Ex-Dem lawmaker receives GOP nod in uphill race to challenge top Senate Democrat
Former Democratic state lawmaker Mike Katz won Delaware’s Republican Senate primary Tuesday, sending the state’s GOP-backed candidate into a November fight against the Democratic nominee for a seat Republicans have not won in more than three decades. Katz defeated retired Army colonel John Shulli in the two-way Republican primary and will face three-term Democratic Sen. Chris Coons in the Nov. 3 general election. Katz, a pediatric anesthesiologist and business owner, previously served in the Delaware state Senate as a Democrat after winning election to the chamber in 2008. He represented the state’s 4th Senate District until losing his re-election bid in 2012. RAUCOUS PRIMARY SEASON REACHES FINAL ACT IN DEEP-BLUE STRONGHOLD, KICKSTARTING SPRINT TO NOVEMBER The anesthesiologist has crossed party lines during his political career. Katz ran for U.S. Senate in 2024 as the Independent Party candidate, finishing third behind Democrat Lisa Blunt Rochester and Republican Eric Hansen with about 4% of the vote. He later registered his 2026 Senate candidacy as a Republican, according to Federal Election Commission records. Katz entered Tuesday’s contest as the Delaware Republican Party’s endorsed candidate. His campaign has focused on lowering the cost of living, reforming health care, protecting jobs in Delaware, and reducing federal spending, according to his campaign website. SUPREME COURT REJECTS TRUMP BID TO REVIVE STRICT MAIL-BALLOT RULES BEFORE MIDTERMS Katz characterized his move to the Republican Party as an alignment with long-held beliefs rather than a shift in his political views, telling FOX 29 that re-registering as a Republican “was not a change in principle” but an alignment with principles he had held for decades. “Our campaign is building a coalition. A coalition of Republicans, Independents and Democratic voters to win this race in November to defeat Chris Coons,” Katz told supporters in an ad ahead of Tuesday’s primary. Katz will attempt to snap a decades-long losing streak for the party in Delaware Senate races. The GOP has not won a U.S. Senate election in the state since Republican Sen. William Roth won re-election in 1994.
Dem senator defeats challenger named ‘No-Trump’ in Delaware primary
A Democratic stalwart cruised to a primary victory in Delaware on Tuesday, including fending off an opponent with an anti-Trump name. Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., easily held on against a small field of primary challengers and clinched the Democratic nomination for Senate in a race for a third term that he’s expected to win in November, and he did it while besting an opponent with an unusual name: E. No-Trump Hansen. Hansen, formerly known as Eric Hansen, a former business executive, ran on a platform of curbing presidential power. His solution to President Donald Trump’s “worst impulses” was to pass legislation that would limit presidential power to “restore real checks and balances, and root out corruption and self-dealing.” RAUCOUS PRIMARY SEASON REACHES FINAL ACT IN DEEP-BLUE STRONGHOLD, KICKSTARTING SPRINT TO NOVEMBER “The name E. (Eric) No-Trump Hansen isn’t a gimmick — it’s his complete commitment to positive change,” his campaign website said. Hansen told local outlet WHYY that he changed his name to reflect his opposition to Trump. “Trump has said he’ll go after his critics by any means available,” Hansen said. “He will go after me, but I’m willing to bear that risk anyway — because the alternative is letting things get worse for Delawareans.” MCCONNELL RETURNS AFTER MONTHS-LONG ABSENCE FOR CRUCIAL VOTE A statement of candidacy filed with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) showed that Hansen officially began campaigning under his new moniker in July. Previously, Hansen ran as a Republican in 2024 and scored the GOP nomination. He ultimately lost to Sen. Lisa Blunt-Rochester, D-Del. Meanwhile, Coons’ victory over Hansen, Jeff Appelhans and Mary Louve tees up a November challenge against either Mike Katz or John Shulli. REPUBLICAN CAVALRY ARRIVES FOR KEN PAXTON AS BIG-BUCKS TEXAS OFFENSIVE OPENS CASH FLOODGATES And Coons, the top-ranking Democrat on the Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, has history on his side. The lawmaker first entered Congress to replace then-Sen. Joe Biden, who was tapped by former President Barack Obama to be his running mate. He won his first full term in 2014 and has maintained his grip on the position ever since. The First State hasn’t sent a Republican to the upper chamber since 1966, when former Sen. J. Caleb Boggs lost re-election. Boggs was ousted by a 29-year-old Biden, cementing Delaware as a deep-blue stronghold for decades to come.
