NationalWatch

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem on Saturday touted sweeping Transportation Security Administration (TSA) operations at Miami International Airport, saying the efforts have played a critical role in protecting U.S. transportation networks.

Speaking at a news conference at the airport, Noem said TSA officers prevented more than 10,000 people with suspected ties to narcoterrorism from traveling over the past year. She added that an additional 85,000 people linked to terrorism or listed on the U.S. terrorism watch list were also stopped from boarding flights.

“What has happened here at this airport is that over the last year they have prevented over 10,000 individuals from traveling that had ties to narcoterrorism, 85,000 individuals that had similar ties to terrorists and to terrorists on the watch list in the United States,” Noem said. 

Noem also highlighted Miami International Airport’s human trafficking unit, which conducted more than 2,200 inspections in the past year. Those efforts resulted in 24 arrests related to child exploitation.

DHS SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM ADDRESSES CALLS FOR HER FIRING, NEW ALEX PRETTI VIDEO

The unit also confiscated 85 firearms from travelers — 82 of them loaded at the time of discovery, according to Noem.

“It’s incredible the work that they have done to keep people safe, which is the mission that the Department of Homeland Security seeks to do every single day,” Noem said.

One of the busiest airports in the world, Miami International employs more than 1,700 TSA officers and serves an average of 70,000 passengers per day. Officials recently screened nearly 100,000 travelers in a single day, setting a new record on Jan. 4. More than 25 million passengers traveled through the airport in 2025, Noem said.

As travel continues to surge, Noem pointed to a $9 billion airport modernization project aimed at strengthening security. TSA is contributing $100 million to the effort, alongside DHS’s previously announced $1 billion nationwide investment in upgraded security technology.

Planned upgrades include expanded canine units, advanced computed tomography scanners, and enhanced imaging systems.

BEHIND THE SCENES: TRUMP AND WHITE HOUSE RALLY BEHIND NOEM AS ‘RADICALS’ DEMAND OUSTER

Noem said the investments are especially critical as the U.S. prepares to host major global events, including the upcoming FIFA World Cup.

“That billion dollars will make sure that we continue to keep America safe,” Noem said.

During the event, Noem was also asked about the possible release of body camera footage related to Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse and licensed concealed-carry holder who was killed this month during an immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota. 

“The FBI is leading the investigation, and as it goes forward, that will be at their discretion,” she said. 

REP JEFFRIES ESCALATES RHETORIC AGAINST NOEM, SAYS DHS LEADER SHOULD BE ‘PUT ON ICE PERMANENTLY’

Addressing the upcoming expiration of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians, Noem said the program was never intended to be permanent and accused the Biden administration of abusing it.

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“Any individual who is from a country where TPS is expiring has an opportunity to appeal that and to look at other programs that they may qualify for, and they have a number of months to do that,” Noem said. “They should reach out to the State Department, they should reach out to the Department of Homeland Security, and we will help them with that.”

DHS did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

A federal judge on Saturday gave the Trump administration three days to release a 5-year-old Ecuadorian boy and his father from immigration detention in Texas following an emergency request.

Videos of Liam Conejo Ramos, 5, being taken into custody along with his father, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in Minneapolis earlier this month sparked outrage.

U.S. District Judge Fred Biery, a Clinton nominee, wrote in his ruling that “the case has its genesis in the ill-conceived and incompetently-implemented government pursuit of daily deportation quotas, apparently even if it requires traumatizing children,” according to the order obtained by Fox News Digital. 

He invoked the Declaration of Independence in the ruling, saying, “Thirty-three-year-old Thomas Jefferson enumerated grievances against a would-be authoritarian king over our nascent nation. Among others were: 1. ‘He has sent hither Swarms of Officers to harass our People.'”

MEDIA RUNS WILD WITH ‘EGREGIOUS LIE’ TARGETED 5-YEAR-OLD IN MINNESOTA, DHS SAYS CHILD WAS ABANDONED

He also cited the “pesky inconvenience called the Fourth Amendment” that protects people from “unreasonable searches and seizures.”

“Civics lesson to the government: Administrative warrants issued by the executive branch to itself do not pass probable cause muster,” he wrote. “That is called the fox guarding the henhouse. The Constitution requires an independent judicial officer.”

He added, “Observing human behavior confirms that for some among us, the perfidious lust for unbridled power and the imposition of cruelty in its quest know no bounds and are bereft of human decency. And the rule of law be damned.”

Biery said Ramos and his father could be deported, but added “that result should occur through a more orderly and humane policy than currently in place.”

FEDERAL JUDGE REJECTS MINNESOTA REQUEST TO BLOCK ICE-LED OPERATION METRO SURGE

He previously ordered a temporary block on their deportation. 

While neighbors have claimed that the government used Ramos as “bait,” asking him to knock on the door to his house, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) called that an “abject lie,” saying his father abandoned him in a running vehicle in their driveway.

“The facts in this case have NOT changed: ICE did NOT target or arrest a child,” Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “On January 20, ICE conducted a targeted operation to arrest Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias an illegal alien from Ecuador who was RELEASED into the U.S. by the Biden administration. As agents approached, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias fled on foot—abandoning his child.”

Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., has accused ICE this week of “needlessly” detaining Ramos in Texas.

“They shipped him 1,300 miles to suffer, without his mother, in a squalid Texas detention center. And now he’s growing ill. Democrats are fighting to end this cruelty,” she wrote. “Liam is not a criminal. Let him go.”

McLaughlin also posted a statement from Dr. Sean Conley, acting director of DHS’ Office of Health Security and chief medical officer, in which he addressed the child’s condition.

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Conley said that a pediatrician examined Ramos and “found no medical concerns.”

“It is standard policy to provide medical care from the moment an alien enters ICE custody. This includes medical, dental and mental health intake screening within 12 hours of arriving at each detention facility, a full health assessment within 14 days of entering ICE custody or arrival at a facility and access to necessary medical appointments and 24-hour emergency care. This is the best healthcare many of these individuals have received in their entire lives,” he said.

Fox News Digital’s Louis Casiano and Peter Pinedo, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Shouts of “Trump act now!” filled the sunny Saturday afternoon on New York’s Fifth Avenue as hundreds of anti-Iranian regime protestors denounced the theocratic regime in Tehran and called for the U.S. to take action against Iran.

TED CRUZ URGES US TO ARM IRANIAN PROTESTERS AS MILITIAS THREATEN ‘TOTAL WAR’ AGAINST AMERICA

“We want freedom for the Iranian people,” said protester Sarah Shahi. “We want this theocracy that has been taking people’s rights away to be taken out with whatever means necessary. We need help when so many people have been killed.”

The protesters gathered across the street from the residence of Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations and called for the regime in Tehran to be toppled.

The ornate 19th century limestone townhouse was originally purchased by the Iranian government under Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the shah of Iran who ruled from 1941 until 1979. It has been the official home of the country’s UN representative ever since. Protests have been rare at the location, but at some point, overnight, someone spray-painted the words “terrorists” and “killers” on the front facade.

TRUMP’S LEADERSHIP CREATES ‘RARE OPPORTUNITY’ FOR CHANGE IN IRAN, FORMER IRANIAN POLITICAL PRISONER SAYS

The building’s location is one of the most exclusive on the Upper East Side, diagonally across the street from the Metropolitan Museum of Art and less than a block away from the former residence of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

One protester’s sign showed a photograph of current Iranian UN Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani with the words “A terrorist lives here.”

“For the people of the Islamic republic to be residing here is just so unjust,” said Shahi. “But it is the closest thing we have to an embassy” as a protest location.

EXILED IRANIAN CROWN PRINCE REVEALS 6-STEP PLAN TO EXERT PRESSURE ON TEHRAN’S REGIME

Since Iran does not have diplomatic relations with the United States, the building is the only Iranian government-owned property in the country.

President Trump has ordered U.S. warships to within striking distance of Iran as he considers potential attacks against the regime’s nuclear program, oil and military targets. The buildup is in response to Iran’s continued support of terrorism and its brutal mass killings of protesters, with estimates saying as many as 30,000 people have been killed for participating in anti-regime street demonstrations.

The protesters in Manhattan are supporters of the late shah’s son, Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, who has been speaking out for weeks against the regime as its barbaric crackdown continued. Pahlavi has been in exile for 47 years, since his father fled and the Iranian revolution ushered in the hardline religious Anti-American regime of the Mullahs.

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The chants from the protesters were no less impassioned than those of their brethren who have flooded the streets of Iranian cities. Signs demanded “End the regime in Iran,” and “Brave Iranians are fighting on the ground. The U.S. and Israel must act against a common enemy now.” Other signs proclaimed, “No to the Islamic Republic regime,” and “Make Iran Great Again.”

