DHS blasts Chicago mayor for comparing raid leader to segregationists, accusing him of ‘terror’
EXCLUSIVE: After Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson put Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino on blast for his “Operation Midway Blitz” immigration raids in the Windy City, DHS hit back saying the Democrat should worry more about Chicagoans being maimed by illegal immigrant gangbangers and drug traffickers. At his latest press conference, Johnson appeared to equate Bovino’s behavior with terrorism, saying the North Carolina native is someone who “provokes terror on people,” and condemned immigration enforcement raids and their spread on federal social media as akin to “grotesque” imagery of racist behavior like lynchings and anti-desegregation scenes from the 20th century. “Mayor Brandon Johnson is once again demonizing ICE and CBP law enforcement are facing a more than 1,000% increase in assaults and 8,000% increase in death threats against them,” Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Fox News Digital when asked about Johnson’s comments. “Mayor Johnson has shown time and time again he does not care about the innocent American lives taken at the hands of gang members, murderers, drug traffickers, and rapists who have no right to be in this country,” McLaughlin said. OPERATION MIDWAY BLITZ COMMANDER REBUTS PRITZKER’S ‘CRAZY RHETORIC,’ WARNS IT COULD LEAD TO VIOLENCE After a reporter joked about Bovino’s “Midway Blitz” team posing at Chicago’s “Bean” sculpture — and another quipped that agents were saying “Little Village” instead of “cheese” while taking photos in the heavily Hispanic neighborhood — Johnson scoffed, saying the North Carolina–born commander “should just go away.” “Here’s someone who has provoked terror on people,” Johnson said, before condemning the way Bovino comported himself as he left Illinois federal court swarmed by protesters screaming, “F— you, Greg,”, “F— you, fascist,” and calling him a “p—y.” Johnson also shared a photo of Bovino posing with agents at the “Bean” and called the picture “wicked and vile.” DHS responded by sharing images of recently-arrested violent illegal immigrants and proverbially corrected the mayor, saying they should be the ones considered “wicked and vile.” BORDER PATROL CHIEF FIRES BACK AFTER CHICAGO MAYOR CALLS HIM ‘BARBARIC’ OVER TEAR GAS CLASH “I’ve seen a lot of bad behavior from human beings over the course of my study of just history,” Johnson told reporters. “Even when he was on his way into federal court, he paraded down the street and saluted individuals,” he added, furrowing his brow. “And then [DHS goes] on social media and put hip-hop music to their terror in Black and Brown communities. That’s not even a dog whistle anymore. That’s some real racist jacked-up stuff that he is engaged in.” BORDER PATROL CHIEF FIRES BACK AFTER PRITZKER CALLS FEDERAL OPERATIONS ‘UNCONSTITUTIONAL INVASION’ Johnson went on, claiming President Donald Trump is a “brittle man” and that Bovino is acting “under the direction of his king.” “This president has unleashed Bovino to unleash tear gas on police officers and babies. And then they have the temerity to take a picture in front of one of our public assets,” he said of the “Bean” scene. “There are horrific pictures that exist within America, in American society, graphic ones, from lynchings to Black children being prevented from entering into a public institution,” Johnson said. Former Arkansas Democratic Gov. Orval Faubus and ex-Alabama Democratic Gov. George Wallace both barricaded schoolhouses to prevent desegregation in the mid 20th century, leading Presidents Dwight Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy, respectively, to federalize the National Guard. “What Bovino and the Border Patrol are executing right now have the same grotesque proclivity as those who have worked incredibly hard to dehumanize, historically, people who have been placed in the margins.”
