IL Dems decline to defend ‘no’ votes on Laken Riley Act after student’s killing tied to repeat offender
Nearly a dozen Illinois Democrats are declining to defend their votes against the Laken Riley Act after the killing of a Loyola student allegedly by an illegal immigrant who, under the law, could have been detained following a prior arrest. Sheridan Gorman, 18, was shot and killed by Jose Medina-Medina, authorities allege, who had previously been picked up for shoplifting in Cook County. That charge would have qualified him to be held for federal detention and processing instead of being released back onto the streets, where he could reoffend, under the act named for a Georgia college student slain by another illegal immigrant repeat offender. DHS Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis told Fox News Digital that Gorman’s death could have been prevented if not for sanctuary state and city policies and if a law like the Laken Riley Act had been in effect sooner. “Sheridan Gorman — just like Laken Riley and countless other American victims — would still be with us today and with their families if it were not for sanctuary politicians’ refusal to cooperate with ICE,” Bis said. CHICAGO LAWMAKER RIPPED OVER ‘DISGUSTING’ RESPONSE TO COLLEGE STUDENT KILLED BY ALLEGED ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT The Illinois delegation voted 11-5 against the Laken Riley Act, with Democratic Rep. Brad Schneider not voting due to a medical emergency but later saying he would have voted “no.” All three Republicans, along with Democratic Reps. Nikki Budzinski and Eric Sorenson, voted for the act, but 11 other Democrats opposed it, along with Schneider. “While I firmly believe that the government has a responsibility to keep our communities safe and do everything in its power to keep dangerous criminals off our streets, this bill, as written, opens the door to the targeting and detention of innocent people, something clearly prohibited by our Constitution,” Schneider said in a January 2025 statement, going on to say he would support something more along the lines of the Lankford-Sinema immigration bill opposed by President Donald Trump. Schneider said at the time the Laken Riley Act used the student’s death to “score cheap political points.” He did not respond to a request for comment Monday. Nine of the 11 Democrats who voted “no” did not respond or did not provide comment, except Reps. Jonathan Jackson of Chicago and Jan Schakowsky of Evanston. Jackson, the son of the late Rev. Jesse Jackson, told Fox News Digital that Gorman’s murder is a “senseless tragedy.” “My deepest condolences go out to her family, friends, and the entire community who are mourning this unspeakable loss. The person responsible for Sheridan’s murder must be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.” “But let’s be clear: this is about more than a single piece of legislation,” Jackson said in reference to the Laken Riley Act. DEM GOVERNOR UNDER FIRE AFTER ILLEGAL ALIEN ALLEGEDLY STABS WOMAN TO DEATH AT BUS STOP: ‘HEINOUS’ “I encourage my colleagues to prioritize bills that strengthen, not divide, our communities and policies which would build safer, thriving communities, and save lives, by investing in effective community-based violence interventions.” A Schakowsky spokesperson directed Fox News Digital to a public statement by the retiring Democrat: “There are no words for a loss like this. Sheridan Gorman was just 18 years old, with her whole life ahead of her. My heart is with her family, her friends, and every member of the Loyola community mourning this senseless tragedy,” Schakowsky said, while however offering no comment on the Laken Riley Act itself. DHS was adamant that Gorman’s death was preventable had the Laken Riley Act been made law. “These politicians would rather release criminal illegal aliens from jails into our communities to perpetuate more crimes and create more victims. Sheridan Gorman was failed by open border policies and sanctuary politicians who released this illegal alien twice before he went on to commit this heinous murder,” Bis told Fox News Digital. She called on Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Chicago leaders to stop releasing criminal illegal immigrants back on the streets and said Trump signed the Laken Riley Act to prevent cases just like Gorman’s. ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT CHARGED IN COLLEGE STUDENT’S MURDER HAULED INTO COURT IN LATEST ARREST She said 21,400 illegal immigrants have been arrested or detained thanks to the Laken Riley Act in one year since its passage. Meanwhile, nine other Illinois Democrats remained officially mum on their no votes. A representative for Rep. Danny Davis of Chicago said the congressman was on another call when a reporter followed up earlier, but Fox News Digital never received a call back. Requests for comment were sent to Reps. Delia Ramirez, Robin Kelly, Mike Quigley and Jesus Garcia of Chicago; Bill Foster of Aurora; Lauren Underwood of Naperville; Sean Casten of Downers Grove; and Raja Krishnamoorthi of Schaumburg. Sens. Richard Durbin and Tammy Duckworth also voted “no” and did not respond to requests for comment. Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga., who authored the House version of the Laken Riley Act, said in a statement that he did so to get criminals like Medina-Medina off the streets. “This young woman (Gorman) had her whole life ahead of her, and it was taken away by an illegal alien who had already been arrested in a sanctuary city,” Collins said. “If [the act] had been law in 2023, she would still be alive today.”
