Trump says his Aug 1 tariff deadline ‘will not be extended’ – here are the countries that might not make it
President Donald Trump warned that his August 1 deadline for making a trade deal with the U.S. “stands strong” on Wednesday, threatening several key nations with a big tariff hike. “The August first deadline is the August first deadline — it stands strong, and will not be extended. A big day for America!” Trump wrote on Truth Social, using all-caps. Here are the major countries that still need to negotiate deals with the U.S. Trump sent a letter to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney threatening a 35% tariff if a deal isn’t struck, but negotiations appear to have stalled. TREASURY SECRETARY BESSENT DETAILS TRUMP ADMINISTRATION’S PLAN TO TACKLE CHINA’S ECONOMIC IMBALANCES “We haven’t really had a lot of luck with Canada. I think Canada could be one where they’ll just pay tariffs. It’s not really a negotiation,” Trump said of the negotiations with our neighbor to the north on Friday. Carney himself said on Monday that negotiations have reached an “intense phase.” “It’s a complex negotiation. You see with the various trade deals that have been agreed to by other jurisdictions — the European Union yesterday, Japan before that, Indonesia, United Kingdom — that there are many elements to these negotiations. We’re engaged in them. But the assurance for Canadian businesses, for Canadians, is we will only sign a deal that’s a good deal, the right deal for Canada,” he told reporters Monday. TRUMP HEADS TO SCOTLAND TO TALK GOLF, POLITICS AND TRADE According to the US Trade Representative (USTR), Canada is America’s third-largest importer, totaling $412.7 billion in 2024. The U.S. exported $349.4 billion to Canada in the same year. Trump sent a similar letter to Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum earlier this month, this one threatening a 30% tariff. No deal has been struck as of Wednesday, however, and neither party has been vocal about where negotiations stand. Mexico is America’s top source of imports, totaling $506 billion in 2024, according to the USTR. Meanwhile, the U.S. exported $334 billion to the country over the same year. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent negotiated with Chinese officials in Sweden this week and said Tuesday that the talks were “very constructive.” He emphasized to reporters that no final agreement was made, however. Unlike most countries, China is facing an August 12 deadline rather than August 1, giving them somewhat more breathing room for negotiations. “Nothing is agreed until we speak with President Trump,” Bessent told reporters. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told Fox News on Monday that the deadline for China could be extended even further than August 12, though that decision will be up to Trump. Trump warned South Korean President Lee Jae Myung in a July 7 letter that the country would face a 25% blanket tariff if a deal isn’t reached by August 1. US IS IN A ‘SUPER PLACE,’ SAYS COMMERCE SECRETARY ON CHINA TRADE TALKS Lee’s office said late last week that it was preparing a proposal. Lutnick met with three top Korean officials in Washington this week, though no news has come out of the meeting. Taiwan has yet to reach a trade deal with the Trump administration, but Taipei has a delegation in Washington hoping to reach one before August 1, Reuters reported Wednesday. The self-governed island is facing a 32% tariff if it does not secure a deal. “All the relevant talks are still ongoing,” one source familiar with the talks told Reuters, with another saying negotiators were still in the U.S. “We hope these negotiations will accomplish four objectives: safeguarding national interests, protecting industrial interests, ensuring public health, and securing food safety. These objectives serve dual purposes: promoting balanced bilateral trade between Taiwan and the U.S., and enhancing cooperation in diverse areas like technology and national security,” Taiwan’s cabinet said in a statement. Trump appears to have slammed the door shut early on India, announcing on Truth Social that the country will face a 25% tariff across the board beginning August 1. “Remember, while India is our friend, we have, over the years, done relatively little business with them because their tariffs are far too high, among the highest in the world, and they have the most strenuous and obnoxious non-monetary trade barriers of any country. Also, they have always bought a vast majority of their military equipment from Russia, and are Russia’s largest buyer of energy, along with China, at a time when everyone wants Russia to stop the killing in Ukraine — all things not good!” Trump wrote. ‘GONE TOO FAR’: GOP LAWMAKERS RALLY AROUND TRUMP AFTER MUSK RAISES EPSTEIN ALLEGATIONS “India will therefore be paying a tariff of 25%, plus a penalty for the above, starting on August first. Thank you for your attention to this matter. MAGA!” he added. Trump threatened a massive 50% blanket tariff on Brazilian goods in a letter to Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva earlier in July. Trump credited the higher rate to Brazil’s prosecution of former President Jair Bolsonaro, who many compared to Trump himself. The U.S. president said Bolsonaro was the victim of a “witch hunt.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Lula’s regime has requested that the U.S. exempt certain industries from the tariffs, but a deal before August 1 appears unlikely.
