FEMA official directed hurricane relief workers to avoid homes with Trump signage


A Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) official has been removed from a role after directing disaster relief workers to skip homes “advertising” support for President-elect Trump after the devastating hurricanes in Florida.

In a statement to Fox News Digital, a FEMA spokesperson said the agency is “deeply disturbed” after the incident,” noting the official who gave the instruction “was given no direction to tell teams to avoid these homes.”

“While we believe this is an isolated incident, we have taken measures to remove the employee from their role and are investigating the matter to prevent this from happening ever again,” the spokesperson said. 

“The employee who issued this guidance had no authority and was given no direction to tell teams to avoid these homes, and we are reaching out to the people who may have not been reached as a result of this incident.”

FLORIDA RESIDENTS FEEL ‘BEATEN DOWN’ BY HURRICANE SEASON: REP. BYRON DONALDS

FEMA SIGN

FEMA Headquarters in Washington, D.C. (Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

The Daily Wire first obtained internal messages about the incident.

In messages obtained by the outlet, a FEMA official instructs workers to “avoid homes advertising Trump.”

The outlet noted the aid workers would enter into a system tracking applications that they made no contact with the residents, blaming the directive — “Trump sign, no contact per leadership.”

Hurricane Helene aftermath in Florida

Hurricane Helene aftermath in Florida. (Office of Congresswoman Kat Cammack)

The agency said it is investigating the incident and is taking it “extremely seriously.”

FEMA noted after hurricanes Helene and Milton the agency has helped over 365,000 households and provided over $898 million in direct assistance.

FEMA DOESN’T HAVE THE ABILITY TO DO THIS: ADAM SMITH

“We are horrified that this took place and therefore have taken extreme actions to correct this situation and have ensured that the matter was addressed at all levels,” the agency said. “Helping people is what we do best, and our workforce across the agency will continue to serve survivors for as long as it takes.”

President Joe Biden talks with FEMA Director Deanne Criswell

President Biden talks with Deanne Criswell, administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, as he arrives at Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport in Greer, S.C., Oct. 2, 2024, to survey damage from Hurricane Helene.  (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

In a statement on X, the U.S. House Oversight Committee and Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., said the person responsible for sending out guidance to employees has not been fired.

“FEMA hasn’t fired this person…But the IRS has been trying to force IRS whistleblower Gary Shapley out for blowing the whistle! We must hold these unelected bureaucrats accountable,” Comer wrote on X.

“FEMA admits this happened but doesn’t say if the bureaucrat responsible has been fired,” the House Oversight Committee wrote on X. “Democrats relentlessly defend the rules that insulate unelected bureaucrats from accountability and make it nearly impossible to fire bad employees. This is why we need President Trump’s reforms to make bureaucrats accountable.”

Ron DeSantis speaks

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks during a storm preparation news conference. (Office of the Florida Governor)

In a statement on X, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced his administration is launching an investigation into FEMA.

“The blatant weaponization of government by partisan activists in the federal bureaucracy is yet another reason why the Biden-Harris administration is in its final days,” DeSantis said. “At my direction, the Division of Emergency Management is launching an investigation into the federal government’s targeted discrimination of Floridians who support Donald Trump.

FOLLOW THE MONEY: UNDERSTANDING FEMA’S DISASTER BUDGET IN HURRICANE MILTON AFTERMATH

“New leadership is on the way to D.C. and I’m optimistic that these partisan bureaucrats will be fired.”

WATCH:

The discovery of mismanagement came after the Biden administration lectured people about spreading “disinformation” about FEMA. 

During a White House address on the government’s response to hurricanes Milton and Helene, President Biden denounced the “reckless, irresponsible and relentless disinformation and outright lies that continue to flow.”

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“That $750 that they’re talking about? Mr. Trump and all those other people know it’s a lie to suggest that’s all they’re going to get,” Biden said during an address in October. “It’s just bizarre. They got to stop this. They’re being so damn un-American with the way they’re talking about this stuff.”





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Texas AG Ken Paxton demands records from special counsel investigation of Trump


Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the Biden administration’s Justice Department (DOJ) on Friday, demanding that it provide records relating to Special Counsel Jack Smith’s corruption investigation into President-elect Trump.

In a release, the Republican AG alleged that former Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who led a team investigating Trump regarding a false Trump-Russia election collaboration, “destroyed records.”

“Past Special Counsels, including — notoriously — Robert Mueller, destroyed records at the end of their investigations to avoid accountability,” Paxton said in a release.

“It is not clear why nobody was prosecuted for doing so,” he added. “This request is part of my Office’s efforts to ensure that Americans are not cheated out of accountability or information again. This pattern of weaponizing the justice system for partisan retribution must end.”

JORDAN DEMANDS SMITH RETAIN ALL RECORDS RELATED TO TRUMP PROSECUTIONS AS SPECIAL COUNSEL’S OFFICE WINDS DOWN

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks at a news conference in Dallas.  (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez, File)

In Paxton’s request, he argued that past special counselors “appear to have intentionally destroyed documents” during their tenure.

“Our office would consider any destruction of the documents requested herein to be a crime under 18 U.S.C. § 1361, and would refer the matter for prosecution in the event destruction occurs,” the letter said.

PRESIDENT-ELECT TRUMP ALREADY MEETING WITH TRANSITION TEAM, STRATEGIZING HOW TO FILL ADMINISTRATION

According to the DOJ, 18 U.S.C. § 1361 “protects “any property” of the United States or an agency or department thereof.”

Special Counsel Jack Smith at podium

Special Counsel Jack Smith delivers remarks on a recently unsealed indictment including four felony counts against former President Trump at the Justice Department in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 1, 2023. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

The FOIA request from Paxton follows the House Judiciary Committee sharing its concern that Smith and prosecutors involved in the Trump investigations will “purge” records to skirt oversight.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and Rep. Barry Loudermilk, R-Ga., penned a letter to Smith on Friday, demanding that he produce to Congress all documents related to the probes before the end of the month.

“The Committee on the Judiciary is continuing its oversight of the Department of Justice and the Office of Special Counsel. According to recent public reports, prosecutors in your office have been ‘gaming out legal options’ in the event that President Donald Trump won the election,” they wrote. “With President Trump’s decisive victory this week, we are concerned that the Office of Special Counsel may attempt to purge relevant records, communications, and documents responsive to our numerous requests for information.” 

Donald Trump

President-elect Trump celebrates beating Vice President Kamala Harris in the presidential race early Wednesday morning. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Following Trump’s decisive victory, the DOJ is looking to wind down two federal criminal cases against Trump as he prepares to be sworn in for a second term in the White House.

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Its decision to do so upholds a long-standing policy that prevents DOJ attorneys from prosecuting a sitting president.

Fox News Digital’s Brooke Singman contributed to this report.





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Rep. Mike Rogers being considered for Secretary of Defense role


House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers, R-Ala., is being considered to serve as secretary of defense in a second Trump administration

A source familiar with discussions told Fox News Digital Rogers has been contacted by the Trump transition team. 

Fox News Digital reached out to a spokesperson for comment.

INSIDE THE REPUBLICAN VICTORIES IN SUBURBAN NEW YORK: ‘FED UP WITH ONE PARTY DEMOCRATIC RULE’

Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala.

U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., speaks during a hearing in Washington, D.C., Sept. 29, 2021.  (Getty Images)

Rogers was re-elected to a third term Tuesday after running unopposed. 

Another potential candidate for defense secretary is Rep. Mike Waltz, R-Fla., a retired Green Beret. In addition to serving in the military before joining Congress, Waltz was an adviser to defense secretaries Robert Gates and Donald Rumsfeld and spent time in the private sector as CEO of defense contractor Metis Solutions.

He sits on the House Armed Services and Intelligence committees, in addition to the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

NEW YORK DEM WARNS ‘VILIFYING VOTERS OF COLOR AS WHITE SUPREMACISTS’ PUSHES THEM ‘FURTHER INTO TRUMP’S CAMP’

Donald Trump at NYC rally

Former President Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, speaks during a campaign rally at Madison Square Garden in New York Oct. 27, 2024. (Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images)

Republicans are bullish about keeping the House majority after victories in the Senate and the White House on election night. 

Replacing a House member, even one from a district that heavily favors one party or the other, generally takes at least several weeks. Republican leaders have already signaled they would not want to waste any time in using their majorities in Congress to forward Trump’s agenda.

Susie Wiles

President-elect Donald Trump brings Susie Wiles to the podium at an election night watch party in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

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On Thursday, Trump announced his campaign manager, Susie Wiles, will serve as his White House chief of staff. 

House GOP Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., is being discussed as a potential candidate for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, two people familiar with such discussions told Fox News Digital.



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Moderate Republican Don Bacon projected to win re-election for Nebraska swing seat


Moderate Republican Rep. Don Bacon is projected to survive a close re-election race in Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District.

The Associated Press projected on Friday that Bacon, a retired military general, who ran against Democratic state lawmaker Tony Vargas, won. 

The race was one of the most closely watched races of the 2024 election cycle. It was a key win for House GOP leaders fighting to keep the chamber majority.

CLUB FOR GROWTH POURS $5M INTO TIGHT HOUSE RACES AS GOP BRACES FOR TOUGH ELECTION

Don Bacon and Tony Vargas

Rep. Don Bacon, left, faced off against Democrat Tony Vargas. (Getty Images)

In a testament to the district’s battleground status, both Bacon and Vargas emphasized their bipartisan work in the closing days of the campaign.

Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District is the least red House seat in the state. It includes all of Omaha, the state’s largest city, as well as the city of Papillion. 

Bacon was one of 16 House Republicans who won seats in 2022 in areas that had voted for President Biden in 2020, making it one of the most competitive races from the get-go.

SPEAKER JOHNSON RIPS ‘LACK OF LEADERSHIP’ IN BIDEN ADMIN’S HELENE RESPONSE: ‘ALARMED AND DISAPPOINTED’

Joe Biden

Bacon is one of 16 Republicans serving in areas President Biden won in 2020. (Getty Images)

The moderate GOP lawmaker made a name for himself for speaking his mind, even when it came to criticizing plans and measures levied by fellow Republicans and House Republican leadership.

