Trump claps back at courts for ‘interfering’ with job, asks ‘how you can give due process’ to illegal migrants
During a special commencement address to students at the University of Alabama, President Donald Trump questioned how you can give due process to people who have illegally entered the United States, in a rebuke to judges who Trump said were “interfering” with his efforts to do his job as president. Trump’s comments came the same day a federal judge permanently barred his efforts to use the centuries-old Alien Enemies Act (AEA) to deport illegal alien gang members. “As you’ve been reading, the courts are trying to stop me from doing the job that I was elected to do,” Trump said during his address to graduates. “They have to let us do the job that the voters want us to do. Judges are interfering, supposedly based on due process. But how can you give due process to people who came into our country illegally? They want to give them due process. I don’t know.” ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT WITH WEAPONS CONVICTION ARRESTED IN CALIFORNIA AS ICE TARGETS CRIMINALS Trump issued a proclamation in March asserting the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua could be deported under the AEA. Shortly thereafter, the Trump administration began deporting hundreds of alleged gang members, including one Kilmar Abrego Garcia. Opponents of Trump’s deportation efforts have insisted Abrego Garcia was illegally deported and is not a gang member. However, evidence has surfaced of Abrego Garcia involved in gang-like criminal activity. TENNESSEE BODYCAM OF ‘MARYLAND MAN’ TRAFFIC STOP SHOWS TROOPERS’ HANDS TIED DESPITE SMUGGLING CLUES Body cam footage from troopers in Maryland show Abrego Garcia being involved in an alleged human trafficking incident in 2022. In the footage, officers can be heard building the case that Abrego Garcia was engaged in human smuggling, which the troopers refer to as “hauling” in the video. Vice President J.D. Vance said in an interview with Fox News that the Trump administration is aggressively appealing the federal court order blocking their deportation efforts. “The judge doesn’t make that determination, whether the Alien Enemies Act can be deployed,” Mr. Vance told Fox News anchor Brett Baier. “I think the President of the United States is the one who determines whether this country is being invaded.”
Jasmine Crockett sets sights on top Democratic seat on Oversight Committee: reports
Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, is looking for support from fellow Democrats with her eyes on a possible run for the top Democratic spot on the House Oversight Committee, according to reports. Although Semafor first reported about Crockett’s plans, Politico also reported that two people familiar with the matter claim the congresswoman has been making calls, sending text messages and having conversations on the floor in search of support for her quest to take the seat held by Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va. Connolly is reportedly planning to step aside as he fights a resurgence of esophageal cancer, though he has not made an official announcement, Politico reported. Still, Crockett reportedly told her colleagues she is “made for the moment,” the sources told the publication, referring to the Democratic Party’s desire to resist President Donald Trump in a more forceful way. JASMINE CROCKETT ROASTED FOR WORRYING ABOUT EFFECT OF DEPORTATION ON OTHER COUNTRIES Crockett did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. Politico reported that Crockett told the outlet in a text message that even though a vacancy does not currently exist, “knowing that Rep Connolly doesn’t plan to seek re-election & knowing that our oversight powers are broad, I’m ready to shine a light on the very dark things taking place in our country under this administration.” Crockett, a first-term progressive, has made headlines for several controversial comments this year. SOCIAL MEDIA ERUPTS OVER JASMINE CROCKETT ‘GASLIGHTING’ ABOUT CALLING ABBOTT ‘GOVERNOR HOT WHEELS’ Her most recent comments came this week as she expressed sympathy for countries that may be affected by mass deportations from the U.S. after remaining largely silent on millions of migrants pouring into the country under the Biden administration. “As far as I’m concerned, you randomly kidnapping folk and you throwing them out of the country against their civil rights, against their constitutional rights,” Crockett said in a video posted to her Instagram page, which has 1.3 million followers. “And, frankly, how would they feel if some other country decided that they were gonna just start throwing people randomly in our country? Like that is absolutely insane.” Crockett lambasted Republicans who had voted down an amendment to a massive budget bill being hammered out by lawmakers that aims to clarify that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) cannot detain or deport U.S. citizens under any circumstances. REP. JASMINE CROCKETT SAYS DEMOCRATS NEED TO BE ‘OK WITH PUNCHING’ IN RACES AGAINST TED CRUZ, REPUBLICANS The Republicans’ actions incensed Crockett, who cited a case last week when a U.S. citizen child was deported with her noncitizen mother. