House panel warns Singham-linked nonprofits: Comply with subpoenas or face Congress
Lawmakers have escalated their probe of three nonprofits linked to Marxist tech tycoon Neville Roy Singham’s funding network, warning that their leaders — and even Singham himself — could be hauled before Congress to answer questions under oath unless they comply with subpoenas by Tuesday. In new letters announced this week, the Republican-led House Ways and Means Committee renewed its demands for financial records and other documents as lawmakers investigate whether millions of dollars flowing through Singham’s network of tax-exempt nonprofits are being used to advance Chinese Communist Party interests in the United States. Singham himself is among 21 individuals identified by the committee for potential questioning under oath, according to Fox News Digital sources. The list includes nonprofit executives, activists and journalists associated with the three organizations. PROBE INTO ‘SUBVERSIVE’ ANTI-AI SINGHAM NETWORK IS ‘ENORMOUS,’ FORMER TREASURY ADVISOR SAYS DOJ LAUNCHES GRAND JURY PROBE INTO MARXIST MOGUL NEVILLE ROY SINGHAM’S FUNDING OF LEFTIST GROUPS The letters were sent to The People’s Forum Inc., a New York City-based activist hub; BreakThrough News, a left-wing nonprofit media outlet that shares a Manhattan address with The People’s Forum; and Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research, a Massachusetts-based Marxist think tank. “Shanghai Singham has poured millions of dollars into these groups to take advantage of America’s nonprofit sector and promote Chinese Communist Party propaganda. That much is public. What these groups are fighting to keep hidden is even more concerning,” Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith, R-Mo., said in a statement. “Either these organizations turn over the documents, or their leaders will answer the Committee’s questions under oath.” The threatened depositions mark another escalation in a dispute that began with requests for financial records in 2025 and intensified when the committee subpoenaed the three nonprofits in July. The organizations have challenged the investigation, arguing lawmakers are targeting their political views and First Amendment-protected activities. The potential deposition targets include eight individuals at The People’s Forum, seven at BreakThrough News and six at Tricontinental. Among those named are The People’s Forum executive director Manolo De Los Santos, education director Layan Fuleihan and organizing director David Chung; BreakThrough News editor-in-chief Ben Becker, news director Zoe Alexandra and chief correspondent Rania Khalek; and Tricontinental executive director Vijay Prashad and Singham, who is listed as chairman of its international advisory board. The committee has not publicly announced that deposition subpoenas have been issued to any of the individuals. SUBPOENAED PRO-CHINA OUTLET DEFENDS ITSELF ON DEMOCRACY NOW!, WHICH PAID SINGHAM-FOUNDED COMPANY MILLIONS The panel alleges that Singham channeled money through shell companies and donor-advised funds before it reached the three tax-exempt groups. Such arrangements, the committee said, can allow foreign-linked funding to pass through intermediaries that “by design, obscure the original source of the contribution.” Singham is an American-born technology tycoon and longtime Marxist activist who sold his software company, ThoughtWorks, for an estimated $785 million in 2017 and now lives in Shanghai. Fox News Digital previously traced at least $278 million from Singham into six core U.S. nonprofits that served as funding hubs within a broader international network of activist groups, media organizations and think tanks promoting socialist, communist and pro-China causes. Of that funding, the investigation found $22.44 million flowed to The People’s Forum, $16.76 million to Tricontinental and $1.098 million to BreakThrough BT Media Inc., the parent organization of BreakThrough News. Together, the three received approximately $40.3 million, according to the investigation, which the committee cited in its earlier correspondence. The committee says it is examining whether existing tax laws adequately protect against foreign influence in the nonprofit sector and whether Congress should strengthen those laws. Separately, Singham is under federal grand jury investigation in the Southern District of New York over alleged financial crimes involving his nonprofit funding network, as previously reported by Fox News Digital. The investigation is examining possible wire fraud, bank fraud, money laundering and other financial offenses. No criminal charges against Singham have been announced. BreakThrough News condemned the latest demands in an Oct. 9 statement on its website, accusing the committee of targeting its journalists because of their political views. The outlet said it receives no outside editorial direction and that its major donations come from U.S. organizations. During an episode of its BT Live program, hosts Alexandra and Khalek, both named among those facing potential depositions, denounced the committee’s demands. “Unless BT gives up its legal rights, including our First Amendment protections, he’ll subpoena each of us individually and drag us to Washington for depositions,” Alexandra said. Khalek accused lawmakers of targeting journalists personally after the outlet challenged earlier demands. “They will come after us individually if we don’t comply with their unconstitutional demands,” she said. BreakThrough News also urged supporters to sign a petition opposing the investigation and donate to help cover its legal expenses. Fox News Digital contacted all three organizations and their attorneys for comment on the latest demands but had not received a response as of publication. The investigation has also drawn accusations of McCarthyism from prominent left-wing figures, including Twitch streamer Hasan Piker, who called the July subpoenas “the McCarthy trials” and warned, “They will come for you,” and CodePink co-founder Medea Benjamin, who described them as a “terrible attack on independent journalism.” ‘MCCARTHY TRIALS’: HASAN PIKER, FAR-LEFT FIGURES ERUPT OVER SUBPOENAS IN $39M SINGHAM PROBE The committee first sought records from The People’s Forum in September 2025 and expanded its investigation to BreakThrough News and Tricontinental in February 2026. After the organizations challenged the requests, lawmakers narrowed their demands in May before issuing subpoenas in July. The committee sought records involving foreign-linked funding, financial arrangements, communications with Singham and other foreign interests, and information about donors and overseas grants. Attorneys for BreakThrough News and The People’s Forum formally objected in August, arguing the subpoenas violated First Amendment protections and demanded information beyond the committee’s legitimate legislative authority. “A witch-hunt is not a valid legislative purpose,” the attorneys wrote in their Aug. 7 responses, comparing the investigation to the House Un-American Activities
This robot dog was made to save soldiers’ lives as US races into new era of autonomous warfare
