Texas authorities double down with razor wire in Eagle Pass after Biden admin ‘cease and desist’ order: video
Texas authorities have placed additional razor wire to deter migrants in Eagle Pass after Attorney General Ken Paxton defied the Biden administration’s threat of legal action. Workers were filmed unpacking and installing razor wire in Shelby Park, which had previously served as a staging area for processing during migrant surges at the heavily trafficked border crossing near the Rio Grande. The razor wire is at the center of the lawsuit between Texas and the federal government. Paxton on Wednesday informed the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that Texas will not comply with a demand letter ordering the state to permit federal border authorities into Shelby Park. The Texas Military Department (TMD) seized control of the park last week, saying the move was necessary to prevent further illegal immigration into Eagle Pass. There were over 302,000 migrant encounters in December alone after a record-setting 2.4 million encounters in fiscal 2023. DHS called the move unconstitutional and said Texas authorities were blocking Border Patrol from approximately 2.5 miles of the border. The administration also said some barriers deployed by Texas sit on federal land. DHS THREATENS TEXAS WITH LEGAL ACTION OVER SEIZURE OF PARK ALONG RIO GRANDE: ‘CEASE AND DESIST’ “We demand that Texas cease and desist its efforts to block Border Patrol’s access in and around the Shelby Park area and remove all barriers to access in the Shelby Park area,” states a Jan. 14 letter addressed to Paxton. The state attorney general replied on Wednesday, accusing the federal government of misstating both the facts on the ground in Texas and the law. “Because the facts and law side with Texas, the State will continue utilizing its constitutional authority to defend her territory, and I will continue defending those lawful efforts in court,” Paxton wrote to DHS General Counsel Jonathan Meyer. “The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) should stop wasting scarce time and resources suing Texas, and start enforcing the immigration laws Congress already has on the books,” he added. BIDEN DOJ SEEKS SUPREME COURT INTERVENTION OVER TEXAS RAZOR WIRE AT SOUTHERN BORDER The Department of Homeland Security and the White House both took aim at Texas after three migrants drowned, including two children, in the Shelby Park area last week. DHS had said Border Patrol agents “were physically barred by Texas officials” from entering the area to provide emergency medical assistance. But in court documents filed as part of ongoing litigation, the Department of Justice admitted that Mexican officials advised Border Patrol at 9 p.m. local time that the migrants had drowned at 8 p.m., that there were an additional two migrants “in distress” on the U.S. side of the border. The filing repeats the claim that Border Patrol was not allowed to enter the area “even in emergency situations.” The two additional migrants, who were suffering from hypothermia, were later rescued by Mexican officials. However, the DOJ suggested that it may have been able to spot the migrants if they had access to the area. “It is impossible to say what might have happened if Border Patrol had had its former access to the area – including through its surveillance trucks that assisted in monitoring the area,” DOJ officials said. “At the very least, however, Border Patrol would have had the opportunity to take any available steps to fulfill its responsibilities and assist its counterparts in the Mexican government with undertaking the rescue mission. Texas made that impossible.” DHS SAYS BORDER PATROL BLOCKED BY TEXAS FROM ENTERING AREA TO RESCUE MIGRANTS WHO LATER DROWNED In his letter, Paxton called it “vile” and “completely inaccurate” to blame Texas for the three migrant deaths. “Contrary to your letter, TMD did not prevent U.S. Border Patrol from entering Shelby Park to attempt a water rescue of migrants in distress. The federal agents at the gate did not even have a boat, and they did not request entry based on any medical exigency,” Paxton wrote. “Instead, the federal agents told TMD’s staff sergeant that Mexican officials had already recovered dead bodies and that the situation was under control,” Paxton wrote (emphasis his). “Texas’s Guardsmen nevertheless made a diligent search, only to confirm that Mexican officials had recovered the migrants’ bodies, downriver from the Shelby Park boat ramp and on their side of the river.” Texas Gov. Greg Abbott also said “Biden was clearly wrong to blame Texas for deaths in the Rio Grande.” “As a federal judge already ruled, Biden & DHS ‘create a perverse incentive’ for migrants to make dangerous illegal crossings,” Abbott wrote in a post on X. “Biden is to blame for drownings.” Fox News Digital’s Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
Ted Cruz backs defense of Trump’s eligibility in 2024 election
Cruz led an amicus brief defending Donald Trump’s eligibility to run for president. Cruz endorsed Trump this week.
