NationalWatch

FIRST ON FOX: Lonnie Bunch III, the Smithsonian Institution secretary who called DEI an “integral to excellence in museum practice,” raked in over $4.4 million from 2020-2024 in base salary and added benefits, a Fox News Digital review found.

While the Smithsonian funds executive compensation through private trust revenues to comply with federal pay caps, the high-dollar package could draw fresh scrutiny because federal taxpayers still fund roughly 60% of the institution’s overall budget.

During his tenure, Bunch has championed a sweeping transformation of the institution’s cultural footprint, stating during a 2019 interview with the Smithsonian Magazine that he wanted the Smithsonian to make “diversity and inclusion so central that it’s no longer talked about.”

“We call ourselves the Great Convener, but we’re really a great legitimizer. And I want the Smithsonian to legitimize important issues, whether it’s 1619 or climate change,” Bunch said, referring to the controversial 1619 Project that has been repeatedly slammed for “egregious errors” by scholars. “We help people think about what’s important, what they should debate, what they should embrace.”

FORMER DEMOCRATIC STAFFERS, DEI LEADERS SHAPE SMITHSONIAN LEADERSHIP AMID POLITICAL FIRESTORM

“Everybody that thought about the 1619 Project, whether they liked it or disagreed with it, saw that the Smithsonian had fingerprints on it. And that to me was a great victory,” he added.

As secretary, Bunch reports to the organization’s board of regents and oversees the Smithsonian’s 21 museums, 21 libraries, the National Zoo and several research centers. Within the organization, the departments of the deputy secretary, chief operating officer and external affairs report to him.

While Bunch’s current salary is not public yet, the Smithsonian Institution’s 990 tax forms from 2020 to 2024 show that he has raked in millions of dollars, including a salary of $915,469 with $74,090 in added benefits in 2024. Other years range from $726,156 to $861,379 for his salary and up to $68,391 in added benefits.

In addition to the interview, he co-wrote a policy framework resource titled “Excellence in DEAI,” an acronym for Diversity, Equity, Accessibility and Inclusion, which was written for the American Alliance of Museums. 

Bunch further elaborated on his views on diversity in this 17-page document, which says that museums should “embed responsibility and accountability for implementing DEAI policies and processes into operations, job descriptions, and performance reviews at all levels of the institution, from the board of directors, c-level executives, and senior leaders to middle managers, junior staff, and volunteers.”

“DEAI is integral to excellence in museum practice. FULL STOP,” Bunch wrote.

“Amid social, political and cultural polarization and clear structural racism and other forms of oppression in the United States and around the world, DEAI must be at the center of how we understand and practice excellence in our institutions,” he added.

SMITHSONIAN PUSHED ‘REVOLTING’ SOCIAL ACTION TRAINING AFTER ‘WHITENESS’ CHART APOLOGY: EXPERT

Bunch’s comments, along with statements from other Smithsonian leadership members, have prompted scrutiny from the Trump administration. In a report titled Saving America’s Story, the administration raised concerns that the organization had taken on a clear political bent.

“Confirmed in the words of museum leadership, this ideological capture has moved the museum’s mission away from straightforward historical education and scholarship toward an extreme political activism that seeks to transform our country,” the report reads.

For his part, Bunch has claimed that he sees himself as an apolitical actor without an agenda despite pushing for DEAI.

“What the country needs are places that are nonpartisan and safe, where people can grapple with what’s going on around them,” Bunch told Smithsonian Magazine.

The Smithsonian, which was established by Congress in 1846 as an independent federal trust, depends heavily on taxpayer dollars.

TRUMP ORDERS SIGNS OUTSIDE SMITHSONIAN MUSEUM AMID ROW OVER ITS DEPICTION OF AMERICAN HISTORY

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“Financially, the institution depends on the federal government for approximately two-thirds of its funding,” the organization stated in its 2025 management report.

Bunch did not immediately respond to requests for comment on whether he believes his political leanings are at odds with the Smithsonian’s overall purpose or whether federal funding should prevent the organization’s employees from furthering a stated agenda.

LOS ANGELES, CA – As new data show homelessness rising in Los Angeles, local activist John Alle said Mayor Karen Bass has neglected her responsibility to address the issue and witness firsthand the crime, drug use and deteriorating conditions in some of the city’s hardest-hit neighborhoods.

The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority released its 2026 annual homeless count Friday, finding overall homelessness increased 3.4% in LA and 1.2% across the Los Angeles Continuum of Care following two consecutive years of declines, though LAHSA said “neither change is considered statistically significant.”

The count estimated 45,194 people were experiencing homelessness in LA and 73,040 across the Continuum of Care, which excludes Long Beach, Pasadena and Glendale.

“She doesn’t get it. She doesn’t see it,” John Alle, a Santa Monica business owner and co-founder of the Santa Monica Coalition who owns properties across Los Angeles, told Fox News Digital in an interview last month.

KAREN BASS GRILLED OVER BROKEN HOMELESSNESS PROMISE, BLAMES BUREAUCRACY FOR SLOWED PROGRESS

“We’ve invited her numerous times to ride along with us through Alvarado, Third Street, Park View, MacArthur Park and Westlake. Come drive with us. Have a police officer follow behind for security. And she refused.”

The report also found street homelessness rose 7.9% in Los Angeles and 3.3% countywide, with an estimated 29,115 people living on the streets in the city. LAHSA said funding cuts affecting Time-Limited Subsidies and other economic factors reduced the number of people permanently housed by about 5,100 from the “record high of 28,625 people housed permanently in 2024.”

In a press release Thursday responding to the data, Bass argued funding cuts “at the federal and state levels” contributed to the rise, adding the Trump administration had “driven up the cost of gas, groceries, and rent — pushing more families to the edge — and slashed critical safety net funding.”

“For two years straight, we drove down homelessness by historic margins — but as expected, last year our efforts ultimately couldn’t keep up with policies and funding cuts at the federal and state levels that pushed more people onto the streets,” she said.

Bass also admitted in a May interview with CNN’s Elex Michaelson that she did not fulfill her promise to end street homelessness in the city by 2026 because she “didn’t anticipate some of the bureaucratic barriers” her administration would face.

Alle said crime has “gotten so bad” in neighborhoods including Little Bangladesh, which Bass has previously described as one of “LA’s most vibrant communities.”

“In Little Bangladesh, the crime is so bad that we’re finding people on the streets unconscious,” he said. “We’re having handymen pick up needles and dispose of them.”

SPENCER PRATT SAYS HIS POLICY WILL FORCE HOMELESS OUT OF LA AND INTO CITIES LIKE SEATTLE

Pointing to his tenants’ experiences, Alle said he sees the impact of the crisis every day on the “mom-and-pop” renters who live in his apartment buildings and pay thousands of dollars a month, saying “it doesn’t sit well with me.”

“From people overdosing outside the gated apartment buildings I own, to people attacking each other, murders, and calling 911 only to be put on hold for sometimes an hour, and then being told, ‘Well, you’re lucky. Sometimes it’s two hours,'” he said.

Alle accused Bass of ignoring neighborhood conditions despite living nearby at Getty House, the mayor’s official residence in Windsor Square.

“The streetlights are out,” he said. “The rubbish isn’t collected. The streets are dirty. It’s one thing to complain about copper wire theft, but we’re just talking about normal streetlights and replacing the bulbs.”

But it’s not just residents who are affected, according to Alle, who said small businesses are being forced to close early to avoid crime and making it harder to stay in the city.

“When I see them having to leave work at four o’clock, I see them having to close their businesses at four o’clock during the winter and at dusk during the summer,” he said. “That’s not good. I want them to succeed. If they don’t succeed, they can’t afford to stay in LA I feel for them, and their problems are my problems.”

HOUSING FIRST IS A DISASTER. I SAW SACRAMENTO’S HOMELESS CHAOS FIRSTHAND

Multiple studies have found that a large portion of homeless individuals in Los Angeles County aren’t originally from there and Alle has been vocal about how his coalition partnered with an artificial intelligence company to create an AI-powered hotline that has helped more than 40 homeless people return to their home states over the past year.

“They’ve called us from shelters,” he said. “They’ve called us from parks. The people calling aren’t entrenched with the drugs or the gangs. They came here for noble reasons.”

Additionally, Alle said his coalition collaborates with local law enforcement, paying for bus, plane or train tickets to help homeless people voluntarily return home, where they can reunite with family or enter treatment programs.

“We’re not gonna put them behind the slammer,” he said.

Alle said the most “heartbreaking” part is watching families embrace loved ones returning home, with many looking “completely different” after recovery.

“It’s a long road ahead, but they’re trying because they’ve seen hell in LA,” he said.

While acknowledging the program won’t end all homelessness, Alle said helping even a small number of people rebuild their lives is a victory.

