Federal judge blocks New York law banning ICE agents from wearing masks
A federal judge on Monday blocked key portions of a New York law that would have prohibited federal immigration agents from wearing masks and required them to display visible identification while carrying out their duties. U.S. District Judge Mae D’Agostino of the Northern District of New York issued a preliminary injunction preventing the state from enforcing the two provisions while a legal challenge to the law continues to move forward. In her ruling, D’Agostino found the challenged provisions were likely unconstitutional because they interfere with federal law enforcement operations, including those carried out by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). FIRST ON FOX: DOJ SUES SPANBERGER’S VIRGINIA OVER LAWS KNEECAPPING FEDERAL AGENTS AS MASK WAR ESCALATES The judge said only the federal government has the authority to establish policies governing federal law enforcement operations. Therefore, New York cannot dictate how federal agents perform their official duties. “New York cannot impose its own uniform requirements on federal agents simply because it disagrees with how the Federal Government is exercising its authority,” the ruling stated. Gov. Kathy Hochul and New York Attorney General Letitia James criticized the court’s decision to block the mask ban, saying they are currently reviewing more legal options. DEM GOVERNOR IN THE HOT SEAT AFTER TESTING LIMITS OF AUTHORITY WITH MAJOR MOVE AGAINST ICE “While the court enjoined enforcement of New York’s mask ban, we stand firm in our belief that masked agents do not make New York safer and our offices are reviewing all legal options at this time,” the pair said in a joint statement. However, D’Agostino declined to block a separate provision barring New York local law enforcement agencies from performing certain federal immigration enforcement functions under 287(g) agreements. The judge said participation by state and local agencies in federal civil immigration enforcement is voluntary under federal law. “The State’s refusal to cooperate in the immigration context—a possibility contemplated by the relevant federal statutes—does not constitute discrimination against the federal government,” the ruling stated. Hochul and James welcomed that portion of the ruling, saying New York taxpayers should not have to fund local cooperation with federal immigration authorities. “As we have said from the start, New York’s ban on 287(g) agreements is legal and will keep our communities safe. Local law enforcement should be focused on local matters, and New York taxpayers should not have to foot the bill for any collaboration with ICE,” their statement read.
Unearthed video exposes El-Sayed’s opinion on driver’s licenses for illegal immigrants
Abdul El-Sayed, a Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in Michigan, once proposed allowing undocumented immigrants to secure driver’s licenses, making the case that not doing so would be discriminatory. “We’ve got to make sure that in this state we are not discriminating against documentation status. Right now, if you’re undocumented, you don’t get access to a driver’s license. You’re stuck,” El-Sayed said in a 2018 campaign interview. At the time, El-Sayed was running for governor. Eight years later, as he looks to join the U.S. Senate, the resurfaced clip sheds light on El-Sayed’s past thinking about how local governments should interact with illegal aliens and raises questions about whether granting them state identification would in some ways legitimize their presence in the U.S. SOCIALIST-BACKED MICHIGAN SENATE HOPEFUL CALLS AMERICAN POLITICS A ‘DISEASE’ AFTER PROFESSING LOVE FOR US Hans von Spakovsky, an elections expert for Advancing American Freedom, explained that a license can act as a doorway to a range of government benefits. “Because America does not have a national ID card like the Europeans and other nations, state driver’s licenses are a stand-in for that ID card. Issuing driver’s licenses to aliens will help them in all the instances where a license is needed, from opening bank accounts to all types of other transactions,” Spakovsky said. Spakovsky noted that I-9 forms, paperwork for employment eligibility, regularly require little else than a license. “The key to getting aliens to self-deport would be to ensure that they cannot rent apartments, open bank accounts and take all of the other steps necessary to live and work in the U.S.,” Spakovsky said. “Providing them driver’s licenses is a huge step in allowing them to easily live and work in the United States,” he added. NEW MAINE LAW LIMITS POLICE COOPERATION WITH FEDERAL IMMIGRATION OFFICIALS In the 2018 clip, El-Sayed seemed concerned that illegal aliens would be ineligible for some of those advantages. “You don’t get access to a lot of the basic things that the state offers everybody else, and I think that’s ridiculous and so we’ve got to stop discriminating that way,” El-Sayed said. Although El-Sayed has rejected labels like “progressive” or “far-left,” he has advocated for a more government-first approach in many key areas like affordability, infrastructure and public services. He’s advocated for Medicare for all, opposes corporate tax carve-outs, and he supports tuition-free access to higher education. When asked about promises to increase government provisions by candidates like Zohran Mamdani, El-Sayed said he believes that Democrats will trend in that direction. “You’re seeing that kind of resonance here in Michigan for sure. And I’m not surprised that you’re seeing that in New York, too. Government ought to be available to set an equal playing field for everybody and to offer those basic things that everybody needs and deserves,” El-Sayed told Fox News Digital in an interview. SHOCKING PERCENTAGE OF DEMOCRATS IDENTIFY AS ‘DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISTS’ ACCORDING TO NEW POLL: ‘TOXIC POLICIES’ El-Sayed’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment on how far government should go in providing some of those same services to non-residents. His campaign also did not address whether providing licenses for undocumented immigrants would be a tacit approval of their presence in the country. El-Sayed faces off against Rep. Haley Stevens on Tuesday evening in the state’s primaries. Whoever secures the party’s nomination will advance to the Nov. 3 general election.