Wisconsin lawmakers advance bill guaranteeing parental oversight of children’s pronouns, educational material
Republicans who control the Wisconsin state Assembly approved a bill Thursday that would guarantee parents the right to determine their children’s pronouns and pull them out of any classes that conflict with their personal beliefs. The Assembly passed the GOP-authored measure 62-35, sending it on to the state Senate. Democratic Gov. Tony Evers is almost certain to veto the proposal if it reaches his desk. The governor vetoed a similar Republican proposal last year. WISCONSIN REPUBLICANS PROPOSE DOE HUNT MORATORIUM The bill would guarantee parents a host of rights, including the right to determine the pronouns their children are known by at school. The bill also would give parents the right to pull their children out of class based on religious reasons or personal convictions. They would have a right to be told of any surveys or evaluations that would reveal their or their children’s political leanings, sexual behavior or illegal behavior; any vaccinations the school offers; and whenever a “controversial subject” such as gender identity, sexual orientation or racism will be discussed. Parents could sue schools that violate those rights. The bill’s supporters say schools are ignoring parents, and the legislation will force administrators to listen to them. Parents in Waukesha County, a Republican stronghold, won a lawsuit in October that alleged Kettle Moraine School District officials used a male name and male pronouns to address their 12-year-old daughter without their consent. The girl was questioning her gender identity at the time. Opponents say the bill is an attempt to disrupt school protocols and amounts to censorship.
Hunter Biden deposition scheduled for next month after risk of being held in contempt of Congress
Hunter Biden is expected to sit for a deposition as part of the House impeachment inquiry against President Biden at the House Judiciary and House Oversight Committees next month, after the first son defied a congressional subpoena and was at risk of being held in contempt of Congress. The House Judiciary Committee announced the newly-scheduled deposition date on X, formerly Twitter, Thursday evening. “HUNTER BIDEN DEPOSITION. CONFIRMED. FEBRUARY 28,” the X post reads. “Hunter Biden will appear before our committees for a deposition on February 28, 2024,” House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer and Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan said in a joint-statement Thursday. “His deposition will come after several interviews with Biden family members and associates.” HOUSE RULES PANEL PAUSES CONSIDERATION OF HUNTER BIDEN CONTEMPT AMID NEGOTIATIONS FOR NEW DEPOSITION DATE They added: “We look forward to Hunter Biden’s testimony.” Comer and Jordan also announced additional witnesses will appear before the committee for testimony, including Hunter Biden’s business partners Mervyn Yan and Rob Walker on Jan. 22; Eric Schwerin and Joey Langston on Jan. 29; and Hunter Biden’s former business partner Tony Bobulinski on Feb. 5. Hunter Biden’s new deposition date comes after the House Oversight Committee and the House Judiciary Committee last week passed resolutions to hold him in contempt of Congress for defying a congressional subpoena. Hunter Biden’s attorneys offered to discuss scheduling a new deposition for the first son–something House Republicans were willing to do. Hunter Biden, ahead of his subpoenaed deposition on Dec. 13, had offered to testify publicly. House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky., and Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, rejected his request, noting that the first son would not have special treatment and pointing to the dozens of other witnesses who have appeared as compelled for their interviews and depositions. Comer and Jordan vowed to release the transcript of Hunter Biden’s deposition. The first son, though, defied the subpoena, ignored the offer and recently delivered a public statement outside the Capitol. At the time, he said his father “was not financially involved in my business.” As the House advanced the resolutions to continue to take steps to hold Hunter Biden in contempt, his attorney, Abbe Lowell, last week asked that the committees issue a new subpoena. Lowell penned a letter to the committees on Friday, saying the initial subpoenas were “legally invalid” as they were issued before the full House of Representatives voted to formalize the impeachment inquiry against the president. “If you issue a new proper subpoena, now that there is a duly authorized impeachment inquiry, Mr. Biden will comply for a hearing or deposition,” Lowell wrote. “We will accept such a subpoena on Mr. Biden’s behalf.” “The committees welcome Mr. Biden’s newfound willingness to testify in a deposition setting under subpoena,” Comer and Jordan wrote at the time. “Although the Committee’s subpoenas are lawful and remain legally enforceable, as an accommodation to Mr. Biden and at your request, we are prepared to issue subpoenas compelling Mr. Biden’s appearance at a deposition on a new date in the coming weeks.”