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“One person saved is great. Fifteen percent, and the 40 people we’ve saved, is tremendous,” he said.

Bass will face off against progressive city councilwoman Nithya Raman, who has her own ties to the homeless crisis as chair of the Los Angeles City Council’s Housing and Homelessness Committee, in her bid to win another term as mayor in November.

A resurfaced video of Dr. Anthony Fauci’s 2021 door-to-door COVID-19 vaccine campaign is gaining renewed attention amid his contentious testimony before Congress on the federal handling of the pandemic.

The clip shows Fauci, then White House health advisor, and Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser visiting residents in the city’s Anacostia neighborhood to encourage them to get vaccinations. But the footage shows several skeptical residents challenging Fauci over the vaccines’ rapid development, long-term safety and the government’s messaging — exchanges that have become a flashpoint in the debate over the federal response.

And now that Fauci’s diary has been published and includes seemingly contradictory public statements versus private musings, his entire involvement has come under the microscope of his biggest critics.

“The people in America are not settled with the information that’s been given to us right now. So I’m not gonna be lining up taking a shot on a vaccination, for something that wasn’t clear in the first place, and then you all create a shot in miraculous time. It takes years to create,” said a Washington, D.C. resident in the video shot by PBS in response to Fauci’s vaccine push campaign.

DID THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION PURPOSEFULLY IGNORE COVID VACCINE SIDE EFFECTS?

Fauci and Bowser, who is leaving office at the conclusion of her current term, encouraged residents in the “historic African American neighborhood” of D.C. to get the vaccine, seemingly attempting to persuade skeptical residents and using Fauci as an expert to sway them.

“[If] thousands of people, like you, don’t get vaccinated, you’re going to let this virus continue to percolate in this country and in this world,” urged Bowser, standing alongside the nation’s top voice on the coronavirus at the time.

That resident pushed back, continuing to question the very swift timeline of the vaccine’s development and roll out. They compared it to the flu and expressed skepticism over why the government was incentivizing residents to get the jab.

FAUCI PRIVATELY TOOK CREDIT FOR COVID-19 LOCKDOWNS DESPITE PUBLIC DENIAL, NEWLY EXPOSED DIARY ENTRIES REVEAL

“Because when you start talking about paying people to get vaccinated, when you start talking about incentivizing things to get people vaccinated, there’s something else going on with that. Something else. It’s something else,” said the resident.

Critics on social media swiftly responded to the resurfaced clip.

“They’re terrified of a free-thinking black man. God bless this man,” wrote “The Riley Gaines Show” podcast Riley Gaines on X.

“Earlier this day, Fauci learned he had a blood clot in his lung. Yet he still beat on black people’s doors, telling them to get the COVID shots. And these (mad) scientists wonder why black Americans are leery of vaccines? Maybe they don’t want to be Tuskegee test rats again,” wrote Article III Project founder Mike Davis.

EXCLUSIVE: BIDEN PARDON WON’T SHIELD FAUCI IF HE LIES TO CONGRESS, COMER SAYS

“Never forget this brave American citizen that turned down getting a Covid vaccine and called out Fauci right to his face on camera,” wrote one user on X.

“What an absolute legend this guy… telling that narcissistic, deranged liar and his acolytes to GFT with their sh*tccine,” wrote Bitcoin miner Javier Hermonsa.

Fauci and Bowser both did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment on the video making its rounds on social media ahead of the retired medical advisor’s appearance in Congress on Wednesday.

Fauci was subpoenaed by Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Sen. Rand Paul to answer questions primarily about the U.S. government’s handling of COVID-19 and the origins of the virus.

Ahead of the hearing Wednesday morning, President Donald Trump blasted Fauci on Truth Social.

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“I Inherited Fauci, who was there since the 1980’s, but with each passing day, relied less and less on him. He made too many bad calls,” wrote Trump in part.

“Fauci was largely taken out of play, and then along came Sleepy Joe Biden, who made Fauci a ‘King!’ I called Biden to tell him Fauci was no good, either didn’t have a clue, or was dishonest. The call was well received, but sadly, not acted on. Biden went on to give Fauci vast destructive power,” he added.

During the hearing, Fauci repeatedly refused to answer substantive questions, invoking the Fifth Amendment against questions from lawmakers at least 111 times during the hearing.

Paul said the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs will hold a vote next week to “certify” Fauci’s contempt of Congress.

Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, tore into Dr. Anthony Fauci, who served as President Joe Biden’s chief medical advisor and was a key government spokesman during the COVID-19 pandemic, dropping an F-bomb during Wednesday’s congressional hearing.

Fauci was issued a subpoena by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., as part of a congressional investigation into the origins of COVID-19 and the federal government’s response to the pandemic. Paul, who chairs the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and his Republican colleagues have long accused Fauci of misleading Congress and the American people about the origins of the virus, federal funding for research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in the Chinese city where the virus first emerged and the nature of so-called gain-of-function research, which alters pathogens to study how they may become more transmissible or dangerous.

“Here I am sitting in front of you six years later saying, who the f–k do you think you were for doing that?” Moreno said. “It is a total disgrace what you did to this country.”

FAUCI PRIVATELY TOOK CREDIT FOR COVID-19 LOCKDOWNS DESPITE PUBLIC DENIAL, NEWLY EXPOSED DIARY ENTRIES REVEAL

Moreno’s remarks came after he argued the government’s COVID-19 guidance, including mask mandates, social distancing recommendations and school closures, harmed Americans. He said “moronic” politicians’ implementation of Fauci’s guidance led to arrests, recounting the story of an Ohio mother who was arrested for not wearing a mask during an outdoor high school football game.

“When that story broke, I said to myself, I cannot stand idly on the side and watch this happen,” Moreno said. “It was about six years ago today that I decided I’m going to give up my businesses, sell them all, run for office, run for the United States Senate.”

Moreno then asked Fauci whether he would apologize to the American people, prompting Fauci to invoke the Fifth Amendment. Throughout the hearing, Fauci invoked the Fifth Amendment more than 100 times rather than answer lawmakers’ questions.

RAND PAUL SEEKS CONTEMPT CHARGES AFTER FAUCI INVOKES FIFTH AMENDMENT MORE THAN 100 TIMES

At the beginning of his allotted time, Moreno called on audience members to stand if they had questioned the government’s COVID-19 guidelines and were made to feel “like less than a human being” or suffered consequences for failing to comply, such as being fired from their jobs or refusing the vaccine. Moreno’s request prompted audience members sitting behind Fauci to stand. Moreno asked Fauci to turn around and face them, but he refused.

Moreno accused Fauci of being more interested in rubbing elbows with celebrities such as Kim Kardashian, referring to a Zoom call Fauci participated in with her and more than a dozen other celebrities, than serving as a public health official.

Moreno’s fiery exchange with Fauci quickly drew praise from conservative commentators and Trump administration officials on social media.

“Fauci should go to jail. Full stop,” Fox News contributor Joe Concha wrote on X.

White House Communications Director Stephen Cheung praised Moreno’s line of questioning.

“Senator @BernieMoreno throwing a high-heat fastball!”

Jace Yarbrough, a Republican congressional candidate in Texas’ 32nd District and an Air Force veteran, thanked Moreno for confronting Fauci and described what he said was pressure placed on service members who declined the COVID-19 vaccine.

“I am one of the service members who refused the COVID shot,” Yarbrough wrote on X. “Many were removed from service, lost their livelihoods, or received career-ending reprimands simply for declining the shot.”

“Thank you @berniemoreno for taking this man to task and standing up for those who were targeted by his regime.”

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Philip Letsou, Moreno’s chief of staff, also reacted to the exchange, writing on X, “Never seen a moment quite like this in Congress.”

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“We have no comment on anything Senator Moreno had to say other than he is completely wrong,” David Schertler, Fauci’s attorney, said in an email to Fox News Digital.

The Trump administration is seeking to use a specialized federal court for the first time since Congress created it three decades ago in an effort to deport an Afghan woman accused of aiding an Islamic State-inspired terror plot in the U.S., according to court records made public on Wednesday.

Nazira Haji Zada, of Fort Worth, Texas, is the first person facing deportation through the Alien Terrorist Removal Court after her arrest earlier this week.

The court is scheduled to hold an initial hearing on Thursday in Washington, D.C., in the government’s effort to deport Haji Zada.

“The allegations in this case show the matriarch of an ISIS-sympathizing family aiding in a plot to launch a mass casualty attack on American voters on Election Day. The Department’s application in this court makes clear that terrorists have no place in the United States of America,” acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement.

‘SOMETHING BIG’: FEDS REVEAL HOW RELATIVES OF SUSPECTS IN FOILED WHITE HOUSE UFC PLOT SAW WARNING SIGNS

According to an FBI memo dated July 15, authorities “developed information” that Haji Zada supports the Islamic State and had her children pledge their loyalty to the terrorist group.

