MAGA loyalists take aim at GOP senator as key Trump defense post sparks controversy: ‘Why the opposition?’
A key Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee is reportedly on the fence about one of President Donald Trump‘s Defense nominees over his stance on a nuclear Iran – a potential roadblock to his confirmation given the GOP’s slim Senate majority. Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., is reportedly hesitant about the nomination of former Defense official Elbridge Colby to serve as the under secretary of defense for policy, a key Defense post that remains unmanned amid the ongoing confirmation process. “Senator Cotton is focused on ensuring all defense nominees commit to supporting President Trump’s position that Iran must not have a nuclear weapon, and Cotton will be addressing this in meetings and hearings with the nominees,” a source familiar with the matter told Fox News Digital as they await Colby’s paperwork to proceed with the nomination process. Colby has previously suggested that the U.S. living with a nuclear Iran is more plausible than countering the country’s nuclear assets, a position that reportedly is causing concern from the key Senator whose support could determine his confirmation. MCCONNELL’S MENTAL ACUITY TARGETED BY TRUMP AFTER EX-SENATE LEADER JOINS DEMS AGAINST CABINET NOMINEES Cotton’s potential opposition to the Trump nominee sparked debate among prominent MAGA figures on social media. RUMP’S KEY TO CABINET CONFIRMATIONS: SENATE-TURNED-VP VANCE’S GIFT OF GAB “Why the opposition to Bridge? What does he think Bridge will do?” Elon Musk wrote in a post on X of reports that Cotton was not on board with the nomination. “The effort to undermine President Trump continues in the US Senate @SenTomCotton is working behind the scenes to stop Trump’s pick, Elbridge Colby, from getting confirmed at DOD,” Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, said on X. “Colby is one of the most important pieces to stop the Bush/Cheney cabal at DOD. Why is Tom Cotton doing this?” “Is Tom Cotton’s resistance to Bridge Colby more about IRI than anything else? As in maybe Cotton’s blocking Colby ain’t that principled. . .” American Majority CEO Ned Ryun posted on X. “Cotton has other problems that he doesn’t want exposed. He’ll support Colby,” former Trump National Security Advisor Michael Flynn claimed on X. Vice President JD Vance expressed support for the Trump nominee, writing that “Bridge has consistently been correct about the big foreign policy debates of the last 20 years.” “He was critical of the Iraq War, which made him unemployable in the 2000s era conservative movement. He built a relationship with CNAS when it was one of the few institutions that would even hire a foreign policy realist,” Vance said. Colby, who worked in the Pentagon during Trump’s first term, has also received endorsements from other members of the Senate. “.@ElbridgeColby is a fighter who will execute President Trump’s mandate to end decades of DC foreign policy failures and stop forever wars abroad—The reason the establishment fears him is because he’s 100% aligned with Trump’s agenda,” Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, wrote on X. “Senate Republicans should confirm him ASAP!” Colby’s Senate confirmation hearing remains unscheduled as the chamber works to confirm more of Trump’s cabinet nominees. Fox News Digital reached out to Colby for comment.
MAGA loyalists take aim at GOP senator as key Trump defense post goes unmanned: ‘Why the opposition?’
