Former UK ambassador to US released on bail after arrest in Epstein misconduct investigation
Peter Mandelson, the former U.K. ambassador to the United States, has been released on bail pending additional investigation after he was arrested in a misconduct probe stemming from his ties to the late Jeffrey Epstein. “A 72-year-old man arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office has been released on bail pending further investigation. He was arrested at an address in Camden on Monday, 23 February and was taken to a London police station for interview. This follows search warrants at two addresses in the Wiltshire and Camden areas,” a Metropolitan Police spokesperson noted. Mandelson and former Prince Andrew are suspected of supplying U.K. government information to Epstein, according to The Associated Press. FORMER UK AMBASSADOR TO US ARRESTED ON SUSPICION OF MISCONDUCT IN PUBLIC OFFICE Mandelson served in senior government roles under previous Labor governments and was U.K. ambassador to Washington until Prime Minister Keir Starmer fired him in September after emails were published showing that he maintained a friendship with Epstein after the financier’s 2008 conviction for sex offenses involving a minor. Messages indicate that Mandelson provided Epstein with government information in 2009 while serving as a senior British government minister, according to the outlet. UK GOVERNMENT TO UNSEAL FORMER AMBASSADOR MANDELSON DOCUMENTS TIED TO JEFFREY EPSTEIN PROBE Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested last week on suspicion of misconduct in public office. “I have learned with the deepest concern the news about Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and suspicion of misconduct in public office. What now follows is the full, fair and proper process by which this issue is investigated in the appropriate manner and by the appropriate authorities. In this, as I have said before, they have our full and wholehearted support and co-operation,” Mountbatten-Windsor’s brother, King Charles III, said in a statement after the arrest last week. FORMER PRINCE ANDREW CHARGED TAXPAYERS FOR MASSAGES WHILE SPLURGING ON LAVISH TRIPS AS TRADE ENVOY: REPORT CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Thames Valley Police later revealed Mountbatten-Windsor had been released, but the investigation remains ongoing. The Associated Press contributed to this report
France restricts Trump ambassador’s access to officials after missed summons
France has restricted U.S. Ambassador Charles Kushner’s access to senior government officials after he failed to attend a summons from the French Foreign Ministry over comments regarding the death of a French activist. Speaking Tuesday in an interview with public broadcaster France Info, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said Kushner’s decision not to appear at the Quai d’Orsay “will naturally affect his ability to carry out his mission in our country,” and demanded “explanations” from the ambassador. Barrot described the no-show as a “surprise,” saying that when an ambassador has “the honor of representing your country in France,” they are expected to “respect the most basic practices of diplomacy” and respond to summons from the ministry. The diplomatic dispute stems from social media posts by official U.S. government accounts following the death of Quentin Deranque, a 23-year-old activist who was killed in Lyon earlier this month. WITKOFF AND KUSHNER SCHEDULED TO MEET PUTIN IN MOSCOW The Associated Press reported that Deranque, described as a fervent nationalist, was beaten during clashes between far-left and far-right activists and later died of brain injuries sustained in the attack. “Reports, corroborated by the French Minister of the Interior, that Quentin Deranque was killed by left-wing militants, should concern us all. Violent radical leftism is on the rise and its role in Quentin Deranque’s death demonstrates the threat it poses to public safety,” the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Counterterrorism said in a Feb. 19 post on X. “We will continue to monitor the situation and expect to see the perpetrators of violence brought to justice.” The U.S. Embassy in France later shared the statement on its official account. FOREIGN AMBASSADOR TO LEAVE US POST AFTER TRUMP CRITICISM Barrot said the remarks amounted to an “injunction” toward France and rejected what he characterized as foreign interference in the country’s domestic political debate. “We have no lessons to learn in matters of maintaining order or public order in matters of violence and we have no lessons to learn at all from the reactionary international, simply,” he told France Info. The State Department did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. FRANCE TO DEPORT PALESTINIAN WOMAN OVER ANTISEMITIC POST FEATURING HITLER, HALTS GAZA EVACUATIONS Barrot said Kushner could regain access to French officials if he provides clarification to the ministry, stressing that the dispute would not alter broader relations between France and the United States. He noted the two countries are preparing to mark the 250th anniversary of their historic alliance this year and expressed hope that cooperation would continue “in this spirit.”
