UP Deputy CM Brajesh Pathak gets ‘blue drum’ as gift from…
The exchange of blue drum took place during the ‘Lantrani Hasya Utsav’ program in Lucknow.
SCOOP: Lindsey Graham amendment signals GOP budget breakthrough, sets stage for Trump agenda
FIRST ON FOX: Senate Committee on the Budget Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., is unveiling on Wednesday the upper chamber’s changes to a House-passed budget resolution in a breakthrough for getting President Donald Trump’s key agenda items through Congress. With the Senate’s latest action, Republicans’ much-anticipated budget reconciliation resolution is one step closer to passage, in what would be a huge win for Trump and the GOP. The Senate amendment includes raising the debt ceiling in the key budget process by no more than $5 trillion. This has been a request of Trump since before he took office the second time. The date estimated for a potential default has been inching closer, presenting a looming problem for Republicans in the Senate. TRUMP, SENATE GOP BUDGET LEADERS HUDDLE AT WHITE HOUSE ON RECONCILIATION BILL Republicans who argued to include the debt ceiling in reconciliation said it would prevent Democrats from having leverage down the road, when a vote to raise it would need 60 votes, forcing them to lobby Democrats for support. The amendment also stipulates that the provision to raise the debt ceiling can be voted on separate from the rest of the resolution, in the case that the “X Date,” when the Treasury is unable to meet its financial obligations without intervention, is set to arrive sooner than Republicans are prepared to vote on the entire reconciliation package. DISTRICT JUDGES’ ORDERS BLOCKING TRUMP AGENDA FACE HEARING IN TOP SENATE COMMITTEE Reconciliation notably lowers the vote threshold in the Senate from 60 to 51, allowing Republicans to move legislation through without Democrat support. This is viewed as a key tool for the Republican trifecta in Washington to get Trump’s policies passed. The Senate amendment would further make the House’s proposed extension of the Trump tax cuts permanent, doing so by using a current policy baseline that allows budget projections to be made in what some view as a more practical and realistic way. DEMS MUM ON TRUMP’S COURT FIGHTS DESPITE TRYING TO LIMIT BIDEN-BLOCKING JUDGES Senate Republicans also avoid needing the parliamentarian to make a ruling, which could have presented issues. They are relying on the authority given by statute to the budget chairman to set the current policy baseline. The amendment’s release comes after countless meetings between key parties to the budget process, including Trump, House leaders, Senate leaders and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. FORMER DESANTIS OFFICIAL DEFEATS DEM FOR MATT GAETZ’S HOUSE SEAT On Wednesday morning, Trump met with Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., and Senate Budget Committee Republicans ahead of the amendment text coming out. The White House discussion was meant to be a final check-in to make sure all parties were on the same page, a source familiar told Fox News Digital.
Bitter House GOP divisions erupt after Johnson shuts down votes over Republican mutiny
House Republicans are still divided after proceedings ground to a halt on Tuesday over a push by a small group of GOP lawmakers to block Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., from changing chamber procedures. Nine House Republicans joined Democrats in blocking a normally sleepy procedural vote, known as a “rule vote,” from passing on Tuesday afternoon. It came after House leaders tucked an unrelated provision into the measure that would have stopped Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., from forcing a vote on giving new parents in the House the ability to vote remotely. Johnson called the move “disappointing” and cut the House’s legislative week short, sending lawmakers back to their districts two days early and canceling the remaining votes. “If a career in politics doesn’t work out for me, I have ample credentials to work at a circus,” a senior House GOP aide said when asked about the current situation. HAWLEY OFFICIALLY A YES ON DR. OZ AFTER SECURING COMMITMENTS ON TRANSGENDER, ABORTION ISSUES It’s led to bitter feelings on both sides of the standoff – and in some cases, toward both parties. “America did not vote for Congress paternity proxy voting at home. America did not vote for Congress to put a lid on the week on a