Former President Bill Clinton deposed in Epstein probe in potential first for Congress
Most congressional precedents emanate from Capitol Hill. Most presidential precedents emerge from 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. But a precedent which may echo around the halls of Congress and the White House for years materialized in recent days in the snow-covered, wooded village of Chappaqua, New York. That’s where former President Bill Clinton testified under subpoena to the House Oversight Committee as part of its investigation into Jeffrey Epstein. Lawmakers said the panel’s ability to compel testimony from a former president could establish a new precedent going forward — including in matters involving President Trump and the Epstein files. According to congressional historians, never before has a congressional committee deposed a former president. It was rare enough to have former First Lady and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton testify the day before. Republicans noted that former President Clinton had previously acknowledged knowing Epstein and traveling on trips that included him. “I do not recall ever encountering Mr. Epstein. I never flew on his plane or visited his island, homes or offices,” said Hillary Clinton after nearly six hours of closed-door testimony before the panel. WHY KEEPING LAWMAKERS IN DC DURING SHUTDOWN MAY HAVE CAUSED MORE HARM THAN GOOD House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said Hillary Clinton declared “‘You’ll have to ask my husband,’” more than “a dozen” times during her deposition ahead of Bill Clinton’s the following day. There are no accusations of wrongdoing against either of the Clintons in connection with Epstein. But the former president’s past ties to Jeffrey Epstein have spurred questions from lawmakers. REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: BONDI’S BINDER STRATEGY TURNS HOUSE HEARING INTO POLITICAL FIRESTORM “It’s very difficult to get people in for these depositions of great power and great wealth,” said Comer. “It took seven months, seven months to get the Clintons in here. But we’ve got them in here.” “Here” was Chappaqua, about an hour north of New York City. The Clintons have resided in Chappaqua since President Clinton left office in 2001 and when Hillary Clinton ran for Senate from New York in 2000. Hillary Clinton served as a senator from New York from 2001 until 2009, when she became President Obama’s first Secretary of State. More specifically, the “here” for the Clintons’ testimony was not a bland office in the Rayburn House Office Building. House members questioned the Clintons at the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center, known locally as “ChappPAC,” a white structure with simple arcades and Greek columns atop a hillside above the Saw Mill River. The Epstein inquiry is serious, and the unusual venue underscored the extraordinary nature of the proceeding. Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., appeared to snap a photo of Hillary Clinton during the deposition, then shared it with conservative media outlets. “I admire (Hillary Clinton’s) blue suit. So I wanted to capture that for everyone,” said Boebert outside the venue. “Why did you send the picture?” asked a reporter. “Why not?” retorted Boebert. “We are sitting through an incredibly unserious, clown show of a deposition, where Members of Congress and the Republican Party are more concerned about getting their photo op of Secretary Clinton than actually getting to the truth and actually holding anyone accountable,” charged Rep. Yassamin Ansari, D-Ariz. BILL CLINTON SAYS HE DIDN’T KNOW WOMAN IN INFAMOUS JACUZZI PHOTO DURING CLOSED-DOOR EPSTEIN TESTIMONY After concluding her testimony, Hillary Clinton told reporters she found the “end” of the deposition to be “quite unusual because I started being asked about UFOs and a series of questions about Pizzagate, one of the most vile, bogus conspiracy theories that was propagated on the internet.” That is a reference to a conspiracy theory that emerged during the 2016 presidential campaign between Hillary Clinton and President Trump. Proponents falsely claimed Democrats operated a child sex trafficking ring out of the Comet Ping Pong pizza shop in Washington. A North Carolina man later drove to Washington, D.C., and fired shots inside the restaurant, telling authorities he was there to rescue children. Rep. Nancy Mace, R-N.C., asserted that Hillary Clinton was “screaming” at lawmakers during the deposition. “She was unhinged,” said Mace. “And I hope that President Clinton is less unhinged today than his wife was yesterday.” Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., emerged from the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center about 90 minutes into former President Clinton’s deposition to speculate about what may have been behind Epstein and his sex trafficking operation. Luna noted she was speaking only for herself and not other members of the committee. “It has become very evident even in the last 24 hours in lines of questioning that Jeffrey Epstein was running an intelligence gathering operation,” said Luna. “I do believe it was a honey pot operation.” Luna added that it was possible a U.S. intelligence ally was involved, though she provided no evidence for the claim. One of the five agreed-upon areas of questioning for the Clintons was how Epstein used his connections with powerful figures to hide his crimes. That is why individuals such as former President Clinton and President Trump have surfaced in previously released Epstein-related documents. The presidency is a unique office, and even President Trump expressed some sympathy for Bill Clinton’s appearance before the Oversight Committee. “I don’t like seeing him deposed. But they certainly went after me a lot more than that,” said the president. When pressed on Friday, President Trump said he was unfamiliar with the Epstein files. “I don’t know anything about the Epstein files. I’ve been totally exonerated,” said President Trump. Oversight Committee Republicans were asked whether they agreed with that claim. “From all the evidence I’ve seen he’s been exonerated for a long time,” replied Comer. “The Epstein victims have exonerated President Trump. This is a trope that you guys are — a rabbit hole you guys are going down. But he’s been exonerated over and over again by Epstein victims,” said Mace. But Democrats questioned why the committee sought testimony from former President Clinton and not President Trump. “There is a lot of email correspondence that included President Clinton,”
