Massie comes out against Johnson retaining speaker’s gavel: ‘He does not have my vote’
Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., has declared that he will not vote for House Speaker Mike Johnson to retain the speakership next year. “He does not have my vote,” Massie told CNN’s Manu Raju. Asked whether he would change his mind, Massie said that would require “a Christmas miracle.” Earlier this year Massie supported Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene in pushing to remove Johnson from the speakership, but the vast majority of members in both parties ultimately voted to spike the ouster effort. JOHNSON HIT WITH POSSIBLE SPEAKERSHIP RIVALS AS CONSERVATIVES REBEL OVER GOVERNMENT FUNDING PLAN “It’s a new paradigm in Congress. Nancy Pelosi, and most republicans voted to keep Uniparty Speaker Mike Johnson,” Massie tweeted at the time. This week Johnson had advocated in favor of a more than 1,500-page government spending measure that would have averted the looming prospect of a partial government shutdown. During a Wednesday interview on “Fox & Friends” Johnson said that the spending measure would kick the government funding issue until March when Republicans will have control of Congress and the White House, enabling the GOP to “decide spending for 2025.” The measure also included disaster relief funding as well as aid related to farmers. “Disaster aid and Farm aid is not ‘Pork’. It’s called governing. That’s what we were all ELECTED to do,” Rep. Greg Murphy, R-N.C., declared in a post on X. But conservatives savaged the proposal and Elon Musk spoke out against it. President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance also weighed in. In a statement, they called for passage of “a streamlined spending bill that doesn’t give Chuck Schumer and the Democrats everything they want.” “Republicans want to support our farmers, pay for disaster relief, and set our country up for success in 2025. The only way to do that is with a temporary funding bill WITHOUT DEMOCRAT GIVEAWAYS combined with an increase in the debt ceiling. Anything else is a betrayal of our country…” they said in the statement. HOUSE GOP LEADERS SCRAMBLE FOR PLAN B AFTER TRUMP, MUSK LEAD CONSERVATIVE FURY AGAINST SPENDING BILL Massie mocked Johnson this week by sharing an AI-generated image that depicted the speaker holding a hose while a house burned in the background. He shared the image after declaring in a tweet that “US foreign aid spending is like watering the neighbor’s yard while your house is on fire.”
State revamps curriculum, bans ‘woke garbage’ to teach all aspects of Obama-Biden-Trump era
EXCLUSIVE: Oklahoma’s 2025 school-year curriculum will look markedly different after major adjustments are made to eschew “woke garbage” while making sure students learn all aspects of complex figures like Thomas Jefferson and Donald Trump, and issues like the BLM and Capitol riots. State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters said Wednesday his state is “taking the lead” on a “direct rejection” of politicizing influences on the curriculum like teachers’ unions and activist educators. “What we are not going to allow is these radical teachers’ unions to push lies in the classroom. That’s not how we’re going to teach.” Walters said school curricula are set every six years, and that he plans to hold schools accountable by withholding accreditation from any institutions that don’t follow suit. CHINESE INFLUENCE IN SCHOOLS A RISING CONCERN, EDUCATION LEADERS SAY He suggested the new rules are an extension of Oklahoma’s previous push to return the Bible to the classroom as an “important historical document” that shaped America’s founding – in that it is important to similarly give students a fuller perspective on landmark events and figures throughout the rest of U.S. history. “We are driving out this woke indoctrination and woke nonsense that has been injected into the classroom by undermining Republican presidents and American exceptionalism,” he said. “So our kids are going to know America is a great country. They’re not going to be taught to hate this country. They’re going to be taught to love this country and a patriotism to come from the principles that our country was founded in our history.” Giving the example of former President Ronald Reagan in the last generation’s education, and how some curricula focused more on shortcomings during Iran-Contra and Col. Oliver North’s hearings, Walters said he will not tolerate educators “maligning” President-elect Trump in the same way. “You’re not going to come in and teach President Trump wanted an insurrection on Jan. 6 [2021]. We’re not going to allow it. We will be crystal clear on what President Trump’s victories were in the White House,” he said. UNIVERSITY CUTS TIES WITH CONFUCIUS INSTITUTES AMID GOP SCRUTINY ON $17M DOD GRANT Similarly, the new curriculum will take a broader look at Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter and the repercussions of coronavirus