Mexico to extradite 26 top cartel leaders to US in Trump administration deal
Mexico is handing over 26 top cartel leaders to the United States this week in a deal with the Trump administration. The cartel figures were scheduled to fly to the U.S. on Tuesday. “Today is the latest example of the Trump administration’s historic efforts to dismantle cartels and foreign terrorist organizations,” Attorney General Pam Bondi told Fox News Digital. “These 26 men have all played a role in bringing violence and drugs to American shores — under this Department of Justice, they will face severe consequences for their crimes against this country. We are grateful to President Sheinbaum and the Mexican government for their collaboration in this matter.” Abigael González Valencia, a leader of the “Los Cuinis,” cartel, which is aligned with the notorious Jalisco New Generation cartel (CJNG) and Roberto Salazar, who is accused of participating in the 2008 killing of a Los Angeles sheriff’s deputy, are among those being handed over to the U.S. US ACCUSES VENEZUELAN REGIME OF NARCO-TERRORISM OVER ALLIANCES WITH TREN DE ARAGUA, SINALOA CARTEL The Trump administration has classified the CJNG as a terrorist organization. Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office and Security Ministry confirmed the men were being handed over, saying the deal was made after the U.S. Justice Department said it wouldn’t seek the death penalty for any of the men. The deal comes amid the Trump administration’s focus on border security and attempt to crack down on Mexican cartels that send drugs across the border. “President Trump’s top priority is protecting the homeland, which is why he took the bold step to designate several cartels and gangs as foreign terrorist organizations,” deputy White House press secretary Anna Kelly previously said in a statement to Fox News Digital. AMERICANS IN VACATION HOT SPOT MAY SEE MORE MILITARY THAN MARGARITAS THIS SUMMER Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Friday said the U.S. military would not be entering Mexican territory following reports that Washington could take action to combat the cartels. “We co-operate, we collaborate, but there is not going to be an invasion,” she said. “It’s off the table, absolutely off the table.” President Donald Trump has also reportedly secretly authorized U.S. military force against cartels in Latin America designated by the U.S. as terrorist organizations, which would allow U.S. forces to engage with them. It also comes ahead of 25% tariffs on Mexican goods coming into the U.S. imposed by Trump. Trump spoke with Sheinbaum, who has been more aggressive than the last president about going after cartels, and told her he would delay 30% tariffs on the country for 90 days for negotiations. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Mexico also extradited 29 cartel leaders in February, including Rafael Caro Quintero, who prosecutors say was behind the torture and murder of a DEA agent in 1985. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Texas state Senate passes new Republican drawn congressional map as House Dems remain on the lam
The Texas state Senate approved new Republican-drawn maps Tuesday night, which have led House Democrats in Texas to flee the state. While Texas House Democrats remain on the lam in an effort to obstruct legislative proceedings spearheaded by Republicans to redraw the state’s congressional maps, the Senate was still able to obtain a quorum and pass the maps. They now must be passed in the House, but it is unclear when that will be possible. During the vote, nine Democrats exited the floor in protest, but two remained on the floor, which allowed the Senate to reach a quorum. The vote to pass the new maps eventually gained approval by the Senate following a 19-2 vote. ABBOTT, PAXTON LAUNCH LEGAL BLITZ ON FLEEING DEMOCRATS IN REDISTRICTING SHOWDOWN “This mid-decade redistricting isn’t about fair representation—it’s about politicians picking their voters instead of voters choosing their leaders,” the Senate Democratic Caucus said in a statement, according to The Texas Tribune. “And it doesn’t stop here. If they can gerrymander now, they can and will do it before every election.” Texas Republicans began pushing for new maps after the Trump administration directed state officials that they were in violation of the Voting Rights Act. Civil arrest warrants were issued by the Texas House Republican majority last week in an effort to compel the absent Democrats to return, but they are only enforceable within state lines and do not lead to jail time, since the warrants are not criminal. TEXAS DEMS ALSO SKIPPED TOWN IN 2021 TO AVOID A VOTE, AND SEVERAL CAUGHT COVID-19 IN DC However, Texas Republicans are seeking to utilize “every legal remedy at our disposal to hold these rogue legislators accountable,” Texas GOP Attorney General Ken Paxton said. In addition to blocking Texas Republicans’ redistricting bill, the exodus of Texas Democrats is obstructing crucial legislation from making its way through the legislature, state Sen. Mayes Middleton told Fox News Digital. This includes flood-disaster relief aid, bills to protect women’s spaces, and more.