A four-legged robot dog prowled the floor of the Army’s largest annual conference in Washington, D.C., this week. Nearby a handheld weapon promised to knock drones from the sky without firing a shot, and a new interceptor was built to chase down the faster, deadlier versions coming next. The displays offered a glimpse of a battlefield changing at a pace that is forcing the U.S. military and defense industry to race not only to develop new weapons, but to keep them from becoming outdated as quickly as they arrive. “It’s always a cat and mouse game, and we do have to be looking down the field,” Eric Brock, CEO of defense technology company Ondas, told Fox News Digital in an interview at the Association of the United States Army’s (AUSA) annual meeting. That race was hard to miss at the AUSA expo this week, where drones, counter-drone weapons and autonomous systems crowded the show floor as the Army looks to rapidly incorporate lessons from conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East into its battleplan. PENTAGON JUMPS FROM $225M TO $55B ON DRONES AS CHEAP ATTACKS OVERWHELM US DEFENSES “If you walk around the hall at AUSA, it’ll give you a good indication of the Army’s priorities. Our priorities are reflected in what we’re procuring,” Army Under Secretary Mike Obadal said ahead of the conference. On the ground, Ondas demonstrated a huge piece of that shift: Scout, a four-legged robotic system designed to move ahead of troops into buildings, tunnels and other potentially dangerous areas while sending imagery back to an operator. “The whole concept is that if the Scout takes fire, it’s better than the soldier,” Brock told Fox News Digital during the demonstration. The Army’s new autonomous systems command is part of a wider Pentagon effort to organize around unmanned warfare, while War Secretary Pete Hegseth said at AUSA this week that the department is working toward a four-star-led Autonomous Warfare Command. Obadal predicted an “immense number” of drones and counter-UAS systems at the show, saying their prevalence reflected procurement and budget priorities across the Pentagon. Ukraine, he said, had “cemented” counter-UAS as a critical part of modern operations. The Army is reorganizing around that reality. This month it announced a new Futures and Autonomous Systems Command tasked with accelerating autonomous capabilities across formations including aviation, armor, fires, sustainment and reconnaissance. At AUSA, the service also expanded drone and counter-drone marketplaces designed to allow the U.S. and its allies to purchase pre-approved systems in days rather than months. US MILITARY BASES ARE ‘ILL-EQUIPPED’ TO STOP DRONE SWARMS, TOP COMMANDER REVEALS AFTER RUBIO’S UAP WARNING For Brock, one of the clearest lessons from the recent war with Iran was the sheer number of threats defenses could be forced to confront. “It’s more about mass,” he said. “So we have to make these affordable, low cost, returnable systems, and we have to produce this to scale.” Ondas has rapidly expanded its own role in that push. Its Mistral subsidiary has secured more than $240 million in orders under the Army’s $982 million Lethal Unmanned Systems contract, including an additional order worth more than $50 million announced in August. The company also acquired DZYNE Technologies this summer in a deal valued at roughly $875 million, adding a portfolio of drones and counter-drone weapons that includes the IonStrike kinetic interceptor and handheld Dronebuster demonstrated for Fox News Digital at AUSA. INSIDE AMERICA’S LASER REVOLUTION AS THE MILITARY NEARS BIG BATTLEFIELD BREAKTHROUGH IonStrike is designed to physically intercept incoming drones, including Shahed-class one-way attack drones. Brock said newer versions of the threat are becoming faster and increasingly difficult for defenses built around earlier, slower drones to defeat. “The faster moving [Shaheds] now need more autonomous systems,” Brock said during a demonstration of the interceptor. “So this system is designed to be very fast.” The system uses onboard guidance to pursue a detected threat and is designed to be deployed in numbers when multiple drones are approaching. But no single weapon can address the growing range of unmanned threats. Ondas also demonstrated its handheld Dronebuster, which uses electronic warfare to jam or spoof communications and navigation links rather than physically destroying an incoming drone. The company recently unveiled a longer-range version under contract for delivery to the Office of Naval Research for testing and evaluation. Those tools illustrate the increasingly layered approach to counter-drone warfare: electronic attack may be enough against one type of drone, while another operating without a vulnerable radio link could require a physical interceptor. And each adaptation can prompt another. Brock pointed to Ukraine, where defenders have developed increasingly effective ways to counter the Shahed-type drones Russia has used in attacks across the country. Russia and its suppliers, in turn, have worked to make those weapons faster and harder to stop. That rapid cycle is putting pressure on a Pentagon acquisition system historically accustomed to developing major weapons over years or decades. The Army used AUSA itself to hunt for more affordable interceptor technology, offering up to $20 million through a competition focused on defeating air and missile threats at a more sustainable cost. The challenge is also moving beyond individual drones and interceptors. Ondas has partnered with Palantir on software aimed at connecting sensors, drones, robotic platforms and command systems so they can operate as part of a larger autonomous network. Its SkyWeaver system uses Palantir-powered AI as part of an architecture designed to link intelligence, mission planning and autonomous operations across multiple domains. “We’re moving from each platform being individually autonomous platforms to mission autonomy,” Brock said. That could mean connecting intelligence gathered by high-altitude balloons and long-endurance unmanned aircraft with smaller drones, ground systems and other sensors closer to the fight, including in environments where traditional communications are degraded. For Brock, keeping pace will increasingly depend on whether the U.S. can manufacture autonomous weapons and defenses in the numbers a future conflict could demand. “I think that’s the bigger challenge,” Brock said. “Technology is not really a
Mamdani praised over move to dismantle controversial NYC industry — but insiders say there’s more to the story
A century-old tradition is on the line in New York City, and horse carriage drivers are speaking out about who will ultimately pay the price if Mayor Zohran Mamdani succeeds in ending the iconic industry. Mamdani and City Council Speaker Julie Menin announced Tuesday that they had reached a deal to phase out horse-drawn carriages in the Big Apple, with a vote expected next week on a bill that would ban carriage operations beginning in June 2028. A longtime source of controversy, the horse-drawn carriages lined up at Central Park to take families and tourists for rides are at the center of a public safety debate after 18-year-old Romanch Mahajan was killed from a fall in June. The bill was later renamed “Romanch’s Law.” Animal rights activists have targeted the industry, accusing carriage drivers of mistreating horses and even heckling some on the streets over concerns about proper care, food and water. Viral videos of horses collapsing and escaping into traffic have prompted calls to terminate the industry for good. MAN KILLED AFTER HORSE-DRAWN CARRIAGE BOLTS AND FLIPS NEAR POPULAR NEW YORK CITY TOURIST DESTINATION But Fox News Digital spoke to leaders in the industry who pushed back on the criticisms and argued that the New York City tradition is being unfairly maligned, and that livelihoods will be destroyed thanks to Mamdani’s efforts. “You have pedicabs flying around, so why are they permitted to have a business?” Frank Riccobono, owner and manager of NYC Horse Carriage Rides, told Fox News Digital. “And now a 168-year-old tradition, attraction is being forced to surrender, which is very taboo. I want my investment to stay there for the next 20 years, 50 years, 100.” Riccobono, who owns 12 horses and three