lockdowns. He cited a recent clip he saw of a student stating that the only thing they knew about Thomas Jefferson was that he was a slaveholder, and did not know he was a president or the primary author of the Declaration of Independence. “And so we will drive these lies out of the classrooms and get back to an understanding of American greatness throughout our history,” he said, noting that Oklahoma will teach “the good with the bad.” Walters was asked how the curriculum would teach COVID-19 lockdown history, given how states like Pennsylvania, New York and Hawaii were confident their zero-tolerance edicts were the right response, just as much as Florida believed its less restrictive response was right. “I don’t care to appease the left or make them happy. We’re going to teach facts. We’re going to stick to accurate history here. And they can be offended by that,” Walters said. “It is not debatable. Rights were taken from individuals during COVID. That’s not debatable. It’s also not debatable that lockdowns hurt kids. Lockdowns hurt families and businesses,” he said, adding that current curriculum often glosses over that argument and offers only a more proverbially-northeastern view of the COVID years. “We are ultimately going to let [students] come to their own conclusions,” Walters said of the curriculum writ-large. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP U.S. history is strewn with successes and failures on all sides, he said, adding that the most responsible way to prepare the next generation to lead the country is to instill in them the widest view of its history and law possible. “The left wants to browbeat kids into believing to hate their country, while conservatives, we just want history taught, and show that America is the greatest country in the history of the world.” “It will show you what policies work, what policies don’t work. A kid should come to their own conclusions. That’s why every state has to look at their [civics curriculum] standards.” Fox News Digital also reached out to union leader Randi Weingarten via the AFT for comment on the general tenor of partially blaming teachers unions for purportedly slanted curricula.
House GOP campaign chair makes prediction for 2026 midterms: ‘Going to be on offense’
The returning head of the House Republican campaign committee says President-elect Trump’s convincing 2024 White House victory gives the GOP plenty of home field advantage as the party aims to defend its razor-thin majority in the 2026 midterm elections. “The battlefield is really laying out to our advantage. There are 14 Democrats who won seats also carried by Donald Trump. There are only three Republicans in seats that were carried by Kamala Harris. So that tells me we’re going to be on offense,” National Republican Congressional Committee chair Rep. Richard Hudson emphasized in a recent Fox News Digital interview. Trump carried all seven crucial battleground states and, for the first time in three presidential elections, won the national popular vote as he defeated Vice President Harris last month. VANCE TO LIKELY BE 2028 GOP PRESIDENTIAL FRONT-RUNNER, BUT RNC CHAIR ALSO LIKES PARTY’S ‘BENCH’ The Republicans also flipped control of the Senate from the Democrats, and even though they had a net loss of two seats in the 435-member House, they’ll hold a fragile 220-215 majority when the new Congress convenes next month. Eight years ago, when Trump first won the White House and the GOP held onto their House majority, Democrats targeted roughly two-dozen Republicans in the 2018 midterms in districts Trump lost in the 2016 election. The Democrats, in a blue-wave election, were successful in flipping the House majority. Fast-forward eight years, and it’s a different story, as this time Republicans will be defending seats on friendly turf in districts that the president-elect carried. “There’s a whole lot more opportunity for us to go on offense,” Hudson, who’s represented a congressional district in central North Carolina for a dozen years, touted. SENATE REPUBLICAN CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE CHAIR SPELLS OUT HIS 2026 MISSION Hudson also made the case that House Republicans who will once again be targeted by the Democrats in the upcoming election cycle are “really battle tested. I mean, they’re folks who’ve been through the fire before. They’ve gone through several cycles now with millions of dollars spent against them.” “They’ve been able to succeed because they work very hard in their districts. They’ve established very strong brands, as you know, people who know how to get things done and how to deliver for their community,” he emphasized. “The Republicans who are in tough seats are our best candidates.” The three House Republicans who are in districts that Harris carried last month are Reps. Don Bacon of Nebraska, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, and Mike Lawler of New York. But there will be a big difference in 2026: Trump, who helped drive low