He retired from the Air Force as a brigadier general in 2014.

Bacon won the seat in 2016 by defeating incumbent Democratic Rep. Brad Ashford by roughly 1%.

FORMER REPUBLICAN US SENATOR ENDORSES KAMALA HARRIS, SAYS ELECTION OFFERS ‘STARK CHOICE’

Speaker Johnson and Leader Jeffries

House Speaker Mike Johnson, left, and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries are fighting to win the House majority. (Getty Images)

His three subsequent elections saw him narrowly hold on to power by roughly 2% or less.

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Vargas had previously challenged Bacon in the 2022 midterms and lost by about 2.2%.

A former teacher and Omaha Public Schools Board member, Vargas joined the Nebraska Legislature in 2017. Like Bacon, he defeated an incumbent of the opposite party to win his seat.



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Fox News Politics: Democrat governor vows Mass. resistance to Trump


Welcome to the Fox News Politics newsletter, with the latest updates on the Trump transition, exclusive interviews and more Fox News politics content.

Here’s what’s happening…

-Where do Trump’s legal cases stand after massive election win?

-Shutdown standoff looms in Congress’ final weeks before Trump’s return to White House

– Special Counsel Jack Smith moves to drop Trump election interference case

– What does President-elect Trump’s win mean for US regarding the Israel-Hamas war?

Sanctuary Commonwealth

Massachusetts Democratic Gov. Maura Healey says that her state police will “absolutely not” be cooperating with the expected mass deportation effort by the incoming Trump administration, warning that she will use “every tool in the toolbox” to “protect” residents in the blue state.

Healey was asked on MSNBC on Wednesday whether the Massachusetts State Police would assist the federal government in the mass deportation of illegal immigrants. President-elect Trump has pledged to launch the “largest domestic deportation operation in American history” to deport millions of illegal immigrants.

“Following the Eisenhower Model, we will carry out the largest domestic deportation operation in American history,” Trump said during the campaign…Read more

Gov. Healey, inset; migrants at border, main photo

This split shows Mass. Gov. Maura Healey and a group of migrants at the southern border. ((Photo by Qian Weizhong/VCG via Getty Images and Jessica Rinaldi/The Boston Globe via Getty Images))

White House

‘CREATED A CRISIS’: Federal judge throws out Biden admin program to legalize illegal immigrant spouses of US citizens…Read more

‘NOT MESSING AROUND’: Trump ally floated as possible AG has harsh warning for Letitia James: ‘We will put your fat a– in prison’…Read more

ANSWER STANDS: White House says President Biden still has no plans to pardon Hunter Biden…Read more

TRUMP TRANSITION: Trump’s former Education Secretary says she is ‘very open’ to discussion about returning to previous post…Read more

‘NOT STAYING HERE’: Trump says mass deportations ‘not a question of a price tag’…Read more

‘GARBAGE’: 4 key times Biden undermined Harris’ campaign against Trump…Read more

split image: Biden center with Harris, left, and Trump, right

Vice President Kamala Harris and President Biden are traveling to areas in the Southeast hit by Hurricane Helene, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. Former President Donald Trump visited Valdosta, Georgia, this week.  (The Associated Press)

TRUMP’S FIX-IT WOMAN: Who is Susie Wiles, Trump’s White House chief of staff? 5 things to know…Read more

LAWFARE: Former White House lawyer says Trump will not use DOJ ‘for political purposes,’ but to implement ‘his agenda’…Read more

ROUND ONE: Highlights from President-elect Donald Trump’s first term as President of the United States…Read more

‘RAPID PACE’: Former Trump official makes prediction about incoming admin’s aggressive border plan…Read more

Capitol Hill

PLAYING THE COURT: Justice Sonia Sotomayor faces pressure to retire ahead of Trump taking office: report…Read more

CLOSE CALL: Toss-up Maine House race moves to ranked-choice tabulation…Read more

SEEING RED: Trio of longtime Dem senators elected same year were voted out in 2024…Read more

‘HISTORIC MANDATE’: Newly elected swing state GOP rep previews first 100 day plan under Trump’s ‘historic mandate’…Read more

Trump, left; Rep.-elect Abe Hamedeh

Newly elected GOP Rep Abe Hamedeh from Arizona’s 8th Congressional District, left, and President Donald Trump, right (Getty)  (Getty)

‘UNPRECEDENTED’: Cornyn touts lifetime fundraising prowess for GOP in final case to succeed McConnell…Read more

KEYSTONE ‘GRATITUDE’: PA Sen-elect McCormick thanks Casey family for decades of service, as Democrat declines to concede…Read more

NO MERCY: Republican senator says Trump should not pardon Hunter Biden…Read more

Trail Dust

‘LET’S DO THIS!’: Tim Scott launches NRSC chair bid as GOP seeks to capitalize on new minority gains…Read more

THE FATAL 5: 5 mistakes that doomed Kamala Harris’ campaign against Trump…Read more

FIRST ON FOX: Jordan demands Smith retain all records related to Trump prosecutions as special counsel’s office winds down…Read more

TRIM THE FAT: Trump administration could lead to budget cuts, leadership shakeup at the United Nations…Read more

MOVING ON UP?: Stefanik in contention for Trump administration role…Read more

Stefanik speaking at Trump MSG rally

US Representative Eloise Stefanik, Republican of New York, speaks during a campaign rally for former US president and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at Madison Square Garden in New York on October 27, 2024.  (ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)

VOTER BREAKDOWN: Trump clinched a higher percentage of Muslim voters compared to Jewish voters in recent election…Read more

RED THREAT: Chinese spies hacked Trump attorney Todd Blanche’s phone: source…Read more

US VS. ‘THEY/THEM’: Trump’s ‘they/them’ ads combined culture war, economic worries to make effective pitch: expert…Read more

Across America

‘READY FOR CHANGE’: Incumbent San Francisco mayor concedes to opponent amid concerns over homeless, drug overdoses…Read more

WANTED: Masked attackers who attacked Jewish students near Chicago’s DePaul University seen in new photo…Read more

‘POWERFUL REPELLANT’: New York Dem warns ‘vilifying voters of color as white supremacists’ pushes ‘them further into Trump’s camp’…Read more

WARRIOR’ WARNING: Dem governor issues stark warning to Trump: ‘You come for my people, you come through me’…Read more

NO MORE: NYC ends taxpayer-funded prepaid debit card program for illegal immigrants…Read more

I heart NY gift shop in Times Square shown

Tourists in the Times Square neighborhood of New York, US, on Friday, May 24, 2024. New York City will see a record influx of travelers this Memorial Day weekend, with a crush at the regions three major airports in particular creating traffic and parking problems. Photographer: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images (Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

‘WARRIOR’ WARNING: Dem governor issues stark warning to Trump: ‘You come for my people, you come through me’…Read more

‘FAILED EXPERIMENT’: Experts reveal why Soros-backed policies took beating in deep blue state…Read more

OPEN BORDER CONSEQUENCES: Illegal migrant charged with killing mother of 4 in AOC’s district…Read more

BLUE STATE RESISTANCE: Dem governor threatens to use ‘every tool’ to fight back against Trump-era deportations…Read more

CLIMATE ON THE BALLOT: Voters decide on climate measures, reject initiative to tax natural gas powered buildings in California city…Read more

DEM MAYOR INDICTED: Capital city Democratic mayor, prosecutor indicted in undercover bribery sting…Read more

Get the latest updates on the Trump presidential transition, incoming Congress, exclusive interviews and more on FoxNews.com.



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Republicans inch closer to ending China’s favored trade status


Fresh off Tuesday’s red sweep, House Republicans have begun to renew the idea of ending China’s preferential trade status. 

They have begun to promote the idea of ending China’s Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR). With Republicans seizing control of the White House and Senate, and being on track for a likely win in the House, the idea that was once considered a longshot now now become a likelihood. 

“For too long, the Chinese Communist Party has taken advantage of America’s open hand with predatory economic practices that target the American economy, our workers, businesses, and our national security. We believe in free trade with free nations, but as the Committee recommended on a bipartisan basis, it is now time to reset our relationship with China by moving past PNTR to a trade relationship that reflects the threat we face from the CCP,” a spokesperson for the House China Committee told Fox News Digital. 

In 2000, Congress voted to grant China permanent normal trade relations. The designation fundamentally changed China-U.S. trade relations: U.S. consumers gained access to low-priced Chinese imports, and between 2001 and 2021, the value of goods imported from China quadrupled to $500 billion.

Critics of PNTR say it allowed companies to outsource their manufacturing to China – and that renewed tensions with Beijing could lead to supply chain issues. 

Fresh off Tuesday’s red sweep, House Republicans have begun to renew the idea of ending China’s preferential trade status.

Fresh off Tuesday’s red sweep, House Republicans have begun to renew the idea of ending China’s preferential trade status. (Photo by Wang Gang/VCG via Getty Images)

REPUBLICANS PROPOSE BILL THAT WOULD DOUBLE TARIFFS ON CHINESE IMPORTS AND END FAVORED TRADE STATUS

Proponents of PNTR say that removing that status would cause inflation, allowing further tariffs on billions’ worth of Chinese goods. 

President-elect Donald Trump has already proposed an across-the-board 60% tariff on all Chinese goods and end China’s favored trade status. 

Repealing PNTR would automatically reset the tariffs on Chinese goods to higher levels. 

Trump could enact much of his trade agenda on goods he deems to be an “unusual and extraordinary threat” to national security or the U.S. economy. 

The GOP’s platform unveiled in July called for an ending of PNTR. In September, Fox News Digital first reported that a group of Republican senators put forth a bill to end China’s PNTR and increase tariffs on many of its goods up to 100%. 

China has enjoyed preferential trade status in the U.S. since 2024. Biden did not move to end that status.

