Secretary Austin to be released from hospital after treatment for bladder issue
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is expected to be released from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center later Tuesday after undergoing treatment for a bladder issue, according to the Pentagon. Austin, 70, had been having ongoing health issues since undergoing surgery in December to treat prostate cancer. He was taken back to Walter Reed over the weekend for a bladder issue and admitted to intensive care for the second time since the surgery. Austin underwent nonsurgical procedures Monday under general anesthesia to address the bladder issue, and his doctors had said they did not anticipate he would be in the hospital this time for a prolonged period. Austin was hospitalized for two weeks at Walter Reed last month after he experienced complications from the surgery. WHITE HOUSE PROMOTES KIRBY TO EXPANDED ROLE TO COORDINATE NATIONAL SECURITY COMMUNICATIONS Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said Tuesday the bladder issue was not related to Austin’s prostate cancer, but wouldn’t say whether it was a further complication from his December surgery. Austin is expected to resume his normal duties after returning from the hospital. He will host a virtual meeting on Wednesday of about 50 countries that meet monthly to coordinate military aid for Ukraine. The Defense Secretary had been scheduled to travel to Brussels on Tuesday for the Ukraine meeting, followed by a quarterly meeting with NATO defense ministers later this week. The U.S. ambassador to NATO, Julie Smith, will represent Austin at that meeting instead.
Biden’s tweet touting economic gains haunt him as Wall Street sees sharp declines Tuesday
The stock market skidded Tuesday toward its worst loss in nearly a year after a disappointing report on inflation, days after President Biden appeared optimistic about the economy. On Saturday, Biden tweeted the “good news” to start the weekend, saying: “The stock market going strong is a sign of confidence in America’s economy.” The S&P 500 was down 1.9% in late trading as traders delayed their forecasts for when the Federal Reserve will deliver the cuts to interest rates they crave so much. BIDEN LASHES OUT AT REPORTERS ASKING ABOUT AGE CONCERNS AFTER SPECIAL COUNSEL REPORT The hotter-than-expected inflation report may have put the final nail into hopes that the first cut could arrive in March. It also pushed many forecasts past May into June, according to data from CME Group. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 731 points, or 1.9%, from its record set a day earlier. The Nasdaq composite, which has been flirting with its all-time high set in 2021, was down 2.2%, with an hour remaining in trading. Despite the grim news on Wall Street, Biden said the economy was in a full-swing recovery. “Today’s data shows that wage growth has been the strongest of any economic recovery in 50 years – and inflation declined two thirds from its peak,” he posted on X. “I’ll continue to fight to lower costs for middle class families and stand in the way of Congressional Republicans who disagree.” The Associated Press contributed to this report.
California Dem Katie Porter says age limits ‘for all elected officials’ should be discussed at Senate debate
California Democratic Senate candidate Rep. Katie Porter said age limits “for all elected officials” should be on the table at a debate Monday night. “I do think generally that age limits are a conversation for all elected officials that we ought to be having,” Porter said at the KRON-TV debate in San Francisco. She gave that answer to a question about whether President Biden, 81, and former President Trump, 77, are “too old” to run for office. “Californians are wondering about this. I think that’s a conversation we ought to be open to. I think we need a mix of people who’ve had years of experience and people like me, who’ve only been in Congress for five years. But I think we have to have that conversation,” Porter said. The advanced ages of the incumbent president and the GOP 2024 frontrunner were thrust into the spotlight last week by the release of Special Counsel Robert Hur’s report on Biden’s handling of classified documents. WHITE HOUSE SAYS IT WAS BIDEN’S IDEA TO HOLD PRESS CONFERENCE AFTER RELEASE OF SPECIAL COUNSEL’S REPORT Hur concluded that criminal charges should not be filed against Biden, partly because a potential jury would find him to be “a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.” “Based on our direct interactions with and observations of him, he is someone from whom many jurors will want to identify reasonable doubt. It would