Fox News Poll: Voters see welfare fraud as common, still mostly favor protecting benefits over crackdowns
As federal authorities continue to crack down on welfare fraud, the latest Fox News survey finds voters are concerned about program abuse, but still also want to protect access for legitimate recipients. The survey was conducted before the Department of Justice announced charges against 15 defendants on Thursday in the ongoing Minnesota welfare fraud investigations, one of multiple inquiries into welfare abuse across the country. A majority of registered voters, 71%, believe fraud in government welfare and social service programs is extremely or very common, and nearly half, 45%, think it has increased over the past two years. Just 19% say decreased and 35% believe it has stayed the same. FOX NEWS POLL: 30% THINK RECENT TRUMP ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT WAS STAGED Yet when weighing enforcement against access, voters prioritize eligible recipients: 56% say ensuring benefits for eligible people should be the higher priority, even if some fraud occurs, while 43% prioritize fraud prevention, even if some eligible people lose benefits. “The data demonstrates what populist candidates understand intuitively,” says Republican pollster Daron Shaw, who helps conduct the Fox News Poll with Democratic partner Chris Anderson. “Voters think corruption and incompetence are rampant in government, and stories of program fraud from Minneapolis and California reinforce this notion. And articulating this belief plays well with the public. The policy implications are trickier: do you risk restricting aid to the truly vulnerable to ensure taxpayers aren’t being ripped off?” Voters are split on who bears more responsibility for fraud: individuals misrepresenting eligibility or organizations and contractors misrepresenting costs (50% each). FOX NEWS POLL: AS ECONOMIC PAIN DEEPENS, DISAPPROVAL OF TRUMP HITS NEW HIGH On fraud prevention, more voters trust their state governments (60% a great deal or some confidence) than the federal government (51%). There is notable bipartisan consensus on the existence of welfare fraud. To varying degrees, Democrats, Republicans, and independents agree fraud is common, and it has increased in recent years. But beyond that, partisan divisions become much sharper. Majorities of Democrats are more likely to blame organizations and contractors for fraud and to prioritize ensuring eligible people receive benefits. By contrast, Republicans are more likely to blame individuals who misrepresent eligibility and favor stronger fraud prevention measures. Independents are split on whether individuals or contractors are more responsible for fraud (50% each) but more prioritize access to benefits (57%) than fraud prevention (43%). Confidence in state governments cuts across party lines, with majorities of Democrats (65%), independents (59%), and Republicans (56%) trusting their state to prevent fraud. Views of the federal government are more polarized. Nearly two-thirds of Republicans (63%) express confidence in the federal government’s ability to combat fraud, compared to 42% of Democrats and 47% of independents. Congressional Approval Only 3 in 10 voters approve of the job Congressional Democrats (30%) and Republicans (31%) are doing. Approval for Congressional Democrats is up 1 point since February (29%, a record low approval). Support for Congressional Republicans has fallen 5 points (36%), and much of that comes from a 10-point drop among Republican voters themselves. Still, more Republicans approve of their lawmakers (67%) than Democrats do theirs (58%). “Voters’ unfavorable views of Democratic lawmakers is one of the most fascinating and important factors affecting the midterms,” says Shaw. “Negative assessments of the Republicans are expected; they hold power at a time when the public mood is sour. But to capitalize on this, the Democrats must convince voters they might actually do better.” Redistricting Six in 10 voters are extremely or very concerned about redistricting ahead of the 2026 midterms. More Democrats than Republicans are concerned (71% vs. 51%) and more than twice as many Democrats say they are extremely concerned (39% D vs. 15% R). Independents are split, with 50% concerned and 49% not concerned, including 22% extremely concerned. CLICK HERE FOR CROSSTABS AND TOPLINE The Supreme Court Voters were also asked how they feel about increasing the number of justices on the U.S. Supreme Court and 45% favor the idea while 55% oppose it. Support is unchanged from 2022 and up from a 35% low in 2021. Overall, voters have generally opposed packing the court. More than half of Democrats (55%) favor expanding the high court, while majorities of independents (56%) and Republicans oppose it (64%). Conducted May 15-18, 2026, under the direction of Beacon Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R), this Fox News survey includes interviews with a sample of 1,002 registered voters randomly selected from a national voter file. Respondents spoke with live interviewers on landlines (109) and cellphones (635) or completed the survey online after receiving a text (258). Results based on the full sample have a margin of sampling error of ±3 percentage points. Sampling error for results among subgroups is higher. In addition to sampling error, question wording and order can influence results. Weights are generally applied to age, race, education, and area variables to ensure the demographics are representative of the registered voter population. Sources for developing weight targets include the most recent American Community Survey, Fox News Voter Analysis, and voter file data.