A key Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee is reportedly on the fence about one of President Donald Trump‘s Defense nominees over his stance on a nuclear Iran – a potential roadblock to his confirmation given the GOP’s slim Senate majority. Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., is reportedly hesitant about the nomination of former Defense official Elbridge Colby to serve as the under secretary of defense for policy, a key Defense post that remains unmanned amid the ongoing confirmation process. “Senator Cotton is focused on ensuring all defense nominees commit to supporting President Trump’s position that Iran must not have a nuclear weapon, and Cotton will be addressing this in meetings and hearings with the nominees,” a source familiar with the matter told Fox News Digital. Colby has previously suggested that the U.S. living with a nuclear Iran is more plausible than countering the country’s nuclear assets, a position that reportedly is causing concern from the key Senator whose support could determine his confirmation. MCCONNELL’S MENTAL ACUITY TARGETED BY TRUMP AFTER EX-SENATE LEADER JOINS DEMS AGAINST CABINET NOMINEES Cotton’s potential opposition to the Trump nominee sparked debate among prominent MAGA figures on social media. RUMP’S KEY TO CABINET CONFIRMATIONS: SENATE-TURNED-VP VANCE’S GIFT OF GAB “Why the opposition to Bridge? What does he think Bridge will do?” Elon Musk wrote in a post on X of reports that Cotton was not on board with the nomination. “The effort to undermine President Trump continues in the US Senate @SenTomCotton is working behind the scenes to stop Trump’s pick, Elbridge Colby, from getting confirmed at DOD,” Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, said on X. “Colby is one of the most important pieces to stop the Bush/Cheney cabal at DOD. Why is Tom Cotton doing this?” “Is Tom Cotton’s resistance to Bridge Colby more about IRI than anything else? As in maybe Cotton’s blocking Colby ain’t that principled. . .” American Majority CEO Ned Ryun posted on X. “Cotton has other problems that he doesn’t want exposed. He’ll support Colby,” former Trump National Security Advisor Michael Flynn claimed on X. Vice President JD Vance expressed support for the Trump nominee, writing that “Bridge has consistently been correct about the big foreign policy debates of the last 20 years.” “He was critical of the Iraq War, which made him unemployable in the 2000s era conservative movement. He built a relationship with CNAS when it was one of the few institutions that would even hire a foreign policy realist,” Vance said. Colby, who worked in the Pentagon during Trump’s first term, has also received endorsements from other members of the Senate. “.@ElbridgeColby is a fighter who will execute President Trump’s mandate to end decades of DC foreign policy failures and stop forever wars abroad—The reason the establishment fears him is because he’s 100% aligned with Trump’s agenda,” Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, wrote on X. “Senate Republicans should confirm him ASAP!” Colby’s Senate confirmation hearing remains unscheduled as the chamber works to confirm more of Trump’s cabinet nominees. Fox News Digital reached out to Colby for comment.
Circuit court puts final nail in the coffin for Biden’s $500M student loan forgiveness plan
The U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals put a final end to former President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan on Tuesday. Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey originally sued the Biden administration over its $500 million effort to wipe away student loans, known as the SAVE plan. The court’s Tuesday ruling found that Biden’s secretary of education had “gone well beyond this authority by designing a plan where loans are largely forgiven rather than repaid.” Bailey noted in a statement that the ruling has no active impact beyond blocking future presidents from attempting Biden’s maneuver. “Though Joe Biden is out of office, this precedent is imperative to ensuring a President cannot force working Americans to foot the bill for someone else’s Ivy League debt,” Bailey said in a statement. SENATE DEM IN KEY BATTLEGROUND RACE FLIP-FLOPPED ON STUDENT DEBT UNDER BIDEN: NO ‘MAGIC WAND’ The Supreme Court of the United States denied the Biden administration’s request to lift a block on the SAVE plan last year. A federal appeals court in Missouri had earlier blocked the entire SAVE program from being enforced while litigation over the merits continues in the lower courts. The Department of Justice, which is part of the Biden administration, most recently asked the high court for emergency relief. DEM STAFFER BLASTED FOR SPENDING HABITS AFTER GOING VIRAL FOR THANKING BIDEN FOR ERASING $8K STUDENT DEBT The Biden administration argued the court went too far when it issued a nationwide injunction, which effectively put a temporary freeze on the SAVE plan. FEDERAL COURT BACKS MISSOURI AG MOTION TO BLOCK BIDEN’S ‘ILLEGAL’ STUDENT LOAN HANDOUT PLAN “Our Administration will continue to aggressively defend the SAVE Plan – which has helped over 8 million borrowers access lower monthly payments, including 4.5 million borrowers who have had a zero dollar payment each month,” a White House spokesperson told Fox News Digital at the time. “And, we won’t stop fighting against Republican elected officials’ efforts to raise costs on millions of their own constituents’ student loan payments.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Biden introduced SAVE after the Supreme Court struck down his initial student loan forgiveness plan. The White House said that the SAVE plan could lower borrowers’ monthly payments to zero dollars, reduce monthly costs in half and save those who make payments at least $1,000 yearly. Additionally, borrowers with an original balance of $12,000 or less will receive forgiveness of any remaining balance after making 10 years of payments. Fox News’ Greg Wehner contributed to this report.
