Dana White takes questions at podium during White House briefing with Trump
UFC CEO Dana White joined President Donald Trump at a White House press briefing on Monday, where Trump clarified that his recent suggestion to appoint the fight executive as his press secretary was merely a joke. Trump made a surprise appearance at the briefing to address reports that he had reached out to White for the role following a difficult news cycle. “We were having a very bad press day, and I said: ‘I don’t know why I thought of his name. ‘ He’s been my friend for a long time. I said: ‘You know, I think I’m going to get Dana White to be my new press secretary,’” Trump told reporters. “I said it to a group of the press and that was it. I was sort of kidding, and then they wrote the story as though I wasn’t kidding.” TRUMP SAYS HE WAS ‘ONLY KIDDING’ ABOUT MAKING DANA WHITE PRESS SECRETARY White then took the podium to address reporters and shut down any rumors of entering government service. “I have zero political aspirations,” White said. “I was at a fight for Zuffa Boxing in London when he called me and told me that he had done this, and the last 24 hours of my life have been insane.” When asked by a reporter to break down a hypothetical UFC cage match between Trump and former President Joe Biden, White praised Trump’s toughness while dismissing the match up. FOLLOW US ON X “He’s the toughest, most resilient human being that I’ve ever met in my entire life,” White said of Trump. “Many times during the last eight or 10 years, I have told him: ‘Why? Why do you keep doing this? ‘ But as tough and as resilient as I thought he was, after he got shot, he proved he is a one-of-one unique human being.” Regarding the hypothetical fight, White added: “It would be very bad. Yeah, I think it would be very bad… I can’t believe you actually have questions for me.” White added that he never explicitly told Trump “no” regarding the position. Before stepping away, the UFC chief was also asked what advice he would give Trump regarding a potential posthumous pardon for Pete Rose, the legendary baseball player who died in 2024. Rose was banned from MLB Hall of Fame eligibility due to betting on baseball games, including those involving his own team, the Cincinnati Reds. In 2025, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred removed Rose and 16 other deceased people from the permanently ineligible list. Trump reiterated during the briefing that he favors pardoning the hit king.
Jeffries vows Democrats won’t ‘give a dime’ to Trump’s deportation efforts
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries on Monday laid out an aggressive agenda for House Democrats as the party prepares to take control of the chamber following sweeping midterm election victories, declaring that Democrats will “not give a dime” toward funding the Trump administration’s deportation efforts. The House minority leader made the remarks during a press conference, one week before Democrats are set to vote on whether Jeffries should remain in his leadership position. “The American people clearly and decisively rejected MAGA extremism on Tuesday and voted for dramatic change,” Jeffries said. “House Democrats have taken the position that we’re not going to give a dime to the administration’s violent mass deportation machine,” he added. DEMS PIVOT FROM ‘AFFORDABILITY’ PITCH TO DHS PROBE THREATS AFTER MIDTERM WINS Jeffries also criticized the use of taxpayer dollars to support what he called “un-American” policies under President Donald Trump. “Taxpayer dollars should be used to make life more affordable for the American people, not brutalize or kill American citizens, and violently target law-abiding immigrant communities and families, which is what has happened over the last two years,” Jeffries said. TRUMP TELLS DHS CHIEF TO WORK WITH DEMOCRATS ON IMMIGRATION REFORM, BUT NO AMNESTY He added that he hopes to secure one additional signature on a discharge petition that would bypass House leadership and force a floor vote on the American Dream and Promise Act, which would provide permanent legal status and a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers and recipients of Temporary Protected Status (TPS). “Hopefully some of our colleagues on the other side of the aisle will be willing to do that work, perhaps beginning with one additional signature that we need to force a vote on the Dream and Promise Act from a Republican,” he said. Among other priorities, Jeffries said Democrats want to pass legislation banning members of the House and Senate from trading stocks, an effort aimed at restoring public trust in government. He also voiced support for an impeachment resolution against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over his handling of the war in Iran and alleged constitutional violations. “I’m a hard yes, as I’ve made clear, on the impeachment resolution. Pete Hegseth has abused his power, undermined America’s national security, and he’s the architect of the reckless and costly failed war of choice in Iran, which has skyrocketed gas prices on everyday Americans, made the country less safe,” Jeffries said. “Iran is stronger now than they were before,” he argued. As the Democratic caucus leadership vote approaches next Wednesday, reporters asked Jeffries whether he was concerned about progressive members who have criticized him for not taking a more aggressive approach during his tenure as leader. Jeffries said he plans to speak with every member of the caucus in an effort to retain his position. “I’m going to work hard to talk to every single member about what we’ve been able to do together over the last two years, and what the opportunities are for us to do together in the next two years,” he said.