Speechwriters from Reagan to Biden agree: Trump’s SOTU is a critical test for his second term
Former White House speechwriters from both parties say President Donald Trump must decide whether to double down on the rally-style politics that powered his campaign or broaden his message to unify a divided country around his governing agenda in his State of the Union address Tuesday night. As Trump prepares to speak to the nation and the world, a majority of Americans think the country is worse off today than it was a year ago, according to a recent Fox News survey. The challenge he faces Tuesday night is to persuade skeptical voters that his economic policies are bringing costs down, that tougher immigration enforcement is making the country safer and that he has a disciplined, forward-looking plan for the years ahead — a message that could shape Republicans’ prospects as they head into the 2026 midterm elections with narrow majorities in Congress. Clark Judge, a speechwriter for President Ronald Reagan and now chairman of the Pacific Research Institute, told Fox News Digital that Trump should address America’s position in the world. “Threats to the country and to the economy were growing,” Judge said. “Now, in area after area, those threats have been confronted and defeated.” WATCH: TOP 5 MOST MEMORABLE MOMENTS IN AMERICAN STATE OF THE UNION HISTORY Judge said Reagan’s strength was clarity. People “knew where he would come down. One advantage of working with him was that he had been so clear throughout his career on what he was for,” he said. There are lessons from Reagan that Judge suggested Trump should take to heart. “Know the president, know the administration, know the public — where is the public at any one moment?” “Where are the Democrats? What are they trying to do — and how do we disarm their arguments?” he said. The balance needed in a State of the Union is finding a “middle ground” between the president’s Cabinet fighting for their mentions and “trying to create big, thematic connections,” former Jimmy Carter presidential speechwriter James Fallows told Fox News Digital. Fallows, the Georgia Democrat’s chief speechwriter during his first two years in office, has since been a book, magazine and Substack writer. He said Trump’s challenge, both now and in his previous addresses, is to unite the country around his agenda, not just please his supporters. Trump’s preferred rhetorical style is a rally-style approach — “where he can digress and weave” and create “us versus them” scenarios to rile the audience,” he said, adding that a State of the Union address requires the opposite. MIKE JOHNSON REVEALS SPECIAL GUESTS FOR TRUMP’S STATE OF THE UNION Former Joe Biden speechwriter Dan Cluchey expressed skepticism that Trump would be able to rise to the occasion. “President Biden has a deep reverence for both the constitutional role of Congress and the dignity of the presidential office, so he approached the State of the Union as an opportunity to rise above the fray and bring Americans together,” Cluchey said, pointing to what the Delawarean considered the “Unity Agenda” laid out in his 2022 address. When asked what could surprise him about Trump’s Tuesday address, Fallows said sticking to his script would be a novelty. “[Also,] given what the next day’s news will describe as a ‘big tent speech’” à la Reagan, the Carter speechwriter said. Former George W. Bush speechwriter and current Wall Street Journal editorial board member Bill McGurn said presidents do tend to differ, sometimes greatly, from each other in style, contrasting the president with his former boss. “George W. Bush was very driven by logic — the speech had a flow and had a logic that was coherent.” “He’d always say, ‘make it so Bubba would understand what that meant’ — don’t dumb it down; but make it so an intelligent person listening can get the idea of what you’re about.” Trump, he said, will likely repeat what many presidents often say, that “the State of the Union is strong.” “Even if it is a laundry list, there’s ways to make it more compelling if you find a unifying thread to it.” Fallows told Fox News Digital there are many “structural challenges” for any president and his team crafting a State of the Union. “So much to cover and only so much time you can hold the attention of even a captive audience.” Fallows, who now writes “Breaking the News” on Substack, said the SOTU is a rare moment for a president to address the nation as a whole, not just partisan supporters. BILL MAHER CALLS FOR COMPLETE END TO STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS AHEAD OF TRUMP SPEECH McGurn agreed. “For all the grandiosity and the important things they cover, they’re usually not remembered,” he said, noting how many more Americans remember Bush’s 9/11 