Owner of daycare in viral Nick Shirley video charged in $4.6M daycare fraud scheme, prosecutors say
A woman allegedly tied to Minnesota’s massive “Feeding Our Future” scandal has been charged in a daycare fraud scheme after being featured in a viral video by influencer Nick Shirley, authorities said. She is accused of pocketing millions of dollars meant for children’s meals. Fahima Egeh Mahamud was charged Wednesday with wire fraud and conspiracy to defraud the United States, according to court documents. STATE OFFICIALS AND DAYCARE MANAGER PUSH BACK ON VIRAL VIDEO FRAUD ALLEGATIONS IN MINNESOTA Earlier this year, Mahamud was indicted for her alleged role in the initial $250 million “Feeding Our Future” scheme. Prosecutors allege she enrolled Future Leaders Early Learning — a Minneapolis daycare where she served as CEO — into the federal child nutrition program, falsely claiming to serve thousands of meals at her childcare center. In addition to her involvement in the nutrition program fraud, Mahamud was federally charged Wednesday with a secondary scheme to defraud the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP), which provides daycare assistance to low-income families. Between October 2022 and December 2025, she allegedly submitted over 13,000 fraudulent claims to CCAP totaling approximately $4.6 million. Prosecutors state the claims were fraudulent because she falsely certified that she had collected mandatory co-payments from families, which is a material requirement for federal reimbursement. ILHAN OMAR PRESSED TO EXPLAIN HOW FRAUD IN MINNESOTA GOT ‘SO OUT OF CONTROL’ The Future Leaders Early Learning center was featured in Shirley’s viral video, FOX 9 Minneapolis reported, which showed him visiting apparently empty, Somali-run childcare centers in and around Minneapolis while alleging widespread fraud. The video served as a catalyst for an immediate and aggressive multiagency crackdown by the Trump administration. Following its release, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) froze roughly $185 million in federal childcare funding to Minnesota. Additionally, over 2,000 federal agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) were deployed to the Twin Cities to escalate investigations and enforcement.
New website puts Platner on notice by amplifying scandals: ‘One red flag after another’
A group aligned with Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, has launched a website compiling the “red flags” raised by her Democratic opponent, Graham Platner. On the site, Pine Tree Results, a fundraising committee, listed the various transgressions that have followed Graham Platner’s campaign as he looks to unseat Collins and flip a key Republican-held Senate seat. “Over 20 years of a grown man revealing his true character with one red flag after another,” the website states. “He’s radical. Dangerous. Too extreme for Maine.” Drawing from social media, Reddit and reporting, the website offers viewers a graveyard full of Platner’s most controversial moments and issues, hoping to keep them in public view as the campaign enters its final six months. LEFT-WING DEM SENATE HOPEFUL CHEERED ON ANTIFA VIOLENCE IN UNEARTHED RANT: ‘KILL A MOTHERF—ER’ In particular, it lists seven key “flags”: the way Platner has talked about rape victims, a Nazi tattoo Platner had removed, comments where he called police “bastards,” derogatory remarks about Maine residents, alleged sympathy for terrorists, comments about communism, and “bigoted” thoughts about minorities. Platner’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Pine Tree Results, founded in January of last year, according to FEC records, has amassed a mostly untapped $12.7 million war chest. Despite the series of scandals highlighted by Pine Tree Results, Democrats are counting on Platner to carry the party banner in a state that they believe is ripe for a Senate win. MAINE GOV JANET MILLS DROPS OUT OF DEMOCRATIC RACE FOR SENATE, SIGNALING SHE STRUGGLED TO RAISE ENOUGH MONEY He became the de facto party nominee earlier this year when former Maine governor Janet Mills, 78, announced she would suspend her campaign after it became clear Platner had more momentum. Collins, a political moderate, has found success in the historically Democratic Pine Tree State as a Republican. She last won reelection in 2020 in a 51% to 42.4% victory over Democratic challenger Sara Gideon, a Maine state legislator. Democrats are hoping Platner’s pitch as a political outsider will convince voters to ditch the five-term incumbent. Platner has framed the PAC’s attacks as proof that his campaign has enough momentum to draw scrutiny. SCHUMER’S ‘NUMBER ONE TARGET’ SAYS VOTERS WILL SEE HER DEMOCRAT SENATE CHALLENGER AS TOO EXTREME “A Republican super PAC called ‘Pine Tree Results,’ funded by twelve billionaires, just bought $2 million worth of attack ads against our campaign. It’s all out-of-state money. Not a single dollar coming from Maine,” Platner said in a post to Instagram last month. If they clear their respective primary elections next month, Collins and Platner will face off in the state’s general elections on Nov. 3.
