Federal judge halts Trump TPS policy, accuses DHS of making migrants ‘atone for their race’
A federal judge in California delayed the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) decision to terminate protections for immigrants from three countries, a move that adds to the legal hurdles for the Trump administration as it pushes to carry out its deportation agenda. Judge Trina Thompson said that DHS Secretary Kristi Noem’s terminations of temporary protected status, also known as TPS, for immigrants from Honduras, Nicaragua and Nepal were likely “preordained decisions” that violated the Administrative Procedure Act and were driven by racial animus. “The freedom to live fearlessly, the opportunity of liberty, and the American dream. That is all Plaintiffs seek,” Thompson, a Biden-appointee, wrote in an order. “Instead, they are told to atone for their race, leave because of their names, and purify their blood. The Court disagrees.” Thompson later added: “Color is neither a poison nor a crime.” DHS TERMINATES TEMPORARY PROTECTED STATUS FOR AROUND 76K HONDURAN, NICARAGUAN MIGRANTS The lawsuit was brought by a group representing TPS holders, including some who have lived in the country for more than two decades. Attorneys wrote in court papers on behalf of the immigrants that they were “laborers, health care workers, artists, and caretakers” who have “relied on TPS to provide the most basic forms of human security — a stable place to live and a chance to work for a living during a time of severe crisis in their home countries.” They argued that Noem declining to extend their TPS status was, by law, supposed to be reached based on an individualized analysis of each country. The judge found that Noem likely failed to condition TPS termination on factors specific to the immigrants’ countries of origin. They also said Noem had given the immigrants a historically short notice period of 60 days before they would lose their TPS status. And she and other Trump administration officials have normalized using “racist invective” to explain their TPS decisions, the attorneys said. FEDERAL JUDGE BLOCKS TRUMP’S IMMIGRATION POLICY IN SHOCKING DECISION ON HAITIAN PROTECTIONS The attorneys cited dozens of examples of Trump or Noem describing migrants as MS-13 gang members, murderers, terrorists and people who have it in their “genes” to commit crime. They pointed to Trump’s viral debate moment in which he made the unproven claim that Haitian immigrants were eating Ohioans’ house pets. The TPS program gives the DHS authority to permit immigrants who might otherwise have no legal status to temporarily reside in the United States because of extraordinary circumstances in their home countries, such as wars or natural disasters. The plaintiffs argued that roughly 61,000 people would lose their TPS as a result of Noem’s decision, which would end the immigrants’ legal status and work authorizations and make them eligible for deportation. The Trump administration has argued that the statute governing TPS gives DHS secretaries sole discretion over TPS designations and that Noem should be allowed to end the status using the same authority that past secretaries used to grant it. In May, the Supreme Court sided with the Trump administration in an emergency order related to a case involving TPS for Venezuelans. The order temporarily paused a lower court order, clearing the way for Noem to end TPS for about 350,000 immigrants. Thompson’s decision will stay in place until at least November, when the next hearing is scheduled. DHS told Fox News Digital it plans to appeal the decision.
