Transgender activists’ National Mall rally to be joined by a dozen members of Congress: organizers
The Trans Day of Visibility Rally will take place on the National Mall Monday afternoon, with organizers prepared to tell the Trump administration, “We’re not going anywhere,” according to the organizers’ flyer. A dozen congressional lawmakers are expected to make an appearance at the rally. The rally, organized “after relentless attacks from the Trump administration on the transgender community,” is one of several large-scale protests and marches held for Trans Day of Visibility on March 31, which was officially designated by former President Biden annually beginning in 2021. The event, organized by the Christopher Street Project — a nonprofit with a PAC focused on electing “champions for the transgender community” — is also supported by a dozen other organizations. TRANS ACTIVISTS SET ‘SURVIVAL SKILLS’ FOCUS AMID TRUMP’S EXECUTIVE ORDERS FOR TRANS DAY OF VISIBILITY WEEKEND Tensions remain high as transgender issues remain a focal point in U.S. politics and the culture war, with several high-profile Democrats, like California Gov. Gavin Newsom, coming out in recent weeks against biological men in women’s sports. The U.S. Supreme Court will also either decide or hear oral arguments on a number of LGBTQ-related cases this year, while both red and blue states pass their own laws to either limit or expand transgender medical treatments for minors. While Trans Day of Visibility has typically been a celebration in recent years, this year’s mood shifted to one of protest against President Donald Trump’s gender-related executive orders. Trump signed a series of executive orders aimed at limiting gender ideology’s influence in federal policies and education since taking back the White House. In February, Trump signed an executive order titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” banning biological males from participating in female-designated athletic competitions. Trump also signed the “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government” executive order establishing a binary definition of sex as male and female, determined at conception. HIDING KIDS’ ‘GENDER IDENTITY’ FROM PARENTS IS COMMON IN BLUE STATE FIGHTING TRUMP ON TRANS ISSUES: WATCHDOG Over the weekend, several blue cities hosted rallies and festivals, including Trans Fest, which featured an indigenous prayer led by activist Angel C. Fabian, who uses he/she/they pronouns and is known in “ceremonial spaces” as Tlahuizpapalotl, or “Butterfly of Light.” The event also offered legal assistance, workshops on rights, political education classes, survival skills and self-defense sessions, according to its advertisement on social media. The National Mall rally is scheduled for 4 to 6 p.m. ET.
‘A birth is more expensive than an abortion’: CO Dems argue fiscal virtues of liberal health care bill
The speaker of the Colorado House of Representatives argued in a recent committee hearing on a new “pregnancy-related services” bill that “averted births” could lead to cost savings for the state and its Medicaid program. Rep. Julie McCluskie, D-Dillon, seated as a bill-sponsor witness during a Health and Human Services Committee hearing in Denver last week, was pressed on her argument that the bill would “decrease costs for our health care policy and financing department [and] Medicaid expenditures.” “[T]he savings from averted births outweigh the cost of covering reproductive health care for all Coloradans,” McCluskie said, adding the bill will require abortions to be state-funded so as to avoid “potential interference” from the feds. McCluskie claimed the bill is a response to voters approving a 2024 ballot referendum that repealed a state constitutional amendment banning public funds for abortion procedures and instead recognized the operation as a right. MORE NEWS FROM COLORADO Rep. Brandi Bradley, R-Lone Tree, questioned McCluskie’s cost argument from a pro-life perspective, and lamented the fact Colorado allows abortion up until the day of delivery. Bradley countered that McCluskie’s cost-centric position ignores the high price of third-trimester abortions, which she calculated to be as much as $25,000, and asked General Assembly nonpartisan fiscal analyst Bill Zepernick to weigh-in on official figures. “So help me understand: From a fiscal point of view, you say there’s a decrease of $1.7 million from federal funds — but if there are no federal funds, you would say there’s no money coming from federal funds,” Bradley asked McCluskie. “Can you walk me through why it just says a decrease, and not that there’s zero money coming from federal funds, because if there is, the Hyde Amendment covers that,” she said, referring to the practice of adding such a rider to health care appropriations bills since the late Rep. Henry Hyde, R-Ill., first did in 1976 to prohibit abortion funding via federal dollars. DEM GOVS URGE TRUMP TO LET STATES PLAY ROLE IN IMMIGRATION DECISIONS McCluskie responded that the savings she referenced comes from “averted births that will not occur because abortions happened instead.” “So, a birth is more expensive than an abortion,” she said. “So, the savings comes in Medicaid births that will not occur — since both federal and state general funds are used through Medicaid for other health care services.” Meanwhile, Bradley pressed McCluskie on the mental health and substance abuse complications some women who undergo abortions may develop. Bill co-sponsor Rep. Lorena Garcia, D-Westminster, chimed in, calling Bradley’s concern one that “assumes misinformation” and instead claimed women denied abortions are at risk of suffering longer-term mental health complications. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Rep. Scott Bottoms, R-Cimarron Hills, rejected Garcia’s claim. “You know that that definitely isn’t misinformation,” he said. “CDC and NIH both — I stated these statistics three weeks ago, but they were ignored. Those statistics are wrong. Suicide goes up drastically, specifically second and third trimester. As I mentioned, if they have an abortion, as mental health issues goes up quite a bit.” A pro-life obstetrician later told the committee it seemed proponents of the bill “are saying that if more babies die by abortion it will be cheaper for the state.” Fox News Digital reached out to McCluskie, Bradley and House Minority Leader Rose Pugliese, R-Colorado Springs, for comment. The full audio was posted in a legislative hearing depository.