House Republicans push Johnson to go to war with Senate over SAVE Act
Several House Republicans are pushing Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to go to war with the Senate GOP over an election security bill that has little chance of passing the upper chamber under current circumstances. House GOP leaders convened a lawmaker-only call on Sunday in the wake of a massive military operation against Iran launched by the U.S. and Israel. After leaders briefed House Republicans on how the chamber would respond to the ongoing conflict — including a vote on ending Democrats’ weeks-long government shutdown targeting the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) — Fox News Digital was told that several lawmakers raised concerns about the Senate not yet taking up the Safeguarding American Voter Eligiblity (SAVE America) Act. Among other provisions, the act would require voters in federal elections to produce valid ID and proof of citizenship. Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wis., was among those pushing the House to reject any bills from the Senate until the measure was taken up, telling Johnson according to multiple sources on the call, “If we don’t get this done, or at least show that we’ve got some backbone, we’re done. The midterms are over.” SEN LEE DARES DEMOCRATS TO REVIVE TALKING FILIBUSTER OVER SAVE ACT, SLAMMING CRITICISM AS ‘PARANOID FANTASY’ At least three other House Republicans shared similar concerns. Sources on the call said Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, argued that GOP voters were “not enthused” heading into November and that “the single biggest thing” to turn that around would be forcing the Senate to pass the SAVE America Act. The SAVE America Act passed the House last month with support from all Republicans and just one Democrat, Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas. JEFFRIES ACCUSES REPUBLICANS OF ‘VOTER SUPPRESSION’ OVER BILL REQUIRING VOTER ID, PROOF OF CITIZENSHIP Republicans have pointed out on multiple occasions that voter ID measures have bipartisan support across multiple public polls and surveys. But Democrats have dismissed the legislation as an attempt at voter suppression ahead of the 2026 midterms. The legislation would require 60 votes in the Senate to break filibuster, which it’s likely not to get given Democrats’ near-uniform opposition. But House Republicans have pressured Senate Majority Leader John Thune to use a mechanism known as a standing filibuster to circumvent that — which Thune has signaled opposition to, given the vast amount of time it would take up in the Senate and potential unintended consequences in the amendment process. It also comes as Congress grapples with the fallout from the strikes on Iran and the need to ensure safety for the U.S. domestically and for service members abroad, both of which will require close coordination between the two chambers. Johnson told Republicans several times on the Sunday call that he was privately pressuring Thune on the bill but was wary of creating a public rift with his fellow GOP leader, sources said. HARDLINE CONSERVATIVES DOUBLE DOWN TO SAVE THE SAVE ACT “If we’re going to go to war against our own party in the Senate, there may be implications to that,” Johnson said at one point, according to people on the call. “So we want to be thoughtful and careful.” At another point in the call, sources said Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., suggested pairing a coming vote on DHS funding with the SAVE America Act in order to force the Senate to take it up. But both Johnson and House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Andrew Garbarino, R-N.Y., were hesitant about such a move given the enhanced threat environment in the wake of the U.S. operation in Iran. Both spoke out in favor of the SAVE America Act, people told Fox News Digital, but warned the current situation merited leaving the DHS funding bill on its own in a bid to end the partial shutdown, so the department could fully function as a national security shield.
Trump’s Iran strike rocks Texas Senate race as Dems demand ‘war powers,’ GOP applauds president
SAN ANTONIO, TX – With hours to go until primary day in Texas, the U.S. and Israeli attack on Iran is the latest flashpoint in Lone Star State’s high-stakes and combustible Senate showdown. Republican Sen. John Cornyn and his two primary challengers are rallying around President Donald Trump‘s decision to launch the attacks, which are now in their second day and resulted in the killing of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Three American military members were also killed in the fighting. But the two Democrats vying for their party’s nomination in a bid to try and flip the long-held Republican seat in right-leaning Texas are condemning the airstrikes on Iran. This year’s Senate showdown in Texas is one of a handful across the country that could determine if Republicans hold their majority in the chamber in the midterm elections. The GOP currently controls the chamber 53-47. FOX NEWS LIVE UPDATES ON THE ATTACK ON IRAN “I think the President did the right thing. It’s amazing to me that President Trump is the only president in my lifetime that is willing to take this kind of decisive action in order to stop the halt of terrorism and also radical Islam,” Cornyn said Sunday in a Fox News Digital interview. Cornyn praised the operation, saying “this was well planned and was very decisive.” But he added, “There’s still a lot more to be done, and unfortunately, Iran still has a lot of ability to inflict casualties on people in the region.” The senator’s top primary rival, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, thanked Trump for his “courageous leadership.” Paxton, a MAGA firebrand and longtime Trump supporter who has survived a slew of scandals over the past decade, said in a social media post that “President Trump’s Operation Epic Fury is yet another overwhelming and historic military success. Khamenei’s been killed and the terroristic regime threatening our troops and nation has been decimated.” IRAN’S NEAR HALF CENTURY WAR ON AMERICANS Rep. Wesley