Tuesday,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., wrote on X on Wednesday morning. “I’m pretty disgusted with the events of yesterday. Republicans should not be joining with Democrats for their own personal agendas, and we shouldn’t quit and go home when things don’t go our way.” Republicans who were against Luna’s push accused her of acting against the will of the House GOP majority and the country. “I don’t think most Americans want their Congress members voting from home. Our constituents have to show up to work, and we should too,” Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, told “The Ingraham Angle.” Johnson accused Luna and her allies of delaying Trump’s agenda. Luna, however, has pointed out that Johnson could have stripped the provision killing her measure out of the “rule” and held the vote again, when it likely would have passed. “I am 100% supportive of [President Donald Trump] and his America First agenda. It is disingenuous for [Johnson] to lie about me,” Luna wrote on X in response to the speaker’s comments. “[House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., and Johnson] did not have to send us home.” Rep. Erin Houchin, R-Ind., appeared to defend Johnson’s decision to end the week. “What I would say is, the speaker has a responsibility, and he is engaging in that responsibility to protect the institutions from proxy voting,” Houchin said. “I support that, and we’ll continue to have these conversations and hope that we’ll come back together next week, and we’ll get back to business.” Another House Republican told Fox News Digital of the decision to send lawmakers home early, “Lots of torn-up feelings. Might be better to press pause for a couple of days.” The “rule,” if passed, would have allowed for debate and eventual House votes on a bill to limit district judges’ ability to issue nationwide injunctions and a measure requiring proof of citizenship in the voter registration process, respectively. But House leaders also added a provision that would have neutered lawmakers’ ability to file discharge petitions, a mechanism that forces the chamber to consider legislation even if those in charge oppose it. Luna had used a discharge petition to try to force a vote on a bipartisan bill to allow new parents in the House to vote remotely for 12 weeks surrounding the birth of their child. That bill gained support from all Democrats and enough House Republicans to net the necessary majority threshold, despite Johnson and a group of conservatives being vehemently opposed. ‘BLINDSIDED’: HOW STEFANIK’S TRUMP NOMINATION AS UN AMBASSADOR IMPLODED Republicans who voted with Luna on Tuesday argued they did so to protect a tool of the House majority. “Don’t buy the BS. My ‘no’ vote was about process—not whether new parents should be able to proxy vote,” Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., wrote on X. “I voted against a rule bill that undermined a Member’s right to utilize the discharge petition—a century-old tool that empowers individual Members to force a vote when leadership blocks legislation.” Steube himself successfully used a discharge petition last year to force a vote on legislation to offer tax relief for disaster victims. Luna said in a statement Wednesday night, “The reason a discharge petition is put in place is in the event that members are unable to bring legislation to the floor because, for whatever reason, the leadership blocks it. There are a few bills that have been filed for a while but have never been voted on. This place loves to consolidate power. The discharge petition must be protected at all costs.” Johnson huddled with members of the House Rules Committee on Wednesday morning, but Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., one of the conservatives opposed to Luna’s push, told Fox News Digital that no decisions had been made. “Nothing has changed. I like Anna Paulina Luna. I just don’t like proxy voting. I think that opens Pandora’s Box,” Norman said. “We didn’t come up with any solutions today, but I think we’ll come up with something.” If Johnson decides to strip out the discharge petition language from the “rule,” the measure will have to be debated and advanced out of the House Rules Committee again. He said little to Fox News when asked about the standoff on Wednesday. “We’ll work through it. We’ve already begun that process today,” Johnson said. He added that “another rule” will be moved “early next week.” Fox News’ Chad Pergram contributed to this report.
