Blackburn demands investigation into Justice Jackson over Grammy appearance applauding anti-ICE rhetoric
Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., is urging U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts to launch an investigation into Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson over her attendance at the Grammy Awards on Sunday amid anti-ICE rhetoric from celebrities and artists at the event. Jackson was in attendance at this year’s politically-charged event because of her nomination for narrating the audiobook version of her memoir, “Lovely One.” However, critics said Jackson clapped as various speakers criticized U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). CRUZ DEMANDS IMPEACHMENT OF BOASBERG AND JUDGE WHO SENTENCED KAVANAUGH’S ATTEMPTED ASSASSIN “While it is by no means unheard of or unusual for a Supreme Court justice to attend a public function, very rarely—if ever—have justices of our nation’s highest Court been present at an event at which attendees have amplified such far-left rhetoric,” Blackburn wrote in a letter to Roberts. Blackburn, who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee, called for an investigation into whether Jackson’s actions violate the high court’s Code of Conduct and would require her to recuse herself from certain cases. “To that end, in the interest of a fair-minded, impartial, and independent federal judiciary, I urge you to initiate an investigation into Justice Jackson’s attendance at this event and if her participation in any way would require recusal from matters that will come before the Court,” her letter states. BARRETT SAYS JUSTICES ‘WEAR BLACK, NOT RED OR BLUE’ IN RESPONSE TO PARTISAN CRITICS IN FOX NEWS INTERVIEW Attendees at the awards were seen wearing “ICE Out” lapel pins, and some winners spewed anti-ICE rhetoric such as “No one is illegal on stolen land” and “F— ICE.” Jackson’s appearance at the event raises questions considering the court is slated to take on cases revolving around the Trump administration, including birthright citizenship and immigration. Fox News Digital has reached out to Blackburn’s office and the Supreme Court. In her letter, Blackburn noted that Democrats and the news media have smeared Republican-appointed justices to the court as “corrupt” and “partisan.” She recalled how Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Sheldon Whitehouse, D-RI., wrote a letter to Roberts urging him to ensure that conservative Justice Samuel Alito would recuse himself from cases related to the 2020 election and Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot because his wife put up a Revolutionary War-era flag at their home. “Unlike these meritless claims against Justice Alito and Justice Thomas, there are serious questions regarding Justice Jackson’s participation in such a brazenly political, anti-law enforcement event and her ability to remain an impartial member of the Supreme Court,” Blackburn wrote.
Trump jokes he ‘hangs around’ Mike Johnson because he feels ‘protected’ at Prayer Breakfast
President Donald Trump joked about House Speaker Mike Johnson’s religious devotion during remarks at the National Prayer Breakfast on Thursday, recounting how Johnson asks to pray before meals, even during lunch, as Trump described it. The 74th annual bipartisan event was held in Washington and attended by lawmakers, faith leaders and dignitaries. “Did you know that, Mr. Speaker, you know, Mike Johnson’s a very religious person, that he does not hide it?” Trump said. “He’ll say to me sometimes at lunch, ‘Sir, may we pray?’ I say, ‘Excuse me, we’re having lunch in the Oval.’ It’s okay with me. But, he’s a very religious person and he is popular, and he’s doing an unbelievable job.” Trump followed the joke with praise for Johnson, saying, “I think God is watching over you. God is watching over him.” EL SALVADOR’S BUKELE SAYS VIOLENT GANG BANGERS ARE LITERAL SATAN WORSHIPPERS IN SHARP IMMIGRATION WARNING “I don’t know about me,” Trump added, before continuing: “So I hang around with him because I feel I’m protected a little bit.” The comments came as Trump used the annual gathering, according to his remarks, to emphasize what he described as a renewed embrace of religion in public life. “In 2025, more copies of the Holy Bible were sold in the United States than at any time in the last 100 years,” Trump said. He also claimed that, in the last year, “young Americans attended church at nearly twice the rate as they did four years ago.” TRUMP GETS IT: PRAYER ISN’T THE PROBLEM. SILENCING IT IS Trump also announced plans for a national prayer gathering on the National Mall later this year. “I’m pleased to announce that on May 17th, 2026, that we’re inviting Americans from all across the country to come together on our National Mall, to pray, to give thanks, and to return,” Trump said. “We’re going to rededicate America as one nation under God.” Johnson, a Louisiana Republican and evangelical Christian, has frequently spoken publicly about the role of faith in his personal life and leadership since becoming speaker. “Today, President Trump will unite our country through the power of prayer at the 74th National Prayer Breakfast,” White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers told Fox News Digital leading up to the event. “President Trump has made unprecedented strides to protect our God-given rights and has delivered on his promise to reverse Joe Biden’s divisive policies that weaponized the federal government against men and women of faith. President Trump has secured major victories for religious freedom – from defending innocent life to restoring biological truth and protecting parents’ fundamental rights.” The office of House Speaker Mike Johnson and the White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. Fox News Digital’s Emma Colton contributed to this report.
