UK prime minister to admit ‘globalization is over’ in response to Trump tariffs: report
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer will announce Sunday that he understands the rationale behind President Donald Trump’s tariffs and that the West is entering a new economic era. “The world has changed, globalization is over and we are now in a new era,” the prime minister’s office said in a statement to the Sunday Times. “We’ve got to demonstrate that our approach, a more active Labour government, a more reformist government, can provide the answers for people in every part of this country.” The statement comes after Trump announced new tariffs on dozens of countries around the world on Wednesday, including a 10% levy on goods from the U.K. TARIFF STOCK SHOCK: NASDAQ HITS BEAR MARKET; S&P, DOW SINK While Starmer will still argue that tariffs are wrong, according to the Sunday Times report, the prime minister will also admit that he understands the rationale behind Trump’s move and why such policies have become increasingly popular with voters. “Trump has done something that we don’t agree with, but there’s a reason why people are behind him on this,” the prime minister’s office said in the statement. Starmer is expected to emphasize the failures of free trade and mass migration specifically during the address on Sunday, the report said, arguing that it has failed millions of voters. MUSK SAYS HE HOPES FOR ‘ZERO TARIFFS,’ FREEDOM OF TRADE ZONE BETWEEN US AND EUROPE Meanwhile, the report noted that Trump ally Elon Musk seemingly publicly broke with the president during a video interview for an event in Italy Saturday, saying he hopes, eventually, for a “zero-tariff” solution between the U.S. and Europe one day. “At the end of the day, I hope it’s agreed that both Europe and the United States should move, ideally, in my view, to a zero-tariff situation, effectively creating a free-trade zone between Europe and North America,” he said. Musk also called for there to eventually be more “freedom” of movement between the two continents, an apparent break from Trump’s hard line on immigration. “That’s what I hope occurs, and also more freedom of people to move between Europe and North America if they wish,” Musk said. “If they wish to work in Europe or wish to work in America, they should be allowed to do so, in my view. So that has certainly been my advice to the president.” The White House did not immediately respond to a Fox News Digital request for comment.
GOP congressman says Signal leak was ‘obviously’ a mistake, defers to president to determine consequences
GOP Rep. Marlin Stutzman told Fox News Digital that the recent Signal leak debacle was “obviously” a mistake, but he expressed confidence in the Trump administration’s national security officials and said he trusts the president to determine whether any consequences should be handed down. “Yes, obviously, we don’t want those things to happen,” Stutzman. R-Ind., told Fox News from inside the Capitol. “We all know that President Trump is America First. He supports our military, he supports security – I mean, he is the law and order president, so he’s going to make sure that he takes care of this… he’s going to be the one to make this decision and I support whatever decision he makes.” RUBIO BREAKS SILENCE ON LEAKED SIGNAL CHAT: ‘SOMEONE MADE A BIG MISTAKE’ Stutzman’s comments came amid a reported attempt by Democratic Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar to introduce articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, national security advisor Michael Waltz and CIA Director John Ratcliffe, each of whom were involved in the Signal chat leak. Trump confirmed Thursday aboard Air Force One that multiple employees within the National Security Council were fired, but did add that it was not many. So far, no consequences have been handed down to Hegseth, Waltz or Ratcliffe, three of the highest-ranking officials who allegedly participated in the leaked Signal chat. PENTAGON WATCHDOG OPENS PROBE INTO HEGSETH’S USE OF SIGNAL TO DISCUSS HOUTHI ATTACK PLANS Republicans have said there was no classified material shared or discussed in the leaked Signal chat, but Democrats have insisted the manner in which sensitive information was handled was still “reckless,” potentially illegal and constituted the need for repercussions. But Stutzman expressed confidence in the administration’s national security officials and the president, noting that “so far” everyone involved has taken appropriate responsibility and “they’re going to make sure that it doesn’t happen again.” “I think they’ll analyze every communication channel that they have,” Stutzman said. “I think that they’re going to be sure, especially this soon in the administration – this will be a top priority for them… we all know that there are folks all around the world trying to get into American leaders’ conversations all the time, and so they’re going to be just as diligent.”
