Minneapolis Democratic socialist Omar Fateh vows to protect illegal immigrants from ‘hostile’ Trump admin
Democratic socialist and Minneapolis mayoral hopeful Omar Fateh says his first priority in office would be protecting illegal immigrants from President Donald Trump’s “hostile federal government.” Fateh made the statement during an interview with KARE 11 News in Minnesota, doubling down on his identity as a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, but denying his policies are “radical.” “Day one, if you were elected, what would be some of your top two or three priorities for the city?” the reporter asked in an interview aired Friday. “The first I would say would be a hostile federal government, with not only Donald Trump in office, but he essentially has a trifecta with both chambers of Congress and the Supreme Court. A lot of our neighbors, especially our undocumented residents are very concerned,” Fateh responded. THE PLOT TO STOP MAMDANI: DEMOCRATS SCRAMBLE TO BLOCK FAR-LEFT TAKEOVER IN NEW YORK The candidate went on to say public safety would be his second priority, but he declined to endorse the Democratic Socialist platform of abolishing the police entirely. “That’s not going to happen, absolutely,” Fateh said of abolition. “What we envision is a public safety system that works for everyone, and that means we have an accountable police force and a police force that is an important part of our public safety system, but making sure that when we call 911 we get an appropriate response.” Fateh argued that half of 911 calls in Minneapolis “don’t need to be responded to with armed officers.” He argued funding should be directed toward social workers and others who can respond to such calls instead. Fateh secured the endorsement of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, the name for the Democratic Party in Minnesota, in July. The party endorsed him over incumbent Mayor Jacob Frey, also a Democrat. Frey is running for a third term and has decided to stay in the race. Some have dubbed Fateh the “Mamdani of Minneapolis,” referencing New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. Both are the children of immigrants, with Fateh hailing from Somalia and Mamdani from Uganda. RNC CHAIR ARGUES MAMDANI ‘FACE OF THE NEW DEMOCRATIC PARTY’ CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Fateh has previously pledged that, if elected mayor, he will raise city’s minimum wage, increase the supply of affordable housing, and combat what he calls police violence. Similar to Mamdani, Fateh calls for replacing some of the police department’s duties with community-led alternatives. He also wants to issue legal IDs to undocumented immigrants. Fox News’ Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report
Female military recruits surge across all service branches
FIRST ON FOX: Female military recruits have sharply increased across all service branches so far in fiscal year 2025. Around 7,260 more women have enlisted so far this fiscal year than at this point last fiscal year: from 16,725 to 23,985, according to Pentagon figures seen by Fox News Digital. “The media’s narrative that the female recruitment numbers have either fallen or stayed the same under Secretary Hegseth and President Trump is 100% Fake News,” a defense official said. “Leadership matters and women are excited to serve under the strong leadership of Secretary Hegseth and President Trump.” The Army surpassed its overall recruitment goals in June, four months before the end of the fiscal year: the service branch announced that month it had signed contracts with more than 61,000 future soldiers, which is more than 10% higher than the 55,000 recruits targeted in fiscal 2024. ARMY SURPASSES FISCAL 2025 RECRUITING GOAL 4 MONTHS AHEAD OF SCHEDULE After record-low recruitment in 2022, the trend began to reverse in 2024, with the armed forces bringing in 12.5% more personnel than the year prior. In 2025, all service branches are on track to meet or exceed their recruiting goals. This year, a survey by the Defense Department found 87% of those between the ages of 16 and 21 were probably or definitely not considering military service. Three out of four were worried about physical injury and two thirds had concerns about the emotional toll. However, Hegseth’s team has credited a “Trump bump” and a returned focus on the “warfighter” for a rise in recruits, despite the broad youth sentiment. PENTAGON FREEZES OUT DC THINK TANKS IN NEW MOVE, CITING ‘AMERICA LAST’ CONCERNS “They see leadership … that says, ‘We want you to be warriors. We’re not doing this politically correct garbage anymore. We’re doing war fighting,’” Hegseth said during a visit to Normandy in June. Additionally, Congress passed three straight pay raises for troops, between 4% and 5%, and an additional 10% for junior enlisted soldiers. “The bottom line is this administration and Secretary Hegseth has prioritized lethality and mission readiness over political pandering. That’s exactly why women, and men, all across the country are more trusting of their leadership and more willing to serve,” Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., an Air Force Veteran, said. Hegseth has come under media scrutiny for his comments about women in combat and the removal of a number of women who served in top Pentagon roles under the Biden administration. His leadership claims they don’t discriminate: they’ve removed men from top roles too. HEGSETH VOWS TO RESTORE WARRIOR MENTALITY AND RAISE STANDARDS IN SWEEPING MILITARY TRANSFORMATION Prior to his confirmation, the secretary had publicly questioned the effectiveness of including women in direct ground combat roles — arguing such integration complicates operations and compromises battlefield effectiveness. During his confirmation hearing, Hegseth explained that he believed women should be allowed to serve in combat but should have to meet the same fitness standards as men. Recently, Hegseth reassigned Adm. Yvette Davids from superintendent of the Naval Academy to the position of deputy chief of naval operations. While some accused leadership of de-elevating a female leader, officials insisted the move was a promotion: Davids is now on a path that could lead her to becoming a four-star admiral. This week, critics seized on a moment in a CNN interview with a pastor, Douglas Wilson, affiliated with Hegseth’s church’s denomination, that the secretary reposted on X. “Women are the kind of people that people come out of,” Wilson said in the interview. “The wife and mother, who is the chief executive of the home, is entrusted with three or four or five eternal souls.” In another moment of the interview, a member of the denomination, Josh Prince, was asked if he saw his wife Amy as his equal. “Yes and no,” he responded. “He is the head of our household and I do submit to him,” Amy added. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “I’m not a White nationalist, I’m not a fascist, I’m not a racist, I’m not a misogynist,” Wilson insisted. In his repost of the clip, Hegseth added, “All of Christ for All of Life.”