The protesters say they are waiting for President Trump to take military action against the regime so that the nation can finally taste freedom.

President Donald Trump has said the U.S. could not share military plans with Gulf allies while negotiating with Iran, even as a major American naval presence moves into the region.

Trump, speaking with Fox News Channel Senior White House Correspondent Jacqui Heinrich, responded to reporting that Gulf allies remain in the dark about potential U.S. intervention plans involving Iran. 

It comes as Trump is understood to be weighing his options on a possible military strike on Iran amid widespread protests and violent crackdowns inside the country.

TRUMP’S IRAN BRIEFING MAY BE ‘DECEPTION CAMPAIGN’ TO MASK MOVES ALREADY UNDERWAY, EXPERT SAYS

‘‘Well, we can’t tell them the plan. If I told them the plan, it would be almost as bad as telling you the plan — it could be worse, actually,’’ Trump said. ‘‘But look, the plan is that [Iran is] talking to us, and we’ll see if we can do something, otherwise we’ll see what happens… We have a big fleet heading out there, bigger than we had — and still have, actually — in Venezuela.’’

Trump announced earlier this week that a ‘‘massive Armada is heading to Iran,’’ led by the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier. 

A senior Gulf official told Fox News that Saudi Arabia would not allow the U.S. to use its airspace or bases for an attack. A high-ranking government figure from a Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) state told Fox News that the ‘‘U.S. hasn’t shared objectives or plans’’ regarding Iran with Gulf allies, despite recent high-level Saudi meetings in Washington aimed at gaining clarity.

Gulf allies have said Iran frequently seeks negotiations, but they remain skeptical that talks will lead to a deal.

‘‘Well, that’s true, but they are negotiating, so we’ll see what happens,’’ Trump said, responding to that assessment.

TRUMP VOWS TO ‘KNOCK THE HELL OUT OF’ IRAN IF NUCLEAR PROGRAM IS REBUILT AGAIN AFTER HIGH-STAKES MEETING

‘‘You know, the last time they negotiated, we had to take out their nuclear, didn’t work, you know. Then we took it out a different way, and we’ll see what happens,” Trump added.

Trump also addressed government funding and the risk of a shutdown, saying Democrats would bear responsibility if talks collapse.

‘‘I think it’s going fine. We had a big GDP, I lost a point and a half because of the last [shutdown],’’ Trump said. ‘‘So you’ll see what happens. I think the Democrats don’t want it to happen. Makes them look very bad, yeah, but it’s not a good thing for the country. So hopefully, enough people will use their heads.’’

Asked about Democratic demands that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents remove face coverings as part of Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding negotiations, Trump declined to engage, while pointing to recent comments on Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and law enforcement efforts.

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‘‘I don’t want to comment on that yet, because it’s not time to,’’ Trump said. ‘‘But I’ll have a comment. You saw my statement on Kristi yesterday. You know where my attitude is. We’re at a low point in history in crime. Since 1900 — recorded history… We have the lowest crime, the lowest number of murders, the lowest everything, because we’re taking criminals out of our country. And Tom’s doing great.’’

President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican, appear to have rounded a corner. 

The president brushed off their previous conflicts in July 2025 that stemmed from their rivalry in the 2024 election, and the two have since publicly appeared to chart a new course for their relationship as Florida backs Trump policies. 

For example, DeSantis has endorsed several agenda items from the Trump administration, including embracing the “Make America Healthy Again” initiative Trump’s Department of Health and Human Services has launched. 

As a result, DeSantis’ state kicked off its “Healthy Florida First” initiative in January, an effort across the state to test for contaminants in food products that DeSantis said is in lockstep with the administration’s priorities.

‘MOB MENTALITY’ ENDANGERS OFFICERS AMID ANTI-ICE UNREST AND CHAOS IN MINNEAPOLIS, RETIRED COPS WARN

“Our ‘Healthy Florida First’ initiative promotes innovation, ensures accountability, and empowers Floridians to make the healthiest choices for their families. Transparency is vital to that mission,” DeSantis said in a statement Monday. “Today, First Lady Casey DeSantis, Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo, and I were proud to announce that Florida has expanded this initiative by evaluating other products marketed for children. Through these transparency efforts and our long-standing commitment to medical freedom, Florida is doing our part to help Make America Healthy Again.”

DeSantis and Trump’s relationship unraveled as DeSantis became a possible rival in the 2024 election, prompting Trump to claim that the Florida governor “desperately needs a personality transplant” after DeSantis officially announced his bid for the White House. 

In June 2023, DeSantis said in an interview with “Good Morning New Hampshire” that Trump’s attacks were “juvenile,” and said that he believed a contributing factor to his loss in the 2020 election.

TIM WALZ ACCUSES TRUMP OF ‘ORGANIZED BRUTALITY’ IN IMMIGRATION CRACKDOWN, SAYS ICE TACTICS ARE ‘UN-AMERICAN’

But the two appeared to put the past behind them in 2025, where Trump reaffirmed that the two have a “lot of respect” for each other. 

“You’re my friend and you’ll always be my friend,” Trump said to DeSantis during a trip to the Everglades, Florida, to open an immigration detention center in July 2025. “We may even have some skirmishes in the future, I doubt it. But we’ll always come back because we have blood that seems to match pretty well.”

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The White House and DeSantis were contacted by Fox News Digital for comment. 

While DeSantis can’t run again for governor in 2026 once his term limit expires, he has weighed in recently on the 2026 midterm elections, and told conservative commentator Mark Levin that he believed Democrats would seek to concoct a plan to impeach Trump, should Democrats regain control of the House. 

“They will do whatever they can — including, probably, try to fabricate another impeachment — to be able to throw sand in the gears to prevent the president from being able to discharge the duties to which he was elected,” DeSantis said in an interview Tuesday on “The Mark Levin Show.” 

President Donald Trump on Saturday ripped Democratic leaders over the massive welfare and daycare fraud scandal in Minnesota, escalating his long-running feuds with Rep. Ilhan Omar, whom he called a “scammer,” and Gov. Tim Walz, whom he labeled either corrupt or incompetent.

“The Theft and Fraud in Minnesota is far greater than the 19 Billion Dollars originally projected,” Trump wrote in an early-morning Truth Social post. “The Biden Administration knew this FRAUD was happening, and did absolutely nothing about it.”

Trump then zeroed in on Omar and Walz, whom he has clashed with repeatedly over the years.

“‘Scammer’ Ilhan Omar and her absolutely terrible friends from Somalia should all be in jail right now or, far worse, send them back to Somalia,” Trump wrote.

VANCE CALLS WALZ ‘A JOKE,’ CLAIMS MINNESOTA GOVERNOR ENABLED MASSIVE FRAUD

“‘Governor’ Waltz [sic] is either the most CORRUPT government official in history, or the most INCOMPETENT. Even a very low IQ person, of which there are many, should have known what was going on in Minnesota!!!” Trump wrote.

Trump has repeatedly singled out Omar in speeches and social media posts, mocking her, accusing her of being a “fraud,” and suggesting she should be removed from the United States. He has also accused Omar of committing immigration fraud by marrying her brother — a claim Omar has repeatedly denied.

Earlier this week, after Omar was sprayed with a substance during a Minneapolis town hall, Trump suggested without evidence that she may have staged the incident, again calling her a “fraud.”

TRUMP ACCUSES TIM WALZ AND ILHAN OMAR OF USING ICE PROTESTS TO DISTRACT FROM MASSIVE STATE FRAUD

Omar, meanwhile, has said that each time Trump uses what she calls “hateful rhetoric” about her and the Somali community, the number of death threats against her increases. Last month, she described Trump as a “racist,” “bigot,” “xenophobic,” and “Islamophobic” in response to his attacks.

Dozens of people — many of them Somali-born or Somali American — have been prosecuted in Minnesota in recent years in connection with large-scale welfare fraud schemes involving food assistance and autism services. Federal prosecutors have alleged the schemes stole hundreds of millions of dollars from taxpayer-funded programs. Separate investigations have also examined alleged fraud in the state’s daycare system.

Trump and Walz have clashed on multiple occasions since Walz became Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, with Trump repeatedly tying the governor to Minnesota’s fraud scandals and accusing him of failed leadership.

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Those attacks have intensified as investigations into the fraud have continued.

In a previous Truth Social post, Trump used an offensive slur to insult Walz, prompting public condemnation and a sharp political feud.

As the threat of a possible U.S. attack against Iran looms, President Donald Trump’s administration has announced additional sanctions targeting Iranian figures.