Haji Zada “supported” a plot by family members to carry out an ISIS-inspired attack in the U.S., according to the memo.

She was identified in court filings as the mother and mother-in-law of two Afghan men who were convicted in Oklahoma in connection with a 2024 Election Day terror plot.

Her son, Abdullah Haji Zada, was sentenced in November to 15 years behind bars. He previously agreed to be deported after his release from prison.

Haji Zada’s son-in-law, Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, who previously worked as a security guard for a U.S. military installation in Afghanistan, pleaded guilty to conspiring and attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State. Prosecutors said he attempted to advance his attack plans by ordering AK-47 rifles, liquidating his family’s assets and purchasing one-way tickets for his wife and child to travel back to Afghanistan.

The Alien Terrorist Removal Court was created in 1996 but never received a petition until this month, when the Justice Department filed an application attempting to deport Haji Zada.

The longtime-dormant court hears government applications seeking the removal of noncitizens alleged to qualify as “alien terrorists” under federal immigration law when the evidence supporting removal includes classified information.

FLORIDA CONGRESSMAN MOVES TO IMPEACH JUDGE WHO ORDERED CONVICTED CUBAN PLANE HIJACKER FREED FROM ICE

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“Congress created the Alien Terrorist Removal Court three decades ago to remove from the United States alien terrorists who never should have been here in the first place,” Blanche said.

The court is made up of five federal judges from various districts across the country who are appointed by the Supreme Court’s chief justice.

For the time being, the court says all proceedings will take place at the E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse in Washington.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

As the Democratic Party’s socialist wing racks up primary victories, one top Democrat is emphasizing that the party remains a big tent.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., dodged a question from Fox News on Wednesday about whether the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) platform has a place in the Democratic Party.

“[The] bottom line is Democrats from one end of the spectrum to the other are going to be working to defeat Trump, to bring down costs, to go after his corruption and to end the chaos,” Schumer replied at a leadership news conference.

The Senate minority leader did not elaborate on whether he agreed with the DSA’s call to abolish the Senate.

WATCH: HOUSE DEMS DODGE QUESTIONS ON SOCIALIST AGENDA THAT THREATENS TO ABOLISH KEY INSTITUTIONS

The Senate has frequently drawn criticism from socialists for giving equal power to all states and its 60-vote threshold requiring bipartisan consensus to pass most legislation.

The Senate abolition proposal is part of the DSA’s recent platform, “Workers Deserve More,” which also calls for scrapping the presidency and the Supreme Court in favor of representatives “chosen by” and “subordinate to” a unicameral Congress.

In the manifesto, the far-left group also calls for abolishing the police and prisons, defunding the Department of War, and dismantling capitalism.

The exchange comes as Schumer’s path to political power is increasingly colliding with the socialist movement’s growing strength.

After upsetting Democratic incumbents in New York City and Colorado this year, the DSA is attempting to keep its winning streak alive by electing more socialist candidates in upcoming primaries in Missouri and Michigan.

If Michigan Senate hopeful Abdul El-Sayed, a far-left candidate who has rejected the “socialist” label, wins the hotly contested Democratic primary, Schumer’s hopes of becoming Senate majority leader could depend on his victory in November.

The New York Democrat has thrown his support behind Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., who has consolidated support among the party’s establishment wing, in the key Senate race.

Schumer could also face a primary threat from the Democratic Party’s far-left flank if he seeks reelection in 2028.

DSA MEMBER LEADS DEM PRIMARY IN MIDWEST BATTLEGROUND BUT TRAILS LIKELY GOP NOMINEE: POLL

Some moderate Democrats have called on the party to take a harder line in rejecting the DSA.

“This isn’t a big tent—it’s anarchy,” Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., wrote on social media earlier this week. “Why can’t Dems call out the DSA?”

DSA co-chair Megan Romer affirmed the group supports many of these policy ideas during a recent interview with “Fox News Sunday.”

“[You’re advocating for] abolish[ing] the Senate?” Fox News’ Shannon Bream asked.

“True,” Romer responded.

“Replace the presidency and Supreme Court as we now know them?” Bream followed up.

“Yep,” Romer replied.

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“Abolish ICE?” Bream pressed.

“Absolutely,” Romer said.

Whether Democratic leaders embrace or distance themselves from the DSA will be a defining question heading into the November midterms.

The Senate took another small step toward levying sanctions against Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin and Iran in another massive, bipartisan vote.

Though not the final vote to pass the long-stalled effort, the latest successful bid to move a bone-crushing sanctions package once championed by the late Sen. Lindsey Graham is no less significant.

The upper chamber hopes to complete work on the package, renamed the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act, by next week. If successful, the long-awaited legislation will again be put on the shelf, albeit temporarily, until the House returns from its August recess.

‘A BIG EFFING DEAL’: GRAHAM’S FINAL MISSION MOVES FORWARD AFTER HIS DEATH

Still, lawmakers are confident they can get the bill through the next few hurdles and believe that it’s the best way to honor Graham, who made his final trip home to South Carolina on Wednesday for his funeral.

“This may turn out to be Lindsey Graham’s greatest legislative achievement in a stellar 32-year career,” Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., said.

The bill, which has gone through several iterations, still focuses on kneecapping Putin’s war machine in its ongoing fight with Ukraine. However, it reinserts sanctions targeting Iran’s weapons and energy sectors in the hopes of incentivizing a lasting peace deal as the war in the Middle East marches on.

PUTIN, RUSSIA PUT ON NOTICE AS SENATE TAKES CRUCIAL STEP TO GRIND DOWN THE KREMLIN’S WAR MACHINE

Key components of the legislation allow for up to 500% tariffs on Russian imports; tariffs of up to 100% on countries buying Russian energy, like China and India; and provides President Donald Trump flexibility for when to turn off some aspects of the sanctions.

Some Democrats have acknowledged that giving Trump tariff authority could give their colleagues heartburn, particularly after raging against his usage of duties during his second term.

Proponents of the bill brought in heavy artillery to convince Democratic skeptics in the form of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, a close ally of Graham’s, to win some key votes for the package.

LINDSEY GRAHAM’S FINAL MISSION NEARS FINISH LINE AS WORLD LEADERS GATHER TO HONOR HIM

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., said on the Senate floor that she was aware that some had raised concerns about the tariff authorities.

“They say that President Trump has used tariffs indiscriminately to target our closest allies. Well, I agree,” Shaheen said.

“But, in the case of this bill, Congress is explicitly directing these tariffs for one unambiguous purpose: to increase the pressure on Vladimir Putin and end his unprovoked war against Ukraine,” she continued. “That’s why this bill is narrowly targeted at the worst actors supporting Russia.”

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And at its core, the legislation is still meant to send Putin and the Kremlin a strong message as the war in Ukraine rages on.

“This bill says to Vladimir Putin, ‘Your days of war are numbered. You are on the losing side. Better to come to the table now than sacrifice more lives, waste more money, crater your economy, destroy your standing in the world,’” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said.

Two prominent Democratic figures with deep ties to the Clinton and Obama administrations publicly criticized New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani this week, with former Clinton adviser Mark Penn attacking the mayor’s proposed property tax plan while former Obama White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel recounted what he described as a private conversation in which he challenged Mamdani’s rhetoric on Israel.

The criticism is notable because it comes from longtime Democrat insiders rather than Republican opponents and focuses on two of the issues that have defined Mamdani’s rise political rise: his far-left economic agenda and his positions on Israel.

Fox News Digital reached out to Penn, Emanuel and Mamdani’s office for comment.

NYC MAYOR MAMDANI CALLS THREAT OF RICH PEOPLE LEAVING NYC OVER TAXES ‘IMAGINED’

Penn, a longtime Democrat strategist and former pollster and adviser to President Bill Clinton, accused Mamdani of dramatically understating the scope of his proposed pied-à-terre tax after the mayor released a public database identifying property owners who could be subject to it.

In a lengthy post on X, Penn argued the city’s valuation system had swept in nearly one million property owners rather than the roughly 30,000 luxury homeowners Penn said had previously been described as the intended targets.

“The $5 million figure was a fake,” Penn wrote, arguing the city’s valuation system had improperly classified properties and would force homeowners to prove they should not be taxed.

RAHM EMANUEL WARNS NEW GENERATION OF DEM SOCIALISTS DON’T LIKE AMERICA

Penn also argued the proposal could depress property values, discourage investment in New York City and potentially raise constitutional questions.

Meanwhile, Emanuel said during an appearance on the Unholy Podcast that he met privately with Mamdani for roughly 90 minutes and challenged the self-described democratic socialist mayor over his views on Israel.

Emanuel said he praised portions of Mamdani’s domestic agenda, including childcare, but criticized Mamdani’s past use of the phrase “from the river to the sea.”