Hunt, the Army veteran turned MAGA rising star, also praised the president, saying, “Trump did it again. PEACE THROUGH AMERICAN STRENGTH!” “Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is DEAD, and now the people of Iran have a chance to be free,” added Hunt, a West Point graduate who flew Apache helicopters during his Army service who is in his second term representing a safe Republican district in the Houston-area. Trump, whose clout over the GOP remains immense, has stayed neutral to date in the Republican primary. All three candidates, who have sought the president’s endorsement, were in attendance Friday as Trump held an event in Corpus Christi, Texas. “They’re in a little race together,” Trump said of Cornyn and Paxton. “You know that, right? A little bit of a race. It’s going to be an interesting one, right? They’re both great people, too.” Trump also complimented Hunt, and said that all three contenders were engaged in an “interesting election.” DEMS’ POTENTIAL 2028 HOPEFULS COME OUT AGAINST US STRIKES ON IRAN The two major Democrats in the race, progressive firebrand Rep. Jasmine Crockett and rising Democratic Party star state Rep. James Talarico, are chastising Trump for not seeking congressional approval. “CONGRESS, not the PRESIDENT, but CONGRESS has the EXCLUSIVE authority to declare war! Speaker Johnson needs to call us in IMMEDIATELY & it is time for the House & the Senate to pass a war powers resolution!” Crockett wrote on social media this weekend. And Crockett, a vocal Trump critic and foil, asked, “Why is it that this President refuses to even pretend that he cares about following the law?! I’ve been stomping & telling people that this election is life or death!” Talarico, taking to social media this weekend, emphasized, “No more forever wars.” But he didn’t make specific comments about the military strikes during a campaign event Sunday in San Antonio, Texas. Cornyn criticized the Democratic candidates for not supporting the U.S. operation. “When the President has, in an act of political courage, ordered the U.S. military, along with our ally Israel, to defeat the number one state sponsor of terrorism and to prevent them from acquiring a nuclear weapon. Whose side do they choose? They choose the Iranian side. It’s just mind-boggling to me,” he argued. And the senator predicted, “this will continue to be an issue in the midterm elections, because I don’t think that’s what the American people want, to live in a new world where a nuclear-armed terrorist state can literally terrorize not just the region but the world.”
Trump pledges to ‘avenge’ fallen US service members as tensions with Iran intensify
President Donald Trump vowed Sunday to “avenge” the deaths of three U.S. service members killed in action as the conflict involving Iran deepens across the Middle East. “As one nation, we grieve for the true American patriots who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation,” Trump said in a video statement posted on Truth Social. “Even as we continue the righteous mission for which they gave their lives, we pray for the full recovery of the wounded and send our immense love and eternal gratitude to the families of the fallen.” ENEMY WITHIN: COUNTERTERRORISM EXPERTS FEAR SLEEPER CELLS COULD BE POISED INSIDE US The president struck a somber note, warning that “sadly, there will likely be more before it ends.” “America will avenge their deaths and deliver the most punishing blow to the terrorists who have waged war,” Trump said. “Our resolve and likewise that of Israel has never been stronger.” Trump’s remarks, his first public statement since the U.S.-Israel strikes that led to the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several senior Iranian officials, signaled a potentially prolonged confrontation. “This wretched and vile man had the blood of hundreds and even thousands of Americans on his hands and was responsible for the slaughter of countless thousands of innocent people all across many countries,” Trump said. TOMAHAWKS SPEARHEADED US STRIKE ON IRAN — WHY PRESIDENTS REACH FOR THIS MISSILE FIRST He said U.S. forces had struck “hundreds of targets” inside Iran, including key Revolutionary Guard facilities, air defense systems and naval assets. Trump said the U.S. “knocked out nine Iranian ships “in a matter of literally minutes.” Military operations, he added, would continue “until all of our objectives are achieved.” He went on to issue a direct warning to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard and military leadership, urging them to surrender in exchange for immunity or face “certain death.” Ahead of the strikes, the U.S. military amassed what Trump previously called an “armada” in Iran’s backyard. Mapped out across the Persian Gulf and beyond, the deployment tells its own story, one of calculated pressure backed by credible capability. At the center of the U.S. presence are two aircraft carrier strike groups — the USS Abraham Lincoln and USS Gerald R. Ford — each supported by guided-missile destroyers and cruisers and capable of sustained air and missile operations. More than a dozen additional U.S. warships are also operating in the region in support roles, according to defense officials. THE ONLY MAP YOU NEED TO SEE TO UNDERSTAND HOW SERIOUS TRUMP IS ABOUT IRAN Meanwhile, Tehran has vowed retaliation for the strikes. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian declared that avenging Khamenei’s killing is both a “legitimate duty and right,” and added that Tehran “will forcefully crush the enemy’s bases.” The confrontation has already included missile and drone strikes launched by Iran against U.S. bases in Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Iraq, though U.S. Central Command has denied Tehran’s claims of successfully targeting American carriers. The unfolding conflict has ignited reactions far beyond the Middle East, including anti-war protests in U.S. cities and heightened diplomatic tensions near American embassies, underscoring how quickly the crisis has expanded beyond the region. In Austin, authorities are investigating a recent shooting as potentially an act of terrorism, further heightening concerns about spillover effects at home. Meanwhile, federal and local law enforcement have boosted security as a precaution, though officials say no specific, credible threats have been identified.