Trump admin pushes back on ‘slush fund’ attacks against Anti-Weaponization Fund and lays out who qualifies
The Trump administration says the $1.778 billion Justice Department “Anti-Weaponization Fund” will compensate Americans unfairly targeted by politicized federal investigations on a “case-by-case” basis, pushing back on critics who have portrayed the program as a taxpayer-funded payout for Jan. 6 rioters and Trump allies. Heated dispute over the fund centers on who will ultimately benefit from it, with Trump administration officials saying it is intended to compensate individuals harmed by “weaponized” federal investigations, such as pro-lifers targeted by the Biden administration, while critics in both parties fear it could allow politically connected figures or some Jan. 6 defendants to seek taxpayer-funded payments. “Republicans can apply for it. Democrats can apply for it,” Vice President J.D. Vance said during a Tuesday White House briefing in answer to the critics. “If Hunter Biden wants to apply for this particular fund, he is welcome to.” The Anti-Weaponization Fund is unusual because it emerged from a lawsuit settlement between Trump and the IRS, an agency he oversees as president, raising concerns among lawmakers and commentators about potential conflicts of interest. Its creation caught GOP lawmakers by surprise and has derailed Senate negotiations on a $72 billion package to fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol — with several Republicans joining Democrats in calling it a “slush fund.” REPUBLICANS RECOIL AS TRUMP’S BILLION-DOLLAR DOJ ‘SLUSH FUND’ FOR ALLIES THREATENS ICE, BORDER PATROL PLAN Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche was deployed to Capitol Hill on Thursday to smooth things over. But according to several sources, the meeting was contentious and more than one Republican senator blew up at the DOJ head. “The Acting Attorney General met with Senators today, and there was a healthy discussion on the settlement,” a DOJ spokesperson said after the meeting Thursday. “He made clear that the Anti-Weaponization Fund announced Monday has nothing to do with reconciliation, indeed not a single dime from the money the President is seeking in reconciliation would go toward anything having to do with the Fund. We will continue to work with the Senate to get critical reconciliation funds approved.” MS NOW contributor Joe Scarborough has alleged that the Anti-Weaponization Fund would be funneled to those convicted in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riots. On his first day in office, Trump issued pardons and commutations to more than 1,500 people involved in the Capitol riots. “We got this billion-dollar ‘Marie Antoinette’ ballroom, now that they’re talking about funding and $1 billion plus slush fund for people who beat the hell out of cops,” Scarborough said. “It is a slush fund, a weaponization slush fund for supporters of Donald Trump, JD Vance and the Republican Party.” But the Trump administration’s grievances with the “weaponization” of the Justice Department extend far beyond Biden-era prosecutions of those involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol Hill riot. Biden’s Justice Department prosecuted more than 50 pro-life activists who were accused of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE Act) between 2021 and 2024. Since returning to office, Trump pardoned dozens of pro-life activists, some of whom were serving jail time. The Trump Justice Department has also accused Biden-era officials of “zealously pursuing” prosecutions against Christians in its “2026 Report by the Task Force to Eradicate Anti-Christian Bias,” potentially opening the door for another category of people who could seek compensation through the fund. Still, Trump faces criticism over the fund even from his own party. Sen. John Thune, R-SD, the top Republican leader in the Senate, said he wasn’t a “big fan” of the fund’s creation and that he “was not sure exactly how they intend to use it.” BIDEN DOJ WEAPONIZED FACE ACT AGAINST PRO-LIFE AMERICANS, 882-REPORT ALLEGES “I think that there are, and will continue to be, a lot of questions around that, that the administration is going to have to answer,” Thune said. Justice Department officials and some legal experts say the fund, while unusual and politically controversial, falls within the government’s legal authority and that payments aren’t guaranteed. The Anti-Weaponization Fund was born out of a settlement between President Donald Trump and the Internal Revenue Service. Trump filed the lawsuit against the IRS in January over the unauthorized disclosure of his tax records. Claims will be determined by a five-person board appointed by the Attorney General, with at least one member selected with consultation with congressional leadership, according to a Justice Department press release. At any point in time, the president has the power to remove a member without cause. Under the settlement agreement, the Anti-Weaponization Fund will evaluate claims by looking at the “totality of the circumstances.” Those factors considered include how strong a person’s claim is and what evidence supports it, the financial harm they allegedly suffered — including legal fees — whether they spent time in prison and whether they have already received compensation or other relief elsewhere. The agreement also gives the board discretion to weigh “other factors” it considers fair and appropriate when deciding whether someone qualifies for compensation. “This is about seeking accountability for all Americans who were victims of law fare and weaponization: millions of Americans whose online speech was censored at the behest of the government, parents silenced at school boards, Senators whose records were secretly subpoenaed, churchgoers targeted by the FBI, and so on,” a Justice Department document stated. The Anti-Weaponization Fund will last until December 1, 2028. APOLOGIES AND CASH HEADED TO ALLEGED ‘WEAPONIZATION’ VICTIMS IN BILLION-DOLLAR TRUMP SETTLEMENT Funding for the Anti-Weaponization Fund is coming from the Judgment Fund, which is a permanent Treasury account used to pay for settlements and claims against the government. While the Justice Department pointed to the Obama administration’s creation of “Keepseagle,” a $760 million fund for victims of racism by the federal government as precedent for the creation of the fund, legal experts say there are key distinctions between the two. For instance, payouts in Keepseagle were made out to people a part of a class action lawsuit against the government; whereas anyone can
Sanders caught on camera snapping at reporter over Platner’s posts: ‘Get a better job’
