House GOP majority on the brink as all-Democrat Texas special congressional election underway
Republicans are clinging to a razor-thin 218-213 House majority. And the GOP’s margin will shrink even further after a special congressional election this weekend to fill the seat in a Democrat-dominated district which has been vacant for nearly a year. That’s because the two candidates in Saturday’s runoff election in Texas’ 18th Congressional District are both Democrats. Voters in the district, which is anchored by downtown Houston and surrounding areas, head to the polls to choose a successor to fill the seat left vacant when Democratic Rep. Sylvester Turner died last March. Sylvester, a former longtime state lawmaker, served two terms as Houston mayor before winning election to Congress in 2024, succeeding the late longtime Democratic Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee. DEMOCRATIC TAKEOVER FEARS SOAR AS HOUSE REPUBLICANS CLING TO FRAGILE MAJORITY Democrats Christian Menefee, a former attorney for Houston’s Harris County, and former Houston City Council member Amanda Edwards are facing off in the special election. They were the top two finishers in a field of 16 candidates that faced off in an initial election in November. While Texas has redrawn its congressional maps for the 2026 midterms, as part of the high-stakes redistricting battle between President Donald Trump and Republicans versus Democrats, the special election will use the state’s current district lines. CASH SURGE: HOUSE GOP SPOTLIGHTS RECORD FUNDRAISING AHEAD OF MIDTERM CLASH The winner of the special election will give the Democrats one additional House member, giving Republican leadership further headaches. “They’d better be here,” House Speaker Mike Johnson recently said of his members. “I told everybody, and not in jest, I said, no adventure sports, no risk-taking, take your vitamins. Stay healthy and be here.” And House Majority Whip Tom Emmer’s office confirmed it is advising members that “outside of life-and-death circumstances,” they expect Republican lawmakers to be on Capitol Hill. Three other special congressional elections are on tap this year. Eleven candidates are running in the Feb. 5 Democratic Party primary in New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District. The seat was left vacant after now New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill stepped down after winning November’s gubernatorial election in the Garden State. The winner of the Democratic primary will face off with Randolph Mayor Joe Hathaway, the only Republican to file for the special election, which will be held on April 16. The suburban district in northern New Jersey leans to the left, with Sherrill winning re-election in 2024 by 15 points, the same margin she carried the district in November’s gubernatorial showdown. REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: HOUSE EXODUS THREATENS JOHNSON’S GRIP ON POWER AS OVER 40 MEMBERS HEAD FOR EXIT But then-Vice President Kamala Harris won the district by just eight points in the 2024 presidential election, giving the GOP some hopes of possibly flipping the seat. A whopping 22 candidates, including 17 Republicans, are running in a special election in Georgia’s 14th Congressional District, in the race to succeed former GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. The MAGA firebrand and one-time top Trump House ally four weeks ago stepped down from Congress a year before her term ended. According to Georgia state law, all the candidates will run on the same ballot. If no contender tops 50% of the vote, a runoff election between the top two finishers will take place on April 7. The district in northwestern Georgia is solidly Republican, with Greene winning re-election in 2024 by nearly 30 points and Trump carrying the district by 37 points. Primary Day in California for the 2026 elections is scheduled for June 2, and this year it will also include a primary for the special election in the state’s 1st Congressional District, in the race to fill a seat left vacant following the recent unexpected death of Republican Rep. Doug LaMalfa. The general election will be held on Aug. 4. The district, in northeastern California, is solidly Republican. Similar to Texas, California is also altering its congressional maps as part of the redistricting wars, but the special election will be held under the current district lines. The White House and congressional Republicans criticized the decision by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom to not hold a special election to fill LaMalfa’s seat until August, six months after the late congressman’s death. But Democrats similarly complained about Republican Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas not scheduling the special election to fill Turner’s seat until eight months after the late lawmaker died. Fox News’ Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this story.