White House says murder rate plummeted to lowest level since 1900 under Trump administration
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said murders in major U.S. cities plunged to their lowest level since at least 1900 as federal arrests, gang takedowns and deportations surged under President Donald Trump’s promise to “restore law and order.” Speaking to reporters at Thursday’s briefing, Leavitt said newly released data shows Trump is “delivering overwhelmingly on his promise.” “A study from the Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ) shows that the murder rate across America’s largest cities plummeted in 2025 to its lowest level since at least 1900,” she said. “Let me repeat to put this in perspective, this marks the largest single-year drop in murders in recorded history.” “This dramatic decline is what happens when a president secures the border, fully mobilizes federal law enforcement to arrest violent criminals and aggressively deport the worst of the worst illegal aliens from our country,” she added. LEAVITT SAYS TRUMP WILL NOT ‘WAVER’ ON ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION CRACKDOWN DESPITE DEMOCRATIC BACKLASH According to the CCJ’s report, nationwide homicide data released later this year could show killings in 2025 falling to roughly 4.0 per 100,000 residents – the lowest rate ever recorded in law enforcement or public health data dating back to 1900 and the largest single-year percentage drop on record. The report found homicides fell 21% from 2024 to 2025 in the 35 cities that reported data, amounting to 922 fewer killings. Thirty-one of those cities saw declines, with Denver, Washington, D.C., and Omaha, Nebraska, each posting drops of around 40%. Other major crimes also fell sharply in the cities studied. TRUMP SAYS CRIMINAL ILLEGAL ALIENS ‘MAKE HELLS ANGELS LOOK LIKE THE SWEETEST PEOPLE ON EARTH’ Robbery declined 23%, carjackings dropped 43% in cities that reported that data, aggravated assaults fell 9%, and motor vehicle theft decreased 27%. CCJ cautioned that its findings are based on a limited group of cities and preliminary police data that could change, and said the report documents crime trends rather than proving that any single policy caused the declines. “The numbers don’t lie,” Leavitt said. “Under President Trump in 2025, the FBI increased violent crime arrests by 100% compared to the prior year. The FBI also conducted more than 67,000 arrests from Inauguration Day 2025 to Jan. 20, 2026, which is 197% more arrests than the same period previously.” TRUMP SAYS IMMIGRATION CRACKDOWN NEEDS ‘SOFTER TOUCH’ WITH ‘TOUGH’ STANCE AFTER DEADLY MINNEAPOLIS SHOOTINGS She also highlighted a drop in crime in Washington, D.C., saying as of last week, homicides were down 62% and motor vehicle theft down 53%. Leavitt argued that the drop in crime is the direct result of Trump’s leadership and willingness to empower law enforcement, rejecting media skepticism and saying rising violence under Democratic leadership was the product of deliberate policy choices. “It’s a choice to put violent criminals ahead of innocent Americans, a choice to force us all to live in fear because of soft on crime, liberal politicians, prosecutors and judges who lack the basic willingness to do their jobs and put dangerous people behind bars,” Leavitt said.
