SCOOP: House Republicans revive push to impeach ‘activist’ judges after Johnson’s green light
FIRST ON FOX: House conservatives are reviving various pushes to impeach judges accused of blocking President Donald Trump’s agenda after Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., gave his tacit approval earlier this week. “I just spoke to him on the House floor, and he’s still in support, so we’re going to push to move forward on at least one,” Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., told Fox News Digital in the early evening on Thursday. Ogles was among the conservative Trump allies who led the push to impeach judges last year as the administration engaged in legal battles with federal courts across the country over various rulings. He previously introduced impeachment articles against U.S. District Judge John Bates for blocking a Trump executive order targeting transgender recognition under federal law, as well as District Judge Theodore Chuang after his ruling to stop a crackdown on foreign aid by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). EX-JUDGES BLAST TOP TRUMP DOJ OFFICIAL FOR DECLARING ‘WAR’ ON COURTS Neither of those impeachment resolutions or others targeting several other judges went anywhere at the time, however. House GOP leaders made clear they believed impeachment was an impractical way to deal with what Republicans saw as “activist judges” trying to influence policy rather than interpret law. Johnson and other leaders instead favored a bill by Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., to limit district judges’ ability to issue nationwide injunctions. That bill passed the House along partisan lines last year but was never taken up in the Senate. The speaker sounded more enthusiastic about impeachment during his press conference on Wednesday, telling reporters, “I’m for it.” JOHNSON CHANGES TUNE ON JUDICIAL IMPEACHMENTS AFTER ‘EGREGIOUS ABUSES’ OF TRUMP AGENDA He named U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, specifically, who’s been targeted by Republicans after rulings on several key immigration cases involving Trump’s policies, including flying migrants to El Salvador and other countries instead of detaining them in the U.S. Boasberg more recently raised GOP ire when it was revealed that Boasberg had signed off on decisions that allowed for the seizure of some Republican lawmakers’ phone records in former special counsel Jack Smith’s Arctic Frost probe. A resolution to impeach Boasberg led by Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, gained traction among conservatives last year, and the Texas Republican told Fox News Digital he was heartened by Johnson’s comments on Thursday. DOJ ORDERS LAWYERS TO REPORT JUDICIAL ‘OBSTACLES’ IN IMMIGRATION, ANTIFA CASES “We’re going to do everything we can to push that forward. I mean the reality is that Boasberg has been acting as an agent of the Democrat Party for quite some time now,” Gill said. “I’m thrilled to see the speaker get on board. I think his leadership will be crucial in getting this passed.” Gill said it was still early to predict whether it would see a House-wide vote but said his office was in contact with Johnson’s office about the measure, which he said was “moving in the right direction.” A source familiar with his effort told Fox News Digital that his resolution to impeach Boasberg gained two new House GOP co-sponsors after Johnson’s comments this week. FRESH TRUMP-LINKED CASE PUTS BOASBERG BACK IN GOP CROSSHAIRS Other House Republicans who supported the push last year indicated they would do so again. “I’d be all for it,” Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., told Fox News Digital. He said of Boasberg specifically, “I think he’s one of the most forthright judicial activists on the bench and that’s not why he was put on the bench.” Rep. Marlin Stutzman, R-Ind., said Johnson expressing support could strengthen the push. “There’s a lot of respect for Speaker Johnson, especially as a constitutional lawyer — he’s someone that a lot of people have a lot of confidence in,” Stutzman told Fox News Digital. “The fact that he’s willing to step out there as a Speaker of the House, it says a lot.” Rep. Lance Gooden, R-Texas, a member of the House Judiciary Committee, told Fox News Digital, “I think there’s more of an appetite and less of a hesitation than there was earlier in the Congress. We had an agenda. We didn’t want to be distracted with potential impeachment, but I think now, as we’re realizing things are not getting better, the people around the nation are expecting us to hold this judge and others like him accountable.” But not all Republicans were as enthusiastic. House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris, R-Md., who was supportive of the GOP’s judicial impeachment fervor last year, told Fox News Digital Thursday that he was not sure it could survive the committee process needed before a House-wide vote. House GOP Conference Vice Chair Blake Moore, R-Utah, said “everybody has to be willing to consider impeachment” as a power of Congress but said he did not know the details of the specific initiatives. “I will reinforce how much I like Issa’s bill. It moves it away from political rhetoric into, ‘Hey, let’s do something substantive here,’” Moore told Fox News Digital. “It’s a pretty innovative solution in a very sound way.” Democrats and other critics of the impeachment push have called it an unwarranted persecution of a co-equal branch of government, but supporters say it’s well within Congress’ right to use the impeachment process when they believe abuses have taken place.