‘The Brink of War’ tells story of Reagan-Gorbachev nuclear discussions
President Ronald Reagan met with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev five times in the late 1980s. The first such meeting was in Geneva, Switzerland in November 1985 when the two leaders began to form a relationship. It was the second meeting in Reykjavik, Iceland, where Reagan and Gorbachev began to find trust. “The reason I wanted to do it really, truly, was because I think these days we’ve gotten so good at yelling at one another that we are not talking anymore,” said “The Brink of War” director Michael Gunn. “What blew me away about the story when Secretary Schultz told me about it was that these were two guys who had every reason to hate each other, had every reason to be enemies, and they sat down in a room together and tried to make a better world.” US RAMPS NUCLEAR WEAPONS PRODUCTION TO COLD WAR LEVELS AS CHINA PURSUES ‘UNPRECEDENTED’ BUILDUP Jeff Daniels stars as Reagan in “The Brink of War,” which follows the Reykjavik summit with Gorbachev, played by Jared Harris. Reagan’s Secretary of State George Schultz, played by J.K. Simmons, was instrumental in giving Gunn behind-the-scenes details for his film. “We spent hours and hours together. I interviewed him. He gave me the declassified transcripts that informed the script. He’s a hero of mine. The movie is dedicated to him, for him, for his public service,” Gunn said. NEW FOX NATION DOCUMENTARY CHRONICLES 20-YEAR JOURNEY BEHIND ‘REAGAN’ FILM “The Brink of War” not only highlights the Reagan administration’s ambitions for peace but also their disappointments. One scene shows Reagan’s doubt over trusting Gorbachev amid the negotiations as Schultz assures him it was not the end of talks to find common ground between the two global powers. “This moment where they figured out just the two of them in a room that they could trust one another, I think led to all that. The first arms reduction agreement in human history,” Gunn said. While no final agreement was reached in Iceland, the summit paved the way for several more meetings between Reagan and Gorbachev. It also led to several peace treaties — like the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF), which required both sides to liquidate a class of nuclear weapons. PRESIDENT TRUMP’S NEGOTIATING TEAM PRAISED BY NUCLEAR EXPERTS FOR WALKING AWAY FROM PAKISTAN TALKS “For the first time on the highest level, we and the Soviets came close to an agreement on real reductions of both strategic and intermediate-range weapons,” President Reagan said after his meeting with Gorbachev in Iceland. “We were in sight of an historic agreement on completely eliminating the threat of offensive ballistic missiles by 1996. I can help remembering being told just a few years ago. Radical arms reduction was an impossible dream, but now it’s on the agenda for both sides.” Gunn believes the Reagan and Gorbachev’s discussions should be an inspiration for ending today’s conflicts. “I think the lesson for today is that we have to continue dialog,” Gunn said. “As tough as it gets, I want people to walk out of the theater with hope that if we engage, if we’re strong, if we are seeking peace in a genuine way and we find a genuine partner that we can make a better safer world even today.” “The Brink of War” debuts in theaters Aug. 14.