Jack Smith team secretly sought years of Kash Patel phone records, new docs show
Former special counsel Jack Smith sought more than two years’ worth of phone records for now-FBI Director Kash Patel while Smith was investigating President Donald Trump, according to a tranche of documents released Tuesday by Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa. Two subpoenas showed Smith’s team asked Verizon for Patel’s phone records dating from October 2020 through February 2023. Patel first announced the subpoenas’ existence in February, calling them “outrageous and deeply alarming” at the time. Patel worked in the first Trump administration from 2019 through January 2021, before becoming an outspoken pro-Trump firebrand as a private citizen, meaning the subpoenas stretched back into his time as a government official. GOP LAWMAKER ACCUSES JACK SMITH OF ‘SPYING’ ON CONGRESS AT TENSE HOUSE HEARING OVER TRUMP PROBE The subpoenas were accompanied by one-year, court-authorized gag orders, meaning Verizon was ordered by the court not to alert Patel of their existence. It is common for prosecutors to subpoena phone records, also known as toll records, as part of investigations. The records would not include contents of messages but would show with whom Patel communicated and when. Grassley released the documents ahead of a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing examining Arctic Frost, the FBI investigation that led to Smith prosecuting Trump over the 2020 election. Patel was also a known witness in a separate FBI probe into Trump’s handling of classified documents, and it is unclear which of the investigations the subpoenas pertained to. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, voiced at the start of the hearing what many Republicans have said about the Biden DOJ’s efforts to investigate Trump, noting how the expansive probes targeted hundreds of Republican individuals and entities. “If Watergate taught us anything, it is that even a single abuse of power carried out by a handful of individuals can shake the foundations of our republic,” Cruz said. “But what we confront today, the Biden administration’s Arctic Frost scheme is not a single act. It is a modern Watergate, trading a break-in at one office for a digital sweep into approximately 100,000 private communications. More than a dozen senators and thousands of individuals lives.” Smith, who became special counsel in November 2022 and resigned when Trump took office, has since appeared before Congress for public and closed-door testimony and repeatedly defended his work as by-the-book and apolitical. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., noted during the hearing that Patel testified to a grand jury as part of the classified documents investigation and that it was “obvious” why Smith was interested in Patel. “Patel made himself a fact witness in that investigation,” Whitehouse said. “He went on podcasts bragging about how he planned to post classified information online at Donald Trump’s direction, and how he’d personally witnessed Donald Trump declassify records.” The new documents released by Grassley also included briefing materials Smith’s team prepared for Attorney General Merrick Garland that noted the FBI’s investigative work was “going well,” that meetings were happening among top FBI and DOJ officials and D.C. federal judges and that Smith was relying on the Democrat-led Jan. 6 Committee’s work to help with his investigation. Fox News Digital reached out to the FBI for comment.
