Alarming missile report draws forceful response from Trump as Iran war tests America’s arsenal
The Trump administration is rejecting concerns that the war with Iran has left the U.S. low on some of its most advanced long-range missiles, after a report found the Army burned through “virtually all” of its stocks of two of its primary long-range precision weapons. The Army has used “virtually all” of its inventories of Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) and Precision Strike Missiles (PrSM) during the five-month conflict with Iran, Reuters, citing people familiar with internal U.S. military data, reported Tuesday. Officials fear the drawdown could complicate the military’s ability to respond to future crises involving adversaries such as China and Russia, according to the report. The White House disputed any suggestion the U.S. military lacks the weapons needed to carry out its missions. WEAPONS STOCKPILE SHORTAGES IMPACTING MILITARY STRATEGY IN THE MIDEAST “We have far more munitions than anyone in the world, and far more than we need, despite the fact that an unprecedented amount was given away by Crooked Joe Biden and the Biden Administration to Ukraine and Europe at no cost, in one of many of their extremely dumb moves,” President Donald Trump said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital. “Our defense companies are, at this moment, making more munitions than they have ever made before, in addition to expanding their plants and equipment at record levels. And as we build up, we will start issuing more to our allies in Europe and elsewhere.” If accurate, the report underscores a longstanding Pentagon concern: America’s most sophisticated precision weapons can be expended in months but often take years to replace. Reuters also reported that the conflict significantly reduced inventories of Patriot and THAAD missile interceptors, along with Tomahawk cruise missiles, though the Pentagon has maintained the U.S. military retains the capabilities needed to carry out operations worldwide. HEGSETH DISMISSES ‘FOOLISH’ US STOCKPILE CONCERNS AS IRAN CONFLICT TESTS MUNITIONS Exact U.S. weapons stockpile figures remain classified for national security reasons. The Pentagon also pushed back on the reporting. “America’s military is the most powerful in the world and has everything it needs to execute at the time and place of the President’s choosing. We have executed multiple successful operations across combatant commands while ensuring the U.S. military possesses a deep arsenal of capabilities to protect our people and our interests,” chief spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement. Independent analysts have also warned that months of combat have strained U.S. inventories of high-end munitions. The Center for Strategic and International Studies estimated last week that the U.S. had expended roughly 65% of its Patriot interceptor stockpile and that inventories of THAAD interceptors had fallen by at least 38% since the start of the Iran conflict, based on open-source analysis and budget data. Reuters reported Tuesday that its sources said those figures broadly aligned with internal U.S. data. ATACMS and the newer Precision Strike Missile are among the Army’s premier long-range precision strike weapons, capable of striking targets hundreds of miles away without putting pilots in harm’s way. ARMY CUTS HELICOPTERS, PUSHES ‘AMAZON FOR WAR’ AS DRONE COMBAT RESHAPES MILITARY Military planners consider them particularly valuable against heavily defended adversaries because they can destroy command posts, air defenses, logistics hubs and other high-value targets from beyond many enemy air-defense systems. Patriot and THAAD serve a different mission. Rather than striking enemy targets, they defend U.S. forces and allies by intercepting incoming ballistic missiles, while Tomahawk cruise missiles allow the Navy to conduct long-range strikes from ships and submarines. The report comes as Pentagon leaders have increasingly warned about the challenge of sustaining prolonged, high-intensity conflicts against major powers while replenishing advanced weapons consumed in combat. That concern has accelerated efforts to pair expensive precision missiles with far larger numbers of lower-cost, “attritable” drones and autonomous systems that can be produced rapidly and fielded at scale. Officials argue the approach would allow commanders to reserve million-dollar precision weapons for the highest-value targets while relying on less expensive systems for surveillance, electronic warfare and many strike missions. Military leaders caution, however, that inexpensive drones are not a replacement for long-range precision missiles such as ATACMS and PrSM. Those weapons remain essential for striking hardened command centers, air-defense batteries and other heavily defended targets at distances many lower-cost drones cannot yet reach or survive. Trump has met repeatedly with executives from the nation’s largest defense contractors, pressing them to accelerate production and expand manufacturing capacity as conflicts in Iran and Ukraine strain U.S. stockpiles. Following a White House meeting in March, Trump said the companies had agreed to quadruple production of what he called “Exquisite Class Weaponry,” including some of the military’s most advanced missile systems. At a second meeting in June and again at a defense summit in July, the president urged industry leaders to move faster, telling executives, “We have the best quality in the world, but we need a little more speed.” The production push is also reflected in the administration’s budget priorities. Trump’s proposed $1.5 trillion defense budget would more than triple spending on drones and autonomous systems while boosting investment in munitions production, missile defense and Tomahawk cruise missile procurement.
