NationalWatch

Sean Duffy, the president’s pick to lead the Department of Transportation, has advanced to the final round of the Senate confirmation process that will decide whether he assumes a top Cabinet position in President Donald Trump’s administration.

Duffy was tapped by Trump to head the transportation agency for the next four years, undergoing a confirmation hearing with the Senate Commerce, Science & Transportation Committee, which advanced his candidacy with bipartisan support.

The Senate held a cloture vote for Duffy on Monday, which passed unanimously. 

TULSI GABBARD, RFK JR. EXPECTED TO FACE OPPOSITION IN SENATE CONFIRMATION HEARINGS

Sean Duffy greets senators at his confirmation hearing. (Fox News Digital/Charlie Creitz)

SENATE CONFIRMS KRISTI NOEM AS TRUMP’S DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY

The cloture vote came just minutes after the Senate voted to confirm Scott Bessent to serve as the secretary of the treasury.

Then-Rep. Sean Duffy leaves the House Republican Conference meeting in the Capitol on May 8, 2018. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

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The Senate’s final vote on whether to confirm Duffy, a former Republican congressman, to the Cabinet post is scheduled for Tuesday afternoon.

President Donald Trump promised House Republicans they would secure the U.S. border through a reconciliation package at a House GOP issues conference Monday at Trump National Doral, his golf course and resort near Miami. 

Trump also said Congress would figure out whether his large policy overhaul will fit into one bill or two bills — an issue splitting Republicans in the House and Senate. 

“In the coming weeks, I’m looking forward to working with Congress on a reconciliation bill that financially takes care of our plan to totally and permanently restore the sovereign border of the United States once and for all,” Trump said. “This should include full funding for a record increase in border security personnel and retention bonuses for ICE and border patrol.” 

TIM SCOTT EMPHASIZES ‘RESULTS’ OVER RECONCILIATION PROCESS AS HE STAYS OUT OF DEBATE

President Donald Trump said Monday that Congress would figure out whether his large policy overhaul will fit into one bill or two bills — an issue splitting Republicans in the House and Senate.  (Melina Mara – Pool/Getty Images)

Trump also vowed to work with members of Congress on the “largest package of tax cuts and reforms in American history.” 

Many of the reforms included in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that Trump passed during his first term are set to expire in 2025, and Trump’s new economic plan calls for extending such cuts. 

Meanwhile, Republicans remain divided about how they will move to advance their legislative priorities. While Republicans in the Senate are pushing for two bills under the budget reconciliation process to speed up enacting new policies, Trump and Republicans in the House historically have called for advancing one massive bill instead. 

However, Trump said Monday it doesn’t matter whether the legislative branch pushes one or two bills.

“We don’t want to get hung up on the budget process … whether it’s one bill, two bills, I don’t care,” Trump said. “They’re going to work it out one way or the other. But the bottom line, the end result, is going to be the same.” 

Under the rules of the budget reconciliation process, passage only requires a 51-seat simple majority rather than the usual 60 seats. Even so, the use of the reconciliation process is sparse and must not include anything that could be considered “extraneous provisions.” 

Trump met with House and Senate GOP leaders on Tuesday, and National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman Tim Scott, R-S.C., told Fox News Digital after the meeting that he remained “agnostic about the process” of employing one bill versus two bills. 

REPUBLICAN LEADERS STILL AT ODDS ON RECONCILIATION DEBATE AFTER TRUMP MEETING

National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman Tim Scott, R-S.C., said he is “agnostic about the process” of passing President Donald Trump’s legislative priorities in one measure or two measures.  (Reuters)

“I think for us, results are more important than process,” Scott told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview. 

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“And if that requires us to have border security, tax reform, deportation — whatever we can get into a package or multiple packages — we have to produce results for the people,” he said. 

Trump also unveiled plans to sign several executive orders on Monday centering on reforms to the military, including directing Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth to kick off creating an “Iron Dome” missile defense shield for America, akin to the one Israel has protecting itself. Trump did not disclose any additional details on this system or how it would function.

Likewise, Trump said that he would sign an executive order to eradicate “transgender ideology” from the military. Trump is poised to sign an executive order that would “end the use of invented and identification-based pronouns” within the Department of Defense, according to a White House document reviewed by Fox News Digital.

“Next, to ensure that we have the most lethal fighting force in the world, we will get transgender ideology the hell out of our military,” Trump said. 

Other executive orders Trump mentioned include stopping service members from being “indoctrinated with radical left ideologies such as critical race theory,” and permitting the more than 8,000 service members who were kicked out of the military for refusing to receive the COVID-19 vaccine to join again at their previous rank. 

Trump also urged Republicans to work alongside each other amid slim Republican majorities in the House and the Senate, noting that Democrats do a good job backing one another. 

“We have to stick together,” Trump said. “We have to work together. We have to fight together. We’re going to win together. … We have a chance to win like never before, as long as we stay united.” 

Fox News’ Elizabeth Elkind, Julia Johnson, and Morgan Phillips contributed to this report. 

DORAL, Fla. — House Republicans brimmed with optimism after President Donald Trump’s speech at their annual retreat on Monday evening, where the new commander in chief detailed his policy goals for a busy first 100 days of the new administration.

Trump’s speech, which ran just over an hour, covered a wide range of issues, from post-election unity to his wishlist for Republicans’ conservative policy overhaul via the budget reconciliation process.

“It was fun, you know? I mean, if you’re a Republican, Trump made politics fun again,” House Appropriations Committee Chair Tom Cole, R-Okla., told Fox News Digital. “I mean, it’s been an extraordinary week. There’s a blizzard of executive orders and actions. It’s actually pushed Congress on some action.”

Rep. Mike Haridopolos, R-Fla., a first-term member of Congress, was buoyant when approached by Fox News Digital on the first night of his first House GOP issues conference, an annual Republican event.

TRUMP’S FEDERAL DEI PURGE PUTS HUNDREDS ON LEAVE, NIXES $420M IN CONTRACTS

President Donald Trump spoke to Republicans for just over an hour on Monday night. (Evan Vucci/AP)

“This is exactly why we ran for office, to turn around this country as quickly as possible. And that the president was in full form tonight. And I’m so excited to be a part of this change,” Haridopolos said. “You could feel the energy in the room, and I think people are very excited to get this agenda through, and more importantly see the results.”

It comes as Republicans negotiate on how to use their razor-thin majorities in the House and Senate to pass massive conservative policy changes through budget reconciliation.

By reducing the threshold for Senate passage from 60 votes to a 51-seat simple majority, reconciliation allows a party in control of both congressional chambers to enact sweeping changes, provided they’re relevant to budgetary and fiscal policy.

There has been some disagreement for weeks over how to package the GOP’s priorities, however. Senate Republicans have pushed for breaking the package up into two bills in order to score early victories on border security and energy policy while leaving the more complex issue of tax reform for a second bill.

House Republican leaders, however, are concerned that the heavy political lift that passing a reconciliation bill entails would mean lawmakers run out of time before they can extend Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, which expire at the end of this year.

Trump, who previously said he favors “one big beautiful bill,” was noncommittal on the strategy during his speech. 

“Whether it’s one bill, two bills, I don’t care,” he said.

House Appropriations Committee Chair Tom Cole said Trump “made politics fun again.” (Getty Images)

He was more specific about what policies he wanted to see passed, however, including more funding for border security, permanently extending his 2017 tax cuts and ending taxation for tips, Social Security benefits and overtime pay. Trump also has vowed to end green energy policies in favor of bolstering the fossil fuel sector.

Cole said he was concerned about the increase in federal spending that some of Trump’s specific policy goals would entail, but he conceded the president was likely speaking in generalities. 

“I think Trump, when he thinks about these things, he’s thinking about just the average person and what a burden it is on them,” Cole said.

Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., one of three House Republicans who won in a district that voted for former Vice President Kamala Harris in November, praised Trump’s speech as “unifying” but shared concerns with Trump’s broad-brush approach.

‘NO BETTER DEALMAKER’: TRUMP REPORTEDLY CONSIDERING EXECUTIVE ORDER TO ‘SAVE’ TIKTOK

“I thought that message is pretty unifying. I do. I think sometimes the execution gets all messy,” Bacon said. 

“While I was in there, I had a businessman from Omaha that does wind energy, and he’s worried about what that means. So I think it … could be a little more targeted. Sometimes I think people on the periphery are scared that their business will be impacted.”