Fox News Poll: 30% think recent Trump assassination attempt was staged
Three in 10 voters believe the recent assassination attempt against President Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner was staged, according to a Fox News national survey. Thirty percent say the shooting was fabricated, including 13% of voters who think it was “definitely” staged. That said, a narrow 52% majority believes the attack was real, with nearly one-third saying it “definitely” happened (31%). One in five is unsure whether it was real or fake (18%). FOX NEWS POLL: VOTERS SEE AI AS A RISK TO PRIVACY AND PAYCHECKS The alleged gunman behind the April 25 attack, Cole Tomas Allen, has pleaded not guilty to the four felony charges filed against him by the Justice Department. The incident marked the third attempt on Trump’s life, following two separate assassination attempts in 2024. Public attitudes surrounding the attack suggest the erosion of a shared reality may have reached a critical tipping point. Most notably, the partisan divide on the attack’s authenticity is stark. The survey finds almost half of Democrats (49%) and voters who backed Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris in 2024 (48%) believe the shooting was staged, while just 10% of Republicans say the same. Meanwhile, 79% of Republicans believe the event was real, as do 77% of 2024 Trump voters. That number climbs to 87% among Republicans who identify as MAGA supporters. By comparison, just 31% of Democrats agree the attack was real. Views among independents are mixed: 41% say it was real and 34% believe it was staged. Uncertainty about whether the incident was real or not is highest among independents, with one quarter unsure (25%), followed by 2 in 10 Democrats (21%), and 1 in 10 Republicans (11%). FOX NEWS POLL: 56% DOUBT WHITE HOUSE’S COMPETENCE AT MANAGING GOVERNMENT Republicans under age 45 are more than five times as likely as older Republicans to think the shooting was staged (22% vs. 4%). Republican pollster Daron Shaw, who conducts Fox News polls with Democrat Chris Anderson, stresses that the assassination attempt was undoubtedly real, warning that a growing denial of facts threatens the political process. “When partisan polarization and political cynicism prevent us from agreeing on a common and obvious set of facts, it undercuts our ability to diagnose problems and develop policy solutions,” Shaw says. “This is especially troubling given that younger voters are among the most cynical about our politics and institutions.” “These findings show what happens when public skepticism becomes embedded in the political culture,” adds Anderson. “When people are told that every major event could be manipulated or manufactured, disbelief itself becomes the default reaction.” Voters under age 35 are nearly twice as likely as those ages 65 and over to think the shooting was fabricated (38% vs. 20%), as seniors are among those most likely to say it was real (65%). There’s also a gender gap, as more women (35%) than men (25%) consider it staged. More than 6 in 10 White evangelical Christians believe the shooting happened, while 2 in 10 don’t. CLICK HERE FOR CROSSTABS AND TOPLINE Conducted May 15-18, 2026, under the direction of Beacon Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R), this Fox News survey includes interviews with a sample of 1,002 registered voters randomly selected from a national voter file. Respondents spoke with live interviewers on landlines (109) and cellphones (635) or completed the survey online after receiving a text (258). Results based on the full sample have a margin of sampling error of ±3 percentage points. Sampling error for results among subgroups is higher. In addition to sampling error, question wording and order can influence results. Weights are generally applied to age, race, education, and area variables to ensure the demographics are representative of the registered voter population. Sources for developing weight targets include the most recent American Community Survey, Fox News Voter Analysis, and voter file data. Fox News’ Victoria Balara contributed to this report.