The Treasury Department announced Friday that its Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) “took additional action against Iranian officials responsible for the regime’s brutal crackdown on its own people.”

“Among the officials sanctioned today is Eskandar Momeni Kalagari, Iran’s minister of the interior who oversees the murderous Law Enforcement Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran (LEF), a key entity responsible for the deaths of thousands of peaceful protesters,” the department said.

HEGSETH SAYS DEPARTMENT OF WAR ‘WILL BE PREPARED TO DELIVER’ WHATEVER TRUMP WANTS FOLLOWING IRAN WARNING

“OFAC also designated Babak Morteza Zanjani, a criminal Iranian investor who previously embezzled billions of dollars in Iranian oil revenue that rightfully belonged to the Iranian people and was never fully recovered. Freed from imprisonment in order to launder money for the regime, Zanjani has provided financial backing for major projects that support the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Iranian regime more broadly.”

The Treasury Department also noted that OFAC designated two digital asset exchanges linked to Zanjani that “have processed large volumes of funds associated with IRGC-linked counterparties.”

The announcement comes as the Trump administration prepares for the possibility of military action against Iran.

RUBIO REVOKES IRANIAN OFFICIALS’ US TRAVEL PRIVILEGES OVER DEADLY PROTEST CRACKDOWN KILLING THOUSANDS

Trump issued a saber-rattling Truth Social post Wednesday warning that the U.S. will attack if Iran does not negotiate a nuclear deal.

Trump suggested in a Truth Social post Wednesday that the U.S. could use force against Iran if a nuclear deal is not reached soon.

“A massive Armada is heading to Iran. It is moving quickly, with great power, enthusiasm, and purpose. It is a larger fleet, headed by the great Aircraft Carrier Abraham Lincoln, than that sent to Venezuela. Like with Venezuela, it is, ready, willing, and able to rapidly fulfill its mission, with speed and violence, if necessary. Hopefully Iran will quickly ‘Come to the Table’ and negotiate a fair and equitable deal – NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS – one that is good for all parties,” the president warned in a Truth Social post Wednesday.

IRAN RESPONDS TO TRUMP PRESSURE WITH WARNING OF RETALIATION: ‘FINGERS ON THE TRIGGER’

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The commander in chief has in recent days been supplied with an expanded list of possible military actions against Iran to inflict additional damage on the foreign nation’s nuclear and missile sites or weaken the Islamic Republic’s supreme leader, The New York Times reported on Thursday, citing U.S. officials.

The military options go further than those the president was previously mulling earlier this month to fulfill his pledge to stop the slaughter of protesters, officials reportedly said.

The current list of options includes the prospect of U.S. forces executing raids inside the nation of Iran, according to the Times, which indicated that the protests have been crushed.

FIRST ON FOX: A previously unreported 2013 Facebook post by China’s San Francisco consulate shows then-freshman Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., touting “great potential” for U.S.-China cooperation during a meeting with a senior CCP diplomat, which came during the same time period when Swalwell was allegedly targeted by Chinese espionage efforts.

The 2013 photo, which was unearthed by Fox News Digital and “liked” by Christine “Fang Fang” Fang, a Chinese national who was suspected of being a Chinese Ministry of State Security (MSS) operative and who was reportedly working closely with Swalwell’s campaign helping with fundraising, showed Swalwell posing with Song Ru’an. 

At the time of the photo, Ru’an was the Deputy Consul General at China’s Bay Area consulate in San Francisco. He would subsequently be tapped to serve as the Deputy Commissioner of the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China in Hong Kong until at least 2021. 

“The United States and China have a lot in common and the two economies are highly complementary. There are great potential for the two countries to cooperate,” Swalwell said at the meeting according to the picture’s caption posted by the Chinese consulate. “I will work actively to promote bilateral economic and trade cooperation, and I’m looking forward to visiting China in the near future.”

SWALWELL PROMISES IF ELECTED GOVERNOR, FORMER ICE AGENTS WOULD BE ‘UN-HIRABLE’ IN CALIFORNIA

The unearthed photo comes a couple of weeks after Fox News Digital reported on a California-based law partner for a Beijing law firm donating thousands of dollars to Swalwell’s gubernatorial campaign. Like Keliang “Clay” Zhu, Ru’an has a history of supporting interests contrary to American priorities. Ru’an served as one of China’s leading officials in Hong Kong between 2015 and 2021, and was a vocal critic of a 2019 U.S. Human Rights and Democracy Act aimed at protecting Hong Kongers from China’s authoritarian crackdown on its dissidents that only a single Republican member of Congress voted against. 

Ru’an blasted the bill at the time as the “the epitome of hegemony” and warned it went against American interests, according to the South China Morning Post. Ru’an also reportedly slammed the moves as a “negative and disgraceful role” the U.S. was playing in China’s domestic issues. 

Ru’an emerged as a central figure in Hong Kong during China’s national security crackdown there that began boiling over in 2020, 2021 and subsequent years. According to the Hong Kong Journalists Association, Ru’an told foreign media outlets to “inject positive energy” into coverage about new extradition laws China was imposing on Hong Kong in 2019. Multiple briefings from both previous and subsequent years showed similar efforts by Ru’an to “guide” media coverage in favor of China. 

In 2018, he met with members of the American media to discuss how the “One Country, Two Systems” framework between Hong Kong and China is vital to U.S.-China trade relations.

SWALWELL GOVERNOR BID HIT WITH RESIDENCY QUESTIONS AFTER COURT FILING ALLEGES HE DOESN’T LIVE IN CALIFORNIA     

Prior to Ru’an’s work on behalf of the Chinese government in Hong Kong, while serving as Deputy Consulate General at China’s San Francisco consulate, public reports said Ru’an and other consular officials sent letters and traveled to Oregon in an attempt to prevent the creation of a mural highlighting China’s human rights abuses against Tibetan people. Prior to working in San Francisco, Ru’an held multiple CCP roles back in China, including at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Swalwell’s team declined to provide any comment for this story. The San Francisco Chinese Consulate did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

“It’s bad enough that certain California special interests are pushing redistributionist tax policies straight out of a communist manifesto. Now one of the state’s leading gubernatorial candidates has been caught cozying up to the Communist Chinese Party again,” GOP strategist Colin Reed said. “California’s next governor needs to have the intelligence, judgment and character to stand up to the CCP, especially when it comes to empowering American innovators with a common sense regulatory environment that allows them to grow.”

“I know first hand what it’s like to live under a communist regime. One-party rule by an authoritarian Communist Party: that’s not theoretical for me, and for years I have expressed my disgust at the establishment strategy of ‘engaging’ with the communist regime in China in the hope that this would one day move them towards freedom and democracy,” Republican California gubernatorial candidate and Former Fox News host Steve Hilton told Fox News Digital.

“These people never give up power voluntarily and they are always on the look-out for the ‘useful idiots’ and gullible stooges who they can target with their influence operations. Seems like they found the perfect mark in Eric Swalwell, and it’s somewhat alarming that the poor judgment is still being repeated, as we learned with the recent revelations about CCP-linked donations to his campaign,” he added.

EX–NEW YORK STATE OFFICIAL ACCUSED OF SPYING FOR CHINA CALLED HOCHUL ‘MORE OBEDIENT’ THAN CUOMO, TRIAL REVEALS

Swalwell served on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) when news broke of his ties to Fang Fang, who “liked” the photo posted in 2013 of Swalwell and Ru’an. Swalwell’s role on the influential intel committee was one that dealt with sensitive national security matters other members of Congress are not privy to. Now, he is asking voters to elevate him to governor of a state at the center of U.S.-China trade and tech. 

Earlier that same year, Swalwell attended an event hosted by the California State University, East Bay Chinese Student Association, a group that was led by Fang Fang, to celebrate the Chinese New Year.

U.S. officials have repeatedly warned that Beijing uses diplomats and influence networks like the United Front to cultivate relationships with American politicians, making even routine-looking interactions politically combustible when they involve a lawmaker already shadowed by foreign-influence scrutiny.

“Swalwell met Fang Fang when he was on the city council. He continued a long relationship with her and she would direct him. She directed interns in his office,” former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy told Fox News Digital. “And it wasn’t just Swalwell who had knowledge of her. I believe people in his family became friends with her as well. But his activity and his behavior is very disturbing.”

“The report that I received, he never should have been on Intel,” McCarthy told Fox News Digital, citing the briefing he and other senior level members of Congress received after news broke about Swalwell, Fang Fang and the alleged influence operation she was part of. “The knowledge that I have of what transpired and the actions that he has done and the behavior, especially when he’s gone to other countries, I would be very leery of him in any position of that can have sensitive information. The recklessness in which he lived his life, the reports that have come back, I think it would be hard for him to ever even be considered as a governor candidate, period.”

