Should Trump build a White House ballroom? Americans weigh in
Americans remain starkly divided on whether President Donald Trump should be allowed to build a ballroom on the site of the White House’s East Wing, according to people who spoke with Fox News Digital last week. Trump has called the ballroom an improvement and a necessity for the White House, arguing it would help avoid another near-death experience for himself, the press and dignitaries after a gunman charged into the Washington Hilton during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in May. “No, definitely not,” Frank of Kansas City, Missouri, said of the ballroom project’s necessity. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENTS’ DINNER SHOOTING SHARPENS FOCUS ON TRUMP’S BALLROOM CONSTRUCTION PROPOSAL “Tearing down the East Wing without all proper authorizations was improper. The way the money is being raised is improper, so I’m ‘no’ to all of it.” Frank appeared to allude to the litigation the administration is fighting to keep its project afloat. APPEALS COURT LETS TRUMP RESUME WHITE HOUSE BALLROOM CONSTRUCTION, SEEKS LOWER COURT CLARITY Danisha from Washington, however, said she approved of the new project in her hometown. She professed to be an ardent supporter of Trump’s and said that he deserves to have a ballroom. “I think the White House definitely should use the ballroom to be beautiful and nice. Because, I think that the President should be able to have fun and invite people to the ballroom,” she said. Sherry and Bill from Knoxville sided with the president on the project: Bill called the U.S. the “greatest country in the world” and therefore a ballroom for the president is a great idea. TRUMP’S WHITE HOUSE BALLROOM CONSTRUCTION GETS ANOTHER LIFELINE FROM SCOTUS AMID HEATED LEGAL FIGHT SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER “It’s brilliant,” Sherry added. “We need it.” “Who cares who’s in the administration, Democrat or Republican? They’re gonna use the ballroom,” Bill said. Sherry noted the ballroom is privately funded, suggesting that aspect should assuage tax-sensitive critics. Meanwhile, Chuck from Washington called the ballroom a “horrible idea” at the present and in the future. “There’s so much more we have to tackle. And building a ballroom should not be a priority one or a priority two,” he said. As of Monday, the Supreme Court allowed construction to proceed as litigation makes its way through the appeals process, with plaintiffs seeking relief from the high court if it chooses to hear the full case, according to reports.
Harvard offers ‘anti-racist’ resources for parents as students head back to school
A Harvard University webpage that provides resources for parents of students at the school features “anti-racism resources,” including a list of books written by controversial authors who have espoused anti-White rhetoric and have suggested discrimination is OK as long as it’s against White people. One of the books is Ibram X. Kendi’s “How To Be An Anti-Racist”, another is the infamous “White Fragility” by Robin DiAngelo. Kendi, born Ibram Henry Rogers, is known for racially inflammatory comments targeting White people. DAVID MARCUS: TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY DUFFY IS RIGHT; HARVARD JUST AIN’T WHAT IT USED TO BE “Europeans are simply a different breed of human,” he wrote in a column in his college newspaper in 2003. “They are socialized to be aggressive people. They are taught to live by the credo, ‘survival of the fittest.’ They are raised to be racist.” In his 2019 book, Kendi explained that discrimination is fine, as long as it promotes equity. On the contrary, he said, discrimination is wrong if it promotes inequity. DISCRIMINATORY ‘SHADOW’ REVIEW PROCESS LOCKS WHITE, ASIAN STUDENTS OUT OF CALIFORNIA MED SCHOOL, DOJ ALLEGES “The only remedy to racist discrimination is antiracist discrimination,” the book says. “The only remedy to past discrimination is present discrimination. The only remedy to present discrimination is future discrimination.” Kendi also slammed “whiteness” at a film screening in November 2023. “I don’t think White people worldwide have really reckoned with how much their own personal identity is shaped by constructions of whiteness, and how much that construction of whiteness prevents White people from connecting to humanity,” he said at the event. Similarly, the resource page on Harvard’s site includes “White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism.” GEORGIA DISTRICT QUIETLY TRAINED TEACHERS TO BLAME ‘WHITENESS,’ ‘DECOLONIZE’ UNDER FEDERAL CRACKDOWN: REPORT “White people are socialized to feel that they are inherently superior because they are white,” DiAngelo wrote in the 2018 book. “Racism is a White problem. It was created by White people,” the book says. “It is wielded by White people, it benefits White people.” She also wrote that White people are always racist. “The question is not ‘Did racism take place?’ but rather, ‘How did racism manifest in this situation?’” she wrote in the book. Other books recommended to parents include “Me and White Supremacy,” by Layla Saad, “Raising White Kids,” by Jennifer Harvey and “The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness,” by Michelle Alexander. A spokesperson for Harvard told Fox News Digital, “The site was created by staff more than five years ago and was not developed as an official Faculty of Arts and Sciences resource.” The online page is title “Anti-Racism Resources” and the list of books is included under the “Information for Parents” tab of the Harvard website. EXCLUSIVE: SPLC’S ‘FAR-LEFT’ ‘ANTI-RACISM’ CURRICULUM FOUND IN CLASSROOMS AS EARLY AS KINDERGARTEN: WATCHDOG The webpage also lists resources for teaching children as young as infants “anti-racism,” including Kendi’s “Anti-Racist Baby,” which “introduces the youngest readers and the grown-ups in their lives to the concept and power of antiracism,” according to Goodreads. “Providing the language necessary to begin critical conversations at the earliest age, ‘Antiracist Baby’ is the perfect gift for readers of all ages dedicated to forming a just society” the description continues. Harvard has faced issues of anti-White racism among its staff. Gregory Davis, the former Dunster House Allston Burr resident dean at Harvard, was fired earlier this year after a series of anti-White, anti–police social media posts were unearthed. Other posts from Davis supported rioting and looting as legitimate forms of protest. The posts in question were made between 2019 and 2024, mostly on X but also on Instagram. Davis became the dean of the dormitory in 2024. “It’s almost like whiteness is a self-destructive ideology that annihilates everyone around it. By design,” he said on X in 2019. During 2020, when tensions between police and left-wing rioters reached a fever pitch after George Floyd was killed, Davis slammed police. “You should ask your cop friends to resign since they’re racist and evil,” he said on X at the time. As rioters and looters wreaked havoc in major metropolitan areas nationwide, Davis defended the chaos. “Something to keep in mind: rioting and looting are parts of democracy just like voting and marching,” he said on X. “The people WILL be heard.” In the same year, around the time President Donald Trump tested positive for COVID-19, Davis said on X that he didn’t blame people who wished Trump ill. He followed that post with a second, captioned “But also, f— that guy,” attaching a meme that said “If he dies, he dies.”
White House highlights ‘steepest’ ever decline in US casualties from cartels amid boat strikes
Senior administration officials touted President Donald Trump’s use of military force against cartels in the Western Hemisphere during a press call on Tuesday. “So, the president directed, the Department of War executed, the first ever plan and strategy to use direct military force to defend the homeland from this threat,” one of the officials said. “The effects have been spectacular, and we’ve seen the largest and steepest reduction in U.S. casualties inflicted by the cartels in American history,” the individual added. US KILLS 4 ALLEGED DRUG SMUGGLERS ON BOAT IN CARIBBEAN, BRINGING TOTAL TO 227 IN 68 STRIKES The official also indicated that the U.S. action “has created the political space — because we are now taking the fight to the cartels — for new governments to be elected that are going to partner directly with us to fight this battle.” “And so now you see governments all across the Western Hemisphere rising up, saying that they recognize this as a military threat, and they’re gonna meet it as a military threat,” the official noted, pointing to Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, Honduras, Costa Rica and El Salvador as examples. NEWLY UNCLASSIFIED PENTAGON IMAGES SHOW SUSPECTED DRUG BOATS AS OFFICIAL ISSUES DEADLY WARNING One of the other officials noted that “U.S. Southern Command’s counter-narcotics operations have driven record reductions in illicit maritime activity,” which “includes a 65% reduction in the Western Caribbean,” a decline of 60% for the eastern Caribbean, as well as “a nearly 50%” decrease in key regions of the Eastern Pacific. With Trump as commander in chief, the U.S. military has executed dozens of deadly attacks against vessels of alleged “narco-terrorists.” The president’s policy of using lethal strikes against alleged drug traffickers has been controversial. US KILLS TWO ‘NARCO-TERRORISTS’ IN STRIKE 2 MONTHS SINCE LAST ANNOUNCED ANTI-‘NARCO-TRAFFICKING’ ATTACK An official on the call said that America’s actions in the Western Hemisphere have yielded “a huge deterrent impact on bad actors all around the world” by showing the nation’s “willingness to use lethal force to protect our core interests.”