Left-wing movie director Oliver Stone rips Democrats’ ‘lying’ Russiagate probe against Trump
Left-wing movie director Oliver Stone slammed Democrats for weaponizing federal law enforcement and “lying” in their attempts to charge the president with Russian collusion during the 2016 election. Stone, meanwhile, applauded President Donald Trump for taking steps to find out what really happened, adding that he is “absolutely” right that the federal government has been weaponized to attack political opponents. Trump recently signed a new executive order directing the FBI to immediately declassify files concerning Crossfire Hurricane, the initial investigation launched in 2016 that sought information on whether members of the Trump campaign were colluding with the Russians to undermine the election. The president has also taken steps to go after the law firms involved in the scandal, including by suspending the security clearances for their attorneys and barring them from entering any federal buildings. ‘ABSURD’: WHITE HOUSE BLASTS LAW FIRM THAT HELPED FUEL RUSSIA HOAX AFTER CHALLENGING TRUMP ORDER “Russiagate – we paid for it,” Stone said. “I applaud [what Trump is doing], and I hate what they did with Russiagate, I really do. I think it’s – again, the lying, the lying, the lying, and selling that to the American people.” When asked if he felt Trump was right about there being weaponization of the federal government against conservatives, Stone responded: “There was.” Stone, who has produced several documentaries supporting Russian narratives about Ukraine, added that the underlying premise behind Russiagate – that Russia is a nefarious actor – is wrong and “un-American.” TRUMP CUTS OFF FEDERAL RESOURCES FOR LAW FIRM THAT HELPED FUEL 2016 RUSSIA HOAX “They are potentially our best partners, as are the Chinese. I mean, we have this mentality that they’re the enemy,” Stone said. “That’s all been inculcated by propaganda. If you go out there to China, and you go out to Russia, you don’t hear that kind of vituperative dialogue.” However, while Stone said he agreed with Trump’s approach to taking on those involved with Russiagate, he did lament the president’s attacks on pro-Palestinian protesters over alleged antisemitism. “I don’t like this new thing about censorship coming from Trump,” said Stone. “Against the anti – what he calls ‘antisemitic news’ – I mean, I don’t agree. I don’t know where he’s coming from, and it’s not what he promised.”
The losers and winners of Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariff plan
President Donald Trump unveiled his latest tariff plan last week on “Liberation Day,” which the administration said will restore the American Dream and spark an economic boon for U.S. workers. “American steel workers, auto workers, farmers and skilled craftsmen,” Trump said from the White House Rose Garden last Wednesday afternoon in his announcement. “We have a lot of them here with us today. They really suffered, gravely. They watched in anguish as foreign leaders have stolen our jobs, foreign cheaters have ransacked our factories, and foreign scavengers have torn apart our once-beautiful American dream. We had an American dream that you don’t hear so much about. You did four years ago, and you are now. But you don’t too often.” “Now it’s our turn to prosper, and in so doing, use trillions and trillions of dollars to reduce our taxes and pay down our national debt,” he continued. “And it will all happen very quickly. With today’s action, we are finally going to be able to make America great again, greater than ever before. Jobs and factories will come roaring back into our country, and you see it happening already. We will supercharge our domestic industrial base.” The Trump administration’s tariff plan leveled a baseline tariff of 10% on all imports to the U.S., while customized tariffs were set for countries that have higher tariffs in place on American goods. The baseline tariffs of 10% took effect on Saturday, while the other tariffs will take effect on April 9. HOW WE GOT TO LIBERATION DAY: A LOOK AT TRUMP’S PAST COMMENTS ON TARIFFS Trump pointed to the European Union during his announcement, and explained the U.S. will charge the EU a 20% tariff, compared to its 39% tariffs on the U.S. Japan will see 24% tariffs, compared to the 46% the country charges the U.S., while China will be hit with a 34% tariff, compared to the 67% it charges the U.S. The customized tariffs, Trump explained, would not be full reciprocal tariffs, as his administration was “very kind” and leveled tariffs that are roughly half of what a particular nation was charging the U.S. on tariffs. “For nations that treat us badly, we will calculate the combined rate of all their tariffs, nonmonetary barriers and other forms of cheating,” Trump said Wednesday. HERE’S WHAT TRUMP IS REALLY UP TO WITH HIGH-STAKES TARIFF GAMBIT “And because we are being very kind, we will charge them approximately half of what they are and have been charging us,” he said. “So, the tariffs will be not a full reciprocal. I could have done that. Yes. But it would have been tough for a lot of countries.” Fox News Digital