NationalWatch

EXCLUSIVE: Kennedy Center President and Ambassador Richard Grenell slammed former President Joe Biden for avoiding Russian President Vladimir Putin as war raged between Russia and Ukraine while praising President Donald Trump’s “common sense” foreign policies.

“You have a president who is really watching the situation, unlike the last president, Joe Biden, who literally didn’t talk to Vladimir Putin for three and a half years,” he said. “President Trump doesn’t believe in that strategy. He wants to confront the issues. He wants to figure out ways to fix them.”

Trump plans to speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin Thursday — just hours after Russian missiles and drones attacked Ukrainian cities. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy already had been scheduled to head to Washington to meet with Trump Friday, to discuss the war and strengthening his country’s defenses. 

Trump vowed from the campaign trail that he would facilitate negotiations for a peace deal to end the war between Russia and Ukraine, which has raged since 2022, but ongoing talks have yet to yield an agreement. 

RUBIO HAILS TRUMP AS ‘ONLY LEADER IN THE WORLD’ WHO CAN BROKER UKRAINE PEACE DEAL AFTER TALKS

In addition to Russia and Ukraine, Trump also been active in efforts to bring peace to the Middle East. Trump secured a historic peace declaration as of Monday, when he traveled to Israel and Egypt to meet with foreign leaders stretching from the Middle East to Europe.

BACK FROM ALASKA, TRUMP STARTS WEEK WITH CRUCIAL FOREIGN POLICY TALKS OVER UKRAINE WAR

Grenell discussed Trump’s strategy for international conflicts during his second term in office while attending “The Sound of Music” at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

“Well, first of all, I’ve worked with President Trump for a long time, and the one thing about President Trump is that he’s filled with common sense, and he evaluates his decisions constantly,” Grenell told Fox News Digital.

Grenell said Trump can make America stronger on the world stage with his ability and willingness to adapt to different international conflicts.

“You see him adjust the policy,” he said. “Something isn’t working, he’s not afraid to replace somebody or change the policy.”

HAMAS ACCEPTS TRUMP PEACE PLAN ENDING 2 YEARS OF WAR IN GAZA, RETURNING HOSTAGES

Grenell described Trump as an “active president” who is ready to make moves and advance U.S. interests.

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“I think that what we’re seeing on the global stage is someone who is an activist president, watching the situation, adjusting the policy so that it’s making America stronger, more prosperous, and solving problems around the world,” Grenell said.

Senate Democrats wanted an equal say in crafting spending bills before the shutdown and are about to get a chance to do so, but they’re unlikely to support Republicans’ latest effort to jump-start the government funding process.

The Senate on Thursday is set to move through a procedural hurdle on the annual defense spending bill, which, among other things, would ensure that military service members would get their paychecks.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., teed up the bill earlier this week as the shutdown raged on to pressure Senate Democrats to make good on their desire to fund the government in a bipartisan manner, and in the hopes of getting the appropriations process moving again. 

TRUMP MOVE SPARES TROOPS’ PAY, BUT REPUBLICANS WARN SHUTDOWN RISKS REMAIN

“We can actually get the appropriations process going forward,” Thune said. “So that’s in the works.”

And in the Senate, given the 60-vote filibuster threshold, spending bills are prime examples of the many pieces of legislation that have to be bipartisan to pass. But Senate Democrats seemed unwilling to go all in on supporting the defense bill, and like the Republicans’ plan to reopen the government, appear ready to block Thune’s effort.

They want to know exactly what Republicans plan to put on the floor later on, despite the vote on Thursday afternoon being designed to give lawmakers the chance to move forward with at least one of several spending bills that must be passed to fund the government.

“We have to see what they’re going to put on the floor,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said. “They haven’t told us yet.”

Republicans are also eyeing at least three other spending bills to attach to the defense appropriations bill, including legislation that would fund the departments of Labor, Commerce, Transportation, Health and Human Services, and Housing and Urban Development.

REPUBLICANS FUME AS DEMOCRATS BLOCK 9TH GOP BID TO REOPEN GOVERNMENT

Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., is a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee and appears ready for the reality that Democrats would block the defense bill and broader spending package.

“You have to start with the defense, and then you can add the other ones to it, but once again, it takes agreement by our Dem colleagues that want to move that forward,” he said. “I’m not sure that we’ve got the votes to do that yet.”