Patel found thousands of sensitive Trump–Russia probe docs inside ‘burn bags’ in secret room at FBI
EXCLUSIVE: FBI Director Kash Patel found a trove of sensitive documents related to the origins of the Trump–Russia probe buried in multiple “burn bags” in a secret room inside the bureau, sources told Fox News Digital. Sources told Fox News Digital that the “burn bag” system is used to destroy documents designated as classified or higher. Sources told Fox News Digital that multiple burn bags were found and filled with thousands of documents. FBI’S CONTROVERSIAL TRUMP-RUSSIA ACTIONS PREDICTED WITH ‘ALARMING SPECIFICITY’ BY FOREIGN ACTORS: SOURCES Sources told Fox News Digital that one of the documents FBI officials found in a burn bag was the classified annex to former special counsel John Durham’s final report, which includes the underlying intelligence he reviewed. The declassification of the classified annex is being done in close coordination between CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Patel, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, Attorney General Pam Bondi and acting National Security Agency Director William Hartman. The declassified annex will be transmitted to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, who ultimately will release the document to the public. Sources exclusively briefed Fox News Digital on some of the contents of the classified annex — including that the U.S. intelligence community had credible foreign sources indicating that the FBI would play a role in spreading the alleged Trump–Russia collusion narrative — before the bureau ever launched its controversial Crossfire Hurricane probe. A source familiar with the contents of the classified annex told Fox News Digital that while it may not have been exactly clear in the moment what the intelligence collection meant, with the benefit of hindsight, it predicted the FBI’s next move “with alarming specificity.” “Ultimately, the release of the classified annex will lend more credibility to the assertion that there was a coordinated plan inside the U.S. government to help the Clinton campaign stir up controversy connecting Trump to Russia,” the source, who was granted anonymity to discuss sensitive intelligence matters that have not yet been made public, told Fox News Digital. “Mere days after this intelligence was collected, the FBI launched Crossfire Hurricane,” the source said. “It’s really hard to see how Brennan, Clapper and Comey are going to be able to explain this away.” Sources told Fox News Digital that Patel and his team discovered a previously undisclosed sensitive compartmented information facility (SCIF) in the FBI headquarters. Fox News Digital reached out to previous FBI Directors Christopher Wray and James Comey for comment and has not yet received any responses. Patel, in a June interview with podcast host Joe Rogan, revealed that he found a room full of documents and computer hard drives “that no one had ever seen or heard of.” “Just think about this,” Patel told Rogan. “Me, as director of the FBI, the former ‘Russiagate guy,’ when I first got to the bureau, found a room that Comey and others hid from the world in the Hoover Building, full of documents and computer hard drives that no one had ever seen or heard of. Locked the key and hid access and just said, ‘No one’s ever gonna find this place.’” Patel and his staff have been working through the documents, some of which are related to sensitive investigations, including the FBI’s original Trump–Russia probe, known inside the bureau as Crossfire Hurricane. It is unclear what the latest documents cover specifically, but sources told Fox News Digital that the most recent discovery was pursuant to an investigative request from Grassley. Patel has turned the documents over to Grassley. EXCLUSIVE: BRENNAN DIRECTED PUBLICATION OF ‘IMPLAUSIBLE’ REPORTS CLAIMING PUTIN PREFERRED TRUMP IN 2016, HOUSE FOUND Grassley has been requesting information related to Durham’s probe. Durham was appointed after then-special counsel Robert Mueller completed his yearslong investigation into the origins of the Trump–Russia probe — including intelligence community malfeasance during and in the aftermath of the 2016 election. Sources told Fox News Digital that Grassley’s team is now reviewing the underlying information as part of its investigative work. As for the other records, Patel’s staff is working to turn them over to Congress pursuant to investigative requests by committees of jurisdiction. EXCLUSIVE: FBI LAUNCHES CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS OF JOHN BRENNAN, JAMES COMEY: DOJ SOURCES Patel has been instrumental in unraveling the alleged Russia collusion narrative. He previously served as the chief investigator in the congressional probe into alleged Trump–Russia collusion — uncovering suspected government surveillance abuse that led to the appointment of two special counsels: one who determined there was no such collusion, Mueller, and another who determined the entire premise of the FBI’s original investigation was bogus, Durham. Patel served as senior counsel and a national security adviser on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) for then-Chair Rep. Devin Nunes. While Mueller investigated, the HPSCI opened its own investigation into alleged Trump–Russia collusion. In July 2016, during the election cycle, the FBI launched an investigation into whether the Trump campaign was colluding with Russia to influence the outcome of the election. That investigation, inside the bureau, was known as Crossfire Hurricane. By January 2017, Comey had notified Trump of a dossier, known as the Steele dossier, that contained salacious and unverified allegations about Trump’s purported coordination with the Russian government, a key document prompting the opening of the probe. EXCLUSIVE: OBAMA OFFICIALS ADMITTED THEY HAD NO ‘EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE’ OF TRUMP-RUSSIA COLLUSION: HOUSE INTEL TRANSCRIPTS The dossier was authored by Christopher Steele, an ex-British intelligence officer, and commissioned by Fusion GPS. Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign hired Fusion GPS during the 2016 election cycle. It was eventually determined that the Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee funded the dossier through the law firm Perkins Coie. Trump fired Comey in May 2017. Days later, Mueller was appointed as special counsel to take over the Crossfire Hurricane probe and investigate whether the Trump campaign colluded with Russia to influence the 2016 election cycle. While Mueller investigated, the HPSCI opened its own investigation into alleged Trump–Russia collusion. Patel, as chief investigator for Nunes, by February 2018 had discovered widespread government surveillance abuse, including alleged
Trump, Republicans race to redraw Texas congressional map as Democrats threaten legal war