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said the child and her siblings were deported because their mothers are not citizens and wanted to take them with them back to Honduras. Crockett made the comments alongside Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., and Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., who also panned Republicans. “Literally they just voted, they being the other ones, not us, because we were all on the right side of history,” Crockett said. “They just voted to give Trump the legal ability to deport U.S. citizens. That is what they voted for. A bunch of elected U.S. representatives, that is how they voted, Am I telling a lie Eric or not?” She also made news in March after she called her fellow Texan, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, who uses a wheelchair, “Governor Hot Wheels.” She later claimed her words were misunderstood. Crockett continues her viral media streak with incendiary comments aimed at those on the other side of the aisle, including saying DOGE head Elon Musk should be “taken down” and Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, should be “knocked over the head, like, hard.” Fox News’ Michael Dorgan, Rachel del Guidice, Elizabeth Elkind and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Trump DHS slams more ‘sob story’ reporting after Tren de Aragua gang members send SOS signal
The Trump Department of Homeland Security is slamming Reuters for what it is calling “sob story” reporting about illegal gang members after the outlet reported on suspected Tren de Aragua members forming an “S-O-S” sign at a Texas detention center. The DHS released a statement on Wednesday saying that “the mainstream media’s latest attempt at a criminal gang sob story includes a self-admitted member of Tren de Aragua” and that “the real story here is that the previous administration was releasing gang members into American communities.” Tren de Aragua – also known as “TdA” – is a brutal international criminal group linked to Venezuelan socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro. The group is linked to some of the most high profile migrant crime cases in recent years including the killing of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley and the seizure of an entire apartment building in Aurora, Colorado. The Trump State Department has declared Tren de Aragua a “foreign terrorist organization.” Reuters reported on Wednesday that 31 Venezuelan illegals and suspected TdA members formed an SOS sign in the yard of the Bluebonnet illegal immigrant detention center in Anson, Texas. TRUMP TO NAME HAITIAN GANGS FOREIGN TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS: REPORT According to the outlet, the men at the facility are facing possible deportation and had been set to be deported to the high-security Terrorist Confinement Center (CECOT) in El Salvador before a judge’s ruling delayed that fate. Despite this, Reuters wrote that the “Venezuelan detainees in Texas fear the Trump administration will send them to El Salvador’s notorious CECOT maximum security prison.” The outlet identified two of the migrants in the detention center as Diover Millan Leon, 24, and Jeferson Escalona Hernandez, 19. Reuters interviewed Escalona Hernandez, who claimed, “I fear for my life here” and “they’re making false accusations about me.” Reuters also reported Millan Leon’s wife saying, “he is desperate” and that he “sat down and looked at the sky and asked God to get him out of there soon.” DHS pushed back against this characterization of the situation, identifying both men as confirmed members of Tren de Aragua. ‘PROMISES MADE, PROMISES KEPT’: TRUMP CELEBRATES FIRST 100 DAYS IN OFFICE WITH HIGH ENERGY MICHIGAN RALLY The statement said that Escalona Hernandez is a “self-admitted Tren de Aragua member” who illegally entered the U.S. in 2024. DHS said that the Biden administration “released this gang member into our country” and that he was later arrested for felony evading arrest with a vehicle and put in a Denton County, Texas, jail. CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE Meanwhile, DHS said that Millan Leon is a documented member of Tren de Aragua who illegally entered the U.S. on an unknown date and location. The department said that U.S. Border Patrol arrested Millan Leon on May 3, 2023, near Brownsville, Texas, but he was given a notice to appear and released on his own recognizance. Nearly two years later, ICE officers operating under the Trump administration arrested Millan Leon in Lawrenceville, Georgia, on March 12, 2025. Commenting on the story, Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said that “Tren De Aragua is one of the most violent and ruthless terrorist gangs on planet earth,” adding that “they rape, maim, and murder for sport.” FORMER DEA AGENT WARNS TREN DE ARAGUA GANG ‘SPREADS LIKE A VIRUS’ “The previous administration released these gang members into our communities,” she went on. “President Trump and Secretary Noem have ended catch and release and will not allow criminal gangs to terrorize American citizens.” McLaughlin called Reuters’ reporting “irresponsible,” asking: “Why do they continue to peddle the sob stories of these gang members but ignore their American victims?” Fox News Digital reached out to Reuters for comment but did not immediately hear back.