Fox News Poll: As economic pain deepens, disapproval of Trump hits new high
Voters are increasingly pessimistic about the economy and President Trump’s handling of key issues, while a majority opposes continued U.S. military involvement in Iran even as most believe the U.S. is winning the war. That’s according to a new Fox News national survey. Affordability continues to dominate the political landscape. Fifty-eight percent flag the cost of living as their top economic worry, up from 50% in February. This eclipses other issues, such as government spending (16%), jobs (8%) and tariffs (8%). FOX NEWS POLL: VOTERS SEE AI AS A RISK TO PRIVACY AND PAYCHECKS More than three-quarters also say the economy is in bad shape (77%), worse than last month (73%) and a year ago (71%). Only 23% rate it positively, the lowest in more than a year. The pessimism is personal too. A slim majority of voters (51%) say their family’s finances are worse now than two years ago. Before the 2022 midterm elections, 44% said the same. FOX NEWS POLL: 56% DOUBT WHITE HOUSE’S COMPETENCE AT MANAGING GOVERNMENT All that helps explain the deterioration in Trump’s ratings on the economy. A year ago, 56% of voters disapproved and last month it was 66%; now, it’s 71%. The increase since April comes from a 7-point rise in disapproval among Republicans. Notably, approval of Trump on the economy among non-MAGA Republicans (36%) is more in line with independents (18%) than with MAGA Republicans (74%). The president’s overall approval on handling the economy stands at just 29%, down from 34% in April. Trump gets his lowest ratings on inflation, where only 24% approve — down from 35% in January. Inflation marks a rare issue where a slim majority of Republicans (51%) disapprove of Trump. It reaches 85% among independents and 96% among Democrats. His job numbers are also net negative on foreign policy (38-62%). Until this month, border security was the one issue where Trump received a positive rating. Now voters are split (49-51%) on his border security performance, pushing his ratings underwater for the first time this term. That shift comes even as 45% of voters say border security is better today than two years ago, while 29% say it’s worse. Approval of Trump’s overall job performance is 39%, down 3 points since last month and 10 points since his second term started — and only 1 point above his lowest in October 2017. A record 61% disapprove of the job he’s doing, including 48% who strongly disapprove. Since April, approval has declined among some of his key constituencies, such as rural Whites (-6 points), White men without a degree (-5), and Republicans (-3). Trump approval is at all-time lows among Republicans (80%), non-MAGA Republicans (54%), Whites (43%) and rural voters (43%). “Despite consistently strong GOP support, the president’s numbers are leaking a bit,” says Republican pollster Daron Shaw, who conducts the Fox News Poll with Democrat Chris Anderson. “Make no mistake; it’s all about affordability. Independents jumped ship in 2025, and now non-MAGA Republicans and other core constituencies are wavering.” Plus, in the long run, more voters think Trump’s policies will hurt the country (57%) than help it (34%). The share saying “hurt” is up 6 points since last April. Fully 88% of MAGA Republicans say his policies will help, while only 43% of non-MAGA Republicans agree. Meanwhile, gas prices are squeezing voter budgets: 86% call rising prices a problem, including 51% who label them a “major” problem. Concern is nearly universal for the broader economy, where 96% see gas prices as a problem and 75% call it “major.” When assigning blame for gas prices, voters aimed heavily at domestic factors, with about 8 in 10 pointing to Trump’s policies, domestic oil companies, and government regulations. However, they overwhelmingly view the Iran war as the primary driver, with 91% saying it is responsible. Iran Two-thirds think the U.S. is winning the war in Iran, yet opposition to U.S. military action increased to 60%, up from 55% last month. Half think the war will last a year (18%) or more (33%), unchanged since March, while 6 in 10 favor a limited timeframe for U.S. involvement in Iran, including 3 in 10 war supporters and 4 in 10 Republicans. Almost all Republicans (89%) and two-thirds of independents believe the U.S. is winning the war, while more than half of Democrats say Iran is winning (56%). Generationally, voters under age 30 are the most likely to believe the U.S. is winning (79%), yet they are also some of the most opposed to the war (67%). Among voters who have served in the military, 55% support the U.S. action against Iran and 72% believe the U.S. is winning the war. Last summer, voter concern about Iran getting a nuclear bomb was at a record high 78%. Today, it’s at a record low 56%, down from 66% in March. Concern since March is down among Democrats (-13 points), independents (-11), and Republicans (-6). Poll-pourri While 45% approve of Trump’s handling of the U.S.-China summit, a 54% majority disapproves. That matches views of the negotiation’s outcome: 52% believe Chinese President Xi Jinping got more of what he wanted compared to 46% for Trump. More than a quarter of Republicans (27%) join majorities of Democrats (75%) and independents (56%) in thinking Xi won the summit, as do nearly a quarter of those who otherwise approve of Trump’s handling of the trip (24%). CLICK HERE FOR CROSSTABS AND TOPLINE Conducted May 15-18, 2026, under the direction of Beacon Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R), this Fox News survey includes interviews with a sample of 1,002 registered voters randomly selected from a national voter file. Respondents spoke with live interviewers on landlines (109) and cellphones (635) or completed the survey online after receiving a text (258). Results based on the full sample have a margin of sampling error of ±3 percentage points. Sampling error for results among subgroups is higher. In addition to sampling error, question wording and order can influence results. Weights are generally applied to age, race, education,