examined the full tariff list and spoke to experts about who stands to lose the most due to the tariffs, and who will likely benefit and tackle the new tariffs victoriously. Fox News Digital spoke with Samir Kapadia, a managing principal at the lobbying and advisory firm the Vogel Group, who explained Vietnam will likely lose the most business due to the upcoming tariffs. “Vietnam has long been an amicable trade partner with the United States for a variety of sectors, whether that would be textiles and apparel or computers and consumer electronics, but there has been a gross inequity in the bilateral trade relationship. Vietnam simply doesn’t have the economy or the resources to import from the United States and to… provide that reciprocity,” Kapadia explained. Vietnam charges the U.S. a 90% tariff on imported goods to the nation. The Trump administration last week announced the Southeast Asian country will face a 46% tariff on goods imported to the U.S. Vietnam’s industries are also deeply rooted in Chinese business investments, Kapadia said. MUSK SAYS HE HOPES FOR ‘ZERO TARIFFS,’ FREEDOM OF TRADE ZONE BETWEEN US AND EUROPE “To add insult to injury, they also have been a hot bed for Chinese investment. Since the imposition of the Section 301 tariffs under the first Trump administration, which were these large-scale tariffs on Chinese imports, you had a whole number of Chinese companies across a variety of industries in the consumer product segment basically invest, instead, in factories in Vietnam as a way to circumvent paying tariffs, so the Chinese would keep their market share, but just go and make it in another country,” he explained. Trump signed a memo under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 in 2018 under his first administration targeting Chinese goods for U.S. tariffs in response to Chinese theft of American intellectual property, Trump said at the time. “This was by far the worst day for the Vietnamese government, in the sense, they’re realizing that that door has now closed. A 46% tariff – Vietnam is not an attractive country to import from. The numbers won’t work,” Kapadia said of the new rounds of tariffs targeting Vietnam. The Asian nation has already felt the pinch, and called on Trump to delay the tariffs from taking effect this weekend. AFTER TRUMP TARIFFS, JPMORGAN RAISES CHANCE OF RECESSION TO 60% Vietnam’s leader To Lam wrote a letter to Trump on Saturday, the New York Times reported, asking him to delay the imposition of the tariffs for at least 45 days and for the pair of world leaders to meet in Washington, D.C., in May “to jointly come to an agreement on this important matter, for the benefit of both our peoples and to contribute to peace, stability and development in the region and the world.” The “biggest losers” from Trump’s Wednesday announcement are “without question” China and Vietnam, Kapadia said. China was hit with a 34% tariff as part of Trump’s announcement last week, which is in addition to previous tariffs leveled on the nation. Kappadia said the newest upcoming tariff and the “high-band” tariffs of 45% on some Chinese goods puts the country’s tariff barrier at about 75% to 80%, which Kapadia predicted could grow to 150% by the end of 2025. “That’s because there’s just a
Meet the Trump-picked lawmakers giving Speaker Johnson a full House GOP conference
House Republicans will finally begin this week with a full conference for the first time this year. Newly minted representatives Randy Fine, R-Fla., and Jimmy Patronis, R-Fla., won special elections in the Sunshine State’s 6th and 1st congressional districts, respectively, Tuesday night. It’s going to give some much-needed wiggle room to Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., who has been wrestling with a one- to two-vote margin since the 119th Congress began at the beginning of January. In separate interviews with Fox News Digital this week, both lawmakers signaled they would be team players focused on advancing President Donald Trump’s agenda, likely welcome news for House GOP leaders as they navigate a conference that’s been deeply fractured on key issues like government spending. SCOOP: TRUMP ALLY DONALDS SHOWCASES CAMPAIGN CASH SURGE SINCE ANNOUNCING FLORIDA GOVERNOR RUN “We do not need the team to fight within itself. Everyone’s got to keep their eye on the prize,” Fine said. “How do we make Speaker Johnson successful? And when we do that, how do we make President Trump successful? My focus is helping the team be successful. That will help my constituents. That will help Florida. That will help the country.” Patronis told Fox News Digital some of his top priorities would be the military and veterans and advancing Trump’s policies on government efficiency, the border crisis and fentanyl trafficking. The military is particularly important to Patronis, who until recently was the chief financial officer of Florida. The 1st Congressional District, which had been represented by former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., maintains a heavy military presence in multiple branches of the armed forces. Patronis pledged his office would be “doing everything