Acting ICE director says agency will ‘ramp up’ raids if sanctuary jurisdictions don’t cooperate
EXCLUSIVE: Todd Lyons, the acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), said his agency will “ramp” up raids in sanctuary cities if they refuse to cooperate with his agents. Todd Lyons sounded off on the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda and a range of other issues, saying ICE agents were going to go after criminal illegal immigrants regardless of sanctuary policies. “The more they’re going to double down or triple down, we’re going to ramp it up more,” he told Fox News. “We want to work with you, but if you don’t want to work with the federal government, if you don’t want to work with ICE, then we’re going to make sure that we’re doing all we can do to bring our law enforcement resources to that jurisdiction. And we’re going to take care of those public safety threats. BIDEN DOJ HANDLED JUDGE AIDING ILLEGAL TO EVADE ARREST DRASTICALLY DIFFERENT THAN TRUMP ADMIN “If you don’t want to work with us, we’re going to handle the problem,” he added. Lyons, however, did praise California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who recently said his state will work with ICE. A sanctuary state, California generally doesn’t cooperate with immigration authorities, but Newsom said it would be willing to work with the agency to honor detainer requests. That followed outrage over a Fox News story about an illegal immigrant convicted of vehicular manslaughter who will be released from prison July 19, over six years before his full sentence is up. DEPORTED ‘MARYLAND MAN’ CHAMPIONED BY DEMS WAS PULLED OVER DRIVING CAR BELONGING TO HUMAN SMUGGLER “I really applaud the governor for that,” Lyons said. “When people see exactly the individual that ICE is dealing with, how could you not work with ICE in a case like that? “We actually saw the details behind this case,” he added. “It’s a commonsense approach to work with ICE to get these public safety threats out of here.” In the first 100 days of the Trump administration, ICE has arrested more than 6,000 illegal immigrants, the agency said this week. The agency is going to continue to “remove the worst of the worst,” Lyons said. “How can anyone argue with you when you’re deporting violent gang members, sex offenders and fentanyl traffickers,” he said. “ICE is out there protecting communities, taking these public safety threats away from our neighborhoods, protecting our children.” As Congress ponders giving ICE funding for 10,000 agents, Lyons said the additional money would be a “game changer.” “I’ll give you an example. When we did the operation in Boston, we had targeted enforcement when we knew these criminal aliens that had been released from jails, from courts, from sanctuary jurisdictions where detainees weren’t honored,” he said. “But while the teams were out there conducting this operation, in real time, more criminal aliens were being released.”