Vice President JD Vance to speak at CPAC’s opening day
Vice President JD Vance is no stranger to the crowd at the Conservative Political Action Conference, better known by its acronym CPAC. But on Thursday, at the opening session at National Harbor, Maryland, just outside the nation’s capital, Vance will address CPAC for the first time since his inauguration last month as vice president of the United States. Vance has been a regular at the conference in recent years, dating back to his successful 2022 campaign for the Senate in Ohio. And last October, as he crisscrossed the national campaign trail as Donald Trump’s 2024 running mate, Vance also spoke at a CPAC-hosted townhall in battleground Arizona. WATCH: JD VANCE SITS DOWN WITH FOX BUSINESS’ MARIA BARTIROMO CPAC, which dates back to 1974, is the nation’s oldest and largest annual gathering of conservative leaders and activists. In the years since Trump first won the White House in 2016, it has been dominated by legions of MAGA loyalists and America First disciples who hold immense sway over the GOP. The vice president is expected to use his address to highlight and promote the avalanche of activity – both domestically and overseas – by the Trump-Vance administration during its first month in office. HEAD HERE FOR THE LATEST FOX NEWS’ REPORTING, ANALYSIS, OPINION ON VICE PRESIDENT JD VANCE Vance, who served two years in the Senate before being elected vice president, has been considered a key player in helping the GOP-controlled chamber confirm Trump’s Cabinet nominees at a brisk pace. And Vance made major headlines earlier this month at the Munich Security Conference in Germany, when he used his first major speech as vice president to deliver a blistering address directed at Europe’s political class. Trump’s naming last summer of Vance – a former venture capitalist and the author of the bestselling memoir, “Hillbilly Elegy,” before running for elective office – as his running was seen as a sign that the now 40-year-old politician was the heir apparent to Trump and his movement. Trump praised Vance in a recent interview with Fox News’ Bret Baier on “Special Report” for “doing a fantastic job,” WATCH: VICE PRESIDENT JD VANCE SITS DOWN WITH FOX NEWS’ BRET BAIER ON “SPECIAL REPORT” But asked by Baier if he viewed Vance as his successor and the Republican nominee in 2028, the term-limited Trump said, “No, but he’s very capable.” “It’s too early. We’re just starting,” Trump added. Questions about 2028 may be hanging over Vance at CPAC, which has long held a closely watched GOP presidential nomination straw poll. Vance, in an interview earlier this month with FOX Business’ Maria Bartiromo on “Sunday Morning Futures,” was asked about the next White House race. “We’ll see what happens come 2028, but the way I think about this is the best thing for my future is actually the best thing for the American people, which is that we do a really good job over the next three and a half years,” the vice president said. Vance noted that “we’ll cross that political bridge when we come to it. I’m not thinking about running for president. I’m thinking about doing a good job for the American people and I think the best way to do that is to make sure that President Trump is a success.”
Trump’s Ukraine policy shift: How are European leaders planning to respond?