A handful of current and former intelligence officials told Axios in 2020 that they believed Fang Fang, who also goes by Christine Fang, was part of an influence operation run by China’s Ministry of State Security between roughly 2011 and 2015. The outlet reported that Fang Fang gained proximity to political power through campaign fundraising and networking, adding that she engaged in sexual relationships with at least two Midwestern mayors, and was also targeting elected officials in California.

Swalwell’s earliest ties to Fang Fang began in 2012 when he was seen posing in a photo with her during his time as a council member for Dublin City, California. The reported “student event” was attended by Fang Fang, who Axios indicated was a leader for her school’s Chinese Student Association and its Asian Pacific American Public Affairs chapter. The pair was identified posing in another photo together the following year at a Chinese New Year banquet held at Fang Fang’s college.

CHINESE SPIES ‘SHAM MARRIAGE’ SCANDAL EXPOSES ‘TARGETED’ NATIONAL SECURITY THREAT AT MAJOR US BASE: EXPERT

Meanwhile, between 2013 and 2014, Fang Fang helped fundraise at an event for Tulsi Gabbard, according to a flyer of the event she shared on Facebook, and also volunteered for Rep. Ro Khanna’s, D-Calif., failed House bid, other social media posts and talks with a former organizer indicated, according to Axios. Fang Fang appeared in photos with Swalwell, Khanna, Rep. Judy Chu, D-Calif., and others across a period of several years around this time as well. According to an intelligence official and a Bay Area politico, Fang Fang took part in fundraising activity for Swalwell’s 2014 campaign and allegedly helped place an intern in his office, while also interacting with the California congressman at multiple events across several years.

Eventually, U.S. intelligence officials became so concerned with Fang Fang’s activities that they alerted Swalwell and other members of Congressional leadership in 2015. At the time, Pelosi was serving as House Minority Leader while McCarthy was the House Majority Leader, but McCarthy indicated he was not briefed then. Meanwhile, Swalwell  immediately cut ties with Fang Fang upon the defensive briefing, sources speaking to Axios said. McCarthy has questioned how long Pelosi knew about Swalwell’s ties to Fang Fang, and whether she was aware of them prior to appointing him to the influential House intel committee. 

Shortly after Axios broke its investigation of Swalwell’s ties to Fang Fang in 2020, top-level Democrats and Republicans, including then-House Minority Leader McCarthy and then-House Speaker Pelosi, received further briefings on the matter, which was followed by GOP calls for Swalwell to be removed from the HPSCI. The high-level committee exercises primary congressional oversight over the U.S. intelligence community and is privy to classified information other members of Congress are not.  

Swalwell has denied any wrongdoing and a multi-year congressional ethics report backed that assertion and did not take any further action against the congressman over his questionable associations.

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In 2021, House Republicans attempted to formally remove Swalwell from the House intel committee, but Democrats had the power and killed the bill. Upon the power in Congress shifting to Republican hands the following Congressional session, then-Speaker of the House McCarthy rejected Swalwell’s attempt to maintain his seat on the powerful committee and he was pushed out in 2023.

McCarthy said he wasn’t trying to take advantage of the opportunity to “punish” Democrats, but, rather, was so alarmed by Swalwell’s behavior that he felt it was necessary to protect national security. 

“Based upon my classified knowledge, and based upon being Speaker – the reports that have come to me are very disturbing, his continual actions and behavior,” McCarthy added. “I don’t understand how a man like him would consider running just based upon that knowledge.” 

NEWFIELDS, N.H. — Ken Burns, the esteemed filmmaker whose popular documentaries chronicle American history and culture, has a message for the Democratic Party.

Burns is urging Democrats to restore his home state of New Hampshire as the lead-off primary in the Democratic National Committee‘s (DNC) 2028 presidential nominating calendar.

New Hampshire had held the lead-off presidential primary for both Democrats and Republicans for a century, and while the GOP adhered to tradition in the last race for the White House, the DNC upended their calendar, placing South Carolina ahead of the Granite State.

The move was an unwanted distraction for Democrats during the 2024 primaries, and the DNC is now starting to discuss which states will lead off its 2028 calendar, when the party aims to win back the White House in the race to succeed term-limited Republican President Donald Trump.

WHITE HOUSE RACE UNDERWAY: WITH 2026 LOOMING, BOTH PARTIES ARE ALREADY PLAYING FOR 2028

Burns, who lives in the small southwestern New Hampshire town of Walpole, wrote a letter to the DNC’s Rules & Bylaws Committee, which oversees the party’s primary calendar, on the eve of that panel’s meeting in Puerto Rico to begin considering applications by New Hampshire and nearly a dozen states to hold an early primary in 2028.

“I’m writing to you today both as a Granite Stater who has witnessed firsthand how New Hampshire’s First in the Nation Primary has helped move our democracy forward, and a historical filmmaker who, in this particularly challenging moment, is concerned for the future of our country and believes that New Hampshire’s citizen-led, First in the Nation primary remains indispensable for this moment,” Burns wrote in the letter, which was obtained by Fox News Digital.

‘ROCK STAR’ NEWSOM STEALS THE SHOW AT DNC SUMMIT AS DEMOCRATS HUNT FOR 2028 CONTENDER TO TAKE ON TRUMP

In the letter, which was first reported by WMUR-TV in New Hampshire, Burns emphasized, “I know of no people better suited to help begin the journey to maintain true freedom, to re-light that sacred fire, than the people of the Live Free or Die State. That’s why we need New Hampshire’s citizen-led, First in the Nation Primary, where everyday people can be heard. For in the strength of everyday citizens, there is no better or equal hope in our world.”

Longtime New Hampshire Democratic Party Chair Ray Buckley, who’s a member of the DNC’s Rules and Bylaws Committee and is attending the meeting in Puerto Rico, told Fox News Digital that “Ken Burns is a beloved, internationally respected storyteller of America. Ken is trusted, he knows his stuff, he speaks with such clarity and authority that he gets people to sit up and listen.”

“Ken makes a powerful statement in support of New Hampshire’s presidential primary that will resonate with my colleagues,” Buckley predicted.

2028 LOOMS LARGE: HARRIS, NEWSOM, PRITZKER CONVERGE AT HIGH-STAKES DEMOCRATIC PARTY SUMMIT

National Democrats for years had knocked both Iowa — whose caucuses for 50 years led off the party’s nominating calendar until 2024 — and New Hampshire as unrepresentative of the party as a whole because the states have largely white populations with few major urban areas. Nevada and South Carolina, which in recent cycles voted third and fourth on the calendar, are much more diverse than either Iowa or New Hampshire. Nevada and South Carolina were added to the Democratic calendar two decades ago to increase the diversity of the early states’ electorate.

But New Hampshire Democrats have long pushed back, saying the state’s rich tradition of grassroots, retail politics, its well-informed electorate, its high percentage of voter participation and its longtime status as a key general election swing state make it the perfect locale to hold the first-in-the-nation primary.

After the DNC removed New Hampshire from the top of their 2024 calendar, putting the state second along with Nevada, the Granite State still moved to the head of the line. Adhering to a nearly half-century-old law that mandates the Granite State to hold the first presidential primary a week ahead of any similar contest, New Hampshire Secretary of State Dave Scanlan scheduled the Democratic and GOP presidential primary contests for Jan. 23, 2024.

The Democratic contest, which was held before South Carolina and Nevada, ended up being an unsanctioned election, with the DNC banning the state’s delegates from attending that summer’s nominating convention. The DNC later made peace with New Hampshire, and reinstated their convention delegates.

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The Rules and Bylaws Committee isn’t expected to decide on the 2028 calendar until later this year.

The rival Republican National Committee, as Fox News Digital first reported last week, at its winter meeting took the first formal step in keeping the GOP’s 2028 calendar the same, with the Iowa caucuses kicking off the nominating process followed by New Hampshire’s primary.

Minneapolis is the Trump administration’s latest immigration flashpoint — and  a familiar figure is on the ground, taking command of the federal operation after two fatal shootings and days of agitators sparking heightened protests in the Twin Cities. 

Border Czar Tom Homan, a career law enforcement official with more than four decades in immigration enforcement, has worked under both Republican and Democratic administrations — including formal recognition during the Obama era. Allies say that résumé undercuts any claims he’s a partisan operator and makes him an ideal choice to take the lead in Minneapolis. 

