Child predators, gang members, human traffickers deported in major Texas city ICE roundup
Child predators, gang members and human traffickers were among the 142 criminal illegals deported to Mexico by ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) officials in the Houston area in just the last two weeks. According to an ICE statement on Tuesday, the criminal immigrants were deported between May 19 and May 30. Those deported had been convicted of a total of 473 criminal offenses and had illegally entered the country a combined 480 times. The statement said that among those deported, 11 of the illegals were convicted child predators, eight were “documented gang members” and one had illegally entered the country 21 times. Additionally, among the deported illegals were 43 aggravated assault and domestic violence-related convictions, 48 drug trafficking or drug possession convictions, 22 human trafficking or human smuggling convictions and one conviction for making terroristic threats. LARGEST EVER ICE OPERATION RESULTS IN NEARLY 1,500 ILLEGALS ARRESTED IN BLUE STATE One of the illegals, Alejandro Aguilar Vazquez, a 45-year-old Mexican national, had been convicted three times of cruelty towards a child, according to ICE. Another, Luis Angel Garcia-Contreras, a 40-year-old criminal immigrant from Mexico and documented member of the Surenos 13 gang, has illegally entered the U.S. 21 times and has been convicted of illegal entry four times. Benito Charqueno Zavala, a 60-year-old Mexican national, was convicted of continuous sexual abuse of a child. In the statement, Bret Bradford, ICE ERO Houston Field Office director, said, “Unfortunately, this is not an anomaly.” MS-13, TREN DE ARAGUA TARGETED FOR DEATH BLOW IN NEW GOP BILL AIMED AT MIGRANT CRIME “For the past few years, there was virtually no deterrent to illegally entering the country,” he said. “As a result, millions of illegal aliens poured into the country including violent criminal aliens, child predators, transnational gang members and foreign fugitives.” As a state that comprises over 60% of the U.S.-Mexico border, Texas was among the states most heavily impacted by the immigration crisis in the last several years. Bradford said that “many of these dangerous criminal aliens went on to prey on law-abiding residents in local communities right here in Southeast Texas.” “This is just a small snapshot of those efforts as it only focuses on deportations to one country over the course of a two-week period, but it gives you an idea of how big this problem really is,” he explained. HOMAN BLASTS BLUE STATE AS REPORT SHOWS IT RELEASING ILLEGALS CHARGED WITH ‘HORRIFIC’ CRIMES ON LOW BAILS Ammon Blair, a senior fellow at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, explained the scale of the still-ongoing crisis in Texas and across the nation. He told Fox News Digital that the deportation of the 142 criminal illegal immigrants in Houston “reveals a far deeper crisis unfolding across our nation—one that poses a direct threat to public safety, national security, and the rule of law.” CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE He said the 142 represents “only a sliver of the 650,000 criminal aliens currently on ICE’s Non-Detained Docket, free to move through American communities with impunity.” “Texas has become the front line in this crisis, not just geographically, but constitutionally,” he added, explaining that “nearly 100 counties in Texas have issued disaster declarations or formally declared an invasion, not for political theater, but because cartel operations, weaponized mass migration, and the release of violent offenders have made every community in Texas vulnerable.” “This is not a policy disagreement. It is a public safety emergency,” he added. SANCTUARY POLICIES IN DEEP-BLUE COLORADO LED TO TERROR ATTACK, SAYS LOCAL DA Andrew Mahaleris, a spokesperson for Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, told Fox News Digital that President Donald Trump is “stepping up where Joe Biden failed.” While many other states are resisting ICE operations, Mahaleris said that Texas “will continue to assist the Trump Administration in arresting, detaining, and deporting illegal immigrants.” “President Trump’s deportation efforts are making Texas safer,” he said. “Governor Abbott is grateful to finally have an administration upholding the rule of law in our country.”