Leavitt flips script on media for balking at Fulton election probe after years of promoting Russia claims
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt hit back at media outlets questioning the FBI’s seizure of ballots and other documents related to the 2020 election in Fulton County, Georgia, after years of the media claiming that Russia influenced the 2016 election. The FBI executed a search warrant in the Georgia county home to Atlanta in January, which included Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard deploying on the ground to carry out an election security assessment. Gabbard’s presence has sparked outrage and questions from Democrats and the media over what they characterize as an unusual, politicized show of force. “As the director of national intelligence, it is a part of Miss Gabbard’s role to make sure that American elections are free of foreign interference and that American elections are safe and secure,” Leavitt said of Gabbard’s presence in Fulton County. “And so the ODNI director is working with the FBI on this effort, and the president wholeheartedly supports both Kash Patel and Tulsi Gabbard in ensuring that American elections are safe, secure, and free of foreign intervention.” GEORGIA’S FULTON COUNTY FILES MOTION SEEKING RETURN OF 2020 ELECTION MATERIALS SEIZED BY FBI The reporter pushed back, “Is there any indication that there’s foreign influence?” Leavitt began taking another question before circling back to remind the reporter of the media’s focus on claims Russia influenced the 2016 presidential election, when President Donald Trump ran against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. PATEL DOUBLES DOWN ON FBI ELECTION HUB RAID, SAYS TRUMP CALLED AGENTS DIRECTLY TO THANK THEM FOR OPERATION “Excuse me one second. It’s the media who has said that there’s Russian interference in American elections. You guys have been saying that for many, many years,” Leavitt shot back. FULTON COUNTY, GEORGIA TO SUE AFTER FBI SEIZES 2020 ELECTION RECORDS “The people in this room, considering that you all, you all said for many years that Russia interfered in the 2016 election to help Donald Trump, you should all be very happy that we finally have an administration that is looking into that, and we’ll be happy to keep you posted,” she continued. Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into claims Trump’s 2016 campaign colluded with Russia to secure the election wrapped up in March 2019, determining there was no evidence of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia.
Tuberville warns mayor over anti-ICE activism: ‘You won’t like me very much’
Irondale Mayor James Stewart, Jr. cited Martin Luther King Jr. as justification for protecting illegal immigrants and pledged funds to train activists to track ICE agents. However, his actions may prompt federal blowback, as Alabama’s senior senator warned the mayor he “won’t like me very much” if he follows through. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala. — who is also running to succeed term-limited Gov. Kay Ivey this year — warned Stewart that the Democrat will have no such luck circumventing the feds. “When I’m governor, Alabama will have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to rogue mayors trying to go around federal law,” Tuberville, the ex-Auburn football coach, told Fox News Digital. “Like it or not, federal law says that illegal immigrants must be deported. If mayors don’t like that, they should run for Congress.” ANTI-ICE LEGISLATION HEADS TO DESK OF RISING STAR DEMOCRAT GOVERNOR, TESTING HIS PRESIDENTIAL AMBITIONS Fox News Digital reached out to Stewart’s office after he said in his February mayoral newsletter that “watching ICE operations tear families apart in Irondale highlights the urgent need to address immigration policies affecting our community, which brings me back to King’s final speech, the one where he said he’d seen the Promised Land but might not get there.” “I understand that now. This may be my last term. But I still have to do God’s will. Every single day. When Dr. King said, ‘I just want to do God’s will’ the night before they killed him, it brings me to tears. Because I know what that means now,” Stewart said. Stewart said ICE operations are “following the same pattern” King described in his letter from jail in Birmingham, adjacent to Irondale. Tuberville further took issue with reporting from Alabama news outlet 1819 News – so named for the state’s founding year – that Irondale has contracted with the Alabama Coalition for Immigrant Justice (ACIJ) to aid programs such as a “warning system to track [ICE] agents at the behest of the city’s mayor.” In that regard, Stewart said in his newsletter his King-inspired work is not done while “families who built this community are being hunted.” Days after Stewart’s newsletter publication, knife-wielding Mexican illegal immigrant Jose Ba-Ruiz was arrested and charged Monday by the Justice Department for assaulting an ICE agent in the Birmingham area. MINNEAPOLIS MAYOR AVOIDS QUESTION ON OPPOSING OBAMA-ERA IMMIGRATION POLICY NOW PUSHED BY TRUMP In comments to Fox News Digital, Ivey backed up Tuberville, saying Montgomery will always work with DHS: “Unlike Minnesota, in Alabama, we enforce the law,” Ivey said. “We are proud to work with ICE to do just that: Enforce the laws and protect our citizens from criminals and lawbreakers.” While Stewart did not respond to Fox News Digital by publication time, he told Fox’s Birmingham affiliate that Irondale is not a sanctuary city and will not hide criminals from the law, and then claimed he won’t actually interfere with ICE operations. “A lot of the things that we see now are the things that were going on 300 to 400 years ago,” he told the outlet. “We want to be a law-abiding city, but we also know our role.”