NJ lawmakers urge schools to follow Trump’s order against ‘radical indoctrination’
Schools should be following President Donald Trump’s executive order “ending radical indoctrination in K-12,” say two New Jersey lawmakers who put forward a bill to repeal the Garden State’s countervailing law. Assembs. Gregory McGuckin, R-Brick, and Paul Kanitra, R-Point Pleasant Beach, have put forward bill A-5560, which would repeal the 2021 state law requiring instruction on DEI and topics like unconscious bias, gender identity tolerance and disability tolerance. Meanwhile, the state’s Democratic attorney general remains party to multi-state legal guidance countering Trump’s order. “DEI is not appropriate in any part of our children’s curriculum. It is nothing more than rebranded Marxist ideology that destroys people, relationships and communities,” McGuckin said in a statement announcing the repeal effort. GREEN NEW HEADACHE: NJ DEMS FLEE GOV’S ENERGY MASTER PLAN AS ELECTION APPROACHES “[I]n schools, [it] wrecks merit-based rewards and an ambition to excel. True diversity, equity and inclusion leads to free associations which foster innovation and progress.” McGuckin went on to call DEI lessons “garbage” that don’t belong in New Jersey schools. Kanitra said it “boggles the mind” why “telling students their skin color determines their success or failure is true or helpful.” “They are either stupid or evil, or maybe brilliant, because the experts pushing this stuff are quite wealthy, I hear,” he said. Both lawmakers highlighted the decline in state education and test scores since the COVID-era school lock-outs ordered by Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat. McGuckin said students have yet to collectively return to 2019-level proficiency scores. Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin characterized Trump’s order to end DEI curricula as having little effect on established law and pledged to continue to fight purported federal overreach. In a statement last week, Platkin said New Jersey’s schools are excelling because of the system’s ability to embrace the state’s diversity. ‘DOGE FEVER’ STATES FROM NJ TO TX ADOPT DOGE INITIATIVES “No toothless threats from the Trump administration will change that,” he said. “Along with my [AG] colleagues across the country, we are issuing legal guidance to schools so that they can continue to foster diverse, equitable, inclusive, and accessible environments that benefit all students.” Platkin added he and the other state AGs will continue to fight any effort by the White House to withhold federal funding from schools or special-needs students. He was backed up by neighboring New York Attorney General Letitia James, who said in a statement that the Trump administration “cannot ban diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility efforts with a ‘Dear Colleague’ letter.” New Jersey’s DEI law, spearheaded by former Gov. Richard Codey — now a Democratic state senator from West Orange — mandated school districts incorporate such instruction beginning in the 2021 school year. “The instruction shall highlight and promote diversity, including economic diversity, equity, inclusion, tolerance, and belonging in connection with gender and sexual orientation, race and ethnicity, disabilities, and religious tolerance,” the bill reads. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP It also “examine[s] the impact that unconscious bias and economic disparities have at both an individual level and on society as a whole; and encourage safe, welcoming, and inclusive environments for all students regardless of race or ethnicity, sexual and gender identities, mental and physical disabilities, and religious beliefs.” Assemb. Carol Murphy, D-Burlington, said in 2020 it guarantees students will be “accepted and understanding of what each student goes through in life and making sure there is no stigma attached to that student, regardless of what culture… race… sexuality or where they are in life.” As of Monday afternoon, the repeal effort had gained three additional co-sponsors: Assembs. Gregory Myhre of Barnegat, Brian Rumpf of Little Egg Harbor and Erik Peterson of Readington, all Republicans. Fox News Digital reached out to Platkin and GOP gubernatorial frontrunner Jack Ciattarelli for additional comment for purposes of this story.