But National Republican Congressional Committee Chair Richard Hudson, R-N.C., who is tasked with leading Republicans through the 2026 midterm elections, said leaders would hash out specifics as needed while crediting Trump with bringing the GOP together.

National Republican Congressional Committee Chair Richard Hudson praised Trump’s speech as unifying. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“We’ll see how the details shake out in these couple of days. But what I thought was great is he kept coming back to his theme: If all Republicans stick together, we can be successful. And I thought that was a good message for all members,” Hudson said.

Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., said she was “very happy to hear” Trump call for a lower tax rate for new domestic manufacturing, particularly in relation to pharmaceuticals.

It’s an issue she hopes Republicans will tackle in their reconciliation process.

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“It was important that President Trump stressed unity as we enter the timeframe for drafting and passing reconciliation, extending the tax package,” Malliotakis said. 

And Rep. Nathaniel Moran, R-Texas, also praised Trump’s speech while dismissing concerns about his lack of commitment toward a one- or two-reconciliation bill strategy.

“He’s a results-oriented guy, and we all know that. And what we need to do is whatever is necessary to get the results for the American people and put his policies in place,” Moran said.

President Donald Trump said that the construction of an Iron Dome-like shield for the U.S. is a top priority for him on Monday, calling for “immediate” work to be done on the project before signing an executive order.

Trump made the remarks at a Republican dinner in Florida on Monday, while commending his recently-confirmed Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. After landing at Joint Base Andrews that night, he confirmed that he signed an executive order regarding the Iron Dome on the plane.

“Pete Hegseth, who’s going to be great, by the way… I think he’s going to be fantastic,” Trump said at the event. “I know him very well. I think he’s going to be fantastic.”

“He’s what we need, to immediately begin the construction of a state-of-the-art Iron Dome missile defense shield, which will be able to protect Americans.”

PETE HEGSETH CONFIRMED TO LEAD PENTAGON AFTER VP VANCE CASTS TIE-BREAKING VOTE

President Trump says that he will sign an EO authorizing an Iron Dome project. (Reuters)

The president added that Americans “protect other countries, but we don’t protect ourselves.” Trump also referenced that President Ronald Reagan was interested in the system during the Cold War, but Americans “didn’t have the technology.”

“And now we have phenomenal technology. You see that with Israel,” Trump continued. “So I think the United States is entitled to that. And everything will be made right here in the USA 100%.”

“We’re going next to ensure that we have the most lethal fighting force in the world.”

On Monday, the State Department said that a future Iron Dome is one of Hegseth’s many priorities.

MCCONNELL VOTED NO ON HEGSETH AS PENTAGON HEAD, FORCING VANCE TO CAST TIEBREAKER

President-elect Donald Trump speaks during a news conference at Mar-a-Lago, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025, in Palm Beach, Fla.  (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

“Other areas the secretary will study include reinstating troops that were pushed out because of COVID-19 vaccination mandates and developing an Iron Dome anti-missile system for the United States,” the statement read.

This wasn’t Trump’s first mention of an Iron Dome for the U.S. At the Commander-In-Chief inaugural ball on Jan. 20., Trump said that the project was on his radar.

“We’re also doing the Iron Dome all made in America,” Trump said. “We’re going to have a nice Iron Dome.”

The Republican leader also referenced the plan on the campaign trail in 2024.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth arrives at the Pentagon, Monday, Jan. 27, 2025 in Washington.  (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf)

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“By next term we will build a great Iron Dome over our country,” Trump said during a West Palm Beach event on June 14. “We deserve a dome…it’s a missile defense shield, and it’ll all be made in America.”

House Republicans are calling on sanctuary city mayors to testify next month about the policy’s impact on public safety and the refusal to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement.

U.S. Rep. James Comer, R-Tenn., chair of the GOP-controlled House Committee on Oversight and Reform, said he was launching an investigation into sanctuary cities across the United States to determine whether they have complied with federal immigration enforcement laws. 

In a letter, he asked Michelle Wu, Brandon Johnson, Mike Johnston and Eric Adams, the mayors of Boston, Chicago, Denver and New York City, respectively, to provide documents and information related to the sanctuary policies of each city.

TRUMP’S ICE NABS CHILD SEX OFFENDERS AMONG 530+ ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS CAUGHT IN SINGLE DAY

House Oversight and Accountability committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) speaks during a hearing with Commissioner of the FDA Dr. Robert Califf in the Rayburn House Office Building on April 11, 2024 in Washington, DC.  (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

They were each asked to testify at a public hearing on the matter on Feb. 11. Fox News Digital has reached out to each mayor. 

“On his first day in office, President Donald Trump took decisive actions to restore the rule of law,” Comer wrote on X. “It is now imperative that our immigration laws are enforced across the country and that criminal aliens are swiftly removed from our communities.”

The letters said 12 states and hundreds of cities and counties across the country have sanctuary policies. However, Comer said the four cities singled out “stand out in their abject failure to comply with federal law.” 

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu speaks during a campaign rally. (AP Photo/Mary Schwalm, File)

Sanctuary cities limit cooperation between local law enforcement and federal immigration authorities. Supporters argue that enforcement of immigration is the job of the federal government. 

Opponents say sanctuary policies harbor criminals, as well as those in the country illegally, and put the public, including illegal immigrants, at risk. 

Adams has spoken out against criminal illegal immigrants, who he said put New Yorkers at risk. In addition, he has said he is willing to work with Trump Border Czar Tom Homan. 

New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Tuesday said his administration has been coordinating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) with regard to deporting illegal criminal migrants.  (Luiz C. Ribeiro/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service via Getty Images and Selcuk Acar/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Meanwhile, Wu, the Boston Mayor, has said her city won’t cooperate with Trump’s mass deportation program, despite the region seeing a number of illegal immigrants with criminal charges released back onto the streets.

“Elections have consequences, and the federal government is responsible for a certain set of actions, and cities, no individual city, can reverse or override some parts of that,” she told WCVB-TV in November. “But what we can do is make sure that we are doing our part to protect our residents in every possible way, that we are not cooperating with those efforts that actually threaten the safety of everyone by causing widespread fear and having large scale economic impact.”

In a statement to Fox News Digital, a spokesperson for the City of Boston said: “We are proud that Boston is the safest major city in the United States. We have received the letter and are reviewing it.”

Chicago Mayor Johnson has doubled down on his support of the city’s sanctuary policies. 

“I find it unconscionable that this administration would attempt to create not just division but fear within our public schools,” Johnson said, referring to potential federal raids. 

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson responds to a question during a news conference on Oct. 7, 2024, in Chicago.  (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

He has directed city departments to “stand firm and uphold the local ordinance” in compliance with the Illinois Trust Act, which prohibits local law enforcement from assisting federal immigration enforcement efforts.

Denver Mayor Mike Johnston has also supported sanctuary policies despite the presence of members of Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua in Denver and the suburb of Aurora.

On Sunday, federal agents arrested 50 members of the gang in Colorado and seized drugs, weapons, and cash, authorities said. 

In his first week after returning to the White House, Trump has rescinded multiple directives and has targeted illegal immigrants with criminal records in a series of raids.

Democrat mayor Mike Johnston. Denver is a sanctuary city. (Edward Romero and Getty Images)

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Raids by agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have been reported in Colorado, New York City, Buffalo, N.Y., Boston, California, and Minnesota, with hundreds of illegal immigrants being detained. 

In addition, deportation flights have also begun.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has placed nearly 60 employees on leave who focused on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and had a combined salary of more than $8 million.

The VA said in a press release Monday that it completed its implementation of President Donald Trump’s executive order to end DEI in the federal government.

Part of the VA’s abolishment of DEI within the agency meant placing on paid administrative leave about 60 employees who were solely focused on DEI activities.

The VA said the combined salary of the employees – including base pay, locality pay and additional earnings – exceeds $8 million, with the average pay being about $136,000 per year, per employee.

TRUMP’S FEDERAL DEI PURGE PUTS HUNDREDS ON LEAVE, NIXES $420M IN CONTRACTS

(Robert Alexander/Getty Images/File)

One of the employees had a salary of over $220,000 per year, according to the VA.

In addition to putting the employees on leave, the VA said it identified multiple contracts for DEI-related training, materials and other consulting services that are currently being looked at for cancellation. The combined value of the contracts, the VA said, is more than $6.1 million.