Ashley Biden files for divorce from husband, Howard Krein, after 13 years of marriage: reports
Former first daughter Ashley Biden this week filed for divorce from her husband of 13 years, according to reports. The 44-year-old also posted an Instagram story on the same day with the song “Freedom” by Beyonce. In her post, Biden walks through a park giving a thumbs up while the song plays, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer, which reported the filing first. MICHELLE OBAMA MOCKS RUMORS THAT HER MARRIAGE IS IN TROUBLE She also posted the quote: “New life, new beginnings means new boundaries. New ways of being that won’t look or sound like they did before” over “Freedom Time” by Lauryn Hill. Biden has been married to plastic surgeon Howard Krein since 2012. The estranged couple were wed in Greenville, Delaware, in a ceremony that combined her Catholic faith and his Jewish roots, according to People magazine. A reception was held at the Biden family’s Wilmington lake house. ASHLEY BIDEN SLAMS REPORTING ABOUT HER DAD’S MENTAL ACUITY AS ‘DISRESPECTFUL AND UNTRUE’ “I kept telling Ash, we’ve got to open up the church and practice walking up and down the aisle so I can handle it,” former President Joe Biden, who was vice president at the time, told People, saying he expected to be emotional at the ceremony. “This is the right guy. And he’s getting a helluva woman,” the former president said at the time. Biden met her husband through her late brother Beau Biden and started dating him in 2010. She mentioned her wedding when she introduced the former president at the Democratic National Convention last year. “At the time, my dad was vice president, but he was also that dad who literally set up the entire reception,” she said. “He was riding around in his John Deere 4-wheeler, fixing the place settings, arranging the plants, and by the way, he was very emotional.” She added, “Before he walked me down the aisle, he turned to me and said he would always be my best friend. All these years later, Dad, you are still my best friend.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Fox News Digital has reached out to a rep for the former president for comment.
DC police chief ripped for ‘mind blowing’ response to basic policing question: ‘Yikes’
Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela Smith is facing backlash and mockery on social media after she appeared to not understand a question from the media about the department’s “chain of command” amid President Donald Trump’s recent federalization of the department. “Can you tell us what the chain of command is now?” a reporter was heard asking Smith during a press conference Tuesday morning. “What does that mean?” the police chief responded. “Well, is it Pam Bondi speaking to the mayor? Is it you? How does this work?” the reporter continued, before Bowser stepped in to explain the department’s chain of command following Trump invoking section 740 of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act Monday, which allows the president to assume emergency control of the capital’s police force. FBI DIRECTOR KASH PATEL BACKS TRUMP’S DC POLICE TAKEOVER: ‘WHEN YOU LET GOOD COPS BE COPS, THEY DELIVER’ The exchange came amid Bowser’s brief press conference Tuesday morning following her meeting with Attorney General Pam Bondi. “Our organizational chart, how we do business, how we fund the police, none of that has changed,” Bowser explained, adding that Bondi is working as Trump’s “proxy” under the federalization order and that the pair are in close communication. TOP HOUSE REPUBLICAN SAYS TRUMP ‘RIGHTLY’ TOOK OVER DC POLICE, DEMANDS BOWSER, OTHERS TESTIFY ON CRIME “We have more police, and we want to make sure we use them,” she added. The exchange of Smith appearing to not understand the reporter’s question on the department’s “chain of command” sparked mockery and backlash online Tuesday afternoon. “This is who is in charge of the police in D.C…” popular conservative X account Libs of TikTok posted of the exchange. “This is why DEI is a disease,” National Co-Chair of the RNC Youth Advisory Council CJ Pearson posted to X in response to the exchange. Smith previously served as the department’s first chief equity officer, where she “led the department’s efforts on diversity, equity and inclusion,” according to her biography. TRUMP’S PLAN TO DEPLOY NATIONAL GUARD IN DC SPARKS BACKLASH FROM RESIDENTS—BUT SOME WELCOME IT “WTF! The DC Police Chief doesn’t even know what Chain of Command means,” another conservative X