Economic boom or environmental disaster? Rural Texas grapples with pros, cons of data centers
Local leaders see data centers, which help power the world’s shift to artificial intelligence, as a way to keep their towns open. Residents worry their way of life — and water — is at stake.
Texas megachurch founder Robert Morris pleads guilty to child sex abuse
The ex-pastor of Gateway Church in Southlake will serve the first six months of his 10-year suspended sentence in a county jail in Oklahoma, where the abuse took place.
Giuliani allies turn on GOP’s Sliwa, back Cuomo in NYC mayor race
Rudy Giuliani’s aides and allies have thrown themselves behind Andrew Cuomo instead of Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa in the race for New York mayor, according to reports. Joe Lhota, Giuliani’s former deputy mayor and the GOP’s 2013 mayoral candidate, confirmed to the New York Post Thursday he is firmly in Cuomo’s camp. Lhota, who later served as Cuomo’s MTA chairman and has since changed his party affiliation to Democrat, framed the choice bluntly. “It’s a choice between a proven manager, a socialist, and a fruit loop,” Lhota told the outlet. “Of course I’m going to be with Andrew,” Lhota added. CUOMO OPPONENTS SLAM HIS RE-ENTRY INTO NYC MAYOR RACE, SAY CITY WANTS TO MOVE ON FROM EX GOVERNOR Anthony Carbonetti, Giuliani’s former chief of staff and a senior adviser to his 2008 presidential campaign, echoed Lhota’s sentiment. While praising Sliwa as a “great New Yorker,” Carbonetti said the math simply isn’t there for him to win the race. Instead, they warned, Sliwa risks becoming a spoiler. “I don’t want a socialist in charge of a $116 billion city budget,” he said, criticizing Zohran Mamdani’s proposal for fare-free buses as an invitation to turn them into “mobile homeless shelters.” CUOMO OPPONENTS SLAM HIS RE-ENTRY INTO NYC MAYOR RACE, SAY CITY WANTS TO MOVE ON FROM EX GOVERNOR Former U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey, who served under George W. Bush and is a longtime Giuliani ally, also endorsed Cuomo in an op-ed published by the Staten Island Advance. “Our city should not be put at risk of irreversible damage, which it would be if Mamdani is elected,” he wrote, adding that Cuomo is “the most viable alternative.” Mayor Eric Adams has already stunned the political world by announcing he will not seek re-election. President Donald Trump has also publicly dismissed Sliwa’s chances. CUOMO, ADAMS TRADE SHOTS OVER WHO SHOULD DROP OUT IN RACE AGAINST MAMDANI FOR NYC MAYOR “Look, I’m a Republican, but Curtis is not exactly prime time,” Trump said on Fox & Friends in September. “Joe Lhota has been a Democrat since 2016. He worked for Andrew Cuomo. Big deal,” said Sliwa adviser Rob Cole. Rudy Giuliani himself, now 81 and still a fixture in GOP politics, has yet to make an endorsement. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Polling shows Mamdani with about a 20-point lead, but under 50 percent and leaving room for an upset if Cuomo can consolidate Republican and independent voters.