Over the coming weeks and months, the VA said it plans to work on reallocating resources to better support the veterans, families, caregivers and survivors who the agency exists to serve.

ATF ACCUSED OF ‘CIRCUMVENTING’ TRUMP ORDER TO PLACE DEI STAFF ON PAID LEAVE

Diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives have been the subject of heated opinions of praise and rebuke. (Adobe Stock)

The VA is also taking down DEI-related materials from its digital assets.

“Under President Trump, VA is laser-focused on providing the best possible care and benefits to Veterans, their families, caregivers, and survivors,” said Morgan Ackley, the VA’s director of media affairs. “We are proud to have abandoned the divisive DEI policies of the past and pivot back to VA’s core mission. We look forward to reallocating the millions of dollars the department was spending on DEI programs and personnel to better serve the men and women who have bravely served our nation.”

The VA joins many other federal agencies that are executing Trump’s plan to end DEI initiatives.

3 IN 10 VOTERS THINK ENDING DEI PROGRAMS IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT, POLL SHOWS, AS FEDERAL DEADLINE LOOMS

President Donald Trump signed an executive order to end DEI initiatives at the federal level. (Evan Vucci/AP)

Trump’s newly created Department of Government Efficiency temporary organization, headed up by tech billionaire Elon Musk, wrote in a social media post on X that about $420 million in current and impending contracts, mainly focused on DEI initiatives, had been canceled.

On the day of his inauguration, Monday, Jan. 20, Trump signed the executive order, and the federal Office of Personnel Management notified heads of agencies and departments that they must begin taking steps to close all DEI offices by the end of the day on Wednesday, Jan. 22, and place government workers in those offices on paid leave. It is not yet clear when or if they will be terminated.

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Trump’s order rescinded President Joe Biden’s executive order on promoting diversity initiatives, “Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government,” which he signed on his first day in office.

Fox News Digital’s Brie Stimson contributed to this report.

A group of Democratic senators previewed several anti-vaccine arguments during a roundtable discussion, including a claim that vaccines cause autism, several days before Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s scheduled confirmation hearings later this week.

Even though Kennedy’s name was “not supposed” to come up during the hearing, according to at least one of the health experts present at the discussion, his nomination to be the next secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) was invoked frequently by lawmakers seeking answers about how to combat anti-vaccine claims and so-called “misinformation,” including arguments about vaccines that Kennedy has promoted in the past.

One claim the senators asked the public health experts at the roundtable about was whether vaccines cause autism, a claim Kennedy has discussed publicly in interviews.

“This is something that I hear a concern about quite a lot,” Sen. Angela Alsobrooks, D-Md., asked the panel. “What, if any information, can you give us to help us push back against that?” 

RFK IS THE LEAST ‘SCARY’ THING HAPPENING TO THE US HEALTH SYSTEM, DR MAKARY WARNS

Sen. Angela Alsobrooks (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images/File)

The doctors on the panel explained the lack of robust studies proving this link while highlighting the wide breadth of studies that have shown no links between vaccines and autism.

“Academic researchers, pediatricians, scientists took that concern seriously enough to spend tens of millions of dollars to answer the question,” said Dr. Paul Offit, a pediatrician with an expertise in virology and immunology. “The more impactful part of your question is how do you get that information out there, because frankly, once you’ve scared people it’s hard to unscare them.” 

Offitt added that since there is no clear cause of autism, it makes it harder to refute claims from Kennedy and others. Dr. Joshua Sharfstein of Johns Hopkins pointed lawmakers to preeminent medical authorities within the U.S., such as the National Academy of Sciences, as places they could go for evidence that vaccines do not cause autism.

TULSI GABBARD, RFK JR EXPECTED TO FACE OPPOSITION IN SENATE CONFIRMATION HEARINGS

The Democratic group of lawmakers, led by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., who caucuses with Democrats, asked questions about, and learned ways to refute, other anti-vaccine claims, such as whether vaccine manufacturers are immune from being held accountable for vaccine injuries.

The experts pointed out the presence of a National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program that allows certain vaccine injury victims to receive compensation from the government, but they suggested that if Kennedy upended the current system and opened up more companies to liability, it could potentially put vaccine manufacturers out of business.

TRUMP’S REINSTATEMENT OF TROOPS BOOTED OVER COVID VACCINE HAILED AS WIN FOR FREEDOM: ‘GREAT DAY FOR PATRIOTS’

“Am I right that the HHS secretary has some discretion about removing vaccines from that list [and opening them up to civil litigation] if they were to choose?” asked Sen. Time Kaine, D-Va. “Because if that were the case, I would obviously worry about – that would be one worry I would have and a set of questions I might like to ask people nominated for positions within HHS.”

Sen. Tim Kaine (Getty Images/File)

Other questions from lawmakers that the health experts helped answer included queries about how to distinguish between vaccine side effects versus vaccine complications, how to combat claims that vaccines are not studied enough, questions about how the government monitors the safety of vaccines, questions about how undermining vaccine efficacy can impact public health and more. 

DIET AND NUTRITION EXPERTS WEIGH IN ON HOW RFK JR’S NOMINATION COULD IMPACT HOW WE EAT

Kennedy will face tough questions about his stance on vaccines this week during his confirmation hearings in front of both the Senate Committee on Finance and the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP).

Robert Kennedy Jr. (Jon Cherry/Getty Images/File)

The chair of the Senate’s HELP committee, Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., called Kennedy “wrong” on vaccines during an interview earlier this month. 

Democrats, meanwhile, have been more pointed about their criticism. During the roundtable discussion with public health experts, Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., called Kennedy “dangerous” and “unqualified” for the position of HHS secretary. 

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“The bird flu, if it explodes, we’re going to need to have some confidence, especially in those people who should be vaccinated, that they can trust the government when they say that it’s safe, they can trust the medical community, and I’m just very afraid of Robert F. Kennedy’s candidacy,” Markey said. 

“Say goodbye to your smile and say hello to polio,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said after news of Kennedy’s nomination to head HHS. “This is a man who wants to stop kids from getting their polio and measles shots. He’s actually welcoming a return to polio, a disease we nearly eradicated.”

Attorneys general in 19 states are warning Costco “to end all unlawful discrimination imposed by the company through diversity, equity, and inclusion” policies to reflect President Donald Trump’s recent executive order booting DEI out of federal agencies and warning private sectors to do the same.

“Racial discrimination is both immoral and illegal. Race-based employment hiring violates state and federal law, and as the chief law enforcement officer of Kansas, I intend to enforce the law vigorously,” Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach told Fox News Digital in a statement. 

Trump’s executive order, signed during his first week in office, will task the attorneys general with rooting out sectors and organizations that allegedly engage in discriminatory DEI practices. Recommendations will be made for potential lawsuits against violators.

REPUBLICAN STATE AGS AWAIT TRUMP-BROKERED TIKTOK DEAL, REMAIN SKEPTICAL ON APP SAFETY

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird and 18 other state AGs wrote a letter to Costco’s CEO to urge an end to the DEI policies within the company. (Getty Images)

The order encourages private-sector entities to align with federal civil rights laws and discontinue “discriminatory” practices. Publicly traded companies, large nonprofits, foundations with significant assets, bar and medical associations and higher education institutions with substantial endowments are potential targets for DEI investigations.

Trump also dissolved all DEI within the federal government. While big companies like Target, McDonald’s and Walmart backed off from their DEI policies, Costco shareholders voted last week to reject an anti-DEI proposal brought by activist shareholder group National Center for Public Policy Research. The measure would have required the wholesale grocery chain to issue a report on the risks associated with their DEI policies. 

The Costco board said its “commitment to an enterprise rooted in respect and inclusion is appropriate and necessary. The report requested by this proposal would not provide meaningful additional information,” according to reports.

TRUMP’S CRACKDOWN ON TRANS TROOPS: NEW ORDER NIXES PREFERRED PRONOUNS AND RESTRICTS FACILITY USE

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced he is ending all DEI programs and policies at the Pentagon. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

“It’s time to ditch DEI. While other companies right the ship and abandon their illegal, woke policies, Costco has doubled down,” Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird told Fox News Digital in a statement. “I’m putting Costco on notice to do the right thing and eliminate discriminatory DEI. No American should be denied an opportunity because they don’t fit the woke mold.” 