MAMDANI DODGES ON ‘POLITICAL THEATER’ OF EMPTY NETANYAHU ARREST THREAT, CALLS FOR US ACTION AND NYC PROTESTS

“I know where there’s a line. You don’t,” Emanuel recalled telling Mamdani.

Emanuel said both calls for a “Greater Israel” and the slogan “from the river to the sea” would lead to “perpetual conflict.”

After clips of Emanuel’s remarks circulated online, Mamdani communications director Anna Bahr publicly disputed the account.

“can confirm this …. did not happen,” Bahr wrote on X in response to a post summarizing Emanuel’s remarks.

It was not immediately clear from Bahr’s post whether she was disputing that the meeting occurred or Emanuel’s characterization of the conversation.

Emanuel has also recently criticized the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) more broadly. In a post on X this week, he argued Democrats should focus on winning competitive elections rather than what he characterized as ideological distractions.

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“You can be focused on winning tough races, flipping red seats blue. Or you can be focused on abolishing prisons and… the Senate and Supreme Court? You can’t do both,” Emanuel wrote. “I’m for winning this November and ending Trump’s corruption — and I’m also for putting an end to all the distractions from the DSA.”

Penn, Emanuel and Mamdani’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s requests for additional comment before publication.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s chances of confirmation were derailed Wednesday, less than 24 hours before a pivotal vote in the Senate.

It’s another chapter in the troubled saga that has followed Blanche since he was tapped to replace former Attorney General Pam Bondi and one that boils down to issues among Blanche, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and two key Republicans who control his fate in the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Senators John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Thom Tillis, R-N.C., are demanding that the DOJ provide explicit, written proposals to modify the settlement deal reached between the IRS and President Donald Trump and his family earlier this year.

TRUMP AG PICK TODD BLANCHE FACES SENATE TEST IN FIRST MAJOR CONFIRMATION FIGHT SINCE GRAHAM’S DEATH

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., had hoped a deal could be struck and allow for the confirmation to move forward, eying next week as the major floor vote to formally confirm Blanche as Bondi’s replacement.

“I think that that’s an issue between, right now, the White House and Senators Cornyn and Tillis,” Thune said. “But, yeah, I would encourage them to sit down, which I think they are, and try to come to a resolution there so that the markup can continue tomorrow, and we can get Todd Blanche ready for the floor.”

The DOJ had until 4 p.m. Wednesday to get the lawmakers what they wanted, but the agency fell short, and Blanche’s bumpy carriage ride to confirmation turned into a pumpkin.

Without a guarantee that Cornyn or Tillis would vote to confirm Blanche, Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, opted to postpone the hearing until a later date.

Their targets are the now-defunct, nearly $2 billion anti-weaponization fund and the president’s audit immunity. Republicans and Democrats alike railed against the fund, particularly over concerns that the funding would go to people involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, riots on Capitol Hill. 

Trump’s audit immunity has similarly ruffled feathers. Blanche, in his announcement of the settlement deal earlier this year, outlined that, as part of the agreement, the IRS would not be allowed to audit Trump, his family or affiliated companies.

DEMS REJECT TRUMP’S TOP SPY PICK AFTER DEMANDING REPLACEMENT, LEAVING COUNTER-TERROR TOOL IN AIR

Cornyn has proven the most resistant until his demands are met. He’s used his newfound freedom to extract concessions from the Trump administration in recent weeks.

His push for an explicit end to the audit language in the settlement agreement is another such example. The longtime lawmaker, who will exit the Senate at the end of this year after being ousted by the Trump-backed Ken Paxton, was set to meet Blanche Wednesday morning.

But the confab was called off, and Blanche continued making the rounds in the Senate throughout the day, capping off his visit to the Capitol with Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo. He declined to comment to reporters on his way out. 

Cornyn said it was “made clear from the outset that we expected some written proposals to modify the release that was signed in the tax dispute with President Trump and his organization.”

“We need to conform the actual document to what Todd Blanche testified under oath as the president’s acting attorney general,” Cornyn said. “We’ve had two meetings scheduled that have now been canceled because they have not been responsive in providing those written documents.”

TRUMP AG PICK HANGS BY A THREAD AS KEY GOP SENATORS REFUSE TO COMMIT

Trump, when asked about the holdup in the Senate for Blanche, portrayed himself as a president at an arm’s length from the situation and said he heard his attorney general pick was “going through quite nicely.” 

“Well, all I can say is Todd Blanche is outstanding. And I thought he’s — I thought it was pretty routine because he’s so good,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “You just wouldn’t find a better person. So, I don’t know, maybe John Cornyn is upset with me because I didn’t endorse him. I don’t know what it is, but I haven’t heard that there’s a problem.”

Tillis made clear he doesn’t “have a beef with DOJ or with Blanche.” 

“They’re trying to get it done, but still gotta get it done,” Tillis said. 

He also noted that the number of hurdles that getting those kinds of written proposals through was more extensive than meets the eye. For example, Tillis said the actual settlement likely was signed by the president’s lawyer and not Trump himself. 

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“So there’s, you know, there’s a circle of people that have to go through the loop,” he said. “And I get that, but, you know, if we can get it done or possibly get him reported out on Tuesday, if they schedule a markup, I would support that if we get the language.”

The Trump Organization, led by President Donald Trump’s sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, made a controversial investment in a construction company that now stands to profit from a rare earth minerals deal funded by the U.S. government.

While the deal raises suspicions, one securities attorney says evidence of wrongdoing is likely impossible to find and acknowledged that critics have a “proof problem.”

“Well, the question is whether President Trump would have known about his sons’ investments in this company, and I think the answer would be ‘no’ unless the sons told them,” Andrew Stoltmann, a Chicago-based securities and investment fraud attorney, told Fox News Digital.

“Look, they are private investors,” he continued. “They are not government employees. So, to the extent they make a passive investment in a company or an entity, there are no real duties to disclose this information.”

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The controversy stems from a tungsten mining deal in Kazakhstan, which primarily involves U.S.-based investment company Cove Capital and the company’s mining affiliate, Cove Kaz Capital Group. Between 2023 and 2024, Cove Capital negotiated with the Kazakh government to take a 70% share in the country’s state-owned tungsten mining deposits.

Tungsten is a rare earth mineral that is critical to building military equipment, including missiles and fighter jets. The lion’s share of the earth’s supply of the mineral is owned by China and Russia. Trump, since returning to office, has made it a strategic national security priority to secure a long-term supply of the resource.

In August 2025, through an investment vehicle created by Dominari Securities, which is housed in Trump Tower in New York, the Trump brothers purchased a minority interest in a construction company, Skyline Builders, which at the time was publicly traded on the NASDAQ under the ticker SKBL.

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In June of that year, Cantor Fitzgerald, founded by Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, underwrote a $46.8 million loan to a company called ASP Isotopes. ASP Isotopes is owned by businessman Paul Mann. Lutnick’s company is now controlled by his sons, Brandon and Kyle Lutnick, who took over when their father became a government official.

At about the time of underwriting, the Trump brothers were investing in Skyline Builders, a wholly-owned ASP Isotopes subsidiary that acquired voting control of Skyline Builders.

On Nov. 6, 2025, Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, met with Trump and announced that the Central Asian country had awarded a tungsten mining contract to the United States. The Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) and the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), which provide government financing for international projects, penned letters of interest totaling up to $1.6 billion in financing for the deal. Cove Kaz Capital was selected as the firm to do the majority of the mining.

The deal has not officially been inked and is under a standard review process by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Earlier this spring, Skyline Builders completed a reverse merger with Cove Kaz Capital, creating a company called Kaz Resources, which is now listed on the NASDAQ as KAZR. Skyline Builders owns 20% of Kaz Resources after a $20 million investment.

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Critics have suggested — albeit without evidence — that the Trump brothers schemed to invest in Skyline Builders with advance knowledge that Kazakhstan would opt to award the billion-and-a-half-dollar tungsten deal to the United States instead of other countries, and, in turn, Kaz Resources would secure the contract. 

The Trump organization vehemently denies that characterization and says the investment made by the brothers through Dominari Securities in Skyline Builders was passive, made before the tungsten deal was done and made without the knowledge that Kazakhstan would award the mining contract to the United States in the first place.

Even without wrongdoing, Stoltmann said the appearance of impropriety could cause headaches.

“The $64,000 question is pretty much what Trump knew and when he knew it — and, look, the optics are bad,” he said. “You have the president’s sons investing in a company that is eventually awarded a very large contract, and so it certainly raises eyebrows, it raises suspicions.

“And it’s certainly clear why this has caused an uproar. But a lot of times, this is more thunder, this is more noise — a tempest in a teapot, as I like to say.”

In discussing potential ramifications, Stoltmann said members of the political left who are frenzied over the deal will have trouble finding proof of wrongdoing, as Trump would have no way of knowing about his sons’ investment unless they told him about it.

