Dem House hopeful vows to help working class despite record of hiking taxes
FIRST ON FOX: A Tennessee Democratic state representative running for Congress, who has been likened to Zohran Mamdani, claims she is running to make life better for the working class, but her voting record tells a different story. Tennessee state Rep. Aftyn Behn, D-District 51, who is running to replace outgoing Congressman from Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District, Mark Green, voted no last year on a bill that would have resulted in a $400 million tax cut for certain Tennessee small businesses, including potential refunds of up to $1.5 billion. Behn also rallied against Republican’s H.R. 1, the so-called “one, big beautiful bill,” which extended Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts that, without, could’ve meant a nearly $4,000 increase for taxpayers in her district. Meanwhile, earlier this year, Behn voted against a statewide budget bill that would have added tens-of-millions to the state’s rainy day fund, which would have effectively padded the state’s coffers so that in times of low-revenue taxes won’t need to be increased so much. That same budget bill would have also allocated millions for volunteer fire departments, senior centers, emergency medical services, teacher bonuses and other public safety funding. TRUMP LOOMS LARGE OVER SPECIAL ELECTION PRIMARY IN DEEP-RED CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT “A pissed-off social worker, Aftyn has seen firsthand how broken systems fail the very people they’re meant to protect,” Behn’s campaign website reads. “She’s now running for Congress after the so-called ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ passed — a giveaway to the wealthy that codified the largest transfer of wealth from working people to the rich in American history.” However, according to estimates from the Tax Foundation, if Trump’s 2017 tax cuts had expired, residents in Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District, whom Behn wants to represent, would have seen an increase in their taxes of approximately $3,717 per taxpayer. “To win, Democrats need to focus on what really matters: making life more affordable for working people,” Behn said after the bill’s passage. “Washington Republicans did the opposite by passing this #BigBullsh–Bill. Gutting healthcare and giving handouts to billionaires.” TENNESSEE SUED OVER LIMITED ACCESS TO EXECUTIONS AS MEDIA DEMAND TRANSPARENCY Even the New York Times has admitted that independent analyses showed Trump’s 2017 tax cuts “have consistently found that a large majority of Americans would owe less because of the law.” Last year, Behn also voted against a bill that the Tennessee General Assembly Fiscal Review Committee estimated would provide over $1.5 billion in tax refunds for small business owners in the state. It also would have reduced a combined yearly tax burden for Tennessee business owners of about $400 million. Simultaneously, Behn voted against Tennessee’s 2025-2026 fiscal year budget that included a big increase to the state’s rainy day fund, which is used by state governments during periods of low revenue. The same budget bill also included community funding for services like volunteer fire departments, emergency medical services and rescue squads, senior centers, teacher bonuses, school security and more. During Behn’s time in the state legislature, she also worked to repeal the grocery tax in Tennessee, claiming it would put money back into the pockets of hard-working Tennesseans year-around. However, according to Republicans, the move would create a business enterprise tax, raising taxes on small businesses by about $800 million. Fox News Digital reached out repeatedly to Behn’s campaign for comment but did not hear back. “Aftyn Behn’s policies would skyrocket the cost of living even more for hardworking Tennesseans,” Behn’s Republican opponent, Trump-backed Matt Van Epps, said. “Aftyn has repeatedly voted against tax cuts and proposed new taxes, taking more money from your pocket. I’ll always fight to lower taxes and bring down costs so that working families can get ahead.” In local media reports, Behn has been compared to New York City mayor-elect and self-proclaimed socialist Zohran Mamdani and the Dickson County Democratic Party described Behn as “our very own AOC of TN,” in a reference to U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. “His message is one of helping working families across New York, my message is one of helping working families across Tennessee,” Behn said about Mamdani during the appearance on CNN. “We need to go back to pocketbook issues, especially in states like Tennessee where people are living unaffordable lives and suffering as a result of Republican policies.”