Feds shift to targeted immigration enforcement in Minneapolis under Homan
The Trump administration is shifting its approach to cracking down on illegal immigration in Minneapolis after federal agents’ actions drew scrutiny and sparked protests, sources told Fox News. Minneapolis has become a flash point for clashes between federal immigration enforcement agents and agitators, particularly after the shooting deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Local leaders slammed the Trump administration’s actions in Minneapolis, with Mayor Jacob Frey calling on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to “get the f— out” of his city after Good was fatally shot. Amid the unrest, President Donald Trump moved to change his administration’s approach and sent border czar Tom Homan to manage the situation. A White House official appeared to dismiss rumors of tension between Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem and Homan, saying that the two were working together to carry out the president’s agenda. HOMAN ANNOUNCES DRAWDOWN OF FEDERAL PRESENCE IN MINNESOTA, HAILS ‘UNPRECEDENTED COOPERATION’ FROM LOCAL POLICE “Thanks to Tom Homan’s tireless work, an unprecedented number of counties in Minnesota have agreed to coordinate with ICE to transfer custody of criminal aliens upon their release. This is one of the conditions President Trump set for a drawdown,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News Digital. “These commitments have been made by local officials and will continue to be monitored for compliance,” Not all of Homan’s changes have been kept behind closed doors. The border czar announced the immediate drawdown of 700 personnel from Minnesota, effective Wednesday, though 2,000 officers will remain. He cited improved cooperation with jails and said a complete drawdown was the goal, but it was “contingent upon the end of illegal and threatening activities against ICE.” MINNEAPOLIS MAYOR TO VISIT DC TO PUSH FOR END OF ‘UNLAWFUL ICE OPERATIONS’ AFTER TRUMP’S BLUNT WARNING Homan has reportedly changed how Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) operates and interacts with suspected illegal immigrants. The border czar has reportedly increased the threshold for making arrests and shifted entirely to targeted operations as opposed to rover patrols, which were done under Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino, according to sources. Under Homan’s leadership, CBP agents have been instructed not to approach anyone they suspect to be in the country illegally unless they are a target, according to sources. CBP agents will instead be partnered with ICE officers to make targeted arrests, sources said. Additionally, sources told Fox News that Homan gave agents a warning that there would be consequences for stepping out of line. A White House official confirmed to Fox News Digital that while officers on the ground in Minnesota will be making targeted arrests, they will also “enforce federal immigration law” if, during an operation, they “come across additional illegal aliens.” Fox News has been told there are thousands of targets in Minnesota and that targets are being identified through public records, which are run through a DHS database that provides criminal history, immigration history, invalid immigration documents and information on whether they have failed to appear for any immigration court hearings. Sources say that fingerprints have been used to identify targets because anyone who entered the country illegally under the Biden administration and encountered CBP was fingerprinted. If an illegal immigrant is arrested by a local police department, DHS gets an alert on where they were fingerprinted and what the arrest was for. DHS did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Targeted for their faith overseas, persecuted Christians get a White House welcome under Trump
FIRST ON FOX: The White House is welcoming a cohort of persecuted Christians from around the globe on Thursday following President Donald Trump‘s speech at the National Prayer Breakfast, Fox News Digital learned. The White House Faith Office, led by senior adviser Pastor Paula White-Cain and faith director Jenny Korn, will welcome at least six Christians who have been persecuted in their home countries, such as China, Nigeria and Cuba, Fox News Digital learned. The White House meeting comes as Trump addressed the National Prayer Breakfast on Thursday morning, which draws hundreds of lawmakers from both sides of the political aisle, business leaders and foreign dignitaries each February to discuss faith and pray for the nation’s future. Trump said from the dais that “no administration in modern history has done more to confront the plight of persecuted Christians around the world than we have.” TRUMP RETURNS TO NATIONAL PRAYER BREAKFAST AS FAITH TAKES CENTER STAGE IN SECOND TERM “It’s a mission. It’s actually a mission. On Christmas Day and in close coordination with the government of Nigeria – we worked with them, but they got to get tougher — I ordered powerful airstrikes to decimate the ISIS terrorists who have been slaughtering Christians in that country by the thousands. It’s not even believable. We hit them so hard,” Trump said. Among the persecuted Christians attending the White House meeting are: Rev. Gideon Para-Mallam of Nigeria; Grace Drexel, who faced persecution in China; Pastor Andrew