China has enjoyed preferential trade status in the U.S. since 2024. Biden did not move to end that status. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)

Trump talks to Maria Bartiromo on trade

Trump has promised to increase tariffs on Chinese goods to 60%.  (Fox News Channel)

GOP SENATORS EYE COMPREHENSIVE STRATEGY TO CURB CCP INFLUENCE 

Over five years, the bill would increase tariffs by 100% on imports deemed “strategic” to national security by the Biden administration in an effort to force the growth of the domestic market for national security-related goods. 

It would boost tariffs on non-strategic goods by a minimum of 35%. 

China is widely expected to respond with tariffs on U.S.-imported goods. China buys tens of billions of dollars’ worth of agricultural products, primarily soybeans, each year. 

The bill, led by Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., and cosponsored by Sens. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and Josh Hawley, R-Mo., would also grant the president the authority to institute further tariffs, quotas and bans on specific Chinese goods. It would end “de minimis treatment” for China, or the value threshold below which imports are not subject to customs duties. 

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The revenue generated, according to the bill, would go toward farmers and manufacturers injured by potential Chinese retaliation, the purchase of key munitions important to a Pacific conflict, and paying down the debt.

Fox News’ Liz Elkind contributed to this report. 



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Somber Walz spotted on daughter’s Instagram after election loss: ‘Live to fight another day’


Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was spotted on his daughter’s Instagram page this week shortly after he and Vice President Kamala Harris were defeated by President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance in Tuesday’s election.

“The Earth keeps spinning and we live to fight another day,’ Walz’s daughter Hope posted on her Instagram story along with a photo of a somber Walz, wearing a sweatshirt and cargo pants, holding and petting his cat.

The video is the first sighting of Walz since he appeared at Harris’ concession speech on Wednesday at Howard University in Washington, D.C.

“Thank you Vice President @KamalaHarris for putting your faith in me, and selecting me as your running mate,” Walz posted on X this week. “Campaigning at your side was the honor and privilege of my life.”

‘SHOULD HAVE BEEN JOSH SHAPIRO’: HARRIS’ VP CONTENDERS PASSED OVER FOR WALZ DODGE MASSIVE CAMPAIGN LOSS

Tim Walz is comforted by second gentleman Doug Emhoff

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is comforted by second gentleman Doug Emhoff as Vice President Kamala Harris delivers remarks conceding the 2024 presidential election at Howard University in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday. (Reuters/Mike Blake)

Harris faced scrutiny even from some in her own party over her decision to name Walz, who many view as further to the left than she is, rather than a more moderate choice. Prominent Democrat Josh Shapiro, governor of the crucial swing state of Pennsylvania that Trump carried on Tuesday night, was viewed by some as a more practical choice.

“One of the things that are top of mind is the choice of Tim Walz as vice presidential candidate,” Harris-Walz surrogate Lindy Li told Fox News senior White House correspondent Jacqui Heinrich at Howard University. “A lot of people are saying tonight that it should have been Josh Shapiro. Frankly, people have been saying that for months.”

Rob Bluey, president and executive editor of The Daily Signal, told Fox News Digital that Walz being added to the ticket was a significant error in judgment.

“Historically, vice presidents have little impact on a presidential candidate’s fate,” Bluey said. “But in the case of Tim Walz, it proved to be a disastrous decision that doomed Kamala Harris from the moment she made it. Not only was Walz ill-prepared for the national spotlight and media scrutiny, but Harris passed over several better options. Given how little Americans knew about Harris or her policy positions, they were right to question her judgment on this big decision.”

HARRIS WORLD BLAME GAME BEGINS AFTER CRUSHING LOSS TO TRUMP

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz with cat

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s daughter posted a picture of her father on Instagram this week. (Hope Walz/Instagram)

Walz was heavily criticized on the campaign trail over questions about his honesty regarding his military service, ties to China, response to the George Floyd riots in 2020, and policy agenda as governor that several Minnesotans who spoke to Fox News Digital described as radical.

“The choice of Walz was only one of many disastrous mistakes but symptomatic of one larger problem — the Democratic Party leadership is too scared to say no to the hard-left progressive wing of the party,” Julian Epstein, longtime Democratic operative and former chief counsel to the House Judiciary Committee, told Fox News Digital.

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Harris Supporters

Supporters react as Vice President Kamala Harris concedes the presidential election during a speech at Howard University in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

This hard left opposes commonsense solutions that Gov. Shapiro supports — charter schools, for example. Or defeating terrorists rather than aping their talking points and positions, which allow them to stay in power and rearm for the next genocidal attack,” Epstein continued. “It’s the hard-left progressive wing that looks first to welfare and redistribution rather than economic growth, and to cultural extremism on migration and gender deeply out of touch with the American electorate. Walz was a really bad choice for sure, but their choice was part of a deeper problem.”



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‘Rapid pace’: Former Trump official makes prediction about incoming admin’s aggressive border plan


The Trump administration’s border security efforts will hit the ground running in 2025, having defeated “lawfare” in the courts and Republican opposition in Trump’s first term, a former top official predicts while telling Fox News Digital that he is “willing and ready” to be part of the effort to secure the border.

Mark Morgan was the acting Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Commissioner in the Trump administration and was a critical official in the construction of hundreds of miles of border wall and the implementation of policies like “Remain-in-Mexico.”

He said that the Trump administration would likely repeat the same strategies at the border that pushed a combination of consequences for illegal entry and deterrence from entering.

‘LIBERATION DAY’: WHAT TO EXPECT FROM PRESIDENT-ELECT TRUMP ON BORDER SECURITY, IMMIGRATION

Donald and Melania Trump greet guests at Mar-a-Lago

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump, Melania Trump and Barron Trump, arrive at an election night watch party, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla.  (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

“More importantly, we’re not going to be just reactive. We want to actually try to prevent the flow of illegal immigration, we want to go after the cartels to prevent the drugs from, you know, making it to our border. The border should be our last line of defense. That’s the same methodology, same strategy that we used in the first Trump administration that led to the most secure border in our lifetime,” he said.

But Morgan believes that this time, it will be more efficient. Trump struggled in his first term to overcome opposition in Congress to border wall construction, and he had to put structures and procedures in place. His policies saw a number of lawsuits in the courts. 

“We already had a series, really a network of tools, authorities and policies in place that were already tested. We knew they worked,” Morgan said. “And equally important is they’d already gone through the continuum of lawfare.”

He pointed to Safe Third Country agreements and the Remain-in-Mexico policy as examples. He also noted that mass deportations had been conducted under the Trump administration, as well as administrations before that.

Migrants in line at border wall

Migrants wait in line to be processed by the Border Patrol along the border wall after crossing the Rio Grande into El Paso, Texas. (HERIKA MARTINEZ/AFP via Getty Images)

“So the statutory authority is already there. The foundation is already there. We’re just going to have to use it with a kind of a a good dose of whole-of-government steroids and just increase the magnitude of those operations,” he said.

Similarly, on border wall construction, there were over 450 miles built during the administration, and the foundations are there for more construction.

HOW HARRIS WAS DOGGED BY ‘BORDER CZAR’ LABEL, PAST RADICAL IMMIGRATION VIEWS DURING FAILED CAMPAIGN

“I’m hoping that there will be a national emergency declared, so that’s going to give and open up the opportunity to get funding from other resources that will help us get that started right away. We won’t have to wait for Congress. But in addition to that, we’ve already been there, right?” he said. “So we’ve already had the contracts before. We already have the design. We’ve already had the systems in place . . . the materials already sitting in there. Everything is going to be put in place at a much more exponentially rapid pace.”

He also said that he believes that with the strong victory of Trump in the election, and control of both chambers of Congress, that there will be more action in D.C.

“I think with the overwhelming victory and the degree of chaos, the lawlessness at our border that we’ve had over the past four years, I think those Republicans that have been resistant to strong border security action that have remained in the shadows, I think they’re going to be forced from those shadows,” he said. “And I think we have a really good shot at a permanent legislative reform and not just having to rely on executive orders.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF THE BORDER SECURITY CRISIS

He said that legislation in Congress could look like the House border security bill, known as HR2, but it could end up packaged differently to avoid Democratic resistance.

As for whether Morgan will be returning to government, he said that it would be inappropriate to speculate, but he said that “if the president calls, there’s only one answer.”

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“There’s only one person that’s going to select his cabinet and that’s going to be President Trump. So to presume that any of us know exactly what those names are going to be, I think is misleading, we don’t. But look, if he asks, I’m able, willing and ready, and I’d be absolutely thrilled to be part of the next administration to get this country back on track and specifically secure our borders.”





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Republican senator says Trump should not pardon Hunter Biden


Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wisc., says President-elect Trump should not offer Hunter Biden a pardon after Biden pleaded guilty to federal tax charges in September. 

“I don’t think he should pardon Hunter,” Johnson said in an interview on NewsNation’s “Dan Abrams Live.”

“I think we need to be very careful about having a dual system of justice where the powerful, or the sons and daughters of the powerful get off scot-free,” he said.

Johnson and Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, have spearheaded the Senate GOP’s investigations into President Biden’s son and allegations of corruption surrounding the Biden family. He has often criticized the Biden administration’s Justice Department for purportedly treating Hunter Biden’s alleged crimes with kid gloves, all the while calling the various criminal investigations into Trump politically motivated.

KJP SAYS PRESIDENT BIDEN STILL HAS NO PLANS TO PARDON HUNTER BIDEN FOR TAX FRAUD, GUN CHARGES

Ron Johnson

Senator Ron Johnson, a Republican from Wisconsin, during a campaign event with former US President Donald Trump, not pictured, at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, US, on Friday, Nov. 1, 2024. Trump and his allies are telling supporters that they’re on pace for a runaway victory barring fraud, setting the stage for outrage and legal challenges if the election doesn’t break in favor of Republicans.

While Johnson is opposed to letting Biden off the hook, he did suggest that Trump might commute or otherwise reduce the first son’s sentence as a show of good will and effort to unify the country.

“I could see possibly commuting the sentence, reducing it, and it wouldn’t surprise me if President Trump would do that,” he said. “I would not pardon Hunter. I would certainly not. I wouldn’t scream about commuting his sentence or reducing it in some way, shape or form.”

