‘Open sore’: Families face agonizing wait as 9/11 mastermind’s trial pushed nearly 27 years after attacks
Twenty-five years after nearly 3,000 people were killed on Sept. 11, families waiting to see the accused plotters brought to justice are confronting another extraordinary possibility: They may still never see a verdict. A military judge has scheduled alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and three co-defendants to go on trial June 5, 2028, nearly 27 years after the attacks. But the date remains tentative, and a recent ruling barring prosecutors from using statements Mohammed made to FBI agents has underscored the legal obstacles still threatening the case. “It’s like an open sore, and that sore gets even more hurtful when we get to anniversaries,” John Ryan, former chief of department with the Port Authority Police who spent nine months working on the recovery operation at Ground Zero, told Fox News Digital. JUDGE THROWS OUT KHALID SHEIKH MOHAMMED’S 9/11 CONFESSION IN ALREADY LONG WAIT FOR TRIAL Ryan is among the victims’ families and first responders who have watched the prosecution drag through years of litigation over evidence obtained after the defendants were subjected to torture in CIA custody, a collapsed plea agreement, repeated changes in military judges and a mountain of unresolved pretrial motions. “Here we are 25 years later, and I’m still involved in this aspect of that here because we still have not convicted or taken to justice the five people that are being held at Guantánamo Bay,” Ryan, who later became a commander with the FBI-led Joint Terrorism Task Force, said. “The planners, KSM and the others that are in custody, are awaiting trial.” Mohammed and three other defendants have been held by the U.S. for years without facing trial for their alleged roles in the plot that killed nearly 3,000 people. A fifth defendant, Ramzi bin al-Shibh, is being handled separately after being found mentally incompetent to stand trial. A military judge recently barred prosecutors from using statements Mohammed made to FBI agents in 2007, finding that the statements were tainted by the coercive treatment he had experienced in U.S. custody. The government chose not to appeal the ruling, saying an appeal could jeopardize the June 5, 2028, trial date. The judge set the trial 18 months after the prosecution’s proposed January 2027 start to give the defense and government time to work through a long list of unresolved legal disputes. He is the fifth military judge to oversee the case since the defendants were arraigned in 2012. For families who lost loved ones on Sept. 11, the years of delay have become another part of the trauma. I LOST MY WIFE ON 9/11; PLEASE LET THIS 25TH ANNIVERSARY BELONG TO THE FAMILIES Sean Passananti, whose father was killed on the 100th floor of the North Tower, said the passage of time has made the case feel increasingly detached from the scale of the crime. “It feels really like a twilight zone and unbelievable that we have to fight for justice for the worst terrorist attack that ever happened on our soil,” Passananti said. “It doesn’t feel real. It’s unexplainable.” SON WHO LOST FATHER IN 9/11 ATTACKS SHARES POWERFUL LESSONS 25 YEARS LATER: ‘I’M STILL HERE’ Passananti said he has attended the memorial ceremony every year but one since the attacks. “I wish I wasn’t here, obviously, but I feel like I have to be here every year,” he said. Dennis McGinley, whose older brother Danny worked on the 89th floor of the South Tower, said the delays have kept his family from closing a painful chapter. “President Trump has a unique, historic opportunity here to be a hero, be our champion, finally close the books on this American nightmare, which is now becoming an American embarrassment,” McGinley said. McGinley described the families’ grief as an injury that keeps reopening. “It is like the wound never healed, and every year we get salt poured back into that wound,” he said. Ryan said he lost 37 police officers he had worked with during his career, along with civilian colleagues at the Port Authority. After the recovery operation, he moved into counterterrorism work. He said he expected the 9/11 case to remain part of his professional life, but not for this long. “The fact is that they’ve all admitted their involvement. It’s not a question of guilt. It’s just a question of the process and the fact that the process has taken 25 years,” Ryan said. The case has been moving through the military commissions since the defendants were arraigned in 2012. By then, Mohammed had already spent nearly a decade in U.S. custody. He was captured in Pakistan in 2003 and held for years at CIA “black sites,” where he was subjected to harsh interrogation techniques, including repeated waterboarding. Mohammed and the other defendants were transferred to Guantánamo in 2006. The treatment of the defendants in CIA custody has become one of the central obstacles in the prosecution. Defense attorneys have argued that statements obtained after the defendants were tortured cannot be considered voluntary. Prosecutors have argued that later statements made to FBI agents by a “clean team” should be admissible. The recent ruling excluding Mohammed’s 2007 FBI statements dealt another blow to that effort and highlighted a problem that has followed the case for years: whether prosecutors can separate evidence gathered later from the coercive interrogations that came before it. The case has also been disrupted by changes in judges, the coronavirus pandemic and a failed plea agreement. In 2024, the defendants reached plea agreements that would have required them to plead guilty in exchange for life sentences rather than face the death penalty. Then-Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin withdrew the agreements, prompting another round of litigation. A federal appeals court later blocked the defendants from entering guilty pleas under the withdrawn deals. Years earlier, the Obama administration had tried another route. In 2009, the administration announced that Mohammed and four other defendants would be prosecuted in federal court in Manhattan. That plan was abandoned after fierce opposition from New York officials and lawmakers who raised
