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Border Patrol commander vows continued tear gas use after Minnesota fedreal judge’s order

Border Patrol commander vows continued tear gas use after Minnesota fedreal judge’s order

One of President Donald Trump‘s most prominent immigration enforcers vowed Saturday to continue using tear gas during Operation Metro Surge in Minneapolis, after a Minnesota federal judge Friday barred federal officers from using it against peaceful protesters. Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino said federal agents would continue deploying tear gas against violent protesters who “cross the line” amid ongoing unrest and heightened tension across the Twin Cities. “We’re going to continue to use that minimum amount of force necessary to accomplish our mission,” Bovino said Saturday on “Fox News Live,” adding that immigration officers have never used tear gas against “peaceful protesters.” “We always support the First Amendment, but when they cross the line and they’re violent, we will use those less lethal munitions because it keeps them safe, it keeps our officers safe, and it keeps the public safe,” Bovino said. THREE VENEZUELAN ILLEGALS ARRESTED AFTER ICE OFFICER ‘AMBUSHED AND ATTACKED’ DURING TRAFFIC STOP: NOEM Bovino’s comments after U.S. District Judge Kate Menendez issued a ruling Friday in a case filed in December on behalf of six Minnesota activists, represented by the American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota, barring federal officers from detaining or deploying tear gas against peaceful protesters who are not obstructing authorities while participating in Operation Metro Surge. The ruling prohibits federal agents from retaliating against peaceful protesters or observers, adding that federal agents must show probable cause or reasonable suspicion that someone has committed a crime or is interfering with law enforcement operations. Federal agents cannot use pepper spray or other non-lethal munitions and crowd-dispersal tools against peaceful protesters, according to the ruling, and peacefully following officers “at an appropriate distance does not, by itself, create reasonable suspicion to justify a vehicle stop.” MINNEAPOLIS MAYOR WHO TOLD ICE TO ‘GET THE F— OUT’ NOW CALLS FOR PEACE AFTER ANOTHER SHOOTING INCIDENT The order came as tensions escalated in Minneapolis after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent fatally shot 37-year-old Renee Good earlier this month during a federal immigration enforcement operation. Menendez noted in her ruling that the immigration crackdown by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in Minnesota appears to be escalating. “There is no sign that this operation is winding down—indeed, it appears to still be ramping up,” she wrote. The City of Minneapolis applauded the court’s decision, while urging community members to be “peaceful and lawful” around immigration agents. TRUMP SAYS NO NEED TO INVOKE INSURRECTION ACT ‘RIGHT NOW’ AMID ANTI-ICE UNREST IN MINNESOTA “As this is a federal court order, we expect the federal administration to change course and comply for the safety of all,” the City wrote Saturday on X. “We applaud the court’s decision in the ACLU’s lawsuit, which prohibits federal immigration agents from targeting or retaliating against those peacefully and lawfully protesting or observing Operation Metro Surge operations.” Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison reacted to the ruling, saying that “this preliminary win matters for every Minnesotan exercising their constitutional right to peaceful protest and witness.” “Thank you to the ACLU and the plaintiffs for standing firm in defense of this bedrock freedom,” he added. After the ruling, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said that the First Amendment does not protect “rioting,” adding that DHS is “taking appropriate and constitutional measures to uphold the rule of law and protect our officers and the public from dangerous rioters.” “We remind the public that rioting is dangerous—obstructing law enforcement is a federal crime and assaulting law enforcement is a felony,” McLaughlin said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “Rioters and terrorists have assaulted law enforcement, launched fireworks at them, slashed the tires of their vehicles, and vandalized federal property. Others have chosen to ignore commands and have attempted to impede law enforcement operations and used their vehicles as weapons against our officers.” McLaughlin added that law enforcement has followed their training and has “used the minimum amount of force necessary to protect themselves, the public, and federal property.”