Trump taps Nick Adams for patriotic, pro-America special presidential envoy role
President Donald Trump tapped Nick Adams to serve as special presidential envoy for American tourism exceptionalism, and values. “Mr. President, it is the honor of a lifetime to serve as your special presidential envoy for American tourism, exceptionalism and values,” Adams declared in a video that he posted on social media. “The United States is a nation that, since its inception, was destined for greatness. And the story of American greatness is the most captivating, exciting and inspiring in the history of the world. Now the greatest president we have ever seen has bestowed upon me the duty to tell this story near and far, to reignite a love for America at home, and relight the sacred beacon atop the shining city on a hill for the entire world to see,” he said. OLYMPIC LEGEND KATIE LEDECKY SHARES WHAT SHE’S LEARNED ABOUT AMERICA In a statement to Fox News Digital on Tuesday, White House spokesman Davis Ingle said, “Nick Adams is an America First patriot who will represent our country well as we celebrate our Nation’s 250th anniversary of independence, and we look forward to working with him to further showcase and advance America’s excellence across the world stage.” Adams wrote in a post on X, “I am deeply grateful for President Trump’s continued friendship and confidence in me to serve in this critical role. I will thrust forward into this role and never relent in spreading the message of the greatness of America!” TRUMP’S IRAN STRATEGY SHOWCASES ‘DOCTRINE OF UNPREDICTABILITY’ AMID STRIKE THREATS AND SUDDEN PAUSE Adams is a naturalized U.S. citizen from Australia, according to the website nickadamsusa.com. Last year, Trump announced he would nominate Adams to serve as ambassador to Malaysia, but the nomination never ultimately came up for a vote in the Senate. TRUMP APPOINTS CHARLIE KIRK’S WIDOW ERIKA TO AIR FORCE ACADEMY BOARD OF VISITORS Back in 2020, Trump appointed Adams to serve on the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars’ board of trustees.
Trump-backed Republican battles to hold key Florida seat in president’s stomping ground
A GOP state legislative candidate in Florida is aiming to keep Republicans in control of a long-vacant state house seat in a Palm Beach-anchored district that includes Mar-a-Lago, President Donald Trump’s home turf. Republican Jon Maples is facing off in a special election in Florida’s House District 87 against Democrat Emily Gregory in the race to fill the seat left vacant last August, when GOP state Rep. Mike Caruso resigned to become Palm Beach County clerk and comptroller. The ballot box battle is one of three special legislative elections being held in GOP-dominated Florida on Tuesday. And while the contests won’t change the balance of power in the state legislature, where for more than a quarter-century Republicans have held majorities in both the House and Senate chambers, bragging rights are up for grabs in the president’s home district. Maples is backed by Trump, who moved his primary permanent residence in 2019 from Trump Tower in New York City to Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida. He is also backed by a number of top Sunshine State Republicans. HEAD HERE FOR THE LATEST FOX NEWS REPORTING FROM THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL “There is a very important Special Election tomorrow, Tuesday, March 24th, for Florida State House District 87 in beautiful Palm Beach County — JON MAPLES HAS MY COMPLETE AND TOTAL ENDORSEMENT!” the president wrote in a social media post on Monday evening. The 43-year-old Maples, a financial planner and former Lake Clarke Shores Council member who during his years at Palm Beach Atlantic University was an all-American athlete, has made cutting taxes and government spending, reducing regulations, promoting private sector job creation and advancing school choice. FOR THE LATEST RESULTS FROM FOX NEWS NATIONAL POLLS, HEAD HERE Gregory, a 40-year-old Army spouse, owns and runs a Jupiter-based fitness center for pregnant and postpartum women. The first-time candidate has made affordability, increasing public education, tackling rising property insurance and housing costs, and access to healthcare key parts of her campaign. Maples was the favorite heading into the special election, thanks to his fundraising advantage in a district that leads to the right. Trump carried the district by roughly 10 points in his 2024 re-election victory. A victory by Maples would be further evidence of the GOP surge in Palm Beach County, which was once firmly blue. In central Florida‘s Hillsborough County, Republican Josie Tomkow and Democrat Brian Nathan are facing off Tuesday in the State Senate 14 race to succeed Republican Jay Collins, who resigned from the seat in August to become the state’s lieutenant governor. The district includes much of Democrat-leaning Tampa as well as the more GOP-leaning Northwest Hillsborough suburbs. And Republican Hilary Holley and Democrat Edwin Perez are on the ballot in the special election in House District 51, in the race to replace Tomkow. The district covers parts of Polk County, in the central part of the state.