Illegal alien sentenced to 50 years for producing child pornography involving own relatives: ‘Monster’
FIRST ON FOX: An illegal alien living in California who used his underage niece with special needs and his nephew to produce child pornography was sentenced Monday to 50 years in prison. Angel Emilio Rodriguez-Marroquin, a Guatemalan citizen, initially pleaded guilty to multiple charges, including producing child sexual abuse material (CSAM) that featured his own niece and nephew, both 8, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said. “This depraved illegal alien from Guatemala pleaded guilty to producing and possessing child pornography, which included footage of him assaulting his own nephew and niece with special needs,” said Acting Assistant DHS Secretary Lauren Bis. “This monster would not have been in our country in the first place if it weren’t for the Biden Administration’s disastrous open borders that released him into our country.” MEXICAN ILLEGAL ALIEN ALLEGEDLY USED ROBLOX CURRENCY TO SOLICIT EXPLICIT CONTENT FROM KIDS UNDER 10 Rodriguez-Marroquin was arrested on Nov. 22, 2025, by federal authorities on suspicion of production of child pornography and possession of child pornography. In addition to his conviction in the U.S., he is also the subject of a child exploitation investigation in Guatemala, which is being led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT TRUCKER ACCUSED IN FATAL CALIFORNIA CRASH RELEASED BY BIDEN ADMIN AFTER 2022 BORDER CROSSING Fox News Digital has reached out to his legal team. Rodriguez-Marroquin first illegally entered the U.S. in 2024 and was released by the Biden administration, DHS said. The Trump administration has blamed Biden immigration policies for the influx of illegal immigrants into the U.S., which led to a surge in crime. “In just the first months of 2026, the Trump Administration has arrested scores of depraved illegal alien killers, rapists, and violent sexual predators who were enabled, protected, and unleashed by the Radical Left’s open borders agenda — policies Democrats are desperate to restore,” the White House said in an April 10 news release highlighting some of the worst offenders.
Trump roasts Dem candidate as unelectable for cardinal sin in Texas
President Donald Trump is confident that his pick for U.S. Senate in the Lone Star State will easily defeat Democrat James Talarico, whom he called unelectable because “he’s a vegan in Texas.” Talarico is a prominent state lawmaker who was only recently propelled to the national stage after winning the Democratic Senate nomination in Texas earlier this year. He has been widely lambasted by conservatives for his history of controversial statements, including claiming, “God is non-binary” and that “sex is a spectrum.” While speaking with reporters before boarding Air Force One on Wednesday morning, Trump predicted that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who he endorsed this week, will “win very substantially” in the upcoming primary runoff with incumbent Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. He then forecasted that Paxton would “go on to defeat a very defective candidate that believes in six genders, and he takes hits at Jesus Christ, and he’s wearing a mask six months ago, anybody wearing a mask six months ago doesn’t get it.” ‘GOD IS NON-BINARY’: TEXAS DEM NOMINEE TALARICO’S PAST REMARKS ON ABORTION, RACE AND GENDER DRAW SCRUTINY He then ripped into Talarico, saying, “And he’s vegan, he’s a vegan in Texas.” “You can’t get elected as a vegan in Texas,” Trump insisted. Trump’s comments reference an unearthed 2022 clip of Talarico giving a speech and calling reducing meat consumption “existential.” “We have heard, I think, heard more and more issues of animal welfare. I think, not just because it’s the right thing to do, and it’s the moral thing to do, but also… necessary to fight climate change,” Talarico said, adding, “It is now existential that we try to reduce our meat consumption, and that we try to respect animals.” “So, I am proud to say that our campaign has officially become a non-meat campaign,” Talarico continued. “So, we are only buying vegan products from our local vegan businesses.” Talarico can be seen wearing a mask during the speech. TEXAS TEEN TELLS CONGRESS HE RECEIVED DEATH THREATS AFTER REVEALING ISLAMIC BOOTH AT HIGH SCHOOL His resurfaced comments caused a significant stir in Texas, where beef cattle production is a multibillion-dollar industry and the state’s largest agricultural segment. “Who wants to tell him that cattle is the #1 commodity in Texas?” the National Republican Senatorial Committee, Senate Republicans’ campaign arm, wrote on X. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, labeled Talarico a “freak” who wants to “ban BBQ.” “Vote Republican this November. The steaks couldn’t be higher,” Cornyn wrote. Amid the backlash, the Talarico campaign blasted out a photo of the candidate wearing a Texas flag shirt and taking a large bite out of a turkey leg. “Official Statement from James Talarico on Vegan Accusations,” the campaign wrote. TRUMP BACKS PAXTON IN TEXAS REPUBLICAN SENATE SHOWDOWN WITH CORNYN In response to Trump’s criticisms on Wednesday, JT Ennis, a spokesperson for Talarico’s campaign, told Fox News Digital that “as costs continue to rise and corruption in Washington runs rampant, James is focused on taking power back for working people and bringing down the price of gas, groceries, and healthcare.” “James is building a people-powered movement to take on this broken, corrupt political system — not any one politician, not any one political party, but the billionaire mega donors and puppet politicians who have made life more expensive for Texans while enriching themselves,” said Ennis.