Trump admin imposes new visa restrictions over alleged racial discrimination, land seizures in South Africa
The Trump administration announced new visa restrictions Tuesday targeting foreign nationals in South Africa who it says are responsible for race-based discrimination, uncompensated land seizures or inciting imminent violence against racial and ethnic minorities. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the policy under a provision of federal immigration law allowing him to deem foreign nationals inadmissible when their entry into the U.S. could have potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences. The restrictions will target foreign nationals who are responsible for, or complicit in, enacting or implementing laws or policies that the State Department says enable uncompensated land seizures, race-based discrimination or the incitement of imminent violence against minority ethnic or racial groups in South Africa. RUBIO UNVEILS VISA RESTRICTIONS TARGETING CYBERCRIME NETWORKS Rubio sharpened the administration’s criticism of the South African government in a post on X announcing the restrictions Tuesday. “As @POTUS has made clear, the South African people are being failed by a government that is destroying its economy through an obsessive pursuit of racial grievance against the Afrikaner minority,” Rubio wrote. Rubio accused South Africa‘s government of failing to adequately address rural crime, what he described as “violent and dehumanizing rhetoric,” and discriminatory policies targeting Afrikaners and other minority groups. RUBIO PUSHES BACK ON INDIA’S CONCERNS OVER US VISA CURBS, SAYS POLICY MUST BE ‘AMERICA FIRST’ UNDER TRUMP “Those responsible for these injustices have no place in the United States,” Rubio wrote. Family members may also be subject to the restrictions, according to the State Department. The announcement marks the latest escalation in the Trump administration’s dispute with the South African government over its treatment of Afrikaners and other minority populations. ‘NARCO-TERRORIST’ FAMILY MEMBERS TARGETED IN RUBIO’S LATEST VISA CRACKDOWN President Donald Trump signed an executive order in February 2025 directing federal agencies to halt aid to South Africa to the extent permitted by law and directing the State and Homeland Security departments to prioritize humanitarian relief for Afrikaners who the administration says are victims of racial discrimination. The order specifically cited South Africa’s Expropriation Act and accused the government of enabling the seizure of Afrikaner agricultural property without compensation, along with pursuing other discriminatory policies. Rubio said Tuesday that the administration does not believe South Africa has adequately addressed its concerns. The new restrictions are being imposed under Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, according to the State Department. The White House and State Department did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment.
