NationalWatch

A highly anticipated 2024 ticket, a controversial dog tale, and feeling “threatened” by Nikki Haley – Gov. Kristi Noem’s, R-S.D., newest book unpacks her role in leadership and experience behind the scenes of D.C. politics.

Noem’s book, titled “No Going Back” details her life lessons through her family farming business, service in congress, and current role as Governor. And despite not yet hitting the shelves, the conservative’s book has already stirred up the news cycle.

The Governor hunkered down on her support for former President Donald Trump, who she described as a “bull in a china shop” in the book, shared with Fox News Digital ahead of its release Tuesday.

Trump recently confirmed the Republican governor was on his shortlist for vice president, and when asked about the coveted position, Noem said she wants the former president “to pick who’s going to help him win.”

DEFIANT KRISTI NOEM DEFENDS KILLING FARM PUP AMID CRITICISM FROM DEMS, GOP

“He knows that I’ll do whatever I can to help him win. But every day, it’s clear to me that our way of life is under attack. And unless he gets in the White House, this country is going to see some very challenging times ahead,” Noem told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview ahead of the book launch.

Ahead of the book launch, there was one released excerpt in particular that drew serious controversy – a story of Noem putting down her hunting dog.

VP STAKES: TRUMP MEETING WITH POTENTIAL RUNNING MATES THIS WEEKEND

The story went as follows. Noem had a young dog, Cricket, who she described as “untrainable” and having an “aggressive personality.” One day, the dog jumped out of her car, proceeded to kill several of her neighbors’ chickens, and nearly bit Noem as she tried to control it. So Noem decided to put the dog down, along with a “demon goat” on her farm.

Lawmakers, on both sides of the aisle, criticized  the governor on social media for the story, with a bipartisan group even launching the Congressional Dog Lovers Caucus just days after the excerpt was released. The governor defended including the story in her book, telling Fox “it was a difficult decision and a vulnerable story.”

“I’m not surprised that those who have always attacked me are attacking me. Republicans and Democrats who attacked me during Covid are the same ones who are attacking me now,” Noem said when asked about the backlash from the story. “But I think the average citizen, when they read that story will recognize that I put the safety of people in my hands above an animal that was killing livestock and attacking people.”

TRUMP EYES 2 BATTLEGROUND STATES AS HE LOOKS TO TEAR DOWN DEM ‘BLUE WALL’ AGAIN

Noem also recalled a phone call with former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, revealing that she felt “threatened” by the former presidential candidate.

“That’s the thing with Nikki Haley: you never know who she’s going to be tomorrow,” Noem wrote. “She’s going to be whatever the polls or donors tell her to be. And that should be very scary to the American people. The people who know her the best, including some colleagues in her home state, seem to have the same concerns.”

After Haley’s team told Politico the story was a “twist” of the conversation, Noem told Fox News Digital that she was “not surprised” by the response.

“I think Nikki says whatever is convenient for Nikki that day,” Noem told Fox. “I’ve watched this for years now. You never know who she’s going to be tomorrow. She tends to be motivated by what works and what the polling says, and that’s not the kind of politicians we need leading our country.”

Reflecting on GOP losses in the 2022 midterms, Noem wrote that “the fact that our party did not achieve a majority in the US Senate was a failure by the Republican National Committee.” Noem added “Donald Trump and a handful of brave folks broke politics. But what do we do now? Instead of “fixing” politics by going back to the “good old days,” let’s step into the chaos and move the nation forward. Our best days truly are ahead.”

Noem’s book will be officially launched on Tuesday, May 7th.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

“The new book is called No Going Back. And it’s about what’s wrong with politics and how we’re going to move America forward. It talks a lot about how Donald Trump really when he entered the political stage, he broke politics,” she told Fox. “And this book is the how-to guide to everyday Americans how they can be a part of moving this country forward.”

Former President Trump is calling for Special Counsel Jack Smith’s arrest after the prosecutors handling the 45th president’s classified documents case admitted seized documents are no longer in their original order and sequence.  

“Now, Deranged Jack has admitted in a filing in front of Judge Cannon to what I have been saying happened since the Illegal RAID on my home, Mar-a-Lago, in Palm Beach, Florida – That he and his team committed blatant Evidence Tampering by mishandling the very Boxes they used as a pretext to bring this Fake Case,” Trump posted to Truth Social on Friday. “These deeply Illegal actions by the Politicized ‘Persecutors’ mandate that this whole Witch Hunt be DROPPED IMMEDIATELY. END THE ‘BOXES HOAXES.’ MAGA2024!”

“ARREST DERANGED JACK SMITH. HE IS A CRIMINAL!” Trump added in a follow-up post. 

Prosecutors admitted in a court filing on Friday that “there are some boxes where the order of items within that box is not the same as in the associated scans.” The prosecutors had previously told the court that the documents were “in their original, intact form as seized.” 

JUDGE UNSEALS FBI FILES IN TRUMP CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS CASE, INCLUDING DETAILED TIMELINE OF MAR-A-LAGO RAID

“The Government acknowledges that this is inconsistent with what Government counsel previously understood and represented to the Court,” a footnote in the filing reads. 

The filing comes after one of Trump’s co-defendants in the case asked for a delay as lawyers were having trouble figuring out the origin of some of the documents in the evidence boxes. 

The FBI agents seized 33 boxes of documents in August 2022 from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, spurring another legal battle that Trump has called a “scam.” The investigation is overseen by special prosecutor Smith, whom Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed to the job, and has charged Trump with 40 felony counts, including allegedly violating the Espionage Act, making false statements to investigators and conspiracy to obstruct justice. 

GOP SLAMS ‘WEAPONIZATION’ OF DOJ AFTER TRUMP’S MAR-A-LAGO RAIDED BY FBI; DEMS CALL IT ‘ACCOUNTABILITY’

Trump has pleaded not guilty to the charges, and slammed the case as an “Election Inference Scam” promoted by the Biden administration and “Deranged Jack Smith.” 

The case is slated to head to trial on May 20, though the date may change, with presiding Judge Aileen Cannon underacting a trove of documents in the lead-up to the trial that have provided notable updates to the case. 

BIDEN ADMINISTRATION INVOLVEMENT

Judge Cannon recently unredacted more than 300 pages of evidence in the case, including emails and conversations related to the Biden administration’s contact with the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) the year prior to the documents’ seizure from Trump’s home, Real Clear Investigations recently reported. Biden has previously publicly said he was not involved in the case, though the filings show other White House officials were involved in the early stages of the investigation. 

TRUMP SAYS MAR-A-LAGO HOME IN FLORIDA ‘UNDER SIEGE’ BY FBI AGENTS

The unredacted documents allege that just weeks after Trump left office in 2021, the White House Office of Records Management under the Biden administration began working with NARA “on exaggerated claims related to records handling under the Presidential Records Act,” Trump’s attorney wrote in a court filing to compel discovery.  

The Archives’ general counsel, Gary Stern, sent a letter to Trump’s Presidential Records Act representatives in May 2021 asking the whereabouts of “roughly two dozen boxes of original Presidential records [that] have not been transferred to NARA.” Stern explained that he “had several conversations” with White House Office of Records Management officials where they discussed “concerns” regarding Trump’s possession of the documents, according to Real Clear Investigations. 

Stern’s letter detailed that the team was looking for “original correspondence between President Trump and North Korean Leader Kim Jung-un” and “the letter that President Obama left for President Trump on his first day in office,” Real Clear reported.

TRUMP’S LAWYERS PUSH FOR DISMISSAL OF CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS CASE, ARGUING ‘PRESIDENTIAL IMMUNITY’

He added that he understood that transitioning administrations was “very chaotic” and it could take “several more months” to transfer the documents, the Federalist reported. By June of that year, a national archivist appointed by former President Barack Obama, David Ferriero, told the Trump team he was running “out of patience,” unredacted filings show. The filing states that Ferriero dismissed “good-faith efforts by President Trump’s PRA representatives to address issues raised by NARA.” 

The filing continued that Ferriero allegedly “threatened” a PRA representative for Trump in August 2021, saying he presumed 24 boxes of “alleged – and non-existent” documents were “destroyed,” and that he was taking the issue to the DOJ. Ferriero and Stern contacted DOJ officials and Deputy White House Counsel Jonathan Su. Stern met with Su at the White House, according to White House logs reported by Real Clear Investigations. 

“At this point, I am assuming [the boxes] have been destroyed. In which case, I am obligated to report it to the Hill, the DOJ, and the White House,” Ferriero wrote in a warning to Trump’s team in August 2021, according to the documents. 

“To my knowledge, nothing has been destroyed,” a Trump representative responded. 

TRUMP DEMANDS JUSTICE DEPARTMENT ‘IMMEDIATELY’ DROP CHARGES AGAINST HIM IN CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS CASE AFTER BIDEN DECISION 

The unredacted filing states that in September, Stern emailed Ferriero and a deputy archivist that he had “reached out to DOJ counsel about this issue,” and that “WH Counsel is now aware of the issue.”

Another email, sent on Sept. 15, details that Stern reportedly spoke with Su to “get him up to speed on the issue and the dispute whether there are 12 or 24 missing boxes,” which was followed by another email that “[White House counsel] is ready to set up a call to discuss the Trump boxes.”

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment Sunday, but did not immediately receive a reply. 

DOJ INSTRUCTS NARA HOW TO PROCEED

Trump’s team delivered 15 boxes of documents to NARA in January 2022, with the Archives’ White House liaison director reporting back to Ferriero and another archivist that the boxes mostly contained newspaper clippings and magazines, in addition to “lots of classified records,” according court filings. 

Unsealed documents show that following the review of the returned boxes, Su urged Stern to contact Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. Monaco’s office subsequently “instructed” how Stern could proceed with the matter, including contacting the inspectors general for the Archives and intelligence community, and DOJ National Security Division Chief Jay Bratt, court filings reported by Real Clear show. 

Stern complied with the instructions, and a criminal referral was sent to the DOJ on Feb. 9. 