ICE director says Portland facility faces violence with ‘little help from local police’
Federal immigration officials say their Portland, Oregon, facility has come under nightly attack, with little help from local police because of political directives from city leaders. In an exclusive interview with Fox News’ Bill Melugin, Cammila Wamsley, director of Portland’s ICE office, said the facility has faced violence for more than 100 consecutive nights, with Portland police largely absent under guidance from the mayor and city council. “I just, I can’t figure out what’s happening at the FDA. I’m totally baffled by it,” Wamsley said, describing her frustration at seeing federal staff attacked outside the building while officers inside lack jurisdiction to intervene. “It’s frustrating for us to watch people be attacked on the street and know that we don’t have the authority to be able to really step in unless there’s some nexus to federal law.” She said nightly protests have escalated beyond chants and signs, with bottle rockets striking the ICE building, rocks shattering windows, lasers targeting officers’ eyes and barricades blocking vehicles. ANTI-ICE PORTLAND RIOTERS WITH GUILLOTINE CLASH WITH POLICE IN WAR-LIKE SCENES Wamsley said protesters have followed ICE staff members home and doxxed at least six employees. “Later, towards the evening and around dark, there are a lot of folks that come up dressed in all black,” she explained. “They are here to wreak havoc. They’ll block our cars, throw paint, damage property and even try to follow our folks home.” She warned that when crowds swell quickly, the violence becomes more dangerous. ICE DIRECTOR REVEALS DANGEROUS NIGHTLY ANTIFA ‘BATTLE’ AS TRUMP PREPARES FEDERAL DEPLOYMENT TO PORTLAND “We’ve seen it before. The folks here can go from a crowd of 50 to a crowd of 1,000 in 30 minutes,” she explained. “Sometimes we only have 20 officers here. We would not be able to defend the building with that show of force.” Wamsley said the Portland Police Department has been slow to respond — and sometimes doesn’t respond at all — because of city policy. She explained that assaults have occurred outside and across the street from the building, but police have either taken too long to arrive or not shown up at all. “That is not the stance they would take six blocks from here, but it is the stance they take with us because of guidance from the mayor and city council,” Wamsley said. PORTLAND MAYOR DOUBLES DOWN ON SANCTUARY STATUS AFTER VIOLENT ANTI-ICE RIOT Fox News Digital has reached out to the Portland mayor’s office and police department for comment. Still, Wamsley said ICE staff remain committed to their mission despite the unrest. “The people that work here are here to serve the American public,” she said. “They are here to enforce the same immigration laws we’ve had in place since the 1950s. Nothing has changed in that regard. We come to work every day. We do our job the way we have been doing it, and we’ll continue to do that.” PORTLAND RAMPS UP PRESSURE ON ICE BUILDING WITH LAND USE VIOLATION NOTICE Todd Rignel, assistant special agent for Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Oregon, said federal agencies are targeting Antifa-linked groups they blame for organizing much of the unrest. “They’re not just facing HSI. They’re facing the FBI, ATF, DEA, IRS — all of these agencies,” he said. “That’s a force to be reckoned with.” Portland remains a flashpoint for unrest with the ICE facility at the center of nightly confrontations. President Donald Trump announced plans to send 200 National Guard troops to Portland to support immigration authorities. Officials said the troops would be stationed near protest areas. The warnings follow an attack on an ICE facility in Dallas Sept. 24. Authorities said two detainees were killed and another was hospitalized after a gunman opened fire before dying of a self-inflicted gunshot. Investigators said shell casings recovered bore an “ANTI-ICE” message. Fox News Digital’s Madison Colombo contributed to this report.
David Hogg’s PAC spent millions on consultants, ads and fitness classes, records show: report
Despite pledging to spend $20 million to back younger, more progressive candidates, a PAC led by Democratic activist David Hogg has spent millions of dollars on political consultants, ads and even fitness classes. The PAC, Leaders We Deserve, spent just $455,000 to back three candidates in tough Democratic primary races over the first eight months of 2025, Axios reported. That figure stands in contrast to the roughly $2.5 million spent on consultants, $1.1 million on digital ads, $965,000 on building donor lists and nearly $5,000 on the fitness class subscription service ClassPass, according to federal campaign filings. AOC DROPS THOUSANDS ON LUXURY HOTELS WHILE ‘FIGHTING OLIGARCHY’ WITH SANDERS, FILINGS REVEAL “We provide a wellness benefit to our employees, like many employers across the country,” Kevin Lata, co-founder and executive director of Leaders We Deserve, told Axios. “Our projections show that every $1 we put into these investments will net $3-$5 by the end of the cycle. This helps to make sure every donation goes farther than it otherwise would.” The group had $1.6 million in the bank at the end of August. Fox News Digital reached out to the PAC. Leaders We Deserve has contributed to various candidates, including $300,000 to New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. The group also contributed $150,000 to House candidate Deja Foxx, a 25-year-old social media influencer and progressive activist who lost the Democratic special election primary by 39 percentage points July 15. Irene Shin, who lost by a wide margin in a special Democratic primary in June to fill the House seat of the late Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., also received $5,000. PRO-MAMDANI SUPER PAC TAKES HEFTY CHECK FROM ULTRA-WEALTHY DONOR DESPITE SAYING BILLIONAIRES SHOULDN’T EXIST In June, Hogg served as vice chair for the Democratic National Committee, igniting a firestorm by pledging to shell out $20 million through Leaders We Deserve to support primary challenges against some older Democrats in safe blue districts. “I ran to be DNC vice chair to help make the Democratic Party better, not to defend an indefensible status quo that has caused voters in almost every demographic group to move away from us. The DNC has pledged to remove me, and this vote has provided an avenue to fast-track that effort,” Hogg said after the DNC Credentials Committee voted on Monday to elevate a challenge to the vice chairs’ leadership positions. The high operating expenditures under his leadership were mocked by New York state Sen. James Skoufis after Leaders We Deserve’s second-quarter FEC filings in June. “At this rate, [Hogg] would only have to raise a little over $3 billion in order to get his promised $20 million to primary candidates,” Skoufis wrote on X at the time. “THIS should be the story, folks.” Lata told Axios that the PAC will have “many more endorsements to announce soon.”