Senate moves to rein in college sports ‘Wild West’ with sweeping new rules for players, schools
The Senate took a major first step to advancing standardized, federal guardrails on college sports as name, image and likeness (NIL) has transformed the landscape of collegiate athletics. Lawmakers moved the Protect College Sports Act, led by Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., onto the next phase, opening up the opportunity for the Senate to advance the bipartisan bill later in the week. “I think most people acknowledge that the current landscape of college sports is a mess,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said ahead of the vote. “It needs to be addressed.” SENATE ADVANCES LANDMARK PROTECT COLLEGE SPORTS ACT, IGNORING SEC AND BIG TEN OPPOSITION WITH CLOCK TICKING At its core, Cruz pitched the legislation as a means to corral the chaos that has unfolded in college athletics since the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) made its landmark decision in 2021 to allow student-athletes to benefit financially while playing collegiate football, basketball and many others. “Some have asked why should Congress get in the middle of this? The answer is simple: because Congress screwed it up in the first place,” Cruz said during a press conference on Monday. “It has been the federal antitrust laws applied in litigation after litigation after litigation that have had the effect of tearing down essentially all the rules,” he continued. “So right now it is the Wild West.” CRUZ AND CANTWELL REFUSE TO BEND TO SEC AND BIG TEN CONCERNS IN REVISED COLLEGE ATHLETICS LEGISLATION The Protect College Sports Act would broadly add restrictions to the transfer portal for student-athletes, create a uniform eligibility framework of five years, recruiting and tampering guardrails that establish when schools or agents can contact or recruit a student-athlete, a federal standard for NIL rules, and a revenue-sharing cap. Opponents of the bill, including Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., contended that the Protect College Sports Act would take away bargaining power from student-athletes and create exemptions from antitrust laws for colleges. “The ‘chaos’ is that (mostly black) athletes now have bargaining power and white coaches and sports industry execs hate it,” Murphy said on X. KATIE UHLAENDER: ATHLETES RISK PAYING THE PRICE IF PROTECT COLLEGE SPORTS ACT IS PASSED And the Congressional Black Caucus, led by Rep. Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y., announced that it would not support the bill, charging in a statement that it would not support the legislation while “Black political representation is under attack across the country,” following the Supreme Court’s decision on the Voting Rights Act earlier this year. “Several months ago, before the Senate ever reached this moment, the Congressional Black Caucus made clear that Congress should not rush to provide sweeping new federal protections and legal certainty to powerful athletic institutions while those same institutions remained largely silent as Black voting rights and Black political representation came under unprecedented attack,” the group said. Cantwell acknowledged the pushback, noting that “several are friends and allies.” “Let me be clear, voting rights are sacred, and I will stand in that fight with anyone,” she said on the Senate floor. “But I cannot agree that the way to wage it is to hold thousands of student-athletes’ scholarships, health protections and future hostages to a Supreme Court decision they did not make.”
Democrat rebels defy Jeffries to hand GOP critical win just before midterms
A pair of moderate House Democrats defied House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., on Tuesday, rescuing Republicans from an embarrassing final week before the November midterms. Reps. Jared Golden, D-Maine, and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Wash., voted with Republicans on a procedural hurdle known as a “rule vote,” aimed at allowing the House to consider a slew of other bills this week. It’s an embarrassing blow to Jeffries’ leadership; it is almost unheard of for the minority party to break ranks and help the majority pass one of their rules, even if lawmakers on that side support the underlying legislation. LINDSEY GRAHAM’S FINAL MISSION TO PUNISH PUTIN CLEARS SENATE AFTER YEARLONG FIGHT Golden’s spokesman told Fox News Digital that the congressman’s vote was to advance a Russia sanctions bill that would have effectively been killed had the Tuesday evening rule vote failed. “Congressman Golden has been a consistent supporter of America’s allies in Ukraine. He didn’t want to see the Russia sanctions bill die in a rule vote after passing with overwhelming bipartisan support in the Senate,” the spokesman said. Fox News Digital reached out to Gluesenkamp Perez’s office as well. The congresswoman posted on X, “I’m proud to represent one of the largest Ukrainian communities in America-people who have lost fathers, mothers, sons and daughters in the fight to defeat fascism. I’ll always stand with my community’s values, and am grateful for the 86 senators who voted to send this bill to the house. My vote today gets us one step closer to enacting these sanctions into law and I look forward to voting tomorrow to cut off the flow of Russian oil money fueling this war.” JEFFRIES THREATENS ‘SERIOUS RESPONSE’ AFTER DEMOCRATS HELP GOP ADVANCE ANTI-SOCIALISM VOTE It’s not the first time the two voted against their own party on a rule, having done so several weeks earlier. The pair have been known to break ranks with fellow Democrats before, but their decision to do so on procedural votes incited particular fury among fellow Democrats. It also spurred questions over whether Jeffries will be able to control his caucus if Democrats take back the House in November, and he is elected to be the next speaker. HOUSE DEMS OVERWHELMINGLY REJECT ANTI-SOCIALISM RESOLUTION AFTER 2 MODERATES DEFY JEFFRIES Jeffries and his top deputies said in a statement the last time the pair broke ranks on a rule, “The decision by two of our colleagues to blindside the entire House Democratic Caucus and join with the Republican majority to pass a procedural rule on the brink of failing represents a significant breach of trust. It is an action that necessitates a serious response, and we have asked the Committee on Caucus Rules to take this up in short order.” It’s not clear if any punishment ensued, however. Golden is notably retiring from Congress at the end of this year. Gluesenkamp Perez is facing her toughest election yet against a Republican challenger in her Washington state district, which voted for President Donald Trump in 2024.