Sen. Bernie Sanders lashed out at a reporter for Fox News Digital when pressed on Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner’s resurfaced vulgar Reddit posts, telling the reporter to “get a better job.” “Who do you work for?” Sanders asked when questioned about Platner’s posts. When told Fox News Digital, Sanders replied, “Why don’t you talk to your owner Mr. Murdoch and ask him for a raise so you can get a better job.” Sanders endorsed Platner in August 2025. Several other Democratic senators also declined to weigh in on Platner’s resurfaced Reddit posts and what they could mean for his Senate bid. Some said they had not seen the posts, while others declined to comment altogether. BERNIE SANDERS DEFENDS MAINE SENATE CANDIDATE UNDER FIRE FOR REDDIT COMMENTS “I haven’t seen it,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said. “I’m not following it. Sorry.” “I’m not going to take any position in that election,” Sen. Angus King, R-Maine, said. “That’s my practice since I’ve been in the Senate.” “On whose?” Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, said when asked to comment on Platner’s posts. “No, I’m not gonna get into that.” Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore, said the viability of Platner’s candidacy should be left to Maine voters to decide. UNEARTHED POSTS SHOW DEM SENATE HOPEFUL PRAISING VULGAR GRAFFITI, MAKING CRUDE PORTA-POTTY ADMISSION “The people of Maine get to choose who they want to represent them in the U.S. Senate,” Merkley said. “And so I encourage you to interview the people in Maine, because that’s what a democracy is all about.” “I have not seen his post, so I’m not going to be able to be in a position to evaluate them.” Platner has faced increasing scrutiny after since-deleted Reddit posts resurfaced online, ranging from talking about masturbating in portable toilets to mocking a wounded Purple Heart U.S. soldier. These posts are among the newest discoveries from his past Reddit history, with previously exposed posts revealing him on rape victims to take responsibility and praising Hamas’ tactics. WATCH: COLLINS RIPS MAINE CHALLENGER PLATNER OVER RESURFACED REDDIT POST MOCKING WOUNDED US SOLDIER “I still have to jerk off every time I sit in a portas—-er… that blue water smell conditioned me,” Platner wrote in one resurfaced post. Platner has publicly addressed some of the posts in the past, attributing them to a troubling time in his life after being in the military and suffering from PTSD. He served three tours in Iraq for the Marine Corps and one tour in Afghanistan for the U.S. Army. The comments were made under the Reddit account “P-Hustle,” which Platner has acknowledged owning. The posts range from 2009 through as recently as 2021. The entire archive of more than 2,000 posts is available on the Maine Monitor database. “He’s explained his journey and his evolution and his PTSD from the war, and again, I think it’s a judgment that should be rendered by the people of Maine,” said Merkley.
Former Detroit mayor blows governor’s race wide open in surprise move
Former Detroit Democratic Mayor Mike Duggan announced he is suspending his independent campaign for Michigan governor, turning the three-way contest to succeed term-limited Gov. Gretchen Whitmer into a typical partisan race in the blue-trending state. Duggan was a popular mayor of the Motor City who garnered sizable support in his first unsuccessful write-in campaign and forged relationships with key city stakeholders like Ford Motor Company Chairman Bill Ford Jr., an early backer of his gubernatorial bid. As a former Democrat, conventional wisdom held that his presence hurt Democratic nominee Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, while his moderate positioning was also considered attractive to Republicans who otherwise might support GOP nominee Rep. John James. NBC News reporter Henry Gomez said on X that Democrats had been “hitting him almost as hard as John James” and that the move was likely “welcome news” for the left in the Great Lakes State. SWING STATE GOVERNOR’S RACE GETS CURVEBALL AS TOP DEM RUNS INDEPENDENT, SPARKING CALLS FOR BUTTIGIEG TO ENTER “Dear Michigan, I’ve decided to suspend my campaign,” Duggan announced via public letter Thursday. “We knew the independent route was filled with challenge. Even against those odds, the excitement for real change carried this campaign upward for more than a year,” he said. Duggan dismissed claims he was trying to be a “spoiler” for either side and instead aimed to change the tenor of national politics. “I’m still hopeful our campaign will prove to have a real long-term impact,” Duggan said. “I will never be able to express the gratitude I feel for all your support and encouragement. I wish I could have done better for you.” When he announced his run, Duggan pointed to his family history and his own political evolution as evidence a change is needed in government. MICHIGAN DEMOCRAT QUITS POLITICS, SAYS PARTY’S AGENDA BETRAYED HER FAITH He told BridgeDetroit his late father supported former President Ronald Reagan but wouldn’t recognize the Trump-led GOP — while Duggan himself admitted the Democratic Party he once knew to be an ally of the working class is sliding in that regard. In one such instance, Democrats piled on Duggan for referring to people illicitly present in America as “illegal immigrants” instead of “undocumented.” “If there was ever a time to give people a third choice, this would be the year,” he told the outlet. Benson told Fox News Digital in a statement that Duggan brought civility to a body politic greatly needing it. “I want to thank Mayor Mike Duggan for what he brought to this race and for his years of service to Detroit,” she said, noting how divided politics has become. “I welcome Mayor Duggan’s ideas, his supporters, and everyone who believes Michigan’s future is bigger than division — and that it can be a place where anyone can afford to live, work, and thrive.” REPUBLICANS HAVE CHANCE TO SECURE GOVERNORSHIPS IN KEY BATTLEGROUND STATES NEXT YEAR “We may not always agree on everything, but we share a commitment to building a stronger Michigan. And that work continues in this campaign,” Benson concluded. Fox News Digital also reached out to James’ campaign. In a statement on social media, the Republican said he wanted to thank Duggan for years of service to Michigan and its largest city. “I respect anyone willing to step into the arena and serve something bigger than themselves. While we have real disagreements on policy, we both recognize Michigan is headed in the wrong direction,” he said, opening the door to working with the former Democrat if he so desired. “Our state has endured too much decline and political dysfunction. I’m ready to work with anyone willing to deliver real solutions, reject the politics of division, and fight for safer communities, stronger families and economic growth — our state’s future is too important for anything less.” While Trump narrowly won Michigan in breaking the proverbial “blue wall” for the second time in three attempts in 2024, the state has reliably chosen Democrats in other statewide races, including Whitmer, Sen. Elissa Slotkin — who won former Sen. Debbie Stabenow’s open seat in 2024 — and the state’s other upper-chamber incumbent, retiring Sen. Gary Peters.