Trump vows heavy campaign push for GOP, cites ‘midterm curse’ for sitting presidents
He’s not on the ballot this year, but President Donald Trump promises he’ll be on the campaign trail “a lot” on behalf of fellow Republicans running in the midterm elections. “I’m gonna do a lot of campaign traveling,” Trump told reporters Thursday aboard Air Force One, as he pointed to his effort this year to help the GOP defend their narrow Senate control and razor-thin House majority. “We’re going to work hard.” But Trump appeared to downplay the GOP’s ballot box expectations as he acknowledged that the party in power, in this case the Republicans, normally faces stiff political headwinds in the midterms. “For whatever reason, it’s a deep-down psychological reason, sitting presidents … don’t seem to do well in the midterms,” the president noted. SCOOP: GOP TAKES FIRST STEP TOWARD HOLDING HISTORIC MIDTERM CONVENTION Trump made stops last month and earlier this month in the key battleground states of Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Michigan to highlight his accomplishments during his first year back in the White House and to tout his efforts to combat rising prices, a key issue with voters. And next week the president travels to Iowa, where Republicans aim to defend open Senate and gubernatorial seats in November’s elections. RNC CHAIR BETS ON ‘SECRET WEAPON’ TO DEFY MIDTERM HISTORY, PROTECT GOP MAJORITIES Sources in the president’s political orbit confirmed to Fox News Digital last month that Trump would be making regular stops on the campaign trail this year. And earlier this week, White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, who served as co-campaign manager of Trump’s 2024 presidential bid, signaled that Trump would be making weekly stops. That’s a big change from Trump’s first term, when the president didn’t start his campaign travel blitz until Labor Day. Republicans lost control of the House in the 2018 midterms, something Trump is aiming to avoid in his second term. Part of Trump’s strategy includes holding a first-ever Republican midterm convention this year. As first reported by Fox News Digital, the Republican National Committee, at the winter meeting on Thursday, took the first formal step to change to the party’s rules, which would allow Chairman Joe Gruters “to convene a special ceremonial convention outside a presidential election cycle.” HOUSE GOP CAMPAIGN CHAIR WANTS TRUMP ‘OUT THERE ON THE TRAIL’ IN MIDTERM BATTLE FOR MAJORITY National political conventions, where party delegates from around the country formally nominate their party’s presidential candidates, normally take place during presidential election years. And the hope among Trump and top Republicans is that a midterm convention would give the GOP a high-profile platform to showcase the president’s record and their congressional candidates running in the midterms. The GOP is dealing with a low propensity issue: MAGA voters who don’t always go to the polls when Trump’s name isn’t on the ballot. But Gruters emphasized in a Fox News Digital interview earlier this month that “the president of the United States is our secret weapon… He’s laser focused.” “We got to make sure we turn our voters out, and we got to make sure that we have people energized. And there’s nobody that can energize our base more than President Trump.” Trump on Thursday touted that “nobody had a better first year than I did.” “Look at what we’ve done. We have the greatest economy in the world. We have the greatest investment in a country, in history, by many times — nobody’s ever had that,” he added. But the president’s approval ratings remain well underwater, with many Americans giving him a big thumbs down on the job he’s doing with the economy and the issue of affordability. “One year into his second term, Donald Trump has made one thing unmistakably clear: He doesn’t care about everyday Americans,” DNC Rapid Response Director Kendall Witmer argued in a statement. “Voters won’t forget Trump’s betrayal come midterms — and Republicans will have to answer for it.”