Michelle Obama reveals ‘infuriating’ moment on Air Force One that still haunts her
Former first lady Michelle Obama revealed on a recent episode of her podcast that she was left infuriated by a moment on Air Force One in 2009 when she debated whether to wear Bermuda shorts while on vacation — which ultimately led to controversy. “The fact that we had to spend time thinking about that kind of stuff in ways that my husband didn’t — it was really infuriating,” Obama said during an episode on her podcast, “IMO With Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson,” which she co-hosts with her brother. “Then an article, a negative article, still happened.” The former first lady explained that in August 2009 she and the former president were set to depart Air Force One for a hike in the Grand Canyon while on their first vacation since the inauguration earlier that year. While she fretted over what attire would be appropriate for a first lady and not draw public criticism, Barack Obama did not need to put effort into thinking about his outfit, she recounted. “It was 100 degrees,” Michelle Obama remembered of the conversation. “Barack — I was like, ‘Well, what are you wearing?’ He was like, ‘Well, I’m gonna throw on some sneakers, I’m gonna take my jacket off and roll my sleeves up’ because that’s what men can do. White shirt, no collar, no tie. That was how he changed.” BROADCAST BIAS: FROM CAMELOT TO WHINE-A-LOT, MICHELLE OBAMA CLAIMS SHE’S MISTREATED Michelle Obama said she debated whether to wear hiking shorts or a dress before landing on wearing Bermuda shorts. “I can’t wear hiking shorts there, and I can’t wear a dress to hike,” she said. “That would be crazy. People would call me ‘disconnected’ and ‘un-American.’ I’m at the Grand Canyon in a tea-length dress with flats? I was like, ‘That’s not how people go to the Grand Canyon.’” “I eventually opted for the thing that felt mostly me,” Michelle Obama continued. “And it was the Bermuda shorts. Because if we’re going on a hike, this is how a normal person would go on a hike.” MICHELLE OBAMA TELLS COLBERT SHE FEELS ‘LOST’ ABOUT CURRENT WHITE HOUSE NORMS AND STANDARDS UNDER TRUMP The former first lady did face backlash for the attire, as pundits at the time criticized that a first lady wearing shorts while departing Air Force One was too casual, with outlets running headlines such as, “Who Wears Short Shorts? Michelle Obama,” “First lady’s shorts draw some long, hard looks,” and “Michelle Obama: The Shorts Heard Round the World.” KAMALA HARRIS MENTIONS MICHELLE OBAMA ONLY THREE TIMES IN 300-PAGE BOOK. HERE’S WHAT SHE SAID Michelle Obama said in 2013 that she would not wear shorts again on Air Force One after the 2009 outfit caused “a huge stink.” She explained at the time that she made the more relaxed choice because “we’re on vacation.” First lady Melania Trump also has faced backlash over her wardrobe attire, including in 2017 when she wore a baseball cap and jeans to visit Texas after Hurricane Harvey that was viewed by some critics as too casual, and again in 2018 when she wore a green jacket while on a trip to visit the border that read, “I really don’t care. Do u?” Melania Trump later told the media she wore the jacket as a message to the liberal media and other critics: “I want to show them that I don’t care,” she told ABC News in 2018. Fox News Digital reached out to Michelle Obama’s office Tuesday for additional comment on the matter but did not immediately receive a reply.
Newsom silent on violent Berkeley protest of TPUSA at California university
Two days after agitators violently disrupted a TPUSA event in Berkeley, California, the state’s governor, Gavin Newsom, has yet to issue a public comment on the matter. The incident unfolded on Monday night on the campus of UC Berkeley at a Turning Point event featuring actor Rob Schneider and author Frank Turek, a Christian mentor of the organization’s late founder, Charlie Kirk. Left-wing agitators swarmed Zellerbach Hall, where the event, which was the last stop on the “This is the Turning Point” tour, was held. Four students at the university were arrested, according to The Daily Californian, which omitted the suspects’ names from its report. They were described as females between the ages of 20 and 22. Each was reportedly charged with felony vandalism. The UC Berkeley Police Department confirmed that two other men were arrested during the night’s activities. FETTERMAN FIRES BACK AT NEWSOM AFTER SHUTDOWN CRITICISM, REFUSES TO ‘PLAY CHICKEN’ WITH THE LIVES OF AMERICANS Christopher Joseph Benton, 48, who is unaffiliated with the school, was arrested for trespassing, resisting or obstructing an officer and being unlawfully present on campus, all misdemeanors. Jay Eduardo Maytorena, 22, listed as a current or former student, was arrested for trespassing and resisting or obstructing an officer. Several of the skirmishes at the event went viral, including a man caught on video beating a Turning Point USA supporter who was arrested and charged with violent crimes. Police said that upon further investigation, the second man involved in the fight was attempting to rob the victim of his necklace. “After speaking with the involved parties and corroborating information through open-source media footage, officers determined that one of the men—Jihad Dphrepaulezz (a 25-year-old Oakland man) had stolen the other man’s chain from around his neck,” police said. “The other man was attempting to get his chain back from Dphrepaulezz.” GAVIN NEWSOM TELLS DEMOCRATS THEY ‘WALKED AWAY’ FROM MASCULINITY CRISIS IMPACTING MEN AND BOYS Newsom, who is in Brazil attending the COP 30 climate conference, has not posted about the disruption of the event, which conservatives have labeled as an assault on free speech. Fox News Digital reached out to Newsom’s office for comment but did not immediately receive a response. Newsom famously sat down for an interview with Kirk before the conservative commentator was murdered, and the two briefly touched on free speech while discussing TikTok. Newsom raised concerns about teachers “policing speech” in classrooms. “Grateful this level of attention being paid to what happened to our students last night at UC Berkeley,” Turning Point USA’s Andrew