Trump repositions 2 nuclear submarines after ‘highly provocative’ Russian comments
President Donald Trump announced Friday that he has “ordered two Nuclear Submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions” following “highly provocative statements” made by former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. Medvedev said earlier this week that Trump’s new deadline for Russia to end the conflict with Ukraine is an additional “step towards war.” “Based on the highly provocative statements of the Former President of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev, who is now the Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, I have ordered two Nuclear Submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions, just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. “Words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences, I hope this will not be one of those instances,” he added. MEDVEDEV WARNS TRUMP’S NEW DEADLINE TO END RUSSIA-UKRAINE CONFLICT IS A ‘STEP TOWARDS WAR’ There was no immediate response to Trump’s comments from Russia. The Russian Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond Friday to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. Medvedev, now the deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia, cautioned that Trump’s announcement Monday that Russia must end the conflict with Ukraine in 10 to 12 days would not end well for the U.S. “Trump’s playing the ultimatum game with Russia: 50 days or 10… He should remember 2 things: 1. Russia isn’t Israel or even Iran. 2. Each new ultimatum is a threat and a step towards war. Not between Russia and Ukraine, but with his own country,” Medvedev said in a post on X on Monday. “Don’t go down the Sleepy Joe road!” While Trump announced on July 14 that he would sign off on “severe tariffs” against Russia if Moscow failed to agree to a peace deal within 50 days, Trump said Monday that waiting that period of time was futile amid stalled negotiations. “I’m going to make a new deadline, of about 10 — 10 or 12 days from today,” Trump told reporters from Scotland. “There’s no reason for waiting. It was 50 days. I wanted to be generous, but we just don’t see any progress being made.” Trump’s remarks come as his frustration with Putin has grown in recent weeks amid no progress toward peace between Russia and Ukraine, and just a day after Russia launched more than 300 drones, four cruise missiles and three ballistic missiles into Ukraine, according to the Ukrainian air force. Trump also wrote on Truth Social Friday that “I have just been informed that almost 20,000 Russian soldiers died this month in the ridiculous War with Ukraine. “Russia has lost 112,500 soldiers since the beginning of the year. That is a lot of unnecessary DEATH! Ukraine, however, has also suffered greatly. They have lost approximately 8,000 soldiers since January 1, 2025, and that number does not include their missing,” the president added. “Ukraine has also lost civilians, but in smaller numbers, as Russian rockets crash into Kyiv, and other Ukrainian locales. This is a War that should have never happened — This is Biden’s War, not ‘TRUMP’s.’ I’m just here to see if I can stop it!” Fox News’ Diana Stancy contributed to this report.
Biden slurs way through latest speech, touts nominating ‘demographically diverse’ judges
Former President Joe Biden touted appointing Supreme Court Justice Kentanji Brown Jackson, the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court, during a slur-filled speech at the National Bar Association’s 100th annual gala at the Hyatt in Chicago Thursday evening — just hours after one of his top aides testified before the Republican House Oversight Committee for their investigation into the former president’s fitness for office. Biden slurred on multiple occasions during the night, including while discussing serving as the vice president to the first Black president, former President Barack Obama, and selecting Kamala Harris as his vice president. Harris was the first woman of Black and South Asian heritage to serve in the role. Likewise, Biden said he also selected demographically diverse judges during his administration. KAMALA HARRIS TO PUBLISH BEHIND-THE-SCENES ACCOUNT OF FAILED 2024 CAMPAIGN “I promised to have an administration that looked like America and appoint a bench that looked like America,” Biden said. “And I kept my promise. I appointed the most demographically diverse … slate of judges ever in the history of the United States of America. The top of that list, one of the greatest lawyers I’ve ever met, Ketanji Brown Jackson, the first Black woman on the United States Supreme Court.” “Justice Jackson, as you witnessed earlier this week, has proven herself to have the wisdom and the character that I saw in her when I nominated her. Appointed 13 Black women to the Courts of Appeals of the United States Federal Court, more than every other president in American history combined,” he said. “For other historic firsts as well, for historic, for Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans, Muslim Americans, by the way, I didn’t just appoint Ivy League judges.” DNC VICE CHAIR COMPARES TRUMP TO NOTORIOUS SEGREGATIONISTS DURING HEATED TOWN HALL EVENT WITH BETO O’ROURKE The National Bar Association originally formed in Iowa before Black attorneys were permitted to join the American Bar Association, and is now made up of 66,000 members working in law who advocate for civil rights and diversity. Those who attended the event included Jackson, as well as Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford, MSNBC pundit Joy-Ann Reid and New York Attorney General Letitia James. Biden and his allies have faced allegations of concealing the truth about Biden’s mental fitness while in office, following his debate performance against President Donald Trump on June 27, 2024 in Atlanta, where Biden struggled to answer seemingly basic questions. LONGTIME BIDEN AIDE TESTIFIES HE STOOD TO EARN UP TO $8M HAD PRESIDENT WON RE-ELECTION Multiple books have been written in 2025 detailing Biden’s final days in office, his deteriorating mental faculties and challenges within the Democratic Party as a result of his decision to withdraw from the election. Additionally, several investigations are ongoing on Capitol Hill concerning Biden’s mental decline. For example, the House Oversight Committee is examining the cover-up of Biden’s cognitive decline and potentially unauthorized executive actions taken during his presidency. Earlier Thursday, longtime Biden aide Michael Donilon appeared before the House Oversight Committee and told lawmakers that he could have raked in a total of $8 million if Biden had won re-election in 2024, Axios first reported. Fox News Digital reached out to Biden’s spokesperson for comment and has not yet received a reply. Fox News’ Charlie Creitz and Alex Schemmel contributed to this report.