Hunter Biden was indicted on three felonies and six misdemeanor counts alleging he evaded paying at least $1.4 million in taxes while simultaneously spending money on “drugs, escorts and girlfriends, luxury hotels and rental properties, exotic cars, clothing, and other items of a personal nature, in short, everything but his taxes,” according to the December 2023 indictment.

POLL COMPARES WHETHER TRUMP, HUNTER BIDEN SHOULD GET PRISON SENTENCES, ACCORDING TO US ADULTS

Joe Biden and hunter biden

President Biden and his son Hunter Biden hug on stage at the conclusion of the first day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago, on Aug. 19, 2024. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

Prosecutors also allege the tax returns Hunter ultimately did file falsely claimed that things like prostitutes, strip club visits, porn website subscriptions and other personal expenses were actually deductible business expenses.

The aim, according to the indictment, was to “evade assessment of taxes to reduce the substantial tax liabilities” that Hunter faced.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre has been repeatedly asked whether President Biden might pardon his son before leaving office. Asked again on Thursday, Jean-Pierre said the president still had no intention of doing so.

BIDEN COMMITTED ‘IMPEACHABLE CONDUCT,’ DEFRAUDED UNITED STATES TO ENRICH HIS FAMILY’: HOUSE GOP REPORT

Hunter Biden, son of President Joe Biden, arrives at the federal court with his wife Melissa Cohen Biden on the opening day of his trial

Hunter Biden, son of President Joe Biden, arrives at the federal court with his wife Melissa Cohen Biden on the opening day of his trial on criminal gun charges in Wilmington, Delaware on June 3, 2024.  (REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque)

“We’ve been asked that question multiple times. Our answer stands, which is no,” she said.

Trump himself floated the idea of a pardon or commuted sentence for Biden in a radio interview with Hugh Hewitt in October.

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“Will you pardon Hunter Biden,” Hewitt asked the former and future president on Oct. 24. 

“I wouldn’t take it off the books,” Trump replied. “See, unlike Joe Biden, despite what they’ve done to me, where they’ve gone after me so viciously, despite what, and Hunter’s a bad boy. There’s no question about it. He’s been a bad boy. All you had to do is see the laptop from hell. But I happen to think it’s very bad for our country.” 

Fox News’ Greg Wehner contributed to this report.



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GOP congressman-elect reveals ambitious 100-day plan for Trump admin: ‘Not going to get fooled again’


FIRST ON FOX: In his first interview since being elected to the House of Representatives, Arizona Republican Abe Hamadeh spoke to Fox News Digital about what the first 100 days in a Republican-controlled Congress and White House will look like.

“Speaker Mike Johnson and the entire Republican leadership team has actually been ahead of its time. They were preparing for this moment, so I know they’re going to hit the ground running with something very historic in the first hundred days,” Hamadeh, elected to represent Arizona’s 8th Congressional district in the House on Tuesday, told Fox News Digital. 

That includes beefing up border security and making it permanent. I know election integrity is the top of my list as well, because without secure elections, we can’t have a republic, and so I know that’s going to be top priorities, election integrity, border security, as well as making sure we increase our energy independence, because that’s going to help reduce inflation rather quickly once we start growing the economy.”

Hamadeh told Fox News Digital he believes that the Republican House majority, if Republicans indeed hold onto control of the chamber, as many expect they will, is “much better prepared” to move through Trump’s agenda than it was in 2017.

TRUMP FLIPS BORDER COUNTY THAT HASN’T VOTED FOR REPUBLICAN IN OVER 100 YEARS WITH MASSIVE 76-POINT SWING

Newly elected GOP Rep Abe Hamedeh from Arizona's 8th Congressional District, left, and President Donald Trump, right (Getty) 

Newly elected GOP Rep Abe Hamedeh from Arizona’s 8th Congressional District, left, and President Donald Trump, right (Getty)  (Getty)

Hamadeh added that he expects Democrats, who labeled Trump a “fascist” on the presidential campaign trail, aren’t being honest when they say they will work with Trump and do what they can to help his transition.

They said the same thing in 2016, 2017, after President Trump won and what did they do?” Hamadeh said. “They opened up multiple impeachment inquiries. They tried to derail his presidency with distractions. They had the media, the corporate media, so many of them like the left wing MSNBC and CNN, drive home so many false narratives. So that’s what they’re going to do.”

Fool me once, shame on you, Fool me twice, shame on me. And we’re not going to get fooled again.”

TRUMP NAMES SUSIE WILES AS FIRST FEMALE WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF IN HISTORY

Abe Hamadeh

Former President Trump endorsed Republican Abe Hamadeh to represent Arizona’s 8th Congressional District. (Abe for Arizona)

Regardless of what actions Democrats take, Hamadeh told Fox News Digital it is clear that Republicans “absolutely” have a mandate from the American people after Trump’s popular vote victory to go along with an Electoral College landslide.

He does have a mandate from the American people,” Hamadeh said. “The last time the Republican won the popular vote and Electoral College was 2004 with an incumbent president, President George W Bush. You know, the last time it was a non-incumbent, I believe, was 1988 under George H.W. Bush. And he was still at least the VP at the time. So this was a historic mandate. And President Trump, I’m going to support him all the way in Congress and make sure that we’re going to change our country around very quickly.”

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Donald Trump standing in front of American flags

 Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to speak during an election night event at the Palm Beach Convention Center on November 6, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Florida. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Hamadeh added that the Republicans “also have to go in there knowing that President Trump has one term.”

“You know, it’s pretty liberating feeling, I’m sure, for President Trump. He’s got one term to get the job done. And I intend to be working every single day as the newest member of Congress to make sure we get the America-first agenda passed.”

The majority in the House of Representatives appears within reach for Republicans, who have already won control of the Senate and the White House.

“We’re almost certainly going to lose the House by a narrow margin,” a senior House Democratic aide told Fox News Digital. “We got our a–es kicked.”

Fox News Digital’s Liz Elkind contributed to this report



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Trump’s former Education secretary says she is ‘very open’ to discussion about returning to previous post


Former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos revealed she is open to the prospect of returning to her former post in 2025 under the new Trump administration. 

After being elected to a second, non-consecutive term in the White House, President-elect Donald Trump is tasked with filling his administration with people who will help shape his agenda over the next four years – including who will lead the Education Department.

“I have been really clear about what I think needs to be the agenda, which is to get the federal tax credit passed and to de-power the Department of Education. If President-elect Trump wanted to talk to me, I would be very open to talking,” DeVos told Education Week newspaper on Thursday. DeVos was appointed by Trump as education secretary in 2017. 

“But I think there’s also a lot of folks [who could do the job well],” she added, detailing what an ideal candidate for the position might look like. 

HERE ARE THE MOST TALKED-ABOUT CANDIDATES FOR TOP POSTS IN TRUMP’S ADMINISTRATION

Then-President Trump speaks with then-Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos at a roundtable with family members of victims, state and local officials, and Cabinet members to discuss recommendations in the Federal Commission on School Safety Report in the Roosevelt Room at the White House on Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2018 in Washington, D.C.

Then-President Trump speaks with then-Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos at a roundtable with family members of victims, state and local officials, and Cabinet members to discuss recommendations in the Federal Commission on School Safety Report in the Roosevelt Room at the White House on Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2018 in Washington, D.C. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

“I think about an ideal secretary of education, what their experience might be. A governor who’s led in their state on education reform issues. That would be a very good profile. Someone who could do the things that need to be done, could come in and hit the ground running,” she said. “The federal Department of Education is a labyrinth, a maze, and I think someone who has accomplished real reforms on a state level would be really fit and suitable for that position.”

UNIVERSITIES COME UNDER FIRE FOR CANCELING CLASSES, PROVIDING SAFE SPACES TO STUDENTS UPSET BY TRUMP’S VICTORY

DeVos served as Education secretary for nearly Trump’s entire term, but she resigned the day after Jan. 6.

“I think President Trump in his second term is going to do a great service and great things to focus on families and students,” DeVos said when asked about her sudden resignation. “If you recall, my resignation was specifically out of concern for putting myself in the seat of young kids and families.”

Then-President Trump, then-Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos and then-Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue in the press briefing room of the White House on March 27, 2020 in Washington, D.C.

Then-President Trump, then-Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos and then-Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue in the press briefing room of the White House on March 27, 2020 in Washington, D.C. (Drew Angerer)

In April, the Department of Education finalized its changes to Title IX aimed to prohibit discrimination based on sex and gender identity in federally funded institutions. Republican critics have slammed the rule change, saying it will enable biological male athletes in schools to compete on women’s sports teams.

“The second Trump administration needs to clarify these issues promptly and put an end to allowing this invasion into women’s sports,” DeVos said.

Trump has suggested that he is going to close the Department of Education when he takes office, but DeVos said it would not be that simple.

“Let’s just say, four decades of data show us that all this federal intervention does not work, has not worked,” she said. “I think more and more folks today are realizing that than they did [when Trump took office], and I think it’s ripe for discussion about how that happens and how the Department of Education is de-powered.”

Then-Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos speaks during the daily briefing on COVID-19 in the Brady Briefing Room at the White House on March 27, 2020 in Washington, D.C.

Then-Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos speaks during the daily briefing on COVID-19 in the Brady Briefing Room at the White House on March 27, 2020 in Washington, D.C. (Jim Watson)

“The federal Department of Education has not worked for students. It’s worked for political interests, but it has not worked for students,” DeVos added.

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While on the campaign trail, Trump suggested former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy or former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin could be contenders for the top education position.

Fox News’ Kristine Parks contributed to this report.



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4 key times Biden undermined Harris’ campaign against Trump


President Biden made a series of gaffes, mistakes and surprising comments while Vice President Kamala Harris rallied national support for her run for the Oval Office. 

Biden campaigned for and endorsed Harris this cycle, but amid the roughly 100-day Harris-Walz campaign, he also made a series of mistakes that likely hurt her chances of winning the election. Biden initially ran for re-election this year before dropping out in July as concerns mounted over his mental acuity and age. 

Fox News Digital examined the last roughly 100 days of the campaign cycle and compiled the top missteps and surprising comments that became fodder for the Trump campaign before the 45th president sailed to re-election on Tuesday. 