Dem megadonor among 400 Jewish Michiganders labeled AIPAC insiders for denouncing El-Sayed’s leftist campaign
More than 400 Democratic Jewish Michiganders are backing Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers and warning that they feel “threatened and alienated” by leftist candidate Abdul El-Sayed and his political allies. Prominent Democratic donor Rob Orley, a senior advisor for O2 Investments, is among the signatories. He previously donated tens of thousands of dollars to Democratic campaigns, according to FEC campaign filings — but now he and other prominent Jewish leaders are ditching El-Sayed for Republican candidate Mike Rogers. “Many of us have been fiercely supportive of Democratic candidates and principles,” a letter signed by Orley and hundreds of others stated. “If El-Sayed were to win the general election in this important swing state, we fear the far-left and anti-Jewish elements in the Democratic Party would become dominant, including in the imminent 2028 presidential race,” the letter continues. “We cannot allow him to become the Democratic standard-bearer or Michigan’s senator.” Fox News Digital reached out to O2 Investments for comment. MICHIGAN SENATE HOPEFUL CALLS AIPAC DONATIONS ‘LEGALIZED BRIBERY,’ REMAINS SILENT ON OTHER DONATIONS The letter includes signatures from some of the most prominent members of Michigan’s Jewish community, including Robert Gordon, the former president of Temple Israel, the state’s largest Jewish congregation, which was the site of an antisemitic attack in March. Shayna Levine, the daughter of the leading rabbi at Temple Israel; David Propis, cantor of Congregation Shaarey Zedek; Laurence Deitch, who served as a University of Michigan regent; and Hannan Lis, a Weight Watchers executive, have also signed the letter declaring that they feel “threatened and alienated by the politics and allies embraced by Abdul El-Sayed.” But former Rep. Andy Levin, who is Jewish, is claiming that opposition to El-Sayed among Jewish Democrats is a minority view and that his old foe, the American Israel Political Action Committee, is really driving the letter. Levin lost his 2022 primary bid to Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., after AIPAC spent more than $4 million in the primary race against him. “It’s not a surprise to me,” Levin said in an interview with Fox News Digital. “The people I know associated with it are all long-time AIPAC insiders and supporters.” Levin added that AIPAC “represents a distinctly minority position about Israel and Palestine within the Jewish community.” Levin, who was first elected to Congress in 2018 to replace his late father Sander Levin, gave his endorsement to El-Sayed in November 2025. “I am overwhelmed like literally every day except Shabbat — our sabbath on Saturday — with the incoming I get from Jewish people, young people, middle-aged people, older people, who are so mad about an effort like this and who want to do everything they can to make sure Abdul El-Sayed wins the election on November 3rd, that this U.S. Senate seat stays democratic, and that we do everything we can to save and expand our democracy,” Levin continued. However, attorney Daniel Cherrin, who signed the letter, told Fox News Digital that he has not attended an AIPAC event since college more than 30 years ago. Cherrin said he has tremendous respect for Levin, whom he has known for years, and previously worked with Abdul El-Sayed in Detroit and Wayne County. Although he considers El-Sayed a “good” person, Cherrin said he cannot overlook the movement backing his candidacy. “I am very concerned about the movement that is behind Abdul, and for the safety of my community, I don’t feel safe in that environment with the people that are standing in support of him,” Cherrin told Fox News Digital. DEMOCRATS’ CIVIL WAR HEADS TO MICHIGAN WHERE PROGRESSIVES FACE BIGGEST TEST YET IN HIGH-STAKES SENATE SHOWDOWN “They don’t understand the impact that their words and their actions is having on me and my children and my neighbors,” Cherrin said. “And so, for that, I am very worried about should he be elected what that means for all those that are trying to advance his candidacy.” Hasan Piker, a Twitch streamer who has called Orthodox Jews inbreds and said America deserved 9/11, has been a top surrogate for El-Sayed’s campaign. Over the past week, El-Sayed has attempted to distance himself from the social media influencer, suggesting that people focusing on his affiliation with Piker are “missing the boat.” Levin, who has condemned Piker’s antisemitic falsehoods about the Oct. 7 attack, agreed with El-Sayed that too much focus is on Piker. He then argued that the Democratic National Committee received very little pushback for inviting Piker to stream during the 2024 Democratic National Convention, giving then-Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris an opportunity to reach Piker’s audience. Piker did not endorse Harris because of the Biden administration’s policy in the Gaza war. “So I’m not accepting Hasan Piker, but look in the mirror, sister,” Levin said. “When it’s a guy named Abdul with a guy named Hasan, you’re blowing up about it and covering it massively. When it was not an Arab American or a Muslim who campaigned with him or did whatever Kamala Harris did, literally no one asked her a single question about it.” Last month, El-Sayed said he had “no plans” to continue campaigning with Piker. Roslyn Schindler attends Congregation T’chiyah, which is a progressive Reform synagogue that touts its support for Black Lives Matter, and transgender rights, with Levin. A daughter of Holocaust survivors, Schindler has lived in the metro Detroit area for 50 years and taught Holocaust studies at Wayne State University. She shared with Fox News Digital that she has supported El-Sayed well before his primary victory, and that the Democratic Party is in need of a “major shake-up,” citing El-Sayed’s support for progressive policies like Medicare for All and getting money out of politics. “I am certainly not an anti-Zionist, as many Jews who don’t support Abdul think we are, but I am a committed Jew,” Schindler told Fox News Digital. “I’m a committed Democrat. I believe that the Democratic Party should be a large tent, so to speak, that includes all members of that party,