‘He’s not a big factor’: Trump’s Senate allies dismiss Elon Musk’s calls to ‘kill the bill’
Elon Musk’s diatribe against President Donald Trump‘s “one big, beautiful bill” continued Wednesday as Senate Republicans embarked on their own course to tweak and reshape the gargantuan legislative package. The former head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) rehashed a similar talking point from his takedown of a previous House GOP government funding bill in December, which, after his input, was gutted and reworked. The nation’s debt sits at over $36 trillion, according to FOX Business’ National Debt Tracker. GOP SENATORS EXPRESS ‘CONCERNS,’ ‘SKEPTICISM’ OVER TRUMP’S SPENDING BILL AFTER MUSK RANT “Call your Senator, Call your Congressman,” Musk said among a flurry of posts on X. “Bankrupting America is NOT ok! KILL the BILL.” Though Musk’s continued tirade against the bill sent House Republicans into a tizzy, on the other side of the Capitol, senators were busy hashing out the finer points of the legislation. This time around, Musk, who just ended his four-month tenure as a special government employee rooting out waste, fraud and abuse, may not have the same level of impact, given that senators want their chance to shape the bill. “I mean, if Elon was going to give me advice on how to get to the moon, I’d listen,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D. “You know, if he was going to give me advice on how to raise several billion dollars from other billionaires, I’d listen.” “But… he doesn’t govern, you know, and so, to be honest, Elon, he’s not that big a factor,” he continued. “I know he’s a glamorous sort of celebrity, but he’s not a big factor.” ELON MUSK WARPATH AGAINST TRUMP’S ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’ RATTLES HOUSE GOP Cramer’s comments came after Senate Republicans heard from the chairs of the Senate Banking, Armed Services and Commerce committees on how they would approach their respective portions of the megabill in a closed-door meeting. After that meeting, members of the Senate Finance Committee, which will handle the tax portion of the package, met with Trump later to shore up support for the tax package. Sen. Roger Marshall, R.-Kan., said that the president’s main message during the meeting was to “pass the damn bill” with as few changes as possible. When asked if Trump seemed concerned about Musk’s impact on the bill’s fate, the lawmaker said “absolutely not.” “It was almost laugh— more of a laughing conversation for 30 seconds,” he said. “It was very much in jest and laughing, and I think he said something positive about Elon, appreciating what he did for the country.” ELON MUSK POSTS ‘KILL BILL’ MEME IN LATEST PUSH TO NIX TRUMP’S BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL Congressional Republicans intend to use the budget reconciliation process to skirt the Senate filibuster, meaning they do not need Senate Democrats to pass the package. However, they do need at least 51 Senate Republicans to get on board. The Senate’s shot at tinkering with the reconciliation package comes after months of deliberations and negotiations in the House that culminated in a package that Trump has thrown his full support behind. Some lawmakers want higher spending cuts to the tune of $2 trillion, others want a full rollback to pre-pandemic spending. Then there are pockets of resistance solidifying around cuts to Medicaid and green energy tax credit provisions baked into the House’s offering. Among the green energy provisions on the chopping block are electric vehicle tax credits. Speculation has swirled that their proposed demise could be the driving force, in part, behind Musk’s anger toward the bill. “Any senator with a brain sees Elon’s comments for what they are, a CEO worried about losing business,” a Senate Republican source told Fox News Digital. “The only reason he’s causing a fuss is because we’re getting rid of pork that benefits his electric car company.” Musk had been pushing for deeper spending cuts until his new demand that the bill be nuked. Currently, the House GOP’s offering sets a goal of $1.5 trillion in spending cuts over the next decade that, coupled with expected growth, would help offset the roughly $4 trillion price tag of making the president’s first-term tax cuts permanent. Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, engaged with some of Musk’s posts on Tuesday and appeared to agree with the tech billionaire’s position that the bill had to go further to cut spending. “I think most of what he’s saying is he would like it to do more and be more aggressive to try to address the debt and deficit problem,” Lee said. However, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office found in its latest report that the bill would only cut $1.3 trillion, reduce revenues by roughly $3.7 trillion and add in the neighborhood of $2.4 trillion to the deficit. Some lawmakers who had found common ground with Musk’s earlier anger with the “big, beautiful bill” still found a common ally on the second day of his rant. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., reiterated to Fox News Digital that he shared Musk’s “skepticism” of the bill. He would not say whether he agreed that congressional Republicans should start from scratch, but noted that his main objection to the bill was a plan to increase the nation’s debt limit by $5 trillion. “My main goal is to say, take the debt ceiling and make it a separate vote, and then vote on a separate bill, and then there’s still a need for less spending,” he said. “But I would be very open to supporting the bill if we had more spending cuts and the debt ceiling was a separate vote.”