Trump tells Supreme Court his authority is under siege in deportation showdown
The Trump administration told the Supreme Court on Wednesday that the president’s authority to protect the nation is under siege from lower court rulings, using a final brief in a high-stakes deportation case to accuse federal judges of imperiling the executive branch’s core powers. In the filing – the last before justices are slated to rule on President Donald Trump’s use of a 1798 immigration law to deport Venezuelan nationals – administration lawyers outlined what they call a pattern of judicial overreach and mounting efforts by federal courts to rein in the president’s agenda. “A single district court cannot broadly disable the President from discharging his most fundamental duties, regardless of the order’s label, and irrespective of its duration,” U.S. Acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris said Wednesday in the filing. Lawyers for the Trump administration urged the court to vacate a pair of lower court orders handed down by U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg and by the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, which they argue have “rebuffed” Trump’s immigration agenda, including its ability “to protect the Nation against foreign terrorist organizations and risk debilitating effects for delicate foreign negotiations.” ‘WOEFULLY INSUFFICIENT’: US JUDGE REAMS TRUMP ADMIN FOR DAYS-LATE DEPORTATION INFO Plaintiffs pushed back on the administration’s reliance on the 1798 Alien Enemies Act, calling its use during peacetime “unprecedented.” In a brief filed earlier this week, they argued the law permits immediate deportations only in cases of a “declared war” or an “invasion or predatory incursion” by a foreign nation – conditions they say do not apply to the Venezuelan nationals targeted for removal. The 1798 law at the center of the case has been invoked only three times in U.S. history: during the War of 1812, World War I, and World War II. Both sides have now submitted their briefs to the Supreme Court, clearing the way for a final decision from the nine justices. The administration has defended the deportations as necessary to remove alleged members of the violent Tren de Aragua gang, who were transferred to El Salvador under the rarely used 18th-century law. The deportations were temporarily blocked last month, first by U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, and later by a three-judge panel on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, prompting the Trump administration to seek relief from the Supreme Court. “This Court should vacate this TRO, halt the tide of injunctions, and restore the constitutional balance,” Harris told the Supreme Court on Wednesday. APPEALS COURT BLOCKS TRUMP ADMIN’S DEPORTATION FLIGHTS IN ALIEN ENEMIES ACT IMMIGRATION SUIT Harris warned that the flurry of injunctions has become so routine it now threatens to paralyze the executive branch, noting that district courts have issued more than 40 injunctions or temporary restraining orders against the administration in just the last two months. Such orders, she argued, risk “destabilizing” the president’s foreign policy powers and “perversely” prevent migrants from using proper legal channels to challenge their designations. Judge Boasberg and the D.C. Circuit panel blocked the administration’s use of the Alien Enemies Act while the case plays out on the merits – a move Boasberg defended as necessary after what he described as a secretive, expedited round of deportations that gave migrants no meaningful opportunity to contest their removal or seek court relief. The U.S. Circuit Court judges who voted 2–1 to extend the block – Karen Henderson, a Bush appointee, and Patricia Millett, an Obama appointee – spent much of last month’s oral arguments focused on due process concerns and the potential for immediate, irreparable harm to migrants deported under the law. Boasberg, for his part, sharply criticized the administration for failing to disclose how many individuals were deported to El Salvador on the same night he blocked further removals. It remains unclear whether officials knowingly violated his bench order to return any departing flights to U.S. soil. WHO IS JAMES BOASBERG, THE US JUDGE AT THE CENTER OF TRUMP’S DEPORTATION EFFORTS? The filing follows weeks of White House criticism accusing federal courts of blocking key parts of Trump’s agenda – a pattern officials describe as judicial overreach. The administration urged the court to vacate Boasberg’s temporary restraining order, “halt the tide of injunctions” and “restore the constitutional balance” that has escalated tensions between the executive and judiciary early in Trump’s second term. It also asked the Court to at least grant an administrative stay, allowing deportations to continue under the Alien Enemies Act while the justices weigh the case. White House officials have continued to denounce the lower court rulings, which press secretary Karoline Leavitt last month called an “unauthorized infringement” on the president’s authority. “The administration will act swiftly to seek Supreme Court review to vindicate the president’s authority, defend the Constitution, and Make America Safe Again,” Leavitt said.