EXCLUSIVE: Haitian illegal alien gang member who went viral yelling ‘Biden forever’ during ICE arrest deported
EXCLUSIVE: A Haitian gang member and illegal alien who defiantly told Fox News cameras “I’m not going back to Haiti” and shouted “Biden forever” during his viral U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrest has been deported to Haiti by the Trump administration after spending 19 months in federal custody. Wisteguens Jean Quely Charles was deported on an ICE flight originating in Louisiana, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed to Fox News. Sources told Fox News that Charles was extremely combative aboard the aircraft and made crude, profane and threatening remarks about President Donald Trump and his family during the deportation flight. DHS CHIEF MULLIN CLASHES WITH TAPPER OVER HAITI DEPORTATIONS AFTER SUPREME COURT TPS RULING An image obtained exclusively by Fox News shows Charles aboard the plane. The photo was provided by an ICE source and was not included among the images officially released by DHS. The deportation completes a dramatic reversal from Charles’ arrest in Massachusetts on Jan. 22, 2025, when Fox News cameras captured him insisting he would not be returned to Haiti. “I’m not going back to Haiti … you feel me?” Charles said during the arrest. “F— Trump,” he added. “Biden forever bro.” Fox News witnessed the arrest as ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations officers took Charles into custody in Massachusetts, just days after Trump returned to the White House. EXCLUSIVE: ICE NABS MULTIPLE CONVICTED KILLERS IN SINGLE DAY AMID NATIONWIDE IMMIGRATION SWEEP DHS identifies Charles as a member of the Back Block Money Gang and says he had accumulated 17 criminal convictions. His criminal history included convictions for assault and battery on a public employee, resisting arrest, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, possession with intent to distribute a Class D controlled substance, possession of controlled substances, carrying a dangerous weapon, carrying ammunition without a firearm identification card and trespassing, according to DHS. Charles remained in federal custody for approximately 19 months after his arrest as his immigration case proceeded. A Department of Justice (DOJ) immigration judge issued Charles a final order of removal on Nov. 7, 2025, according to DHS. ICE MAKES NATIONWIDE ARRESTS OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS, MURDERERS, PEDOPHILES IN HOLIDAY BLITZ DHS publicly announced Charles’ deportation after Fox News obtained details of his removal, specifically referencing the viral video of Charles praising former President Joe Biden during his arrest. “This illegal alien gang member from Haiti had quite the rap sheet,” DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said in a statement, citing Charles’ convictions for assault and battery on a public employee, resisting arrest and drug trafficking. Mullin also criticized the immigration policies of the Obama and Biden administrations and credited the Trump administration with carrying out Charles’ removal. “Once again: if you’re here illegally, we will find you, arrest you, and remove you from the United States of America,” Mullin said. HOUSE REPUBLICAN BREAKS WITH TRUMP, SAYS ENDING HAITIAN TPS RISKS US HEALTHCARE ‘CRISIS’ DHS said Charles had originally received Temporary Protected Status (TPS) during the Obama administration in February 2013, and was admitted to the U.S. in July of that year, according to DHS. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services terminated his TPS in July 2022, according to DHS. The White House separately provided Fox News with a statement following Charles’ deportation. “This gang member and criminal illegal alien loved Obama, Biden, and open-border Democrats who let him enter our country with TPS and allowed him to terrorize American citizens,” White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis said. “Thanks to the Trump administration, he is now off our streets and back in Haiti,” she continued, while contrasting Trump’s immigration enforcement policies with those of Democrats. DHS also posted a tongue-in-cheek photo of President Donald Trump at his viral McDonald’s campaign trail stop waving goodbye to accompany the news. The deportation came more than a year and a half after Charles predicted the opposite as ICE officers placed him under arrest in front of Fox News cameras. “I’m not going back to Haiti,” he said at the time. Charles was deported by ICE to Haiti on Thursday, DHS said.