“Tom Homan is a decorated career law enforcement professional whose service has spanned multiple presidential administrations, both Republican and Democratic. He is a no-nonsense American patriot who is dedicated to making his country better. So I have every bit of confidence that Tom is the right person for the job,” America First Legal president Gene Hamilton said in an interview with Fox News Digital. 

“People know exactly who they are dealing with when they deal with Tom Homan. He’s a known entity,” Hamilton continued. 

BEHIND THE SCENES: TRUMP AND WHITE HOUSE RALLY BEHIND NOEM AS ‘RADICALS’ DEMAND OUSTER

Hamilton worked on immigration policy during Trump’s first term and alongside Homan, and he told Fox News Digital that Homan is the right fit to oversee the Minnesota operation because of his law-and-order approach and record across administrations. Hamilton is now president of America First Legal, after previously working as Trump’s deputy White House counsel during the first half of 2025.

Homan was deployed to the Gopher State on Monday, effectively replacing Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino, and is reporting directly to President Donald Trump as he takes the helm of the administration’s immigration crackdown in the Twin Cities. His leadership over the operation follows a pair of high-profile shootings involving federal law enforcement that left two Americans dead, and Democrats calling the deaths “murder” while pointing to ICE as a modern-day “Gestapo.”

“Tom Homan is a patriot with decades of experience effectively protecting American communities and deporting criminal illegal aliens,” White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said when asked about Homan taking the helm of the mission. 

WHY TRUMP SENDING TOM HOMAN TO MINNESOTA IS A STROKE OF ABSOLUTE GENIUS

A White House official told Fox News Digital amid the Minnesota leadership shakeup that the administration “has not wavered” from its mission to arrest and deport illegal immigrants, with one official saying that Trump wanted to prevent further violence and work with state and local leaders to remove public safety threats.

Democrats have slammed the broader ICE crackdown as heavy-handed, calling for investigations and tighter restrictions on enforcement tactics after agitators Renee Good and Alex Pretti were fatally shot by law enforcement this month. Senate Democrat Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has echoed that criticism, calling what’s unfolding in Minnesota “appalling” and pressing for new oversight and guardrails on ICE’s conduct as the Trump administration insists the mission remains unchanged and focused on law and order.

“The Trump Administration will never waver in standing up for law and order and protecting the American people,” Jackson added in her comment on Homan. 

Homan launched his federal law enforcement career in 1984 as a Border Patrol agent with the Immigration and Naturalization Service, which was abolished after 9/11 and replaced with the Department of Homeland Security. His rise through the ranks of federal law enforcement included former President Barack Obama tapping him to lead ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations in 2013. 

Hamilton continued that Homan is not a partisan actor, but focused on delivering lawful deportation results – as he’s done for a Democrat administration. 

“Tom Homan’s mission is not partisan. It’s not political,” Hamilton continued in his comments on Homan. “The only people who are making it political are the officials in Minnesota who have turned this into a rallying cry for agitators, who are more committed to rioting and impeding federal law enforcement in the streets of Minneapolis than, quite frankly, anything we’ve seen In recent history.”

Chad Wolf, acting Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security during President Trump’s first term, authored an op-ed for Fox News Digital that described Trump tapping Homan to oversee the operation as a “stroke of absolute genius.” 

“Homan is not a political firebrand looking for headlines. He is a career law enforcement professional, with over 30 years of experience at ICE and U.S. Border Patrol, who understands the operational realities of immigration enforcement,” Wolf wrote. “Sending him to Minnesota is not about provocation; it is about restoring coherence to a situation that has grown dangerously fragmented.”

DHS data show deportations surged under Obama, including a record 438,421 removals in fiscal year 2013, fueling a “deporter in chief” label activists used to describe the 44th president. 

In 2016, Obama awarded Homan the Presidential Rank Award for Distinguished Service, an honor recognizing leaders who produce “sustained extraordinary results.”

“Thomas Homan deports people. And he’s really good at it,” the Washington Post wrote in an article at the time reporting on the award. 

“Homan is the Washington bureaucrat in charge of rounding up, detaining and kicking illegal immigrants out of the country,” the article continued. “As Americans fight over whether the next president should build a wall on the Mexico border to keep migrants out or protect millions of them from deportation, Homan is actually hunting undocumented immigrants down right now, setting strategy for 8,000 officers on the front lines.”

DAVID MARCUS: SPURNING TRUMP MEANS MAYOR JACOB FREY OWNS MINNEAPOLIS MESS

Fast-forward to that campaign cycle electing Trump to his first term, Homan was again tapped to help tackle immigration for the Republican president’s administration, serving as the acting director in 2017 and 2018. 

Now, the border czar is vowing he won’t leave the Twin Cities “until the problem is gone.” 

Homan publicly suggested that ICE could pull back from direct action in the community if local leaders allow federal agents access to jails to take custody of removable immigrants in a controlled setting, a proposal that effectively turns Minnesota into a test case for whether sanctuary-style resistance can be traded for cooperation on detainers.

He met with Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz after arriving to the state, calling the interactions “productive” as he looks to pull back the number of federal agents on the streets to focus on deporting illegal aliens detained in jails. 

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“More agents in the jail means less agents in the street,” Homan said Thursday. “This is common-sense cooperation that allows us to draw down on the number of people we have here. Yes, I said it: draw down the number of people here because we have the efficiency, the safety of the jails and the prisons.”

Republicans are clinging to a razor-thin 218-213 House majority.

And the GOP’s margin will shrink even further after a special congressional election this weekend to fill the seat in a Democrat-dominated district which has been vacant for nearly a year.

That’s because the two candidates in Saturday’s runoff election in Texas’ 18th Congressional District are both Democrats.

Voters in the district, which is anchored by downtown Houston and surrounding areas, head to the polls to choose a successor to fill the seat left vacant when Democratic Rep. Sylvester Turner died last March.

Sylvester, a former longtime state lawmaker, served two terms as Houston mayor before winning election to Congress in 2024, succeeding the late longtime Democratic Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee.

DEMOCRATIC TAKEOVER FEARS SOAR AS HOUSE REPUBLICANS CLING TO FRAGILE MAJORITY

Democrats Christian Menefee, a former attorney for Houston’s Harris County, and former Houston City Council member Amanda Edwards are facing off in the special election. They were the top two finishers in a field of 16 candidates that faced off in an initial election in November.

While Texas has redrawn its congressional maps for the 2026 midterms, as part of the high-stakes redistricting battle between President Donald Trump and Republicans versus Democrats, the special election will use the state’s current district lines.

CASH SURGE: HOUSE GOP SPOTLIGHTS RECORD FUNDRAISING AHEAD OF MIDTERM CLASH

The winner of the special election will give the Democrats one additional House member, giving Republican leadership further headaches.

“They’d better be here,” House Speaker Mike Johnson recently said of his members. “I told everybody, and not in jest, I said, no adventure sports, no risk-taking, take your vitamins. Stay healthy and be here.”

And House Majority Whip Tom Emmer’s office confirmed it is advising members that “outside of life-and-death circumstances,” they expect Republican lawmakers to be on Capitol Hill.

Three other special congressional elections are on tap this year.

Eleven candidates are running in the Feb. 5 Democratic Party primary in New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District.

The seat was left vacant after now New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill stepped down after winning November’s gubernatorial election in the Garden State.

The winner of the Democratic primary will face off with Randolph Mayor Joe Hathaway, the only Republican to file for the special election, which will be held on April 16.

The suburban district in northern New Jersey leans to the left, with Sherrill winning re-election in 2024 by 15 points, the same margin she carried the district in November’s gubernatorial showdown.

REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: HOUSE EXODUS THREATENS JOHNSON’S GRIP ON POWER AS OVER 40 MEMBERS HEAD FOR EXIT

But then-Vice President Kamala Harris won the district by just eight points in the 2024 presidential election, giving the GOP some hopes of possibly flipping the seat.

A whopping 22 candidates, including 17 Republicans, are running in a special election in Georgia’s 14th Congressional District, in the race to succeed former GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. The MAGA firebrand and one-time top Trump House ally four weeks ago stepped down from Congress a year before her term ended.

According to Georgia state law, all the candidates will run on the same ballot. If no contender tops 50% of the vote, a runoff election between the top two finishers will take place on April 7.

The district in northwestern Georgia is solidly Republican, with Greene winning re-election in 2024 by nearly 30 points and Trump carrying the district by 37 points.

Primary Day in California for the 2026 elections is scheduled for June 2, and this year it will also include a primary for the special election in the state’s 1st Congressional District, in the race to fill a seat left vacant following the recent unexpected death of Republican Rep. Doug LaMalfa. The general election will be held on Aug. 4.

The district, in northeastern California, is solidly Republican.