be difficult to convince a jury that they should convict him – by then a former president well into his eighties – of a serious felony that requires a mental state of willfulness,” the report said. Hur’s description of Biden’s faulty memory prompted fierce pushback from the White House, which called those comments “gratuitous” and “inappropriate,” as well as from Biden himself. “I’m well-meaning, and I’m an elderly man and I know what the hell I’m doing,” Biden seethed to reporters at a late night press conference last week following a short address on the report. “I’ve been president and I put this country back on its feet. I don’t need his recommendation.” NANCY PELOSI SAYS BIDEN’S AGE IS AN ‘OBJECTIVE FACT,’ ARGUES IT’S ‘ALL RELATIVE’: ‘HE’S YOUNGER THAN I AM’ But at the same press conference, Biden appeared to forget where his late son Beau got the rosary the president said he wears every day. Biden also referred to Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, the president of Egypt, as “the president of Mexico.” Media outlets labeled the press conference a disaster for the president, who has combated questions about his age since assuming office in 2020 as the oldest man to win the White House in American history. Were he to win re-election, Biden would be about 86 years old at the completion of his second term. HOUSE GOP GUNNING FOR TESTIMONY FROM BIDEN SPECIAL COUNSEL ROBERT HUR, SOURCES SAY The age question is of particular significance in the California Senate election as the four candidates (three Democrats and one Republican) vie for the seat previously held by the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. Feinstein was 90 and still in office when she died last September. The longtime senator had suffered from extensive health issues for more than a year before her death, leading many to wonder about her ability to represent California in the Senate. Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed Sen. Laphonza Butler, D-Calif., to serve as interim senator until the 2024 election. Butler declined to run for election to a full term. The other candidates to appear on stage with Porter were frontrunner Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., and Republican political newcomer Steve Garvey, a legendary MLB player for the Dodgers.
Senate’s $95 billion foreign aid bill heads for House Republican buzz saw
Senate Democrats are celebrating a hard-fought win on Tuesday after passing a $95 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan that President Biden had requested for months, but House GOP leaders are signaling that the victory could be short-lived. “Right now, the Senate is the birthplace of poor policy. The lack of serious border security measures in this foreign aid package shows how disconnected this bill is from reality,” Republican Policy Committee Chairman Gary Palmer, R-Ala., the No. 5 House Republican, told Fox News Digital. “The Senate has ignored the House of Representatives and the will of the American people this entire Congress. The American people… want the southern border secure.” Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., meanwhile, warned that the House would not simply “rubber stamp” whatever Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., presented and said any aid package “must secure our own borders” as well. “Americans elected our majority with a mandate to get Biden’s border crisis under control, and we will not abandon that directive to rubber stamp a foreign aid package that the Schumer Senate rammed through overnight,” Emmer told Fox News Digital. PENTAGON RUNS OUT OF MONEY FOR UKRAINE, URGES 50 ALLIES TO CONTINUE SUPPORTING KYIV Twenty-two Senate Republicans joined all but three leftist lawmakers to pass the supplemental aid bill after debating it through the night. But even before it passed early on Tuesday morning, Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., signaled it may not even get a vote in his chamber. “The mandate of national security supplemental legislation was to secure America’s own border before sending additional foreign aid around the world. It is what the American people demand and deserve,” Johnson said in a Monday night statement. “Now, in the absence of having received any single border policy change from the Senate, the House will have to continue to work its own will on these important matters.” U.S. NATIONAL DEBT TRACKER: SEE WHAT AMERICAN TAXPAYERS (YOU) OWE IN REAL TIME A source close to Johnson confirmed to Fox News Digital the speaker does not intend to put the package up for a vote in the House, at least “not in its current form.” Meanwhile, the GOP senators leading opposition to the bill already began re-calibrating their focus on pressuring the House not to act even before it passed the Senate. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., spoke on X Spaces on Monday evening with X owner Elon Musk, former 2024 presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, and fellow supplemental aid critic Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, where Johnson conceded the package was likely to pass. “We can get to the House, get them to stop this,” he added. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, responded to Johnson’s statement on the bill with his own brief reaction, “This is good. We gotta hold the line.” The Senate bill came together quickly after an earlier version, a $118 billion aid package that also included border and immigration reforms, fell apart despite months of sensitive bipartisan negotiations. SENATE REPUBLICANS PREPARE FOR LONG HAUL IN FIGHT OVER UKRAINE, ISRAEL AID Republicans in the House and Senate had closed ranks and demanded the Biden administration do something about the border crisis before they could support aid to Ukraine, which has become an increasingly polarizing issue within the GOP. But key Republican leaders lambasted the deal soon after it came out, claiming it did not go far enough to stop the flow of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border. Johnson led House Republicans in insisting that only an executive order by President Biden could fix the crisis. Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, urged Johnson to let the House vote on the Senate’s bill in his own statement Tuesday. He also accused Republicans of kowtowing to former President Donald Trump, who had publicly urged them to oppose the Senate’s bipartisan deal. “The House may never consider this critical bill because Speaker Johnson and other Republicans, many of whom claim to support our allies, live in fear of Donald Trump and his MAGA acolytes, a group that openly celebrates Putin and roots for Russia,” Himes said. “Speaker Johnson, I was with you in the White House, one day after taking the gavel, when you said we would pass an aid package for our allies. If your words mean anything, let the House vote.”
Fox News Politics: Dems’ age-old question
Welcome to Fox News’ Politics newsletter with the latest political news from Washington D.C. and updates from the 2024 campaign trail. What’s Happening? – Ex-Hunter Biden associate testifies to House panel – House prepares to vote on Biden border chief impeachment – New York’s 3rd district voting on a replacement for ex-Rep George Santos Democrats have overwhelmingly backed President Biden’s 2024 re-election. But the damaging report released last week by Special Counsel Robert Hur has breathed new life into the belief that the party will ultimately replace him as nominee ahead of the 2024 general election. Here are five of the top names being mentioned as a potential replacement for Biden should he decide — or is pressured — not to run for a second term: 1. California Gov. Gavin Newsom Democrat strategists and members of the media continually mention him as a future presidential hopeful, but that future could come sooner rather than later should Biden’s plans change. 2. Vice President Harris Harris’ presidential ambitions have been known since her first unsuccessful run for the White House in 2020, when she failed to gain support over her Democrat primary opponents, including Biden. Despite her low approval rating and frequent gaffes as vice president, she continues to insist she’s “ready to serve” as commander in chief, if necessary. 3. Former first lady Michelle Obama Obama has been one of the more surprising names floated as a potential replacement for Biden, considering her lack of political experience. But she remains popular to Democrats, and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy keeps floating the possibility. 4. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer Despite declining a run for the White House, Whitmer appeared to leave the door open for a future presidential run after her convincing re-election win during the 2022 midterm elections, a year that was expected to be a difficult one for Democrats. 5. Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear Beshear has been seen as a rising star within the party given his status as one of the most popular governors in the country, despite being a Democrat leading a red state. That status grew following a big re-election win last year over then-Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, who was considered a rising GOP star. ‘ENABLER’ BIDEN: Joe Biden ‘enabled’ family to sell access to ‘dangerous adversaries,’ key witness tells House panel …Read more WITH THE BANNED: Biden campaign gains thousands of TikTok users in first day, despite him restricting app use over security issues …Read more BIDEN’S PLAN: White House says it was Biden’s idea to hold press conference after release of special counsel’s report …Read more ROUND TWO: House to hold second impeachment vote for Biden border chief …Read more EYES ON HUR: Jim Jordan eyes testimony from Biden Special Counsel Robert Hur: Sources …Read more ‘BIASED INVESTIGATION’: Elise Stefanik calls for Trump NY AG James to be disbarred over handling of Trump trial …Read more AGE-OLD QUESTION: Jon Stewart mocks Biden TikTok video that made president ‘end up looking older’ …Read more CHILLING DEMOCRACY: New York voters brave winter storms to vote for ex-Rep. Santos’ replacement …Read more LAKE EFFECT: Kari Lake earns key endorsement in crucial Senate battleground race …Read more ‘AGGRESSIVE’: GOP Rep Zinke alleges husband of primary opponent punched a staff member …Read more ‘POLITICAL GAME’: Vulnerable House Dem backpedals after refusing to condemn antisemitic phrase …Read more ‘ECONOMIES WILL SUFFER’: Mayors want work permits extended to keep migrants employed, receive new asylum seekers …Read more SPECIAL COUNSEL ON THE CLOCK: Supreme Court gives Jack Smith a deadline to respond to Trump’s attempt to delay trial until after election …Read more ‘SPECIAL TREATMENT’: New polls shows majority of Americans believe Biden got off easy in special counsel probe …Read more Subscribe now to get Fox News Politics newsletter in your inbox. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more on FoxNews.com.
State attorney general officially calls on Kamala Harris to invoke 25th Amendment, remove Biden from office
FIRST ON FOX: Republican West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey is officially calling on Vice President Kamala Harris to invoke the 25th Amendment and seek to remove President Biden from office. In a Tuesday letter to Harris, Morrisey cites the release of Special Counsel Robert Hur’s report last week that detailed numerous memory lapses by Biden, as well as other frequent gaffes he has committed during his time in office, as reason for such drastic constitutional action to be taken. “For too long, Americans have had to stand by and watch as their President has experienced a profound cognitive decline. Over the last few months alone, President Biden has mixed up world leaders and political figures, strained to address basic issues in public speeches, and wandered out of events in a disoriented state,” Morrisey wrote in the letter. MEET 5 DEMOCRATS WHO HAVE BEEN FLOATED AS POSSIBLE BIDEN REPLACEMENTS “These serious mental missteps have equally serious consequences,” he added before detailing multiple instances in which Biden’s advanced age and cognitive decline appeared to surface in his interactions with foreign leaders. Those gaffes included when Biden appeared to fall asleep during the COP26 climate change conference in 2021, and when he was forced to clarify the U.S.’s “One China” policy after committing to defend Taiwan militarily should it be attacked. “I am writing to urge you to invoke your powers under Section 4 of the Twenty-Fifth Amendment and declare that President Biden is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office,” Morrisey added. GOP SENATOR FUMES OVER BIDEN ADMIN PROVIDING VETERAN MEDICAL RESOURCES TO ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House and Harris’ office for comment. Hur’s damaging report, stemming from the investigation into Biden’s mishandling of classified documents, said the president would face no charges partly because his defense would possibly be that, “Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.” The report cited examples when investigators said the president’s memory lapsed, including over when his older son Beau had died, and caused a heightened level of concern among Democrats who previously backed the president despite Republican attacks on his ability to serve. Other elected officials have also called for the 25th Amendment to be invoked following the release of the Hur report, including Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., Rep. Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., and Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, R-Pa.
Journalists seriously injured in Israeli drone strike in Rafah
NewsFeed An Israeli drone strike has targeted two journalists in Muraj, north of Rafah, including Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent, Ismail Abu Omar who doctors say is in a critical condition. Published On 13 Feb 202413 Feb 2024 Adblock test (Why?)