House committee launches investigation into ‘rampant’ California hospice fraud
Republicans on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform have launched an investigation into what they categorize as “rampant taxpayer fraud in California’s hospice programs.” “Recent reporting has revealed alarming evidence of fraudulent activity in California’s hospice programs, including agencies overbilling Medicare and fraudulently enrolling beneficiaries without their knowledge,” a letter to Golden State Gov. Gavin Newsom states. “The Committee is concerned your administration does not have sufficient internal controls to prevent and detect fraud and is not conducting proper oversight of these hospice programs. As a result, Americans across the country are paying for California’s rampant hospice fraud and vulnerable patients are being exploited,” the letter declares. CALIFORNIA BUILDING WITH DOZENS OF HEALTH CARE, HOSPICE PROVIDERS RAISES EYEBROWS AMID FRAUD SPECULATION The lawmakers are demanding information from Newsom. “The Committee is requesting documents and communications regarding California’s oversight and internal controls to detect and prevent fraud for its federally funded hospice programs,” the document notes. DOCTOR DENIES KNOWING ABOUT RAMPANT LA-AREA MEDICARE FRAUD USING HIS PROVIDER NUMBER The letter is signed only by Republicans. “California took decisive action on hospice fraud years ago. In 2021, Governor Gavin Newsom signed legislation placing a moratorium on new hospice licenses – a policy that remains in effect today, preventing bad actors from entering the system while strengthening oversight of existing providers,” a Newsom spokesperson said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital on Tuesday. LOS ANGELES HOSPICE FRAUD REACHES BILLIONS AS MEDICARE PROVIDERS SCAM FEDERAL SYSTEM WITH FAKE COMPANIES A statement released by the governor’s office in January says in part, “The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) facilitates a multi-department and multi-agency Hospice Fraud Task Force that includes representation from the California Health & Human Services Agency (CalHHS), Department of Health Care Services (DHCS), California Department of Social Services (DSS), and California Department of Justice’s DMFEA.” In the statement provided to Fox News Digital on Tuesday, the Newsom spokesperson pointed to the task force, declaring, “Under Governor Newsom’s leadership, California also established a multi-agency Hospice Fraud Task Force, bringing together CDPH, CalHHS, DHCS, DSS, and the Department of Justice to share intelligence, investigate wrongdoing, make arrests, and coordinate enforcement. This work is delivering results, as more than 280 hospice licenses have been revoked over the past two years and an additional 300 providers are under investigation. The state continues to take coordinated action to suspend Medi-Cal payments, revoke licenses, and pursue prosecutions.”
GOP senator launches effort to close Medicaid loophole allowing fraudsters to rake in millions
Sen. Ashley Moody, R-Fla., is introducing new legislation aimed at closing a legal loophole protecting the beneficiaries of Medicaid fraud from prosecution, Fox News Digital has learned. Moody’s STOP FRAUD in Medicaid Act is routed in her experience as Florida’s attorney general, where she was limited to prosecuting Medicaid fraud only on the provider side. The legislation would grant state attorneys general and their Medicaid Fraud Control Units to investigate and prosecute the recipients of fraudulent benefits as well. “I fought fraud as Florida’s Attorney General, recovering millions of dollars for taxpayers, and I’m fighting it now as a U.S. Senator: finding and closing gaps in our laws to increase enforcement,” Moody said in a statement to Fox News Digital on Tuesday. “The STOP FRAUD in Medicaid Act gives State AGs the authority to pursue and prosecute not just providers but recipients looking to bilk taxpayers. This will go a long way to winning our War on Fraud,” the statement continued. COMER TO SAY TIM WALZ ‘ENABLED FRAUD,’ FAILED WHISTLEBLOWERS IN BOMBSHELL MINNESOTA HEARING Moody’s office says federal prosecutors can go after fraud recipients under anti-kickback laws, but said federal groups often let the “small fish” skate by. Empowering MFCUs would go a long way toward picking up the slack, they say. The proposed law could be particularly effective in states like Minnesota, where years of apparently rampant fraud has led to a quagmire of investigations and finger-pointing. A new state audit investigating the