Trump admin trucking crackdown lands 51 immigration detentions, 36 English language proficiency violations
President Donald Trump’s administration announced the results of a crackdown on illegal immigration in the trucking industry Tuesday. The Department of Transportation (DOT) began the crackdown, Operation Highway Shield, in Florida earlier this year. The DOT has since expanded the effort to multiple states in the Midwest, including Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Ohio, Fox News has learned. Officials carried out 3,487 enforcement stops during the operation that resulted in 766 unsafe commercial vehicles or drivers placed out of service, 51 immigration detentions, 47 criminal charges filed, 39 incarcerations, 36 English language proficiency (ELP) violations and three cargo theft recoveries totaling roughly $1 million in stolen freight. TRUMP TAPS VETERANS TO FIX ILLEGAL ALIEN TRUCKING PROBLEM PLAGUING US ROADWAYS The Trump administration maintains that federal immigration and commercial driving enforcement remains a top priority. Fox News previously broke news about the ramped-up enforcement efforts in Florida in March. Florida troopers said up to half of truckers at some weigh stations cannot meet English proficiency requirements. “I try to concentrate on the [signs] they have to read,” Master Trooper Craig Lents said at the time. “If you are going down the road at 70 miles per hour, and you see that sign, you only see it for a split second.” In another encounter caught on video, a trooper asked a trucker what a road sign meant. VIRGINIA BUS CRASH THAT KILLED FIVE INVOLVED DRIVER WHO DOESN’T SPEAK ENGLISH, SEAN DUFFY SAYS The trucker replied, “No.” The trooper then asked what drivers should do if they saw the sign, to which the trucker replied, “No,” again. The Trump administration has noted that federal English requirements have been on the books for years. “It’s been the law for a long period of time,” said Derek Barrs, Federal Motor Carrier Safety administrator. “It’s a safety issue. … If there was a crash or something like that, I would want to make sure that driver would know how to respond — slow down for upcoming traffic or a crash that has happened up ahead.” ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT TRUCK DRIVER FROM INDIA ARRESTED IN DEADLY CALIFORNIA HIT-AND-RUN AFTER BIDEN RELEASE Authorities explained that being unable to speak or read English is dangerous because truckers are driving by important road signs at high speeds while carrying hundreds of tons. The enforcement push comes after a string of deadly crashes nationwide involving drivers the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) claims were in the U.S. illegally or operating with commercial drivers’ licenses (CDLs) they should never have had.
Trump keeps calling Thune despite public fight over SAVE America Act
FIRST ON FOX: The reports of President Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader John Thune’s dead working relationship have been greatly exaggerated, the South Dakota Republican leader told Fox News Digital. “I’ve heard from him twice this morning already. He called me over the weekend, and so there, you know, we talk, I don’t bother him, I’m not calling him every day,” Thune said in an interview. Last week, Trump said, “We’re going to find out,” whether Thune was the man for the job to lead Senate Republicans, casting doubt on a critical relationship between him and the Senate’s top Republican. TRUMP QUESTIONS THUNE’S LEADERSHIP AS SAVE AMERICA ACT STALLS The tension stems from the SAVE America Act floundering in the Senate, and Trump’s desire to see the election integrity package passed by any means necessary. Thune doesn’t see Trump’s comment as a personal slight, however. Both he and the president “want to get to the same place. We have, sometimes, disagreements about how best to get there.” “Most of mine are constrained by what’s achievable in an institution like the Senate that has procedural roadblocks to do almost anything,” Thune said. “We have those candid conversations, but I’m not worried about that relationship,” he continued. “I know he’s going to push as hard as he can. That’s his business model, is to just keep pushing, pushing, pushing to get people to go as far as they can go.” SENATE FACES ‘COME-TO-JESUS’ MOMENT ON TRUMP’S ELECTION PRIORITY UNDER GOP’S NEW PLAN There is a voracious appetite among Trump, Senate Republicans and their base to see the SAVE America Act passed. One that Thune hears every day, either online or within his own conference. It’s dominated the oxygen inside the Capitol and beyond its walls, and the pressure comes as the Senate is sprinting to finish work on key items, like preventing a government shutdown and confirming dozens of Trump’s nominees. “There are good days and bad days,” Thune said. “And around here, probably lately more bad days than good days, but you know you just kind of, like I said, keep your head down, do the work.” But passing the SAVE America Act is the most elusive item for Republicans, given the current make up of the Senate. While there are a cohort of Republicans who are voting against it, Thune made the point that every single Senate Democrat has shut it down each of the five times that it’s been brought to the floor in a variety of configurations. And Thune is one of the Republicans that wants the bill passed — he’s an original co-sponsor of the SAVE Act, the precursor to the current version of the SAVE America Act. The avenue of cutting Democrats out of the equation and ramming through aspects of the bill through budget reconciliation exists, which Thune is