Trump urges Senate Republicans to redirect funds from Obamacare-backed insurers, pay Americans directly
President Donald Trump has urged Senate Republicans to abolish Obamacare and reroute federal health care spending directly to individual Americans. In a Truth Social post Saturday morning, Trump wrote: “I am recommending to Senate Republicans that the Hundreds of Billions of Dollars currently being sent to money sucking Insurance Companies in order to save the bad Healthcare provided by ObamaCare, BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, HEALTHCARE, and have money left over.” DEMOCRATS HOLD THE GOVERNMENT HOSTAGE OVER SUBSIDIES AMERICANS DON’T WANT “In other words, take from the BIG, BAD Insurance Companies, give it to the people, and terminate, per Dollar spent, the worst Healthcare anywhere in the World, ObamaCare.” The post marks Trump’s latest push to revive his long-running campaign against the Affordable Care Act, dubbed Obamacare, a centerpiece of former President Barack Obama’s domestic legacy. PEOPLE TALK ABOUT LOWERING HEALTHCARE COSTS, BUT THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION IS DOING IT Trump and Republicans have renewed their criticism of the program amid the government shutdown, arguing it drives up costs and enriches insurance companies at taxpayers’ expense. Trump spent much of his first term trying to repeal the law. Obama and Democrats argue it made health care more available and affordable for millions of Americans. Congress remains deadlocked over government funding, with health-care programs and insurer subsidies among the major budget sticking points fueling the shutdown. House Speaker Mike Johnson on Thursday told reporters Thursday that he would not commit to holding a vote on extending COVID-19 pandemic-era enhanced Obamacare subsidies, which are set to expire at the end of this year without congressional action. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., had been floating a vote on such an extension in exchange for Democrats voting to end the shutdown. The issue of enhanced Obamacare subsidies has been a matter of debate within the GOP, with some Republicans in more moderate districts calling for at least a year-long extension to give lawmakers time to create a new healthcare deal in its place. Trump also once again called on Republicans to end the filibuster, the procedural rule that requires 60 votes to advance most legislation. “Unrelated, we must still terminate the Filibuster!” Trump wrote.
Patriot or ‘Pathetic RINO’? Maverick Republican Thomas Massie trades ‘America First’ label for ‘America only’
Rep. Thomas Massie — a Republican fiscal hawk facing a President Donald Trump-backed primary challenger in Kentucky — has previously described himself as “America First,” but now he says he thinks that he’s “America only.” “I am tired of sending money overseas,” he told Fox News Digital during an interview on Thursday. “I am tired of favoring foreign beef over U.S.A.-grown beef,” he continued. “I’m ready to be America only. And I think all congressmen should be that way.” Massie gave Trump a mixed review, saying that the president is America First on “some” fronts. REP THOMAS MASSIE REMARRIES AFTER WIFE’S DEATH LAST YEAR: ‘PLEASE PRAY FOR US’ “But when it comes to the beef, he is not America first. When it comes to sending money overseas to Ukraine and Israel,” Massie said, “I think he needs to get back to his campaign promises and put America first. Because we’re not gonna make America great again by sending our money overseas.” Massie noted that his “biggest disagreement” with both the Trump administration and House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is the increase in spending. “I mean, I thought we were conservatives. Why are we spending more this year than Joe Biden spent in his last year? Actually, we’re spending about $200 billion dollars more,” he said, adding that the consequence “is inflation and higher interest rates.” “And people are feeling that. You can’t gaslight them,” Massie added. “You can’t tell them that things are getting cheaper when they’re not getting cheaper.” In a statement to Fox News Digital, White House spokesman Kush Desai accused Massie of “Fake Math.” TRUMP SAYS MASSIE IS ‘GONNA BE HISTORY’ AS ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’ JUMPS FINAL HURDLES TO PASSAGE “Here are the facts: President Trump’s Working Families Tax Cut Act cut mandatory spending by $1.5 trillion over the next 10 years, and the budget deficit from April to September of this year is down a staggering 40% compared to last year, when Joe Biden was president,” Desai declared in the statement. “Instead of Fake Math, Thomas Massie should reflect on how he betrayed his voters and hardworking Americans when he voted with every Democrat against the biggest tax cut for working families in American history, including no tax on tips, no tax on Social Security, no tax on overtime pay, increased child tax credits, and permanence for the 2017 Trump Tax Cuts,” he added. Massie said his other disagreements with what has been happening in D.C. are “secondary” to the spending issue. “I would say, we need to follow through on some of our campaign promises. For instance, release the Epstein files,” he said. MAVERICK HOUSE REPUBLICAN IN TRUMP’S CROSSHAIRS TOUTS RECORD CAMPAIGN CASH HAUL Massie and Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., have been spearheading a bid to force a House vote on a proposal that would compel the release of materials pertaining to Jeffrey Epstein. Their discharge petition has amassed 217 of the 218 signatures needed to force the vote, but Democratic Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva, who has said she will sign on, has still not yet been sworn in to office more than six weeks after winning a special election in Arizona. Johnson “has tried every which way he can to avoid this vote,” Massie claimed, asserting that the speaker has not sworn in the Democrat because she “represents the 218th signature I need to force a vote on releasing the Epstein files.” Fox News Digital reached out to Johnson’s office for comment. RAND PAUL PLEDGES SUPPORT FOR MASSIE AGAINST TRUMP-BACKED CHALLENGER: ‘I’M GOING TO HELP HIM’ Massie, who owns cattle himself, said the president has “sort of gut punched the cattle ranchers and… livestock farmers” in the U.S. During remarks aboard Air Force One last month, Trump indicated the U.S. was considering buying beef from Argentina to drive down prices. Days later Reuters reported that a White House official indicated that the administration was quadrupling the nation’s low-tariff imports of beef from the South American nation. Increasing the tariff rate quota to 80,000 metric tons will allow Argentina to send greater quantities of the product to America at a lower rate of duty, according to the outlet. The president has Massie in his political crosshairs — he has repeatedly reviled the congressman on Truth Social. In a post on Monday, Trump referred to Massie as “a Weak and Pathetic RINO” — a pejorative acronymn that stands for “Republican in name only.” He also called the congressman “a totally ineffective LOSER,” while expressing his support for primary challenger Ed Gallrein, who Trump is backing in the race. SCOOP: TRUMP-BACKED FORMER NAVY SEAL LAUNCHES GOP PRIMARY CHALLENGE AGAINST MASSIE Even as the president tries to convince voters in Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District to reject Massie, the lawmaker said that he does not regret endorsing Trump ahead of the 2024 election, noting that former Vice President Kamala Harris would have been a total “disaster.” Massie initially backed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the GOP presidential primary, but DeSantis dropped out and backed Trump, and Massie later endorsed the Republican juggernaut as well. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “And I’m glad that President Trump won,” he said. Trump has “done a lot of good things,” he said, adding that many of them have been carried out via executive order, and he thinks Congress should vote on more of the issues so that the president’s moves are not simply “temporary actions.” Asked whether he’d have any interest in potentially running for president himself, Massie said that he is not interested.