Kolvet posted on X. “No one attending a peaceful event should be subjected to the type of harassment and attacks we saw last night. The Antifa thugs who did this MUST be stopped.” The Department of Justice announced it is investigating the campus chaos. “Mob assault and thuggish intimidation of attendees exercising their First Amendment rights are unacceptable,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon wrote in a post announcing the probe on X. The DOJ has demanded that the school preserve all records related to security and campus preparation for the Turning Point event. In a lengthy statement provided to Fox News Digital, UC Berkeley strongly condemned all violence and threats that may chill freedom of speech. It also said it will cooperate with the federal investigation. “The University is conducting a full investigation and intends to fully cooperate with and assist any federal investigations and the FBI-led Joint Terrorism Task Force to identify the outside agitators responsible for attempting to disrupt last night’s TPUSA event,” the statement said. “UC Berkeley will take all appropriate steps to safeguard the right of every member of our community to speak and assemble freely.” Fox News Digital’s Peter D’Abrosca and Stephen Sorace contributed to this report.
Red-state university ripped for offering entry-level job to foreign workers, not grads: ‘Woke mind virus’
EXCLUSIVE: An Indiana Republican lawmaker is speaking out against Indiana University after the school posted a job listing advertising the position to be filled by an H-1B visa holder, rather than a graduate or Indiana resident. “One of the whole points of a state university is to educate the next generation so they can get jobs here in Indiana and, amazingly, that same school then turns around and says, ‘Except when we hire people, we’re going to hire people from foreign countries instead of our own graduates,’” state Rep. Andrew Ireland told Fox News Digital. In a Tuesday post on X, Ireland took issue with a job posting on the IU website for a “marketing generalist” that pays $68,000 per year that was classified as a “notice of intent to hire H-1B/E-3 Employee 2.” His criticism quickly spread on social media and Ireland told Fox News Digital it was “frustrating” to see the “flagship” university in the state offer that job to a foreign worker rather than a student or graduate of the school. CLICK HERE FOR MORE CAMPUS RADICALS COAST TO COAST At the same time, Ireland told Fox News Digital the job posting is “not a surprise.” “I think more than 220 H-1B applications were filed this year for opportunities with different universities and colleges in the state of Indiana,” Ireland explained. “These are public universities, public institutions, or the state government in some cases itself, that are using H-1B visas to fill positions. But frankly, very few of which seem to be actually technical or unique in nature. There’s no specialization to a marketing generalist or a librarian, a marketing instructor. Some of these roles are being filled right now in the state of Indiana with H-1B workers.” Ireland, a graduate of Indiana University, said there has been a “longtime struggle” with the university’s “political bend” and reflected on a situation when he was a student where he says a journalism professor suggested to him that GOP Sen. Ted Cruz, who Ireland worked for as a student, was “the devil.” “I got thick skin, you can give it to me as much as you want,” Ireland told Fox News Digital. ‘But I think it’s really indicative of what’s going on on campus there at Indiana University and many other schools across the country, is that I think you really do have the infection from the woke mind virus.“ ‘3 HEADED MONSTER’: EXPERT REVEALS HOW H-1B VISA PROGRAM IS CRUSHING AMERICAN COLLEGE GRADUATES Ireland continued, “I think there’s a good case to be made that this sort of H-1B abuse certainly plays a part in that, too, where, you know, again, instead of really saying that our own best and brightest here in Indiana should have opportunities, that we really want to focus on merit, we’re going to go and search outside of this country, even for some relatively low-skilled roles. Very frustrating, to say the least.” Fox News Digital reached out to the University of Indiana for comment. The Trump administration has made efforts since January to crack down on H-1B visa abuse, both by putting financial incentives on companies to hire Americans rather than overseas workers and by investigating companies who are potentially abusing the system. Last week, Fox News Digital first reported that Trump’s Department of Labor has launched at least 175 ongoing investigations targeting potential abuses within the H-1B visa program. Ireland says he applauds the Trump administration for “taking the issue seriously.” “But what I’m really focused on as a state lawmaker in Indiana is reining in what we can through state government, our own state institutions that are funded and subsidized by tax dollars to make sure we’re putting our money where our mouth is,” Ireland told Fox News Digital. “If we’re America first, that means that we’re going to hire American workers to fill American jobs, not foreigners. And I think that’s something we can do even without the federal government, regardless of who’s in the White House, that we should really be focused on that here in the state of Indiana.” In terms of what Ireland can do about H-1B visas at the state level in his capacity as a lawmaker, he pointed to the upcoming legislative session in the state and suggested he has some plans in the works. “I’m working to put a bill hopefully together for exactly this issue,” Ireland said. “Short of outright banning H-1B visas, and I think there’s a strong case for that, is at least, require more transparency around this.” “It’s one thing when we’re talking about the Elon Musks of the world. You know these high-skilled foreign individuals who bring a skillset that we simply just don’t have in our own workforce. But I gotta tell you, there’s plenty of people who can make PowerPoints and graphics and post on Facebook for Indiana University. We don’t need to hire somebody for $68,000 a year to do the job that an American worker can do.”