account posted in response. “Smith previously served as the Police Department’s “Chief Equity Officer,’” the Trump War Room account posted to X. “MIND BLOWING: D.C. police chief reveals she DOES NOT KNOW what chain of command is. Folks, this is the Washington, D.C. POLICE Chief,” another critic posted. “NEW: Washington DC Police Chief Pamela A. Smith doesn’t know what the ‘chain of command’ means. … Yikes,” Trending Politics co-owner Collin Rugg posted. Fox Digital reached out to the Metropolitan Police Department and Bowser’s office for comment on the exchange and subsequent backlash, but did not immediately receive replies. TRUMP ACTIVATES NATIONAL GUARD TROOPS TO ADDRESS ‘TOTALLY OUT OF CONTROL’ CRIME IN WASHINGTON Trump federalized the D.C. police department following a spate of high-profile attacks and killings in the city in recent weeks, including the fatal shooting of a congressional intern in June, the fatal shooting of a pair of Israeli embassy staffers in May, and a brutal attack on a former Department of Government Efficiency staffer earlier in August. “Our capital city has been overtaken by violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals, roving mobs of wild youth, drugged-out maniacs and homeless people,” he said. “And we’re not going to let it happen anymore. We’re not going to take it.” Trump declared it was “Liberation Day in D.C.,” adding, “We’re going to take our capital back.” “We’re taking it back under the authority vested in me as the president of the United States. I’m officially invoking section 740 of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act. You know what that is. And placing the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department under direct federal control. … In addition, I’m deploying the National Guard to help reestablish law, order and public safety in Washington, D.C. And they’re going to be allowed to do their job properly,” he said Monday.
Fox News Politics Newsletter: Trump vs Newsom showdown
Welcome to the Fox News Politics newsletter, with the latest updates on the Trump administration, Capitol Hill and more Fox News politics content. Here’s what’s happening… -Female military recruits surge across all service branches -Climate group scrubs judges’ names from website after unearthed chats unmasked cozy ties -DC paid protester requests surge 400% amid Trump’s federal takeover of city police: crowd company The federal government argued before a California judge — the brother of a retired Supreme Court justice — that President Donald Trump acted within his legal authority by deploying the National Guard and Marines to quell immigration riots in Los Angeles earlier this year. Judge Charles Breyer – sibling of President Bill Clinton-appointed Justice Stephen Breyer – heard testimony in the case brought by the Newsom administration over whether the federal government violated federal law in its use of the military on domestic soil and/or the 10th Amendment. The case is expected to test the limits of a president’s power as commander in chief, as the 1878 Posse Comitatus Act — born out of Reconstruction — requires either an act of Congress or constitutional authorization to use the U.S. military for domestic law enforcement…READ MORE. NUMBERS IN DOUBT: Trump’s pick to lead labor stats agency could pause monthly jobs report over accuracy concerns BOOTS ON STANDBY: Pentagon drawing up quick reaction force of National Guard ready to quell civil unrest at any moment: report DOGE VICTORY: DOGE lands big legal win as appeals court strikes down preliminary injunction ‘UNFORTUNATE’: White House criticizes judge’s decision not to unseal Epstein associate grand jury testimony CAMPUS CRACKDOWN: Trump admin rips George Washington University in DC as ‘deliberately indifferent’ to antisemitism MONEY PIT: Trump blasts ‘Too Late’ Powell again, threatens lawsuit over Fed’s $3B HQ renovations ‘AWFUL LOT WRONG’: Unearthed emails reveal how White House nixed Biden visiting ship because of ‘how many steps were involved’ DICTATOR’S REIGN: Venezuela human rights hit new low as US puts $50M bounty on Maduro’s head: State Department NEW FINDINGS: State Department report condemns South Africa over ‘extrajudicial killings’ in annual Human Rights report ‘STUPID BEHAVIOR’: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene explains why she’s ‘extremely frustrated’ with DC lawmakers TIDE TURNS: Senate Democrats show shift on Israel as Sanders-backed arms blockade gains traction RED STATE REBELLION: Bernie Sanders brings ‘Fighting