There is a trust deficit between Senate Democrats and Republicans from earlier this year when the GOP passed President Donald Trump’s request to claw back billions in funding for foreign aid and NPR and PBS, in addition to continued actions by Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought to withhold or cancel funding for Democratic priorities.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., told Fox News Digital after Senate Democrats met behind closed doors on Wednesday that there had been no indication from Republicans there would be “bipartisan cooperation or any willingness to put any guardrails around what they plan to do.”

“I think the stage we’re at is that we’ve been shown nothing,” he said. “So there’s no reason to vote for it yet.”

“I think what was needed is a larger agreement about how the appropriations process is moving forward, so it’s clear that our priorities are respected,” he continued.

However, pairing the defense bill could grease the wheels for some in the Democratic caucus.

“No, not unless it’s paired with [the Labor and HHS bill],” Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, said.

REPUBLICANS EYE FRESH FUNDING FIGHT AS SHUTDOWN STANDOFF DRAGS ON

Thune’s move to reignite the appropriations process, an exercise that played out in the Senate in early August when lawmakers advanced a trio of funding bills ahead of the shutdown deadline, is part of Republicans’ broader desire to fund the government the old-fashioned way, rather than through a colossal omnibus spending package.

It’s an exercise, however, that hasn’t been fully completed since the 1990s.

Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., noted to Fox News Digital that a major part of selecting a new leader for the Senate GOP was returning to what’s known as regular order, or passing spending to fund the government.

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He argued that when Schumer ran the Senate as majority leader, the upper chamber was often resigned to passing “these omnibus bills that were developed in the, you know, middle of the night with four people.”

“We’re not interested in that. So we want to get bills on the floor, and they’ve got to move in a bipartisan way, right? So I think this is something that I would hope Democrats would support, too,” he said. “But if their mentality is at this point, you know, just oppose everything Republicans want to do, it’s pathological, and I don’t have any advice for them except seek help.”

Republicans are still trying to reopen the government and plan to put the House-passed continuing resolution (CR) on the floor again Thursday for a 10th time. And just like many times before, it is expected to fail.

When asked if he believed that the shutdown could transform into lawmakers passing spending bills one-by-one to reopen the government, Thune said, “I certainly hope not.” 

EXCLUSIVE – SADDLE BROOK, N.J. – GOP gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy of Ohio was a long way from home on Wednesday night, as he briefly left his own race to help another Republican running for governor.

But Ramaswamy’s campaign trail stop in New Jersey’s competitive and combustible gubernatorial election, where he teamed up with GOP nominee Jack Ciattarelli at a packed diner full of supporters, could pay dividends next year in his own race back home.

New Jersey and Virginia are the only two states to hold gubernatorial showdowns in the year after a presidential election, and the contests traditionally grab outsized attention and are viewed as political barometers ahead of the following year’s midterm elections.

And this year, they’re being viewed to a large degree as ballot box referendums on President Donald Trump’s unprecedented second-term agenda.

CIATTARELLI WELCOMES TRUMP’S HELP IN BATTLE FOR NEW JERSEY GOVERNOR

Pointing to New Jersey and Virginia, Ramaswamy said in an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital that GOP victories in both elections would “set the table for even bigger and more decisive victories, hopefully in places like Ohio next year.”

Ramaswamy arrived in New Jersey hours after the latest poll in the governor’s race indicated Ciattarelli narrowing the gap with Rep. Mikie Sherrill, the Democratic Party nominee in the race to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy.

The MAGA world rock star’s stop in New Jersey could help Ciattarelli energize many in the party’s base – low propensity voters who often skip casting ballots in non-presidential election years.

NATION’S ONLY TWO 2025 RACES FOR GOVERNOR ROCKED WITH THREE WEEKS UNTIL ELECTION DAY

“If you want to bring down costs in this state, back Jack,” Ramaswamy told the boisterous crowd. “If you want to make New Jersey great again, back Jack. We are ready, Jack, for change. This state is hungry for it.”

And Ramaswamy, the multimillionaire biotech entrepreneur and conservative commentator who pushed an “America First 2.0” platform as he ran for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination before ending his bid and becoming one of Trump’s top supporters and surrogates, told Ciattarelli, “We’re going in Ohio next year, but you’ve got to pave the path this year. We’re counting on you.”

Ramaswamy, who’s been endorsed by Trump, is the only major Republican candidate right now in the 2026 race to succeed term-limited GOP Gov. Mike DeWine.