The Rev. Al Sharpton led a “buy in” at the Harlem Costco in support of the company rejecting a bid that challenged their corporate DEI policies. The MSNBC host said that he and 100 members of his National Action Network shopped at the store Sunday.

DEFENSE SECRETARY PETE HEGSETH SAYS ‘NO MORE DEI AT DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE’: ‘NO EXCEPTIONS’

President Donald Trump speaks to reporters after signing a series of executive orders in the Oval Office on Jan. 23, 2025.

“Race-neutral practices, on the other hand, honor the founding ideals of this country,” reads the letter sent to Costco CEO Ron Vachris by the 19 attorneys general. “Now, the federal government is also focusing on ensuring invidious racebased discrimination no longer finds a home in woke corporations.”

The attorneys general want a response within the next 30 days to “either notify us that Costco has repealed its DEI policies or explain why Costco has failed to do so.”

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Attorneys general from Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska and North Dakota also signed the letter.

Fox News Digital reached out to Costco but did not hear back by the time of publication.

Fox News Digital’s David Spector contributed to this report.

Colombia did an about-face at lightning-fast speed on accepting deportation flights in what President Donald Trump hailed as a victory for his “f— around and find out” [FAFO]-style of governing. 

One of the first diplomatic spats of the new administration, Colombia’s stunt put on full display a souring of relations with what was until recently one of the U.S.’ strongest allies in Latin America. 

But the U.S. strong-arming has already had reverberations across the globe: China announced it would be accepting its own nationals who unlawfully crossed into the U.S. and get deported under the new administration, faced with a campaign trail threat of up to 60% tariffs. 

PUTIN REPORTEDLY CONCERNED OVER RUSSIA’S ECONOMY AHEAD OF POSSIBLE TRUMP TARIFFS

After President Gustavo Petro refused two flights full of Colombian migrants deported from the U.S., Trump immediately wrote in a Truth Social post he was imposing 25% tariffs on all goods from Colombia, a travel ban on Colombian government officials and other steep financial sanctions. He said the tariffs would reach as high as 50% by next week. 

At first, Petro retaliated with his own 25% tariffs on U.S. goods coming from Colombia.

But amid intense political pressure from within his own government, the former Marxist guerrilla fighter acquiesced to all U.S. demands.

After the debacle, Trump posted a celebratory AI-generated image of himself dressed as a mobster next to a sign that read “FAFO.” 

Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro initially rejected migrant flights to his country. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara, File)

Experts say the Colombian leader was taken by surprise at the economic and diplomatic force by the U.S.

“The Biden administration was doing very little to push back on some of the really disruptive actions by the Petro government… including on security cooperation and countering drug trafficking,” said Andres Martinez-Fernandez, Latin America analyst at the Heritage Foundation’s Allison Center. “The Biden White House was giving them carte blanche in terms of not pushing back. That’s important to note for why the Colombian government felt so bold.” 

COLOMBIAN LEADER QUICKLY CAVES AFTER TRUMP THREATS, OFFERS PRESIDENTIAL PLANE FOR DEPORTATION FLIGHTS

“He was taking a shot, probably not expecting the U.S. to come down as hard as it did, when it did, because I imagine he wanted to draw this out,” said Joseph Humire, executive director at the Center for a Secure Free Society, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit. 

“If Petro was left to his own devices, I think he would have gone through with it. I don’t think he cared about the Colombian economy.”

“His own ministers, other sectors of the government, and obviously the private sector, probably pressured him a lot… and he relented.”

Former President Joe Biden and former Vice President Kamala Harris had often urged migrants not to come to the U.S. – but illegal immigration figures remain stubbornly high. 

“I can say quite clearly: Don’t come,” Biden told ABC in an interview in 2021. But he continued: “We’re in the process of getting set up. Don’t leave your town or city or community.”

Harris told Guatemalans that same year: “I want to be clear to folks in this region who are thinking about making that dangerous trek to the United States-Mexico border: Do not come. Do not come.”

Donald J. Trump was be sworn in as the 47th president on Jan. 20, 2025. (Trump-Vance Transition Team)

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt released this image Friday, writing on X that “deportation flights have begun.” (White House)

But annual net migration – the number of people coming into the U.S. minus the number leaving – reached an all-time record average of 2.4 million population growth between 2021 and 2023. 

Petro took on Trump over the weekend when he insisted he would not accept the return of migrants who were not treated with “dignity and respect” and who had arrived shackled or on military planes. 

But after steep tariff threats “panicked” Colombia’s government and business leaders, the White House later announced Colombia had agreed to all U.S. conditions, including accepting migrants on military planes.

AOC ROASTED OVER POST ABOUT COLOMBIA TARIFFS AND COFFEE PRICES THAT ‘AGED LIKE HOT MILK’

Petro accepted 126 deportation flights last year, often with immigrants in shackles to prevent aviation emergencies, given that there are far more deportees than officers charged with accompanying them.

“It’s not the first time this has happened, and I think that was complete BS on [Petro’s] part,” said Humire.  

“It was a pretty, I would say, poorly conceived effort by the Colombians on this front, and for numerous reasons, but, but in particular, because the Colombian economy and society and its security apparatus, defense apparatus, they’re also deeply integrated with the U.S. and dependent on the U.S.,” said Martinez-Fernandez.

Colombia is one of the top recipients of U.S. aid in the world due to a security partnership. Since 2000, Colombia has received more than $13 billion in foreign assistance from the U.S. Departments of Defense and State and from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), largely focused on counternarcotics efforts, continued implementation of the government’s 2016 peace accord with the FARC rebel group, integration of Venezuelan migrants and refugees, and environmental programs.

For years, Colombia had grown closer to the U.S., becoming a major non-NATO ally in 2022. But under Petro, relations between the two nations took a turn. 

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Now, Colombia is intent on shrugging off U.S. influence and aligning itself with China, Russia and Iran, and deepening ties with Venezuela, which finds itself at odds with the U.S. under President Nicolas Maduro. 

“Petro’s intent is clear: he is legitimizing the dictatorship in Venezuela and Cuba, taking Colombia into a different geopolitical orbit,” Humire said. 

The spat caused a massive rift between Petro and his foreign minister, Luis Murillo, Colombian media outlets reported. Murillo, who’s reportedly been in contact with Trump special envoy Ric Grenell on the matter, spent the weekend phoning Republican U.S. lawmakers and plans to travel to the U.S. to smooth over relations with Colombia’s biggest trading partner. The U.S. accounts for 34% of Colombia’s total trade. 

Ohio GOP Sen. Bernie Moreno ripped Chicago’s Democratic Mayor Brandon Johnson as the “worst mayor in American history” and called on liberal mayors across the country to focus on making life better for their citizens, as opposed to blocking President Donald Trump’s immigration efforts.

“My message to the mayors of those cities is, why don’t you do this for a change, why don’t you actually advocate for the American citizens that live in your communities, help them with better schools, better housing and better security rather than protecting criminal illegals that shouldn’t even be in this country in the first place,” the freshman senator told Fox News Digital. “And I think when the voters of those cities see what these mayors are doing, they’re going to throw them out.”

“The mayor of Chicago is probably the worst mayor in American history,” Moreno continued. “He’s just going for extra credit. The guy is a total and complete bumbling idiot. So, hopefully, the voters of Chicago take care of that pretty quickly.”

Johnson has been one of the more outspoken mayors calling for resistance to Trump’s immigration and deportation efforts, saying recently that his city is “going to protect undocumented individuals” from ICE raids. 

INDIANA ATTORNEY GENERAL FILES LAWSUIT AGAINST SHERIFF FOR DEFYING FEDS ON ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

Ohio GOP Sen. Bernie Moreno told Fox News Digital that Democratic mayors should focus on protecting their citizens and not opposing Trump. (Fox News Digital/Getty)

The Chicago mayor’s office acknowledged Fox News Digital’s inquiry by labeling Moreno’s comment “ad hominem criticism,” but did not expand on their response.

Some Chicago residents have voiced frustration with Johnson’s public opposition to Trump, including P Rae Easley, a Chicagoan and host of “Black Excellence Hour,” in an interview with “Fox & Friends First.” 

“We understand that we are in the middle of an invasion,” Easley said. “Every single person who came across that border came with an invoice on their back for the Chicago taxpayer.”

Despite calls from Johnson and other mayors pledging to block Trump’s efforts, ICE agents across the country have deported hundreds of illegal immigrants in the first few days of Trump’s administration.

