Trump’s border wall expansion moves forward in several critical areas: ‘Crisis is not yet over’
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem cleared waivers allowing for 36 more miles of border wall construction in Arizona and New Mexico. The waivers curb environmental regulations that the construction would be subjected to legally build more quickly. DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Fox News Digital in a statement that “DHS has been working at a neck-breaking speed to secure our border” and remove “criminal illegal aliens out of our country.” The waivers cover several projects, including filling gaps in the Yuma Sector and making developments on the wall in the El Paso Sector, according to a news release. In addition, 24 miles will be part of the Tucson Sonoita Project. REPUBLICAN AGS VISIT US-MEXICO BORDER WALL AS TRUMP’S ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’ CLEARS EXPANSION FUNDING These projects already had funds allocated in 2020-21 appropriations for Customs and Border Protection, the release from CBP added. “Today’s news is welcome here in Yuma, Arizona, where our community is still grappling with the consequences of the Biden-Harris Administration’s four years of open-border policies,” Jonathan Lines, a Yuma County Supervisor and Chairman of the Border Security Alliance, stated. “We applaud President Trump’s commitment to border security, and we look forward to the completion of the wall across the entire southern border. The border crisis is not yet over, and our federal government must continue to equip the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents with the tools, technologies, and resources necessary to provide adequate national security to keep America safe,” Lines added. TRUMP ADMIN SHARES BORDER PLANS FOR 2025 AND BEYOND: ‘AS MUCH WALL AS WE NEED’ Another waiver was granted in April to build more of the wall in California. With only a few small exceptions, border wall construction was largely halted during the Biden administration as millions of people crossed illegally, including through gaps. The gaps between barriers are also known to be used for cartel activity. CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE “Our border has never been safer or more secure, and we have the Trump Administration to thank for that,” Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen told Fox News Digital in a statement. “Finishing the wall is exactly what Arizonans voted for, and I’m pleased Secretary Noem is quickly carrying out President Trump’s mission to protect our citizens and strengthen our national security. Sanity and the rule of law are being restored in our nation.” Critics of further wall construction have largely cited environmental concerns. BORDER COMMUNITY REVEALS WHAT TRUMP ADMIN STILL NEEDS TO ACCOMPLISH AS CRISIS CALMS DOWN: ‘UNDUE BURDENS’ “Waiving environmental, cultural preservation, and good governance laws that protect clean air and clean water, safeguard precious cultural resources, and preserve vibrant ecosystems and biodiversity will only cause further harm to border communities and ecosystems,” Earthjustice Associate Legislative Representative Cameron Walkup said in a statement in April after the California waiver. “Rather than rushing to spend tens of billions of dollars to help President Trump build even more wasteful border wall through a budget reconciliation package, Congress should focus on rescinding these waivers and remediating the significant damage that has already been caused by the wall,” Walkup added.
Trump-Musk feud: Who deserves the most credit for president’s resounding 2024 White House win?