speech or his brief address through a bullhorn atop the rubble of the Twin Towers. “A dirty little secret is most speech artists hate the State of the Union for the laundry list kind of thing,” he added. Sometimes, a State of the Union may not be remembered itself, but it may lead to something much more memorable. Judge recalled drafting Reagan’s 1988 address, thinking “this is technical and dull — what I need is an image.” Settling on the phrase, “1,000 sparks of genius in a 1,000 communities,” the line went viral in then-fledgling “dial” polling — to the extent that Reagan’s protégé, the future President George H.W. Bush, borrowed the line for his “Thousand Points of Light” speech, Judge said. JOHNSON PRAISES TRUMP’S ‘BOLD ACTION’ IN FORMAL STATE OF THE UNION INVITATION LETTER TO CONGRESS While the public may not remember everything from every SOTU, the speechwriters collectively said there are parts they still recall today. Cluchey said his best memories are of Biden choosing to share stories of everyday Americans he helped, “in order to illustrate the impact of his policies.” In other cases, there are times the world takes notice. Working with Reagan near the end of his successful bid to stifle the Cold War,
State Dept slammed with hundreds of calls from Americans trapped in Mexico
The State Department has received hundreds of calls on its 24/7 crisis hotline as Americans in Mexico scramble to find ways home amid escalating chaos following the killing of a top cartel leader. The calls have been mostly pertaining to flight cancellations and concerns about travel back to the U.S., Fox News has learned. Violence erupted in Mexico after a Feb. 22 government operation in which Jalisco New Generation cartel leader Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes was killed. The cartel leader was killed during a shootout inside his home as the Mexican military attempted to capture him. The operation was carried out by Mexican forces with U.S. intelligence support. MEXICO VIOLENCE SEES DOZENS OF MILITARY TROOPS, CRIMINALS DEAD AFTER CARTEL LEADER ‘EL MENCHO’ KILLED Mexico Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch said the 25 Mexican National Guard troops in Jalisco were killed in six separate attacks following the killing of El Mencho. He also said some 30 criminal suspects were killed in Jalisco and four others were killed in Michoacan. Additionally, García Harfuch said that a prison guard, an agent from the state prosecutor’s office and a woman whom he did not identify were also killed. The State Department’s travel advisory for Mexico, which was issued in August 2025, has since been updated regarding areas of risk. The Mexican states of Colima, Guerrero, Michoacan, Sinaloa, Tamaulipas and Zacatecas are under a “Level 4: Do Not Travel” advisory. Meanwhile, the states under a “Level 3: Reconsider Travel” advisory are Baja California, Chiapas, Chihuahua, Guanajuato, Jalisco, Morelos and Sonora. MAJOR DRUG LORD ‘EL MENCHO’ KILLED IN MEXICAN MILITARY OPERATION WITH US INTELLIGENCE SUPPORT Americans in Mexico who need consular assistance are advised to call the State Department’s Bureau of Consular Affairs at +1-202-501-4444 from outside the U.S. or +1-888-407-4747 from within the U.S. or Canada. Additionally, the department has recommended U.S. citizens enroll in the online Smart Traveler Enrollment Program or follow the “U.S. Department of State – Security Updates for U.S. Citizens” WhatsApp channel for safety and security updates. The Smart Traveler Enrollment Program, also known as STEP, allows the U.S. embassy or consulate to contact travelers or their emergency contact if necessary. On Tuesday, the U.S. Embassy and Consulates in Mexico issued an updated security alert for Jalisco State, including Puerto Vallarta, Chapala and Guadalajara, and Nayarit State, including the Nuevo Nayarit/Nuevo Vallarta area near Puerto Vallarta. The embassy and consulates said in the joint alert that due to road blockages and criminal activity, U.S. government staffers in several locations — including Guadalajara (Jalisco), Puerto Vallarta (Jalisco/Nayarit), and Ciudad Guzman (Jalisco) — are sheltering in place. The government entities said the workers would remain sheltered in place until blockades are cleared and called on U.S. citizens to follow suit. While the State Department hotline has been flooded with calls regarding flight cancellations, the embassy and consulates noted that “all airports in Mexico are open, and most airports are operating normally.” The entities noted that travelers whose flights to the U.S. had been canceled could be able to book a connecting flight through another Mexican city, as not all airports were impacted by the disruptions. Fox News Digital’s Stephen Sorace contributed to this report.