Moreno praised Trump’s efforts and said he anticipates the flurry of immigration moves from Trump in recent days to continue.  

“It’s amazing,” Moreno told Fox News Digital. “I mean, President Trump knows the urgency that we need to get safety and security back to our cities. Look, these criminal aliens should never have been allowed to be in this country in the first place. Joe Biden put this country in jeopardy for four years and President Trump’s going to clean it up really fast.”

UP TO 250,000 CHILDREN BORN TO ILLEGAL MIGRANTS IN 2023: PRELIMINARY REPORT

Bernie Moreno, then a Senate candidate, addresses the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, July 16, 2024. (Reuters/Mike Segar)

The new administration’s efforts to roll back illegal immigration has gained support from Democrats in certain situations, including the passage of the Laken Riley Act, which had the support of 48 Democrats in the House. 

Moreno, when asked if that vote shows Democrats are becoming increasingly more open to addressing the illegal immigration issue, said, “Absolutely.”

“I mean, look, this should be an American issue, like we want legal immigrants to come here safely, securely in a way that benefits this country, not by breaking into this country, paying drug cartel members who rape them and beat them along the journey,” Moreno said. “It’s the most disgusting way to welcome migrants to this country, especially fake asylum claims. We have a bill that’s going to stop that.”

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Mayor Brandon Johnson responds to a question during a news conference on Oct. 7, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

“Look, if you’re a true refugee, we’re going to have a safe process for you to come to this country. If you’re an economic migrant, you got to wait in line. You can’t use asylum as a way to skip a line ahead of millions of people, which is fundamentally unfair. And I think a lot of Democrats will come on board with my bill.”

Moreno recently introduced the Refugees Using Legal Entry Safely (RULES) Act, which aims to reform the way asylum seekers enter the United States.

Democratic New York City Mayor Eric Adams will have a limited public schedule this week, with his office saying that he will be undergoing medical tests. 

“Over the last few days, Mayor Adams hasn’t been feeling his best,” New York City Deputy Mayor for Communications Fabien Levy said in a statement. Levy did not specify a condition or medical concern.  

ADAM SAYS NYC IS COORDINATING WITH ICE AS MASS MIGRANT DEPORTATIONS LOOM

“As a result, this week, the mayor will have a number of doctors’ appointments and undergo routine medical tests,” Levy continued. “While Mayor Adams will continue to communicate constantly with staff and ensure city business continues undeterred, during this time, the mayor will have a limited public schedule.”

New York City Mayor Eric Adams speaks during a news conference outside Gracie Mansion, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in New York.  (Rashid Umar Abbasi for Fox News Digital)

Adams’ office said that New Yorkers City Hall would continue its everyday functions as Adams focuses on his health this week.

NYC MAYOR ADAMS TO ATTEND INAUGURATION AT TRUMP TEAM’S REQUEST

“New Yorkers can rest assured that their local government will continue to deliver for them every day as our committed workforce at City Hall, and more than 300,000 employees at dozens of city agencies, continue to show up on the most important issues,” Levy said. “Like every other New Yorker, Mayor Adams has a right to privacy when it comes to personal matters, but we will continue to communicate in the unlikely event he is unable to fully discharge his duties on any particular day.”

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The Air Force has resumed a course on the first Black pilots unit that was temporarily yanked to ensure compliance with President Donald Trump’s executive order banning DEI in the federal government. 

Following backlash from legislators and even the new Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the Air Force claimed reports it had yanked a course teaching new recruits about the 15,000 Black pilots, mechanics and cooks in the segregated Army of World War II known as the Tuskegee Airmen were “inaccurate.” 

However, Hegseth wrote on X Sunday that the course’s removal had been “immediately reversed.”

Lt. Gen. Brian Robinson, Air Education and Training Command commander, said in a statement that the segment that included videos on the Tuskegee Airmen was temporarily yanked on Jan. 23 because a section of it that included DEI material was directed to be removed.

A video on the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP), a paramilitary group of female pilots in World War II, was also temporarily removed.

From left to right, Tuskegee Airmen pilots Lt. Colonel Washington Ross, Lt. Col. Harry Stewart, Colonel Charles McGee and Lt. Col. Alexander Jefferson stand next to a Tuskegee Army Airfield AY-6 Texan fighter plane during a ceremony to honor the airmen at Selfridge National Airbase in Harrison Township, Michigan, on June 19, 2012.

“We believe this adjustment to curriculum to be fully aligned with the direction given in the DEI executive order,” he said. “No curriculum or content highlighting the honor and valor of the Tuskegee Airmen or Women Air Force Service Pilots has been removed from Basic Military Training.”

TRUMP’S CRACKDOWN ON TRANS TROOPS: NEW ORDER NIXES PREFERRED PRONOUNS AND RESTRICTS FACILITY USE

“No Airmen or Guardians will miss this block of instruction due to the revision, however, one group of trainees had the training delayed. The revised training, which focuses on the documented historic legacy and decorated valor with which these units and airmen fought for our nation in World War II and beyond will continue on 27 January.”

Gen. David Allvin, Air Force chief of staff, explained further, “Allow me to clearly dispel a rumor – while we are currently reviewing all training courses to ensure compliance with the executive orders, no curriculum or content highlighting the honor and valor of the Tuskegee Airmen or Women Air Force Service Pilots has been removed from Basic Military Training.”

Some 14,000 Tuskegee Airmen served in World War II, including hundreds of its now legendary fighter pilots. (Tuskegee University Archives)

“From day one, I directed our Air Force to implement all directives outlined in the Executive Orders issued by the president swiftly and professionally – no equivocation, no slow-rolling, no foot-dragging. When policies change, it is everyone’s responsibility to be diligent and ensure all remnants of the outdated policies are appropriately removed, and the new ones are clearly put in place,” he went on in a statement. 

“Despite some inaccurate opinions expressed in reporting recently, our Air Force is faithfully executing all the president’s executive orders. Adhering to policy includes fully aligning our force with the direction given in the DEI executive order. Disguising and renaming are not compliance, and I’ve made this clear. If there are instances of less-than-full compliance, we will hold those responsible accountable.”

Before the Air Force announced it would resume training on the airmen on Monday, Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., had accused it of “malicious compliance.” 

“I have no doubt Secretary Hegseth will correct and get to the bottom of the malicious compliance we’ve seen in recent days. President Trump celebrated and honored the Tuskegee Airmen during his first term,” she said. 

Tuskegee Airmen pictured in 1945. (Tuskegee University Archives)

PETE HEGSETH CONFIRMED TO LEAD PENTAGON AFTER VP VANCE CASTS TIE-BREAKING VOTE

“Amen! We’re all over it, Senator. This will not stand,” Hegseth echoed.

WASP were vital to ferrying warplanes throughout World War II. The Tuskegee Airmen, an active fighter unit from 1940 to 1952, were the first soldiers who flew during World War II. The group destroyed more than 100 German aircraft. 

The nation’s armed forces were not desegregated until 1948, under an executive order from then-President Harry Truman. 

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Trump is expected to issue a new executive order focused on rooting out DEI in the military on Monday, in addition to one restricting accommodations for transgender troops. Another executive order will reinstate service members who were fired over refusing the COVID-19 vaccine. 

Vice President JD Vance’s political team, including two top advisors, are joining Vivek Ramaswamy’s soon-to-be announced 2026 Ohio gubernatorial run, a source with knowledge confirmed to Fox News.

The news follows conversations between Ramaswamy and Vance, who until he stepped down earlier this month to assume the vice presidency was a senator from Ohio, added the operative, who asked to remain anonymous to speak more freely.

Ramaswamy, a multimillionaire biotech entrepreneur and former Republican presidential candidate, for weeks has been putting the pieces together to launch a gubernatorial campaign in the race to succeed GOP Gov. Mike DeWine of Ohio, who is term-limited and cannot seek re-election.

“Expect Vivek to announce his candidacy in mid-February,” the source told Fox News.

RAMASWAMY DONE AT DOGE AS HE HEADS BACK ON CAMPAIGN TRAIL

Vivek Ramaswamy and Kristi Noem applaud during President Donald Trump’s inauguration at the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 20, 2025. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters/Pool)

Ramaswamy was among the contenders who challenged President Donald Trump for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination before dropping out of the race and becoming a top Trump ally and surrogate.

