NationalWatch

President Donald Trump is setting the stage for the U.S. to be involved in overseeing Venezuela for a significant period of time, after conducting strikes and capturing dictator Nicolás Maduro and labeling himself “acting” president of Venezuela. 

The move marks his boldest interventionist move yet — a foreign policy approach by which one country intervenes in another state’s affairs — and follows other major military operations from the Trump administration, including strikes in Syria in December 2025 against Islamic State operatives after an ambush against U.S. troops there, and strikes in June 2025 against the Iranian nuclear sites of Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan.

Trump told The New York Times in an interview that was published Wednesday that “only time will tell” how long the U.S. will be running Venezuela, but said it would be “much longer” than a year. 

Additionally, Trump announced recently that Venezuela’s interim government would hand over up to 50 million barrels of oil to the U.S. and that the oil would be sold “immediately.”

TRUMP DISCUSSES EXPANSION OF DRUG CARTEL CRACKDOWN, ISSUES GRIM WARNING TO IRAN

“We will rebuild it in a very profitable way,” Trump told the Times. “We’re going to be using oil, and we’re going to be taking oil. We’re getting oil prices down, and we’re going to be giving money to Venezuela, which they desperately need.”

Likewise, Trump shared a doctored image that looked like a Wikipedia page that identified him as “Acting President of Venezuela” since January 2026. 

Previous interventionist actions the U.S. has taken include launching an invasion of Afghanistan in response to the 9/11 attacks Afghanistan-based al-Qaeda conducted against the U.S., and an invasion of Iraq in 2003 that led to the toppling of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s regime. In both cases, the U.S. remained in prolonged occupations there. 

The language the Trump administration is using now focusing on illegal migration is different than what was used during the Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts, which focused on democracy-building and promoting freedom, Katherine Thompson, a senior fellow in defense and foreign policy studies at the libertarian think tank the Cato Institute, told Fox News Digital. 

US RAID IN VENEZUELA SIGNALS DETERRENCE TO ADVERSARIES ON THREE FRONTS, EXPERTS SAY

“But the pathway to achieve those things, I don’t see, like, a broad differentiation from the things that we did before,” Thompson told Fox News Digital. 

Thompson said that she doesn’t see how the Trump administration’s goals could be completed without small rotational deployments from U.S. forces to provide security, particularly in the event that the U.S. reopens its Embassy in Caracas, Venezuela. 

“I don’t see how we’re going to have a team there without at least some small deployment of rotational forces to achieve security of our own personnel,” Thompson said.

So far, no U.S. troops are on the ground in Venezuela, and the Senate advanced a War Powers resolution Thursday that, if passed, would bar using U.S. forces within or against Venezuela without Congress’ approval. 

TRUMP ADMIN SAYS MADURO CAPTURE REINFORCES ALIEN ENEMIES ACT REMOVALS

When asked by Fox News Digital about whether Trump’s “Acting President of Venezuela” post was shared jokingly and what it indicates about how long the U.S. will be involved in running Venezuela, White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly told Fox News Digital: “President Trump will be the greatest President for the American and Venezuelan people in history. Congratulations, world!”

Although Trump has blasted previous administrations for actions in the Middle East and vowed he would bring an end to “endless wars” while ushering in an “America First” agenda prioritizing U.S. interests, Democrats warned that the U.S. may be involving itself in another complicated conflict. 

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., claimed that the U.S. is on the path to another “endless war.”

“The very thing that Donald Trump campaigned against over and over and over again was no more endless wars,” Schumer said in an interview with ABC News Jan. 4. “And, right now, we’re headed right into one with no barriers, with no discussion.” 

SEN JEAN SHAHEEN: MADURO IS GONE, BUT THE SAME POWER STRUCTURES REMAIN IN VENEZUELA

Trump announced on Jan. 3 that U.S. special forces conducted a “large-scale strike” against Caracas, and seized Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. Both were taken to New York and appeared in a Manhattan federal court Jan. 5 on drug charges, where they each pleaded not guilty.

The raid came after months of pressure on Venezuela and more than two dozen strikes in Latin American waters against alleged drug traffickers as part of Trump’s effort to crack down on the influx of drugs into the U.S.

The Trump administration routinely stated that it did not recognize Maduro as a legitimate head of state and said he was the leader of a drug cartel. Likewise, Trump said in December 2025 he believed it would be “smart” for Maduro to step down. 

The Trump administration has justified seizing Maduro as a “law enforcement” operation, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio said congressional approval wasn’t necessary since the operation didn’t amount to an “invasion.”

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However, lawmakers primarily on the left have questioned the legality of the operation in Venezuela, which was conducted without Congress’ approval.

“This has been a profound constitutional failure,” the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., said in a statement Jan. 3. “Congress — not the President — has the sole power to authorize war. Pursuing regime change without the consent of the American people is a reckless overreach and an abuse of power.”

The Trump administration has filed court warrants in an effort to seize more ships linked to Venezuela’s oil trade, according to media reports. 

So far, five vessels have been seized by the U.S. military and Coast Guard in recent weeks in international waters.

The seizures were part of the administration’s pressure campaign to force former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro out of power, which happened Jan. 3, when he was arrested by U.S. forces. 

PRESIDENT TRUMP SAYS THERE WON’T BE A ‘SECOND WAVE OF ATTACKS’ AGAINST VENEZUELA DUE TO THEIR ‘COOPERATION’

After Maduro’s capture, President Donald Trump said the United States would control Venezuela’s oil resources indefinitely. 

Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House and Justice Department.

Through federal courts, the U.S. government has filed multiple civil forfeiture actions to force the seizure and confiscation of oil cargo and ships that have been involved in the trade, the sources told Reuters. 

It was not clear how many seizure warrants the U.S. is seeking.

US FORCES ATTEMPTING TO BOARD SANCTIONED RUSSIAN-FLAGGED OIL TANKER IN NORTH ATLANTIC, SOURCES SAY

On Friday, the War Department said it “will hunt down and interdict ALL dark fleet vessels transporting Venezuelan oil at the time and place of our choosing.”

“The Department of War blockade in the Caribbean Sea remains in full effect — and very effective,” Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell wrote on X. “In the past 24 hours alone, at least seven “dark fleet” oil vessels have turned around to avoid interdiction — because they know we mean business. The days of letting criminal activity run rampant in our hemisphere are OVER.”

A day earlier, Attorney General Pam Bondi said the Justice Department was monitoring several other vessels amid news of the U.S. seizure of the Bella-1 tanker, a Russian-flagged oil vessel allegedly responsible for transporting sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran. 

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Russia, like Venezuela, relies on the shadow fleet to carry oil that is under sanctions.

Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., is facing backlash from the MAGA base after voting with Democrats and a small group of Republican senators to advance a war powers resolution related to Venezuela — marking a break with President Donald Trump.

On Wednesday, the Senate is expected to hold a full vote on the resolution that would limit Trump’s ability to conduct future military operations against Venezuela without Congressional approval, teeing up a test for Hawley with MAGA and its base. 

The vote comes after Trump announced Jan. 3 that the U.S. military carried out a successful operation in Venezuela, capturing dictatorial president Nicolás Maduro and his wife. The couple is now being held in a New York City jail on sweeping narco-terrorism conspiracy and drug trafficking charges. 

The operation set off condemnation among Democrats who took issue with Trump ordering the mission and strike on Venezuela without prior congressional approval. 

HOUSE REPUBLICANS RIP SENATE WAR POWERS PUSH AS ‘POLITICAL THEATER’ AFTER TRUMP’S VENEZUELA RAID

Days later, on Jan. 8, the Senate advanced a bipartisan war powers resolution by a 52–47 vote that would require the president to seek congressional authorization before engaging U.S. armed forces in “hostilities within or against Venezuela.” The procedural vote set up a full Senate vote slated for Wednesday. 