United States President Donald Trump’s plan to cut a deal with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin over Ukraine and his administration’s new approach to transatlantic ties have left European leaders concerned. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Tuesday held a meeting with a Russian delegation led by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and aimed at ending the war in Ukraine. The meeting in the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh comes after Trump spoke to Putin last week and agreed to hold peace talks to end the three-year conflict without involving his European allies. Trump also said that he might meet Putin in Saudi Arabia. This has sparked concern among European leaders and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who has warned that Kyiv would not recognise any deal made without its involvement. “No decisions about Ukraine without Ukraine … Europe must have a seat at the table when decisions about Europe are being made,” Zelenskyy said at the Munich Security Conference this weekend. So what’s the Trump administration’s new approach, and how will Europe respond to the new reality? Advertisement What’s on the agenda at US-Russia talks in Riyadh? Rubio, alongside national security adviser Mike Waltz and special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, has held talks with the Russian delegation led by Lavrov. Along with aiming to reset the fractured relations between Washington and Moscow, the Riyadh talks may likely prepare for a possible meeting between Trump and Putin. The talks, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, would be “primarily devoted to restoring the whole complex of Russian-American relations”. “The world is holding its breath as the meeting between these high-ranking officials in Riyadh has started,” Al Jazeera’s Yulia Shapovalova said, adding that no breakthrough is expected. “The settlement of the conflict in Ukraine, as well as improving Russia-US bilateral relations – which have hit rock bottom – are on the agenda,” she said, reporting from Moscow. Why are Europe and Ukraine concerned about not being invited to the Riyadh summit? Zelenskyy, who travelled to the United Arab Emirates on Monday, reiterated that he would not accept any decisions between the US and Russia about Ukraine. European leaders have also expressed their concerns about the exclusion of Europe and Ukraine from the discussions, and have expressed that they want to be part of the negotiations. “A dictated peace will therefore never find our support,” said German Chancellor Olaf Scholz over the weekend after Trump’s unilateral overture to Putin on Wednesday. Trump later told reporters that Zelenskyy will be involved in the negotiations, without giving further explanation. Keith Kellogg, the US envoy for Ukraine, also tried to reassure that no deal would be imposed on Ukraine. Advertisement Kellogg is heading to Kyiv on a three-day visit. Kyiv, which has lost nearly 20 percent of its territory and thousands of lives, would like to have a deal that addresses its legitimate security concerns. “We seek a strong and lasting peace in Ukraine. To achieve this, Russia must end its aggression, and this must be accompanied by strong and credible security guarantees for the Ukrainians,” France’s President Emmanuel Macron posted on X a day after he hosted European leaders in Paris. European leaders are concerned “because neither Ukraine nor Europe is represented. And they think Trump will sell Ukraine down the river,” Timothy Ash, an associate fellow in the Russia and Eurasia programme at Chatham House, told Al Jazeera. “They fear a similar outcome as per Trump’s messaging on Gaza – he simply does not care,” Ash said, referring to Trump’s proposal to “take over” Gaza after displacing Palestinians, which would amount to ethnic cleansing and a war crime. How are European leaders responding to Trump’s policy shift on Ukraine and transatlantic ties? European leaders have been left scrambling for responses after the new Trump administration upended the US’s Ukraine policy for the past three years and put forth proposals that will change the dynamics of the transatlantic alliance in place since 1949. On Sunday, Kellogg, Trump’s envoy for Ukraine, announced that Europe would not be at the table for Ukraine peace negotiations. Last week, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said that membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) for Ukraine was “unrealistic”. In line with Trump’s rhetoric that Europe should increase its spending on NATO, Hegseth indicated that Europe should ramp up its financial and military responsibilities in Ukraine. He also ruled out deployment of US troops in Ukraine after any deal is signed with Russia. US Vice President JD Vance reiterated the same point: Brussels should “step up in a big way to provide for its own defence”. Advertisement Stung by the tone and messaging from Trump’s top aides, European leaders on Monday gathered in Paris to devise their next steps. Macron was joined by leaders from Germany, Denmark, Poland, Italy, Spain and the Netherlands, alongside officials from NATO and the European Union. “Ready and willing,” NATO chief Mark Rutte posted on X on Monday. European nations have stepped up their contribution to Kyiv in recent years, providing nearly $140bn in Ukraine aid, more than the US, which has spent about $120bn since the war erupted in February 2022. Ash from the Chatham House explained that Europe is “realising the US is an unreliable partner”, as Trump’s overture to Putin is being seen by some as a betrayal by a key ally. Europe’s main fear is Russian aggression beyond Ukraine, as Washington has been Europe’s security guarantor for decades through the NATO alliance. But Trump has been demanding that Europe shoulder more responsibility for its security. According to media reports, the US wants to pull out some of its troops from Europe. In 2014, NATO member states pledged to contribute at least two percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) to defence, but more than 10 years later, only 23 of the 32 members have honoured their commitment. Trump wants them to increase defence spending to five percent of GDP. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Monday posted