Enemy within: Counterterrorism experts fear sleeper cells could be poised inside US
American counterterrorism agencies are quietly monitoring suspected sleeper cells on U.S. soil in the wake of joint U.S.–Israel strikes on Iran, stepping up surveillance amid heightened fears of possible retaliation from Iran-linked operatives or sympathizers. Federal and local law enforcement have also boosted on-the-ground security in major U.S. cities as part of a precautionary posture, even though no specific, credible threats have been publicly identified. The move comes on the heels of a Saturday morning operation, dubbed Operation Epic Fury, that resulted in the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several senior Iranian officials in a coordinated U.S.–Israeli military campaign. US, ISRAEL STRIKE IRAN: AYATOLLAH KHAMENEI, 40 TOP IRANIAN LEADERS KILLED Security experts warn that the fallout could extend beyond the Middle East. “If ever there’s going to be a Hezbollah cell or a Hamas cell act in the United States in a violent way, it’s now,” Chris Swecker, a former assistant FBI director, told Fox News. “Both organizations are Iranian-backed all the way. Both organizations have had a presence in the United States since the 1980s,” he added. Swecker said U.S. authorities have long been aware of domestic networks and sympathizers. “We know that they have cells here. We also know that there are lone sympathizers, many of whom have come out in these protest groups,” he added. TOMAHAWKS SPEARHEADED US STRIKE ON IRAN — WHY PRESIDENTS REACH FOR THIS MISSILE FIRST He also warned that border security vulnerabilities may have compounded the risk. “We just come off four years of open borders, and I have said before that that was an open door for terrorists to terrorist cells and terror sympathizers to infiltrate. Many were already here, but it’s impossible that they would not infiltrate into these particular groups and sort of act as catalysts, as enablers.” Against that backdrop, the FBI is moving to reinforce its domestic security posture. FBI Director Kash Patel said Saturday that counterterrorism and intelligence teams are now on high alert amid ongoing U.S. actions involving Iran. “Last night, I instructed our Counterterrorism and intelligence teams to be on high alert and mobilize all assisting security assets needed,” Patel wrote on X. Patel added that while the U.S. military is handling force protection overseas, the FBI “remains at the forefront of deterring attacks here at home” and will continue working around the clock to protect Americans. FBI RAISES COUNTERTERROR TEAMS TO HIGH ALERT AMID IRAN TENSIONS Jason Pack, a retired FBI supervisory special agent and Fox News contributor, said heightened monitoring is routine when U.S. military operations intersect with adversaries that have historically responded through indirect or unconventional means. “The intelligence and counterterrorism communities work on this kind of scenario continuously, long before any conflict begins,” Pack said. “When the United States commits to a joint military campaign with Israel, the domestic threat environment doesn’t simply remain static. It could shift, potentially significantly.” He noted that adversarial actors — including Hezbollah, Hamas’s external networks and Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps proxies — have historically demonstrated both intent and, in some cases, the capability to retaliate against U.S. military actions. Meanwhile, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said she is “in direct coordination with our federal intelligence and law enforcement partners as we continue to closely monitor and thwart any potential threats to the homeland.” The heightened alert comes as parts of the Department of Homeland Security face a partial shutdown, raising additional questions about resources and operational strain at a time when federal agencies are on elevated watch. While no specific plots have been identified, officials acknowledge the threat environment could shift quickly as tensions overseas evolve and whether that escalation reaches American soil remains to be seen. Fox News Digital’s Michael Dorgan and Kelley Kramer contributed to this report.