Hawley joined Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska; Rand Paul, R-Ky.; Susan Collins, R-Maine; and Todd Young, R-Ind., in voting with Democrats to require Trump obtain congressional approval prior to military action in Venezuela, sparking condemnation and surprise from the MAGA base on social media earlier in January. 

“The Republicans who sided with Democrats today on the War Powers resolution are STUPID & WEAK,” former campaign aide Alex Bruesewitz posted to X following the procedural vote. “It came as no surprise to see Rand Paul, Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins, or Todd Young vote against President Trump, they’ve all shown clear signs of Trump Derangement Syndrome in the past.”

Bruesewitz added that he was “surprised and disappointed” by Hawley for aligning “himself with the anti-Trump faction and Democrats, particularly since he represents Missouri, one of the most staunchly pro-Trump states in the nation.”

“Shameful,” he added. 

Hawley previously defended his procedural vote by framing it as a constitutional issue rather than a rebuke of the administration. 

“My read of the Constitution is that if the President feels the need to put boots on the ground there in the future, Congress would need to vote on it,” Hawley posted to X explaining the vote. 

Fox News Digital spoke to a longtime Republican campaign operative working on midterm races, who said Hawley has broken with the administration over a handful of issues, and compared him to former Republican Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie, who frequently take shots at the president and his policies and draw media attention.  

DEMOCRATS’ OWN WORDS BACK UP TRUMP ACTION IN VENEZUELA, TOP INTEL LAWMAKER SAYS

“It seems like every other month he does something that’s opposed to the president and the party more broadly,” the source said. 

Trump needs two of the five Republicans to switch their positions ahead of Wednesday’s vote. The president put the five senators on notice following the procedural vote, warning on social media that they “should never be elected to office again.”

“This Vote greatly hampers American Self Defense and National Security, impeding the President’s Authority as Commander in Chief,” he wrote earlier in January. “In any event, and despite their ‘stupidity,’ the War Powers Act is Unconstitutional, totally violating Article II of the Constitution, as all Presidents, and their Departments of Justice, have determined before me.”

MAGA allies echoed Trump’s Truth Social message in their own posts, describing Hawley as a “RINO” whose political career is allegedly teetering over the vote. 

“President Trump ERUPTS on the Republican senators who just voted to approve the War Powers resolution that would rein in his Venezuela operations, says NEVER ELECT THEM AGAIN,” Eric Daughtery posted to X Jan. 8. 

“Remember this in November. Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Rand Paul, Josh Hawley, and Todd Young should never be elected to office again! We are sick of compromised GOP dirtbags going against our President,” another MAGA-aligned social media account, Farm Girl Carrie, posted. 

Hawley told Fox News Tuesday, when asked how he plans to vote, that he’s spoken with Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and DOJ officials about his top concern of having American troops on the ground. 

He said they “assured me there are no ground troops in Venezuela” and that there “are not going to be ground troops in Venezuela.” 

“My big concern has been ground troops in Venezuela and, making sure that if there’s going to be ground troops in Venezuela, (which) I would hope we would not do, that Congress authorizes that. But I will tell you, I’ve talked to the president. I talked to the secretary of state. I talked to the Department of Justice here in the last few days and have had tremendous conversations in the Secretary of State, who I just talked to recently, assured me there are no ground troops in Venezuela. There are not going to be ground troops in Venezuela,” he said. “The administration will notify Congress, will seek congressional approval where necessary.” 

Hawley has drawn Trump’s ire before, including during a fight over Hawley’s stock-trading ban proposal in July. Trump, who previously said he liked the idea “conceptually,” accused Hawley of siding with Democrats to block a GOP-backed effort tied to reviewing Nancy Pelosi’s stock trading.

“Why would one ‘Republican,’ Senator Josh Hawley from the Great State of Missouri, join with all of the Democrats to block a Review, sponsored by Senator Rick Scott, and with the support of almost all other Republicans, of Nancy Pelosi’s Stock Trading over the last 25 years. The information was inappropriately released just minutes before the Vote — Very much like SABOTAGE!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Hawley has also broken with the administration on domestic policy, repeatedly criticizing Medicaid reforms included in Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” back in 2025, even as he ultimately voted in favor of the sweeping package when it came to the Senate floor.

REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: GOP REBELS DEFY TRUMP AS CONGRESSIONAL GRIP CONTINUES TO WEAKEN ACROSS MULTIPLE VOTES 

The Republican campaign operative said it is unclear why Hawley has broken with the administration on certain policies, speculating he might have 2028 aspirations.

“The polling I’ve seen shows that Republicans are in favor of the president’s actions in Venezuela,” the sourced added. “He would be out of step with our voters. I don’t think it’d bode well for him. I think this was one of the most unifying moments on the right, when the president successfully arrested Maduro and took him out the country. Him siding with the Democrats is bizarre.” 

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“How has that worked out for Rand Paul or Massie,” the operative said, referring to Kentucky lawmakers’ ongoing policy spats with the president and administration. 

Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons argued on Tuesday that federal immigration agents are facing “constant impediments” and “constant attacks” after video showed a suspected illegal migrant in San Antonio ramming cars in an attempt to flee.

The video shows the migrant in a car ramming into vehicles that were blocking them in from the front and the back, as the individual attempted to evade arrest.

During an appearance on Fox News’ “Hannity,” Lyons was asked if rhetoric from Democrats criticizing ICE can be tied to incidents like these.

REP RO KHANNA DEMANDS PROSECUTION OF ICE AGENT IN MINNEAPOLIS SHOOTING

“When we hear elected officials calling upon individuals to impede or obstruct ICE law enforcement operations nationwide, you’re going to see incidents like this,” Lyons responded. “You saw the officers and agents attempting to apprehend a criminally illegal alien, and there they are using their car as a weapon.”

Lyons said one of the agents went to a hospital with neck injuries after their vehicle was struck in the incident.

“Every day, this is what the men and women of ICE are facing,” he claimed. “It’s constant impediments, constant attacks like this. And it’s not safe for my folks, it’s not safe for the public. It really needs to stop.”

He also purported that “criminal gangs” are organizing groups to impede or obstruct immigration enforcement operations.

“It’s a constitutional right to go out there and protest. But when you have organized criminal gangs, which these are, that are organizing these groups to, again, impede or obstruct law enforcement operations … that’s a criminal act. I will tell you that Homeland Security investigations, my folks, the FBI, we’re investigating these and people can be held accountable because you can’t organize groups to go out and impede law enforcement. It’s a criminal act, and we have to act swiftly to prevent this from spreading,” he said.

Lyons was also asked about recent comments from Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, who vowed to prosecute any ICE agent who commits unlawful acts during operations in the city while stressing that his threat does not apply to “honest, decent, moral” agents.

“The men and women of ICE, the men and women of HSI, they’re not committing any crimes,” Lyons argued. “So he doesn’t have to worry about arresting any of my folks because what we’re doing is we’re enforcing the law. We are out there every day making this nation and his city safe again. So he shouldn’t worry about the men and women of ICE. What he should worry about is the sanctuary policies that have these criminal aliens go back to his neighborhoods and commit heinous crimes like fentanyl trafficking, human trafficking, rape of a child. He should focus on those and let law enforcement do law enforcement work.”

PHOTOS RELEASED OF RENEE NICOLE GOOD, THE US CITIZEN KILLED BY ICE IN MINNESOTA

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This comes on the heels of a recent incident in Minnesota, where Renee Nicole Good, a U.S. citizen, was fatally shot by masked ICE agent Jonathan Ross, who fired into the driver’s open window from the side of the vehicle and subsequently exclaimed “f–king b—h” as the car crashed into another parked vehicle.

Democrats and local residents have condemned the shooting as a murder and called for Ross’ prosecution, while the Trump administration and Republican lawmakers have defended the incident by arguing that it was a justified shooting.