propensity voters to the polls this year, won’t be on the ballot in the 2026 midterms. “I certainly would rather have him on the ballot because he turns out voters that don’t come out for other candidates,” Hudson acknowledged. But he argued, “If you look at the way this race is shaping up, we campaigned on a key set of issues of things that we promised we would deliver. If we deliver those things and have Donald Trump there with us campaigning with our candidates, I believe we can drive out a higher percentage of those voters than we have in midterms in the past.” Hudson said Trump “was a great partner” with House Republicans this year and will be again in the upcoming election cycle. “[Trump] cares deeply about having a House majority because he understands that a Democrat House majority means his agenda comes to a grinding halt. And so he’s been very engaged, was a very good partner for us this last election, and I anticipate that continuing.” Hudson, who is returning for a second straight cycle chairing the NRCC, said that at the top of his committee to-do list are candidate recruitment and fundraising. “I mean, first thing, we’ve got to go out and recruit candidates. You know, candidate quality matters. And then we’ve got to go raise the money. And so I’ll be on the road and be out there helping our incumbents. But I’m looking forward to it,” he emphasized. Fox News’ Emma Woodhead contributed to this report Editors note: Fox News Digital also interviewed Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chair Rep. Suzan DelBene of Washington. That report will be posted on Friday.
DOGE Caucus leader Joni Ernst eyes relocation out of DC for third of federal workers
FIRST ON FOX: Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, the leader of the Senate Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Caucus, is hoping to take on the centralization of the federal workforce in the Washington, D.C., area with a new bill that would relocate nearly a third of workers. Ernst is leading a bill, titled the “Decentralizing and Re-organizing Agency Infrastructure Nationwide To Harness Efficient Services, Workforce Administration, and Management Practices Act,” or DRAIN THE SWAMP. The measure would authorize the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to relocate 30% of federal agency staff to places other than the metropolitan area surrounding Washington, D.C. PETE HEGSETH SAYS HE HASN’T HEARD FROM WEST POINT SINCE EMPLOYEE ‘ERROR’ DENYING HIS ACCEPTANCE Additionally, the rest of the federal workers remaining around the capital would be required to work in person 100% of the time. Under her bill, the OMB would further be directed to work to sell the unnecessary office space created by the relocations. MIKE LEE LOOKS TO HALT WELFARE FOR ILLEGALS GOING ON UNDER BIDEN WITH KEY BUDGET PROCESS “My investigations have exposed how bureaucrats have been doing just about everything besides their job during the workday,” Ernst said in a statement. “Federal employees have shown they don’t want to work in Washington, and in the Christmas spirit, I am making their wish come true. Instead of keeping them bogged down in the swamp, I’m working to get bureaucrats beyond the D.C. beltway to remind public servants who they work for.” “In addition to improving government service for all Americans, we can give taxpayers an extra Christmas gift by selling off unused and expensive office buildings.” FARM STATE REPUBLICANS APPEAR SKEPTICAL ABOUT RFK JR AMID HIS QUEST FOR HHS CONFIRMATION Ernst has long been investigating federal government agencies and programs and what she deems as waste. With Donald Trump’s announcement of DOGE ahead of his second administration, the Iowa Republican appears ready to hit the ground running with specific ideas already laid out for the president-elect. Companion legislation is being introduced in the House by Rep. Aaron Bean, R-Fla., who is a co-leader of the lower chamber’s DOGE caucus. “The swamp is thick and deep here in Crazy Town, and I’m here to drain it. It is time to remind Washington that our duty is to serve the American people. I’m proud to join Senator Ernst to ensure the government works for the people, not the other way around,” he said in a statement. In November, Trump announced that billionaire Elon Musk and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy would lead DOGE, a proposed advisory board tasked with eliminating government waste. RFK JR. SAYS HE PLANS TO ALSO MEET WITH DEMS IN BID TO GET CONFIRMED AS TRUMP HHS HEAD “Together, these two wonderful Americans will pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies – Essential to the ‘Save America’ Movement,” he wrote in a statement at the time. Afterward, caucuses were formed in both the House and Senate, led by Reps. Aaron Bean, R-Fla., and Pete Sessions, R-Texas, and Ernst and Blake Moore, R-Utah, respectively. Republicans in both chambers have already started rolling out a slate of bills aimed at fulfilling the mission of DOGE.