House votes to avoid government shutdown after Speaker Johnson bucks GOP rebels
The House of Representatives on Thursday voted to advance a short-term government funding extension. The bill now goes to President Biden’s desk, where he will have to sign it before the end of the day on Friday to avert a partial government shutdown. It passed 314 to 108 and nearly split the House GOP in half — 107 Republicans voted for its passage, while 106 opposed. House leaders rushed to put the bill, called a continuing resolution (CR), on the floor Thursday afternoon soon after the Senate passed it 77 to 18. It was brought for a vote under a suspension of the rules, meaning it forgoes a procedural vote but then needs two-thirds of House lawmakers’ support for final passage, rather than just a simple majority. The decision was made amid widespread frustration within Speaker Mike Johnson’s right flank over the passage of another CR. Johnson, R-La., previously vowed to be “done” with CRs after passing one in November, but congressional leaders have agreed it’s needed to give lawmakers more time to cobble together a spending deal for fiscal year 2024. HOUSE, SENATE RELEASE BIPARTISAN AGREEMENT ON GOVERNMENT FUNDING AS SHUTDOWN DEADLINES LOOM Hours before the vote, House Freedom Caucus Chair Bob Good, R-Va., met with Johnson to persuade him to add a border security amendment to the CR. Good told reporters Johnson was “considering it,” arguing, “The Senate will be forced to consider, are they willing to fund the government and secure the border, or they refuse to fund the government because they don’t want to secure the border.” But Johnson immediately put the rumors to rest. His spokesman, Raj Shah, posted on X minutes after Good spoke to reporters, “The plan has not changed. The House is voting on the stop gap measure tonight to keep the government open.” HOUSE GOP ERUPTS IN DIVISION OVER CALL TO PUSH JOHNSON OUT OF SPEAKERSHIP: ‘WORKING FOR JOE BIDEN’ The new CR would preserve Johnson’s “laddered” approach by keeping the two separate funding deadlines intact, extending them from Jan. 19 and Feb. 2 to March 1 and March 8, respectively. Johnson previously said that it’s aimed at preventing Congress from passing an all-in-one “omnibus” spending bill, something Republicans in the House and Senate oppose. JOHNSON CAUGHT BETWEEN WARRING HOUSE GOP FACTIONS: ‘DRIFTING TOWARD MOB RULE’ Good and other members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus complained about the CR earlier this week but acknowledged there was little they could do to stop it from passing, given its support from House Democrats and a significant share of House Republicans. Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., told Fox News Digital he was “an optimist” but conceded that there was likely little that conservatives could do to stop the CR from passing. “I guess if he puts it on suspension, a lot of Democrats vote for it, maybe that’s a correct statement. But it’s certainly not something I’m going to vote for,” he said.
Florida Senate passes bills seeking to expand health care availability
Florida will seek to streamline regulations and offer incentives to help make health care more accessible under two bills unanimously passed by the Senate, votes that quickly pushed forward Republican Senate President Kathleen Passidomo’s top session priority. The bills passed Thursday would make it easier for foreign doctors and out-of-state health care workers to relocate to Florida and would create loan programs and other incentives to attract health care providers to underserved rural areas. SOUTH CAROLINA LAWMAKERS BRING BILL BANNING SURGERIES, MEDICATIONS FOR TRANS MINORS TO HOUSE FLOOR They also seek to reduce demand at emergency rooms by strengthening hospitals’ partnerships with urgent care centers. Republican Senate Health Policy Committee Chair Colleen Burton said Florida is growing by 300,000 people a year, but the influx of new doctors and nurses isn’t keeping up. “We have a city’s worth of new Floridians every year and there’s not a proportionate number of health care providers,” she said.