Where Trump stands in the eyes of Americans ahead of the State of the Union address
President Donald Trump, taking to social media earlier this month, touted, “The highest Poll Numbers I have ever received.” “Obviously, people like a strong and powerful Country, with the best economy, EVER!” the president added in a post on his Truth Social platform. But on the day of his annual State of the Union Address, Trump’s poll numbers remain in negative territory in the vast majority of national surveys. The president’s approval rating stands at 44% in the latest Fox News national poll, which was conducted late last month, with 56% disapproving of the job he’s doing in the White House. STRATEGY SESSION: TRUMP’S TEAM HUDDLES OVER MIDTERM MESSAGING And he stood at 39% approval among all adults and 41% among registered voters in an ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos survey conducted Feb 12-17 and released on Sunday. An average of the most recent surveys conducted over the past four weeks puts Trump’s approval ratings in the low 40s, with disapproval in the mid-50s. Trump started his second term in positive territory, but his approval ratings sank below water last March and have slowly edged down deeper into negative territory in the ensuing months. The latest surveys point to a massive partisan divide, with continued strong support for the president among Republicans, a thumbs down among independents and near total disapproval among Democrats. FOX NEWS POLL: AN EARLY LOOK AT THE 2026 MIDTERMS “Support among Republicans has remained in place, but the opposition has become even more calcified,” veteran Republican pollster Daron Shaw told Fox News Digital, as he pointed to Democrats. Deep concerns over inflation boosted Trump and Republicans to sweeping victories at the ballot box in 2024, as they won back the White House and Senate and kept their House majority. “We had record inflation. We don’t have it anymore,” Trump said at a campaign event last week in Rome, Georgia. “I’m going to make a State of the Union address on Tuesday. I hope you’re going to watch and we’re going to be talking about it.” But the president’s approval ratings on the economy are, on average, slightly lower than his overall approval ratings. DNC CHAIR KEN MARTIN BOASTS ‘WIN AFTER WIN,’ SHRUGS OFF MASSIVE TRUMP, REPUBLICAN MONEY LEAD And Democrats say their decisive victories in November’s 2025 elections, and their overperformances in special elections and other ballot box showdowns in the year since Trump returned to office, were fueled by their laser focus on affordability amid persistent inflation. A slew of surveys, including the latest Fox News polling, indicate Americans are pessimistic about the economy and say things have not generally improved during the second Trump administration. “He can’t unstick the notion that inflation is too high and that the economy is not moving in the right direction,” added Shaw, who helps run the Fox News Poll with Democrat Chris Anderson. But Democrats don’t have much to brag about when it comes to the polls. The party’s brand dropped to historic lows last year in a slew of polls, with the trend continuing into the new year. The president’s primetime address in front of Congress comes with just over eight months to go until the midterm elections, when Republicans will be defending their razor-thin majority in the House and their narrow control of the Senate. Last week, the president’s political team huddled in a closed-door strategy session with Trump administration Cabinet members and their top aides on how best to sell the president’s agenda to voters in this year’s midterm elections. TRUMP CHEERS STEADY INFLATION NUMBERS AS AFFORDABILITY FIGHT SHAPES 2026 MIDTERM BATTLE According to sources familiar with the meeting, the message during a slide presentation by chief pollster and strategist Tony Fabrizio was that the economy will be the top issue on the minds of voters, and that the White House needs to spotlight its efforts on easing affordability. “Team Trump will deploy every resource necessary to win the midterms, protect our majorities, and ensure President Trump keeps delivering results for America’s working families,” a source in the president’s political orbit told Fox News Digital. Regardless of Trump’s overall approval ratings, he remains very popular and influential with Republicans. And in what may be a base election, the GOP sees the president as their best tool to motivate low-propensity MAGA voters, who don’t always vote when Trump’s not on the ballot, to show up at the polls during the midterms. Republican National Committee Chair Joe Gruters told Fox News Digital last month that Trump was the GOP’s “secret weapon” that will help Republicans “defy history” in the midterms. “We got to make sure we turn our voters out, and we got to make sure that we have people energized. And there’s nobody that can energize our base more than President Trump,” Gruters said.
