South Carolina Republicans defy Trump, tank redistricting, for now
A handful of Republican state senators in South Carolina on Tuesday derailed an effort in the GOP-dominated legislature to redraw their state’s congressional district map which aims to erase the only Democrat-dominated U.S. House seat ahead of the midterm elections. Five Republican state senators broke with their party and teamed up with Democrats to defeat a proposal that would have allowed the chamber to vote on redistricting after the South Carolina legislative session comes to a close later this week. The move came hours after President Donald Trump warned on social media that he’d be “watching closely” as lawmakers met to move forward with changing their state’s map. The setback means it will be much harder for South Carolina to join Tennessee, Alabama and Louisiana, which are altering their maps to eliminate Democrat-controlled congressional districts in time for the midterms, when the GOP will be defending its razor-thin House majority. The southern states are the latest battleground in the nationwide redistricting showdown. At stake is which party will control the House during the final two years of Trump’s second term in the White House. DEMOCRACY ’26: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB The efforts by Republicans in the southern states come in the wake of a decision by the conservative majority on the Supreme Court to slash a key protection in the landmark 1965 Voting Rights Act. The justices ruled that race should not dictate the redrawing of legislative district maps. South Carolina Republicans were trying to advance a new map that could put longtime Rep. Jim Clyburn, the only Democrat in the state’s seven-person House delegation, out of a job. Clyburn this past week remained optimistic he can still win re-election. “I don’t know why people think I could not get re-elected if they redistrict South Carolina,” Clyburn said in a CNN interview. “I have a district that’s about 45 percent African-American. I have no idea what the number will be after the legislature finishes, but whatever that number is, I will be running on my record and America’s promise.” ALABAMA REPUBLICANS PLOW FORWARD ON REDISTRICTING Trump, in a social media post Monday night, urged “South Carolina Republicans: BE BOLD AND COURAGEOUS.” “Move the U.S. House Primaries to August, leave the rest on the same schedule. Everything will be fine. GET IT DONE!” he emphasized. Trump’s message came a week after five Indiana Republican state senators who in December helped sink congressional redistricting in the solidly red Midwestern state were ousted by Trump-backed challengers in GOP primaries. Shane Massey, the South Carolina Senate’s Republican majority leader, argued in a floor speech that following Trump’s lead on edistricting would be against the interests of the Palmetto State. “South Carolina has always punched above their weight,” Massey said. “Doing this will diminish that influence.” But he also acknowledged that he will likely face political payback from Trump and the president’s allies. “There are likely consequences for me, personally, taking the position that I am right now,” Massey said. “I’m comfortable with that. I may not like it, but I’m comfortable with it…My conscience is clear on this one.” Other South Carolina Republicans had raised concerns that carving up the district represented by Clyburn could backfire on their party in the midterms. The top four Republicans running for governor this year, Lt. Gov. Pam Evette, Attorney Gen. Alan Wilson, and Reps. Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman all criticized the lack of legislative action, with Evette describing it as “a betrayal of the people of South Carolina” and in “direct defiance” of Trump. The current governor, Republican Henry McMaster, a top Trump ally, could still call the legislature back into special session to try and push through redistricting, but his office has so far said that scenario is unlikely. WHAT’S ON THE LINE AS THESE STATES HOLD PRIMARIES TODAY The GOP-dominated Tennessee legislature on Thursday quickly adopted a new map that would eliminate the only Democrat-controlled congressional district in the state, and would likely give Republicans control of all nine districts. GOP Gov. Bill Lee quickly signed the new maps into law. Democratic Rep. Steve Cohen, who represents the majority Black district that’s being carved up, vowed legal action. “Trump knows he HAS TO rig the game to keep his majority in November. And the TN GOP was willing to go along with it. It’s shameful,” Cohen wrote on social media. “Next stop is the courts.” Trump praised Tennessee Republicans in his social media post and urged GOP lawmakers in South Carolina to act “just like the Republicans of the Great State of Tennessee were last week.” It’s back to the future in Alabama, after the Supreme Court, in a 6-3 ideological ruling, cleared the way for the state to put in place a map Republicans drew up in 2023 that had been blocked by lower courts. The map would eliminate one of the state’s two blue-leaning congressional seats. GOP Gov. Kay Ivey on Tuesday called for a special primary election in August in the four U.S. House districts altered by the new map. Last week, the Supreme Court said that its decision declaring Louisiana’s map unconstitutional should go into effect immediately. That cleared the way for the GOP-controlled state legislature to begin the process of reshaping the map, and hearings got underway on Friday. Republican Gov. Jeff Landry, a top Trump ally, took swift action in the immediate aftermath of the high court’s ruling, when he delayed the May 16 U.S. House primary elections in Louisiana. Louisiana Republicans are aiming to erase one or both of the two Black-majority House seats, which are represented by Democrats. BLOCKBUSTER SUPREME COURT VOTING RIGHTS RULING IGNITES REDISTRICTING WAR ACROSS SOUTHERN STATES In Florida, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis last week signed a bill by the GOP-dominated state legislature that overhauls the red-leaning state’s congressional districts, adding four more right-leaning seats by eliminating districts currently controlled by Democrats. Republicans currently control Florida’s U.S. House delegation by a 20-8 margin. Democrats are fighting