Experts praise long-awaited AI report from Congress: ‘A thoughtful and forward-thinking framework’
Congress’s bipartisan task force on artificial intelligence (AI) released its long-anticipated report this week, detailing strategies for how the U.S. can protect itself against emerging AI-related threats while ensuring the nation remains a leader in innovation within this rapidly evolving sector. Responses to the report, which sought to strike a “flexible sectoral regulatory framework,” were positive and with mixed concerns. “The Task Force report offers a thoughtful and forward-thinking framework that balances AI’s transformative economic potential with the imperative to address legitimate safety concerns,” said Dr. Vahid Behzadan, a professor in the computer science department at the University of New Haven. “That said, there’s still work to be done.” He pointed to the importance of developing an “international collaboration strategy,” especially with U.S. allies, the need to establish “clearer priorities among the many recommendations provided” and the need for more guidance on market competition and consolidation. FOX NEWS AI NEWSLETTER: OPENAI RESPONDS TO ELON MUSK’S LAWSUIT The Center for AI Policy, a nonpartisan research organization based in the nation’s capital, issued a press release that commended lawmakers for their work on the report. But the group echoed Behzadan’s remarks about the need for more detail. “The body of the report does not contain enough detail about how or when these frameworks will be created,” the group said after the report’s release. It also expressed concern over the report’s lack of emphasis on “catastrophic risks” posed by AI. “Congress has deliberated on AI for two years now, and it is time to start moving forward with decisive action,” the press release stated. Yaron Litwin is the chief marketing officer for Canopy, a digital parenting app and an expert in how AI technology is revolutionizing parental control and internet safety. He said “we need faster” and “stronger” protections than what was laid out in the report. “To me, the report appears more business-friendly than not.” The report pointed out that it would be “unreasonable to expect Congress to enact legislation this year that could serve as its last word on AI policy.” But while Congress may be slow to act, some states have already moved the ball forward on regulating AI, and experts who spoke to Fox News Digital said the report could serve to bolster those efforts. AI-POWERED DECEPTION: THE SNEAKY MACOS MALWARE MASQUERADING AS YOUR NEXT VIDEO CALL Lawmakers in Colorado enacted the first comprehensive piece of AI legislation this year, which placed certain obligations on developers of “high-risk artificial intelligence systems.” Meanwhile, in California, lawmakers passed a bill this month aiming to regulate AI in health care. “These federal soft law standards could work alongside state efforts to protect consumers and give businesses clear, consistent, and science-based federal guidelines,” said Tatiana Rice, Deputy Director for U.S. Legislation at the Future of Privacy Forum, a nonprofit that explores challenges posed by technological innovation. Rice pointed out that an increasing number of state AI laws “include carveouts or assumptions of compliance if businesses adhere to federally recognized standards,” and she noted that Congress’s approach will likely “make it easier for businesses to meet legal requirements, incentivize consumer trust and safety, and reduce regulatory complexity.” Craig Albright, Senior Vice President of U.S. Government Relations for the Business Software Alliance, posited that the report could likely encourage states “to be more aggressively [sic] next year than what we are expecting to see in Congress.” LISA KUDROW BEGAN TO FEAR AI AFTER SEEING TOM HANKS MOVIE On the issue of whether the 25-page report strikes the balance that lawmakers were hoping for in terms of balancing regulation with the need to foster innovation, experts who spoke to Fox News Digital expressed optimism. “The House AI Working Group report strikes the right tone,” Dakota State University President José-Marie Griffiths told Fox News Digital. Griffiths has advised both the Senate and White House on AI policy, including Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., co-chair of the Senate AI Caucus. “While there will always be debate over regulation versus not enough government oversight, the report is a step in the right direction,” said Griffiths. “With the development of any new technology, regulation requires a nuanced and flexible approach. My recommendation going forward will be for Congress to pick and choose to legislate on specific aspects of AI policy.” Griffiths’ reaction to the report was echoed by others who warned that in such a rapidly evolving industry, it will be critical not to get trigger-happy with regulations that could soon become obsolete. “It is encouraging that the report suggests taking an incremental approach to AI policy,” said JD Harriman, a partner at Foundation Law Group who has worked as outside patent council at technology corporations like Apple and Pixar. “Many areas of technology have been stifled by over-regulation before a complete understanding of the technology was undertaken.” “The task force’s honesty – ‘We don’t know what we don’t know’ – is both refreshing and daunting,” added Cassidy Reid, the founder of Women in Automation, a nonprofit group that supports women in the tech sector. “It acknowledges the speed of AI’s evolution but raises a bigger question: Are we ready to govern something so inherently unpredictable?”