Inside Trump’s intimate meeting with nation’s bravest soldiers during whirlwind Texas trip
ARLINGTON, Texas — During his whirlwind trip to Texas to rally Republican voters ahead of November’s elections, President Donald Trump on Thursday made a pit stop to honor America’s bravest warriors the day before the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The intimate gathering was held at the National Medal of Honor Museum, where Trump also met privately with the Medal of Honor recipients who were present. Trump also signed legislation clearing the way for a new monument honoring the award’s recipients on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., before addressing roughly 100 guests, including 16 of the nation’s 65 living Medal of Honor recipients. REPUBLICANS HEAD TO DALLAS WITH ONE MISSION: DEFY HISTORY AND WIN BIG “It’s very special for all of us,” Trump said. “It’s special for me to be here, and it’s an American treasure devoted to the best and bravest warriors of our country. And, frankly, it’s really the best they’ve ever produced.” The event was a stark contrast to the tens of thousands to whom Trump had addressed about 13 hours prior at the GOP midterm convention, a half hour away in Dallas. DAVID MARCUS: IN DALLAS, GOP SEEKS UNITY ON 9/11, KIRK ANNIVERSARIES Charlotte Jones, daughter of Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, is the chairman of the museum’s board of directors and served as the event’s emcee. Her father beamed with pride as he sat front and center, which Trump noted from the stage. High-ranking Republican politicians, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. and Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, were among the high-profile guests who huddled in the room for the event. Both Jones and Troy Bertram, the CEO of the new center, stressed that the National Medal of Honor Museum (NMOH) is not just a war museum. “We are not a military history museum,” Bertram told Fox News Digital. “We are storytelling around the humans, about their courage, their sacrifice. Who they were before what they became.” Trump’s speech struck a tone of admiration for the men and women honored by the museum. MEDAL OF HONOR RECIPIENT JAMES CAPERS JR. SAYS RECOGNITION IS BITTERSWEET AFTER LOSING ‘SO MUCH’ “They stormed into hellfire and crushed America’s enemies,” the president said. “They had bravery like few people could even think of having. They carried the wounded out of battle and on their own backs and carried them back and forth. … They stood in the way of bullets, purposely just standing just like this and taking bullets, and it’s amazing.” One of those warriors was Army Lt. Col. William Swenson, a man of steely resolve who serves on the museum’s board. DAKOTA MEYER TALKS SERVICE, BLASTS CONTROVERSIAL DESIGN FOR GLOBAL WAR ON TERROR MEMORIAL His heroic 2009 actions in Afghanistan, where he fought during Operation Enduring Freedom, earned him the highest military decoration awarded by the U.S. government in 2013, presented by then-President Barack Obama. Pinned down by the enemy during a seven-hour battle in the Ganjgal Valley of the country’s Kunar Province, Swenson saved lives by making multiple trips into active combat zones, pulling wounded soldiers to safety and loading them onto helicopters for evacuation. “The president and our commander-in-chief has been a strong supporter of this project,” Swenson told Fox News Digital. “He continues to be a strong supporter of this project, and having him as involved as he is going to be a great contribution to get the monument done to standard, on time and to start signaling the messaging to the American people what’s important about service.” The 47th president is working with private donors to build the new monument in Washington, D.C., near the Lincoln Memorial, in honor of recipients of the nation’s highest military award for heroism in battle. He previously signed the Hershel “Woody” Williams National Medal of Honor Monument Location Act, officially clearing the path for its construction. WWII VET GIVES DIRECT MESSAGE TO YOUNG PEOPLE TODAY: ‘WE GAVE UP OUR YESTERDAYS FOR YOUR TOMORROWS’ “When he died, Woody was the last surviving recipient from World War II. [He] had one of the most dangerous jobs of war, and that’s operating a flamethrower,” Trump said, speaking of the man for whom the bill was named. “In the Battle of Iwo Jima, he carved a path to American victory — literally carved a path so soldiers could get in and win through a deadly gauntlet of enemy strongholds. And back and forth he went. He just kept going back and forth.” Williams was one of about 300 flamethrowers in Iwo Jima, a famed and defining battle in the war’s Pacific theater. The late soldier’s family members were in the audience and were fondly acknowledged by the president. “America will never, ever forget what they did and what they risked and how much they risked [and] what they meant to their families and what they’ve meant to our country,” Trump concluded. “I want to thank you all once again.” Swenson described the importance of remembrance. “What we do to ensure that we have common history, common beliefs, is we have monuments, and we have museums. We have our mythology that tells us who we are as Americans and what we will continue to be in the future,” he said. “Without this mythology, we don’t have that narrative. The fact that the event was held the day before the 25th anniversary of 9/11 wasn’t lost on him, either. He described the tragedy as a “seminal event” for him, which happened just as he was finishing college, that shaped his entire future. Swenson spent 22 years in the Army after the attack. “The United States is forged in fire,” he said. “We’ve had revolutions, we’ve had civil wars, we’ve had global conflicts, we’ve had civil strife. There will always be challenges to our freedom and to our country, and it’s up to us to move forward from those events and create that more perfect union. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “That said, we must always learn
AOC, Mamdani interaction caught on cam at 9/11 memorial sparks online fury