Fetterman warns Democrats must confront ‘rising antisemitism problem’ after clashes outside NYC synagogues
Amid mobs clashing with police outside synagogues in New York City, and after a Pennsylvania Supreme Court justice announced he would be abandoning the Democratic Party over its “acquiescence to Jew-hatred,” Sen. John Fetterman, D-Penn., called out his party for its “antisemitism problem.” A Supreme Court justice in Pennsylvania, David Wecht, who began serving on the court in 2016 and was retained in a 2025 election, put out a statement Monday obtained by Fox News Digital indicating he would no longer affiliate himself with the Democratic Party as a result of “activists, leaders and even many elected officials in the Democratic Party” acquiescing to a rise in antisemitism on the left. Fetterman subsequently posted on social media that, while he may not have plans to change parties himself, something he affirmed in an op-ed earlier in May, he understood Wecht’s choice and added that “the Democratic Party must confront its own rising antisemitism problem.” FETTERMAN SAYS ‘MORAL CLARITY’ DRIVES HIS WIDENING BREAK WITH THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY In the past week, two mobs have clashed with police outside synagogues in New York City. The latest incident took place Monday night when agitators — three of whom police said were arrested — swarmed an area near the Young Israel Senior Services of Midwood, which had been hosting an event advertising real estate in Israel, according to local media reports. Hezbollah flags, chants of “Zionism will fall” and a banner bearing the red inverted triangle Hamas uses to designate Israeli targets were seen and heard at the Monday clash, according to the Combat Antisemitism Movement and videos shared on social media. “Mob of Pro-Hezbollah / Hamas s(—)heads raging against law enforcement and terrorizing the NYC Jewish community near a synagogue and day care,” Fetterman wrote in a Wednesday post on X following a clash earlier in May outside a separate NYC synagogue holding another Israeli real estate event. “Where’s my party’s condemnation?” “There’s a synagogue here. This is clearly a Jewish neighborhood, and they deserve the right to worship in peace,” a counterprotester at the anti-Israel clash in recent days in Brooklyn told Spectrum News New York. In Wecht’s statement about his plans to leave the Democratic Party, he said that while antisemitism has festered on the fringes of the right for a long time, “that same hatred has grown on the left,” and blamed leaders in the party for failing to stamp it out. Wecht did not necessarily provide any specific names, or instances, but he hinted at pro-Palestinian protests, mentioned “attacks at synagogues” and appeared to reference one of the party’s burgeoning Democratic Party candidates in Maine, U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner, who has been forced to explain a tattoo he has that resembles Nazi insignia. JOHN FETTERMAN BREAKS WITH PARTY OVER ‘ORGY OF SOCIALISM’ MAY DAY PROTESTS “From 1998 to 2001, years that preceded my judicial career, I served as Vice-Chair of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party. In the quarter century that has passed since then, the Democratic Party has changed. Nazi tattoos, jihadist chants, intimidation and attacks at synagogues, and other hateful anti-Jewish invective and actions are minimized, ignored, and even coddled. Acquiescence to Jew-hatred is now disturbingly common among activists, leaders and even many elected officials in the Democratic Party,” he asserted in part of his statement obtained by Fox News Digital. After Wecht announced his plans to abandon the Democratic Party, Fetterman posted on social media that he “fully understand(s) David’s personal choice.” “I know David and his legendary father, Cyril,” Fetterman said in a post on X that included a screenshot of a headline about Wecht’s decision to leave the Democratic Party. “As I’ve affirmed, I’m not changing my party—but I fully understand David’s personal choice. The Democratic Party must confront its own rising antisemitism problem.” Earlier in May, Fetterman penned and op-ed in The Washington Post saying “it has become increasingly lonely” for him in the Democratic Party. Fetterman slammed the party’s disdain for “once-common views,” which he argued was the result of “catering to the fringe and agitated parts of our base.” “There’s been a fracturing between me and my party… primarily it’s been Israel,” Fetterman said on “Life, Liberty & Levin” in April, noting that he was one of the few Democrats to support Operation Epic Fury, the joint U.S.–Israeli military campaign against Iran. However, while Fetterman has publicly discussed his widening break with the Democratic Party, in his op-ed, Fetterman reassured skeptics that he did not have any plans to switch parties. He wrote that while “being an independent voice” may put him at odds with much of the contemporary Democratic Party, he remains committed to it and wrote explicitly that he has “no plans to leave” the party. “Plus, I’d be a terrible Republican who still votes overwhelmingly with Democrats,” Fetterman concluded in the May 7 editorial. Fox News Digital reached out to the Democratic National Committee (DNC) for comment on Fetterman’s remarks.
