House votes to make Trump Gulf of America name change permanent
The House of Representatives voted 211-206 to make President Donald Trump‘s name change for the Gulf of America permanent on Friday morning. No Democrats voted for the bill, as was expected. Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., was the only Republican to vote against the bill. The legislation was led by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., a vocal ally of Trump’s in Congress. “This is such an important thing to do for the American people. The American people deserve pride in their country, and they deserve pride in the waters that we own, that we protect with our military and our Coast Guard and all of the businesses that prosper along these waters,” Greene said during debate on the bill. SCOOP: REPUBLICANS DISCUSS DEFUNDING ‘BIG ABORTION’ LIKE PLANNED PARENTHOOD IN TRUMP AGENDA BILL “But Democrats today are outraged. They’re outraged because they love the cartels more than any other people in the world, more than the American people.” Democratic lawmakers, meanwhile, panned the legislation as a waste of time. “Republicans think this juvenile legislation is the best use of this House’s time. This is the only work we’re doing today, folks,” Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said in his rebuttal to Greene. “What a sick joke this is. Republicans worry about 400-year-old words on a map. I worry about families and every community in America that’s struggling to get by.” MEET THE TRUMP-PICKED LAWMAKERS GIVING SPEAKER JOHNSON A FULL HOUSE GOP CONFERENCE The vast majority of Republicans supported the bill, with several arguing the name change would help boost tourism and a sense of patriotism in the region. However, earlier this week, Fox News Digital was told that several GOP lawmakers privately expressed frustration at what they saw as a largely symbolic bill taking up their time instead of more meaningful legislation to move Trump’s agenda along. “I’ve heard criticisms from all corners of the conference. Conservatives to pragmatic ones,” Bacon told Fox News Digital on Tuesday. “It seems sophomoric. The United States is bigger and better than this.” One conservative GOP lawmaker vented to Fox News Digital, “125 other [executive orders], this is the one we pick.” Greene hit back at the detractors, however, in response to Fox News Digital’s report. “Some of my Republican colleagues don’t want to vote for my Gulf of America Act, which is one of President Trump’s favorite executive orders. They say they would rather vote on ‘more serious EOs.’ Boys are you ready to vote to criminalize sex changes on kids?? Because I have that bill on that EO too,” she wrote on X. The legislation will now be sent to the Senate, where it must reach a 60-vote threshold – with Democratic support – before it can hit the president’s desk.
Retired judges criticize Trump admin over arrest of Milwaukee County judge: ‘Embarrassing spectacle’
A coalition of more than 150 former judges joined together in a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, accusing the Trump administration of perpetrating “attacks” against the judiciary. “We are former state and federal judges who join together to condemn the Trump Administration’s attacks on the judiciary, including its recent arrest of Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan in her courthouse,” the letter begins. Dugan allegedly escorted a wanted illegal immigrant “out of the courtroom through the ‘jury door,’ which leads to a nonpublic area of the courthouse,” according to an affidavit, which notes that authorities at the courthouse to arrest the wanted individual were still ultimately able to apprehend him. MILWAUKEE JUDGE HANNAH DUGAN ‘TEMPORARILY RELIEVED OF HER OFFICIAL DUTIES’ BY WISCONSIN SUPREME COURT “This latest action is yet another attempt to intimidate and threaten the judiciary after a series of rulings by judges appointed by presidents of both parties holding the Trump Administration accountable for its countless violations of the Constitution and laws of the United States,” the former judges declared in their letter. They asserted that the Justice Department “at your direction decided to create an embarrassing spectacle that included the FBI’s arrest and handcuffing of Judge Dugan and the Director of the FBI, Kash Patel, posting a photo of the perp walk on X.” The letter links to an April X post that features a photo and declares, “No one is above the law.” FBI ARRESTS WISCONSIN JUDGE, ALLEGING SHE OBSTRUCTED ARREST OF ILLEGAL ALIEN Fox News Digital reached out to the Justice Department for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication. President Donald Trump‘s second-term agenda has been bogged down by judicial roadblocks, and the president has been outspoken in registering his complaints with the judiciary. PRESIDENT TRUMP ANNOUNCES MULTIPLE JUDICIAL NOMINEES, ACCUSES COURT SYSTEM OF BLOCKING HIM FROM DOING HIS JOB “Our Court System is not letting me do the job I was Elected to do. Activist judges must let the Trump Administration deport murderers, and other criminals who have come into our Country illegally, WITHOUT DELAY!!!” he declared in a Wednesday Truth Social post.