Conservative group blasts LinkedIn for removing pro-ICE post, labeling it ‘hateful’
A conservative advocacy group is slamming the social media platform LinkedIn and conservatives online are threatening to ditch the site after the group’s post supporting President Donald Trump’s illegal immigration crackdown was temporarily removed in what the company called an error. “.@DHSgov is carrying out the essential task of keeping our country safe,” State Freedom Caucus Network posted on Jan. 27 on multiple platforms including X and LinkedIn. “Biden let over 10M illegal aliens enter our states, many being violent criminals and pedophiles. Every state must ensure collaboration with ICE and CBP to remove them. Our caucuses are on the frontlines leading their states to support @POTUS’s mission to keep Americans safe!” On Thursday, SFCN revealed a screenshot showing that while the post was allowed by X, it was flagged as “hateful speech” by LinkedIn and removed. TIKTOK ‘MAJOR INFRASTRUCTURE ISSUE’ SPARKS CENSORSHIP CLAIMS FROM DEMOCRATS NEWSOM, MURPHY “Apparently protecting children is ‘hate,’ but letting actual predators roam free is fine,” SFCN wrote. “@elonmusk doesn’t censor us, but @LinkedIn does! We’ll be deleting our account as a result.” Conservatives on social media quickly began calling out the social media company, co-founded by liberal megadonor Reid Hoffman before he sold the company to Microsoft, where he currently sits on the board. 2010 OBAMA CLIP GOES VIRAL WHERE HE DEFENDS DEPORTATIONS, EVEN OF THOSE ‘JUST TRYING TO EARN A LIVING’ “Everyone delete LinkedIn,” Townhall columnist Dustin Grage posted on X. “Just a garbage woke platform that provides little value.” “How is wanting pedos off the streets hateful?? ?? Why are you censoring Conservatives?? @LinkedIn,” conservative influencer account LibsofTikTok posted on X. “DELETE YOUR LINKEDIN ACCOUNT.” A LinkedIn spokesperson pushed back, telling Fox News Digital: “This was removed in error, and we quickly corrected it.” Andrew Roth, president of the State Freedom Caucus Network, told Fox News Digital he received a “removal notice” via email and after the situation was posted on LibsofTikTok, he received another email saying the removal was an error. “Initially, your post was removed for going against our policies,” Roth was told by LinkedIn. “As part of our review, we now find that your post doesn’t go against our policies and apologize for the mistake.” Roth told Fox News Digital, “Yeah, right.” “I guess wokeism is still alive and well, but we will continue to fight it. First step is to not engage on the LinkedIn platform ever again. Second step is to tell the world what they did.” Conservatives have long decried censorship and perceived bias on social media platforms and although the post was reinstated within a few hours of being taken down, Daniel Cochrane, Heritage Foundation Senior Research Associate at the Center for Technology and the Human Person, told Fox News Digital the situation represents the “predictable model” that Big Tech platforms often operate under. “Censor first and then ask for forgiveness later,” Cochrane said. “While platforms nearly always claim a ‘mistake’ or ‘miscommunication’ content moderation systems and processes operate in a black box,” Cochrane added. “The opaque nature of these systems leads to a dearth of accountability.” Cochrane went on to say that even if platforms aren’t “explicitly targeting” a specific group or message, “liberal biases” can often be “baked into their algorithmic moderation systems disproportionately flag and demote conservative voices.” “Without greater accountability, the status quo of arbitrary censorship is a feature of Big Tech platforms, not a bug.”
