Freshman GOP lawmaker reflects on first 90 days in Congress and previews what’s next: ‘Really rewarding’
EXCLUSIVE: Freshman GOP Congressman Gabe Evans revealed during an interview with Fox News Digital how Republicans have fared, and what’s next, after 90 days of the new session of Congress have now passed. “Obviously, the Republican conference has come together three times to do things that all the pundits said weren’t going to happen,” Evans told Fox News Digital this week. “We had a speaker on the first ballot and people said we weren’t gonna be able to do that. We passed the reconciliation resolution out of the House. Folks said that that was gonna be a long shot. And we kept the government funded by passing a clean CR. And so three different times we’ve seen the conference pull together to do things many folks were doubtful that we could get done.” Evans said he believes that success will continue to “breed success.” “I think that is going to lay just some absolutely fantastic foundational groundwork for being able to actually deliver the big things that we need to deliver, particularly around cost of living and affordability,” Evans said. ‘FULL COURT PRESS’: FRESHMAN GOP LAWMAKER REVEALS BLUEPRINT TO FLIP SCRIPT ON GREEN ENERGY MANDATES Evans, a former captain in the National Guard and former police officer, was elected to Congress in November, defeating incumbent Democrat Yadira Caraveo in Colorado’s 8th Congressional District. Evans told Fox News Digital he has been very “excited” over the past three months to work on issues he campaigned on, including securing the border, ending the “scourge of fentanyl” and working to lower crime rates. “It’s been really, really rewarding to be able to do things like pass the the Halt Fentanyl Act out of the U.S. House, introduce my bill, the Uplift Act, unhandcuffing police to locate and interdict foreign transgressors so that we can empower state and local law enforcements and sanctuary states like Colorado to work with their federal counterparts to get violent criminals and cartel members who are illegally present in the country and committing other crimes out of the community. For me that’s been the flavor of the first three months.” TRUMP SAYS HE’LL ‘TAKE A LOOK’ AT EXEMPTING SOME LARGER US COMPANIES HIT ESPECIALLY HARD BY TARIFFS Evans, who has introduced six bills since becoming a member of Congress, said he is looking forward to continuing moving legislation forward, including the bipartisan Medicare and Medicaid Fraud Prevention Act and the Uplift Act. Over the next few months, Evans told Fox News Digital that his constituents in Colorado want Congress to focus on issues like cost of living. “We actually just did a town hall earlier this week. We had over 8,500 people dial in and stay on the line for that town hall and we did some just unofficial polling with all of the people who were on the line and the number one issue, no surprise, that came up was cost of living,” Evans said. “So being able to deliver relief in that cost of Living space by being able to work on cutting through just some of the absolute punitive red tape that’s out there that particularly impacts my district around things like energy production, like agricultural production, like air quality permitting.” Evans told Fox News Digital that Republicans will also continue to address crime and illegal immigration, which he says the president has already made important strides on. “In the crime space, what we’re really seeing now is a push-pull between the priorities of the new administration and Congress and blue sanctuary cities and states like Colorado and like Denver,” Evans explained. “So here’s the fact, Denver’s homicide rate in 2024 was double San Francisco’s homicide rates. Colorado is number one in the nation again, three of the last five years running, for our auto theft rate. We’re number two in the nation for teenagers overdosing and dying on fentanyl. We’re the third most dangerous state in the country and so that fixing that problem requires a partnership between the federal state and local government.” “Under the new administration in this Congress, the federal government has suddenly gotten back to business and is doing their part. The border is secured. Border crossings are at historic lows and we have federal law enforcement agencies. who are going out into communities like mine and getting violent criminals and gangs and drug traffickers out of the community.”