Patel, Van Hollen trade barbs over ‘slinging margaritas’ in heated Senate clash
FBI Director Kash Patel and Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., clashed in a heated Senate hearing Tuesday, trading personal accusations over allegations of misconduct and a past overseas trip. The exchange escalated from questions about Patel’s leadership into a direct confrontation, with Van Hollen citing allegations reported in The Atlantic and Patel responding by accusing the senator of misconduct during a 2025 visit to El Salvador — a claim Van Hollen denied. During a Senate Appropriations subcommittee hearing, Van Hollen pointed to allegations of “erratic” behavior, “excessive drinking” and “unexplained absences” outlined in the report. Patel has denied the claims. “When your private actions make it impossible for you to perform your public duties, we have a big problem. You cannot perform those public duties if you’re incapacitated,” Van Hollen said. FBI DIRECTOR KASH PATEL FILES $250 MILLION LAWSUIT AGAINST THE ATLANTIC OVER ‘DEFAMATORY HIT PIECE’ “And Director Patel, these reports about your conduct, including reports of your being so drunk and hungover that your staff had to force entry into your home are extremely alarming. If true, they demonstrate a gross dereliction of your duty and a betrayal of public trust,” Van Hollen said. Patel called the report “unequivocally, categorically false” before turning the focus to Van Hollen. “The only person who was slinging margaritas in El Salvador on the taxpayer dollar with a convicted gang banging rapist was you,” Patel said. Public records do not establish that Abrego Garcia is a convicted gang member or convicted rapist. MARYLAND SHERIFF INFURIATED BY SENATOR’S TRIP TO VISIT MS-13 SUSPECT, SILENCE ON LOCAL MURDER VICTIMS “The fact that you mentioned that indicates you don’t know what you are talking about,” Van Hollen replied. Patel later posted, “Fact check @ChrisVanHollen,” referencing images from the trip. The exchange stems from Van Hollen’s 2025 visit to El Salvador, where he met with deported migrant Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who had been sent to the country’s high-security “Terrorism Confinement Center” (CECOT) over alleged MS-13 ties. His attorneys have denied any gang affiliation. Images from that meeting — showing the two seated at a table with drinks — resurfaced and drew criticism, including from El Salvador President Nayib Bukele. Van Hollen has previously dismissed the images as a “staged hoax” by the Salvadoran government and said no alcohol was consumed. “Kilmar Abrego Garcia, miraculously risen from the ‘death camps’ & ‘torture,’ now sipping margaritas with Sen. Van Hollen in the tropical paradise of El Salvador!” Bukele wrote at the time. Patel has filed a $250 million defamation lawsuit against The Atlantic over the report. The Atlantic has said it stands by its reporting. Fox News Digital’s Greg Wehner contributed to this report.