“But this is where the proof problem comes in,” said Stoltmann.

“It’s fun to have conjecture. It’s fun to theorize, and it’s fun to discuss this, but I don’t think there’s any duty of disclosure when you are a passive investor in a company, and that’s where President Trump would most certainly say, ‘I don’t know all the things my sons do.'”

As for the Lutnick brothers, Stoltmann noted that Cantor Fitzgerald stood to financially benefit from underwriting and advisory fees when it helped finance the loan for Mann, whose company now owns a majority voting stake in Kaz Resources.

“You most certainly need a Wall Street brokerage firm or bank to help finance some of this, but, more importantly, to do the underwriting,” Stoltmann said. “We have reverse mergers, we have mergers and we have multiple shell companies coming into the equation. When you do that, you need a bank, you need a brokerage firm. And that’s where Cantor Fitzgerald comes in.”

In the way of political ramifications, Stoltmann warned that if Democrats regain control of the House and Senate in November, the Trump brothers will likely face heat from the president’s political opponents for any business deals that they think can come under scrutiny.

“You’re going see a tsunami of subpoenas trying to get the phone records, the communication records, the emails of the Trump boys and President Trump and everybody associated with this deal,” he predicted. “So, look, is there potential legal liability this situation? Yes, there is. I don’t think there is for President Trump, though.

“You know, clearly, at least by all appearances, it seems like his sons were passive investors, and the sons would say, ‘Look, we’re worth a couple hundred million dollars. We have passive investments in dozens and dozens, if not hundreds of different companies. This is all pure than Caesar’s wife,’ but it certainly raises some suspicions.”

The White House reiterated that the president does not directly manage his investment holdings and that they are instead managed by independent third-party financial institutions.

“This is the same, tired narrative that Democrats have pushed against President Trump, his family and his administration for a decade,” White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said. “President Trump only acts in the best interests of the American public, which is why they overwhelmingly re-elected him to this office despite years of lies and false accusations against him and his businesses from the fake news media. There are no conflicts of interest.”

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Cantor Fitzgerald emphasized that it had no interaction at all with Kaz Resources or Skyline Builders.

“Cantor is a natural partner for companies raising capital to meet growing demand for critical minerals,” a spokesperson said. “Cantor’s involvement is limited to supporting capital raises in the public markets and does not include participation in negotiations with the current or any prior administration.”

The Trump Organization and Commerce Department did not return Fox News Digital’s requests for comment.

FIRST ON FOX: President Donald Trump will launch the White House’s new “Freedom Haulers” initiative Thursday, Fox News Digital has exclusively learned, opening new pathways for military veterans to become commercial truck drivers while intensifying the administration’s crackdown on illegal immigrant and non-English-speaking truckers. 

“President Trump’s administration has made our roads safer by taking illegal alien, non-English speaking truck drivers off America’s highways. Now, through the Freedom Haulers initiative, the President is expanding opportunities for our veterans by making it easier to obtain commercial driver’s licenses once they conclude their service,” White House spokesperson Anna Kelly told Fox News Digital.

The Trump administration is pairing its crackdown on illegal immigrant and non-English-speaking commercial drivers with a new effort to recruit military veterans into the trucking industry. Trump, along with Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Sean Duffy, Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins and Acting Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling, will welcome a truck on West Executive Avenue to announce the initiative.

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“By leading a multi-agency process spanning the Departments of Transportation, Labor, Veterans Affairs, and War, President Trump is bolstering America’s trucking industry, which is crucial to strong supply chains, while helping our nation’s heroes transition to civilian life with quality, good-paying jobs,” Kelly added.

The Department of Transportation will expand eligibility for veterans to receive expedited commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs), extending the waiver period from 12 months to 24 months after active-duty service.

For veterans who have never driven a heavy commercial vehicle during their military service, CDL training will be offered.

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Indiana and Wyoming will also join the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s “Even Exchange” program, allowing military truck drivers to more easily transition into civilian CDLs.

Werner Enterprises, an Omaha, Nebraska-based trucking company attending Thursday’s event, will announce plans to hire 1,400 new veteran drivers.

The administration is also highlighting its ongoing crackdown on commercial drivers who fail to meet English-language proficiency requirements or were improperly licensed.

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The Department of Transportation says it has removed more than 24,000 commercial driver’s licenses from the nation’s highways under stricter English-language proficiency enforcement.

More than 28,000 CDLs were also canceled after officials determined they had been improperly issued to non-citizen truck drivers.

The White House says the initiative is aimed at improving highway safety while strengthening the nation’s trucking workforce.

The announcement comes after a series of fatal crashes involving illegal immigrant truck drivers in states including Florida, California, Indiana and Pennsylvania.

Earlier this month, a Pennsylvania State Police trooper was killed during a roadside inspection when a semitruck driven by a Haitian national struck him. Authorities say the driver had obtained a non-domiciled CDL before the administration’s rule changes.

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Truck drivers have seen a 7.42% increase in real wages during the Trump administration, compared to a 3% decline in real wages under President Biden, according to DOT.

DOT also says veteran truck drivers experience 42% fewer accidents and cover 98% more miles than non-veteran drivers, arguing the initiative will both improve highway safety and help strengthen America’s supply chains.

In North Carolina, more Democrats than Republicans say they are extremely interested in the midterm elections (51% vs. 42%), and more Democrats also say they are extremely motivated to vote (58% vs. 50%). This enthusiasm advantage creates an edge in the Senate matchup.

Democrat Roy Cooper leads Republican Michael Whatley by 53% to 44% in the race to fill the state’s open Senate seat, according to a Fox News poll of North Carolina voters.

Cooper’s gap widens to 15 points among those saying they’re extremely interested in the election (57% vs. 42%) and 13 points among those extremely motivated to vote (55% vs. 42%). The race is unchanged among those saying they’re “certain” to vote (53% to 44%).

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Whatley is the former chair of the Republican National Committee, while Cooper served as North Carolina’s governor from 2017-2025. The candidates are vying to fill the seat held by retiring Republican Senator Thom Tillis.

Cooper receives high support from moderates, voters under age 30, independents, voters with a college degree, and women. He also captures support from about one in five non-MAGA Republicans and conservatives.

Whatley performs best among very conservative voters, White evangelical Christians, White voters without a college degree, and rural voters.

There’s also an enthusiasm gap when voters are asked why they back their candidate. Some 52% of Whatley’s supporters say they’re voting for him, while 46% say it’s mainly against Cooper. By contrast, 84% of Cooper supporters say they’re voting for him rather than against Whatley (13%).

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Most voters are committed to their choice: 81% of Cooper’s backers say they’re certain to vote for him and it’s 77% among Whatley supporters. Overall, one in five voters say they could switch their pick. 

President Trump complicates the contest for Whatley. Forty percent of North Carolina voters view the president favorably and 58% unfavorable. That’s net negative by 18 points, while his ratings were underwater by just 6 points two years ago (47-53%).

And Whatley’s ties to Trump concern 48% of voters, with worry extending across the spectrum, including more than half of moderates, more than 4 in 10 independents, and about 3 in 10 non-MAGA Republicans. Meanwhile, concern about Cooper’s ties to the Democratic establishment is more partisan. Overall, 42% are concerned, including 7 in 10 Republicans, but just 3 in 10 independents and moderates.

“Recent data put the average Republican advantage in North Carolina statewide races at about 3 points,” says Republican pollster Daron Shaw, who conducts the survey with Democrat Chris Anderson. “Cooper’s edge rests on almost unanimous Democratic support and commanding numbers among independents. To win, Whatley must stop the bleeding with non-MAGA Republicans and improve his standing with disaffected, less partisan Carolinians.”

Personal popularity also sets the candidates apart. Cooper’s 54% favorable rating is significantly higher than Whatley’s at 40%. In addition, Cooper is more popular than the Democratic Party by a 12-point margin, while Whatley trails the GOP by 4.

Whatley is less well known overall, as 14% of voters say they’re unable to rate him or have never heard of him, including about 1 in 10 Republicans. 

Tar Heel voters share equally negative views of the Republican Party (44% favorable vs. 54% unfavorable) and the Democratic Party (42% vs. 56%).

Negative partisanship is strong, as more Democrats view the GOP negatively (94%) than view their own party positively (83%). The reverse is also true: more Republicans (92%) hold an unfavorable opinion of the Democratic Party than view the GOP positively (85%). 

Among the small subgroup viewing both parties negatively, Cooper draws twice as much support as Whatley (64% to 32%).

Inflation is the top issue for North Carolina voters, with 36% saying it will be most important to their vote for Senate. Next, it’s political divisions within the country at 14%, followed closely by healthcare and immigration at 13% each. 

Half describe their financial situation as stable, 12% say they’re getting ahead, and 38% say they’re falling behind, which is 6 points lower than it was two years ago.