Cuomo hit by fellow Dems for dodging questions about sexual harassment during time as NY governor
Andrew Cuomo dodged questions throughout Wednesday evening’s New York City mayoral debate regarding sexual harassment allegations against him, which the former New York governor insisted were false. “Every woman watching tonight should listen right now,” said Michael Blake, a former state assemblyman from the Bronx who is running against Cuomo. “Andrew Cuomo would not respond when had a chance about sexual harassment – every woman watching tonight – he was just given a chance to actually address the clear claims that were stated, and he ignored it.” Cuomo was accused of multiple incidents of sexual harassment that ultimately led to his resignation as governor in 2021. A subsequent report from New York Attorney General Letitia James confirmed Cuomo “sexually harassed multiple women from 2013 through 2020,” while in January 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice announced it had reached a nearly $500,000 settlement with Cuomo’s executive office over one of the claims. However, no criminal charges were ever filed against Cuomo, with some district attorneys citing insufficient evidence. SCANDAL-SCARRED FORMER GOV ANDREW CUOMO IS THE FRONTRUNNER IN NYC MAYORAL RACE “The people who don’t feel safe are young women, mothers and grandmothers around Andrew Cuomo,” Blake added in his criticism of Cuomo during the Wednesday night debate. “That’s the greatest threat to public safety in New York City.” Cuomo was given multiple opportunities to address the allegations, but he frequently dodged questions on the matter by pivoting to other issues, like public safety. However, Cuomo’s opponents and the moderators would not let him get away without engaging with the question. NEW YORK GOVERNOR DECLINES TO SAY WHETHER ANDREW CUOMO IS FIT TO SERVE AS MAYOR “Mr. Cuomo. I’m sorry. I’m sure that people at home must be wondering about your answer to this question, because we speak to voters throughout the city and quite a few of them will say, I’m not sure exactly what happened with those sexual harassment cases,” one of the moderators told Cuomo amid questions about whether the candidates had any regrets regarding their past political tenures. “What do you say to voters now looking ahead to your potential mayoralty? Are you doing anything differently? And why should they believe that that same situation won’t happen again?” In response, Cuomo addressed the question, but insisted the allegations against him were “political” and “false.” “Let’s just make sure we have the facts,” Cuomo shot back. “A report was done four years ago making certain allegations. I said at the time, that it was political and it was false. Five district attorneys, Democratic, Republican, short, tall, looked at it all across the state, found absolutely nothing. One case has been resolved. I was dropped from that case. I said at the time that if I offended anyone, it was unintentional. But I apologize.”
Biden insists ‘I made the decisions’ as Republicans investigate White House autopen use
Former President Joe Biden doubled down on his use of an autopen on Wednesday, insisting that he was in control of the White House during his term in office. President Donald Trump ordered an investigation into Biden’s administration, alleging that top officials used autopen signatures to cover up the former president’s cognitive decline. “I made the decisions about the pardons, executive orders, legislation, and proclamations. Any suggestion that I didn’t is ridiculous and false,” Biden said in a statement. “This is nothing more than a distraction by Donald Trump and Congressional Republicans who are working to push disastrous legislation that would cut essential programs like Medicaid and raise costs on American families, all to pay for tax breaks for the ultra-wealthy and big corporations,” he added. EXCLUSIVE: COMER HAILS DOJ’S BIDEN PROBE AS HOUSE INVESTIGATION HEATS UP Trump called on Attorney General Pam Bondi to open investigations into top Biden officials on Wednesday, arguing they may have conspired to deceive the public about his mental state and exercised presidential authority through use of the autopen. TRUMP SAYS BIDEN DIDN’T FAVOR HIS ADMIN’S LAX BORDER SECURITY POLICY, SUGGESTS AUTOPEN PLAYED A ROLE Trump wrote in a Wednesday memo that the U.S. president has a tremendous amount of power and responsibility through his signature. Not only can the signature turn words into laws of the land, but it also appoints individuals to some of the highest positions in government, creates or eliminates national policies and allows prisoners to go free. “In recent months, it has become increasingly apparent that former President Biden’s aides abused the power of Presidential signatures through the use of an autopen to conceal Biden’s cognitive decline and assert Article II authority,” Trump wrote. “This conspiracy marks one of the most dangerous and concerning scandals in American history. The American public was purposefully shielded from discovering who wielded the executive power, all while Biden’s signature was deployed across thousands of documents to effect radical policy shifts.” “Given clear indications that President Biden lacked the capacity to exercise his Presidential authority, if his advisors secretly used the mechanical signature pen to conceal this incapacity, while taking radical executive actions all in his name, that would constitute an unconstitutional wielding of the power of the Presidency, a circumstance that would have implications for the legality and validity of numerous executive actions undertaken in Biden’s name,” he added. House Republicans, led by Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, launched an investigation earlier last month aimed at determining whether Biden, who was in declining health during the final months of his presidency, was mentally fit to authorize the use of the autopen. Comer said last week he was “open” to dragging Biden before the House to answer questions about the matter if necessary. Fox News’ Greg Wehner contributed to this report.