Talarico’s ‘proud capitalist’ about-face collides with resurfaced call to ‘dismantle’ capitalism
The James Talarico campaign says the Democratic Senate nominee in Texas is a “proud capitalist,” even though he once described capitalism as an “oppressive system” that needed to be dismantled — and predicted that Texas’ fossil fuel industry was “not gonna last.” The remarks, made during a resurfaced 2020 Zoom call with Sierra Club activists, are drawing fresh scrutiny as Talarico faces Republican nominee and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in a Senate race that could help determine control of the chamber. The comments were first reported by CNN early Tuesday and were seized on by Lone Star Liberty PAC, an outside political group aligned with Paxton, and Senate Leadership Fund, a leading super PAC backing Senate Republicans. THESE 12 MIDTERM RACES WILL DECIDE WHICH PARTY CONTROLS THE SENATE On the call, Talarico is heard saying that the U.S. was facing a “multi-faceted threat” of a climate, economic and social crisis. After an activist asked how to address the harm suffered by communities of color by climate change, Talarico responded, “I’m so thankful that you asked this question and also thankful that young activists have really drawn the link between climate change and White supremacy and capitalism in our country.” “I think only understanding the ways that all three of those oppressive systems work together are we going to be able to begin the process of dismantling them.” DEMOCRACY ’26: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB Talarico, during the same forum, forecast that Texas’ fossil fuel industry wouldn’t last. “We all know that Texas has been a leader in oil and gas, but in many ways that’s like being the leader in cassette tapes in the 1980s. That industry is not gonna last,” Talarico said. Asked for comment, Talarico campaign spokesperson J.T. Ennis told Fox News Digital, “James is a proud capitalist and agrees with the majority of Texans that racism, natural disasters, and a billionaire-controlled economy are all problems we need to address.” “James has already said he missed the mark on some of his past statements, while Ken Paxton has refused to address his comments that the school shooting in Uvalde was ‘God’s plan’ and that Texas’ abortion ban is good for interstate commerce,” Ennis added. The Talarico campaign also spotlighted that the state lawmaker had “taken many votes” in support of the oil industry. And the campaign website states that he aims to make sure that Texas “not only maintains, but extends” its energy dominance. WHAT THE LATEST FOX NEWS POWER RANKINGS IN THE MIDTERM RACES SHOW The Paxton campaign and Republicans have repeatedly targeted Talarico for past comments he’s made on social issues, including his prior suggestion that “God is nonbinary,” that he “hates Christianity,” and that “there are many more than two biological sexes; in fact, there are six.“ Talarico, a 37-year-old former middle school teacher and Presbyterian seminarian, defeated progressive firebrand and vocal critic of President Donald Trump Rep. Jasmine Crockett in the March Democratic Senate primary. SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER Paxton, a longtime Trump ally, captured the GOP nomination in late May, after defeating longtime Republican Sen. John Cornyn in a primary runoff election. The combustible clash between the two Texas titans shaped up as a fight between the Republican establishment and Trump’s MAGA and America First supporters. Trump stayed neutral in the intra-party battle until giving Paxton an 11th-hour endorsement. The general election face-off in deep-red Texas between Talarico and Paxton is one of roughly a dozen races that will likely decide if Republicans hold the Senate majority or if Democrats win back control of the chamber. Democrats haven’t won a Senate election in Texas in nearly four decades, but they view Paxton as vulnerable because of the slew of scandals and legal problems that have battered him over the past decade. And Paxton is dealing with a messy divorce, with his wife citing “biblical grounds” based on “recent discoveries” in filing last year to end their marriage. Talarico enjoys a large fundraising advantage over Paxton. Meanwhile, the most recent Fox News poll in the Texas Senate showdown, conducted in late July, indicated Talarico holding a slight 51%-48% edge over Paxton among registered voters. The survey suggested that Paxton had yet to fully unite Republicans. While virtually all Democrats supported Talarico (98%), slightly fewer Republicans were unified behind Paxton (89%). Meanwhile, the most recent Fox News Power Rankings, released last month, shifted the Senate race in Texas from Lean Republican to toss-up.