Hawley blasts FDA approval of new abortion drug, cites safety and trust concerns
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., accused the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of endangering women’s health, saying the agency approved another chemical abortion drug without the thorough safety review it had promised. Hawley argued the move shows both regulatory failure and the influence of a company that refuses to define “woman” in its materials. “This is shocking. FDA has just approved ANOTHER chemical abortion drug, when the evidence shows chemical abortion drugs are dangerous and even deadly for the mother. And of course 100% lethal to the child,” he wrote on X on Thursday afternoon. “FDA had promised to do a top-to-bottom safety review of the chemical abortion drug, but instead they’ve just greenlighted new versions of it for distribution. I have lost confidence in the leadership at FDA.” PRO-LIFE GROUP URGES SENATE TO PRESS RFK JR. ON ABORTION PILL SAFETY, DEMAND SAFEGUARDS RETURN Evita Solutions describes its mission as one to “normalize abortion” and make it “accessible to all.” On its website, the company says it “believes that all people should have access to safe, affordable, high-quality, effective, and compassionate abortion care, regardless of their race, sex, gender, age, sexuality, income, or where they live. “We know that you can make the best choice for your body.” According to the FDA, Evita received approval in a Sept. 30 letter obtained by Reuters. In an interview with Fox News Digital, Hawley said the FDA’s decision was even more troubling given its promised safety review has barely begun. “I just, I can’t figure out what’s happening at the FDA. I’m totally baffled by it,” Hawley said. Fox News Digital has reached out to the FDA and Evita Solutions for comment on the matter. FDA CHIEF HAS NO ‘PLANS’ FOR ABORTION PILL POLICY CHANGES BUT CONTINUES SAFETY REVIEW In another post, Hawley blasted the FDA for partnering with a company that “doesn’t even believe there is such a thing as a ‘woman.’” Evita Solutions now joins GenBioPro in producing the generic version of mifepristone, the abortion pill originally made by Danco Laboratories. Mifepristone blocks progesterone, a hormone needed to sustain pregnancy, and is followed by misoprostol to complete the process. The approval comes as abortion drugs face mounting opposition from conservative lawmakers, religious organizations and pro-life groups. MORE THAN 20 GOP ATTORNEYS GENERAL CALL ON RFK JR, FDA TO REINSTATE SAFEGUARDS FOR ABORTION DRUGS Religious groups like Inspire Investing and Alliance Defending Freedom have campaigned against the drug, while the Restoration of America Foundation (ROAF) has pressed lawmakers for accountability. Last month, ROAF called on the Senate Finance Committee to hold Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. accountable at a hearing, demanding answers about the removal of safety protocols for the abortion pill mifepristone. In a letter obtained by Fox News Digital, ROAF warned that the rollback leaves women more vulnerable and shifts costs to taxpayers. The group said the Biden-era changes endanger women by allowing abortion pills to be prescribed via telehealth and sent through the mail. Hawley said the FDA should restore the safeguards put in place under the Trump administration. “What needs to happen is the FDA needs to get in line with the president’s policy and put back into place the safety regulations President Trump had. Ditch the Biden approach and go back to President Trump’s approach,” Hawley said. Under the Biden administration, the FDA for the first time allowed telehealth prescribing and mail-order delivery of abortion pills. Previously, the agency required mifepristone to be dispensed in person to screen for complications such as ectopic pregnancy. Fox News Digital’s Jasmine Baehr and Reuters contributed to this report.