Trump tells DHS chief to work with Democrats on immigration reform, but no amnesty
President Donald Trump has encouraged Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin to work with Democrats who have reached out about immigration reform, but the administration has not discussed changing its enforcement policies and remains opposed to amnesty, Mullin reportedly said Monday. Mullin told reporters on the sidelines of a counter-drone conference in Maryland that “a lot of Democrats” have contacted him about working together on immigration legislation in the new Congress. “I’ve let the president know that those calls are coming in, and the president has said, ‘Let’s start working with them and then let’s meet at some point,’” Mullin said. WHITE HOUSE DOUBLES DOWN AFTER TRUMP ANGERS BASE BY FLOATING ILLEGAL ALIEN DEAL WITH DEMS However, Mullin emphasized that he and Trump have not discussed changing the administration’s immigration enforcement policies. “But has there been a conversation about changing the policy?” Mullin said of his discussions with Trump. “No, we haven’t had that conversation.” “We’re never going to allow amnesty to happen,” Mullin added. Mullin also suggested Congress could consider a pathway to permanent legal status for recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which provides temporary protection from deportation and work authorization to eligible immigrants brought to the country illegally as children. HOUSE GOP ERUPTS AT STEPHEN MILLER AS TRUMP ELEVATES HIM AFTER MIDTERM MASSACRE: ‘MEGALOMANIAC’ “If we want to have an immigration reform to where we can look at DACA and figure out a way that these individuals can become maybe legal permanent citizens or something like this, that’ll be up to Congress,” Mullin said. Mullin’s comments come after Trump signaled openness to working with Democrats on immigration following the 2026 midterm elections , even as the president named Stephen Miller , the architect of his administration’s hardline immigration policies, as his new White House chief of staff, replacing Susie Wiles. Mullin’s willingness to consider a legislative pathway for DACA recipients marks a shift in tone from the department’s messaging earlier this year. In a March post on X, DHS stressed that DACA “does not confer any form of legal status in this country” and warned that recipients could be arrested and deported, including for criminal conduct. The post also included video of Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., questioning then-DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. Durbin asked whether Noem was aware that DACA immigrants must undergo criminal background checks. Noem responded that the agency follows the law in its detention and deportation decisions. SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER DHS said in the post that ICE arrested 264 DACA recipients nationwide between Jan. 20 and Sept. 28, 2025, and that more than 92% had been charged with or convicted of a crime in the United States. Mullin’s comments Monday marked his first public suggestion that DACA recipients could gain permanent legal status through congressional action. DHS did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment by publication time.
Trump’s redistricting gamble faces reckoning as GOP holdouts claim vindication
Under intense pressure from the White House and conservative activists, Indiana Republicans resisted an effort to redraw the state’s congressional map to favor the GOP ahead of the midterms. Now, with Republicans reeling from major election losses, a state lawmaker who helped block the plan believes the opposition may have spared Indiana’s GOP delegation a political wipeout. President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance pushed Republican-led states to redraw congressional maps mid-decade, but the strategy failed to deliver several anticipated pickups as Democrats flipped seats previously considered safely Republican. Indiana Senate President Pro Tempore Rod Bray, R-Martinsville, who helped lead opposition to the proposed redraw, told Fox News Digital that the plan could have devastated the state’s Republican congressional delegation. “[H]ad we made a change to redistricting, we’d’ve ended up with something like 8-1 or 7-2 [favoring Democrats] — I really do believe that,” Bray said. REDISTRICTING EFFORTS BLOW UP IN REPUBLICANS’ FACES AMID HISTORIC HOUSE LOSSES Vance personally pressed Indiana Republicans to redraw their congressional districts, visiting Indianapolis twice and meeting privately with lawmakers, including Bray. Trump also advocated for a redraw and singled out Bray while warning Republican holdouts that they could face MAGA-backed primary challengers. Fox News Digital contacted the White House and the vice president’s office for comment but