interested in pursuing. But then comes the problem of generating 50 votes to support that, and keeping those votes together to shut down “crazy democratic amendments.” GOP RIFT GROWS AS THUNE HITS BRAKES ON TRUMP’S ELECTION BILL TO AVERT SHUTDOWN Thune’s job helming the Senate majority is to do the math on what can be accomplished in an institution that’s “designed” to be difficult. And the votes still aren’t adding up. “I keep asking the question, am I the only one in this town that can count to 50? Because it seems like these questions recur and there are a lot of people out there who haven’t seemed to internalize the fact that there aren’t Democrats that are going to flip and vote for this,” Thune said. “And there aren’t 50 Republicans that are going to vote to nuke the filibuster. Those are two facts that are indisputable and unchangeable.” Thune’s position is, by extension, an embodiment of the Senate in many ways. Unlike the House, legislation and agendas can’t be rammed through without a bipartisan agreement to blast through the filibuster. And senators’ concerns and desires encompass an entire state, not just a sliver of a state’s population. Through several interviews with Fox News Digital, he’s instilled that part of his job is to listen and take consensus on what does and doesn’t work, deliberating on the best path for a deliverable outcome. “This place was supposed to be difficult, so that no dictator could master it, and I think that’s kind of the role of the Senate in our system and our democracy,” Thune said. “It’s important to keep that in perspective, but it’s frustrating as heck when you’re somebody who likes to get things done, likes to get results, and you’ve got procedural roadblocks holding things up as we try to wind down and get some things done,” he continued.
Vance to host Congress at White House to discuss legislative action on fraud
FIRST ON FOX: Vice President JD Vance will host members of Congress at the White House on Wednesday morning for a fraud task force meeting where members will discuss potential legislative action to address the administration’s crackdown on fraud. A source familiar with the meeting told Fox News Digital that roughly 20 members from both the House and Senate are expected at the meeting. Vance will also detail how members can target fraud in the various states and districts they represent. Vance has previously hosted meetings at the White House to address fraud with a number of attorneys general alongside other members of the administration involved in the task force led by Vance. PENNSYLVANIA AG EXPLAINS WHY STATE LEADS NATION IN MEDICAID FRAUD CONVICTIONS WHILE OTHERS BATTLE MASS SCHEMES “Our task force is using every tool at its disposal to end fraud once and for all. Congress has an important role to play in cracking down on fraudsters and protecting federal programs from abuse,” a White House official told Fox News Digital. “President Trump, Vice President Vance, and all of the task force’s interagency partners will not relent until every fraudster is brought to justice.” On Tuesday, the Justice Department announced that it is expanding its Northeast Health Care Fraud Strike Force to Philadelphia as federal and state authorities target alleged Medicare and Medicaid fraud involving home healthcare services, adding Pennsylvania to a number of states across the country where the administration is honed in on fraud. Federal and state law enforcement charged 19 defendants accused of participating in schemes involving more than $4 million in claims submitted to Medicare and Medicaid, according to a DOJ release obtained by Fox News. On Sunday, Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday also announced a plea agreement involving the final defendant in a previously charged 21-defendant case tied to more than $1.7 million in claims. “The vice president’s task force continues to stop the flow of taxpayer funds before they fall into the hands of fraudsters and deliver savings to the American people,” a spokesperson for Vance told Fox News Digital. “This is great momentum in the fight for the President’s War on Fraud.” WATCH: DR. OZ SAYS NEWSOM, OTHER BLUE STATES HAVE TURNED MEDICAID FRAUD INTO A ‘FEATURE’ The task force has suspended payments to a number of healthcare providers who have been suspected of fraud across the country. As of May, Vance and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz withheld more than $1.4 billion in federal funding for home health and hospice providers nationwide. In June, the Trump administration revealed new figures that show a drastic 7,100% spike in Medicare claims for skin substitutes in just six years, surging from $200 million to $14.4 billion from 2019 to 2025. CMS identified 4,200 suspicious claims for skin substitutes, known as allografts, totaling $224 million in charges through May of this year. “That’s a lot of money,” Oz said during a news conference in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Wednesday. “And that bankrupts not just hospital systems and physician groups, but it causes major problems across the entire landscape.” FEDERAL GOVERNMENT’S LANDLORD JOINS VANCE FRAUD CRACKDOWN AS WHITE HOUSE WIDENS HUNT: ‘CRITICAL FORCE’ President Donald Trump established the task force through an executive order in May. He appointed Vance to the fraud crackdown team and various agencies and departments have been involved in rooting out widespread fraud. “Vice President JD Vance and Republicans are doing a great job hunting down Fraud in the various States,” Trump posted on Truth Social in June. “Billions of Dollars is being found, and we’ve just started!”