News of the criminal referral sparked condemnation from Republicans that it was spurred by political spite at the hands of Democrats against Trump. 

TRUMP EXPECTED BACK IN COURT FOR CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS HEARING IN SPECIAL SECURE FLORIDA FACILITY

“At no time and under no circumstances were NARA officials pressured or influenced by Committee Democrats or anyone else,” acting National Archivist Debra Steidel Wall wrote in a letter to congressional Republicans in 2022. 

ALLEGATIONS OF IMPROPER ATTEMPTS TO INFLUENCE WALT NAUTA’S COUNSEL

Trump was charged alongside his personal aide and valet, Walt Nauta, as well as Mar-a-Lago maintenance chief Carlos De Oliveira. Unredacted court filings show Nauta’s attorney was allegedly threatened he could lose a shot at becoming a federal judge if Nauta didn’t flip on Trump. 

A motion filed in June 2023, and recently unredacted, reported that Nauta’s attorney Stanley Woodward met with DOJ National Security Division Chief Jay Bratt just weeks after the raid on Mar-a-Lago and “was led to a conference room where Mr. Bratt awaited with what appeared to be a folder containing information about Mr. Woodward,” the Federalist reported. 

“Mr. Bratt thereupon told Mr. Woodward he didn’t consider him to be a ‘Trump lawyer,’ and he further said that he was aware that Mr. Woodward had been recommended to President Biden for an appointment to the Superior Court of the District of Columbia,” the motion stated, the Federalist reported. “Mr. Bratt followed up with words to the effect of ‘I wouldn’t want you to do anything to mess that up.’ Thereafter, Mr. Bratt advised Mr. Woodward that ‘one way or the other’ his client, Walt Nauta, would be giving up his lavish lifestyle of ‘private planes and golf clubs’ and he encouraged Mr. Woodward to persuade Mr. Nauta to cooperate with the government’s investigation (this was prior to the appointment of the Special Counsel).”

Bratt was later appointed lead prosecutor to Jack Smith’s case. 

The DOJ argued that “at no point during the meeting did Woodward suggest that any of the prosecutors’ comments were improper.” 

TRUMP FLORIDA JUDGE CANNON DENIES TRUMP DISMISSAL ON ‘UNCONSTITUTIONAL VAGUENESS’

Legal experts, including James Trusty, Trump attorney and former chief of the Justice Department’s organized crime unit, have said the allegations in the filing amount to “extortion.” 

“You had a high-level DOJ official – according to a statement submitted as an officer-to-the-court, to a federal judge – told Stanley Woodward, a defense attorney representing Walt Nauta that it would be a shame, essentially, if he endangered his pending judgeship by not flipping Nauta against President Trump,” Trusty said last year in comment to Fox News’ Mark Levin. 

‘PLASMIC ECHO’

Newly unredacted filings reveal that the FBI investigation into Trump, which officially began in March 2022 following the president and his team voluntarily handing over boxes of documents, was dubbed “Plasmic Echo.” 

“This document contains information that is restricted to case participants,” documents unsealed last month show, Fox News Digital previously reported. It added, “PLASMIC ECHO; Mishandling Classified or National Defense Information, Unknown Subject; Sensitive Investigation Matter.”

TRUMP’S SECURITY CLEARANCE WAS ALLEGEDLY RETROACTIVELY REVOKED

Earlier this year, Trump’s legal team indicated they might use evidence showing Trump acted in “good-faith and non-criminal states of mind” when he took classified documents home to Florida, due to a high-level security clearance granted by the Department of Energy. 

Unsealed, unredacted filings assert Trump had the high-level “Q clearance” granted by the DOE until last year, but that it was allegedly revoked following Trump’s indictment. 

The DOE’s “Central Personnel Clearance Index and Clearance Action Tracking System ‘reflect[ed] an active Q clearance’ for President Trump,” according to the 2024 filing, as reported by the Federalist. 

An assistant general counsel at the agency, however, “instructed that the relevant systems ‘be immediately amended’ and ‘promptly modified to reflect the terminated status of [President] Trump’s Q clearance,'” the filing states.

Trump’s classified documents case comes as he continues a weeks-long legal battle in a Manhattan courtroom where he is facing 34 felony charges of falsifying business records. Trump has pleaded not guilty to the charges, and slammed the case as another “scam” and “witch hunt” promoted by the Biden administration ahead of the general election. 

SPECIAL COUNSEL JACK SMITH HITS BACK AT JUDGE FOR ‘FUNDAMENTALLY FLAWED LEGAL PREMISE’ IN TRUMP DOCUMENTS CASE

“This Judge has taken away my Constitutional Right to FREE SPEECH. I am the only Presidential Candidate in History to be GAGGED,” Trump wrote last week on Truth Social. 

“This whole ‘Trial’ is RIGGED, and by taking away my FREEDOM OF SPEECH, THIS HIGHLY CONFLICTED JUDGE IS RIGGING THE PRESIDENTIAL OF 2024 ELECTION. ELECTION INTERFERENCE!!!” Trump continued. 

The classified documents case, meanwhile, also opened the doors to investigations regarding classified documents in the possession of Biden and former Vice President Mike Pence. Special Counsel Robert Hur announced in February that he would not recommend criminal charges against Biden for possessing classified materials after his vice presidency, citing that Biden is “a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.”

“Based on our direct interactions with and observations of him, he is someone from whom many jurors will want to identify reasonable doubt. It would be difficult to convince a jury that they should convict him – by then a former president well into his eighties – of a serious felony that requires a mental state of willfulness,” Hur wrote in his report. 

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP 

The findings sparked widespread outrage that Biden was effectively deemed too cognitively impaired to be charged with a crime, but could serve as president. Trump has meanwhile slammed the disparity in charges as a reflection of a “sick and corrupt, two-tiered system of justice in our country.” 

Mike Pompeo, when he was U.S. secretary of state, shared intel with the United Kingdom during the COVID-19 pandemic suggesting a “high likelihood” that the deadly coronavirus leaked from a Chinese lab, according to The Telegraph.

An intelligence alliance known as “Five Eyes” reportedly met in January 2021 to discuss the lab-leak theory, the outlet reported. Around the same time, Pompeo is said to have shared information from classified American reports put together by the State Department to then-U.K. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, as well as representatives from New Zealand, Canada and Australia. 

The British newspaper says two former Trump administration officials believe Raab – and the U.K. government as a whole – ignored the lab leak theory due to pressure from government scientists who leaned toward the theory that the illness had been transferred from animals to humans. 

“We saw several pieces of information and thought that they were, frankly, gobsmacking,” one former official who worked on the intelligence in Pompeo’s report told The Telegraph. “They obviously pointed to the high likelihood that this was indeed a lab leak.”

HOUSE COVID COMMITTEE CALLING FOR CRIMINAL PROBE INTO GAIN-OF-FUNCTION VIRUS RESEARCH IN WUHAN

The reports, consisting of information collected in the early days of the pandemic, were also shared with the U.K. via Five Eyes between October and December 2020. Five Eyes consists of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Information in one document obtained by The Telegraph states U.S. officials accused Chinese officials of “stonewalling,” as well as “gross corruption and ineptitude.” The information also reportedly showed that the Chinese military had been working with the Wuhan Institute of Virology for years before the pandemic, and that lab researchers got sick soon before COVID-19 was first reported in the area. 

ECOHEALTH ALLIANCE PRESIDENT TO TESTIFY ON COVID ORIGINS, WUHAN LAB TAXPAYER-FUNDED RESEARCH

On May 1, the U.S. House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic called for a criminal probe into the origins of the COVID-19 virus.

The demands for an investigation come after the release of an interim staff report accusing EcoHealth Alliance President Dr. Peter Daszak of funding “dangerous gain-of-function research in Wuhan, China, without sufficient oversight.”

EcoHealth Alliance is a non-governmental organization based in the United States and focused on researching pandemic prevention.

According to congressional lawmakers, EcoHealth used taxpayer dollars “to fund dangerous gain-of-function research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV)” in China. 

The NGO disputes that claim.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Fox News Digital previously reported that EcoHealth Alliance received millions of dollars in grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and that U.S. taxpayer funds flowed to Chinese entities conducting coronavirus research through EcoHealth Alliance.

Fox News’ Timothy H.J. Nerozzi and Brooke Singman contributed to this report. 

The Biden administration is taking its economic message to the road, tasking Vice President Kamala Harris with an economic opportunity tour. It kicked off last week in Georgia with an event in Michigan next in line as the issue remains the most important to voters heading into the November election. 

“The Biden campaign has to be very nervous about turnout problems among potential Democratic voters in Michigan and Georgia,” said Ken Kollman, director of the University of Michigan’s Center for Political Studies.

Both states were flipped from red to blue in 2020 when Biden defeated former President Trump. 

“It’s likely that every sliver of turnout will matter in these states,” Kollman added. 

ALL GOP SENATORS PRESS BIDEN NOT TO SUPPORT EXPANDING WHO PANDEMIC AUTHORITY

“It’s nothing new to quote James Carville’s ‘It’s the economy stupid’ line, but the economy really consistently does play a major role in determining presidential outcomes,” Democratic strategist Kaivan Shroff explained. 

Earlier this week, the official tour was announced, with the White House rolling out an April 29 event in Atlanta and previewing an event in Detroit later this week. A press release noted more locations and dates would soon be added. 

ERNST LEADS SENATE GOP DEMANDING BIDEN ‘CEASE PLANNING’ GAZA REFUGEE ACCEPTANCE

“President Biden and I are committed to creating an economy in which every person has the freedom to thrive,” Harris said in a statement on the tour.

Her Atlanta kickoff included an event where the vice president delivered remarks to hundreds of people, mainly Black entrepreneurs and lawmakers. She touted legislation passed during the Biden administration, highlighting spending on infrastructure and manufacturing in particular. 

The Georgia visit comes as concerns over Biden’s performance with Black Americans linger, with some indicating lethargy about supporting the president again. 