Trump admin wants to put Columbia under federal oversight to ensure compliance with antisemitism policies
After Columbia University took steps to align itself with President Donald Trump’s demands regarding antisemitism on its campus, the Trump administration now reportedly wants to take additional steps to ensure Columbia does not falter. Sources in the administration leaked to the Wall Street Journal that it is pursuing a legal arrangement, known as a consent decree, that would create a court-enforced compliance agreement to make certain that Columbia continues to align its policies and practices with executive directives on antisemitism laid down by Trump. After facing the threat of losing $400 million in federal funding over its response to alleged antisemitism on its campus, Columbia took steps to revise its policies and practices. These included changes to its protesting policies, an expansion of the school’s Jewish studies program, placing the school’s Middle Eastern studies program under new supervision, alterations to student disciplinary procedures and more. IVY LEAGUE ANTI-ISRAEL RINGLEADER MAHMOUD KHALIL DENIES ALLEGATIONS AS JUDGE AWAITS DEPORTATION EVIDENCE To ensure those changes last, the Trump administration is reportedly moving to usher in a consent decree, which could place Columbia in contempt of court if a judge determines that the school is not in compliance with the administration’s directives. Such violations could lead to further monetary penalties for Columbia. While the Trump administration has said Columbia is on the “right track” to restore its $400 million in federal funding, no formal announcement has been made indicating it has been. The consent decree must be voluntary, so Columbia must be a willing partner in the arrangement, or it can fight the matter in court. “The University remains in active dialogue with the Federal Government to restore its critical research funding,” a spokesperson for the University told Fox News Digital. FEDERAL GOVERNMENT QUESTIONED FORMER COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT OVER CAMPUS ANTISEMITISM Consent decrees are not an unusual tool for an administration to use to ensure its policy priorities are being implemented. Under former President Joe Biden, the government entered into consent decree arrangements with police departments to ensure they were implementing the president’s desired criminal justice reforms. Biden also pursued these legal arrangements with various universities, including Brown and Rutgers, over antisemitism concerns after the Hamas Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack in Israeli, according to the Wall Street Journal. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP According to the sources who leaked the information about the consent decree arrangement, the Trump administration is pursuing the matter because it has doubts about Columbia’s desire to follow the president’s federal directives on antisemitism in good faith, despite its public actions to do so. Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment but did not hear back in time for publication.
Red states get in line with Trump’s DEI ban in schools as compliance deadline nears
President Donald Trump has extended the deadline to April 24 for states and school districts to certify compliance with his executive order banning DEI policies, a Department of Education spokesperson confirmed to Fox News Digital. “Federal financial assistance is a privilege, not a right. When state education commissioners accept federal funds, they agree to abide by federal anti-discrimination requirements,” acting Assistant Secretary Craig Trainor said in a statement. “Unfortunately, we have seen too many schools flout or outright violate these obligations, including by using DEI programs to discriminate against one group of Americans to favor another based on identity characteristics in clear violation of Title VI.” So far, several states have either certified their compliance or signaled their intent to do so, while blue states like New York, Minnesota and Illinois signaled defiance this week in the face of the administration’s funding threat. Education Secretary Linda McMahon commended Puerto Rico in a post on X “for being the first to certify that discrimination or harmful race-preferencing is not allowed in your classrooms.” TRUMP ADMIN WARNS STATES TO COMPLY WITH HOUSING PRISONERS BY THEIR BIOLOGICAL SEX OR FACE FUNDING CUTOFF “Every state that wants to continue receiving federal funds should follow suit,” McMahon said Tuesday. On Monday, Willie Jett, Minnesota’s education commissioner, said DEI-related funding threats “without backing in law or established requirements put key programs at risk that students and schools depend on every day.” Illinois’ education board also issued a scathing response to the threats, saying the administration “is once again threatening funding for Illinois’ children and attempting to exert power over every district in the country — even as it claims it’s returning education to the states.” DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION DOLED OUT OVER $200M TO UNIVERSITIES TO INJECT DEI INTO COUNSELING COURSES: REPORT “Illinois will never waver in its commitment to helping every child from every community, background, socioeconomic status, gender, and race — which is consistent with federal and state laws and our values,” the board said in a statement. Federal funding accounts for 16% of the Chicago Public Schools budget — over $1 billion — and $6.4 billion statewide, according to a report from Axios Thursday. Wisconsin is also bucking Trump’s demands, and the state’s Department of Public Instruction published a letter raising “several concerns” with the president’s certification requirements Wednesday. Benjamin Jones, an attorney representing Wisconsin’s Department of Public Instruction, wrote in a letter that Wisconsin had already “certified assurances of compliance with federal law,” including “federal statutes related to nondiscrimination.” He called Trump’s order “unauthorized, unlawful and unconstitutionally vague.” NEW YORK PREPARES TO BATTLE TRUMP’S DEI FUNDING THREATS IN FIGHT OVER SCHOOLS “We are deeply concerned that the [certification requirement] allows the federal bureaucracy to threaten the loss of crucial education funding in order to dictate local education agency policies and decisions on what is best for kids,” the letter states. But Trump is gaining support from other Republican-led states, and several are already pushing for stricter bans on DEI initiatives at public colleges. States like West Virginia, Iowa, Indiana, Texas and Ohio have considered or put forth measures to restrict DEI programs, training and scholarships. In Ohio, the state Senate passed a bill to eliminate DEI-related activities, while Indiana’s Senate proposed legislation that would prohibit faculty members from endorsing DEI with penalties for noncompliance. New Hampshire’s Department of Education has advised school leaders to evaluate their DEI programs for compliance with the new federal directives, and the Indiana Department of Education also announced it will collect signatures from districts and schools verifying their compliance. The certification document cites Title IX, stating no one “shall, on the ground of race, color, or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.” The certification comes after a Dear Colleague letter from the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights was sent in February telling K-12 school districts and universities to end all “admissions, hiring, promotion, compensation, financial aid, scholarships, prizes, administrative support, discipline, housing, graduation ceremonies, and all other aspects of student, academic, and campus life” on the basis of race. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP In January, Trump issued the “Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling,” executive order, which prohibits K-12 schools from teaching materials considered anti-American or promoting “gender ideology” and critical race theory. The order mandates that law enforcement investigate educational institutions suspected of promoting such content and criminally prosecute educators who assist in the social transition of minors.