did not receive a response before publication. North Carolina offered a prominent example of the risks Republican mapmakers faced as Democrats won districts the GOP had expected to hold. Former North Carolina House Speaker Tim Moore, R-Kings Mountain, helped engineer the state’s Republican-friendly redistricting strategy, only to lose his own congressional seat to Democratic political newcomer LaKesha Womack. Moore did not respond to a request for comment. National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Richard Hudson, R-N.C., who led House Republicans’ campaign arm, also lost his Fort Bragg-area seat to former West Virginia state Sen. Richard Ojeda. Democratic Rep. Don Davis, meanwhile, survived despite the addition of Republican-leaning areas such as Emerald Isle and Down East to his district. Western Carolina University political scientist Chris Cooper warned before the election that North Carolina Republicans risked spreading their voters too thin. “They can’t spread too much thinner, or else they’ll be at risk of what folks call a dummymander, where you end up hurting yourself,” Cooper told Axios in April. In Florida, Democratic Reps. Jared Moskowitz and Lois Frankel, whose district includes Mar-a-Lago, survived despite redistricting efforts intended to improve Republican prospects. Democrat Pia Dandiya also won a redrawn district near Lake Okeechobee considered a “Trump +10” seat. In Texas, Democratic Reps. Henry Cuellar and Vicente Gonzalez also survived in districts along the U.S.-Mexico border that Republicans had sought to make more favorable to their candidates. Those results suggest that Republican redistricting failed to produce several anticipated pickups. Whether the strategy actually cost the party seats, however, remains a separate question from whether a broader Democratic wave overwhelmed districts that had become more Republican on paper. “Given how the newly proposed maps would have added even more Democratic voters in seemingly safe Republican districts, it is possible the redistricting, had it gone through, would backfire and actually would have given Democrats more seats,” University of Indianapolis political scientist Laura Merrifield Wilson told Fox News Digital. Wilson noted that Democrats flipped only one of Indiana’s nine congressional districts. “As it was, they did flip (Rep. Victoria Spartz’) IN-5 from red to blue and that was a district that was considered ‘solid Republican’ at the beginning of this election cycle,” Wilson said. “Adding more Democratic voters to those Republican districts could have actually tipped the scales in favor of the Democratic candidates.” Bray explained why he believed the rejected map would have put more Republican seats at risk. “If you take the Democrat strongholds in the state of Indiana that are Marion County and obviously Northwest Indiana, and then you spread those out amongst all the congressional districts among the state, by definition you’re going to weaken these other congressional districts,” Bray said. He added that redrawing district boundaries would also force Republican incumbents to campaign in unfamiliar territory, potentially weakening their existing fundraising and constituent networks. Resisting the White House came with political consequences for Indiana Republicans. Wilson noted that most Republican state senators who opposed the redraw and subsequently faced primary challenges lost their races, with Sens. Greg Goode, R-Terre Haute, and Spencer Deery, R-West Lafayette, among the exceptions. SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER “The redistricting debacle proved to be a waste of time, energy, and money,” she told Fox News Digital. Bray said he believed resisting the redraw was worthwhile. “There was an immense amount of political capital spent on both sides of this darn thing,” Bray said. “It was not a good idea to start, at least from my perspective.” “Indiana didn’t want it,” he added. “I think the results would have been far worse had we done it. So it was worthwhile. Yes.” The election leaves Republicans confronting two possible explanations: Their aggressive redistricting may have spread GOP voters too thin, exposing previously safe seats, or the Democratic wave may simply have been too powerful for even Republican-friendly maps to withstand. For Indiana Republicans who resisted Trump’s demands, the results offer a measure of vindication, though the consequences of adopting the rejected map remain uncertain. “You can get far too cute with redistricting if you want to, and some folks think that they have the means or the science to just draw maps and come up with a result that they can guarantee,” Bray said. “That is not the case.” “We continue to hold elections for a reason. Because sometimes the results are not exactly what we expect.”