Similar to Texas, California is also altering its congressional maps as part of the redistricting wars, but the special election will be held under the current district lines.

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The White House and congressional Republicans criticized the decision by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom to not hold a special election to fill LaMalfa’s seat until August, six months after the late congressman’s death.

But Democrats similarly complained about Republican Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas not scheduling the special election to fill Turner’s seat until eight months after the late lawmaker died.

Fox News’ Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this story.

A conservative advocacy group is slamming the social media platform LinkedIn and conservatives online are threatening to ditch the site after the group’s post supporting President Donald Trump’s illegal immigration crackdown was temporarily removed in what the company called an error. 

“.@DHSgov is carrying out the essential task of keeping our country safe,” State Freedom Caucus Network posted on Jan. 27 on multiple platforms including X and LinkedIn. 

“Biden let over 10M illegal aliens enter our states, many being violent criminals and pedophiles. Every state must ensure collaboration with ICE and CBP to remove them. Our caucuses are on the frontlines leading their states to support @POTUS’s mission to keep Americans safe!”

On Thursday, SFCN revealed a screenshot showing that while the post was allowed by X, it was flagged as “hateful speech” by LinkedIn and removed.

TIKTOK ‘MAJOR INFRASTRUCTURE ISSUE’ SPARKS CENSORSHIP CLAIMS FROM DEMOCRATS NEWSOM, MURPHY

“Apparently protecting children is ‘hate,’ but letting actual predators roam free is fine,” SFCN wrote. “@elonmusk doesn’t censor us, but @LinkedIn does! We’ll be deleting our account as a result.”

Conservatives on social media quickly began calling out the social media company, co-founded by liberal megadonor Reid Hoffman before he sold the company to Microsoft, where he currently sits on the board.

2010 OBAMA CLIP GOES VIRAL WHERE HE DEFENDS DEPORTATIONS, EVEN OF THOSE ‘JUST TRYING TO EARN A LIVING’

“Everyone delete LinkedIn,” Townhall columnist Dustin Grage posted on X. “Just a garbage woke platform that provides little value.”

“How is wanting pedos off the streets hateful?? ?? Why are you censoring Conservatives?? @LinkedIn,” conservative influencer account LibsofTikTok posted on X. “DELETE YOUR LINKEDIN ACCOUNT.”

A LinkedIn spokesperson pushed back, telling Fox News Digital: “This was removed in error, and we quickly corrected it.”

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Andrew Roth, president of the State Freedom Caucus Network, told Fox News Digital he received a “removal notice” via email and after the situation was posted on LibsofTikTok, he received another email saying the removal was an error.

“Initially, your post was removed for going against our policies,” Roth was told by LinkedIn. “As part of our review, we now find that your post doesn’t go against our policies and apologize for the mistake.”

Roth told Fox News Digital, “Yeah, right.”

“I guess wokeism is still alive and well, but we will continue to fight it. First step is to not engage on the LinkedIn platform ever again. Second step is to tell the world what they did.”

Conservatives have long decried censorship and perceived bias on social media platforms and although the post was reinstated within a few hours of being taken down, Daniel Cochrane, Heritage Foundation Senior Research Associate at the Center for Technology and the Human Person, told Fox News Digital the situation represents the “predictable model” that Big Tech platforms often operate under.

“Censor first and then ask for forgiveness later,” Cochrane said. 

“While platforms nearly always claim a ‘mistake’ or ‘miscommunication’ content moderation systems and processes operate in a black box,” Cochrane added. “The opaque nature of these systems leads to a dearth of accountability.”

Cochrane went on to say that even if platforms aren’t “explicitly targeting” a specific group or message, “liberal biases” can often be “baked into their algorithmic moderation systems disproportionately flag and demote conservative voices.”

“Without greater accountability, the status quo of arbitrary censorship is a feature of Big Tech platforms, not a bug.”

Former CNN anchor and journalist Don Lemon is slated to appear in federal court Friday afternoon to face federal criminal charges and potential jail time in connection with his alleged involvement in a protest at a Minnesota church earlier this month. 

Lemon will be charged in Los Angeles Friday afternoon on allegations of conspiring to violate someone’s constitutional rights and alleged FACE Act violations, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security confirmed to Fox News Digital.

The FACE Act, passed in 1994, is a federal law that prohibits the use of force, intimidation, or obstruction to deliberately “injure, intimidate, or interfere” with an individual’s ability to exercise their right to religious freedom at a place of worship. 

FACE Act violations carry penalties ranging from fines to prison time, depending on the severity of the violation alleged and other contributing factors. Because the FACE Act classifies a first-time violation involving the use of force or physical obstruction as a misdemeanor, Lemon could face a maximum of one year in federal prison if prosecutors seek those charges. The Justice Department did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

MINNESOTA DRAGS TRUMP’S ICE TO COURT IN EFFORT TO PAUSE IMMIGRATION CRACKDOWN

Lemon’s attorney, Abbe Lowell, said the case is an “unprecedented attack” on the First Amendment and an attempt by the Justice Department to chill free speech protections, including  

He told Fox News Digital in a statement that Lemon would fight the charges “vigorously and thoroughly” in federal court. 

Lemon’s arrest comes more than a week after he was seen with a group of anti-ICE protesters who interrupted a church service at the Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, where an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) official serves as a pastor. The group of protesters was seen chanting “ICE out,” according to video footage, and interrupting the service.

Three other individuals, including independent journalist Georgia Fort, were also charged Friday in connection with their alleged involvement in the demonstration.

Fort said she was also at the church in a reporting capacity. 

DON LEMON TAPS HUNTER BIDEN’S ATTORNEY TO FIGHT TRUMP DOJ CHARGES

Attorney General Pam Bondi on Friday confirmed reports of Lemon’s arrest earlier in the day, saying on social media that he and three others had been taken into custody in connection with the protest. 

“At my direction, early this morning federal agents arrested Don Lemon, Trahern Jeen Crews, Georgia Fort, and Jamael Lydell Lundy, in connection with the coordinated attack on Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota,” Bondi said on X.

Lemon, an independent journalist, said he had been attending the demonstration as a reporter, and not as a protester. In a video posted to his YouTube channel, Lemon remarked, “I’m just here photographing, I’m not part of the group … I’m a journalist.” 

Lowell, Lemon’s attorney, said on Friday that Lemon had been attending the demonstration in a reporting capacity, and not as a demonstrator. “Don Lemon was taken into custody by federal agents last night in Los Angeles, where he was covering the Grammy Awards,” Lowell said in a statement.

“Don has been a journalist for 30 years, and his constitutionally protected work in Minneapolis was no different than what he has always done.” 

MINNESOTA AG KEITH ELLISON DENIES DON LEMON, ANTI-ICE PROTESTERS VIOLATED FACE ACT AS DOJ MULLS CHARGES

“The First Amendment exists to protect journalists whose role it is to shine light on the truth and hold those in power accountable,” Lowell added. “There is no more important time for people like Don to be doing this work.” 

Lowell has represented a number of prominent clients in the last 12 months who argue they have been targeted by the Trump administration — among them, New York Attorney General Letitia James, Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa Cook, and former National Security adviser John Bolton.

A federal magistrate judge in Minnesota had rejected the Justice Department’s initial attempt to bring criminal charges against Lemon in connection with the Jan. 18 protest, describing the administration’s case against Lemon as “frivolous,” and prompting lawyers for the Justice Department to appeal that decision to a federal appeals court. 

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Lemon’s arrest comes as Minnesota has emerged as a flashpoint for immigration protesters in recent weeks, including in the aftermath of the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. 

It also prompted fresh concerns over First Amendment protections for journalists, including from Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her.

“The arrest today of journalists for covering a protest is deeply chilling,” Her said in a statement Friday. “We need to all be hyper vigilant and call out the way this administration has eroded our First Amendment and other Constitutional rights — because if we let this go unanswered, it won’t stop here.”

President Donald Trump earlier this week signaled that the administration is willing to “de-escalate” tensions in Minnesota, though further details on that process remain unclear.

A federal judge on Friday struck down key portions of President Donald Trump’s executive order aimed at tightening citizenship verification for voter registration and absentee ballot applications, ruling the White House overstepped its constitutional authority.

U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly said the Constitution gives states and Congress, not the president, the power to set rules for federal elections. 

Kollar-Kotelly blocked provisions in the executive order that would have required documentary proof of American citizenship on federal voter registration and absentee ballot forms.

REPUBLICANS, DEMS BREAK THROUGH RESISTANCE, MOVE FORWARD WITH TRUMP-BACKED FUNDING PACKAGE

“The Constitution does not allow the President to impose unilateral changes to federal election procedures,” Kollar-Kotelly wrote, permanently enjoining the administration from implementing the challenged provisions of the order.