Shelley Moore Capito wins West Virginia GOP Senate primary with Trump’s endorsement backing her bid
Republican Sen. Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia is a big step closer to re-election, thanks in part to support from President Donald Trump. Capito easily defeated five Republican challengers in Tuesday’s GOP Senate primary in West Virginia, the Associated Press reports, to secure her party’s nomination in the solidly red Mountain State. The two-term lawmaker who served a decade and a half in the House before first winning election to the Senate in 2014 and making history as the state’s first female senator hails from a political family. Her late father was Arch Moore Jr., a former three-term governor and six-term congressman. DEMOCRACY ’26: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB Among those trying to defeat her in Tuesday’s primary was state Sen. Tom Willis, who argued that it was “time for a change” and took aim at “career politicians.” But Capito, as she ran for re-nomination, spotlighted her support from Trump. “I’m honored to have President Trump’s complete and total endorsement as we fight to protect West Virginia jobs, make life more affordable, secure our border, and defend our shared values in the Mountain State,” she wrote last month. SIX MONTHS TILL MIDTERMS: THE TEN RACES THAT WILL DETERMINE THE SENATE’S MAJORITY And on Tuesday, she took to social media to highlight, “Proud to lead President Trump’s ticket in West Virginia today.” The National Republican Senatorial Committee, which backs Capito, touted on social media after her primary victory that the senator “is ready to keep fighting alongside President Trump to put West Virginia FIRST!” West Virginia, once a state where Democrats dominated, is nowadays dark red. Trump carried the state by over 40 points in his 2024 White House victory. DEMOCRATS EYE NARROW PATH TO CAPTURE SENATE MAJORITY, BUT ONE WRONG MOVE COULD SINK THEM Capito will now be considered the overwhelming favorite in the November midterm elections, as top nonpartisan political handicappers rate the race as solidly Republican. The GOP currently controls the Senate with a 53-47 majority. Five Democrats were seeking their party’s Senate nomination.
Democrat lawmaker calls Clarence Thomas an ‘Uncle Tom’ and ‘lynchman’ after Supreme Court redistricting ruling
State Rep. Juandalynn Givan launched a blistering attack on U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Clarence Thomas in a fiery video Monday, calling him an “Uncle Tom” and a “lynchman,” as well as accusing him of betraying the Black community. Her remarks came in response to a Monday Supreme Court ruling on redistricting, in which the justices struck down a 2023 court-ordered congressional map that had helped create an additional Democratic-leaning seat in the 2024 elections. The decision could clear the way for contested maps that would eliminate two Democratic-held congressional seats, potentially impacting Reps. Terri Sewell and Shomari Figures. In the scathing rebuke, Givan argued that Thomas has undermined minority representation in Congress and went further, likening him to a slave trader and a sell-out within his own community. WHY THE SUPREME COURT GUTTED THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT AFTER SIX DECADES IN A BLOW TO BLACK POLITICIANS “He must’ve been the one that sold us out in Africa. He must have been. His ancestors had to be the ones that sold us out in Africa that caused us to be chained,” Givan said on Facebook. “He is the man who has turned us back into the hands of the master.” “I don’t know what kind of Black he is. I don’t know what d— plantation this man came from. I don’t know what slave ship he was on. I don’t know what part of the slave ship he was on,” she added. “You have sided with the Republican Party. You are a freaking straw boss… or d— Uncle Tom for these people. I just don’t get it,” she said. ALABAMA’S CONGRESSIONAL MAP HINGES ON US SUPREME COURT Thomas, who acts in a supervisory role over district cases covering Alabama, has consistently opposed “racial apportionment” of congressional seats, arguing that such practice is discriminatory and would violate the Constitution. His Monday decision effectively overruled the 11th Circuit Court judges’ court-drawn map, which could have further allowed Black voters to elect their preferred candidates in the upcoming May 19 primary. Givan noted that the new ruling could render two seats null and void, potentially forcing a new vote under the newly permitted maps.
Bolivia issues warrant for Evo Morales’s arrest after court no-show
The ex-Bolivian president is on trial for allegedly fathering a child with a 15-year-old girl while in office. By AFP, Anadolu and Reuters Published On 12 May 202612 May 2026 A Bolivian judge has found former President Evo Morales in contempt of court and reissued a warrant for his arrest after he failed to turn up for the start of his trial on charges of trafficking a minor. The ruling on Monday renewed tensions in the South American country, with supporters of Morales warning they would “throw the country into turmoil” if the former leader is arrested. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list Morales, who is Bolivia’s first Indigenous president, is accused of fathering a child with a 15-year-old girl while in office. The parents of the teen are accused of consenting to the relationship in exchange for favours from Morales. The former socialist leader, who governed from 2006 to 2019, has rejected the accusations. Morales did not attend the scheduled start of his trial on Monday in the southern city of Tarija, forcing the proceedings to be suspended. The Public Prosecutor’s Office said Morales’s “unjustified absence” confirmed his fugitive status and warranted an arrest order as well as a travel ban. The former president has been hiding from the law in his central coca-growing stronghold of Chapare since late 2024, guarded by Indigenous supporters who have promised to resist any attempt to capture him. ‘Ready for battle’ “They think that by arresting Evo Morales, they will succeed in quelling and demobilising the movement. They are very much mistaken,” supporter Dieter Mendoza said on Kawsachun Coca radio on Monday. “If they touch Evo Morales, this will cause an upheaval … There will be an insurgency across Bolivia.” Advertisement Mendoza urged residents of the Cochabamba Tropics to remain on “high alert” and “ready for battle”. Authorities first issued an arrest warrant for Morales in October 2024, but could not execute it after his supporters blocked roads for 24 days, preventing officers from reaching the region where he remains sheltered. Morales was already declared in contempt of court in January 2025, when he did not show for a pretrial detention hearing. Wilfredo Chavez, one of his lawyers, told the AFP news agency on Friday that neither Morales nor his lawyers would show up in court, as they had not been “properly notified”. The lawyer said the court did not send the summons to Morales’s address, but had instead served it through an edict. Morales, who rose from dire poverty to become one of Latin America’s longest-serving leaders, has slammed those “that persecute me and condemn me in record time”. His refusal to give up power in 2019 after three terms led to a tumultuous exit that cast a shadow over nearly 14 years of economic progress and poverty reduction. Forced to resign after elections tainted by fraud, he slipped away into exile in Mexico and later Argentina, but returned home a year later. He failed to make a comeback last year after being barred from seeking a fourth term in presidential elections. Adblock test (Why?)