Spanberger takes swipe at Trump admin, says Virginians worried about ‘recklessness coming out of Washington’

Democrat Abigail Spanberger took multiple swipes at the Trump administration Saturday as she was sworn in as Virginia’s first female governor.  Spanberger, who handily defeated Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears in November and takes over for Republican Glenn Youngkin, told a crowd at the State Capitol, “I know many of you are worried about the recklessness coming out of Washington.”  “You are worried about policies that are hurting our communities, cutting healthcare access, imperiling rural hospitals and driving up costs. You are worried about Washington policies that are closing off markets, hurting innovation and private industry and attacking those who have devoted their lives to public service,” Spanberger said.  “You are worried about an administration that is gilding buildings while schools crumble, breaking, breaking, breaking the social safety net and sowing fear across our communities, betraying the values of who we are as Americans, the very values that we celebrate here on these steps. VIRGINIA DEMOCRATS MOVE TO SEIZE REDISTRICTING POWER, OPENING DOOR TO 4 NEW LEFT-LEANING SEATS “And across the Commonwealth, everything keeps getting a bit more expensive. Groceries, medicine, daycare, the electricity bill, rent and the mortgage. Families are strained, kids are stressed and so much just seems to be getting harder and harder,” Spanberger added.  “Growing up, my parents always taught me that when faced with something unacceptable, you must speak up. YOUNGKIN BACKS JD VANCE FOR 2028, CALLS VICE PRESIDENT A ‘GREAT’ GOP NOMINEE “You must take action. You must right what you believe is wrong and fix what isn’t working. And I know that some who are here today or watching from home may disagree with the litany of challenges and the hardships that I laid out,” Spanberger also said.  “Your perspective may differ from mine, but that does not preclude us from working together where we may find common cause.”  Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House for a response to Spanberger’s remarks. “The history and the gravity of this moment are not lost on me. I maintain an abiding sense of gratitude to those who work, generation after generation, to ensure women could be among those casting ballots,” Spanberger said at one point during her speech. Prior to her inauguration speech, Youngkin posted a video on X, saying it was an “honor of a lifetime” to serve the state. 

Illegal immigrants rack up $1B-plus in Texas hospital costs in fiscal year 2025; total likely higher: report

Illegal immigrants rack up B-plus in Texas hospital costs in fiscal year 2025; total likely higher: report

Texas hospitals accumulated more than $1 billion in healthcare costs for illegal immigrants during fiscal year 2025, the first year the state began tracking the figures. The data, compiled by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) and obtained by Texas Scorecard, shows hospitals logged 313,742 visits linked to individuals not legally present, with total costs reaching $1.05 billion by the end of the fiscal year. Texas’ fiscal year runs from Sept. 1 through Aug. 31, but hospitals were only required to begin reporting in November. Based on the reported data, costs averaged about $105 million per month, meaning the true annual total could be significantly higher. MIGRANT INFLUX PUSHING MASS. SHELTER COSTS PAST $1B IN FY25: REPORT To put the figures into perspective, the reported hospital costs approach about 1% of the state’s tax-funded resources. The figures were collected under an executive order signed by Gov. Greg Abbott in August 2024 that mandated the agency track the number of “individuals not lawfully present” in the U.S. who use Texas public hospitals. Abbott’s executive order directed Texas hospitals to provide HHSC with quarterly breakdowns on patients not lawfully present in the U.S., including the number of inpatient discharges, emergency department visits and the cost of care provided to these patients. Texas, a border state, reported some of the highest crossing numbers ever recorded under the Biden administration, putting immense pressure on its healthcare system, Andrew Mahaleris, Abbott’s press secretary, told Fox News Digital previously. The largest share of expenses came from inpatient discharges for non-Medicaid and non-CHIP patients, totaling $565.4 million across 40,947 discharges, according to the report. CHIP is the Children’s Health Insurance Program, a federal-state program that provides low-cost health coverage for children in families who earn too much to qualify for Medicaid. CONGRESSMAN CALLS ON NOEM, DR. OZ WITH PLAN TO ‘SWIFTLY REMOVE’ 1.4 MILLION ILLEGAL MIGRANTS ON MEDICAID Emergency department visits for non-Medicaid and non-CHIP patients added another $205.5 million in costs, according to the report. Patients enrolled in Medicaid or CHIP accounted for significant costs as well, including $255.3 million tied to inpatient discharges and $24.3 million in emergency department visits. For fiscal year 2025, hospitals were initially required to submit data only for November 2024, when they reported 30,743 visits costing more than $102 million, according to the state. Subsequent reporting showed continued high costs. From December 2024 through February 2025, hospitals reported 149,619 visits totaling $330.8 million. Between March and May 2025, reported costs reached $319.3 million, followed by $298.3 million from June through August 2025.