Former Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan, who spent two decades representing a large swath of northeastern Ohio, including Akron and Youngstown, is likely to launch a gubernatorial campaign in the coming days. Ryan, his party’s Senate nominee in Ohio’s 2022 election, would become the second major Democrat in the 2026 gubernatorial race, joining former state health director Amy Acton.

FINAL FACEOFF: CIATTARELLI, SHERRILL, CLASH ON DEBATE STAGE

“It doesn’t matter who we’re running against,” Ramaswamy said when asked what a Ryan candidacy would mean to him. “The beauty of our side of this election in Ohio is we’re more united than we’ve ever been as a Republican Party. I’m running unopposed in the Republican primary. But even more importantly, we have widespread labor support in Ohio. This is unprecedented.”

Ramaswamy, as he spoke at the Ciattarelli event in New Jersey, which included an overflow crowd of a couple of hundred people outside the diner, received encouragement to make another White House run down the road.

“I’m 100% focused on Ohio,” Ramaswamy told Fox News Digital. “You can’t make long-run plans. Life never goes according to your plan.”

But he added, “We’re gonna do our part in Ohio, and that’s my next step for how we save the country.”

HEAD HERE FOR THE LATEST FOX NEWS REPORTING ON THE 2025 ELECTIONS

Ramaswamy’s stop in New Jersey, with less than three weeks until Election Day, came hours after multiple sources confirmed to Fox News that Trump will hold tele-rallies with Ciattarelli. 

In what’s expected to be a low-turnout election, Trump’s backing could prove crucial for Ciattarelli, who’s making his third run for governor after narrowly losing to Murphy four years ago.

“There’s obviously a whole lot of people across the state of New Jersey that are pleased with the job the president’s doing,” Ciattarelli said earlier Wednesday in an exclusive Fox News Digital interview.

Pointing to the president’s push to temporarily halt wind farms off the Jersey Shore, his vow to kill New York’s congestion pricing, tax cuts, deductions, and credits in the GOP’s massive domestic policy measure, and his efforts to secure the nation’s southern border, Ciattarelli said that people “are very pleased with the president, what he’s done for New Jersey.”

Trump endorsed Ciattarelli earlier this year, in the GOP gubernatorial nomination race. And the president headlined a tele-rally for Ciattarelli ahead of the June primary.

While Trump isn’t on the ballot, he’s loomed large over the New Jersey gubernatorial election.

At last week’s second and final debate, Sherrill charged that her GOP rival had “shown zero signs of standing up to this president. In fact, the president himself called Jack 100% MAGA, and he’s shown every sign of being that.”

Asked whether he considered himself part of the MAGA movement, Ciattarelli said he was “part of a New Jersey movement.”

When asked to grade the president’s performance so far during his second term, Ciattarelli said, “I’d certainly give the president an A. I think he’s right about everything that he’s doing.”

“I think that tells us all we need to know about who Jack Ciattarelli’s supporting. I give him an F right now,” Sherrill responded, as she pointed to New Jersey’s high cost of living.

While Democrats have long dominated federal and state legislative elections in blue-leaning New Jersey, Republicans are very competitive in gubernatorial contests, winning five out of the past 10 elections.

And Trump made major gains in New Jersey in last year’s presidential election, losing the state by only 6 percentage points, a major improvement over his 16-point deficit four years earlier.

Ciattarelli said in a Fox News Digital interview last month that he was “really pleased that the White House has offered to help us in any way that we see fit,” and that he and his campaign were “in constant communication with the White House about different ways they can help.”

And while there’s no indication, as of now, that Trump will join Ciattarelli in person in New Jersey, campaign strategist Chris Russell told Fox News, “We’re appreciative of all the help we’ve received from the president and his team so far, and grateful for any support they provide down the stretch.”

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But the Democratic National Committee (DNC), in a release after word of the Trump tele-rally was first reported by Axios, claimed that Ciattarelli was “desperate.”

“It’s clear that this election comes down to one major truth: Jack is 100% for Trump, while Mikie Sherrill is 100% for New Jersey,” DNC Deputy Communications Director Abhi Rahman said in a statement.

Welcome to the Fox News Politics newsletter, with the latest updates on the Trump administration, Capitol Hill and more Fox News politics content. Here’s what’s happening…

-Republicans fume as Democrats block 9th GOP bid to reopen government

-War Secretary Pete Hegseth’s plane makes unscheduled landing after windshield crack

-White House unveils criminal illegal migrants on Medicaid as shutdown over healthcare continues

Military funding on the line 

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is warning that a key move by the Trump administration in the government shutdown impasse is only a temporary Band-Aid — and that lawmakers could soon be forced to reckon with the political quagmire.