Trump signed the order, titled “Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections,” on March 25.

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

This is a developing story, check back later for updates. 

President Donald Trump offered renewed support for Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem on Friday, saying she has done a “great job” amid ongoing nationwide immigration protests.

In a lengthy post on Truth Social, Trump accused “radical left” activists of targeting Noem while touting what he described as historic gains in border security and public safety under his administration.

“The Radical Left Lunatics, Insurrectionists, Agitators, and Thugs, are going after Kristi Noem, the Secretary of Homeland Security, because she is a woman, and has done a really GREAT JOB!” Trump wrote Friday evening. “The Border disaster that I inherited is fixed, the violent criminals that were allowed into our Country through Sleepy Joe’s ‘sick’ Open Border Policy, are largely gone, or being strongly sought for purposes of removal, and the Murder Rate in the USA just reached the lowest level in history, 125 years!”

In a separate post, Trump praised border czar Tom Homan for doing a “FANTASTIC JOB” after sending him to Minneapolis this week to replace Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino. Trump has suggested Bovino did not adequately oversee the state’s immigration crackdown.

MINNESOTA SHAKEUP SHIFTS LEADERSHIP NOT STRATEGY, WHITE HOUSE SAYS, PUSHING BACK ON ‘RETREAT’ CLAIM

Trump’s comments come as Noem faces mounting criticism following the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good during immigration enforcement operations by federal agents in Minneapolis.

Several prominent Democrats have recently called for her removal as DHS secretary, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., along with other House Democrats, are threatening impeachment proceedings if Noem is not “fired immediately.”

Republican Sens. Thom Tillis of North Carolina and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska have also publicly urged her removal.

GRAHAM PUSHES BACK ON TILLIS’ CRITICISM OF NOEM, MILLER FOR LABELING MAN KILLED BY BORDER PATROL A ‘TERRORIST’

On Friday, several University of Minnesota student groups led what they dubbed a “National Shutdown” in protest of federal immigration enforcement, with activists joining from across the country.

Trump accused Democrats of using protests as a distraction from what he alleged were widespread financial crimes involving billions of dollars in public funds.

“Republicans, don’t let these Crooked Democrats, who are stealing Billions of Dollars from Minnesota, and other Cities and States from all over the Country, push you around,” he wrote. “They are using this aggressive protest SCAM to obfuscate, camouflage, and hide their CRIMINAL ACTS of theft and insurrection. They should all be in jail.”

FEDERAL COURT RULES NOEM TERMINATING TEMPORARY PROTECTED STATUS FOR VENEZUELANS IN US WAS ILLEGAL

The president’s latest message of support for Noem follows confirmation Tuesday that he has no plans to ask her to step down from her role.

“Is Kristi Noem going to step down?” a reporter asked.

“No,” Trump responded.

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Noem addressed calls for her ouster in an interview Thursday on “Hannity,” saying “radicals” were targeting her.

“These radicals are attacking me, but I’m just doing my job. I’m following the law, enforcing the laws like President Trump promised that he would do to keep people safe in this country,” she said.

Fox News Digital’s Nora Moriarty, Anders Hagstrom and Peter D’Abrosca contributed to this report.

Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois is accusing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement of “needlessly” detaining a 5-year-old child with his illegal immigrant father after the agency said his mother refused to take custody.

In an X post featuring pictures of 5-year-old Liam Ramos, Duckworth, a second-term senator, wrote that “Trump’s ICE snatched this bright, happy 5-year-old from his driveway.”

“They shipped him 1,300 miles to suffer, without his mother, in a squalid Texas detention center. And now he’s growing ill. Democrats are fighting to end this cruelty,” she wrote. “Liam is not a criminal. Let him go.”

DEM GOVERNOR DUCKS QUESTION ON ‘MONSTER’ ILLEGAL ALIEN WHO FRACTURED 8-YEAR-OLD’S SKULL WITH ROCK ATTACK

However, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin posted a statement from Dr. Sean Conley, acting director of DHS’ Office of Health Security and chief medical officer, in which he addressed the child’s condition.

Conley said that a pediatrician examined Ramos and “found no medical concerns.”

“It is standard policy to provide medical care from the moment an alien enters ICE custody. This includes medical, dental and mental health intake screening within 12 hours of arriving at each detention facility, a full health assessment within 14 days of entering ICE custody or arrival at a facility and access to necessary medical appointments and 24-hour emergency care. This is the best healthcare many of these individuals have received in their entire lives,” said Conley.  

The doctor added that “ensuring the safety, security and well-being of individuals in our custody is a top priority at ICE.”

He said illegal aliens are “provided with three meals a day that are certified by dieticians, including pediatric considerations.”

In response, Duckworth told Fox News Digital, “The Trump administration suggesting that needlessly keeping a 5-year-old in federal custody is in his best interests is appalling.

“Detaining children like this is cruel, no matter what Trump’s DHS says,” said Duckworth. “The best thing they can do for Liam is return him to his mother.”

WATCH: HARDCORE SOCIALIST GROUPS STAGE-MANAGE ANTI-ICE PROTEST IN WASHINGTON

Ramos was taken into custody along with his illegal immigrant father, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, by federal immigration authorities Jan. 20 in a suburb of Minneapolis. They are both being held at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in South Texas. 

Federal authorities were trying to take Conejo into custody in Minneapolis last week when he fled and left Ramos, who was arriving home from preschool, the Department of Homeland Security said. 

Some ICE officers remained with the boy while others chased down Conejo, who was apprehended soon after. 

ICE officers made multiple attempts to have Ramo’s mother, who was inside her home, take custody of her son, but she refused, DHS said. 

MINNESOTA AG KEITH ELLISON DENIES ICE DEAL AMIDST IMMIGRATION CRACKDOWN DEBATE

McLaughlin said “officers even assured her she would not be taken her into custody,” but “the alleged mother refused to accept custody of the child. The father told officers he wanted the child to remain with him.”

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“Following the mother’s abandonment of the child, officers abided by the father’s wishes to keep the child with him. Father and son are together at Dilley [Immigration Processing Center],” DHS said in an X post. 

Conejo entered the U.S. illegally in December 2024 and was released into the U.S. by the Biden administration, DHS said. The family’s attorney said he had a pending asylum claim allowing him to stay in the country.

A federal judge on Tuesday temporarily blocked the Trump administration from deporting Arias and his child.

Fox News Digital’s Louis Casiano contributed to this report.

The federal government is shutting down for the second time in six months after Congress failed to reach an agreement on the yearly budget in time.

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is expected to notify federal agencies to begin shutdown preparations as early as just after midnight on Jan. 31 Unlike last time, however, the government is only entering a partial shutdown this weekend.

That’s because Congress was able to pass legislation fully funding some areas — the Department of Agriculture, the legislative branch, and the Department of Justice, for instance — while a majority of federal spending is still not set.

Senate Democrats walked away from a bipartisan deal to fully fund the federal government for the remainder of fiscal year FY 2026 amid fallout over President Donald Trump’s surge of federal law enforcement in Minneapolis.

GRAHAM BLOCKS TRUMP-BACKED SPENDING PLAN, CALLS IT A ‘BAD DEAL’ AS SHUTDOWN NEARS

Federal officers shot and killed two U.S. citizens in the Midwest city during separate demonstrations against Trump’s immigration crackdown. In response, Democrats threatened to hold up a massive federal funding bill that also includes dollars for the departments of War, Labor, Health and Human Services, Transportation and others unless funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) were stripped out.

That means a prolonged shutdown could fuel airline delays, risk active duty troops missing paychecks, and even limit some Medicaid and Medicare services.

Senate Democrats struck a new deal with the White House that would fund all but DHS through Sept. 30, which is the majority of federal spending. DHS would be kept running with a two-week extension of current spending levels to give Congress time to hash out a compromise that would include stricter guardrails on immigration enforcement agencies under the department’s purview.

President Donald Trump lauded the funding truce, which he struck with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., in a post on Truth Social. He urged Republicans to support it, and warned that the “only thing that can slow our Country down is another long and damaging Government Shutdown.” 

Still, it was a bitter pill for some Senate Republicans who were already frustrated with the underlying, original package. A handful were angered over the billions in earmarks attached to the legislation. 

And Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., was enraged by the House’s inclusion of a provision that would allow senators to sue for up to $500,000 if their phone records were subpoenaed by former Special Counsel Jack Smith.