Longest government shutdown in history nears likely end as House moves on funding bill
The end of the longest government shutdown in U.S. history is finally in sight, with the House of Representatives set to vote on a federal funding bill later Wednesday evening. House lawmakers are set to take a procedural vote in the 5 p.m. hour on whether to allow debate on the measure. If the legislation survives, a final vote is expected in the 7 p.m. hour. The government has been shut down for 43 days as Democrats and Republicans hotly debated the merits of the GOP’s initial federal funding bill, a short-term extension of fiscal year (FY) 2025 spending levels through Nov. 21. The vast majority of Democrats are still against the legislation, including House Democratic leadership, but GOP lawmakers across several ideologically diverse factions have signaled confidence in a nearly unified Republican vote. THE 5 LONGEST GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWNS IN HISTORY: WHAT HAPPENED, HOW THEY ENDED House Freedom Caucus Policy Chairman Chip Roy, R-Texas, said he heard no dissent on the bill from his band of fiscal hawks. “I’m not going to speak for everybody, but I think there’s general support. So you know, I’m unaware of any opposition of significance,” he told reporters Tuesday night. House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole, R-Okla., said, “Nothing’s ever easy around here. But, look, I didn’t notice any dissent … I think the votes will be there on our side.” BILL TO END GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN SURVIVES KEY HURDLE BEFORE HOUSE-WIDE VOTE But with a razor-thin majority, House GOP leaders can only afford to lose two Republican votes at most to pass the bill without relying on any Democrats. “I’m very hopeful,” House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., told Fox News Digital when asked if Republicans had the votes to pass the bill. “I think you’re seeing just a few Democrats come to their senses. It should be a lot more.” Meanwhile, the shutdown’s effects on the country have grown more severe by the day. Many of the thousands of air traffic controllers and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents who had to work without pay were forced to take second jobs, causing nationwide flight delays and cancellations amid staffing shortages at the country’s busiest airports. Millions of Americans who rely on federal benefits were also left in limbo as funding for critical government programs ran close to drying out. At the heart of the issue was Democratic leaders’ refusal to back any funding bill that did not also extend COVID-19 pandemic-era enhanced Obamacare subsidies that are set to expire at the end of this year. Democrats argued it was their best hope of preventing healthcare price hikes for Americans across the U.S. Republicans agreed to hold conversations on reforming what they saw as a broken healthcare system, but they refused to pair any partisan priority with federal funding. The initial bill passed the House on Sept. 19 but stalled in the Senate for weeks, when Democrats sank the bill more than a dozen times. MIKE JOHNSON SPEAKS OUT AFTER SENATE BREAKTHROUGH ON GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN However, after weeks of stalemate and the clock running down on their Nov. 21 bill, a new compromise emerged that got support from eight Senate Democrats to carry it across the finish line. The new legislation would extend FY 2025 federal funding levels through Jan. 30, to give negotiators more time to strike a longer-term deal for FY 2026. It would also give lawmakers some headway with that mission, advancing legislation to fund the Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration; the Department of Veterans Affairs and military construction; and the legislative branch. In a victory for Democrats, the deal would also reverse federal layoffs conducted by the Trump administration in October, with those workers getting paid for the time they were off. A side deal struck in the Senate also guaranteed Senate Democrats a vote on legislation extending the enhanced Obamacare subsidies. Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., however, has made no such promise in the House. If passed on Wednesday night, the legislation heads to President Donald Trump’s desk for a signature. When asked about the bill on Tuesday, a White House official told Fox News Digital, “President Trump has wanted the government reopened since the first day Democrats shut it down. The action in the Senate is a positive development, and we look forward to seeing it progress.”