Anti-ICE Minnesota agitator arrested days after daring Bondi to do so
William Kelly, one of the anti-U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agitators who disrupted a service at Cities Church in Saint Paul, Minn., on Sunday, has been arrested. “A THIRD subject has now been arrested connected to targeting Cities Church in Minneapolis Sunday. William Kelly is now in custody,” FBI Director Kash Patel declared in a Thursday post on X. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem noted in a post, “William Kelly is being charged with conspiracy to deprive rights, a federal crime, for his involvement in the St. Paul church riots.” VIDEO SHOWS ANTI-ICE AGITATOR BERATING CHRISTIANS IN MINNESOTA CHURCH SERVICE “William Kelly is now in custody,” U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi noted in a Thursday post on X. “Our nation was settled and founded by people fleeing religious persecution. Religious freedom is the bedrock of this country. We will protect our pastors. We will protect our churches. We will protect Americans of faith,” she noted in the post. Kelly had said days earlier in a video, “Come and get me Pam Bondi, you f—in’ traitorous b—-.” ANTI-ICE PROTESTER WILLIAM KELLY DARES PAM BONDI TO ARREST HIM AFTER MINNESOTA CHURCH DISRUPTION In posts that feature the profanity-laced video, Kelly, who apparently goes by “dawokefarmer2” on social media, wrote, “And for the record they invited us into their church and the police never asked us to leave.” Williams has shared video of himself berating people at the church. ANTI-ICE AGITATOR WHO STORMED MINNESOTA CHURCH SERVICE ALSO HARASSED CONGREGANTS AT PETE HEGSETH’S CHURCH He asserts that “all these pretend Christians, all these comfortable White people… are living lavish, comfortable lives, while children are dragged into concentration camps.” “You’re sinners. You’re pretending to be Christians. But we know you live an easy life, don’t you? A very easy life while people are starving,” he said.
Border Patrol union chief touts high morale despite clashes with agitators: ‘They are patriotic’
National Border Patrol Council President Paul Perez told Fox News Digital that, despite heavy criticism from the media and Democrats, as well as the consistent presence of agitators, officers’ morale remains high and there is “no shortage of volunteers” to assist with deportation operations. Perez told Fox News Digital during an interview that though the “majority of our agents are stationed on the southwest border,” members of his union understand the threat that criminal illegal immigrants pose to the entire nation after four years under the Biden administration. “Unfortunately, you throw a dart at the map, and it’s very likely that some of the people that Biden let in are there,” he explained. Though distinct from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers who are primarily responsible for interior removal operations, Perez said there has been “no shortage of volunteers” for deployments for operations in cities across the country, including Minneapolis, Portland and Los Angeles. BORDER PATROL COMMANDER PROVIDES UPDATE ON MINNEAPOLIS OPERATIONS “We’ve got plenty of agents that are willing to go out there to go and help because they see the challenges that our ICE officers and our other our law enforcement partners are going up against and they want to be there to help,” he explained. “They’re very well-trained, they’re very eager, they are patriotic, and they want to do their duty to secure the border and help secure America.” Perez said that because the Biden administration wanted the flow of migrants entering the country to be processed quickly, “there are very few records for us to rely on that are accurate.” “There’s just so many people that were let in, to the tune of millions of people, and they were interspersed throughout the United States,” he said, adding, “A lot of these people weren’t required to put information that we could vet because the administration wanted them out quick.” Perez said that though Border Patrol agents have found themselves being deployed to communities far from home, they have approached operations with the same ethic. At the same time, he said the vitriol from some has had some impact on officers in his union. DHS SAYS ICE AGENTS RAMMED BY VEHICLES AMID MINNEAPOLIS ENFORCEMENT SURGE: ‘AGGRESSIVELY ASSAULTED’ “The rhetoric coming from the left, it does impact our families because of the doxing and the protesters thinking that it’s okay because politicians are asking them to protest. They’re seeing what they’re doing as agitators, and they continue to up the ante and say, ‘Hey, go after these ICE officers, interfere, impede,’ and there’s consequences to that,” he said. Despite this, Perez said that Border Patrol officers are as resolved as ever, and they are “not going to back down.” Despite the backlash from protesters, the media and politicians, he said that Border Patrol officers in his union feel that “we’ve got more support now than we’ve ever had” because of the administration. ‘SCOURGE’ OF SEXUAL PREDATORS, VIOLENT CRIMINALS BEING REMOVED FROM MINNEAPOLIS STREETS DESPITE BACKLASH “From the human aspect, we know the type of people that we’ve come across, and we don’t want them in the cities and communities of America because we know that the damage they can cause,” he explained. “We’ve got so many murderers, rapists, burglars, robbers, and we want to get them out of our country.” “Our Border Patrol agents live in the communities that they serve, the communities that they patrol and protect. And so, when we go out into other municipalities across the country, we take that into account because that is somebody else’s home, that’s somebody’s city that they live in, and we want them to be safe.”