fraud in Gov. Tim Walz’s Minnesota revealed that the state’s Department of Human Services (DHS) failed for years to properly investigate Medicaid kickback allegations. SENATE DOGE LEADER MOVES TO FORCE ‘RECEIPT’ FOR EVERY TAX DOLLAR AFTER MINNESOTA FRAUD SCANDAL Kickbacks were a key component of fraud schemes uncovered in the state’s autism services program, with prosecutors describing how providers used financial incentives to attract and retain families in order to maximize Medicaid billing, CBS News reported in December. In one case, investigators said an autism center operator fraudulently billed millions while using tactics that included offering payments or benefits tied to enrollment, illustrating how kickbacks helped drive inflated claims and contributed to large-scale misuse of public funds intended for children with autism. The audit recommended that DHS “should amend its administrative rule defining ‘fraud’ to clearly include kickbacks” and said the legislature should intervene if that doesn’t take place. In a press release, Minnesota House Fraud Prevention Committee Chair Kristin Robbins, a Republican state representative running for governor, wrote, “The continued lack of accountability for the rampant fraud in this state is astounding.” READ MOODY’S BILL – APP USERS, CLICK HERE: Fox News’ Andrew Mark Miller contributed to this report.
Reporter’s Notebook: GOP eyes DHS deal funding ICE probes, but not removals, as shutdown drags
This is cobbled together talking to senior Senate Republican sources. Senate Republicans are developing a plan to fund most aspects of DHS — leaving out controversial programs like certain ICE operations — to end the five-and-a-half week partial government shutdown. This emerged after a meeting at the White House last night. There is a lot to sort out at the GOP Conference luncheon at the Capitol today. However, Fox is told that the Senate could start to move forward on a plan to end the DHS shutdown “as early as tonight.” SCHIFF, BOOKER DEFLECT ON SHUTDOWN BLAME AMID TERROR CONCERNS, THOUSANDS OF DHS WORKERS WITHOUT PAY The new plan would fund ICE investigations — like cartels, traffickers and child predators. But they will leave unfunded programs for “enforcement and removal.” Ironically, this idea would mirror what Democrats have tried to do on multiple occasions. Democrats have asked unanimous consent on the floor to pass bills to fund DHS — sans ICE. So, Republicans have come around to the position that this is the only way out of this cul-de-sac — even if it reflects the Democratic position. Still, Republicans contend they are “calling the Democrats bluff.” “We’re going to have to move forward and give them what they want,” said one Senate Republican source, referring to the Democrats. THUNE REVEALS REASON DEMOCRATS ARE ‘SCARED’ TO REOPEN DHS But the question is whether Democrats will balk — especially since this was their idea. Regardless, this approach would still need Democratic buy-in and need 60 votes to clear a filibuster. Fox is told that this is NOT pre-baked with House Republicans. The House and Senate would have to sync up to end the shutdown. Lawmakers on both sides are increasingly freaked out about the possibility of a terrorist attack — to say nothing of watching lengthy lines at airports. Now the question is what Republicans can do with the SAVE America Act. SEN KENNEDY SAYS HE WOULD ACCEPT DEMOCRATS’ OFFER TO ‘OPEN UP EVERYTHING’ BUT ICE Fox is told that Republicans hope to extract a promise from Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, to come off the SAVE America Act — and resume that debate after the Easter/Passover recess. But that bill lacks the votes to pass. In addition, Republicans are looking at stuffing some provisions from the SAVE America Act into a budget reconciliation package. By nature, a reconciliation package is NOT subject to a filibuster and only needs a simple majority to pass. However, reconciliation requires bills be fiscal in nature and deal with numbers, not policy. It is possible Republicans could fund the enforcement and removal programs at ICE under budget reconciliation. But portions of the SAVE America Act are dicey. Fox is told that Republicans could try to focus on the “money” aspects of the SAVE America Act — such as withholding dollars from states which don’t require photo ID, et al. But getting those provisions past the Senate umpire, Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough, is challenging. MacDonough could rule out of order policy provisions pertaining to the SAVE America Act in a reconciliation measure.