Hamas to release six Israeli captives, hand over four bodies this week
Hamas will release six Israeli captives and hand over the bodies of four others this week as part of the Gaza ceasefire agreement, the group’s leader in the enclave said. Khalil al-Hayya, head of the Palestinian group in Gaza said the handover of the bodies will take place in Gaza on Thursday and that six living Israeli captives will be released on Saturday. “Hamas has proven, along with the resistance, its seriousness in implementing the agreement with full responsibility,” he said on Tuesday. “We stress the need to oblige the occupation to implement all provisions of the agreement without procrastination. The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that talks in Egypt resulted in an agreement on the release of six living Israeli captives on Saturday as part of the first phase of the ceasefire deal with Hamas. Israel will also receive the bodies of four dead captives on Thursday, before another four bodies later next week, the statement said. The first phase of the Gaza truce, which was brokered by the United States, Qatar and Egypt, is due to expire on March 1. Negotiations on the next stages, including a permanent end to the war, have not yet begun. Advertisement Reporting from Amman, Jordan, Al Jazeera’s Hamdah Salhut said the releases could be a major development regarding negotiations on phase two of the ceasefire. “Hamas said they are doing this because they want the second phase to take place. The Israelis have been asking for this for about a week now, saying they want the bodies of some captives to be released sooner than the end of phase one,” she said. Al-Hayya said that the bodies of members of the Bibas family would be among those handed over on Thursday. In November 2023, Hamas announced the family was killed in an Israeli air strike. Husband and father Yarden Bibas was released last month as part of phase one of the ceasefire deal. There was no immediate comment from Israel regarding the identity of the deceased captives. “The Israeli military had said they had great concerns over the fate of the mother and her two children, but did not confirm whether they were killed. Hamas now confirms they will be releasing the bodies,” Al Jazeera’s Salhut said. Former director general of the Israeli Foreign Ministry Alon Liel, pointed out that Hamas returning bodies of the Israeli captives to the Red Cross, “could have a devastating effect on the Israeli public.” He said it would be a day of mourning in Israel which would shock the people. “But it is still better than getting nothing from Hamas. We would love to have all the living hostages and the bodies back in Israel as soon as possible,” Liel said. Israel seeks ‘maximum flexibility’ in talks Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire deal in Gaza on January 19, after more than 460 days of a war that has devastated the Palestinian territory. Advertisement However, Israel has violated the ceasefire in Gaza 266 times, killing at least 132 people, Palestinian security sources told Al Jazeera on Tuesday. Since the ceasefire took effect, Israeli leaders have also discussed the possibility of an imminent return to fighting in Gaza, with far-right ministers in Netanyahu’s cabinet pushing for a military occupation of the enclave, while US President Donald Trump has called for the forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza. Mohamad Elmasry, a professor at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, told Al Jazeera, said Israel is looking for “maximum flexibility” in advance of potential talks over the second phase of the truce deal with Hamas. “On the one hand, there are whispers that at least some in the Israeli government want to move to phase two of the Gaza ceasefire and [US President] Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy said he is confident there will be a phase two. All of that seems to be positive,” Elmasry said. “On the other hand, Israel and the US are in a way talking from both sides of their mouth because they’re still talking about the complete eradication of Hamas and Trump’s forced expulsion and ethnic cleansing plan for Gaza,” Elmasry added. On Tuesday, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said that Israel will begin negotiations “this week” on the second phase of the ceasefire deal in Gaza. “We had yesterday night a security cabinet meeting. We decided to open negotiations on the second phase. It will happen this week,” Saar said of the talks, which were originally supposed to start on February 3. Advertisement He added that Israel demands “a total demilitarisation of Gaza and no presence of the Palestinian Authority”. Adblock test (Why?)