DEMS’ DHS SHUTDOWN THREAT WOULD HIT FEMA, TSA WHILE IMMIGRATION FUNDING REMAINS INTACT

“You jammed me, Speaker Johnson. I won’t forget this,” Graham said. “I got a lot of good friends in the House. If you think I’m going to give up on this, you really don’t know me.”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., was able to quell opposition and advance the modified package with the help of Senate Democrats. Though the deal passed through the Senate, it still must be taken up in the House.

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The House passed the original federal funding plan that Democrats walked away from in late January but must vote again after the Senate’s modifications.

That means the duration of this shutdown will hinge on how long it takes House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to corral Republicans and Democrats around the legislation next week.

As President Donald Trump weighs his options on a possible military strike on Iran, a senior Gulf official told Fox News Saudi Arabia will not allow the U.S. to use its airspace or bases for such an attack.

A high-ranking government figure from a Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) state told Fox News that the “U.S. hasn’t shared objectives or plans” regarding Iran with Gulf allies despite recent high-level Saudi meetings in Washington aimed at gaining clarity.

“We said this as friends, [we] want to make sure they understand our position and our assessment in general. And we want to understand the U.S. assessment with as much clarity as possible,” the senior official said. “I’d like to get full clarity, and we did not get there.”

Regarding U.S. military movements for a strike on Iran, the official said, “The plan is something other than using Saudi airspace.”

TRUMP SAYS IRAN ALREADY HAS US TERMS AS MILITARY STRIKE CLOCK TICKS

The official said the U.S. is welcome in Saudi Arabia, especially regarding Operation Inherent Resolve, the ongoing U.S.-led campaign against ISIS. Yet, the Saudi position now is “consistent” with what it was during the 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran in April 2024, the official said.

“Saudi Arabia wouldn’t allow airspace to be used to target Israel, Houthis, Iran. The position is the same now. Saudi Arabia wouldn’t allow airspace to be used in a war Saudi Arabia is not a part of,” the official said.

Trump said Friday that the United States has directly communicated expectations to Iran as pressure mounts for Tehran to accept a nuclear deal, even as Iranian officials publicly signal interest in talks.

Asked whether Iran faces a deadline to make a deal, Trump suggested the timeline had been conveyed privately. 

“Only they know for sure,” he said when pressed that the message had been delivered directly to Iranian leaders.

Trump also tied the growing U.S. naval presence in the region explicitly to Iran, saying American warships “have to float someplace” and “might as well float near Iran” as Washington weighs its next steps.

AS IRAN WEAKENS, QUESTIONS GROW OVER MOHAMMED BIN SALMAN’S REGIONAL AMBITIONS

Despite the president’s words that Iran wants to make a deal, the official cautioned that “Iran always wants to make a deal, but the question is what kind of deal? Is it acceptable to the U.S.?

“We don’t see it coming together at this moment,” the official said. “Everybody knows the U.S. is bringing capabilities to the region in general to deal not with whatever the plan is but whatever the ramification of the plan is.”

Regarding the success of future U.S. actions in Iran, the official said, “There is always a problem whether you make a decision or don’t. There’s a balance of … future in the Middle East. We advise the U.S. on a better outcome at the end, using all means, including diplomatic means, and advise Iranians too. … We understand that we’re all in this — the U.S., Iran and others — and we hope for better results.”

The official said that, in the Gulf allies’ assessment, the Trump administration’s strikes on Iran’s nuclear assets heavily degraded their capabilities so that they are “not in the same situation as before.”

TRUMP SAYS IRAN CALLED ‘NUMEROUS’ TIMES TO MAKE DEAL AS CARRIER ENTERS MIDDLE EAST WATERS

That being said, they believe an “off ramp could be reached by Iranians doing the right thing.”

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“We want a prosperous country that supports their people. That’s what we think we should all be doing. Iran has real economic potential, energy. A lot of talent in Iran and especially abroad who live in other countries. … There’s a way to get out of it, and Iran could be a very constructive actor in the region and important actor in the region. I hope that they get there because the Iranian people deserve a lot.” 

Though the U.S. has not shared its objectives or plans, the source said, “I hope that outcome is for a more stable Middle East, more prosperous.”

The U.S. State Department late Friday announced it had approved two arms sales to Israel and Saudi Arabia worth $6.67 billion and $9 billion.

The sales come as the Trump administration moves forward with its peacekeeping plan in Gaza and amid the threat of U.S. military strikes in Iran.

Thirty Apache helicopters with rocket launchers make up the largest part of the sale to Israel, along with 3,250 light tactical vehicles, power packs for armored personnel carriers and a number of light utility helicopters.

The State Department said the sale would “enhance Israel’s capability to meet current and future threats by improving its ability to defend Israel’s borders, vital infrastructure and population centers.”

ISRAEL SET TO REOPEN GAZA’S RAFAH BORDER CROSSING WITH EGYPT FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE MAY 2024

“The United States is committed to the security of Israel, and it is vital to U.S. national interests to assist Israel to develop and maintain a strong and ready self-defense capability,” it said.

Saudi Arabia will receive 730 Patriot missiles and related equipment that “will support the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by improving the security of a major non-NATO ally that is a force for political stability and economic progress in the Gulf Region,” the department said.

“This enhanced capability will protect land forces of Saudi Arabia, the United States and local allies and will significantly improve Saudi Arabia’s contribution” to the integrated air and missile defense system in the region.

On Thursday during a Cabinet meeting, President Donald Trump and his Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, said they believe Hamas will disarm under a U.S.-backed Gaza ceasefire plan as it enters its second phase.

But regional analysts have warned the terror group has no intention of disarming and could even block Trump’s Gaza plan altogether.

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“Hamas will do all the possible and creative maneuvers and manipulations in order to keep its power and influence in the Gaza Strip,” professor Kobi Michael, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies and the Misgav Institute, told Fox News Digital.

“The Israel Defense Forces are the only entity that can disarm Hamas.”

Fox News’ Emma Bussey and the Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Left-wing activists disrupted an event at a Jewish temple in New York this week while Democratic Rep. Tom Suozzi was speaking, protesting his vote in favor of a government spending bill that included increased funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

The demonstrators, affiliated with the activist group Climate Defiance, interrupted Suozzi on Wednesday night at the temple on Long Island, unleashing a barrage of crude theatrics and profane insults, according to the New York Post.

“We confronted Congressman Tom Suozzi,” Climate Defiance posted to X. “He is one of seven Democrats casting the decisive votes to increase ICE funding by $10,000,000,000. Hideous, grotesque, fascist-loving coward, this man has blood on his hands. We will not forgive and we will not forget.”

Video of the disruption, which has amassed millions of views online, shows activists heckling the congressman with props such as adult diapers and knee pads while mocking his support for additional funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the New York Post reported.

AOC VOICES SUPPORT FOR ANTI-ICE SHUTDOWN, DECLINES TO PARTICIPATE

One demonstrator taunted Suozzi by holding up an adult diaper and saying, “I know you voted to increase ICE funding, so I wanted to get something for you. This is an adult diaper for when you pee yourself in front of Donald Trump. You’re the type of leader we need right now. Someone who soils themselves when the fascists are at our door.”

Another displayed knee pads saying, “I actually have some gifts — I have some kneepads for you — you can use these while you b— Donald Trump.”

A third individual said, “As a Jewish man, I have never felt safer than when there is a masked Gestapo in the street, so thank you, Congressman Tom Suozzi, for funding ICE.”

Comedian and activist Walter Masterson appeared to be thrown out of the temple during the disruption while attempting to read aloud the names of individuals he said had died in ICE-related incidents.

DHS PUNCHES BACK AT MOULTON FOR ‘INCITING RIOTERS’ WITH ‘GROSS’ ICE REMARKS

“Nine people were killed by ICE this month, and you’re throwing me out while I’m reading their names? How f—ing dare you!” Masterson shouted.

Days after the vote, Suozzi publicly apologized for supporting the DHS spending package, which included roughly $10 billion in additional funding for ICE, Politico reported.

The apology followed intense backlash from fellow Democrats and came after the fatal shooting of 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti by Border Patrol agents in Minnesota, according to the New York Post.

LOOMING GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN THREATENS SERVICE MEMBERS, FEMA, TSA AMID ICE IMPASSE

“I failed to view the DHS funding vote as a referendum on the illegal and immoral conduct of ICE in Minneapolis,” Suozzi said in a statement. “I hear the anger from my constituents, and I take responsibility for that. I have long been critical of ICE’s unlawful behavior and I must do a better job demonstrating that.”

Suozzi joined six other Democrats in crossing party lines to help Republicans narrowly pass the DHS funding measure in a 220–207 vote, Politico reported.

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Suozzi and Climate Defiance did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.