Tim Scott’s Senate campaign arm staff revealed ahead of crucial 2026 swing state races
FIRST ON FOX: The senior staff for the new National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) that will help incoming Chairman Tim Scott, R-S.C., in his quest to expand the GOP majority in 2026 were revealed on Thursday, and they include veterans of President-elect Donald Trump, Scott himself and former Vice President Mike Pence. Scott, who was chosen to lead the NRSC in the upcoming cycle, will be assisted by a slate of veteran GOP operatives. Jennifer DeCasper, Scott’s longtime chief of staff and top adviser, will be the next NRSC executive director. Stephen DeMaura will join her as deputy executive director. He served as Pence’s 2024 presidential campaign manager and has an extensive history of working with campaigns and outside groups to win elections. PETE HEGSETH SAYS HE HASN’T HEARD FROM WEST POINT SINCE EMPLOYEE ‘ERROR’ DENYING HIS ACCEPTANCE “Two years of complete Republican control is good, but four years of a Trump agenda is even better,” Scott said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “Defending the majority, going on offense, and advancing President Trump’s agenda requires an elite team to execute at the highest levels. I’m excited about the organization we are building, the wins we will put on the board, and the results we will deliver for the American people.” “Jennifer DeCasper is an outstanding choice to lead the NRSC as Executive Director,” current NRSC Chairman Steve Daines, R-Mont., said in a statement. “As a trusted advisor to Senator Tim Scott, she’s proven to be a master at navigating both politics and policy. Her strategic insight, relentless drive, and commitment to conservative principles make her uniquely equipped to help us keep and grow our hard-fought Senate majority.” MIKE LEE LOOKS TO HALT WELFARE FOR ILLEGALS GOING ON UNDER BIDEN WITH KEY BUDGET PROCESS Cara Mason, a Trump alum, will serve as finance director. Nathan Brand is joining the NRSC team as Scott’s senior adviser. The committee’s next political director will be Brendan Jaspers, who previously served as director of campaigns at the Club for Growth. The NRSC’s next communications director will be Joanna Rodriguez, who is currently running communications for Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb. Ricketts will be taking on the role of vice chair at the NRSC for the 2026 cycle as well. Additionally, veteran Senate staffer Brennen Britton will be the NRSC’s director of external affairs and the committee’s senior finance adviser will be Brittney Godoy, who has led Scott’s fundraising efforts in the past. FARM STATE REPUBLICANS APPEAR SKEPTICAL ABOUT RFK JR AMID HIS QUEST FOR HHS CONFIRMATION “It will take a team of seasoned, conservative operatives to ensure President Trump has a Senate majority for his entire term, and that’s exactly who Senator Scott has lined up,” said Ricketts in a statement. “I’m especially excited to see a member of my senior staff, Joanna Rodriguez, join the team. She will share her experience crafting winning, conservative messages with incumbents and challengers across the map. As an NRSC Vice Chair and in-cycle Senator, I’m confident this team will do whatever it takes to win races and champion President Trump’s agenda of prosperity and security.” The NRSC noted the value added by the wide range of political experience that each member of the team brings to the table, which they believe will help to maintain and grow a GOP Senate majority to work with Trump. RFK JR. SAYS HE PLANS TO ALSO MEET WITH DEMS IN BID TO GET CONFIRMED AS TRUMP HHS HEAD In 2026, there are several races expected to be competitive, including those for the seats of Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., Thom Tillis, R-N.C., and Susan Collins, R-Maine. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., has made an aggressive case to her fellow Democrats to let her take on the role of Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee chairwoman during the same cycle. Central to her pitch has been her ability to speak effectively to voters in purple areas, which she says Democrats must do.