we can” to help the military installations continue to “protect our nation.” On veterans’ care, the new Florida congressman lauded Trump’s first administration for backing reforms aimed at enabling veterans to seek care outside of VA hospitals but said it was “mothballed” under the Biden administration. “It’s really allowed those vets to seek services in their own community instead of traveling out of state,” he said, pledging to work to get it back on track. While he did not mention the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) specifically, Patronis signaled he aligned with its goals of transparency in federal spending. “I’m a big believer that the citizens of the state of Florida spend their money better, a heck of a lot better, than Washington, D.C., does,” Patronis said. “I like being a watchdog. … I like to ensure that that transparency is the norm, that we have, you know, a public that is informed and aware how their tax dollars are being used.” Fine, when asked about his agenda items, deferred largely to the president. “The big agenda item for me is gonna make sure we get President Trump’s agenda passed. Look, it’s a narrow majority, and you have to support the team captain,” Fine said. DESANTIS REBUKES REPUBLICANS FOR BACKING BILL FOR CARBON SEQUESTRATION TASK FORCE: ‘ABSOLUTELY EMBARRASSING’ He pointed out that Florida’s Republican majority grew significantly during his tenure in both houses of the state legislature. “It didn’t get there overnight. It’s because Republicans showed that we knew how to govern, and we hit singles and doubles and triples every day. And the voters rewarded us,” Fine said. “The goal needs to be go from a five-vote majority to a 15, to a 25, to a 35, and you do that by governing and putting points on the board every day.” Both Republicans made clear, however, that their principles would follow them from the Sunshine State to the nation’s capital. Patronis said he was looking at starting work on insurance reform, a critical issue in Florida, a state that regularly deals with natural disasters. “When you’ve got high insurance rates, when you’ve got inflation the way it is, home ownership is more of a dream than a reality,” he said. “We rolled out several solutions when I was CFO.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Among the initiatives he mentioned was legislation to create a tax-free savings account to help homeowners during national disasters, a bill that was introduced by Rep. Laurel Lee, R-Fla., a fellow delegation member. Fine maintained to Fox News Digital that he “can’t give carte blanche” guarantees to House GOP leaders but said he foresaw few if any future points of contention. “I was the only Republican Jew in the Florida legislature for eight years. I got this crazy nickname, the ‘Hebrew hammer,’ which I finally decided to embrace,” Fine said. “If, God forbid, they were going to do something that stood in the way of [fighting antisemitism], that would be an example where my principals would override, and I wouldn’t be able to be with the team.”
Musk says he hopes for ‘zero tariffs,’ freedom of trade zone between US and Europe
Billionaire Elon Musk says he hopes the U.S. and Europe can develop their economic relationship toward eliminating the need for tariffs. Musk made the statement during a video interview with Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini on Saturday.The billionaire says he has advised President Donald Trump to bolster the relationship with European countries. “At the end of the day, I hope it’s agreed that both Europe and the United States should move ideally, in my view, to a zero-tariff situation, effectively creating a free trade zone between Europe and North America,” Musk said. He went on to say he would like to see greater freedom of movement between Europe and the U.S. as well. TARIFF STOCK SHOCK: NASDAQ HITS BEAR MARKET; S&P, DOW SINK “If people wish to work in Europe or wish to work in North America, they should be allowed to do so in my view,” Musk said, adding that this “has certainly been my advice to the president.” Musk’s statement comes less than a week after Trump unveiled sweeping tariffs against virtually every major country on earth. AFTER TRUMP TARIFFS, JPMORGAN RAISES CHANCE OF RECESSION TO 60% The initial 10% “baseline” tariff took effect at U.S. seaports, airports and customs warehouses on Thursday. Higher taxes on goods from 57 larger trading partners are set to start later this week. European Union imports will face a 20% tariff, while Chinese goods will be hit with a 34% tariff, bringing Trump’s total new taxes on China up to 54%. World leaders in Europe and elsewhere have vowed to retaliate against the tariffs. China, hit harder than any other nation, promised to “take countermeasures to safeguard its own rights and interests” last week. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says Europeans “feel let down by our oldest ally.” “Uncertainty will spiral and trigger the rise of further protectionism. The consequences will be dire for millions of people around the globe,” she said. Fox News’ Landon Mion and Reuters contributed to this report.