Famed filmmaker presses Democrats to put ‘citizen-led’ presidential primary first
NEWFIELDS, N.H. — Ken Burns, the esteemed filmmaker whose popular documentaries chronicle American history and culture, has a message for the Democratic Party. Burns is urging Democrats to restore his home state of New Hampshire as the lead-off primary in the Democratic National Committee‘s (DNC) 2028 presidential nominating calendar. New Hampshire had held the lead-off presidential primary for both Democrats and Republicans for a century, and while the GOP adhered to tradition in the last race for the White House, the DNC upended their calendar, placing South Carolina ahead of the Granite State. The move was an unwanted distraction for Democrats during the 2024 primaries, and the DNC is now starting to discuss which states will lead off its 2028 calendar, when the party aims to win back the White House in the race to succeed term-limited Republican President Donald Trump. WHITE HOUSE RACE UNDERWAY: WITH 2026 LOOMING, BOTH PARTIES ARE ALREADY PLAYING FOR 2028 Burns, who lives in the small southwestern New Hampshire town of Walpole, wrote a letter to the DNC’s Rules & Bylaws Committee, which oversees the party’s primary calendar, on the eve of that panel’s meeting in Puerto Rico to begin considering applications by New Hampshire and nearly a dozen states to hold an early primary in 2028. “I’m writing to you today both as a Granite Stater who has witnessed firsthand how New Hampshire’s First in the Nation Primary has helped move our democracy forward, and a historical filmmaker who, in this particularly challenging moment, is concerned for the future of our country and believes that New Hampshire’s citizen-led, First in the Nation primary remains indispensable for this moment,” Burns wrote in the letter, which was obtained by Fox News Digital. ‘ROCK STAR’ NEWSOM STEALS THE SHOW AT DNC SUMMIT AS DEMOCRATS HUNT FOR 2028 CONTENDER TO TAKE ON TRUMP In the letter, which was first reported by WMUR-TV in New Hampshire, Burns emphasized, “I know of no people better suited to help begin the journey to maintain true freedom, to re-light that sacred fire, than the people of the Live Free or Die State. That’s why we need New Hampshire’s citizen-led, First in the Nation Primary, where everyday people can be heard. For in the strength of everyday citizens, there is no better or equal hope in our world.” Longtime New Hampshire Democratic Party Chair Ray Buckley, who’s a member of the DNC’s Rules and Bylaws Committee and is attending the meeting in Puerto Rico, told Fox News Digital that “Ken Burns is a beloved, internationally respected storyteller of America. Ken is trusted, he knows his stuff, he speaks with such clarity and authority that he gets people to sit up and listen.” “Ken makes a powerful statement in support of New Hampshire’s presidential primary that will resonate with my colleagues,” Buckley predicted. 2028 LOOMS LARGE: HARRIS, NEWSOM, PRITZKER CONVERGE AT HIGH-STAKES DEMOCRATIC PARTY SUMMIT National Democrats for years had knocked both Iowa — whose caucuses for 50 years led off the party’s nominating calendar until 2024 — and New Hampshire as unrepresentative of the party as a whole because the states have largely white populations with few major urban areas. Nevada and South Carolina, which in recent cycles voted third and fourth on the calendar, are much more diverse than either Iowa or New Hampshire. Nevada and South Carolina were added to the Democratic calendar two decades ago to increase the diversity of the early states’ electorate. But New Hampshire Democrats have long pushed back, saying the state’s rich tradition of grassroots, retail politics, its well-informed electorate, its high percentage of voter participation and its longtime status as a key general election swing state make it the perfect locale to hold the first-in-the-nation primary. After the DNC removed New Hampshire from the top of their 2024 calendar, putting the state second along with Nevada, the Granite State still moved to the head of the line. Adhering to a nearly half-century-old law that mandates the Granite State to hold the first presidential primary a week ahead of any similar contest, New Hampshire Secretary of State Dave Scanlan scheduled the Democratic and GOP presidential primary contests for Jan. 23, 2024. The Democratic contest, which was held before South Carolina and Nevada, ended up being an unsanctioned election, with the DNC banning the state’s delegates from attending that summer’s nominating convention. The DNC later made peace with New Hampshire, and reinstated their convention delegates. The Rules and Bylaws Committee isn’t expected to decide on the 2028 calendar until later this year. The rival Republican National Committee, as Fox News Digital first reported last week, at its winter meeting took the first formal step in keeping the GOP’s 2028 calendar the same, with the Iowa caucuses kicking off the nominating process followed by New Hampshire’s primary.