China’s growing nuclear arsenal aims to break US alliances and dominate Asia, report warns
China is no longer building nuclear weapons solely for deterrence — it’s using them to fuel its ambitions as a dominant power in Asia, seeking to intimidate U.S. allies and undermine American influence across the region, according to a new report. The Hudson Institute warns that by the mid-2030s, China is expected to become a nuclear peer of the United States in both quantity and quality, fielding a modern, survivable and diverse arsenal that includes over 1,000 warheads, a fully developed nuclear triad and tactical nuclear capabilities. However, Beijing’s goal isn’t to win a nuclear war, the report argues. It’s to manipulate and degrade trust in America’s nuclear umbrella, particularly among U.S. allies in East and Southeast Asia. By sowing doubt that Washington would defend them in a crisis, China hopes to pressure countries like Japan, the Philippines and South Korea into strategic passivity, giving Beijing more room to act — including a potential move on Taiwan — without triggering a broader allied response. “The purpose of amplifying uncertainty is to manipulate notions of risk to China’s advantage,” the report states. “This is primarily about exacerbating hesitancy among U.S. allies by exploiting persistent fears of abandonment and doubts regarding America’s commitment.” JAPAN CALLS AXIS OF CHINA, RUSSIA, NORTH KOREA THE ‘GRAVEST THREAT’ TO GLOBAL ORDER SINCE WWII China’s military strategy blends rapid nuclear modernization with psychological operations and information warfare. The country is investing in advanced technologies such as hypersonic boost-glide vehicles and fractional orbital bombardment systems — space-based platforms that can deliver nuclear strikes from low-Earth orbit with little warning. Its warheads can now be launched from silos, submarines, road-mobile launchers and aircraft. The report urges the U.S. to “abandon the false hope of arms control” with China and instead embrace a doctrine of strategic ambiguity and instability, one that deters Beijing through strength and unpredictability rather than bilateral disarmament. President Donald Trump has expressed interest in future arms control talks with both China and Russia, but analysts say Beijing has shown little genuine interest in limiting its nuclear forces. The Hudson report devotes case studies to three key allies — the Philippines, Japan and South Korea — and how China uses nuclear intimidation differently in each case. While Manila is more concerned with gray-zone conflicts in the South China Sea, China may increasingly use implied nuclear threats to dissuade it from hosting U.S. missile systems like the Typhon launcher, which can strike deep into Chinese territory. China has already begun deploying messaging via state-linked outlets that hint at targeting Philippine-based assets. Heavily dependent on the U.S. nuclear umbrella but constrained by strong domestic anti-nuclear sentiment, Tokyo faces an information campaign from Beijing designed to shake confidence in U.S. commitments. China applies psychological pressure to prevent Japan from building counterstrike capabilities or assisting in a conflict over Taiwan. PENTAGON PRESSES JAPAN, AUSTRALIA ON ROLE IN POSSIBLE TAIWAN CONFLICT Seoul remains narrowly focused on North Korea’s nuclear threat, not China’s. It has been reluctant to fully align with U.S. efforts to deter Beijing, and it’s unclear whether South Korea would permit U.S. forces to use its bases in the event of a Taiwan contingency. China, the report says, is working to keep Seoul compartmentalized and disengaged from the broader East Asian conflict. The report outlines four core recommendations: “Washington and its allies must show that China’s buildup is backfiring — leading not to fear and passivity, but to renewed resolve and regional rearmament,” the report says. The report lands ahead of the Pentagon’s forthcoming global force posture review, expected later this year. The Department of Defense is widely expected to announce a shift in forces from Europe to the Indo-Pacific, reflecting the Biden administration’s—and potentially Trump’s — emphasis on great power competition with China.