carriages, said raising horses is like raising a child, and that “non-horse people” will never understand that bond. “I had horses give birth in front of me,” he said. “I’ve owned their mom and I have their baby and it’s like taking a child away from me.” The bill would not take the horses away from their owners. Owners could keep, sell or transfer them as long as they are not sent to slaughter, another carriage business or an “inhumane purposes,” but Riccobono could no longer use his horses for carriage rides in the city. He called the criticism “brainwashing,” adding his horses receive “the most perfect lifestyle” and regularly see certified veterinarians. “That’s what this bill shows,” he said. “It shows they’re trying to criminalize us because a horse is working.” Riccobono said he will also lose a huge investment after purchasing a medallion for nearly $400,000. Medallions are licenses that allow horse carriage drivers to legally operate in New York City. “I am going to take a very, very big loss here and there’s no reimbursement in this bill,” he said. MAMDANI, CITY COUNCIL MOVE TO END ICONIC NYC HORSE-DRAWN CARRIAGE INDUSTRY AS WORKERS FACE UNCERTAIN FUTURE The ban means much more than just losing a business, according to Riccobono, who said it threatens a family legacy with horses spanning generations. Riccobono has spent more than two decades driving horse-drawn carriages after falling in love with the career through his father, who spent 47 years in the business. “I have a father that has medical conditions,” he said. “I have colleagues that are on dialysis. These people rely on these medallions for income, for retirement. But they’re trying to strip this away from us and they don’t even know how much they’re gonna give us.” Riccobono’s wife, Natalie, said that without her husband’s income, the family will not be able to “sustain what we have right now.” “By taking away these businesses from us, they are literally taking food off of our table and possibly a shelter from over our heads,” she said. However, what comes next remains up in the air to drivers who say their voices have been left unheard. Mamdani, who has made waves with his socialist agenda, and Menin have vowed to help the city’s roughly 200 carriage drivers transition into new jobs. MAMDANI’S LATEST FREEBIE SETS OFF ONLINE FURY AS CRITICS RIP CITY PRIORITIES: ‘OPERA SOCIALISM’ “I think that we have a civic responsibility to ensure that we are not leaving anybody out to dry,” Mamdani told reporters Wednesday. “They should not be ones that are simply left as an afterthought of what comes after this.” Christina Hansen, a veteran New York City horse carriage driver and Transport Workers Union (TWU) Local 100 shop steward, told Fox News Digital drivers have yet to hear directly from Mamdani and are being treated “as if we don’t matter, as if we don’t count.” “The only cruelty in the New York City carriage industry has always been the way that the people in it, the way the carriage drivers and carriage owners and stable owners are treated,” she said. In a statement to Fox News Digital, a spokesperson for Menin said she will remain involved in the transition that “must include meaningful protections for the workers” and said she invited TWU and the administration to join a new working group. “Through thoughtful conversations with labor and other stakeholders, the Council developed a framework to ensure better economic opportunities for these New Yorkers,” she said. With the city anticipating the horses will go to rescues or sanctuaries, Hansen warned those facilities already struggle to care for the horses they have because of declining donations and a lack of resources. Once the national attention fades, Hansen worries the horses could be left behind. “There’s no funding from the city or anything like that to say, we’re going to make sure that, you know, the city pays for the horse’s retirement,” she said. MAMDANI PLEDGES MILLIONS TO COMBAT ANTISEMITISM WHILE LEAVING KEY QUESTION UNRESOLVED This isn’t the first time carriage drivers have feared the industry could disappear. Former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio pledged to ban horse-drawn carriages after taking office in 2014 and backed vintage-style electric cars
Becoming a lawyer could get cheaper and faster under looming Trump admin shakeup
The Trump administration is expected to decide by late December whether to strip the American Bar Association’s (ABA) law school accrediting arm of federal recognition, a move that would not automatically end the ABA’s accreditation of law schools or change state bar-admission rules but could accelerate states’ efforts to approve alternative paths to becoming a lawyer. Two legal education experts told Fox News Digital that while most law students would be unlikely to lose access to federal loans if the ABA’s accrediting arm loses recognition, the decision could accelerate a broader shift away from the organization’s longstanding dominance over legal education, with states increasingly exploring alternative accreditation pathways that could change how law schools operate and who qualifies to practice law. “I think the biggest thing is, everyone should know that the federal recognition of the ABA is just the first step,” Adam Biggs, general counsel of the University of Austin, told Fox News Digital. “If they get knocked off their perch, that’s going to supercharge the conversations of these state supreme courts to create alternative pathways that are not just the ABA.” The looming decision follows a September vote by the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI), the federal panel that advises the Education Department on accreditation matters, which remained deadlocked over whether to recommend renewing the ABA’s federal accreditation recognition. Education Department staff have already recommended denying renewal, and now the decision rests in the hands of Under Secretary of Education Nicholas Kent to rule on whether the ABA’s accrediting arm can retain its federally recognized status, which it has held since 1952. AI BACKLASH REACHES MAJOR UNIVERSITY WITH BOLD BAN ON LAPTOPS AND PHONES FOR LAW STUDENTS The ABA has long served as the primary gatekeeper for legal education in the United States, with most states requiring graduates to have attended an ABA-accredited law school to qualify for the bar exam. Although losing federal recognition would not automatically end that arrangement, critics argue it could accelerate efforts already underway in some states to recognize alternative law school approval systems, potentially allowing institutions to experiment with cheaper, shorter programs outside the ABA’s traditional accreditation model. One such alternative is taking shape in Texas, where Biggs is helping develop a new law school at the University of Austin (UATX) that would operate without ABA accreditation. The university is considering a two-year law program or a model that combines undergraduate and legal studies. It plans to make tuition free and avoid federal funding altogether. The proposed school could also depart from traditional law school staffing models by relying more heavily on practicing attorneys and federal judges as adjunct instructors, rather than maintaining the extensive full-time faculty structure that Biggs says ABA accreditation standards require and that can pose a high bar for institutions. Biggs argued that the ABA’s longstanding influence over legal education has discouraged such experimentation by imposing what he described as a “one size fits all elitist model of education,” which he said drives up costs and limits schools’ ability to offer alternative approaches to training future lawyers. DUKE LAW’S ALLEGED RACE-BASED ADMISSIONS