Democrats blink as Schumer helps GOP clear key shutdown hurdle
Senate Republicans opted to strike on bipartisan momentum and take a key step to prevent a government shutdown almost two months before the deadline. The upper chamber voted in a bipartisan wave to clear the first procedural hurdle for a short-term funding extension that would see the government open through the midterm elections and into early December. It comes after Republicans have spent months hand wringing that Democrats would again shut the government down to score political points during the pivotal November elections. HOUSE GOP VOTES TO PUNT GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN BATTLE TO AFTER NOVEMBER MIDTERMS The actual deadline to fund the government is not until Sept. 30, when the current fiscal year expires, but Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., argued that it’s better to move now then to wait to create more “certainty” in the coming weeks. “There’s been enough uncertainty this last year, and, you know, unfortunately, I think through two government shutdowns that extended for a long period of time, it’s better for everybody if there’s predictability, certainty,” Thune said. Congress has been no stranger to shutdowns during President Donald Trump’s second term, with two of the longest in history taking place under Republican control of the legislative branch. SENATE WEIGHS NEW, PAINFUL LEVERAGE TACTIC AS FEARS OF ANOTHER GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN GROW The first happened last year, and entered the record books as the longest full government closure that stretched over 40 days. That battle was over now-expired Obamacare tax subsidies, an issue that was never fully reconciled in the months that followed. Then came the shutdown earlier this year that stretched for over 70 days. Democrats rebelled against a bipartisan funding deal after Renee Nicole Good was slain in Minnesota by immigration enforcement agents. That prompted Republicans to skirt Democrats entirely and fund immigration enforcement on their own. But, for now, there is a bipartisan current pushing through the Senate to at least make sure a shutdown doesn’t happen for the time being. SCHUMER BACKS GOP’S PLAN TO BRING THE PAIN DURING FUTURE SHUTDOWNS: ‘I’M GOING TO VOTE FOR IT’ Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., endorsed the continuing resolution (CR) on Monday, arguing that the current bipartisan offering was the “responsible path forward that allows continued bipartisan negotiations on a budget that delivers for American families.” “For months, Democrats have been clear: we want to fund the government, avoid a shutdown and pass strong, bipartisan appropriations bills that improve people’s lives,” Schumer said in a statement. Republican leadership is hopeful that they can clear the decks and advance the CR to the House during the Senate’s last official week in town before jet-setting from Washington, D.C., back to lawmakers’ respective home states. While the CR is the current top priority, there are several other items waiting in the wings, too. There’s a package of over 70 nominees Republicans want to ram through, the long-awaited Russia sanctions package, a crypto market structure package that, for now, appears doomed, and the final confirmation vote for acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Justice (DOJ). “I think we have a bunch of stuff we have to finish and we’ll just stay until we finish it,” Thune said.
‘Doctor’ El-Sayed’s bizarre health hustle raises campaign headache: ‘Moon Juice Brain Dust’
Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed made money promoting health products, including while invoking his medical credentials, despite saying he broadly rejected advertisements for products making health claims and criticizing others for doing the same. Before running for Senate, El-Sayed hosted a podcast that provided him with a six-figure income partially through ad reads. Among the companies El-Sayed promoted for cash, often citing his purported experience as a doctor, were firms selling supplements, peptides, and an Israeli metabolism-tracking device that has been scrutinized by health experts. The ad reads came despite an assurance from El-Sayed that he would not use his platform to sell health products to people who listen to him. SOCIALISM’S WAR ON SUCCESS HAS A NEW CHAMPION — AND HE’S RUNNING FOR SENATE IN MICHIGAN “I broadly reject any advertisements that are for products making claims about health,” he