Mamdani zings Cuomo in rent-stabilized housing spat during anti-Trump tour stop
Zohran Mamdani, New York City’s Democratic mayoral nominee, continued his “Five Boroughs Against Trump” tour in Brooklyn on Tuesday, as President Donald Trump’s agenda continues to take center stage on the New York City campaign trail. Speaking at the Flatbush Gardens Community Center, Mamdani’s second anti-Trump event of the week was focused on housing, a hot-button issue in the New York City mayoral race as former Gov. Andrew Cuomo has spent days criticizing Mamdani’s rent-stabilized apartment in Astoria. “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 said on Tuesday. Mamdani began his week-long tour alongside Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., in Manhattan on Monday morning. After visiting Brooklyn on Tuesday, Mamdani will travel to Staten Island on Wednesday, the Bronx on Thursday and Queens on Friday, Fox News confirmed. CUOMO PROPOSES ‘ZOHRAN’S LAW’ TO PROTECT RENT-STABILIZED HOUSING FROM THE WEALTHY The 33-year-old self-described socialist’s tour is a rejection of the Trump administration’s sweeping second-term agenda and his so-called “authoritarian” attack on working New Yorkers, with Tuesday’s event focused on housing. ZOHRAN MAMDANI LAUNCHES ANTI-TRUMP TOUR ACROSS FIVE BOROUGHS IN NEW YORK CITY “While housing experts are ringing the alarm, Andrew Cuomo is ringing Donald Trump,” Mamdani said. During Mamdani’s events on Monday and Tuesday, reporters peppered the 33-year-old socialist candidate with questions about Cuomo’s latest policy proposal – “Zohran’s law.” The former governor, who lost the Democratic mayoral primary to Mamdani in June, began trolling the assemblyman over the weekend with an edited video of Mamdani admitting he pays “$2,300 for my one bedroom in Astoria.” “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. Cuomo said “Zohran’s law” was designed to prevent high-income individuals from occupying rent-stabilized apartments. But Mamdani fired back at Cuomo’s criticism on Tuesday, telling reporters, “It pains me to say that in our disgraced former Governor Andrew Cuomo’s mind, these units, these buildings, these tenants are but a political pawn.” Chief among Mamdani’s now-infamous progressive policy proposals is his commitment to freezing rents. “As Mayor, Zohran will immediately freeze the rent for all stabilized tenants, and use every available resource to build the housing New Yorkers need and bring down the rent,” according to Mamdani’s campaign website. Mamdani has accused incumbent Mayor Eric Adams of appointing Rent Guidelines Board members to raise rents on stabilized apartments. While landlords and advocates argue the freeze would be illegal, Mamdani can accomplish this goal by appointing members to the board who wouldn’t vote to increase the rent. Former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s board voted to freeze the rent three times during his tenure. Cuomo had previously called the democratic socialist’s plan to freeze rent a “politically convenient posture,” and said such a move would hurt landlords who would be “unable to maintain their buildings.” As Cuomo’s fiery social media posts about Mamdani’s rent-controlled apartment made the rounds, de Blasio – who has yet to endorse a candidate in the race to run the nation’s most populous city – fired back at his former governor. “I did a rent freeze and almost 2 million hard-working New Yorkers benefited. @ZohranKMamdani wants to do a rent freeze. You know who doesn’t want to do a rent freeze? @andrewcuomo, and he thinks he can trick us into forgetting that,” de Blasio trolled on X. During the first stop on his anti-Trump tour on Monday, Mamdani responded to Cuomo’s freshly proposed law “that will keep the rich out of New York’s affordable housing.” “What do we know about this policy proposal beyond the fact that it seeks to evict me from my apartment?” Mamdani questioned on Monday. “Like so much of Andrew Cuomo’s politics, it is characterized by a petty vindictiveness. It leaves far more questions than it has answers. How many New Yorkers would this apply to? How many New Yorkers would be evicted from their apartments? How many New Yorkers would have their lives upended by a former governor who is responding to the fact that he was handily beaten by a tenant of a rent-stabilized apartment?” Mamdani asked. “I live rent-free in his head,” Mamdani trolled Cuomo, arguing that he had many years to implement such policies as governor but is now only focused on trying to reckon with a “political defeat.” Soon after Mamdani’s criticism, the Cuomo campaign unveiled his proposal to protect rent-stabilized apartments from being occupied by high-income individuals. “Under Cuomo’s proposal, when a rent-stabilized apartment becomes vacant, the incoming individual income would be capped so that the annual rent makes up at least 30 percent of that income. For example, if an apartment rents for $2,500 a month ($30,000 per year), the new tenant’s income could not exceed $100,000,” according to the plan. The Cuomo campaign also clarified that “Zohran’s law” would only apply to vacant apartments. Mamdani poured cold water on Cuomo’s plan during the press conference on Tuesday, telling reporters, “What is so absurd to me about Andrew Cuomo’s proposal is that it wouldn’t even apply to me. The way that he has put forward this language does not actually apply to me, and yet he uses my name in it.” When reached for comment regarding Mamdani’s anti-Trump tour, White House spokeswoman, Abigail Jackson, told Fox News Digital, “Comrade Mamdani is the American people’s worst nightmare. His communist policies will crater our economy, increase crime, crowd out Americans with free health care for illegal immigrants, and defund the brave men and women of law enforcement who keep us safe.” The White House added that “Mamdani’s idea of ‘immigration reform’ is no borders and amnesty for all the violent criminal illegal aliens that Joe Biden released into our country. The American people have repeatedly rejected