Minnesota millionaire who qualified for food stamps warns of ‘fraud by design’ loophole ahead of hearing
Ahead of a Tuesday hearing where Minnesota lawmakers will discuss food stamp fraud, Fox News Digital spoke to a millionaire who says he was able to qualify for food stamps through a loophole — one that he hopes will soon be closed as the state grapples with a massive fraud scandal. Rob Undersander, a retired engineer who volunteers to help seniors navigate the government benefits system, said he learned during training that eligibility for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in Minnesota was based on income only, not assets. Because his retirement income was low, he realized he could qualify even though he had significant savings and property. To test the system, Undersander applied for benefits in Stearns County in 2016 and was approved within weeks. He later said he collected thousands of dollars in SNAP benefits over more than a year, which he donated to charity, in an effort to draw attention to the issue. “I strongly support SNAP benefits for truly needy individuals, but when we have nearly one in seven Americans receiving food support in the wealthiest nation on earth, with historically low unemployment rate, something is wrong,” Undersander told Fox News Digital. “One might call the current eligibility rules fraud by design. And given the current climate of fraud and abuse of taxpayer-funded benefits in Minnesota, I’m hoping that there will be a new bipartisan effort to reduce and eliminate both.” BROOKE ROLLINS, ROBERT KENNEDY JR: WE’RE BRINGING FAMILIES MORE HEALTHY FOODS IN A SNAP As Minnesota continues to deal with an exploding fraud scandal that could reach into the tens of billions of dollars, Undersander will testify in front of the Minnesota House Public Safety Committee on Tuesday in a hearing on a SNAP reform bill introduced by GOP state Rep. Pam Altendorf. The bill would tighten eligibility rules for food stamp benefits by requiring stricter income and asset verification before recipients can enroll in SNAP. Over the 10 years since he first exposed the flaw in the SNAP system, Undersander has become a vocal advocate of making changes, even testifying before Congress, but says nothing has been done by the elected officials. “I have purchased lobster and filet mignon on my EBT card,” Undersander said. “Isn’t that crazy?” “During former President Joe Biden’s administration, federal spending on SNAP climbed to record highs at $128 billion in 2021 and $127 billion in 2022, largely driven by COVID-19 relief measures that expanded access to food assistance,” FOX Business reported in November. WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT NEW STATE LAWS IN 2026 ON WAGES, SNAP BENEFITS AND CLIMATE TAX Last year, SNAP cost $99.8 billion, with participants receiving an average of $187 in monthly benefits, federal data show. In a November press release, Altendorf’s office reported that Minnesota distributed nearly $725 million in benefits in 2020, but that total jumped to nearly $2 billion in 2021, marking a 174% increase in just one year. “SNAP is meant to help needy Minnesotans put food on the table, not to subsidize people who already have significant financial resources,” America First Policy Institute Health & Harvest Campaign Director Matt Schmid, who is also testifying on Tuesday, told Fox News Digital. “It’s unacceptable that under Minnesota’s current system, even millionaires and lottery winners can qualify for taxpayer-funded benefits. That is a fundamentally broken system.” AFPI experts argue that states can reform the SNAP program and limit budget impacts by improving oversight and closing key loopholes. They note that the One Big Beautiful Bill Act requires states to manage the program more effectively or take on more of the cost burden, putting states like Minnesota at risk due to high error rates. They also emphasize that certain loopholes make SNAP harder to administer and contribute to payment errors, and that eliminating broad-based categorical eligibility would strengthen income and asset verification. “Reintroducing basic guardrails like an asset test is a common-sense step to restore integrity, ensure benefits go to those who truly need them, and protect the long-term viability of the program,” Schmid said. “This isn’t about taking help away. It’s about making sure SNAP works the way it was intended to.” The push for tighter SNAP rules comes as Gov. Tim Walz faces ongoing criticism over major fraud scandals in Minnesota’s welfare system, including hundreds of millions in fraudulent food aid payments uncovered in recent years. Earlier this year, Fox News Digital reported that a Minnesota woman was sentenced to about one year in federal prison for running a $325,000 SNAP fraud scheme with family members. Prosecutors said they used fake identities and fraudulent documents to obtain EBT cards and maximize benefits, then withdrew and sold the funds for profit. She was also ordered to repay the stolen money. Fox News Digital reached out to Walz’s office for comment on the legislation and efforts he has taken to combat SNAP fraud.