BIDEN CONGRATULATES TRUMP, PLEDGES ‘PEACEFUL AND ORDERLY’ TRANSFER OF POWER

Biden calls Trump supporters ‘garbage’ 

“Donald Trump has no character. He doesn’t give a damn about the Latino community,” Biden said during a campaign call at the White House. “Just the other day, a speaker at his rally called Puerto Rico a floating island of garbage.

“The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters. His demonization of Latinos is unconscionable, and it’s un-American.” 

WHITE HOUSE ALTERED BIDEN’S ‘GARBAGE’ TRANSCRIPT DESPITE CONCERNS FROM STENOGRAPHERS

Biden’s comments set off a lightning storm of criticism from Republicans nationwide, with some comparing it to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s “basket of deplorables” comment during a fundraiser during her failed 2016 campaign, which was viewed as likely undermining her campaign.

The White House attempted to backtrack on Biden’s comment, saying it was in reference specifically to remarks made during Trump’s massive Madison Square Garden rally. Comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, host of the popular podcast “Kill Tony,” sparked backlash after he cracked a joke hours ahead of Trump taking the stage at Madison Square Garden that Puerto Rico is a “floating island of garbage.” 

“Earlier today I referred to the hateful rhetoric about Puerto Rico spewed by Trump’s supporters at his Madison Square Garden rally as garbage — which is the only word I can think of to describe it,” Biden wrote in a post on X. “His demonization of Latinos is unconscionable. That’s all I meant to say. The comments at that rally don’t reflect who we are as a nation.”

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris laughing with US flag behind them

President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. (Aaron Schwartz/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Despite efforts to walk the comments back, Trump and his campaign leaned into the derogatory comment, with Trump donning a bright orange sanitization vest and climbing into a “MAGA”-decorated trash truck during a Wisconsin campaign event. 

Biden wears a Trump hat while speaking to voters 

Biden went viral on social media in September, when he visited Pennsylvania voters at the Shanksville Fire Station on the anniversary of 9/11, after participating in a wreath-laying ceremony at the town’s memorial site for United Airlines Flight 93. 

BIDEN SHOCKS THE INTERNET BY DONNING TRUMP 2024 HAT: ‘THIS ISN’T AI’

While in the firehouse, he spoke with a Trump supporter and decided to put the man’s pro-Trump hat on his head. 

“BREAKING: Kamala did so bad in last night’s debate, Joe Biden just put on a Trump hat,” the Trump war room said on X of the footage. 

“At this point even Joe Biden is voting for President Trump,” State of Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis quipped online. 

“Joe Biden just put on a Trump 2024 campaign cap. This is not a joke… he really did,” broadcaster Piers Morgan wrote, with an emoji of a monkey covering its eyes.

The White House also confirmed the footage was real and defended the bizarre scene as Biden spreading a message of unity to voters. 

Kamala Harris on October 13

Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign rally at the Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum on the campus of East Carolina University on Oct. 13, 2024 in Greenville, North Carolina. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

“At the Shanksville Fire Station, @POTUS spoke about the country’s bipartisan unity after 9/11 and said we needed to get back to that. As a gesture, he gave a hat to a Trump supporter who then said that in the same spirit, POTUS should put on his Trump cap. He briefly wore it,” White House spokesman Andrew Bates wrote on X.

In another unexpected wardrobe choice, first lady Jill Biden set social media ablaze earlier this week when she wore red-colored pantsuit to vote on Tuesday. Red is the color of the Republican Party, sparking commenters to joke that perhaps Jill Biden voted for Trump as a protest to Democrats calling on President Biden to exit the presidential race over the summer. 

Biden’s surprising remarks on a Republican governor’s handling of hurricane

As two hurricanes ripped through the southeast U.S. in October, Harris slammed Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis’ response to the natural disasters, with her campaign claiming his office denied phone calls from the Harris team. 

“People are in desperate need of support right now and playing political games with this moment, in these crisis situations, these are the height of emergency situations, it’s just utterly irresponsible, and it is selfish,” Harris told reporters of DeSantis. 

BIDEN UNDERMINES HARRIS CLAIM THAT RON DESANTIS IS POLITICIZING HURRICANE RESPONSE: ‘DOING A GREAT JOB’

Biden declared a day after Harris’ remarks that the GOP governor was doing a “great job” and thanked him for his efforts to assist Floridians. 

“The governor of Florida has been cooperative. He said he’s gotten all that he needs. I talked to him again yesterday, and I said – no – you’re doing a great job, it’s all being done well, and we thank you for it,” Biden said. “There was a rough start in some places, but every governor, every governor – from Florida to North Carolina – has been fully cooperative and supportive.”

DeSantis later shot back at Harris’ claims that he was playing politics with the storm, accusing her of being the actual culprit of engaging in political gamesmanship.  

“I’ve worked on these hurricanes under both President Trump and President Biden. Neither of them ever tried to politicize it. She has never called on any of the storms we’ve had since she’s been vice president until apparently now,” DeSantis said. “Why, all of the sudden, is she trying to parachute in and inject herself when she’s never shown any interest in the past? We know it’s because of politics, we know it’s because of her campaign.”

“Harris is not even in the chain of command. She has no role in this,” DeSantis added. “The idea that I should be, like, worrying about her when I’m focused on the task at hand is just quite frankly absurd.”

Biden bites a baby at a Halloween party 

In another surprising incident during the election cycle, Biden was caught on camera playfully biting babies dressed in Halloween costumes at a trick-or-treat event last month. Biden playfully biting the babies unfolded as Trump campaigned in Wisconsin while dressed in the sanitization vest in rebuke of Biden’s “garbage” comment. 

BIDEN SEEN BITING BABIES IN-COSTUME AT WHITE HOUSE HALLOWEEN EVENT

TRUMP VOWS TO LEAD ‘GOLDEN AGE OF AMERICA’ IN VICTORY SPEECH: ‘FIX EVERYTHING’

Donald Trump

Former President Donald Trump arrives to speak during an election night event at the Palm Beach Convention Center on Nov. 6, 2024 in West Palm Beach, Florida. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Trump secured the massive election win early Wednesday morning, after key battleground states such as Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Georgia voted in his favor. 

“Every citizen, I will fight for you, for your family and your future. Every single day, I will be fighting for you. And with every breath in my body, I will not rest until we have delivered the strong, safe and prosperous America that our children deserve and that you deserve. This will truly be the golden age of America. That’s what we have to have. This is a magnificent victory for the American people that will allow us to make America great again,” Trump said during his victory speech in the dead of night. 

President Biden giving thumbs up

President Biden departs the Rose Garden after speaking on the 2024 election in the Rose Garden on Nov. 7, 2024 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

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Harris held an election watch party at her alma mater, Howard University, in Washington, D.C., but did not publicly join her supporters as the election results began trending in Trump’s direction. Biden spent the night of the election at the White House, skipping the party. 

Fox News Digital’s Alec Schemmel and Lindsay Kornick contributed to this report. 

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.    



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Trump administration could lead to budget cuts, leadership shakeup at UN


A Donald Trump presidency is sure to have reverberations at the United Nations (U.N.), and first on the chopping block could be its funding. 

The U.N. currently relies on the U.S. for about a third of its budget. President Biden increased U.S. financial contributions to the U.N., boosting it from $11.6 billion in 2020 to $18.1 billion in 2022. This gives a new administration wiggle room to withhold funds to the U.N. if its global interests do not align with the U.S.’, a notion some Republicans have already pushed for. 

The U.S. gave about three times as much that year as the next-highest contributors, Germany at $6.8 billion and Japan at $2.7 billion. 

“They will have to recalibrate now very much again in the Trump administration that will, I believe, be much more attentive, engaged and monitoring of the U.N.,” predicted Hugh Dugan, a longtime member of the U.S. delegation to the U.N. 

“There are teams there that have been sleepwalking the last few years without U.S. pressure on accountability, efficiency and effectiveness.”

Trump will be in office when the international body elects its next secretary general in 2026, and the U.S. will have veto power over any candidate. 

“Over the next year and a half, it’s going to make an effort to look more managerially competent to avoid some of the stern green eyes seated across here – attention that Elon Musk and the Trump team will want to bring to the consideration of the secretary general selection.”

TOPSHOT - US President Donald Trump salutes during the presidential inaugural parade on January 20, 2017 in Washington, DC.

A Donald Trump presidency is sure to have reverberations at the United Nations, and first on the chopping block could be its funding. ( Nicholas Kamm / AFP)

ISRAEL’S UN AMBASSADOR: RESPONSE TO IRAN WILL BE ‘VERY PAINFUL’

Trump would also likely once again withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Climate Accords and the U.N. Global Compact on Migration. 

The U.N. particularly relies on the U.S. for global aid programs. In 2022, it provided half of all contributions to the World Food Programme, and about a third of all contributions to the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and the International Organization for Migration.

“There’s no doubt the U.N. is frightened and horrified,” of Trump taking office, said Hillel Neuer, executive director of U.N. Watch. 

“We’re going to see budget cuts,” he said. “The most memorable being UNRWA.” 

UN General Assembly

President Biden addresses the 79th United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters in New York City on Sept. 24, 2024. (REUTERS/Caitlin Ochs)

Trump cut funding to the organization that distributes aid to Palestinians in Gaza. Biden led the U.S. in reinstating that aid and earmarking $1 billion for UNRWA – before freezing that aid when it was revealed that some employees had links to Hamas. 

“I would say the Human Rights Office, which is based in Geneva, the U.N. Human Rights Council, America gives voluntary funds to that bureaucracy. I could see that being cut,” Neuer said. 

Some wonder whether Trump and a Republican-led Congress might try to withdraw the U.S. from the U.N. entirely. The GOP-controlled House passed a spending bill in June that would eliminate funding for the U.N.’s regular budget.

However, despite an adversarial tone toward global institutions, Trump is not expected to stop dealing with the U.N. altogether. In his first administration, he enjoyed a good relationship with Secretary General António Guterres, inviting him to the White House, and seemed to enjoy his yearly address to the General Assembly and the pageantry of world leaders traipsing through the New York City headquarters. 