President Donald Trump and Republicans are moving full speed ahead in an extraordinary push to redraw congressional district maps ahead of next year’s midterm elections, when the GOP will be defending its razor-thin House majority. And Democrats are trying to fight back against the Republicans’ controversial moves. Texas GOP state lawmakers will unveil their proposed new congressional redistricting maps as early as Wednesday, a well-connected Republican source in the Lone Star State confirmed to Fox News Digital. Meanwhile, the top Democrat in the House is expected to travel to Texas to meet Wednesday evening with Democrats in the state legislature at a meeting in Austin. TEXAS DEMOCRATIC LAWMAKERS PREPARING TO FLEE RED STATE TO BLUNT GOP CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING PUSH House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has accused the Republicans of being “afraid of the voters in 2026 in the midterm elections and they’re trying to cheat to win.” The Republican push in Texas is part of a broader effort by the GOP across the country to keep control of the House, and cushion losses elsewhere in the country, as the party in power traditionally faces political headwinds and loses seats in midterm elections. TEXAS GOV SAYS DEMS WHO ‘FLED’ STATE OVER ELECTIONS BILL WILL BE ARRESTED UPON RETURN Trump and his political team are aiming to prevent what happened during his first term in the White House, when Democrats stormed back to grab the House majority in the 2018 midterms. “Texas will be the biggest one,” the president told reporters recently, as he predicted the number of GOP-friendly seats that could be added through redistricting in the reliably red state. “Just a simple redrawing, we pick up five seats.” Democrats control just 12 of the state’s 38 congressional districts, with a blue-leaning seat vacant after the death in March of Rep. Sylvester Turner. The GOP idea is to relocate Democratic voters from competitive seats into nearby GOP-leaning districts, and move Republican voters into neighboring districts the Democrats currently control. Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, both conservative Republicans and Trump allies, said they needed to redistrict because of constitutional concerns raised by the Justice Department over a handful of minority-dominated districts. COURT SIDETRACKS REDISTRICTING FIGHT IN KEY BATTLEGROUND STATE But the move is potentially risky. “There is some risk of making safe Republican seats more competitive, and I think that the incumbents are certainly worried about that,” veteran Texas-based Republican strategist Brendan Steinhauser recently told Fox News. “If you talk to Republican members of Congress, they’re going to be worried about their own seats. They don’t want to be in a seat that’s more competitive.” Steinhauser noted “that’s the tradeoff for Republicans, if you want to grow the majority.” But he added that “the people drawing the maps… they don’t want to make any seat too competitive because that will defeat the purpose.” Redistricting typically takes place at the start of each decade, based on the latest U.S. Census data. Mid-decade redistricting is uncommon—but not without precedent. Democrats are slamming Trump and Texas Republicans for what they describe as a power grab, and vowing to take legal action to prevent any shift in the current congressional maps. And Democrats in blue-dominated states are now trying to fight fire with fire. “Two can play this game,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote on social media recently. The next day, after a meeting, Democrats in California’s congressional delegation said they were on board with an ambitious plan to try and gain at least five seats through redistricting. Democrats currently control 43 of the Golden State’s 52 congressional districts. Jeffries, after his two-day stop in Texas, heads to California for meetings with state Democrats. But it won’t be easy to enact the change, because in California, congressional maps are drawn by an independent commission that is not supposed to let partisanship influence their work. Newsom has suggested that the state’s Democratic-controlled legislature move forward with a mid-decade redrawing of the maps, arguing that it might not be forbidden by the 17-year-old ballot initiative that created the independent commission. The governor also proposed quickly holding a special election to repeal the commission ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. Both plans are considered long shots, as they would face plenty of legislative, legal and financial hurdles. Democrats in other heavily populated blue states—including New York, Illinois, and New Jersey, are also considering making changes to their maps, but have redistricting limits enshrined in their state constitutions. Meanwhile, Ohio is required by law to redistrict this year, and a redrawing of the maps in the red-leaning state could provide the GOP with up to three more congressional seats. And Republicans are also mulling mid-decade redistricting that might give the GOP a couple of more House seats in red states such as Florida, Missouri, and Indiana.
Backlash against Sydney Sweeney ‘jeans/genes’ ad gets mocked by WH: Americans are ‘tired of this bulls—’
A top White House official waded into the Sydney Sweeney-American Eagle advertisement controversy late Tuesday, calling left-wing backlash and claims of a “shift toward whiteness” more “cancel culture run amok.” Steven Cheung, President Donald Trump’s communications director, reposted an MSNBC headline claiming Sweeney’s ad promoted racial superiority in the form of genetic “whiteness” – and wrecked it in a caption. “Cancel culture run amok,” Cheung said. “This warped, moronic, and dense liberal thinking is a big reason why Americans voted the way they did in 2024. They’re tired of this bulls—.” THE WAR ON HOT WOMEN: WHY THE WOKE MOB HATES SYDNEY SWEENEY While some TikTokers simply noted the ad’s multiple similarities to a 1980 Calvin Klein ad featuring then-child-model Brooke Shields – others lambasted Sweeney’s version as a sinister nod to eugenics; citing how “great genes” and “great jeans” are homophones. TikTokkers, compiled by the New York Post, lambasted the ad as “Nazi propaganda” and “fascist-weird.” Activist Zellie Imani, whose X profile includes the phrase “All Black Everything,” called the ad a “love letter to White nationalism and eugenic fantasies, and Sydney Sweeney knew it.” Those types of responses drew their own incredulous comment from Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas: “Wow. Now the crazy Left has come out against beautiful women — I’m sure that will poll well,” Cruz said on X. First son Donald Trump Jr. took to Instagram to troll critics as well. Trump Jr. posted an artificially-generated image of his father in the ad instead of Sweeney and paraphrased Owen Wilson’s fashion-designer-character catchphrase from the Ben Stiller film “Zoolander.” SYDNEY SWEENEY FROLICS WITH MYSTERY MAN AS AMERICAN EAGLE DROPS PROVOCATIVE NEW AD “Hanse – Um, Donald is so hot right now,” Trump Jr. quipped. Such signaling from the first family and the White House has also led to feelings that the cultural tide is turning in favor of the right for the first time in decades. Proponents of that view also point to the cancellation of Stephen Colbert and the entire CBS “Late Show” franchise. American Eagle will reportedly be donating proceeds from such jeans to the national Crisis Text Line to support victims of domestic violence. The company defended the ad in a statement last week: CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “This fall season, American Eagle is celebrating what makes our brand iconic – trendsetting denim that leads, never follows,” American Eagle & Aerie president and creative director Jennifer Foyle said. “Innovative fits and endless versatility reflect how our community wears their denim: mixed, matched, layered and lived in. With Sydney Sweeney front and center, she brings the allure, and we add the flawless wardrobe for the winning combo of ease, attitude and a little mischief.” American Eagle CEO Jay Schottenstein and family also have friendly ties with the Trumps, as the Wall Street Journal reported they have been Mar-a-Lago members for years and Schottenstein’s son held his wedding at the Palm Beach compound.