Biden-appointed judge rejects Trump HHS declaration on transgender treatments for kids
A federal judge appointed by former President Joe Biden in 2023 has ruled that Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. overreached in his December declaration that “sex-rejecting procedures” for children were “neither safe nor effective.” U.S. District Judge Mustafa Kasubhai in Oregon ruled that RFK Jr. exceeded his authority and failed to follow required administrative procedures when HHS issued the declaration. The ruling grants preliminary relief to health professionals who provide the treatments. The judge also denied the government’s motion to dismiss the case, which was brought by 20 blue states and Washington, D.C., that had legalized controversial “sex-rejecting” health services, including “puberty-suppressing hormones, cross-sex hormones, and surgical procedures.” RFK Jr. used comprehensive evidence review of “documented risks of significant harm, markedly weak evidence of benefit, unfavorable risk-benefit profiles, inadequate existing clinical guidelines, growing international consensus among countries conducting rigorous evidence reviews, and applicable medical ethics principles” to issue the declaration rejected by Kasubhai as an overreach. HOUSE APPROVES MTG-SPONSORED BILL TO CRIMINALIZE GENDER TRANSITION TREATMENT FOR MINORS “Sex-rejecting procedures for children and adolescents are neither safe nor effective as a treatment modality for gender dysphoria, gender incongruence, or other related disorders in minors, and therefore, fail to meet professional recognized standards of health care,” the declaration read. “For the purposes of this declaration, ‘sex-rejecting procedures’ means pharmaceutical or surgical interventions, including puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgeries such as mastectomies, vaginoplasties, and other procedures, that attempt to align an individual’s physical appearance or body with an asserted identity that differs from the individual’s sex.” The ruling prevents the federal government from immediately enforcing the declaration against hospitals and health professionals. CALIFORNIA AG SUES HOSPITAL THAT ENDED GENDER TRANSITION TREATMENT FOR MINORS TO COMPLY WITH TRUMP POLICIES The lawsuit argued the declaration was unlawful and an attempt to override established medical standards without public notice or comment. The federal government said the general statement of policy was exempt from legal rule-making requirements. The declaration was “the Secretary’s non-binding policy position on the safety and efficacy of certain pediatric and adolescent treatment modalities for gender dysphoria, gender incongruence, or other related conditions,” the government argued Feb. 10. “Secretary Kennedy, just like anyone else, is entitled to articulate his opinion on the safety and efficacy of emerging and controversial medical practices. The Declaration summarizes Secretary Kennedy’s independent evaluation of the cited medical literature and expresses his opinion that certain treatment modalities are not safe and effective and fail to meet professionally recognized standards of health care.” NEW YORK AG ORDERS MANHATTAN HOSPITAL TO RESUME GENDER-TRANSITION TREATMENT FOR TRANSGENDER YOUTH Kasubhai’s ruling was at the end of a roughly six-hour hearing and will be followed by a written decision. “There’s a theme of ‘Break it and see what others will do,’ and that’s not a system or method committed to the rule of law,” Kasubhai said. “That notion that ‘I will go forward, issue a declaration and see if we can get away with it,’ that is not a principle of governance that adheres to the overarching commitment to the democratic public that requires the rule of law to be regarded and respected and honored as sacred.” New York Attorney General Letitia James, who led the case, said the ruling protects patients, families and providers from federal intimidation. TRUMP-SIGNED SHUTDOWN BILL SENDS $4M TO CHILDREN’S HOSPITALS UNDER FEDERAL PROBE FOR TRANSGENDER CARE “So much of the conversation around transgender health care has lost sight of the real people harmed by the federal government’s attacks,” James wrote in a statement last week, praising the opinion. “Young people are losing access to life-saving treatment, families are being left in the dark, and medical providers are being threatened just for doing their jobs and following standards of care. “Today’s win breaks through the noise and gives some needed clarity to patients, families, and providers. Health care services for transgender young people remain legal, and the federal government cannot intimidate or punish the providers who offer them. “It is my duty and my privilege to stand with trans New Yorkers and their families. I will always fight for the LGBTQ+ community.” CHLOE COLE ACT AIMED AT BLOCKING MINORS FROM UNDERGOING LIFE-ALTERING TRANSGENDER SURGERIES, GOP LAWMAKER SAYS The case was brought by Oregon, New York, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Vermont, Wisconsin, Washington and Pennsylvania. The ruling comes as President Donald Trump has sought to tag a 2024 presidential campaign vow to “protect children from transgender mutilation surgeries” to the 2026 SAVE America Act currently being debated in the Senate. Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., formally introduced an amendment to attach the added Trump priorities to the election-integrity bill. “I’ve worked closely with President Trump and the White House to introduce a substitute amendment that will save our elections, save women’s sports, and save our children from gender mutilation surgeries,” Schmitt wrote in a statement last week. “It’s time to get this done.”