Eyebrow-raising claim from ‘Hunter Biden’ X account draws GOP mockery
A newly active X account bearing former first son Hunter Biden’s name drew mockery from GOP lawmakers and prominent social media personalities after posting its first message Tuesday. “Your laptop’s reputation precedes you,” Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn wrote in response to the “@HunterBiden” account. Fox News Digital reached out to X and Hunter Biden’s art gallery to verify if the account belongs to the former president’s son, but did not receive confirmation. The account has garnered thousands of followers and interactions since Tuesday, when it launched its first message. “I’m Hunter Biden. You’ve never actually heard from me,” the account blaring the former first son’s name posted. The account’s profile reads: “Artist. Author. Recovery Advocate.” HUNTER BIDEN HELPED MAKE CAMPAIGN DECISIONS, WAS MAJOR FIXTURE IN FATHER’S ORBIT, AUTHOR SAYS Hunter, 56, has re-emerged in the public spotlight as he attempts to rebuild his image following years of controversy involving drug addiction, legal troubles and scrutiny surrounding his personal life. The X account, @HunterBiden, was first launched in 2013, according to a Fox News Digital review, but posted its first public message on Tuesday. Hunter Biden’s art gallery website is linked to the X account, while the art gallery’s website links to the X account, a YouTube page and a Substack account. The tweet sparked a wave of mockery aimed at the younger Biden, as well as a handful of accounts quipping that the former first son would allegedly launch a 2028 run. “We’ve heard plenty,” Republican Indiana Sen. Jim Banks responded to the account. “Trust me, we’ve heard and seen ENOUGH from you,” Republican Missouri Rep. Jason Smith chimed in. Other social media users quickly piled onto the alleged Hunter Biden post, resurfacing past controversies and even floating him as a potential political candidate. “Oh this oughta be good,” said conservative commentator Nick Sortor in an X response. “Very real chance he doesn’t remember that we have, in fact, heard from him in hours of podcasting before now,” said Fox News contributor Mary Katharine Ham. “The 2028 Dark Horse Candidate,” wrote one X user, while another added “He’s running.” MAMDANI’S WIFE’S ‘STUDENT SKETCHBOOK’ ART IS HUNTER BIDEN EFFECT ALL OVER AGAIN, SAYS US ARTIST Additionally, Candace Owens tagged the X account in a trailer for her upcoming interview with Hunter Biden, who is continuing a media tour following years of controversy while under the public spotlight. The @HunterBiden account reposted the video, writing, “She’s got questions. I’ve got answers. Thursday.” JOE BIDEN POSES WITH HUNTER’S CHINESE BUSINESS ASSOCIATES IN NEWLY SURFACED PHOTOS: ‘INCREDIBLY DAMNING’ HUNTER BIDEN’S FINANCIAL WOES REVEALED IN NEW MOTION TO DROP LAWSUIT: ‘SIGNIFICANT DEBT’ Hunter Biden has been involved in a string of controversies spanning his foreign business dealings, tax and gun charges, and scrutiny tied to his family’s political connections. Hunter received a pardon from President Joe Biden for any offense he “has committed or may have committed” from Jan. 1, 2014, to Dec. 1, 2024, before his father left office. In September 2024, Hunter Biden pleaded guilty to nine federal tax charges in California for a scheme evading over $1.4 million in taxes from 2016 to 2019. He was also convicted in Delaware in June 2024 for lying on a federal form about his drug use to purchase a firearm in 2018. Hunter published a memoir titled “Beautiful Things: A Memoir” in 2021, detailing his battle with severe substance abuse and family tragedies from his own perspective.