In a recent Fox News Poll, Trump bested Biden in Georgia, 51% to 45%. Biden defeated Trump in the southern state in 2020, 49.47% to 49.24%.

“The vice president’s economic opportunity tour is a way for the administration to highlight their actions to promote economic opportunity, especially for minority communities who will play a big role in this year’s election in swing states,” said University of South Carolina political scientist David Darmofal. 

He said the Atlanta event was “noteworthy for its in-depth panel discussions. This highlights how the administration is meeting these voters’ concerns with detailed, substantive, policy-oriented events.”

SEN. TOM COTTON TAKES AIM AT STUDENT LOAN FORGIVENESS FOR ANTI-ISRAEL AGITATORS

“The issues she discussed in Atlanta and will discuss in Detroit are the kitchen table issues: fighting medical debt, pathways to homeownership, student loan forgiveness and more,” Shroff said. “She is also emphasizing the efforts the Biden-Harris administration has made to invest in Black communities, and I think that is important in swing states like Georgia and Michigan where Black voters are critical to winning the state again — as the Biden-Harris ticket did in 2020.”

Harris’ office explained the tour is focused on showing voters what the administration has accomplished to expand opportunities to those in communities that are traditionally underserved. On the tour with the vice president are representatives from the Small Business Administration and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, who are there to provide information and resources on various programs. 

THUNE TARGETS IRS STAFF’S USE OF PERSONAL DEVICES AFTER REPORTED FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH TIKTOK BAN

On Monday, she will be headed to Detroit for a second event, where Biden and Democrats have seen warning signs electorally.

In a Fox News Poll last month, Trump defeated Biden in Michigan, 49% to 46%. In 2020, Biden won Michigan over Trump, 49.9% to 48.6%. 

Anthony Michael Kreis, a Georgia State University College of Law assistant professor said, “The big keys for Biden in Michigan and Georgia is to solidify the base and hold onto one key demographic, educated suburban voters.

“For both these groups, Biden has a huge challenge.” 

“While the economy is booming on paper, Americans aren’t necessarily feeling like it at home, particularly after a rough few years of inflation,” Kreis said. 

He claimed Biden and Harris’ re-election campaign has yet to find the right message to convince voters, adding the tour “appears to be the latest attempt to refine their economic message.”

“You can’t really dispute how much money Biden has spent trying to prop up the economy, which is why we have a $1.8 trillion deficit, a $35 trillion national debt and record inflation,” remarked Michigan Republican strategist Jason Cabel Roe. 

DEM SENATOR LEADS BIPARTISAN EFFORT TO STRENGTHEN TAIWAN SUPPLY CHAIN AMID CHINA THREAT

Despite this spending, he said voters are still “dissatisfied with the cost of living, the cost of gas, diminishing take-home pay and a feckless leader who can’t seem to manage anything competently.”

Kyle Kondik, managing editor of Sabato’s Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Center for Politics, suggested Trump is finding an effective pitch to voters in relying on “nostalgia for the pre-COVID economy.” 

“Biden doesn’t necessarily need to be perceived as better on the economy than Trump in order to win, but he does need to combat this nostalgia,” he said. 

Democratic strategist Max Burns reiterated Kreis’ point that positive economic developments aren’t being felt by average voters. He explained that Biden needs to be out on the trail to sell the message, adding that “retail politics has always been Biden’s strength.”

While he noted the importance of the economy in any election, Kondik said, “I do wonder if it really is the key driver of voting attitudes.”

He noted that there was recently “an election where inflation was a huge national problem but the ruling party [the Democrats] were not hugely penalized for it.”

For that reason, he suggested “it is a lot more complicated than just ‘It’s the economy, stupid,’” referencing Carville’s saying. 

In a statement, Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said, “Under President Trump, inflation was nonexistent, gasoline was cheap, groceries were affordable and the American Dream was alive and well. Thanks to Joe Biden’s out-of-control spending, prices are nearly 20% higher than they were four years ago, gas prices have hit record highs and American’s paychecks are not keeping up with the increasing pace of inflation.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

“Michigan and Georgia’s families and workers cannot afford four more years of Joe Biden. We need a businessman and a proven leader like President Trump who will get our economy booming again.” 

The vice president’s office did not provide comment to Fox News Digital. 

RENO, Nev. — An Afghanistan War veteran and Republican running for Senate in what is expected to be one of this year’s most closely watched races is expanding his campaign as he sets his sights firmly on a vulnerable Democratic incumbent.

Former U.S. Army Capt. Sam Brown spoke with members of the media, including Fox News Digital, last week after opening a new campaign headquarters in Reno, Nevada, as he aims to oust incumbent Democrat Jacky Rosen and flip the Silver State red.

“The energy is great. This is just a sign of the grassroots movement that we built,” Brown said after a packed room of supporters eventually emptied.

FORMER TRUMP OFFICIAL ANNOUNCES MAJOR ‘DEPORT THEM ALL’ BORDER INITIATIVE AMID BID TO FLIP CRUCIAL SENATE SEAT

“Sadly, people are stressed. There is a sense of a loss of hope for some people. They look at the issues that we’re dealing with as a nation, as a state, as individuals, and they’re looking for leadership. They’re looking for someone who’s willing to go represent them and, at times, even push back against their own party leadership. That’s what’s driving so much energy here. And I’m excited about the turnout today.”

National Republicans remain optimistic about their chances to win control of the Senate in November, with a number of states, including Nevada, Arizona, Montana, West Virginia, Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Maryland, taking center stage.

The GOP views Brown as its best chance to flip Nevada, a state where it’s struggled in recent election cycles. In 2022, Republican Senate nominee Adam Laxalt came within 8,000 votes of winning against a Democratic incumbent.

Brown is a seasoned candidate who unsuccessfully ran against Laxalt in the 2022 Republican primary and for Congress while living in Texas in 2014. However, this year, he predicts voters will be driven to the polls to support Republicans for a number of reasons, namely President Biden’s “failed” policies that he says Rosen hasn’t stood up to.

GOP IN BATTLEGROUND STATES RIP TRUMP TRIAL JUDGE’S ‘DANGEROUS’ RULING

“We need people who will represent all Nevadans, all Americans. And, the issues, again, where Biden has failed and where Jacky Rosen has not provided leadership — with the border, with spending so much that it’s driving up inflation and just supporting families,” he said.

Brown also predicted the ongoing prosecutions against former President Trump in multiple states and Washington, D.C., will drive voters to the polls in favor of Republicans.

“The Trump trial is just an example of how the judiciary has really become politicized. And it seems to be motivating people to get engaged, to voice their concerns, and, frankly, to see that Trump is taking heat on their behalf. A lot of this didn’t start until he announced he was running for re-election. And I do expect that it will play a part in driving people to participate in voting this year,” he said.

Brown is facing what appears to be a tough primary challenge from Jeffrey Gunter, a dermatologist and former Trump official who served as the U.S. ambassador to Iceland from 2019-2021. However, his strategy so far appears to be keeping the focus directly on Rosen and Biden.

TOP BATTLEGROUND SENATE RACE HEATS UP AS PARTY-BACKED REPUBLICAN FACES ONSLAUGHT FROM FORMER TRUMP OFFICIAL

“My record has been clear. I’ve been on the campaign trail effectively for the last three years. Nevadans know who I am because I ran last cycle in the primary. I have been consistent. My issues have never changed. I am a pro-America First candidate, and I am extremely conservative,” Brown said when asked about Gunter.

“This is an indictment against Jacky Rosen. It’s an indictment against the Biden administration and their policies that have not served Nevadans well.”

Concerning Brown’s remarks, Rosen campaign spokesperson Johanna Warshaw told Fox News Digital the senator “has been ranked one of the most bipartisan and effective senators in the nation because of her proven record of political independence and her work across party lines to deliver for Nevada.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

“While extreme MAGA Republicans are busy tearing each other down in a divisive and expensive primary, Sen. Rosen is focused on communicating directly to voters about the work she’s doing to fight for Nevadans.”

The primary will be held Tuesday, June 11.

Elections analysts rate the race as either a tossup, “tilt Democratic” or “lean Democratic.”

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

Anti-Israel groups accuse Chicago, DNC of trying to ‘protect’ Biden from protests at 2024 Dem convention

A coalition of anti-Israel agitators seeking to protest outside the Democratic National Convention in August are continuing to put pressure on the City of Chicago, alleging their First Amendment rights are being violated, while some Democrats fear unrest could disrupt the annual convention.

A series of lawsuits have been filed against the city in recent months by the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, the Anti-War Coalition, and Students for a Democratic Society at the University of Illinois — some of which have voiced support for the anti-Israel encampment at the University of Chicago.

In a Tuesday filing at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, the coalition of protesters stated they want to “engage in peaceful political speech and seek to exercise their First Amendment rights at the Convention to deliver their political messages directly to… President Biden.”

That effort is being stifled by the City of Chicago, which denied the groups “respective applications for parade permits within sight or sound of the Convention,” according to the filing.

YOUNG DEMOCRATS UPSET OVER GAZA COULD REACH ‘1968 PROPORTIONS’ IF THE WHITE HOUSE ISN’T CAREFUL, AUTHOR SAYS

“Instead, the City, on information at the behest of the DNC, unilaterally decided to offer an alternative parade route approximately four (4) miles away buried on a tree lined street in an entirely other part of the City, clearly to protect President Biden and others from hearing the Plaintiffs’ political message,” the coalition stated in the filing. “In doing so, the City failed to consider to least restrictive route narrowly tailored to meet a compelling government interest. Indeed, the City admitted it considered no other alternative than the one it seeks to force on Plaintiffs and failed to engage Plaintiffs to consider less restrictive options.”

The 2024 Democratic convention, which is slated to be held this summer in Chicago at the United Center from August 19 – 22, will be attended by Democrats from all over the country. It will also be where the party announces its official nominee for the 2024 presidential election, which is expected to be a rematch between Biden and former President Donald Trump.