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., were lambasted Friday for appearing to share a moment of levity at the 9/11 Memorial in lower Manhattan during the solemn reading-of-the-names of victims. Mamdani was already facing criticism from some 9/11 victims’ families over his attendance when a television feed showing the reading of victims’ names cut from a young man sobbing at the memorial to the mayor and congresswoman appearing to grin and laugh as they spoke, though their conversation was inaudible. “Disgraceful,” said Steve Guest, a former top staffer for Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas. “AOC and Mamdani look happy.” MAMDANI HEADS TO 9/11 MEMORIAL DESPITE 110,000-SIGNATURE PUSH FROM VICTIMS’ FAMILIES TO STAY AWAY “They always show us who they really are,” another critic on X said. Others critics were more direct. “Why the f— are these two laughing?” Meghan McCain, daughter of the late Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., asked. FAMILIES OF 9/11 VICTIMS’ MESSAGE TO MAMDANI: ‘PLEASE DO NOT COME’ TO MEMORIAL CEREMONY However, a top member of former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani’s entourage claimed that the video was taken out of context. “The videos of [them] laughing are not true. I was standing next to them the whole time,” tweeted Michael Ragusa, reportedly head of Giuliani’s security as of 2025, according to WPIX-11. “The camera just caught her greeting him hello. Multiple other politicians were laughing and joking behind me. Republicans and Democrats.” The Pittsburgh Republican Committee suggested on X that the sight was one of the reasons 9/11 victims families didn’t want the mayor there, while former Los Angeles mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt also sounded off. ZOHRAN MAMDANI URGED TO SKIP NEW YORK CITY’S 9/11 MEMORIAL: ‘VILE ANTISEMITE’ “While normal Americans cry, commie Mamdani and AOC laugh it up at the 9/11 memorial in New York,” Pratt said. “They hate you. They hate your country. They enjoy your misery. We cannot allow these people to have power.” A New York City lawmaker added that she was outraged to see Mamdani and Ocasio-Cortez acting that way. “After thousands of families of victims of terror beg Mamdani not to show up, he stands there and laughs while families weep,” said Councilwoman Inna Vernikov, R-Brighton Beach. “This is NYC’s Mayor.” RETIRED PORT AUTHORITY OFFICERS TELL MAMDANI, HOCHUL TO STAY AWAY FROM GROUND ZERO ON 9/11 Richard Sementa, better known as “Mr. Producer” for Mark Levin’s national radio show, tweeted, “Un-freaking believable.” Juanita Broaddrick called Mamdani and AOC “two disgusting degenerates” on X. Rep. Randy Fine, R-Fla., who continues to criticize democratic socialists and opponents of Israel, called the mayor “Jihad Mamdani” and said he and the congresswoman should not be anywhere near Ground Zero. “They do not mourn this country, they mock it,” he tweeted. “Have some damn respect.” “As the names of Americans murdered on September 11th are read aloud at Ground Zero, AOC and Mamdani are laughing and smiling together,” said Rep. Wesley Hunt, R-Texas. “There is a time and a place for politics. This isn’t it. Ground Zero is sacred ground.” “September 11 is not a photo op, it is not a networking event,” said Hunt. Separately, Mamdani was seen at other points standing somberly between New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill and New York first gentleman William Hochul Jr. But critics continued pointing out what one called the “jarring split-screen” of the mayor joking around with Ocasio-Cortez a split-second after the mourner was seen sobbing over the shadow “fountain” at the footprint of the Twin Towers. “What exactly is funny?” former Trump White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson asked. Former NYPD cop and Fox News contributor Paul Mauro tweeted what he envisioned the two discussing. “Zo[hran]: You’re not buying into this ‘never again’ bull— are you? AOC: ‘No, not me,’ Hilarity ensues.” SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER It was not immediately clear what the two politicians were chatting about at that moment. Fox News Digital reached out to Mamdani and Ocasio-Cortez for comment.
At Ground Zero, 9/11 families turn to Trump as Obama’s old decision resurfaces
On a cloudy morning at the site where two sprawling towers once stood, the loved ones of New Yorkers killed on 9/11 gathered with a message for President Donald Trump: Release the unredacted files they believe could implicate Saudi Arabia. Vice President JD Vance attended the ceremony alongside former presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Joe Biden and Bill Clinton, as well as former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo were also among those in attendance. The message was delivered on the main stage by Terry Strada, whose husband, Tom, was killed in the attacks. Speaking from the memorial stage, Strada accused successive administrations of protecting Saudi Arabia instead of supporting the 9/11 families. Strada called out President Barack Obama, who was at the memorial, for vetoing the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act, or JASTA, in 2016. Congress later overrode the veto, allowing 9/11 families to sue Saudi Arabia over its alleged role in the attacks. TRUMP SET TO HONOR 9/11 VICTIMS, FIRST RESPONDERS AT PENTAGON ON 25TH ANNIVERSARY “Administration after administration, including leaders in front of us here today, chose to protect the Saudis instead of standing with the 9/11 families,” Strada said. “They withheld evidence. They vetoed JASTA. They broke promises, both public and private. It has been one betrayal after another. “President Trump can still change that” She urged the president to tell Saudi leaders “that if they want to be friends with the USA, they cannot continue to deny all of this, all of the pain, all of the destruction that we have all been suffering through.” “Please carry that message back,” another speaker said, addressing Vance. “Stand with the families. Stand with the survivors.” The remarks drew applause from the crowd. “Administration after administration has not done anything for us. In fact, they’ve blocked, blocked us every step of the way of getting justice,” Dennis McGinley, whose older brother Danny worked on the 89th floor of the South Tower, told Fox News Digital. “President