Embattled GOP rep takes dramatic step to ‘clear my name’ as abuse allegations engulf House race
Rep. Max Miller, R-Ohio, is calling for an investigation into abuse allegations made against him by his ex-wife, as the dramatic family feud overshadows his race for re-election. Miller has consistently denied wrongdoing and accused both his ex-wife and her father, Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, of trying to take down his political career. “In light of all the renewed interest in my family affairs, I am going to file my own paperwork for an ethics investigation into myself to clear my name from these horrific attacks on myself and my family. I have absolutely nothing to hide,” Miller wrote on X on Tuesday. “We will be providing the committee all necessary documents needed for a detail examination. The accusations continue to change, but my facts stay the same. I am looking forward to my colleagues reading everything for themselves.” OHIO GOP FAMILY FEUD EXPLODES AS SEN BERNIE MORENO CALLS ON REP MAX MILLER TO RESIGN The Ethics Committee confirmed on Tuesday afternoon that it would investigate allegations that Miller “may have engaged in domestic violence and abuse or illegal drug use.” Emily Moreno, who filed for divorce from Miller in 2024 after two years of marriage, has accused him of physically abusing both her and their young daughter. Allegations include that he scalded Moreno with boiling water and held a gun to her head during two separate occasions, and that she had to get their daughter medical aid for a broken collar bone after she was in Miller’s care. Miller suggested in a livestream on X over the weekend that Moreno had suffered from mental health issues in the past and that might be the reason behind her accusations. He also said none of the allegations she made have been substantiated by relevant entities. “Every single one of these allegations were already investigated. No criminal charge has ever been filed against me,” Miller said in the video. He said the water incident occurred during “horseplay” between the two, and disputed that the water was boiling. He also said Moreno took their daughter to the emergency room thinking there was a bruise on their daughter’s neck, but that the mark was from finger painting. SEN BERNIE MORENO CALLS FOR EX-SON-IN-LAW TO RESIGN FROM HOUSE, GET ‘SERIOUS PSYCHOLOGICAL HELP’ But mounting public pressure has brought the Cleveland-area feud to Washington, where Sen. Moreno told reporters Tuesday that Miller “fails to meet that minimum basic standard” for elected officials who get to serve. He also criticized Miller in a statement posted on X, calling him a “danger” to his daughter and granddaughter. Miller and Moreno share custody over the child. The intense public scrutiny is also potentially putting Miller’s re-election into question, with Democrats seeing new opportunity in what was a relatively safe red seat in the Cleveland suburbs. One House GOP source, who was granted anonymity to speak candidly about a sensitive situation, told Fox News Digital the situation was a “f—-ing trainwreck.” DEMOCRATS TARGET MORE GOP HOUSE SEATS AFTER SOCIALIST VICTORIES ROCK LEFT-WING PRIMARIES The source noted that the allegations against Miller had not been substantiated, but said “the court of public opinion is a b—-.” Miller likely appears to voters to have “a little too much on his plate,” the source said. Meanwhile, a House Republican, who was granted anonymity to speak candidly, said Miller should not run for re-election. “We must lead by example,” they said. The same House Republican also called for Reps. Chuck Edwards, R-N.C., and Cory Mills, R-Fla., also facing harassment allegations that they have denied, to similarly drop out of their races. SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER But Miller has been defiant so far, expressing confidence that he’ll win in November. The House Ethics Committee, which Miller is calling on to investigate his case, recently recommended that Edwards be censured for his behavior toward two young female staffers.