ASRA NOMANI: El-Sayed glides into role as rock star of the hard left’s red-green alliance
CHANTILLY, Va. — Three days after Abdul El-Sayed won a historic election as America’s first Muslim senator, a driver navigating a black luxury GMC Yukon Denali SUV pulled into a parking space beside a side security entrance of an upscale Marriott conference center here in this suburb of Washington, D.C., at 7:39 p.m. on Friday. A man jumped out of the front passenger seat and opened the rear door, from which El-Sayed emerged for an appearance at the Arab America Foundation’s “CONNECT Empowerment Summit,” hosted by the 501(c)(3) nonprofit whose leaders had supported his election. As the man extended an arm to shield El-Sayed, the senator-elect dipped out of the SUV, slipping on a jacket as he climbed the steps toward the entrance. The Democratic Party’s newly minted rock star had arrived, in more ways than one. ABDUL EL-SAYED DELIVERS MAJOR BLOW TO GOP IN MICHIGAN AFTER BRUISING SENATE RACE The ensuing 45 minutes offered a window into some of the activists, organizations, political rhetoric and cultural forces surrounding the El-Sayed’s dramatic rise, buoyed by an increasingly powerful coalition that includes many disaffected Democrats, but also outright Islamists and communists in an unlikely alliance. Inside, Medea Benjamin, co-founder of CodePink, a far-left nonprofit, paced in the hallway in a fuchsia tunic over leggings and white boots. CodePink is a pro-communist, pro-China nonprofit funded by Neville Roy Singham, an American-born, Shanghai-based tycoon whose financing of left-wing nonprofits has drawn congressional and prosecutorial scrutiny. CodePink’s other co-founder, Jodie Evans, is married to Singham. Nearby, Benjamin’s husband and fellow CodePink activist, Tighe Barry, wore a traditional Chinese jacket under a khaki Mao-style cap emblazoned with a five-point star associated with communist iconography. He carried a backpack patterned with a keffiyeh pattern and watermelons, symbols adopted by pro-Palestinian activists. Benjamin and Barry weren’t political outliers in El-Sayed’s orbit. His political rise has been supported by prominent anti-Israel activists including Linda Sarsour and left-wing streamer Hasan Piker, who has called Hamas “1,000 times better” than Israel, a remark he later described as intentionally provocative. Friday night provided a firsthand view of another part of that coalition. They were among activists and representatives of organizations from different ideological traditions that have converged around El-Sayed — part of what Fox News Digital has examined as a “red-green” network linking elements of the socialist and communist hard-left with Muslim and Arab advocacy organizations. The gathering itself didn’t fit neatly into a fundamentalist religious mold, amid questions about Islamism, or political Islam, and the Muslim Brotherhood that have followed El-Sayed. He has denied being a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, although his family reportedly has ties to the organization and he himself has written favorably about the organization’s leaders. Women danced and sang with bare shoulders and flowing hair, underscoring the secular and openly cultural character of much of the celebration. A table for Jinba Village and School outside Hebron in the West Bank displayed a flyer reading, “End Settler Outposts: Make Palestinian Villages Safe. Email Congress.” Another table offered keffiyehs with designs replacing the traditional fishbone pattern with the outlines of Palestinian territory. Along the far corner of the ballroom, a collection of gifts for a fundraiser included a handcrafted wooden “silhouette of Palestine, painted in the iconic colors of the Palestinian flag” by artist Hasan Munem. Opening bid: $100. ABDUL EL-SAYED’S ALLEGED FAMILY TIES TO MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD SURFACE AFTER DENYING ANY LINK DURING NBC INTERVIEW Benjamin eventually took a seat beside Hazami Barmada, a prominent Syrian American anti-Israel activist who has deployed political theater and demonstrations across Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C., storming the offices of Palantir Technologies, Lockheed-Martin and PETA, the animal rights advocates, and confronting Biden and Trump administration officials to cut ties with Israel. Barmada wore a keffiyeh over her hair like a turban. Benjamin, Barry and Barmada declined to answer questions from Fox News Digital. Their presence put figures from different wings of the political coalition around El-Sayed in the same room: activists from the socialist, pro-communist Left alongside Arab, Muslim and pro-Palestinian activists and organizations that supported his candidacy. Fox News Digital has tracked the intersection of those movements as a “red-green” network — the “red” referring to socialist and communist organizations and “green” to Muslim and Arab political organizations. The groups don’t share a single ideology or formal organizational structure but have converged around causes including opposition to Israel and U.S. foreign policy. Friday