North Carolina’s recent voting history points in different directions. Cooper won reelection in 2020 by almost 5 percentage points. In fact, Democrats have won 8 of the state’s last 10 gubernatorial elections. The last Republican to win was Pat McCrory, by about 11 points in 2012.

At the same time, Republicans have won the state in 11 of the last 12 presidential elections. The last Democrat to carry the state was former President Obama, who won by 0.3% in 2008. 

In the 2024 presidential election, Trump won North Carolina by 3 percentage points.

Conducted July 23-27, 2026, under the joint direction of Beacon Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R), this Fox News Poll includes interviews with a sample of 1,005 North Carolina registered voters randomly selected from a statewide voter file.  Respondents spoke with live interviewers on landlines (115) and cellphones (654) or completed the survey online after receiving a text message (236). Results based on the full sample have a margin of sampling error of ± 3 percentage points. Sampling error for results among subgroups is higher. In addition to sampling error, question wording and order can influence results. Sources used to develop weight targets include the most recent American Community Survey, Fox News Voter Analysis, and voter file data. Weights are generally applied to age, race, education, and area variables to ensure the demographics of respondents are representative of the registered voter population.  Results among subgroups are only shown when the sample size is at least N=100. 

Fox News’ Victoria Balara contributed to this report.

A high-ranking Trump Department of Homeland Security official called out the “liberal media” for what he referred to as the “absolute absurdity” of its response to his series criticizing activist judges.

James Percival, general counsel for the Department of Homeland Security, posted a series on X last week titled “Worst of the Worst, District Judge Edition.” In his posts, Percival pointed to the risks that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents face while enforcing the law, saying some judges are working to “sabotage” those operations and put officers “at risk.”

After his posts, Percival said DHS was contacted by a Chicago Sun-Times reporter about whether “a social media post like this risk[s] additional threats” in the context of “ongoing threats to federal judges.”

In response, Percival blasted the outlet in an X post in which he told followers, “Witness the absolute absurdity of the liberal media response to my new series, Worst of the Worst, District Judges.”

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Percival emphasized that “legitimate fact based critiques of judges and their rulings is fair game in a free society.” He also noted that “the media has no issue with it if the judge is conservative.”

Notably, conservative judges, including Supreme Court justices Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett, have been the target of intense criticism from the left and, in some cases, violence. In 2022, Kavanaugh was the target of an assassination plot after an armed California man traveled to his home with a pistol, ammunition, zip ties, pepper spray, duct tape and burglary tools. Further, Barrett testified in a recent congressional hearing that she has had to wear a bulletproof vest in response to threats.

In his Worst of the Worst activist judges series, Percival called out district judges in the sanctuary jurisdictions of Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland and California.

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Percival said that earlier this month, Northern District of Illinois Judge Matthew Kennelly, a Clinton appointee, ordered a nationwide pause on the termination of temporary protected status for migrants from Burma. Percival wrote that Kennelly ordered the stay “even though these decisions are not subject to judicial review, even though we have been vindicated by the Supreme Court on TPS four times, and even though the Seventh Circuit summarily reversed him on the same issue only days before.”

“This is judicial sabotage,” he wrote.

Meanwhile, Percival wrote that Central District of California Judge Hernan Vera, a Biden appointee, recently “entered an order micromanaging DHS’s use of force policy with respect to violent anti-ICE agitators in Los Angeles.”

Percival noted that the judge “described the agitators as ‘protesters’ and ‘legal observers,’ while describing DHS’s actions defending its personnel and property as ‘violent.’”

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Percival noted, “Agitators in Los Angeles have assaulted DHS employees, thrown objects at them, engaged in arson, and even tried to breech [sic] a federal facility.”

“Judicial micromanagement of use of force in these contexts puts our officers at risk.”

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In response, Sean Lewis, a spokesperson for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, told Fox News Digital that “the Code of Conduct calls on federal judges not to comment publicly on pending cases. It also requires them to decide each matter independently, based on the law and the facts—not political pressure, public reaction, partisan interests, or fear of criticism.”

Lewis added that “when someone disagrees with a ruling, the appropriate way to challenge it is through the appellate process.”

Fox News Digital reached out to the Chicago Sun-Times and the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California for comment.

President Donald Trump offered Americans a first look at the newly regilded Arts of War sculptures in Washington, D.C., as crews began removing the towering scaffolding that concealed the iconic golden horses during months of restoration work.

“Taking down the scaffolding around the regilded Arts of War sculptures!” Trump wrote on Truth Social, sharing photographs of workers carefully dismantling the structure surrounding the massive monument near the Lincoln Memorial.

Exclusive Fox News video captured workers removing the final sections of scaffolding, revealing the gleaming gold horses and figures that crown the monumental granite pedestals.

The Arts of War sculptures flank the eastern entrance to Arlington Memorial Bridge just west of the Lincoln Memorial, while their companion Arts of Peace sculptures sit nearby along Parkway Drive. Each monument features gilded bronze horses and human figures mounted atop massive granite bases, according to a study by MTFA Design.

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The restoration is part of an ongoing National Park Service preservation project. According to the same 2018 study, the granite pedestals had developed extensive purple staining caused by copper runoff from the aging bronze sculptures, prompting specialized cleaning and stabilization work in addition to regilding.

The agency temporarily closed surrounding lawn and turf areas beginning July 2 to protect visitors, workers and the historic monuments while construction continues. The restrictions are scheduled to remain in effect through Sept. 30, though the National Park Service said areas will reopen as soon as the work no longer requires them to remain closed.

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Sidewalks bordering the restoration area and those leading onto Memorial Bridge remain accessible, and the project has not required any road closures, according to the agency.

The surrounding parkland will remain partially restricted while crews complete the broader rehabilitation project and remove the remaining construction equipment.

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For months, the towering monuments were almost entirely hidden behind scaffolding, tarps and fencing. 

Trump’s photos and Fox News’ exclusive video now offer one of the clearest looks yet at the restored sculptures are unveiled with a renewed gold finish just in time for America’s 250th anniversary.

The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

As Republicans intensify scrutiny of the Smithsonian Institution, numerous former Democratic staffers and employees of progressive nonprofits are holding senior positions throughout the nonprofit, while officials responsible for hiring emphasized diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. 

A Fox News Digital review of public biographies and social media profiles identified roughly two dozen individuals employed by the Smithsonian in leadership positions or as curators who worked for Democratic offices or progressive nonprofits before being hired. Leadership biographies and political donation records indicate the pattern extends beyond a handful of senior employees.

That former Democratic staffers and individuals previously employed by liberal nonprofits now hold leadership positions at the Smithsonian is likely to further fuel conservative criticism that the sprawling museum and research organization has developed a left-of-center bias.

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In recent weeks, Republicans have accused the Smithsonian, particularly its National Museum of American History, of promoting progressive ideology, emphasizing identity politics and giving insufficient attention to the nation’s founding and traditional historical figures. Republican lawmakers and the Trump administration also have criticized specific exhibits addressing gender identity, diversity and social justice, arguing that museum leaders have allowed political activism to displace the neutral presentation of history.

These allegations follow years of DEI-centric leadership.

Roshni Lal, the director of the Smithsonian’s office of academic appointments and internships, which oversees academic hiring and internships, has had a career-long commitment to advancing DEI in hiring, professional biographies show.

Lal previously was the director of diversity, equity and inclusion for the Mountain Pacific Association of Colleges & Employers, where she oversaw policies, training and programming she characterized as anti-racist and rooted in social justice, according to her Smithsonian biography. She also held DEI-related roles at the Manhattan Beach Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Colleges and Employers before joining the Smithsonian, per Lal’s LinkedIn page.

In a 2024 podcast appearance, Lal discussed her dedication to “identity-based career services,” partially through connecting with “students of color” through “culturally inclusive” job placement.

Public Smithsonian biographies show that several curators at the National Museum of American History describe their work as focusing on race, identity and social justice, themes that also appear in a number of the museum’s exhibits and initiatives.

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The current chairwoman of the National Museum of American History political history division, which is responsible for overseeing exhibits about American presidents, for instance, also oversees the Smithsonian’s Center for Restorative History, which says on its website that it exists to “spotlight the people and stories that have been excluded from our national narrative using the principles of restorative justice” by bringing together “diverse voices.”

Among the center’s flagship programs are an effort to preserve the history of the Black Lives Matter movement by centering the perspectives of activists and a “decolonization working group,” according to its website.

Multiple other curators at the National Museum of American History approach their jobs with a similar focus on racial identity, per their Smithsonian biographies. These include one curator who is working on “stitching social justice throughout the Americas” through their exhibit work as well as multiple scholars who primarily study race.