As the war of words between President Donald Trump and Elon Musk rages, it’s sparked a new debate over how decisive the world’s richest person was in helping Trump recapture the White House in the 2024 election. The president, speaking with reporters, argued, “I think I would have won” even without Musk’s help on the campaign trail last year. Musk, firing back, argued that “without me, Trump would have lost the election.” While the once-strong alliance between Trump and Musk rapidly disintegrated on Thursday as the two traded barbs over the president’s “big, beautiful” tax cuts and spending bill, the zingers also extended to other topics, including last year’s presidential election. MUSK MAY SPEAK WITH TRUMP AIDES IN PUSH TO END FEUD WITH PRESIDENT Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, went all in for Trump last summer and autumn. He endorsed the GOP presidential nominee in July right after the assassination attempt against Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania. REPUBLICAN LAWMAKERS STAND FIRM AGAINST MUSK’S ‘KILL THE BILL’ ASSAULT ON TRUMP’S AGENDA Musk became the top donor of the 2024 election cycle, dishing out nearly $300 million in support of Trump’s bid through America PAC, a Trump-aligned super PAC. Much of the money was used for get-out-the-vote efforts and ads in the crucial battleground states as Trump and Kamala Harris faced off for the presidency. Musk concentrated much of his efforts on Pennsylvania. He joined Trump for the first time on the campaign trail at an Oct. 5 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, then held five town halls in the Keystone State later in October. And Musk set up a war room of sorts in Pittsburgh. Trump, mentioning how Musk campaigned for him in Pennsylvania, pointed to his White House chief of staff, Susie Wiles, who was co-chair of Trump’s 2024 campaign. The president noted that “Susie would say I would have won Pennsylvania easily anyway.” MUSK’S FISCAL CONSERVATIVE EVOLUTION PUTS HIM AT ODDS WITH TRUMP Musk, apparently watching Trump’s comments in real time, quickly fired back on X, which Musk renamed after buying Twitter. “Without me, Trump would have lost the election, Dems would control the House and the Republicans would be 51-49 in the Senate,” Musk wrote. “Such ingratitude.” Veteran Republican strategist John Brabender, who served as a media consultant to the 2024 Trump campaign, told Fox News Digital that “Elon and many others played an important role in helping the president win states all across America.” “But the bottom line is there’s only one constant and one person who is most responsible, by far, and that’s President Trump. That’s who people voted for,” Brabender added. Longtime Republican consultant Dave Carney, a veteran of numerous GOP presidential campaigns over the past few decades, said the president and Musk are both right. Carney, who steered Preserve America, another top-spending Trump-aligned super PAC, told Fox News that Trump “might have won without the help, but you can’t underestimate how important that help was.” Pointing to Preserve America, Musk’s America PAC and MAGA Inc, which was the main Trump-aligned super PAC, Carney said they all deserved “a tremendous amount of credit” and “just made it easier” for Trump to sweep all seven battleground states and win the White House. Carney also highlighted the Musk-aligned super PAC’s “unprecedented field effort, mail and other communications … to turn out these low-propensity Trump voters.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Tom Eddy, the GOP chairman in Erie County, a longtime crucial swing county in the northwestern corner of battleground Pennsylvania, told Fox News that Musk “helped Trump significantly. I really think so. He had money, and he had a name.” But Eddy added that “my gut feeling would be that Trump is basically saying, ‘Look. I won the election. These people helped me, but I won.’ That’s what he’s trying to bring across.” In battleground Michigan, veteran Republican strategist Dennis Lennox pointed to Musk’s comments and told Fox News “it’s incredibly arrogant to say that, but it’s probably true.”
Trump admin asks Supreme Court to lift injunction blocking dismantling of Education Department
The Trump administration is asking the Supreme Court to block a lower court ruling that is keeping it from restructuring the Department of Education. “That injunction effectively appoints the district court to a Cabinet role and bars the Executive Branch from terminating anyone, even though respondents conceded that some other [reductions in force] would plainly be proper,” the SCOTUS filing reads. On Wednesday, a federal appeals court declined to lift a judge’s order blocking President Donald Trump from carrying out his executive order that would shut down the department, according to Reuters. In the executive order, which was issued in March, Trump asserted that “closing the Department of Education would provide children and their families the opportunity to escape a system that is failing them.” FEDERAL APPEALS COURT THROWS ROADBLOCK AT TRUMP’S EDUCATION REFORM AGENDA U.S. District Judge Myong Joun initially blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to dismantle the DOE in May. The ruling stopped a mass firing at the DOE that was announced in March and ordered the reinstatement of those who have been fired. The DOE quickly rejected Joun’s ruling, with Deputy Assistant Secretary of the DOE’s Office of Communications and Outreach Madi Biedermann saying, “President Trump and the Senate-confirmed Secretary of Education clearly have the authority to make decisions about agency reorganization efforts, not an unelected Judge with a political axe to grind. This ruling is not in the best interest of American students or families. We will immediately challenge this on an emergency basis.” Trump made it clear that he would seek to restructure and even dismantle the DOE during his second term in office. In fact, when he nominated Education Secretary Linda McMahon, he said her goal should be to “put herself out of a job.” The president cited poor performance as one of his reasons for seeking to shut down the DOE. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION DESIGNATES JUNE AS ‘TITLE IX MONTH’ AMID TRANSGENDER ATHLETE DEBATE The Nation’s Report Card, which assesses how American students are performing in various subjects, showed seven out of 10 fourth graders are not proficient readers, which is a worse score than the last report card in 2022. The report card noted that reading scores showed “no significant change” since 1992. The administration has faced both political and legal pushback on its quest to get rid of the department. In February, several Democrats attempted to enter the Department of Education building in D.C., but were blocked by an employee. During the incident in February, Democrats repeatedly slammed the Trump administration and accused it of lacking transparency. Fox News Digital’s Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.