Kavanaugh cites 3 presidents in explaining Supreme Court’s ballooning emergency docket
As President Donald Trump has faced an onslaught of legal bids to block his agenda during his second term in office, Trump-nominated Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh spoke at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit judicial conference on Thursday, according to reports. “Executive branches of both parties over the last 20 years have been increasingly trying to issue executive orders and regulations that achieve the policy objectives of the president in power,” Kavanaugh said, according to the New York Times. “And I think presidents, whether it’s President Obama – I think the phrase was ‘pen and phone’ – or President Biden or President Trump, have really done more of that, and those get challenged pretty quickly in court,” he said, according to CNN. FOX NEWS POLL: APPROVAL OF SCOTUS AT 5-YEAR HIGH, REBOUNDING FROM RECORD LOW IN 2024 Unlike regular Supreme Court rulings that fully explain the rationale behind the decision, decisions on the high court’s emergency docket may go unexplained. “We’ve been doing certainly more written opinions on the interim orders docket than we’ve done in the past,” Kavanaugh said, according to CNN. SCOTUS TO DISCUSS GHISLAINE MAXWELL’S CASE PRIVATELY IN SEPTEMBER AT POST-SUMMER CONFERENCE Though he noted that issuing written opinions may pose the “risk” of “lock-in effect” in which that opinion does not “reflect the final view,” reports indicate. Kavanaugh described the court’s “collegiality” as “very strong,” noting that the nine members on the bench “look out for each other” and consider one another “patriots” and “good people,” according to reports. Trump nominated Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court during his first term in office. US JUDGE BLOCKS TRUMP EFFORT TO CUT PLANNED PARENTHOOD FUNDING He also nominated Amy Coney Barrett and Neil Gorsuch, meaning he chose one third of the current justices.
Border apprehensions hit record low in dramatic turnaround from Biden era
The southern border has largely gone quiet. United States Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks posted to X on Friday that southwest border apprehensions hit a monthly record low in July, with only 4,399 apprehensions. For the third month in a row, there have been zero releases. This is the new all-time record low, beating the prior record low of 6,070 in June. BORDER CROSSINGS PLUMMET TO HISTORIC LOWS; TRUMP’S ENFORCEMENT POLICIES YIELD BIG RESULTS In July, it averages out to 141 apprehensions per day at the southern border. At the height of the Biden-era crisis, there were 10,000-plus apprehensions on some days in December 2023. CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE The high number of crossings resulted in an intense strain on resources in small border communities for years, as agents struggled to keep up with the demand while also dealing with responsibilities at the legal ports of entry. In addition, many migrants were bused at the request of some Republican leaders to Democratic-run areas like New York City. ‘TRUMP EFFECT’ TOUTED AS SOUTHERN BORDER NUMBERS STAY LOW, INCLUDING NEW RECORD During the Biden administration, the record high was December 2023, with 249,785 apprehensions, the majority of which were released into the U.S. The nosedive in numbers is seen as a major victory by Republicans and the Trump administration. “The border is secure again — as it should be. Strong policies equal quiet borders,” Rep. Morgan Luttrell, R-Texas, posted to X. At the start of President Donald Trump’s second term, troops were deployed to the border, and the CBP One app that was commonly used for people crossing illegally to claim asylum was shuttered. NEW DATA REVEALS BORDER CROSSINGS REACH RECORD LOWS AMID TRUMP ADMIN’S CRACKDOWN The app was replaced with CBP Home, which is used for people to self-deport. The Department of Homeland Security has been touting for months an offer to give people $1,000 and free travel outside the U.S. if they have not committed other crimes. Deportation efforts are now underway throughout the U.S., as the administration is honing in on areas with sanctuary policies, with push back from Democratic officials at different levels of Congress. Still, border and immigration enforcement is expected to get a resources boost with the recent passage of the Trump-backed spending bill, dubbed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Billions were allocated for border security efforts, including to pay back states for costs incurred during the Biden administration, and ICE is now beginning recruitment for thousands more agents they’ve been given the budget to hire.