Progressive-backed candidate convicted in man’s killing wins city council election
A Maine woman who previously served time as a convicted killer was elected to serve on a local city council on Tuesday night, causing a stir on social media in the process. Angela Walker was elected to the Bangor city council, New York Post reported, more than 20 years after pleading guilty to manslaughter in the death of a man named Derek Rogers in 2002. The manslaughter conviction stemmed from a fight where Walker was allegedly called a racial slur derogatory toward Native Americans and the man who said it, a Canadian tourist named Derek Rogers, was later found beaten to death and suffocated with sand, according to news reports. Walker ultimately pleaded guilty to manslaughter, along with her brother, and perjury, earning a sentence of 10 years in prison. WHAT JAY JONES’ VICTORY MEANS FOR DEMOCRATS AND THE ‘NEW ERA OF VIOLENT RHETORIC,’ ACCORDING TO EXPERTS Although Walker was sponsored by a progressive group, she is not affiliated with a political party and will serve a three-year term along with three others who were elected to the council. News of Walker’s election quickly spread on social media with popular conservative influencer account LibsofTikTok sharing it with her 4.5 million followers. “Meet Angela Walker,” LibsofTikTok posted on X. “She was just elected to Bangor, Maine City Council. She was previously convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 10 years for kiIIing a tourist, allegedly because he called her a ‘racist’ name. He was found severely beaten and suffocated with sand stuffed down his throat.” HOUSE GOP PROBE TARGETS SOROS-LINKED GROUPS OVER ALLEGED ANTIFA FUNDING TIES “Um, wut?” GOP Sen. Ted Cruz posted on X. “Unfortunately, Jay Jones is not the floor,” Dhillon Law Group Associate Jesse Franklin-Murdock posted on X. “There is a genuine bloodlust on the left, and voters are all too happy to let it out [in] the ballot box.” “New progressive paradigm: The more mentally ill, the more popular,” Grabien founder Tom Elliott posted on X. “WTH is going on? Democrats simply don’t care what their politicians do,” conservative influencer Paul A. Syzpula posted on X. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Walker told the Bangor Daily News, “I want people to see that it’s possible that we can change.” “That’s my past. I don’t live there anymore and I’m a different person,” Walker added about her conviction. Fox News Digital reached out to Walker for comment. Democrats have been facing heavy criticism this week for electing Jay Jones as Virginia’s next attorney general even after it was revealed he fantasized in 2022 text messages about shooting former Virginia House Speaker Todd Gilbert in the head while also suggesting that harm should come to that Republican’s young “fascist” children.