wrote in a now-deleted social media post from March 2022. El-Sayed also accused Mehmet Oz during his 2022 Pennsylvania Senate run of being part of the “medical industrial complex that exists to sell you things that you don’t need that are not actually based in any level of science.” “Yet he can … say, ‘Well, I’m a doctor, so you should trust what I have to say,’” El-Sayed added. DR OZ REVEALS THE HEALTHY RETIREMENT HABIT THAT COULD MAKE AMERICA $1 TRILLION RICHER After assuring his audience that he wouldn’t hawk health products, and criticizing Oz for using his medical credentials for doing so, El-Sayed used his medical credentials to sell health products. “Even as a doctor and epidemiologist, nutrition labels are obnoxiously hard to process,” El-Sayed said during a March 2025 ad read. “That’s where Thrive Market comes in. See, I love Thrive Market, my go to online grocery store for getting all of my healthy essentials delivered. And I don’t even have to leave my couch.” Thrive Market has sold a wide selection of supplements, including items such as “Moon Juice Brain Dust” and “Royal Jelly Brain Fuel” that claim to improve the cognitive function of those who use them. Health experts have cast doubt on whether or not such supplements can actually improve brain function. Moon Juice Brain Dust describes itself as a “nootropic blend of adaptogens and herbs that target stress to support mental stamina, alertness, and concentration” that is “informed by Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda.” Royal jelly, meanwhile, is a thick, milky substance produced by bees to feed their queen. Proponents argue it can be helpful in treating menopause symptoms or addressing low energy, though scientific evidence for such claims is limited. Thrive did not respond to a request for comment when reached by Fox News Digital on Monday. IV THERAPY AND SUPPLEMENTS UNDER SCRUTINY AS EXPERTS WARN OF POTENTIAL SIDE EFFECTS While El-Sayed has leaned heavily on his identity as a doctor both in doing ad reads and on the campaign trail, public records indicate that he never held a medical license or completed a residency. He does, however, hold a medical degree and a doctorate degree in public health. The New York Post was the first to report on El-Sayed’s advertisement for health goods. A company making moon dust and brain jelly wasn’t El-Sayed’s only customer. On July 23, 2024, El-Sayed read an ad promoting a medical device created by an Israel-based startup. “Lumen is the world’s first handheld metabolic coach. It’s a device that measures your metabolism through your breath and on the app. It lets you know if you’re burning fat or carbs and gives you tailored guidance to improve your nutrition, workout, sleep, and even manage your stress,” he said. “All you’ve got to do is breathe into your Lumen first thing in the morning, and it’ll give you an inside look into what’s going on with your metabolism, whether you’re burning mostly fats or carbs.” Years before El-Sayed took Lumen’s advertising money, experts were raising concerns about its medical claims. “I just don’t see a practical use for the product in helping people achieve their weight-loss goals,” Harbor-UCLA Medical Center senior researcher Nicholas Tiller told Outside Magazine in 2022. “The use of metabolic flexibility and other science-sounding terms lend the product a false scientific legitimacy.” “It’s quintessential marketing over science,” he added. El-Sayed also advertised for a company offering a peptide that allegedly improves skin health. The El-Sayed campaign did not respond to a request for comment when reached by Fox News Digital on Monday.
Mamdani’s grocery giveaway hits ID snag as critics cry foul: ‘Make it make sense’
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s game plan for government-run grocery stores faced criticism Monday after a city official told reporters a “library-card-esque system” may be employed to prevent abuse of the 30% discounted markets. Mamdani took a question from a reporter who asked about preventing bulk purchases of groceries at the artificial discount from being re-sold at MSRP or higher. The mayor responded that the government grocery Request-for-Proposal makes clear “this is a program for New Yorkers to be able to put food on the table, not a program for people to be able to make a quick buck through reselling. I’m going to pass it over to our EDC head, Jeanny Pak, to add some additional details.” MAMDANI’S CITY GROCERY PLAN COULD LEAVE TAXPAYERS PAYING FOR EVERY