GOP warns Democrats’ DHS shutdown could jeopardize World Cup security
The ongoing government shutdown over Homeland Security funding could disrupt security planning for the FIFA World Cup, raising concerns among lawmakers as U.S. cities prepare to host matches this summer. Congressional Republicans warn that with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shuttered amid the funding lapse, host cities in both blue and red states gearing up for the games later this year could fall behind in planning. “I think it’ll be a concern real fast if we’re not able to get [DHS] reopened,” Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., told Fox News Digital. AGENCY THAT NABBED ‘EL CHAPO,’ ‘DIDDY’ THREATENED AS DEMOCRATS’ DHS SHUTDOWN DRAGS ON The World Cup kicks off in June and will be held across the U.S., Canada and Mexico. Several U.S. cities are set to host matches, including East Rutherford, New Jersey, New York, Boston, Dallas, Houston, St. Louis, Atlanta, Miami, Philadelphia, the San Francisco Bay Area and Seattle. DHS is the chief agency responsible for securing host cities as local officials prepare for an influx of fans from around the world. The agency has been shuttered for two weeks, with negotiations between the White House and Senate Democrats stalled. Sen. Andy Kim, D-N.J., told Fox News Digital he frequently discusses World Cup preparations with local officials but has not yet heard concerns about the shutdown’s impact. SCHUMER, DEMS AGAIN BLOCK DHS FUNDING, FORCE STATE OF THE UNION SHOWDOWN “I mean, look, if that’s the concern that Republican senators have, then have them press the White House to move forward on these negotiations,” Kim said. “You know, I just feel like they are not moving forward with the urgency that the American people want to see.” Congressional Democrats have blocked funding for DHS in a bid to enact reforms to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), but neither side has reached an agreement on a path forward. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, told Fox News Digital it was clear to him the shutdown could affect the effort to prepare for the World Cup, though he said he had not yet heard concerns from local officials. “I think the Democrats took the wrong hostage,” Cornyn said. “I mean, they’re mad at immigration enforcement, which they don’t believe in, but they are taking TSA and FEMA and the Coast Guard hostage, and they didn’t have anything to do with that.” DEMOCRATS RISK FEMA DISASTER FUNDING COLLAPSE AS DHS SHUTDOWN HITS DAY 5 Senate Democrats argue there has been little urgency from the White House to move toward reopening DHS, citing a slowdown in negotiations over the past week. They have put the responsibility for ending the shutdown on the Trump administration, despite Republicans publicly pushing back against several of their demands, including requiring ICE agents to obtain judicial warrants and refrain from wearing masks, among other changes. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., told Fox News Digital she had not heard from officials in Boston about possible disruptions to World Cup preparations. She argued Democrats’ demands that ICE adhere to the same rules as local police forces were reasonable. Warren dismissed the criticism as typical political posturing. “Well, sounds like the usual for the Trump administration,” she said. “All talk, no action.”
Dems’ potential 2028 hopefuls come out against US strikes on Iran
Some of the top rumored Democratic potential candidates for president in 2028 are showing a united front in opposing U.S. strikes on Iran, with several high-profile figures accusing President Donald Trump of launching an unnecessary and unconstitutional war. Former Vice President Kamala Harris said Trump was “dragging the United States into a war the American people do not want.” “Let me be clear: I am opposed to a regime-change war in Iran, and our troops are being put in harm’s way for the sake of Trump’s war of choice,” Harris said in a statement Saturday following the joint U.S. and Israeli strikes throughout Iran. “This is a dangerous and unnecessary gamble with American lives that also jeopardizes stability in the region and our standing in the world,” she continued. “What we are witnessing is not strength. It is recklessness dressed up as resolve.” FROM HOSTAGE CRISIS TO ASSASSINATION PLOTS: IRAN’S NEAR HALF-CENTURY WAR ON AMERICANS California Gov. Gavin Newsom delivered some of his sharpest criticism during a book tour stop Saturday night in San Francisco, accusing Trump of manufacturing a crisis. “It stems from weakness masquerading as strength,” Newsom said. “He lied to you. So reckless is the only way to describe this.” “He didn’t describe to the American people what the endgame is here,” Newsom added. “There wasn’t one. He manufactured it.” Newsom is currently promoting his memoir, “Young Man in a Hurry,” with recent and upcoming stops in South Carolina, New Hampshire and Nevada — three key early voting states in the Democratic presidential calendar. Earlier in the day, Newsom said Iran’s “corrupt and repressive” regime must never obtain nuclear weapons and that the “leadership of Iran must go.” “But that does not justify the President of the United States engaging in an illegal, dangerous war that will risk the lives of our American service members and our friends without justification to the American people,” Newsom wrote on X. California is home to more than half of the roughly 400,000 Iranian immigrants in the United States, including a large community in West Los Angeles often referred to as “Tehrangeles.” DEMOCRATS BUCK PARTY LEADERS TO DEFEND TRUMP’S ‘DECISIVE ACTION’ ON IRAN Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., a leading progressive voice and “Squad” member, accused Trump of dragging Americans into a conflict they did not support. “The American people are once again dragged into a war they did not want by a president who does not care about the long-term consequences of his actions. This war is unlawful. It is unnecessary. And it will be catastrophic,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “Just this week, Iran and the United States were negotiating key measures that could have staved off war. The President walked away from these discussions and chose war instead,” she continued. “In moments of war, our Constitution is unambiguous: Congress authorizes war. The President does not,” she said, pledging to vote “YES on Representatives Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie’s War Powers Resolution.” Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, another Democrat often mentioned as a potential 2028 contender, also criticized the strikes and accused Trump of ignoring Congress. “No justification, no authorization from Congress, and no clear objective,” Pritzker wrote on X. “Donald Trump is once again sidestepping the Constitution and once again failing to explain why he’s taking us into another war,” he continued. “Americans asked for affordable housing and health care, not another potentially endless conflict.” “God protect our troops,” Pritzker added. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro focused his criticism on war powers, arguing Trump acted outside constitutional guardrails. “In our democracy, the American people — through our elected representatives — decide when our nation goes to war,” Shapiro said, adding that Trump “acted unilaterally — without Congressional approval.” JONATHAN TURLEY: TRUMP STRIKES IRAN — PRECEDENT AND HISTORY ARE ON HIS SIDE “Make no mistake, the Iranian regime represses its own people … they must never be allowed to possess nuclear weapons,” he said. “But that does not justify the President of the United States engaging in an illegal, dangerous war.” Shapiro added that “Congress must use all available power” to prevent further escalation. Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg also accused Trump of launching a “war of choice.” “The President has launched our nation and our great military into a war of choice, risking American lives and resources, ignoring American law, and endangering our allies and partners,” Buttigieg wrote on X. “This nation learned the hard way that an unnecessary war, with no plan for what comes next, can lead to years of chaos and put America in still greater danger.” Buttigieg has been hitting early voting states, stopping in New Hampshire and Nevada in recent weeks to campaign for Democrats ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., who has been floated as a rising national figure within the party, said he lost friends in Iraq to an illegal war and opposed the strikes. “Young working-class kids should not pay the ultimate price for regime change and a war that hasn’t been explained or justified to the American people. We can support the democracy movement and the Iranian people without sending our troops to die,” Gallego wrote on X. Fox News’ Daniel Scully and Alex Nitzberg contributed to this report.