House Budget chairman explains why there’s no ‘pork’ in Trump tax bill after Elon Musk attacks
FIRST ON FOX: The chairman of the House Budget Committee is pushing back on Elon Musk’s claim that President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” is full of “pork.” Chairman Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, told Fox News Digital it was not possible for “pork barrel spending” to be included in the legislation, called a budget reconciliation bill, because the reconciliation process was simply not the mechanism for such federal funds. “Reconciliation does not have anything to do with discretionary spending – earmarks, and all of that,” Arrington said. “And quite frankly, the [Department of Government Efficiency] findings were, I think, almost entirely an issue for . . . annual appropriations.” “Discretionary spending” refers to the annual dollars allocated by Congress each year through the appropriations process – also known as “spending bills.” HOUSE GOP TARGETS ANOTHER DEM OFFICIAL ACCUSED OF BLOCKING ICE AMID DELANEY HALL FALLOUT It’s a process that’s historically known to be rife with “pork barrel spending” from both Republicans and Democrats – funding for pet projects or other specific initiatives benefiting a certain member of Congress’ district. But reconciliation deals with the government’s “mandatory spending” – largely government welfare programs that can only be amended by changing the law. “We’re dealing with mandatory spending programs – entitlements, health care, welfare and the tax code,” Arrington said. “We did a responsible bill. There’s no pork in it. The question, I think, for some folks and the objective of mine and my budget committee members was, whatever we’re doing on tax or security to unleash growth and to buy greater security for the American people, we wanted it to be done in a fiscally responsible way.” Senior White House adviser Stephen Miller echoed that sentiment on X: “The reconciliation bill cuts taxes, seals the border and reforms welfare. It is not a spending bill. There is no ‘pork.’ It is the campaign agenda codified.” MIKE JOHNSON, DONALD TRUMP GET ‘BIG, ‘BEAUTIFUL’ WIN AS BUDGET PASSES HOUSE The vast majority of the trillions of dollars in the bill are aimed at Trump’s tax policies – extending his 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) while implementing new priorities like eliminating taxes on tips and overtime wages. There’s also $4 trillion in House Republicans’ versions of the bill aimed at raising the debt limit. The legislation is also aimed at amending current laws to enable new funding for border security and Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) – projected to boost those priorities by billions of dollars. To offset those costs, House GOP leaders are seeking stricter work requirements for Medicaid and food stamps, while shifting more of the cost burden for both programs to the states. Republicans are also looking to roll back green energy tax subsidies in former President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). But Musk and other fiscal hawks’ main concern has been that the legislation does not go far enough with those spending cuts. They’ve also raised concerns about the overall bill adding to the national debt – which is currently nearing $37 trillion. As part of his social media campaign against the bill, Musk called for both eliminating the tax cuts and removing the debt limit increase from the final legislation. Musk reposted another X user who wrote, “Drop the tax cuts, cut some pork, get the bill through.” He’s also shown support on X for Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and his call to strip the debt limit provision out of the bill. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has projected that the bill would cut taxes by $3.7 trillion while raising deficits by $2.4 trillion over a decade.