California allocating $35M to support illegal immigrants amid Trump’s mass deportation agenda
California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the allocation of $35 million in state funding to support illegal immigrants as the Trump administration carries out its massive deportation agenda. Newsom’s office is releasing the money that the legislature set aside in the state budget to help philanthropic partners support immigrant families with food assistance and other resources, according to a press release. These funds are on top of funds the state already allocated to provide legal resources to those facing deportation. “While the federal government targets hardworking families, California stands with them – uniting partners and funding local communities to help support their neighbors,” Newsom said in the release. “The urgent need grows as the Trump Administration accelerates mass detention, tramples due process, and funds authoritarian enforcement with over $170 billion. As the Trump Administration chooses cruelty and chaos, California chooses community.” DOJ SUES NEWSOM OVER CALIFORNIA MEASURE GIVING ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS COLLEGE TUITION BENEFITS A spokesperson for Newsom said he has been speaking with immigrant families and community leaders about the federal government’s immigration crackdown. “People are afraid to leave their homes, afraid to go to school or work, and unable to afford groceries,” the spokesperson told CalMatters. California allocated the money despite significant budget constraints, as Newsom’s office anticipates a $2.9 billion deficit in the coming budget year, according to CalMatters. The state also limited health care for illegal immigrants this year to help make up for a larger deficit last year. “When federal actions create fear and instability, our responsibility is to show up for families. This investment strengthens local partners who are helping people access legal services and meet basic needs during an incredibly difficult moment,” Kim Johnson, secretary of the California Health and Human Services Agency, said in the release. Democrat state Sen. Lena Gonzalez, chair of the California Latino Legislative Caucus, said the funding shows her party will “continue to stand in solidarity with our immigrant families.” TRUMP TO CUT FEDERAL PAYMENTS TO SANCTUARY CITIES STARTING FEB. 1 OVER IMMIGRATION POLICIES “The federal government is waging a war on our communities – and we won’t stand for it,” Gonzalez said. “We are putting money behind an effort to stop the fear, stop the separation of our families and stop violating our basic rights.” Assemblymember Carl DeMaio, a Republican, blasted the funding as “absurd.” “If you were audited by the IRS and found to owe money and back taxes, as a citizen, you couldn’t say, ‘Well, I want a free lawyer to fight the federal government,’” DeMaio told CalMatters. President Donald Trump campaigned on a major immigration crackdown and has since followed through with that promise through mass deportations. In June, Trump signed a budget bill that included $170 billion for immigration enforcement, detention and deportation, an investment that aims to remove up to 1 million immigrants from the U.S. per year over four years. FEDERAL OFFICIALS TO HALT MORE THAN $10B IN FUNDING TO 5 STATES OVER NON-CITIZEN BENEFIT CONCERNS: REPORT California state funds set aside for immigration legal services prevent money from being used to help people with serious or violent felony convictions fight against deportations, CalMatters reported. California laws do not block state corrections staff from moving illegal immigrants who have been convicted of serious or violent felonies to Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody. “California will never be silent in the face of Trump’s cruel and unlawful immigration raids. We will meet fear and intimidation with courage and action,” Speaker of the Assembly Robert Rivas, a Democrat, said in the release.