DOJ accuses courts of undercutting executive power in high-stakes Supreme Court border case
The Department of Justice will argue Tuesday that lower courts are undermining the federal government’s ability to manage the southern border in a closely watched Supreme Court case about how migrants make asylum claims. DOJ lawyers wrote in court papers ahead of the arguments that an appeals court was wrong to restrict the government’s ability to limit how it processes migrants into the country. The lawyers said the ruling stripped the executive branch of a necessary tool, first used during the Obama administration, to respond to surges of illegal migration, which the Trump administration has sought to curb after officials encountered more than 10 million migrants at the border during the Biden administration. “Administrations of both major parties have opposed the decision, which deprives the Executive Branch of a critical tool for addressing border surges and preventing overcrowding at ports of entry,” the DOJ lawyers wrote. “This Court should reverse.” The case, Noem v. Al Otro Lado, centers on whether migrants who are stopped on the Mexican side of the U.S.–Mexico border can be treated as having “arrived in the United States” under the Immigration and Nationality Act. If they can be designated as having arrived in the country, they would be entitled to apply for asylum, which would require border officials to process their asylum claims. USCIS HALTS ‘ALL ASYLUM DECISIONS’ AFTER DC SHOOTING OF NATIONAL GUARD MEMBERS The DOJ lawyers, led by Solicitor General John Sauer, argued that the immigration law’s language was clear. “In ordinary English, a person ‘arrives in’ a country only when he comes within its borders,” they wrote. “A person does not ‘arrive in the United States’ if he is stopped in Mexico.” BORDER CROSSINGS PLUMMET TO HISTORIC LOWS; TRUMP’S ENFORCEMENT POLICIES YIELD BIG RESULTS The case stems from a lawsuit brought in 2017 by the immigrant rights group Al Otro Lado and more than a dozen unnamed asylum seekers. The plaintiffs challenged the practice of “metering,” which was first used during the Obama administration and allowed U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers to turn migrants away, saying border facilities were over capacity and that they should come back later. ‘TRUMP EFFECT’ TOUTED AS SOUTHERN BORDER NUMBERS STAY LOW, INCLUDING NEW RECORD Immigration law requires the United States to allow migrants arriving at the border to claim asylum by saying they fear persecution in their home country. Once they make the claim, a legal process begins, and, if the claim is granted, the migrant is given a pathway to live and work legally in the United States. Border hawks have argued the asylum system is rife with abuse as migrants make meritless asylum claims at the border and then never show up for their hearings. The plaintiffs’ lawyers said in court papers that metering was an unlawful “turnback policy.” “Petitioners zero in on a single preposition—the word ‘in’— to urge an interpretation that renders the rest of the statutory text non-sensical,” they wrote. Unlike prior administrations, when the United States saw influxes of illegal migration, President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown has drastically curbed arrivals at the southern border. But the DOJ lawyers argued that the executive branch should have the option to practice metering if needed without judicial interference. A ruling in the case is expected by the summer.