Bill to create a Texas Homeland Security Division passes state Senate
Senate Bill 36, a priority bill for Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, would create an office within the Department of Public Safety focused on immigration enforcement, organized crime and threats to state infrastructure.
‘Bogus claims’: Blue city mayor under fire for trying to halt reopening of ICE facility
The City of Newark and its Democratic mayor are facing pushback after filing a legal complaint against Immigration and Customs Enforcement for reopening a building to prep illegal immigrants for deportation without “following proper building safety protocols.” Mayor Ras Baraka said in a statement that using the building, Delaney Hall, for processing people in the country illegally goes against state and local law, leading the city to file a lawsuit in the Essex County Superior Court at the end of March. “The City was informed that construction work is taking place in the building without required permits,” the mayor stated. “The Department of Engineering imposed a stop work order to halt any and all construction on the site today. Two ICE officials and the GEO Group facility director on site were made aware of the violations.” “In addition, ICE has failed to apply for construction permits, continued certificates of occupancy, and requests to change the building’s use,” he added. Delaney Hall has just under 1,200 beds, according to USA Today. TEXAS MAN WHO VOWED TO SHOOT, KILL ICE AGENTS, SAID NOEM SHOULD BE IN ‘GULAG,’ CHARGED IN FEDERAL COURT: DOJ “The agreement between ICE and the GEO Group to use Delaney Hall with the intention of incarcerating and holding immigrants slated for deportation does not supersede the ordinances and procedures legislated by the City of Newark and the State of New Jersey.” the Democrat continued. “As I have stated in the past, without compliance with requirements, Delaney Hall cannot lawfully open. We will not tolerate federal attempts to ignore or evade our laws and statutes, which apply to everyone.” The contractor who runs Delaney Hall, the GEO Group, said this is a political tactic and could put jobs and community safety “in jeopardy.” “The attempt by local and state officials to stop the opening of a lawful federal immigration processing center at the Delaney Hall facility in Newark is another unfortunate example of a politicized campaign by sanctuary city and open borders politicians in New Jersey to interfere with the federal government’s efforts to arrest, detain, and deport dangerous criminal illegal aliens in accordance with established federal law,” a spokesperson for the group told Fox News Digital. NEW JERSEY WOMAN ACCUSED OF HIRING TINDER DATE TO KILL HER EX AND HIS TEEN DAUGHTER: COURT DOCS “These politically motivated tactics threaten both public safety and the local economy and are based on bogus claims about the Delaney Hall facility, which previously operated as a federal immigration processing center for six years under President Obama’s administration, without opposition from local political leaders,” the statement continued. CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not respond in time for publication. Baraka, who’s running for governor, criticized an ICE raid in the city in January, which led to the arrest of eight individuals. “The problem with this is that none of these people were rapists, or murderers or criminals,” Baraka said at the time. “The problem with it is that ICE went in there without a warrant.” “We don’t want an ICE detention in Newark. What we are concerned about is the erosion of the Constitution,” he added. GOP CANDIDATE RIPS BLUE STATE DIRECTIVE MEDDLING IN POLICE FORCE’S COOPERATION WITH ICE: ‘HANDCUFFED’ New Jersey state laws on illegal immigrants have continued to spark pushback among Republicans, as state police were directed not to pay attention to warrants requested by the federal government for immigration enforcement purposes, according to an email obtained by Jack Ciattarelli’s gubernatorial campaign and reviewed by Fox News Digital. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “The fact that my campaign received this email is evidence that brave and courageous law enforcement officers throughout New Jersey are angry about being handcuffed by liberal Democrat policies in Trenton, making our communities less safe,” Ciattarelli, a Republican, said in a statement. Fox News’ Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.