Trump officials visit Gaza aid sites as international community pressures Israel
U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff visited Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) sites amid controversy over the distribution of aid in the Strip. “Went into Gaza today [and] observed humanitarian food program by U.S.-launched GHF. Hamas hates GHF [because] it gets food to [people without] it being looted by Hamas. Over 100 MILLION meals served in 2 months,” Huckabee wrote on X. In a separate post, Huckabee hailed GHF’s work as “an incredible feat.” HUCKABEE, WITKOFF SLATED FOR HIGH-STAKES GAZA VISIT TO ADDRESS ‘DIRE’ STARVATION CRISIS “At [President Trump’s] direction, [U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee] and I met yesterday with Israeli officials to discuss the humanitarian situation in Gaza. Today, we spent over five hours inside Gaza — level setting the facts on the ground, assessing conditions, and meeting with [GHF] and other agencies. The purpose of the visit was to give [President Trump] a clear understanding of the humanitarian situation and help craft a plan to deliver food and medical aid to the people of Gaza,” Witkoff wrote on X after the visit. GHF also posted about the visit, saying it was the organization’s “privilege and honor” to have the Trump officials at one of its sites as it delivered its 100 millionth meal. GAZA HUMANITARIAN FOUNDATION: WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT THE US-BACKED AID GROUP “The GHF food program is working. It’s working very well,” Huckabee told Fox News’ Brian Kilmeade on Friday. He also said that the situation in Gaza is “a mess” because of Hamas. Huckabee dismissed two prevailing charges against Israel: that the IDF is randomly shooting Palestinians and that there is no proof that Hamas has been stealing aid. Both the U.S. and Israel have backed the GHF largely as a way to distribute aid to people and block Hamas from looting trucks. The ambassador told Kilmeade that incidents of people being shot by the IDF at aid sites are “never random” and expressed his exhaustion with the narrative. Additionally, he dismissed claims that Israel lacked evidence of Hamas stealing aid as “ludicrous.” Huckabee said he had seen evidence of Hamas looting aid trucks and selling food on the black market for outrageous prices. According to Huckabee, a 4-kilogram (8.8-pound) bag of sugar is being sold on the black market for as much as $200. HAMAS LOSING IRON GRIP ON GAZA AS US-BACKED GROUP GETS AID TO PALESTINIANS IN NEED “People need to understand that until now, most of the humanitarian aid that entered Gaza was looted by Hamas and various clans. They sold the goods to Gazans for money,” GHF executive chairman Rev. Johnnie Moore wrote in a recent Jerusalem Post op-ed. “As a result, prices of basic products in the Strip skyrocketed — Hamas created conditions that led to hunger in Gaza by denying food to the population that had no means, and with the money and supplies it looted, it managed to recruit new fighters and keep operating.” In the interview with Kilmeade, Huckabee went on to call out the United Nations, demanding it stop “pretending” that GHF’s system isn’t effective and instead work with the U.S.- and Israeli-backed organization. Huckabee also accused the international body of having more interest in acting like a humanitarian organization than doing the work. ISRAEL ANNOUNCES IMMEDIATE RESUMPTION OF GAZA AID AIRDROPS AMID GROWING HUNGER CRISIS The U.N. and the GHF have been at odds since before the American-backed organization began distributing aid in May. While the U.N. has expressed concern that GHF sites are dangerous and ill-prepared to hand out food, the organization has pointed to the number of meals distributed as a success. “When parents no longer have to plead with Hamas for flour, something good has happened. When women can safely collect food for their children, a small piece of dignity is restored. When children are fed without conditions or coercion, a bit of light breaks through the darkness. These are victories, even if others refuse to see them,” Moore wrote in his op-ed. Huckabee and Witkoff’s visit comes as the Trump administration appears to shift its messaging on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. While in Scotland this week, President Donald Trump pledged to set up new food centers in Gaza in an apparent break with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. While Trump said he saw “real starvation in Gaza,” Netanyahu sent exactly the opposite message. “There is no starvation in Gaza, no policy of starvation in Gaza, and I assure you that we have a commitment to achieve our war goals,” Netanyahu said in a video statement on X. On Friday, Trump told Axios that he is working on a plan to “get people fed” in Gaza. The outlet noted that the president was concerned about starvation in Gaza, but placed the blame on Hamas. Additionally, Trump told Axios that Witkoff was “doing great work,” but that he had not gotten a briefing from his special envoy yet.