DISTURBING CONTENT WARNING: Illegal accused of killing Georgia grandmother faces new disturbing charges
DISTURBING CONTENT WARNING: The illegal immigrant accused of killing an Atlanta-area grandmother has been indicted and now faces additional disturbing charges related to the brutal murder. Hector David Sagastume-Rivas, a 21-year-old Honduran illegal alien, was caught and released at the border by the Biden administration in March 2021 and has had an active deportation order since July 2023 after he ignored a deportation order. Cobb County Police say Sagastume-Rivas killed Camillia Williams, a 51-year-old mother of five and a grandmother, then dumped her body in the woods in a neighborhood, drawing parallels to the tragic murder of nursing student Laken Riley, who was also killed by a caught-and-released illegal and left in the woods in Georgia. In addition to felony and malice murder, Sagastume-Rivas is now being charged with aggravated assault, aggravated sexual battery, rape and necrophilia. BLUE STATE SANCTUARY LAWS ENABLED ILLEGAL ‘ABOLISH ICE’ ACTIVIST TO EVADE CAPTURE, SAYS LOCAL DA Authorities say Sagastume-Rivas choked Williams until she was unconscious and then put his knees on her neck and used his full body weight to kill her. Williams was later found in the bushes of a neighborhood yard in Marietta, a popular Atlanta suburb. The new charges were released in an indictment published last Friday. According to the woman’s family, she had been worried about being followed in the days leading up to her murder. Her family is now left shocked and devastated by the killing. Speaking with Fox News, the victim’s brother, Arsene Williams said: “[We] just have problems with people in this country that are murderers, rapists, abusers… we don’t need that over here, we’ve already got enough of that in our own society.” BLUE STATE LEADER SOUNDS ALARM ABOUT ‘PERFECT STORM’ OF DEM IMMIGRATION POLICIES DECIMATING PUBLIC SAFETY There is no indication of a plea by the defendant on the indictment. The Department of Homeland Security told Fox News that Sagastume-Rivas entered the United States illegally on March 17, 2021, and was arrested by the U.S. Border Patrol. CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE “He was issued a notice to appear and paroled into the country by the previous administration,” the statement said. “A judge ordered him removed on July 11, 2023. On March 18, 2025, he was arrested by the Cobb County Police Department for capital murder and other crimes.” The statement said, “ICE has lodged an immigration detainer with the Cobb County Jail. President Trump and Secretary Noem will not allow criminal illegal aliens – including accused murderers – to be loose on America’s streets.” HOMAN BLASTS BLUE STATE AS REPORT SHOWS IT RELEASING ILLEGALS CHARGED WITH ‘HORRIFIC’ CRIMES ON LOW BAILS Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has denounced the Biden administration for enabling the “gruesome attack.” “This illegal alien should have never been in our country in the first place,” said Noem. “President Trump and I are putting the safety of Americans FIRST.”