Brunson, who faced persecution in Turkey; Mariam Ibraheem, who faced persecution in Sudan; Mario Felix Lleonart Barroso of Cuba; and Y Phic “Jack” Hdok of Vietnam. Para-Mallam, a Nigerian pastor who founded the Gideon & Funmi Para-Mallam Peace Foundation, has worked with survivors of attacks on Christians in the nation and leads advocacy and humanitarian relief efforts in some of Nigeria’s hardest-hit communities. The U.S. launched airstrikes in northwest Nigeria on Christmas night targeting ISIS militants Trump accused of killing Christians, which Para-Mallam said led to “one of the most peaceful Christmas seasons for Nigerian Christians in recent history.” AFTER TRUMP STRIKES ISLAMIST TERRORISTS, US GENERAL TRAVELS TO NIGERIA WITH MILITANTS ‘ON THE RUN’ The group also includes Pastor Andrew Brunson, the American pastor who spent more than two decades ministering in Turkey before his 2016 arrest on what supporters said were false accusations. His high-profile case ended with his release in 2018 after Trump pushed for it. Grace Drexel is the daughter of Pastor Ezra Jin, who was detained in China on Oct. 10, 2025, alongside nearly 30 other church leaders in what supporters describe as a major crackdown on unregistered churches. Mariam Ibraheem drew global attention after a Sudanese Shariah court sentenced her in 2013 to 100 lashes and death by hanging for alleged apostasy after leaving the Islamic faith while she was pregnant. Cuban pastor Barroso, who said he was detained 21 times and sent to a labor camp for his faith before fleeing Cuba in 2016, and Y Phic “Jack” Hdok, a Montagnard Christian advocate who fled Vietnam in 2018, are also attending. NIGERIA NAMED EPICENTER OF GLOBAL KILLINGS OF CHRISTIANS OVER FAITH IN 2025, REPORT SAYS The meeting comes just ahead of the one-year anniversary of the creation of the White House Faith Office on Feb. 7, 2025. Trump launched the White House Faith Office via executive order, tasking it with leading the executive branch’s outreach to faith-based groups, community organizations and houses of worship. In honor of the anniversary and as lawmakers and others gathered for the National Prayer Breakfast, the Faith Office said there are “150 reasons why President Trump is the most pro-faith, pro-life and pro-religious liberty president in American history.” “He protected religious liberty and affirmed faith in America. He has fought anti-Christian, antisemitic, and other forms of anti-religious bias while ending the weaponization of government against all people of faith. He has expanded school choice, protected parental rights, restored biological truth, uplifted families, ended illegal and divisive DEI policies, stopped taxpayer funding for abortion, restored free speech, and stood side-by-side with Israel,” the Faith Office said of Trump.
El Salvador’s Bukele says violent gang bangers are literal Satan worshippers in sharp immigration warning
El Salvador President Nayib Bukele joined the annual National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, warning attendees that violent gang members in his country have a documented history of worshiping Satan — and that some of those gang members have crossed into the U.S. “Many people don’t know that our enemy was not just the flesh and blood, but spiritual as well. The gangs didn’t just murder, rape, extort. They also worship Satan,” Bukele said on Thursday morning from the U.S. Capitol. “It’s straight up. Literally. When we went to their homes to arrest them, we discovered altars that were used for satanic rituals.” “This is well documented. We put up the pictures, the videos right away. But for some reason, the global mainstream media didn’t think it was worth it to cover it. But we know gangs in El Salvador were satanic and they worshiped Satan,” he continued. TRUMP SAYS CRIMINAL ILLEGAL ALIENS ‘MAKE HELLS ANGELS LOOK LIKE THE SWEETEST PEOPLE ON EARTH’ He warned the body of bipartisan lawmakers and business leaders: “Some of those gangs are here in the United States.” Bukele has previously warned that El Salvador’s security forces found alleged MS-13-linked “satanic” altars and ritual materials during raids. Bukele is a Trump ally who struck a deal with the U.S. government in 2025 to accept hundreds of Venezuelan gang members, who were illegally living in the United States, into El Salvador’s notoriously no-nonsense, high-security prison. TRUMP DISCUSSES EXPANSION OF DRUG CARTEL CRACKDOWN, ISSUES GRIM WARNING TO IRAN Bukele said crime has cratered in his country after snuffing out violent gang syndicates with prison time and law-and-order policies. “El Salvador was the murder capital of the world. That was our nickname, murder capital of the world. The most dangerous place in the whole wide world. And now it’s the safest country in the whole continent,” he said Thursday. BUKELE CHALLENGES HILLARY CLINTON TO TAKE EL SALVADOR’S ENTIRE PRISON POPULATION AFTER CRITICISM President Donald Trump also addressed the prayer breakfast, reflecting on the administration’s mission to protect religious liberty. “They declared that all of us are made free and equal by the hand of our creator,” Trump said of the Founding Fathers. “A lot of presidents refuse to say that.… Some major politicians refuse to say the word God. They don’t want to say it. I say it, that we are endowed with our sacred rights to life, liberty, and not by government, but by God Almighty himself.”