Trump has a unique, historic opportunity here to be a hero, be our champion, finally close the books on this American nightmare, which is now becoming an American embarrassment. It’s got to start.” The appeal came as families marked the 25th anniversary of the attacks with a renewed push for accountability from Saudi Arabia, which they accuse of helping two of the hijackers establish themselves in the United States. The kingdom has repeatedly denied involvement. The families’ claims center on Omar al-Bayoumi, a Saudi national who helped hijackers Nawaf al-Hazmi and Khalid al-Mihdhar obtain an apartment in San Diego, and Fahad al-Thumairy, an accredited Saudi diplomat and imam at the King Fahd Mosque in California who had numerous contacts with al-Bayoumi. The 9/11 Commission documented the men’s connections but did not conclude that the Saudi government or senior Saudi officials supported the plot. Its report also said investigators found no evidence that another Saudi national, Osama Bassnan, gave money to the hijackers. Newly released investigative material and evidence presented in a long-running civil case have intensified scrutiny of those connections. In August 2025, U.S. District Judge George Daniels allowed claims against Saudi Arabia to proceed, finding that the families had presented enough evidence to move toward trial. The ruling did not determine that Saudi Arabia was responsible for the attacks. The families say that legal ruling, along with additional FBI and British intelligence material, gives Trump an opportunity to release more records and help resolve what they view as a 25-year-old betrayal. SON WHO LOST FATHER IN 9/11 ATTACKS SHARES POWERFUL LESSONS 25 YEARS LATER: ‘I’M STILL HERE’ For Passananti, the demand was inseparable from his own loss. His father, Horace Robert Passananti, was working on the 100th floor of the North Tower. Passananti was 32 when he called his father after hearing that a plane had struck the building. He never heard from him again. Passananti said he has attended the ceremony every year but one since the attacks. “I wish I wasn’t here, obviously, but I feel like I have to be here every year,” he told Fox News Digital. Passananti, who is affiliated with the group 9/11 Justice, said families want those responsible for the attacks held accountable. “We’ve really been on our own — the families — trying to obtain evidence,” Passananti said. “We’ve gotten really no help from our government. We feel like they’ve put Saudi Arabia ahead of the 9/11 families, and we’re hoping that will change.” TRUMP CONFIRMS PENTAGON PLANS FOR 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF 9/11 ATTACKS, DISPUTES REPORT ON GROUND ZERO ABSENCE He described the delays in the case as “a twilight zone.” “It feels really like a twilight zone and unbelievable that we have to fight for justice for the worst terrorist attack that ever happened on our soil,” Passananti said. “It doesn’t feel real. It’s unexplainable.” Trump has previously acknowledged that questions remain unanswered about the attacks. In 2022, while defending his decision to host a Saudi-backed LIV Golf tournament at his New Jersey club amid protests from 9/11 families, Trump said, “Nobody has gotten to the bottom of 9/11.” But Trump has not publicly said whether he supports releasing additional files concerning Saudi Arabia’s alleged ties to the hijackers. “President Trump is leading the most transparent administration in history, which is why he authorized the declassification and release of hundreds of pages of documents related to the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. The President will always pay tribute to the American heroes we lost in the tragic September 11 attacks, their beautiful family members, and to the acts of heroism that defined that fateful day when the unbreakable spirit of the American people prevailed,” White House spokesperson Olivia Wales said in a statement to Fox News Digital. McGinley worked across the Hudson River and called his brother after seeing the first plane hit, believing it was a small aircraft. His brother told him it was a passenger jet and described
Mamdani draws fury from 9/11 mourners over Ground Zero appearance: ‘Disrespectful’
Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s presence at Friday’s 9/11 remembrance at Ground Zero drew criticism from some in the city, including one former police officer who said the mayor “probably should have skipped it” and another mourner who called his appearance “disrespectful” and “very offensive.” Mamdani has faced criticism over his associations with controversial political and online figures, as well as his decision to appoint Ramzi Kassem as his administration’s chief counsel. Kassem previously represented a Guantánamo detainee linked to an al Qaeda terrorist plot. Former New York Republican Gov. George Pataki, 9/11-era FDNY Commissioner Thomas von Essen and others called on Mamdani to skip the ceremony. “He showed up anyway. It does bother us,” Walter Matuza, whose father Walter was killed that day, told Fox News Digital. MAMDANI HEADS TO 9/11 MEMORIAL DESPITE 110,000-SIGNATURE PUSH FROM VICTIMS’ FAMILIES TO STAY AWAY Matuza said he was part of the group of victims’ families that initiated the petition to keep Mamdani away. He cited Mamdani’s association with streamer Hasan Piker, who once said America “deserved 9/11,” as well as Mamdani’s appointment of Kassem. MAMDANI UNDER FIRE AFTER SYMBOLIC 9/11 PEN GOES TO FORMER AL QAEDA DEFENSE LAWYER Matuza, of Staten Island, said his father was one of dozens at Carr Futures brokerage who died after American Airlines Flight 11 struck the north tower just above their 92nd floor offices. Mike, a former New Jersey police officer, told Fox News Digital he recalled watching the terror unfold on television from across the Hudson – and later came to Manhattan to help relieve exhausted NYPD officers stuck at their posts. “Based on the rhetoric that he’s used in the past. Yeah, he probably should have skipped it,” Mike said of Mamdani. He added that Mamdani’s appointment of Kassem also troubled him, saying the mayor could’ve handled the situation in a “whole different way.” FAMILIES OF 9/11 VICTIMS’ MESSAGE TO MAMDANI: ‘PLEASE DO NOT COME’ TO