EXCLUSIVE: ‘Shady trial lawyer pipeline’ funneling millions to Democrats according to report
EXCLUSIVE — One of the country’s leading consumer protection firms released a report today exposing a “shady lawyer pipeline” of politicians handing out lucrative public contracts to trial lawyers, who in turn contribute millions of dollars to liberal political campaigns, including $1.4 million to the Harris-Walz campaign in 2024. The report – released by Alliance for Consumers (AFC) – highlights the deep Democratic ties of eight major consumer protection law firms – Morgan & Morgan, Lieff Cabraser, Motley Rice, Baron & Budd, Grant & Eisenhofer, Berger Montague, Cohen Milstein and Simmons Hanly – which it dubs the “shady eight.” According to AFC, these firms hold profitable public contracts across the country and contributed around $25 million in political donations from 2017 through 2024. In 2024 alone, the firms collectively donated $4 million to political campaigns, 99% of which were for Democrat candidates or Democrat-allied committees. EXCLUSIVE: GOP FIREBRAND DARES DEMS TO CONDEMN ATTACKS ON ELON MUSK’S TESLA During the 2024 presidential election, the firms contributed $1.4 million to former Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign. The shady eight also prioritized midterm Senate races, the report found, with Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., and former Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, Bob Casey, D – Penn., and Jon Tester, D – Mont. receiving the largest contributions next to Harris. Five of the firms — Lieff Cabraser, Motley Rice, Grant & Eisenhofer, Simmons Hanly, and Baron & Budd – showed a 100% commitment to Democrats and their allies, generating more than $2.5 million in federal donations in 2024. “The consumer should never be on the losing side of a left-wing political money game like what is on display in the Shady Trial Lawyer Pipeline,” AFC says in its report. “This partisan political giving is supported by money from public contracts signed by politicians and public officials; money that belongs to the taxpayers and consumers.” TESLA HYPOCRISY: DEMS CONTINUE INVESTING IN ELON MUSK COMPANY DESPITE PAINTING HIM AS VILLAIN AFC said “the ‘Shady Eight’ are stark examples—although far from the only ones—of how the Shady Trial Lawyer Pipeline works, with politicians feeding sweetheart contracts to trial lawyers who give 99% of their political donations to liberals and will happily turn around and pump millions of dollars into left-leaning candidates, committees, and allied organizations.” O.H. Skinner, executive director of the Alliance for Consumers, told Fox News Digital the report “shows how left-wing trial lawyers have turned consumer protection efforts into a political game.” He urged states to move to end their contracts with these “shady” law firms. DEM CANDIDATE CAUGHT ON CAMERA APPLAUDING NOTORIOUS ANTISEMITE’S VIOLENT RHETORIC: ‘YOU BREAK HIS NECK’ “The contracts that states have with these firms make some sense if the goal is funding left-wing political campaigns, but, for many reasons, they are exactly the wrong way to protect consumers,” he said. “Ending the Shady Trial Lawyer Pipeline is one of the strongest steps public officials can take to protect consumers and the rule of law.” This comes as Republicans in Congress move to rein in “out of control” rulings by activist judges that have inhibited some of the most highly-prioritized aspects of the Trump administration’s agenda, such as immigration enforcement and the deportation of criminal migrant gang members.
Val Kilmer leaves legacy of film, stage, and poetry
[unable to retrieve full-text content] Val Kilmer has died at the age of 65 from pneumonia, leaving behind a career that reached far beyond action movies.
Singer Hans Raj Hans’s wife Resham Kaur passes away at 62
Singer Hans Raj Hans’s wife, Resham Kaur, died on Wednesday after suffering from an illness for a long time. She was hospitalised in Jalandhar and took her last breath there at around 1 pm.
Air Force’s Jaguar fighter aircraft crashes in Gujarat’s Jamnagar
Air Force’s Jaguar fighter aircraft crashed in Gujarat’s Jamnagar on Wednesday, i.e., April 2.