British couple detained in Iran charged with spying
The couple admitted they had ignored warnings not to travel to Iran as part of their “slightly bonkers” round-the-world motorbike trip. Two British nationals detained in Iran have been charged with espionage, according to the Iranian judiciary’s Mizan news agency. The pair were laid with the charges on Tuesday after they allegedly gathered information in different parts of the country, the agency reported. Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards have arrested dozens of foreigners and dual nationals in recent years, mostly on espionage and security-related charges. The British Foreign Office named the two as Craig and Lindsay Foreman, and their family said on Saturday they were engaging with relevant authorities to ensure their safe return home. “The detained individuals entered the country as tourists and collected information in several provinces of the country,” Mizan said, without giving further details. According to British media reports, the pair are a married couple in their early fifties. Mizan cited a judicial official as saying the two were connected to intelligence services and that investigations into the alleged links were ongoing. Advertisement The couple admitted that they had ignored warnings not to travel to the country as part of their “slightly bonkers” round-the-world motorbike trip. Lindsay said in a Facebook post that by late December they had “now done 12,499 miles across 13 countries”, having crossed places such as Italy, Albania, Greece and Turkey. A life coach with a doctorate according to her social networks, Lindsay said she had been having “an amazing time” while Craig, a carpenter, praised Iran’s “lovely people.” In their social media posts the couple said they had been carrying out a research project on what makes a “good life.” Lindsay said she had interviewed more than 360 people. Iranian authorities have accused the pair of having links with Western intelligence services and said they were found to be “cooperating with covert institutions linked to the intelligence services of hostile and Western countries”. The couple said they crossed into Iran from Armenia in December. On Friday, Britain’s Foreign Office said it was “providing consular assistance to two British nationals detained in Iran” and was in contact with Iranian authorities. Adblock test (Why?)
Indian Army havildar loses teen son, saves others’ lives by…
After the loss of his 18-year-old son, Arshdeep Singh, who succumbed to injuries from a road accident, Havildar Kumar made a heroic decision. Amidst unimaginable grief, he chose to donate his son’s organs
Kathy Hochul does apparent about-face on natural gas as NYC utility signals major rate hikes
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has approved permits to expand capacity on a major bi-state pipeline despite years of pushing green policies like bans on natural gas use in new construction. The Hochul administration signed off on permits to expand capacity in the Iroquois Pipeline – a crucial 414-mile route from St. Lawrence County — near the border with Cornwall, Ontario, – running down the Adirondacks, through western Connecticut, under Long Island Sound and forking toward Commack, Long Island, or Hunts Point, Bronx. That move comes as the state Department of Environmental Conservation admitted the approvals are “inconsistent with” statewide greenhouse gas emissions limits imposed in recent years, according to the New York Post. Hochul said this week that just as she is trying to institute $500 “inflation refunds” for middle-to-low income families, that money is going “right out the door” to Consolidated Edison (ConED). REPUBLICANS RIP HOCHUL’S INFLATION REFUNDS: BRIBE TO MAKE NYERS LIKE HER ConEd, the main utility provider in New York City and Long Island, is planning to implement 11.5% increases in electric rates and 13% increases in gas rates – amounting to about $500 per year – unless the New York Public Service Commission (PSC) steps in, according to FOX-5. The PSC is already under pressure from Hochul to audit the salaries of ConED executives amid chatter about the rate hikes. Hochul’s actions come after years of crackdowns on fossil fuel production and consumption by New York Democrats. In 2019, then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed the Climate Leadership & Community Protection Act from then-Sen. Todd Kaminsky, D-Long Beach, which moved the state away from fossil fuels and established a net-zero goal by 2040. Two years later, the state shuttered the massive Indian Point nuclear energy production facility on the Hudson River opposite Haverstraw. Cuomo said at the time that he had been concerned for years about the safety of the plant. “It does not belong on the Hudson River and in close proximity to the most densely populated area in the country… This is a victory for the health and safety of New Yorkers, and moves us a big step closer to reaching our aggressive clean energy goals.” Albany Democrats, led by Hochul, have since banned furnaces and gas heating in new construction. The governor also announced a “cap and invest” program to force Big Oil to invest in green energy by paying for emissions. According to the Post, a report from the PSC also indicated ConED and fellow utility National Grid were also “barely able to provide adequate [energy] supply” during a recent Arctic storm that brought temperatures near 0 degrees Fahrenheit to the Empire State. HOCHUL’S CHRISTMASTIME BOAST OF SAFER SUBWAYS CAME AMID STRING OF VIOLENT ATTACKS As for Hochul’s efforts to audit ConED, Republicans agreed the rate hikes are and have been outrageous, but that particular move would not help. “Natural gas is a proven, reliable source of energy and vital for consumers in the Northeast,” said State Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay. “The green dreams of environmental extremists are meaningless if people can’t heat their homes in mid-February. It’s incredible to see radical liberals protest a necessary measure that allows New Yorkers to stay warm in the winter. But reliability, affordability, and common sense have never been priorities of New York’s climate cult.” Additionally, the state’s natural-gas-rich Southern Tier – a 200-mile area roughly running from Jamestown to Hancock along the Pennsylvania border – has been affected by a statewide ban on fracking, which state lawmakers representing the area have fought yet-unsuccessfully to undo. This, even as communities just a few miles southward in Pennsylvania continue to extract natural gas from the same Marcellus Shale Range on their side of the line. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Hochul added to the ban by further prohibiting a new, safer form of fracking using carbon dioxide instead of liquids. While former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf enacted a moratorium on state parkland fracking, there has been no fracking activity to speak of along the NY-17 corridor for many years. After then-Gov. David Paterson announced the state’s original fracking moratorium in 2008 – later becoming an outright ban under Cuomo – some Southern Tier villages whose economies depended on energy production considered trying to “secede” to Pennsylvania. Fox News Digital reached out to Hochul and ConED for comment but did not receive a response by press time.