Navy SEAL who killed Bin Laden rips Platner for ‘barbaric’ post trashing soldier under fire: ‘Out of line’
FIRST ON FOX: Robert O’Neill, the U.S. Navy SEAL who is credited with killing Osama bin Laden, is weighing in on the unearthed social media posts from Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner that have caused an uproar in recent days. “Mr. Platner was way out of line talking about a soldier that way,” O’Neill told Fox News Digital days after a resurfaced Reddit post showed Platner trashing a soldier seen in a viral video that was wounded in a clash with Taliban fighters saying, “Dumb motherf—– didn’t deserve to live.” “This is completely barbaric,” O’Neill said. “I don’t understand. If you swear an oath to the country, it doesn’t even matter what the politics are. Every single time you fight it’s for the man next to you, it’s for the person next to you. Politics goes out the window. And to wish ill on someone like that under fire is just, you know, like I said, it is the opposite of everything I’ve ever been raised to believe.” Platner has leaned into his struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to explain the bevy of incendiary social media posts that have surfaced since he announced his Senate run. O’Neill described Platner’s post as “vile hatred” and said that post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) isn’t an excuse. LEFT-WING DEM SENATE HOPEFUL CHEERED ON ANTIFA VIOLENCE IN UNEARTHED RANT: ‘KILL A MOTHERF—ER’ “PTSD shouldn’t do that to you, especially if you do it again and again, which he’s done on this and then on Reddit and things like that,” O’Neill said. “Just the vile hatred. I don’t even know why, instead, you know, he should be seeking to get some of the Ibogaine therapy that I’ve done for PTSD, if it’s that bad that you’re out there wishing American soldiers to die under fire.” Platner, a combat veteran, has also faced recent criticism over a resurfaced video disparaging “American Sniper” Chris Kyle and suggesting he killed civilians to inflate his numbers. “That would just stem from jealousy, maybe because Chris Kyle’s name became famous for a whole bunch of confirmed kills,” O’Neill said. “The jealousy is there. I’ve seen the jealousy too, but professional jealousy, stuff like this is really, really rare between veterans.” UNEARTHED POSTS SHOW DEM SENATE HOPEFUL PRAISING VULGAR GRAFFITI, MAKING CRUDE PORTA POTTY ADMISSION In recent days, Fox News Digital has reported on Democrats in Congress ducking questions on the Platner controversy as more and more inflammatory posts continue to trickle out into the public, something O’Neill took issue with. “He’s obviously been picked by someone and he’s being groomed by the same group of people because you’ve seen even with the other Democrats right now, as this stuff comes out, they refuse to condemn it because they do not care about the American people,” O’Neill said. “They care about votes for their party. I cannot say that enough. That’s all this is about. Can he get a seat in Congress somewhere for the Democrats? That’s why you won’t hear stuff from Chuck Schumer. You won’t hear stuff from Elizabeth Warren. You’re not hearing anything from Hakeem Jeffries. They’ll pretend they didn’t see it.” NEW WEBSITE PUTS PLATNER ON NOTICE BY AMPLIFYING SCANDALS: ‘ONE RED FLAG AFTER ANOTHER’ Some of the controversial posts from Platner have been brushed off by his allies as “locker room talk” and O’Neill acknowledged some of that is legitimate but said ultimately, he believes Platner has shown overall through the resurfaced posts that he’s not qualified for the U.S. Senate. “Everything from the Nazi tattoo on his chest and wishing a soldier would die under fire, no, I don’t think he’s fit for the Senate,” O’Neill said. O’Neill did defend Platner as someone who is possibly personally struggling and said “some of the stuff he might have been saying to get attention” and “some of the stuff he might’ve said because he was drinking some alcohol.” “I’ve been there,” O’Neill said. “I’ve had drinks and said some dumb stuff, too. That’s part of the reason I quit. So some of that’s there, and he is moving forward, and so, for the benefit of the doubt, I would personally like to see how he handles himself from here on out… I am a believer in forgiveness.” Fox News Digital reached out to the Platner campaign for comment.