BANANA It was Pak’s follow-up that raised eyebrows, given Mamdani and many Democrats’ staunch opposition to voter ID and Republicans’ SAVE America Act moving through Congress. “[W]e are looking to make sure that we target New Yorkers, whether it be a sort of a library card-esque thing, and also we manage who’s buying and that is focused on everyday New Yorkers,” Pak said. “So, we are mindful of that, and so we’re going to make sure that we have all the things in place to ensure that that does not happen.” SEN MARK WARNER CALLED OUT IN ABC INTERVIEW FOR INACCURATE VOTER ID CLAIMS When asked about the apparent divergence between Pak’s response referencing a possible ID card-type system and opposition to voter ID, a Mamdani spokesperson said it was an apples-to-oranges contrast. “Comparisons to voter ID laws or the SAVE Act simply do not apply. This is not an identification system, nor is it a mechanism to verify who someone is, where they live, or how much they earn,” Mamdani’s spokesperson said. “It is a practical inventory management tool to ensure affordable groceries remain available for the people who need them instead of being cleared off shelves for resale.” EXPERTS SCORCH MAMDANI’S GROCERY PLAN AS AN ‘ILLUSION’ THAT WILL HAVE TAXPAYERS FOOTING THE BILL The spokesperson pointed to the mayor’s comments specifically regarding bulk-buying concerns, saying that was the premise of the reporter’s question — not whether people from Pennsylvania, New Jersey or upstate New York would be able to shop at the subsidized outlets. “To be absolutely clear: NYC Grocery stores will be open to everyone,” the spokesperson said. “There will be no system to verify identity, residency, or income, and no one will be asked to show ID to shop.” Instead of an “ID,” the spokesperson said the stores may employ a “customer card” similar to loyalty programs at other grocers like ShopRite, Food Lion or Weis. The “customer card” would be designed by the “private operator” of the city-run store to “help manage supply and prevent people from buying large quantities of discounted staples for resale” and is strictly intended to “make sure the savings reach families putting food on the table.” SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER Customers will not need to apply through City Hall or any agency, the spokesperson added. Critics were unconvinced. “ID for government cheese,” said Philadelphia radio host Rich Zeoli. “After all, we have to make sure no one crosses the border and if they do, the police will be called. So it’s good to see Mamdani now supports ID (just not for voting), border control, and law enforcement,” Zeoli tweeted. Former Texas congressional candidate Nick Plumb commented on X that “Mamdani wants to protect taxpayer funded grocery store[s] from non-NYC residents they’ll need an ID card to enter. You can[t] make this up.” Former Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares, a supporter of voter ID who also opposed the Old Dominion’s recent failed attempt to redraw congressional lines to Democrats’ advantage, also criticized the mayor. “So let me get this straight: Taxpayer-funded grocery store? Better show a valid ID or you can’t buy milk,” Miyares said. “Voting for the people who decide how those taxes get spent? A valid ID is somehow ‘racist’ and ‘oppressive’. Unbelievable,” he said. When asked whether the mayor’s office believed the loyalty card system constituted a form of identification, a Mamdani spokesperson directed Fox News Digital to a paragraph in the Request for Proposal (RFP) that prospective store operators must follow: “The Operator(s) will create a voluntary free-to-access membership card program to monitor sales activity, and implement the discount program and any associated demand management measures. The savings card shall not be required for physical access to N.Y.C. Groceries site(s) and shall be made easily available to any individual requesting one,” the section read. “Make it make sense,” added FOX News host Sean Hannity. New York Republican Congresswoman Claudia Tenney added: “So ID for government grocery stores to stop people abusing the system is fine, but requiring ID to vote not? Got it.” SAVE Act supporter Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind., added on X that the hypocrisy must “stop.” “Democrats: Are fighting to ensure you don’t have to show an ID before voting in our elections. Also Democrats: Want you to show an ID before entering a supermarket.” “Oh, the irony is too much,” said X CEO Elon Musk.