Newsom office dismisses crime fears, defends sanctuary policies amid surge in violence: ‘Fake news’
In the wake of a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer being shot allegedly by two criminal illegal immigrants earlier this month, experts are calling attention to how sanctuary policies sheltering lawbreakers are directly responsible for rising crime and violence in Democratic-run jurisdictions. California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office, however, pushed back against the notion that sanctuary policies are to blame, with a spokesperson calling it “fake news” and an attempt by the Trump administration to justify “their cruel and militaristic actions.” This comes after two illegal immigrants – Miguel Francisco Mora Nunez and Cristian Aybar Berroa – were arrested in connection with an off-duty CBP officer being shot in the face in a New York City park. According to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), both illegals have long criminal histories and had ICE detainers against them that had been ignored by New York City officials. Last week, the Trump Justice Department announced it is suing New York City over its longstanding sanctuary policies, which DHS said enabled the shooting. The lawsuit, filed in a New York federal court, names New York City Mayor Eric Adams and several other city officials as defendants. The lawsuit claims the city has enacted policies with the intent of impeding the federal government’s ability to enforce immigration laws. BASS, NEWSOM MORE INTERESTED IN ‘SHELTERING’ ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS THAN REBUILDING FROM FIRES: STEPHEN MILLER Joe Borelli, a former New York City Council member, told Fox News Digital that sanctuary policies have made many of America’s major cities “demonstrably” less safe. “We have had about a decade of this ‘sanctuary city’ experiment in Democratic-run cities, and after all this time, we can now definitively say it’s been a net loss. And that’s being polite,” said Borelli. “In truth, it has drained the coffers of American cities and states and has demonstrably made our neighborhoods less safe, especially those that are home to our legal immigrant communities,” he added. Andrew Arthur, a former immigration judge and policy expert at the Center for Immigration Studies, told Fox News Digital that the continued criminality of individuals like the two suspects in New York is “a direct result of the sanctuary policies.” He said the suspects in the New York shooting had a “slew of prior arrests, any one of which could have resulted in their arrest by ICE and deportation from the United States.” “But they didn’t because they occurred largely in sanctuary jurisdictions where ICE didn’t have cooperation from the local authorities,” he explained. NOEM BLAMES ‘SANCTUARY’ POLICIES FOR MIGRANT ACCUSED OF SHOOTING OFF-DUTY CBP OFFICER “The contention that is made is that those policies are necessary in order to protect the immigrant communities, but the only things that sanctuary policies actually protect are criminals,” he said. “States and localities like California, Los Angeles, Denver, Boston, Massachusetts, New York and New York City that do have sanctuary jurisdictions make it much more likely that criminal aliens will be released onto the street to re-offend.” Lora Ries, a border security and immigration expert at the Heritage Foundation, predicted that if the sanctuary policies continue, “there’s going to be more preventable crime and more victims who shouldn’t be victims.” “It has not just been a national security threat, but a personal safety threat,” she said, adding, “and we have already too many examples of preventable crimes because perpetrators shouldn’t have been here. They either snuck across the border the first time, the second time, the third time, committed crimes previously and either weren’t prosecuted or weren’t detained or and or weren’t turned over to ICE.” Ries pointed out that, despite Democratic claims that Trump’s immigration crackdown is unpopular, it is sanctuary policies – that allow criminal illegals to evade ICE – that the public is opposed to. Since 2015, a majority of Americans have generally favored the deportation of illegal immigrants. The latest Fox News survey, released on Monday, found roughly 8 in 10 Democrats, 6 in 10 independents, and 4 in 10 Republicans agree that at least illegal immigrants charged with crimes should be deported, while others should be offered a path to stay. DEMS’ SANCTUARY POLICIES SHIELD ‘GANGBANGERS,’ HARM LATINO FAMILIES, BUSINESSES, SAYS HISPANIC GOP LAWMAKER Rep. Gabe Evans, R-Colo., whose district includes portions of Denver, told Fox News Digital that sanctuary policies have made Colorado the second most dangerous state in the country. “It’s an absolutely horrible impact on public safety. And that horrible impact is tied directly back to sanctuary state policies that handcuff cops and roll out the red carpet for criminal organizations like Tren de Aragua,” he explained. “We’re talking guns and drugs and human trafficking and child abuse,” he continued. “And the predators and the criminals that are perpetuating these violent acts, peddling fentanyl in our community, literally killing Americans and Coloradans by the thousands, these are the people that have been festering in our society under the sanctuary state policies in Colorado.” Evans added that besides inhibiting law enforcement