The groups also claimed the City of Chicago is “working with the DNC” in an effort “to limit the number of peaceful parades organized to deliver political speech by denying permit applications solely on the grounds that such applications are ‘duplicative.’”

“This provision violated the First Amendment on its face as it is vague and overly broad and has been interpreted by the Defendants to allow … not only [denying] permit applications but even seek criminal and civil penalties against any organization and its members applying for a parade permit on more than one date or against two or more organizations with even a single member in common which seek parade permits,” the groups noted in the filing.

The groups filed for a preliminary injunction and have requested a federal judge grant them better access to the event for their planned protest, which has been dubbed “March on the DNC 2024.”

“Instead of meeting with us and working out a compromise that brings us within sight and sound of the DNC, the city has tried to shut us away in a corner,” Liz Rathburn, a member of the Students for a Democratic Society at the University of Illinois Chicago, told one local outlet last month.

BIDEN, HARRIS COULD FACE ‘REAL PROTESTS’ AT CHICAGO DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION, SAYS FORMER HOUSE SPEAKER

In a March filing, the coalition said Biden is “the one person who could stop the suffering in Gaza with a single phone call.”

The Washington Post noted in a Saturday morning report that Democrats are “bracing for massive protests” at the August convention as more and more anti-Israel protests sweep the nation, primarily on college campuses.

“Peaceful protest is fundamental to American democracy, and has been a fixture of political conventions for decades,” Matt Hill, a spokesperson for the Democratic National Convention, said in a statement to the outlet. “While Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans stoke political violence, we support the ongoing security coordination at all levels of government to keep our convention safe.”

Hill added, “When the country looks to Chicago this August, the unity and excitement of Democrats will stand in stark contrast to the chaos and extremism stewing in the GOP.”

Similar protests are planned for the Republican National Convention in July. However, the Post noted the protests planned for the Democratic National Convention are likely to be “more robust.”

Members of the coalition previously vowed to protest “with or without” permits outside the convention.

“We’ll be marching with or without permits. This DNC is the most important one since 1968, also in Chicago when Vietnam War protesters and the black liberation movement organized mass demonstrations that were violently repressed,” Hatem Abudayyeh, executive director of the U.S. Palestinian Community Network, said at a conference last month. “The march on the DNC will be the largest mobilization for Palestine in the history of the city.”

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Reacting to concern among Democrats who may be worried with how the protests could impact the party’s image come August, Tesla CEO and X owner Elon Musk wrote in a Thursday post to X, “The Democratic National Convention this August has a good chance of outdoing 1968!”

Musk’s comment on the matter referenced the party’s 1968 convention, which was marred by seven days of violent protests over the Vietnam War under then-President Lyndon Johnson. The protests took place just months after the deaths of Martin Luther King Jr. and former U.S. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy.

Democrat and Republican lawmakers in a crucial battleground state are “deeply troubled” after a group of illegal immigrants were flown to the Big Sky Country on a late night flight.

Five migrants, reportedly from Venezuela, were flown from New York to Kalispell, Montana Wednesday night into Glacier Park International Airport, Flathead County Sheriff Brian Heino confirmed to Fox News Digital. The migrants were reportedly dropped off and eventually provided housing in the city, but Heino said it was just “one of many instances.”

“The only way an illegal immigrant from South America ends up in Montana is if a ‘nonprofit’ connected with the Biden Administration moves them there,” said Rep. Ryan Zinke, R-Mont., said in a press release, referring to Valley Neighbors, the local nonprofit that picked up the migrants who were flown into the state.

“Montana law enforcement, schools, hospitals and safety nets are being stressed to their max because of the Biden border crisis,” said Zinke, who represents the district covering Flathead. “It’s unacceptable and absolutely needs to end now.”

DHS DOCS REVEAL WHERE PAROLED MIGRANTS UNDER CONTROVERSIAL BIDEN FLIGHT PROGRAM ARE LANDING

Zinke took the effort a step further, penning a letter to Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas Thursday that urged him to “immediately detain and deport this group of illegal immigrants.” The letter, obtained by Fox News Digital, requested information regarding their knowledge of the migrants and how they traveled from the southern border to northern Montana.

A spokesperson for Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., said he is working with state officials to monitor the situation, telling Fox News Digital that it “undermines our national security” when migrants are allowed to enter the U.S. illegally.

“Senator Tester is in touch with local officials in Flathead County and is closely monitoring this ongoing situation,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “He believes that allowing anyone to enter the country without being properly vetted or going through a legal process undermines our national security, which is why he voted for bipartisan border security legislation that would give law enforcement the tools to crack down on individuals entering the country illegally and keep Montana and our country safe.”

Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., blamed President Joe Biden for the migrant crisis, saying he and “Senate Democrats failed to secure the border and now Montanans can see that failure firsthand.”

TRUMP DISCUSSES USING MILITARY TO EXPEL ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION IN SECOND TERM: ‘THESE AREN’T CIVILIANS’

Gov. Greg Gianforte, R-Mont., said he was “deeply troubled and frustrated” by the situation, while Rep. Matt Rosendale, R-Mont., demanded Biden “be held accountable and his actions be reversed,” saying “Montana is not a sanctuary state.”

Former Navy SEAL Tim Sheehy, a Republican Senate candidate in Montana, also chimed in, blaming the Democrat he is running to unseat in the fall for the “insane” migrant crisis.

“A month ago, the Senate voted to continue secret, taxpayer-funded illegal migrant flights by one vote – Jon Tester’s. Now, illegals are reportedly being flown to Montana,” Sheehy said in a statement. “This is insane. Stop the invasion, seal the border, and put America First!”

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The flights come days after Fox News reported on a subpoena by the House Homeland Security Committee about a separate parole program for migrants, under which approximately 200,000 migrants flew into the U.S. between January through August 2023. The subpoena revealed that migrants have flown into more than 45 cities as part of the program for Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan and Venezuelan migrants.

Fox News’ Bill Melugin contributed to this report.

LAS VEGAS — EXCLUSIVE: A former Trump official running in one of this year’s crucial battleground Senate races is launching a major initiative to help end the crisis at the southern border amid his effort to oust an incumbent Democrat.

Republican Nevada Senate candidate Jeff Gunter, the former U.S. ambassador to Iceland, announced Saturday his “Build the Wall, Deport Them All” initiative, which, although in its preliminary stage, will ultimately target illegal immigrants he says are causing a grave economic impact on small businesses across the country.

Gunter says he will invest $1 million of his own money in the initiative, including developing a website and reporting mechanism for everyday citizens to report suspicious activity. The money will also go towards an ad campaign to inform people across the silver state about the initiative, which is expected to have more backers in the near future.

GOP IN BATTLEGROUND STATES RIP TRUMP TRIAL JUDGE’S ‘DANGEROUS’ RULING

“I refuse to stand by and watch our communities destroyed by the flood of illegals,” Gunter told Fox News Digital. “Talk is cheap, and if Biden won’t do anything about it, I will. That’s why I’m stepping up to make progress and expedite the deportation effort.”

“With President Biden, Democrats, and RINOs failing to secure our nation’s borders, it’s time for real patriots to step up. My plan will not only restart the wall construction, but will also ensure that our laws are enforced without apology. This financial commitment underscores my personal commitment to our national security and the rule of law,” he added.

A key component of Gunter’s initiative will include working with local businesses to identify illegal immigrants negatively impacting their operations, with that information being passed to the Department of Homeland Security for “immediate action and enforcement.”

It will also include developing partnerships with small businesses to “assess and mitigate the impact of illegal immigration on their operations,” and the launch of a “See Something, Say Something” campaign that will provide a dedicated tip line to “empower citizens to report suspicious activities and support law enforcement in maintaining national security.”

TOP BATTLEGROUND SENATE RACE HEATS UP AS PARTY-BACKED REPUBLICAN FACES ONSLAUGHT FROM FORMER TRUMP OFFICIAL

Additionally, Gunter vows that, if elected, he will work to immediately resume construction of the border wall, enhance border surveillance, crack down on sanctuary cities and states, and end birthright citizenship.

“My top three priorities when I become the next U.S. senator here in Nevada is shut the border, shut the border, and, you guessed it, shut the border,” Gunter told Fox News Digital in a recent interview. 

“If you do not have a border, you do not have a country. And, think about it, Donald Trump put in Remain in Mexico. While the asylum seekers were being processed, they had to remain in Mexico. And what did Joe Biden do? He eliminated it with the rubber stamp of Jacky Rosen,” he said, referencing Democrat Sen. Jacky Rosen, who is running for re-election.

Gunter said he would work to reinstate the Remain in Mexico policy, where asylum seekers were required to remain in Mexico while their applications were processed, and reinstate Title 42, a policy established during the COVID-19 pandemic that allowed officials to turn away migrants at the border because of health concerns.

“They’re not just illegal immigrants that are coming into this country, they’re 110% invaders,” Gunter said. “The Chinese government knows exactly who’s coming into America. We can also see that many of these people are 20 to 30-year-olds of military age. And we need to stop it. We need to keep America safe.” 

RFK, JR REVEALS PATH TO PRESIDENCY AS BIDEN, TRUMP CAMPAIGNS TARGET RACE ‘SPOILER’

“I will support President Trump as the next U.S. senator, not only shutting the border, not only reinstituting Remain in Mexico and everything else, but I will advocate for the largest deportation program ever seen here in America. Why? Because your first act as an American should not be an illegal act,” he added.

The seven figures Gunter intends to invest in the initiative comes a month after he announced plans to spend millions on the ramp up of his Senate campaign amid his battle with former U.S. Army Captain Sam Brown for the Republican nomination and a shot at Rosen in November.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

“Jacky Rosen has been ranked one of the most bipartisan and effective Senators in the nation because of her proven record of political independence and her work across party lines to deliver for Nevada. While extreme MAGA Republicans are busy tearing each other down in a divisive and expensive primary, Senator Rosen is focused on communicating directly to voters about the work she’s doing to fight for Nevadans,” Rosen campaign spokesperson Johanna Warshaw told Fox News Digital.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), which is backing Brown, has been highly critical of Gunter and sought to tie him closely to his home state of California.