Hegseth quips ‘99.9%’ of DEI initiatives are gone from the military under Trump’s watch
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth quipped that the Trump administration has wiped out “99.9%” of diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives (DEI) from the military during a Cabinet meeting on Thursday. President Donald Trump questioned Hegseth about whether the military had eradicated 100% of DEI efforts under his leadership, as Cabinet members shared updates on their own agencies’ attempts to purge such policies. “99.9, sir – I’m going to get that last point,” Hegseth said. The Trump administration has unveiled multiple initiatives to curb DEI initiatives within the military, including signing an executive order in January barring transgender people from enlisting and serving openly in the military. However, two federal judges issued nationwide injunctions in March blocking the Trump administration from enforcing the ban while the lawsuit is pending. In a judgment rendered on March 19, U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes of Washington, D.C., said the Trump administration’s order was “soaked in animus,” and discriminated based on a person’s transgender status. A SECOND FEDERAL JUDGE RULES AGAINST TRUMP’S REMOVAL OF TRANSGENDER TROOPS “Indeed, the cruel irony is that thousands of transgender servicemembers have sacrificed – some risking their lives – to ensure for others the very equal protection rights the Military Ban seeks to deny them,” Reyes wrote in the decision. Trump signed another executive order in January banning DEI content in K–12 schools that receive federal funds. While military service academies were originally exempt since they are not classified as K–12 institutions, the Pentagon issued instructions to the Naval Academy to remove DEI-related books from its library in March. Included in the list of nearly 400 books purged are “How to be Anti-Racist” and “Stamped From the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America” by Ibram X. Kendi, as well as “Our Time is Now: Power, Purpose, and the Fight for a Fair America,” by former Georgia Rep. Stacey Abrams. HERE’S THE LIST OF BOOKS THE NAVAL ACADEMY REMOVED FROM ITS LIBRARY DURING DEI PURGE Kendi is the founding director emeritus of the Boston University Center for Antiracist Research. He rose to national prominence following the 2020 death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police. Hegseth has made clear that the Pentagon will not tolerate any DEI initiatives under his watch. “The President’s guidance (lawful orders) is clear: No more DEI at @DeptofDefense,” Hegseth said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, in January. “The Pentagon will comply, immediately. No exceptions, name-changes, or delays.” The Associated Press contributed to this report.
China targets Hollywood films in retaliation of tariffs; Trump responds
China announced the immediate restriction of imported American films as the country retaliated against President Donald Trump’s escalated U.S. tariffs on imported Chinese goods. Trump was asked about his reaction to China’s latest move of targeting cultural exports from the U.S. on Thursday during a cabinet meeting. “I think I’ve heard of worse things,” the president said, which was followed by a room full of laughter. Reuters reported that the financial impact would likely be minimal, according to industry experts, but mainly because box office returns have significantly declined in recent years in China. TRUMP TARIFF SPIKE FUELS NEW HOUSE BILL TO LOCK CHINA OUT OF US GOVERNMENT TECH For about 30 years, China imported 10 Hollywood movies annually. But the National Film Administration (NFA) in Beijing said on its website that Trump’s tariffs would continue to sour its domestic demand for American movies in China. “We will follow market rules, respect the audience’s choices, and moderately reduce the number of American films imported,” the NFA said on its website. China was once looked to by Hollywood to help boost the box office performance of movies, since the former is the world’s second-largest film market. TRUMP SAYS HE’LL ‘TAKE A LOOK’ AT EXEMPTING SOME LARGER US COMPANIES HIT ESPECIALLY HARD BY TARIFFS China’s domestic movies, though, are increasingly outperforming American movies shown in China. For instance, Pixar’s “Inside Out 2” was eclipsed by “Ne Zha 2,” to become the highest-grossing animated film of all time, Reuters reported. Hollywood movies now only scout for 5% of the overall box office recipes in China. Hollywood studios also only receive 25% of ticket sales in China, though in other markets, they take in double their profits. It is not clear if China will allow several major blockbusters expected to hit the screen this year. DONALD TRUMP’S ALLIES, SUPPORTERS AND DONORS, LED BY ELON MUSK, PUSH TO END TARIFF WAR Walt Disney recently received permission to debut the new Marvel superhero movie, “Thunderbolts” on April 30, but others like Tom Cruise’s “Mission Impossible – The Final Reckoning” and James Guns’ “Superman,” could be in jeopardy. The news comes after the White House said Thursday it had imposed 145% in new tariffs on China, up from the 125% Trump announced the day before. While hiking rates on China, Trump said he would reduce tariffs on other countries that did not retaliate against the U.S. to his baseline of 10%. Reuters contributed to this report.