Trump’s own SCOTUS picks could wind up hurting him on tariffs
The Supreme Court on Wednesday heard oral arguments in a case centered on President Donald Trump’s use of an emergency law to enact his sweeping “Liberation Day” tariffs, and even Trump-appointed justices appeared skeptical of the administration’s arguments. Several questions from conservative justices, particularly Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett, suggested uncertainty about allowing Trump to use the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to enact his steep 10% tariffs on most imports. A ruling against the administration would deliver a major blow to Trump’s signature economic policy. The IEEPA law gives the president broad economic powers in the event of a national emergency tied to foreign threats, and Trump declared the trade deficit such an emergency to impose tariffs via executive order earlier this year. But the law does not mention the word “tariffs” or “taxes” — a major sticking point in both this week’s oral arguments and the lower court’s earlier review of the case. Most of the justices’ questions focused on a single phrase in the law — the power to “regulate importation” during a national emergency — and whether that phrase grants Trump the authority he claims. Several justices seemed wary of a reading that could hand Congress’ Article I power over revenue and taxation to the executive branch. SUPREME COURT TO WEIGH TRUMP TARIFF POWERS IN BLOCKBUSTER CASE This included Trump’s appointees, who appeared to struggle with separation-of-powers issues that could vastly expand presidential authority — not only for Trump but for his successors as well. Barrett, in particular, pressed U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer on this, asking: “Can you point to any other place in the code or any other time in history where that phrase — together with ‘regulate importation’ — has been used to confer tariff-imposing authority?” Gorsuch later asked Sauer about his “theory of the Constitution” and “major questions doctrine,” indicating concern about separation-of-powers issues and granting too much power to the executive. TRUMP ASKS SUPREME COURT FOR URGENT RULING ON TARIFF POWERS AS ‘STAKES COULD NOT BE HIGHER’ “What would prohibit Congress from abdicating all responsibility to regulate foreign commerce or declare war to the president?” Gorsuch asked Sauer. Sauer repeatedly argued that a “regulatory tariff” is not a tax and that the power to raise revenue was “only incidental,” even as the White House has celebrated that Trump’s tariff revenues exceeded $100 billion this year. Challengers, including private entities and Democratic-led states, argue that Congress must clearly state when it wants presidents to have the authority to implement tariffs. In court filings, they pointed to laws such as Section 232 (national security trade measures) and Section 301 (retaliation for unfair trade) as times when Congress expressly gave tariff powers to the president. By contrast, IEEPA has been used for embargoes, asset freezes and licensing but never across-the-board tariffs. The last time the Court permitted a delegation of tariff powers to the president, in Algonquin SNG v. FEA (1976), it relied on Section 232 because Congress put that authority plainly in the statute. Challengers say there is no comparable language in IEEPA. The liberal justices on the Court signaled that without clear words from Congress, IEEPA cannot provide Trump with tariff authority. After a previous Supreme Court decision in Loper Bright v. Raimondo (2024), courts no longer give federal agencies the benefit of the doubt when interpreting vague laws. And under the “major questions” doctrine referred to by Gorsuch and other justices, large, economy-wide actions like Trump’s tariffs need a plain, specific grant from Congress. JONATHAN TURLEY: SUPREME COURT RULING ON TRUMP TARIFFS COMES DOWN TO A NUMBERS GAME Court watchers and legal experts said after arguments that a Trump administration win could be more difficult than expected, though each cautioned it is hard to draw conclusions from roughly two hours of oral arguments — a fraction of the total time justices spend reviewing a case. Jonathan Turley, a law professor and Fox News contributor, said in a blog post that the justices “were skeptical and uncomfortable with the claim of authority, and the odds still favored the challengers.” “However, there is a real chance of a fractured decision that could still produce an effective win for the administration,” Turley added. SUPREME COURT PREPARES TO CONFRONT MONUMENTAL CASE OVER TRUMP EXECUTIVE POWER AND TARIFF AUTHORITY Jack Goldsmith, a former assistant attorney general in the George W. Bush administration, did not go quite as far. “I think that it is fair to say that the justices the government needs to win the case — Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett — asked the government very hard questions that did express skepticism about important elements of its case,” Goldsmith said in a New York Times interview. “But they also asked the other side very hard questions. I do not think any of these three tipped off their hands definitively. I did not find anything terribly surprising in the questions.” Brent Skorup, a legal fellow at the CATO Institute, told Fox News Digital in an emailed statement that members of the Court seemed uncomfortable with expanding presidential power over tariffs. “Most justices appeared attentive to the risks of deferring to a president’s interpretation of an ambiguous statute and the executive branch ‘discovering’ new powers in old statutes,” Skorup said. “The justices were skeptical and uncomfortable with the claim of authority, and the odds still favored the challengers. However, there is a real chance of a fractured decision that could still produce an effective win for the administration.” The case is Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump (consolidated with Trump v. V.O.S. Selections). A ruling is expected by late June.