The House of Representatives voted 226-197 along bipartisan lines Tuesday to reverse Biden-era regulations on shower heads, a move Republican lawmakers framed as a quick and easy way to return choice to homeowners.

“Washington bureaucrats have gone too far in dictating what happens in Americans’ own homes,” Rep. Russell Fry, R-S.C., the sponsor of the legislation, said of his bill. 

“This is about defending consumer choice, pushing back on regulatory overreach and standing up for commonsense policy.”

WHITE HOUSE ‘LASER FOCUSED’ ON AFFORDABILITY AS TRUMP SOFTENS TARIFF STRATEGY

Asked what his thoughts were on the bill, Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine., kept his thoughts simple.

“Shower pressure is a good thing,” Golden said. 

Golden was one of 11 Democrats who joined Republicans to pass the Saving Homeowners from Overregulation with Exceptional Rinsing Act, or SHOWER Act.

The bill looks to codify an executive order President Donald Trump issued in April of last year, directing the Department of Energy to repeal the way the Biden administration interpreted water pressure in showers.

Under current law, shower heads can only produce a set amount of pressure.

That Biden-era regulation interpreted that to mean that the combined flow of showers with multiple nozzles had to stay below that bar. In other words, the more shower heads, the less pressure the individual nozzles could have.

JOHNSON WARNS OF ‘UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES’ IN TRUMP’S CREDIT CARD RATE CAP IDEA

Rep. John McGuire, R-Va., characterized it as a way Democrats had gone out of their way to create unnecessary restrictions.

“It seems like the Democrats want to tax you out of existence and overregulate you. So, [the bill] is a step in the right direction. Less regulation,” McGuire said. 

Fry, the sponsor of Tuesday’s bill, said the legislation would reinstate what he viewed as the common interpretation of what a “shower head” meant to most audiences.

“That rule was widely criticized as overreach and emblematic of a broader regulatory agenda targeting everyday household appliances,” Fry said in a statement. “The SHOWER Act is a smart fix that reaffirms each shower nozzle is just that — its own shower head — and should be treated accordingly under the law.“

Rep. Brett Guthrie, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, echoed the comments from Fry.

MIKE JOHNSON SAYS HOUSE GOP WORKING FULL STEAM AHEAD ON TRUMP’S ‘AFFORDABILITY AGENDA’

“For far too long, federal regulations and red tape have limited consumer choice and forced Americans to live with limited water pressure,” Guthrie said. 

“By codifying how different nozzles are categorized, the SHOWER Act offers a commonsense fix that will allow households to choose what meets their needs, not what Washington mandates.”

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The bill now heads to the Senate, where it must receive the support of at least seven Democrats before making its way to President Trump’s desk.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., pushed back on the idea that the U.S. would intervene militarily in Greenland, saying he does not anticipate war or U.S. troops being deployed there.

Johnson told The Hill there is no declaration of war pending for Greenland and said he does not expect any boots on the ground.

“We’ve been very clear. I mean, the Article 1 branch is clear. There’s no declaration of war pending for Greenland,” Johnson said. “It’s just not a thing. I don’t anticipate any boots on the ground anywhere, anytime soon.”

Johnson echoed the foreign policy objectives of President Trump, noting the administration views Greenland as strategically important to U.S. interests.

STEPHEN MILLER DISMISSES THE IDEA DENMARK WOULD FIGHT FOR GREENLAND, CLAIMS IT SHOULD BE PART OF THE US

“Look, there are negotiations. There is interest in Greenland. For U.S. interests, America’s first interest,” Johnson said.

“It has to do with national security and critical minerals and many other reasons. And we’ve long acknowledged that,” he added.

Trump has made acquiring Greenland a key strategic and national security objective, warning last week that if the United States does not acquire the territory, superpowers Russia or China could move in.

He said Sunday the U.S. must acquire Greenland — not lease it — arguing the Arctic territory lacks adequate defenses and warning that Russia or China would move in if Washington does not act, a move he said is critical to U.S. and NATO security.

Greenland has rejected Trump’s repeated advances, and on Tuesday the island’s prime minister said the country would prefer to remain part of Denmark rather than become a U.S. territory.

“We face a geopolitical crisis, and if we have to choose between the U.S. and Denmark here and now then we choose Denmark,” Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said while appearing alongside Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen at a joint press conference in Copenhagen.

TRUMP ADMIN REPORTEDLY CONSIDERS PAYING EACH GREENLAND RESIDENT UP TO $100K AMID US TAKEOVER TALKS

“We stand united in the Kingdom of Denmark.”

Johnson’s comments come as bipartisan lawmakers move to restrict any unauthorized U.S. military action against NATO allies amid growing debate over Trump’s remarks about Greenland.

Rep. Bill Keating, D-Mass., is leading legislation that would block funding for military action taken without congressional approval, arguing the effort is aimed at preventing U.S. intervention against allied nations.

“This isn’t just about Greenland. This is about our security,” Keating said.

The push follows Trump’s statement Friday that the U.S. would act on Greenland “whether they like it or not,” raising alarm among European leaders over a potential violation of NATO’s collective defense commitments.

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The developments also come as Denmark’s foreign minister, Lars Løkke Rasmussen, and Greenland’s foreign minister, Vivian Motzfeldt, are expected to meet Wednesday with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance at the White House, according to Reuters.

Fox News’ Greg Norman and Landon Mion, as well as Reuters contributed to this report.

Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., suggested Tuesday that Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell should resign to avoid a potential indictment, arguing the move could prompt the Department of Justice (DOJ) to drop its investigation.

The suggestion comes after the DOJ announced Sunday it has opened a criminal probe into Powell focused on the renovation of the central bank’s Washington headquarters and whether he was truthful in his congressional testimony regarding the project.

“If you’re the attorney for Jay Powell and you want to avoid an indictment, how about you go to Jeanine Pirro and say, ‘I’ll make a deal. I’ll step down today if you’ll drop the investigation today,'” Cramer said on FOX Business’ “Kudlow.”

Cramer added that his proposed legal strategy would be “a win-win for everybody.”

THUNE WARNS DOJ’S PROBE OF FED CHAIR POWELL ‘BETTER BE REAL’ AND ‘SERIOUS’ AMID POLITICAL BACKLASH

U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said on X Monday that her office had contacted the Fed “on multiple occasions to discuss cost overruns and the chairman’s congressional testimony, but were ignored, necessitating the use of legal process — which is not a threat.”

“The word ‘indictment’ has come out of Mr. Powell’s mouth, no one else’s,” Pirro continued. “None of this would have happened if they had just responded to our outreach. This office makes decisions based on the merits, nothing more and nothing less. We agree with the chairman of the Federal Reserve that no one is above the law, and that is why we expect his full cooperation.”

Powell provided testimony before the Senate Banking Committee last year regarding a significant renovation to two main office buildings in the Fed’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. The project is expected to cost $2.5 billion and is being paid for by the central bank, not taxpayers.

TRUMP INSISTS GOPERS ‘LOVE’ DOJ TARGETING JEROME POWELL, SAYS HE ‘CAN’T HELP’ IT IF IT LOOKS LIKE RETRIBUTION

Powell confirmed in a video statement Sunday that the Federal Reserve had been served “with grand jury subpoenas” that threatened “a criminal indictment.”

While Powell said he respected the rule of law and congressional oversight, he asserted that the Justice Department’s move was “unprecedented” and politically motivated.

“This new threat is not about my testimony last June or about the renovation of the Federal Reserve buildings,” he said. He added that the threat of criminal charges is a “consequence of the Federal Reserve setting interest rates based on our best assessment of what will serve the public, rather than following the preferences of the president.”

REPUBLICAN SENATOR VOWS TO BLOCK TRUMP FED NOMINEE OVER POWELL INVESTIGATION

A spokesperson for the Fed told Fox News Digital the Fed would not have any comment beyond Powell’s video message from Sunday.