New Jersey governor to launch portal for uploading videos of ICE tactics: ‘They have not been forthcoming’
New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat, announced that state officials will launch a portal allowing residents to upload photos and videos of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents conducting federal operations. Sherrill revealed the initiative during a Wednesday appearance on The Daily Show, Comedy Central’s nightly comedy news program. “If you see an ICE agent in the street, get your phone out, we want to know,” Sherrill said. “They have not been forthcoming,” the governor continued. “They will pick people up, they will not tell us who they are, they will not tell us if they’re here legally, they won’t check. They’ll pick up American citizens. They picked up a five-year-old child. We want documentation, and we are going to make sure we get it.” MARYLAND DEMOCRAT’S BILL SEEKS TO ‘DIGITALLY UNMASK’ ICE AGENTS AFTER FATAL MINNEAPOLIS SHOOTING Sherill said her administration will soon be launching a portal so New Jersey residents “can upload all their cell phone videos and alert people” about local immigration operations. A spokesperson for the governor, Sean Higgins, said Sherill’s administration will release further details in the coming days. “Keeping New Jerseyans safe is Governor Sherrill’s top priority and, in the coming days, she and Acting Attorney General Davenport will announce additional actions to protect New Jerseyans from federal overreach,” Higgins said in a statement. Sherrill also said that her administration intends to provide information to educate New Jerseyans on their rights in the state. GOP LAWMAKER RENEWS OVERSIGHT HEARING REQUEST OF DHS AGENCIES FOLLOWING FATAL SHOOTING IN MINNEAPOLIS New York Attorney General Letitia James launched a similar portal in her state in October, saying state officials would review the videos and images uploaded to the portal to determine whether immigration agents violated the law. California officials also opened a portal last month for residents to report possible unlawful acts by ICE agents. Some grassroots groups across the country have also been warning community members of reports of ICE activity, so migrants can avoid the area. This comes after two killings of U.S. citizens by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis this month. Both shootings were recorded by bystanders and sparked unrest in Minnesota and across the country. Renee Nicole Good was shot and killed by ICE agent Jonathan Ross on Jan. 7 in Minneapolis, and Border Patrol agents on Saturday fatally shot Alex Pretti while he was recording immigration enforcement operations in the same city. Pretti, an ICU nurse, appeared to be attempting to assist a woman agents had knocked down when he was sprayed with an irritant, pushed to the ground and beaten, according to video and witness accounts. An agent was later seen pulling Pretti’s lawfully owned firearm from his waistband before other agents fired several shots, killing him. Sherrill also compared ICE to secret police forces she observed in other countries when she served in the Navy. “We saw people in the street with masks and no insignia. So not accountable at all, hiding from the population – and we saw again and again an undermining of what law enforcement should do to keep people safe,” she said on Wednesday. Democrats in Congress and in various state legislatures have sought for months to adopt measures that would ban immigration agents from wearing masks to hide their identities, arguing that such legislation is needed to ensure transparency.
Trump unloads on ‘radical left’ as he stands by Kristi Noem amid immigration enforcement unrest
President Donald Trump offered renewed support for Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem on Friday, saying she has done a “great job” amid ongoing nationwide immigration protests. In a lengthy post on Truth Social, Trump accused “radical left” activists of targeting Noem while touting what he described as historic gains in border security and public safety under his administration. “The Radical Left Lunatics, Insurrectionists, Agitators, and Thugs, are going after Kristi Noem, the Secretary of Homeland Security, because she is a woman, and has done a really GREAT JOB!” Trump wrote Friday evening. “The Border disaster that I inherited is fixed, the violent criminals that were allowed into our Country through Sleepy Joe’s ‘sick’ Open Border Policy, are largely gone, or being strongly sought for purposes of removal, and the Murder Rate in the USA just reached the lowest level in history, 125 years!” In a separate post, Trump praised border czar Tom Homan for doing a “FANTASTIC JOB” after sending him to Minneapolis this week to replace Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino. Trump has suggested Bovino did not adequately oversee the state’s immigration crackdown. MINNESOTA SHAKEUP SHIFTS LEADERSHIP NOT STRATEGY, WHITE HOUSE SAYS, PUSHING BACK ON ‘RETREAT’ CLAIM Trump’s comments come as Noem faces mounting criticism following the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good during immigration enforcement operations by federal agents in Minneapolis. Several prominent Democrats have recently called for her removal as DHS secretary, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., along