WATCH: Wesley Hunt flips script on Dems’ ‘Jim Crow 2.0’ attacks amid heated SPLC racism hearing
A Black Republican congressman excoriated Democrats and the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) for allegedly perpetuating racist tropes he said had long faded while recounting how his father endured true bigotry in ways far worse than what Americans experience today. Rep. Wesley Hunt, R-Texas, joined a House Judiciary Committee hearing Wednesday examining the role the SPLC allegedly played in “distorting civil rights policy” by funneling money to racist and extremist groups such as the Ku Klux Klan and whether that funding elevated extremist threats in America. Hunt began his remarks by noting the idea du jour in the “Democrat hive” is that “Jim Crow 2.0 is alive and well in America” as he sat beside a split image of a Black man standing near a “Colored” sign and a person handing over identification to poll workers. “I’m sure some of the SPLC’s actions have helped them make this argument,” he said before turning to retired Vanderbilt law and political science professor Carol Swain — who is also Black — and asking her if she experienced any true “Jim Crow” treatment when she last voted in Tennessee. PATEL, CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST RIP SPLC AFTER DOJ ALLEGES GROUP FUNDED THE ‘VILLAINS’ THEY CLAIMED TO FIGHT “Were you intimidated in any way with baseball bats, fire hoses or dogs?” Hunt asked, as Swain replied that the only nervousness she felt was when asking for a Republican ballot in a Democrat-heavy precinct. Hunt thanked Swain for her testimony and turned to the contrasting image beside him. “For all my Democrat colleagues, everyone on the left screaming ‘Jim Crow 2.0’ ad infinitum — let’s take a moment to revisit what actual Jim Crow was. Jim Crow was a time when Black Americans could not sit in classrooms with White Americans. It was colored-only water fountains; it was beatings in the streets; it was lynchings.” Hunt said true Jim Crow was when his father had to go to the back door of restaurants growing up in New Orleans in order to get a sandwich because he could not go in the front like Whites. “That is precisely why it is so offensive to compare that era of legalized discrimination and racial terror to showing a photo ID at the voting booth.” “And it is offensive that… groups like these manufacture faux hate,” Hunt said of the SPLC. WHITE HOUSE KNOCKS CHUCK SCHUMER OVER JIM CROW CLAIM: ‘PROFESSIONAL GASLIGHTER’ During the hearing, which did not feature the SPLC itself, Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights CEO Maya Wiley defended the group, saying attacks from Republicans are “nothing more than part of a larger, broader, coordinated attack on civil rights organizations.” When it was his turn to speak, Hunt alleged that Democrats who tout the phrase “Jim Crow 2.0” to condemn political policies they disagree with do so because it is the only way they can stay relevant. “The Democrat Party survives on manufacturing grievance. Democrats invoke the pain of the past because they have nothing to offer for the present. They don’t want an honest debate. They want emotional manipulation. They want outrage. They want division, as evidenced by our discussion in this very hearing today.” Hunt said that he and the other sitting Black Republicans in the House — Reps. Burgess Owens of Utah, John James of Michigan and Byron Donalds of Florida — all represent White-majority districts, which he said disproves notions from the left on the matter. “Nobody cares about what we look like. We are being judged not by the color of our skin but by the content of our character because we’ve come a long way from this,” he said, pointing to another split image of a segregation-era scene transposed next to a voting scene. “I want to continue on the path that America has set forth in the name of Jesus Christ,” he said. “This is not 1960 anymore, it’s 2026. And the fact that groups like these are willing to stroke the flames of hate by funding the KKK.” He then yielded back to Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio. Several recent election integrity and related policies enacted by Republicans at the state and federal level have been accused of being newfound Jim Crow roadblocks for minorities. SCHUMER FACES BACKLASH AFTER CALLING SAVE ACT ‘JIM CROW’ DESPITE PREVIOUS ALLEGATION FALLING FLAT The most memorable is likely Georgia’s Election Integrity Act, in which Democrats and Major League Baseball sought boycotts of Atlanta for the legislature passing such a bill. After a 1960s-era segregationist tenor failed to materialize, proponents of such policies, including Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, noted the Democratic din suddenly dissipated. “These voices have gone strangely silent now that their dire predictions have proved false. Two weeks ago, Georgia held its first election primaries since the new election law took effect, and far from ‘suppressing’ the vote, there was record turnout,” Wicker said in a 2022 statement. SCHUMER DOUBLES DOWN ON GOP VOTING BILL ‘JIM CROW 2.0’ DESPITE DEMOCRATIC VOTER SUPPORT “Early voting increased nearly threefold from 2018 and more than doubled from 2020, a presidential election year. Minority early voting soared as well, with African American voters casting over 100,000 more early ballots than in 2018. All of this must have come as a surprise to voters who had been fed misinformation,” Wicker added. At the hearing, ranking member Jamie Raskin, D-Md., however, defended SPLC’s “informant program” at issue, which he said shared information about racially charged terror plots with law enforcement and added that he has seen no proof the group’s donors were being deceived. “Where is the fraud? Where are their lawsuits?” he asked. The fact the phrase Jim Crow 2.0 continues to be bandied about shows that the divisions cited by Hunt still resonate in some political corners, portending uncertainty into the future on the matter.