South Africa urges ICJ to consider action on Israel’s planned Rafah assault
World Court asked to order additional emergency measures ahead of an assault on Gaza city crammed with displaced people. South Africa says it has asked the World Court to consider whether Israel’s plan to extend its offensive in the Gaza Strip into the densely populated southern city of Rafah requires additional emergency measures to protect Palestinians. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) last month ordered Israel to take all measures within its power to prevent its troops from committing genocide against Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip in a case brought by South Africa. Israel has denied all allegations of genocide in connection with its assault on Gaza and asked the court to reject the case outright, saying it respects international law and has a right to defend itself against Hamas, the group that governs Gaza. The South African Government has made an urgent request to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to consider whether the decision announced by Israel to extend its military operations in Rafah, which is the last refuge for surviving people in Gaza, requires that the court uses… — #SONA2024 | Presidency 🇿🇦 (@PresidencyZA) February 13, 2024 Israel said it is planning to expand its ground assault into Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians have sought refuge from the offensive that has laid waste to much of the enclave since Hamas fighters attacked Israel on October 7. “In a request submitted to the court yesterday [Monday], the South African government said it was gravely concerned that the unprecedented military offensive against Rafah, as announced by the State of Israel, has already led to and will result in further large-scale killing, harm and destruction,” a statement issued by South Africa’s presidency said. “This would be in serious and irreparable breach both of the Genocide Convention and of the Court’s Order of January 26.” There was no immediate comment from The Hague-based ICJ. In past cases, the ICJ has sometimes granted additional emergency measures when circumstances on the ground had changed. ‘Additional measures’ The court has not yet ruled on the core of the case brought by South Africa – whether genocide has occurred in Gaza. But it recognised the right of Palestinians in Gaza to be protected from acts of genocide. The court also ordered Israel to allow in much-needed humanitarian aid, including fuel. Al Jazeera’s Fahmida Miller, reporting from Johannesburg, said there has always been questions about whether the original order by the ICJ would be followed. “While the order was given, there’s always been concern around monitoring and implementation and if Israel would pull back, which we haven’t seen yet,” Miller said. “South Africa is saying Israel is already in breach of the order, which was given several weeks ago, and … wants the court to put in place additional measures,” she added. “South Africa is asking for a declaration that would ultimately protect Palestinian lives.” The day South Africa filed its request, Israeli forces attacked 14 houses and three mosques in Rafah, killing dozens of people and prompting hundreds of displaced families to flee. On Tuesday, Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent Ismail Abu Omar and photojournalist Ahmed Matar were wounded in an Israeli drone attack in the Miraj area, north of Rafah. The area had been designated a “safe zone” by the Israeli military, causing Palestinians from across Gaza to flee there. Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has killed at least 28,473 people, more than 70 percent of them women and children, according to Palestinian health officials. About 80 percent of the population has been displaced, and a humanitarian catastrophe has pushed more than a quarter of the population towards starvation. Adblock test (Why?)
Hezbollah chief says only Gaza ceasefire will end Lebanon border attacks
Cross-border shelling into Israel will only end when Israel’s ‘aggression’ on Gaza stops, Hassan Nasrallah says. Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah has said that his armed group’s cross-border shelling into Israel would only end when Israel’s “aggression” on the Gaza Strip stops, saying diplomatic efforts so far to bring a halt to hostilities along Lebanon’s border seemed to only benefit Israel. The Lebanese armed group has been trading fire with the Israeli military across Lebanon’s southern border in support of its Palestinian ally Hamas, which launched a cross-border assault from the Gaza Strip into Israel on October 7 that met heavy Israeli bombardment by land, air and sea. Nasrallah said on Tuesday his group would only stop its exchanges of fire if a full ceasefire was reached for Gaza. “On that day, when the shooting stops in Gaza, we will stop the shooting in the south,” he said in a televised address. There are growing fears of another full-blown conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, with tens of thousands displaced on both sides of the border and regional tensions soaring. Late last month, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said Israeli troops would “very soon go into action” near the country’s northern border with Lebanon. Recent weeks have seen a flurry of diplomatic activity in Beirut, with foreign ministers including from Germany, France and the United Kingdom visiting in efforts to dial down tensions. Nasrallah said many foreign “delegations” had travelled to Beirut with “proposals” to end hostilities in southern Lebanon, but said they only seemed to “have one goal, which is: the security of Israel, the protection of Israel”. France’s foreign minister delivered a written proposal to Beirut that calls for fighters including Hezbollah’s elite Radwan unit to withdraw 10km (six miles) from the border, among other measures, the Reuters news agency reported, citing a document. Without specifying the French proposal, Nasrallah said one delegation had “presented a paper as a mediator”. “You read the paper – there’s nothing. There’s Israel’s security,” he said. “Let nobody think Lebanon is weak and afraid, or that they can impose conditions” including over the withdrawal of Hezbollah fighters, Nasrallah said. He added that if Israel widened the war further in Lebanon, his group would do the same. He warned that if Israel decided to wage war on Lebanon, those displaced from northern Israel “will not return” and Israeli officials should “prepare shelters, hotels, schools and tents for two million people” who would be displaced. Last week, Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz warned that “time is running out” to reach a diplomatic solution in southern Lebanon. “Israel will act militarily to return the evacuated citizens” to its northern border area if no diplomatic solution is reached, he said. The cross-border shelling has killed about 200 people in Lebanon, including more than 170 Hezbollah fighters, as well as 10 Israeli troops and five Israeli civilians. Adblock test (Why?)
Colorado Democrats push to allow non-residents access to medically assisted suicide
Democratic lawmakers in Colorado have introduced legislation that would allow non-residents to access medically assisted suicide. The legislation, titled “Medical Aid-in-Dying,” would also dramatically reduce other barriers to accessing assisted suicide. The bill’s sponsor in the state Senate, Democratic Sen. Joann Ginal, has objected to the use of the term “suicide” in association with the bill, however. “This is an option for a person to be able to have a choice in how they leave this world,” Ginal told Colorado Politics. “This is not suicide. We’ve worked very hard to make sure that this is an option for people who are terminally ill and want to go out on their terms in their way. If they want that choice, it should be there.” In addition to allowing out-of-state access, the bill would allow advanced practice registered nurses to prescribe medication for assisted suicide, rather than just physicians. CANADA OFFERED ASSISTED SUICIDE TO A PARALYMPIAN VETERAN WHO WANTED A WHEELCHAIR LIFT INSTALLED: REPORT In its current form, the bill also reduces the mandatory waiting period for administering assisted suicide from 15 days to just 48 hours. Ginal said in late January that she planned to amend the bill to a seven-day waiting period, but the legislation has yet to see that adjustment. TOP MASSACHUSETTS COURT RULES AGAINST OVERTURNING LAW PROHIBITING PHYSICAN-ASSISTED SUICIDE The Colorado Catholic Conference condemned the bill for promoting a “culture of death” in a statement to Colorado Politics. “Physician assisted suicide targets the most vulnerable in our society, corrupts the medical practice and distorts the patient-doctor relationship by violating a doctor’s commitment to the health of his patients,” the group argued. Physician-assisted suicide has been a hotly debated topic across the United States for decades. Starting with Oregon in 1997, 10 other states and the District of Columbia have made it legal for a terminally ill patient to ask their doctor for a lethal cocktail of drugs they ingest to die. CANADIAN GOVERNMENT REPORTS EUTHANASIA ACCOUNTED FOR 4% OF ALL DEATHS IN 2022 Several concerned physicians told Fox News Digital last year that they saw profound ethical concerns with physicians helping to end someone’s life, arguing it was destructive for medicine and society at large. “To legislate and consecrate the idea that we purposefully expedite their death to me is not what medicine is all about, not what our healing profession is about and is emblematic of what’s going on in our society in all aspects,” Southern California primary care doctor Jeff Barke said at the time. “I think it’s a terrible advancement that states are legislating the rights and the power of a physician to act God-like and create and expedite a patient’s death,” he added. Fox News’ Kristine Parks contributed to this report.