WATCH: Hidden camera catches red-state university admins admitting how they ‘cleverly’ disguised DEI agenda
FIRST ON FOX: Undercover video shows administrators at a North Carolina university detailing how they are continuing their diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts despite state and federal efforts to roll back the policies. “It shook things up around here, but fortunately for us, this office is not actually under the DEI office at all, so we’re able to just keep going. We just like switched up our, you know, changed the wording of things,” Pascha Miller, Office of Intercultural Engagement assistant director at North Carolina A&T State University, says in a video obtained by Accuracy in Media. The videos, taken in August and September 2024, came months after the University of North Carolina System Board of Governors voted to essentially ban DEI and focus on “institutional neutrality,” Carolina Journal reported. Michael Eccles, the university’s office manager for the Office of Intercultural Engagement, said in the video, “The word ‘diversity,’ we had to change saying ‘diversity’ to competency.” CLICK HERE FOR MORE CAMPUS RADICALS COAST TO COAST “Yes,” Eccles said when asked if he would describe that process as “creative naming,” using the word “cleverly” to describe the method. Austin Horne, assistant director of LGBTA programs and services at the Office of Intercultural Engagement, is also seen in the video going a step further. “The Board of Governors did a statute in May that is really like, attacking DEI jobs and restricting some of our language,” Horne said. “It is very intentionally vague is what, you know, the way I read it. But it’s really leaving it up to you know each university to kind of think about it in their own way and consider how much they want to open themselves up to litigation. But, luckily I think there’s only been one position that wasn’t lost, it was just changed here.” The undercover journalist then pressed Horne. “Just to make sure I understand, so for at least A&T, you’ve not had to like, you’ve just changed or maybe got creative, with some of the language?” the journalist asked. “Yes,” Horne responded. “To get around the legislation?” the journalist asked. “Well, it’s not even to get around the legislation, so what the legislation is, is it’s giving us, I want to say it’s 11 rules for what we can and cannot say when we are speaking on behalf of the university, and so some universities like Charlotte have taken that and said these positions can’t function with these rules in place so we’re just going to get rid of them. Every other public university has said they can function, we’re just going to try and shield ourselves from litigation.” The journalist responded, “Just to appease the politicians?” WATCHDOG: HOW UNIVERSITIES ARE REBRANDING DEI TO SKIRT TRUMP’S CRACKDOWN “Yes, it’s very much, it’s so vague,” Horne said. In another clip, Eccles says, “It’s been a little bit of a challenge, but we’re still pushing through and trying to make sure people get what they need.” Miller says in another clip toward the end of the video, “We don’t use DEI anymore, it’s kind of hard not to use the word ‘diversity,’” then laughs along with the journalist and says, “We try not to, you know, just to be safe.” Fox News Digital has reported extensively on universities this year who appear to be simply rebranding their DEI efforts in order to avoid scrutiny from the Trump administration or state governments. Earlier this year, UNC Asheville severed ties with its dean of students after Fox News Digital reported on a video showing her boasting about DEI efforts still taking place but you “gotta keep it quiet.” Fox News Digital reached out to North Carolina A&T State University for comment. “North Carolina’s universities have been captured by lawbreaking radicals, and they require fundamental reform,” Adam Guillette, president of Accuracy in Media, told Fox News Digital. “Any government employee who is caught circumventing laws should never again be allowed to earn a paycheck from taxpayers. And the legislature needs to enact a Kansas-style DEI ban which includes both a reporting mechanism and actual consequences for those who flout the law.”