House Republicans sound alarm over CCP-linked fake research threatening US taxpayer-funded science
FIRST ON FOX: House Republicans are sounding the alarm over what they say is a growing threat from China-linked “paper mills” that may be injecting fake scientific research into U.S. government-funded programs, potentially compromising taxpayer-funded science and American scientific leadership. In oversight letters sent this week and obtained by Fox News Digital, House Science, Space, and Technology Committee Chairman Rep. Brian Babin, R-Texas, and subcommittee chair Rep. Rich McCormick, R-Ga., are demanding answers from federal agencies about what safeguards they have in place to prevent falsified or plagiarized studies tied to CCP-backed publishing operations from influencing federal grants and research. The letters warn that fraudulent academic papers, produced by so-called paper mills that manufacture or sell research for profit, are increasingly appearing in U.S. journals and may already be shaping federally funded science, despite originating from operations linked to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). “These operations are becoming major sources of falsified and plagiarized research,” the committee wrote, cautioning that U.S. research grants could be awarded to individuals who rely on compromised studies or collaborate with CCP-affiliated funding sources, undermining the integrity of taxpayer-funded programs. CHINESE SCHOLARS CHARGED WITH SMUGGLING BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS INTO US UNDER RESEARCH COVER In the letters, the committee asks the Department of Energy, Environmental Protection Agency, National Science Foundation, NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to provide information on how agencies vet published studies used in funding decisions, whether they screen for ties to foreign adversaries or paper-mill activity, and what steps are taken when fraudulent research is identified. The committee also requests briefings on how agencies plan to strengthen oversight and protect taxpayer-funded science from compromised or manipulated findings. Fox News Digital has asked the five agencies to provide a response. CHINESE NATIONALS ARRESTED AT TOP SCHOOL SHOWS HOW CCP VIEWS US UNIVERSITIES AS ‘WEAK LINK,’ EXPERTS WARN The committee pointed to a 2006 Alzheimer’s disease study, which helped popularize the so-called “amyloid hypothesis,” and was later revealed to have relied on fabricated data — yet the findings were used for years to justify research priorities and funding decisions at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). According to the committee, NIH continued to fund research based on the faulty hypothesis for roughly 16 years, culminating in the approval of an experimental drug aimed at stabilizing amyloid proteins in the brain — before the underlying research was exposed as fraudulent. Lawmakers warn the case illustrates how fake or manipulated studies can embed themselves into the scientific ecosystem, misdirecting funding, delaying legitimate breakthroughs, and eroding trust in federally supported research. The committee also cites massive retractions by major academic publishers as evidence that fraudulent research tied to paper-mill operations has already flooded Western journals. In one example highlighted in the letters, Wiley, a prominent U.S. academic publisher, retracted more than 8,000 fabricated papers in 2023 alone after uncovering widespread manipulation linked to paper mills. The scandal ultimately forced the collapse of one of Wiley’s journal subsidiaries. Lawmakers say the scale of the retractions underscores how paper mills have been able to exploit peer-review systems and push fake research into respected publications where it can be cited, relied upon, and reused long before problems are detected. US UNIVERSITIES TRAINING CHINESE MILITARY SCIENTISTS ON TAXPAYER DIME, COMMITTEE WARNS Investigations cited by the committee estimate that individual paper mills can generate hundreds of fraudulent studies per year, and that hundreds of thousands of suspect papers worldwide may already be contaminating scientific databases. Analyses of the scientific literature suggest that thousands of fake or suspicious papers have already entered legitimate journals, particularly in fields like biomedical research and engineering, undermining confidence in academic publishing and scientific credibility. In some cases, publishers have been forced to retract thousands of articles linked to suspected paper-mill activity, and entire journals have been shut down after fraud was uncovered. Public trust in science and federal research institutions has already been shaken — a