Canadian PM tells Trump to ‘stop trying to be tough’ in trade fight
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Monday that Americans need to “stop trying to be tough” during the countries’ contentious trade negotiations. Speaking to reporters in Ottawa about U.S.-Canadian trade negotiations over automobile tariffs, Carney said, “When the Americans stop doing memes, stop throwing shade, stop trying to be tough and start being serious about having those discussions, we can have those discussions.” “Look, it’s not constructive, but that’s their democracy,” Carney added. TRUMP TAUNTS CANADA ON RENAMING LAKE ONTARIO THE ‘LAKE AMERICA’ AMID RISING BORDER TRADE RIFT After Canada suspended trade talks on Aug. 21, Trump signed an executive order changing the name of Lake Ontario, which is bordered by New York and Canada’s Ontario province, to Lake America. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and War Secretary Pete Hegseth also mocked Canada in social media posts, with Bessent writing that Canada could not go “tit-for-tat” with America’s economy and Hegseth posting a photo of two female Canadian military members with the caption “this is real.” When asked to comment on U.S. Cabinet secretaries mocking the Canadian military, Carney responded, “It’s beneath their office.” Carney cited both the U.S. posture and its terms in negotiations and barriers to reaching a deal. TRUMP TRADE CHIEF WARNS CANADA WALKED AWAY FROM ‘THE BEST DEAL’ TO TRIGGER 50% U.S. TARIFFS “The issues with respect to language and culture — enough to not have to deal. The issues Mr. Gray just asked about, with respect to restrictions on future trade deals, restrictions on our sovereignty — enough not to have a deal. Issues with respect to locking in an uncompetitive, trade arrangement in our key industries, automobiles being one of them — enough to not have a trade deal,” he continued. “And then the general attitude, and I’ll leave you with this, which I think this is a very important point, is that the attitude of the United States in these discussions and subsequently has been one that, the core Canadian industries either would be subsidiaries effectively of the United States industries or would put in place terms where those industries would be, gradually wound down in Canada and we’re not going to of course, we’re not going to accept those terms.” Trump, following Carney’s suspension of negotiations, accused Canada of wanting “the benefits of being a State, without being one!!!” In a post on Truth Social, Trump also said Canada has been taking advantage of the U.S. by charging U.S. farmers tariffs. TRUMP MUST CLOSE THE BACK DOOR CHINA USES TO EXPLOIT NORTH AMERICAN TRADE Carney, for his part, said America’s insistence that it have a say over who else Canada trades with was a bridge too far. He also said the U.S. view of the trade relationship was “misguided,” adding that on automobiles, the U.S. needs both Canada and Mexico. FEARS OF A CANADIAN TRADE WAR ARE OVERBLOWN. SO FAR, IT’S MORE OF A SKIRMISH “The United States auto industry is made stronger by the Canadian and the Mexican auto industries. And at a time of big, big change in auto, it’s important that we work together. That’s why I say yes, there is a mutually beneficial deal,” he told reporters. Carney did leave the door open for further negotiations. ‘CAPTAIN CANADA’ FIREBRAND UNLOADS ON TRUMP WITH PROFANE ONE-LINER AS TRADE WAR ESCALATES “There were elements of that mutually beneficial deal that we were moving towards, which is why we were still at the table. But we never, viewed that we had that deal. And it diverged towards the end. At some point, maybe it’ll converge again,” Carney said. He told lawmakers in his country that relations with the U.S. will not “go back to normal any time soon” and said the situation is “a new normal that we have to get adjusted to.” TRUMP ALLIES PUSH TO ARM PRESIDENT WITH NEW TARIFF WEAPON TO PUNISH COUNTRIES ‘RIPPING OFF’ AMERICA Carney, matching a slate of tariffs the U.S. imposed on Canadian goods such as steel and lumber, imposed his own set of tariffs which he said will go “dollar for dollar” with America’s tariffs. The Canadian levies are set to take effect on Sept. 8. “Canada was offered the most generous trade deal of any of America’s trading partners despite being overwhelmingly reliant on access to the American economy, which is over 12-times larger than Canada’s economy. Canada rejected that deal to demand continued one-sided access to the American market with no reciprocity. President Trump was given a resounding Election Day mandate to put American workers, farmers, and businesses first, and the Administration will continue to deliver while lowering costs for everyday families,” White House Spokesman Kush Desai told Fox News Digital in a statement. Fox News Digital contacted the office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the U.S. Treasury, the Pentagon and the Canadian Prime Minister’s Office for further comment. Fox News Digital’s Michael Sinkewicz, The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
FIRST ON FOX: Trump’s 9/11 tribute to feature massive piece of Ground Zero history at White House