night, those relationships weren’t nodes on an organizational chart. They were in the room. Co-founders Warren David and Dr. Amal David started the Arab America Foundation as an educational and cultural organization dedicated to promoting Arab heritage and connecting and empowering Arab Americans nationwide. Now they were waiting to greet the country’s first Muslim senator. The foundation describes itself as nonpartisan, but political participation features prominently in its programming. The next morning, the summit’s “Leading from the Front,” included Abbas Alawieh and Layla Elabed, co-chairs of the Uncommitted National Movement, which organized Democratic voters in 2024 to cast “uncommitted” ballots in protest of the Biden administration’s policies toward Israel and the war in Gaza. El-Sayed supported the Uncommitted effort. Also on the roster was Anas Shallal, CEO of the Washington, D.C., restaurant and bookstore, Bus Boys and Poets, which has hosted events involving left-wing organizations, including groups in the Singham network such as CodePink, on issues ranging from Israel and the Trump administration and Israel to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The summit also included Arab American Institute founder James Zogby among dozens of artists, musicians and business, government and community leaders. But Friday night, El-Sayed was the celebrity guest. ‘DESTROYING THE AMERICAN WAY OF LIFE’: EL-SAYED’S POLITICAL ORBIT COMPLICATES EFFORT TO MODERATE HIS IMAGE Benjamin, Barry and Barmada rushed into one hallway before being directed back toward another as organizers and supporters tried to determine where El-Sayed would enter. Supporters eventually gathered near a doorway beside displays depicting Israel and the Palestinian territories as a single state of Palestine. At 7:51 p.m., El-Sayed finally appeared through
SCOTUS allows Trump admin to temporarily resume border construction in Texas’ Big Bend
The U. S. Supreme Court on Monday cleared the way for the Trump administration to resume border wall construction in West Texas, granting an emergency request from the federal government to lift a lower court’s hold on the project. The justices’ ruling stays a preliminary injunction issued last month by a federal district judge in El Paso, who had temporarily halted border wall construction in the region designated by U. S. Customs and Border Protection as the Big Bend Sector while litigation proceeds. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson indicated she would have denied the stay request but did not file a written dissent. LIBERAL JUSTICE HAMMERS SUPREME COURT FOR FAST-TRACKING EMERGENCY DOCKET CASES The lawsuit against the project was brought by a coalition of environmental groups and local residents, who claim the Department of Homeland Security violated constitutional provisions by proceeding without congressional authorization and bypassing environmental regulations. Spanning more than 500 miles, the Big Bend Sector covers roughly a quarter of the U. S.–Mexico border, though it accounted for just 1. 3% of all border apprehensions in 2025, Reuters reported. MULLIN TELLS CONGRESS PRIMARY BORDER WALL WILL BE DONE BY JUNE 2027, SECONDARY WALL BY SUMMER 2028 Administration officials have argued the wall is vital to stopping cartel operations active south of the border and curbing the smuggling of large quantities of illicit drugs into the U.S. Most of the proposed construction in the Big Bend Sector will take place on privately owned land, according to administration officials. Big Bend National Park is slated for a 17-mile barrier, though officials noted it will not feature the 30-foot steel pedestrian fencing planned in other areas along the southern border. President Donald Trump has long touted border wall expansion as a signature initiative of his strategy to seal the southern border and crack down on illegal immigration.
Rubio’s defense of Trump’s Iran war draws sharp contrast with Vance’s midterm blame
Secretary of State Marco Rubio defended the Trump administration’s war against Iran on Sunday, days after Vice President JD Vance blamed the conflict for Republicans’ devastating midterm losses, as the White House confronts an unresolved standoff with Tehran. “I think the president took on something that other presidents have failed to do. Sometimes, when you do the right thing, you don’t know whether it’s popular or not, but it’s still the right thing to do. Presidents are elected to take on the hard things, sometimes difficult things, but necessary things,” Rubio said Sunday. Vance made his argument in a post on X last week. “The reason we lost is the war. The president himself said so last night,” Vance wrote last week. “But everyone knows why we lost. And any honest conversation about where we go from here must start there,” he added. VANCE REFUSES TO PUT A CLOCK ON IRAN CONFLICT AS KEY QUESTION KEEPS US FORCES ENGAGED Vance cited an unnamed pollster in the X post who said voters who had abandoned the GOP wanted the administration to end the conflict, address inflation and the cost of living, put America first