Risch urges ‘top to bottom’ USAID spending review after waste, fraud exposed
Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, said a thorough review of spending from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is warranted, following the Trump administration’s efforts to overhaul the agency. USAID was an independent agency to provide impoverished countries aid and offer development assistance, but the agency was upended since February when President Donald Trump installed Secretary of State Marco Rubio to oversee the organization amid concerns that USAID did not advance U.S. core interests. Since then, the agency has faced layoffs and is being absorbed into the State Department. This increased scrutiny on USAID spending is valid, according to Risch. “The amount of money that we’re spending on that has to be reviewed top to bottom,” Risch said during an event Wednesday at the Washington-based think tank the Hudson Institute. ‘FIRED ME ILLEGALLY’: EMOTIONAL EX-USAID EMPLOYEES LEAVE BUILDING WITH BELONGINGS AFTER MASS LAYOFFS Risch said that several weeks into the Trump administration, he and others, including Rubio, evaluated a list of programs that detailed $3 million in funding for “promotion of democracy in Lower Slobovia.” According to Risch, the description didn’t provide enough information and items like these are totaling up to billions of dollars that must undergo review. “Lower Slobovia” is a fictional place and a term used by Americans to describe an underdeveloped foreign country. “We can do so much better, not only in how, how much money we spend, but how we spend it,” Risch said. “So, if you say, well, we’re eliminating this program, be careful you don’t say, ‘Oh, that means we’re walking away from human rights.’ Look, America is human rights. If America leads the way on human rights. We are the world standard on human rights. We have no intention of giving that position up.” The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) targeted USAID in its push to eliminate wasteful spending. The agency came under fire for many funding choices, including allocating $1.5 million for a program that sought to “advance diversity, equity and inclusion in Serbia’s workplaces and business communities” and a $70,000 program for a “DEI musical” in Ireland. ‘HYSTERIA’: WHITE HOUSE SHUTS DOWN CONCERNS OVER USAID DOCUMENT PURGE As a result, Rubio announced on March 11 that the State Department completed a six-week review and would cancel more than 80% of USAID programs — cutting roughly 5,200 of USAID’s 6,200 programs. Fox News Digital was the first to report later in March that the State Department planned to absorb the remaining operations and programs USAID runs so it would no longer function as an independent agency. The move means eliminating thousands of staff members in an attempt to enhance the existing, “life-saving” foreign assistance programs, according to a State Department memo that Fox News Digital obtained. NEXT US NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR? HERE’S WHOM TRUMP MIGHT PICK TO REPLACE WALTZ “Foreign assistance done right can advance our national interests, protect our borders, and strengthen our partnerships with key allies,” Rubio said in a March statement to Fox News Digital. “Unfortunately, USAID strayed from its original mission long ago. As a result, the gains were too few and the costs were too high.” “We are reorienting our foreign assistance programs to align directly with what is best for the United States and our citizens,” Rubio said. “We are continuing essential lifesaving programs and making strategic investments that strengthen our partners and our own country.” Meanwhile, Democrats slammed the restructuring of the agency, labeling the move “illegal.” “Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s destruction and dismantling of USAID is not only disastrous foreign policy and counter to our national security interests; it is plainly illegal,” the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., said in a statement in March. “Congress wrote a law establishing USAID as an independent agency with its own appropriation, and only Congress can eliminate it.”