Kaine breaks into Spanish as Dems force vote targeting Trump-El Salvador alliance over deportations
Top Democrats announced an effort Thursday to force the Trump administration to provide a report on how it is specifically complying with a court order to facilitate the return of wrongfully deported U.S. residents to El Salvador. The resolution to do so from Sens. Tim Kaine of Virginia, Charles Schumer of New York, Alex Padilla of California and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland is “privileged,” – meaning it will require a full Senate vote. Kaine cited the specific code under a 1961 foreign assistance law that allowed such. If passed, and the White House fails to abide by it, U.S. security assistance to El Salvador would be immediately frozen, Schumer, Kaine and Van Hollen said. NOT A MARYLAND MAN: GOP BLASTS DEMOCRAT SENATOR FIGHTING FOR RETURN OF SALVADORAN NATIONAL At a press conference outside the Capitol, the three men laid out how the vote would work, and one lawmaker later disclosed a separate effort to schedule a vote on sanctions against El Salvador over President Nayib Bukele’s work with Trump. “I also send a message to the government of El Salvador,” Kaine said during his remarks, breaking into Spanish midway. “You might think it’s cute right now to grab attention by a bromance with President Donald Trump. He’s going to be a president for poco mas (a short time) – tres anos mas (three years more).” Continuing in Spanish, Kaine said the two countries will always have relations, before transitioning back to English to say that the U.S. will not soon forget “you violating the human rights of American citizens, you’re wrong.” “We will remember this forever,” Kaine pledged. “And there will be significant and challenging downstream consequences for any nation that violates the rights of Americans.” KILMAR GARCIA NOW GETS 5 TOTAL DEM PROPONENTS IN EL SALVADOR The move was spurred by the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a suspected MS-13 gang member who was deported from Maryland to his home country last month. Van Hollen later said the privileged resolution was not expressly about Garcia, but instead the greater idea that such people could be deported and/or treated without due process. Echoing Kaine on repercussions for San Salvador’s government from Washington, Van Hollen spoke of plans to also seek a sanctions vote against Bukele “and all those who are part of his government conspiring with Donald Trump to deprive residents of the United States of their constitutional rights.” Returning again to speaking bilingually, Kaine responded to a reporter’s question by summing up the privileged resolution in Spanish. “We have a guarantee of a vote after ten days on El Salvador and we are sending a message to President Trump that he needs to follow the law. And we are also sending a message to President Bukele that we are not going to forget if the government of El Salvador is violating American human rights,” he said. In a statement in English aside from the conference, Kaine said Bukele “has rounded up tens of thousands of Salvadorans without due process and jammed them indefinitely into overpopulated torture centers. And now he’s trying to do the same to people living in the United States,” Kaine said in a statement obtained by Fox News Digital prior to the conference. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “We will use this resolution to force accountability,” said Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, a House supporter of the resolution – though Kaine said it does not require their blessing. Van Hollen, who took a junket to El Salvador to attempt to bring Garcia to Maryland – where his family lives – said Trump has failed to comply with the order to facilitate his return. Both Trump and Bukele appeared to agree in an Oval Office meeting last month that returning Garcia would be “preposterous” and that the court order didn’t quite say what critics said it did. Fox News Digital reached out to the White House and Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., for comment.
House Republicans subpoena USA fencing chairman with history of supporting trans competitors in women’s sports
House Republicans have subpoenaed USA Fencing (USFA) board chair Damien Lehfeldt in an effort to compel him to testify in front of Congress during a hearing examining the participation of transgender women in biologically women’s sports. The subpoena comes after USA Fencing’s Chief Executive Officer Phil Andrews told the Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency, which intends to hold the hearing on May 7, that Lehfeldt would be unavailable to testify for unspecified reasons, according to a letter sent in tandem with the subpoena. Lehfeldt’s apparent refusal to cooperate comes after he allegedly made public statements online indicating he had intended to be present at the hearing. “Under the Ted Stevens Act, an [National Governing Body]—such as USFA—is required to provide equal opportunities to athletes regardless of sex when engaged in developing interest and participation in the sport it governs