from above, sanctuary policies also “sends a message to other outside groups that it’s okay to go and interfere with and, at times, outright assault law enforcement officers.” Tricia McLaughlin, Department of Homeland Security assistant secretary, placed the blame directly on Democratic politicians for the sanctuary policies. “When sanctuary politicians ignore ICE detainers, they are protecting criminal illegal aliens at the expense of American citizens,” McLaughlin told Fox News Digital. ICE SIT-IN ‘PHOTO OP’ BY MARYLAND DEMS BLASTED BY DHS CHIEF NOEM “Make no mistake, Democrat politicians like Hakeem Jeffries, Mayor Wu of Boston, Tim Walz, and Mayor Bass of Los Angeles are contributing to the surge in assaults of our ICE officers through their repeated vilification and demonization of ICE. From comparisons to the modern-day Nazi Gestapo to glorifying rioters, the violent rhetoric of these sanctuary politicians is beyond the pale.” “These reckless policies have deadly consequences,” she added. However, Diana Crofts-Pelayo, a spokesperson for Newsom’s office, pushed back. “Their assertions are fake news,” said Crofts-Pelayo, adding, “This is the Trump team’s attempt
Ramaswamy pledges ‘rule of law’ revival after viral Cincinnati mob attack
Exclusive: Republican candidate for Ohio governor Vivek Ramaswamy told Fox News Digital that the violent assault in downtown Cincinnati early Saturday morning “hit close to home.” The brutal attack on Fourth Street and Elm Street triggered national outrage, including from national leaders like Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, and Vice President JD Vance after the now-viral video circulated across social media. The video, which occurred outside a popular nightclub, shows a mob viciously attacking two people, including a woman who was knocked out while bystanders filmed instead of intervening. “I spoke to Holly earlier today,” Ramaswamy said in a social media post, referring to the woman who was knocked out. CINCINNATI BUSINESS OWNERS SLAM VIRAL ‘OUT OF CONTROL’ BEATING AMID FIGHT TO CLEAN UP DOWNTOWN “Most importantly, we’re praying for her recovery,” Ramaswamy told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview. “It was sad to watch. And one of the things that surprised me was, despite how many times that video had been viewed around the country and beyond, she told me that I was the first state or local official that had reached out, and she appreciated that.” CINCINNATI MAYORAL CANDIDATE, VP VANCE’S HALF-BROTHER, SLAMS CITY LEADERSHIP AFTER BRUTAL BEATDOWN Ramaswamy, who was born and raised in Cincinnati, said this incident should be a “wake-up call for why we need to address the wave of violent crime across the country.” A lone gunman killed four people, including a New York Police Department (NYPD) officer, on Monday afternoon in New York City, renewing national public safety concerns. Ramaswamy said it “struck a chord” to see a violent incident play out in his hometown of Cincinnati. “I think part of the reason it got the attention it did is that it struck a nerve that went far beyond this incident and what people are seeing in crumbling cities across the country, due to poor, failed, anti-police policies and poor left-wing leadership,” Ramaswamy said of the Ohio assault. The business leader lamented that “it hasn’t always been that way in Cincinnati, and it doesn’t need to be.” “The leadership tone starts at the top,” Ramaswamy said. “We need leaders who are willing to be unapologetic about standing for the rule of law. I won’t apologize for backing law enforcement.” The former Republican presidential candidate and businessman told Fox News Digital that the top lesson he learned from his conversation with Holly is that “we need to bring back common sense.” “Bring back rational police presence in our cities, and do it in a way that unites people around safety, rather than seeing tragedies like the one that played out in Cincinnati over the weekend,” Ramaswamy explained. Specifically, as governor, the Republican candidate told Fox News Digital that common-sense reform includes reallocating resources for a greater police presence and equipping police officers with more training to effectively do their jobs. If elected next year, Ramaswamy said, “We’re going to set an example for what that looks like in Ohio,” emphasizing the importance of strong leadership at the top, shifting the culture to one that prioritizes the rule of law. “We’ve got to listen to the people we lead, listen with empathy, but to channel even those most negative of experiences to have positive solutions, and that’s the tone I’m looking to set in our state,” Ramaswamy said of his conversation with Holly. The gubernatorial candidate and native Ohioan described Holly as a “single working mom who went to a friend’s birthday party,” in his post on Monday night. “It’s unconscionable that there were no police present in that area of Cincinnati on a Friday night, or even an ambulance to take her to the hospital. Hard-working Americans shouldn’t have to worry for their safety when they have a good time in our cities,” he continued. “Holly appreciates the kind words and prayers from patriots across the country, and hopes that the publicity around her story ensures that local & state leaders clean up our failing cities. We hope to visit Holly soon as she recovers,” Ramaswamy shared. Fox News Digital’s Pete D’Abrosca contributed to this report.