FIRST ON FOX: President Donald Trump will host 9/11 first responders and officials at the White House on Sept. 8, where a 21-foot steel beam recovered from the World Trade Center’s South Tower will be displayed, Fox News Digital learned. “President Trump will pay tribute to the American heroes we lost in the tragic Sept. 11 attacks, their beautiful family members and to the acts of heroism that defined that fateful day when the unbreakable spirit of the American people prevailed,” White House spokesperson Olivia Wales told Fox News Digital. The Tunnel to Towers Foundation will bring its “Steel Across America” tour to the White House on Sept. 8, where the 21-foot, 16,900-pound steel beam recovered from the World Trade Center’s South Tower will be displayed on the White House Ellipse. MASSIVE WORLD TRADE CENTER STEEL BEAM ARRIVES AT WEST POINT, UNITING 9/11 HEROES WITH GENERATION SENT TO WAR “The president will stand with first responders to renew our sacred vow that we will never forget – and that the United States of America will always defend our proud, free nation with unyielding resolve,” said Wales. Trump and Tunnel to Towers Foundation Chairman and CEO Frank Siller are expected to speak. The president will also attend a ceremony at the Pentagon while Vice President JD Vance will travel to New York City’s World Trade Center site, and other administration officials will represent the White House in Shanksville, Pennsylvania — marking all three locations targeted or affected by the attacks. RETIRED PORT AUTHORITY OFFICERS TELL MAMDANI, HOCHUL TO STAY AWAY FROM GROUND ZERO ON 9/11 Last year, Trump and first lady Melania Trump attended a 9/11 commemoration at the Pentagon and issued a Patriot Day proclamation calling for flags to be flown at half-staff. He later attended a Yankees-Tigers game featuring tributes to the victims in the Bronx, New York City. The steel beam has served as a traveling memorial to the victims and first responders of 9/11, offering pop-up events across 21 states leading up to the anniversary of the tragic day. AMERICA’S HEARTLAND COMES FACE-TO-FACE WITH 9/11 HISTORY AS 25TH ANNIVERSARY NEARS “Never forgetting the sacrifice and bravery of our nation’s heroes, as well as our lost loved ones, is a generational promise that every American can help keep,” Tunnel to Towers Foundation Chairman and CEO Frank Siller previously told Fox News Digital. Siller founded the organization in honor of his brother, FDNY firefighter Stephen Siller, who died responding to the attacks. Tunnel to Towers has provided mortgage-free homes to families of fallen service members and first responders while also working to combat veteran homelessness. The foundation is honoring the 343 FDNY firefighters who died on 9/11 by delivering 343 mortgage-free homes this year.
Nation’s largest teachers union under fire as controversial agenda puts century-old federal charter at risk
EXCLUSIVE — The head of an influential Senate committee is urging Congress to reconsider the charter of the nation’s largest teachers union, citing its far-left associations and allegedly irresponsible financial activity. In recent years, the National Education Association, which represents roughly 3 million educators, has come under fire for mobilizing students and teachers to support liberal activist campaigns, been criticized by its Jewish members for failing to address antisemitism, spent millions in membership dues supporting left-wing causes and partnered with organizations that portray political violence and far-left extremism favorably. Now, Sen. Bill Cassidy, the Republican chair of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, is calling on his colleagues to take a closer look at the NEA’s congressional charter. BLISTERING REPORT EXPOSES HOW NATIONAL K-12 GROUP’S DEI AGENDA IS TRICKLING DOWN TO LOCAL SCHOOLS “Children are struggling to read and to do basic math. Instead of helping students succeed, teachers’ unions are injecting a dangerous, anti-American agenda into our classrooms,” Cassidy told Fox News Digital. “Parents deserve to send their children to school without worrying that they will be indoctrinated with DEI and taught that Americans have ‘misplaced faith’ in our institutions.” Cassidy, in a report outlining the NEA’s activity obtained exclusively by Fox News Digital, puts a spotlight on the Zinn Education Project and Rethinking Schools — a pair of interlinked educational nonprofits that the top teachers union has collaborated with extensively. EXCLUSIVE: SPLC’S ‘FAR-LEFT’ ‘ANTI-RACISM’ CURRICULUM FOUND IN CLASSROOMS AS EARLY AS KINDERGARTEN: WATCHDOG The Zinn Education Project and Rethinking Schools, for instance, have published curricular materials that justify the actions of the Black Panther Party — a left-wing militant Black nationalist organization that operated during the Cold War — and praise its members, including those who were involved in acts of political violence, according to the report. “The Marxist and communist ideologies espoused by the Black Panther Party are inconsistent and incompatible with the foundation of the United States Constitution,” Cassidy’s report, published by the HELP committee, reads. “The Black Panthers advocated for the use of armed force against police and were involved in the murders of civil servants and members of their own party.” SCOPE OF SPLC’S DEEPLY EMBEDDED INFLUENCE TRAINING TEACHERS NATIONWIDE UNCOVERED IN SWEEPING REPORT Rethinking Schools also published a lesson plan where students are meant to role-play as “queer liberation” activists fighting against the “Religious Right,” according to the report. Another lesson plan, titled “Expanding Intersectional Queer History in the Elementary Grades,” instructs teachers on how to incorporate LGBTQ material into lessons for young students. The union has worked closely with the duo of nonprofits over the years, giving them prominent space and speaking opportunities at conferences, collaborating with them on curriculum development and nationwide