Zeldin shutters multimillion-dollar Biden EPA museum that ‘scarcely’ saw visitors
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin is shuttering the Biden-era EPA museum located near the White House that “scarcely” saw visitors since it opened in 2024, Fox News Digital learned. Zeldin announced Monday afternoon that the National Environmental Museum and Education Center, which opened last year under the Biden administration, will shutter after costing taxpayers millions to build and subsequently drew a lackluster number of visitors. “The scarcely visited museum cost a whopping $4 million taxpayer dollars to build in accordance with Smithsonian standards and more than $600,000 annually to operate,” the EPA said of the museum in Monday comment provided to Fox News Digital, describing the museum as the “Biden EPA’s pet project.” “It had less than 2,000 external visitors between May 2024-February 2025 and while the museum was free, the cost to taxpayers per external visitor amounted to nearly $315 per person.” The EPA museum opened in May 2024 within the William Jefferson Clinton federal building, which is home to the EPA’s headquarters and sits just blocks from the White House. A smaller EPA exhibit previously was showcased in a neighboring federal building ahead of the construction and opening of the National Environmental Museum and Education Center in 2024. EPA TERMINATES BIDEN ADMIN’S GREEN GRANTS WORTH $20B, ZELDIN SAYS “From Love Canal and the founding of EPA more than 50 years ago to the historic funding of our Investing in America agenda, our new museum chronicles our nation’s work to protect public health and the environment – a movement that has transcended political and geographic divides,” Biden-era EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan said at the ribbon cutting ceremony for the museum last year. “Our work with state, local and Tribal partners has changed people’s lives, it has restored our connection with the environment and our planet, and it will ensure that future generations will continue to have clean air to breathe, safe water to drink, and clean land to live, work and play on,” he continued. Zeldin’s EPA said the museum did not spotlight bipartisan achievements and efforts protecting Americans’ health and the environment, but instead, “the Biden administration chose to curate the museum with a massive gap of recognition between 2014 and January 20, 2021.” STACEY ABRAMS SLAMMED AFTER DEFENDING $2 BILLION IN BIDEN-ERA EPA FUNDS TO BUY GREEN ENERGY APPLIANCES “There is also a higher priority placed on Democrat Administrations’ work compared to Republican Administrations,” an EPA spokesperson said of the museum. “Biden’s EPA favored the incorporation of a slew of ‘environmental justice’ and climate change content to proliferate the fearmongering tactics of the radical left instead of focusing on the statutory work EPA does daily to deliver clean air, land and water to Americans.” LEE ZELDIN LIKENS BIDEN ENERGY ‘SCHEME’ CONNECTED TO STACEY ABRAMS TO ‘THROWING GOLD BARS OFF THE TITANIC’ A breakdown of estimated annual costs to operate the museum, which was provided to Fox Digital, shows taxpayers were expected to foot the bill for an estimated: $123,766.29 in annual cleaning and landscaping costs, $37,899 for audio and visual maintenance, $54,292.99 in annual “artifact storage” costs, $8,900 for “Magnetometer maintenance,” $46,000 for X-ray maintenance, an estimated $123,000 in utility costs, and $207,326 in annual costs to fund two security guards for the museum during operating hours. The total annual operating costs totaled just more than $600,000. The Functional Government Initiative, a government watchdog focused on broadening the public’s awareness of government officials and decisions, celebrated Zeldin’s announcement as a win for taxpayers as funds will return to it intended use for the agency: protecting the environment. COMER PROBES NGOS THAT RECEIVED $20B IN BIDEN EPA GRANTS DESPITE ALMOST NO REVENUE: ‘SHADY DEAL’ Rod Law, Functional Government Initiative’s communications director, said in comment to Fox News Digital Monday. “There is something ironic about the EPA wasting money on a museum about itself when it is supposed to be focused on toxic waste.” “Sadly, promoting special interest climate activism and growing the out-of-touch bureaucracy were hallmarks of the EPA in the Biden administration, and this museum was an unfortunate result of such policy. Administrator Zeldin closing it protects taxpayers, helps return the EPA to its statutory mission of protecting the environment, and abandons past dysfunction and bureaucratic self-promotion,” Law continued. TRUMP EPA CHIEF TO ‘CONFRONT CRISIS’ OF MEXICAN SEWAGE POLLUTING SAN DIEGO AREA BEACHES The New York Times previewed in February that the museum’s fate hung in the balance as the Trump administration and its Department of Government Efficiency went through various federal agencies in search of government overspending, fraud, and mismanagement. Zeldin, a staunch Trump ally, has been on a cost-cutting mission at the agency since he was sworn-in back in January. Zeldin has uncovered and cut $20 billion in grants awarded by the Biden administration for climate and clean-energy projects; put the Biden administration’s Clean Power Plan 2.0, which cracked down on power plants, on the chopping block; and terminated hundreds of employees amid the Trump administration’s mission to trim and streamline the federal government of overspending.