and change its relationship with Israel. The vice president’s argument that the war was the primary driver of Republicans’ losses, however, is complicated by polling. The Fox News Voter Poll found that 89% of voters considered the cost of living a crucial or major factor in their congressional vote, compared with 74% who said the same about the war in Iran. The findings suggest broader economic frustrations were also a major concern among voters, although the two issues may overlap and the polling does not establish which ultimately drove Republican defections. Fox News Digital contacted Vance’s office five times seeking clarification on whether ending the conflict would mean lifting the blockade, withdrawing American forces or securing new concessions from Tehran, but received no response. The contrasting assessments come as Republicans begin looking ahead to 2028, with Trump naming Rubio as a possible presidential contender during an interview with CBS. Some longtime Trump donors are reportedly expressing doubts about backing Vance in 2028, fearing his ties to the Trump administration and the GOP’s devastating midterm losses could hurt his presidential prospects, with some floating Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and other Republicans as alternatives, according to The Wall Street Journal. Meanwhile, Trump and Vance are pursuing another diplomatic opening with Iran, with Qatar mediating talks over a possible agreement that could ease the U.S. blockade and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Trump met with Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani Monday to discuss mediation efforts and potential terms for ending the conflict with Iran. Rubio expressed skepticism Sunday that negotiations were nearing a breakthrough, arguing that Iran’s demands remained unrealistic. Vance has been personally involved in indirect talks with Iranian representatives through regional mediators in recent weeks, according to Axios. “I’m not in a political office,” Rubio told reporters Sunday when asked about the midterm results. “As you know, I just don’t comment on domestic politics.” TRUMP SAYS HE DOESN’T DISAGREE WITH VANCE THAT IRAN WAR FUELED GOP LOSSES Trump initially projected that Operation Epic Fury, launched against Iran in February, would involve four to five weeks of combat operations. More than eight months later, the broader confrontation continues despite the end of major U.S. combat operations in April. After a June Memorandum of Understanding with Iran failed to produce a lasting resolution, the Trump administration returned to economic and military pressure, with renewed limited strikes, continued maritime tensions and an unresolved standoff over Iranian missile capabilities and the flow of oil and natural gas through the Strait of Hormuz. Vance played a role in the administration’s negotiations with Iran, helping lead diplomatic efforts that produced the June agreement before it unraveled. Trump even joked in June that Vance would take the blame if the Iran deal failed. “If it works out, I’m going to take the credit. If it doesn’t work out, I’m blaming JD,” Trump said at the time. The vice president has previously defended the administration’s military campaign, crediting U.S. forces with significantly weakening Iran’s conventional military and its ability to threaten commercial shipping. “The VP has let it be known for a few months now that he is not in full agreement with the President on Iran. But [the] social media post is striking, if not shocking,” Ludovic Hood, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute’s Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East, told Fox News Digital. Hood also questioned Vance’s emphasis on the war as the primary cause of Republicans’ losses, arguing that broader economic concerns played a significant role in voters’ frustration. AFTER 47 YEARS OF CONFRONTING IRAN, DOES AMERICA HAVE A STRATEGY FOR ENDING THIS WAR? Trump dismissed suggestions that Vance’s comments about Iran had strained their relationship on Sunday, defending Vance’s remarks while suggesting he should have gone a step further in expressing support for the administration’s actions. “No, not at all,” Trump said when asked whether Vance’s comments had affected their relationship. “But a lot of people didn’t like his comments, but not me. He was right.” Trump added that Vance “should have made one other statement,” arguing that the administration’s actions against Iran were worth repeating. TRUMP’S IRAN GAMBLE DIVIDES GOP HAWKS AND ‘AMERICA FIRST’ CONSERVATIVES OVER WHAT VICTORY LOOKS LIKE Secretary of War Pete Hegseth also publicly defended the Iran campaign, calling it a “courageous and historic” effort even as Vance questions its political costs. Hegseth also faces questions about his future in the administration, although the president publicly insisted he intends to keep his Pentagon chief. Beyond the political fallout, assessments differ over whether the administration has achieved its military objectives and what risks remain for the United States. GOP CRACKS WIDEN OVER IRAN WAR AS VULNERABLE CANDIDATES BREAK WITH TRUMP, DEMAND ITS END Retired Army Lt. Col. Daniel L. Davis, a veteran of four combat deployments and