Obama’s baseball outing with Castro reignites fury after Trump DOJ drops hammer on Cuban leader
Former Cuban President Raúl Castro was indicted Wednesday in connection with the 1996 shootdown of two civilian aircraft that killed four people — reviving scrutiny of former President Barack Obama’s highly publicized 2016 trip to Havana. “President Obama’s approach to Cuba was not merely a policy mistake. It was a diplomatic disaster — naive at best, incompetent at worst, and deeply disrespectful to the dissidents, political prisoners and victims who suffered under the Castro regime,” former Miami mayor Francis Suarez, who is Cuban-American, told Fox News Digital. “Obama treated normalization as enlightened diplomacy. It handed legitimacy to a brutal dictatorship while asking little in return,” said the Fox News contributor. “The administration reopened relations, relaxed restrictions and gave Havana a public-relations victory, yet the Cuban people remained trapped under the same repressive system and the United States gained no meaningful security concessions.” The Justice Department on Wednesday unsealed a superseding indictment charging Castro and five co-defendants over the deaths of four U.S. nationals aboard two unarmed civilian aircraft operated by the Miami-based exile group. Cuban-American critics said the charges underscore longstanding objections to Obama’s normalization push, which they argue gave legitimacy to the Castro regime. US MOVING TO INDICT FORMER CUBAN LEADER RAÚL CASTRO: SOURCE Obama traveled to Cuba in 2016 as part of his administration’s push to normalize U.S.-Cuba relations after decades of hostility, arguing that engagement on diplomacy, the economy and human rights would be more effective than isolation. The visit also included Obama and Castro attending a baseball game between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Cuban national team in Havana. “I have come here to bury the last remnant of the Cold War in the Americas,” Obama said from Havana that year. “I have come here to extend the hand of friendship to the Cuban people.” Photos of Obama and Castro embracing during the 2016 Havana trip quickly resurfaced online after the indictment, going viral across social media and triggering a wave of criticism from users who blasted the optics of the former president’s relationship with the communist leader. “While Raoul was harboring American terrorists like Joanne Chesimard and Guillermo Morales. Disgusting,” wrote Fox News contributor Paul Mauro on X. “Barack Obama in his element with communists and criminals,” wrote General Mike Flynn on X. OBAMA SETS INTERNET ABLAZE WITH ‘SICK’ REACTION TO THE ‘MOTIVE’ OF WHCD SHOOTER Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz reposted a photo with a cringe emoji. Castro, 94, is the younger brother of former Cuban leader Fidel Castro. Raul Castro served as Cuba’s president from 2008 to 2018. Suarez said that Obama’s Cuba policies were not just a human rights failure but a national security failure not understanding the serious threat the regime posed. DEMOCRATS AND REPUBLICANS CRITICIZE BIDEN ADMIN’S CUBA DETENTE’ “It did nothing to curtail Cuba’s role as a base for America’s enemies. It did nothing to confront the island’s use as an intelligence and spy platform so close to our shores. It did nothing to reduce the regime’s support for terrorism. It did nothing to confront Cuba’s narco-state behavior or its destabilizing influence throughout the hemisphere,” said Suarez. RUBIO BLASTS COMMUNIST CUBAN REGIME AS NJ TROOPER’S KILLER REMAINS FREE Obama’s trip came two decades after the 1996 incident, which became a major flashpoint in U.S.-Cuba relations, as the Trump administration adopted a more public and hardline approach toward Cuba. TRUMP DECLARES NATIONAL EMERGENCY OVER CUBA, THREATENS TARIFFS ON NATIONS THAT SUPPLY OIL TO COMMUNIST REGIME “Raúl Castro and five co-defendants participated in a conspiracy that ended with Cuban military aircraft firing missiles at those planes and killing four Americans,” said acting Attorney General Todd Blanche on Wednesday during the indictment announcement. “Nations and their leaders cannot be permitted to target Americans. Kill them, and not face accountability.” Following the indictment, Trump said Cuba is “very important.” “A lot of people have suffered very big, very, very at levels that few people would understand. And I think the Cuban population of Miami, and certainly beyond Miami,” said Trump. “People that came there that were decimated, whose families were ruined, appreciate what the Attorney General just did today, and he’s just doing it now. He’s just watching it. We have Cuba on our mind. Very important.” Suarez said that for Cuban Americans, Obama cozying up with Castro was disrespectful. “It is about families torn apart, property confiscated, voices silenced, dissidents beaten, prisoners of conscience abandoned and generations forced to live under fear. To treat the Castro government as a normal partner without first honoring those victims was not diplomacy,” he said. Trump has previously joked the U.S. would be “taking over” Cuba “almost immediately.” “Cuba’s got problems. We’ll finish one first. I like to finish a job,” he added this month. Fox News Digital reached out to Obama’s office and the White House for additional comment on the renewed criticisms of the trip.