Cramer cautioned on “Kudlow” that an indictment could negatively impact the economy.

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“I don’t want to do anything to disrupt this incredible rocket ship economy we’re enjoying right now,” he said. “We’ve got other big things to do that I’d rather focus on than an indictment.”

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Fox News Digital’s Amanda Macias contributed to this report.

The interim government in Venezuela has released at least four U.S. citizens who were imprisoned under President Nicolás Maduro‘s regime, Fox News confirmed.

The release marks the first known release of Americans in the South American country since the U.S. military completed an operation to capture authoritarian Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who is now facing federal drug trafficking charges in New York.

“We welcome the release of detained Americans in Venezuela,” a State Department official said Tuesday. “This is an important step in the right direction by the interim authorities.”

The release of American citizens was first reported by Bloomberg.

TRUMP SIGNS ORDER TO PROTECT VENEZUELA OIL REVENUE HELD IN US ACCOUNTS

President Donald Trump said Saturday that Venezuela had begun releasing political prisoners.

“Venezuela has started the process, in a BIG WAY, of releasing their political prisoners,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Thank you! I hope those prisoners will remember how lucky they got that the USA came along and did what had to be done.”

Venezuela’s interim government has reported that 116 prisoners have been released, although only about 70 have been verified by the non-governmental organization Justicia, Encuentro y Perdón, according to Bloomberg.

National Assembly President Jorge Rodríguez said prisoner releases would continue, according to the outlet.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION FILES SEIZURE WARRANTS TARGETING SHIPS TIED TO VENEZUELAN OIL TRADE: REPORT

The U.S. government issued a new security alert Saturday urging Americans in Venezuela to leave the country immediately, citing security concerns and limited ability to provide emergency assistance, the U.S. Embassy in Caracas said.

“U.S. citizens in Venezuela should leave the country immediately,” the embassy said in the alert.

The warning pointed to reports of armed groups operating on Venezuelan roads.

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Following the military operation, Trump suggested that the U.S. would “run” Venezuela for an extended period.

“We’re going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition,” he said.

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., accused his “pro-life” Republican colleagues of not caring about the people killed in boat strikes near Venezuela who the Trump administration, without providing evidence, claims were trafficking fentanyl.

During an appearance on “The Joe Rogan Experience” released on Tuesday. Paul said GOP lawmakers “don’t give a s‑‑-” about the people who died on the vessels, blasting his colleagues for not granting the presumption of innocence.

“I look at my colleagues who say they’re pro-life, and they value God’s inspiration in life, but they don’t give a s‑‑- about these people in the boats,” Paul said. “Are they terrible people in the boats? I don’t know. They’re probably poor people in Venezuela and Colombia.”

“I guess what I don’t feel connected to my Republican colleagues is that those lives don’t matter at all, and we just blow them up. And against all justice, and against all laws of war, all laws of just war, we have never blown up people who were shipwrecked,” he added, referring to the administration’s reported targeting and killing of survivors of initial strikes who were clinging to wreckage.

RAND PAUL SAYS TRUMP’S THREAT TO BOMB IRAN ‘IS NOT THE ANSWER’: NOT THE ‘JOB OF THE AMERICAN GOVERNMENT’

The liberty-minded Republican said it is “against the military code of justice to do that.”

“We’re doing it and everybody just says, ‘Oh, well, they’re drug dealers,'” he said.

Paul criticized his fellow GOP lawmakers who have repeated the administration’s claims about the boats carrying fentanyl. He also took issue with colleagues who hold the position of, “Well, we’re at war with them. They’re committing war by bringing drugs into America.”

“They’re not even coming here,” Paul explained. “They’re going to these islands in the south part of the Caribbean. The cocaine — and it’s not fentanyl at all — the cocaine’s going to Europe.”

He emphasized that “those little boats can’t get here.”

“No one’s even asked this common question: Those boats have these four engines on them. They’re outboard boats. You can probably go about 100 miles before you have to refuel. Two thousand miles from us, they’d have to refuel 20 times to get here,” Paul said.

The senator accused the administration of conducting the boat strikes to create “a pretense and a false argument” ahead of the operation to attack Venezuela and arrest its president, Nicolás Maduro.

“It’s all been a pretense for arresting Maduro,” he said. “So, we have to set up the predicate. We got to show you we care about drugs.”

Paul helped the Senate advance a resolution last week that would limit Trump’s ability to conduct further attacks against Venezuela after the U.S. military’s recent move to strike the country and capture Maduro, which the Kentucky Republican said amounts to war. The Upper Chamber could pass the measure later this week, although it faces an uphill battle in the House despite some support from Republicans.

“I think bombing a capital and removing the head of state is, by all definitions, war,” Paul told reporters before the procedural vote last week. “Does this mean we have carte blanche that the president can make the decision any time, anywhere, to invade a foreign country and remove people that we’ve accused of a crime?”

SENATE REPUBLICANS BLOCK SCHIFF EFFORT TO FORCE RELEASE OF CARIBBEAN STRIKE FOOTAGE

The lawmaker has repeatedly criticized the administration’s boat strikes on alleged narco-terrorists in recent months, often raising concerns about killing people without due process and the possibility of killing innocent people. The senator previously cited Coast Guard statistics that show a significant percentage of boats boarded on suspicion of drug trafficking are innocent.

Paul said on “The Joe Rogan Experience” that he believes the administration might attack Mexico next, which Trump has signaled could be a future target.

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“They want to do that next. They want to bomb Mexico,” Paul said.

Trump has said cartels are “running Mexico” and that “something’s going to have to be done” because Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum is “very frightened” of the cartels.

President Donald Trump was caught on video appearing to mouth an expletive and make an obscene gesture toward a heckler during a visit to a Ford factory in Michigan Tuesday, a moment the White House later defended as an “appropriate and unambiguous response.”

The video, first published by TMZ, shows Trump briefly turning toward someone shouting from the crowd as he walked through the Ford River Rouge complex in Dearborn.

In the video, Trump appears to mouth the words “f— you” twice and gestures with his middle finger.

TRUMP TO CUT FEDERAL PAYMENTS TO SANCTUARY CITIES STARTING FEB 1 OVER IMMIGRATION POLICIES

TMZ reported that the exchange followed a heckler shouting an insult at the president off camera. The outlet described Trump’s reaction as “flipping the bird” while continuing to walk away.

White House communications director Steven Cheung defended the president’s reaction, telling Fox News Digital, “A lunatic was wildly screaming expletives in a complete fit of rage, and the President gave an appropriate and unambiguous response.”

TRUMP WEARS ‘HAPPY TRUMP’ PIN ALONGSIDE AMERICAN FLAG DURING WHITE HOUSE OIL EXECUTIVE MEETING

Trump visited the plant as part of a scheduled appearance focused on U.S. manufacturing and the auto industry when the exchange occurred during a tour of the factory.

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The White House did not specify whether the individual shouting at Trump was a Ford employee or an attendee, and Fox News Digital has not independently confirmed the identity of the person heard in the video.

Minneapolis-area leaders on Tuesday formally denounced federal immigration authorities and called for their removal from the region amid the Trump administration’s deportation campaign. 

The Hennepin County Administration, Operations and Budget Committee unanimously passed a resolution condemning ICE and calling for the removal of ICE personnel and assets from Minnesota.

In a statement, the seven-member committee said it did “not take this action lightly.”

MINNESOTA LAWSUIT OVER TRUMP’S ICE ‘INVASION’ WON’T SUCCEED: LEGAL EXPERT

“It comes forward in the context of an additional 1,000 ICE agents due to arrive in the metro area during the largest deployment of DHS resources in our nation’s history, anywhere,” committee Vice Chair Debbie Goettel said. 

The committee framed the vote as a stand to protect residents. The board will vote to formally adopt the resolution in its Jan. 27 meeting. 