WATCH: Former ICE director reveals what goes into agency’s decisions on cities to target
While some Democrats have accused the Trump administration of politically targeting Democratic cities for enforcement, former acting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director John Sandweg shared insight about how the agency selects the next city for operations. Sandweg, who served as acting ICE director under President Barack Obama from 2013 to 2014, told Fox News Digital during an interview that the existence of sanctuary policies harboring illegal aliens does play a major role in determining cities for targeting. However, Sandweg said that this is not for purely political reasons. “The biggest driver would be immigrant population, how significant a population is there in that particular community. And then the second thing is, is there something like a sanctuary policy that would increase the number of at-large targets, meaning people who ICE wants to take into custody who are not currently in a prison or jail,” he explained. “Those are the traditional factors that ICE would rely on in making determinations about where to do at-large surges.” In 2025, the Trump administration surged ICE agents to cities like Minneapolis, Los Angeles, Portland and Chicago. All of these were major cities with significant immigrant populations, and all had sanctuary policies. Sandweg said that he expects crackdowns such as these to be “just beginning.” VICE PRESIDENT JD VANCE TO VISIT MINNEAPOLIS, SOURCE SAYS, AMID UNREST OVER ICE OPERATIONS “You want to go where the criminals are … and so, you’re going to be looking at data about where is it that we can find the biggest bang for our buck,” he explained, adding, “Traditionally, that’s going to be in larger urban cities, just because they’re higher density population, and you’re more likely to find your criminal populations there.” When it comes to the role of sanctuary cities in ICE’s targeting process, Sandweg said that “sanctuary policies are not all equal.” “ICE is really good at getting people in prisons and jails. There isn’t a person booked into a prison or jail in the United States today that ICE doesn’t get visibility on,” he explained. “While we’re paying a lot of attention to these kinds of very public standoffs between protesters and DHS agents in Minneapolis and other places, there’s a lot going on behind the scenes the public doesn’t understand, including the picking up of people in prisons and jails, federal, state, local, across the country.” DHS WEBSITE TRAFFIC SURGES 68% AS THOUSANDS USE TRUMP’S SELF-DEPORTATION APP FOR VOLUNTARY DEPARTURE Though he said that some sanctuary jurisdictions are willing to cooperate with ICE in arresting illegals with serious criminal charges, such as violent crimes, there are some that are not willing to do that. Sanctuary jurisdictions that refuse to honor requests by ICE to hold illegal aliens, called “detainers,” present their own operational challenge, said Sandweg. This, in turn, can potentially lead to the agency deciding to surge more agents and resources to the area. US CITIZENS ARE ONLY ARRESTED BY ICE IF THEY VIOLATE A STATUTE ICE ENFORCES: TOM HOMAN “There are jurisdictions … that have very restrictive sanctuary policies, where you’re sitting there scratching your head saying, these are bad guys, why won’t they give us custody of this person in jail?” he said. “In those jurisdictions, you’re going to find more targets because those people, ICE normally would take custody of them in jail or prison.”