UC Berkeley’s bloody protest of TPUSA allegedly funded by far-left nonprofit
Last month, a band of demonstrators marched across West Temple Street in downtown Los Angeles in the national anti-Trump #NoKings protests, carrying a banner that read: “DEFEAT TRUMP’S FASCIST TAKEOVER. Stop ICE raids and deportations by any means necessary.” In one corner, four bold letters stood out: “BAMN,” an acronym for “By Any Means Necessary.” The rest of the banner spelled out clues to the group’s full name in smaller print: “Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action, Integration and Immigration Rights and Fight for Equality By Any Means Necessary.” That organization – one of 266 groups with combined annual revenues of $2.9 billion identified by Fox News Digital leading the #NoKings protests – would soon reappear at this week’s flashpoint on the campus of the University of California, Berkeley. On Monday night, the group proudly broadcast videos on its Instagram channel of its leaders stoking an angry mob on the streets again, this time on the Berkeley campus, staging a protest that turned into a bloody brawl outside a Turning Point USA event, leading to the arrest of several people. ‘NO KINGS’ ORGANIZER DISCOURAGES VIOLENCE FOLLOWING COAST-TO-COAST ARRESTS A flyer circulated before the demonstration urged participants to “End Fascist Turning Point’s Youth-Oriented Campaign of Incitement to Violence!” It announced a rally outside Zellerbach Hall an hour before doors opened for the event. At first glance, the flyer appears like many other activist handouts. But its digital trail tells a deeper story. A QR code printed on the flyer leads to a page on BAMN.com, a domain displayed on the #NoKings banner weeks earlier for the group, “By Any Means Necessary.” On the page, visitors could directly download a “PDF of flyer” and “PDF of poster.” Journalist Andy Ngo, the author of a book on far-left violence and the Antifa network, shared the flyer on social media, warning that “By Any Means Necessary” is a long-standing fixture within the chaotic ecosystem of groups associated with the “anti-fascist” movement. TURNING POINT LEADER DEMANDS REPERCUSSIONS FOR UCHICAGO PROFESSOR ARRESTED AT ANTI-ICE RALLY Fox News Digital examined the metadata embedded in both documents to follow the money on “By Any Means Necessary.” Each file was created on Nov. 9, a day before the protest, and both listed the “owner” as “ronald.cruz@ueaa.net.” The email domain, ueaa.net, links to a far-left Detroit-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit, “United for Equality and Affirmative Action Legal Defense Fund,” which “By Any Means Necessary” describes as its nonprofit “affiliate.” They act as a seamless entity at protests, from #NoKings to anti-Israel actions after the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas terrorists. Ronald Cruz, a licensed attorney in California, is listed in state bar records as a counsel for “United for Equality and Affirmative Action Legal Defense Fund.” Tax records show it has been federally tax-exempt since March 2022. Cruz didn’t return a request for comment. What’s more, under a label for “Storage Used,” both documents note the files are “Owned by UEAA Legal Defense Fund.” By Any Means Necessary and the United for Equality and Affirmative Action Legal Defense Fund didn’t respond to a request for comment. MEET THE RADICAL DC ACTIVIST MOBILIZING GANG MEMBERS, ‘HARDCORE MEN’ TO TARGET FEDERAL TAKEOVER: ‘REAL ENEMY’ On its official “Donate” page, the leaders of “By Any Means Necessary” confirm the connection. They instruct visitors on how to make a tax-deductible donation, enthusiastically noting, “You can make a contribution to our 501(c)(3) affiliate, United for Equality and Affirmative Action Legal Defense Fund (UEAALDF)! Money goes toward our legal cases and broader organizing and education.” With one click, visitors are directed to the “UEAALDF website” at “ueaa.net,” legitimizing the activist network under the guise of charity. While the organization’s balance sheet is small, with reported tax-deductible “public support” totaling $99,348 over five years from 2018 through 2022, the most recent year available, the implications are significant. As experts note, the case illustrates how organizations leverage nonprofit status to claim moral and legal legitimacy while allegedly fomenting organized street violence, sectarian division and