teaching events, and praising and promoting their lessons. The union has also incorporated the groups’ work into educator handbooks and helped distribute their lesson plans to teachers. HOUSE GOP LAUNCHES PROBE INTO 5 MAJOR LABOR UNIONS OVER DEM SPENDING DESPITE MAGA MEMBERSHIP BASE Congress chartered the NEA in 1906 under the expectation that it would “elevate the character and advance the interests of the profession of teaching; and to promote the cause of education in the United States,” a mission Cassidy and some other Republicans argue it has since strayed from. Revoking the NEA’s charter would primarily be a reputational blow to the union, as it would still be able to operate even without it. As another example of the NEA allegedly failing to live up to its charter, the HELP committee points to its involvement in the left-wing protest movements. MAY DAY PROTESTS ‘JUST THE BEGINNING’ OF STUDENT ACTIVISM PUSH, EXPERT WARNS The labor union promoted and participated in the 2026 May Day protests, which were critical of President Donald Trump and his Republican allies. In one planning webinar the NEA hosted in the lead-up to the demonstrations, educators were advised to “bring activism into the classroom,” targeting children as young as three years old. Students in Chicago were reportedly encouraged by teachers to skip class for the protests, even as Chicago Public Schools see subpar reading and math competency scores. On the financial side of things, Cassidy points to data showing that, since 2015, the NEA has contributed hundreds of millions of dollars to advocacy organizations and political action committees, the vast majority of which are left-of-center. In some cases, political organizations funded by the NEA later provided members of the union’s leadership team with cushy jobs, according to the report. FAR-LEFT ACTIVIST CONFERENCE AT TEACHERS UNION HQ RAISES CLASSROOM CONCERNS “The central issue is not whether every such expenditure is impermissible. Rather, it is whether members receive sufficient transparency about how their dues are used, whether union leadership has adopted adequate safeguards against conflicts of interest and whether these expenditures advance the purposes for which members joined the union in the first place,” the Senate committee report reads. Organizations funded by the NEA include the Sixteen Thirty Fund and the Tides Foundation, two of the largest Democratic-aligned dark money operations in the country, as well as millions to its own PAC, which almost exclusively supports Democratic candidates. JEWISH EDUCATORS FACE RAMPANT ANTISEMITISM IN TEACHERS UNIONS, NEW REPORT FINDS The HELP committee report also alleges that the NEA has failed to represent the interests of Jewish educators, citing an August 2025 letter where the union’s Jewish Affairs Caucus claimed its members reported “shunning, harassment and antisemitic comments” at the union’s annual assembly. While not congressionally chartered like the NEA, the American Federation of Teachers drew flak from Cassidy’s report for many of the same reasons. The report cites the AFT’s participation in “No Kings” protests against President Donald Trump, its boycott of Target over immigration enforcement and its advocacy on LGBTQ+ issues, as well as its routing of tens of millions of dollars to liberal causes, as evidence of alleged mission drift at the union. The NEA, AFT, Rethinking Schools and the Zinn Education Project did not respond to requests for comment when
DeSantis endorses Florida GOP slate including Byron Donalds in governor’s race
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis endorsed a “slate” of Republicans statewide Tuesday, including GOP gubernatorial nominee U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds. “I’m endorsing the slate here tonight … because I know it’s important for the state of Florida,” DeSantis said at the Florida GOP Leadership Forum in Tampa. The event showcased Donalds, Attorney General James Uthmeier, Florida Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia and Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson. Last year, DeSantis appointed Ingoglia as CFO and Uthmeier as attorney general. Later in 2025, the governor endorsed Ingoglia for election to the CFO post. He then backed Simpson for re-election this year. TRUMP’S HANDPICKED DESANTIS SUCCESSOR WINS CROWDED GOP PRIMARY FOR FLORIDA GOVERNOR “Tonight I was honored to earn Governor @RonDeSantis’s endorsement,” Donalds wrote in a post on X. “Governor DeSantis has done incredible work to make Florida the envy of America. As your next Governor, I will build on his success and defend the Florida Dream,” he said. FORMER FLORIDA GOVERNOR HOPEFUL HAULED OUT OF COUNTY MEETING AFTER PROTESTING ISRAEL INVESTMENTS Donalds, who won the Florida GOP gubernatorial primary in August with the backing of President Donald Trump, will face Democratic gubernatorial candidate former U.S. Rep. David Jolly in the general election. While he is currently running for governor as a Democrat, Jolly previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives as a Republican. BYRON DONALDS SHUTS DOWN BILL MAHER’S CLAIM ON GOP PRIMARY RACISM, SAYS ‘FLORIDA IS A MERITOCRACY’ Under the Florida Constitution, DeSantis, who is serving his second consecutive term, is not eligible to seek another consecutive term as governor this year. “No person who has, or but for resignation would have, served as governor or acting governor for more than six years in two consecutive terms shall be elected governor for the succeeding term,” the Florida Constitution states.