Trump DOJ unleashes largest denaturalization effort in department history — and says it’s ‘only the beginning’
FIRST ON FOX: The Department of Justice is moving to revoke the citizenship of more than two dozen individuals who the DOJ said committed crimes ranging from attempted murder to child sexual abuse to identity fraud, marking its largest citizenship revocation surge on record, Fox News Digital learned Monday. “U.S. citizenship is one of our nation’s highest privileges, and it must be obtained lawfully and honestly,” Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche told Fox News Digital on Monday. “The complaints announced today allege that these individuals secured naturalization through fraud, concealment, or other unlawful conduct— including by concealing violent crimes, sexual offenses against children, fraudulent identities, and other disqualifying facts,” said Blanche. The complaints against the 25 individuals, filed between July 20 and Aug. 3, involve naturalized U.S. citizens who are natives of 17 countries: Pakistan, Moldova, India, Mexico, Colombia, Nigeria, Liberia, Ghana, Jamaica, Taiwan, Honduras, Cameroon, Jordan, Cuba, El Salvador, Haiti and Sweden, Fox News Digital learned. The DOJ told Fox News Digital later Monday that it had added another case, raising the number of people facing denaturalization from 24 to 25. DOJ MOVES TO STRIP CITIZENSHIP FROM 17 PEOPLE ACCUSED OF HIDING DISTURBING CRIMES “Today’s filings represent the largest coordinated denaturalization effort in Department history, but they are only the beginning. The Justice Department will continue to use every tool available to protect the integrity of the naturalization process and the safety of the American people,” Blanche added. The cases bring the department’s total denaturalization filings to 88 since Jan. 20, 2025, as the Trump administration ramps up efforts to strip citizenship from individuals it says obtained it unlawfully. The cases span a wide range of alleged conduct that the Justice Department says should have disqualified the individuals from obtaining or keeping U.S. citizenship. The complaints involve allegations including attempted murder, child sexual abuse, domestic violence, marriage fraud, identity fraud, passport fraud, bank and credit card fraud, and practicing medicine without a license, among other offenses. “Today marks the largest denaturalization surge in recorded history,” said Justice Department’s Civil Division Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate told Fox News Digital. TRUMP PUTS ASYLUM LAWYERS ‘ON NOTICE’ WITH NEW FRONT IN WAR ON FRAUD “Every one of these individuals committed crimes incompatible with U.S. citizenship. We are moving at record speed to denaturalize those who sought to deceive the federal government and abuse the naturalization process.” In one case, the department seeks to denaturalize a man in North Carolina convicted of attempted first-degree murder and assault with a deadly weapon after obtaining citizenship through military service but allegedly failing to meet the required period of honorable service. ICE NABS ILLEGAL ALIENS CONVICTED OF CHILD SEX CRIMES AND METH TRAFFICKING IN NATIONWIDE ENFORCEMENT SWEEP Prosecutors also allege a naturalized citizen in South Carolina concealed a violent assault in which he beat and choked his wife, later pleading guilty to assault and battery after the attack left her hospitalized. In June, DOJ moved to revoke 17 individuals from 13 different countries over allegations of child sexual abuse, narcotics trafficking and large-scale financial fraud.
Obama-appointed judge faces fresh impeachment threat after blocking Trump TPS order for Somalis
FIRST ON FOX: The federal judge who blocked the Trump administration from ending protections for Somalis in the U.S. is facing a new impeachment threat from President Donald Trump’s allies in Congress. Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., has filed an impeachment resolution against Judge Allison Burroughs, a federal judge on the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts. Burroughs issued a stay on Friday temporarily blocking the Trump administration from ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Somalis, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), amid an ongoing lawsuit by African Communities Together arguing the move was made based on racially discriminatory grounds. SUPREME COURT WEIGHS TRUMP EFFORT TO TERMINATE TEMPORARY PROTECTIONS FOR HAITIAN, SYRIAN MIGRANTS Ogles’ resolution, first obtained by Fox News Digital, accused Burroughs of having “defied the authority of both Federal law and the Supreme Court.” “There is no serious debate about what is going on in these cases—defiance, obstruction, and delay,” DHS General Counsel James Percival posted on X on Friday. The order came despite a Supreme Court ruling in June that significantly curbed lower courts’ ability to block TPS decisions. SUPREME COURT’S LATEST IMMIGRATION RULING WILL CAUSE AMERICANS TO ‘DIE AND SUFFER’ ATTORNEY WARNS But the latest stay order is based on an amended complaint by the plaintiffs aiming to account for that ruling. Ogles argued in his impeachment resolution, “In issuing this stay, Judge Burroughs attempted to get around the Supreme Court’s ruling in Mullin v. Doe by entertaining spurious allegations of racial and national-origin discrimination against an Administration that has chosen to not renew a single temporary protected status designation.” “This judicial activist’s obstruction of the people’s will must be stopped,” Ogles told Fox News Digital. “Judge Burroughs must be impeached.” FLORIDA CONGRESSMAN MOVES TO IMPEACH JUDGE WHO ORDERED CONVICTED CUBAN PLANE HIJACKER FREED FROM ICE Fox News Digital reached out to the Massachusetts district court for a response to Ogles’ impeachment threat earlier Monday. TPS is a humanitarian program providing safe harbor in the U.S. for people who fled natural disasters or war in their home countries. Ogles’ impeachment resolution is one of several that has been filed by Trump allies in Congress so far during the president’s second term. A significant effort to pursue impeachment against U.S. federal judge James Boasberg fell flat last year after senior House Republicans argued it was not the most effective way to rein in what they called “rogue” judges. But Fox News Digital first reported earlier this year that conservatives would begin their campaign to remove who they describe as activist judges from the bench again. Burroughs was appointed to the bench in 2014 by then-President Barack Obama.