Pentagon reveals secret space weapons are already in orbit — but won’t say what they do
The U.S. has weapons orbiting Earth that can be used to defend American forces from attacks in space, the Air Force secretary revealed this week in a rare public acknowledgment of capabilities the Pentagon has largely kept secret. Air Force Secretary Troy Meink said Monday that the Space Force now has “on-orbit space control weapons capable of defending the joint force against hostile adversary action,” but declined to say what the weapons are, how they work or when they were deployed. The carefully worded disclosure marks a shift in how openly the U.S. military talks about weapons in orbit as China and Russia develop their own capabilities to disrupt, disable or destroy satellites. TRUMP TO TRANSFORM SPACEFLIGHT FROM SPECTACLE TO STATUS QUO TARGETING 3 LAUNCHES PER DAY “Is there any question in the room, by anybody, about whether or not the Chinese or Russians have been developing these sorts of weapons?” Meink told reporters after his remarks at the Air & Space Forces Association’s Air, Space & Cyber Conference in National Harbor, Maryland — right outside of Washington, D.C. “For over a decade, we’ve been talking about the fact, and we have expressed concern, that the Chinese and Russians were developing weapons for space,” he continued. “We need to focus on making sure we can protect ourselves operating in that environment.” Exactly what the U.S. has put into orbit remains a mystery. The U.S. has previously discussed placing weapons in space, including plans to deploy space-based interceptors capable of destroying incoming missiles as part of President Donald Trump’s Golden Dome missile defense system. But Meink’s disclosure goes a step further: The Space Force already has weapons in orbit for “space control,” a mission aimed at protecting U.S. access to space and, if necessary, denying an adversary the ability to use it. The Pentagon has historically revealed little about the weapons developed for that mission, with publicly known U.S. counter-space capabilities largely based on the ground. “What the U.S. is going for is a wow factor here,” Clayton Swope, deputy director of the Aerospace Security Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Fox News Digital. “Wow. The U.S. has never talked about space weapons like this before.” “That’s really what is exceptional and newsworthy about this revelation,” Swope said. “The U.S. is saying we’re putting weapons in space to make sure that our adversaries can’t use space, or to make sure that we can continue to use space.” Meink appeared to make clear that the ambiguity surrounding the weapons is intentional. He told reporters his language was “very well thought out” and declined to say whether the systems are kinetic or non-kinetic. Kinetic weapons physically strike or destroy a target — think bombs, bullets and missile — while non-kinetic systems can disrupt or disable it without blowing it up — like cyber attacks or radio jams. “There are a lot of factors that roll into how we talk about these things,” Meink said, explaining that publicly revealing a capability can contribute to deterrence while disclosing too much about it can undermine that advantage. “We’re not going to talk about the specifics of what we’re doing, whether we’ve tested it, not tested it, or anything else,” he said. That leaves a wide range of possibilities. Fox News Digital did not hear back from the Space Force when reached for details of the weapon. INSIDE AMERICA’S LASER REVOLUTION AS THE MILITARY NEARS BIG BATTLEFIELD BREAKTHROUGH Swope said “space control weapons” could encompass everything from kinetic systems capable of firing missiles or projectiles at another satellite to jammers that interfere with satellite communications or lasers designed to temporarily overwhelm imaging sensors. “We really don’t have enough information to know precisely which one of these types of capabilities we’re talking about,” Swope said. “It’s really anybody’s guess what type of weapon we’re talking about.” FATAL AIR AMBULANCE CRASH EXPOSES GROWING GPS DANGER FACING US FLIGHTS But whatever the Pentagon has deployed, putting a weapon in orbit rather than launching it from Earth could offer one potentially significant advantage: speed and surprise. A weapon launched from Earth toward a satellite could potentially give an adversary warning that an attack was underway. A capability already positioned in orbit could dramatically shorten that window. “Maybe something measured at dozens of minutes could be compressed into just mere minutes,” Swope said. “And you wouldn’t have any indication that maybe a jammer was turned on, on the satellite, other than all of a sudden your signal is being interfered