throughout the United States,” the letter accompanying the subpoena, signed by GOP House Oversight Chairman James Comer. “The Subcommittee is concerned that the policies of USFA may not uphold these obligations and that the underlying law is not accomplishing its intended purpose. Therefore, the Subcommittee is investigating whether additional legislation regarding requirements of NGBs of amateur sports, like USFA, is necessary to address these issues.” FEMALE FENCER DEFENDS PROTEST AGAINST TRANSGENDER OPPONENT Lehfeldt and Andrews have both publicly expressed their support for allowing transgender women to compete on biological women’s sports teams. House Republicans’ decision to subpoena Lehfeldt follows an incident when a female fencer named Stephanie Turner was punished by USA Fencing for refusing to compete against a transgender competitor earlier this year. Turner, during a regional meet in March, refused to compete against a transgender competitor who previously had competed in the men’s division. A video of her taking a symbolic knee at the start of the match, eventually earning her a “black card,” fencing’s most severe penalty, went viral following the incident. ENGLAND SPORTS GOVERNING BODY BANS TRANSGENDER ATHLETES FROM WOMEN’S SOCCER FOLLOWING UK COURT RULING “In fencing, personally, I see it quite often,” Turner said following the incident. “I have witnessed transgender fencers in women’s tournaments and girls’ tournaments in different age categories, specifically Y-14 (the youngest age group).” Fox News Digital reached out to USA Fencing for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
EXCLUSIVE: DHS fires back at claims ICE raided ‘wrong home’ in Oklahoma smuggling investigation
EXCLUSIVE: The Department of Homeland Security is setting the record straight after media reports claimed ICE raided “the wrong home” and targeted U.S. citizens, setting Democrats fuming. The Independent ran a headline on Wednesday reading: “ICE raids wrong Oklahoma home, seizes life savings and leaves family ‘traumatized for life’” writing that an Oklahoma mother and daughters were subject to a “violent and humiliating raid by federal agents last week, despite allegedly not being the intended targets of the operation.” That same day, Rep. Becca Balint, D-Vermont, claimed that ICE agents mistakenly “terrorized” a family of naturalized U.S. citizens – including children – in a raid at a home in northwest Oklahoma City. Balint claimed that “this was all a colossal mistake” and placed the blame squarely on President Donald Trump, saying “this is Trump’s America.” BIDEN DOJ HANDLED JUDGE AIDING ILLEGAL TO EVADE ARREST DRASTICALLY DIFFERENT THAN TRUMP ADMIN The raid in question occurred on April 24 at a single-family home in northwest Oklahoma City. When ICE agents, assisted by Oklahoma state police, carried out the raid they encountered a naturalized U.S. citizen originally from Guatemala as well as three others, the youngest of whom was 17. A representative for DHS told Fox News Digital that the raid was a “lawful, court-authorized action explicitly targeting a property, which was a hub for human smuggling, not specific individuals as falsely suggested by media reports.” The representative clarified that the warrant “targeted the property itself, not specific individuals, and its execution was not contingent on the presence of any person.” According to the DHS spokesperson, the warrant, which was signed by a federal judge the day before, was based on an 84-page affidavit detailing probable cause that the address served as a “stash house” for human and drug smuggling. DEPORTED ‘MARYLAND MAN’ CHAMPIONED BY DEMS WAS PULLED OVER DRIVING CAR BELONGING TO HUMAN SMUGGLER From its months-long surveillance of the property, including observations as recently as April 20, DHS had probable cause to believe that the primary targets of the warrant, Cidia Lima-Lopez and V. Lima-Lopez, illegal aliens from Guatemala, were continuing to use the house for illegal activities. The spokesperson said that Homeland Security Investigations agents further confirmed via utility records that a member of the Lima Lopez transnational criminal organization was still paying utilities at the residence. CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE DHS said that the warrant authorized the seizure of evidence, including electronic devices and documents, “regardless of who was present.” The representative said that agents “executed the warrant with precision, seizing electronic devices as authorized,” calling the raid “a critical strike against a dangerous human smuggling network in furtherance of our mission to protect American communities from the chaos unleashed by the Biden administration’s open-border policies.” TRUMP ADMIN BLASTS NY TIMES OVER ‘SOB’ STORY ON DEPORTED KIDNAPPER Though the family living in the home is no longer in federal custody, the spokesperson said that the investigation is still ongoing and “we have not ruled out current occupants’ involvement in the smuggling ring.” Fox News Digital reached out for comment from Balint and The Independent but did not immediately hear back.