Oligarchy Tour’ to Trump strongholds across deep-red West Virginia FLORIDA’S ‘CHUCK NORRIS’: DeSantis picks ‘the Chuck Norris of Florida politics’ as new top deputy PARTISAN PLAYBOOK: Dems suggest GOP redistricting has forced them to play partisan politics, Republicans argue nothing’s changed RUNAWAY REBELLION: Texas Republicans seek to ‘domesticate’ rogue Dems for breaking quorum ‘VERY CONCERNED’: Minneapolis Democratic socialist Omar Fateh vows to protect ‘undocumented’ residents from Trump LIVING ‘RENT-FREE’: Mamdani zings Cuomo in rent-stabilized housing spat during anti-Trump tour stop ‘WORST OF THE WORST’: ICE Houston arrests more than 350 gang members — and it’s not just MS-13 DC VIOLENCE: Man in DC shot and killed hours after Trump federalizes city’s police department Get the latest updates on the Trump administration and Congress, exclusive interviews and more on FoxNews.com.
New poll exposes trouble for rivals in heated NYC mayoral race as one candidate takes commanding lead
New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani maintains a hefty lead in the race, according to a recent Siena poll of registered voters. Mamdani is polling at 44%, and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who’s running as an independent, is at 25%. Republican Curtis Sliwa is at 12%, and incumbent Mayor Eric Adams is at 7%. “While City Democrats favor Mamdani over Cuomo 53-32%, with single digits for the other two, more than two-thirds of City Republicans support Sliwa. City independent voters are more closely divided, with 30% supporting Mamdani and 20% supporting Adams,” Siena pollster Steven Greenberg said in a press release on Tuesday. CUOMO OPPONENTS SLAM HIS RE-ENTRY INTO NYC MAYOR RACE, SAY CITY WANTS TO MOVE ON FROM EX GOVERNOR “City voters under 35 are overwhelmingly supporting Mamdani, as are a plurality of voters 35-54, however, voters 55 and older back Cuomo over Mamdani, 38-32%,” he added. “Mamdani, included in the Siena poll for the first time, has a 46-32% favorability rating with New York City voters and a negative 28-37% favorability rating among voters statewide,” Greenberg continued. However, the pollster said that Cuomo, who resigned as governor and then lost the Democratic primary to Mamdani, is facing serious favorability issues. “Cuomo has an underwater favorability rating with City voters, 37-54%, and an even worse 29-61% favorability rating with statewide voters, the worst ever favorability rating for Cuomo in a Siena poll. In fact, among Democrats statewide, Cuomo’s favorability rating is 36-56%, down from 51-39% in March,” he said. CUOMO, ADAMS TRADE SHOTS OVER WHO SHOULD DROP OUT IN RACE AGAINST MAMDANI FOR NYC MAYOR Adams, who opted to pursue the race as an independent, is also facing favorability woes, according to the poll. The mayor was indicted by the Department of Justice last year on bribery, conspiracy and campaign finance charges, but the case was later dropped. Adams has presented himself as a pro-law enforcement alternative to Mamdani, especially after the 345 Park Avenue office shooting last month. “Adams is also underwater with voters in the City, 30-58%, statewide 22-51%, and among Democrats statewide 22-59%,” Greenberg said. “Sliwa has a 26-30% statewide favorability rating, and 30-42% in the City.” The recent poll comes as the nation’s eyes remain on the race, as Mamdani’s win was seen as an upset against Cuomo, and the Democratic nominee has pushed several far-left policies. Currently, Mamdani is doing an anti-Trump tour across the city. “There is no borough that will be free from Trump’s cruelty,” Mamdani said on Monday. “We will feel the pain of this legislation, whether we are in Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens or Staten Island, and we will shine a light this week and every week on the costs of this vision that is coming out of Washington, D.C.” MAMDANI’S PRIMARY WIN EXPOSES DEMOCRAT DIVIDE AS TOP LEADERS WITHHOLD ENDORSEMENTS Although some Democrats have held back on publicly supporting Mamdani, others, such as Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-NY., have been campaigning for him. Cuomo, Adams, and Sliwa have taken aim at Mamdani on a variety of issues, including policing and rent control. Cuomo is even pitching “Zohran’s Law” after it came out that Mamdani lives in a rent-stabilized apartment. “Rent-stabilized apartments when they’re vacant should only be rented to people who need affordable housing, not people like Zohran Mamdani,” Cuomo told reporters in a video posted on social media on Sunday. “We must remember that Andrew Cuomo has spent more time talking about my apartment than asking why so many New Yorkers are being forced out of theirs. He has spent more time criticizing me than he has in criticizing the legislation that Donald Trump has passed,” Mamdani fired back on Tuesday. The election is on Nov. 4, which makes it one of the few major off-year elections.