“Jeff Gunter is a Democrat who recently moved to Nevada from California. Gunter will stand with Joe Biden to open the border — not secure it,” NRSC communications Director Mike Berg told Fox News Digital.

The primary will be held Tuesday, June 11.

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

Georgia lawmakers heard testimony Friday that caused one Republican senator to express concern that there’s little oversight of how Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis uses her $36.6 million budget.

State Sen. Bill Cowsert, a Republican representing Athens and chairman of the committee, questioned Fulton County Commissioner Robb Pitts and Fulton County Chief Financial Officer Sharon Whittmore about how the DA’s office receives and spends its funds. The witnesses testified that Willis has broad discretion over those taxpayer dollars, including whether to hire a special prosecutor and how much they should be paid.

“This is sounding to me kind of like the Wild West, very little control from Fulton County over a $36 million budget,” Cowsert said after asking several questions about the county budget process. 

“You don’t know how much of that is spent on professional services, who is hired, how much they’re paid per hour, what their total compensation is. Yet you’re being asked to provide $36.6 million a year that you know encompasses a number of those types of independent contractors that you know you’re funding with no oversight or control, right?” he asked Whittmore at one point. 

ANTI-TRUMP DA BAILED ON DEBATE TO ‘SCHMOOZE’ WITH CELEBS, IS CHALLENGED TO A REMATCH

“Yeah, the board of commissioners has no oversight over the district attorney,” the finance chief answered. 

Pitts testified that Willis has wide discretion over how to spend the funds appropriated for the district attorney’s office and said she does not have to get any pre-approval for hiring an independent special counsel to assist with her activities. 

“And [the district attorney] doesn’t have to even report back to you how the money was spent or who was hired as an independent contractor and how much they were paid?” Cowsert asked.

“That’s correct,” Pitts replied. 

ANTI-TRUMP DA’S NO-SHOW AT DEBATE LEAVES CHALLENGER FACING OFF AGAINST EMPTY PODIUM

The Georgia Senate Special Committee on Investigations convened its third meeting on Friday to probe allegations of potential conflicts of interest and potential misuse of public funds by Willis, who indicted former President Trump on conspiracy charges related to his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.

Willis is up for re-election this year and has denied any wrongdoing. The findings of this legislative probe could inform acts by the Georgia legislature to reform laws or adjust the state appropriations process with the intention of restoring public confidence in the district attorney’s office, according to FOX 5 Atlanta.

Georgia’s GOP-controlled Senate voted in January to form a special committee to investigate Wilis amid revelations she had an ‘improper’ affair with subordinate counsel. 

The special committee has subpoena power to investigate Willis over allegations she hired special prosecutor Nathan Wade for the case because of their alleged romantic relationship.

AFTER JUDGE’S SCOLDING FOR PLAYING ‘RACE CARD,’ FANI WILLIS SAYS SHE’LL ‘TALK ABOUT IT ANYWAY’

“This is not a political witch hunt; this is a quest for the truth,” Cowsert said at the inaugural meeting of the special committee. 

Trump and attorneys for several of his co-defendants have said Willis should be disqualified over the allegations and all charges against them dismissed. 

In January, Trump co-defendant Michael Roman filed court documents alleging that Willis had been having an “improper” affair with Wade, whom she hired to help prosecute the 2024 GOP front-runner. Roman and his lawyers argue the relationship created a conflict of interest and that she benefited financially from it in the form of lavish vacations the two took using funds his law firm received for working the case.

Willis has called the allegations “salacious” and said they have no “merit,” though she admitted in a court filing that she and Wade have been “professional associates and friends since 2019.” 

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

After a hearing to consider the allegations, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee ruled that either Willis or her ex-lover Wade must step aside for the case to proceed in Fulton County. The judge also gave Trump and eight co-defendants permission to appeal his order. 

Trump and the co-defendants filed an official notice of appeal in March. A decision from the Court of Appeals on whether to take up the case is expected later this month. 

Fox News Digital’s Brianna Herlihy contributed to this report.

Texas Republicans are criticizing a Biden administration parole program for four nationalities after it was revealed this week that three of the top destinations for migrants under the program are in Texas — on top of the numbers it is already seeing coming across the border.

“It’s just another layer to the entirety of what we’re dealing with,” Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas told Fox News Digital in an interview. “But that’s what people need to understand, it’s a very specific program designed to flood the system, misusing parole to do it.”

Fox News reported this week on how official stats show that during an eight-month period from January through August 2023, roughly 200,000 migrants flew into the U.S. via a parole program for four nationalities. Of those, the vast majority landed in Florida, but three of the top 15 destinations were in Texas — Austin, Dallas and Houston. Over 10,000 migrants traveled to those airports in that period.

DHS DOCS REVEAL WHERE PAROLED MIGRANTS UNDER CONTROVERSIAL BIDEN FLIGHT PROGRAM ARE LANDING

The policy was first announced for Venezuelans in October 2022, which allowed a limited number to fly or travel directly into the U.S. as long as they had not entered illegally, had a sponsor in the U.S. already, and passed certain biometric and biographical vetting. The program does not itself facilitate flights, and migrants are responsible for their own travel.

In January 2023, the administration expanded the program to include Haitians, Nicaraguans and Cubans, with up to 30,000 people per month allowed into the U.S. It allows for migrants to receive work permits and a two-year authorization to live in the U.S. and was announced alongside an expansion of Title 42 expulsions to include those nationalities. By the end of February 2024, more than 400,000 nationals have arrived under the parole program, according to Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data.

DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas recently said the program is a “safe and orderly way to reach the United States” and has “led to a reduction in numbers of those nationalities.”

“It is a key element of our efforts to address the unprecedented level of migration throughout our hemisphere, and other countries around the world see it as a model to tackle the challenge of increased irregular migration that they too are experiencing,” Mayorkas said.

‘ILLEGAL PROGRAM’: GOVERNOR VOWS TO FIGHT BIDEN FLYING MIGRANTS INTO US

DHS has said that those who enter the U.S. under the program undergo and clear a “robust security vetting” as well as other eligibility criteria. 

“These processes are publicly available online, and DHS has been providing regular updates on their use to the public. These processes are part of the administration’s strategy to combine expanded lawful pathways with stronger consequences to reduce irregular migration, and have kept hundreds of thousands of people from migrating irregularly,” a spokesperson told Fox News Digital last month.

But Republicans have claimed the program abuses the parole limits set by Congress, which say that the authority must be used on a case-by-case basis for urgent humanitarian reasons or for significant public benefit. It also comes amid an ongoing border crisis that the Biden administration has blamed on a lack of resources and a “broken” immigration system in need of reform, but that Republicans have blamed on the policies of the Biden administration.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE

“The invasion at our southern border has turned every American city into a border city, and the Biden administration’s efforts to fly illegal aliens across the country is the reason why,” Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

“Biden’s fast-track processing, and programs like their CHNV parole program, are only pushing the border crisis further into the interior of the country. Every day, our national security is being undermined more and more by the Biden administration,” he said. “In Texas, Houston, Dallas, and Austin have been hit especially hard by the open border, finding themselves having to support tens of thousands of illegal aliens Biden has rolled out the red carpet for.”

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, was asked on “The Brian Kilmeade Show” if he thought that the program was okay.

“No,” he said. Cornyn has previously slammed the use of parole by the administration as “cooking the books.” 

Roy told Fox that the historic crisis, which has seen more than 2.4 million migrant encounters last fiscal year at the border, is having a “severe” impact on the state, and he believes Texans will be angry to learn that more migrants are flying in.

“So the impact is severe,” Roy said. “This parole program now I think the Texans are going to go: ‘Wait a minute. You mean they’re flooding across the border and you’re flying people directly to our airports and to our communities?’ And I think that’s going to just continue to elevate the frustration people feel.”

In terms of Republicans effecting change in Washington, Roy says that with a current stalemate that he blames on Speaker Mike Johnson for giving away leverage on Ukraine funding to fix the border, it will be up to governors to act to secure the border.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

“Much of the leverage has been given up. So I think this is more of a reason for Texas to do what it has to do, governors to do what they have to do, because, frankly, the federal government has abandoned them,” he said. “This is a reason to elect Donald Trump. This is a reason to, yes, send Republicans, to the House and to the Senate. So we can at least have an actual debate about border security.”

Fox News’ Aubrie Spady contributed to this report.

A group of Australian lawmakers wrote to President Biden on World Press Freedom Day urging him to drop the charges against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange as press freedom groups call for the release of Assange and other journalists around the world facing legal cases.

In a Friday letter, the co-chairs of the “Bring Julian Assange Home” Parliamentary Friendship Group – Members of Parliament Andrew Wilkie, Independent; Josh Wilson, Labor Party; Bridget Archer, Liberal Party, and Sen. David Shoebridge, Greens – called on Biden to end the prosecution of Assange, who is in a U.K. prison fighting extradition to the U.S. to face espionage charges for publishing classified American military documents 14 years ago.

A hearing will be held May 20 in front of the British High Court in London to determine if Assange, an Australian publisher, can be extradited to the U.S. to stand trial or if he can make a full appeal challenging his extradition. If the court rules in favor of extradition, Assange’s only remaining option would be at the European Court of Human Rights.

“On World Press Freedom Day, we write as a group of Australian Parliamentarians from across the political spectrum seeking the freedom of Julian Assange,” the lawmakers wrote. “We write in the hope that Mr. Assange, who has endured maximum security imprisonment in the United Kingdom’s Belmarsh Prison for more than five years without conviction on any substantial charge, can go free, can go home, can be reunited with his wife, children, and family.”

ASSANGE EXTRADITION CASE MOVES FORWARD AFTER US ASSURES UK COURT THERE WILL BE NO DEATH PENALTY

Assange, 52, faces 17 counts under the Espionage Act for allegedly receiving, possessing and communicating classified information to the public, as well as one charge alleging conspiracy to commit computer intrusion. If extradited, Assange would stand trial in Alexandria, Virginia, and could face up to 175 years in a maximum security prison if convicted.