Socialist wave spreads coast to coast as progressive Democrats rally around Zohran Mamdani’s NYC win
New York Democrats embraced socialism when they elected Zohran Mamdani to lead the nation’s largest city, but the verdict is still out on whether New York City’s shift to the left is an outlier or the beginning of a broader political realignment. From California’s redistricting success to gubernatorial races in Virginia and New Jersey, Democrats dominated the most closely watched contests of 2025 – results that could be considered a referendum on President Donald Trump’s sweeping, second-term agenda. As Mamdani rises to political fame, a slate of fellow progressives are vying to ensure that his victory signals the beginning of a new era in progressive politics. SQUAD 2.0: MEET AMERICA’S NEXT WAVE OF RADICAL DEMOCRATS SHAPING THE PARTY’S FUTURE Aftyn Behn, a former healthcare community organizer and current Democrat state representative, recently secured the Democratic nomination to represent Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District. The Dickson County Democratic Party described Behn as “our very own AOC of TN,” referring to “Squad” member Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., according to The Tennessee Star. On her campaign website, Behn describes herself as a “pissed-off social worker” who was inspired to run for the House of Representatives after Congress passed Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act earlier this year. Behn is running in Tennessee’s special election on Dec. 2 to replace Rep. Mark Green, R-Tenn., who retired from Congress earlier this year. Kat Abughazaleh, 26, is the progressive Gen Z candidate running for Illinois’ 9th Congressional District next year. She was indicted on federal charges in October after protesters allegedly attacked an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) vehicle outside a Chicago suburb facility in September. Viral videos of Abughazaleh obstructing the ICE vehicle and being shoved the ground by an agent outside the Broadview ICE facility on Sept. 19 became flash points in the divisive debate over Trump’s deportation rollout. Abughazaleh is a former journalist and activist who frequents protests outside the ICE facility in Broadview, Illinois. She has accused Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem of perpetrating “crimes against humanity.” Abughazaleh garnered national attention earlier this year for questioning why it’s controversial that illegal immigrants should have access to taxpayer-funded healthcare. “I don’t have health insurance, and I’m running for Congress,” the young progressive’s campaign website reads. Saikat Chakrabarti arrived on the political scene during the rise of the “Squad,” running Ocasio-Cortez’s successful 2018 congressional campaign and then serving as her chief of staff. The progressive met Ocasio-Cortez when he launched “Justice Democrats,” a political action committee committed to recruiting a new generation of leaders. Now, Chakrabarti has become the generational candidate himself. Earlier this year, he announced his campaign to challenge House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi for her congressional district in San Francisco. On Thursday, Pelosi announced her intention to retire from Congress at the end of next year, teeing up an already competitive Democratic primary expected with state Sen. Scott Wiener also in the race to replace Pelosi. Chakrabarti said it was time for “totally new leadership” in Washington, D.C. His policy platform includes a long list of progressive promises, including Medicare for All, a wealth tax on the ultra-rich, millions of units of housing, a ban on congressional stock trading and an end to military funding to Israel. During a phone interview, Chakrabarti told Fox News Digital that his main focus is fixing the “underlying economic anxieties that most Americans are facing” — the same “plan for bold, sweeping economic change” that landed Trump back in the White House last year and was successful for Mamdani this year. Chakrabarti’s said a new generation of candidates, like himself, have been inspired to run since witnessing “the complete failure of the Democratic political establishment.” “I think the people are feeling that the Democratic Party, the establishment, is just sort of weak and slow moving and unable to face the moment,” he added. Chakrabarti’s first campaign commitment, according to his website, is to stop Trump’s “authoritarian coup.” The congressional candidate described Trump’s ICE-led deportation rollout as “a flagrant violation of our constitutional rights and the freedom of speech and everything we hold dear in this country.” When asked if the party is moving to the left in response to Trump’s second term, he said, “It’s not really a left versus right thing.” “I think people are looking for real solutions to the problems. People are looking for a change to the system, and I don’t think Donald Trump is doing it, but that’s what Donald Trump articulated in his campaign.” Overall, Chakrabarti said voters are “very sick and tired of corruption” and the “old guard” that he described as only looking out for themselves, rather than their constituents. Chakrabarti congratulated Mamdani’s win in a social media post on Tuesday, telling his followers that Mamdani won because he stood for “real, bold change.” “That’s what we’re doing here in San Francisco,” Chakrabarti said, comparing his own campaign to Mamdani’s. Dr. Abdul El-Sayed is one of several progressive candidates vying for Michigan’s open U.S. Senate seat next year. “Abdul literally wrote the book on Medicare for All,” according to his campaign website. He wrote “Medicare for All: A Citizen’s Guide,” explaining how the U.S. healthcare system can provide affordable care to all Americans. El-Sayed led Detroit’s Health Department after its bankruptcy and restructured Wayne County’s Department of Health, Human & Veterans Services. In 2020, he helped President Joe Biden craft policies to help lower prescription drug prices. He believes in abolishing medical debt and that students deserve debt-free and tuition-free two-year apprenticeship programs or a four-year college education. Abdul El-Sayed celebrated Mamdani’s success on social media this week, when he wrote, “Yesterday, voters reminded us how big America can be.” Graham Platner is challenging Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, in 2026. He is a Marine and a U.S. Army veteran and an oyster farmer. On Nov. 4, he said he would not be mourning the death of former Vice President Dick Cheney. “As a veteran of the Iraq war, I am going to say: No, not this time.”