Dem senator accuses Pentagon of murder with boat strikes targeting drug traffickers
Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., in a letter to President Donald Trump suggested that an examination of the evidence indicates that the administration’s boat strikes against alleged drug traffickers have killed people who were not participating in narcotrafficking. “They are murder victims,” the lawmaker asserted in the Aug. 3 letter. White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital, “On the campaign trail, President Trump promised to take on the cartels – and he has taken unprecedented action to stop the scourge of narcoterrorism that has resulted in the needless deaths of innocent Americans. All of these decisive strikes have been against designated narcoterrorists bringing deadly poison to our shores, and the President will continue to use every element of American power to stop drugs from flooding into our country and to bring those responsible to justice.” Fox News Digital also reached out to the War Department on Monday. US MILITARY CONDUCTS STRIKE ON ANOTHER VESSEL CARRYING ALLEGED NARCO-TRAFFICKERS, KILLING 2 The U.S. military has conducted dozens of deadly strikes against vessels of alleged “narco-terrorists.” “In late July 2025, you directed the Department of Defense to conduct kinetic operations to combat narcotrafficking operations in the Americas. You selected numerous organizations for targeting. That target list is classified so I cannot reveal it. Importantly, the classification of the list means that those you have asked the Department of Defense to target are entirely unaware that they are marked for execution,” Kaine wrote in the letter. “In September 2025, the United States launched boat strikes in international waters in the Americas pursuant to your directive. A Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) opinion issued in September 2025 provided legal support for such operations so long as they complied with specific factual conditions. That legal opinion (and the specific factual conditions) is classified. As a result, these conditions are also unknown to those being targeted,” he continued. FIRST ON FOX: TRUMP TO OPEN DIRECT LINE WITH MILITARY FAMILIES IN GROUND-UP READINESS PUSH “A Department of Defense order implementing your July directive (the EXORD) was issued in October 2025. The EXORD contains targeting criteria that the Department of Defense should use in carrying out your kinetic operations directive. The EXORD and its targeting criteria are also classified,” the senator noted. “My review of your directive, the OLC legal opinion, the EXORD, and the notifications of the boat strikes, makes clear that the United States is engaged in violent and fatal attacks against people far beyond those whom the OLC opinion claimed could be lawfully targeted. In other words, a careful review of the available evidence suggests that the United States has killed individuals who are not involved in narcotrafficking,” he declared. Kaine has served in the U.S. Senate since early 2013 and was Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton’s running mate during the 2016 White House contest that Trump won. WATCH: TIM KAINE REJECTS CLAIMS KARMELO ANTHONY VERDICT WAS RACIST Kaine asked the president to look into “the extent to which the leadership of the Department of Defense has exceeded your July 2025 directive,” and “to halt this illegal, costly and ineffective operation.”