Unearthed emails reveal White House nixed Biden visiting ship because of ‘how many steps were involved’
FIRST ON FOX: Unearthed emails as part of a FOIA request show Biden administration agencies scrapping a plan to visit a vessel at an event because it would have required then-President Joe Biden to take too many steps. Records show, as part of a FOIA request by Protect the Public’s Trust obtained by Fox News Digital, that Biden was set to visit a National Security Multi-Mission Vessel (NSMV) while touring a Philadelphia shipyard in July 2023. However, according to the emails, that visit to the vessel was scrapped because of “how many steps were involved to get on the ship.” The emails show that the U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD) was engaged in a major project at the Philadelphia shipyard at the time that Biden was planning to visit to tout offshore wind and clean energy jobs. WATCHDOG FINDS ‘NO EVIDENCE’ BIDEN KNEW OF CRUCIAL CLIMATE EOS, DEMANDS ANSWERS ON WHO SIGNED AUTOPEN A MARAD official emailed members of the Office of Secure Transportation, with the Department of Transportation cc’d, on July 17, 2023, that said, “No visit to the NSMV vessel is planned after the WH realized how many steps were involved to get on the ship. {True – lots of steps on grating}.” The email exchanges also show a lack of coordination between the White House and MARAD, an agency of the DOT, as the next day an email between DOT officials said, “MARAD hasn’t had anyone reach out to them from WH. All info they have received has been from Philly shipyard. S2 team reached out to WH Advance, and that is how we confirmed the visit was scheduled. Nothing else heard and no further call made or received on this event that I am aware of.” ‘RINGS HOLLOW’: BIDEN RIPPED FOR WARNING OF OLIGARCHY ‘TAKING SHAPE’ IN US DESPITE DEEP TIES TO BILLIONAIRES The decision to skip visiting the vessel in the shipyard came a little more than a month after Biden faced questions over his mental and physical sharpness when he stumbled and fell on stage at an Air Force Academy graduation ceremony in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on June 1, 2023. The White House said at the time that the president tripped over a sandbag and that he was not injured by the fall. Around the same time, White House officials were rejecting concerns from conservatives about Biden’s health and insisting he was able to perform his duties at a high level. Roughly a week after the event in Philadelphia, then-White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre bristled at a question about Biden’s age and whether the White House could assure people there was nothing to be concerned about by outlining the president’s accomplishments. “Look, we’ve been asked this question multiple times,” Jean-Pierre said. “And you have a president who — I just went through his Unity Agenda — what we’ve been able to do in a bipartisan way as it relates to issues that really matter to the American people — right? — the Cancer Moonshot, which is actually going to make a difference with people and family — fam- — Americans who have family members dealing with cancer. That is something that this president has been able to do.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Fox News Digital reached out to Biden’s office and the Philadelphia shipyard for comment. “There’s an awful lot wrong here, beginning with the White House planning a presidential visit to one of the most important shipyards in the nation without bothering to give a heads-up to the Department of Transportation, which has major ongoing projects there,” Protect the Public’s Trust Director Michael Chamberlain told Fox News Digital. “That’s amateurish. Second and far more critical, the president’s staff was proscribing events he couldn’t physically handle more than a year before he dropped out of the re-election race, all while lambasting anyone who claimed he wasn’t fit enough to complete the Ironman Competition. I realize there’s an elevator down to the White House Situation Room, but most voters would like to think they’re pulling the lever for a president who could take the stairs in an emergency.” A former Biden aide pushed back on that narrative, saying that it is “ironic that an organization called ‘Protect the Public Trust’ is more interested in how many steps the former president took than the current president’s cost-raising agenda and close relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.” “The group is presenting a deceptive story with this ‘don’t look at Epstein’ bait based on a single email with no context and they know it.” A former Biden administration official reached by Fox News Digital referenced the massive size of the shipyard and that the size would be considered when planning events like this, adding that the email references steps and not stairs specifically. The former official also pushed back on the person sending the email not having spoken directly with someone at the White House and explained that several teams are involved in arranging events like the one at the shipyard, considering accessibility, security risks, visuals and other factors.