Republican drops primary challenge against incumbent Sen Cassidy after Trump-backed candidate enters race
Louisiana state Rep. Julie Emerson announced on Thursday that she was nixing her U.S. Senate bid in light of President Donald Trump-backed U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow entering the GOP primary. “With Congresswoman Letlow’s entrance into the race, the path to victory that was visible a couple of months ago has diminished. I support President Trump and respect his decision to endorse Julia Letlow to defeat Bill Cassidy. Because of this, I’m choosing to end my campaign now,” Emerson said in a statement. Incumbent Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, who has served in the U.S. Senate since 2015, is running for re-election. TRUMP ENDORSEMENT ROCKS LOUSIANA SENATE RACE AS LETLOW JUMPS IN After the House impeached Trump in 2021, Cassidy was one of the Senate Republicans who voted to convict during a vote that occurred after Trump had already departed from office — the Senate vote ultimately fell short of the threshold required to convict Trump. The president pledged his endorsement to Letlow in a Truth Social post on Saturday. WHO IS JOHN FLEMING, THE FREEDOM CAUCUS FOUNDING MEMBER CHALLENGING GOP SEN BILL CASSIDY? “Should she decide to enter this Race, Julia Letlow has my Complete and Total Endorsement. RUN, JULIA, RUN!!!” the president exclaimed in the post. Letlow launched a Senate bid days later. GOP LOUISIANA STATE SENATOR SAYS HE’S RUNNING FOR US SENATE BECAUSE INCUMBENT REPUBLICAN ‘SUCKS’ “Today, I am announcing my candidacy for the United States Senate to ensure the nation we leave our children is safer and stronger. Louisiana deserves a conservative Senator who will not waver. I am honored to have President Trump’s endorsement and trust. Let’s Geaux!” she declared in a Tuesday post on X. Louisiana State Treasurer John Fleming and state Sen. Blake Miguez are also running in the Republican U.S. Senate primary in the state.
NEA insider blows whistle on ‘toxic’ culture and far-left politics inside teachers union: ‘It’s a cult’
FIRST ON FOX: As the National Education Association, one of the most prominent teachers unions in the country, continues to face criticism over placing far-left agenda items over the needs of children, a whistleblower organization spoke to Fox News Digital about the “toxic” politics inside headquarters. “It’s a very liberal place, there’s only a handful of conservatives that work at NEA, and if you are, it’s like you just don’t say anything, because it’s a very toxic environment if you do say something,” an NEA employee, who is remaining anonymous due to concerns of retribution, told Fox News Digital. “It’s crazy, they’ll send out this weekly newsletter of ‘Trump’s a fascist’ and blast it to all the states.” The whistleblower described a workplace where staff members are often subject to staff meetings and breakout sessions focused on “social justice and White supremacy and all that nonsense” that feel more like “brainwashing” than they do education. “It’s a cult. It’s 100% a cult and if you don’t have their mindset, you’re the enemy.” GOT A SCOOP ON CAMPUS? SEND US A TIP HERE Earlier this month, Fox News Digital exclusively reported on a federal NEA filing showing the union funneled millions of dollars to far-left activist groups, ballot initiatives and social justice organizations. Among the largest expenditures was more than $3.5 million sent to Education International, a global teachers federation where NEA President Becky Pringle serves as a vice president. “Why are we sending money internationally?” The whistleblower told Fox News Digital. “They’re not American teachers.” In November, Fox News Digital first reported on NEA training sessions instructing members on a variety of far-left causes, including how to go through a gender transition at work, best practices for using gender pronouns and combating transphobia, while also being provided with literature labeling conservative opposition as “villains.” “They don’t care about the students, they care about pushing these leftist, liberal Democrat people [politicians] so that they can get more money and just fund all these stupid initiatives,” the whistleblower told Fox News Digital. PARENTS’ RIGHTS GROUP RELEASES SCATHING ‘LOOKOUT’ WARNING TARGETING TOP 2 TEACHERS UNIONS: ‘INDOCTRINATION’ Additionally, Fox News Digital obtained an email sent on Jan. 16 from NEA Executive Director Kim Anderson that included more heated rhetoric directed at ICE and President Donald Trump. “Masked ICE agents are operating with impunity in Minneapolis, attacking students on school grounds and abducting neighbors from locations that are considered places of safety and care, including churches and hospitals,” the email said. “ICE agents are harassing, frightening, abusing, detaining and killing our neighbors. They abuse power and disregard the rule of law.” The email continued, “Violent ICE raids disproportionately targeting Black and brown students, families, and communities, have forced public schools to close their doors. Keeping students safe from ICE also keeps them from their classrooms, their friends, and the support they deserve.” The email referred to Trump’s actions enforcing immigration law as “Un-American” and an “authoritarian threat.” “People talk about turning down the temperature and how rhetoric is getting people killed, like it is, and they’re doing it, they’re the ones saying all this crazy nonsense,” the whistleblower told Fox News