“We stand with our immigrant communities, our protesters and observers, and our neighbors standing together to bring accountability to this unconscionable show of force,” Goettel said. 

The vote came hours after President Donald Trump said his administration will withhold federal payments from sanctuary jurisdictions beginning Feb. 1. 

HOUSE REPUBLICAN CALLS FOR HEARING AFTER DEADLY ICE SHOOTING IN MINNEAPOLIS

In a Truth Social post, Trump said sanctuary cities hamper federal immigration enforcement efforts at the expense of public safety. 

“And it breeds fraud and crime and all the other problems that come. So we’re not making any payment to anybody that supports sanctuary,” Trump wrote. 

Earlier in the week, the Department of Homeland Security said it would be sending additional federal agents to protect Minnesota immigration officers as they conduct enforcement operations while facing protesters. 

Minnesota has become a flashpoint in Trump’s deportation campaign following last week’s fatal shooting of Renee Good, who was shot by an ICE agent as she attempted to ram into him with her vehicle, officials said. 

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The city of Minneapolis is suing the federal government over the law enforcement operations, which local officials said have been marked by racial profiling and excessive force. 

South Carolina Republican lawmakers have introduced a new bill that would criminalize abortion as murder, applying existing homicide and wrongful death laws from the moment of conception.

The Prenatal Equal Protection Act, introduced in the South Carolina House of Representatives, would be the strongest anti-abortion law in state history if enacted. The legislation has been scheduled for a hearing in the South Carolina House Constitutional Laws Subcommittee on Wednesday.

Supporters argue current heartbeat laws merely regulate abortion and still allow the procedure in certain cases, prompting Republican state Sen. Lee Bright to introduce the legislation as a way to extend full legal protections to unborn children.

PRO-LIFE PREGNANCY CENTERS SEE CLIENT INCREASE AFTER SUPREME COURT DECISION: STUDY

“These children deserve equal protection. I will be filing a bill of equal protection today. I know we’ve got hearts and minds to change,” Bright said Tuesday at a press conference at the South Carolina State House.

South Carolina State Representative Rob Harris said that in 2023, the Legislature and the Governor revised the heartbeat law that regulates abortion and still allows the procedure under certain circumstances.

SUPREME COURT RULES AGAINST PLANNED PARENTHOOD IN MEDICAID FUNDING DISPUTE

“Incredibly, in one section of that bill, it asserts that life begins at conception, but in another section, it writes into law where, when, and how someone may legally murder a baby in South Carolina,” Harris said.

The legislation would apply to all parties involved, including the pregnant woman.

Republicans hold large majorities in both chambers of the South Carolina General Assembly, meaning the bill could pass if GOP lawmakers remain unified. But similar abortion legislation has previously stalled amid divisions within the GOP, raising questions about whether the bill can advance.

SENATE PARLIAMENTARIAN OKS BAN ON PLANNED PARENTHOOD FEDERAL FUNDING IN TRUMP MEGABILL

A November bill sought to further restrict abortion under existing law but stalled after some Republicans objected. The Prenatal Equal Protection Act goes much further, treating abortion as homicide from the moment of conception and applying criminal penalties, including for pregnant women — a shift supporters say is necessary to fully eliminate abortion.

Supporters argue the earlier bill failed because it regulated abortion rather than abolishing it, and say incremental restrictions have repeatedly stalled or been struck down, leaving a full equal-protection approach as the only lasting solution.

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The new bill is backed by national anti-abortion activists who have warned Republican lawmakers they could face primary challenges if they do not support it.

Critics are expected to raise concerns about criminal penalties, enforcement and constitutional issues.

Hey, you up?

Mayor Zohran Mamdani and President Trump have been exchanging “friendly” missives at least twice a week — as the unlikely bromance between the socialist and conservative commander-in-chief continues to blossom, The Post has learned.

‘JUST SAY YES’: TRUMP CUTS IN AS NYC MAYOR-ELECT MAMDANI DODGES ON CALLING HIM A ‘FASCIST’ AT OVAL OFFICE

The former Astoria lawmaker and the Queens native have semi-regularly been chatting via text since their chummy White House meeting in November, discussing a wide range of topics, from the toppling of Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro and zoning red tape in Big Apple real estate, according to sources.

Insiders with knowledge of the conversation described the tone of the texts as “friendly.”

MAMDANI CALLS ICE DETENTION OF NYC EMPLOYEE ‘ASSAULT ON OUR DEMOCRACY’

“It wouldn’t make practical, political sense for them to scream at each other — in public or private,” one politico said, while also noting, “Of course, they can’t appear too cozy.”

The source added: “Mamdani would be smart to kiss Trump’s ass … Especially when the federal government can withhold billions from the city.”

The budding relationship and the regularity with which the two chat personally are a marked departure from previous interactions between presidents and New York City mayors in recent history.

MAMDANI STRONGLY CONDEMNS TRUMP’S CAPTURE OF VENEZUELAN LEADER MADURO AS ‘ACT OF WAR’

Even Mamdani’s predecessor Mayor Eric Adams, who cozied up to Trump and rushed down to DC in the middle of the night to attend his inauguration last year, had to connect with the president through intermediaries.

Andrew Kirtzman, CEO of the strategic communications firm KSX, said it was “remarkable that Trump feels so comfortable with [Mamdani].”

“He hated (Bill) de Blasio, the last left-wing mayor, and probably felt estranged from the city because of it,” he said. “He seems to feel an emotional connection with Mamdani. The mayor must be totally amazed by what’s happening.”

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Asked how this might play with Mamdani’s base of Democratic Socialists of America members who despise the Republican White House, Kirtzman said he believed they’d likely give the lefty mayor a pass.

“I think the left understands this is purely transactional from Mamdani’s perspective,” he said.

President Donald Trump’s Senate allies could try to kill the war powers resolution before the Senate wades into the debate, Fox News has learned.

Fox News is told there is an effort to kill off the bipartisan effort to debate the resolution blocking military action in Venezuela.

A bipartisan coalition of senators voted to launch this debate next week.

GOP SENATORS JOIN DEMOCRATS TO STOP TRUMP FROM POLICING VENEZUELA

However, Fox is told that some Republicans are looking for an exit ramp — even though they voted yes last week to begin the debate.

It’s possible that some Republicans may try to force a vote to table or kill the war powers resolution — because it’s not applicable. The argument is that the US has no troops in Venezuela. Therefore, this resolution is out of bounds.

GOP EYES VENEZUELA’S UNTAPPED OIL WEALTH AS DEMOCRATS SOUND ALARM OVER TAXPAYER RISK

It is also possible that Vice President Vance could be brought in to break a tie, Fox News was told. Keep in mind that a tie means the resolution fails. But if the Trump administration wants the prospective motion to table to pass — and kill the bill – Vance could be brought in to break a tie and pass the motion to kill it.

Fox is told that the Senate has successfully “discharged” the war powers resolution onto the floor. But there is still a vote to actually get into the resolution.

HOUSE REPUBLICANS RIP SENATE WAR POWERS PUSH AS “POLITICAL THEATER” AFTER TRUMP’S VENEZUELA RAID

It is only at that point that the Senate could vote to table the resolution.

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Otherwise, the Senate must burn all 10 hours on the resolution and then vote to table. Or, vote to table after all the time is yielded back.

President Donald Trump unloaded on a cohort of Senate Republicans who voted to rein in his policing powers in Venezuela, arguing that they couldn’t give a good reason to vote against him.

During remarks at the Detroit Economic Club following a tour of a Ford plant in Dearborn, Mich., Trump harangued Republicans for not staying unified, while declaring that though congressional Democrats have bad policy, they “stick together like glue.”

“We got some real losers, mostly great,” Trump said of Republicans before tearing into Sens. Rand Paul, R-Ky., Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Todd Young, R-Ind.