with other House Democrats, are threatening impeachment proceedings if Noem is not “fired immediately.” Republican Sens. Thom Tillis of North Carolina and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska have also publicly urged her removal. GRAHAM PUSHES BACK ON TILLIS’ CRITICISM OF NOEM, MILLER FOR LABELING MAN KILLED BY BORDER PATROL A ‘TERRORIST’ On Friday, several University of Minnesota student groups led what they dubbed a “National Shutdown” in protest of federal immigration enforcement, with activists joining from across the country. Trump accused Democrats of using protests as a distraction from what he alleged were widespread financial crimes involving billions of dollars in public funds. “Republicans, don’t let these Crooked Democrats, who are stealing Billions of Dollars from Minnesota, and other Cities and States from all over the Country, push you around,” he wrote. “They are using this aggressive protest SCAM to obfuscate, camouflage, and hide their CRIMINAL ACTS of theft and insurrection. They should all be in jail.” FEDERAL COURT RULES NOEM TERMINATING TEMPORARY PROTECTED STATUS FOR VENEZUELANS IN US WAS ILLEGAL The president’s latest message of support for Noem follows confirmation Tuesday that he has no plans to ask her to step down from her role. “Is Kristi Noem going to step down?” a reporter asked. “No,” Trump responded. Noem addressed calls for her ouster in an interview Thursday on “Hannity,” saying “radicals” were targeting her. “These radicals are attacking me, but I’m just doing my job. I’m following the law, enforcing the laws like President Trump promised that he would do to keep people safe in this country,” she said. Fox News Digital’s Nora Moriarty, Anders Hagstrom and Peter D’Abrosca contributed to this report.
Government shuts down again after Democrats revolt over DHS funding
The federal government is shutting down for the second time in six months after Congress failed to reach an agreement on the yearly budget in time. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is expected to notify federal agencies to begin shutdown preparations as early as just after midnight on Jan. 31 Unlike last time, however, the government is only entering a partial shutdown this weekend. That’s because Congress was able to pass legislation fully funding some areas — the Department of Agriculture, the legislative branch, and the Department of Justice, for instance — while a majority of federal spending is still not set. Senate Democrats walked away from a bipartisan deal to fully fund the federal government for the remainder of fiscal year FY 2026 amid fallout over President Donald Trump’s surge of federal law enforcement in Minneapolis. GRAHAM BLOCKS TRUMP-BACKED SPENDING PLAN, CALLS IT A ‘BAD DEAL’ AS SHUTDOWN NEARS Federal officers shot and killed two U.S. citizens in the Midwest city during separate demonstrations against Trump’s immigration crackdown. In response, Democrats threatened to hold up a massive federal funding bill that also includes dollars for the departments of War, Labor, Health and Human Services, Transportation and others unless funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) were stripped out. That means a prolonged shutdown could fuel airline delays, risk active duty troops missing paychecks, and even limit some Medicaid and Medicare services. Senate Democrats struck a new deal with the White House that would fund all but DHS through Sept. 30, which is the majority of federal spending. DHS would be kept running with a two-week extension of current spending levels to give Congress time to hash out a compromise that would include stricter guardrails on immigration enforcement agencies under the department’s purview. President Donald Trump lauded the funding truce, which he struck with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., in a post on Truth Social. He urged Republicans to support it, and warned that the “only thing that can slow our Country down is another long and damaging Government Shutdown.” Still, it was a bitter pill for some Senate Republicans who were already frustrated with the underlying, original package. A handful were angered over the billions in earmarks attached to the legislation. And Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., was enraged by the House’s inclusion of a provision that would allow senators to sue for up to $500,000 if their phone records were subpoenaed by former Special Counsel Jack Smith. DEMS’ DHS SHUTDOWN THREAT WOULD HIT FEMA, TSA WHILE IMMIGRATION FUNDING REMAINS INTACT “You jammed me, Speaker Johnson. I won’t forget this,” Graham said. “I got a lot of good friends in the House. If you think I’m going to give up on this, you really don’t know me.” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., was able to quell opposition and advance the modified package with the help of Senate Democrats. Though the deal passed through the Senate, it still must be taken up in the House. The House passed the original federal funding plan that Democrats walked away from in late January but must vote again after the Senate’s modifications. That means the duration of this shutdown will hinge on how long it takes House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to corral Republicans and Democrats around the legislation next week.