Elon Musk may speak to Trump aides in push to calm feud
Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk may speak to White House aides Friday in an effort to calm his ongoing feud with President Donald Trump, Fox News Digital has learned. Musk and Trump have been arguing over social media in recent days. This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Seven times federal judges ruled against the Trump admin this week
Federal judges are continuing their pushback against the Trump administration by issuing orders blocking a number of actions, including the deportation of the family of Mohamed Soliman, who is facing a hate crime charge in the wake of a firebombing attack in Colorado. The rulings – some from judges appointed under the Biden administration – come after White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said last week that “President Trump had more injunctions in one full month of office in February than Joe Biden had in three years.” “The real constitutional crisis is taking place within our judicial branch, where district court judges in liberal districts across the country are abusing their power to unilaterally block President Trump’s basic executive authority,” Leavitt also has said. Here are seven cases in which federal judges ruled against the Trump administration this week: A Biden administration-appointed federal judge in Colorado on Wednesday halted the deportation of the wife and five children of Mohamed Soliman, the Egyptian national under federal investigation for the Boulder firebombing attack on Sunday. The temporary restraining order issued by U.S. District Judge Gordon P. Gallagher prevents federal immigration authorities from removing Soliman’s wife, Hayem El Gamal, and the couple’s five children from the country, at least for now. TRUMP FOE JUDGE BOASBERG RULES DEPORTED MIGRANTS CAN CHALLENGE REMOVALS, IN BLOW TO ADMINISTRATION The ruling will remain in effect until a scheduled hearing on June 13. It came after El Gamal’s friend, Susanna Dvortsin, sought emergency legal protection for the family and argued that they faced imminent deportation by the Trump administration without the opportunity to present their case in court. According to Fox News correspondent Bill Melugin, citing sources, El Gamal and her five children have all overstayed their visas. However, an asylum application had already been submitted on their behalf by Soliman. A federal judge granted a request Wednesday from more than a dozen major news outlets and publishers to unseal certain records in the case of Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, the Salvadorian migrant and alleged MS-13 member who was deported from Maryland to El Salvador in March in what administration officials have acknowledged was an administrative error. Separately on Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis granted a request from Abrego Garcia’s legal team to file a motion for sanctions against the Trump administration. The one-two punch from Xinis could give plaintiffs new ammunition to pursue more formal punishments against the Trump administration if officials are found to have been acting in bad faith or knowingly defying court orders. The Supreme Court has ordered the Trump administration to “facilitate” Abrego Garcia’s return to the U.S. A federal judge in Washington state on Tuesday granted Denver and other local governments a preliminary injunction against the Trump administration’s threats to withhold federal funding for transportation programs. Denver and dozens of other plaintiffs filed the lawsuit in May, claiming that the Trump administration’s threats to withhold an estimated $4 billion in critical federal grants exceed the Executive Branch’s authority and were thereby “unlawful and politically motivated funding conditions,” according to the injunction order. The judge ruled that the Trump administration likely violated the Separation of Powers doctrine, and that its threats to cut funding constitute harm. A federal judge on Thursday ordered the Trump administration to restore millions of dollars in grant funding for AmeriCorps and to reemploy thousands of employees, ruling that the administration’s abrupt dismantling of the organization violated federal law. U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman agreed to reinstate thousands of terminated AmeriCorps employees across 24 U.S. states and D.C., which sued the administration earlier this year over the steep cuts to the agency ordered by the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. FEDERAL JUDGE RULES AGAINST TRUMP ORDER HALTING SEX CHANGE PROCEDURES IN PRISONS She also ordered the Trump administration to restore hundreds of millions of dollars in congressionally approved funding for AmeriCorps programs, which were also slashed by DOGE earlier this year. A federal judge on Wednesday issued a temporary restraining order that stops the Trump administration from closing Job Corps centers. The motion, filed by the National Job Corps Association, was to stop the Department of Labor’s closure of 99 Job Corps campuses nationwide, according to a news release. Job Corps was created