Reporter’s Notebook: Alcohol, not coffee
Republicans control the House and Senate. But characterizing it as the “Republican Congress” doesn’t do justice to the present circumstances. This truly is “President Trump’s Congress.” The president’s relationship with Republican lawmakers is light-years away from the fraught, shotgun marriage of 2017 after he unexpectedly captured the White House. Republicans on Capitol Hill didn’t know what to do with him. USER’S MANUAL TO WALTZ’S NSA EXIT AND ITS REVERBERATION ON CAPITOL HILL Congressional Republicans “didn’t read the tweets.” They snickered behind his back. They chortled at what they believed were untenable ideas emanating from the White House. And Trump also didn’t know what to do with congressional Republicans, either. He and then-House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., formed the Odd Couple of politics. But Trump’s relationship with then-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., was even worse. So they focused on areas of agreement. Congressional Republicans viewed the Trump presidency as a means to an end. They saw an opportunity to pass some of their legislative priorities. REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: WHERE WE STAND WITH TRUMP’S ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’ McConnell muscled three of President Trump’s Supreme Court nominees to confirmation, altering the contours of the high court for a generation. Ryan bored deeply into his area of expertise: tax policy. By Christmas 2017, the Republican-led Congress approved the vaunted “Trump tax cuts.” But they stumbled early on repealing and replacing ObamaCare. “I will not sugarcoat this. This is a disappointing day for us,” said Ryan when he had to yank an initial plan to end ObamaCare off the floor in the spring of 2017. The House finally approved a revamped repeal and replace package more than a month later. But the late Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., torpedoed the effort with his vote against the plan later that summer. But things are different this time around between Trump and congressional Republicans. “He’s still the biggest dog in the pound,” said Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn. So now congressional Republicans are teaming with the president to pass his “big, beautiful bill.” “We are on track to pass the bill out of the House – as we’ve said from the very beginning – and get it over to the next stage by Memorial Day,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t GOP skepticism. “Seems like that’s a pretty tight timeframe,” said Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., of Johnson’s aspirations. “I’m not aware of any consensus, even within one of the bodies. Let alone a bicameral consensus.” “A July 4 timeframe will be optimistic,” said Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla. “If we can get this done by the end of July, I would count that as a win.” But deep divides cleave Republicans. TRUMP NOMINATES WALTZ FOR HIGH-LEVEL POST AFTER OUSTING HIM AS NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR “I don’t think we’re on the same page even inside the House, much less in the House and the Senate,” said Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas. Roy questioned what was so magical about finishing the bill by “Memorial Day” or “Independence Day.” “Christmas? Easter? Memorial Day? July 4th? Does that have anything to do with policy? Hell no. It has to do with what? Jet fumes! People leaving town, right?” argued Roy. “Every single policy, as long as I can remember, is based on that more than it is on policy.” But some Republicans aren’t convinced Congress is moving fast enough. Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Ohio, relayed what he heard from constituents in Ohio. “People were like, “What’s taking so long?’ They don’t think it’s rushed by any means. They’re like, ‘Where’s the bill?’” said Davidson. “If we don’t get this by mid-June, I think people back home are going to go ‘What are you guys doing?’” This is why Democrats say Republicans are fretting privately. “They’re clearly conflicted about Medicaid cuts,” said Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va. “They’re conflicted about raising the debt ceiling just with Republican votes. They’ve traditionally wanted to get Democratic votes for that and not do it all on their own. But if they do it in the reconciliation bill, they’re going to have to do it all on their own.” And Republicans are starting to get nervous about the success or failure of the bill. The president – and most congressional Republicans – have banked their entire political calculus on this gambit. “It’s a job for alcohol. Not coffee,” said Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., noting the anxiety now permeating congressional Republicans. “Some of them would make a Valium nervous.” Kennedy contends he’s not worrying. But says that even after another two months of hand-wringing, the Senate “won’t reach consensus. Nor will the House.” But who will forge common ground? “The president is going to have to be the arbiter because he’s going to put his muscle behind this to sell it,” observed Kennedy. The sides are much more in sync. But this bill is such a behemoth that 53 Senate Republicans and 220 House GOPers won’t be able to sort this out on their own. They will look to the president to solve this. “What do you think is the difference between Republicans and how they responded to President Trump during his first term? And what you see now?” yours truly asked Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. “I think they are much more afraid of him now. He’s done much more in terms of threatening them in both privately and even publicly,” replied Schumer. “They don’t know what to do. They’re between a rock and a hard place. On the one side, Trump threatens. On the other side, there are the American people who hate what Trump is proposing.” I posed a similar interrogative to Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D. “Can you characterize the difference in the response from congressional Republicans to President Trump this time around, compared to 2017? They seemed a little skeptical of him in 2017. That’s not the case now,” I observed. “We all watched what happened in November and the mandate he got from the American people. It was clear.