Musk agrees with Massie that bill is ‘debt bomb ticking’ and ‘missed opportunity’ for conservatives
Elon Musk, who is vociferously decrying the Trump-backed One Big Beautiful Bill Act that cleared the House of Representatives last month, agreed with Rep. Thomas Massie, who declared in a post on X that the measure “is a debt bomb ticking” and that it marks a major “missed opportunity” for conservatives. “The Big Beautiful Bill is a debt bomb ticking. It’s also the biggest missed opportunity conservatives have ever had to put our country back on a track of fiscal sanity. If we defeat this bill, a better one can be offered that won’t bankrupt our country,” Massie declared in a post on X. “Absolutely,” Musk wrote when retweeting Massie’s comments. MASSIE CALLS ON ELON MUSK TO FUND PRIMARY CHALLENGES AGAINST REPUBLICANS WHO BACKED TRUMP TAX BILL Massie, who was one of the two House Republicans who voted against the measure, made the comments when retweeting a post in which Musk had urged people to call their lawmakers about the proposal. “Bankrupting America is NOT ok! KILL the BILL,” Musk declared in the post. In another tweet on Wednesday, Musk asserted, “No one who actually reads the bill should be able to stomach it.” MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE SOUNDS ALARM OVER AI PROVISION IN ONE BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL ACT: ‘I WOULD HAVE VOTED NO IF I HAD KNOWN’ America’s national debt is more than $36 trillion. Musk is sounding the alarm about the country’s debt problem and profligate spending. “America is in the fast lane to debt slavery,” he warned in a post on X. ELON MUSK WARNS EXCESSIVE SPENDING WILL PLUNGE US ‘INTO DEBT SLAVERY’ Massie, a serious fiscal hawk, draws attention to the nation’s fiscal fecklessness by wearing a small debt clock.
GOP hopeful Earle-Sears unveils ‘Axe the Tax’ plan in Virginia governor’s race
EXCLUSIVE: Smarter, not harder, is the theme Congress should follow to pass tax relief in its budget efforts, according to the top Republican running in one of only two gubernatorial races this year. Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, seeking to succeed term-limited Gov. Glenn Youngkin, unveiled her “Axe the Tax” framework, identifying consensus areas where people across the political spectrum can support it. Her plan would end taxes on tips in Virginia, mirroring President Donald Trump’s policy proposal and seeking to give a break to residents in a state known for its nightlife and tourist meccas like Alexandria, Williamsburg, Virginia Beach and Roanoke. Food service workers, personal service workers, hospitality and other gratuity-based industry employees would pay 0% statewide under her plan, which she said gives working families a break they’re clamoring for on both the state and federal levels. WINSOME EARLE-SEARS ANNOUNCES VA GOV BID TO BUILD ON YOUNGKIN RECORD: IT’S ‘ALL ABOUT BUSINESS’ It also repeals the automobile tax and vehicle-based property taxes, which residents of 27 out of the 50 states pay. “The ‘Axe the Tax’ plan is rooted in a simple truth: Working Americans shouldn’t be punished for earning a living or driving to work,” Sears told Fox News Digital in exclusive remarks. “Conservatives in Congress get that, and they should follow Virginia’s lead. … Real working families deserve to keep more money in their pockets, and, as governor, I’ll make sure they do.” TOP DEMS CLAIM 51K PEOPLE WILL DIE ANNUALLY FROM ‘BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL’ Sears said ending taxes on tips on a national and state level recognizes that a tip is a “recognition of great service,” not another avenue for the government to take its share. With most middle-class people either working service industry jobs and/or owning a car, Sears said her initial tax plan is evidence that a surgical approach is what is needed to properly address what the people are asking for, rather than trying to do too much at once. “Virginia’s economy is powered by a thriving service sector and thousands of hardworking commuters made up of families like mine,” Sears said. “Tip earners are stretched to the limit. Working parents depend on their cars, not a METRO line, to get through the day. This isn’t just Virginia’s story. It’s the reality for families across the country.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Respecting the political process and “actually listen[ing] to people” and responding in kind is how a politician should lead, she said. Like Congress, where Republicans hold narrow majorities in both chambers and have often seen similarly closely split governance, the “Axe the Tax” plan includes provisions that “prove you can work within a divided chamber and still put taxpayers first,” Earle-Sears said. “Virginia is leading the way.”