Is this Trump’s last ‘last chance’? Ceaseless string of broken ceasefires fuels doubt over Iran deal
President Donald Trump is warning Iran that it has one last chance to make a deal, even as Tehran denies the negotiations Trump says persuaded him to hold off on a major U.S. attack. The clash has left the status of the diplomatic effort unclear. Trump says indirect talks could reopen the Strait of Hormuz and eventually address Iran’s nuclear program, while Tehran acknowledges only limited discussions with Oman and has not publicly embraced the broader deal Trump has described. “There’s certainly an element of posturing involved,” Ali Vaez, deputy program director for the Middle East at International Crisis Group, told Fox News Digital. “While there are no ‘talks’ in the sense of U.S. and Iranian officials sitting at the same venue exchanging proposals and counter-offers, engagement appears ongoing.” Trump said diplomacy persuaded him to call off a planned attack on Iran that he described as the biggest since World War II. Over the weekend, he said Iran and several Middle Eastern countries had asked for more time to finalize an agreement reopening Hormuz and addressing Tehran’s nuclear program. TRUMP WARNS IRAN FIGHTING ISN’T OVER AS HE VOWS US WILL ‘WIN’ AS TALKS FADE Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said, however, that Tehran was neither holding talks with the United States nor expecting an American delegation. He described the Oman discussions as a bilateral effort to establish a temporary shipping corridor through the Strait. Trump, in response, accused Iran’s leadership of being “unbelievably duplicitous.” “They ask for a meeting, some would say ‘beg,’ talks begin, with more scheduled in the immediate future, and they say, openly and proudly, that they’re not having any discussions,” Trump wrote Monday on Truth Social. Later that afternoon, Trump called the talks Iran’s “last chance” to avoid an escalation in U.S. strikes. He said negotiators would first seek to reopen the Strait, then turn to Tehran’s nuclear program. “The first phase is the opening of the straits. The second phase will be the denuclearization,” Trump said in the Oval Office. “And that will take a little while.” Trump said reporters could learn more about the negotiations “today or tomorrow.” Iran has not publicly endorsed either phase of his plan. Saudi Arabia and other Gulf allies have urged Trump to hold off on the planned attack, fearing more Iranian reprisals against their territory. Jonathan Schanzer, executive director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said those concerns have complicated Trump’s next move. “He’d like to be able to walk away with a win. The Iranians are not allowing him to do that,” Schanzer told Fox News Digital. “There is not a clear path ahead for him at this moment.” US OFFICIAL SAYS JD VANCE MADE ‘GREAT PROGRESS’ IN IRAN TALKS, CALLS SNUB REPORTS ‘FOREIGN PROPAGANDA’ A June memorandum also opened with promises of a broader settlement. The United States and Iran signed it to halt fighting, lift the U.S. blockade and reopen the Strait. Shipping became the first test of the June memorandum, and it quickly exposed how far apart Washington and Tehran remained. Each side had its own plan for restoring commercial traffic through the Strait. When U.S. officials accused Iran of firing on commercial vessels days later, American strikes followed. Tehran said Washington had tried to force through a new shipping arrangement without its consent. Negotiators never bridged that divide. Trump declared the ceasefire over in early July and expanded the U.S. air campaign. Iran answered with missile and drone attacks on American positions and regional partners. That fighting set up another, shorter pause at the end of the month. Trump said mediators had asked the U.S. to hold fire, an arrangement Iran said it would match. Within days, Iranian missiles targeted U.S. forces in Jordan and the conflict spread again. Brief breaks have become a feature of the conflict, which Schanzer described as a “ceasefire war.” “It is a war that is punctuated by short bouts of calm, only to see conflict return,” Schanzer said. Even if Oman succeeds in opening a temporary route, it would settle only the immediate question of how ships move through the Strait. Trump wants that step to lead into negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program, a sequence Tehran has yet to publicly embrace. As long as Iran can still threaten traffic and Washington can maintain its blockade and prepare further strikes, each side may decide it can wait the other out rather than make the concessions needed to end the war. “Fundamentally, both sides know that the status quo is a recipe for continued military and economic attrition without a clear endgame,” Vaez said.
Reporter’s Notebook: Inside the Senate showdown over Trump’s push to scrap August recess
“Should I stay or should I go now? If I go there will be trouble. And if I stay it will be double.” – The Clash The words “schedule” and “Congress” don’t always mesh. But the formal Senate schedule has long had senators taking off at the end of this week until early September for the customary “August recess.” Only thing is, President Trump and some conservatives pushing for approval of the SAVE America Act don’t want the Senate to beg off. They assert that the Senate should remain in session until it passes the bill, which requires proof of citizenship to vote. “I think there’s nothing more important than they pass the SAVE America Act. I think they should stay,” said President Trump. “They do what they want. But I think they should stay.” SEN RICK SCOTT: AMERICANS WORK FIVE DAYS A WEEK, WHY CAN’T THE SENATE? The Senate has already defeated two efforts to adopt the SAVE America Act. So there’s not an obvious pathway to alter those previous outcomes. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., has rebuffed the President’s demands to stay in session. “I don’t think having a Congress sitting around here for the month of August and quorum calls or having to vote on Democrat amendments is probably a good use of anybody’s time,” said Thune. There’s tension between the South Dakota Republican and the President over the Senate’s legislative realities. Thune may be Majority Leader. But Thune believes the President bears responsibility for changing some minds on Capitol Hill. “We have in the past suggested to he and his team to come up here and visit with some of my Republican colleagues,” said Thune. “Now if he can change the facts and start moving some of those senators who are noes into yesses, then we have a different conversation. But that’s just the reality.” As always, it’s about the math. And the SAVE America Act lacks the votes. “I know Sen. Thune says the votes aren’t there. I’m not saying he’s wrong. I’m just saying people change their mind sometimes,” argued Sen. John Kennedy, R-La. But it doesn’t look like there will even be a vote on that, unless something ripens quickly. That’s where Sens. Mike Lee, R-Utah, Ted Cruz, R-Texas, Roger Marshall, R-Kas, Rick Scott, R-Fla., and others have suggested the Senate shouldn’t go on break unless they pass the bill. So what happens next? Let’s say we get to Friday night. The Senate has taken its final vote of the summer. Maybe to confirm Todd Blanche as Attorney General. Perhaps the measure named after late Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., which sanctions Russia. The Senate is ready to finish until mid-September. In recent years, the Senate has not voted on a resolution to go out of session for weeks on end. That’s where SAVE America Act proponents would attempt to block such an effort. But its immaterial since there is no vote. In the not too distant past, the House and Senate often approved “adjournment resolutions.” But not right now. Such a plan must align with the wishes of the House of Representatives. Article I, Section 6 of the Constitution bars either body for adjourning for more than three days “without the Consent of the other.” The House isn’t around to approve an adjournment resolution. It’s been out of session for a couple of weeks now. Moreover, it’s not clear that the House could adopt an adjournment resolution. So, under the Constitution, each body must – at a minimum – hold a brief “pro forma” session where lawmakers convene for just a few seconds and then immediately gavel out. That meets the Constitutional requirement. But there’s the rub. When the Senate wraps up, Thune or one of his lieutenants would usually go to the floor and ask “unanimous consent” that the Senate meet on a series of Mondays and Thursdays or Tuesdays and Fridays between now and September. These are the “pro forma” sessions, convening at three-day intervals. But if Lee or someone wants to object, they’re stuck. The Senate can’t green light the set of pro formas. The Senate must have buy-in of all 100 senators. REPUBLICAN SAYS TRUMP’S TOP ELECTION PRIORITY ‘DEAD’ IN SENATE AS GOP FRACTURES AHEAD OF MIDTERMS But an objection in this case hardly blocks the recess or compels debate – let alone a vote or passage – on the SAVE America Act. If Thune or his designee can’t get unanimous consent, the only option they have is to move to meet again the next day. Let’s say 9 a.m. ET. If someone objects to the time, it will meet at noon et under the Senate’s default protocols. That said, this is where someone could force what might constitute the de facto “vote to go on recess.” A Republican senator might demand a vote on the Senate adjourning for the day on Friday and meeting on Saturday. This is not a vote to “go on recess.” But it’s the closest someone can engineer a possible vote related to Senate action. A motion to adjourn is not debatable on the floor. But it is amendable. Someone could offer another option about when the Senate should meet. But that’s about it. On this hypothetical Saturday session, it’s possible that Thune could simply get recognition and ask for the Senate to adjourn for the day again. One of those pushing the SAVE America Act doesn’t even get recognized to speak. However, if Thune is gracious and is willing to allow someone to have their say, they could get the floor and hold it as long as they want. Note that doing so does not constitute a filibuster. Filibusters are efforts by senators to stop something. In this case, advocates of the SAVE America Act are trying to start something. So no filibuster. This would just be a really long speech. But Thune might not let it come to that. And even though they’ve chattered about it a lot, the strongest
Battlefield robots open new front in innovation war with major US adversary
FIRST ON FOX: The U.S. Army is teaming up with an artificial intelligence (AI) company to build an AI “brain” for military robots that can think, understand their surroundings and continue missions even after losing contact with human operators as the race for AI dominance intensifies. Working with the Army Research Laboratory, defense AI company EdgeRunner AI has developed an onboard AI system that allows military robots to function in the battlefield without relying on cloud computing or an internet connection in environments where connectivity is lost. “We like to think of robots as the next frontier of AI,” EdgeRunner AI founder and CEO Tyler Saltsman told Fox News Digital. “Think of them as a very far-out edge device, kind of like a cell phone, a tablet or a laptop. But now what we can do is we can put a brain, or a neural network, right on that robot so that robots can have context when they’re on a mission helping the warfighter.” CHINA IS BUILDING AN AI WAR MACHINE. WASHINGTON MUST WAKE UP BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE The partnership comes as the U.S. and China race to integrate AI into their militaries, with both countries viewing AI as critical to maintaining a technological edge in future conflicts. Saltsman said it’s important for the U.S. to stay ahead in the global AI race, calling China’s dominance in drone manufacturing “problematic.” “Whether or not China’s ahead of us is debatable, but if China is, it’s not by much,” he said. Saltsman said today’s AI is “too generalized,” which is why his company is developing technology built for specific military missions. “Warfighters don’t need 19th-century poetry,” he said. “They need specific intelligence to his or her occupation in order to make better decisions in the heat of battle and that can increase the probability of winning the fight.” Working alongside aerial drones, the AI is designed to help robots “problem solve through different routes” while detecting explosives, carrying ammunition, scouting routes and reporting enemy activity. UKRAINE’S BATTLEFIELD IS TRANSFORMING THE FUTURE OF NATO “As you combine them together, you get a much better clarity of the battlefield and