Musk not leaving yet, wrapping up work on schedule once ‘incredible work at DOGE is complete’: White House
Elon Musk will exit his role with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) on schedule later this spring, once “his incredible work at DOGE is complete,” the White House confirmed Wednesday. “This ‘scoop’ is garbage,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt posted to X Wednesday. “Elon Musk and President Trump have both *publicly* stated that Elon will depart from public service as a special government employee when his incredible work at DOGE is complete.” Leavitt was referring to a Wednesday Politico article reporting that “Trump has told his inner circle & members of his Cabinet that” Musk “will be stepping back in the coming weeks from his current role.” Musk, however, has long been anticipated to step back from DOGE when his 130 days as a “special government employee” run out in May. Musk has been the public face of DOGE since President Donald Trump signed an executive order establishing the office Jan. 20. Musk officially was hired as a “special government employee,” which is a role Congress created in 1962 that allows the executive or legislative branch to hire temporary employees for specific short-term initiatives. IVY LEAGUE STUDENT ACCUSED OF CAUSING ‘EMOTIONAL HARM’ TO NON-FACULTY STAFF FOR SENDING DOGE-LIKE EMAIL Special government employees are permitted to work for the federal government for “no more than 130 days in a 365- day period,” according to data from the Office of Government Ethics. Musk’s 130-day timeframe, beginning on Inauguration Day, runs dry May 30. “Politico has become a tabloid paper that would rather run fake news for clicks than real reporting,” White House spokesman Harrison Fields told Fox Digital Wednesday of Politico’s report. “This is exactly why President Trump and DOGE have terminated millions of dollars in wasteful, government contracts to so-called news organizations that have diminished their credibility with the American people.” DOGE SLASHES OVER $100M IN DEI FUNDING AT EDUCATION DEPARTMENT: ‘WIN FOR EVERY STUDENT’ DOGE is a temporary cross-departmental organization that was established to slim down and streamline the federal government. The group itself will be dissolved on July 4, 2026, according to Trump’s executive order. Musk and Trump have both previously previewed that Musk’s role was temporary and would come to end in the coming weeks. “You, technically, are a special government employee and you’re supposed to be 130 days,” Fox News’ Bret Baier asked Musk during an exclusive interview with the DOGE leader and members of his team Thursday. “Are you going to continue past that or do you think that’s what you’re going to do?” “I think we will have accomplished most of the work required to reduce the deficit by a trillion dollars within that time frame,” Musk responded. Trump hinted at Musk’s departure in comments to the media Monday when asked if he wants Musk to remain in a government role for longer than the predetermined 130 days. DOGE VOLUNTEER CREDITS TRUMP FOR UNPRECEDENTED EFFORT TO CURB ‘JAW-DROPPING’ SOCIAL SECURITY FRAUD “I think he’s amazing. But I also think he’s got a big company to run,” Trump responded. “And so at some point he’s going to be going back.” “I’d keep him as long as I can keep him. He’s a very talented guy. You know, I love very smart people. He’s very smart. And he’s done a good job,” the president added. “DOGE is, we’ve found numbers that nobody can even believe.”
DeSantis rebukes Republicans for backing bill for carbon sequestration task force: ‘Absolutely embarrassing’
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis described it as “embarrassing” after the Sunshine State’s GOP-dominated House Natural Resources and Disasters Subcommittee voted to advance a bill that proposes creating a carbon sequestration task force. The subcommittee favorably reported the measure in a 15-2 vote on Tuesday, April 1. Just two Republicans opposed it, while 10 Republicans and all five Democrats voted in favor of it. FORMER DESANTIS OFFICIAL DEFEATS DEM FOR MATT GAETZ’S HOUSE SEAT “Is this Sacramento or Tallahassee? Absolutely embarrassing,” DeSantis asked when commenting on the vote result. The task force would “provide recommendations for the development of a statewide carbon sequestration program,” according to the measure, which defines carbon sequestration as “the long-term storage of carbon in plants, soils, geologic formations, and the ocean through land and aquatic habitat management.” In a video posted on social media the day before the vote, DeSantis called carbon sequestration a “scam” that is a facet of “climate ideology.” SCOOP: TRUMP ALLY DONALDS SHOWCASES CAMPAIGN CASH SURGE SINCE ANNOUNCING FLORIDA GOVERNOR RUN “Don’t indulge the left with carbon sequestration,” he declared. The text of the governor’s tweet described the prospect of dumping carbon into the soil, aquifers, or the ocean floor as a “non-starter.” But Democratic Florida state Rep. Lindsay Cross pushed back, tweeting, “We aren’t pumping carbon anywhere.” DESANTIS PROPOSES SOLUTION AS TRUMP’S AGENDA IS STYMIED BY JUDGES CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “#CarbonSequestration is Science & happening all around us. Plants pull carbon from the air & store in their roots/soil. We aren’t pumping carbon anywhere. This bipartisan bill will make FL a leader; ready to leverage private investments to conserve & manage natural & ag areas,” she wrote in response to the governor.