Democrats vying for NYC mayor spar over defunding police, combating ICE
Democratic mayoral candidates sparred over whether to defund the police during the New York City mayoral debate Wednesday night, with many candidates distancing themselves from the once-popular progressive position. Candidates also discussed how to best combat President Donald Trump, particularly when it comes to his illegal immigration crackdown. Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, the current frontrunner in the mayoral race, said: “We have to admit what we did wrong. The people on the stage, almost without exception, were all defund the police … and now they’re calling for more police. We wouldn’t need more police if we didn’t defund them in the first place.” After saying this, several other candidates quickly turned the tables on Cuomo, accusing him of also leading the charge on defunding the police, something the former governor adamantly denied. “I used the words defund the police, I said I don’t support defund the police,” said Cuomo. GINGRICH WARNS ‘VERY PROFOUND CULTURAL CIVIL WAR’ UNDERWAY, SAYS DEMOCRATS DOUBLING DOWN ON ‘WEIRD VALUES’ While some candidates said they actually support increasing the police presence in New York City, others suggested increasing “mental health outreach workers” on the streets and subway trains. Progressive New York state Assembly Member Zohran Mamdani suggested, “We are going to put together dedicated teams of mental health outreach workers who will be deployed to the top hundred subway stations with the highest levels of mental health crisis and homelessness.” Whitney Tilson, a hedge fund manager, blamed positions such as Mamdani’s as being responsible for Trump’s rise in popularity among New York City voters. “I do think we Democrats have to stop giving Trump gifts,” said Tilson. “When we let ourselves be defined by our far left, by socialists, with their ‘defund the police’ nonsense and open borders, et cetera.” ANDREW CUOMO THE BIGGEST TARGET AS NEW YORK CITY MAYORAL PRIMARY SHIFTS INTO HIGH GEAR “One area that I do agree with Trump is, is that when, a socialist like Zohran on here tweets that the NYPD is quote, ‘wicked,’ and calls to defund and dismantle the NYPD, that that is madness,” he said, adding: “That is costing us elections since Trump has doubled his share of the New York City vote in the last three elections, from 17% to 30%.” “We’ve got to move away from the far left, the socialism is sinking our party and our city,” said Tilson. Candidates also discussed how to address the rise in crime and shoplifting in New York City and addressed whether bail reforms passed by the state under Cuomo are responsible for the spike. Michael Blake, a former Obama aide, suggested a “guaranteed” median income could be the solution to rising shoplifting. SELF-PROCLAIMED DEMOCRATIC ‘SUPER MAYOR’ ORDERED TO COURT AS SCANDAL-PLAGUED TENURE UNRAVELS “If we help New Yorkers make and keep more money in their pocket in the first place, then we wouldn’t have people speaking about shoplifting. That’s why we need the local median income. That’s why we have to have guaranteed income. That’s why I have to help people on the front end. So, we’re not talking about them being on the back,” said Blake. Regarding Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration, candidates largely doubled down on New York City’s sanctuary city status and on further limiting local police’s ability to cooperate with ICE. Current New York City Mayor Eric Adams was widely lambasted for being willing to cooperate with the Trump administration and ICE when it comes to immigration enforcement. Asked whether she would tip off migrants about federal immigration enforcement operations in New York City, current city council speaker Adrienne Adams asserted that if elected, “my mission is and will be to protect the immigrants.” Adams said, “I will absolutely use my bully pulpit to warn, as I’m doing as city council speaker pretty much on a daily basis.” SANCTUARY POLICIES IN DEEP-BLUE COLORADO LED TO TERROR ATTACK, SAYS LOCAL DA Brad Lander, the New York City comptroller, meanwhile, said he would build a network in the city government that would enforce New York’s sanctuary laws and “absolutely warn people before they walk into ICE.” Zellnor Myrie, a state senator, claimed that sanctuary laws “used to not be political” and “not only would I be warning but I would be assuring them that we have their back right now.” CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE Jessica Ramos, a Democratic New York state senator, said she would use city tax resources to combat Trump’s immigration crackdown, saying, “We have absolutely have to keep ICE … out of any public institution” and “I want to make sure that in a town with so many lawyers, our immigrants have lawyers.” “This is not the first time he’s brought ICE to New York. He’s done that before and we fought him and we won,” said Cuomo. SCOOP: TOP CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES LAUNCH PROBE INTO NASHVILLE MAYOR ACCUSED OF BLOCKING ICE “So, he can be beaten. But he has to know that he’s up against an adversary who can actually beat him. And I can tell you this, I am the last person on this stage that Mr. Trump wants to see as mayor,” he went on. “And that’s why I should be the first choice that for the people of this city to have as mayor.” Eric Adams is running for re-election as an independent and thus did not participate in the debate.