While Lal started her role at the Smithsonian in November 2023, her predecessor, who held the position for 11 years beginning in 2012, previously worked for the Clinton White House, the Obama State Department and as a special assistant to then-Sen. Hillary Clinton, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Lal did not respond to a request for comment when reached by Fox News Digital Tuesday.

“The Smithsonian is a nonpartisan institution, and politics does not factor into our hiring practices,” a spokesperson for the institution told Fox News Digital. “Our hiring is solely based on qualifications to fulfill the responsibilities of any given position.”

Leadership at the Smithsonian is not monolithic. The institution’s chief legal officer worked in the Bush administration, and the chief of staff to the organization’s regents clerked for Chief Justice John G. Roberts on the Supreme Court as well as Justice Brett Kavanaugh during his time on D.C.’s federal appellate court, according to their institutional biographies.

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Congressional Republicans held two hearings to investigate allegations that the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History has used taxpayer money to promote left-wing narratives about race, gender and oppression while minimizing the nation’s founding ideals and achievements. Following the hearings, conservative lawmakers are expected to be using Congress’ spending authority in an attempt to restrict Smithsonian funding to pressure it to remove exhibits they feel are inappropriate.

“These leaders have commandeered an institution that the nation entrusted to them to ensure the transmission and, thus, continuance of American culture and heritage and have perversely turned it into its opposite, a hothouse for anti-American activism,” Heritage Foundation senior fellow Mike Gonzalez said during his July 21 congressional testimony on the Smithsonian. 

“These leaders often reveal, in their own words, that they see the world in terms of power dynamics — who has dominance and how to wrest it from them by dismantling the American narrative, all deeply Marxist and Gramscian constructs.”

Other senior Smithsonian staffers who came from left-of-center backgrounds, according to LinkedIn profiles and other online biographies, include the National Museum of American History head librarian, who previously worked for the liberal Urban Institute; an advisory board member who was a senior staffer for the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein; the institution’s undersecretary for education, who served as the deputy assistant secretary of education during the Obama administration; the Smithsonian’s associate director of advancement for strategic initiatives, who came from the NAACP; and the director of communications for the National Museum of American History, who worked as a senior staffer for House Democratic leadership before joining the institution.

Curators with liberal backgrounds, per LinkedIn profiles and online biographies, meanwhile, include the recently departed director of curatorial affairs at the National Portrait Gallery, who held multiple DEI-related positions at colleges; an associate curator at the National Museum of the American Indian who was involved with a militant civil rights organization in the 1970s, the American Indian Movement; and a curator of time-based media for the Smithsonian American Art Museum who previously worked for a feminist art gallery.

Fox News Digital considered groups that publicly align with the Democratic Party or those that focus on issues such as environmentalism, racial justice or left-of-center economic policy as liberal for the purposes of its review.

The Smithsonian has roughly 6,400 full-time employees with varying degrees of public documentation. Fox News Digital’s review covered a relatively small slice of that total, focusing on publicly identified leadership at the top of the institution as well as leaders at the National Museum of American History and individuals identifying themselves as curators on LinkedIn.

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While a full accounting of the political beliefs of the Smithsonian’s senior staff and curators is impossible to glean from public records alone, political donations can provide some insight.

Only about 1% of donations made by individuals identifying themselves as Smithsonian employees have gone to Republican committees this cycle, according to campaign finance records reviewed by Fox News Digital.

Fox News Digital reached each Smithsonian employee mentioned for comment.

Former NIAID Director Anthony Fauci’s refusal to answer questions from Congress extended to simple facts, including the day of the week and the color of the tie he was wearing.

Fauci, 85, invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination about as many times as his years alive on Earth, despite Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee Chairman Rand Paul, R-Ky., and Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., asserting that he did not have that right given his current legal status.

Hawley cited a Supreme Court case from 1896, where President Benjamin Harrison’s appointee Justice Henry Brown ruled that a witness granted statutory immunity from prosecution could nonetheless be compelled to testify because his immunity displaced pleading the Fifth.

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In that case, an auditor for a Pittsburgh railroad unsuccessfully challenged a contempt charge for refusing to answer grand jury questions.

Hawley turned to Fauci and tested his repeated Fifth Amendment invocations throughout the hearing, quipping, “Doc, let’s try something.”

“What day of the week is it today?” Hawley asked Wednesday.

Fauci replied with his boilerplate invocation of the Fifth Amendment.

“What color tie are you wearing?” Hawley asked.

Fauci declined to answer, again invoking the Fifth Amendment.

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“Let’s just get one thing straight. You don’t have any rights under the Fifth Amendment because you’ve been pardoned, as you very well know,” he said, invoking the 1896 Brown v. Walker case.

Hawley, who is also an attorney, added that the legal reality was likely why Fauci’s remaining attorneys were “shifting nervously” behind him.

A top Fauci attorney, David Schertler, had previously been ejected by Paul after refusing to take his assigned seat and remain quiet.

“This isn’t about the law. This is about contempt, contempt for this body and contempt for the American people,” Hawley said.

“But I think I know why you’re doing it. It’s because you don’t want to answer questions. It’s because you did all kinds of terrible things. It’s because during the pandemic, you got rich… while people were dying.”

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Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, followed Hawley with similar questions that Fauci refused to answer.

Moreno said Fauci should know what the Fifth Amendment is if he wanted to invoke it dozens of times.

When he asked Fauci to recite the Fifth Amendment, Fauci invoked his Fifth Amendment right.

“No, I’m just asking you what it says,” Moreno repeated.

“On the advice of counsel, I respectfully decline to answer based upon my rights under the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution,” Fauci said once more.

Moreno then gave a copy of the Constitution to an aide and instructed him to bring it to Fauci to read.

That attempt also prompted the same repeated response from the octogenarian immunologist.

“So you’re invoking a right that you don’t know who wrote it or what it says? Is that correct?” Moreno quipped.

Fauci again invoked his Fifth Amendment right after declining to recite the amendment when asked.

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Fox News anchor Harris Faulkner later discussed the legal implications of Fauci’s repeated Fifth Amendment invocations.

She cited President Joe Biden’s blanket, retroactive pardon against Fauci, saying that he is “protected from any offenses against the United States he may have taken part in.”

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Faulkner said the pardon does not cover state criminal prosecutions, future crimes or congressional investigations.

“It does not protect him from prosecution from perjury if he lies under oath after receiving the pardon,” she said.

President Donald Trump is striking a noticeably softer tone toward China just days after delivering a public address to the nation accusing Beijing of “sinister election meddling.”

The fresh set of accusations levied on July 16 raised new questions about the Trump administration’s posture towards China, especially as it moves to keep TikTok operating in the U.S. while warning against the hostility of the world power against America.

“President Trump just told the nation that China tried to influence the 2020 election and weaken his presidency. During that same year, the intelligence community identified TikTok as a primary vector of CCP influence in the United States,” Hudson Institute Senior Fellow Michael Sobolik, who specializes in U.S.–China relations, told Fox News Digital.

“Beijing still controls the algorithm, which means that the very dangers Trump raised persist today,” Sobolik added.

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Trump has long taken a hard line on China, using tariffs, trade pressure and national security warnings to frame Beijing as one of America’s chief adversaries.

In his recent address to the nation, the president accused the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) of running a “sinister” campaign to interfere in U.S. elections and influence Americans and undermine his presidency.

Yet just five days later, on July 21, Trump suggested “China is maybe a little bit different today.” It struck a softer tone that falls more in line with the president’s backing of a deal to keep TikTok operating in the U.S., despite seeking during his first term and at the start of his second to force the app out over national security concerns.

“The CCP hasn’t changed. Xi Jinping hasn’t changed. But President Trump has,” Sobolik detailed.

“He’s much more conciliatory toward China in his second term than he was in his first. He risks telegraphing significant weakness to Xi by letting China off the hook.”

Trump downplayed Beijing’s past election interference, suggesting both countries engage in similar tactics and indicating he was more focused on future negotiations than revisiting China’s actions.

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“It took place a long time ago. I think China is maybe a little bit different today than it was then,” Trump conceded.

“But look there, they do things and we do things to them. I’ll be honest — do we do things to them too? It’s not a one-way street, but we’ll be talking to them,” said Trump when speaking about Chinese election meddling days after his “free and fair elections” televised remarks.

Sobolik argued the softened rhetoric could embolden Beijing to continue attempts to influence U.S. politics in the future.

In his first term, Trump sought to ban TikTok, saying it posed a national security risk. Then, during his second term, Trump joined the app, and in recent weeks, so have his top Cabinet members.

“President Trump has saved TikTok for its millions of American users — yet another promise made, promise kept,” White House spokesperson Olivia Wales told Fox News Digital. “With the new TikTok under the control of U.S. investors, Americans can continue to enjoy TikTok with their data fully protected.”

TikTok’s ownership deal was reconstructed at the beginning of this year to have majority U.S. ownership while still giving Chinese technology company ByteDance a 19.9% stake – 0.01% below the threshold required under U.S. law.