Red state lawmakers look to punish local governments defying Trump’s immigration crackdown
The Indiana House Judiciary Committee voted to advance a bill that gives the governor authority to punish local governments that fail to comply with federal immigration authorities. Indiana House Bill 1531, which allows local law enforcement agencies the ability to carry out federal immigration laws and threatens to withhold funding from local governments who fail to comply with federal immigration laws, passed through the committee on a party line vote after hours of tense testimony and now moves to the full House, according to a report from the Indy Star Monday. The bill would also allow the state’s attorney general to impose civil penalties if a local government agency fails to comply with a federal immigration detention request, requires state judges to report any non-U.S. citizen convicted of a crime to federal authorities, prohibits employers from recruiting or hiring illegal immigrants, and grants immunity to government bodies or employees for action taken on immigration detainer requests. RED STATE AG PROMISES LEGAL FIGHT WITH ICE-RESISTING LOCAL GOVERNMENTS “We’ve been doing as much as we can with existing authority under labor trafficking laws to go after this issue of illegal aliens being employed in the state,” Assistant Chief Deputy Attorney General Blake Lanning told the Indy Star. “But in many ways, Indiana law was not designed for this problem, to address this problem.” Lanning said the attorney general’s office worked closely with the state’s GOP legislature to craft the bill, which comes after Republican Attorney General Todd Rokita threatened to sue local jurisdictions who do not comply with federal immigration orders. “Now that’s a problem in Indiana, particularly because there’s an Indiana state statute that I enforce that says what you have got to give, whatever level of cooperation is allowed by federal law, you shall give it as a state or local law enforcement official,” Rokita told Fox News Digital in an interview Friday. “And, so, that’s what’s happening here. That defiance I need to look into now.” ‘CLAWED BACK’: DHS CHIEF NOEM SECURES EYE-POPPING SUM SENT TO NYC FOR MIGRANT HOTELS DOGE PUTS DEI ON CHOPPING BLOCK WITH TERMINATION OF OVER $370M IN EDUCATION DEPARTMENT GRANTS The push comes as President Donald Trump has intensified efforts to both secure the border and deport immigrants already in the country illegally. However, some of those efforts have been hindered by so-called sanctuary jurisdictions, which ban local law enforcement agencies from cooperating with federal immigration authorities. Indiana’s legislation faces stiff opposition from Democrats and outside groups, who question the constitutionality of the bill. “This is unprecedented to have this many anti-immigrant bills in one legislative session for Indiana. So it really is kind of a race to be the most racist. Any argument against that is just disingenuous,” Carolina Castoreno, the co-founder of the Alliance for Latino Migrant Advocacy, told the Indy Star after testifying against the bill. “The rhetoric that they are continuing to use in these rooms — the mentioning of cartels, the mentioning of Hispanic men, talking about the Spanish speaking language,” Castoreno added. “They’re not talking about Ukrainian immigrants. They’re not talking about immigrants from any other part of the world, except for Latin America.” However, efforts to defeat the legislation face an uphill battle in Indiana, where Republicans enjoy supermajorities in both the state House of Representatives and Senate as well as control the governor’s office.