ACCUSED OF DEFYING SUPREME COURT RULING: DOJ “Right now, the model they force makes it impossible to cut overhead, and it’s going to be an expensive product,” Biggs said, criticizing the ABA’s accreditation requirements. “That makes the decision for you. Because you need to live in a big city to go work at a firm to pay off your massive amount of debt.” Biggs added that reducing the cost of legal education could help address attorney shortages in rural and underserved communities, where graduates carrying substantial student debt may struggle to pursue lower-paying legal work. Allowing law schools to operate with less overhead, he said, could give new attorneys greater flexibility to serve those communities and potentially make legal services more affordable. The ABA faculty requirements criticized by Biggs are also facing scrutiny from the Justice Department, which has threatened an antitrust investigation over restrictions on adjunct professors teaching core law school courses. In an Oct. 7 letter, Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward gave the ABA 15 days to revise or justify its rules, arguing that the requirements restrict competition and contribute to higher tuition costs, The Wall Street Journal reported. The emergence of alternative accreditation pathways could offer aspiring lawyers new opportunities, but also introduce complications for graduates hoping to practice in states other than where they attended law school. While the federal government determines which accrediting agencies it recognizes for federal purposes, state supreme courts generally set their own bar-admission requirements. Many states currently require graduation from an ABA-accredited law school, a requirement that would not automatically disappear if the ABA loses its federal recognition. TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ACCUSES PRESTIGIOUS LAW SCHOOL OF FAVORING BLACK APPLICANTS OVER WHITE, ASIAN PEERS That means graduates of schools approved through alternative state-level processes, such as the one UATX hopes to pursue in Texas, could qualify for the bar in their home state but face additional hurdles elsewhere. Biggs predicted that as more states adopt alternative pathways, others could face pressure to reconsider their requirements. “Eventually there’s gonna be a very large group of states that are not ABA or nothing,” Biggs said, predicting that states such as New York and Illinois would eventually have to confront the issue. “They’re gonna have to come to the table and try to figure out how portability is gonna work.” Several states have already begun loosening the ABA’s longstanding hold over legal education. In January, Texas became the first state to end its exclusive reliance on ABA accreditation for bar eligibility, with the state Supreme Court assuming authority to approve qualifying law schools. Florida followed nine days later, adopting its own approach to recognizing law schools outside the traditional ABA system. The movement has since extended to other states. Ohio’s Supreme Court proposed changes in May to establish a state-run law school approval process, while courts in Tennessee, Alabama and Washington have also taken steps toward reducing
Liberal-city resident hesitates when pressed on beliefs: ‘I hadn’t really thought about socialism that way’
PORTLAND, Maine — Americans who were asked for their opinions of socialism by Fox News Digital offered sharply different interpretations of the ideology, with some embracing its promises of economic equality while others expressed strong reservations about government control over the means of production. Fox News Digital took to the streets of Maine’s largest city, a progressive bastion, to talk to residents about their definitions of socialism and how far they would be willing to go to embrace its ideals. The topic of socialism has featured prominently in campaign coverage during this midterm election cycle, as candidates backed by the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) scored high-profile victories over more centrist rivals in a slew of Democratic primaries this year. DSA’s outsized influence has been a driving force in the ballot box battle for the Democratic Party’s ideological future. LIBERAL HOTSPOT RESIDENTS CAN’T AGREE ON WHAT SOCIALISM MEANS A new Fox News national poll indicates 32% of voters have a favorable view of socialism, with 64% seeing it in an unfavorable way. But the favorable rating matches an all-time high, first reached five years ago, since Fox News first began asking the question in 2019. And a September Gallup poll found that 43% of Americans had a positive image of socialism, the highest level since the polling organization began tracking the question in 2010. Lewis, a retired Navy veteran, said socialism was a good thing because it “looks out for people’s needs…. and it’s not communism.” Socialism and communism both emphasize collective ownership of the means of production, such as factories, businesses and major industries. But socialism encompasses a range of approaches, including those that allow private enterprise, while communism traditionally envisions the abolition of private ownership of productive assets and, ultimately, a classless society. CHECK OUT THE LATEST FOX NEWS NATIONAL POLL Lewis turned skeptical when Fox News Digital asked whether he would personally surrender private property to government or collective control. “I guess. I hadn’t really thought about socialism that way. I think about taking care of the needs of people, you know, things like… national health care, things like that,” he answered. “I don’t like government taking things away from you.” Nolan, who recently moved to Portland, told Fox News Digital “there’s a lot of wealth imbalance in America right now, and we could benefit from some sort of leveling system.” He said socialism exists to help “people who aren’t as, you know, benefiting in society.” Nolan added that “business owners should have their autonomy” and that “people deserve to earn their money.” “But there are a lot of really high-end… corporations that benefit so much… that really don’t need that much wealth… there’s so much exorbitant wealth at the top end that a lot of that could trickle down to people who are disadvantaged and don’t have homes,” Nolan stated. SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER Nola, another resident passing through Portland’s Monument Square, said socialism’s “a good thing. It means equity.” Asked about the takeover of businesses and means of production under socialism, Nola said she still “100%” supported socialism. “I’m the daughter of a small business owner. I’ve seen how tough it is to run a small business in this country and how easy it is for corporations to just do whatever they want,” she explained. “So if we gave actually back to small businesses and the government helped them out… and so much of the market that’s privatized actually became public, I think… with how big the U.S. has gotten, it’s only a good thing.” Ted disagreed. “Socialism overall, I think it’s a horrible idea,” he emphasized. “If we can learn from history, anything from history, we see that it’s gonna really give way too much power to the government institution. It’s gonna… make things that are harmful overall for everyone… it’s like it’s dictatorship.” Ted argued that “socialism just impoverishes. Capitalism, the free market economy is a good thing.” He added that while “some people are very wealthy and very greedy,” that overall capitalism “creates other wealth for other people.” The new Fox News poll found that 51% of voters had a favorable view of capitalism, compared with 32% who viewed socialism favorably. Another 46% had an unfavorable view of capitalism.