Trump’s earliest supporter announces bid for Alabama Senate seat
FIRST ON FOX: Another House Republican has their eyes set on a Senate seat in the 2026 midterms. Rep. Barry Moore, R-Ala., told Fox News Digital in an interview that he plans to run for Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s seat in the upper chamber. Moore, who has represented the southern Alabama 1st congressional district since 2021, styled himself as a fiscal hawk with a longstanding history of supporting President Donald Trump. Indeed, he was the first elected official in the country to endorse Trump during his first run for office in 2015. TOP HOUSE REPUBLICAN SAYS TRUMP ‘RIGHTLY’ TOOK OVER DC POLICE, DEMANDS BOWSER, OTHERS TESTIFY ON CRIME “I think my number one job is to protect the people’s liberty and to support the president in that process,” Moore said. “And so, for us, it’s an opportunity to continue to fight for the America First agenda, and also make sure we have conservatives in the Senate from Alabama that are truly the voice of the people.” And one of his top concerns in Washington is the ever-increasing national debt, which has neared $37 trillion and counting, according to the Fox Business National Debt Tracker. One of his top priorities when helping to craft Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” was to apply downward pressure on Congress’ spending habits to achieve roughly $1.5 trillion in spending cuts over the next decade. “I think that we’ll have to hold the line on spending,” Moore said. “But again, this didn’t get this way overnight. You’re not going to fix it overnight. So you have to do it gradually.” SENATE REPUBLICANS REVEAL DRAMATIC DEALMAKING BEHIND TRUMP’S $3.3T MEGABILL PASSAGE Moore, 58, is not alone in the race to replace Tuberville, who earlier this year announced that he would make a bid for the governor’s mansion after serving only one term in the upper chamber. He joins Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall and former Navy SEAL Jared Hudson in the Republican primary. There are also a trio of candidates running on the Democratic side, including Kyle Sweetser, Dakarai Larriett and Mark Wheeler II. And despite his conservative bona fides — he is a member of the House Freedom Caucus and touted his deeply conservative voting record — Moore believed that the number one issue in the Senate, and Congress in general, is the growing partisan divide. TRUMP’S SENATE CLOSER: REPUBLICAN FRESHMAN EMERGES AS KEY WHITE HOUSE ALLY He noted that when he came to Washington in 2021, he was disappointed that Republicans and Democrats didn’t work together more in the lower chamber under former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. “I think most people in D.C. are principled,” he said. “They’re trying to do the right thing. There’s perfect, and that’s sometimes the enemy of practical. And so we try to make sure that even on the ‘big, beautiful bill,’ it wasn’t perfect. There were 435 versions of perfect in the House, but having principled people come to the table and say, ‘Let’s get a practical solution so we can get wins for this administration and for our country’ – I think that’s what we have to do in the Senate.” “I don’t think we have to look at the opposing side as the enemy always,” he said. “And I think we have to keep in mind, too, that they represent areas, and they have a different experience in life.” Still, despite his desire to create bipartisan inroads in the upper chamber, which is a must in most legislative fights, given the 60-vote filibuster threshold, Moore supports a change to Senate rules for confirmations to blast through Senate Democrats’ blockade of Trump’s nominees. He’s in support of shortening the debate time on nominees, one of the options on the table for when lawmakers return from their August break, and argued that Democrats “are playing the obstructionist” despite Trump winning big in the 2024 election. “The American people are fed up with that, so I say we change the rules and allow these nominees to get the jobs and start doing the job so they can help the president achieve his agenda,” he said.