Former Republican congressman-turned-Democrat launches bid for governor in push to flip red-state Florida
Democrats in Florida face an uphill climb as they work to win the governor’s office in next year’s elections. It’s been more than three decades since a Democrat won a gubernatorial election in the Sunshine State. You have to go all the way back to Democrat Gov. Lawton Chiles’ 1994 re-election. But former Rep. David Jolly, when asked how the Democrats could end their losing streak, told Fox News Digital, “It’s been even longer since we had an affordability crisis like we’re experiencing right now. That’s how.” Jolly, who, as a Republican a decade ago, won election and re-election to Congress, on Thursday announced his Democrat candidacy for governor in the 2026 race to succeed term-limited GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis. THIS TOP TRUMP ALLY APPEARS TO BE GEARING UP FOR A GUBERNATORIAL RUN IN A KEY STATE “We have an affordability crisis in Florida driven by an insurance crisis that continues to worsen in the face of complete neglect by Tallahassee. We have abandoned public education, and we’ve allowed corruption to run rampant. It’s time for a change,” Jolly said in a statement. And in his Fox News interview, Jolly argued that the state’s affordability crisis has “largely been caused by Republican neglect that I don’t believe Republicans will address and that our campaign will.” REPUBLICAN GOVERNORS CAMPAIGN CHAIR REVEALS ELECTION BATTLE PLAN Jolly, who left the Republican Party seven years ago and became an independent and a cable news political analyst on MSNBC, pointed to the GOP’s voter registration advantage in Florida. “Let’s be honest about the math,” he said. “There aren’t enough Democratic votes in Florida for a Democratic governor to just win with their own party. We have to build a coalition that includes independents and commonsense Republicans. But here’s the good news, it’s already there.” Jolly, pointing to the recent town halls he’s been holding ahead of his campaign launch, said, “Republicans are turning out. Independents are coming out. There’s a perfect storm for legacy Republicans right now. We have an affordability crisis in Florida that’s hitting every family, every voter, every walk of life, and it doesn’t care what your partisan affiliation is, Republican, Democrat or independent.” “This is a race much like you’ve seen with Andy Beshear in Kentucky and Steve Bullock in Montana, a coalition for change can win next November. But that coalition is going to have to be led by today’s Democratic Party,” he added. The mentions of GOP-dominated Kentucky’s current Democrat governor and red-state Montana’s former Democrat governor were intentional. Jolly recently hired as an adviser Democrat political strategist Eric Hyers, who helped steer Beshear and Bullock’s successful campaigns. Four years ago, former governor and former Rep. Charlie Crist, another Republican-turned-Democrat, was trounced by DeSantis as the conservative governor cruised to re-election by 19 points. Jolly highlighted that Crist (who defeated Jolly as the then-congressman ran for re-election in 2016) quickly transitioned from Republican to Democrat. “It was transactional for running for office. He would always say, ‘I didn’t leave the party. The party left me,’” Jolly noted. “David Jolley left the party,” he said. “I’ve grown. I’ve changed.” “Over the last 10 years, my values haven’t changed,” Jolly said. “This is very important. When I was a Republican in Congress, I supported marriage equality, gun control, climate change, campaign finance reform. Republicans didn’t want me. Democrats didn’t need me, but those values were already there then. I am a person of deep faith. I grew up a preacher’s kid in a Christian church. I belong to a Christian church today.” But Florida Republicans predict Jolly will become the latest in a line of defeated Democrat gubernatorial candidates. “It’s good to know Never Trumper and failed MSNBC analyst has found his true home in the irrelevant @FlaDems,” Republican Party of Florida Chair Evan Power said after Jolly joined the Democratic Party. “I welcome him to run for Governor, the nearly 40% of the electorate that voted for @CharlieCrist deserve an equally bad choice this cycle.” Making the Democrats’ climb to win back the governor’s office next year even steeper is last month’s announcement by state Sen. Jason Pizzo, the former state Senate Democrat leader, to run for governor as an independent. Weeks earlier, Pizzo argued the Florida Democratic Party was “dead.” “I have enormous respect for Jason Pizzo. He followed his political conviction, just as I did. I disagree with his decision,” Jolly said. But Jolly also said, “Jason