Hundreds of billions in over-budget federal projects exposed, as Senate DOGE tries to claw money back
More than a dozen federal infrastructure projects are over budget by at least $162 billion total, according to a new report from the Senate DOGE Caucus, whose chair claimed it took DOT Secretary Sean Duffy to help uncover the data the Biden administration did not make public. Senate DOGE Caucus Chairwoman Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, shared with Fox News Digital her report that uses California’s decadeslong high-speed-rail project as a boondoggle benchmark and laid out details of every federal infrastructure project that is also either more than $1 billion over budget, five years past deadline or both. “Going a billion dollars over budget isn’t a rounding error; it’s a financial train wreck,” Ernst told Fox News Digital. The caucus report said the accumulated $162.9 billion over-budget figure for all listed projects is likely a “floor” if more digging into data were to be done. “I am thrilled to have worked with the Trump administration to defund the California Crazy Train, but now it’s time for these other boondoggles to meet the same fate,” Ernst continued. “Including just five of these off the rails projects in a future rescissions package would save taxpayers billions more than the first rescissions package.” “Being five years behind schedule isn’t just losing track of time — it’s a full derailment,” she said. Ernst and Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa., also introduced the Billion Dollar Boondoggle Act, which is set for a committee vote this week and would require every federal agency to report on projects that are severely delayed or over budget. REPUBLICAN SENATORS ROLL OUT DOGE BUDGET PROPOSALS FOR TRUMP’S ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’ In one case involving an earmark for a 14-mile Minneapolis light rail extension, it languished for years and doubled its price tag to a current $2.74 billion. Dubbed the “costliest public works project [in Minnesota] state history,” the project was defended by Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., as crucial to the community given the “fallout of George Floyd’s murder” in 2020. “This project will help us get back on our feet,” Omar said in a statement at the time. Another rail project in Honolulu requires $9.9 billion more infused to be completed, according to the report, which also cites that figure as about half of the average annual budget for the entire state of Hawaii. The rail line, which the report said has been clocked at slower than rush hour traffic at times, is also about $4.5 billion over budget. The crown jewel of over-budget, behind-schedule projects cited in the report is California’s high-speed rail — a venture that has spanned multiple gubernatorial administrations. The approximately-800-mile project was launched during the Obama administration, in which the DOGE report found the state sought federal funding before the preliminary process was even complete – in order to qualify for sunsetting Obama-era stimulus cash, according to a 2018 letter from the state auditor’s office included in the document. HIGH-SPEED RAIL ISN’T CALIFORNIA’S ONLY EXPENSIVE BOONDOGGLE The feds approved about $7 billion, about half of which remains unspent, while the entire project is now projected to cost $128 billion; an overrun of $95 billion. Separate from the statewide project, the report includes a photo of Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., signing her name on a concrete wall at what is supposed to be an extension of the Caltrain system in San Francisco. “This is about saving the planet. It’s about clean air. It’s about people. It’s about quality of the air. It’s about quality of the life, quality of people not having to be in their cars for long stints adding to pollution, but nonetheless getting to and from work more quickly,” Pelosi said. The report said the less-than-2-mile project is expected to be one of the most expensive by-distance in the world. That $8-billion project would connect the state’s future high-speed rail system, Caltrain and local rail via a tunnel between the Salesforce Center and the end of the current Caltrain line south of the business district. The other project would extend the BART system south of its current end near SFO, passing Norman Y. Mineta International Airport in San Jose, before curving north on the other side of the Bay in order to service Silicon Valley and end in Berryessa, California. Ernst’s report noted Pelosi attempted to insert a separate, nine-figure earmark for the Silicon Valley project into the COVID-19 relief bill but was rebuffed by the Senate Parliamentarian. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Other lesser projects listed in the report, more so for tardiness reasons, include one in her own state of Iowa, where Interstate 80 and Interstate 29 briefly converge in Council Bluffs before the former crosses the Missouri River into Omaha, Nebraska. On the East Coast, the project to untangle the interchange between New Jersey’s “42 Freeway,” Interstate 295 and the Walt Whitman Bridge from Philadelphia, was listed as several years past-due. That project, which consists of several related contracts, began in 2013 and, while overseen by Trenton, received more than $1 billion in federal funds, according to DOGE’s report. Inside the beltway, the feds contributed several billion to Maryland’s “Purple Line” commuter rail project, which has run into dueling politics and other issues. In addition, Duffy told Fox News Digital he fully endorsed Senate DOGE’s efforts. “If you’re receiving taxpayer dollars, you should expect to be held accountable by the American people,” the secretary said. “No more boondoggles – Thank you Senator Ernst for your leadership in Congress to ensure federal dollars are being used effectively and efficiently.”