Left-wing activists storming synagogue use knee pads, adult diaper to mock Dem congressman over ICE vote
Left-wing activists disrupted an event at a Jewish temple in New York this week while Democratic Rep. Tom Suozzi was speaking, protesting his vote in favor of a government spending bill that included increased funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The demonstrators, affiliated with the activist group Climate Defiance, interrupted Suozzi on Wednesday night at the temple on Long Island, unleashing a barrage of crude theatrics and profane insults, according to the New York Post. “We confronted Congressman Tom Suozzi,” Climate Defiance posted to X. “He is one of seven Democrats casting the decisive votes to increase ICE funding by $10,000,000,000. Hideous, grotesque, fascist-loving coward, this man has blood on his hands. We will not forgive and we will not forget.” Video of the disruption, which has amassed millions of views online, shows activists heckling the congressman with props such as adult diapers and knee pads while mocking his support for additional funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the New York Post reported. AOC VOICES SUPPORT FOR ANTI-ICE SHUTDOWN, DECLINES TO PARTICIPATE One demonstrator taunted Suozzi by holding up an adult diaper and saying, “I know you voted to increase ICE funding, so I wanted to get something for you. This is an adult diaper for when you pee yourself in front of Donald Trump. You’re the type of leader we need right now. Someone who soils themselves when the fascists are at our door.” Another displayed knee pads saying, “I actually have some gifts — I have some kneepads for you — you can use these while you b— Donald Trump.” A third individual said, “As a Jewish man, I have never felt safer than when there is a masked Gestapo in the street, so thank you, Congressman Tom Suozzi, for funding ICE.” Comedian and activist Walter Masterson appeared to be thrown out of the temple during the disruption while attempting to read aloud the names of individuals he said had died in ICE-related incidents. DHS PUNCHES BACK AT MOULTON FOR ‘INCITING RIOTERS’ WITH ‘GROSS’ ICE REMARKS “Nine people were killed by ICE this month, and you’re throwing me out while I’m reading their names? How f—ing dare you!” Masterson shouted. Days after the vote, Suozzi publicly apologized for supporting the DHS spending package, which included roughly $10 billion in additional funding for ICE, Politico reported. The apology followed intense backlash from fellow Democrats and came after the fatal shooting of 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti by Border Patrol agents in Minnesota, according to the New York Post. LOOMING GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN THREATENS SERVICE MEMBERS, FEMA, TSA AMID ICE IMPASSE “I failed to view the DHS funding vote as a referendum on the illegal and immoral conduct of ICE in Minneapolis,” Suozzi said in a statement. “I hear the anger from my constituents, and I take responsibility for that. I have long been critical of ICE’s unlawful behavior and I must do a better job demonstrating that.” Suozzi joined six other Democrats in crossing party lines to help Republicans narrowly pass the DHS funding measure in a 220–207 vote, Politico reported. Suozzi and Climate Defiance did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
US approves massive arms sales to Israel and Saudi Arabia for more than $15 billion amid Middle East tensions
The U.S. State Department late Friday announced it had approved two arms sales to Israel and Saudi Arabia worth $6.67 billion and $9 billion. The sales come as the Trump administration moves forward with its peacekeeping plan in Gaza and amid the threat of U.S. military strikes in Iran. Thirty Apache helicopters with rocket launchers make up the largest part of the sale to Israel, along with 3,250 light tactical vehicles, power packs for armored personnel carriers and a number of light utility helicopters. The State Department said the sale would “enhance Israel’s capability to meet current and future threats by improving its ability to defend Israel’s borders, vital infrastructure and population centers.” ISRAEL SET TO REOPEN GAZA’S RAFAH BORDER CROSSING WITH EGYPT FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE MAY 2024 “The United States is committed to the security of Israel, and it is vital to U.S. national interests to assist Israel to develop and maintain a strong and ready self-defense capability,” it said. Saudi Arabia will receive 730 Patriot missiles and related equipment that “will support the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by improving the security of a major non-NATO ally that is a force for political stability and economic progress in the Gulf Region,” the department said. “This enhanced capability will protect land forces of Saudi Arabia, the United States and local allies and will significantly improve Saudi Arabia’s contribution” to the integrated air and missile defense system in the region. On Thursday during a Cabinet meeting, President Donald Trump and his Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, said they believe Hamas will disarm under a U.S.