with,” he added. “If you can act fast without your adversary knowing, if you can have surprise, that gives you a strategic or an asymmetric advantage in combat,” Swope said. “And having systems in orbit do just that.” Even observing the spacecraft itself may offer few clues about what it can do. “Space is a very transparent place,” Swope said, noting that governments and civilian observers can track where satellites are, how fast they are moving and what orbits they occupy. “But what you’ll see often is, oh, it’s a satellite,” he said. “It’s a lot of technology with solar panels and antenna on it. And you don’t really know much beyond that.” A satellite equipped to jam another spacecraft’s signals, for example, might look much like an ordinary communications satellite. “Any signal can be a jamming signal,” Swope said. “It just depends on if it’s the one you want to receive, or the one that someone’s trying to use to jam you.” The concept of weapons operating in orbit is not new. Swope pointed to the Soviet Union’s work on co-orbital anti-satellite weapons dating to the 1960s. Russia has continued developing counterspace capabilities, including systems designed to operate in orbit near other satellites. China has also developed and tested technologies that could threaten spacecraft, including satellite-servicing and debris-removal systems that have legitimate civilian uses but could potentially be repurposed to interfere with another satellite. Other forms of interference are already widespread. “When we talk about jamming
WATCH: ‘Lifelong Democrat’ admits she is ‘ashamed’ of party after son killed in illegal immigrant crash
In testimony before Congress this morning, self-identified “lifelong Democrat” Elizabeth Carter admitted that she is “ashamed” of her party’s handling of the immigration issue after her son, William Micah Carter, was killed in a car crash involving an illegal immigrant truck driver issued a license by California. Carter’s son and his newlywed wife, Jennifer Lower, along with their cat “Bert,” were killed in a car crash after their vehicle slammed into a jackknifed big rig driven by illegal immigrant Rajinder Kumar in late November. According to Carter, the couple were returning from their wedding reception in her late daughter-in-law’s hometown in Oregon when the crash occurred. “Sixteen days after they were married, Billy, Jenny and her cat Bert were killed. They lost the Russian roulette game our government is forcing them to play,” testified Carter. ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT ACCUSED OF KILLING NEWLYWED COUPLE IN OREGON CRASH ARRESTED BY ICE AFTER JAIL RELEASE While being questioned by Rep. Brad Knott, R-N.C., Carter criticized Democrats’ resistance to immigration enforcement, saying, “We allowed 10 million people in under Biden. How is there a different suggestion as to how to process them, other than the same way they came into the country en masse, leaving?” She continued, “I have to say, as a lifelong Democrat, I am ashamed of what my party is doing.” To which, Knott responded, “Well, they don’t care.” Knott pressed, “This is the question for the country to consider, is it worth enforcing our laws to protect just one American family?” HOMAN BLASTS DEM HYPOCRISY ON DEPORTATIONS, RECALLS PAST WHEN ‘OBAMA GAVE ME AN AWARD’ FOR ENFORCING BORDER “One party says, ‘Absolutely, if we have to mass deport the problem that they built, so be it,’” he continued. “If it protects one family from having to suffer like you’ve suffered, I think that is a worthwhile endeavor.” Carter responded, “Absolutely.” Pointing to where the Democratic committee members were sitting, Knott exclaimed, “They are still defending it. Not one of them will say, if you’re here illegally, get out.” Licensed illegal immigrant drivers on American roads have become an increasingly significant concern following a series of deadly crashes involving immigrants. OUT OF CONTROL, UNQUALIFIED ILLEGAL ALIEN TRUCKERS ENDANGERING KIDS ON US ROADS, INSIDER WARNS: ‘JUST MADNESS’ Last week, ICE launched a new tipline for Americans to report suspected commercial driver’s license (CDL) fraud as the Trump administration ramps up its crackdown on unqualified truckers. SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER In announcing the tipline, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told Fox News Digital that “too many American lives have been lost or permanently changed because illegal aliens who have no business being on our roads have been granted CDLs.” “ICE and our federal partners, including the Department of Transportation, will be cracking down on CDL fraud so that not one more American life is lost to a reckless illegal alien behind the wheel of a semi-truck,” he added.