Fetterman suggests Biden admin stop meeting with ‘sleazeball’ Menendez, wishes Dems would ‘chuck him’
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., took another dig at the embattled New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez, calling him a “sleazeball” for being present at Secretary Antony Blinken’s classified briefing to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Thursday despite his alleged corruption. Menendez stepped down as committee chairman last year following his federal bribery indictment. “I don’t know why anybody would take a meeting with that sleazeball,” Fetterman said to reporters. “And he needs to go. I’ve been very clear about that. And that’s why they are choosing to endorse, Andy Kim, and it’s astonishing.” Rep. Andy Kim, D-N.J., is running against Menendez for his Senate seat in the 2024 election. Kim is part of a chorale of Democrats calling for the New Jersey senator to resign. Fetterman, who has repeatedly called for Menendez to be expelled, said, “We should have chucked him.” “I don’t know why we haven’t chucked him, and I sure hope eventually we do chuck him,” he said. DEMOCRAT LAWMAKER RENEWS CALL TO EXPEL MENENDEZ AFTER LATEST BRIBERY CHARGES Prosecutors accused Menendez in a second superseding indictment unsealed this month of accepting bribes and gifts in exchange for helping to benefit Qatar as part of a years-long corruption scheme from 2021 through 2023, one year longer than originally thought, the Justice Department said. His attorney, Adam Fee, said the new allegations “stink of desperation.” Menendez and his wife, Nadine, requested separate trials, according to documents that each of their lawyers filed late Monday. Their trial is set to begin in May in Manhattan. In a request to District Court Judge Sidney H. Stein, Nadine’s lawyers claim she seeks to protect confidential marital communications with Menendez, anticipating her husband’s potential testimony in their trial. Menendez is facing federal charges for allegedly acting as a foreign agent and accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars of bribes to benefit the Egyptian government through his power and influence as a senator. His attorneys filed a motion to dismiss the additional charges earlier this month. DEMOCRAT SEN. BOB MENENDEZ SETS UP DEFENSE FUND AMID CRIMINAL PROBE INTO GIFTS TO HIS WIFE: REPORT Menendez, along with his wife Nadine and three New Jersey businessmen – Wael Hana, Jose Uribe and Fred Daibes – were first charged in the federal bribery scheme on Sept. 23. All have pleaded not guilty. Among the new allegations is that Menendez and hs wife enriched themselves with cash, gold bars and a luxury car. The couple allegedly received the gifts in exchange for Menendez using his influence to induce the Qatari Investment Co. to invest with Daibes. “”Sensationalized allegations are now creating a rising call for my resignation, despite my innocence and before a single piece of evidence has even been introduced in a court of law,” Menendez said on the Senate floor this month. CLICK TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Menendez repeatedly asserted his innocence and claimed “there is no evidence” of the gifts and payments he allegedly received as a suspected foreign agent. “In fact, there will be at trial a full explanation of what is the truth about those issues, a truth that proves I am entirely innocent of the charges,” he said.