‘Come-to-Jesus meeting’: Military community reacts to Hegseth’s get fit, get in line or get out speech
War Secretary Pete Hegseth delivered a blunt message to military leaders from around the globe this week: Get fit, get on board with the Trump agenda or get out. It marked the first time generals from around the world had been summoned to convene with the secretary, and many had expected closed-door announcements on trimming the general officer corps, drawing down forces in the Middle East and Europe or cutting civilian and contractor roles. Instead, what they got was a televised address from Hegseth and President Donald Trump. The secretary pushed a populist message of handing decision-making back to the warfighter, requiring senior leadership to perform physical training in line with lower-ranking officers and bringing uniformity back to the force. Garrett Smith, an active-duty Marine Corps reservist and CEO of defense tech firm Reveal, said the spectacle was unusual but not without precedent. TRUMP DECLARES ‘REAWAKENING’ OF ‘WARRIOR SPIRIT,’ UNWAVERING SUPPORT FOR MILITARY: ‘I HAVE YOUR BACKS’ “At a first level, at any big multinational corporation or big organization, when there’s a new boss, it’s totally reasonable to call in all your regional managers and VPs for a setting of tone, to reconfirm the agenda, to ensure alignment. So, all of that makes sense,” Smith said. “But, obviously, these are not normal times. This is the Trump administration. So, it’s going to come with a bunch of enhanced drama and mystique and weirdness about it. … The policy and the action might have been totally great, but much of the country is going to be left wondering, ‘What was that really about?’” Even so, Smith argued, the underlying message was unmistakable: “A return to warfighting and preparation for winning wars as the priority mission of the department. There was a perception we’d strayed from that, that it had become just one mission among many. Reconfirming that this is the mission is really important — investing in a warfighting ethos.” At a moment when the Trump administration is on alert for internal resistance to its agenda, the speech served as a reminder to commanders stationed far from Washington that their authority ultimately flows from the president. “This is a historic come-to-Jesus meeting,” said Chad Robicheaux, a former reconnaissance Marine who deployed to Afghanistan eight times. “The message is clear. The days of divisiveness, resistance and undermining leadership are over.” “It was crystal clear. Generals and admirals are on notice. Comply and enforce these new policies and culture or be fired. No more woke leaders,” said Amber Smith, a combat veteran and advisor with the Coalition for Military Excellence. “The topic today is about the nature of ourselves, because no plan, no program, no reform, no formation will ultimately succeed unless we have the right people and the right culture at the Department of War,” Hegseth told the group. He emphasized that combat fitness tests would be gender-neutral and that high-level officers would need to meet standards. “It’s completely unacceptable to see fat generals and admirals in the halls of the Pentagon and leading commands around the country and the world. It’s a bad look. It’s not who we are,” he said. “Whether you’re an airborne Ranger or a chairborne Ranger, a brand-new private or a four-star general, you need to meet the height and weight standards and pass your PT test.” Hegseth announced that all personnel must pass physical training tests and meet weight requirements twice a year and would be required to work out daily. “We’re not talking, like, hot yoga and stretching,” he said. “Real hard PT.” That represented a departure from previous years, when fitness standards often fell away once officers reached higher ranks and desk-bound commands. HEGSETH INSTATES ‘HIGHEST MALE STANDARD ONLY’ FOR COMBAT, OTHER CHANGES, DECLARING DEPT. OF DEFENSE ‘IS OVER’ Smith, who comes from the infantry, said the focus on standards for physical readiness was part of that shift. “If we want to present a deterring force to the world so we don’t have to go to war, we have to be ready to win the next war. That is the deterrent force we project,” he said. At the same time, Smith acknowledged the cultural edge of Hegseth’s message. “There was an obvious and very clear anti-woke, anti-social justice threat in there. That is unique to this administration, and it has to be a part of their message every time. That’s not a surprise given the last four or five years.” From Trump, generals saw a preview of what is expected in the forthcoming national defense strategy, a renewed focus on homeland defense and U.S. dominance in the Western Hemisphere. Trump suggested crime-ridden U.S. cities could even serve as “training grounds” for troops. “I told Pete we should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military — National Guard, but military — because we’re going into Chicago very soon,” Trump said. HEGSETH TELLS TROOPS TO RESIGN IF THEY OPPOSE HIS PLAN TO SCRAP ‘WOKE’ POLICIES AND RESTORE WARRIOR ETHOS Hegseth’s message carried a personal edge rooted in his own military experience. A former Army National Guard officer who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, Hegseth left the service at the rank of major, well short of the general officer