Paris Hilton-backed bill aimed at stopping abuse in youth residential programs heads to Biden’s desk
A bill backed by celebrity and entrepreneur Paris Hilton is heading to President Biden’s desk after the House passed the act on Wednesday, a week after it was cleared unanimously by the Senate. The “Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act” requires more oversight for youth residential treatment facilities, a regulation Hilton has spent years lobbying for after testifying that she was sexually abused as a 17-year-old at a Utah boarding school. The bipartisan bill was co-sponsored by 23 lawmakers including Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Ct., Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore. and Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif. Once the bill is enacted, the Secretary of Health and Human Services has 45 days to enter into a contract with the National Academics of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine to “conduct a study to examine the state of youth in youth residential programs and make recommendations,” according to the text. PARIS HILTON URGES HOUSE TO PASS ‘STOP INSTITUTIONAL CHILD ABUSE ACT’ AFTER SENATE’S UNANIMOUS APPROVAL Hilton celebrated Congress passing the bill in a social media post on Wednesday where she stated, in part, “today is a day [she] will never forget.” “This moment is proof that our voices matter, that speaking out can spark change, and that no child should ever endure the horrors of abuse in silence. I did this for the younger version of myself and the youth who were senselessly taken from us by the Troubled Teen Industry,” she wrote on X. She thanked the “countless survivors who shared their stories,” the “families who stood with us” and the legislators “who chose courage over complacency.” “And to the children still trapped in these systems: I will never stop fighting for you. Change is possible!” she concluded. PARIS HILTON CHAMPIONS CHILD WELFARE REFORM: ‘MOST TRAUMATIZING EXPERIENCE OF MY LIFE’ The act requires the National Academies to submit a report within three years, and every two years thereafter for a decade, detailing various issues, including the “nature, prevalence, severity, and scope of child abuse, neglect, and deaths” in the programs. The reports must also include who is funding the youth residential programs at the state and federal levels. Recommendations will also be made on how to better train those working in fields that may come into contact with institutionalized youth, and how to implement “positive behavioral interventions.” Hilton has also influenced similar legislation protecting institutionalized minors in eight states.
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to what happened to the interim spending bill
The 1,547-page interim spending bill to avoid a government shutdown is effectively dead. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has all but yanked the plan off the floor after President-elect Trump, Vice President-elect Vance and Elon Musk torched the package to avoid a government shutdown this weekend and fund the government through March 14. Had House Republicans had the votes to pass the bill – without leaning too heavily on Democrats – Republicans may have been able to pass the bill late Wednesday afternoon before the intervention of Mssrs. Trump and Vance. But there was just too much grassroots pressure, sparked by Musk on X and elsewhere. HOUSE GOP LEADERS SCRAMBLE FOR PLAN B AFTER TRUMP, MUSK LEAD CONSERVATIVE FURY AGAINST SPENDING BILL The stopgap spending package proved unpopular due to its size, and various legislative ornaments festooned on the bill like a Christmas tree. Conservatives were expecting Johnson to handle the spending plan differently this year at the holidays. But it backfired. Badly. It’s notable that Mr. Trump did not weigh in until the 11th hour. He also demanded a debt ceiling increase. That’s something which faced the President-elect in the first quarter of the year and threatened to derail any legislative agenda or potentially spook the markets. Johnson’s decision to veer off course – despite touting the bill heartily on Fox this morning – underscores several things. This is a sign of things to come once President-elect Trump is in office. And that could present problems for Johnson as he may be at the whim of decisions by the new President? Why did Johnson pull the bill? It was wildy unpopular with his rank and file. But it devolved further once Musk and the President-elect got infused themselves. MATT GAETZ REPORT BY HOUSE ETHICS COMMITTEE TO BE RELEASED In many respects, Johnson’s decision to pull the bill was all about January 3. That’s the day of the Speaker’s