Trump says Mike Johnson will ‘easily remain speaker’ if he acts ‘decisively and tough’ on spending bill
EXCLUSIVE: President-elect Donald Trump told Fox News Digital that House Speaker Mike Johnson will “easily remain speaker” for the next Congress if he “acts decisively and tough” and eliminates “all of the traps being set by Democrats” in the spending package. Fox News Digital spoke exclusively with the president-elect Thursday morning, just hours after the bipartisan deal to avoid a partial government shutdown was killed. JOHNSON HIT WITH POSSIBLE SPEAKERSHIP RIVALS AS CONSERVATIVES REBEL OVER GOVERNMENT FUNDING PLAN “Anybody that supports a bill that doesn’t take care of the Democrat quicksand known as the debt ceiling should be primaried and disposed of as quickly as possible,” Trump told Fox News Digital. Vice President-elect JD Vance met with House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., Wednesday night. The two spoke about the potential continuing resolution for about an hour. Vance said the two had a “productive conversation,” and said he believes they will “be able to solve some problems here” and will continue “working on it.” The chaos surrounding the effort to pass legislation to avert a government shutdown is putting the upcoming speaker vote in focus, as Johnson has struggled to keep the party fully united. But the president-elect told Fox News Digital that Johnson will “easily” keep his role as speaker. “If the speaker acts decisively, and tough, and gets rid of all of the traps being set by the Democrats, which will economically and, in other ways, destroy our country, he will easily remain speaker,” Trump told Fox News Digital. The speaker vote is set for Jan. 3, 2025. The now-dead-on-arrival 1,547-page bill was set to be 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. MIKE JOHNSON WINS REPUBLICAN SUPPORT TO BE HOUSE SPEAKER AGAIN AFTER TRUMP ENDORSEMENT In addition to funding the government through March 14, the bill included more than $100 billion in disaster aid to help Americans affected by Hurricanes Milton and Helene. It also included $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. The bill also proposed a pay raise for members of Congress. Members of the 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. Sources said top Republicans like House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., were mentioned in early talks about alternatives. But a person close to Donalds told Fox News Digital in response, “At this time, the congressman has not made any statements regarding the future of House leadership.” And a spokesperson for Emmer told Fox News Digital, “Whip Emmer supports Speaker Johnson and is focused on doing the job he was elected to do.” And a source close to Jordan told Fox News Digital that the Ohio Republican is “not interested in challenging Johnson.” Fox News Digital’s Liz Elkind contributed to this report.
‘Make America Healthy Again’ caucus launched by Sen Marshall after RFK Jr meeting
FIRST ON FOX: Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., is launching a new caucus in the Senate on Thursday, named the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) caucus, to support the joint mission of President-elect Donald Trump and his choice to lead the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Marshall, a medical doctor who has practiced for more than 25 years, will lead the caucus as it works to promote healthy food, address widespread chronic diseases, encourage safer agricultural practices and work on expanding healthcare access. “The MAHA caucus is committed to improving health outcomes by prioritizing nutrition, providing access to affordable, nutrient-dense foods, and focusing on primary care availability to tackle the root causes of chronic diseases,” the Kansas Republican said in a statement. “With our ‘Food is Medicine’ approach, support from RFK Jr., and a shared goal to Make America Healthy Again, we aim to foster transparency, innovation, and a transformative agenda that builds a healthier, stronger nation.” PETE HEGSETH SAYS HE HASN’T HEARD FROM WEST POINT SINCE EMPLOYEE ‘ERROR’ DENYING HIS ACCEPTANCE Marshall is being joined in the new caucus by founding members Sens. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., and Rick Scott, R-Fla. According to the senator’s office, the MAHA caucus’ purpose will be to work alongside Kennedy, assuming that he is confirmed in the new Congress, and use legislation to ensure that Trump and Kennedy’s plan can be swiftly executed. The caucus will foster partnerships with stakeholders at the local, state and federal level in order to facilitate key MAHA initiatives, while also mobilizing support for its priorities and creating educational campaigns to spread nutritional awareness. MIKE LEE LOOKS TO HALT WELFARE FOR ILLEGALS GOING ON UNDER BIDEN WITH KEY BUDGET PROCESS After Kennedy suspended his independent presidential campaign earlier this year and subsequently endorsed Trump, the two announced that together they would work to “make America healthy again.” Following his election last month, Trump revealed his choice to nominate Kennedy to lead HHS and pursue that goal. The caucus’ creation comes as Kennedy continues to make the rounds on Capitol Hill, meeting with senators to shore up his confirmation support. Marshall, Tuberville and Scott were among those who met with him this week. FARM STATE REPUBLICANS APPEAR SKEPTICAL ABOUT RFK JR AMID HIS QUEST FOR HHS CONFIRMATION While many Republicans in the Senate have expressed support for Trump’s nominees across the board, including Kennedy, there are questions among some about his stance on vaccines, agriculture and abortion. Despite this, he has managed to address the concerns of some of the GOP lawmakers he has already met with. For example, Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., said Kennedy promised to restore certain pro-life policies at HHS. Tuberville told reporters prior to his meeting that he planned to discuss food production and agricultural policy with Kennedy. Following their discussion, he said Kennedy was aligned with Trump on protecting farmers and not over-regulating their livelihoods. RFK JR. SAYS HE PLANS TO ALSO MEET WITH DEMS IN BID TO GET CONFIRMED AS TRUMP HHS HEAD Kennedy is expected to conduct more meetings with senators on both sides of the aisle and will still need to address concerns, specifically those about his past comments on vaccine efficacy and how they will factor into his leadership at HHS. The former independent presidential candidate has long been a prominent vaccine skeptic. But, the HHS nominee said he wouldn’t do anything to take vaccines away from people.