The two Vance advisors are Andy Surabian and Jai Chabria, who played major roles in Vance’s 2022 Senate race and in his vice presidential campaign last summer and autumn, after Trump named the first-term senator as his running mate.

MUSK AND RAMASWAMY IGNITE MAGA WAR OVER SKILLED WORKER IMIMGRATION

The Ohio-based Chabria, a veteran in Buckeye State politics, is expected to serve as the Ramaswamy campaign’s general consultant.

Surabian, who is also a top advisor to Donald Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son and a top figure in the MAGA movement, will steer an outside political group allied with Ramaswamy.

Tony Fabrizio, the veteran Republican pollster who worked on Trump’s 2016 and 2024 campaigns, as well as Vance’s 2022 Senate campaign, is also on board, according to the source, as is Arthur Schwartz, another close ally to Vance and Donald Trump Jr.

Vice President JD Vance speaks prior to swearing in Pete Hegseth as Defense secretary of Defense in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus, Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)

Vance, who has known Ramaswamy since they both studied at Yale Law School, has put his imprint on Ohio politics since winning his 2022 Senate election in the one-time key battleground state that has shifted to the right over the past decade.

Vance endorsed now-Sen. Bernie Moreno ahead of his 2024 GOP Senate primary victory, and key members of Vance’s political team steered Moreno’s campaign.

“It should not come as a surprise that JD’s top operatives are working with Vivek, given that JD and Vivek have had a longtime friendship,” a source in Vance’s political orbit told Fox News.

A longtime Ohio-based Republican operative, who asked for anonymity to speak more freely, said Vance is “sending a message” with this move.

He added that the advisors joining the Ramaswamy effort are “an all-star caliber campaign team.”

CLICK HERE FOR THE LATEST FOX NEWS REPORTING ON VIVEK RAMASWAMY

Also part of that team, according to the source, are three veterans from Ramaswamy’s White House campaign – Ben Yoho, Mike Biundo and Chris Grant.

Ramaswamy, who’s now 39 years old, launched his presidential campaign in February 2023 and quickly saw his stock rise as he went from a long shot to a contender for the Republican nomination.

He campaigned on what he called an “America First 2.0” agenda and was one of Trump’s biggest supporters in the field of rivals, calling Trump the “most successful president in our century.”

Ramaswamy dropped his White House bid a year ago after a distant fourth-place finish in the Iowa caucuses and quickly endorsed Trump, becoming a top surrogate on the campaign trail.

Trump, in the days after his November presidential election victory, named Elon Musk, the world’s richest person, along with Ramaswamy, to steer the Department of Government Efficiency initiative, which is better known by its acronym DOGE.

Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy arrive at the U.S. Capitol to discuss their efforts leading DOGE, in December. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

But last Monday, as Trump was inaugurated, the new administration announced that Ramaswamy was no longer serving at DOGE. Ramaswamy’s exit appears to clear the way for Musk, Trump’s top donor and key ally, to steer DOGE without having to share the limelight.

“It was my honor to help support the creation of DOGE. I’m confident that Elon & team will succeed in streamlining government. I’ll have more to say very soon about my future plans in Ohio. Most importantly, we’re all-in to help President Trump make America great again!,” Ramaswamy wrote. 

DeWine announced a week and a half ago that Lt. Gov. Jon Husted would fill the U.S. Senate seat that was held by Vance until he stepped down ahead of the Trump/Vance inauguration.

Before the Senate announcement, Husted had planned to run for governor in 2026 to succeed DeWine. Ramaswamy, for his part, had expressed interest in serving in the Senate. 

Gov. Mike DeWine announces his appointment of Lt. Gov. Jon Husted, right, to fill the U.S. Senate seat formerly held by Vice President-elect JD Vance, on Jan. 17, 2025, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Julie Carr Smyth)

DeWine’s decision to choose Husted to fill the vacant Senate seat appeared to accelerate Ramaswamy’s move toward launching a run for governor.

Sen. Rick Scott of Florida, a major Trump ally in the Senate, on Monday endorsed Ramswamy’s all-but-certain gubernatorial bid.

“I’ve had the privilege of working closely with Vivek G. Ramaswamy, and he is totally focused on trying to save our country,” Scott said in a social media post.

The race for the GOP gubernatorial nomination could be competitive. Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, 68, announced late last week his candidacy for governor.

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Ramaswamy’s move to run for governor also comes a couple of weeks after he and Musk sparked a firestorm among Trump’s hard core MAGA supporters over their support for H-1B temporary worker visas for highly skilled workers from foreign countries.

Ramaswamy’s comments criticizing an American culture that he said “venerated mediocrity over excellence” received plenty of pushback from some leading voices on the right as well as some in Trump’s political circle.

Ohio, which was once a top general election battleground, has shifted red over the past decade as Republicans have dominated statewide elections.

President Donald Trump is expected to sign a new executive order restricting transgender troops from serving in the military on Monday. 

The new order requires Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to update medical standards to ensure they “prioritize readiness and lethality” and take action to “end the use of invented and identification-based pronouns” within DOD, per a White House document reviewed by Fox News Digital. 

The order also restricts sleeping, changing and bathing facilities by biological sex. It’s not an immediate ban, but a direction for the secretary of Defense to implement such policies. 

It revokes former President Joe Biden’s executive order the White House argues “allowed for special circumstances to accommodate ‘gender identity’ in the military – to the detriment of military readiness and unit cohesion.”

The order builds on another directive Trump issued last week that revoked a Biden-era order allowing transgender people to serve in the military. 

DEFENSE SECRETARY PETE HEGSETH SAYS ‘NO MORE DEI AT DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE’: ‘NO EXCEPTIONS’

On the campaign trail, Trump promised to reinstate the ban on transgender troops he imposed during his first term. In his inauguration speech, he said he would formally recognize that there are only two genders: male and female.

Trump’s new order requires Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to update medical standards to ensure they “prioritize readiness and lethality” and take action to “end the use of invented and identification-based pronouns.” (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

There are an estimated 9,000 to 14,000 transgender service members – exact figures are not publicly available.

Between Jan. 1, 2016, and May 14, 2021, the DOD reportedly spent approximately $15 million on providing gender-affirming care (surgical and nonsurgical care) to 1,892 active duty service members, according to Congressional Research Service. 

The move comes as part of a campaign taken up by Trump and Hegseth to weed out any diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices across the military. And GOP lawmakers successfully included an amendment in their 2025 defense policy bill that bans irreversible transgender care for minors in the military healthcare system.

Advocates protest Trump’s transgender military ban in his first administration.

Hegseth, pictured embracing his kids after his confirmation, has promised to root out DEI within the military. (Roberto Schmidt/AFP)

WHITE HOUSE OPM ORDERS ALL DEI OFFICES TO BEGIN CLOSING BY END OF DAY WEDNESDAY

A day-one order banning DEI policies across the federal government has already sidelined 395 bureaucrats, Fox News Digital reported. 

An order requiring the federal government to only recognize two genders has prohibited the use of taxpayer money for “transgender services” following reports that some inmates were receiving transgender care funded by the government. Medicaid, in some states, currently covers such treatments. 

Also, under that order, federal prisons and shelters for migrants and rape victims are to be segregated by biological sex. It would block requirements at government facilities and at workplaces that transgender people be referred to using pronouns that align with their gender. Trump’s team says those requirements violate the First Amendment’s freedom of speech and religion.

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The order does not issue a nationwide mandate on which bathrooms transgender people can use or which sports competitions they can participate in, though many states have passed laws in those areas.

EXCLUSIVE: Female Republicans in Congress are fighting to change the decadeslong narrative that paints Democrats as the party of women, hoping it transcends to significant gains in future elections.

“We’ve got to get back to our roots of being the party of women,” Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., told Fox News Digital. “I don’t know why we ever allowed the Democrats to hijack the narrative and claim to be the party of women. That’s bull.”

Other GOP lawmakers who spoke with Fox News Digital about this story noted that cost of living, a cornerstone issue for Republicans in the last election, was as much a women’s issue as anyone else’s.

Republicans have also passed several bills since winning that election that have put women at the focus of conservative policy changes on transgender youth and border security.