TRUMP BLASTS GOP WAR POWERS DEFECTORS, SAYS THEY ‘SHOULD NEVER BE ELECTED TO OFFICE AGAIN’

That foursome joined all Senate Democrats to vote in favor of Sen. Tim Kaine’s, D-Va., war powers resolution, which, if passed, would require Trump to receive congressional approval before further military force is used in Venezuela.

Lawmakers are expected to take a final vote on the resolution on Wednesday.

When Kaine’s effort initially advanced, Trump blasted the defectors and declared that they should “never be elected to office again.” With the vote fast-approaching, Trump didn’t hesitate to make clear that their votes were still fresh on his mind.

He panned Paul for routinely voting against GOP policies, and then turned his sights to Murkowski, Collins and Young.

GOP EYES VENEZUELA’S UNTAPPED OIL WEALTH AS DEMOCRATS SOUND ALARM OVER TAXPAYER RISK

“Then you have Lisa Murkowski and you have Susan Collins, disasters,” Trump said. “And you had a gentleman from Indiana that, I don’t believe it, Todd Young, he voted against.”

“And you say, ‘Why are you voting against?’ They can’t give you an answer. They’re unable to give you an answer. It’s like, why are they against the attack on Venezuela? They’re against the attack,” he continued. “After they found out who was the most successful attack. Probably, probably the most talented, most brilliant tactical attack that we’ve had maybe in 100 years. And they’re against it. Why?”

Paul has routinely voiced opposition to military action with congressional oversight; he’s a co-sponsor of Kaine’s resolution. Murkowski, Collins and Young had no issue with the capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, but they argued that their vote for the resolution last week was to ensure Congress’ authority to weigh in before future action.

5 GOP SENATORS JOIN DEMOCRATS TO STOP TRUMP FROM POLICING VENEZUELA

The White House and Senate Republican leadership have been working to flip the lawmakers in order to prevent the resolution from passing, but it may not be the successful pressure campaign that they had hoped for.

Collins, when asked if she would still vote in favor of the resolution after leaving the Senate GOP’s weekly closed-door policy lunch, said, “Wes.”

There was also a fifth Republican, Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri, who voted to advance the resolution. Trump notably did not mention him during his speech.

That comes after Hawley spoke with several administration officials on what the next steps in Venezuela would be. Hawley said that he was told by officials that the administration would “abide by the statutory notification requirements, and also, if they took action that resulted in major ground operations would come back to Congress.”

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Hawley didn’t say if that would flip his vote and noted that he was in “listening and receive mode at this time.” Still, it did go a long way to address his biggest issue of boots on the ground in Venezuela.

“The administration’s view is that the resolution is way broader than ground troops, and I said, ‘Well, you know, and I didn’t draft the resolution, but my concern is about ground troops in Venezuela without congressional authorization,’” Hawley said.

The Senate quietly passed legislation on Tuesday that would create stiffer penalties for explicit AI-manipulated images, known as deepfakes. 

The bill from Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., is designed to beef up federal penalties against the creation, distribution, or solicitation of “non-consensual digital forgeries,” or deepfakes. It’s geared to act as a companion to a previously passed bill targeting revenge porn.

Durbin’s Disrupt Explicit Forged Images and Non-Consensual Edits, or DEFIANCE Act, passed unanimously through the Senate on a fast-track vote. But it will still require the House to weigh in before it heads to President Donald Trump’s desk. 

REVENGE PORN BILL BACKED BY MELANIA TRUMP HEADS TO PRESIDENT’S DESK AFTER OVERWHELMING HOUSE VOTE

His bill, which was co-sponsored by Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and introduced in the House by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, would allow victims of deepfake images to sue people who create, possess with intent to share, solicit, or share non-consensual them and levy a fine of up to $250,000 per violation. 

“Give to the victims their day in court to hold those responsible who continue to publish these images at their expense,” Durbin said on the Senate floor. “Today, we are one step closer to making this a reality.”

HAWLEY BREAKS WITH TRUMP ON VENEZUELA AS POLICY RIFT CONTINUES

It also allows courts to order takedowns, deletions and injunctions to stop further spread of the images, provide privacy protections for victims during litigation and sets up a statute of limitations of up to 10 years. 

Durbin said that the backlash of deepfake images can be long-lasting, and people may go through depression, anxiety and fear, “and in the worst cases, victims have been driven to suicide.” 

TRUMP OPENS DOOR TO LIZ WARREN ON CREDIT CARD RATES AS GOP WEIGHS AFFORDABILITY FIGHT

“Imagine losing control over your own likeness and identity. Imagine how powerless victims feel when they cannot remove illicit content, cannot prevent it from being reproduced repeatedly, and cannot prevent new images from being created,” Durbin said. 

The DEFIANCE Act comes as lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have pushed for stiffer regulations and penalties for AI, particularly chatbots and potentially harmful interactions they have with children online. Notably, Durbin and Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., teamed up last year for legislation that defines AI as a product, allowing people to sue for liabilities that stem from using AI systems. 

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Durbin’s successful effort in the upper chamber comes after lawmakers passed a separate bill, the Take It Down Act, last year geared to creating penalties for revenge porn. First Lady Melania Trump heavily lobbied for that bill, which was ultimately signed into law by Trump and is set to take effect in May. 

Rep. Neal Dunn, R-Fla., announced Tuesday that he will not seek re-election, saying in a statement that he plans to step away from Congress after five terms.

Dunn, a physician and Army surgeon, said he wanted to “pass the torch to new conservative leaders, return home to Panama City, and spend more precious time with my family and our beloved grandchildren.”

“It has been my greatest honor to fight for lower taxes, our military and veterans, the unborn, healthcare innovation, and policies that empower Americans over bureaucracy and addressing threats from Communist China, Russia and others,” Dunn said.

“I am deeply grateful for your trust, support, and prayers over these years. America remains the greatest nation on Earth, and with God’s blessing, our best days are ahead,” he added.

DEM REP. STENY HOYER, 86, TO ANNOUNCE RETIREMENT AFTER CAREER SPANNING FOUR DECADES

As of mid-January, 49 House members, including 22 Democrats and 27 Republicans, have announced they will not seek re-election in the 2026 election cycle, according to the U.S. House of Representatives Press Gallery “Casualty List.”

Some members of Congress are retiring, while others are seeking higher office, including bids for the Senate or governor.

Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., is running for governor of South Carolina, while Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., is seeking the governorship in California.

HOUSE DEM SERVING SINCE 1993 ANNOUNCES SHE WON’T SEEK RE-ELECTION

Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, is running for Texas attorney general, and Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, is mounting a Senate bid in Texas, challenging incumbent Sen. John Cornyn.

Republicans currently hold a slim majority in the House after former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., resigned in January and Rep. Doug LaMalfa, R-Calif., died the same week.

The special election to fill Green’s seat is scheduled for March 10.

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President Donald Trump told lawmakers during a House GOP retreat at the Kennedy Center that he hopes Republicans pull off an “epic midterm victory.”

“They say that when you win the presidency, you lose the midterms. You gotta win the midterms,” Trump said. “Because if we don’t win the midterms … they’ll find a reason to impeach me. I’ll get impeached.”

President Donald Trump has been making inroads with progressive Democrats to discuss affordability, courting an unlikely ally along the way in his pursuit of capping credit card interest rates. 

Trump and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., appeared to have briefly warmed their chilly relationship to discuss affordability issues in the country and have found a middle ground in the president’s desire to cap credit card interest rates at 10% for one year. 

Warren told Fox News Digital that Trump picked up the phone and called her on Monday shortly after she gave a fiery speech centered on affordability, where she slammed the president’s efforts on the matter. During the call, the two agreed on the credit card issue, one that she’s backed for years, she said.

“I supported it for years,” Warren said, “and when he first floated the idea over a year ago, I said, ‘I’m all in,’ and so far, Trump hasn’t done anything.”