Arizona Republican holds House seat, surviving re-election scare
Rep. Eli Crane, R-Ariz., narrowly won re-election to a second term, defeating Democratic challenger Jonathan Nez in a tight rematch, The Associated Press projected Monday. Crane, a former Navy SEAL combat veteran, previously defeated Nez, a former president of the Navajo Nation, in the 2024 general election. Crane and Nez were separated by 3,834 votes at the time of the AP race call. The Fox News Power Rankings had rated the seat Likely R in the lead-up to Election Day. Nez has not yet conceded the race. His most recent social media post, from Nov. 5, said that counting every ballot “takes time” in the large district. BLUE WAVE NEARLY SWALLOWED SOME OF AMERICA’S REDDEST STATES AS ELECTION DATA EXPOSES GOP’S CLOSE CALLS In a post on X, Crane thanked rural Arizonans and his staff while praising Nez for stepping into the arena again. “I’m going to keep fighting against the status quo in Congress,” Crane wrote. “Both parties have been driving this country into the ground for decades, and the American people are sick of it.” TRUMP TORCHES DEMOCRATS AT ARIZONA RALLY, WARNS THEY WILL ‘DESTROY OUR COUNTRY’ AHEAD OF MIDTERMS Crane was backed by President Donald Trump, who endorsed the GOP lawmaker as an “America First Patriot.” At the same time, Trump targeted Nez, labeling him a “Radical Left Democrat” who opposes eliminating taxes on tips, overtime and Social Security. DEMOCRATS ARE CHANGING THEIR TRANSGENDER MESSAGE. REPUBLICANS SAY THEY’RE JUST FLIP-FLOPPING “He wants massive Tax Increases, Open Borders, Men playing in Women’s Sports, and Transgender Mutilation of your Children. Jonathan Nez is Reckless, Radical, and Dangerous!” Trump wrote. Crane noted that he will stand in the way of anyone “trying to move this country in the wrong direction.”
White House doubles down after Trump angers base by floating illegal alien deal with Dems
The White House on Monday morning wouldn’t rule out the administration working with Democrats on a “deal” for illegal immigrants who have been living in the U.S. for more than a decade as Republicans prepare to lose control of Congress in January. President Donald Trump, in his first sit-down interview since sweeping GOP midterm losses, opened the door to the possibility of considering amnesty. “The President never said the word amnesty,” a White House official insisted to Fox News Digital. “We want Democrats to show their cards,” the official revealed. TRUMP ADMITS IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT MAY HAVE BEEN TOO ‘TOUGH’ IN FIRST INTERVIEW SINCE MIDTERMS They said, “There has never been a President stronger on immigration enforcement than President Trump.” “Thanks to his efforts more than 3 million illegal aliens have left the U.S. and we have the most secure border in American history. Like the President has said, he’s willing to work with anyone to improve the lives of Americans and Make America Safe Again.” In a “60 Minutes” interview that aired on Sunday, host Ross Douthat asked Trump how he is open to working with Democrats on immigration as he enters a lame-duck final stretch of his presidency. “I’d love to do something on immigration,” the president replied. “I think [immigration] both helped and hurt. I think I got an A+ for closing up the border. I get very high marks for getting the bad ones out, but I get hurt because we also took people that had good jobs, that created one violation or breaking of the law — that was that they came into the country illegally.” Trump, however, maintained that there are people in the United States who want to see all illegal aliens deported. FOX NEWS POLL: MAJORITY SAYS IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT HAS CROSSED THE LINE But, Trump said, “if they’re good people working in a landscaping company or working in a hotel, or doing something, right? And in some cases paying taxes, and there’s a large group of people that think they should be allowed to stay.” “When you go into a hotel and you have a woman that’s working there as a maid, as a cleaner as a this as a that, as a waitress, a lot of good things, great jobs, and all of a sudden they’re being taken out of the country, it’s tough. It’s a tough thing,” he said, adding that people who he called “far-right” want deportations regardless of whether the illegal alien is working. FIRST ON FOX: DEMS’ AFFORDABILITY CRUSADE COLLIDES WITH EYE-POPPING PRICE TAG FOR SOCIALIST IMMIGRATION PLANS While Trump didn’t say “amnesty,” as the White House noted, he signaled in the interview his willingness to “work a deal” for people who have been in the United States illegally for “10 and 15 years” who haven’t committed other crimes. Rep. Maria Salazar, R-Fla., a longtime proponent of giving legal status to illegal aliens, celebrated Trump’s comments on X. “Well done, Mr. President! What you described on 60 Minutes is what the Dignity Act is all about,” she said in the post. Salazar’s Dignity Act