Michigan Democrat confirms sister-in-law’s terror watchlist lawsuit days before Obama campaign appearance
Michigan Democrat Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed acknowledged Saturday night that his sister-in-law was involved in a federal terrorist watchlist lawsuit during the Obama administration, just days before former President Barack Obama is scheduled to campaign alongside him. El-Sayed was confronted by Fox News senior correspondent Mike Tobin about court documents identifying his sister-in-law, Mariam Jukaku, as a plaintiff in a 2016 lawsuit challenging her alleged placement on the federal Terrorism Screening Database, commonly known as the terrorist watchlist. “There’s reporting in a lawsuit that now backs it up. And documentation with the lawsuit that Mariam Jukaku, who’s your sister-in-law, that she was on the terrorist watch list?” Tobin asked. “Yeah,” El-Sayed responded. MICHIGAN SENATE DEBATE ERUPTS INTO PERSONAL ATTACKS AS ROGERS, EL-SAYED CLASH OVER ISRAEL, IRAN AND MORE El-Sayed then defended his sister-in-law, insisting she had committed no wrongdoing and turning his criticism toward Republican Senate rival Mike Rogers. “She did nothing wrong and was captured on that and then sued and got off,” El-Sayed said. “You’ve got this system where folks are guilty until proven innocent because they’ve got different kinds of names, because of the infrastructure that people like Mike Rogers set up.” The exchange comes as Obama prepares to campaign alongside El-Sayed in Michigan on Oct. 24, ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm election. EL-SAYED ASKED IF HE BELIEVES AMERICA IS ‘READY FOR A MUSLIM PRESIDENT’ AHEAD OF SENATE RACE According to the 2016 complaint, Jukaku underwent additional airport screening in 2012, and alleged she was never told why she had been flagged. The filing said she was believed to have been removed from the watchlist by 2016. El-Sayed said she sued and won, but a federal appeals court overturned a ruling favoring the plaintiffs in 2021. A separate lawsuit seeking damages was dismissed in 2017. Despite El-Sayed’s claim that she sued and won, a federal appeals court overturned a ruling favoring the plaintiffs in 2021, while a separate lawsuit seeking damages was dismissed in 2017. TRUMP LINKS MICHIGAN SENATE CANDIDATE ABDUL EL-SAYED TO MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD: ‘HE’S A CON MAN’ The FBI said it does not confirm or deny individuals’ watchlist status. “It is the U.S. government’s policy to neither confirm nor deny a person’s inclusion in the Terrorist Screening Dataset, commonly known as the terrorist watchlist,” the agency told Fox News. The exchange follows separate allegations about El-Sayed’s family’s purported Muslim Brotherhood connections, which his campaign called “racist and untrue.” Rogers called the allegations “disqualifying” Saturday. The watchlist lawsuit does not establish wrongdoing by Jukaku or El-Sayed.