-backed Gaza ceasefire plan as it enters its second phase. But regional analysts have warned the terror group has no intention of disarming and could even block Trump’s Gaza plan altogether. “Hamas will do all the possible and creative maneuvers and manipulations in order to keep its power and influence in the Gaza Strip,” professor Kobi Michael, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies and the Misgav Institute, told Fox News Digital. “The Israel Defense Forces are the only entity that can disarm Hamas.” Fox News’ Emma Bussey and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
Saudis won’t let the US use its bases or airspace for an attack on Iran, senior Gulf official reveals
As President Donald Trump weighs his options on a possible military strike on Iran, a senior Gulf official told Fox News Saudi Arabia will not allow the U.S. to use its airspace or bases for such an attack. A high-ranking government figure from a Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) state told Fox News that the “U.S. hasn’t shared objectives or plans” regarding Iran with Gulf allies despite recent high-level Saudi meetings in Washington aimed at gaining clarity. “We said this as friends, [we] want to make sure they understand our position and our assessment in general. And we want to understand the U.S. assessment with as much clarity as possible,” the senior official said. “I’d like to get full clarity, and we did not get there.” Regarding U.S. military movements for a strike on Iran, the official said, “The plan is something other than using Saudi airspace.” TRUMP SAYS IRAN ALREADY HAS US TERMS AS MILITARY STRIKE CLOCK TICKS The official said the U.S. is welcome in Saudi Arabia, especially regarding Operation Inherent Resolve, the ongoing U.S.-led campaign against ISIS. Yet, the Saudi position now is “consistent” with what it was during the 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran in April 2024, the official said. “Saudi Arabia wouldn’t allow airspace to be used to target Israel, Houthis, Iran. The position is the same now. Saudi Arabia wouldn’t allow airspace to be used in a war Saudi Arabia is not a part of,” the official said. Trump said Friday that the United States has directly communicated expectations to Iran as pressure mounts for Tehran to accept a nuclear deal, even as Iranian officials publicly signal interest in talks. Asked whether Iran faces a deadline to make a deal, Trump suggested the timeline had been conveyed privately. “Only they know for sure,” he said when pressed that the message had been delivered directly to Iranian leaders. Trump also tied the growing U.S. naval presence in the region explicitly to Iran, saying American warships “have to float someplace” and “might as well float near Iran” as Washington weighs its next steps. AS IRAN WEAKENS, QUESTIONS GROW OVER MOHAMMED BIN SALMAN’S REGIONAL AMBITIONS Despite the president’s words that Iran wants to make a deal, the official cautioned that “Iran always wants to make a deal, but the question is what kind of deal? Is it acceptable to the U.S.? “We don’t see it coming together at this moment,” the official said. “Everybody knows the U.S. is bringing capabilities to the region in general to deal not with whatever the plan is but whatever the ramification of the plan is.” Regarding the success of future U.S. actions in Iran, the official said, “There is always a problem whether you make a decision or don’t. There’s a balance of … future in the Middle East. We advise the U.S. on a better outcome at the end, using all means, including diplomatic means, and advise Iranians too. … We understand that we’re all in this — the U.S., Iran and others — and we hope for better results.” The official said that, in the Gulf allies’ assessment, the Trump administration’s strikes on Iran’s nuclear assets heavily degraded their capabilities so that they are “not in the same situation as before.” TRUMP SAYS IRAN CALLED ‘NUMEROUS’ TIMES TO MAKE DEAL AS CARRIER ENTERS MIDDLE EAST WATERS That being said, they believe an “off ramp could be reached by Iranians doing the right thing.” “We want a prosperous country that supports their people. That’s what we think we should all be doing. Iran has real economic potential, energy. A lot of talent in Iran and especially abroad who live in other countries. … There’s a way to get out of it, and Iran could be a very constructive actor in the region and important actor in the region. I hope that they get there because the Iranian people deserve a lot.” Though the U.S. has not shared its objectives or plans, the source said, “I hope that outcome is for a more stable Middle East, more prosperous.”