WATCH: Unearthed footage exposes medical school administrators pledging to resist Trump executive orders
FIRST ON FOX: Leaked video obtained by Fox News Digital shows school administrators at an Illinois school of medicine rejecting multiple Trump executive orders, including on combatting DEI, and outlining how the school plans to fight back against them. Trump’s executive order on gender ideology “is an attack on women” and on “basic human rights,” according to Dr. Jerry Kruse, Dean, Provost, and CEO of SIU School of Medicine. Kruse recently gave a speech in a small group discussion about Trump’s executive orders and actions that was obtained by the medical and policy advocacy group Do No Harm. “We will resist obeying in advance. We won’t do any anticipatory obedience,” Kruse said. “The existing laws have not changed, no court directives will require any change in compliance at this time.” Kruse added that “these executive orders and actions and the general philosophy that they espouse constitute direct attacks on all that is important to us” while mentioning science, higher education and healthcare. ‘WOKE’ HOSPITAL COULD BE IN CROSSHAIRS OF TRUMP ADMIN AFTER SCATHING COMPLAINT ALLEGES DEI DISCRIMINATION “More importantly, these orders and actions constitute a direct attack on the people we serve, the people to whom we are accountable.” Kruse explained that the school of medicine is “very fortunate” to be part of a university system that is “on top of it” in terms of pushing back on Trump’s executive orders. Kruse also claimed that the executive orders on immigration and DEI from the Trump administration are “an attack on human rights and on justice and fairness” that “have engendered fear among large segments of the population of law-abiding people.” At one point in his speech, Kruse said he would provide employees with the “resources” to “fight back.” The SIU school system has been active in promoting DEI in recent years, and it was a topic discussed in the presentation. TRUMP’S CRACKDOWN ON HARVARD, ‘WOKE’ COLLEGES WILL TAKE MORE THAN 100 DAYS TO LEAVE LASTING REFORM: PROFESSOR “The work that we are doing around Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is a life or death issue for some people,” Dr. Wendi El-Amin, Associate Dean for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, said during the presentation. The school’s website hosts a page featuring its work on DEI that says it works to “ensure that our students, residents, faculty, and staff reflect the demographics of central and southern Illinois while also equipping them with the knowledge and skills to address health disparities through culturally responsive care, patient access, education, and health literacy initiatives.” In February of this year, the SIU Board of Trustees reaffirmed its commitment to DEI and the school’s VP of anti-racism and DEI, Sheila Caldwell, claimed that DEI is “lifesaving” and has had measurable improvements for minority students in retention rates. SIUSOM receives millions in active grant funding from NIH and HHS and Dr. Donald Torry, Associate Dean for Research, said during the presentation that none of the grant funding has been affected so far. In terms of immigration executive orders, Dr. Vidhya Prakash, Associate Dean of Clinical Affairs and Population Health and Chief Medical Officer, said during the presentation that a school dean recently sent an email to faculty members instructing them not to comply with ICE and that they should call security if a situation arises. “So please understand that no member of our school of medicine whether it’s an employee or its a trainee, should have to engage in conversation or discourse with ICE,” she said, adding that the school has patients who are “afraid” and live in fear of being apprehended. “Continue doing what you have been doing,” Paulette Dove, Senior Counsel for Health Affairs for the SIU system, said during the presentation, adding that the “law has not changed.” “These issues demand a strong institutional and collective response,” Kruse said. “Thankfully, the SIU system stands firm with a strong voice. SIU president Dan Mahoney has stated that we will hold our ground and that ‘the executive actions are antithetical to the values of our institution, the SIU system.’” Lauren Crocks, the university’s director of marketing, communications, and engagement, told Fox News Digital that “Southern Illinois University School of Medicine is committed to following the law.” White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller touted Trump’s efforts to dismantle diversity, equity and inclusion programs on Thursday. Miller appeared alongside White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt during a Thursday morning briefing, declaring that the administration is bringing a “system of merit” back to the U.S. “This administration is not going to let our society devolve into communist, woke, DEI strangulation,” Miller said. “We are going to have a system of merit.” “It’s not just a social and cultural issue, it’s an economic issue. When you hire, retain and recruit based on merit, as President Trump has directed, you advance innovation, you advance growth, you advance investment, you advance job creation,” he added. Fox News Digital’s Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.