‘Things need to change’: Senate Democrats sharpen criticism of Israel as humanitarian concerns grow
Senate Democrats have undergone a steady tonal shift on Israel, with a recent vote to block arms sales to the Jewish State giving a glimpse at the evolution on the Hill. More Democrats in the upper chamber than ever before voted alongside Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., to halt the $675 million sale of thousands of bombs and guidance kits for the bombs and to block the sale of automatic rifles to Israel. BERNIE SANDERS TO FORCE SENATE VOTE ON BLOCKING ARMS SALES TO ISRAEL Sanders’ push ultimately failed late last month, but over half of all Senate Democrats voted alongside him, with many voting with him for the first time. Meanwhile, all Senate Republicans voted against them. “The tide is turning,” Sanders, who routinely caucuses with Democrats, said in a statement. “The American people do not want to spend billions to starve children in Gaza. The Democrats are moving forward on this issue, and I look forward to Republican support in the near future.” Getting Republicans on board for future attempts, as Sanders hoped would happen, is a stretch at best. “Republicans stand with Israel,” Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair Jim Risch, R-Idaho, told Fox News Digital in a statement. “Senator Sanders’ resolution to block arms sales would have reinstated the failed policies of the Biden administration and would abandon America’s closest ally in the Middle East,” he continued. “We can’t afford to go back there.” TOP HOUSE REPUBLICAN SAYS TRUMP ‘RIGHTLY’ TOOK OVER DC POLICE, DEMANDS BOWSER, OTHERS TESTIFY ON CRIME But the change within the Democratic caucus was likely spurred by the release of photos of starving children in the Gaza Strip, which earned shocked reactions from both lawmakers and President Donald Trump. Many Democrats have pinned the blame on Israel and argued that the Jewish state has put a chokehold on aid that is meant for civilians in Gaza, while Republicans contend that the terrorist organization Hamas is stealing the food. “What’s going on is unacceptable, and Israel has the power to fix it,” Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, told Fox News Digital. Like Sanders, King typically caucuses with Senate Democrats. But unlike his fellow Independent colleague, he has routinely stood firm in his support of Israel. But the photos and reports of widespread malnutrition prompted him to vote to block arms sales. “Israel’s the one that’s not letting the aid get in,” he said. “The humanitarian response is entirely within Israel’s hands, and they’ve been blocking, slowing, starting and stopping, to the point where I just could no longer stand silent.” And like King, Sen. Jean Shaheen, the top ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, changed course and voted in favor of blocking arms sales out of concern that food aid was not making its way to Palestinians. “I think it’s important to send the message to Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu and his government that things need to change,” the New Hampshire Democrat said in an interview with PBS Newshour. SENATE REPUBLICANS REVEAL DRAMATIC DEALMAKING BEHIND TRUMP’S $3.3T MEGABILL PASSAGE But Republicans charged that it was not Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s fault that food aid was not making its way into Gaza, and instead believed that it was Hamas stealing the food. Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., said that Israel wants to make sure that the food aid actually makes it to civilians in Hamas. “Israel and the US have cut out, cut off most of Hamas’ cash flow,” Kennedy said. “And a lot of their cash flows depends on stealing the food and selling it, sometimes to their own people, absorbing the prices.” And not every Senate Democrat is on the same page when it comes to their position on the Jewish State. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., has routinely slammed Democrats for criticizing Israel, and believed that his party was moving further away from his position. “What I really fundamentally believe, there’s been a wholesale shift, even within my party, to blame Israel for the situations and the circumstances overall,” Fetterman told Fox News Digital. “And I don’t really understand. It’s like we’ve seen the same pictures and, of course, what’s happened in Gaza is devastating.” “But so, for me, I blame Hamas and Iran,” he continued. “And I don’t know why there’s not like a collective global outrage.”