Destroying Lahore air defence base to condemnation of Poonch killings: 10 key points from MEA presser on Op Sindoor
In response to the Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir which claimed 26 lives, India launched ‘Operation Sindoor’ in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK) to target nine terror camps associated with terror outfits.
Schools, colleges to remain shut tomorrow in J-K’s Baramulla, Kupwara, other regions amid escalations with Pakistan
Amid the ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan, authorities on Thursday announced that educational institutes in Baramulla, Kupwara and those falling nearby the Srinagar and Awantipora airports shall continue to remain closed on Friday and Saturday.
From floppy disks to flight delays: Top lawmaker warns US air system is due for a reboot
A leading lawmaker from the nation’s most interconnected air travel state warned that outdated technology – like “floppy disks” – and ongoing air traffic control (ATC) crises at key hubs are compounding the need to overhaul the U.S. air travel system. Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, who also sits on the Aviation subcommittee on the Senate Commerce and Transportation Committee, spoke to Fox News Digital exclusively on Wednesday as the crisis mounted, most recently in the Philadelphia ATC sector; specifically at Newark-Liberty International Airport. The Last Frontier has the least miles of roads per capita and hundreds of communities where air travel is the only relatively realistic or reliable mode. Sullivan said that it is not only in his state’s interest to see such an overhaul, but that – just as the Philadelphia sector has seen issues as of late – the Anchorage air traffic control hub itself controls individual flight patterns almost anywhere between Chicago and Tokyo. ALASKA SENATOR LITERALLY TEARS UP BIDEN’S ENERGY ORDERS, BOOSTS WH EFFORTS TO LEVERAGE ARCTIC LNG ASIA TRADE “We help the entire country when people are traveling from the Lower 48 over to Asia,” he said. “What we need to do is we need to preemptively address challenges before they become tragedies,” said Sullivan, who spoke out similarly at a commerce hearing with NTSB and FAA officials earlier this year. He also cited a February passenger airliner crash in his own state, when a plane went down on Norton Sound’s sea ice after leaving Unalakleet for Nome, killing 10. “What happens, unfortunately, is too often tragedy is what inspires and motivates reform,” he said, adding that the Department of Transportation should and likely will, under Secretary Sean Duffy, pivot to “predict[ing] and preempt[ing].” On a recent tour of the Anchorage center, he spoke to FAA workers and saw how they, like other sectors, rely on 20th-century floppy disks and “strips of paper that are like post-it notes.” AK CAN BE ‘CURE TO THE NATION’S ILLS’ WITH HELP FROM TRUMP ADMIN: GOV DUNLEAVY “What we don’t want, unfortunately – it’s happened – is have a big crash and tragedy as the thing that inspires change,” he said, placing the blame most recently on the Biden administration, in part, for appearing to prioritize diversity over substantive reforms at USDOT. “I watched this: Hiring people for the FAA in terms of air traffic controllers is competitive. It requires real schooling. It requires high performance. And the Biden team came in, and I guess in the name of diversity… they started taking people off the street literally with no background in any of this. We’ve got to get back to the rigorous FAA standards,” he said. He said he spoke with Duffy on Tuesday and predicted “a really big comprehensive reform program” in the weeks and months to come. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “We have the safest aviation system in the world, but that doesn’t happen through magic. That happens through diligence, through upgrading our technology.” While not directly addressing the situation in Newark, Sullivan praised the Trump administration’s “outstanding” response to the Unalakleet crash and predicted the Department of Transportation would handle the Newark-Liberty incident in a similarly effective manner. Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has defended his tenure, writing on X that “we put safety first, drove down close calls, grew [ATC] and had zero commercial airline fatalities out of millions of flights on our watch.”