by Congress in 1964 and allows 16- to 24-year-olds from disadvantaged backgrounds to obtain high school diplomas or an equivalent, vocational certificates and licenses, and on-the-job training. The program currently serves about 25,000 people at 120 Job Corps centers run by contractors. When the Department of Labor announced it was pausing Job Corps center operations, it said the program was not cost-effective, had a low graduation rate and was not placing participants in stable jobs. The department also said there had been thousands of instances of violence, drug use and security breaches at Job Corps centers. A federal judge in Oregon on Tuesday issued an order barring U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement from removing a Mexican asylum seeker from a Washington detention facility, according to local reports. The migrant, a 24-year-old transgender woman identified as “O-J-M” in court documents, was arrested outside a Portland courtroom on Monday and transferred to the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma, Washington. U.S. District Court Judge Amy Baggio, a President Joe Biden appointee, also demanded that ICE provide the exact date and time of the removal from Portland and explain why it was deemed immediately necessary. A federal judge on Thursday issued a fresh order blocking ICE from arresting Yunseo Chung, a 21-year-old Columbia University student whom the Trump administration is seeking to deport back to South Korea after she participated in an anti-Israel protest earlier this year, according to the Washington Post. The newspaper reported that federal agents first sought to detain Chung in March, yet were unable to locate her. She then sued to block them from doing so. “This is a win not just for Yunseo and for the legions of people who stand up for Palestinians and oppose the daily atrocities in Gaza
EXCLUSIVE: Bill strengthening ‘special relationship’ with UK military introduced on D-Day
EXCLUSIVE: Just in time for the 81st anniversary of D-Day, a House Republican is introducing a bill to allow greater military technology sharing between the United States and the United Kingdom, promising “we will never forget their friendship.” Titled the Special Relationship Military Improvement Act of 2025, Rep. Mark Green said his bill is meant to further build up the U.S.’s relationship with one of its closest allies. Green asserted that in the current climate of escalating global conflict and tension, sharing technological advances with America’s closest allies is “crucial.” “On the 81st anniversary of D-Day, I’m reintroducing the Special Relationship Military Improvement Act of 2025,” the Tennessee Republican said in a statement announcing the bill. “Our nation can never forget the sacrifice of thousands of Allied soldiers who lost their lives on D-Day and the invasion of Normandy. The price they paid ensured that millions could live free from tyranny. And the best way to commemorate this momentous day is to strengthen our partnership with the United Kingdom—and that’s exactly what this bill does,” he said. CHALLENGES POSED BY TRUMP AND PUTIN PUSH UK TO ADOPT NEW NATO FIRST DEFENSE POLICY Under the current rules of International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), advances in military technology are the U.S.’s exclusive property when sold to the government. Although Canada is granted exemptions under this regulation, the United Kingdom currently is not. Green’s bill would amend the Arms Export Control Act to add an exemption for sharing military technology with the United Kingdom as well. Green called the practice of sharing advancements in American military technology with close allies “common sense.” “The U.S. and the U.K. work together in almost every aspect to share intelligence, fight terrorism around the globe, and ensure that, through our combined military strength, the world can enjoy unprecedented peace,” he said. TRUMP BANS TRAVEL TO US FROM SEVERAL COUNTRIES TO BLOCK ‘DANGEROUS FOREIGN ACTORS’ Green also said that as a veteran and former commander in the 82nd Airborne Division, which made the jump on D-Day, the anniversary “is very personal to me.” He also shared he was “honored” to join several other veterans in Congress in jumping out of original C-47 transport planes over Normandy in commemoration of the 80th anniversary of D-Day in 2024. “American and British soldiers have fought shoulder to shoulder for over 100 years,” Green said. “There are no better warriors to fight alongside the United States. Our friendship cannot be overstated.” BRITISH PM KEIR STARMER MOVES UK MILITARY INTO ‘WAR-FIGHTING READINESS’ In a statement to Fox News Digital Green added that “on the beaches of Normandy, it was British soldiers who ran in the sand alongside Americans” and that “when we were attacked on 9/11, it was the United Kingdom that sent soldiers into Afghanistan to help us destroy al-Qaeda and the Taliban that gave them safe haven.” CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE “We will never forget their friendship in our time of need,” he said, adding: “With global threats increasing, sharing technology is crucial.”