DC councilman charged with corruption scheme says leaders are ‘responsible,’ don’t need ‘federal interference’
President Donald Trump’s federal takeover of Washington, D.C.’s law enforcement is facing criticism from an eyebrow-raising source: a D.C. city councilman who is facing charges of running a bribery scheme out of his office. Trayon White, 41, was sworn in to the city council on Friday, having been elected to the post despite facing an upcoming trial on federal bribery charges in 2026. Asked about Trump’s then-threatened takeover of D.C. law enforcement, White argued that D.C.’s leaders are already “responsible,” and that a federal takeover would only “cripple” the city. “I think we have one of the strongest budgets of any city for the last 20 years. We are fiscally responsible. We have a AAA bond rating. We’ve shown that we can be responsible with our funds. We don’t need federal interference. In fact, they’ve only crippled Washington D.C. and the progress we’ve made over the last four decades,” White told reporters. The D.C. council voted to expel White in February as his bribery charges began to play out. He nevertheless won back his seat in July, basing his campaign around claims that the FBI had targeted him unjustly. He claimed last week that the federal agency was out to “kill” him. TRUMP IS THREATENING TO ‘FEDERALIZE’ DC WITH NATIONAL GUARD AND MORE. HERE’S HOW THAT COULD PLAY OUT “You know the FBI is after me, you know, but I believe that, you know, not just arrest me, but, you know, but I believe they want to kill me,” White told reporters Friday. TRUMP VOWS TO MAKE DC ‘SAFER’ AND ‘BEAUTIFUL’ AS CAPITAL BATTLES CRIME AND HOMELESSNESS The FBI arrested White in August 2024 after he was accused by federal authorities of agreeing to accept $156,000 in bribes. His trial is scheduled to begin in January 2026. White denies any wrongdoing and is pleading not guilty in the federal case, despite apparent video of him allegedly pocketing cash-stuffed envelopes. A Justice Department statement from August 2024 alleges that White agreed to accept the bribes in exchange for “using his official position to pressure renewal” of contracts valued at $5.2 million. Trump announced on Monday that his administration was federalizing the Metropolitan Police Department and deploying 800 National Guardsmen to the city in an effort to combat crime and homelessness. U.S. Attorney for Washington, D.C., Jeanine Pirro blames much of the problem on “young punks” who view themselves as untouchable by the law. DC COUNCIL EXPELS TRAYON WHITE FOLLOWING FEDERAL BRIBERY CHARGE The alleged bribery scheme was focused on violence-prevention programs, with White allegedly pressuring employees at the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (ONSE) and the Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services (DYRS) to re-up certain contracts. White was allowed to run in the special election because he had not been convicted of a felony. “So we sent a message loud and clear to D.C. City Council that Trayon White is here to stay,” White said in his victory speech, according to the Associated Press. The outlet added that the troubled, once-ousted council member told the story of his return to office as one of resilience and redemption.
Democratic whistleblower told FBI that Adam Schiff approved classified leaks to target Trump
A Democratic whistleblower told the FBI that Adam Schiff approved leaking classified information in order to discredit President Donald Trump, according to newly-released documents. The documents, which were obtained by Just The News, were recently handed over to Congress by FBI Director Kash Patel. The whistleblower reportedly worked for Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee for over ten years, and reported Schiff’s alleged behavior to the FBI in 2017. According to the report, the intelligence staffer called the leaking “treasonous” and “illegal,” in addition to being unethical. He was most recently interviewed by the FBI in 2023. COULD SENATOR ADAM SCHIFF REALLY GO TO JAIL OVER ALLEGED MORTGAGE FRAUD? The staffer also said that he personally attended a meeting where Schiff greenlit the leak. “When working in this capacity, [redacted staffer’s name] was called to an all-staff meeting by SCHIFF,” the documents state, per Just The News. “In this meeting, SCHIFF stated the group would leak classified information which was derogatory to President of the United States DONALD J. TRUMP. SCHIFF stated the information would be used to indict President TRUMP.” “[The whistleblower] stated this would be illegal and, upon hearing his concerns, unnamed members of the meeting reassured that they would not be caught leaking classified information,” the report added. TRUMP-FOE ADAM SCHIFF DISMISSES TULSI GABBARD’S DECLASSIFIED RUSSIA COLLUSION INTELLIGENCE AS ‘DISHONEST’ John Solomon, who co-authored the piece with Just The News’ Jerry Dunleavy, appeared on Fox News Channel’s “Hannity” to discuss the report. “This is the first of several major leak investigations we’re going to see over the next several days,” Solomon said. “You’re going to see other major people that were clearly identified by the FBI, having leaked classified secrets.” “Their own staff turned them in when interviewed by the FBI. Nothing, again, happened,” he added. “It’s a common pattern. The question now is, in Donald Trump’s Justice Department, does that dynamic change?” Soon after the report was published, Patel shared it on X, saying that the FBI “found it [and] declassified it.” “Now Congress can see how classified info was leaked to shape political narratives – and decide if our institutions were weaponized against the American people,” Patel’s post read. Fox News Digital’s Brooke Curto contributed to this report.