vote. With 434 members to start the new Congress, Johnson needs 218 votes. Otherwise, he lacks a majority and cannot become Speaker. The House must vote repeatedly – as it did in January 2023 – before electing former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) five days later in what was the longest Speaker’s race since the 1850s. Johnson tried to salvage himself in the Speaker’s vote by adding emergency agriculture spending to the bill. But Johnson is now trying to salvage himself by coming up with a new bill. The irony is that Johnson did not want to create drama before Christmas with a spending package. But drama is exactly what he got in what quickly became the worst Congressional holiday standoff since the fiscal cliff in 2012 or a government shutdown threat in 2014. So here’s the $64,000 Question: What play does Johnson call next? Does he do a clean CR to fund the government with nothing attached? Is it a bill that just re-ups current funding coupled with disaster aid? Do they attach a debt ceiling suspension as President-elect Trump has requested? RFK JR SET TO FACE ABORTION, VACCINE SCRUTINY IN SIT-DOWNS WITH SENATORS ON CAPITOL HILL And then the biggest question of all: can ANYTHING pass at all? Especially without votes from the Democrats? Johnson has a tranche of conservatives who won’t vote for any CR at all. Many of them would also not vote for a debt ceiling increase, either. And even if there is a new bill, do conservatives insist on waiting three days to ponder that bill? That triggers a government shutdown right there. The deadline is 11:59:59 pm ET on Friday. So this is going to require someone to pull a rabbit out of a hat. President-elect Trump’s maneuver today is reminiscent of a similar move he made in December 2019, which sparked the longest government shutdown in history. Then-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), then-Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) and others thought they had a deal to fund the government and avoid a Christmas-time shutdown. The Senate voted for the bill. Senators even sat in the back of the chamber and sang Christmas carols during the vote. Mr. Trump then balked at the last minute. House Republicans followed suit. The government shut down for more than a month.
Trump, Musk fire back after Dem leader blames House GOP for breaking bipartisan agreement
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., while speaking at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., called out House Republicans for breaking a bipartisan agreement to fund the government and avoid a government shutdown, accusing them of hurting everyday Americans across the country. On Wednesday, House GOP leaders scrambled to search for a backup plan after reaching an initial bipartisan deal to avoid a partial government shutdown this Friday was buried by a barrage of opposition from conservative leaders. Jeffries spoke about the failed deal, accusing Republicans and their leaders for not reaching the agreement. “House Republicans, house democrats, Senate. Republicans and Senate Democrats reached a bipartisan agreement to fund the government, keep it open and meet the needs of the American people,” Jeffries said, pointing out the agreement would provide disaster assistance for those affected by extreme weather events. “House Republicans have now unilaterally decided to break a bipartisan agreement that they made. House Republicans have been ordered to shut down the government and hurt everyday Americans all across this country…An agreement is an agreement. It was bipartisan and there was nothing more to say.” TRUMP SAYS HE’S ‘TOTALLY AGAINST’ PROPOSED CONTINUING RESOLUTION BILL The minority leader also fired off a post on X, saying, “House Republicans have been ordered to shut down the government. And hurt working class Americans they claim to support. You break the bipartisan agreement; you own the consequences that follow.” As of Wednesday, the U.S. national debt – which is a measure of what U.S. taxpayers were on the hook for to the nation’s creditors – had reached $36,189,345,826,140.62, and was climbing at a rapid pace, showing no signs of slowing down. The federal government’s budget deficit in the recently concluded fiscal year totaled $1.834 trillion, ranking the third largest in U.S. history. Billionaire Elon Musk, who was appointed by President-elect Trump to serve as a co-chair of the newly-established Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, lambasted the bill on his social media platform, saying the 1,547-page continuing resolution (CR) bill is full of “pork.” Musk fired back at Jeffries’ on X. “You seem to think the public is dumb. They are not.” he wrote. DANIEL