The charges were brought by the Trump administration’s DOJ over WikiLeaks’ 2010 publication of cables leaked by U.S. Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning, and the Biden administration has continued that prosecution. The information detailed alleged war crimes committed by the U.S. government in Iraq, Afghanistan and the detention camp at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, as well as instances of the CIA engaging in torture and rendition.

The letter comes after Biden said last month he is considering a request from Australia to drop the charges against Assange.

“We were heartened by President Biden’s recent acknowledgment that the United States is considering Australia’s request to end the prosecution of Julian Assange,” the letter reads. “We respectfully urge the United States to discontinue the long, expensive, and punishing extradition process that prevents Mr Assange from returning to his family in Australia.”

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

SQUAD AND MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE JOIN 16 LAWMAKERS CALLING ON BIDEN TO FREE JULIAN ASSANGE

Assange has been held at London’s high-security Belmarsh Prison since he was removed from the Ecuadorian Embassy on April 11, 2019, for breaching bail conditions. He had sought asylum at the embassy since 2012 to avoid being sent to Sweden over allegations he raped two women because Sweden would not provide assurances it would protect him from extradition to the U.S. The investigations into the sexual assault allegations were eventually dropped.

A U.K. district court judge had rejected the U.S. extradition request in 2021 on the grounds that Assange was likely to kill himself if held under harsh U.S. prison conditions. Higher courts overturned that decision after getting assurances from the U.S. about his treatment.

Assange’s lawyers have continued to fight against his extradition, currently seeking the opportunity for a full appeal following the May 20 hearing, which comes after the U.S. provided assurances to the U.K. last month that Assange would not face new charges that could lead to the death penalty. They also said he would be allowed to make a First Amendment argument in a U.S. courtroom – things Assange’s lawyers and family described as empty promises.

In March, when the British court asked the U.S. to provide assurances, it rejected most of Assange’s appeals – six of nine he lodged, including allegations of a political prosecution and concerns about an alleged CIA plot under the Trump administration to kidnap or kill Assange while he remained hunkered down in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of the Labor Party has said “there is nothing to be served by his ongoing incarceration” and the Leader of the Opposition, Peter Dutton of the Liberal Party, has said he believes this case has “gone on for too long.”

In February, the House of Representatives in the Australian Parliament passed a motion demanding Assange be freed, stressing “the importance of the U.K. and the U.S.A. bringing the matter to a close so that Mr. Assange can return home to his family in Australia.”

BRITISH COURT RULES JULIAN ASSANGE EXTRADITION ON PAUSE UNTIL US GUARANTEES NO DEATH PENALTY

A cross-party delegation of Australian lawmakers visited Washington, D.C., in September and met with U.S. officials, members of Congress and civil rights groups in an attempt to secure Assange’s freedom.

“While we believe the prosecution of Julian Assange is wrong as a matter of principle, we say in any case that there is no justice, compassion, or reasonable purpose in the further persecution of Mr. Assange when one considers the duration and harsh conditions of the detention he has already suffered,” the letter concludes.

The Obama administration in 2013 decided not to indict Assange over WikiLeaks’ 2010 publication of classified cables because it would have had to also indict journalists from major news outlets who published the same materials.

President Obama also commuted Manning’s 35-year sentence for violations of the Espionage Act and other offenses to seven years in January 2017, and Manning, who had been imprisoned since 2010, was released later that year.

No publisher had been charged under the Espionage Act until Assange, and many press freedom groups have said his prosecution sets a dangerous precedent intended to criminalize journalism.

“President Biden has repeatedly said that journalism is not a crime, all the while his administration continues to prosecute WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange under the Espionage Act for acts that journalists engage in every day,” Caitlin Vogus, Deputy Director of Advocacy at Freedom of the Press Foundation, told Fox News Digital. “To truly celebrate World Press Freedom Day, the Biden administration should immediately drop the Espionage Act charges against Assange.”

She continued: “If the DOJ tried to prosecute reporters at the New York Times or Wall Street Journal under the Espionage Act for speaking to sources, obtaining classified information, and publishing that information, we would rightfully see it as a severe threat to the First Amendment. The Espionage Act prosecution of Assange threatens press freedom by opening the door to precisely those kinds of prosecutions of journalists by the current or future administrations.”

Reporters Without Borders Executive Director Clayton Weimers told Fox News Digital that the prosecution of Assange “could set a very dangerous precedent for American press freedom.”

“This would be the first time the Espionage Act, an archaic law badly in need of reform, would be used to punish the publisher of factual information, not just the leaker,” he said. “In this case, the leaker, Chelsea Manning, has already served her sentence. But if the Justice Department is successful in prosecuting Assange, they’re opening the door to prosecuting any journalist or media outlet – including Fox News – to prosecution for publishing government secrets, even if that publication is in the public interest.”

On World Press Freedom Day, many other journalists around the world are facing legal cases for their journalistic work, including Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who is being held in Russia on espionage charges for allegedly stealing secret military documents.

“We continue to call for the Kremlin to release Evan Gershkovich, and indeed for the release of all wrongly jailed journalists around the world,” Weimers said. “We also call on the State Department to designate journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, a US citizen, as ‘wrongfully detained.'”

ARTIST THREATENS TO DESTROY PICASSO, REMBRANDT, WARHOL MASTERPIECES WITH ACID IF JULIAN ASSANGE DIES IN PRISON

When governments arrest or imprison journalists for covering the news, Vogus said, it “threatens everyone’s freedom and ability to be informed.”

“Arresting journalists for covering the news is an authoritarian bullying tactic whether it’s happening in Russia or Austin, Texas,” she said. “Compelling reporters to reveal their confidential sources will make whistleblowers less likely to come forward. Sources often risk their livelihoods and even their freedom to tell journalists what they know about corruption, crimes, and wrongdoing.”

Reporters Without Borders downgraded the U.S. to 55 among nations in the 2024 World Press Freedom Index.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

“The U.S. should be a beacon for press freedom around the world. Instead, we have recently seen journalists in the U.S. arrested and prosecuted simply for doing their jobs across the country, and witnessed growing distrust fueled by the irresponsible rhetoric of some political officials,” National Press Club president Emily Wilkins and National Press Club Journalism Institute president Gil Klein said in a statement. “The falling ranking of the U.S. in the World Press Freedom Index shows that we are headed in the wrong direction.”

The Freedom of the Press Foundation, Reporters Without Borders, National Press Club and many other press freedom groups are urging Congress to pass the bipartisan PRESS Act, which would prevent the federal government from compelling journalists to reveal their sources and confidential work.

FIRST ON FOX: The anti-Israel protests that have erupted on college campuses across the country in recent weeks over Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza are fueling new political attacks by Republicans on vulnerable Democrats running in this year’s Senate elections.

“Death to America. Threatening Jews. Attacking Police. Antisemitic mobs are taking over our universities. Students radicalized by the far left acting like terrorists,” the narrator says in a new series of ads by the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), the campaign arm of the Senate GOP.

The spots target four Democrats — senators Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Bob Casey of Pennsylvania and Jon Tester of Montana — as well as Rep. Elissa Slotkin, the likely Democratic Senate nominee in Michigan. All five are being heavily targeted by the NRSC as the GOP aims to regain the Senate majority in November’s elections.

The narrator argues that President Biden and Democratic lawmakers “want you to pay off their student loans using your tax dollars to fund this mayhem.” 

HEAD HERE FOR FOX NEWS UPDATES ON THE CAMPUS PROTESTS ACROSS THE COUNTRY

The ads end with the narrator urging viewers to tell Democrats to “stop caving to the woke mobs and put America first.”

The NRSC is spending a minuscule five figures to run the spots, but a bigger ad blitz with a similar theme is expected in the near future.

“This is the most toxic issue for Democrats since they tried to defund the police,” NRSC communications director Mike Berg claimed.

“You can bet it will be in television ads if Democrats on college campuses continue these antisemitic riots.”

BIDEN CONDEMNS VIOLENT PROTESTS BUT DECLINES TO CALL UP NATIONAL GUARD

The protests, some of which have turned violent this week, have grabbed plenty of attention on the cable news networks and online. And they seem to be giving Republicans plenty of ammunition to use in this year’s ballot box showdowns.

It’s not just the NRSC.

In battleground Pennsylvania’s high-profile Senate contest, which may decide the chamber’s majority, presumptive GOP nominee Dave McCormick on Friday attacked Casey in an email titled “As Antisemitism Runs Rampant on Campuses Across the Country, Bob Casey Fails to Stand Up for What’s Right.”

HEAD HERE FOR FOX NEWS SERIES ON ANTISEMITISM EXPOSED

Casey, who earlier this month teamed up with GOP Sen. Tim Scott to introduce the Senate’s version of the Antisemitism Awareness Act, has emphasized that “on the campuses, they’ve got to enforce the law.”

As the House GOP works to hold onto its fragile majority, the National Republican Congressional Committee this past week launched a similar spot against 37 swing district Democrats it is targeting.

“Tell House Democrats it is time to stand up for Israel. It is time to stand up for what is right,” the narrator in the ad urges.

The NRSC ad buy is also modest but may be an appetizer for more to come.

Republicans are mostly unified in reacting to the protests, framing them as antisemitic and anti-American, while Democrats have struggled to find a consistent message when it comes to the demonstrations.

Brian Walsh, a veteran Republican consultant who served for years as a top communications strategist for both House and Senate Republicans, argued that the protests are “problematic for Democrats on several fronts.”

“First, they need the youth vote to turn out for them in November, and it’s clear they’re very unhappy with President Biden, which will have a negative down-ballot effect. Second, it’s motivating conservatives because it reminds them of the woke ideology that’s become a hallmark of this administration,” Walsh said. “And it’s coming at the same time the president is telling working-class Americans they need to pay for the student loans of these same college students. 