Digital. Mika Hackner, director of research at the North American Values Institute, told Fox News Digital that a union’s purpose is “to advocate for and to represent effectively and fairly its union members” and that it’s “difficult to see how the NEA can do this when it ensures that a particular political position and worldview is woven into the fabric of its organization.” Another area the whistleblower flagged is union revenue, claiming NEA leadership is especially focused on protecting dues collection by shifting members to “auto-pay” in states where payroll deductions face pushback. “That’s the biggest thing they’re worried about right now,” the whistleblower said, claiming the union is fighting efforts that prevent dues from being “take[n]… directly out of your paycheck.” On the day following Trump’s victory over former Vice President Kamala Harris, endorsed by the NEA, in the 2024 presidential election, the whistleblower told Fox News Digital the NEA offices were filled with distraught employees. “Everybody in the office had their doors closed. They were crying. It was a whole thing. It was wild, grown-ass people crying over an election.” In a statement to Fox News Digital after publication, an NEA spokesperson said, “The positions of the NEA are determined through democratic processes by the educators and other dedicated public employees who make up our membership. NEA staff go to work every day to support our members as they educate and care for students. NEA members and staff hold a wide variety of views, but one thing remains constant: we believe in the value of a quality public education for every student and every community in this country.” Erika Sanzi, senior director of communications for Defending Education, told Fox News Digital in November that the union’s federal charter should be re-evaluated given the organization has become more of a political operation than a union pushing for better student outcomes. Sanzi explained, “Their federal charter was granted because they promised to ‘elevate the character and advance the interests of the profession of teaching; and to promote the cause of education in the United States.’ Seeing as their leadership — and by extension, the organization itself — has morphed into a far-left insane asylum that is actively destroying the cause of education, that charter is no longer defensible.” “Few organizations have done more to erode trust in American public education than the National Education Association,” Terry Stoops, director of state affairs at Defending Education, told Fox News Digital this week. “The National Education Association has little interest in improving the lives of America’s public school educators. Instead, it’s committed to dispensing millions of dollars in membership dues to Democrats, while infiltrating classrooms and corrupting young minds with the grotesqueries of the far Left.”
Trump says US should have tested NATO by invoking Article 5 over border security
President Donald Trump on Thursday said the United States should have considered testing NATO by forcing member countries to respond to America’s southern border crisis. Trump speculated in a post on Truth Social that the U.S. could have invoked Article 5 — the alliance’s collective defense clause that deems an attack on one member as an attack on all — thereby putting NATO “to the test.” “Maybe we should have put NATO to the test: Invoked Article 5, and forced NATO to come here and protect our Southern Border from further Invasions of Illegal Immigrants, thus freeing up large numbers of Border Patrol Agents for other tasks,” he wrote. The president’s comments came after he has recently questioned NATO’s commitment to aiding the U.S. DENMARK RAMPS UP DEFENSES IN GREENLAND AS TRUMP ZEROS IN ON CONTROL OF TERRITORY “We will always be there for NATO, even if they won’t be there for us,” the president wrote on social media earlier this month. After meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on Wednesday at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland, Trump announced that he had the “framework of a future deal regarding Greenland.” Trump wrote on Truth Social that if finalized, the deal “will be a great one for the United States of America, and all NATO Nations.” DAVOS BRACES FOR TRUMP AMID TENSIONS OVER NATO, GREENLAND AND GLOBAL DEFENSE Following the meeting, Trump said he would scrap a plan to impose tariffs on a group of NATO members who sent troops to Greenland amid the president’s efforts to acquire the island. Trump had asserted that those countries would be subjected to a 10% tariff on all goods beginning Feb. 1. In an exclusive interview with Fox News this week, Rutte said Trump was “totally right” about needing to shore up security in the Arctic region, noting that the chance of Russia or China becoming a threat in that region was increasing. Rutte applauded Trump’s leadership in getting NATO countries to pay more money for the alliance’s defenses. “I would argue tonight with you on this program he was the one who brought a whole of Europe and Canada up to this famous 5%,” Rutte said, “which is crucial for us to equalize our spending, but also protect ourselves. And this is the framework which you see in his post that we will work on.” NATO members were previously spending 2% of GDP on defense, but have now agreed to spend 5% of GDP on defense and national security infrastructure. Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment. Fox News Digital’s Alec Schemmel contributed to this report.