Republican lawmakers stand firm against Musk’s ‘Kill the Bill’ assault on Trump’s agenda
The Big, Beautiful Bill became the big, throbbing migraine for Congressional Republicans this week. That’s thanks to the big, ugly brawl between President Donald Trump and Elon Musk. It started Tuesday with a hangup between Congressional Republicans and Musk over the Big, Beautiful Bill. Musk characterized it as a “disgusting abomination.” He then turned on all 215 House Republicans who voted yes on the bill last month. “You know you did wrong,” declared Musk. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., tried to call Musk to foam the political flames. MUSK SAYS TRUMP WOULD HAVE LOST 2024 ELECTION WITHOUT HIM AS ‘BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL’ FEUD CONTINUES “I called Elon last night. He didn’t answer. “But I hope to talk to him today,” said Johnson. Surely the world’s richest man would have the bandwidth for the Speaker of the House. But the hangup was only starting. Rather than returning the Speaker’s call, Musk returned political fire. Not by phone. But on his own communication platform. ELON MUSK WARPATH AGAINST TRUMP’S ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’ RATTLES HOUSE GOP On X, Musk posted an iconic picture of Uma Thurman in a yellow jumpsuit, wielding a sword from a Quentin Tarantino movie poster. “KILL the Bill,” read Musk’s caption. Reach out and touch someone? How about reach out and call your senator or representative? Musk’s influence – and rapid pivot – frightened Congressional Republicans. “To say that it’s a problem or that it has created a bigger challenge for us, is true,” said House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington,” R-Tex. “He’s got a big voice. He’s got a big audience. And more importantly, it’s a credible voice. But he’s wrong on this issue.” Still, Republicans weren’t budging as Musk demanded lawmakers craft a new piece of legislation. “Elon, look,” said an exasperated Johnson. “We don’t have time for a brand new bill.” ELON MUSK POSTS ‘KILL BILL’ MEME IN LATEST PUSH TO NIX TRUMP’S BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL The Speaker added that Congressional Republicans “can’t go back to the drawing board and we shouldn’t.” The political contretemps started simmering as Republicans quickly became incensed with Musk. “Give us some productive feedback that we can operate on. I can’t operate on platitudes,” said Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., of Musk’s vague criticism about the size of the legislation and deficit spending. Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Ohio, is one of the two House Republicans who voted no on the Big, Beautiful Bill last month. “Part of the goal with Musk and conservatives like me that have had reservations about the bill is make it better,” said Davidson. “The disappointing thing is this bill does grow deficits in this Congress.” Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., was the other House GOPer who voted nay. He says Musk learned how Congress operates the hard way. DAVID MARCUS: MUSK VS. MAGA ON BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL, BUT GOP NEEDS BOTH “Trust was misplaced. And so I think he has a right to be upset with our leadership,” said Massie. But Democrats suddenly made strange bedfellows with Musk. They viewed Musk’s opposition as an opportunity to help them sidetrack the legislation. “He’s not my cup of tea, to put it mildly. But Republicans are already listening to him,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., of Musk. But at least one Democrat called out his colleagues for their inconsistency with Musk. “We’ve been dumping all over Musk and vandalizing Teslas,” said Sen. John Fetterman, D-Penn. “And now suddenly, now we might be more back into him.” This all came as the Trump Administration asked Congress to chip away at spending. Budget Director Russ Vought sent lawmakers a $9.4 billion “rescissions” request. This measure asks that lawmakers claw back money it already allocated. “$9.4 billion is a teardrop in the ocean,” said Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C. “If we can’t get this now, then God help us on getting the true deficit numbers down.” The rescissions plan targeted foreign aid and public broadcasting. “You’ve sent us a rescission package worth $9 billion that goes after Big Bird and Cookie Monster,” lamented Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Wisc., at a hearing with Vought. WHITE HOUSE STANDS BY TAX BILL AFTER MUSK CALLS IT A ‘DISGUSTING ABOMINATION’ The Congressional Budget Office analysis of the Big, Beautiful Bill found that it adds $2.3 trillion to the deficit over a decade. But Republicans say those figures are wrong. The CBO also issued an analysis – specific to President Trump’s tariffs. The CBO projects a $3 trillion decrease in deficits over the next decade because of the tariffs. The CBO cannot evaluate the tariffs under the One Big, Beautiful