‘Blindsided’: How Stefanik’s Trump nomination as UN ambassador imploded
Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., saw her nomination to serve as ambassador to the United Nations under President Donald Trump crumble last week before she ultimately withdrew her name from consideration. The saga unfolded quickly, with Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jim Risch, R-Idaho, only being informed of Stefanik’s withdrawal by the White House roughly two hours before Trump shared it on social media. Two senior House GOP aides told Fox News Digital that even Republican leaders were blindsided by the decision. “Trump pulling Stefanik’s nomination for ambassador to the U.N. blindsided seemingly everyone on Capitol Hill,” one senior House GOP aide said Thursday. “As early as yesterday, representatives were praising her as the ‘soon-to-be-ambassador.’” HOW TRUMP-BLOCKING JUDGES MANAGED TO GET PAST SENATE JUDICIARY HAWKS A White House official told Fox News Digital it was about the GOP’s shrinking majority in the House: “The season for needing votes is upon us – reconciliation, debt ceiling. Every vote counts.” Trump himself was reportedly concerned about the slim House majority and Democrats over-performing in special elections in Florida. Stefanik, who had been poised for a bipartisan confirmation process, said she’d spoken with Trump multiple times since Thursday. “It was a combination of the New York corruption that we’re seeing under Kathy Hochul, special elections and the House margin,” Stefanik said on “Hannity” Friday. “I’ve been in the House. It’s tough to count these votes every day. And we are going to continue to defy the political prognosticators and deliver, deliver victory on behalf of President Trump and, importantly, the voters across this country.” “The president knows that. He and I had multiple conversations today, and we are committed to delivering results on behalf of the American people. And as always, I’m committed to delivering results on behalf of my constituents,” she added. Upon hearing the news, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told reporters, “The only reason they would do it is because of the House,” referring to the lower chamber’s slim majority. “Because everybody likes her [and] thinks she’s qualified.” JOSH HAWLEY BELIEVES HIS BILL CAN STOP ‘RESISTANCE’ JUDGES FROM ‘PROVOKING A CRISIS’ “But I could understand why that would be a problem,” he explained. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., wasn’t even aware of her looming withdrawal when reporters first asked him. “It’s probably something to do with political realities,” he said. The Republicans’ House majority is crucial to getting Trump agenda priorities done through the key budget reconciliation process, which the GOP has been trying to expedite. With an already fragile majority, Republicans also faced potential trouble on two fronts in special elections prior to Stefanik stepping back. For Stefanik’s New York district, Republican-on-Republican infighting was threatening the party’s hold on the seat. One of the candidates even threatened to run as a third-party candidate if he didn’t get the GOP nod. That could have put the possibility of splitting the Republican base in play, giving a Democratic candidate a prime opportunity to prevail – though GOP elections sources denied concerns over her seat. REPUBLICANS LOOK TO ABOLISH TSA IN FAVOR OF PRIVATE SECURITY AT AIRPORTS Another point of concern for the GOP majority is the election to replace national security advisor and former Rep. Mike Waltz in Florida’s 6th District on Tuesday. The Democratic candidate, Josh Weil, and Democrats have poured money into the race to flip the red seat. If Weil is successful, Republicans in the House would have one less vote to advance Trump’s agenda items, particularly his hallmark tax cuts. SCOOP: TOP REPUBLICAN CHUCK GRASSLEY SETS PROMPT HEARING ON JUDGES BLOCKING TRUMP As the reality of these concerns set in, Trump took to Truth Social last week to confirm that Stefanik was withdrawing as U.N. ambassador nominee. “I have asked Elise, as one of my biggest Allies, to remain in Congress to help me deliver Historic Tax Cuts, GREAT Jobs, Record Economic Growth, a Secure Border, Energy Dominance, Peace Through Strength, and much more, so we can MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “With a very tight Majority, I don’t want to take a chance on anyone else running for Elise’s seat. The people love Elise and, with her, we have nothing to worry about come Election Day. There are others that can do a good job at the United Nations,” he said.