Newsom set to rally Texas Dems with victory lap days after Prop 50 passes: ‘California stepped up’
A newly emboldened Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom is taking his show on the road. Four days after spearheading a ballot box landslide victory in his home state of California in the high-stakes battle over congressional redistricting, the two-term governor and potential 2028 Democratic presidential contender will headline a rally Saturday in Republican-leaning Texas. Newsom was the driving force behind Tuesday’s passage of Proposition 50, a ballot initiative which will temporarily sidetrack Democratic-leaning California’s nonpartisan redistricting commission and return the power to draw the congressional maps to the Democrat-dominated legislature. That is expected to result in five more Democratic-leaning congressional districts in California, which would counter the passage earlier this year in the reliable red state of Texas of a new map that aims to create up to five right-leaning House seats. NEWSOM SCORES MAJOR BALLOT BOX VICTORY ON ELECTION NIGHT 2025 “California stepped up. Now, we are taking this fight across the country — helping Democrats in other states push back against Trump’s election rigging,” Newsom said in a statement to Fox News Digital, as he pointed to the push by President Donald Trump and Republicans for rare mid-decade redistricting. It’s part of a broad effort by Trump’s political team and the GOP to pad the party’s razor-thin House majority to keep control of the chamber in the 2026 midterms when the party in power traditionally faces political headwinds and loses seats. Missouri, North Carolina, and Ohio have drawn new maps as part of the president’s push. HEAD HERE FOR THE LATEST FOX NEWS REPORTING, ANALYSIS, AND OPINION ON GAVIN NEWSOM Trump is aiming to prevent what happened during his first term in the White House when Democrats reclaimed the House majority in the 2018 midterm elections. Failure to approve what’s known as Proposition 50 would have been a stinging setback for Democrats. But Newsom was victorious and now has a message for fellow Democrats from coast to coast. “We need to see other states, their remarkable leaders that have been doing remarkable things, meet this moment head-on as well,” he said on Tuesday night as he celebrated passage of the ballot initiative. “We can de facto end Donald Trump’s presidency as we know it, the minute Speaker Jeffries gets sworn in as speaker of the House of Representatives. It is all on the line.” Newsom is expected to rally with Texas Democrats at an afternoon event in Houston. While two other Democratic blue state governors with likely national ambitions in 2028, JB Pritzker of Illinois and Wes Moore of Maryland, are mulling new maps in their states to create one or two more blue-leaning congressional districts, Newsom has been the most visible leader so far in the redistricting wars and the first Democrat to succeed. And the campaign for Prop 50 passage only burnished Newsom’s already solid credentials as an anti-Trump warrior, which could pay dividends for him down the road in what’s expected to be a crowded and competitive 2028 Democratic presidential nomination race. “He put a lot of effort into this, and it was not a sure thing when it first started,” veteran Democratic strategist Maria Cardona told Fox News Digital. “He galvanized and mobilized California voters.” And Cardona, a committee member on the Democratic National Committee, said, “I certainly think it burnished Gavin Newsom’s brand not just as the anti-Trump, but right now I think it puts him as one of the leaders in contention for 2028.”
Federal judge dismisses Boeing felony charges despite victims’ families opposition to $1.1B settlement deal
A federal judge ruled in favor of the Department of Justice (DOJ) on Thursday, dismissing felony charges against aircraft giant Boeing in relation to two commercial plane crashes that claimed the lives of 346 people in Indonesia and Ethiopia. Judge Reed O’Connor accepted the DOJ’s motion to dismiss in the Northern District of Texas. Boeing, which previously agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to defraud the government, made a deal with the Trump administration in May in return for the charges — tied to the Boeing 737 MAX 8 crashes in October 2018 and March 2019 — being dropped. O’Connor, who was appointed by former President George W. Bush, said that despite some victims’ families’ opposition, the government did not act with bad faith, provided conclusory reasons for its dismissal, and satisfied its obligations under the Crime Victims’ Rights Act, Politico reported. The non-prosecution agreement requires Boeing to pay more than $1.1 billion in fines, more than $455 million to strengthen the company’s compliance, safety and quality programs, and an additional $445 million for the crash victims’ families, a DOJ spokesperson told Fox News Digital. BOEING PAYING $1.1B AS DOJ DISMISSES CRIMINAL FRAUD CASE; FAMILIES OF VICTIMS IN CRASHES SET TO OBJECT TO DEAL “On top of the financial investments, Boeing must continue to improve the effectiveness of its anti-fraud compliance and ethics program and retain an independent compliance consultant,” the spokesperson wrote in a statement to Fox News Digital. O’Connor noted it disregards the need for the company to be monitored by an unbiased consultant, as Boeing can choose who it hires, and said he understood families may be disappointed the agreement “fails to secure the necessary accountability