Dem governor’s buried cocaine investigation docs hit with official inquiry as questions swirl over Senate run
More than three decades after Maine’s Democratic Gov. Janet Mills avoided releasing approximately 6,000 pages of case files pertaining to the federal investigation into her alleged cocaine use, the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) is seeking those very documents. The NRSC submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) in April 2025, attempting to release the files relating to her suspected cocaine use trial amid suspicion that Democrats were recruiting her to jump into the state’s Senate race. While NARA initially told the NRSC they would review the request, they later claimed 3,000 pages of the files were under FOIA exemption, which preserves the secrecy of grand jury testimony. The NRSC is now appealing the denial of those records, citing public interest in the case. Fox News Digital first reported last month on the newly unearthed memo that contradicts Mills’ claim that an investigation into her alleged cocaine use was politically motivated. MAINE’S DEM GOVERNOR LAUGHS OFF QUESTIONS WHEN CONFRONTED ABOUT ALLEGED PAST COCAINE USE Fox News Digital has learned that approximately 3,195 documents that did not fall under the FOIA exemption required a wait time of 11 years to process. However, in 1992, Mills submitted her own FOIA request for the same documents. A newspaper article from the Ellsworth American reported that Mills got a response that NARA was “too busy” to process her request at the time. When asked if she would make the documents publicly available if she received them, Mills told the outlet, “I’d first have to see what was in it.” SEN TUBERVILLE RIPS ‘COMPLETE IDIOT’ JANET MILLS AS MAINE CONTINUES TO DEFY TRUMP’S TRANSGENDER ATHLETE ORDER Fox News Digital has not found a record of Mills releasing those documents, and Fox News Digital reached out to Mills’s office but did not receive a response. In early 1990, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Maine, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and Maine’s Bureau of Intergovernmental Drug Enforcement (BIDE) investigated Mills, then a sitting district attorney in Maine, after a drug suspect accused her of using cocaine. MAINE GOV JANET MILLS RESPONDS TO DOJ LAWSUIT AGAINST HER STATE OVER TRANS ATHLETES IN GIRLS’ SPORTS The investigation was eventually dropped without charges being filed. Mills has maintained that the investigation never had any merit and that she was politically targeted for her Democratic affiliation and criticism of BIDE. In 1990, she and two other district attorneys in Maine criticized BIDE for inflating arrest numbers through excessive enforcement of low-level drug offenders. “It’s scary,” Mills told the Portland Press Herald in November 1991. “Maine apparently has a secret police force at work that can ruin the reputation of any who opposes it.” A March 1995 memorandum from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Professional Responsibility addressed to the deputy attorney general – Merrick Garland was serving as the principal associate deputy attorney general – and unearthed by Fox News Digital, refutes Mills’ claim. It revealed that there was no misconduct by federal or state authorities investigating her case. According to the DOJ memo, WCSH-TV reported in December 1990 that Mills was being investigated by a federal grand jury for drug use, citing law enforcement sources. Mills later sued that reporter for libel and slander. The report also prompted Mills’ attorney to demand a grand jury investigation, arguing that “the press received leaks from BIDE law enforcement officials.” The results of the libel and slander suit are no longer available. The docket for the case showed that the records were disposed of in 2015 in accordance with policy. However, a 1991 Lewiston Sun-Journal article appears to state that the effort to “end drug probe rumors” was thrown out by a judge. Earlier this month, Mills was confronted in Washington, D.C., about her alleged cocaine use, Fox News Digital exclusively reported, in an exchange where she said, “What the f—?” when asked if “sniffing cocaine at work” is a “human right.” Longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins is up for re-election in 2026, and with Mills’ governorship term limited next year, she would be a competitive Democratic candidate to challenge Collins. Mills indicated in April that she did not “plan to run for another office,” but admitted that “things change week to week, month to month,” leaving the door open to a potential Senate bid.
Schumer calls on FBI to conduct counterintelligence threat assessment on Epstein files
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has called on the FBI to conduct a counterintelligence threat assessment on the Jeffrey Epstein files. Schumer said on the Senate floor on Tuesday that the FBI assessment should accomplish three things: determine if foreign intelligence agencies could gain access to the information “the president does not want to release in the Epstein files, through methods that include cyber intrusion;” identify any vulnerabilities that could be exploited by foreign intelligence agencies with access to non-public information in the Epstein files, “including being able to gain leverage over Donald Trump, his family, or other senior government officials;” and result in the FBI publicly showing that the bureau is “developing mitigation strategies to counter these threats and safeguard our national security.” At his weekly Democratic leadership press conference afterward, Schumer condemned what he categorized as the Epstein “cover-up,” further taking aim at President Donald Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. “Trump promised he’d release the Epstein files while he was on the campaign trail, yet he has yet to do it,” Schumer told reporters. “Speaker Johnson quite literally preferred to shut down Congress, sending everyone home on an Epstein recess to avoid the topic. Americans are right to be angry over the lack of transparency, but there are also some very real questions about risks to national security.” JOHNSON SAYS GHISLAINE MAXWELL DESERVES LIFE SENTENCE OVER EPSTEIN CRIMES, REJECTS POTENTIAL PARDON “Given Trump’s total about-face on releasing files and given what we know from the FBI whistleblowers, it’s natural to ask, what happens if our adversaries use cyberattacks and other means to access files and materials into Epstein that are damaging or worse for President Trump and or those around him?” Schumer continued. “What happens if the Epstein files end up in the hands of Russia or North Korea, or Chinese governments? Unless the Epstein files are fully released to the public, could our adversaries use that, Epstein, to use