increased situational awareness,” he said. When communications are cut off, Saltsman said the military will need autonomous systems that can continue making decisions on their own. “You can have a human pilot that controls the ground robot or the drone in the air,” he said. “But then if they were to be jammed by a radar jammer and lose connectivity, then the neural network on that robot can still continue the mission and still aid the warfighter.” Saltsman argued the military “can’t rely on internet access in war,” warning that depending on systems like SpaceX’s Starlink could add a “risk” to missions. “The problem with Starlink is if you use it, you’re effectively showing the enemy where you are, so you might as well be wearing a beacon on you saying, ‘Hey, here’s where I’m located,’” he said. INSIDE CHINA’S AI ‘WOLF PACK’ DRONES BUILT WITH TAIWAN CONFLICT IN MIND Pointing to the Russia-Ukraine war, Saltsman said the success of drones has sparked a new push for autonomous ground robots. “As drones have become ubiquitous, now ground robots are like the next thing and then eventually humanoid robots so robots that move and look like humans,” he said. Despite the push to advance military AI, Saltsman said safety can’t take a back seat and that the technology is built using “transparent” datasets to “understand the biases” of the AI. “That’s another thing that differentiates us,” he said. “One of the problems is how to use AI safely, how to put guardrails around it and how to understand it.” While the technology remains in the “development phase,” Saltsman said the breakthrough gives robots the ability to understand what they see, not just detect it. “You can put computer vision models on robots so they can see, but if they don’t understand the context of what they’re seeing, they’re not useful and that’s what we’re solving for.”
Trump’s AG pick survives — for now — as Republicans question if White House deal will hold
President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Justice Department survived a crucial hurdle on Tuesday after reaching an agreement with key holdouts, but whether he reaches the finish line remains an open question. The Senate Judiciary Committee, after last-minute delays and drama, confirmed acting Attorney General Todd Blanche in a 12-10 vote, sending him to the Senate floor for his final test. His success on committee remained in the air until the weekend, when a deal to win over Sens. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., and John Cornyn, R-Texas, was announced. And the duo accepted the terms of the deal, which would permanently rescind the nearly $2 billion anti-weaponization fund and narrow the scope of Trump and his family’s audit immunity — two major components of his settlement with the IRS that Blanche rolled out earlier this year. TRUMP’S AG PICK OFF LIFE SUPPORT AFTER KEY REPUBLICAN REBELS RELENT Some lawmakers, however, are questioning the agreement and whether Trump will actually comply. Tillis said of the anti-weaponization fund that, “we’ve got enough data in the record to know it’s rescinded.” But he acknowledged that, “Other people are asking about the audit component, but it’s another area where I put a lot of faith in John Cornyn.” “I think that he believes that we’re at a place where it’s narrowly defined, and it would be very difficult for anybody to construe it as some sort of get out of audit free — for any kind of future — I know it’s retrospective, it is not prospective,” Cornyn said. “And I believe that only the parties to the agreement may be in a position to be exempted. So, that’s, you know, that’s enough for me,” he continued. DOJ BARS IRS FROM AUDITING TRUMP’S PRIOR TAX RETURNS IN SETTLEMENT ORDER SIGNED BY BLANCHE The duo’s colleagues on the Senate Judiciary Committee have a divided outlook on the nature of the deal, given Trump’s desire to revive the fund and because the audit immunity wasn’t fully buried. “Cornyn and Tillis seem to have gotten nothing meaningful,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., told Fox News Digital. “You know, the tax immunity deal is still unlimited, in terms of past potential liability. And the slush fund — the thug fund as I call it — is still alive and well, so far as Donald Trump is concerned. And he’s the one who counts.” Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., told Fox News Digital Trump “could renege on their agreement.” “I’m not saying he will or he won’t, what’s stopping the president from doing anything? But it was important to Cornyn and important to Tillis,” Kennedy said. “And I’m glad they got cooperation from, finally, from DOJ. And I think I’ve heard some other senators who have grumbled a little bit about not voting for Blanche, but I think they will. He’ll be confirmed.” To Kennedy’s latter point, Blanche’s trajectory to becoming the permanent attorney general still isn’t guaranteed. A handful of Senate Republicans are not outright declaring their support for his nomination. And as usual, that turns into a math problem on the Senate floor. TRUMP THREATENS TO YANK HIS OWN AG NOMINEE AS GOP REVOLT GROWS Right now, Blanche can only afford to lose two votes on the floor. That’s because Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., is still missing in action while he recovers from a fall at his Washington, D.C., home in June. And the numbers look tough going forward. Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, Susan Collins, R-Maine, John Curtis, R-Utah, and Bill Cassidy, R-La., are still on the fence about Blanche. Murkowski told reporters that she wants “to find out a little bit more about the negotiations,” over the weekend that led to the deal. “I think certainly the fact that he has signed this order, basically disbanding [the fund] — that’s a pretty good step,” Murkowski said. Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., wants to get rolling on the Blanche confirmation as soon as possible, given the laundry list of to-do items he and Republicans are trying to check off before leaving Washington, D.C., for a break until September. Because of the schedule and outlying variables, he couldn’t guarantee that Blanche’s confirmation would get done before September. “Ideally, we’d like to get him done, and particularly if he comes out, which looks like he now will, affirmatively out of the committee,” Thune said. “Then I’d like to figure out a way, a path forward to get him done.”