Youngkin credits Trump administration with bolstering anti-human trafficking efforts
Gov. Glenn Youngkin laid out his plans to address human trafficking during an annual conference Tuesday, saying the Trump administration has been a shot in the arm to state law enforcement as it attempts to tackle the elusive issue. Youngkin, joined by Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares and other state attorneys general, compared human trafficking enforcement to addressing transnational gangs. “We must have multi-state and federal support in order to dismantle the networks, not just arrest an individual, we’ve got to unpack the networks,” Youngkin told a crowd of a few hundred. The Trump administration has been a boon to human trafficking enforcement efforts, Youngkin said, noting he met with top Justice Department officials at the White House after the inauguration to discuss the matter and found them receptive. Virginia law enforcement has since been coordinating with the federal government to take down foreign gang operations, which Youngkin said overlaps with the human trafficking space. Youngkin used the example of gang crime inside correctional centers, which he said was the first “thread” his team pulled. FLORIDA’S OPERATION DRAGON EYE RESCUES DOZENS OF ‘CRITICALLY MISSING’ CHILDREN IN MASSIVE STING “We were able to unpick [MS-13 gangs] from their phones,” Youngkin said. “What we found was an immense network being run out of incarcerated criminals, and once the FBI tools and the Homeland Security tools and the state police tools could all be unleashed, in the FBI regional headquarters here in Northern Virginia, a map went up on the wall of the organization, and it’s just like any other work chart.” Miyares said in an interview with Fox News Digital he made requests to the Biden administration for an interagency task force to address MS-13, Tren de Aragua and other gangs but that the requests were made “on deaf ears.” He said that, by contrast, the Trump administration has acted quickly. “It’s not just drug trafficking. Human trafficking is a huge component of it.… Within 30 days, [the Trump administration] had both approved it and given us interagency space at the FBI field office in Manassas, a huge space where we had both federal, state and local law enforcement working together,” Miyares said. In March, the U.S. attorney for Eastern Virginia announced the task force had made 342 arrests, “many of them with illegal status,” and that 81 had “gang or transnational crime affiliation.” VIRGINIA DEMOCRATS CHOOSE NOMINEE TO CHALLENGE GOP ATTORNEY GENERAL JASON MIYARES Human trafficking violations are governed largely by the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, a law passed more than two decades ago. Incidents can involve a person forcing or coercing another person into performing labor or sexual acts. The perpetrators tend to target children, women and vulnerable people, such as those living in economic hardship, fleeing natural disasters or struggling psychologically. Youngkin said human trafficking is an “ill-defined” problem. Miyares echoed those sentiments, saying human trafficking violations were “multifaceted.” He cited instances of missing children in his state and an arrest made in 2022 after migrants were discovered working illegally in a laundry facility in Williamsburg. West Virginia Attorney General JB McCuskey told Fox News Digital in an interview after the event that trafficking cases “all look so very different” but that foster children in his state were particularly susceptible. He said he hopes to harness artificial intelligence to use data across agencies to get a firmer grasp on the issue. “I think the biggest next step is building these communication bridges between agencies.… Because once a kid is found, [police] need to know everything immediately, and it needs to all be in one centralized place so that a correct decision can be made very, very quickly,” McCuskey said. “Because these things happen fast, and a kid’s life can be ruined in a day and a half because an adult made the wrong decision based on bad intervention.”