Top financial officials sound alarm on ‘unconscionable’ economic impact of DOGE protest violence: letter
FIRST ON FOX: A group of more than two dozen financial officers from across the United States has sent a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi warning how the “domestic terrorism” attacks carried out against Tesla dealerships in recent weeks “have led to significant financial losses affecting millions of Americans.” “These attacks are not just politically charged, they undermine the financial well-being of the public servants who dedicate their lives to the betterment of our society and affect the long-term financial growth of our state pension systems and other state treasury investments,” the letter to Bondi, signed by 26 state financial officers nationwide, explains. “Many state investment funds, including public pensions that hold the retirement savings of our public school teachers, first responders, and police officers, are invested in Tesla for good reason. As of December 31, 2024, Tesla employs over 125,000 workers, and, before these incidents began in late January 2025, was valued at roughly $1.3 trillion and trading at over $400 per share,” the letter continued. “Since these attacks started, Tesla’s stock has plummeted. It is unconscionable that the financial well-being of our public school teachers and police officers, and all beneficiaries of our state treasury funds – to say nothing of those whose personal property has been vandalized – has become collateral damage of rage politics and violent actions.” What began as protests against Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have escalated into violent incidents against the Trump ally’s company, including shots fired at a building, destroyed dealership windows and charging stations set on fire. TESLA TAKEDOWN: ANTI-MUSK PROTESTERS MOBILIZE FOR GLOBAL DAY OF PROTEST AT HUNDREDS OF TESLA LOCATIONS The rise in incidents has caused the FBI to launch a task force to crack down on Tesla crime, and the Justice Department to announce charges against arson suspects, with Bondi labeling the attacks “domestic terrorism.” The letter commends the actions the administration has taken, including “swift” action by the FBI and says it is “our responsibility to call out radical elements of society that seek to use violence as a form of political and economic persuasion.” “The despicable attacks being carried out on Tesla vehicles across the nation are driven by radical political hatred and must not be tolerated. Not only are the attacks a threat to innocent people’s physical safety – they have also caused considerable financial harm, not just for Tesla owners or the company itself, but for millions of everyday Americans whose pension funds are invested with Tesla,” Pennsylvania Treasurer Stacy Garrity told Fox News Digital in a statement. PAM BONDI ISSUES NEW WARNING TO FAR-LEFT DEMOCRAT OVER ‘DANGEROUS’ RHETORIC TOWARD ELON MUSK, TED CRUZ “As a result, the retirement savings of schoolteachers, police officers, and other public servants are at serious risk. My co-signers and I thank the Justice Department for their swift and decisive action against the perpetrators and call on other elected officials to condemn this violence for exactly what it is: domestic terrorism meant to intimidate and destabilize society.” Prominent Democrats have been slow to condemn the violence at Tesla dealerships, including over a dozen Democrats who have previously warned about the dangers of domestic terrorism in the past. As the violence across the country continues, Elon Musk and other top Republicans have been increasingly calling out the protests and violence as being motivated by far-left groups and organizations. “The anti-Tesla attacks are dangerous, selfish, and completely indefensible,” O.J. Oleka, CEO of the State Financial Officers Foundation, told Fox News Digital. “The radicals behind these crimes are dead wrong if they think they are victimless or merely symbolic. Those engaging in this domestic terrorism are putting human life at risk while also robbing hardworking Americans of their financial peace, especially those who depend on public pensions. No teacher or police officer or first responder should have to see their retirement savings suffer because hate-fueled violence was allowed to go on, or worse, shamefully encouraged by certain attention-hungry politicians. As this letter makes clear, our financial officers will support every necessary action to protect Americans, their property, and their financial future.” Fox News Digital’s Sarah Rumpf-Whitten contributed to this report
White House considers Signal chat leak case ‘closed,’ reiterates support for Waltz, press secretary says
The White House considers the Signal group chat leak case “closed,” Trump administration press secretary Karoline Leavitt told the media Monday while reiterating President Donald Trump’s support of national security advisor Mike Waltz. “As the president has made it very clear, Mike Waltz continues to be an important part of his national security team,” Leavitt told the media in brief remarks during a gaggle outside of the White House’s press room Monday afternoon. “And this case has been closed here at the White House, as far as we are concerned.” “There have been steps made to ensure that something like that can obviously never happen again,” she continued. “And we’re moving forward. And the president and Mike Waltz and his entire national security team have been working together very well, if you look at how much safer the United States of America is because of the leadership of this team.” The Trump administration came under scrutiny from Democrats and other critics after the Atlantic’s editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, revealed