“You should expect Republican candidates around the country to pose a very simple question to their Democratic opponents: Do they stand with the protesters who’ve sided with Hamas or do they stand for law and order and in support of one of America’s closest allies, Israel? It’s a problem for many Democrats because they’re caught between their liberal base and where most Americans are who are disgusted by the scenes at Columbia, UCLA and elsewhere.”

Democrats appear divided.

Some in tough races are calling for crackdowns on the campus protests. 

“We all speak strongly that the antisemitism and hate and violence are not acceptable,” Ohio’s Brown said.

But plenty of progressives who don’t face difficult re-election fights are strongly defending the protesters’ rights to demonstrate and oppose calls for federal intervention.

“It is outrageous and it is disgraceful to use the charge of antisemitism to distract from the immoral and illegal war policies that Netanyahu’s extremist and racist government is pursuing,” progressive champion Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont argued as he pointed to the longtime Israeli leader.

Veteran Democratic strategist Maria Cardona told Fox News “Democrats need to continue to underscore two foundational things. The first one is that we are a nation of laws, and one of those critical laws and rights is that we allow for and people have a right to peacefully protest. Underscore peaceful. 

“President Biden and Democrats need to continue to listen to the Palestinians and those speaking for the innocent lives that are being lost in Gaza and for the need to continue and expand humanitarian aid, and that is something that President Biden and Democrats are listening to and working very hard to obtain a cease-fire.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

“The other side is to always strongly disavow and condemn hate speech, violent rhetoric, antisemitism and that harassment of Jewish students will not and should not be tolerated,” Cardona emphasized. “And those two things are a huge contrast to Donald Trump, who said he would deal harshly with the protesters, even those who are doing it peacefully, wanting to call in the National Guard and clear everyone out. (He) has said before he would bash heads. That is not the way that we do things in this country. “

While Republican candidates and campaign committees are likely to keep up the pressure as the protests continue, it’s questionable how effective their efforts will be with voters.

An ABC News/Ipsos poll released this week indicated that few respondents said the demonstrations in the U.S. and the fighting in Gaza were critical to their vote in the autumn elections.

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

Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn., became the first House Democrat to call on Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, to resign hours after he was indicted on bribery and money laundering charges. 

“While the bar for Federal indictment is high, trust in our government is low,” Phillips said in a statement posted to his social media. “That’s why office holders and candidates under indictment should resign or end their campaigns, including Sen. Bob Menendez, Donald Trump, & Rep. Henry Cuellar.” 

U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, also a Democrat, faces obstruction of justice charges connected to bribery allegations. Former President Trump is currently on trial for alleged hush money payments he made before the 2016 election. 

DEMOCRATIC TEXAS REP HENRY CUELLAR INDICTED BY DOJ ON CONSPIRACY AND BRIBERY CHARGES

The Department of Justice indicted Cuellar and his wife Imelda on conspiracy and bribery charges Friday in connection with $600,000 in bribes they allegedly accepted between 2014 and 2021 from an Azerbaijan-based energy company and a bank in Mexico City to advance the former Soviet republic’s interests in the U.S. 

The couple have been released on bond, Fox News has confirmed. 

Federal law enforcement raided Cuellar’s house and office in 2022 as part of an investigation into a group of U.S. businessmen, and their ties to the country. The representative and his office agreed to cooperate with the investigation.

Cuellar released a statement on Friday following reports of the upcoming indictment, declaring both himself and his wife as innocent without specifying the charges.

“I want to be clear that both my wife and I are innocent of these allegations,” wrote Cuellar. “Everything I have done in Congress has been to serve the people of Texas.”

The Texas representative specifically defended his wife and her qualifications, once again without specifying the nature of the indictments.

SEN BOB MANENDEZ MAY BLAME HIS WIFE NADINE DURING FEDERAL CORRUPTION TRIAL: COURT DOCUMENTS

“Imelda and I have been married 32 years. On top of being an amazing wife and mother, she’s an accomplished businesswoman with two degrees. She spent her career working with banking, tax, and consulting. The allegation that she is anything but qualified and hard working is both wrong and offensive,” he wrote.

Cuellar, 68, and his wife, 67, made their first court appearance on Friday in front of U.S. Magistrate Judge Dena Palermo in Houston.

“The bribe payments were allegedly laundered, pursuant to sham consulting contracts, through a series of front companies and middlemen into shell companies owned by Imelda Cuellar, who performed little to no legitimate work under the contracts,” the DOJ said of the indictments. “In exchange for the bribes paid by the Azerbaijani oil and gas company, Congressman Cuellar allegedly agreed to use his office to influence U.S. foreign policy in favor of Azerbaijan. In exchange for the bribes paid by the Mexican bank, Congressman Cuellar allegedly agreed to influence legislative activity and to advise and pressure high-ranking U.S. Executive Branch officials regarding measures beneficial to the bank.”

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

They each face two counts of conspiracy to commit bribery of a federal official and to have a public official act as an agent of a foreign principal, two counts of bribery of a federal official, two counts of conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud, two counts of violating the ban on public officials acting as agents of a foreign principal, one count of conspiracy to commit concealment money laundering, and five counts of money laundering. 

Fox News’ Chad Pergram, Kelly Phares and Timothy H.J. Nerozzi contributed to this report. 

During the 11th day of the criminal trial in the case N.Y. v. Trump, former Trump campaign and White House communications director testified that Michael Cohen, Trump’s ex-lawyer, would often frustrate campaign staff and do things that were not helpful. 

On the witness stand, Hicks testified that Cohen “used to like to call himself Mr. Fix It, but it was only because he first broke it.”

Cohen is a central player and is expected to be the star witness for Manhattan District Attorney Bragg’s case against the former president that he falsified business records connected to a payment made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels to quiet her claims alleging an illicit affair with Trump in the early 2000s. 

Cohen arranged and made the $130,000 payment to Daniels, who was then paid by Trump for what were listed as legal expenses, but which the prosecution alleges were reimbursement for the payments for Daniels.

NY V. TRUMP: WITNESS SAYS COHEN DREAMED OF WHITE HOUSE JOB DESPITE DENYING AMBITIONS IN HOUSE TESTIMONY

Trump has denied the affair and pleaded not guilty to the 34 criminal counts. 

Michael Colangelo, a lawyer for the prosecution and former high-ranking official in the Justice Department, questioned Hicks — who served as the press secretary for Trump’s 2016 campaign — about Trump’s reaction to the “Access Hollywood” tape just prior to the 2016 presidential election, which captured Trump in 2005 making crude comments about women with a television host.

The prosecution has continuously pushed for the tape to be played for the jury, but Judge Juan Merchan had repeatedly said the video is not admissible evidence and is too prejudicial to be played in the courtroom, though they could refer to the transcript. 

The tape, they argued in court filings, “bears directly on defendant’s intent and motive, both at the time that he and his confederates made the Stormy Daniels payoff and later when they sought to conceal that payment.”  

HUSH MONEY TRIAL JUDGE DOUBLES DOWN ON NOT SHOWING TRUMP ‘ACCESS HOLLYWOOD’ TAPE TO JURORS

“The release of the Access Hollywood Tape caused a panic within the campaign about defendant’s electoral prospects and ultimately served as the catalyst for consummating the Stormy Daniels payoff,” a filing stated. 

On Friday, however, Hicks, who served in the Trump Organization before joining the campaign and eventually the White House as a close advisor to the president, testified that Trump’s main concern following the leak was the impact on his wife, Melania Trump. 

TRUMP DELIVERS PIZZA TO NEW YORK CITY FIREFIGHTERS IN CAMPAIGN STOP AFTER DAY IN COURT

“He was worried about how this would be viewed at home,” Hicks said. “Mr. Trump really values Mrs. Trump’s opinion. She doesn’t weigh in all the time, but when she does… it’s valuable,” Hicks told defense attorney Emil Bove in cross-examination. 

According to Hicks, Trump asked that newspapers about the leaked tape not to be brought to the Trump residence.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Bove asked Hicks about the impact on Trump’s family. “I don’t think he wanted anyone in his family to be hurt or embarrassed about anything on the campaign. He wanted them to be proud of him,” she responded.

Fox News’ Grace Taggart, Maria Pavovich and Kerri Kupec Urbahn contributed to this report.

The Michigan Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of a local government Friday in a dispute over sending a drone to take pictures of a rural salvage yard without permission.

Liberal and conservative groups closely watched the case, even joining together to urge the court to throw out evidence collected by Long Lake Township.

MICHIGAN SUPREME COURT REJECTS ATTEMPT TO REMOVE TRUMP FROM BALLOT

Todd and Heather Maxon had argued that the aerial photos violated their right to not have unreasonable searches. But the Supreme Court said the fight over excessive junk on the heavily wooded parcel was a civil action, not a criminal case, and that the so-called exclusionary rule doesn’t apply.

“We decline to address whether the use of an aerial drone under the circumstances presented here is an unreasonable search in violation of the United States or Michigan Constitutions,” the court said in a 7-0 opinion.

Without photos and video, the township “would have difficulty ensuring that the Maxons bring their property into conformity with its local zoning and nuisance ordinances,” the court said in a decision written by Justice Brian Zahra.

The township in northern Michigan sent a drone over the property in 2017 and 2018 after neighbors claimed the Maxons were storing too many cars and other items. The township said the property was being turned into a salvage yard, a violation of an earlier lawsuit settlement.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, the Cato Institute and the Rutherford Institute filed briefs on the side of the Maxons. The Michigan Townships Association and Michigan Municipal League backed the township.

New York City prosecutors again made numerous references on Friday to the leaked Access Hollywood tape where former President Donald Trump made crude comments — after the judge reiterated that the jury could not hear or watch the comments.

Judge Juan Merchan ruled that playing the tape itself would be overly prejudicial towards Trump, but not the comments Trump made in the 2005 incident that leaked just before the 2016 presidential election. In the tape, Trump used lewd language about groping women in the presence of a TV host ahead of a cameo appearance on a soap opera. 