Trump blasts ‘Too Late’ Powell again, threatens lawsuit over Fed’s $3B HQ renovations
President Donald Trump on Tuesday ramped up his pressure on Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell to cut interest rates, threatening to allow a lawsuit over the central bank’s $3.1 billion renovation project to move forward. Trump took to Truth Social to blast Powell, who has refused to adjust rates despite repeated demands by the president as inflation remains steady, holding at 2.7% in July. “Jerome ‘Too Late’ Powell must NOW lower the rate,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social. THE FED’S FOOLISH INTEREST RATE POLICY IS STOPPING AMERICA’S ECONOMY FROM BOOMING “Steve ‘Manouychin’ really gave me a ‘beauty’ when he pushed this loser. The damage he has done by always being Too Late is incalculable. Fortunately, the economy is sooo good that we’ve blown through Powell and the complacent Board.” Trump then went on to dangle the prospect of the legal action, although it is unclear what lawsuit Trump was referring to. “I am, though, considering allowing a major lawsuit against Powell to proceed because of the horrible, and grossly incompetent, job he has done in managing the construction of the Fed Buildings. Three Billion Dollars for a job that should have been a $50 Million Dollar fix up. Not good!” The comments are Trump’s latest public attack against Powell despite appointing him as the Federal Reserve chair in 2017. A Fed spokesperson declined to comment. GOOD ECONOMIC DATA IS BAD NEWS FOR TRUMP’S INTEREST RATE PUSH The Federal Reserve’s renovation is focused on two historic buildings in Washington, D.C.: The Marriner S. Eccles Federal Reserve Building and the adjacent 1951 Constitution Avenue structure, also known as the FRB-East Building. Powell and the Fed have previously defended the ongoing renovations, emphasizing that they’re necessary structural updates and not luxuries, and are in full compliance with plans approved by the National Capital Planning Commission in 2021. Powell and Trump toured the site last month. In a Truth Social post on Sunday, Trump slammed the costs of the overhaul. “We are not going to allow people to spend $3.1 Billion Dollars on fixing up a building, like the Federal Reserve, which could have been done in a far more elegant and time sensitive manner for $50 to $100 Million Dollars,” Trump wrote. “The Renovation would have actually been better, and would have saved $3 Billion Dollars, Traffic Jams and never-ending Construction.” Earlier this month, Trump urged the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors to take control from Powell if he resisted immediate interest rate cuts. The Fed has held its benchmark interest rate range between 4.25%-4.5%, which Trump has argued stifles American economic growth. The Federal Reserve determines its interest rate policy collectively through a 12-member panel known as the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), which votes on those decisions with each member – including Powell – receiving one vote. The FOMC isn’t scheduled to meet again until Sept. 17–18, meaning an emergency meeting would be the only way to cut rates beforehand. Last month, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., referred Powell to the Department of Justice (DOJ) for criminal charges, accusing him of lying about lavish amenities at the Federal Reserve’s Eccles Building and misrepresenting its state of maintenance. Fox News’ Greg Wehner, Eric Revell and Rachel Wolf contributed to this report.