to ensure the safety of the flying public,” according to the report. Tracy Brammeier, partner of Clifford Law Offices who serves on the plaintiff’s team, said there would be a quick appeal of O’Connor’s Thursday ruling. “The judge recognizes there is a miscarriage of justice on the part of the government’s decision not to prosecute the case, and that this was not in the best interest of the public, which the government serves,” Brammeier wrote in a statement to Fox News Digital. “Unfortunately, he feels the power to right this wrong is limited by legal precedent. The families are disappointed by the outcome but will act quickly to protect the interests of the families and the public on appeal.” NTSB ISSUES URGENT SAFETY BULLETIN ABOUT ENGINES FOUND IN SOME BOEING 737 MAX JETS Three cases involving families of victims in the 2019 crash were settled Wednesday after jury selection, including a case on behalf of a 28-year-old mother from Kenya who left behind a daughter and her parents, Clifford Law Offices wrote in a news release. The other two cases that settled were that of a 38-year-old father of seven from Yemen and Kenya, and a 30-year-old father of three from the UK and Kenya, who left behind a pregnant wife, according to Clifford Law Offices. Flight ET-302 crashed in March 2019 shortly after takeoff from Addis Ababa Bole International Airport in Ethiopia, heading to Kenya and killing all 157 on board. According to the attorneys, nearly a dozen cases related to the two crashes remain unresolved. A DOJ spokesperson told Fox News Digital “victims are at the heart of the Department’s mission” and the Boeing case is no exception. “Rather than allow for protracted litigation, this agreement provides finality for the victims and requires Boeing to act now,” the spokesperson wrote in a statement. “As the Court recognized, the Department in good faith complied with its statutory obligations and met extensively with the crash victims’ families. While they are all experiencing grief, and nothing will diminish their losses, the victims have expressed a broad set of views regarding the resolution, ranging from support to disagreement. Ultimately, in applying the facts, the law, and Department policy, we are confident that this resolution is the most just outcome.” A Boeing spokesperson told Fox News Digital the company is “committed to honoring the obligations of our agreement with the Department of Justice … [and] to continuing the significant efforts we have made as a company to strengthen our safety, quality, and compliance programs.”
State Dept says G20 boycott tied to South Africa’s ‘government-sponsored discrimination’ against Afrikaners
FIRST ON FOX: The Trump administration on Friday intensified its dispute with South Africa, saying no U.S. government official will attend the G20 Summit in Johannesburg in protest of what it describes as state-backed discrimination against White Afrikaners. “The lives and property of Afrikaners have been endangered by politicians who incite race-based violence against them, threaten to confiscate their farms without compensation, and prop up a corrupt race-based scoring system that discriminates against Afrikaners in employment,” State Department Deputy Principal spokesperson Tommy Piggott told Fox News Digital. “South Africa must immediately end all government-sponsored discrimination against Afrikaners and condemn those who seek to ignite racial violence against them.” TRUMP PICKS HIS MIAMI DORAL RESORT TO HOST 2026 G20 SUMMIT IN FLORIDA DURING NATION’S ANNIVERSARY YEAR Trump wrote on Truth Social on Friday that it’s a “total disgrace” the G20, scheduled for Nov. 22 and Nov. 23, will be held in South Africa. “Afrikaners (People who are descended from Dutch settlers, and also French and German immigrants) are being killed and slaughtered, and their land and farms are being illegally confiscated,” the president said. “No U.S. Government Official will attend as long as these Human Rights abuses continue. I look forward to hosting the 2026 G20 in Miami, Florida!” Afrikaners have faced increasing hostility from some politicians who have called for violence against them and the threat of land confiscation. South Africa’s Expropriation Act of 2024 allows the government to take land for public use, including in some cases without compensation — a policy the government says is aimed at addressing racial inequities in ownership, but one that critics warn could unfairly affect White Afrikaner farmers. RUBIO BOOTS SOUTH AFRICAN AMBASSADOR FROM US: ‘PERSONA NON GRATA’ Trump confronted South African President Cyril Ramaphosa at the White House in May, pressing him on “White genocide” in the country. Ramaphosa vehemently denied the claims. “There is just no genocide in South Africa,” he said. “We cannot equate what is alleged to be genocide to what we went through in the struggle because people were killed because of the oppression that was taking place in our country. So you cannot equate that.” Trump played a video in the Oval Office of white crosses along a highway that he said depicted burial sites of White farmers. “Have they told you where that is, Mr. President?” Ramaphosa asked. “I’d like to know where that is, because this I’ve never seen.” A senior State Department official told Fox News Digital that the Trump administration has set a refugee cap for fiscal year 2026 of 7,500, with a majority of the spots reserved for Afrikaners fleeing what it describes as government-sponsored race-based discrimination in South Africa.