GOP lawmaker’s gifts, ‘effusive affection’ toward young staffers detailed in explosive ethics report
A House GOP lawmaker is accused of sexually harassing two “young female staffers” in his office in an explosive report that details lavish gifts, trips, and even reciting a poem for one of the aides in an incident that made others in his office uncomfortable. The House Ethics Committee is recommending a censure for Rep. Chuck Edwards, R-N.C., after an extensive probe found that he violated the House of Representatives’ code of conduct with repeated incidents targeting the two staffers. “Specifically, the Committee found that Representative Edwards engaged in persistent unprofessional and inappropriate conduct towards two young female staffers. While Representative Edwards denied that any of his conduct was intended as a sexual or romantic advance, his pattern of behavior would lead a reasonable observer to interpret it as such, including providing the young women with lavish and recurrent gifts, making comments regarding their appearance and dress, inviting them to intimate dinners and vacations, sending notes regarding his effusive affection, and inviting them to other activities as a way to spend time together,” the report said. The committee also said Edwards sought to cooperate with the panel, but that some messages deemed relevant to the probe were “omitted and/or seemingly deleted from his phone.” REPUBLICAN LAWMAKER WELCOMES HOUSE ETHICS PROBE INTO SEXUAL MISCONDUCT ALLEGATIONS AGAINST HIM “An example of Representative Edwards’ unprofessional conduct was commenting on the two women’s appearance in the congressional office, telling them when they looked ‘pretty’ or ‘breathtaking,’ and even remarking on one staffer’s weight,” the report said. Edwards told the committee he only commented on staffers’ clothing and said “it’s almost an insult if you don’t make some comment about [one another’s clothing],” according to the report. While sexual harassment allegations are detailed regarding both staffers, the report goes into significant detail about Edwards’ alleged entreaties to the aide referred to as “Staffer 2.” RESIGNATION IS THE NEW ESCAPE HATCH AS LAWMAKERS FACE EXPULSION That includes that Edwards “wrote poems for Staffer 2, including one that he read at her going away party in the congressional office accompanied by a slideshow, during which he cried.” “Several staffers present testified that they felt uncomfortable, and Representative Edwards acknowledged in his own testimony that he could tell the staff felt uncomfortable,” the report said. Edwards also “arranged for a singer to go to Staffer 2’s birthday party to sing Ed Sheeran’s Hills of Aberfeldy and say that it was ‘from a special someone,’” according to the findings. That staffer confided in a friend after the ordeal that it left her “scared lowkey,” the report said. The congressman also went to her home “to perform chores like yard work, pick her up and drop her off for events and activities with his driver.” He also missed House votes to help Staffer 2 decorate her Christmas tree, according to the report. The findings also state he “Took Staffer 2 to the casino, bought her drinks and paid for her to gamble. Staffer 2 texted Representative Edwards after one such outing to thank him for a fun night.” He printed that text message on paper and drew a heart next to it, the report said, and handwrote, “Perhaps my proudest personal moment!” Edwards is also accused of booking and paying for spa treatments for that staffer and sending both staffers “personal texts late in the evening.” Later, when “Staffer 2” told Edwards that she received another job offer, Edwards told her he cried and then proceeded to “repeatedly” ask her to dinner for the next several days, the report said. She told the congressman that it was not “a great idea” after a friend asked her about rumors of an affair between Edwards and a staffer, to which the report said Edwards responded, “It’s disappointing to feel something that used to be easy has gotten complicated. Whether we were talking about cat poop, crime plots, or thoughts more meaningful—I’ve always valued the time we shared, and the money we won 🙂 and I thought you might too. I didn’t expect outside chatter to change that. Still, I understand. You get to set the boundaries, and I get to respect them. If you ever feel easy again, I hope you’ll give me the signal.” Edwards told the committee that he “suppose[d]” his response could seem intended to make someone feel guilty, but that was not his intent. “That was my way of saying – I ain’t asking again because part of harassment is, when an interaction is not wanted and repetitive, and I was just trying to set the groundwork for ‘I’m going [] to respect that,” he apparently told the committee. Edwards also said the text showed he allowed those staffers to set boundaries on what they were comfortable with, but the committee noted it “received evidence that Staffer 1 and Staffer 2 did not always feel free to reject Representative Edwards’ attentions without fear of professional consequences.” With “Staffer 1,” Edwards is also accused of leaving an event early and telling her it was because she “brought a date,” but he told the committee “that he told Staffer 1 that he did not want to be ‘in the way or something to that effect.’” The House Ethics Committee is chaired by Edwards’ fellow Republican Rep. Michael Guest, R-Miss., but acts on a bipartisan basis to investigate lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. The explosive report comes after a string of high-profile sexual harassment allegations against House members including now-former Reps. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., and Tony Gonzalez, R-Texas, both of whom have since resigned amid the blowback.