Sustained war with Iran could drain US missile stockpiles, test escalation control
As coordinated U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran continue, current and former defense officials say that while a limited strike lasting several days is feasible, sustaining a broader confrontation — one involving potentially hundreds of incoming missiles — is far more complicated. The U.S. and Israel undertook a mission known as Operation Epic Fury, targeting Iranian leadership and military sites Saturday. Its duration is still unclear, but the campaign may go on for days, according to U.S. officials. Sustaining operations beyond the initial window presents a more complex challenge — one shaped by a “zero-sum” competition for missile defense inventories between the Middle East and Europe. Officials and analysts warn that certain U.S. missile and air-defense interceptor inventories have been severely drawn down by the relentless pace of recent operations. The strategic dilemma for the Pentagon is that the systems required to shield U.S. bases from Iranian retaliation are the same ones being depleted by the defense of Ukraine and the ongoing protection of Israel. TRUMP ISSUES STERN IRAN WARNING AS TEHRAN ANGRILY REACTS TO SPEECH AMID MUTED WORLD REACTION Iran already has fired counterattacks near U.S. positions in Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Jordan, with several host governments saying their air defense systems intercepted incoming projectiles. No U.S. service member fatalities or injuries have been reported as of Saturday, a U.S. official told Fox News Digital. U.S. authorities have not publicly released casualty figures or formal damage assessments. During the intense June 2025 Iran–Israel conflict, U.S. forces fired more than 150 Terminal High Altitude Area Defense Interceptors — roughly a quarter of the total global inventory — and a large number of ship-based standard missiles to protect allies, according to published defense assessments. This shortfall largely is attributed to the dual pressure of supplying Ukraine against Russian cruise missiles and the surge of batteries to the Middle East. Replenishing these high-end systems can take more than a year, analysts say, because production lines are optimized for peacetime and cannot be surged overnight. Independent groups have noted the U.S. currently produces roughly 600–650 Patriot PAC-3 MSE missiles annually, reflecting recent contracts to boost production capacity. Analysts say that in a high-intensity war with a near-peer adversary like Iran — where multiple interceptors are often used to defeat a single incoming missile — even a year’s worth of production could be consumed in a matter of weeks, especially after recent drawdowns in Ukraine and the Middle East. “The Department of War has everything it needs to execute any mission at the time and place of the president’s choosing and on any timeline,” Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in response to readiness questions. Retired Air Force Gen. Charles Wald, former deputy commander of U.S. European Command, said the United States retains the ability to surge conventional strike munitions into the region and draw from prepositioned stocks if a campaign is ordered. “From a conventional munition standpoint, we can always fly in more weapons from around the world,” Wald told Fox News Digital. “There are a lot of weapons stored there with this type of mission in mind.” The greater concern, he acknowledged, lies on the defensive side. “The issue will be defensive weapons — Patriot, SM-3, and the Arrow system in Israel,” Wald said. “You can never have enough defense.” Regional analysts caution that in a sustained missile exchange, interceptor inventories — not offensive strike weapons — could become the binding constraint. “There is a limit to how many THAAD missiles can be used,” Israeli defense analyst Ehud Eilam said. “These are not systems you can reproduce overnight.” Iran is believed to possess between 1,500 ballistic missiles and 2,000 ballistic missiles, as well as drones and shorter-range rockets capable of striking U.S. bases and Gulf energy infrastructure. Several experts also pointed to the psychological impact of recent U.S. operations. The swift Operation Absolute Resolve in Venezuela in January 2026 and summer 2025’s 12-day exchange with Iran have reinforced confidence in American military capability. However, one former defense official cautioned that success in these tightly scoped missions can create a false sense of momentum toward action in far more complex scenarios. TRUMP SAYS IRAN HAS 15 DAYS TO REACH A DEAL OR FACE ‘UNFORTUNATE’ OUTCOME “Iran is a very different problem,” the official said — a large, heavily armed state with extensive missile forces and regional proxy networks that would not resemble a short, surgical operation. Wald acknowledged that risk. “You don’t want to get people so confident that you don’t consider the risks. It’s not going to be as clean or pure as, say, Venezuela was, or the 12-day war.” Even as the strikes continue, officials warn that retaliation from Iran and its network of allied militias could broaden the conflict. Iran’s ballistic missiles and drones — coupled with allied groups in Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen — already have prompted missile salvos against U.S. bases and Gulf partners, according to defense reporting. Experts say the 2025 conflict underscored how quickly escalation can test both defensive systems and political will. “Once these things break, you own what follows,” one former official said, underscoring the risk that missiles and proxy actions could quickly widen a limited U.S. strike. Wald warned that even a successful military phase would not eliminate the political uncertainty. “Bombing Iran is not going to do regime change,” he said, emphasizing that air power can degrade capability but cannot guarantee a stable political outcome. Beyond the immediate exchange, officials say the economic consequences could prove just as consequential. Roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil supply transits the Strait of Hormuz, and even limited disruption could send global energy markets sharply higher. For Washington, the strategic calculus extends beyond the Middle East. China remains the primary long-term competitor, with the war in Ukraine already consuming significant resources. A sustained regional conflict would draw on naval assets and air-defense systems that planners must also consider for potential future contingencies in Taiwan or North Korea. Officials familiar with internal