9/11 steel beam arrives at Florida school where Bush learned America was under attack
A steel beam recovered from the World Trade Center arrived Tuesday at the Florida elementary school where President George W. Bush learned the United States was under attack on Sept. 11, 2001. The beam was brought to Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota as part of the Tunnel to Towers Foundation’s “Steel Across America” tour commemorating the upcoming 25th anniversary of the terrorist attacks. Former White House chief of staff Andy Card, who informed Bush that a second plane had struck the World Trade Center, attended the ceremony. Bush was visiting a second-grade classroom at the school on the morning of Sept. 11, when Card approached the president and told him what had happened. “I walked up to the president,” Card recalled during Tuesday’s ceremony. “I whispered into his ear, ‘A second plane hit the second tower, America is under attack.’” TUNNEL TO TOWERS ANNOUNCES STEEL ACROSS AMERICA TOUR TO MARK 25 YEARS SINCE 9/11 ATTACKS The moment, captured on live television, became one of the defining images of the Sept. 11 attacks and the early hours of the national crisis. Card returned to the campus Tuesday alongside former second-grade teacher Sandra Kay Daniels, whose classroom Bush was visiting when the attacks unfolded. “Just being on this campus and remembering what happened when I came and whispered in the president’s ear that America was under attack… it takes you right back to that day, the feelings, the emotion, the duty, the honor,” Card said. NEW 9/11 MUSEUM EXHIBIT AIMS TO CONNECT YOUNGER AMERICANS TO THE ATTACKS THROUGH POWERFUL ARTIFACTS Daniels said the memories of that morning have stayed with her ever since. “That day changed not only Emma E. Booker Elementary School students and staff, but it changed the world, the community,” Daniels said. “It’s an everyday thing for me,” Daniels added. “I will never get away from that. I was with the president, and he was with me. That happened here at my school.” GOP CONGRESSMAN REVEALS HOW HE LEARNED ABOUT 9/11 TERROR ATTACKS IN REMOTE ALASKA WILDERNESS Inside the school’s library, a section dedicated to Sept. 11 includes an original copy of “The Pet Goat,” the book students were reading when Bush received the news. The Sarasota stop marked the seventh destination on the nationwide remembrance tour, which is transporting a steel beam from the World Trade Center to communities across the country ahead of next year’s 25th anniversary of the attacks. The ceremony included appearances from local officials, first responders and members of the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, which was founded in honor of FDNY firefighter Stephen Siller, who died responding to the attacks in New York City. TUNNEL TO TOWERS HONORS GOLD STAR FAMILIES ON VETERANS DAY: THE UNENDING SACRIFICE Former students who were inside the classroom that morning also returned to the school Tuesday, including Natalia Jones-Pinkney, who was seated just feet away from Bush during the reading lesson. “I don’t know if I understood at that time that that was really going on,” Jones-Pinkney told FOX 13. “I was just excited that we were meeting the president.” Now an adult with a second-grade daughter of her own, Jones-Pinkney said returning to the school underscored how deeply the events of that day shaped her life. “Being there, reading to the president, shaped our lives,” she told the station. “That’s something we’ll never forget.” The steel beam was later made available for attendees to approach and reflect upon as part of the memorial event honoring the victims and first responders killed in the Sept. 11 attacks.
Wall Street banks helped Chinese military-linked firm raise billions despite red flags, lawmakers find
FIRST ON FOX: Congressional investigators are accusing major U.S. banks of helping a Chinese battery giant the Pentagon labeled a “Chinese military company” raise billions of dollars from global investors despite unresolved national security concerns. A new report from the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party alleges JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America underwrote CATL’s Hong Kong IPO — helping the company raise money from investors through stock offerings — after the Pentagon designated the company under its Section 1260H list of Chinese military-linked firms in January 2025. The report also says JPMorgan, Bank of America and Morgan Stanley later participated in a second CATL offering. The report places Wall Street at the center of a growing debate in Washington over whether American financial institutions should continue helping companies the Pentagon has identified as linked to China’s military or military-civil fusion strategy raise money from global investors, even when those activities remain legal under current U.S. law. OUR ADVERSARIES ARE EVEN USING THE US BANKING SYSTEM. HERE’S HOW THEY GET AWAY WITH IT The Pentagon’s Section 1260H list identifies companies the War Department determines are linked to China’s military or military-civil fusion strategy, though the designation itself does not broadly prohibit U.S. investment or commercial activity. The committee argues the transactions exposed a major gap in U.S. policy because the designation carried reputational consequences but did not prohibit Wall Street firms from helping the company raise capital. “To be clear, the banks broke no U.S. law and the transactions were not prohibited by U.S. law,” the report states. “But each bank made the choice to essentially disregard the U.S. government’s Chinese military company designation to make millions of dollars.” “The banks trusted CATL’s representations over the considered judgment of the U.S. government,” the report states. The report alleges JPMorgan and Bank of America accepted CATL’s assertions that it had no links to China’s military despite the Pentagon’s conclusions and despite what the committee described as incomplete responses during due diligence reviews. CHINA CONTROLS OVER 80% OF BATTERY MATERIALS CRUCIAL TO US DEFENSE EQUIPMENT, UNSETTLING REPORT REVEALS CATL allegedly provided identical responses to multiple JPMorgan questions concerning ties to the People’s Liberation Army, dual-use technologies and military-linked entities, according to documents cited in the report. The committee also cited what it described as publicly available evidence linking CATL to Chinese military-industrial entities, including relationships with companies on U.S. restriction lists and research collaborations involving defense-linked institutions. “My committee’s investigation calls for serious policy changes to ensure what JPMorgan and Bank of America did never happens again,” said Select Committee Chairman John Moolenaar, R-Mich. “American banks must not help Chinese military companies raise money, because in doing so, they provide not only access to funding, but also legitimacy and credibility to companies that are helping our adversary build up its military.” JPMorgan and Bank of America defended their involvement, arguing CATL is not sanctioned by the U.S. government and remains deeply integrated into Western manufacturing