Top takeaways from JD Vance town hall: Costly gas, DC corruption, immigration hot takes and the war
Vice President JD Vance faced questions from Michigan voters during a town hall in Flat Rock as the state emerges as a key battleground in the fight for Senate control in November’s midterms. The town hall hosted by CBS News came just weeks before the midterm elections as Republicans are fighting to keep their majorities in the House and Senate. Vying for the open Senate seat in Michigan is Democratic candidate Abdul El-Sayed and Republican candidate Mike Rogers, a former member of the House of Representatives. Here are the top moments from the town hall: The first question Vance fielded Saturday came from a 43-year-old Detroit barber, who asked him why gas prices remain significantly higher than during Trump’s first term. Vance first pointed to Iran’s attacks on commercial shipping and the resulting disruption to global energy markets, but he also placed blame on the Biden administration. “That’s actually the biggest reason why gas prices are so high, because when Joe Biden was president, we had about 20% of American refining capacity that went offline,” Vance said. Vance said the Trump administration was using the Defense Production Act to help restore domestic refining capacity, but cautioned that rebuilding that infrastructure would take time. CBS News anchor Tony Dokoupil pushed back on Vance’s attempts to blame Biden, noting that Trump and Vance have been in office for nearly two years while Americans continued to face high gas prices. MORNING GLORY: PRESIDENT TRUMP AND THE AMERICAN MILITARY HAVE BEATEN IRAN Dokoupil shifted the conversation to government corruption, citing a Fox News poll showing that 60% of voters were extremely concerned about the issue. He asked Vance whether anything he had witnessed inside the Trump White House made him feel “squeamish.” “You certainly see evidence of corruption in Washington, D.C. Do I see evidence of corruption from the president of the United States, from the administration? No, Tony, I just don’t,” Vance said. The exchange came days after Kimberly Guilfoyle resigned as U.S. ambassador to Greece amid allegations that she sought $100,000 from a donor seeking access to Trump administration officials. Guilfoyle has denied wrongdoing. Dokoupil pressed Vance on the allegations involving Guilfoyle, along with concerns about restrictions on IRS scrutiny of Trump’s tax returns and the president’s cryptocurrency earnings. Vance said selling access to the White House would be “disgusting and despicable” and that anyone responsible should face consequences. Dokoupil then asked whether Vance would comply with subpoenas investigating alleged corruption if Democrats took control of Congress in January. “Of course, of course I will,” Vance said. “Look, we follow the law. I follow the law.” KIMBERLY GUILFOYLE FACES POTENTIAL SENATE PROBE OVER BOMBSHELL $100K ALLEGATION Vance was confronted over his immigration rhetoric by a naturalized U.S. citizen who said she voted for the vice president but questioned why the administration was “scapegoating immigrants.” The voter, who immigrated to the United States 20 years ago, challenged Vance over his characterization of certain H-1B visa workers as “foreign indentured servants.” “To the extent that my rhetoric has been imperfect here, that’s on me,” Vance said. But Vance defended his remarks, arguing that his criticism was aimed at companies exploiting foreign workers rather than immigrants themselves. He said the H-1B visa system gives employers too much power over foreign workers whose ability to remain in the country depends on their employment, while also allowing companies to replace American workers with visa holders. “That’s not a criticism of the H-1B visa holder. That’s a criticism of a company who brings a person in, who sometimes will literally lay off an American worker,” Vance said. Dokoupil pressed Vance on whether his rhetoric and that of the Trump administration dehumanized immigrants. “My goal here is not to dehumanize any immigrant. And in fact, I love a number of immigrants,” Vance said. But Vance argued that allowing too many immigrants into the country too quickly could undermine social cohesion and fundamentally change American communities. “I have neighbors, I have friends of mine who literally don’t know a single person in their neighborhood who speaks the language they do,” Vance said. “I don’t think it’s unreasonable for an American citizen to want to share their community with people they have something in common with.” Though the town hall was pre-recorded, Vance took to X shortly after it aired to share footage from showing a burning building in France amid mass riots. He said what’s unfolding in France is a cautionary tale for the United States. “Western liberals imported the third world into France and other countries in the name of diversity and compassion. They ignored fundamental questions of assimilation and compatibility,” Vance posted on X. “They were told it would lead to this and they didn’t listen. I pray that France, a beautiful country of amazing people, will stop this madness before more of its landmarks burn,” Vance continued. Dokoupil pressed Vance on why the war with Iran had dragged on longer than the Trump administration anticipated, asking the vice president, “Why haven’t we won decisively?” Vance argued that the U.S. had “in some ways” already won the war, claiming that American military strikes had successfully destroyed Iran’s nuclear program, which he described as the central reason Trump launched the operation. “Have we destroyed the Iranian nuclear program? The answer is yes,” Vance said. But Vance said the administration was still working to secure a “long-term” and “verifiable” commitment from Iran that it would not rebuild its nuclear capabilities, while also preventing Tehran from disrupting global energy supplies. Vance said the Iranians responded by terrorizing commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, disrupting global oil supplies and driving up gas prices. He claimed gas prices would be “three times as high” if it weren’t for the U.S. Navy protecting commercial shipping through the waterway. VANCE TAKES AIM AT SOFT-ON-CRIME DEMS AS GOP FACES UPHILL MIDTERM BATTLE: ‘LOST THEIR MINDS’ Vance was also urged by a Michigan voter to condemn antisemitism within his own political base, including rhetoric from
‘No Kings’ protesters spurn organizers’ rules: ‘This is as partisan as you can get’
ALEXANDRIA, Va. — On South Washington Street, 26-year-old environmental engineer Nayely Cruz Hernandez had a straightforward message for voters as she joined a phalanx of protesters lining the street for nationwide “No Kings” protests against President Donald Trump: “Vote blue.” “We got to take the power away from Trump, from the Republicans,” Hernandez told Fox News Digital. “So we got to win the House, we got to win the Senate, not only in Virginia, but across the country.” Standing beside her boyfriend, Noah Schwarzott, 25, their 13-year-old Maltese-poodle, Maybellene, in her arms, Hernandez acknowledged that national No Kings organizers had their own rules for the protests to be “nonpartisan,” but she wasn’t following orders. ‘NO KINGS’ FOOT SOLDIERS IGNORE ORGANIZERS’ WARNING, GO ALL IN FOR DEMOCRATS “The No King … organizers can say whatever,” she said. “But I’m saying vote blue, because why are we here? Who’s in the House? Who’s in the Senate? Who is the President? It’s red, it’s Republicans, and it’s Trump.” A Fox News Digital investigation documented about 300 organizations with $2.5 billion in combined annual revenues behind the “No Kings” protest network, including Democratic-aligned advocacy groups, major labor unions and nonprofits including MoveOn, the American Federation of Teachers and the ACLU. Cruz Hernandez ended by introducing Maybellene and declaring that the dog was “telling you to vote for Don Beyer,” a Democratic member of Congress who represents Alexandria, Arlington and other Northern Virginia communities. The national organizers’ position is that the Oct. 17 events must be “nonpartisan.” That’s to comply with the federal laws that regulate the nonprofits that fund the No Kings protests. PARTY POOPERS’ FIGHT CARD: JANE FONDA, ‘NO KINGS,’ COMMUNISTS ROLL OUT RIVAL SPECTACLE TO TRUMP’S 250TH Her comments directly contradicted the written instructions of the national “No Kings” organization and its leaders at the Indivisible nonprofit, prohibiting calls to “vote Blue,” elect Democrats or endorse candidates and target individuals. Nearby, a man held a sign by a far-left group called “Refuse Fascism” with another