that information to blackmail someone like the president? Last Thursday, Schumer noted, the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Health and Human Services were among several government agencies hacked as part of a breach to Microsoft SharePoint system. “This was confirmed that it was Chinese actors. So we don’t need this happening again,” Schumer said. “We have to ensure that it can’t happen. National security is not and should never be a partisan issue. We need to do everything we can to make sure we protecting the U.S. and American families. This report is vital in doing that. Beyond that, there is one more thing Donald Trump could do to quell people’s anger, confusion, frustration, and/or deep fears. That is, release the files.” Last week, Johnson ended the House legislative session a day early, averting a potential vote on a resolution by Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., that would have compelled the Justice Department and the FBI to release the Epstein files. Johnson asserted on Sunday that House Republicans supported “maximum disclosure” but argued that the resolution was “reckless” and poorly drafted, arguing that it ignored federal rules protecting grand jury materials and “would require the DOJ and FBI to release information that they know is false, that is based on lies and rumors and was not even credible enough to be entered into the court proceedings.” TRUMP DROPS EPSTEIN-LINKED NAMES THAT MEDIA ‘OUGHT TO BE SPEAKING ABOUT’ AMID FILES FIRESTORM Johnson said he supported the Trump administration’s stance that “all credible evidence and information” be released, but emphasized the need for safeguards to protect victims’ identities. During a bilateral meeting with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Scotland on Monday, Trump was asked why he kicked Epstein out of his Mar-a-Lago club in West Palm Beach, Florida, years ago. “That’s such old history. Very easy to explain, but I don’t want to waste your time by explaining it. But for years, I wouldn’t talk to Jeffrey Epstein. I wouldn’t talk because he did something that was inappropriate,” Trump told reporters. “He hired help, and I said, ‘Don’t ever do that again.’ He stole people that worked for me. I said, ‘Don’t ever do that again.’ He did it again, and I threw him out of the place, persona non grata. I threw him out and that was it.” Trump said he turned down an invitation to Epstein’s notorious island in the Caribbean and claimed former President Bill Clinton and former Harvard University President Larry Summers had gone. “I never went to the island and Bill Clinton went there, supposedly 28 times. I never went to the island, but Larry Summers, I hear, went there. He was the head of Harvard and many other people that are very big people. Nobody ever talks about them,” Trump said. “I never had the privilege of going to his island. And I did turn it down. But a lot of people in Palm Beach were invited to his island. In one of my very good moments, I turned it down.” Fox News’ Tyler Olson contributed to this report.
Biden ‘Politburo’ member Steve Ricchetti appears before House investigators in Comer cover-up probe
Longtime Democratic operative Steve Ricchetti is appearing before House investigators on Wednesday, the seventh former White House aide to be summoned for Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer’s probe. Ricchetti most recently served as counselor to President Joe Biden during the vast majority of the Biden White House’s four-year term. He’s now expected to sit down with House Oversight Committee staff for a closed-door transcribed interview that could last several hours. Ricchetti said little to reporters on his way inside the room. His lawyer told Fox News Digital to expect a statement after his interview. COMER DISMISSES BIDEN DOCTOR’S BID FOR PAUSE IN COVER-UP PROBE: ‘THROWING OUT EVERY EXCUSE’ “I’m not gonna say anything on the way in. I’m just gonna go in and- just go in and give an interview,” Ricchetti told Fox News Channel’s Chad Pergram. Asked if Biden was “up for the job” of president, Ricchetti said, “Of course he was.” Comer, R-Ky., is investigating whether Biden’s top White House aides concealed signs of mental decline in the president, and if that meant executive actions were signed via autopen without his knowledge. Ricchetti first began working for Biden in 2012, when he was appointed as counselor to the vice president during the Obama administration. He was soon promoted to Biden’s chief of staff in late 2013. Ricchetti, who made a living as both a lobbyist and a Democratic insider, chaired Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign as well. The committee’s interest in him, however, lies in his alleged key role in managing the White House while aides reportedly worked to obscure signs of the president’s mental decline. “As Counselor to former President Biden, you served as one of his closest advisors. According to a report, you were part of a group of insiders who implemented a strategy to minimize ‘the president’s age-related struggles,’” Comer wrote to Ricchetti in June, referencing a Wall Street Journal report. “The scope and details of that strategy cannot go without investigation. If White House staff carried out a strategy lasting months or even years to hide the chief executive’s condition—or to perform his duties—Congress may need to consider a legislative response.” Axios reporter Alex Thompson, who co-wrote “Original Sin” with CNN host Jake Tapper about Biden’s cognitive decline and his aides’ alleged attempts to cover it up, told PBS program Washington Week earlier this year that Ricchetti was part of a small group of insiders that some dubbed Biden’s “Politburo.” He also played a key role in Biden’s legislative agenda, most notably as one of the Democratic negotiators working with then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., to avoid a full-blown fiscal crisis over the U.S. national debt in early 2023. It comes after another close former aide, former White House Chief of Staff Ronald Klain, appeared before investigators for his own transcribed interview last week. FAR-LEFT FIREBRAND SAYS SHE ‘NEVER HAD A CONCERN’ ABOUT BIDEN’S MENTAL STATE AS HOUSE PROBE HEATS UP Like Klain, Ricchetti is appearing on voluntary terms—the fourth former Biden aide to do so. Three of the previous six Biden administration officials who appeared before the House Oversight Committee did so under subpoena. Former White House physician Kevin O’Connor, as well as former advisers Annie Tomasini and Anthony Bernal, all pleaded the Fifth Amendment during their compulsory sit-downs. But the three voluntary transcribed interviews that have occurred so far have lasted more than five hours, as staff for both Democrats and Republicans take turns in rounds of questioning.