Trump jolts immigration hawks with surprising defense of Chinese students in USA
President Donald Trump split with immigration hawks by defending Chinese students in the U.S. while also softening on Chinese-owned farmland — creating friction inside MAGA and unexpected overlap with moderate Democrats. Fox News’ Sean Hannity asked Trump in a recent interview from Beijing about concerns surrounding Chinese nationals attending school in the U.S. and China-linked entities purchasing farmland, including in sensitive areas like near a North Dakota military base that raised eyebrows earlier this decade. Republicans have long warned that Chinese student visa programs could expose U.S. research and state secrets to the Chinese Communist Party, while GOP officials like Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Nebraska Sen. Deb Fischer have pushed for tougher restrictions on Chinese ownership of American farmland. “It’s not that I love it. You want to see farm prices drop; you want to see farmers lose a lot of money just take that out of the market. But they’ve had a lot of land for a long time. Obama did nothing about it,” Trump said. SENATORS RICKETTS, FETTERMAN UNITE AGAINST CHINA’S QUIET INVASION OF US FARMLAND Trump also defended allowing Chinese students to study in the U.S., calling them “good students” and arguing that banning them would unnecessarily inflame tensions with Beijing. “I frankly think that it’s good that people come from other countries and they learn our culture and many of them want to stay here,” Trump said, while admitting that it “doesn’t sound like a very conservative position – and I’m a conservative… commonsense guy. I think MAGA is ‘common sense,’” he said. The comments triggered backlash from the right wing of the MAGA movement, with former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene disputing, “No — that’s not commonsense.” “Trump says it’s insulting to tell China their students can’t go to our universities, imagine being an American student and receiving a rejection letter while 500,000 Chinese students get in,” Greene said, according to the left-wing New Republic. “And no – it’s not OK for China to buy our farmland.” Some Democrats, however, appeared heartened by Trump’s more moderate stance on a major sticking point in the immigration field. Fox News Digital reached out to top Democrats on the moderate New Democrat Coalition’s Border Security Working Group. Chairman Gabe Vasquez of New Mexico told Fox News Digital that while he disagrees with Trump “on a lot” regarding immigration enforcement, he will continue to support efforts to bring new blood into the American economy. “I have long supported building America’s workforce by encouraging the best and brightest across the world to come study in the U.S. and build their careers and families here,” said Vasquez. “Congress should expand more legal pathways for students to stay here and start businesses, grow the American economy, and help our country fill critical needs in key industries like healthcare, manufacturing, quantum AI and engineering.” A Vasquez spokesperson added that the lawmaker, however, agrees with conservatives on one point where Trump differed — that Chinese nationals should not be permitted to purchase U.S. farmland. “Food security is national security,” the spokesperson said. Speaking to Hannity, Trump added: “I could tell [Xi], I don’t want any students, it’s a very insulting thing to say to a country. They would then immediately go out and start building universities all over China.” Trump argued that without the influx of Chinese students, middling and lower-tier universities would begin dying on the vine financially. Lora Ries, former counsel for the House Judiciary Committee’s immigration subcommittee and a 30-year policy expert now with the Heritage Foundation, told Fox News Digital that universities have grown too dependent on foreign students because they often pay “full freight” — and made the case for scrutinizing the education system rather than keeping it propped up with foreign tuition. TRUMP CLAIMS GOP ‘VERY OPEN’ TO KEEPING ‘DREAMERS’ IN US, TAKES SHOT AT ‘VERY DIFFICULT’ DEMS “It is no longer a level playing field for American students to get into these universities. We also know many of these universities are producing degrees that don’t have a great return on investment: gender studies, et cetera. So why on earth do we want to keep universities that depend on those sorts of degrees afloat?” Ries said. “We shouldn’t justify continuing to bring in high levels of foreign students to keep so many universities in business when the Big-Ed model is absolutely upside-down.” According to Ries, Chinese and other foreign student blocs exacerbate the difficulty American students face getting into colleges — while native students are also not finding meaningful jobs after graduation. Ries said the issue is “right up Trump’s alley,” but not in the way the president posited on “Hannity.” She said Trump could shake up “Big-Ed” by incentivizing quality degrees and disincentivizing ones that leave American graduates occupationally