House Dem compares Trump’s illegal immigration crackdown to ‘terrorism,’ vows to abolish ICE
Rep. Maxine Dexter, D-Ore., compared U.S. enforcement of immigration law to “terrorism” during a Saturday town hall and promised to dismantle the chief U.S. immigration enforcement agency if Democrats regained power. “The frank terrorism that is being invoked – when we call that out and stand together, I think people will continue to not want to do that work,” Dexter told an audience at Wy’east Middle School in Oregon. “I’m not supposed to get political, but if there’s a change in political will, then we can absolutely dismantle and abolish ICE altogether,” Dexter said, referring to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Dexter, a freshman progressive lawmaker, is one of many Democrats who have called for reforms to the agency in the wake of public unrest in Minnesota over President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown. JEFFRIES CLASHES WITH LEFT-WING PODCAST HOST OVER DEMAND TO LEAD PUSH TO ‘ABOLISH ICE’ When two civilians in Minneapolis were shot and killed in separate confrontations with immigration officials in January, Dexter was among the first lawmakers who promised to vote against any spending legislation for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that didn’t also include major reforms to ICE, which operates under DHS. Although the vast majority of Democrats eventually adopted Dexter’s stance over DHS funding, the idea first began as a position held by the Congressional Progressive Caucus and was championed by members like Reps. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., and Ilhan Omar, D-Minn. PROGRESSIVE DEM JASMINE CROCKETT TARGETS TRUMP DEPORTATION FLIGHTS WITH NEW ‘TRACK ICE’ BILL Gridlock over DHS funding has led to a partial government shutdown which began on Feb. 14, when Democrats in the Senate also refused to advance DHS funding over a set of 10 reforms to ICE. Among those demands, Democrats want to impose new operational limits to the agency, such as an end to roaming patrols, a ban on masks, a requirement for visible identification and stiffer warrant requirements for detaining illegal aliens in public. Those changes would represent the most direct intervention into the agency’s operation since its creation in 2003. Republicans have rebuffed those demands, arguing they would severely limit the administration’s immigration goals. Dexter’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday about the nature of her comments — including whether she had made a campaign promise at a town hall or who had funded the event.
Abbott surges Texas troopers to border after cartel kingpin’s killing sparks violence in Mexico
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced he is surging state troopers to the border and across the state to enhance public safety operations following a spike in cartel violence after the killing of kingpin “El Mencho” over the weekend. On Monday, Abbott, a Republican, directed the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) to “enhance public safety and homeland security operations” across Texas. He said the surge is in response to escalating cartel violence in Mexico that he believes poses a growing threat to American civilians. “Mexican drug cartels pose a significant threat to public safety and national security,” said Abbott. “By increasing proactive efforts to defend against cartel violence, Texas will continue to utilize every tool and strategy to protect our state and our nation.” He vowed that in the face of increased cartel violence, “We will not cower to criminals who impose terror on our fellow Texans and Americans.” TRUMP’S ‘TOTAL ELIMINATION’ STRATEGY PAVED WAY FOR FALL OF CARTEL KINGPIN ‘EL MENCHO’ At the governor’s direction, the state is surging Texas Highway Patrol, Texas Rangers, Criminal Investigations Division, and Special Operations Group resources to the border region to “detect, interdict, and apprehend criminals, and to prevent spillover activity from transnational threats.” Texas is also increasing its Tactical Marine Unit and Aircraft Operations Division presence along the border to detect and apprehend criminals. Further, Texas is activating additional personnel from its Homeland Security Division and Texas Fusion Center to monitor social media and reports of suspicious activity 24/7. This comes as cartel violence that erupted across Mexico left 25 Mexican National Guard troops and more than two dozen criminal suspects among the dead following the killing of Jalisco New Generation (CJNG) cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, who was also known as “El Mencho.” The cartel reacted to its leader’s death with violence across Mexico, placing roadblocks and setting vehicles on fire throughout Sunday. CRUZ WARNED MEXICO OFFICIALS ‘PRESIDENT TRUMP WAS GOING TO’ ACT IF THEY DIDN’T FIGHT CARTELS Multiple American tourists vacationing in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, also told Fox News Digital they unexpectedly found themselves in the middle of a violent cartel retaliation. As airlines canceled flights and authorities issued shelter-in-place orders, stranded visitors reported cars set ablaze, suspected cartel members blocking major roads, and stores ransacked by looters — scenes some witnesses said made parts of the popular resort city feel like “a war breaking out in the streets.” Witnesses said they were forced to evacuate their rooms, manage with limited hotel food, and even venture outside in search of meals while waiting for Mexican authorities to regain control of the city. Staying at an Airbnb near a main road, Eugene Marchenko, 37, of Charleston, South Carolina, told Fox News Digital he woke up to blaring horns and saw six cars completely engulfed in flames just outside his balcony. He and his wife, who had arrived in Mexico only a day earlier, were forced to evacuate for several hours, fearing that a nearby fuel tanker, also ablaze, could explode. EX-NAVY SEAL PUTS ‘DERANGED’ MEXICAN DRUG CARTEL ON NOTICE AFTER VIOLENT WEEKEND: ‘MORE LIKE ISIS’ Abbott urged Texans in need of immediate assistance to call the U.S. Department of State or the Texas Fusion Center, the state’s primary tactical intelligence hub. He said the state is “closely coordinating” with the State Department and FBI as the situation unfolds.