MEMORIAL CEREMONY “But, he did it and unfortunately people aren’t going to forget it.” Another mourner called Mamdani a “communist” when asked about his appearance on Friday, adding that the memorial was “not supposed to be a political event.” Steven, who traveled all the way to New York from Hobe Sound, Florida, to attend the remembrance, lambasted Mamdani’s presence as “disrespectful” and “offensive.” ZOHRAN MAMDANI URGED TO SKIP NEW YORK CITY’S 9/11 MEMORIAL: ‘VILE ANTISEMITE’ “I’ve been following that over the past couple weeks and I saw that I think they had upwards of 700,000 New Yorkers requesting him not to be here. I mean, as the mayor, I would assume he has the right to be here…. But who he represents and the people he’s affiliated with… I feel that he should stay away. I don’t feel that his presence here is wanted, and I think he should honor that as a human being.” The petition had garnered more than 110,000 signatures at the time, according to the petition’s tally. Steven called Kassem’s appointment “hideous” and added that the youngest generation who does not remember or did not live through 9/11 are suffering from “incorrect information” and do not understand the reality of the terror attack. He said he will educate his children on 9/11 so that they do not go down the same ideological road. Attendee John told Fox News Digital that Mamdani does have a right to attend. John said he lost friends including at now-Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick’s Cantor-Fitzgerald firm – which lost more than 650 people; the most of any company in the Twin Towers that day – and that as long as Mamdani is respectful to the fallen Americans being remembered, he is “fine” with the Democrat attending. Fox News Digital reached out to Mamdani for comment. In a prior statement, the mayor said he is proud of New York and “love[s] this city [and] country.” “[W]hat I want this week to be a focus on is on the families whose loved ones were stolen from them 25 years ago in the horrific act of terror of September 11, and a focus also on the first responders who gave everything they could to this city and to the people who came together to try and help their fellow New Yorkers.” During the ceremony, footage captured Mamdani approaching and greeting his 9/11-era predecessor, Republican Rudolph Giuliani. SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER The two could be seen appearing to exchange brief pleasantries before Giuliani turned and sat down and an aide began speaking to the incumbent mayor. All living former presidents reportedly attended the ceremony, as President Donald Trump instead visited the Pentagon’s remembrance before departing for County Clare, Ireland from nearby Andrews Air Force Base.
Reporter’s Notebook: Countdown is on as Senate races to pass crypto, college sports bills
It’s a twofer in the Senate. Senators return to Washington Monday for the first time since the wee hours of Aug. 8. The Senate’s slated to meet for three weeks before heading home for the midterms — if the session even goes that long. There are a lot of items senators want to tackle. But only two big ones are lined up for test votes right now. The first legislative vote is locked in. It’s a procedural vote on a measure to regulate cryptocurrency. That comes Tuesday afternoon. The bill needs 60 votes to be in play. REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: SUMMER ENDS, BUT THE SENATE’S FALL CRUNCH BEGINS There’s no bigger advocate for cryptocurrency than President Trump. He’s pushing for the Senate to move legislation. “We ended the war on crypto once and for all,” said the President. “Now we need Congress to take the next step by passing the Clarity Act.” Let’s clarify what the Clarity Act does. The measure clarifies federal rules for digital currencies and tokens. The framework would divide oversight between two regulators: The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CTFC). Approval of the bill would be the first step toward establishing guardrails for cryptocurrency. “We passed the Clarity Act in the House last summer with 78 Democratic votes. It’s now time for the Senate to join us,” said House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill, R-Ark., on Fox Business. The package has bipartisan support. But there’s a roadblock coming from the Democrats. “The one remaining significant issue, I think, is the ethics provision,” said Hill. President Trump’s own financial disclosure report reveals he earned $1.4 billion on cryptocurrency last year alone. That’s why Democrats want specific rules for the Trump family and crypto. “It basically exempts the President from any kind of ethical constraints. And that’s just not going to fly in the Democratic caucus,” said Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., says the bill is too closely aligned with what the President and his industry allies want. “Yes. We need crypto legislation. But not this legislation that has been written by this industry,” said Warren. “I just don’t see how anyone, Democrat or Republican, moves forward on this bill.” That’s why many doubt the measure can score 60 votes twice to break a filibuster. The naysaying aggravates cryptocurrency advocates. “This is the right bill at the right time, and it’s time to vote,” said Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wy. She argues that crypto supporters bowed to demands to firm up ethics rules. “In 2023, we added 100 pages with stronger consumer protection provisions. Yet we got feedback from colleagues that they wanted more. So again, we listened. Today, this bill that was under 300 pages is more than 600 pages. That’s hundreds of pages built over 11 months of daily bipartisan negotiations in windowless rooms where colleagues from both parties shared their priorities, and we worked diligently to incorporate them,” said an exasperated Lummis. Warren argues that the bill makes it easier for drug runners and terrorists to fund their operations — without a literal paper trail. TED CRUZ URGES SENATE TO STAY IN WASHINGTON UNTIL PROTECT COLLEGE SPORTS ACT PASSES THIS WEEK Lummis says if the U.S. doesn’t establish its cryptocurrency blueprint, digital assets could flee overseas. “These companies can go to