stranded. FOREIGN STUDENTS WHO HATE AMERICA DON’T DESERVE VISAS — AND WE HAVE TOOLS TO STOP THEM When it comes to the adage about jobs Americans supposedly won’t do, she pointed to the medical field, which has seen an influx of foreign students. “You can’t say medicine is a job that Americans won’t do, so what’s going on?” she said. She also noted that Chinese nationals cannot come to live in America without the knowledge of — and often information-sharing with — the CCP, which itself poses a risk. “Also, Chairman Xi can say, ‘Well, America is in decline,’ as he just did in this summit.” When asked for comment, a White House spokesperson directed Fox News Digital to the president’s remarks to Hannity. Trump’s comments set up a new potential divergence between presidential policy and conservative politics among some of his current and former most ardent supporters, including Greene. It also, however, potentially opens up a rare immigration dialogue with Democrats like Vasquez and his coalition of moderates, who have been trying to advance their own fixes to the broken system.
The battle of perception: From Israel’s Fauda to Hezbollah’s FPV footage
The footage lasts just three minutes. An Israeli flag flies over a position in the village of al-Bayada, in occupied southern Lebanon. One drone approaches the flagpole while another observes from above. The flag falls after the impact. The final frame displays a digitally rendered, torn Israeli flag with the words: “Al-Bayada does not welcome you.” The video’s caption reads: “Flag lowering ceremony”. This is the latest video released by Hezbollah, which reflects a broader context beyond a single hillside in southern Lebanon. Journalists and observers who covered southern Lebanon in the late 1990s may recall Hezbollah’s media strategy before the Israeli withdrawal. Al-Manar TV functioned as more than a television channel; it operated as a psychological campaign in plain view. Repeated footage of Israeli soldiers screaming after being attacked with a roadside bomb, retreating, positions abandoned, and flags lowered, created the perception in the Arab world that Israel was already departing before any official decision to do so had been taken. Back then, the image pushed forward a new reality, one that played a vital role in mobilising support for Hezbollah and adding pressure on the Israeli government internally to withdraw its forces from Lebanon. Then the withdrawal occurred in May 2000, and to many, it felt like a natural result of all that was happening. This approach was never abandoned, but it became unnecessary for a long period due to Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s commanding presence and speeches. Advertisement For two decades, Nasrallah was the face of the media war. A man whose son was killed in battle. A leader who said things and then made them happen. What he had could not be taught or replicated; it was credibility accumulated over years of real achievement, giving him the rare ability to reshape how his audience understood events. When something went wrong, he could reframe it. When a setback came, he could place it inside a longer story that made sense. He was the frame that held everything together. The war in Syria badly damaged Hezbollah’s image. Seeing its fighters in Qalamoun, Aleppo, Homs, and other Syrian cities, in what much of the Arab world saw as a sectarian war, was hard to absorb. But Nasrallah was there to absorb it for his base, give it logic, and keep the narrative from collapsing. He framed it as a war to preserve resistance against Israel, rather than one to defend an ally combating a revolution. Without him, the organisation could have faced an even worse image, not only among his critics but also among his supporters. The image itself could not survive without him. Then came 2024. Fuad Shukr, one of Hezbollah’s most senior commanders, was killed in Beirut at the end of July. Less than two months later, the pager operation tore through Hezbollah’s ranks, hundreds of devices detonating at once, an intelligence penetration so complete it felt almost unreal. Then the assassinations kept coming. Senior commanders, one after another. And on September 27, Nasrallah himself was killed in an Israeli strike on the southern suburbs of Beirut. His successor, Naim Qassem, was the deputy leader for 30 years. His organisational capabilities helped the party restructure and rebuild, but he is not a communicator. What Nasrallah had was not a transferable skill. It grew from decades of confrontation, presence, and delivery. Qassem’s words lack the crucial layer of strategic narrative his predecessor mastered. So Hezbollah’s media machinery, which always depended on the leader’s voice to shape everything, found itself, for the first time in decades, without a centre, without the voice capable of putting things together, and giving a hint to supporters of what’s to come. As for Israel, its communications strategy wasn’t something it wandered into by accident. For years, Israel had been building it on two tracks simultaneously. The first was operational. A well-resourced apparatus