Hawley demands Zuckerberg testify on alleged ties between Meta, China
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., sent a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg calling on the tech billionaire to testify on Capitol Hill after a Facebook whistleblower alleged the company had ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). “After yesterday’s shocking revelations, it’s time for Mark Zuckerberg to come to Capitol Hill, take an oath, and answer to America for how he has sold out our country’s security for China profits,” Hawley wrote in a post on X that included images of his letter to Zuckerberg. META IS ENDING ITS FACT-CHECKING PROGRAM In his letter, Hawley lays out allegations made by Facebook whistleblower Sarah Wynn-Williams during a Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday. Wynn-Williams served as the director of global public policy at Facebook for almost seven years. CONGRESSMAN CALLS FOR ZUCKERBERG TO ANSWER ON CHINA DEALINGS “We are engaged in a high-stakes AI arms race against China. And during my time at Meta, company executives lied about what they were doing with the Chinese Communist Party to employees, shareholders, Congress, and the American public,” Wynn-Williams told the committee. The former Facebook employee claimed that the company deleted the account of a Chinese dissident living in the U.S. after pressure from Beijing and gave the CCP user data. She claims that Meta began briefing the CCP as early as 2015, and said they focused on AI and other forms of “critical emerging technologies.” The dissident that Wynn-Williams referenced was likely Guo Wengui, whose page was temporarily shut down in 2017. At the time, Facebook claimed Wengui violated community standards, according to Reuters. Then-Sen. Marco Rubio grilled Facebook general counsel Colin Stretch about Wengui’s page in 2017. Stretch denied Facebook was ever pressured by China to delete the page. Meta denies that it does business in China and refutes Wynn-Williams’ allegations. “Sarah Wynn-Williams’ testimony is divorced from reality and riddled with false claims. While Mark Zuckerberg himself was public about our interest in offering our services in China, and details were widely reported beginning over a decade ago, the fact is this: we do not operate our services in China today,” a Meta spokesperson told Fox News. Fox News’ Alexa Angelus contributed to this report.
Toilet to tap: El Paso is about to embark on a whole new way to save its limited water supply
El Paso’s dry climate — it rains just 9 inches annually — is one of the reasons the city has taken water management so seriously.
Gabbard says RFK, MLK Jr records ‘ready to release’ in days, has ‘hunters’ looking at FBI, CIA for more files
Documents related to the 1968 assassinations of Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. will be released in the coming days, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said Thursday during President Donald Trump’s Cabinet meeting at the White House. Gabbard said that more than 100 people “working around the clock” have been scanning paperwork related to both killings and the subsequent investigations. “These have been sitting in boxes in storage for decades,” she told Trump, who was sitting a few feet away from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “They have never been scanned or seen before. We’ll have those ready to release here within the next few days.” EPSTEIN FILES DEBACLE SPURS NEW INTEREST IN CONTENTS OF PROMISED RFK, MLK ASSASSINATION FILES Trump said, “That’s great” before moving to RFK Jr., the son of the former senator. “Bobby, how do you feel about that?” he asked. “I’m very gratified,” RFK Jr., responded. “That’s hitting close to home,” Trump said. “I’m thinking about Bobby when that statement was made.” RFK Jr. then told Trump he was “very grateful.” “And you let Bobby see some of this because, you know, it’s very personal stuff. But it’s time,” Trump told Gabbard, who replied that she spoke with the RFK Jr., who she said told her the “world needs to know the truth.” DEADLINE LOOMS FOR RELEASE OF JFK ASSASSINATION FILES RFK Jr. was a teenager when his father was fatally shot on June 5, 1968, at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, after addressing campaign supporters following his California Democratic presidential primary win. Upon taking office, Trump issued an executive order to declassify files on the assassinations of King, a civil rights icon who was gunned down on April 4, 1968, outside his second-floor Tennessee hotel room in Memphis, Sen. Kennedy and his brother, former President John F. Kennedy. In March, declassified documents related to the assassination of the former president were released. Gabbard said the government has “hunters” looking in storage lockers at the FBI, CIA and other agencies to see if there is anything else that hasn’t been reported. “We’re actively going out and trying to search out the truth,” she said.