Lebanese in south refuse to flee again despite escalating Israeli strikes
NewsFeed Al Jazeera’s Obaida Hitto reports from southern Lebanon, where displaced residents say they will not leave again despite a sharp rise in deaths and intensifying Israeli strikes. Published On 12 May 202612 May 2026 Click here to share on social media share-nodes Share googleAdd Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Adblock test (Why?)
California ex-mayor admits acting as agent of China, US authorities say
Ex-mayor of wealthy Los Angeles suburb promoted pro-China propaganda at behest of Chinese officials, prosecutors say. Published On 12 May 202612 May 2026 The former mayor of a wealthy suburb in the United States city of Los Angeles has admitted to acting as an illegal agent of China, according to authorities. Eileen Wang, the former mayor of Arcadia, agreed to plead guilty to one count of acting as an illegal agent of a foreign government from late 2020 until 2022, the US Department of Justice said on Monday. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list Wang admitted that she did not notify the US government that she was acting on behalf of China while promoting pro-Beijing propaganda, the Justice Department said. Wang, 58, operated a website, called the US News Center, that published content supportive of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) while purporting to provide news for Chinese Americans, the department said. Wang ran the site with Yaoning Sun, a Californian man who was sentenced to four years in prison after pleading guilty to acting as an illegal agent of a foreign government in October 2025, according to US prosecutors. Wang’s activities included republishing a “PRC official-written essay” that denied allegations that the Chinese government was committing genocide against ethnic-minority Uighurs in its far-western region of Xinjiang, according to prosecutors. Wang resigned as mayor on Monday, according to a statement published on the City of Arcadia’s website. She faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. Her lawyers, Brian A Sun and Jason Liang, said Wang wished to apologise for “mistakes she has made in her personal life”. “It is important to note, however, that the conduct underlying the information and the agreement with the government relates solely to Ms. Wang’s personal life – i.e., a media platform that she once operated with someone whom she believed to be her fiancé – and not to her conduct as an elected public official,” Sun and Liang said in a statement. Advertisement “Her love and devotion for the Arcadia community have not changed and did not waver,” they added. “She asks for the community’s understanding and continued support.” US Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A Eisenberg issued a statement expressing deep concern over Wang’s activities. “Individuals elected to public office in the United States should act only for the people of the United States that they represent,” he said. “It is deeply concerning that someone who previously received and executed directives from PRC government officials is now in a position of public trust at all, but particularly so because that relationship with that foreign government had never been disclosed.” China’s embassy in Washington, DC, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Wang’s prosecution comes as US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are set to meet in Beijing on Wednesday for a summit expected to focus on the US-Israel war on Iran, trade, and the status of Taiwan, among other issues. The summit comes after the two leaders agreed to a yearlong pause in their trade war during a meeting in South Korea last October. Adblock test (Why?)
PM Modi’s gold, fuel remark sparks political row; DK Shivakumar questions high petrol, diesel prices
PM Modi’s appeal to reduce consumption of petrol and diesel and not buy gold for a year has sparked political row as the Opposition has been angered. Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar has questioned the rising petrol, diesel and gold prices.
After PM Modi’s appeal, petrol and diesel prices may soon be increased: How much could be the hike?
On Sunday, while speaking at an event, Prime Minister Narendra Modi appealed to citizens to cut down on fuel consumption. He urged people to use public transport and carpool, and to take up work-from-home wherever possible.