Singapore, Switzerland, the UAE and have a well-understood clear set of regulations,” said Lummis. So that test vote is locked in. But it’s rare to pass a major financial regulatory measure this close to the midterms. And if Democrats prevail in November, that could create friction with the White House. The Senate also expects a test vote before the end of September on a bill to regulate money in college sports. But there’s no specific agreement on a date for that roll call tally. You know the old saying that there’s no such thing as bad publicity? Well, the “bad” publicity surrounding college football could potentially provide this legislation a boost. President Trump implored senators to stay in Washington to finish the bill last month. But it wasn’t ready. However, controversies over former pro players heading back to college — to say nothing of clock maintenance at the University of Michigan — could prod skeptical senators to give this measure another look. Let’s start with LSU tight end Dae’Quan Wright. If you can keep up with him. Last year, Wright played for current LSU head coach Lane Kiffin last year at Ole Miss — before Kiffin abandoned his squad late in the season for the Tigers. Wright decided to go pro. The Philadelphia Eagles picked him up in the spring. But then waved Wright early last month. The Cleveland Browns then signed Wright. He dressed for a preseason game against the Buffalo Bills. Never played a snap. Then the Browns cut him. So, Wright headed back to school. But this time, at LSU. “I’m just putting on a college uniform again and going out there and having fun and embracing my opportunity,” said Wright. A judge then cleared Wright and former Ole Miss defensive lineman Zxavian Harris to play for LSU this fall. But in between, Harris appeared in preseason camp with the New Orleans Saints — before the team waived him. Drew Rosenhaus is Wright’s agent. He believes his client had no other option after his brief cup of coffee in the pros. “His contract with the NFL was terminated,” said Rosenhaus. “If he was still able to play in the NFL, he would be there.” Chaos like this is prodding lawmakers to try to regulate intercollegiate athletics. “It’s not fair to the high school kids coming out to play college ball if you suddenly have colleges that are going and recruiting from the NFL,” said Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz, R-Texas. Cruz teamed up with Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., the top Democrat on the Commerce panel, to craft the college athletics regulation measure. One big restriction: the legislation limits athletes to one
‘Feels like yesterday’: 9/11 victim’s daughter says families still fighting for justice 25 years later
DALLAS – Twenty-five years after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Angela Mistrulli said, “It feels like forever, but it also feels like yesterday.” Mistrulli, whose father was killed in the collapse of the World Trade Center twin towers in New York City, is the founder of American Victims of State-Sponsored Terrorism (AVSSTU), which represents victims and families impacted by terrorist attacks. She spoke with Fox News Digital on the sidelines of the Republican midterm convention, where she and other 9/11 family members, Gold Star families, and families of civilian victims were pressing to meet with political leaders on an urgent mission as the clock ticked towards a critical deadline. BROOKLYN TEACHERS WHO WITNESSED 9/11 AS CHILDREN REVEAL WHAT THEY WANT THE NEXT GENERATION TO REMEMBER “Congress created the United States Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund (USVSST Fund). It was supposed to be a place for all victims to be able to go and receive some sort of relief. It was a lifeline to over 22,000 victims,” Mistrulli explained. “Unfortunately, that fund has run dry, and September 30th is the fiscal deadline for Congress to act in order for victims to receive relief.” Established in 2015, the USVSST Fund has provided over $10 billion to victims harmed by international state-sponsored terrorism, including personal representatives for those who lost their lives from acts of terrorism such as the 9/11 attacks. Mistrulli emphasized that 25 years after the 9/11 attacks, “We are still fighting for justice, transparency, recognition, and relief that Congress promised us.” “We’re here not only to memorialize the 25th anniversary of 9/11, but also to try to get some face time with these leaders and these higher ups to be able to discuss this urgent and critical topic,” she added. 9/11 MUSEUM UNVEILS EXHIBITION FOR GENERATION TOO YOUNG TO REMEMBER THE ATTACKS: ‘CALLED EVERYBODY TO LEAD’ With the fiscal-year cutoff approaching Sept. 30, Congress would need to authorize additional funding for victims holding unpaid terrorism judgments to be paid. A bipartisan group of lawmakers from New York introduced a bill in July that would require the U.S. Department of the Treasury to loan $3 billion annually to the fund for fiscal years 2027, 2028 and 2029. The bill, H.R. 9795, was named after Mistrulli’s father — the Never Forget the Victims of Terrorism: Joseph D. Mistrulli and Alan Kleinberg USVSST Fund Solvency Act. The Department of Justice has acknowledged that available USVSST funds remain insufficient to fully compensate victims’ claims that have been and are anticipated to continue to grow. Mistrulli and members of the AVSSTU are at the Republican midterm convention to push to influence members of Congress in voting to authorize continued funding for victims as the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks concludes the week of convention activities in Dallas. GEORGE BUSH WELCOMES TOP OFFICIALS TO HIS HOME STATE FOR 9/11 REMEMBRANCE ON 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF ATTACKS “This is a hard one this year. 25 years. It feels like forever, but it also feels like yesterday, and it’s also disappointing because I feel like our country has come so far away from who we were on September 12th,” Mistrulli said. “It’s also exhausting that it’s been 25 years of us fighting for justice.” “We have now been divided as a nation and my wish to everyone out there as we commemorate this anniversary, memorialize, never forget by coming back together.”