‘A BIG RELIEF’: NC RESIDENTS DESCRIBE MEETING WITH TRUMP AFTER FEELING ‘IGNORED’ POST-HURRICANE

From left to right, Reps. Nancy Mace, Nicole Malliotakis, and Ashley Hinson are at the forefront of the GOP’s push to appeal to women. (Getty Images)

“You should not let the Democrat Party tell you they’re the party of women if they can’t even define what a woman is. So we are going to continue to be strong advocates for young women and girls, whether that’s in professional spaces, in bathrooms or in sports,” said Rep. Ashley Hinson, R-Iowa, referencing a recently passed bill keeping biological male student athletes out of girls’ sports teams and locker rooms.

Hinson said she is “a working mom fighting for other working moms.”

“Women are oftentimes the most important decision makers in a household, for example. So, when I’m thinking about economic indicators, how are we going to get more women in the workforce? How can we empower more women and families? How can we support more women in sports?” Hinson posed.

Historically, Malliotakis pointed out, it was Republicans who led passage of the 19th Amendment that secured women the right to vote. She also pointed out that it was under President Donald Trump that a museum dedicated to women’s history was authorized.

TRUMP WARNS FEMA FACES RECKONING AFTER BIDEN ADMIN: ‘NOT DONE THEIR JOB’

Rep. Nicole Malliotakis pointed out that a Smithsonian women’s museum was authorized during President Donald Trump’s first term. (Donald Trump 2024 campaign)

“President Trump authorized in 2020 the Smithsonian Women’s History Museum. And Joe Biden did nothing with it for four years,” Malliotakis said. ” “I’ve been pushing a land transfer for the Smithsonian women’s museum to be built, and I think it makes total sense that we would be the party that would do this, considering our history.”

As a voting bloc, women have favored Democrats and the left in recent history.

Democrats have also blamed Republicans for the conservative-leaning Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade, a move that did appear to translate to electoral success in the 2022 midterms.

Progressives were also historically the biggest supporters of the Equal Rights Amendment, legislation that was pushed primarily during the second-wave feminist movement.

However, Republican women like Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., are now arguing that bills like hers, which would deport illegal immigrants who commit sex crimes against women and other Americans, are what it takes to protect women.

Freshman Rep. Julie Fedorchak pointed out she was the highest vote-getter in her state this past year. (AP Photo/Jack Dura)

“MAGA is the new feminist,” Mace wrote on X this month.

Additionally, Rep. Julie Fedorchak, R-N.D., one of the few Republican women in the 119th Congress’ freshmen class, pointed out that her own story was a testament to GOP meritocracy.

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“I was the largest vote-getter in my whole state out of anybody, as a woman, as the first congresswoman in our state. So I think more than anything else, people want folks who are primed for the job, who are competent and ready,” Fedorchak said.

“The cost of everything, making ends meet, helping women manage their multiple roles, getting government out of their lives, helping reinforce the role of parents…these are things that are women’s issues.”

A special legislative session called by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to take up a series of proposals to help implement President Donald Trump‘s immigration crackdown gets underway on Monday.

However, with pushback from top Republican lawmakers who call the session “premature,” it is unclear if any measures will be considered.

DeSantis wants lawmakers to pass bills that would support the president’s flurry of immigration and border executive orders, signed since last Monday’s inauguration, and Trump’s plans for mass deportation of illegal immigrants.

‘THANK YOU RON’ – TRUMP PRAISES DESANTIS IMMIGRATION PUSH IN FLORIDA 

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, left, speaks as Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, right, listens before President-elect Donald Trump talks at a meeting with Republican governors at Mar-a-Lago on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, in Palm Beach, Florida. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

The governor wants to mandate that Florida’s counties and cities participate in the federal deportation program and wants the power to suspend officials who do not comply. He is also proposing to make it a state crime to enter the nation illegally, and he wants to mandate that people show identification and their immigration status before sending money back home.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION MOVES QUICKLY ON IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT

“We’ve got to make sure that we are working hand-in-hand with the Trump administration,” DeSantis emphasized last week in an interview on Fox News’ “Ingraham Angle.”

He added that the special legislative session would help “to facilitate the Trump administration’s mission.”

The Florida State Capitol Building, as seen in Tallahassee, Florida.  (Mark Wallheiser/Getty Images)

Eleven bills were filed on the eve of the special session by Florida lawmakers. Among them are measures to create a state immigration czar and to allow the governor to activate the national and state guards for immigration enforcement.

Under Florida’s constitution, if the governor calls for a special session, lawmakers are obligated to show up at the capitol in Tallahassee. However, the top Republicans in the state House and Senate say that while they support Trump’s immigration efforts, the special session is unnecessary with the regularly scheduled legislative session scheduled for early March.

“It’s not premature,” DeSantis told Fox News. “We’ve been waiting four years to have a partner in Washington, D.C., on this issue. We have a sense of urgency. We have to get the job done. No more dragging your feet.” 

DeSantis, who waged a bitter and unsuccessful primary challenge against Trump for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, was praised by the then-president-elect earlier this month.

“Thank you Ron, hopefully other governors will follow!” Trump wrote in a social media post after DeSantis announced the special session.

Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, center, speaks at a campaign stop in Hampton, New Hampshire, on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024. (Paul Steinhauser/Fox News)

However, the pushback by GOP state lawmakers over the calling of the special session is a dramatic turn of events for DeSantis, who long enjoyed massive influence over the Florida legislature, especially after his nearly 20-point re-election in 2022.

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Following his unsuccessful 2024 White House bid, the lame duck governor does not appear to have the same clout over lawmakers that he once enjoyed.

Pushing back against opposition to his plans, DeSantis has warned that any lawmaker who stood in his way over the special session would pay a political price.

While nearly two dozen states are suing to stop President Donald Trump’s executive order ending birthright citizenship for the children of illegal immigrants, some legal experts, such as Hans von Spakovsky with the Heritage Foundation, say the order is perfectly legal under the 14th Amendment and should be upheld by the courts.

“I strongly believe that Donald Trump is correct, that we need to enforce the 14th Amendment as it was originally intended,” Spakovsky told Fox News Digital. “No doubt there will be lawsuits against it, it’ll get to the U.S. Supreme Court, and if the court follows the actual legislative intent and history, they will uphold what Donald Trump has done.”

As Trump has moved quickly to clamp down on illegal immigration, his most controversial move yet was to issue an executive order ending birthright citizenship for children of illegal immigrants.

The order titled the “Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship” states that “the privilege of United States citizenship does not automatically extend to persons born in the United States” when that person’s parents are either unlawfully present in the U.S. or when the parents’ presence is lawful but temporary.

TRUMP ADMIN HITS BACK AS ACLU LAUNCHES LAWSUIT ON BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP: ‘READY TO FACE THEM’

Migrants in Brooklyn; President Trump (Getty Images)

Twenty-two Democrat-led states and the ACLU are suing to stop the order, arguing that it violates the 14th Amendment, which states, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.”

The lawsuit argues that “the President has no authority to rewrite or nullify a constitutional amendment or duly enacted statute. Nor is he empowered by any other source of law to limit who receives United States citizenship at birth.”

However, Spakovsky, who is a senior legal fellow at the Heritage Foundation and an authority on civil rights and immigration, told Fox News Digital that the 14th Amendment was never meant to include the children of individuals in the country illegally or temporarily and that this broad interpretation has led to widespread “birth tourism” and abuse.

He said the key phrase often overlooked today is “subject to the jurisdiction thereof,” which necessitates the immigrants’ loyalties be to the U.S., not to some foreign power.

TRUMP’S HOUSE GOP ALLIES PUSH BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP BILL AFTER PROGRESSIVE FURY AT PRESIDENTIAL ORDER

A man plays with a child while waiting with other migrants from Venezuela near a bus station after being released from U.S. Border Patrol custody in El Paso, Texas, Sept. 13, 2022. (REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez)

“The 14th Amendment has two key clauses in it. One, you have to be born in the United States, but you also have to be subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. All those who push birthright citizenship just point to that first phrase and ignore the second,” he said. “I’ve done a lot of research on this. I’ve looked at the original passage of the 14th Amendment and what that phrase meant subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. According to the original sponsors of the 14th Amendment in Congress was that you owed your political allegiance to the United States and not a foreign government.” 

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“That means that children born of aliens who are in this country, and it doesn’t matter whether they’re here legally, illegally, as diplomats; if their parents are foreign citizens when they are born they are citizens of their parents’ native land, they owe their political allegiance to and are subject to the jurisdiction of those native lands, not the United States. So, they are not citizens of the U.S.,” he said.