“He engaged personally up there quite a lot. And during the opening of the General Assembly, he brought the White House up there, frankly, and lived up there for that week every year and operated. He recognizes the value of the organization, if just as a meeting place,” said Dugan.

UN Secretary General Guterres

The race to replace United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres will take place in 2026. (REUTERS/Mike Segar)

UN REMOVES QUILT PANEL ARTWORK CALLING FOR ISRAEL’S EXTERMINATION AFTER FACING BACKLASH

Trump could also seek to push candidates for leadership over agencies like UNICEF and the World Food Programme that challenge U.N. orthodoxy and encourage American employment across the agency to counter China’s growing influence. 

China doubled the number of its nationals employed at the U.N. to nearly 15,000 from 2009 to 2021. 

“This was very much in the mind of the Trump administration when I worked in the White House that China’s growing its influence in subtle and not so subtle ways throughout the organization, affording it a globalized platform of legitimacy that they’re ready and willing to exploit to their national ends,” said Dugan. 

“The U.S. has to study the terrain of the organization better and identify, in particular, the key posts and influential offices that we should show up with our best talent and make sure that we are effective. The Chinese have been doing that really well.”

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Additionally, though the Biden administration did buck a number of U.N. resolutions that targeted Israel, he was naturally more supportive of international organizations as a whole. 



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Voters decide on climate measures, reject initiative to tax natural gas powered buildings in California city


On Tuesday, voters in various states decided on ballot initiatives that would determine whether to expand and fund environmental and climate-related projects in their states.

In Berkeley, California, voters shot down a ballot measure to impose a tax on buildings 15,000 square feet or larger using natural gas, or appliances such as gas stoves for heat.

At the state level, California voters passed a ballot measure to finance climate projects across the state.

California voters passed Proposition 4, which will create a $10 billion taxpayer-funded bond for climate projects, including improvements to drinking water, wildfire prevention efforts, and protecting coastal areas from rises in sea level.

BIDEN-HARRIS EPA FUNDING ‘RADICAL, LEFT-LEANING’ ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS CALLING TO END FOSSIL FUELS: REPORT

The large Barren Ridge solar panel array is viewed from Highway 58 on April 4, 2017 near Mojave, California.

The large Barren Ridge solar panel array is viewed from Highway 58 on April 4, 2017 near Mojave, California. (George Rose)

Prior to its passing, opponents of the measure warned that there would be financial implications for such projects and that the state should not take a loan-based approach to climate-related mitigation.

On Election Day, voters in Washington rejected an initiative to repeal the state’s climate policy.

CLIMATE ACTIVISTS COVER US EMBASSY IN LONDON WITH ORANGE PAINT AFTER TRUMP’S PROJECTED WIN

Residents voted against Washington Initiative 2117, which would have repealed the state’s Climate Commitment Act, which aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 95% below 1990 levels by 2050.

The measure would have repealed the 2021 law and prohibited state agencies from implementing any carbon cap-and-trade system.

A wind turbine farm in the Columbia River Gorge on the Washington state side of the river.

A wind turbine farm in the Columbia River Gorge on the Washington state side of the river. (Don and Melinda Crawford)

Proponents of the bill have heavily criticized the law and claim the current carbon tax has increased energy costs. A group opposing the bill, however, told Fox News Digital that passing the measure would mean “more pollution in our air and water.”

“Washingtonians said loud and clear that they value clean air and clean water — and they don’t want to go backwards,” Gov. Jay Inslee said in a statement. “Washingtonians showed that they reject cynicism, and they support action and innovation to protect our kids’ and grandkids’ health. This a victory for clean air, clean energy jobs, and a stronger economy in the Evergreen State.”

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Rhode Island passed Question 4 on their ballots for a $53-million bond for land preservation, while Minnesota voters voted in favor of Amendment 1 to earmark funds from the state lottery to the Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund for environmental projects.



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Where do Trump’s legal cases stand after massive election win?


The Justice Department announced Wednesday that it is seeking to wind down two federal criminal cases against President-elect Donald Trump ahead of his second term. 

With two other cases outstanding and the legal jeopardy expected to diminish in the months ahead, here’s a timeline of Trump’s legal troubles after his first departure from the Oval Office. 

Federal cases

Classified documents case

Trump was indicted on 37 federal counts in June 2023 on charges stemming from Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021. He pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Trump’s team initially requested a partial pause in light of the Supreme Court ruling in Trump v. United States, wherein the court held that a former president has substantial immunity from prosecution for official acts committed while in office, but not for unofficial acts. 

JONATHAN TURLEY: TRUMP’S VICTORY PUTS AN END TO DEMOCRAT ATTACKS ON ONE BRANCH OF GOVERNMENT

Judge Aileen Cannon eventually dismissed the case against Trump in July, finding that Smith was improperly appointed to the special counsel role under the Constitution’s Appointments Clause.

The Appointments Clause states, “Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the Supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States be appointed by the President subject to the advice and consent of the Senate, although Congress may vest the appointment of inferior officers in the President alone, in the Courts of Law, or in the Heads of Departments.”

Smith was never confirmed by the Senate.

Donald Trump

The Justice Department announced on Wednesday it is seeking to wind down two federal criminal cases against President-elect Trump ahead of his second term. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Smith appealed the decision in August, with the filing reading, “The Attorney General validly appointed the Special Counsel, who is also properly funded.”

Election interference case

Smith filed another indictment in connection to his investigation against Trump in August 2023. He was indicted on four federal charges stemming out of the probe, including conspiracy to defraud the United States; conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding; obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding; and conspiracy against rights.

Trump pleaded not guilty to all charges and argued he should be immune from prosecution from official acts done as president of the United States. 

In July this year, the Supreme Court in its ruling on presidential immunity sent the matter back to a lower court, as the justices did not apply the ruling to whether or not former President Trump is immune from prosecution regarding actions related to efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

TRUMP SUES CBS NEWS FOR $10 BILLION ALLEGING ‘DECEPTIVE DOCTORING’ OF HARRIS’ ’60 MINUTES’ INTERVIEW

Trump was indicted a second time in August. The new indictment maintained the previous criminal charges but narrowed the allegations after the Supreme Court ruling, clarifying Trump’s role as a current candidate and making clear the allegations regarding his conversations with then-Vice President Mike Pence in his ceremonial role as president of the Senate. 

The 165-page filing submitted by Smith, in which he laid out the case and alleged evidence he would use in an eventual trial against the president-elect, was unsealed in early October. Judge Tanya Chutkan ordered more documents to be open to the public later that month, just weeks before the presidential election. 

Trump’s team moved to dismiss Smith from the case in late October, arguing he was unlawfully appointed. 

State cases

Manhattan hush money case 

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg indicted Trump in 2023 on 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree relating to alleged hush money payments made during the 2016 presidential campaign. Bragg alleged Trump “repeatedly and fraudulently falsified New York business records to conceal criminal conduct that hid damaging information from the voting public during the 2016 presidential election.”

Trump pleaded not guilty to all counts. 

Trump and Manhattan DA Bragg

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, right, indicted Trump in 2023 on 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree relating to alleged hush money payments made during the 2016 presidential campaign. (Emily Elconin/Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

The president-elect was later found guilty on all counts, making him the first former president of the United States to be convicted of a crime. He appealed the decision.

His sentencing date was initially set for July 11, just days before the Republican National Convention where he was set to be formally nominated as the 2024 GOP presidential nominee. Judge Juan Merchan delayed the sentencing to Sept. 18 and once again to Nov. 26, after the presidential election.

Trump’s team requested the case be removed to federal court in October this year, citing the Supreme Court’s presidential immunity ruling and thus arguing he cannot be prosecuted for official acts he performed as president. Merchan is also scheduled to make a decision on Nov. 12 on Trump’s motion to vacate the case.

Georgia election case 

Trump was indicted in Georgia in August 2023 after a yearslong criminal investigation led by state prosecutors into his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election in the state.

Trump pleaded not guilty to all counts.

Fani Willis

In early 2023, Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee dismissed six of the charges against Trump, saying District Attorney Fani Willis, pictured, failed to allege sufficient detail. (Alex Slitz-Pool/Getty Images)

In early 2023, Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee dismissed six of the charges against Trump, saying District Attorney Fani Willis failed to allege sufficient detail. It was then thrown into disarray when it was revealed Willis reportedly had an “improper affair” with Nathan Wade, a prosecutor she hired to help bring the case against Trump. Wade was later removed.

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The Georgia Court of Appeals paused the proceeding in June until it heard the case to disqualify Willis. The court also said it would hear Trump’s argument to have Willis disqualified on Dec. 5, a month after the election.

When reached by Fox News Digital for comment on the state of the president-elect’s legal cases on Thursday, the Trump campaign said, “The American people have re-elected President Trump with an overwhelming mandate to Make America Great Again.”

“It is now abundantly clear that Americans want an immediate end to the weaponization of our justice system, so we can, as President Trump said in his historic speech yesterday, unify our country and work together for the betterment of our nation,” campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said.

Fox News’ Brooke Singman, David Spunt and Jake Gibson contributed to this report.



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NY Democrat warns against ‘vilifying voters of color as white supremacists’


As the political left reflects on the 2024 election results, Rep. Ritchie Torres, D-N.Y., warned that “vilifying voters of color as white supremacists” will only push them further toward President-elect Trump.

“Popular explanations for the outcome of the election seem to include white supremacy, patriarchy, misogyny…” Torres noted in a post on X. 

“I am going to state the obvious here: vilifying voters of color as white supremacists will not attract them back to the Democratic Party. It will drive them further into Trump’s camp. The purpose of politics is not to repel but to attract. Condescension is the most powerful repellant in politics. Voters viscerally resent condescension and will punish you for it at the ballot box,” he added.