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and his team have made numerous references to the tape — in court and in legal filings — apparently attempting to make the case that the damage from the leaked tape was a catalyst for the $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels. Trump is charged with falsifying business records related to Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, to quiet her story about an alleged affair with Trump. Trump has repeatedly denied the affair.

On Friday, Merchan reiterated that the tape cannot be introduced as evidence or played aloud in the courtroom because it would be prejudicial to Trump. 

NY V. TRUMP: WITNESS SAYS COHEN DREAMED OF WHITE HOUSE JOB DESPITE DENYING AMBITIONS IN HOUSE TESTIMONY

In March, the DA argued the infamous tape should be admissible because “bears directly on defendant’s intent and motive, both at the time that he and his confederates made the Stormy Daniels payoff and later when they sought to conceal that payment.”  

“The release of the Access Hollywood Tape caused a panic within the campaign about the defendant’s electoral prospects and ultimately served as the catalyst for consummating the Stormy Daniels payoff,” a filing stated. 

Last month, Judge Merchan doubled down on his decision to not play the video for the jury because it was too prejudicial. 

But on Friday morning, the prosecution again tried to argue that while it was ruled that the entire Access Hollywood tape couldn’t come into evidence, they wanted the 2016 Washington Post article that discusses it to come in to establish the date that the article was posted. 

Merchan reiterated that he doesn’t want the video to be shown because it’s too powerful of evidence to have Trump’s voice and face associated with the words on the video. 

On Friday, former Trump campaign press secretary and White House communications director Hope Hicks testified that Trump’s worry following the leaked tape centered around how it would affect his wife, Melania Trump. 

HOPE HICKS: COHEN CALLED HIMSELF ‘MR. FIX IT’ ONLY BECAUSE HE ‘BROKE IT’

“He was worried about how this would be viewed at home,” Hicks said. “Mr. Trump really values Mrs. Trump’s opinion. She doesn’t weigh in all the time, but when she does…it’s valuable,” Hicks testified. 

“[I] don’t think he wanted anyone in his family to be hurt or embarrassed about anything on the campaign. He wanted them to be proud of him,” Hicks later added. 

Her testimony, which she provided to the court under subpoena, could undercut the prosecution’s arguments that the Trump tape was a catalyst to the Stormy Daniels payment out of concern about how a subsequent bad media hit would impact his campaign. 

The defense team argued earlier in the day that the recent decision in the case of the disgraced Hollywood producer, Harvey Weinstein, could be relevant in Trump’s case. 

Weinstein’s conviction was recently overturned by the New York State Court of Appeals after the court granted him a new trial, saying the trial judge had allowed prosecutors to call women who said Weinstein had assaulted them to testify, even though their accusations did not specifically relate to the entertainment mogul’s charges.

Trump’s defense team argued that the prosecution has been attempting to introduce evidence, including the Access Hollywood tape, that is not directly related to Trump’s alleged crimes.

The decision to overturn the Weinstein conviction relied on two courtroom terms: the “Molineux rule” and a “Sandoval ruling.” 

NY V. TRUMP: HOPE HICKS TESTIFIES, PROSECUTORS REFER TO ‘ACCESS HOLLYWOOD’ TAPE

The Molineux rule says that evidence of prior uncharged crimes or acts committed by an individual may not be entered into evidence in order to infer the guilt of the defendant. 

Such prior acts may be entered into evidence for certain other reasons, like establishing intent, or knowledge, but such uncharged acts may not be entered in a manner that could taint the jury’s opinion as to the likelihood that the defendant committed the crime charged. 

In Trump’s case, defense attorney Todd Blanche argued Friday that evidence is being introduced that does not establish elements of the crime charged, but rather implies Trump’s guilt.

A Sandoval ruling addresses a defendant potentially testifying at their own trial. Prosecutors typically ask to introduce, and the defense typically asks to limit, past allegations of behavior or actions by the defendant. 

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

A defendant may choose not to testify based on what the judge allows prosecutors to question the defendant about. But the issue in Trump’s case would be whether a defendant was prevented altogether from testifying in their own defense by the allowance of questions from the prosecutor that would prejudice the jury.

Before adjourning for the day, both parties continued to discuss the Sandoval rule and what questions Trump could be asked if he testifies. 

It’s unclear whether Trump will testify later in the course of the unprecedented trial.

Fox News’ Kevin Ward, Grace Taggart, Maria Pavovich, Shannon Bream and Kerri Kupec Urbahn contributed to this report. 

Welcome to Fox News’ Politics newsletter with the latest political news from Washington D.C. and updates from the 2024 campaign trail. 

What’s happening? 

– Trump’s criminal trial wraps up its third week

– University president breaks silence on anti-Israel agitators

– Only pro-life Dem in Congress indicted 

During the 11th day of the criminal trial in the case N.Y. v. Trump, former Trump campaign and White House communications director testified that Michael Cohen, Trump’s ex-lawyer, would often frustrate campaign staff and do things that were not helpful. 

On the witness stand, Hicks testified that Cohen “used to like to call himself Mr. Fix It, but it was only because he first broke it.”

Cohen is a central player and could be the star witness for Manhattan District Attorney Bragg’s case against the former president that he falsified business records connected to a payment made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels to quiet her claims alleging an illicit affair with Trump in the early 2000s. 

Trump paid a $9,000 fine for violating the judge’s gag order ruling Friday, but there are still four more alleged violations that Judge Juan Merchan has yet to rule on. Trial resumes on Monday at 9:30 a.m.

Campus Unrest

‘FLOOD THE GATES’: Guide to ‘escalate’ campus chaos spread among agitators at Ivy League …Read more

PROSECUTOR’S PRIORITIES: NYC DA probes cop’s ‘unintentional discharge’ in Columbia campus raid …Read more

NO MORE TESTS! Columbia Law Review editors argue that school cancel finals after mass arrests …Read more

‘CAUSE FOR CONCERN: Biden brings up Islamophobia amid worst antisemitism outbreak in decades …Read more

‘OVERLY BROAD’: Bill designed to combat antisemitism raises bipartisan free speech concerns …Read more

‘I LOVE YOU’: Video reveals ‘Squad’ Democrat’s message to anti-Jewish agitators during encampment Zoom call …Read more

Capitol Hill

CHARGES FILED: Justice Department indicts Dem Rep. Henry Cuellar  …Read more

‘RAISED YOU RIGHT’: Lawmaker praises frat brothers for defending American flag …Read more

Tales from the Campaign Trail

‘EVERYTHING IN OUR POWER’: Biden opens up Obamacare to illegal immigrants shielded by DACA …Read more

FAITH IN REPUBLICANS: Catholics’ support swings for Trump over Biden by significant margin: poll …Read more

BE MORE HUMBLE: Politico founder warns media ahead of election …Read more

BIG RISK: Bernie Sanders warns Biden’s pro-Israel position may sink his presidency …Read more

Subscribe now to get Fox News Politics newsletter in your inbox.

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more on FoxNews.com.

ATLANTA (AP) — Several Democrats serving as their state’s top election officials have sent a letter to the parent company of Facebook, asking it to stop allowing ads that claim the 2020 presidential election was stolen.

In the letter addressed to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, the secretaries of state from Colorado, Maine, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington and Vermont said allowing such ads will further erode trust in elections and fuel threats of political violence against election workers, which already has led some to leave the profession. Also signing the letter was Wisconsin Secretary of State Sarah Godlewski, who does not oversee elections.

NEW TRUMP VOTER FRAUD SQUADS BEGIN GEARING UP FOR ‘ELECTION INTEGRITY’ FIGHT

“Meta is allowing extremists and election deniers to further undermine our elections,” the secretaries wrote in the letter, which was emailed to the tech giant on Thursday. “As Secretaries of State, we are strongly opposed to Meta’s decision to allow ads promoting election denialism and urge you to repeal this policy before it inflicts more damage.”

Nearly four years later, conspiracy theories surrounding the 2020 election and false claims of widespread fraud and manipulation of voting machines persist. Former President Donald Trump continues to insist, despite no evidence of widespread fraud, that he won that election as he seeks a return to the White House.

Reviews, recounts and audits in the swing states where he disputed his loss have all affirmed Democrat Joe Biden’s victory, and even Trump’s former attorney general said there was no fraud on a scale that could have tipped the election. In an interview this week with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Trump falsely claimed he won Wisconsin despite losing to Biden by about 21,000 votes. Trump told the news outlet he would accept the results of the November election “if everything’s honest.”

Since the 2020 election, election workers across parts of the country have faced death threats and harassment. A recent survey by the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU found that 34% of local election officials said they knew of one or more local election officials or election workers who left their job at least in part because of safety fears, threats or intimidation. The environment has led to a historic turnover of election workers throughout the country.

YouTube, the Google-owned video service, announced a policy similar to Meta’s last year in which it said it would stop removing content that falsely claimed previous U.S. presidential elections were tainted by fraud.

Meta has defended the work it’s doing to protect elections globally. A company spokesperson provided details about how the company views elections, referencing its 2022 plan for the midterm elections in which the company said it will “continually review content to determine if it violates our community standards, including our policies on election and voter interference, hate speech, coordinating harm and publicizing crime, and bullying and harassment.”

As part of its work, Meta said it would remove election-related content that includes misinformation about the “dates, locations, times and methods of voting” along with calls for violence related to voting or the outcome of an election. In that plan, the company specified it would reject ads calling into question the legitimacy of an upcoming or ongoing election.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

But it’s the ads related to the 2020 election that have the group of Democratic secretaries of state concerned, including various campaign ads earlier this year repeating false claims that the election was rigged. The letter was organized by the Democratic Association of Secretaries of State, a political action committee affiliated with the Democratic National Committee, and was circulated only among Democrats.

“When people believe an election was stolen they are less likely to have confidence in the system, and that depresses turnout,” Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows said in an interview Friday. “We want voters to know the truth about elections and feel empowered to participate.”