Biden hires veteran Democrat communicator as former president aims to defend tarnished reputation
As former President Joe Biden faces incoming fire not only from President Donald Trump but also fellow Democrats, the former president is bringing on board a veteran strategist and communicator to help refurbish his reputation and legacy. The former president has hired Chris Maegher, a Biden administration veteran, to help him now that the first 100 days of Trump’s second tour of duty in the White House has passed, sources confirm to Fox News. Former presidents have traditionally refrained from criticizing their successors during the first 100-day period of the new administration. However, in a sign that Biden is looking to re-engage publicly, he will make a live appearance on “The View” talk show on Thursday, and sources confirm that Meagher had a hand in arranging the segment. HEAD HERE FOR THE LATEST FOX NEWS COVERAGE OF FORMER PRESIDENT BIDEN Earlier this week, in his first interview since Trump’s inauguration three and a half months ago, Biden sat down with the BBC. Biden’s re-entering into the political and media spotlight may not sit well with many Democrats, who thank the former president for the plethora of policies passed during his single term in the White House but who continue to blame him for last November’s election setbacks and who want fresh faces to lead the party as it aims to exit the political wilderness. The media appearances by Biden come as his White House successor continues to blast and belittle the former president over several issues. TRUMP’S APPROVAL RATINGS SLIDE, BUT DEMOCRATS POLL NUMBERS HIT ALL-TIME LOWS It comes as the Trump administration, according to a Politico report, is working to release audio of Biden’s interview with then-special counsel Robert Hur, who investigated Biden’s handling of classified documents and raised questions about Biden’s mental acuity in a February 2024 report. Biden made history in his 2020 White House defeat of Trump as the oldest person ever elected U.S. president. Hur’s report amplified questions about whether the then-81-year-old, who at the time was running for re-election, had the physical and mental stamina to serve another four years in the White House. Biden’s disastrous debate performance against Trump last June further exacerbated his problems and fueled a chorus of calls from fellow Democrats for him to step down as the Democrats’ 2024 standard-bearer. Biden eventually succumbed to the pressure and dropped his re-election bid in late July, with then-Vice President Kamala Harris succeeding him as the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee. Biden continues to face criticism from fellow Democrats for staying too long in the 2024 White House race. When asked in the BBC interview if he should have dropped his re-election bid earlier than he did, the former president said, “I don’t think it would have mattered.” “It was a hard decision,” Biden said. “I think it was the right decision.” The former president also used the interview to blast Trump for single-handily renaming the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America, for his repeated comments about acquiring Greenland or taking control of the Panama Canal, and for continuously saying Canada should become America’s 51st state. “What the hell’s going on here? What president ever talks like that? That’s not who we are,” Biden said. “We’re about freedom, democracy, opportunity, not about confiscation.” He also pilloried Trump’s efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine war as “modern-day appeasement.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Meagher is a longtime operative and strategist with both political and private sector experience on his resume. He’s a veteran of the Democratic National Committee, former Sen. John Tester of Montana’s successful 2018 reflection, and Pete Buttigieg’s 2020 presidential campaign, when the long shot for the Democratic nomination soared to major contender status. During the Biden administration, Meagher briefly served under then-Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg before moving to the White House as a deputy press secretary and later to the Pentagon as Defense Department spokesperson.