FBI Director Kash Patel backs Trump’s DC police takeover: ‘When you let good cops be cops, they deliver’
FBI Director Kash Patel endorsed President Donald Trump’s plans to take over the Metropolitan Police Department to tackle crime in Washington D.C., amid heavy criticism from Democrats and local officials who say the move is part of a power grab. Patel was seen Monday afternoon inside a command post for the first night of the temporary takeover in a show of support for law enforcement. “Proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with the men and women who keep our nation’s capital safe,” Patel said in an exclusive statement to Fox News Digital. “When you let good cops be cops, give them the tools they need, and back them every step of the way, they deliver – every time.” In photos exclusively provided to Fox News Digital, Patel can be seen speaking Monday to FBI and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) personnel wearing protective vests at a command center at a U.S. Park Police station. TOP DEMOCRATS RIPPED ON SOCIAL MEDIA OVER ‘BONKERS’ REACTIONS TO TRUMP’S DC CRIME PLAN: ‘MASSIVE LIAR’ On Monday, Trump said he would federalize the police department and place it under the authority of U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi in an effort to address crime. He also said he was activating approximately 800 National Guard troops to “reestablish law, order and public safety” in the capital. Washington D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser called the move “unsettling and unprecedented.” “While this action today is unsettling and unprecedented, I can’t say that given some of the rhetoric of the past, that we’re totally surprised,” Bowser said during a news conference. “I can say to D.C. residents that we will continue to operate our government in a way that makes you proud.” TRUMP’S PLAN TO DEPLOY NATIONAL GUARD IN DC SPARKS BACKLASH FROM RESIDENTS—BUT SOME WELCOME IT The District of Columbia Home Rule Act allows Trump to place the city’s police department under federal control for up to 30 days. Bowser noted that granting D.C. statehood, an issue local officials have repeatedly advocated for, could have prevented the takeover. “If people are concerned about the president being able to move the National Guard into our city, the time to do that would have been when the Congress had a bill that it could have given control of the D.C. National Guard to D.C.,” she said. “So there are things that, when a city is not a state, and not fully autonomous, and doesn’t have senators, that the federal government can do.” Other Democrats heavily criticized the Trump administration for the move. “If President Trump wants to help make Chicago safer, he can start by releasing the funds for anti-violence programs that have been critical to our work to drive down crime and violence,” the office of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said. “Sending in the national guard would only serve to destabilize our city and undermine our public safety efforts.” The Washington, D.C. City Council called the temporary takeover a “manufactured intrusion on local authority.” TRUMP CLAIMS DC CRIMES TROUNCE STATS FROM NOTORIOUSLY VIOLENT CITIES WORLDWIDE “Violent crime in the District is at the lowest rates we’ve seen in 30 years. Federalizing the Metropolitan Police Department is unwarranted because there is no Federal emergency,” the council said in a joint statement. “Further, the National Guard has no public safety training or knowledge of local laws. The Guard’s role does not include investigating or solving crimes in the District. Calling out the National Guard is an unnecessary deployment with no real mission.” The National Capital Region Delegation, a body comprised of several House Democratic lawmakers, accused Trump of personally inciting crime in the capital, referring to the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol building. “Trump’s ‘temporary’ takeover of the Metropolitan Police Department is not intended to prevent crime, it is a soft launch of authoritarianism,” the group said in a statement. “Trump has a longstanding pattern of seeking showy displays of power. As he has shown repeatedly, Trump is working to serve himself and is not concerned with keeping American families safe in cities and towns across our country.” “The President’s announcement this morning is an unserious and unacceptable publicity stunt,” they added. “If he wants to reduce crime in the District of Columbia, he should focus on getting his Republican allies in Congress to restore the funding they arbitrarily stripped out of the city’s budget, which risks cuts to law enforcement and other public safety measures.” Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers union, called Trump’s announcement a “gross overreach, disconnected from actual conditions on the ground.” “So, we have to ask: Will the president’s heavy-handed show of force make the average D.C. resident feel safer? Will it create jobs for working people and bring patrons back to downtown businesses?” she said. “Will it provide young people a pathway to jobs, skills or other activities that keep them off the streets?” “The answer to those questions is ‘no,’ she added. “That’s why this move is yet another crass spectacle from a president who cares more about targeting, intimidating and playing king than the safety of D.C. and its residents.” Trump’s opponents have cited crime statistics showing crime in Washington is on the decline. Crime in Washington is down 26% this year compared to the same timeframe in 2024, according to the MPD. Assaults with a dangerous weapon are down 20%, and homicides are down by 12%, according to police data. In January, the Justice Department said violent crime in 2024 in the district was down 35% from 2023, the lowest it has been in over 30 years. However, Trump disagrees. Metropolitan Police Department data shows that while the homicide rate is falling, the last five years saw the greatest number of murders since 2008. “The murder rate in Washington today is higher than that of Bogota, Colombia, Mexico City, some of the places that you hear about as being the worst places on Earth, much higher,” Trump said Monday. “This is much higher. The number of car thefts has
Trick or Treat: Congress faces ‘chamber of horrors’ as government funding deadline looms