From hostage crisis to assassination plots: Iran’s near half-century war on Americans
After radical students overthrew Iran’s shah in 1979 and took hostages in the U.S. embassy, the Middle Eastern nation became a strident and blood-soaked adversary of what its new Islamic fundamentalist dictatorship has long called the “Great Satan.” Since then, Tehran has sponsored terrorism around the globe, including targeting the U.S. in multiple, high-profile instances. Former Reagan Justice Department chief of staff Mark Levin said Sunday there are at least 44 examples of Iran targeting Americans either directly or indirectly. “The Iranian-Nazi regime… [has] murdered more than 1,000 Americans [and] relentlessly pursued nuclear weapons to use against us — they are genocidal warmongers,” said Levin, an author, attorney and Fox News Channel host. The stage for Iran’s transformation from ally to enemy of the U.S. was set in the 1960s, when Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi began clashing with influential Islamic cleric Ruhollah Khomeini. The monarch infuriated the theocrat by liberalizing the national constitution to allow faiths other than Islam to be sworn into office on holy books of their choice. Khomeini’s rhetoric from France, where he was exiled, intensified during the period known as the White Revolution, including misogynistic and xenophobic sermons and demands that Pahlavi be ousted. With Pahlavi as a U.S.-aligned leader, this marked an early instance of antagonism by proxy. As protests engineered by Khomeini broke out in fall 1978, the shah declared martial law, and military police fired on a massive crowd of protesters. Pahlavi and Empress Farah Pahlavi soon fled on a “vacation” to Egypt but never returned. By February 1979, Khomeini returned to Tehran with significant sectarian support. Carter national security advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski — the father of “Morning Joe” host Mika Brzezinski — coined the term “arc of crisis” and advanced an ultimately failed “Green Belt” strategy that supported an arc of largely unstable but fundamentalist regimes across the Middle East that were also viewed as oppositional to the Soviet Union. Brzezinski’s envisioned buffer strategy soon collapsed when Khomeini proved to be just as anti-American as anti-Soviet. In October 1979, after months of debate over whether to admit him to the U.S. amid the new turmoil in Iran, President Jimmy Carter relented and permitted the cancer-stricken shah to seek medical care in New York. That November, the group “Muslim Student Followers of the Imam’s Line” stormed the U.S. embassy, beginning 444 days of captivity for 52 American hostages. The U.S. severed diplomatic ties the following April, and one rescue mission failed and left several U.S. service members dead. The shah died that summer in Egypt, leaving Khomeini in full control of the government. In what was seen as the final offense to Carter, Iran suddenly released the hostages minutes into President Ronald Reagan’s administration on Jan. 20, 1981. On July 5, 1982, the years-long saga known as the Lebanon hostage crisis began with the systematic abductions of foreigners, including Americans, by Hezbollah and Iranian proxies in the Mideast country, according to United Against a Nuclear Iran. That group, founded by former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and former Ambassador Mark Wallace, maintains a comprehensive history of Iranian aggression on its website and is a nonpartisan policy organization formed to combat the threats posed by the Islamic Republic. During the Lebanon hostage crisis, several victims spent years imprisoned by Hezbollah, where they were forced to undergo psychological and medical torture, including CIA Beirut Station Chief William Buckley, who was not related to the National Review founder of the same name. Buckley was tortured for months by Dr. Aziz al-Abub, a Lebanese Hezbollah psychiatrist and medical expert who reportedly forced him to take phenothiazines and experimented on him to induce interrogation and make an example of him to the West. Buckley reportedly died in custody amid these experiments on June 3, 1985. The CIA later memorialized him on its wall in Langley, Virginia, and Obama-era Director John Brennan said in a 2014 statement that “we remember Bill not for the manner in which he died but for the legacy he left behind. From his time as an Army lieutenant colonel to his tenure with the Agency, Bill inspired those around him to do great things despite often dangerous conditions.” The agency later caught up with the figurehead of the Hezbollah-linked Islamic Jihad terrorist group — carrying out what the Washington Institute described as a rare contemporary CIA assassination nearly 25 years later. Imad Mughniyeh’s group had announced Buckley’s execution in October 1985, but the actual date was determined later, with allegations that he died not from execution but from the side effects of the medical torture he endured. Former hostage David