Bill – because, well, they’re not part of the legislation. But, proponents of the One Big Beautiful Bill say that measure, coupled with the tariffs, decreases deficits by $500 billion over the next decade. Some Republicans believe that the CBO estimate about the deficit is what set off Musk. “I think their assumptions are wrong. We have long complained about it,” said Johnson. But remember, this is the CONGRESSIONAL Budget Office. And REPUBLICANS run Congress. “Why are you not getting the numbers that you want?” asked yours truly of the Speaker. “They use a different scoring,” replied Johnson. “Would you consider a rescission for the CBO in the legislative branch appropriations bill?” I followed up. “I would,” answered Johnson. But the CBO is the least of Johnson’s worries as the battle between the president and Musk went supernova on Thursday. “What is the message you need to hear from him to make sure you are on the same page?” I asked Johnson of Musk – who still hadn’t connected. “I just want to answer any questions Elon has and make sure he fully understands this is not a spending program,” said Johnson. “Do you think he just misperceives this?” I inquired. “I do,” said Johnson. Senate Republicans who are noes on the bill applauded Musk’s staunch opposition to the One Big, Beautiful Bill. “We both seem to be on the same wavelength and that we’re very, very skeptical,”
Harvard sues Trump admin over foreign student ban, describes it as ‘government vendetta’
Harvard filed an amended complaint in federal court on Thursday arguing that the Trump administration’s decision to ban entry to foreign students with F and J visas if they plan to attend the Ivy League is unconstitutional. Over 7,000 students at Harvard hold F-1 or J-1 visas. Without those certifications, they can’t study, teach, or conduct research in the U.S. The ban also affects their families and dependents. According to the university’s lawsuit, the proclamation “lacks any lawful basis” and does not apply to any broad group of immigrants. “Nonimmigrants may enter the country unabated, as long as they do not attend Harvard,” the complaint states. TRUMP IS DOWN BUT NOT OUT IN COURT BATTLE OVER HARVARD’S FOREIGN STUDENT VISAS Harvard argues the measure does not target a “class of aliens,” but instead singles out Harvard-bound students, calling it a “government vendetta” rather than a national security measure. In April, a federal task force led by the Trump administration sent the university a list of demands, including ideological screening of students and faculty, “viewpoint diversity” quotas in hiring and admissions, and punishment of student activist groups. The administration also demanded Harvard report foreign funding sources and allow government oversight of internal policies. When Harvard refused, the government froze $2.2 billion in research funding. Trump later posted on Truth Social that Harvard should lose its tax-exempt status if it continued to “push radical ideology.” In another post, he accused the school of hiring “woke, Radical Left, idiots” and claimed it was no longer a great university. TRUMP ACCUSES HARVARD OF BEING ‘VERY SLOW’ TO TURN OVER FOREIGN STUDENT INFO The Department of Homeland Security revoked Harvard’s SEVP (Student and Exchange Visitor Program) certification a few days later, which allows the school to sponsor international students, but a federal judge blocked that decision. Harvard now says that the administration is using Trump’s proclamation to do what the courts have already stopped. The government claims Harvard failed to provide complete information on its international student population, but the university says it has submitted all records required by law and that the revocation is a pretext. “There is no lawful justification for the government’s unprecedented actions,” the university said in Thursday’s filing. The amended complaint also reveals that Harvard is being represented by Robert Hur, the former special counsel who interviewed former President Joe Biden. DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin responded to the lawsuit by saying it “seeks to kneecap the President’s constitutionally vested powers under Article II. It is a privilege, not a right, for universities to enroll foreign students. “The Trump administration is committed to restoring common sense to our student visa system; no lawsuit, this or any other, is going to change that. We have the law, the facts, and common sense on our side.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP International students now face uncertainty as the legal battle wages on. Jing, a 23-year-old Chinese graduate student interning in Asia, told The Associated Press: “It is tiring; we all feel numb now.” Another student, Yonas Nuguse from Ethiopia, who was accepted after surviving war and a school shutdown, also told The AP, “I hope the situation is temporary and I can enroll on time.” Fox News’ Louis Casiano and David Spunt contributed to this report.