tier he now oversees. That trajectory has long colored his outsider posture toward the Pentagon brass, giving him credibility with rank-and-file troops but also fueling what some see as a chip-on-the-shoulder tone toward those who climbed higher in the hierarchy. His insistence that generals shed weight, train daily and live by the same standards as junior officers reflects both his populist instincts and his lived sense of being closer to the warfighter than the war planner. “I can’t really imagine a scenario where a general needs to be able to run across a battlefield,” one veteran mused. “It felt a bit theatery,” one junior officer said of the speech. “But he’s right that generals should have to meet the same standards they expect of the people they lead.” CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE
Virginia voters sue to boot Democrat off ballot in district that could decide state House majority
A new court filing claims a Democratic candidate for a hotly contested, GOP-held Virginia House of Delegates seat doesn’t live in the district she seeks to represent, a dispute that could shape control of the chamber in 2026. Three voters in Stafford County went to court to allege candidate Stacey Carroll does not live in District 64 and instead in the neighboring, Democratic-majority 23rd and want her booted from the ballot. Plaintiffs Stephen Schwartz, Judith Anne Parker and Juliet Schweiter alleged Carroll continues to live near US-1 in Aquia, Virginia, at the southern edge of the 23rd district but filed to run for office from an address about 7 miles southwestward near Stafford Court House, Virginia, in the 64th. Local residents are asking the court to throw out Carroll’s voter registration at the Stafford address, which they argue would disqualify her from the ballot. RAMASWAMY ENDORSES WINSOME EARLE-SEARS FOR VIRGINIA GOVERNOR, RALLY PLANNED NEXT WEEK IN SWING SUBURB That address is reportedly registered to another family, and a 1966 Virginia court ruling puts the burden of proof-of-residency on the voter registrant or ballot applicant, according to The Virginia Mercury. While a seemingly local matter, the result of the case could have wide-ranging implications for the final tally on Election Day as all 100 House of Delegates seats are up for grabs. And Democrats achieved the rare accomplishment of running candidates in all of them, including reliably Republican seats in far-flung rural regions like St. Charles, Big Stone Gap and Tazewell. COURT SHUTS DOWN REDISTRICTING FIGHT IN KEY SWING STATE — HERE’S WHAT IT MEANS If her candidacy stands, Carroll will face Republican Del. Paul Milde of Stafford in a district that narrowly went for President Donald Trump in 2024 by just under two points. If she is found to truly live in Aquia, her home district seat would be that of Democratic Del. Candi King of Prince William, a much safer and more suburban seat that went for former Vice President Kamala Harris by about 66-31. A tie loses in the House of Delegates, meaning Republicans need only three seats to win back the majority but cannot afford to lose tight races like Milde’s. ‘DON’T MARYLAND MY VIRGINIA’: YOUNGKIN, 2025 GOP TICKET RALLIES TOGETHER FOR FIRST TIME AHEAD OF KEY ELECTION Democrats won back the House of Delegates in the last election in 2023, scoring a 52-48 majority. Republicans currently have one vacancy after House Minority Leader Todd Gilbert, R-Luray, resigned to briefly become U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Virginia. Carroll’s chances of flipping Milde’s seat give Republicans an additional roadblock in their quest to take back the chamber. They are also fielding other tightly contested races, including in Hampton Roads. LONE MARYLAND GOP CONGRESSMAN WARNS REDISTRICTING COULD CUT WHITE HOUSE TIES FOR ENTIRE STATE Del. A.C. Cordoza, R-Poquoson, is the only Black Republican in the chamber and represents a district Harris narrowly won. Republicans are laser focused on the seat, and Gov. Glenn Youngkin, Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears and lieutenant gubernatorial candidate John Reid have all stumped for Cordoza. Like exurban Stafford, Hampton Roads is perennially competitive. Democrats tend to have the edge in state races, while Republicans, such as incumbent Rep. Jennifer Kiggans, often prevail in federal contests. DEMS WANTED TO DRAW EVERY REPUBLICAN OUT OF MARYLAND BUT NOW LAMBAST TEXAS REDISTRICTING Earle-Sears shocked the area in 2001 by winning a routinely Democratic-held seat in Virginia Beach, launching her into the commonwealth’s political conscience. Several other seats in the region, which also includes Norfolk, Portsmouth, Hampton, Chesapeake and Isle of Wight, are seen as potential pickups for the opposing party. Reid’s race is also expected to weigh heavily on Republicans’ chances of controlling Richmond beyond the governor’s seat. While Democrats control the upper chamber, Earle-Sears is statutorily the tie-breaking vote. Divided similarly to the House, the Senate’s partisan future may hang in the balance depending on whether Reid can defeat state Sen. Ghazala Hashmi, D-Chesterfield. Reid would break ties in favor of Republicans, meaning they only need to win back two more Senate seats. Hashmi would do the opposite, meaning the GOP would need three. Fox News Digital reached out to Carroll’s campaign for comment.