Jacobsen told the institute that Buckley was often sick and delirious in his cell and ultimately died “drowning in his own lung fluids” after a bout of torture. David Dodge, then-president of the American University in Beirut, was also kidnapped for about a year, and U.S. journalist Terry Anderson was held in captivity for more than six years. On April 18, 1983, an Iran-backed group seen as the predecessor to today’s Lebanese Hezbollah bombed the U.S. embassy in Beirut, killing 63 people, including 17 Americans. That October, a suicide truck bomb linked to Iran hit a U.S. Marine barracks in Lebanon, killing 241 service members, in what remains the deadliest single day for the Corps since Iwo Jima. According to the MEMRI translation of Khomeini’s representative to Lebanon, Sayyed Issa Tabatabai’s interview with the IRNA: “I quickly went to Lebanon and provided what was needed in order to [carry out] martyrdom operations in the place where the Americans and Israelis were.” He added, “The efforts to establish [Hezbollah] started in [Lebanon’s] Baalbek area, where members of [Iran’s] Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) arrived. I had no part in establishing the [political] party [Hezbollah], but God made it possible for me to continue the military activity with the group that had cooperated with us prior to the [Islamic] Revolution’s victory.” The MEMRI report continued, “It is noteworthy that the part of the interview in which
Mamdani’s response to Trump’s Iran strike sparks conservative backlash: ‘Rooting for the ayatollah’
New York City’s socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani is facing blowback from conservatives on social media over his post condemning the U.S. attack on Iran that led to the killing of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. On Saturday, as a joint strike on Iran by the United States and Israel was developing, Mamdani blasted the Trump administration’s decision in a post on X that has been viewed roughly 20 million times. “Today’s military strikes on Iran — carried out by the United States and Israel — mark a catastrophic escalation in an illegal war of aggression,” Mamdani wrote. “Bombing cities. Killing civilians. Opening a new theater of war. Americans do not want this. They do not want another war in pursuit of regime change.” OMAR, SQUAD LASH OUT AT TRUMP IN RESPONSE TO IRAN STRIKE: ‘ILLEGAL REGIME CHANGE WAR’ Mamdani said Americans prefer “relief from the affordability crisis” before speaking directly to Iranians in New York City. “You are part of the fabric of this city — you are our neighbors, small business owners, students, artists, workers, and community leaders,” Mamdani said. “You will be safe here.” The post was quickly slammed by conservatives on social media making the case that Mamdani’s response appeared sympathetic to Iran’s brutal regime and pointing to his lack of public reaction to the Iranian protesters killed in recent years. “Comrade Mayor is rooting for the Ayatollah,” GOP Sen. Ted Cruz posted on X. “They can chant together.” OBAMA OFFICIAL WHO BACKED IRAN DEAL SPARKS ONLINE OUTRAGE WITH REACTION TO TRUMP’S STRIKE: ‘SIT THIS ONE OUT’ “Do u say anything pro American ?” Fox News host Brian Kilmeade posted on X. “do u know any Iranians – ? they hate @fr_Khamenei they celebrate his death, you should be celebrating his death ! hes killed thousands of American’s and just killed 30k Iranians, did u even say a word about that? You are an embarrassment !! Please quit.” “I don’t feel safe in New York listening to someone like you, Mamdani, who sympathizes with the regime that killed more than 30,000 unarmed Iranians in less than 24 hours,” Iranian American journalist Masih Alinejad posted on X. “We Iranians do not allow you to lecture us about war while you had nothing to say when the Islamic Republic shot schoolgirls and blinded more than 10,000 innocent people in the streets. You were busy celebrating the hijab while women of my beloved country Iran were jailed and raped by Islamic Security forces for removing it. “And NOW you find your voice to defend the regime? No. I will not let you claim the moral high ground. The people of Iran want to be free. Where were you when they needed solidarity?” “How is it that you can’t differentiate between good and evil?” Billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman posted on X. “Why is this so hard for you?” “It takes a particular kind of audacity, or ignorance, for a city mayor to appoint himself the conscience of American foreign policy while his constituents step over garbage on their way to work,” GOP Rep. Nancy Mace posted on X. “History will not remember his bravery. It will not remember him at all.” “Iranian New Yorkers are thrilled today and see right through you,” Republican New York City Councilwoman Vickie Paladino posted on X. “When Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey, UAE, Bahrain all support today’s operation eliminating world’s #1 sponsor of terror, but New York City’s Mayor @ZohranMamdani is shilling for Iran,” Republican New York City Councilwoman Inna Vernikov posted on X. Fox News Digital reached out to Mamdani’s office for comment. Shortly after Mamdani’s post, it was announced by President Trump and Israeli officials that the military operation resulted in Khamenei’s death. Israeli leaders confirmed Khamenei’s compound and offices were reduced to rubble early Saturday after a targeted strike in downtown Tehran. “Khamenei was the contemporary Middle East’s longest-serving autocrat. He did not get to be that way by being a gambler. Khamenei was an ideologue, but one who ruthlessly pursued the preservation and protection of his ideology, often taking two steps forward and one step back,” Behnam Ben Taleblu, senior director of FDD’s Iran program, told Fox News Digital.