Trump endorses ‘MAGA warrior’ for RNC chairman after Whatley launches Senate campaign
President Donald Trump issued a full-throated endorsement of Florida state Sen. Joe Gruters for the role of Republican National Committee chair. “He will be a wonderful Chairman!” the president declared in a post on Truth Social. Current RNC Chairman Michael Whatley announced he is running for U.S. Senate in North Carolina. Trump has endorsed Whatley’s campaign. Trump also backed Jennifer Saul-Rich for the role of RNC treasurer. This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Democrats escalate anti-Trump lawfare by targeting Congress in Planned Parenthood funding fight
Abortion providers and Democrat-led states are bringing lawsuits over the Trump administration’s decision to defund Planned Parenthood, a legal fight that raises the stakes by challenging the will of both Congress and the president. Planned Parenthood and several blue states have sued over the provision in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that strips Medicaid funding from certain abortion providers for one year. The bill was passed by Congress and signed by the president in July. The legislation advances the pro-life movement’s longtime goal of defunding Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest abortion provider, but a federal judge in Massachusetts has temporarily blocked the Trump Health and Human Services Department from carrying it out. Derek Muller, a professor at Notre Dame Law School, told Fox News Digital that taking on two branches of government sets this litigation apart from many of the hundreds of other lawsuits targeting the Trump administration. SENATE PARLIAMENTARIAN OKS BAN ON PLANNED PARENTHOOD FEDERAL FUNDING IN TRUMP MEGABILL “Congress has the power of the purse,” Muller said. “Congress has a lot of discretion [over] how it wants to spend its money, and this is not an instance where the executive has been engaged in overreach or doubtful conduct. … This is ordinary legislation, and when it comes to ordinary legislation, there’s more deference given to Congress, and certainly more in how it chooses to subsidize things, where it wants to give money or where it doesn’t want to give money.” The judge’s decision to temporarily block the funding cuts stemmed from a lawsuit brought by Planned Parenthood, a nonprofit with hundreds of facilities across the country that provide abortions and other reproductive health services. Planned Parenthood’s attorneys alleged in court papers that the provision was unconstitutional, arguing it would deprive the nonprofit of millions of dollars in Medicaid reimbursements, causing it to lose half of its patients and forcing it to shutter up to one-third of its facilities. FEDERAL JUDGE PAUSES TRUMP ADMINISTRATION’S PLANNED PARENTHOOD DEFUNDING MEASURE Katie Daniel, counsel at SBA Pro-Life America, told Fox News Digital Planned Parenthood was making a “desperate argument” that “totally undermines Congress’ ability to determine how taxpayer dollars are spent.” It also signals that Planned Parenthood was not a solvent business, she said. “It’s a business that really can’t keep itself afloat without getting hundreds of millions in taxpayer dollars,” Daniel said. Planned Parenthood’s attorneys noted that Medicaid does not typically cover abortions and that the funding cuts would affect other services. Cancer and sexually transmitted infections would go undetected, especially for low-income people, and more unplanned pregnancies would occur because of a lack of contraception access, the attorneys said. “The adverse public health consequences of the Defund Provision will be grave,” the attorneys wrote. Daniel said the Medicaid marketplace includes other options for clinics and that those options “outnumber Planned Parenthood nationally 15 to one.” Judge Indira Talwani, an Obama appointee, said she was inclined to agree with Planned Parenthood that the legislation violated several provisions in the Constitution and granted a preliminary injunction, which the Department of Justice is now appealing. That lawsuit has been joined by two others challenging the bill. A coalition of 21 states with Democratic attorneys general, along with the District of Columbia and Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, brought one of them on Monday. Maine Family Planning, which operates 18 health facilities in the Pine Tree