was right when he said you’ve got millions of disaffected independent voters” and added that “my job as the Democratic candidate, and perhaps the Democratic nominee, is to build a coalition that says [to] those independent voters, ‘We want you in this coalition.’” In the race for the Republican gubernatorial primary, Rep. Byron Donalds appears to be on an early glide path to the nomination as speculation of a possible bid by first lady Casey DeSantis cools. Donalds enjoys the support and endorsement of Florida’s most famous resident: President Donald Trump. “This race is not about Donald Trump. You’ll never hear me talk about Donald Trump. It’s about the affordability crisis and how Republicans in Tallahassee have created it,” Jolly said. But Jolly argued that “Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis are the scene-setters for an earthquake-of-a-change election environment in the state of Florida, because if voters in Florida are demanding change, I’m not sure they could look at Trump’s endorsed candidate in Byron Donalds and see change. If it’s Casey DeSantis, you’re not seeing change. You’re seeing the third term of Ron DeSantis.”
Trump orders Attorney General to investigate Biden’s autopen use amid cognitive decline concerns
President Donald Trump called on Attorney General Pam Bondi to lead an investigation into whether certain individuals working for former President Joe Biden conspired to deceive the public about his mental state while also exercising his presidential responsibilities by using an autopen. In a memo on Wednesday, Trump said the president of the U.S. has a tremendous amount of power and responsibility through the signature. Not only can the signature turn words into laws of the land, but it also appoints individuals to some of the highest positions in government, creates or eliminates national policies and allows prisoners to go free. “In recent months, it has become increasingly apparent that former President Biden’s aides abused the power of Presidential signatures through the use of an autopen to conceal Biden’s cognitive decline and assert Article II authority,” Trump wrote. “This conspiracy marks one of the most dangerous and concerning scandals in American history. The American public was purposefully shielded from discovering who wielded the executive power, all while Biden’s signature was deployed across thousands of documents to effect radical policy shifts.” He continued, saying Biden had suffered from “serious cognitive decline” for years, and the Department of Justice (DOJ) recently concluded that Biden should not stand trial, despite clear evidence he broke the law, because of his mental state. EXCLUSIVE: COMER HAILS DOJ’S BIDEN PROBE AS HOUSE INVESTIGATION HEATS UP “Biden’s cognitive issues and apparent mental decline during his presidency were even ‘worse’ in private, and those closest to him ‘tried to hide it’ from the public,” Trump said. “To do so, Biden’s advisors during his years in office severely restricted his news conferences and media appearances, and they scripted his conversations with lawmakers, government officials, and donors, all to cover up his inability to discharge his duties.” Still, during the Biden presidency, the White House issued over 1,200 Presidential documents, appointed 235 judges to the federal bench and issued more pardons and commutations than any administration in U.S. history, Trump said. The president wrote about Biden’s decision just two days before Christmas 2024, to commute the sentences of 37 of the 40 most dangerous criminals on federal death row, including mass murderers and child killers. TRUMP SAYS BIDEN DIDN’T FAVOR HIS ADMIN’S LAX BORDER SECURITY POLICY, SUGGESTS AUTOPEN PLAYED A ROLE “Although the authority to take these executive actions, along with many others, is constitutionally committed to the President, there are serious doubts as to the decision-making process and even the degree of Biden’s awareness of these actions being taken in his name,” Trump wrote. “The vast majority of Biden’s executive actions were signed using a mechanical signature pen, often called an autopen, as opposed to Biden’s own hand. This was especially true of actions taken during the second half of his Presidency, when his cognitive decline had apparently become even more clear to those working most closely with him. “Given clear indications that President Biden lacked the capacity to exercise his Presidential authority, if his advisors secretly used the mechanical signature pen to conceal this incapacity, while taking radical executive actions all in his name, that would constitute an unconstitutional wielding of the power of the Presidency, a circumstance that would have implications for