US officers detain 5-year-old boy as Minnesota immigration raids continue
School official says the child, Liam Conejo Ramos, was ‘essentially’ used ‘as bait to apprehend his father, who is seeking asylum in the US. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers have detained a five-year-old boy arriving home from preschool in Minnesota, after allegedly using him “as bait” to apprehend his father, who has a pending asylum case. Federal agents took the child, Liam Conejo Ramos, from a running car while it was in the family’s driveway on Tuesday afternoon, Columbia Heights Public Schools Superintendent Zena Stenvik said during a news conference on Wednesday. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list The officers then told the child to knock on the door to his home to see if other people were inside, “essentially using a five-year-old as bait”, Stenvik said. Stenvik said the family, who came to the United States in 2024, has an active asylum case and had not been ordered to leave the country. “Why detain a five-year-old?” she asked. “You cannot tell me that this child is going to be classified as a violent criminal.” Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement that “ICE did NOT target a child”. She said ICE was conducting an operation to arrest the child’s father, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, who McLaughlin said is from Ecuador. “For the child’s safety, one of our ICE officers remained with the child while the other officers apprehended Conejo Arias,” McLaughlin said, adding that parents are given the choice to be removed with their children or have them placed with a person of their choosing. Liam is the fourth student from Columbia Heights Public Schools who has been detained by ICE in recent weeks, said Stenvik. A 17-year-old student was taken on Tuesday while heading to school, and a 10-year-old and a 17-year-old have also been taken, she said. Advertisement The family’s lawyer, Marc Prokosch, said on Thursday that Liam and his father were taken to an immigration lockup in Dilley, Texas, and that he assumes they were being held in a family holding cell. “We’re looking at our legal options to see if we can free them either through some legal mechanisms or moral pressure,” he said at a news conference. A lawyer who visited the Dilley detention facility last week, as part of an ongoing lawsuit to ensure the safekeeping of immigrant children in federal custody, said conditions were deteriorating. “The conditions were worse than ever,” said Leecia Welch, chief legal counsellor at the advocacy group Children’s Rights. “The number of children had skyrocketed, and significant numbers of children had been detained for over 100 days,” Welch said. “Nearly every child we spoke to was sick – and it seemed there was an epidemic of illnesses going around. Families reported that their children were malnourished, extremely ill, and suffering profoundly from prolonged detention,” Welch said. During a visit to Minneapolis on Thursday, US Vice President JD Vance said he heard the “terrible story” about Liam, but said he was not sure what the federal agents could have done differently. “Well, what are they supposed to do? Are they supposed to let a five-year-old child freeze to death? Are they not supposed to arrest an illegal alien in the United States of America?” said Vance, noting that he was also the parent of a five-year-old. US federal agents have arrested some 3,000 people in immigration raids across Minnesota in recent weeks, according to Greg Bovino, a US Customs and Border Protection official. Julia Decker, policy director at the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, said advocates have no way of knowing whether the government’s arrest numbers and descriptions of the people in custody are accurate. Also on Thursday, US Attorney General Pam Bondi said that three people have been arrested in Minneapolis after they protested at Cities Church in St Paul, where they alleged one of the pastors, David Easterwood, was the acting field director for the St Paul ICE field office. Those arrested included Minneapolis civil rights activist Nekima Levy Armstrong and St Paul school board member Chauntyll Louisa Allen, according to the Minnesota Star Tribune newspaper. In a post on X, Bondi said that Armstrong had played a “key role” in organising the protest on Sunday. Adblock test (Why?)