message defying the organizers’ guidance: “TRUMP MUST GO NOW!” Another man held an inflatable balloon mocking Trump as a baby in a diaper. Another sign said “86 47,” the controversial message former FBI Director James Comey posted on social media and which federal prosecutors deemed an overt threat against Trump. As the young couple cheered honking cars, Eunic Epstein-Ortiz, national spokesperson for No Kings, called Fox News Digital to insist “No Kings” is a “nonpartisan, peaceful movement that has brought millions of Americans together to stand up for democracy, defend our freedoms, and reject authoritarianism.” DAVID MARCUS: AS DEMOCRATS PROTEST IN DALLAS, CONSERVATIVES ARE QUIET AND CAUTIOUS Told that a Fox News DIgital investigation found “No Kings” events from Maine to Oregon were clearly partisan, Epstein-Ortiz said, “We are aware of partisan events circulating online that are not affiliated with or officially organized by No Kings. Many people utilize the No Kings name as a rallying cry.” But, in this case, the protest on South Washington Street was an official “No Kings” event, advertised on the organizers’ official website. Among the demonstrators, one woman beamed while waving a sign that was explicit about the protest’s agenda: “THE USA Needs a Big Beautiful BLUE WAVE.” But hours after the Alexandria demonstration, Fox News Digital encountered another protester marching on H Street NW by the White House who openly rejected the nonpartisan description. She marched at an official “No Kings” event. Nadine Seiler, a self-described “professional protester” recently mentioned by Trump, was asked whether she agreed with organizers’ insistence that the demonstration was nonpartisan. “No, no, the people who agree with Trump are not out here,” Seiler responded from behind an inflatable costume. “So it’s never gonna be non-partisan if it’s a resistance to the fascist regime.” “They can pretend, but it’s not,” she added. Asked directly whether the event was partisan, Seiler answered: “Yes, this is a partisan protest.” She explained that participants were resisting what she described as illegal policies of the Trump administration. “Yeah, so this is as partisan as you can get,” she concluded. The exchanges offer a ground-level perspective on the political character of a movement whose organizers have gone to considerable lengths to insist its voter-mobilization activities are “nonpartisan.” FIRST ON FOX: ‘NO KINGS’ PROTEST NETWORK BEHIND FIGHT AGAINST AI DATA CENTERS AND FLOCK CAMERAS “No Kings” has distributed detailed election-law guidance prohibiting partisan slogans, campaign materials, candidate endorsements and coordination with political parties. Yet the movement’s own leadership has openly discussed its broader Democratic electoral objectives. During an Oct. 15 livestream, Indivisible co-founder Ezra Levin contrasted the parties’ candidates. “Our candidates are quite good all around the country. Their candidates are quite trash all over the country,” Levin said. In an Oct. 9 webinar, Levin explained how activists could criticize Trump while avoiding explicit Democratic endorsements. “Uh, you’ve got to let people connect the dots on that one,” he said. Indivisible co-founder Leah Greenberg, meanwhile, described No Kings as a “nonpartisan coalition” intended to welcome participants across the political spectrum. The distinction matters legally. Individual protesters expressing partisan opinions don’t automatically establish that event organizers violated election law. Tax-exempt charities also face restrictions different from those governing political advocacy groups. In yet another sign, a protester again targeted Trump, writing, “EVERY DAY I HATE HIM MORE THAN I DID THE DAY BEFORE.” Another sign read: “NO CROWN FOR THE CLOWN.” From northern Virginia to the White House, participants were making no effort to conceal their political preferences. For Seiler, the description was simple: “This is as partisan as you can get.” Fox News Digital’s Reagan Schroeder and Tessa Hoyos contributed to this report.
Minnesota Senate race takes bizarre turn after dark family history uncovered
A dark chapter in the family history of Minnesota Democratic Senate candidate Peggy Flanagan has made its way into the race, but it is unclear whether voters will hold the alleged sins of her long-dead grandfather against her. Earlier this week, Alpha News revealed the troubled mental health history of Flanagan’s grandfather, John Jacob Hartmann, supported by old newspaper accounts and court records. He spent decades in psychiatric custody, escaped twice and was suspected in multiple killings, though never charged. The reporting comes just weeks before the midterm elections, in which Flanagan, the state’s lieutenant governor, faces former television sports reporter Michelle Tafoya in a race to fill the seat of Democrat Tina Smith, who is retiring. Neither Flanagan nor Tafoya has commented publicly on the matter since the decades-old allegations resurfaced. But the bizarre development has generated a buzz on social media. Turning Point USA spokesman Andrew Kolvet highlighted the “violent mental illness in Minnesota Democrat Peggy Flanagan’s family,” in an X post, followed by a photo of Flanagan wearing a shirt that says “Protect trans kids.” and Dustin Grage, a columnist with Town Hall, wrote the report “adds up.” Flanagan has frequently spoken about her upbringing, including being raised by a single mother who relied on SNAP benefits and housing assistance, and the influence of her indigenous father, a tribal land rights activist who helped inspire her own advocacy for Native American communities. But a lesser-known part of her family history involves Hartmann, who made headlines in Minneapolis newspapers throughout the 1970s and early 1980s for his time in psychiatric hospitals, his escapes and allegations linking him to at least four killings, which was dredged up by Minnesota-based outlet Alpha News. WARREN’S ANCESTRY SAGA ROARS BACK AFTER DEM ALLY TOUTS NATIVE SENATE FIRST: ‘ARROWS FIRED’ Flanagan was three years old when Hartmann died on Feb. 6, 1983. A Minnesota Star Tribune death notice listed Flanagan’s mother, Patricia Hartmann, and her three sisters — Kathleen, Mary and Margaret — as his surviving daughters. An obituary for Patricia, who died in 2022, listed her maiden name as Hartmann and identified her father as John. In an interview with Minnesota Women’s Press, Flanagan said both her mother and grandmother were single mothers. She described her grandmother as having raised four daughters “at a time when that didn’t happen a lot.” Flanagan’s mother eventually married Thomas Flanagan, who is identified as Peggy Flanagan’s stepfather in his obituary. In a Feb. 9, 1983 article announcing Hartmann’s death, the newspaper now known as The Minnesota Star Tribune stated that he was committed on Nov. 1, 1951 after his wife filed a petition claiming that he was “mentally ill and dangerous.” His commitment came after the body of a man named Theodore Foth was found burning in his room, although Hartmann was never charged in Foth’s death. The paper also named Hartmann as a suspect in a 1964 murder of a fellow patient at the Minnesota Security Hospital, but he was never charged. SLEEPER GOP CANDIDATE PUTS BLUE-LEANING STATE IN PLAY AS FRAUD SCANDAL SHADOWS DEMS Hartmann was transferred to Anoka State Hospital in 1970, but escaped to New Mexico, where the newspaper reported he was suspected in the deaths of a man and woman. However, a 1973 Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling does not mention the alleged murder allegations against Hartmann. Instead, the ruling stated New Mexico authorities picked up Hartmann from a warrant issued by Minnesota Probate Judge Melvin Peterson in September 1970. The authorities found that he was living in the state “without incident and without hiding his identity following his escape in Minnesota.” A special prosecutor later released Hartmann, finding that he was “sane and safe to be at large.” Hartmann was apprehended in Colorado for a misdemeanor charge the next year and brought back to Minnesota. In April 1979, Hartmann failed to return from a visit pass at the Minnesota Security Hospital and fled to Missouri, where he allegedly threatened U.S. District Judge Miles Welton Lord during a phone call. Lord presided over Hartmann’s earlier federal challenge to his involuntary return from Colorado to Minnesota and initially dismissed claims against several Minnesota officials. Hartmann was charged by federal authorities for the alleged threat, according to a 1979 Star Tribune article. Fox News Digital reached out to Flanagan’s campaign for comment.