in an article published March 24 that he was added to a Signal group chat with top national security leaders, including Waltz, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and CIA Director John Ratcliffe. TRUMP OFFICIALS ACCIDENTALLY TEXT ATLANTIC JOURNALIST ABOUT MILITARY STRIKES IN APPARENT SECURITY BREACH Signal is an encrypted messaging app that operates similarly to texting or making phone calls, but with additional security measures that help ensure communications are kept private to those included in the correspondence. TRUMP SAYS WALTZ DOESN’T NEED TO APOLOGIZE OVER SIGNAL TEXT CHAIN LEAK: ‘DOING HIS BEST’ The Atlantic’s report characterized the Trump administration as texting “war plans” regarding a planned strike on Houthi rebels in Yemen. The Trump administration has maintained, however, that no classified material was transmitted in the chat, with Trump repeatedly defending Waltz amid the fallout. DEMS HAVE LONG HISTORY OF SUPPORTING ENCRYPTED SIGNAL APP AHEAD OF TRUMP CHAT LEAK Waltz took responsibility for the journalist’s inclusion in the high-profile group chat, including in an interview with Fox News’ Laura Ingraham. “I built the group. My job is to make sure everything’s coordinated,” Waltz said on “The Ingraham Angle.” “Of course I didn’t see this loser in the group. It looked like someone else,” Waltz added. “The person I thought was on there was never on there.” TRUMP REVEALS WHO WAS BEHIND SIGNAL TEXT CHAIN LEAK Leavitt told the media Wednesday that the administration was investigating the incident, explaining Elon Musk’s team was also assisting with the investigation. “The National Security Council, the White House Counsel’s Office, and also, yes, Elon Musk’s team” will be leading the investigation into the Signal leak, Leavitt said during a White House press briefing. TOP DEM USED SAME APP USED IN ATLANTIC SCANDAL TO SET UP CONTACT WITH STEELE DOSSIER AUTHOR “Elon Musk has offered to put his technical experts on this, to figure out how this number was inadvertently added to the chat – again, to take responsibility and ensure this can never happen again,” she continued. Trump slammed the media’s coverage of the group chat in a Truth Social post Sunday afternoon, calling it the “never ending Signal story.” “They just don’t stop – Over and over they go! Meet the Fake Press should instead explain how successful the attack was, and how Sleepy Joe Biden should have done it YEARS AGO,” he posted. “This story and narrative is so old and boring, but only used because we are having the most successful ‘First One Hundred Presidential Days’ in the history of America, and they can’t find anything else to talk about. The Fake News Media has the lowest Approval Ratings in history, and for good reason. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!”
New research reveals how EV, emissions mandates are inflating costs for gas-powered cars, utilities
FIRST ON FOX: Government subsidies for electric vehicles (EVs), combined with a regulatory credit system for vehicle emissions, are leading to rising automobile and utility costs, a new report from the American Energy Institute (AEI) reveals. Increasingly stringent Corporate Average Fuel Economy and greenhouse gas tailpipe emissions standards have forced gas-powered vehicle manufacturers to produce more EVs. As a result, this has siphoned auto manufacturers’ resources away from gas-powered vehicle production and toward EV production, ultimately pushing the costs of gas-powered cars higher, according a report by the AEI. If auto manufacturers do not produce enough EVs to meet state and federal standards, they are forced to buy into a credit system to offset their emissions production, inevitably creating another avenue where additional costs are transferred to consumers, according to the report. GOP LAWMAKER SEEKS TO SLAM BRAKES ON BIDEN’S ‘WOKE AND WASTEFUL’ EV TAX CREDIT Utility costs also see an impact, AEI’s report points out. State and federal subsidy and rebate programs for EV charging infrastructure, while beneficial for utility companies’ profits, lead once more to increased costs that are subsequently passed on to rate payers. Forty states offer rebates for in-home level two chargers, while at the federal level, rebate and subsidy programs for EV charging infrastructure received an investment of roughly $7.5 billion under former President Joe Biden. “By distorting the market with regulatory credits, subsidies, and behind-the-scenes rulemaking, federal agencies are shifting costs from affluent EV buyers to working-class Americans — while straining a grid that’s already under pressure,” said Jason Isaac, co-author of the report and the founder and CEO of AEI. “This isn’t about consumer choice or energy innovation. It’s administrative overreach that leaves Americans paying more to drive and to keep the lights on.” Isaac, a former Texas state representative, admitted that during his time in the legislature, he worked to create an EV subsidy in the Lone Star State, which provided all EV buyers with a $2,500 tax credit. He said that over time, he realized the majority of fully electric vehicles were being purchased by wealthier individuals who, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research, would have done so even without the subsidies. “This policy is not a home run,” said Hunt Allcott, a professor of environmental social sciences and a senior fellow at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, with regard to the federal EV tax credit system. “While the [Inflation Reduction Act’s] electric vehicle tax credits have slowed climate change and shifted production to U.S. manufacturing firms, they also impose high costs on U.S. taxpayers.” TOP AGENCY STAFFER TRYING TO BLOCK CRUCIAL TRUMP DIRECTIVE ONCE MANAGED DEI