of military spokespersons, carefully managed press access, and rapid-fire media briefings, all designed to get the Israeli military’s version of any story to people’s mobile phones and newsrooms before any alternative could take hold. Advertisement An investigation by Swiss public television SRF released in October revealed how the Israeli military had been quietly producing slick 3D animation videos weeks before major operations, ready to deploy the moment the strikes began, justifying hits on hospitals, residential blocks, and civilian infrastructure. Many broadcasters ran them, and many did not even ask questions about the accuracy of what they were showing. The second track was cultural and ran deeper. Fauda, the Netflix thriller written by veterans of Israeli undercover units, spent several seasons building audiences worldwide, painting Palestinian and Hezbollah fighters as brutal and ultimately incompetent, always outthought, always outmanoeuvred. Tehran, on Apple TV+, did the same job on Iran: Mossad as professionals, the Islamic Republic as a paranoid bureaucracy lurching from one failure to the next. Neither series was crude propaganda, and that was their leverage. They entered living rooms in countries with no prior opinion or knowledge of the conflict and quietly arranged the furniture before the next war arrived. When Israel attacked Iran in June 2025, a LEGO animation video with the soundtrack from Tehran started circulating online. The Iranian responded with another LEGO video that didn’t leave a real impact, but it was just the beginning. By the time the United States and Israel launched their campaign in February, aimed openly at Iran’s nuclear programme and its leadership, Tehran had assembled a media response that caught many observers off guard. Explosive Media, a Tehran-based group producing animated short videos in English, began releasing Lego-style animated films at a pace matching the news cycle. One showed US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu beside the devil, looking at Epstein Files, before Trump presses a button and a rocket flies towards Iran. The camera then cuts to the rubble of an Iranian girls’ school that was attacked by Israel and the US military. In another video, missiles are flying towards their targets, each dedicated to a different victim
At least eight killed in Israel’s air attacks on southern Lebanon
Israeli attacks on Lebanon continue despite the ‘ceasefire’ that was recently extended until the beginning of July. Published On 20 May 202620 May 2026 At least eight people have been killed in Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon, in the latest violation of an ongoing “ceasefire” agreement, according to Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency (NNA). Israeli fighter jets struck in the village of Doueir on Wednesday, killing five people and injuring two others, NNA reported. Several homes were flattened in the attack, the agency said. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list Another Israeli attack killed two people near a hospital in the village of Tibnin, while one person riding a motorcycle was killed in a drone attack on the village of Burj Shemali in the Tyre district, NNA said. The Red Cross said it recovered the body of one person on the outskirts of the town of Shebaa in the Nabatieh governorate. Israeli attacks across Lebanon continue despite the United States-mediated “ceasefire” that was recently extended until the beginning of July. The fresh wave of Israeli attacks came hours after at least 16 people were killed in Israeli air attacks across southern Lebanon on Tuesday. The Health Ministry said three women and three children were among the victims. Moreover, the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah said its forces clashed with Israeli troops trying to advance to the centre of the village of Haddatha late last night. The group also reported clashes with Israeli forces in the town of Biyyada and the municipality of Rashaf. Attacks on eastern Lebanon ongoing Israeli forces continue to expand their military campaign beyond the country’s south into the western Bekaa Valley. Advertisement “For weeks, the Israeli army has been targeting Muslim Shia majority villages in the western Bekaa Valley where Hezbollah has support,” Al Jazeera’s Zeina Khodr reported. “They lie on the road that links the southern front-line villages to the east of the country.” Yousef Hasan, displaced from the town of Yuhmor, called Israel “an expansionist state that kills women and children”. “They don’t believe in borders. For them, the border is as far as Israeli soldiers can reach. It is a state that occupies others’ lands,” Hasan told Al Jazeera. Since March 2, Israel has killed 3,073 people in Lebanon and injured 9,362 others, and displaced more than 1.6 million, about one-fifth of the country’s population, according to Lebanese authorities. Israeli forces have also destroyed entire villages in southern Lebanon, prompting comparisons with the devastation caused by Israel’s genocidal war against the Palestinians in Gaza. Adblock test (Why?)