communal hate, activities outside the boundaries of “charitable” purpose. MILLIONS EXPECTED TO FLOOD STREETS AT ‘NO KINGS’ PROTESTS TARGETING TRUMP ACROSS ALL 50 STATES In the wake of the assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk in September, President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance called for closer scrutiny of nonprofits that receive tax benefits while allegedly promoting political violence. The convergence of tax-exempt organizations, campus unrest and politically motivated violence underscores an emerging challenge in the nonprofit sector. Groups like “By Any Means Necessary” allegedly exploit the credibility and financial protections of charitable status while acting as de facto political operatives, often in coordination with broader ideological movements like Students for Justice in Palestine, first established at UC Berkeley by Palestinian American academic Hatem Bazian. The metadata and cross-linked digital trails for the UC Berkeley protest reveal a well-coordinated infrastructure beneath the seemingly spontaneous protests, raising questions about accountability, transparency and the weaponization of the tax code for political warfare. ANTI-ISRAEL RADICALS FROM ‘GLOBAL INTIFADA’ MOVEMENT JOIN ‘NO KINGS’ PROTESTS The contrast between “By Any Means Necessary” activists marching relatively peacefully in last month’s #NoKings protest and the violent clash their protests helped incite at UC Berkeley this week highlights how some groups exploit nonprofit status to appear charitable one day while allegedly fomenting chaos, sectarianism, hate and violence the next day. The UC Berkeley protests also raise questions about malign foreign influence. On its “Affiliates” webpage, “By Any Means Necessary” includes a link to the website for the “International Trotskyist Committee for the Regeneration of the Fourth International,” which is organizing “militants” who support early 20th century Soviet communist leader Leon Trotsky and the rise of a global “revolutionary Marxism.” The committee includes the Revolutionary Workers League and the Revolutionary Internationalist League, both self-declared communist groups. A flyer, “Victory to the Palestinian Struggle,” includes the logos for “By Any Means Necessary” and the communist groups. The violence at Berkeley prompted Attorney General Pam Bondi and U.S. Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights
Trump makes formal request to Israeli president to pardon Netanyahu
President Donald Trump on Wednesday morning made a formal request to Israeli President Isaac Herzog to pardon Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is on trial for corruption and fraud charges. Trump asked Herzog to consider fully pardoning Netanyahu in a letter that Herzog’s office shared. Trump wrote that Netanyahu has been a “formidable and decisive” leader for Israel in a time of war and has led Israel “into a time of peace.” “Prime Minister Netanyahu has stood tall for Israel in the face of strong adversaries and long odds, and his attention cannot be unnecessarily diverted,” reads the letter. Trump wrote that while he “absolutely” respects the independence of the Israeli judicial system, he believes the case against Netanyahu is a “political, unjustified prosecution.” INSIDE TRUMP’S ULTIMATUM THAT FORCED NETANYAHU TO THE TABLE: ‘YOU CAN’T FIGHT THE WORLD’ Netanyahu is currently standing trial on charges of bribery, fraud, and breach of trust in three separate corruption cases. The trial, which began in 2020, marked the first time a sitting Israeli prime minister testified as a criminal defendant. Trump wrote that “it is time to let Bibi unite Israel by pardoning him, and ending that lawfare once and for all.” NYC LAWMAKER DARES MAMDANI TO MAKE GOOD ON ‘PIPE DREAM’ PLEDGE BY INVITING NETANYAHU Herzog declined to take a position on the matter, with his office issuing its own statement that a presidential pardon request must go through the proper channels, which includes the person who wants a pardon making a formal request. The statement said that Herzog holds Trump in the “highest regard” and “continues to express his deep appreciation” for Trump’s support of Israel and his “tremendous” role in the return of hostages from Gaza. Trump previously urged Herzog to pardon Netanyahu during a speech in the Israeli Knesset last month. Fox News’ Yonat Friling contributed to this report.