Texas GOP seeks to ‘domesticate’ rogue Dems for breaking quorum through nationwide civil arrest warrants
Texas Republicans, Attorney General Ken Paxton and House Speaker Dustin Burrows are seeking nationwide civil arrest warrants for the Texas House Democrats who broke quorum when they fled the state for Illinois and California. In the latest escalation of the redistricting debate taking national politics by storm, Paxton and Burrows are seeking to “domesticate” civil arrest warrants in Illinois and California for the Texas Democrats who fled the Lone Star State to block a Republican-led redistricting plan that could protect Republicans’ slim U.S. House majority. “We are pursuing every legal remedy at our disposal to hold these rogue legislators accountable,” Paxton said in a statement. “Texas deserves representatives who do their jobs instead of running away at the behest of their billionaire handlers. If there’s one thing Texans can’t stand more than losers, it’s cowards.” Burrows emphasized that “all options are on the table” to ensure House members return home to Texas to “fulfill their constitutional obligations.” TEXAS ASKS ILLINOIS COURT TO ENFORCE ARREST WARRANTS FOR DEMOCRATIC LAWMAKERS “The State has no choice but to pursue additional legal remedies to compel their return from other states. Our full focus is on stopping this dereliction of duty and restoring quorum in the Texas House as soon as possible so we may return our time, attention and resources where they most matter—on the critical issues of the special session call,” the Republican House Speaker said. ABBOTT, PAXTON LAUNCH LEGAL BLITZ ON FLEEING DEMOCRATS IN REDISTRICTING SHOWDOWN Burrows issued arrest warrants on Aug. 4 for the Democrats who fled Texas, under Article III, Section 10 of the Texas Constitution and Rule 5, Section 8, of the Rules of the Texas House of Representatives. According to the attorney general’s office, it allows for “[a]ll absentees for whom no sufficient excuse is made may, by order of a majority of those present, be sent for and arrested, wherever they may be found.” More than a week later, as Democrats have yet to return, Paxton and Burrows are seeking to implement their warrants in Illinois and California, through the Full Faith and Credit Clause of the U.S. Constitution. While the Texas Republicans argue that other states are obligated to adhere to official acts by the state of Texas, both Govs. J.B. Pritzker of Illinois and Gavin Newsom of California have come out in support of the rogue Texas Democrats, as their home states float their own redistricting plans to balance the scales if Texas Republicans are successful. The Democrats will not be detained and escorted back to Texas unless a state court in Illinois and California accepts Texas’ civil arrest warrants. Once lawmakers leave the state, they are beyond the legal jurisdiction of Texas authorities who can compel their return, according to GovFacts, a nonpartisan educational resource that explains U.S. government legalities. However, if they were to return to Texas, the Texas Constitution would allow legislative leaders to “physically compel the attendance” of missing members through civil arrest warrants, allowing law enforcement to find the missing Democrats and return them to the Capitol. Paxton has also filed a lawsuit with the Texas Supreme Court, requesting that 13 House Democrats’ seats are declared vacant because they fled the state to avoid the Trump-backed redistricting vote. The conservative attorney general also filed a lawsuit against former U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke, D-Texas, for allegedly conspiring to aid and abet Democrats’ effort to break the quorum. According to the Courthouse News Service, Republican Tarrant County Judge Megan Fay issued a temporary restraining order against O’Rourke and his Super PAC, Powered by People, hours after the suit was filed “to stop using funds to pay for Democrats’ travel expenses and conduct fundraising to pay for such expenses in the future.” When reached for comment, a Pritzker spokesperson pointed to his past comments, addressing the threat of nationwide civil arrests, in which he said Illinois law enforcement will protect “everybody” in Illinois. And a Newsom spokesperson flagged his X posts, trolling the Texas Republicans and urging them to “come and take” democracy. O’Rourke did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
As Trump intervenes in DC’s crime crisis, another violent city’s DA gets a challenger from inside the tent