India is world’s second-largest shrimp producer. That is now under threat
Kolkata, India: Buddhadeb Pradhan, a shrimp farmer in Nandigram in the West Bengal state in eastern India, has taken a major risk by cultivating a second shrimp crop within weeks of harvesting the first cycle. But he needs the money and is willing to risk a diseased crop, a common occurrence when there are two harvesting cycles in a pond in the same year. He was partly pushed into making that decision because of the falling price of the shrimp on account of the tariffs imposed on India by United States President Donald Trump. “The falling prices of the shrimp have me stressing if I can recover my investment of 300,000 rupees [$3,380],” he told Al Jazeera. India is the world’s second-largest producer of shrimp – predominantly for export – after Ecuador. In the financial year ending in March 2025, it sent $5bn of frozen shrimp globally, with the US accounting for about 48 percent of its sales. It produces two commercial varieties of marine and freshwater shrimp, black tiger and Pacific whiteleg, popularly known as vannamei (Litopenaeus vannamei). India’s shrimp production stood at 1.1 million tonnes, predominantly vannamei, but also 5 percent black tiger, in the financial year ending March 2024, as per the latest data available. India has two distinctive shrimp cycles of vannamei, starting from February to June and then from July to October. Farmers are generally reluctant to go for a second cycle, fearing diseases. The black tiger is a single crop from March to August. The shrimp is cultivated in the coastal states of West Bengal, Gujarat, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Goa, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala. The industry employs approximately 10 million people, including the shrimp farmers and people at hatcheries, processing units, and others, said Manoj Sharma, a veteran shrimp farmer. Advertisement Since the tariffs were announced in May, farm prices of shrimp dropped from 300 rupees ($3.38) per kilogramme to 230 rupees ($2.59) as farmers tried to offload whatever they had. With production costs at 275 rupees ($3.10) per kilogramme, losses are mounting. Buddhadeb Pradhan has taken a major risk by cultivating a second shrimp crop [Gurvinder Singh/Al Jazeera] Nardu Das, 40, a shrimp farmer in Nandigram, told Al Jazeera that farmers might be forced to consume “poison” if the market doesn’t stabilise and prices do not increase. The 40-year-old said shrimp farming is a costly affair with bills for power, lease on land, feed and other expenses. “The farmers not only risk their savings but also take loans with the hope of massive returns. But diseases and the fall in prices often push them to the brink of poverty,” he said. Farmers are worried that with tariffs at 58.26 percent – including countervailing duties of 5.77 percent and anti-dumping duties of 2.49 percent – they will lose their US market. “The US is a preferred destination for shrimp exporters because of easy market access, higher growth prospects, better profit margins, and repeat customer approvals. The hike in tariffs will discourage farmers from continuing to invest in shrimp culture that also incurs upfront costs of land lease, seed and feed,” said Rahul Guha, senior director of Crisil Ratings. India brings its brood stock – the term for the mother shrimp – in chartered flights from the US to breed to produce seeds for farming. But there have been cases where it is either of poor quality or unfit for the Indian environment, in turn leading to disease among the shrimp produce, which then has to be thrown away. “We have been demanding the government to breed the shrimps using the local brood stock in order to get the high-quality seeds that adjust to our conditions,” said IPR Mohan Raju, president of the Prawn Farmers Federation of India. Another spillover of the tariffs has been on hatcheries. India has about 550 private hatcheries that depend on these shrimp farmers for their livelihood. Several farmers, fearing a further dip in prices of shrimp, have stopped buying seeds, and at least half the hatcheries have already shut down, said Ravid Kumar Yellanki, president of All India Shrimp Hatcheries Association. “Undoubtedly, the US tariffs have begun to have a major impact on the hatcheries, with many halting production,” Yellanki said. These hatcheries produce approximately 80 billion seeds annually and have drained seven to eight billion seeds in the past four months due to no demand from the farmers, as the shelf life of seeds is just three to four days. Advertisement “It would be a major loss to the hatchery owners if the situation doesn’t turn normal soon,” Yellanki added. Nardu Das said farmers might be forced to consume ‘poison’ if the market doesn’t stabilise and if prices do not rise soon [Gurvinder Singh/Al Jazeera] Ecuador, another headache India is already facing stiff competition from Ecuador, which has been expanding its share of the US market due to its geographical proximity to the US. Ecuador produces high-quality vannamei shrimp at a lower price, as that is its domestic species. Plus, tariffs on it are at 15 percent, much lower than India’s, making it a more attractive market for the US to source from. During the first nine months of 2025, Ecuador exported 1,038,208 metric tonnes of shrimp to the US, up 14 percent year-on-year, with a total value of $5.51bn, representing a 23 percent increase compared with the same period last year. Sharma, the aquaculture expert, says the US tariffs will force Indian exporters to compete among themselves to sell to alternate markets. His suggestion is for businesses to cultivate one oft-ignored market – the domestic Indian market. There is “complete ignorance of the domestic market [among exporters] … and that has a lot of potential”, he said. Adblock test (Why?)