Social media erupts after Stephen King makes false claim about Trump’s family: ‘What is this sh–?’
Horror author Stephen King is facing backlash online Monday for a post tearing into President Donald Trump’s personal life, including a line claiming that Trump has no children. “Trump: has never had a child. Has been married 3 times. Ran several businesses into the ground. Never ran a home, couldn’t make a bed to save his a–. Calls people he works with dumb, losers, ect. Has never done sweat labor. Has never served on a local committee,” King said in a post to X. “[He] has no life experience,” King added. The post immediately began drawing criticism from accounts like Libs of TikTok. TRUMP TEARS INTO ‘AVERAGE GUY’ GEORGE CLOONEY WHO ‘COMPLAINED, CONSTANTLY, ABOUT COMMON SENSE IN POLITICS’ “Trump literally has 5 kids. What is this sh–?” Libs of TikTok posted on X. “Um… I’m pretty sure Donald Trump had children,” 1776 Project PAC founder Ryan Girdusky posted on X. “Is there a 25th Amendment for taking peoples’ phones away?” Conservative writer Bonchie wrote on X. “Donald Trump, famously childless,” conservative reporter Jerry Dunleavy jokingly wrote on X. King’s comments come as Trump, who is the father of five children and is in his second presidential term, is set to address the country on Tuesday evening in the 2026 State of the Union, a report to Congress on the administration’s work. King’s remarks mirror similar social media comments made about Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., a prominent progressive member of the House of Representatives, on Saturday. In a tweet put up by an account called “Stacy is Right,” a self-described MAGA mother of three, the author similarly disparaged elements of Ocasio-Cortez’s life and background. That post also mocks the Democrat for a lack of children, having never been married, never having run a business and never having had a “professional job.” AOC BLAMES CRITICS, TRUMP AFTER MUNICH HICCUP BACKLASH “[She] has no real life experience. Is a typical deadbeat socialist,” Stacy is Right said in her post. King reshared that post before putting up his own remarks about Trump. “You literally plagiarized an entire post…which was about AOC… and then applied it to Trump…… for whom it isn’t true and doesn’t make any sense. Why are you plagiarizing? I thought you were a writer?” Matt Van Swol, a former Department of Energy nuclear scientist, posted on X. Monday’s post isn’t the first time King has taken to X to vent his political views. Since Trump’s second term, King has used similar language to describe the president and his policies. NANCY PELOSI SWIPES AT TRUMP, ACCUSING HIM OF CROWNING HIMSELF AS ‘KING’ “Just wanted to say that Trump is a traitorous, Putin-loving dipsh–! Goes double for Elon!” King said in a post in February 2025. Earlier this year, King took to social media to compare ICE to Nazi Germany’s Gestapo. “ICE is the American Gestapo,” King wrote, referring to the secret state police in Germany. “Trump is ruining the economy with his stupid tariffs,” King said in another instance in April. King’s office did not respond to a request for comment on the message behind his post.