A former municipal judge who lost to Philadelphia’s Soros-linked city prosecutor in the May Democratic primary announced over the weekend he would be registering for the Republican Party line in November’s election, as President Donald Trump brings a new focus on urban crime. Philadelphia Judge Patrick Dugan, of the city’s Far Northeast, earned enough write-in votes in May’s contest – where no Republican was on that party’s primary ballot – to be able to run on the party line in November. However, it wasn’t until the weekend that Dugan formally announced he would take the GOP mantle in hopes of ousting Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner. Trump, meanwhile, announced on Monday he is usurping control of the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, D.C., for the statutory 48 hours allowed under the District of Columbia Home Rule Act of 1973 due to violent crime he declared is on par with several capitals in Central America. SOROS-BACKED PHILADELPHIA DA SURVIVES PRIMARY CHALLENGE, BUT POTENTIAL GOP WRINKLE AHEAD Dugan said in a statement that he expects Krasner to try to tie him to Trump and call him an “extremist,” but only “because he knows his record is one of failure, and he cannot defend the rampant crime his policies have caused.” “I know that Philadelphians are smart enough to believe their eyes, and what they see is more crime, more drugs, more victims abandoned, more shootings, and more criminals let loose on the streets,” Dugan said in a statement. The former jurist also reportedly said that although he will be on the Republican line, he identifies as an “Independent-Democrat.” That wasn’t enough to quell Philadelphia Democratic Party boss Bob Brady, who called Dugan a “disgrace” and appeared to kick him out of the party. “He’s got zero integrity… he’s out of our party… I don’t need liars in our party,” the former congressman told the Philadelphia Inquirer. SOROS-BACKED PHILLY DA COULD FACE UPHILL BATTLE FOR RE-ELECTION IF GOP WRITE-IN SCHEME SUCCEEDS The Associated Press had called the Krasner-Dugan primary with the incumbent earning at least 60% of the vote. Dugan, however, garnered 53,000 Democratic votes and a shocking 6,400 write-ins. Because Pennsylvania is a closed-primary state, those voters were likely – if not entirely – Republicans. Dugan said Saturday he would be a DA for “all of Philadelphia,” regardless of party affiliation. “I cannot stand by and allow Mr. Krasner’s failed policies to continue to hold our city hostage. Every Philadelphian has a real choice this fall, and I believe they will stand with me for common sense and safety.” Philly GOP chair Vince Fenerty added that the city now has a “real choice” between Dugan and Krasner, a “proven advocate for the very criminals he is supposed to prosecute.” Pennsylvania state Sen. Joe Picozzi, a fellow Northeast Philly Republican, called Dugan a “proven leader” and said “firing Larry Krasner” is a top priority for him. Picozzi himself shocked the commonwealth when he unseated a Democrat in 2024, making him the first Republican state senator to represent America’s birthplace in decades. Krasner criticized Dugan for being a Democrat embraced by Republicans. Since Krasner’s rise, Philadelphia has battled a crime crisis, as well as the prosecutor’s penchant not to prosecute marijuana possession, certain sex work offenses and other low-level crimes. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP However, during some of the looting amid the George Floyd riots, Krasner indicated there had been 550 arrests for burglary and that he would “vigorously prosecute” many of them. “Some of them, on the other hand, are an 18-year-old who’s never had contact with the criminal justice system before, not even an arrest, who’s going in through a broken window and coming out with a T-shirt,” he added, according to CBS News. Violent crime as a category, however, has declined some in the past few years, with a decrease of about 17%, according to the Penn Capital-Star, to which critics have pointed to the custom of dropping charges on some crimes. Trump previously called Krasner the “worst district attorney,” and asked Philadelphians who attended a 2019 rally in Hershey to “get yourself a new prosecutor.” In a January statement after Trump took office, Krasner hit back, telling the president in a statement that “arrests and prosecutions are based on probable cause, not on whether you agree or disagree with a political position.” “Unlike the current president, who this week pardoned or commuted sentences for over 1,000 lawfully convicted and sentenced insurrectionists, my office and others will continue to uphold the U.S. Constitution and the rule of law,” Krasner said.