It was mid-July. And the House of Representatives was already done for the summer. That’s right around the same time Halloween decorations like gigantic yard skeletons and Reese’s peanut butter and chocolate pumpkins began materializing in stores. Those weren’t phantasms. Halloween is the next big consumer holiday on the calendar. I mean, what would you buy to decorate for Labor Day? But there’s a spooky alignment between July and Halloween when it comes to Congress. If you begin to see Halloween paraphernalia in July, that’s practically October in Capitol Hill terms. The reason? Congress didn’t finish its annual spending bills before the annual August recess and that means it will be a sprint to finish them by October 1, the deadline to avoid a government shutdown. GRIDLOCK CRUMBLES AS SENATE ADVANCES SPENDING BILLS IN RACE AGAINST SHUTDOWN Right around the same time that the rest of the nation starts thinking about ghosts and goblins for Halloween. The funding deadline is enough to convert the U.S. Capitol into a chamber of horrors for the entire month of September. Congress is always dragging to complete spending measures in July. Then August comes and concerns about the spending bills vanish like a ghost. Then the appropriations bills rise like mummies out of their coffins when Congress comes back in September. The battle over averting a government shutdown is like a vampire. It sucks most other legislative activity out of Congress until there’s a deal. That’s because most Members want no part of a government shutdown. Lawmakers from both sides know that government funding is one of the most important inflection points on the political calendar. Let’s examine where we stand with government funding. Congress approved a stopgap spending bill to avert a government shutdown in March. That interim spending package funded the government through September 30, the end of the federal fiscal year. The House approved the bill. But lawmakers worried about a potential government shutdown because breaking a filibuster on the measure required 60 votes. That entailed support of some Democrats since Republicans only have 53 votes in the Senate. At the last minute, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., announced he would help Republicans crack the filibuster. Schumer didn’t vote yes on the bill itself. But the New York Democrat argued that avoiding a shutdown at that point was better than enduring one under President Trump – and Elon Musk who was then fully empowered at DOGE. Some longtime Capitol Hill hands and Congressional observers feared the government might shutter for a lengthy period if it closed. Schumer and other Democrats asserted that the President and Musk would use that as justification for never re-opening some parts of the government since they lacked funding from Congress. Progressives excoriated Schumer for not extracting a major concession from President Trump and Congressional Republicans which reflected Democratic values and priorities. Liberals used Schumer’s decision as justification to demand new Democratic leadership in the Senate. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., appeared to seethe at Schumer’s maneuver, sidestepping questions from reporters about the break. White House Budget Director Russ Vought says he wants a less bipartisan appropriations process. That’s fine. But this is about the math. House Republicans must stick together to pass any spending package there. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., can only lose three votes and still pass a bill without Democratic assistance. Likewise, Senate Republicans can only lose three votes there, too. But the real hurdle is the filibuster. That’s where 60 votes are necessary. And that means the GOP must lean on Democrats – assuming they’re willing to help out. HILLARY RIPPED AS ‘MASSIVE LIAR’ AFTER SCATHING REACTION TO TRUMP’S PLAN TO FIX DC CRIME It’s really unclear if Republicans can stick together to approve a spending package. Keep in mind that it’s almost a certainty that any spending measure must simply renew all current funding on a temporary basis. A lot of Republicans are fed up with this appropriations rut – especially since Johnson promised to do things differently once he claimed the Speaker’s gavel in October 2023. Remember that some conservatives helped bounce former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., less than two years ago because he propounded an interim spending plan. Some Republicans are beginning to lose patience with Johnson on spending plans. But remember that most Republicans will support whatever appropriations plan the GOP brass concocts – as long as it has the blessing of President Trump. So Vought may advocate for a more partisan process. But that won’t result in policy achievements and GOP spending priorities unless Republicans convince Democrats to play ball. Here’s another dynamic: some members of the conservative Freedom Caucus are hinting they simply want to re-up the current levels of funding again. Yes, lawmakers approved those spending plans under President Biden and a Democratic Senate. Therefore, much of the federal government is still operating under Democratic spending blueprints. But Democrats would demand more money for the next spending round. The same with some Republicans. So voting to renew the old money – regardless of who pushed for it – is less than Congress could have spent. That’s why some Freedom Caucus members suggest this would serve as a de facto spending cut. They’re not wrong. Federal spending is almost always on an upward trajectory. This would level things off and bend the annual spending curve for the first time in decades. TRUMP FIRES BACK AT ‘SQUAD’ MEMBER WHO CALLED HIM A ‘PIECE OF S—‘ AT RALLY So, if your goal is to trim funding, this may be the most plausible option under the present political circumstances. Remember, it’s about the math. Moreover, Republicans have only approved a pittance of the funding cuts demanded by DOGE. Congress passed a bill to slash $9 billion from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and foreign aid. That’s not a lot. And Republicans could barely approve that bill. How they rescind other funding remains to be seen. However, Republicans could greenlight all the old money – and