State, has also sued over the legislation. While lawmakers have touted that the bill defunds Planned Parenthood, it was written to include other entities, including Maine Family Planning, as a way to pass parliamentarian scrutiny. JUDGE TORCHED FOR PLANNED PARENTHOOD ORDER: HER COURT LOOKS ‘LIKE A FAST FOOD DRIVE-THROUGH’ Daniel told Fox News Digital she anticipates the higher courts will rule in favor of the Trump administration but that the bill’s one-year limit on the funding cuts works in Planned Parenthood’s favor. “At this point for Planned Parenthood, it’s really about running out the clock,” Daniel said. “The defund provision is for one year, so every single day that they can keep getting money. … That’s existential to them.” If the Trump administration ultimately wins the court fight, it could attempt to claw back the Medicaid funds it lost while Talwani’s injunction was in place. Daniel noted, however, that “it’s incredibly difficult, it’s time-consuming, it’s costly, and Planned Parenthood is relying on all of that.” Among Planned Parenthood’s allegations was a longshot claim that Congress’s bill violates the Constitution’s bill of attainder clause because it singles out and punishes Planned Parenthood without a trial. Bills of attainder are pieces of legislation that serve to bypass the role of judges and punish people or entities. The Constitution prohibits bills of attainder because they infringe on the function of the courts. Muller told Fox News Digital he believed the bill of attainder argument was a “nonstarter.” “People have tried to argue that certain things that Congress does, singling out or targeting individuals, could rise to a bill of attainder,” Muller said. “This has gotten some traction in lower courts. It has never really gotten traction in the courts of appeal because it is far afield from the original meaning of the Constitution on this topic.”
Lawmaker unveils ‘ERIC ADAMS Act’ threatening criminal penalties for sanctuary city mayors
FIRST ON FOX: A House lawmaker is making a push to hold mayors of sanctuary cities responsible for illegal immigrants committing murder within their jurisdictions. Rep. Buddy Carter, R-Ga., is introducing the Establishing Responsibility for Illegals’ Crimes and Adding Deterrence and Accountability for Mayors’ Sanctuary Cities Act, or the ERIC ADAMS Act, on Friday. If passed, the bill would open sanctuary city mayors to criminal liability if illegal immigrants living there were found guilty of murder. COMER DISMISSES BIDEN DOCTOR’S BID FOR PAUSE IN COVER-UP PROBE: ‘THROWING OUT EVERY EXCUSE’ It’s named after New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who is up for re-election this November. Carter, meanwhile, is running to unseat Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., in the November 2026 midterms. The bill’s introduction comes days after the Trump administration moved to sue the Big Apple for its sanctuary policies, one of multiple such lawsuits President Donald Trump’s officials are pursuing against Democrat-run cities and states. FAR-LEFT FIREBRAND SAYS SHE ‘NEVER HAD A CONCERN’ ABOUT BIDEN’S MENTAL STATE AS HOUSE PROBE HEATS UP Under the terms of Carter’s legislation, a sanctuary city mayor could be found guilty of “criminal negligence resulting in manslaughter” if an undocumented person committed murder there and if “the mayor knowingly adopted, maintained, or failed to repeal a sanctuary policy that materially restricted cooperation with Federal immigration enforcement, and such policy directly and foreseeably contributed to the failure to detain or remove” the person before the crime was committed, according to bill text obtained by Fox News Digital. It would carry a penalty of up to seven years in prison, as well as certain fines. Enforcement would be left to the attorney general, the bill text said. “Laken Riley and countless other loved ones could still be alive today if our immigration laws were respected by mayors of sanctuary cities,” Carter told Fox News Digital, referencing a nursing student killed by an illegal immigrant in early 2024 in Georgia. “As far as I’m concerned, they have blood on their hands and should be held personally accountable for creating a lawless environment that allows criminal illegal aliens to commit murder.” Fox News Digital reached out to Adams’ campaign and the New York City Mayor’s Office for comment but did not hear back.