Biden sets economy-wide climate target: reducing emissions 66 percent in 2035 from 2005 levels
President Biden announced an audacious goal for America to reduce its carbon emissions by two thirds with barely weeks left in his administration. Biden’s White House announced the new goal in a public statement. It calls for the U.S. to massively reduce its carbon emissions by 2035, invoking the Paris Agreement. “Today, as the United States continues to accelerate the transition to a clean energy economy, President Biden is announcing a new climate target for the United States: a 61-66 percent reduction in 2035 from 2005 levels in economy-wide net greenhouse gas emissions,” the White House wrote. “It keeps the United States on a straight line or steeper path to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions, economy-wide, by no later than 2050. In connection with this announcement, the United States is making a formal submission of this new target to the United Nations Climate Change secretariat as its next NDC under the Paris Agreement,” the statement continued. WHITE HOUSE SAYS TO ‘EXPECT MORE’ CLIMATE FUNDING BEFORE PRESIDENT BIDEN LEAVES OFFICE President-elect Trump withdrew the U.S. from the Paris Agreement soon after entering office in his first term. Biden then re-entered the U.S. into the treaty. Trump has not said whether he plans to once again remove the U.S. from the plan, which calls on global powers to self-impose climate reforms. CLIMATE JUSTICE GROUP HAS DEEP TIES TO JUDGES, EXPERTS INVOLVED IN LITIGATION AMID CLAIMS OF IMPARTIALITY Trump reportedly plans to install an “energy czar” to scale back energy and climate regulations implemented under the Biden administration. Six sources familiar with Trump’s transition team told the New York Times last month that a series of executive orders and presidential proclamations have been drafted related to climate and energy, aimed at rolling back Biden-era clean energy regulations that some critics argue have hurt the economy. US TO TIGHTEN RESTRICTIONS ON ENERGY DEVELOPMENT TO PROTECT STRUGGLING SAGE GROUSE Other plans Trump and his transition team are reportedly discussing include installing an “energy czar” to help cut regulations on domestic energy production and potentially moving the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) headquarters outside of Washington, D.C. “The American people re-elected President Trump by a resounding margin giving him a mandate to implement the promises he made on the campaign trail,” Trump-Vance transition spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told Fox News Digital when asked to confirm the details about Trump’s reported plans. “He will deliver.” Fox News’ Alec Schemmel contributed to this report.
What to expect as Republicans try to salvage spending package, avoid government shutdown
The revolt by conservatives and the sudden infusion into negotiations of President-elect Donald Trump, Vice President-elect JD Vance and Elon Musk has House Speaker Mike Johnson and others struggling to find a way out of their political cul-de-sac and avoiding a government shutdown at 12:00:01 a.m. ET Saturday. Fox News is told that Trump’s unexpected demand to tackle the debt ceiling in this package has complicated matters exponentially. Many conservatives won’t vote for any debt ceiling increase. And Democrats are balking because Republicans reneged on the deal. THE HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO WHAT HAPPENED TO THE INTERIM SPENDING BILL Democrats have bailed out majority Republicans on every major fiscal bill this Congress. They appear to be done with helping Republicans. HOUSE GOP LEADERS SCRAMBLE FOR PLAN B AFTER TRUMP, MUSK LEAD CONSERVATIVE FURY AGAINST SPENDING BILL Moreover, there may not be enough time to avoid a shutdown, especially if a new bill is to be produced – and conservatives demand that it lay fallow for three days before voting. That does not even address getting it through the Senate. ‘THERE’S ALWAYS CONSEQUENCES’: GOP REBELS PLOT MUTINY AGAINST JOHNSON OVER GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN DRAMA Many members with whom Fox News spoke Wednessday night are now resigned to a very high chance of a government shutdown – perhaps one which bleeds through Christmas. There simply isn’t a combination of votes that unlocks this puzzle yet. Congress also hasn’t addressed disaster aid. Some conservatives are opposed to that for North Carolina and Florida without offsets. The fate of assistance after Hurricanes Helene and Milton is now in serious limbo.
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?”