Scalise reveals post-shutdown GOP battle plan as House readies for intense new schedule
FIRST ON FOX: House GOP leaders are looking to kick off next week in high gear to make up for the six weeks they spent out of session during the government shutdown. With the end of Congress’ 42-day fiscal standoff in sight, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., told Fox News Digital that House lawmakers will be faced with an accelerated schedule to accomplish the GOP’s priorities for this term. “I wanted to rework the schedule to create more time to make up for what happened during the shutdown, and the fact that there were a lot of bills that stacked up that we planned to bring to the floor in October that weren’t able to go,” he said in an interview on Tuesday night. Priorities for next week include legislation to help reduce federal restrictions on liquefied natural gas (LNG), and a bill aimed at expanding refining capacity in a bid to reduce soaring energy costs. MIKE JOHNSON SPEAKS OUT AFTER SENATE BREAKTHROUGH ON GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN Measures aimed at D.C. are also expected to see votes, including a bill that D.C.’s pretrial release and detention processes require mandatory pretrial detention for defendants charged with violent crimes. Another bill expected to get a vote next week would undo local ordinances that Republicans say place burdensome barriers on the Metropolitan Police Department. A largely symbolic measure to denounce socialism in the U.S. is also on next week’s schedule. Lawmakers will be expected to work long into the night in a departure from their traditional day-to-day in D.C. Votes will be scheduled in the evenings when lawmakers have normally departed Capitol Hill for other events. THE 5 LONGEST GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWNS IN HISTORY: WHAT HAPPENED, HOW THEY ENDED Scalise also noted the House would have a five-day legislative week from Monday through Friday, rather than the more traditional four days in D.C. More time will also be allotted during the day for House committees to conduct hearings and advance their legislation, something that has not been done on Capitol Hill since Sept. 19. “We’re going to do that for the next few weeks until we catch up on the time that we missed when everybody was back in their districts,” Scalise said. The latter point is critical considering Congress will be reckoning with several key priorities in the coming months. The bill to end the government shutdown, expected to pass the House on Wednesday, kicks the majority of fiscal year (FY) 2026 federal spending to a Jan. 30 deadline. It would also authorize funding for three of Congress’ 12 annual spending bills for FY 2026. However, it will be an uphill battle for both the Senate and House appropriations committees to strike their remaining spending deals by then. “There are nine remaining bills, and we’d like to get all of those done in the next few weeks. And so, [House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole, R-Okla.] and his appropriators will be working overtime as well,” Scalise said. Congress also still has to find a bipartisan compromise on the federal government’s annual defense policy bill, called the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). “There have been a lot of negotiations ongoing. I think we’re getting close on the NDAA,” Scalise said. Scalise said Republicans would also be busy at work on a new Farm Bill, legislation that sets agricultural priorities as well as federal food policies for urban, suburban and rural areas across the country, as well as a highway bill — legislation that authorizes policy for surface infrastructure like roads, bridges and rail lines nationwide. “A lot of those bills have been very active in the committee process. They just haven’t gotten a lot of attention nationally during the shutdown. But the committees have been working, especially the chairman, to try to get those bills ready to move,” he said. “And so we will have a lot of big ticket items that are important to our America First agenda ready to go. And that’s why we’re going to just add more floor time to be able to get all of it done by the end of this year.” But in order to get all those “big-ticket items” done, the House will first need to pass the Senate’s bipartisan bill to end the government shutdown. Asked if his chamber had the votes to do so, Scalise said, “I’m very hopeful we will.” “I’m very confident our members are really eager to get back to a full House schedule. Many of them have been working overtime in their districts to mop up the mess Democrats created during the shutdown,” he said.
Kennedy grandson launches campaign to replace longtime Democrat in Congress
John F. Kennedy’s grandson, Jack Schlossberg, announced on Tuesday that he’s launching a campaign for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives to replace longtime New York Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler, who is set to retire. Schlossberg, 32, a Democrat, told supporters in an email that he would officially launch his campaign Wednesday, though he made his case to constituents in a campaign video he posted to social media late Tuesday. “This district should have a representative who can harness the creativity, energy and drive of this district and translate that into political power in Washington,” Schlossberg said in the video. Schlossberg blasted President Donald Trump in the campaign video, accusing Trump of corruption and creating what he called a “constitutional crisis.” TRUMP TRASHES NADLER ON HEELS OF DEM’S HOUSE RETIREMENT ANNOUNCEMENT: ‘ONE OF THE MOST DISGUSTING CONGRESSMEN’ “It’s a corruption crisis,” he said. “The president has made almost a billion dollars this year. He’s picking winners and losers from inside the Oval Office. It’s cronyism, not capitalism.” “It’s a constitutional crisis with one dangerous man in control of all three branches of government,” he continued. “He’s stripping citizens of their civil rights and silencing his critics.” Schlossberg is no stranger to criticisms of the Trump administration, having drummed up a large following on social media with frequent posts weighing in on national issues, including taking aim at his cousin, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. JFK’S GRANDSON SAYS THERE IS ‘NOTHING HEROIC’ ABOUT TRUMP’S DECLASSIFICATION ORDER Last month, he posted on Instagram an image of a Halloween costume for “MAHA Man,” in reference to Kennedy’s Make America Healthy Again message, and described it as including such things as measles. Nadler, who currently represents New York’s 12th District, is serving his 17th term in Congress. He announced in September that he will not run for re-election next year, suggesting to The New York Times that a younger Democratic lawmaker in his seat “can maybe do better, can maybe help us more.” The district includes Manhattan’s Upper West Side, Upper East Side and Midtown. The Associated Press contributed to this report.