Judge awards $6.6M to whistleblowers who were fired after reporting Texas AG Ken Paxton to FBI
A district court judge awarded $6.6 million combined to four whistleblowers who sued Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on claims he fired them in retaliation for reporting him to the FBI. Blake Brickman, David Maxwell, Mark Penley and Ryan Vassar notified Paxton and his office on Oct. 1, 2020, that they had reported him to the FBI for allegedly abusing his office. The four were all fired by mid-November. Travis County Judge Catherine Mauzy ruled Friday that by a “preponderance of the evidence,” the whistleblowers proved liability, damages and attorney’s fees in their complaint against the attorney general’s office. The judgment says the former aides made their reports to federal law enforcement “in good faith” and that Paxton’s office did not dispute any claims or damages in the lawsuit. FBI FLOODED WITH RECORD NUMBER OF NEW AGENT APPLICATIONS IN KASH PATEL’S FIRST MONTH LEADING BUREAU “Because the Office of the Attorney General violated the Texas Whistleblower Act by firing and otherwise retaliating against the plaintiff for in good faith reporting violations of law by Ken Paxton and OAG, the court hereby renders judgment for plaintiffs,” Mauzy wrote in her judgment. The court found that the four former aides of the attorney general were fired in retaliation for reporting allegations that he was using his office to accept bribes from Austin real estate developer and political donor Nate Paul, who employed a woman with whom Paxton was having an extramarital affair. Paxton has denied allegations that he accepted bribes or misused his office to help Paul. “It should shock all Texans that their chief law enforcement officer, Ken Paxton, admitted to violating the law, but that is exactly what happened in this case,” Tom Nesbitt, an attorney representing Brickman, and TJ Turner, an attorney representing Maxwell, said in a joint statement. Paxton said in a statement that the judge’s ruling is “ridiculous” and “not based on the facts or the law.” He said his office plans to appeal the ruling. The attorney general was probed by federal authorities after eight employees reported his office to the FBI in 2020 for bribery allegations. He agreed to settle the lawsuit for $3.3 million that would be paid by the legislature, but the state House rejected his request and conducted its own investigation. Paxton was impeached in the House in 2023 before he was later acquitted in the Senate. TEXAS AG PAXTON ACQUITTED ON ALL IMPEACHMENT CHARGES: ‘THE TRUTH PREVAILED’ In November, the state Supreme Court overturned a lower-court ruling that would have required Paxton to testify in the lawsuit. The U.S. Justice Department declined to pursue its investigation into Paxton in the final weeks of the Biden administration, according to The Associated Press. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Trump admin suspends lawyer in case of Maryland man mistakenly deported for failing to ‘zealously advocate’
The Trump administration has placed a Justice Department (DOJ) lawyer on leave for not “zealously advocating” its position in the case involving a Salvadoran man living in Maryland who was mistakenly deported last month. Attorney General Pam Bondi’s office placed Erez Reuveni, who argued for the government, in Friday’s hearing in which a judge ruled Maryland father Kilmar Abrego Garcia must be returned to the U.S. by Monday, on indefinite paid leave, Fox News has learned. “At my direction, every Department of Justice attorney is required to zealously advocate on behalf of the United States,” Bondi told the New York Times in a statement. “Any attorney who fails to abide by this direction will face consequences.” Fox News Digital has reached out to the DOJ for comment. JOHN YOO URGES TRUMP ADMIN TO ‘WORK OUT A DEAL’ TO RETURN MISTAKENLY DEPORTED INDIVIDUALS Reuveni on Friday admitted that Garcia’s deportation was a mistake, according to the New York Times. On Saturday, the Trump administration argued in an emergency appeal that U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis can’t force the administration to return Garcia to the U.S. Xinis on Friday ruled that the government must make arrangements to have Garcia back in the U.S. before Monday at midnight. The Saturday emergency appeal seeks to temporarily stay Xinis’ decision until the government has time to properly appeal the ruling. “Late Friday afternoon, a federal district judge ordered the United States to force El Salvador to send one of its citizens – a member of MS-13, no less – back to the United States by midnight on Monday. If there was ever a case for an emergency stay pending appeal, this would be it,” the government wrote in the emergency appeal reviewed by Fox News Digital. The government also argued that it “does not have control over” Garcia now that he is in El Salvador. “Nevertheless, the court’s injunction