Trump-backed crypto bill fails to launch as Dems, Republicans unite to block it
A colossal crypto regulatory package backed by President Donald Trump stumbled in the Senate, and another shot is unlikely. The Clarity Act failed to move through a key procedural hurdle on Tuesday, serving proponents of the bill, including major players in the cryptocurrency industry and the White House, a major blow in their pursuit of folding the novel currency into the nation’s web of financial regulations. Democrats dealt the bill a mortal blow, but a handful of Republicans with outstanding concerns, including Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, Josh Hawley, R-Mo., and Jerry Moran, R-Kan., were not assuaged, either. And with little time left on the Senate’s calendar and major bills piling up ahead of the midterm elections, the bill’s biggest backers believed that the Clarity Act might end up back on the shelf. REPUBLICANS TARGET TRUMP’S CRYPTO EMPIRE WITH NEW PLAN, DEMS SAY IT FALLS SHORT “I think we’re done. It’s over,” Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., the bill’s primary architect, said. “Because we’ve been working on this bill for over a year. And we’ve given them over 120 of their requests and that’s enough.” When asked if the bill would come back to the floor, Lummis said, “Nope.” A midnight hour update was made to the bill to try and pull anyone on the fence off to at least let the package move forward. But it wasn’t enough. And negotiations ran until the very end, just before the vote opened. DEMOCRATS HAND TRUMP ONE POWER THEY SPENT YEARS FIGHTING The issues with the package were many and varying among Democrats and Republicans. Several Senate Democrats were not satisfied with the ethics language baked into the Clarity Act that sought to slow the Trump family’s rapidly growing crypto empire. That’s because Trump’s income between 2024 and 2025 erupted by about 250% — from just over $620 million to about $2.2 billion. And much of that increase is attributed to his various holdings and ventures in crypto, which are run by his sons, Don Jr. and Eric, according to the president’s financial disclosure forms reviewed by Fox News Digital. “We could talk a lot about it,” Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., said of his vote against the bill. “But the simple thing is, it allows the corruption of the president to continue.” Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., who was working with Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., to strengthen the ethics provision in the package, told Fox News Digital, “We were actually getting very, very close, and at the last minute, the banking staffer from [Sen. Tim] Scott’s office came in and just said, ‘negotiations are over.’” “And so, I don’t know what happened. You know, we were getting to the point where we were probably going to be able to pass, at least get the motion to proceed, move forward, and then, again, an ethics amendment vote,” Gallego said. “But I think they got scared with the fact that they had to take an ethics amendment vote. And that’s why they killed it. They pulled it at that last minute, so it’s bulls—. We were negotiating at the end. At the end of the day, they cared more about protecting the president’s right to grift than trying to get a good bill on digital currency.” Others didn’t believe that the language dealing with foreign money laundering had enough teeth. “I have not seen the kind of engagement yet from the Republican side when it comes to countering terrorist financing and cartel financing that would get me to a yes,” Sen. Andy Kim, D-N.J., said. “I’m still engaged. I didn’t get on board with the GENIUS Act till the very last vote.” TRUMP’S $5,000 DIVIDEND CHECKS WOULD COME WITH A MAJOR CATCH UNDER GOP SENATOR’S PLAN Still, some lawmakers argued they should at least move forward with the bill to tweak it as needed. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, was still undecided before the vote. He was worried about how bringing crypto into the fold could affect deposit yields at community banks and guardrails on the currency being “diverted for criminal purposes,” but he argued the bill could be strengthened if they moved forward. “What we used to do around here is something called legislate,” Cornyn said. “You know where you’d actually vote to get on the bill, but then you amend it, and then you decide whether you’re going to support it on the back end.” The bill’s failure does open up the Senate to speedily move to other legislative priorities, like Sen. Ted Cruz’s, R-Texas, college sports bill to add protections to student-athletes and slow the big money train ripping through collegiate athletics. “We committed to ensure that we got a vote on college sports,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said. “So we’ll see if we have 60 [votes]. I don’t know the answer for sure to that yet. I hope we do.”