Johnson held a press conference on the ongoing shutdown on Wednesday, when military service members were poised to miss paychecks if no deal was reached.

And while the funding fight shows no signs of ending, the White House granted active duty U.S. troops temporary relief by rerouting some existing Pentagon funds — aimed originally at research and development — to ensure they don’t miss Wednesday’s payday…Read more

White House

DOUBLE STANDARD: Trump, Vance blast Democrats for backing Virginia AG candidate over texts fantasizing GOP lawmaker’s murder

World Stage

BEAM ME UP: Israel to deploy first combat-ready laser weapon system for operational air defense

Capitol Hill

‘POLITICAL STUNTS’: Dem lawmakers seen on video storming Speaker’s office, berating Capitol officer and messing with signs

‘INTIMIDATED’: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene says there are many ‘weak Republican men’

CLOCK RUNNING OUT: Republicans eye fresh funding fight as shutdown standoff drags on

MONEY FOR NOTHING: Shutdown faces taxpayer reckoning as lawmaker works to expose ‘true cost of Democrats’ political stunt’

‘NO MORE LOOPHOLES’: Hawley pushes ban on Obamacare coverage for gender transition care, abortion amid shutdown

Across America 

BALLOT BATTLE: Supreme Court hears pivotal Louisiana redistricting case ahead of 2026 midterms

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: Atlanta’s city-run grocery sees early success, sparking debate over government’s role

VOTING RIGHTS REVOLT: Louisiana AG aims to dismantle ‘offensive’ voting law that factors race into redistricting

‘GRAVE RISK’: Pentagon advisor accused of hoarding classified docs placed on leave by prominent DC think tank

‘DISQUALIFYING’: Virginia Dem Jay Jones’ fatherhood-themed post sparks outrage over past text wishing harm to Republican’s kids

TURNING TIDE: Deep blue New Jersey in the midst of ‘Lord of the Rings’ moment to ‘save’ the state from Dems: Scott Presler

DAMAGE CONTROL: Katie Porter says she regrets viral outbursts at reporter, staffer

BOUNDARY BRAWL: This state is on deck in push to pass Trump-backed right-leaning congressional maps

‘SCARED OF US’: ‘The View’ co-hosts say they want more Republicans on the show, claim they’re too ‘scared’ to come on

SLAP ON THE WRIST: Teens who assaulted former DOGE staffer get no jail time with probation-only sentences

Get the latest updates on the Trump administration and Congress, exclusive interviews and more on FoxNews.com.

President Donald Trump is next looking “at land” in Latin America, after the U.S. military has conducted at least five fatal strikes against alleged drug boats in the Caribbean since September. 

“We are certainly looking at land now because we’ve got the sea very well under control,” Trump told reporters Wednesday. “We’ve had a couple of days where there isn’t a boat to be found, and I view that as a good thing, not a bad thing.” 

Trump said he wasn’t interested in having the Coast Guard simply stop the alleged drugs boats because “we’ve been doing that for 30 years, and it has been totally ineffective.” 

TRUMP TOUTS US STRIKE AS MADURO SLAMS MILITARY ‘THREAT’ OFF VENEZUELA

“They have faster boats. Some of these boats are seriously, I mean, they’re world class speedboats,” Trump said. “But they’re not faster than missiles. But we’ve been trying to do that for years.” 

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital for more details on the nature of the land operations Trump is considering. 

Additionally, Trump confirmed that he authorized the CIA to conduct covert operations in Venezuela, after the New York Times reported Wednesday he had approved the order. According to Trump, he did so because Venezuela has released prisoners into the U.S., and that drugs were coming into the U.S. from Venezuela via maritime channels. 

Trump declined to answer though when asked if the CIA had the authority to “take out” Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. The Trump administration has said it does not recognize Maduro as a legitimate head of state, but a leader of a drug cartel.

“I don’t want to answer a question like that,” Trump said. “That’s a ridiculous question for me to be given. Not really a ridiculous question, but wouldn’t it be a ridiculous question for me to answer? But I think Venezuela is feeling heat.” 

The Trump administration has adopted a hard-line approach to address the flow of drugs into the U.S., and designated drug cartel groups like Tren de Aragua, Sinaloa and others as foreign terrorist organizations in February.