According to Spakovsky, the 14th Amendment, which was ratified after the Civil War to acknowledge citizenship for former slaves and their descendants, was not used to confer birthright citizenship to illegal aliens until more than 100 years after it was adopted by Congress. 

PRESIDENT TRUMP’S BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP EXECUTIVE ORDER FACES LEGAL CHALLENGES FROM 22 STATES

President Donald Trump participates in a ceremony commemorating the 200th mile of border wall at the international border with Mexico in San Luis, Ariz., on June 23, 2020. (SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

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As Democrats and left-wing groups prepare to launch a legal war with the Trump administration over the order, Spakovsky said he is confident the Supreme Court will rule in Trump’s favor.

“The problem with birthright citizenship is it gives rights as an American citizen to individuals who have absolutely no loyalty to and no connection to the U.S. government, our culture, our society,” he said. “The Supreme Court should uphold it because the original meaning of the 14th Amendment is clearly not recognizing birthright citizenship.”

It’s the second week of the second Trump presidency, and Mike Pence has some concerns. 

Coming off a trip to Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore, the former vice president is more convinced than ever of the need for the U.S. to stand strong against China and bolster Taiwan’s defenses. 

“There seems to be this suggestion on both sides of a certain thawing in relations, which in principle I welcome, but not compromising on principles,” he told a small group of reporters at the Advancing American Freedom office in Washington, D.C. 

And in the new Trump 2.0, Pence is convinced that his brand of neoconservatism is not dead, at least not yet. 

“There have been voices of isolationism that have been emerging in our party of late,” he said. “I’m not yet convinced that they represent the president’s views.” 

The former vice president does not believe the 2024 election was a referendum on interventionist policy. 

TRUMP’S ‘BLACKLIST’: PRESIDENT-ELECT DESCRIBES THE TYPE OF PEOPLE HE DOESN’T WANT TO HIRE

It’s the second week of the Trump presidency, and Mike Pence has some concerns. (Siavosh Hosseini/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

“I don’t think people were voting for isolationism in 2024.”

But Pence refused to endorse President Donald Trump in the 2024 election. Pence and Trump fell out after the January 6th Capitol riot, and Trump, in turn, recently suggested that he wouldn’t hire anyone who had worked for his former second-in-command.

“There are loud voices, both inside and outside the administration that are calling on America to pull back from, whether it be Eastern Europe, the Asia Pacific, and even some are calling for us to pull back on our longstanding support for Israel,” Pence went on.

“One of the things we want to be, Advancing American Freedom and whatever remains of my bully pulpit, is to be an anchor to windward for traditional conservatism within the Republican Party.”

In Hong Kong, Pence stood in front of 2,000 people and called for authorities to release Jimmy Lai, an imprisoned media mogul and pro-democracy activist, to the audible gasps of the crowd. 

Back at home, he’s calling on Trump to “reconsider” the U.S.-Nippon Steel merger that Biden stopped.

He is also worried his former boss does not fully grasp the dangers of TikTok, after Trump’s newfound embrace of the video-sharing platform where he enjoys 15 million followers. He signed an executive order this week giving TikTok another 75 days in operation after Congress passed a law last year forcing them to divest from Chinese-owned ByteDance or face a ban in the U.S. 

“I am concerned that the administration doesn’t fully appreciate the issues that animated the need for divestment,” said Pence. 

“People that are in their 20s and 30s today could be in the Senate – in the House in 10 years. The fact that the Chinese Communist Party is collecting data on Americans, whatever their age or experience is, is not something to be dismissed.”

The former vice president said that China is trying to infiltrate public opinion in Taiwan ahead of a possible invasion to try to take over the island. 

“The CCP thinks the principal value of TikTok is the ability to impact public opinion at a critical moment,” he said. “When I met with leadership in Taiwan, on TikTok they said, in effect, they’re dealing with an onslaught of social media propaganda coming out of China into Taiwan, trying to set the stage for whatever action, economic, political or hard power may be coming their way.” 

It was the first Trump administration that made tough-on-China policies go mainstream, according to Pence. 

TRUMP’S LATEST HIRES AND FIRES RANKLE IRAN HAWKS AS NEW PRESIDENT SUGGESTS NUCLEAR DEAL

“I am convinced that our administration changed the national consensus on China,” he said. “I would point out that President Biden never undid the $250 billion in tariffs that we imposed.”

Pence said he is also worried about Tulsi Gabbard, the former Democratic congresswoman-turned Republican whom Trump has nominated to be his director of national intelligence. 

She has “at times over the last two years, been an apologist for Putin. And, you know, has a history of being critical of the use of American power,” said Pence.

“I think, if memory serves, she actually criticized when we took out [top Iranian general] Qassem Soleimani.”

Trump suggested that he might want to sit down with Iran and work on a new nuclear deal on Thursday. But Pence said he trusts the new administration, particularly officials like Secretary of State Marco Rubio and national security adviser Michael Waltz, not to get taken for a ride by Iran. 

Pence and Trump shake hands at Jimmy Carter’s funeral. (Getty Images)

“The first order of business is to go back to isolating around economically, and diplomatically, and making it clear that different from the Iran nuclear deal there, there would have to be a sea change in any policy regarding nuclear weapons or the state of Israel.”

“I trust that the administration will be very cautious in any of those interactions.”  

Pence’s group has already come out with a campaign in opposition to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. 

Pence is pictured at Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20.

To do that, the former vice president said he would be anything but retired from public life. He plans to continue to advocate for increasing defense spending – 5% of GDP is his current goal – and to use his voice to convince elected officials to stand strong with America’s friends and boost deterrent measures to prevent a Chinese invasion of Taiwan. 

The U.S. has a longstanding policy of ambiguity when it comes to whether it would actually stand shoulder-to-shoulder on the ground with Taiwan if China were to invade. Even in private life, Pence isn’t ready to say whether that would be the right move. 

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“There’s an old saying, ‘Never say what you’ll never do,'” he said. 

“We ought to have one hand extended in friendship in exchange, and the other hand resting comfortably on the holster of the arsenal of democracy.”

Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., noted that a Boy Scout proposed a policy of not taxing workers younger than age 18.

The congressman from the Bluegrass State listed several reasons why he loves the idea.

“A 15 yr old Boy Scout working on his merit badge just sent me this idea: No taxes on workers under 18 yrs old. I love it because: 1. They need experience to pick a college major 2. They need to develop a work ethic 3. The economy needs more workers 4. They don’t get to vote,” Massie wrote in a post on X.

MASSIE AND OTHER REPUBLICANS PUSH ‘NATIONAL CONSTITUTIONAL CARRY ACT’ TO PROTECT AMERICANS’ GUN RIGHTS

Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., is seen outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, December 18, 2024 (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Someone responded to the lawmaker, suggesting that youths “don’t make enough money for the most part and get it back when they file taxes. It is a good lesson on how to file taxes and gives them a chance to get a return,” the person opined.

Massie replied, “Sounds like conditioning to be sheeple. Hard pass.”

Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., indicated that high minimum wages box young people out of the job market.

REPUBLICAN LAWMAKERS PUSH TO ABOLISH ‘UNCONSTITUTIONAL’ ATF

Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., speaks with reporters as she leaves the U.S. Capitol for the weekend on May 17, 2024 in Washington, D.C. ( Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

“So many of our youth have lost the opportunity to enter the workforce due to high minimum wage requirements. High taxes, insurance, and paid leave requirements are a few of many issues as well. Small business owners are unable to invest in first-time workers or provide them with skills training for their future,” she tweeted.

“Great points!” Massie replied.

He has previously suggested that the U.S. should nix the federal income tax entirely.

MASSIE DROPS COLORFUL ANALOGY OPPOSING FOREIGN AID, MOCKS SPEAKER JOHNSON WITH AI-GENERATED IMAGE

Left: Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., during a House Oversight and Accountability Committee hearing in Washington, D.C., on Monday, July 22, 2024; Center: Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., is seen outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2024; Right: Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, attends the inauguration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 20, 2025 in Washington, D.C. (Left: Tierney L. Cross/Bloomberg via Getty Images; Center: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images; Right: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

“The federal income tax was unconstitutional for most of our [country’s] existence. The founders of this country would have never agreed to it. We should repeal it,” he tweeted in February 2024.

Massie has also spoken out against foreign aid.

“My position of ‘no foreign aid’ might sound extreme to some, but it’s far more extreme to force future generations of Americans into indentured servitude to our foreign creditors,” he noted in a 2023 post.