Did the US give Greenland back to Denmark? Trump omits history at Davos
On Wednesday, United States President Donald Trump made clear to other world leaders in Davos, Switzerland, that he was unflinching in his demand to acquire Greenland, even as he said for the first time that he did not plan for the US to take the land by force. Trump, who talked up his tariff-based negotiation strategy, cited Greenland’s strategic position between the US, Russia and China as the main reason he wants to acquire the territory. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list Retelling the US history with Greenland and Denmark, Trump said, during World War II, “we saved Greenland and successfully prevented our enemies from gaining a foothold in our hemisphere”. This much is accurate: After Germany invaded Denmark, the US assumed responsibility for Greenland’s defence and established a military presence on the island that remains today, albeit in diminished scope. But Trump overstepped when he said, after World War II, “we gave Greenland back to Denmark”. “All the United States is asking for is a place called Greenland, where we already had it as a trustee, but respectfully returned it back to Denmark not long ago,” he said. Although the US defended Greenland during World War II, it never possessed the nation, and so could not have given it back. Experts have told PolitiFact that Greenland’s status as part of Denmark is not in question, and has not been for more than a century. Denmark’s colonisation of Greenland dates to the 1720s. In 1933, an international court settled a territorial dispute between Denmark and Norway, ruling that as of July 1931, Denmark “possessed a valid title to the sovereignty over all Greenland”. Advertisement After the 1945 approval of the United Nations Charter – the organisation’s founding document and the foundation of much of international law – Denmark incorporated Greenland through a constitutional amendment and gave it representation in the Danish Parliament in 1953. Denmark told the UN that any colonial-type status had ended; the UN General Assembly accepted this change in November 1954. The US was among the nations that voted to accept Greenland’s new status. Since then, Greenland has, incrementally but consistently, moved towards greater autonomy. Greenlandic political activists successfully pushed for and achieved home rule in 1979, which established its parliament. Today, Greenland is a district within the sovereign state of Denmark, with two elected representatives in Denmark’s Parliament. What about Iceland? Four times in the Davos speech, Trump referred to Iceland instead of Greenland. “Our stock market took the first dip yesterday because of Iceland,” Trump said. “So Iceland has already cost us a lot of money, but that dip is peanuts compared to what it’s gone up, and we have an unbelievable future.” US markets reacted negatively to Trump’s Greenland comments the day before his Davos speech, falling about 2 percent in value. But in recent weeks, Trump has said nothing about acquiring Iceland, an independent island nation with nearly 400,000 residents, located east of Greenland. In an X post following Trump’s Davos address, the White House press secretary criticised a reporter for posting that Trump “appeared to mix up Greenland and Iceland” several times. Karoline Leavitt said Trump’s “written remarks referred to Greenland as a ‘piece of ice’ because that’s what it is”. Although Trump did call Greenland a “very big piece of ice”, he also separately mentioned “Iceland”. Traditionally, Icelanders have maintained strong ties to the US, dating back to World War II, when Reykjavik invited US troops into the country. In 1949, Iceland became a founding member of NATO, and in 1951, the two countries signed a bilateral defence agreement that still stands. Its location – between the Arctic and North Atlantic oceans, a strategic naval choke point in the Greenland-Iceland-United Kingdom gap – means that Iceland, despite its lack of a standing military, is geographically important for both North America and Europe. In 2006, the US gave up its permanent troop presence at the Keflavík airbase – a 45-minute drive south of the capital, Reykjavik – but US troops still rotate through. Icelandic civilians now handle key NATO tasks such as submarine surveillance and operations at four radar sites on the nation’s periphery. Iceland also makes financial contributions to NATO trust funds and contributes a small number of technical and diplomatic personnel to NATO operations. Advertisement Trump’s pick for ambassador to Iceland, former Republican Congressman Billy Long, attracted criticism earlier this month when he was overheard saying Iceland should become a US state after Greenland, and that he would serve as governor. Long apologised during an interview with Arctic Today. “There was nothing serious about that. I was with some people, who I hadn’t met for three years, and they were kidding about Jeff Landry being governor of Greenland, and they started joking about me. And if anyone took offence to it, then I apologise,” Long told the publication. Trump has tapped Landry, Louisiana’s Republican governor, to be the US envoy to Greenland. Silja Bara R Omarsdottir, an international affairs professor who now serves as rector, or president, of the University of Iceland, told the Tampa Bay Times in August that newfound attention to Iceland’s security, including concerns over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine for the rest of Europe, is “definitely very noticeable at the political level”. Multiple analysts in Iceland told the daily, only half-jokingly, that the key to surviving the Trump era has been to remain out of sight, something Greenland, for whatever reason, was unlucky enough not to be able to do. “You could say Icelandic policy towards the US has been to try to keep under the radar,” said Pia Elisabeth Hansson, director of the Institute of International Affairs at the University of Iceland. Adblock test (Why?)