Senator says Dems ‘eat their own’ as Fetterman faces renewed scrutiny
A Republican senator who entered Congress’ upper chamber in the same cycle as Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., said the former Braddock mayor’s cognitive issues seem to be subsiding and that the hubbub in the press is likely due to the onetime progressive star breaking with the left wing of his party on key issues. Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., told Fox News Digital that, while he is not a doctor, his own run-ins with the hulking, outspoken Democrat have been constructive, and that some of the issues he was facing during his 2022 contest against now-Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) chief, Dr. Mehmet Oz, has improved. “I can’t speak to his health as far as, you know, I’m not a doctor, and I’m definitely not going to break any HIPAA rules. But it is kind of funny because the way the Democrats act is if you don’t agree with them on all their points, they want to wipe you off the face of the earth,” Mullin said. Mullin alluded to how Fetterman, who, as lieutenant governor, amassed a progressive following and support from democratic socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and then later lost much of that bloc of left-wing populist support when he came out in support of Israel and against Iran. JOHN FETTERMAN FACES NEW SPOTLIGHT ON HEALTH, FAMILY DRAMA, SPARKING ONLINE UPROAR “A few short years ago, Fetterman was like this godsend in Pennsylvania. And he came here, and they realized that Fetterman’s his own man. He’s gonna speak his mind, and he’s gonna say it the way that it is or the way he feels like it is anyways, and they can’t control him,” Mullin said. “And the Democrats are all about controlling the party. And so, if you’re speaking away from them, it’s doomsday for you.” Mullin remarked that Fetterman’s health “sure wasn’t an issue” when he was running against Oz – as Democrats continued supporting him despite cognitive issues. At one Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, debate, Fetterman opened by saying “Hi – good night, everybody,” and was criticized for the apparent oxymoron. “His health seemed like it was worse than it is now. But it seems interesting to me. I don’t really, when you really start thinking about John, here’s a guy that is going against the norm, and I commend him for it,” Mullin explained. FETTERMAN SPOKESWOMAN REAMED FOR REPORTEDLY CONTRADICTING BOSS ON ISRAEL: ‘UNPARALLELED HUBRIS’ “That’s why him and I talk, because I think it’s pretty neat that he’s still who he is. He has an interesting story with the reason why he dresses the way he does, and the reason why he is who he is, and I respect him for doing that.” Mullin suggested Democrats are “planting stories like this” and that “we shouldn’t be surprised… they eat their own.” As for staffers who have publicly and privately broken with Fetterman, Mullin added that it is his name on the Senate office door and not theirs, going on to lament those who objected to decisions as simple as meeting with President Donald Trump. “So they can go pound sand. If they don’t like working for him, go find another member, because he’s the member,” he said. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., added that Fetterman “comes to play every day,” when Fox News Digital caught up with him near Constitution Avenue. “I can tell you I work with him constantly. We work particularly in terms of hunger programs, making sure that there’s technologies available that protect the hungry and taxpayers,” he said. When encountered outside the Capitol getting into a car, Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., paused momentarily while working on his phone, before saying he had to go when Fox News Digital mentioned the Fetterman story. New York Magazine did not return Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
The Texas Tribune has acquired the Austin Monitor
This move will allow us to build on the Monitor’s mission to serve a growing city with more expansive needs.
Deportation flights to Libya would violate court order without prior notice, federal judge says
A federal judge said Wednesday that any potential deportation flights to Libya or Saudi Arabia would violate a court order if the Trump administration does not provide advanced notification to the impacted illegal immigrants and their attorneys first. The administration has not confirmed planned deportation flights to either country, but a group of attorneys representing illegal immigrants from nations including Vietnam, Laos and the Philippines claimed in court documents that their clients were told by immigration enforcement agents that they would soon be sent to Libya or Saudi Arabia. Immigration lawyers asked U.S. District Judge Brian E. Murphy – who was nominated by former President Joe Biden – for a temporary restraining order Wednesday “to prevent non-citizen removals to third countries, including but not limited to Libya and Saudia Arabia, without prior written notice and a meaningful opportunity to raise fear-based claims.” TRUMP TO RENAME PERSIAN GULF THE ARABIAN GULF AHEAD OF US-IRAN NUCLEAR TALKS, MIDDLE EAST TRIP: REPORT Murphy agreed with the immigration lawyers that the motion should not be required because deporting the illegal immigrants to Libya without a chance to claim convention against torture (CAT) protection would violate his prior court order. “The April 18, 2025 Preliminary Injunction requires all third-country removals to be preceded, inter alia, by written notice to both the non-citizen and the non-citizen’s counsel in a language the non-citizen can understand as well as a meaningful opportunity for the non-citizen to raise a fear-based claim for CAT protection,” Murphy wrote Wednesday. “The April 30, 2025 Amendment to the Preliminary Injunction further clarifies that the Department of Homeland Security may not evade this injunction by ceding control over non-citizens or the enforcement of its immigration responsibilities to any other agency, including but not limited to the Department