Texas Dem candidate to hold high-dollar Hollywood fundraiser while GOP gathers in Dallas: ‘Fake cowboy’
Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico is set to travel to Los Angeles in September for a high-dollar fundraiser with Hollywood celebrities, according to a report. Politico reported that “Lost” co-creator Damon Lindelof and his wife, Heidi, will host a fundraiser for Talarico in Brentwood on Sept. 10. Tickets for the event start at $500 and go as high as $13,500, according to the outlet. This will be Talarico’s second Hollywood fundraiser in a few months. The first was held in June and was described by Page Six Hollywood as a “glitzy Dem fundraiser” at the home of Hollywood producer Peter Chernin. Fox News Digital reached out to the Lindelofs and Chernin for comment. Meanwhile, Talarico’s opponent, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, will gather in Dallas for the Republican National Committee’s midterm convention, along with President Donald Trump and other Republicans. The same night Republicans rally in Dallas, former President Barack Obama will headline a Democratic House fundraiser in New York, according to The New York Times. The events put prominent Democrats on the coasts while Republicans gather in Texas. Fox News Digital previously reported that donors from outside Texas accounted for roughly 50% of the funds raised by Talarico, according to first-quarter campaign finance records. TALARICO SAYS THE DIVIDE IS ‘TOP VS. BOTTOM’ — THEN HEADS TO ONE OF AMERICA’S RICHEST DONOR ENCLAVES Talarico is taking heat from Republicans for his out-of-state fundraising. RNC spokesperson Zach Kraft told Fox News Digital that “it is no surprise that James Talarico feels more comfortable in crazy liberal California than when his handlers force him to wear a fake cowboy hat and rent a pickup truck to pretend to be a ‘real’ Texan.” Fox News Digital reached out to Talarico’s campaign for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication. Talarico currently serves as a progressive Democratic lawmaker in the Texas House of Representatives. Since winning the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate, Republicans have continually knocked him for his record of controversial statements, including calling God “nonbinary,” saying that there are six sexes and saying that reducing meat consumption was “existential” to fight climate change. JAMES TALARICO DOESN’T DRIVE HIS OWN TRUCK IN VIRAL TEXAS CAMPAIGN AD FEATURING DODGE RAM Despite the attacks, Talarico and Paxton are running a tight race, and many Democrats believe this could be the year Texas finally flips blue. A Fox News poll from July gave Talarico a 3-point edge over Paxton, 51% to 48%, which was within the survey’s margin of sampling error. Paxton, meanwhile, has told Fox News Digital that Talarico’s lead is not surprising given his head start in the general election following his particularly messy primary runoff against incumbent Sen. John Cornyn. Speaking with Fox News on Sunday, Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., said that “money is an issue” in the race. FIRST ON FOX: MAJOR CORNYN BACKER GOES ALL-IN FOR PAXTON AS GOP RALLIES AFTER RED STATE SHOCK POLL “Mr. Talarico has been raising bucketloads of money from California, Hollywood,” he said. He called on Trump to help Paxton with cash, saying, “We in the Senate don’t have the money budgeted for Texas; we need help from the president.” SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER For his part, Trump has promised: “I’m going to help Ken Paxton, and I’m going to spend a lot of time in Texas.” Touting his history of winning the state three times on the presidential level, he said, “I’ll be going to Texas, and we’re working really hard. We want to win that race.” Trump called Paxton a “very good candidate,” while taking a jab at Talarico, saying, “‘Talafreako,’ they call him, because he is a little freaky.”