Kennedy Center board votes to immediately close main building over safety, financial concerns
Fox News Digital confirmed Tuesday that the Kennedy Center board voted to immediately close the main building of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., citing safety and funding concerns. President Donald Trump said shortly after the vote that the board agreed “almost unanimously” to close the building for safety reasons and begin the process of reconstruction. Trump said the closure will take effect immediately, but renovation and reconstruction will not begin until the D.C. Circuit rules in the ongoing dispute over the board’s proposed use of his name at the Kennedy Center. He said Justice Department attorneys will seek an expedited appeal. Trump also said $17 million he raised has been deposited into the Kennedy Center’s account “to keep it afloat.” KENNEDY CENTER CEILING PARTIALLY COLLAPSES AS TRUMP-LED BOARD PUSHES FOR 2-YEAR CLOSURE Two additional sources told Fox News the board approved the closure during a special meeting. Earlier Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper blocked the board from putting Trump’s name on the building or renaming the grounds “President Donald J. Trump Plaza,” ruling that such memorials require congressional approval. EXCLUSIVE: KENNEDY CENTER BOARD MOVES TO NAME GROUNDS ‘PRESIDENT DONALD J TRUMP PLAZA’ Kennedy Center Vice President of Public Relations Roma Daravi said the board’s decision “reflects sound judgment and a clear prioritization of safety above all else.” TRUMP’S NAME TO BE REMOVED FROM KENNEDY CENTER AS APPEALS COURT DENIES BOARD’S REQUEST FOR ADMINISTRATIVE STAY “As the main building closes for urgent renovations — long overdue and desperately needed to protect the safety of patrons, artists and staff — the Center remains committed to pursuing a safe and efficient renovation through all legal means,” Daravi said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “We intend to appeal today’s Court ruling and move forward with recognizing Chairman President Trump’s historic contributions to the revitalization of America’s Cultural Center.” The closure comes less than two weeks after part of the Kennedy Center ceiling collapsed during a rainstorm. Kennedy Center spokesperson Roma Daravi told Fox News Digital at the time that the structural failure demonstrated the “urgent need” for renovations and blamed “decades of neglect and deferred maintenance.” Trump said Tuesday morning that a security guard had passed through the area only shortly before the ceiling collapsed, and argued that the incident only demonstrated the building’s safety problems. KENNEDY CENTER DISPUTES ALLEGATIONS ON CONTRACTOR BIDS DESPITE DEMOCRAT SENATOR’S CLAIMS “A security guard had just passed the area, one minute prior to this ceiling collapse,” President Trump said in his Truth post. “He was, therefore, 60 seconds away from certain death.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The Grand Foyer slab that fell roughly 60 feet during the recent structural failure weighed more than 150 pounds, according to information obtained by Fox News Digital. It was not immediately clear how long the Kennedy Center will remain closed or how Tuesday’s court ruling could affect the closure. This is a developing story. Please check back for updates. Fox News Digital’s Brie Stimson contributed to this reporting.