Jasmine Crockett roasted for worrying about effect of deportation on other countries
Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, is being torched online after she expressed sympathy for countries that may be affected by mass deportations from the U.S. after she remained largely silent on millions of migrants pouring into the U.S. under the Biden administration. Crockett, a first-term progressive who has made headlines for several controversial comments this year, appeared unaware of the apparent double standard, which drew criticism from conservative accounts and commentators and Republican lawmakers. “As far as I’m concerned, you randomly kidnapping folk and you throwing them out of the country against their civil rights, against their constitutional rights,” Crockett said in a video posted to her Instagram page, which as 1.3 million followers. “And, frankly, how would they feel if some other country decided that they were gonna just start throwing people randomly in our country? Like that is absolutely insane.” SOCIAL MEDIA ERUPTS OVER JASMINE CROCKETT ‘GASLIGHTING’ ABOUT CALLING ABBOTT ‘GOVERNOR HOT WHEELS’ In the video, Crockett decries Republicans who had just voted down an amendment to a massive budget bill being hammered out by lawmakers that is aimed at clarifying that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) cannot detain or deport U.S. citizens under any circumstances. The Republicans’ actions incensed Crockett, who cited a case last week when a U.S. citizen child was deported with her noncitizen mother. Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said the child and her siblings were deported because their mothers are not citizens and wanted to take them with them back to Honduras. Crockett made the comments alongside Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., and Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., who also panned Republicans. “Literally they just voted, they being the other ones, not us because we were all on the right side of history,” Crockett said. “They just voted to give Trump the legal ability to deport U.S. citizens. That is what they voted for. A bunch of elected U.S. representatives, that is how they voted, Am I telling a lie Eric or not?” Part of the clip was posted to the popular conservative account “End Wokeness.” “Other countries have been ‘just throwing people randomly’ into our country for decades, Rep. Crockett,” Rep. Mark Harris, R-N.C., wrote in a comment. “Hahaha. She is literally one never-ending campaign ad,” wrote Rep. Marjorie Taylor Green, R-Ga. REP. JASMINE CROCKETT SAYS DEMOCRATS NEED TO BE ‘OK WITH PUNCHING’ IN RACES AGAINST TED CRUZ, REPUBLICANS As part of their big tax bill, Republicans in Congress are pumping billions of dollars into President Donald Trump’s mass deportation and border security plan with nearly 20,000 new officers, $1,000 fees for migrants seeking asylum and $46.5 billion for a long-sought border wall. Overall, the plan is to remove 1 million immigrants annually and house 100,000 people in detention centers. Trump previously floated the idea of deporting violent criminal U.S. citizens to an El Salvador prison where many criminal migrants have already been sent during his second term. It’s not the first time Crockett’s comments have been criticized. In March, she called her fellow Texan, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, who uses a wheelchair, “Governor Hot Wheels.” The Democrat claimed her words were misunderstood. Crockett continues her viral media streak with incendiary comments aimed at those on the other side of the aisle, including saying DOGE head Elon Musk should be “taken down” and Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, should be “knocked over the head, like, hard.” Fox News’ Rachel del Guidice, Elizabeth Elkind and The Associated Press contributed to this report.