the legality and validity of numerous executive actions undertaken in Biden’s name,” he added. TRUMP HAS NOT DIRECTED ADMIN TO DECLASSIFY BIDEN DOCS ON HEALTH ‘COVER-UP’ The memo goes on to call for an investigation that addresses if certain individuals, who are not named in the document, conspired to deceive the American public about the former president’s mental state and “unconstitutionally” exercised the president’s authority and responsibilities. Specifically, Trump called on the attorney general’s investigation to look at any activity that purposefully shielded the public from information about Biden’s mental and physical health; any agreements between his aides to falsely deem recorded videos of Biden’s cognitive ability as fake; and any agreements between Biden’s aides to require false, public statements that elevated the president’s capabilities. The investigation will also look at which policy documents the autopen was used for, including clemency grants, executive orders, and presidential memoranda, as well as who directed Biden’s signature to be affixed to those documents. Trump said last week that he thinks Biden did not really agree with many of his administration’s lax border security policies, instead suggesting that those surrounding the former president took advantage of his declining faculties and utilized the autopen to pass radical directives pertaining to the border. House Republicans, led by Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, launched an investigation earlier last month aimed at determining whether Biden, who was in declining health during the final months of his presidency, was mentally fit to authorize the use of the autopen. Comer said last week he was “open” to dragging Biden before the House to answer questions about the matter if necessary. Fox News Digital’s Alec Schemmel contributed to this report.
Trump suspends foreign student visas at Harvard University amid national security concerns
President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed a proclamation to student visas for foreigners seeking to study or participate in exchange programs at Harvard University, the move in the ongoing feud between the White House and the Ivy League school. The proclamation directs the State Department to “consider revoking” existing academic or exchange visas of any current Harvard students who meet certain criteria. “Admission into the United States to attend, conduct research, or teach at our Nation’s institutions of higher education is a privilege granted by our Government, not a guarantee,” Trump said. “That privilege is necessarily tied to the host institution’s compliance and commitment to following Federal law. Harvard University has failed in this respect, among many others.” The proclamation doesn’t apply to foreign nationals attending other universities’ Student Exchange Visa Program (SEVP) and exempts others whose entry is deemed in the national interest. STATE DEPARTMENT NOW SCRUTINIZING ALL VISA HOLDERS ASSOCIATED WITH HARVARD Last month, the State Department said that it would begin scrutinizing all visa holders associated with Harvard University, not just student visa holders. The investigation is aimed at identifying potential security vulnerabilities or other abuses of the visa system. Wednesday’s proclamation cited Harvard’s history “concerning foreign ties and radicalism.” “Harvard has failed to provide sufficient information to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) about foreign students’ known illegal or dangerous activities, reporting deficient data on only three students,” it said. It said Harvard has also developed “extensive entanglements with foreign adversaries,” while receiving more than $150 million from China alone. In exchange, Harvard has “hosted Chinese Communist Party paramilitary members and partnered with China-based individuals on research that could advance China’s military modernization.” TRUMP SAYS HARVARD’S FOREIGN STUDENTS ARE FROM COUNTRIES PAYING ‘NOTHING’ FOR THEIR EDUCATION The Trump administration has accused Harvard of failing to stamp out antisemitism on campus, among other issues. The proclamation said Harvard has seen a “drastic rise in crime in recent years while failing to discipline at least some categories of conduct violations on campus.” Harvard officials have said the Trump administration is retaliating against the university with moves to freeze taxpayer-funded research grants, an attempt to revoke its ability to enroll international students, to end its tax-exempt status and to open an investigation into whether it discriminated against white, Asian, male or straight employees or job applicants. Fox News Digital has reached out to Harvard for comment.