Haitian illegal immigrant charged with rape released back onto streets in Boston despite ICE appeals
A Haitian illegal immigrant charged with raping a developmentally disabled person was released back into the community in Boston, as authorities ignored an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) request to transfer them into its custody. “Disturbingly and despite our filing an immigration detainer, this individual was released back into the community by the criminal court,” ICE said in a statement. In a press release, ICE said that the illegal immigrant arrived at the border at a port of entry in Brownsville, Texas, in December 2022 and was released with a notice to appear. ICE sources identified the man as Pierre Lucard Emile. ICE AGENTS RECAPTURE ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT CHARGED WITH RAPE WHO WAS RELEASED ONTO STREETS IN VIRGINIA In September, he was arrested for rape and indecent assault and battery on a developmentally disabled person. ICE immediately lodged a detainer, a request that an illegal immigrant be held so that ICE can take them into custody and begin deportation proceedings. However, “sanctuary” jurisdictions like Boston do not typically honor ICE detainer requests and forbid or limit cooperation with federal immigration officials. Consequently, ICE’s detainer was ignored, and he was released with an electric monitoring tag in November. ICE went on to arrest him this month on January 9. The agency now says that after the adjudication of his criminal charges, its Enforcement and Removal Operations will seek his deportation. ICE EXTENDS EVALUATION OF CALIFORNIA DETENTION FACILITY LEFT LARGELY EMPTY SINCE 2020 “The men and women of ERO Boston continue to protect the community from those who pose a real public safety threat to our communities,” ERO Boston Field Office Director Todd Lyons said in the statement. “We remain strongly committed to protecting residents in communities by apprehending those who are not lawfully present in this country and pose a threat to public safety. This remains central piece of our mission.” The case is the latest illegal immigrant with either a criminal record or pending charges to be released back onto the streets due to sanctuary policies. Fox reported in November how an illegal Honduran alien charged with rape, kidnapping and assault was released back onto the streets in Virginia despite an ICE detainer. The illegal immigrant had entered the U.S. and was arrested by Border Patrol in Texas in June 2021 and released into the country with a Notice to Appear. There were over 302,000 migrant encounters in December, and DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has said that over 85% of migrants are being released. However, authorities have repeatedly stressed that there is a multi-layered vetting process in place for those encountered at the border.
Delaware Gov. John Carney delays State of the State address over illness
Democratic Gov. John Carney was forced to postpone his scheduled State of the State address on Thursday because of illness, his office said. Officials provided few details in a statement, saying only that Carney has “a fever and mild symptoms” but was in good spirits. A spokeswoman later said Carney, 67, had tested negative for COVID-19. The State of the State Address will be rescheduled for a date yet to be determined. Carney announced in May 2022 that, after receiving the coronavirus vaccine and two booster shots, he had tested positive for COVID-19 after experiencing mild symptoms. Carney also tested positive for COVID-19 in January 2023, again saying he was experiencing mild symptoms. Carney is in the final year of his second term as governor. He has formed a campaign committee as he explores a possible bid for mayor of Wilmington, Delaware’s largest city.
User’s Manual to filleting today’s House vote on the stopgap spending bill
This is the third time that Congress has punted on an interim spending bill since September. Congress was supposed to fund the government by Sept. 30. But today’s stopgap bill marks yet another delay. It is expected that WAY MORE Democrats will support the temporary bill than Republicans. SENATE PASSES SHORT-TERM SPENDING BILL TO FUND GOVT UNTIL MARCH, SAYS THERE WILL BE NO SHUTDOWN This is what infuriates conservatives about House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) – as well as his predecessor, former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.). Democrats put up 209 yeas on both the September and November interim spending bills. The GOP only put up 126 and 127 yeas, respectively. Some on the right are mad that Johnson and McCarthy have put bills on the floor that get way more support from Democrats than they do from Republicans. BORDER DEAL, INTERNATIONAL AID AGREEMENT COULD TAKE A WHILE The question is whether there is attrition from that mid-120s figure of GOP ayes, now that this is the third time a House Republican Speaker has gone down the stopgap spending road. Also, watch to see if Republicans dip below at least 111 yeas. There are currently 220 House GOPers. A vote of fewer than half the GOP conference would be a big blow to Johnson. CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF CONGRESSIONAL KIND: LAWMAKERS STRUGGLE TO GRASP ALLEGED ‘INTERDIMENSIONAL’ NATURE OF UFOS Another vote that is a metric to use in this exercise: the bill to lift the debt ceiling last May. The bill passed 314-117. But more Democrats (165) voted yes than Republicans (149). However, note that all three of these bills (two continuing resolutions (CRs) and one debt ceiling bill) all scored well above 300 yeas. What that reveals is that there is a large, bipartisan coalition in the “fat middle” of the House and away from the poles of both parties to pass things. Legislation just can’t tilt too far to the left or to the right. Otherwise, “Goldie Locks” legislation like the debt ceiling and the CRs to run the government pass overwhelmingly.