California diners are cutting back as costs soar — but restaurant owner reveals one trend that’s booming
Happy hour is becoming the main event for some California diners as the state’s high cost of living pushes more customers to seek out discounted meals instead of paying full price for a night out. Chef Alex Carballo of Grand Restaurant Group told Fox News Digital that happy hour once accounted for an estimated 5% to 8% of his business. Now, that figure has climbed to nearly 30%, even as customers cut back on dining out. “My happy hour has increased a lot, so I think people are looking for deals and looking for options,” Carballo said. The shift reflects a broader affordability squeeze across California where residents told Fox News Digital that rising costs for housing, groceries and gasoline are forcing them to rethink everyday spending. California has the highest overall price levels in the nation, according to 2024 data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, with prices running roughly 11% above the national average. But affordability pressures extend far beyond the Golden State, as Americans nationwide grapple with elevated costs for housing, groceries and other everyday necessities. NEWSOM UNDER FIRE AS CALIFORNIA GAS TAX HIKE SENDS PUMP PRICES EVEN HIGHER Carballo said customers are visiting his restaurants less frequently, with some scaling back how often they eat out. “They’re going out three times a week, where they were coming out to see me four or five [times]. And the people that used to see three times a week, they’re only coming out once,” he said. What was once a stop for drinks or appetizers before dinner is increasingly becoming the dinner itself, Carballo said. “Now it’s like, that’s where they’re going and they’re hitting those scenes,” he said. Customers can still enjoy the same food, service and atmosphere at lower prices, Carballo said, making happy-hour deals particularly appealing. But those discounts also create challenges for restaurant operators who are already grappling with rising expenses. “I’m still paying the same amount for food. I’m still paying the employees. My rent didn’t change. Nothing changed. Only thing I’m doing is trying to discount my product to gain people to come here,” Carballo said. AMERICANS SAY TIPPING PRACTICES ‘HAVE BECOME RIDICULOUS’ AS DIGITAL PROMPTS PUSH HIGHER GRATUITIES Fox News Digital also spoke with residents in Southern California who described making financial trade-offs that extend well beyond restaurants. Jonas, a Santa Monica resident who is planning a wedding with his fiancée, said he and his fiancée are reevaluating their budget as everyday expenses continue to add up. “Certainly gas is expensive, rent is high, and then grocery prices are pretty high as well,” Jonas said. He estimated that he spends approximately $100 a week on groceries and said rising costs are influencing their decisions about dining out and transportation. The couple is “eating out a little bit less,” Jonas said, adding that he has also started walking to work to “save money on gas as well.” “I think that people are just seeing prices go up everywhere, and feeling like they’re getting less than what they had four years ago maybe,” he said. “I think everybody’s really feeling that.” BELOVED RESTAURANT CHAIN DWINDLES FROM 850 LOCATIONS TO 87, BUT EXPERT SEES ‘A LOT OF LIFE LEFT’ For some Californians, the financial strain has gone beyond cutting back on restaurants. Justin, a California native from Glendora who moved to Las Vegas seven years ago, told Fox News Digital that the state’s high cost of living was one of the reasons he left. “Affordability is crazy,” Justin said while visiting Los Angeles for a Rams game. “I left seven years ago and I thought gas and you know rent was high then,” he said. “Here I am seven years later and it’s … one of the reasons why I’m in Vegas now. It’s just unaffordable.” Justin said many of his friends who remain in California are still struggling with housing costs. EXCLUSIVE: INSIDE LA’S HOMELESS HELLSCAPE — UNLIKELY CRITICS BLAST DEMS AS GOP HOPEFUL TOURS SKID ROW “90% of my friends are living with a roommate. It is really hard to live alone here,” he said. Housing remains another major affordability challenge in the Golden State. Just 19% of California households could afford the state’s median-priced home of $916,750 in the second quarter of 2026, according to the California Association of Realtors. In Venice, resident Tatiana described rising expenses across everything from gasoline to groceries and neighborhood restaurants. “Everything is more expensive, gas is more expensive, food,” she told Fox News Digital. “There’s really very few affordable restaurants left on Abbot Kinney. Even our local co-op prices have gone up at least 15%. Everything costs more.” “We’re not getting any breaks in California,” she said.