would offer legal status to people who have been in the United States continuously since 2020, provided they haven’t committed other crimes and pay a restitution fee and back taxes. The White House wouldn’t clarify what such a deal could entail when asked Monday. Notably, the interview was taped before Stephen Miller, a notorious immigration hawk, was selected to be Trump’s new chief of staff. Immigration restrictionism has been Trump’s calling card since he first ran for president beginning in 2015. His comments in the interview that aired Sunday drew a sharp reaction from those favor immigration restriction. TED CRUZ SAYS ‘BLUE TSUNAMI’ TOOK OVER TEXAS AFTER DEMOCRATS SWEPT STATEWIDE RACES “To be clear, if President Trump struck an amnesty deal with the Democrat-controlled Congress, it would be a bigger betrayal than starting the foolish war in Iran,” commentator Steve Cortes said on X, adding a clip of Trump promising “the largest deportation operation in the history of our country” during a campaign rally in 2024. “This plan absolutely guarantees that Texas never again votes Republican,” said radio show host Anthony Cumia. “More states will turn permanently blue if illegals are given amnesty. Regan did the same this and California became a forever democrat state. Trump can do the same to Texas. Disgusting.” “Someone needs to tell Trump: Any amnesty deal with Democrats will destroy the Republican Party,” said X personality Kelly McCarty. “We voted for NO amnesty and mass deportations of ALL illegals. No compromises. No exceptions.”
Hegseth impeachment vote looms as House Republicans privately warn it could pass
The House of Representatives is barreling toward a vote on impeaching Secretary of War Pete Hegseth this week, and several GOP lawmakers think it could very well pass. Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., is triggering a vote on impeaching Hegseth by introducing a privileged resolution on Monday, a mechanism for forcing consideration of bills that House majority leaders otherwise would have ignored. A privileged resolution must be considered within two legislative days, putting the vote on Wednesday at the latest. Massie read his resolution on the House floor on Monday, as is custom, which took over an hour. It comes as fallout from the war in Iran, including high gas prices, is blamed as a key factor in Republicans‘ significant losses in Tuesday’s midterm elections. HEGSETH FACES BIPARTISAN IMPEACHMENT THREAT AFTER IRAN WAR GETS BLAME FOR GOP MIDTERM SLAUGHTER Massie told Fox News Digital last week that he would trigger the vote when Congress returned after the midterms if Hegseth did not first resign. Hegseth, for his part, called the impeachment effort against him a “shame” that “won’t work” in a video posted to X on Friday. HEGSETH DEMANDS $350B FOR MILITARY, FIRES BACK AT DEM IMPEACHMENT PUSH But several House Republicans told Fox News Digital on Thursday that they believed Hegseth could very well be impeached. Sources said a combination of absences of Republican members who lost their elections and negative sentiment toward Hegseth’s conduct could be enough to tip it over the edge. The majority of Republicans are still expected to oppose the move, however. Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Ohio, a critic of the war, said he was not in favor of impeaching Hegseth. “I think it’s an effort to scapegoat Pete Hegseth for Congress shirking their own duty and, frankly, the president taking action that, in my view, is unconstitutional — but it’s also not unprecedented,” Davidson told Fox News Digital. “What would be unprecedented is to hold the Secretary of Defense accountable for a decision the president makes. Or frankly, it would have been unprecedented for the Secretary of Defense to kind of break ranks on something that is clearly not unprecedented in terms of what has become the standard operating procedure for administrations going back to the Korean War.” Massie’s impeachment resolution includes eight articles having to do with the war in Iran, striking suspected drug boats in the Caribbean, U.S. strikes against Yemen, and the extradition of now-former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. GOP REP THOMAS MASSIE INTRODUCES 8 ARTICLES OF IMPEACHMENT AGAINST WAR SECRETARY PETE HEGSETH Notably, another impeachment article accuses Hegseth of suppressing free speech by retaliating against Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., over a video in which Kelly urged troops to resist “unlawful orders.” A privileged resolution notably carries two steps. Before a vote on the measure itself, leaders can call up a vote to “table” the bill or refer it to the relevant committee, which in both instances effectively kills it. The last Cabinet secretary to be impeached was Biden administration Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, whom Republicans accused of a dereliction of duty at the U.S.-Mexico border. It was quickly scuttled without a trial in the last Democrat-controlled Senate. It’s not immediately clear how House GOP leaders plan to deal with Massie’s resolution.