PENNY TO BE TAPPED FOR CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL BY HOUSE GOP LAWMAKER Musk also wrote in a separate post, “The voice of the people was heard. This was a good day for America.” Trump adamantly opposed the bill on Wednesday through a series of posts on Truth Social. “Sounds like the ridiculous and extraordinarily expensive Continuing Resolution, PLUS, is dying fast, but can anyone imagine passing it without either terminating, or extending, the Debt Ceiling guillotine coming up in June?” the incoming president asked. “Unless the Democrats terminate or substantially extend [the] Debt Ceiling now, I will fight ‘till the end. This is a nasty TRAP set in place by the Radical Left Democrats!” He continued, saying Democrats are looking to embarrass Republicans when it comes up for a vote in June, and the people who extended it from Sept. 28 to June 1, “should be ashamed of themselves.” GOP SENATORS ‘VERY IMPRESSED’ WITH MUSK, RAMASWAMY DOGE FRAMEWORK AMID MEETINGS ON CAPITOL HILL Trump called the extension “political malpractice,” and reiterated the bad timing of Congress asking for pay increases. “Hopefully, you’ll be entitled to such an increase in the near future when we, “MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” he said. In another post, Trump explained that trying to pass a clean CR without all of the bells and whistles Democrats want will be destructive to the country and his administration instead of the Biden administration. “Any Republican that would be so stupid as to do this should, and will be Primaried,” Trump warned. “Everything should be done, and fully negotiated, prior to my taking office on January 20th, 2025.” MIKE JOHNSON WINS REPUBLICAN SUPPORT TO BE HOUSE SPEAKER AGAIN AFTER TRUMP ENDORSEMENT Congressional leaders released the text of their 1,547-page CR on Tuesday evening after last-minute negotiations delayed its original planned release on Sunday. A source familiar with discussions told Fox News Digital more specifically that the deal was largely struck between the top two Democrats and Republicans in each chamber. Since its release, the CR has seen fierce pushback from conservatives and House GOP hardliners, many of whom are frustrated with unrelenting policy riders attached to the legislation, rather than a “clean” extension of government funding. While the bill would avert a partial government shutdown through March 14 if passed, it also includes provisions on health care and ethanol fuel, along with $100 billion in disaster aid funding and measures to fund the reconstruction of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. The bill also includes the first pay raise for lawmakers since 2009. Fox News Digital’s Anders Hagstrom and Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.
AOC laughs off sarcastic sympathy from Trump after failed House leadership bid: ‘You know it’s bad’
President-elect Trump commented Wednesday that it was “too bad” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., was recently turned down for a leadership position on a House committee, prompting an amused response by the progressive politician. “Really too bad that AOC lost the Battle for the Leadership Seat in the Democrat Party,” Trump wrote Wednesday on Truth Social. “She should keep trying. Someday, she will be successful!” Later, the New York congresswoman screenshot Trump’s remarks and wrote a humorous response. “Damn you know it’s bad when even Trump is feeling bad for me,” Ocasio-Cortez said, adding a laughing emoji. TIDE TURNS FOR HEGSETH AS TRUMP’S DEFENSE SECRETARY NOMINEE GOES ON OFFENSE The amusing exchange came just one day after the 36-year-old Democrat was defeated in her bid to serve as the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee. The leadership role went to Democratic Rep. Gerry Connolly of Virginia, who received 131 votes to Ocasio-Cortez’s 84. “I thank my colleagues for their support and the confidence they’ve placed in me to lead House Democrats on the Oversight Committee,” Connolly said in a statement after being elected by the House Democratic Caucus. GET TO KNOW DONALD TRUMP’S CABINET: WHO HAS THE PRESIDENT-ELECT PICKED SO FAR? “This will be trench warfare,” he added. “Now is not the time to be timid. I promise the American people that our Committee Democrats will be a beacon of truth and prepared from day one to counter Republican gaslighting.” Ocasio-Cortez, who has served on the oversight committee since 2023, wrote on the social media platform Bluesky that she “tried her best” with her bid. “Tried my best. Sorry I couldn’t pull it through everyone — we live to fight another day,” she wrote. Fox News Digital’s Stephen Sorace contributed to this report.