of Defense.” “If there is any doubt—the Court sees none—the allegedly imminent removals, as reported by news agencies and as Plaintiffs seek to corroborate with class-member accounts and public information, would clearly violate this Court’s Order.” Fox News Digital reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment on Thursday morning. In their request seeking Murphy’s intervention, the immigration attorneys cited “alarming reports” late Tuesday and Wednesday morning from “class members’ counsel and from the press” announcing “the imminent removal” of Laotian, Vietnamese, and Philippine illegal immigrants “being prepared for removal to Libya, a [country] notorious for its human rights violations, especially with respect to migrant residents.” “Class members were being scheduled for removal despite not receiving the required notice and opportunity to apply for CAT protection,” they wrote. FEDERAL JUDGE OPENS DOOR TO ALIEN ENEMIES ACT TARGETS SUING TRUMP ADMINISTRATION The attorneys also cited a CNN report claiming that publicly available information “indicates that a C-17 flight is scheduled to fly on Wednesday from Kelly Field in San Antonio, Texas, to Misrata Airport in Libya.” The Associated Press cited a U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity Wednesday about alleged plans to fly migrants to Libya on a military plane. The official reportedly did not have details on the timing of the C-17 flight. Libya has denied reports of a deportation deal with the U.S. The Tripoli-based government of Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah said in a statement Wednesday that there was “no deal or coordination” with the U.S. to receive migrants. However, it said “some parallel parties” could have agreed to receive them. That appears to refer to its rival administration in east Libya, which is controlled by powerful military commander Khalifa Hifter. Libya has been split for years between rival administrations in the east and west, each backed by armed groups and foreign governments. The Hifter-led Libya National Army, which controls eastern and southern Libya, also released a statement, denying any deal or understanding to receive migrants from the U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday directed questions to the Department of Homeland Security(DHS), according to the AP. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said during a news conference in Illinois that she “can’t confirm” media reports of plans to send people to Libya. The State Department told the AP it does not “discuss the details of our diplomatic communications with other governments.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The Trump administration has said it’s exploring other third countries for deportations. In addition to the Venezuelans sent to El Salvador, the administration has deported people to Panama and Costa Rica who were not citizens of those countries. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
REAL ID deadline comes and goes – airports report business as usual
Despite fears of first-day chaos over the new REAL ID requirement, airports reported smooth sailing Wednesday, with no major disruptions tied to the rollout, according to security officials. “We didn’t see long lines,” one passenger arriving at South Carolina’s Greeneville-Spartanburg Airport from Washington-Dulles told a local reporter. “It was a walk in the park.” TSA spokesperson Lorie Dankers said in April that about 20% of the public still lacks REAL ID compliance. When asked whether this could affect travel times starting Wednesday, she said it’s “reasonable” to expect travelers may need to arrive early. DO WE EVEN NEED THIS? LAWMAKERS GET REAL ABOUT REAL ID MANDATE STARTING TODAY “I am extremely concerned there will be long lines and a lot of confusion,” Henry Harteveldt, a travel industry analyst and president of Atmosphere Research Group, added in comments to travel website The Points Guy ahead of the rollout. Meanwhile, Philadelphia International Airport urged passengers to arrive two-and-a-half hours early for domestic flights Wednesday. However, reporters at various airports across the country found that the delays some feared never came to fruition, and wait times were minimal. Airport and security officials confirmed their reports. “We are pleased to share that the TSA lines are moving efficiently,” Nashville International Airport said Wednesday. “Smooth operations this morning,” Baltimore-Washington International Airport reported. “Smooth” operations were reported by airports and security officials alike. There was an increased presence of Homeland Security officials at Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta, but no complaints were reported to Fox News reporters on the ground there from passengers. Travelers on social media and in news reports shared stories of getting through airport security without a REAL ID, or its compliant equivalent such as a passport, which federal officials indicated would be possible with additional screening ahead of Wednesday’s rollout. Several passengers without compliant identification were given a notice indicating their IDs were not REAL ID compliant, and they should expect delays the next time they travel if they don’t have one. FLIGHT PASSENGERS WARN OF ‘REAL ID APOCALYPSE’ WHILE OTHERS ACKNOWLEDGE AMERICANS CAN STILL FLY The federal government’s REAL ID requirement is two decades in the making and has faced several delays over the years. The law stemmed from long-held concerns from federal officials about false identification, but gained momentum and was enacted following the 9/11 attacks. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “REAL ID will keep us more secure. It gives us more information so that we know who is traveling on our federal transportation systems and our airlines,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Wednesday in a video from Washington-Reagan International Airport. “Thank you everybody for all of your cooperation, and we’re looking to make America more secure in following our federal law.”