Bomb-thrower Dem makes shocking promise to kick Schumer to curb during Senate debate
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., could be facing headwinds in his quest for power even if Democrats win back Congress’ upper chamber in November. Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., who is running in a heated primary against incumbent Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., said during a debate Monday night that he would not support Schumer as leader if elected. “The first vote that I take when I get to the United States Senate will be for not Senator Schumer, because we need new leadership at the top as well,” Moulton said. MASSACHUSETTS SENATE CANDIDATES TRADE SHARP ATTACKS IN FIERY DEBATE AS INCUMBENT MARKEY SKIPS EVENT He was alluding to the selection of each party’s leadership ranks, which generally comes after the November election. Markey also did not explicitly endorse Schumer for leader, but he has supported him in the past. Markey’s campaign directed Fox News Digital to the senator’s comments during the debate when asked about his support for Schumer. “We need a big debate about new leadership in the Senate – the direction of the Senate,” Markey said. It’s a notable move for both Democrats to distance themselves from the current party leader, as the primary for Massachusetts’ Senate seat has been marked by bitter accusations on both sides. Moulton has accused Markey of selling out his beliefs by taking money from fossil fuel groups, and slammed the 80-year-old senator for his age and lengthy tenure in Congress. Meanwhile, Markey has attacked Moulton for investing in defense companies that the House committees he sits on have jurisdiction over, and his prior comments on transgender participation in youth sports. The Salem-area House Democrat has a notable history of challenging his party’s leadership. In 2018, he led a rebellion within his caucus to challenge former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., from keeping her leadership post. He said in a 2019 HuffPost interview that Democratic leadership was “failing” in standing up to President Donald Trump and accused leaders of fueling divisions within the caucus. Now that fight is playing out in deep blue Massachusetts as part of a wider national war within the Democratic Party. Younger candidates are challenging the establishment left in races across the U.S., arguing that the status quo is not working for Americans today. HOUSE PROGRESSIVES REVIVE GREEN NEW DEAL FOR PUBLIC SCHOOLS AS DEM CIVIL WAR EMPOWERS FAR LEFT “If you think the Democratic establishment is winning for Massachusetts, if you think it’s fine that the Democratic establishment has allowed a second term of Donald Trump, then vote for the status quo,” Moulton said during the debate. Schumer is not up for re-election until 2028, but he must face his fellow Senate Democrats every two years in the internal leadership race to make a case for why he should stay at the helm. And younger candidates like Moulton could pose issues for him on that front. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., who at 53 years old is younger than a significant number of his colleagues, was evasive when asked if Schumer should remain in leadership during an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union” in March. SCHUMER DODGES QUESTION ON WHETHER DSA BELONGS IN DEMOCRATIC PARTY “Well, I think we are united right now as a caucus. There’s always a lot of focus on Senator Schumer and [House Minority] Leader Jeffries,” Murphy said when asked if he supported Schumer, who he said had a “tough job.” Abdul El-Sayed, a Democratic socialist running in the Michigan Senate primary against an opponent backed by the New York Democrat, said at a recent rally, “If you’re Chuck Schumer, I’m pretty damn dangerous.” SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER And Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., has also called on Schumer to step aside and make way for new leadership. Fox News Digital reached out to Schumer’s office and Markey’s campaign for comment on Moulton’s remarks.