NEW YORK DEMOCRAT RIPS ‘FAR LEFT’ FOR TRUMP VICTORY: ‘IVORY-TOWERED NONSENSE’

Rep. Ritchie Torres

Democratic Rep. Ritchie Torres of New York has said that demonizing “voters of color as white supremacists” will push them further toward President-elect Trump. (Noam Galai/Getty Images)

Trump soundly defeated Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday to win the 2024 White House contest. 

Torres has suggested that signs of the impending drubbing were clear.

“The signs of a decisive defeat were staring us in the face all along. We were simply in denial about them or willfully blind to them, substituting magical thinking for actual analysis,” he declared in a tweet.

BERNIE SANDERS EXCORIATES DEMOCRATIC PARTY, CALLS CAMPAIGN ‘DISASTROUS’ AFTER TRUMP VICTORY

Rep. Ritchie Torres

“Voters viscerally resent condescension and will punish you for it at the ballot box,” Rep. Ritchie Torres said, referring to Vice President Kamala Harris’ loss in the presidential election. (Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“In recent history, there’s no precedent for an incumbent party winning a presidential election when the percentage of Americans who think the country is on the right track or headed in the right direction is in the 20s. The structural challenge was simply insurmountable,” he added.

Torres, who has served in the House of Representatives since 2021 and won another term in office during the 2024 election, has accused the “far left” of alienating people from the Democratic Party.

“Donald Trump has no greater friend than the far left, which has managed to alienate historic numbers of Latinos, Blacks, Asians, and Jews from the Democratic Party with absurdities like ‘Defund the Police’ or ‘From the River to the Sea’ or ‘Latinx,’” the congressman opined in a post on X.

REP. RITCHIE TORRES CALLS OUT NY TIMES ‘BIAS’ FOR NOT INTERVIEWING HIM FOR STORY ABOUT HIS ANTI-ISRAEL CRITICS

Rep. Ritchie Torres

Rep. Ritchie Torres, D-N.Y., said the far left panders to Twitter, Twitch and TikTok and is not representative of the real world. (Noam Galai/Getty Images)

“There is more to lose than there is to gain politically from pandering to a far left that is more representative of Twitter, Twitch, and TikTok than it is of the real world. The working class is not buying the ivory-towered nonsense that the far left is selling,” he added.

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The lawmaker has also suggested that his side of the political aisle should not push the idea that they suffer from a “messaging problem.”

“We should expunge from our vocabulary the words: we have a ‘messaging problem,'” Torres wrote on X. “When over 70% of Americans think we are on the wrong track or headed in the wrong direction, that is not a messaging problem. That is reality problem.

“Inflation and immigration are not ‘messaging problems.’ These are realities that produced discontent widespread enough to hand Donald Trump the presidency. We ignore the real-world messages that these realities send at our own peril,” he warned.



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Shutdown standoff looms in Congress’ final weeks before Trump’s return to White House


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EXCLUSIVE: The tumultuous two years of the 118th Congress are likely to be capped by one more standoff over government spending.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., signaled to Fox News Digital that it was unlikely Republicans will move to kick fiscal 2025 federal funding discussions into the new year.

But he reiterated vows that House Republicans would fight against rolling all 12 annual appropriations bills into one large “omnibus” package, setting up a possible showdown with Senate Democrats.

“The ideal scenario would be we get an agreement for the remainder of the fiscal year,” Scalise said.

JOHNSON BLASTS DEM ACCUSATIONS HE VOWED TO END OBAMACARE AS ‘DISHONEST’

Donald Trump and Steve Scalise

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise suggested he wants Congress to sort out fiscal 2025 funding before President-elect Trump comes to office so he can focus on current matters. (Getty Images)

He cited constraints on national security if Congress were to simply extend fiscal 2024 funding levels.

“When you think about defense funding, it costs us money to have short-term funding bills when you cannot do long-term procurement, to buy the kind of long-range defense systems that we need to compete with China,” Scalise said. “China is not operating on short-term spending bills, neither should we.”

Before recessing in September, House Republicans and Senate Democrats agreed to extend fiscal 2024 funding levels through what’s known as a continuing resolution (CR) to avoid a partial government shutdown at the end of the fiscal year on Sept. 30.

That bought congressional negotiators through Dec. 20 to hash out a deal.

At the time, several supporters of President-elect Donald Trump demanded that the CR run into the new year in the hopes a new Republican administration would take the reins, something opposed by senior GOP lawmakers and national security hawks.

HOUSE GOP LEADERS RIP ACTBLUE AFTER DEM FUNDRAISING GIANT HIT WITH SUBPOENA

Xi Jinping

Scalise cited concerns that a clean funding extension of last year’s levels could put the U.S. behind China in new military technology. Pictured here is Chinese President Xi Jinping. (Xie Huanchi/Xinhua via Getty Images)

If Republicans win the House in addition to the Senate and White House, Trump will have a say over how a GOP-controlled Congress handles spending in the fall next year. A number of House races remain undecided days after Tuesday’s general election.

Scalise also cited several other priorities, like the border crisis and extending tax cuts, that will take up much of the beginning of Trump’s term.

As for this year’s negotiations, however, both sides are still far apart.

House Republicans have accused Senate Democrats of slow-walking the process without having passed any of their own spending bills on the floor in a bid to force the GOP to swallow an end-of-year “omnibus” with excess spending and little transparency.

Democrats have in turn criticized House Republicans’ spending bills, several of which passed the House floor, as pushing draconian cuts and conservative policies deemed “non-starters.”

SPEAKER JOHNSON RIPS ‘LACK OF LEADERSHIP’ IN BIDEN ADMIN’S HELENE RESPONSE

Chuck Schumer looks on at the United Center, on Day 2 of the Democratic National Convention

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has not yet ruled out an omnibus this year. (Reuters/Cheney Orr)

“We have a lot of conversations to have with our members about the best approach,” Scalise said. “When we had left, we had already passed over 70% of the government funding bills through the House, and the Senate hadn’t passed any.”

“We’re trying to get agreements on the individual bills. That’s why the House did our job … hopefully we can start getting those agreements when we return.”

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Fox News Digital reached out to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., about whether he anticipates an omnibus, which he has ushered through the Senate nearly every year he’s been majority leader, at the end of this year.

If an agreement is not reached by Dec. 20, the country could face a partial government shutdown just weeks before the new presidential administration.



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Tim Scott launches bid to chair NRSC as GOP seeks to capitalize on new minority gains


FIRST ON FOX: Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., is running to lead the Senate Republican campaign arm in the next election cycle, sharing the announcement exclusively with Fox News Digital.

On Friday, Scott launched his bid to lead the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) for the 2026 midterm cycle, after speculation last month that he planned to do so.

“Let’s do this! I’m running for NRSC Chair because two years of a Republican agenda is good, but four years of success under Donald J. Trump is even better,” he told Fox News Digital in a statement.

TOP REPUBLICAN PRIVATELY BACKING THUNE TO SUCCEED MCCONNELL IN GOP LEADER RACE

Tim Scott, Donald Trump

Scott is hoping to lead Republicans in the next cycle of Senate elections. (Reuters)

“That means the entire four years of his presidency will create low inflation, secure borders and safe streets, leading to a generation of American prosperity! With Donald J. Trump in the White House and Republicans leading the U.S. Senate, we will protect our majority in 2026 and create opportunities for all Americans.” 

The South Carolina senator ran for president in the 2024 Republican primary before dropping out and endorsing Trump. He was also considered a contender to be Trump’s running mate before Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, was chosen. 

RICK SCOTT SEES RED WAVE AS ‘BEST CASE SCENARIO’ FOR SENATE LEADER BID AS HE LOBBIES TRUMP FOR SUPPORT

Donald Trump

Former President Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, arrives to speak during an election night event at the Palm Beach Convention Center Nov. 6, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla.  (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Scott additionally rolled out three high-profile endorsements to go with his campaign announcement.

Current NRSC Chairman Steve Daines, R-Mont., who just successfully led the campaign arm in helping Republicans take back the majority, has thrown his support behind Scott. 

“We took back the U.S. Senate in 2024, and there is no one I trust more to protect the majority in 2026 than Tim Scott,” Daines said in a statement. 

CHUCK SCHUMER PREPS FOR RETURN TO SENATE MINORITY AFTER GOP VICTORY

Tim Scott

Sen. Tim Scott spoke at a South Carolina GOP delegation breakfast Wednesday (Getty Images)

The South Carolina Republican was also endorsed by Senate Republican Conference Chairman John Barrasso, R-Wyo.

“Tim’s inspiring message, record of fundraising and vision for the party makes him the perfect partner for President Trump,” Barrasso said. “Together, they will protect and grow the Republican majority. There’s nobody better than Tim Scott.”

“Protecting the majority and growing the party starts with a vision and the resources to compete anywhere. That is why I’m confident in Tim leading the NRSC into 2026,” Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said in his own statement backing Scott. 

ELECTION NIGHT WINNERS AND LOSERS: 2024 EDITION

black man voting

Minority voters shifted toward Trump in 2024. (iStock)

The election will be held on Nov. 13 and decided via a secret ballot along with other Senate GOP leadership races. 

Scott’s bid for the top NRSC role comes on the heels of the Republican Party and Trump seeing significant gains across the country with minorities in the 2024 elections. 

As one of only four Black senators in the 118th Congress and the only Black Republican senator, Scott has made a variety of efforts to reach minority voters on behalf of the GOP. 

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In the last three months, he held a Black financial literacy event in North Carolina, an event on Black Opportunity Zones in Wisconsin, a Black pastor event in Michigan and school choice events in Wisconsin, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Chicago. 

He also joined fellow Black Republican representatives Burgess Owens, R-Utah; Byron Donalds, R-Fla.; John James, R-Mich.; and Wesley Hunt, R-Texas, earlier in the year to launch a weekly video series dedicated to the voices of Black members of the GOP. The series was called “America’s Starting Five.” 

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub





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Why the media waited till now to admit Harris ran a lousy campaign


Something suddenly struck me as I tracked all the finger-pointing and blame-shifting over Kamala Harris losing badly to Donald Trump.

As we watched her 107-day campaign, most of the coverage was absolutely glowing, as she was depicted as an inspiring trailblazer who would unify the country.