‘Their souls are in that steel’: 9/11 beam makes emotional stop in Indianapolis before return to NYC
A 21-foot, 16,900-pound steel beam recovered from the World Trade Center’s South Tower arrived in Indianapolis last month as part of a nationwide tour commemorating the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in a tribute that will ultimately end up back at Ground Zero. The Tunnel to Towers Foundation brought its “Steel Across America” tour to the Indiana War Memorial and Museum on Aug. 19, marking the tour’s 31st stop. The beam is traveling more than 10,500 miles through 21 states and Washington, D.C., before returning to New York City for a Sept. 11 commemoration. The piece of steel recovered from Ground Zero in the days after the attacks by first responders who rushed to the site has since become a symbol of the nearly 3,000 civilians, firefighters, police officers, emergency workers and military personnel who died that day. “For the past four months, communities across the country have welcomed this sacred piece of American history with incredible emotion,” Tunnel to Towers Chairman and CEO Frank Siller said in a press release. “Watching people stand in front of that steel, hugging it, praying over it, weeping, reminds me every single day of why we do this work.” TUNNEL TO TOWERS ANNOUNCES ‘STEEL ACROSS AMERICA’ TOUR TO MARK 25 YEARS SINCE 9/11 ATTACKS The Indianapolis ceremony included a color guard, a pipes and drums procession, the national anthem performed by the Voices of the Indianapolis Fire Department and an invocation from Indianapolis Fire Department Chaplain Mike Gatliff. Indianapolis Fire Division Chief Tom Neal and Timothy Winslow, a retired major general and executive director of the Indiana War Memorial and Museum, also addressed the crowd about the connection between the city’s first responders, veterans and the legacy of 9/11. FIRST RESPONDERS HONOR WORLD TRADE CENTER BEAM ARRIVING AT BOSTON FALLEN HEROES MEMORIAL “Bringing this steel to Indianapolis, and to a museum that has stood for over a century as a tribute to American sacrifice, is deeply moving,” FDNY Lt. Jack Kielty, a Tunnel to Towers board member, said. “Indiana veterans and first responders understand what it means to serve.” The event also highlighted Indiana’s own connection to the attacks. Nine Hoosiers died on Sept. 11, while Indianapolis Task Force One sent rescuers to Ground Zero. Six members of the team later died from illnesses linked to their work in the toxic environment, according to the Indiana War Memorial. Scott Nokes, a Marine Corps veteran and Tunnel to Towers recipient, spoke to attendees about the significance of allowing people to see the steel in person. “Out of the 2,977 lives that were lost, there’s over 1,000 bodies that were never recovered specifically from Ground Zero in New York,” Nokes said. “Their souls are in that steel, and if you touch it, you feel it.” The foundation’s tour is designed in part to connect younger Americans with an event that many were too young to remember or were not alive to witness. Nokes said seeing the artifact firsthand offers a connection that cannot be replicated by books or documentaries. The Indianapolis stop was followed by an appearance at the Cincinnati Fire Museum. The tour’s final stops include West Point, Boston and Washington, D.C., before the steel returns to New York City. When the steel returns to New York City on Sept. 11, Frank Siller and members of the Siller family will carry it through the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel, retracing the route Stephen Siller took 25 years earlier after strapping 60 pounds of gear to his back and running toward the World Trade Center. The steel will accompany the procession through the tunnel but will not enter or stop at the World Trade Center site.