Former Secret Service officials warn of low-tech threats facing Trump after latest Mar-a-Lago breach
A deadly confrontation at Mar-a-Lago, Florida, Sunday is the latest in a string of high-profile security incidents threatening President Donald Trump, as former Secret Service officials warn that low-tech, lone actors now pose one of the toughest challenges to presidential protection. “It should be quite clear to all of us by now that Trump is the most threatened president in the history of the U.S.,” former Secret Service agent William “Bill” Gage told Fox News Digital Monday, pointing to multiple high-profile incidents in recent years. Unlike past presidencies, where threat levels often subsided over time, Gage said, “the longer he’s president, the more these attacks keep happening.” Gage said the most difficult cases to prevent are often the least sophisticated. The recent incidents, he noted, were “super low-tech attacks by people with zero training,” using rudimentary weapons. “If you were standing behind them in line at Starbucks, you wouldn’t have given them a second look,” he said. Gage said the threat landscape shifted over the course of his 12-year career as a Secret Service agent. When he joined the Secret Service in 2002, he said the agency was moving away from what he described as the traditional “lone gunman” model — figures like Lee Harvey Oswald, who assassinated John F. Kennedy, or international militants such as “Carlos the Jackal,” one of the world’s most wanted terrorists in the ‘70s and ’80s — and adapting to a post-9/11 world focused on coordinated terrorist networks like al Qaeda and later ISIS. ARMED MAN SHOT AND KILLED AFTER ‘UNAUTHORIZED ENTRY’ INTO MAR-A-LAGO: SECRET SERVICE “But if you look at Butler and the two incidents at Mar-a-Lago, those were super low-tech attacks,” Gage said. “The low-tech actors are the ones that tend to slip through the cracks.” He also warned of a potential copycat effect when details of such incidents become public. “If it were up to the Secret Service, they would never report any of these incidents ever,” Gage said, arguing that widespread coverage allows others to “study what happened” and attempt to refine it. In today’s hyperconnected political climate, he said, that dynamic adds another layer of complexity for agents trying to stop the next threat before it materializes. In the early hours of Sunday, a 21-year-old man identified as Austin Tucker Martin of North Carolina was shot and killed by U.S. Secret Service agents and a local sheriff’s deputy after entering the secure perimeter of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida. Authorities say Martin drove through the north gate carrying a shotgun and a gasoline can. After being ordered to drop both, he dropped the can but raised the shotgun toward officers, who fired and killed him at the scene. Trump and First lady Melania Trump were in Washington at the time. The incident marked the third highly publicized security encounter involving Trump in less than two years. In July 2024, a gunman opened fire at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, grazing Trump’s ear and killing an attendee before being shot by a Secret Service sniper. In September 2024, a man armed with a rifle was confronted by agents near Trump’s golf course while he was playing; that suspect was later convicted on attempted assassination charges. While the incidents have drawn intense attention, former senior special agent Don Mihalek said the latest Mar-a-Lago intrusion does not necessarily signal a breakdown in protective systems. “He got through an exterior gate of an active club,” Mihalek told Fox News Digital. “This wasn’t someone reaching the president’s residence.” Agents confronted the suspect within seconds, he said, describing the rapid response as evidence that overlapping security layers functioned as designed. Mihalek said presidential protection relies on multiple rings of security because outer perimeters at properties like Mar-a-Lago cannot be sealed in the same way as the White House. “If he ended up in the president’s house on Mar-a-Lago, that might be a different conversation,” he said. He also cautioned against viewing recent incidents in isolation, noting that presidents routinely face roughly 2,000 threats per year, most of which are mitigated before the public ever becomes aware of them. “These just happen to be very public instances,” Mihalek said, arguing that the social media era amplifies perceptions of escalation. GUNFIRE, ARSON AND VANDALISM: TRACKING POLITICAL VIOLENCE IN AMERICA Mihalek pointed to the 2024 rally shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania, as an example of how early intervention can be decisive, noting that local law enforcement had reportedly identified the suspect prior to the attack. “If somebody had walked up and said, ‘Hey, who are you?’ we wouldn’t be talking about Butler,” he said. As Trump prepares to address Congress at the State of the Union, both former officials said the security posture at the Capitol is unlikely to change in response to the weekend incident. The annual address is designated a National Special Security Event — the highest level of federal security planning — triggering coordination among the Secret Service, U.S. Capitol Police, FBI, War Department and other agencies. The designation allows for expanded perimeter controls, airspace restrictions and continuity-of-government planning. Gage, who previously led advance planning for State of the Union addresses, said the event operates under a well-established security “blueprint” built to account for worst-case scenarios. “There’s really no way to increase it anymore,” he said. Both former officials said the defining challenge for presidential protection today is unpredictability: individuals with minimal training, rudimentary weapons and the ability to find reinforcement online. Unlike organized extremist networks, such actors may leave few detectable signals before acting.