DHS fires back after Dem accuses ICE of ‘needlessly’ detaining boy with father after mom refused to take him
Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois is accusing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement of “needlessly” detaining a 5-year-old child with his illegal immigrant father after the agency said his mother refused to take custody. In an X post featuring pictures of 5-year-old Liam Ramos, Duckworth, a second-term senator, wrote that “Trump’s ICE snatched this bright, happy 5-year-old from his driveway.” “They shipped him 1,300 miles to suffer, without his mother, in a squalid Texas detention center. And now he’s growing ill. Democrats are fighting to end this cruelty,” she wrote. “Liam is not a criminal. Let him go.” DEM GOVERNOR DUCKS QUESTION ON ‘MONSTER’ ILLEGAL ALIEN WHO FRACTURED 8-YEAR-OLD’S SKULL WITH ROCK ATTACK However, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin posted a statement from Dr. Sean Conley, acting director of DHS’ Office of Health Security and chief medical officer, in which he addressed the child’s condition. Conley said that a pediatrician examined Ramos and “found no medical concerns.” “It is standard policy to provide medical care from the moment an alien enters ICE custody. This includes medical, dental and mental health intake screening within 12 hours of arriving at each detention facility, a full health assessment within 14 days of entering ICE custody or arrival at a facility and access to necessary medical appointments and 24-hour emergency care. This is the best healthcare many of these individuals have received in their entire lives,” said Conley. The doctor added that “ensuring the safety, security and well-being of individuals in our custody is a top priority at ICE.” He said illegal aliens are “provided with three meals a day that are certified by dieticians, including pediatric considerations.” In response, Duckworth told Fox News Digital, “The Trump administration suggesting that needlessly keeping a 5-year-old in federal custody is in his best interests is appalling. “Detaining children like this is cruel, no matter what Trump’s DHS says,” said Duckworth. “The best thing they can do for Liam is return him to his mother.” WATCH: HARDCORE SOCIALIST GROUPS STAGE-MANAGE ANTI-ICE PROTEST IN WASHINGTON Ramos was taken into custody along with his illegal immigrant father, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, by federal immigration authorities Jan. 20 in a suburb of Minneapolis. They are both being held at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in South Texas. Federal authorities were trying to take Conejo into custody in Minneapolis last week when he fled and left Ramos, who was arriving home from preschool, the Department of Homeland Security said. Some ICE officers remained with the boy while others chased down Conejo, who was apprehended soon after. ICE officers made multiple attempts to have Ramo’s mother, who was inside her home, take custody of her son, but she refused, DHS said. MINNESOTA AG KEITH ELLISON DENIES ICE DEAL AMIDST IMMIGRATION CRACKDOWN DEBATE McLaughlin said “officers even assured her she would not be taken her into custody,” but “the alleged mother refused to accept custody of the child. The father told officers he wanted the child to remain with him.” “Following the mother’s abandonment of the child, officers abided by the father’s wishes to keep the child with him. Father and son are together at Dilley [Immigration Processing Center],” DHS said in an X post. Conejo entered the U.S. illegally in December 2024 and was released into the U.S. by the Biden administration, DHS said. The family’s attorney said he had a pending asylum claim allowing him to stay in the country. A federal judge on Tuesday temporarily blocked the Trump administration from deporting Arias and his child.