaimer clause that every court holds up except this judge,” Trump said in November. “They’re trying to hurt me — especially her, for political reasons,” Trump added in reference to James. CLICK TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Additionally, House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., filed an ethics complaint against Engoron in November, alleging he had exhibited “inappropriate bias and judicial intemperance” in the case. Fox News Digital’s Brooke Singman and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
US vetos UN resolution calling for Gaza cease-fire as Biden admin pushes 6-week pause
The U.S. vetoed a United Nations resolution calling for a cease-fire in Gaza on Monday, as President Biden’s administration pushes an alternate plan for a six-week pause in fighting. The U.S. was the only nation to vote against the resolution, with 13 other countries voting in favor. The United Kingdom was the sole abstention. In addition to a cease-fire, Monday’s measure would have mandated the unhindered flow of aid into Gaza, as well as banning the forced relocation of Palestinians living in the region. “Signs of hope are still absent for improvement of the situation in Gaza,” said the Algerian ambassador who introduced the resolution. “Now is the time for action and the time for truth. [Members] bare the responsibility of voting for measures that uphold international peace and responsibility.” The ambassador went on to argue that voting for the resolution was a stand “against the advocates of murder and hatred,” while a vote against it implies, “an endorsement of the brutal violence and collective punishment inflicted upon [Palestinians].” UN, HUMAN RIGHTS, MEDIA GROUPS RELY ON HAMAS DEATH TOLL IN ‘SYSTEMATIC DECEPTION’: EXPERT Prior to the vote, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield issued a brief statement explaining why the U.S. opposed the move. “Demanding an immediate unconditional cease-fire without an agreement requiring Hamas to release the hostages will not bring about a durable peace. Instead, it could extend the fighting between Hamas and Israel, extend the experience of hostages in captivity,” she said. BIDEN ADMIN CONTINUES PUSH FOR 2-STATE SOLUTION AS CRITICS WARN: ‘EFFORTS REPEATEDLY FAIL’ “While numerous parties engage in sensitive negotiations, this is not the time for this resolution, which jeopardizes these efforts,” she added. Thomas-Greenfield also addressed the potential Israeli invasion of Rafah, saying a competing U.S. resolution called on Israel not to move forward with the operation. IDF VIDEO REVEALS TUNNEL USED TO HIDE HAMAS MEMBERS, HOSTAGES IN TERRORIST GROUP’S STRONGHOLD On Friday, President Biden made clear his feelings about Israel going into Rafah, telling reporters, “I’m hoping that the Israelis will not make a massive land invasion.” Biden added during the same press conference that he had engaged with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the situation and that he had made the case in calling for a temporary cease-fire so that hostage negotiations can continue. Fox News’ Benjamin Weinthal contributed to this report.