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While the app is based in the U.S., Sobolik said that TikTok’s algorithm remains under ByteDance’s control via a licensing regime.

“The fact that it’s training on U.S. data stored on servers in America doesn’t change the fundamental reality that a Chinese Communist Party-controlled company still controls the algorithm itself,” said Sobolik. “The administration hasn’t directly addressed the possibility that Beijing could calibrate the app’s algorithm in concerning ways.”

Trump visited China in May for a high-stakes summit with President Xi Jinping on several of the biggest pressure points in the U.S.-China relationship — from trade and Taiwan to AI and human rights. Those meetings appeared to end without firm public breakthroughs.

In his final meeting with Xi at the summit, Trump touted what he called “fantastic trade deals.”

Sobolik said Trump “wants what he’s always wanted with China,” which is a trade deal.

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“He needs to think broader and bigger. Economic competition is one part of the larger new cold war that’s playing out between Washington and Beijing,” he said.

Sobolik said Trump is placing too much emphasis on trade while overlooking other important areas of competition with China.

“Xi will have the advantage,” he added.

Trump said Xi will be visiting the U.S. on Sept. 24, with artificial intelligence expected to be a key topic during their talks.

A Republican governor in a state that voted to elect President Donald Trump is facing intense backlash online after an interview arguing against the president’s order to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) migrants from the United States.

Republican Gov. Mike DeWine’s state is home to an estimated 30,000 Haitian TPS holders. He told CBS earlier this week that the Haitians shouldn’t be sent back to their country of origin.

“Haiti is hell today. So you’d be sending people … back to hell,” he said. “Very few of these Haitians will voluntarily go back to Haiti. If they have to leave, they’ll go someplace else. They want to work. They want to support their family. They don’t want to go back to Haiti.”

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Online detractors quickly seized on DeWine’s comments, mostly from users claiming that those responsible for Haiti’s conditions are the ones that the governor wants to allow to stay in the United States.

“What makes Haiti hellish? Is it…the Haitians?” asked Sean Davis, co-founder of The Federalist, in response to CBS’ story about the interview posted on X.

“Hey governor, what is it that makes Haiti so bad anyway?” The Blaze’s Logan Hall asked.

“I think the real question here is, if Haiti is hell, why are we importing Haitians?” questioned internet personality Larry Sanger.

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Others referenced the liberal media’s freakout when in 2018 Trump referred to Haiti and some other nations as ‘s—hole’ countries.

Meanwhile, TV personalities and talking heads, comedian Conan O’Brien chief among them, defended Haiti for its natural beauty.

“Still reeling from [Trump’s] very negative Yelp review of Haiti, which means I’ll love it,” O’Brien said at the time, announcing a trip to the country. “I have no idea what the president has against the people of Haiti, but if the president doesn’t like them, they must be lovely people.”

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One X user specifically blamed Haitians for DeWine’s characterization that the country is “hell.”

“Or is it a paradise like so many celebrities have said?” the user asked.

“I was reliably informed by democrats [sic] and hollywood [sic] celebrities that Haiti is utopia,” said another user.

“What a tragedy it would be for Haitians to live in Haiti,” said another X user.

DeWine argued in the CBS interview that sending Haitians back to Haiti would be a “mistake” that would endanger the lives of the TPS holders.

He also specifically mentioned Springfield, his hometown, which has a large population of Haitian TPS holders.

“These are people who have helped Springfield really come back,” DeWine said. “The Haitians who are living there and employed there, they came there to work, and they came there because there were jobs that were not being filled by other people.”

TPS was officially terminated Monday after Trump’s order survived a Supreme Court review.

“Temporary Protected Status is exactly that — temporary. For too long, TPS has been allowed to function as a de facto amnesty program despite Congress never intending it to be permanent,” a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson told Fox News Digital earlier this week.

TPS was created as part of the Immigration Act of 1990, and was designed for people facing serious emergencies like armed conflict or severe natural disasters. Critics claim it has been abused to give status to those in the U.S. for non-emergent reasons.

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DeWine’s office declined to comment on “statements made in online comment sections,” when reached by Fox News Digital.

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment but did not hear back at time of publication.

Fox News Digital’s Andrew Mark Miller contributed to this report.

A House Democratic lawmaker compared actions by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to domestic terrorism after a visit to a Texas detention facility on Tuesday.

Rep. Luz Rivas, D-Calif., said that seeing ICE’s actions was personal for her as the daughter of Mexican immigrants and argued that “for the people of the United States, we don’t want to see our government, or ICE officials, acting like domestic terrorists,” she said in Spanish during a press conference.

She said her Los Angeles district saw more ICE raids than anywhere else in her county.

Rivas was among a group of lawmakers led by Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, on a visit to an ICE facility in Dilley, Texas, which over 100 House Democrats have demanded to be shut down.

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The lawmakers accused the Trump administration of holding families, including a child as young as 2 months old, in inhumane conditions.

Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., a member of the left-wing “Squad,” also attacked President Donald Trump as a “dictator.”

SOMETHING TO HIDE? ICE UNDER FIRE FOR SUBSTANDARD CONDITIONS AT FOR-PROFIT DETENTION CENTER

“It’s so important that we not acquiesce to this, this fascist administration, this dictator in the Oval Office,” Pressley said. “History has shown us time again, appeasement does not work. The only way to beat a dictator is with defiance. The only way to beat fascism is to refuse to accept this segregated, divided, dark, dystopian view that they have for our country, is to reject it as an inevitability.”

She called on Americans to “resist, reject, condemn at every turn.”

But it’s that kind of rhetoric that Republicans have argued is responsible for sending tensions across the U.S. skyrocketing.

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GOP allies of the president have accused Democrats of encouraging violence and resistance against ICE agents, drawing a line between encouragement to resist federal immigration officers and the slate of violent incidents involving those officers this year alone.

But Democrats are accusing ICE of acting as a rogue agency outside the bounds of the law.

“We have to abolish ICE. And then I’m going to take it one step further and say any of those agents that have contributed to and caused the injury, the harm, and even fatalities, they must also be held accountable,” Pressley said. “And we should abolish qualified immunity for these federal law enforcement officers.”

In a letter sent earlier this month, 111 House Democrats accused the administration of harming children and families with the conditions at the Dilley detention center.

“Parents describe horrendous conditions at Dilley, leading to severe depression, hopelessness, and suicidal ideation amongst their children. Children have reported that their food is often contaminated with worms and mold and that they feel sick after drinking tap water,” the letter said. “Families also report not being able to sleep at night because the lights are kept on in their rooms throughout the night. … Medical care provided by CoreCivic staff is delayed, denied, and in many cases outright dismissed, even when children are suffering life-threatening medical emergencies.”

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Fox News Digital reached out to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for a response to Rivas’ comments.

DHS did previously accuse Democrats of lying about conditions at Dilley, which it said in a press release was specialized to hold families and care for children specifically.

“The Dilley facility is retrofitted for families. Children have access to teachers, classrooms, and curriculum booklets for math, reading, and spelling. They have access to age-appropriate books, toys, and outdoor activities. All of this is generously funded by the U.S. taxpayer,” DHS said.

“Infant care packages include formula, baby food, bottles, diapers, wipes, and hygiene items. The facility also provides sippy cups and cribs. Adults with children are housed in facilities that provide for their safety, security, and medical needs.”

President Donald Trump on Wednesday morning issued a profanity-laced threat against Iran after the Islamic regime launched a surprise missile strike on U.S. forces in Jordan overnight.

“We’re going to beat the f—— s— out of them,” Trump told Fox News chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst.

“We’ll be hitting them hard,” the president said of Iran. “They’re going to get a beating.”

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Trump said the American forces in Jordan had just minutes to respond and shoot down the incoming Iranian ballistic missiles. The president added that he reviewed video showing U.S. personnel calling out coordinates in real time during the interceptions.

U.S. Central Command said all Iranian missiles were successfully intercepted.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) fired ballistic missiles at the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base and the headquarters of the U.S. military’s Central Command in Jordan, the paramilitary force said in a statement carried by Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency.

Jordan’s military said five Iranian missiles had been intercepted and destroyed. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage.

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The U.S. military later announced that American and Saudi fighter aircraft had struck multiple Iran-backed Shiite logistics and weapons sites in eastern Iraq in response to alleged drone attacks on Saudi Arabia. The Saudi Defense Ministry warned that it “does not seek escalation but will respond to any aggression.”

Trump told Fox News that the overnight U.S.-Saudi strikes against Iran-backed Shiite militias in Iraq were coordinated with the Iraqi government.

He called the militias a “cancer on the world” and said additional warnings against Iranian proxies were under consideration.

Despite the flare-up, Trump said that talks with Iran will continue.

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“We’re going to let them keep talking,” he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.