supply chains. “Based on available information and our own due diligence, CATL has lawfully partnered with American companies — including major auto manufacturers — to provide essential battery technology that will strengthen U.S. manufacturing and enhance American competitiveness,” a JPMorgan spokesperson told Fox News Digital. “We complied with the law and U.S. government sanctions policies,” a Bank of America spokesperson told Fox News Digital. “We conducted the appropriate due diligence on this transaction, and we shared significant detail about our process with the committee. CATL is not sanctioned by the US government and conducts significant business with U.S. companies.” JPMorgan additionally argued the Pentagon designation applies primarily to War Department procurement and does not prohibit private-sector business relationships involving CATL. CATL has other partnerships with major Western automakers including Ford, Tesla, Stellantis, BMW and Volkswagen. JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon previously defended the bank’s work involving CATL in a Bloomberg Television interview in May 2025. “If we thought it was wrong, we wouldn’t do it,” Dimon said. “The government did not sanction CATL.” The debate underscores growing tension between U.S. national security concerns surrounding China and the reality that major American and European manufacturers remain heavily reliant on Chinese battery technology and supply chains. Ford is currently building a $3 billion battery plant in Michigan using CATL technology through a licensing arrangement designed to avoid Chinese ownership of the facility, according to a recent Bloomberg report. Ford has argued the partnership helps strengthen domestic manufacturing and improve U.S. competitiveness in electric vehicle production. The committee’s report argues current U.S. law is insufficient to stop American financial institutions from financing companies tied to China’s military-industrial base because Section 1260H restrictions primarily affect War Department procurement rather than broader commercial activity. “The deals were legal, so the banks proceeded,” the report states. The committee recommends legislation that would prohibit U.S. financial institutions from underwriting offerings for blacklisted Chinese entities and urges the Treasury Department to impose stronger sanctions authorities against CATL. Fox News Digital has also reached out to Morgan Stanley, CATL and the Pentagon for comment.
Republicans recoil as Trump’s billion-dollar DOJ ‘slush fund’ for allies threatens ICE, Border Patrol plan
Senate Republicans are breaking with President Donald Trump on his new, nearly $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund as concerns over where the money comes from and who gets it ripple through the Capitol. The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the $1.78 billion fund earlier this week in a deal struck between Trump and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to drop his $10 billion lawsuit. Shortly after, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche was grilled by senators on the subject. “This is an outrageous, unprecedented slush fund that you have set up,” Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., said. “Simple question, will individuals who assaulted Capitol Hill police officers be eligible for this fund?” TRUMP DEMANDS SENATE PARLIAMENTARIAN’S OUSTER FOR AXING BALLROOM SECURITY FUNDING “Anybody in this country will be eligible to apply,” Blanche said. That concern has driven several Senate Republicans to criticize the fund, given that several people convicted of assaulting police on the Hill, or who have tried to harm the president, could get access to taxpayer dollars. “Imagine that,” Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said. ”A fund that is set up to compensate people who assaulted Capitol Police officers and other responding agencies, right? People that had pled guilty to physical acts against the president may actually be able to get compensated. How absurd does that sound coming out of my mouth?” Senate Republicans are currently trying to ram through a multibillion-dollar package that will fund immigration operations for the remainder of Trump’s presidency and are already grappling with a $1 billion funding request that will go toward security enhancements for his colossal ballroom. That funding, which was already stripped out by the Senate rules referee, and whether to add restrictions to the DOJ fund, are gumming up the process in the upper chamber. SENATE REPUBLICAN THREATENS TO DERAIL ICE, BORDER PATROL PACKAGE OVER TRUMP’S BILLION-DOLLAR REQUEST Few Republicans are actively supporting the “anti-weaponization” fund. Lawmakers are set to meet with Blanche Thursday morning behind closed doors to learn more about how it works. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., previously said that he was “not a big fan” of the fund and questioned its purpose. “Our members have very legitimate questions about it, and we’ve had some conversations about, if it’s going to be a feature going forward, what it might look like and how we might make sure that it’s fenced in appropriately,” Thune said ahead of the meeting. Officers who protected the Hill on Jan. 6 sued to block the fund on Wednesday, but it hasn’t sated the concerns that Republicans have. Some want Congress to get involved. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., who Trump successfully worked to oust during his primary election over the weekend, argued that the fund was adding to the nation’s staggering national debt, and that “if there needs to be a settlement, the administration should bring it to Congress to decide.” SENATE REPUBLICANS, DEMS BLOCK DUELING ATTEMPTS TO REPEAL CONTROVERSIAL ARCTIC FROST PROVISION “People are concerned about paying their mortgage or rent, affording groceries and paying for gas, not about putting together a $1.8 billion fund for the president and his allies to pay whomever they wish with no legal precedent or accountability,” Cassidy said on X. But it’s not a unanimous issue shared throughout the Senate GOP. Some, like Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., believe that there have been people “really harmed by the federal government,” and had no issue with setting up a fund to compensate them. Johnson and a handful of his colleagues were the targets of former special counsel Jack Smith’s Arctic Frost probe and had their phone records subpoenaed without notice as part of the investigation. That spurred now-defunct legislation that would have allowed senators targeted in the probe to sue for up to $500,000. Johnson believed that the five-member panel that would process the claims would prevent criminals and others from getting a piece of the fund. “I’m assuming they’re not going to provide that type of funding for criminals. I mean, people who really should have been prosecuted, people who committed violence, that type of thing,” Johnson told Fox News Digital. “But, I mean, for the grandma and grandpas that just showed up and you’ve got the DOJ or FBI doing SWAT raids on their farms? Yeah, those people should be compensated.”