commands that Defendants accomplish, somehow, Abrego Garcia’s return to the United States in give or take one business day,” the appeal said, calling it “indefensible.” The filing said that the “lacked the power” to require the government “on the clock, to try to force a foreign country to take a discrete action.” It added, “Abrego Garcia has been found to be a member of a designated Foreign 3 Terrorist Organization, MS-13. Given that status, he has no legal right or basis to be in the United States at all.” VANCE DOUBLES DOWN AFTER TRUMP ADMIN ADMITS ‘ERROR’ SENDING MAN TO SALVADORAN PRISON Xinis on Friday said that the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s March 15th expulsion of Garcia violated the Administrative Procedures Act, since it occurred without a judicial proceeding. The Trump administration has acknowledged Garcia’s removal was an “administrative error,” but has also defended it, alleging that Garcia has ties to MS-13. “This individual is an illegal criminal who broke our nation’s immigration laws. He is a leader in the brutal MS-13 gang, and he is involved in human trafficking,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a briefing on Tuesday. “And now MS-13 is a designated foreign terrorist organization. Foreign terrorists have no legal protections in the United States of America. And this administration is going to continue to deport foreign terrorists and illegal criminals from our nation’s interior,” she added. An immigration judge five years ago said Garcia, who came to the U.S. illegally in 2011 and asked for asylum, could not be deported to his home country, over concerns he would become a victim of local El Salvador gang members. His request for asylum was denied, but he was given protection from deportation and ICE didn’t appeal the decision. Garcia’s wife, Jennifer Vasquez Sura, who is a U.S. citizen, has vigorously campaigned for his return. Garcia had been working as a sheet metal apprentice in Maryland and was arrested in an IKEA parking lot on March 12 while his 5-year-old son was in the car. His lawyers have argued the man had a Department of Homeland Security permit to work in the country, and strongly deny any gang affiliations. They also say that the government has given little evidence to back up its claim. There was no indication how the government would comply, since he is incarcerated in an El Salvador prison under that government’s custody. Fox News’ Cameron Arcand and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
US revokes all South Sudan visas, bars future issuance until deportees accepted
Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Saturday announced the U.S. will revoke visas held by South Sudanese passport holders will be revoked, and no others will be issued, effective immediately. Rubio attributed the change to “the failure of South Sudan‘s transitional government to accept the return of its repatriated citizens in a timely manner,” according to a statement posted on X. The U.S. Department of State on Saturday wrote in a statement that it is time for the Transitional Government of South Sudan to “stop taking advantage” of the U.S. TRUMP ADMIN ENDS DEPORTATION PROTECTIONS FOR MASSIVE NUMBER OF VENEZUELANS AMID ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION CRACKDOWN “Enforcing our nation’s immigration laws is critically important to the national security and public safety of the United States,” according to the statement. “Every country must accept the return of its citizens in a timely manner when another country, including the United States, seeks to remove them. “ The department said it “will be prepared to review these actions when South Sudan is in full cooperation.” The East African country is currently on the verge of civil war, with escalating armed conflict, mass displacement and severe food insecurity. The U.S. Embassy in Khartoum suspended its operations, to include visa, passport, and other routine consular services, on April 22, 2023. The move comes after the Trump administration in February ended a deportation shield for hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans in the U.S. TRUMP REPORTS ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT ENCOUNTERS AT HISTORIC LOWS DURING FIRST FULL MONTH IN OFFICE The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said it would revoke the statuses of more than 300,000 nationals protected by Temporary Protected Status (TPS). The Trump administration has deported more than 100,000 illegal migrants since taking office, according to a New York Post report citing a DHS official. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation for the Republic of South Sudan did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. United Nations South Sudan declined Fox News Digital’s request for comment. Fox News Digital’s Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
Speaker Johnson moves on Senate’s Trump budget bill as House GOP rebels threaten to defect