DEPRESSED MEDIA REACT TO TRUMP VICTORY: HOW COULD THIS POSSIBLY HAVE HAPPENED?

But about five minutes after Donald Trump was declared president-elect, a very different portrait emerged.

Harris had run an awful campaign, making all sorts of missteps and blunders. She hadn’t done this, that and the other thing. She wasn’t up to the challenge. She couldn’t meet the moment.

Now they tell us?

kamala-harris-donald-trump

A side-by-side of Vice President Kamala Harris and President-elect Donald Trump. (AP Images)

Doesn’t this suggest that the journalists, commentators and analysts were covering for her? That they knew the vice president was faltering, flubbing and failing, and weren’t being straight about it?

Well, here’s what that brings to mind.

For most of his term, President Biden was portrayed as a competent chief executive, maybe lacking pizazz, but more than capable of getting things done, whether you liked his policies or not.

Some age-related stories surfaced earlier this year, but both White House officials and those covering Biden assured readers and viewers that he was, in one phrase,

“sharp as a tack.”

THE ‘GARBAGE’ CAMPAIGN: WHY MISTAKES AND DISTRACTIONS COULD TILT THE OUTCOME

And then came the debate. Boom! The country saw the president struggling to form coherent sentences against Trump, and he would soon be pressured out of the race.

At that point, many media figures said sure, they had seen Biden’s mental acuity decline, and yes, he had often been hidden from them, but wasn’t it obvious? A few said White House officials had told them as long as two years earlier that there was no way Biden was capable of running for reelection. But of course that was off the record.

Kamala Harris

Vice President Kamala Harris gestures as she delivers a concession speech for the 2024 presidential election, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024, on the campus of Howard University in Washington.  (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

In short, even as the president was looking confused or turning the wrong way, much of the press covered for him.

And you wonder why the media’s credibility ratings are in the toilet.

In the case of Harris, just as in the case of Biden, many journalists obscured the harsh reality of their problems until it was no longer in their interest to do so.

We’re getting a major dose of this because of all the sniping between the Harris and Biden camps.

TRUMP CAMP CONFIDENT BASED ON EARLY VOTING, WHILE BLACK LEADERS SAY HARRIS IS STRUGGLING

“Democrats are directing their rage over losing the presidential race at Joe Biden, who they blame for setting up Kamala Harris for failure by not dropping out sooner,” Politico reports.

“They say his advancing age, questions over his mental acuity and deep unpopularity put Democrats at a sharp disadvantage. They are livid that they were forced to embrace a candidate who voters had made clear they did not want — and then stayed in the race long after it was clear he couldn’t win.”

On the same site, columnist Jonathan Martin says “the Biden sympathizers want to pin her loss on, well, her. And the Harris defenders believe Biden’s undeniably at fault for creating the forbidding political environment she proved unable to overcome.

Donald Trump

Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to speak during an election night event at the Palm Beach Convention Center on November 06, 2024 in West Palm Beach, Florida. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

“How can Harris’s defenders grumble about being dragged down by Biden when she could not find one substantive policy issue on which to break from the unpopular incumbent?”

What’s more, “where was the daring? There was no full-throated attempt at defensive politics and reassuring the country she’d govern from the center and reject extremists in both parties…If the other side assails you as a liberal without any clear and sustained response, well, voters will believe the attacks. Given the scale of difficulty she faced — and, yes, how bad that initial, internal polling was — why not take some risks?”

Now there were some suggestions, including from me, that Harris was being too cautious and sticking to talking points. I argued from the day she passed over Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro that Tim Walz would do nothing for the ticket; now many pundits are simply stating that as fact. 

One exception to the wait-till-it’s-over approach is this mid-October piece in Axios:

“Many senior Biden aides remain wounded by the president being pushed out of his reelection bid and are still adjusting to being in a supportive role on the campaign trail…Some on the Harris team say that top White House aides aren’t sufficiently coordinating Biden’s messaging and schedule to align with what’s best for the vice president’s campaign.”

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The media have plenty to answer for in the wake of this election, including how they underestimated Trump’s chances and appeal to voters, and failed to grasp why Harris’ party seemed out of touch to many in the working class. 

But painting a rosy scenario when things were actually dark for Harris – even if there’s nothing she could have done to stop the Trump juggernaut – ranks right up there.



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Fox News Politics: Biden congratulates Trump


Welcome to the Fox News Politics newsletter, with the latest political news from Washington, D.C.

Here’s what’s happening…

– 8 possible replacements for VP-elect JD Vance’s Senate seat

– How Kamala Harris’ failed 2024 presidential run mirrors her ill-fated 2020 campaign

– JD Vance’s wife, Usha Vance, will become first Indian American second lady

‘Peaceful and orderly’ transfer of power

President Biden addressed the nation from the Rose Garden on Thursday after his vice president, Kamala Harris, conceded the 2024 presidential election to President-elect Trump.

In brief remarks, Biden announced that he spoke with Trump on Wednesday to congratulate him on his victory and assure him that the entire Biden administration will work with his team “to ensure a peaceful and orderly transition.” 

“That’s what the American people deserve,” Biden said…Read more

President Biden giving thumbs-up in front of US, presidential flags

WASHINGTON, DC – NOVEMBER 07: U.S. President Joe Biden departs the Rose Garden after speaking on the 2024 election in the Rose Garden on November 07, 2024 in Washington, DC. Former President Donald Trump defeated Democratic candidate Vice President Kamala Harris. Biden pledged to work with the Trump team to ensure a smooth transition and invited the former President for an Oval Office meeting. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images) (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

White House

DOUBLE DOWN: President Trump and Grover Cleveland: How presidential candidates triumphantly returned to the White House…Read more

IRAN’S ENEMY: Iran ‘terrified’ of Trump presidency as currency falls to an all-time low…Read more

‘FULL FIREPOWER’: ACLU vows to oppose Trump policies on LGBT issues, abortion and deportations…Read more

CABINET CANDIDATES: Here are the most talked-about candidates for top posts in Trump’s administration…Read more

FLORIDA TO DC?: DeSantis floats Florida surgeon general Dr. Joseph Ladapo as candidate for Trump’s HHS secretary…Read more

CHIEF OF STAFF: Longtime Republican political operative Susie Wiles top contender for President-elect Trump’s Chief of Staff…Read more

‘YOU’LL LOSE’: Xi Jinping warns Trump US would ‘lose from confrontation’ with China as renewed trade war looms…Read more

Xi Jinping of China, left; President-elect Trump, right

Picture split showing China’s President Xi Jinping and President-elect Donald Trump. (Xi photo: Pedro Pardo – Pool/Getty Images| Trump photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Capitol Hill

GARDEN STATE VOTES: GOP Rep Thomas Kean projected to survive Susan Altman’s challenge in hotly contested New Jersey district…Read more

TEXAS REPUBLICAN SAFE: GOP Rep Monica De La Cruz projected to win re-election in Texas, fending off Democrat Michelle Vallejo…Read more

‘DOWN TO THE WIRE’: Steve Scalise predicts House control may be decided today…Read more

TRUMP FARM TEAM?: Rep.Massie ‘willing to help’ as agriculture secretary, but hasn’t received ‘commitments or offers’ …Read more

‘COMMITTED TO OUR VALUES’: Chuck Schumer preps for return to Senate minority after GOP victory…Read more

TIME TO MOVE ON?: House Democrat says the party needs to get past ‘Trump Derangement Syndrome’…Read more

SOMBER ANNOUNCEMENT: Virginia Rep. Gerry Connolly announces cancer diagnosis 2 days after winning re-election…Read more

Gerry Connolly, Va. Democrat

U.S. Congressman Gerry Connolly seen in his official portrait. (connolly.house.gov)

INCUMBENT OUSTED: New York Dem Laura Gillen ousts incumbent Republican Rep. Anthony D’Esposito in toss-up House race…Read more

RACE TO THE TOP: Rick Scott sees red wave as ‘best case scenario’ for Senate leader bid as he lobbies Trump for support…Read more

POWER GRAB: House leaders move quickly to consolidate power in show of confidence for Republican takeover…Read more

STAYING RED: Trump-backed incumbent Rep. Scott Perry wins re-election in Pennsylvania…Read more

Trail Dust

BIG TENT: Trump’s big tent: President-elect improved on 2020 performance in 4 counties with big minority populations…Read more

ACHILLES HEEL?: How Harris’ campaign was dogged by border czar, radical immigration views…Read more

‘MORALITY MATTERS’: Pro-life advocate says Trump victory is ‘huge’ for Catholic voters: ‘Morality matters’…Read more

GO WOKE, GO BROKE: New York Democrat rips ‘far left’ for Trump victory: ‘Ivory-towered nonsense’…Read more

‘NO RESPECT’: Top Philly Dem torches Harris camp as Dem blame game intensifies…Read more

‘DISASTROUS CAMPAIGN’: Bernie Sanders excoriates Democratic Party, calls campaign ‘disastrous’ after Trump victory…Read more

Sen. Bernie Sanders closeup shot

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., speaks on the second day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 20, 2024.  (CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images)

‘DOOMED’: Experts say this crucial campaign decision led to VP Harris’ ‘disastrous’ defeat…Read more

GENDER THEORY: Kamala Harris underperformed Biden’s numbers with women. South Dakota’s governor thinks she knows why…Read more

FAILED MOVEMENT: Moderate Republicans buck Cheney, throw support behind Trump…Read more

Across America

‘READY TO FIGHT’: Blue state gov summons legislature in response to Trump victory…Read more

photo split: Gov. Newsom on left, President-elect Trump on right

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and President-elect Trump (Getty/AP)

BECOMING NAZI GERMANY?: Federal military draft agency reposts message suggesting US is becoming 1936 Nazi Germany: report…Read more

‘DECEPTIVE MANNER’: Giuliani set to appear in New York City courtroom after missing deadline to turn over assets…Read more

LEGAL LIMBO: Where does Trump’s New York sentencing stand after massive election win?…Read more

Get the latest updates on the Trump presidential transition, incoming Congress, exclusive interviews and more on FoxNews.com.



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