House GOP leaders scramble for Plan B after Trump, Musk lead conservative fury against spending bill
House GOP leaders appear to be searching for a backup plan after an initial bipartisan deal to avoid a partial government shutdown on Friday was buried in an avalanche of conservative opposition. The legislation angered conservatives in both the House and Senate – as well as President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to co-chair his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Elon Musk. As Musk called for lawmakers who supported the bill to lose their seats, Trump’s presidential transition team released an official joint statement by Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance opposing the initial iteration of the deal. The bill was expected to get a vote sometime on Wednesday afternoon, but a planned round of late afternoon votes was canceled. Instead, senior Republicans are huddling in the speaker’s office to chart a path forward – less than 24 hours after the legislation was unveiled. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., told reporters while leaving Johnson’s office in the early evening, “There will be a new CR likely tomorrow. They are negotiating right now. But there will be no votes this evening.” DANIEL PENNY TO BE TAPPED FOR CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., told reporters a short while later that he anticipated a “skinny” CR without disaster aid or agricultural subsidies. It came after GOP critics of the spending bill spent much of the day attacking Johnson’s handling of the issue. The 1,547-page bill is a short-term extension of fiscal year (FY) 2024 government funding levels, aimed at giving lawmakers more time to agree on funding the rest of FY 2025 by the Friday deadline. It’s the second such extension, called a continuing resolution (CR), since FY 2024 ended on Sept. 30. In addition to funding the government through March 14, the bill also has more than $100 billion in disaster aid to help Americans affected by Hurricanes Milton and Helene. It also includes an added $10 billion in economic relief for farmers, as well as health care reform measures and a provision aimed at revitalizing Washington, D.C.’s RFK stadium and its surrounding campus. Members of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus said they felt blindsided by what they saw as unrelated policy riders being added to the bill in last-minute negotiations. Several GOP lawmakers granted anonymity to speak freely said Johnson would see challenges to his speakership bid in early January over the matter. But Johnson defended the deal on “Fox & Friends” Wednesday morning. “When we start the new Congress in January, when Republicans are in control…we’re going to be able to scale back the size and scope of government. But before we get to that point, remember right now, we only control one half of one third of the federal government. Remember, Democrats are still in charge of the Senate and the White House. So what we’ve done is the conservative play call here,” he said. REPUBLICANS GIVE DETAILS FROM CLOSED-DOOR MEETINGS WITH DOGE DUO Opponents of the legislation include Elon Musk, who posted on X, “Any member of the House or Senate who votes for this outrageous spending bill deserves to be voted out in 2 years!” He later called on Republicans to leverage a partial government shutdown, “‘Shutting down’ the government (which doesn’t actually shut down critical functions btw) is infinitely better than passing a horrible bill.” Meanwhile Trump and Vance called for Republicans to reject the deal and instead opt for a CR paired with an increase in the U.S. debt limit – which was suspended until January 2025. “Increasing the debt ceiling is not great but we’d rather do it on Biden’s watch. If Democrats won’t cooperate on the debt ceiling now, what makes anyone think they would do it in June during our administration? Let’s have this debate now. And we should pass a streamlined spending bill that doesn’t give Chuck Schumer and the Democrats everything they want,” the statement said. But simply bowing to his right flank may not get Johnson out of the woods, with Democrats warning him to not renege on their deal. “House Republicans have been ordered to shut down the government.And hurt the working class Americans they claim to support.You break the bipartisan agreement, you own the consequences that follow,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, R-N.Y., wrote on X. Johnson was always likely to need Democratic help to pass a CR, given his slim margins in the House and widespread opposition to short-term funding extensions within the GOP. But it’s not clear if the number of Democrats willing to break ranks will offset that Republican opposition. House leaders will also have to decide whether to put the bill through regular order – which will include a House Rules Committee vote followed by a House-wide procedural vote before lawmakers can weigh on the measure itself – or bypass that and rush the bill onto the House floor in exchange for raising the threshold for passage to two-thirds rather than a simple majority. All the while, the clock is ticking until the partial government shutdown deadline at the end of Friday.