trend exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic — raising concerns that further revelations could deepen skepticism toward taxpayer-funded science. The committee ties much of the paper-mill activity to Chinese Communist Party–linked academic incentives, arguing that China’s centralized “publish or perish” system has fueled demand for fabricated research. According to sources cited in the letters, Chinese researchers face intense pressure to continually publish in order to secure jobs, promotions, and funding — a system that lawmakers say has encouraged widespread abuse, including ghostwriting, data fabrication, and the purchase of authorship slots. The letters cite surveys showing that nearly half of medical residents at some Chinese hospitals admitted to buying or selling papers or hiring ghostwriters, while other investigations found that Chinese institutions have historically offered large cash rewards for publication in elite Western journals. Although Beijing announced reforms aimed at curbing cash-for-publication incentives, the committee argues those efforts have been poorly enforced and riddled with loopholes, allowing paper mills to continue operating at scale.
Trump defends Noem at National Prayer Breakfast, rejects calls to fire DHS secretary: ‘Why would I do that?’
President Donald Trump completely rejected the idea of firing Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem despite mounting criticism over the administration’s immigration enforcement tactics. While addressing the National Prayer Breakfast on Thursday, Trump said that he had been asked about firing Noem during his interview with “NBC Nightly News” anchor Tom Llamas. The president dismissed the notion entirely. “Why would I do that?” Trump said. “We have the strongest border in the history of our country. We have the best crime numbers we’ve ever had going back to the year 1900.” NBC released a transcript of the interview ahead of time, giving a look at the moment Trump was asked whether he still believes in Noem. GRAHAM PUSHES BACK ON TILLIS’ CRITICISM OF NOEM, MILLER FOR LABELING MAN KILLED BY BORDER PATROL A ‘TERRORIST’ “Look, look, she was in charge of the border. The border’s closed. I mean, everybody gives me A+ on the border. The border was a disaster. People were pouring into our country,” Trump said, according to the NBC transcript. When Llamas pressed the president on the issue of enforcement, Trump doubled down on his confidence in his administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration. “They don’t even try and come up now. . . We have very good — you just — you just asked me a — Kristi. We have the best crime numbers that we’ve had in 125 years. I think she’s doing a very good job. Again, public relations. She’s not getting credit for the job that she does,” Trump is quoted as saying in the transcript. REP JEFFRIES ESCALATES RHETORIC AGAINST NOEM, SAYS DHS LEADER SHOULD BE ‘PUT ON ICE PERMANENTLY’ During his speech on Thursday, Trump defended several members of his administration, while taking swipes at former presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama. He called Biden the “world’s worst president” and said Obama was “a terrible divider of our country.” The president joked that his most recent predecessor, Biden, would not take it personally that he called him the “world’s worst president” because “he had no idea he was president.” “He had no idea he was president, so he doesn’t take it personally. I don’t want him to take it personally. Fortunately, he has no idea what the hell I’m saying,” Trump said. Turning his criticisms to Obama, he said that the 44th president was “very bad.” “He was a divider, and — believe it or not — we’re bringing the country together,” Trump told the crowd, adding that the “tremendous success” of his administration was uniting Americans. Trump, who has not shied away from insulting his opponents, has repeatedly made clear his disdain for Obama and Biden, even going so far as to put it in writing on the new White House “Presidential Walk of Fame.” The walk of fame, which was unveiled in September 2025, features photos of presidents along with plaques featuring facts about America’s past leaders. For Biden, rather than using a photo of the 46th president, the Trump administration used a picture of the autopen, a device that was used during his administration to sign important orders, including pardons. Both Biden and Obama’s “Walk of Fame” plaques feature digs at their presidencies. Biden’s plaques include the nicknames Trump gave him, including “Sleepy Joe Biden” and “Crooked.” Meanwhile, Obama’s plaques refer to him as “one of the most divisive political figures in American History.”