WHITE HOUSE ‘LASER FOCUSED’ ON AFFORDABILITY AS TRUMP SOFTENS TARIFF STRATEGY

When asked about Trump’s call with Warren and other recent moves to work with left-wing politicians on the economy, the White House told Fox Digital that Trump is smashing the district’s “obsession with consensus orthodoxy.” 

“President Trump was given a resounding mandate by the American people to smash Washington, D.C.’s obsession with consensus orthodoxy that has let Americans down,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said. “The Trump administration is turning the page on Joe Biden’s economic disaster by implementing traditional free market policies that do work — like deregulation and tax cuts — while rectifying the America Last policies that have Americans behind.”

A White House official described the president’s call with Warren as “productive” and focusing on credit card interest rates and affordability. 

THE ECONOMIC POLICIES SHAPING TRUMP’S RETURN TO THE WHITE HOUSE

But getting Senate Republicans on board is another matter, given their disdain for any legislation remotely related to price controls. When asked if she believed Republicans might support that push, Warren wasn’t as optimistic. 

“Well, if they do, they’ve kept it well hidden,” she said. 

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., quickly threw cold water on the idea, but noted that Sens. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., and Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., already had legislation in the works to cap credit card interest rates.

“I think… that would probably deprive an awful lot of people of access to credit around the country. Credit cards will probably become debit cards,” Thune said. “So, yeah, I mean, that’s not something I’m out there advocating for.” 

There’s also a long-simmering push from Sens. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., and Dick Durbin, D-Ill., to boost competition among credit card payment networks that Trump endorsed late Monday night. 

AFFORDABILITY: THE ISSUE THAT BOOSTED TRUMP AND REPUBLICANS IN 2024 DEFLATED THEM IN 2025

A source familiar told Fox News Digital on Tuesday that the duo planned to reintroduce that bill, which first saw the light of day in 2023. 

The call with Warren is just the latest of Trump welcoming left-wing Democrats to the affordability table or embracing policy ideas that overlap with Democratic critiques of the economy.

Newly-minted New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, whom Trump had described as a “communist,” visited the White House in a warm meeting in November, when the pair discussed lowering costs and improving affordability for citizens, telling the media they share a vision on lowering the cost of living.

“When we spoke to those voters who voted for President Trump, we heard them speak about cost of living. We focused on that same cost of living. And that’s where I am really looking forward to delivering for New Yorkers, in partnership with the president, on the affordability agenda,” Mamdani said from the Oval Office. 

‘PERCEPTION VS. REALITY’: TRUMP’S ECONOMY PICKS UP SPEED — BUT VOTERS AREN’T BUYING IT YET

Trump leaned into publicly promoting “affordability” in the late half of 2025, as Democrats in a handful of high-profile elections last off-year cycle centered their campaigns on lowering high prices they tied to the Trump administration. The three races, which included the New York City mayoral election and gubernatorial elections in New Jersey and Virginia, all handed Democrats wins over their GOP challengers. 

The president railed that Democrats promoting affordability was a “con job,” noting that he inherited sky-high inflation caused by Democratic policies under the Biden administration. 

“You just say it. Affordability. I inherited the worst inflation in history. There was no affordability. Nobody could afford anything. The prices were massively high,” Trump said in December during his administration’s final Cabinet meeting for 2025. 

Instead, he has argued that affordability “should be our word, not theirs.”

HARVARD ECONOMIST SAYS TRUMP INFLATION REPORT LEAVES ‘NO OTHER WAY TO SPIN IT’ BUT GOOD NEWS

Trump’s first term in the Oval Office was seen as an economic success as the unemployment rate hit 50-year lows and inflation remained tame until the pandemic hit in 2020. The president traveled to Pennsylvania in December to champion his track record on the economy and preview his vision for the future. 

In recent months, the White House has touted a bevy of actions Trump has taken to ease the financial burden on Americans, including rolling out a housing-cost push that directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to buy $200 billion in mortgage-backed securities to try to push mortgage rates down and make homeownership more affordable.

Separately, Trump has floated policy proposals he’s pitching as affordability fixes — including saying he’s taking steps to ban large institutional investors from buying additional single-family homes, an approach that overlaps with ideas Democrats have pursued through legislation aimed at curbing hedge fund and private equity ownership in the housing market.

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Trump is set to visit Michigan on Tuesday to promote manufacturing in the Rust Belt state. 

FIRST ON FOX: The California chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is facing heightened scrutiny as House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith referred the group to the IRS for a probe into whether the nonprofit should lose its tax-exempt status, citing alleged misuse of taxpayer funds, potential violations of federal law and support for unlawful activity.

“Tax-exempt status is a privilege, not a right,” Smith, a Republican from Missouri, told Fox News Digital Tuesday. “Organizations that receive special treatment under the tax code must follow the law and operate in the public interest, not bankroll illegal activity, mislead federal agencies, or misuse hard-earned taxpayer dollars.” 

Smith sent a letter to Treasury Secretary and acting IRS chief Scott Bessent and IRS CEO Frank Bisignano Tuesday referring CAIR-California for IRS review, arguing that the nonprofit may no longer meet the legal standards required to operate as a 501(c)(3) organization. The letter claims that evidence alleges CAIR-California improperly used millions of dollars in federal funds, provided misleading information to the IRS, and materially supported activity that resulted in arrests and violations of the law, particularly during campus protests across California.

BESSENT BLAMES WALZ AS TREASURY PROBES WHETHER MINNESOTA FRAUD FUNDS REACHED TERROR GROUP AL-SHABAB

The Council on American-Islamic Relations is a leading American Muslim civil rights organization, with chapters across the country and its home base located in Washington, D.C. Republicans have scrutinized CAIR in recent years, including calls for Treasury reviews over alleged Hamas ties — allegations the group denies.

CAIR pushed back on the letter to Fox News Digital Tuesday, calling it “embarrassing” and based on “a false claim made by a pro-Israel group without fact-checking.” 

The New York Post published an article published in March 2025 based on an advocacy group, Intelligent Advocacy Network, investigation into CAIR-California that found alleged financial irregularities. 

CAIR-California includes offices in Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, Sacramento and San Diego. 

The call for an investigation comes as the IRS and other investigators dig into what officials say is a sprawling COVID-era scheme in Minnesota involving money laundering that has dominated headlines since before the holiday season. Federal prosecutors have estimated the fraud could exceed $1 billion and rise to as high as $9 billion. 

Officials have made dozens of arrests, the majority of which are from the state’s Somali community. 

“The widespread fraud uncovered in Minnesota has only made our efforts to root out fraud in the nonprofit sector more urgent, and we owe it to the American taxpayer to hold these bad actors accountable,” Smith told Fox Digital. “If these allegations are true, CAIR-California does not meet the standards required to maintain tax-exempt status, and the IRS must act accordingly.”

FEDERAL PROSECUTOR CALLS NEWSOM ‘KING OF FRAUD’ AS TRUMP LAUNCHES CALIFORNIA CORRUPTION PROBE

The chairman’s letter detailed concerns surrounding CAIR-CA’s handling of more than $7 million in federal refugee legal-aid funding intended to help resettle Afghan refugees. 

The referral, citing the New York Post article detailing a watchdog group’s previous investigation, indicated CAIR-CA assisted fewer than 10% of the refugees it pledged to help, while allegedly routing millions of dollars through an unregistered affiliate operating under CAIR-CA’s tax identification number — potentially exposing the group to False Claims Act violations, according to the referral. 

“Not only does this misdirection of funds back to itself potentially violate the law, but the failure of CAIR-CA to properly document the use of grant funding would also place the organization at risk of violating the False Claims Act for misrepresenting grant use,” Smith wrote. 

CAIR told Fox News Digital that Smith’s letter was “provably inaccurate letter,” and based on “retracted story about CAIR-California that The New York Post had to correct after it repeated a false claim made by a pro-Israel group” is “a sign of how desperate he and other Israel First members of Congress have become to smear and silence Americans who speak up for Palestinian human rights and against the waste of American taxpayer dollars on Israel’s genocide in Gaza.”