The agency staff Vought might recommend cutting and whether the cuts will be permanent
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) chief Russell Vought and President Donald Trump are in the midst of mapping out cuts to the federal government after lawmakers on Capitol Hill failed to reach a funding bill agreement early Wednesday morning. Trump set the stage in the lead-up to the shutdown that the federal government is likely to see staffing and program cuts during the shutdown, adding in a message Thursday to Truth Social that many federal agencies are a “political SCAM.” “I have a meeting today with Russ Vought, he of PROJECT 2025 Fame, to determine which of the many Democrat Agencies, most of which are a political SCAM, he recommends to be cut, and whether or not those cuts will be temporary or permanent,” Trump posted. HERE’S WHAT TRUMP WANTS TO DO TO RESHAPE THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT DURING THE SHUTDOWN “I can’t believe the Radical Left Democrats gave me this unprecedented opportunity. They are not stupid people, so maybe this is their way of wanting to, quietly and quickly, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” Fox News Digital spoke with Richard Stern, the Heritage Foundation’s director of the Grover M. Hermann Center for the Federal Budget, Thursday morning to discuss which agencies the OMB chief would likely target for staffing cuts and if such cuts would be permanent. Stern explained to Fox Digital that there are a pair of overlapping issues that lead to the government’s staffing size. Agencies are required by various laws to provide certain services to citizens. And, separately, appropriation bills set funding floors on how much money an agency has available to spend on staff payroll. During a shutdown, however, there is a lapse in funding, meaning agencies do not have “payroll floors from the funding bill,” leaving the executive branch with discretion on how to continue providing required services to citizens, he explained. “Because the funding bills set effective floors per salary spending, that tends to dictate how many people work for the agencies. In the event of a shutdown, the only requirement on the administration is to ensure that the agencies provide the services and whatnot that are required by law. But those laws don’t say you need, you know, 100 staffers to write a grant or only one staffer,” Stern told Fox Digital in a phone interview. WHITE HOUSE PREPARES FOR ‘IMMINENT’ FEDERAL LAYOFFS AFTER DEMOCRATS FORCE GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN “They simply say, you know, ‘There’s a grant program that has to go out the door under XYZ parameters.’ So, in the event of a lapse in funding, it means that the administration … can lay out a plan saying, ‘Hey, look, you know, we think the Department of Education, for example, could do everything it is legally required to do, but do it with 10% of the workforce,’” he continued. If the administration determines that an agency can fulfill its legally required services to citizens with fewer people, it will subsequently send reduction in force notices, known as RIFs, to staffers. “If the funding was there, and if the funding law required those staff levels, then you wouldn’t be able to RIF,” he said. “But in the lapse of funding, it gives the White House that opportunity.” Permanent changes to the government are in a gray zone, however, because RIFs would not be able to take effect until after 60 days. “Once the RIF notices go out, you … legally need to wait 60 days before the RIF notices can be enacted,” Stern continued. “Really the shutdown would have to last 60 days, beyond that, to actually act on the RIFs.” The Heritage Foundation expert, who also serves as the conservative think tank’s acting director of the Thomas A. Roe Institute for Economic Policy Studies, stressed that any staffing cuts are not an example of government “downsizing.” TRUMP’S WHITE HOUSE DEMANDS AGENCIES MAP OUT MASS LAYOFFS AHEAD OF POTENTIAL SHUTDOWN “It’s not downsizing the activities of agencies,” he said. “It’s not reducing what they make available, what services they provide. It’s simply reducing the workforce that’s providing the same level and the same amount of services.” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told a gaggle of reporters Thursday that “thousands” of federal employees could be laid off during the shutdown. “Look, it’s likely going to be in the thousands. It’s a very good question. And that’s something that the Office of Management and Budget and the entire team at the White House here, again, is unfortunately having to work on today,” Leavitt said. Stern pointed to a handful of agencies that will likely be targeted for layoffs, citing agencies that have “mission creeped” their original purview into regulatory issues, such as the Environmental Protection Agency, as well as other agencies, like the National Science Foundation, that handle grant writing for programs. “Probably the Department of Ed is, is kind of the poster child on this one,” he said. “They’ve been talking about, they quite literally only need 10% or so on the staff.” He also noted the EPA, Department of the Interior and the Department of Labor could face cuts due to the various agencies’ “mission creep into a lot of regulations that are quite harmful to the economy, that are quite harmful to just American families.” WHITE HOUSE TELLS FEDERAL AGENCIES TO PREPARE LAYOFF PLANS AS GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN LOOMS “EPA over … a decade or so, has mission creeped its jurisdiction into more and more regulatory affairs, that just simply the EPA doesn’t have under a statutory capacity,” he said. “They’re regulating outside of the confines, the charge they were given by law, by Congress. So, EPA is another one of those where that makes a lot of sense to cut a lot of the workforce there. Then, at HUD and Department of Labor you have similar things.” Stern said the administration likely is also eyeing agencies such as the National Science Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts and Humanities and certain aspects of the Department of Housing and Urban
Unearthed debate clip goes viral against Dems as illegal immigrant health coverage becomes top issue
As the federal government shutdown continues, a clip from the 2019 Democratic presidential primary went viral when the candidates were asked if they support providing healthcare to those in the country illegally. “Is JD Vance a liar or just woefully ignorant when claiming that Democrats want to give health benefits to undocumented immigrants?” disgraced ex-Democratic Minnesota Sen. Al Franken posted to X on Wednesday, leading to the clip being posted in the comments by one user. “Raise your hand if your government plan would provide coverage for undocumented immigrants,” NBC News anchor Savannah Guthrie asked while moderating the June 2019 debate followed by all ten Democrats on stage raising their hands. JOHNSON SAYS DEMOCRATS LYING ABOUT ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT HEALTHCARE PUSH Franken’s post triggered a range of responses, including from conservatives. CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE “You should stick to intimate photography,” GOP communicator Matt Whitlock posted on X, referring to the disgraced ex-senator’s scandal that included a photo of him smiling while posing and groping radio host Leeann Tweeden, who was sleeping in the photo. DEMS IN THE HOT SEAT AFTER OBAMACARE’S SPIKING PREMIUM COSTS TORPEDO THEIR NARRATIVE “Why don’t we let Democrats answer that?” Heritage Action said, posting the debate clip. The clip, which included multiple current members of Congress like Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y. and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., also garnered the attention of billionaire Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, who posted “lol” in response to the debate video, which means “laugh out loud.” Part of the ongoing government shutdown debate centers on subsidies for the Affordable Care Act, which would lead to a rise in premiums that opponents say prove that the program is unsustainable. Illegal immigrants are unable to get insurance on the ACA marketplace, but Emergency Medicaid is covered as well as several states that use state taxpayer dollars for illegal immigrants to enroll in Medicaid. SPEAKER JOHNSON, ABC’S STEPHANOPOULOS CLASH OVER GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN, ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS GETTING HEALTHCARE However, California was once the subject of a federal audit where they were recommended to refund over $52.7 million in “improperly claimed” medical costs for those with “unsatisfactory immigration status.” “Democrats are now trying to run away from their RIDICULOUS $1.5 Trillion big government spending bill — now that Americans are learning what’s in it,” House Speaker Mike Johnson posted to X on Thursday. “Some Democrats now claim they don’t want illegal immigrants on Medicaid — but their previous votes, and the ACTUAL LANGUAGE of their current bill, say otherwise.” However, some Democrats have also criticized Republicans for bringing up state-based Medicaid programs that offer coverage to illegal immigrants. “This isn’t funded by the Federal Government or ACA Tax credits. [The Vice President] is lying again. However if he wants to tell the GOP to write a bill to exclude illegal immigrants from buying on the market and restore ACA tax credits to 24 million Americans, I would be game,” Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., said in response to a post from Vice President JD Vance, which included a screenshot showing New York’s public health insurance coverage for “undocumented immigrants over age 65.” As of Thursday afternoon, it’s unclear when the shutdown will end.