Top House chairman warns Congress against ‘complacency’ 25 years after 9/11
House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Andrew Garbarino, R-N.Y., remembers exactly where he was when the World Trade Center was attacked on Sept. 11, 2001. “I was a senior in high school. I was in Mr. Ponzi’s government class. And that’s when the first plane hit. And one of the other teachers came in and was telling Mr. Ponzi about it,” he told Fox News Digital. “We all thought it was a little plane. And then we went to the next class. And then the second plane hit, and everybody realized that stuff was wrong.” Twenty-five years later, Garbarino leads a congressional committee that oversees a Cabinet department created explicitly after the terror attack. He’s warning that Congress needs to change how it deals with potential threats to avoid another tragedy of that scale. “Being chairman of the committee, being a New Yorker, it’s one of those things you focus on, and you want to make sure another 9/11 doesn’t happen, and doesn’t ever happen again. And that’s my goal. That’s my priority,” he said. 9/11 IS BECOMING HISTORY. MY GENERATION MUST MAKE SURE AMERICA NEVER FORGETS “Congress is very good at being reactive… We don’t want another 9/11. So if I could leave my fingerprints on something here, it’s the fact that the focus, Congress’ focus on national security, Congress’ focus on homeland security or safety, is that we address an issue before something happens.” HOW 9/11 TRANSFORMED SYNAGOGUE SECURITY INTO A NEW REALITY FOR THE JEWISH COMMUNITY He said Congress needed to get into the habit of passing laws ahead of time, “instead of being like, ‘Oh my God I can’t believe this happened, how did this happen, let’s fix it now.’” “That’s why 9/11 happened. 9/11 happened because our intelligence agencies, they were siloed, they were not sharing information. I don’t know if it was a complacency or whatever, but there were a lot of problems,” Garbarino said. “I don’t want to fall into that same complacency.” Garbarino represents New York’s 2nd Congressional District, part of Long Island’s south shore. As a suburb of New York City, its residents are deeply attuned to that tragedy 25 years ago. “We have people that lost loved ones that day that are still dealing with it 25 years later,” Garbarino said. “So the scar is still there.” His district and others are also still dealing with illnesses stemming from that day, including first responders who bravely rushed to the collapsing twin towers. “There are now more people that have died from 9/11-related illnesses than died on the actual day. So it’s a day that keeps taking people away from us,” Garbarino said. “You have firemen who, 9/11 was their first call. They were 21, 22 years old. They’re now 47… And a lot of these, some of these cancers, they take a while to take hold, and they’re now just getting sick.” SCIENTISTS DISCOVER POSSIBLE LINK BETWEEN 9/11 AND ACCELERATED AGING Earlier this year, President Donald Trump signed legislation led by Garbarino and others to address a projected funding shortfall for the World Trade Center Health Program, which helps survivors pay for their medical treatment. He said nearly all congressional districts across the country have at least one person participating in the program, a testament to how widespread the tragedy’s effects are. “People moved out of New York, people who came from all over the country after 9/11 to help, they all went back home, they also got sick. So this does affect the entire country,” Garbarino said.
‘Trump-level’ smackdown earns Vance roaring praise as 2028 buzz builds at GOP convention
Republicans reached a consensus that Vice President JD Vance solidified his position as the presumptive 2028 presidential candidate with his “Trump-level” smackdown of a foreign flag-waving protester who disrupted his speech at the Republican National Convention. Vance did not hesitate after a protester interrupted his primetime speech in Dallas on Thursday by waving the flags of the Palestinian Authority and Mexico. He recalled to those watching his speech on TV: “What the people at home missed is that we just had a protester interrupting us and waving the Mexican flag.” “Well, my friend, if you love Mexico so much, get your a– over there. I’ll buy you the plane ticket,” the VP said, to which the crowd erupted into applause. “JD Vance just MIC DROPPED a leftist heckler who interrupted him waving a Mexican flag…this place is DEAFENING,” conservative commentator Eric Daugherty wrote on X, adding, “TOTAL PANDEMONIUM.” CROWD ERUPTS AS VANCE SMACKS DOWN PROTESTER WAVING MEXICAN FLAG: ‘GET YOUR A– OVER THERE’ Popular conservative pundit Benny Johnson called Vance’s quick wit an “epic response.” President Donald Trump supporter and activist Scott Pressler similarly praised Vance for reacting “without missing a beat,” and called it “an iconic moment.” “This was masterful. A Trump-level move from JD Vance,” wrote Overton, a conservative commentary and news account. “Vice President Vance perfectly handled a protestor waving a Mexican flag at the RNC in Dallas. Then he fired back with a savage one-liner that sent the American Airlines Center into absolute bedlam.” The moment was capped off with a “USA!” chant from those in the crowd at the GOP Midterm Convention. Students for Trump co-founder Ryan Fournier wrote, “JD Vance just absolute [sic] WIPED THE FLOOR with a leftist heckler who interrupted his rally waving a Mexican flag.” “The crowd went completely WILD. Unbelievable energy,” wrote Fournier. VANCE DECLARES DEMOCRATS ‘PARTY OF HATRED,’ SAYS PARTY HAS MOVED BEYOND BIG GOVERNMENT, CENSORSHIP “JD Vance just notched the most iconic moment of the RNC when he told a protester waving a Mexican flag exactly what all red blooded Americans were thinking,” wrote Turning Point USA spokesman Andrew Kolvet. Commentator Brilyn Hollyhand put it simply, posting on X, “Yea JD for President after this.” Vance recovered from the interruption quickly, telling the crowd, “Ladies and gentlemen, I had a whole speech written. But I think I’ve got to change it because we just discovered the symbol of the far left — an idiot waving … a Mexican flag at a protest when he should be waving the flag of the United States of America.” “Now, we all know, of course, that as much as that person might wave around a foreign flag, he’d much rather live in Dallas, or in Cincinnati, or in any one of our great cities than Mexico,” President Donald Trump’s No. 2 continued. “But while we wave the American flag and fight for the American dream, we have to remind ourselves tonight that the good life that is the foundation of this country’s promise is not guaranteed.” CHARLIE KIRK HONORED AT GOP CONVENTION WITH CALL TO REJECT ‘COMFORTABLE LOSING’ “Every generation of Americans has had to fight for these things when it’s our turn,” he went on. “And this fall, the Democrats are running candidates who will tell your children what they’re allowed to say, how they’re allowed to live, and importantly, who they ought to hate, because that’s what the Democrat Party is about in 2026,” Vance continued. “It’s not about you, it’s about foreign fraudsters, and it’s about who they hate. And we got to send their a–es back in November.” Speculation has swirled over who will be the heir to Trump’s MAGA throne in 2028. The consensus so far among Republicans appears to be split between Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio — but a lot could change before the next presidential election.