House Republican leaders are rallying GOP lawmakers around a plan to enact a broad swath of President Donald Trump’s agenda, after the legislation was passed by the Senate in the early hours of Saturday morning. “More than a year ago, the House began discussing the components of a reconciliation package that will reduce the deficit, secure our border, keep taxes low for families and job creators, reestablish American energy dominance, restore peace through strength, and make government more efficient and accountable to the American people. We are now one step closer to achieving those goals,” Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and his top lieutenants wrote to House Republicans. “Today, the Senate passed its version of the budget resolution. Next week, the House will consider the Senate amendment.” Congressional Republicans are pushing a conservative policy overhaul via the budget reconciliation process. Traditionally used when one party holds all three branches of government, reconciliation lowers the Senate’s threshold for passage on certain fiscal measures from 60 votes to 51. TED CRUZ CLASHES WITH KEY DEMOCRAT OVER ‘SECOND PHASE OF LAWFARE’ THROUGH FEDERAL JUDGES’ ORDERS As a result, it’s been used to pass sweeping policy changes in one or two massive pieces of legislation. Senate Republicans passed a framework for a reconciliation bill just after 2 a.m. ET on Saturday, after hours of debate and votes on amendments to the measure. It’s similar to the version House Republicans passed in late February; but mechanisms the Senate used to avoid factoring in the cost of extending Trump’s 2017-era tax cuts as well as a lower baseline for required federal spending cuts has some House conservatives warning they could oppose the bill. The Senate’s version calls for at least $4 billion in spending cuts, while the House’s version mandates a floor of $1.5 trillion to $2 trillion. Both bills also include Trump priorities on border security, energy, and new tax policies like eliminating penalties on tipped and overtime wages. “If the Senate’s ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ budget is put on the House floor, I will vote no,” Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, wrote on X. “In the classic ways of Washington, the Senate’s budget presents a fantastic top-line message – that we should return spending back to the pre-COVID trajectory (modified for higher interest, Medicare, and Social Security) of $6.5 Trillion, rather than the current trajectory of over $7 Trillion – but has ZERO enforcement to achieve it, and plenty of signals it is designed purposefully NOT to achieve it.” But House GOP leaders insist that the Senate’s passage of its framework simply allows the House to begin working on its version of the bill passed in February – and that it does not impede their process in any way. “The Senate amendment as passed makes NO CHANGES to the House reconciliation instructions that we voted for just weeks ago. Although the Senate chose to take a different approach on its instructions, the amended resolution in NO WAY prevents us from achieving our goals in the final reconciliation bill,” the letter said. “We have and will continue to make it clear in all discussions with the Senate and the White House that—in order to secure House passage—the final reconciliation bill must include historic spending reductions while protecting essential programs.” GOP DEFECTORS HELP SENATE ADVANCE RESOLUTION TO CANCEL TRUMP TARIFFS DESPITE WHITE HOUSE VETO WARNING House GOP leaders have pointed out that passing a framework is just the first step in a long process, one that just lays out broad instructions for how money should be spent. Now that similar frameworks have passed the House and Senate, the relevant congressional committees will work out how to achieve the final reconciliation policy goals under their given jurisdictions. “We have made it clear the House will NOT accept nor participate in an ‘us versus them’ process resulting in a take it or leave it proposition from the Senate,” House leaders warned. “Immediately following House adoption of the budget resolution, our House and Senate committees will begin preparing together their respective titles of the reconciliation bill to be marked up in the next work period.” The letter reiterated Johnson’s earlier goal of having a bill on Trump’s desk by the end of May. House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, called the Senate’s resolution “unserious and disappointing,” noting it only mandated $4 billion in “enforceable cuts.” He vowed to work with congressional leaders to find the best path forward, however. “I am committed to working with President Trump, House leadership, and my Senate counterparts to address these concerns and ensure the final reconciliation bill makes America safe, prosperous, and fiscally responsible again,” Arrington said.