TEAM Each EV that’s purchased benefits from an estimated $94,000 to $153,000 in hidden subsidies over a 10-year period, according to research from the AEI. These figures account for the costs automakers bear to meet government mandates as well as losses from forced EV production, expenses that ultimately raise prices for consumers. Rebates and subsidies for EV charging infrastructure are driving up base utility rates for consumers as well, the AEI report states. It is estimated that if each EV sold resulted in one in-home or commercial charging infrastructure, the more than 1.1 million EVs sold in 2023 would have received more than $827 million in residential charging tax credits. Isaac said these rebates and subsidies are then used by utility companies to lobby public utility commissions to approve higher base rates because they are enhancing their infrastructure to improve EV infrastructure. “When you go buy a gallon of gasoline, [taxpayers] are not helping you pay for that gallon of gasoline; all the costs are embedded within a gallon of gasoline,” Isaac said. “So the typical EV charge, whatever they pay at the charging station, is only a small portion of the expenses. That charging station itself has received a significant subsidy, both from the state and the federal government, and the utility has come in and increased the infrastructure or improved, enhanced the infrastructure to handle that load, and the rate payers in that particular area are picking up that burden.” DEMOCRATS TURN ON TESLA DESPITE YEARS-LONG ELECTRIC VEHICLE PUSH One anecdote used in the report to illustrate the cost burden of EV charging subsidies and rebates posits that if one homeowner were to purchase an EV charger on a street of 10 people, and the local electric company provides that homeowner with a $500 rebate, the downhill impacts lead to each of the 10 households shouldering a roughly $50 cost to build the charger as a result of the subsidized rate increases. The increased costs on gas-powered car buyers and utility rate payers, Issac said, illustrates the need to get rid of these clean-air mandates. “Eliminating these costly EV mandates is exactly the kind of action needed under President Trump’s energy emergency,” Isaac said. “It would jump-start a resurgence in the American auto industry, lower the price of new vehicles and ease pressure on our electric grid, bringing down energy costs for every household.” Fox News Digital reached out to several EV advocacy groups, including Drive Change. Drive Electric, Plug In America, DriveElectric USA, EVHybridNoire, the Sierra Club and the Electric Vehicle Association, but did not receive a response in time for publication of this story.
US sanctions 6 Beijing, Hong Kong authorities for ‘undermining’ the island region’s autonomy
The State Department sanctioned six Beijing and Hong Kong authorities who Secretary of State Marco Rubio said “have engaged in actions or policies that have degraded the autonomy of Hong Kong, including in connection with transnational repression targeting individuals residing in the United States.” Rubio announced Monday that the actions “demonstrate the Trump Administration’s commitment to hold to account those respondsible for depriving people in Hong Kong of protected rights and freedoms or who commit acts of transnational repression on U.S. soil or against U.S. persons.” Those sanctioned include Sonny Chi Kwong Au – the Secretary-General for the Committee for Safeguarding National Security in Hong Kong – and Raymond Chak Yee Siu, the Police Commissioner of Hong Kong Police Force. The other four sanctioned were identified as Dong Jingwei, Dick Chung Chun Wong, Margaret Wing Lan Chiu and Paul Ting Kwok Lam. “Beijing and Hong Kong officials have used Hong Kong national security laws extraterritorially to intimidate, silence, and harass 19 pro-democracy activists who were forced to flee overseas, including a U.S. citizen and four other U.S. residents,” the State Department said. 45 PRO-DEMOCRACY HONG KONG ACTIVISTS SENTENCED TO UP TO 10 YEARS IN PRISON UNDER CHINA-BACKED LAW Lam, according to the State Department, “is the Secretary for Justice, Hong Kong in the Regional Government Ministers category, and has been responsible for or involved in developing, adopting, or implementing, the National Security Law.” Last year, Human Rights Watch said the “Safeguarding National Security Ordinance punishes peaceful speech and civil society activism with heavy prison sentences, expands police powers, and weakens due process rights.” HONG KONG LAWMAKERS UNANIMOUSLY PASS CONTROVERSIAL SECURITY LAW, GRANTING GOVERNMENT POWER TO CURB DISSENT “As a result of today’s sanctions-related actions, and in accordance with E.O. 13936, all property and interests in property of the sanctioned persons described above that are in the United States or in possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to the Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC),” the State Department said. “Additionally, all individuals or entities that have ownership, either directly or indirectly, 50 percent or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked,” it continued. “All transactions by U.S. persons or within (or transiting) the United States that involve any property or interests in property of designated or otherwise blocked persons are prohibited unless authorized by a general or specific license issued by OFAC or exempt from U.S. sanctions,” according to the State Department. “These prohibitions include the making of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services by, to, or for the benefit of any blocked person and the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services from any such person.” Fox News’ Nick Kalman contributed to this report.