CAIR shot continued that, “Contrary to the false claims made by Mr. Smith, CAIR-California is a respected civil rights organization with a long record of lawful advocacy and cooperation with government agencies.”

“Every dollar CAIR-California receives is used strictly for its intended purpose and subject to rigorous internal and external oversight, auditing, and reporting. Funds designated to support Afghan refugees are used exclusively to serve that population, consistent with grant terms. CAIR-California also receives a diverse set of funds that allows the organization to serve clients beyond the Afghan and Muslim community,” CAIR continued in an emailed comment. 

If the IRS revokes a group’s 501(c)(3) status, it can trigger a cascading hit on the organization — donations may no longer be tax-deductible, federal taxes and penalties can apply, and the nonprofit’s funding pipeline can dry up as donors and grantmakers pull back.

The letter adds that evidence suggests CAIR-California “institutionally endorsed and materially supported” college encampments during the anti-Israel protests that swept the nation from 2021 until the Trump administration, including protests that “resulted in violations of the law and/or arrests.” 

The letter argued that CAIR national also promoted and endorsed a “Protest Donald Trump” rally at the Minnesota Republican Party Lincoln-Reagan Dinner during the 2024 election cycle, which the letter claims may have violated the prohibition on 501(c)(3)s to directly or indirectly participate, or intervene in, any political campaign.  

TRUMP DEMANDS CALIFORNIA HAND OVER RECIPIENT LISTS AS $10B PAUSED AMID FRAUD CONCERNS

Smith argued that while protests are generally permitted, the IRS has previously found groups can lose exempt status if demonstrations cross into civil disobedience or other illegal activity.

“The only allegation in Mr. Smith’s letter that is even remotely close to accurate is the claim that CAIR expressed support for college students who hosted sit-ins to peacefully protest their university’s financial entanglements with the Israeli government’s genocide in Gaza,” CAIR said. “We were proud to express solidarity with students peacefully protesting the Gaza genocide, who were on the right side of history, just like the college kids who protested segregation, the Vietnam War, and apartheid South Africa.”

CAIR sent its own letter to Bessent and the IRS Tuesday morning following Smith’s letter, Fox News Digital learned. 

Conservatives have previously argued CAIR’s national network crosses from civil-rights advocacy into partisan politics and activism — pointing to past allegations cited by GOP lawmakers of improper political involvement and longstanding concerns about ties to Hamas-linked entities, which CAIR has repeatedly denied. 

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, for example, designated CAIR, as well as the Muslim Brotherhood, as foreign terrorist organizations under state law in 2025, claiming the groups “support terrorism across the globe and subvert our laws through violence, intimidation, and harassment are unacceptable.”

CAIR pushed back on Abbott’s designation, telling the Houston Chronicle in January that it has worked to stop terrorism in the U.S., including claiming it flagged the FBI to a potential threat against President Donald Trump under his first term, the outlet reported. 

“We only reveal it now in response to these ludicrous claims that CAIR — which has quite literally helped to stop acts of terrorism — is a terrorist organization,” Edward Ahmed Mitchell, CAIR’s national deputy director, told the Chronicle. “CAIR has not only condemned terrorism verbally, but we have taken action to stop terrorism.”

Smith’s referral cited longstanding concerns about CAIR’s alleged connections to terrorism, including reported links to the now-defunct Holy Land Foundation, which was convicted in 2009 for providing material support to Hamas. 

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“Given CAIR-CA’s alarming activity, along with the fact that CAIR’s network holds suspicious ties to terrorist organizations like Hamas, I ask that you use your authority to investigate CAIR-CA and consider the revocation of tax-exempt status of CAIR-CA upon adequate review,” Smith concluded in his letter.

Police groups, MAGA supporters and the Department of Homeland Security galvanized around mocking left-wing Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner on social media for his warning to the National Guard and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement amid President Donald Trump’s immigration and fraud crackdowns. 

“To ICE and the National Guard: if you commit crimes in Philadelphia, we will charge you and hold you accountable to the fullest extent of the law,” Krasner posted to X Saturday, accompanied by a black and white photo of himself wearing sunglasses and the caption “FAFO.”

“FAFO” is internet slang meaning “f— around and find out,” that has increasingly entered the MAGA political lexicon, embraced by Trump, administration-linked messaging, and prominent Republican allies as a blunt warning to political opponents and foreign adversaries. 

Krasner has served as Philadelphia’s district attorney since 2018, frequently coming under fire from conservatives for reduced reliance on cash bail, shifts in charging for some low-level crimes, and an aggressive posture on police accountability. Republicans have repeatedly pointed to his office’s bail and prosecution policies as drivers of public-safety concerns, staging high-profile hearings and pushing an impeachment effort that ultimately collapsed in court.

ICE CHIEF TODD LYONS FIRES BACK AFTER AOC ALLEGES RENEE NICOLE GOOD WAS ‘ASSASSINATED IN THE STREET’

Conservatives, police groups and leaders and administration social media accounts lambasted Krasner over the message. Krasner’s post came amid a heightened federal law enforcement presence in Minnesota, as a sweeping Minneapolis fraud investigation unfolded and a woman was fatally shot during the increased deployment.

“This embarrassment of a DA regularly gives the velvet glove treatment to murders, robbers, and rapists…what a joke,” Fraternal Order of Police National Vice President Joe Gamaldi posted to X, slamming Krasner. 

“Unlike criminals in Philadelphia who get their charges dropped by the DA,” the National Police Association responded. 

The Department of Homeland Security responded with at least two memes brushing off Krasner’s comment, including a gif of a person dressed up as a founding father with the caption, “Oh no! Anyways.” 

“True Clownsmanship,” a lawyer on X quipped.

“Note that Larry Krasner has never said FAFO to the actual criminals he’s supposed to put behind bars, and thus his city is garbage. But good posturing you pathetic waste of space,” Republican communicator Matt Whitlock wrote. 

“this is so cringe, even for a Soros DA,” another commented. Left-wing billionaire George Soros was one of Krasner’s donors amid his election effort, Fox Digital previously reported. 

“It would be news if Krassner prosecuted an actual criminal, let alone ICE,” RealClearInvestigations senior writer Mark Hemingway posted. 

“LMAO, they try so hard to use social media the way this administration does, and it fails every time,” another posted, referring to Democrats attempting to lean into MAGA’s often searing use of social media. 

“This idiot has never read the Supremacy Clause of the US Constitution. Federal law trumps local law when in direct conflict of one another. This post is pure provocative trash,” former New Jersey Senate candidate Mike Crispi posted. 

Krasner’s social media message joins a chorus of Democrats nationwide criticizing ICE and federal immigration law enforcement officials following the fatal shooting of Renee Good in Minnesota earlier in January. Good was shot on a residential street while operating her car. DHS said Good used her car as weapon against the agents before the shooting, calling her actions an “act of domestic terrorism.”

Philadelphia Sheriff Rochelle Bilal also slammed ICE earlier in January as “madeup, fake, wannabe law enforcement,” claiming ICE violated both “legal law” and “moral law” following the shooting. 

Democrats have rallied against the federal law enforcement officer’s actions, with some left-wing lawmakers such as New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez calling the incident “murder,” while other Democrats have underscored a push for more accountability of federal officers. 

Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz authorized the National Guard be “staged and ready to support local and state law enforcement in protecting critical infrastructure and maintaining public safety following a shooting involving federal immigration enforcement agents in south Minneapolis.” Trump has mobilized, or attempted to mobilize, the National Guard to other cities in 2025 as part of his mission to crack down on crime, including when he federalized the Washington, D.C., police force in August. 

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Krasner’s office did not immediately respond to Fox Digital’s request for comment on the mockery and criticisms revolving around his Saturday message.