TRUMP UNLEASHES US MILITARY POWER ON CARTELS. IS A WIDER WAR LOOMING?

Additionally, the White House sent lawmakers a memo Sept. 30 informing them that the U.S. is now participating in a “non-international armed conflict” with drug smugglers. 

However, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have voiced concerns over the legality of the strikes, and Sens. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and Tim Kaine, D-Va., filed a war powers resolution in September to bar U.S. forces from engaging in “hostilities” against certain non-state organizations.

Although the resolution failed in the Senate by a 51–48 margin Oct. 8, Republicans Rand Paul of Kentucky and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska voted alongside their Democratic counterparts for the resolution.

US STRIKES ANOTHER ALLEGED DRUG-TRAFFICKING BOAT NEAR VENEZUELA, KILLING 4

When asked about lawmakers’ concerns about the legality of the strikes, Trump dismissed them and said that lawmakers were informed the vessels carried drugs. 

“But they are given information that they were loaded up with drugs,” Trump said. “And that’s the thing that matters. When they’re loaded up with drugs, they’re fair game. And every one of those ships were, and they’re not ships, they’re boats.” 

This is a breaking news story and will be updated. 

President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced federal law enforcement will next set its eyes on San Francisco, commending the FBI’s more than 23,000 violent criminal arrests, which he said is more than double the number arrested in the final year of the Biden administration.

During an Oval Office news conference at the White House, Trump said the FBI has “destroyed or severely disrupted” more than 170 organized criminal enterprises and gangs, 1,600 of the most violent gangs, and confiscated more than 6,000 illegal firearms since he was sworn in.

He added he wants to make every city safe, and his focus has turned to San Francisco.

“These are great cities that could be fixed,” the president said. “I’m going to be strongly recommending … [we] start looking at San Francisco. I think we can make San Francisco one of our great cities. … It’s a mess, and we have great support in San Francisco. … Every American deserves to live in a community where they’re not afraid of being mugged, murdered, robbed, raped, assaulted, or shot.”

TRUMP’S DC CRIME OPERATION ‘PUTS SAFETY OF FAMILIES FIRST’ AS ARRESTS SURGE PAST 1,800: FBI DIRECTOR

During the news conference, FBI Director Kash Patel announced “Operation Summer Heat,” which the FBI created to target violent criminals, yielded 8,700 arrests of violent offenders in three months.

More than 2,200 guns and 421 kilograms of fentanyl seized during the operation—enough fentanyl to kill 55 million Americans, according to Patel.

TRUMP’S DC CRIME SUCCESS PUTS SPOTLIGHT ON CHICAGO’S DEADLY ‘WAR ZONE’

To date, he said the FBI has seized 1900 kilograms of fentanyl—enough lethal doses to kill 127 million Americans alone to date.

“If you look at the past four years of the Biden administration, [there were] 16,000, 17,000, 15,000, 15,000 … arrests year over year of violent felons in this country,” Patel said. “You have 28,600 arrests of violent felons in just seven months alone because of your leadership and the dedication of the men and women at the FBI who want to go out there and do the job they were prevented from doing. … This number is historic by every metric.”

HUNDREDS ARRESTED AS TRUMP’S WASHINGTON, DC, CRIME CRACKDOWN HITS FULL STRIDE

Patel also highlighted the FBI’s efforts to find missing children, claiming 5,400 were located since January.

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“That is a 30% increase year to date over the last administration,” he said. “Violent crimes against children arrests alone are up 10% [and] gang arrests are up 210% in the last seven months alone. … Mr. President, you said we have to go after the worst of the worst. … This is just the beginning.”

A federal judge in Oregon on Wednesday extended an emergency order blocking President Donald Trump from immediately deploying some 200 National Guard troops into Portland, delivering a blow, if only temporarily, to Trump’s federalization push.

U.S. District Judge Karin Immergut, a Trump appointee, issued the 14-day extension to keep in place her earlier temporary order, which was slated to expire this weekend.

That order blocked Trump from immediately deploying Oregon National Guard troops into the city despite the objections of local officials, who have argued that Trump’s description of the violence in Portland is hyperbolic and does not warrant intervention from federal officers. 

Judge Immergut described Trump’s actions in her earlier order as “untethered to reality,” and said the federalization effort risks “blurring the line between civil and military federal power — to the detriment of this nation.”

‘UNTETHERED FROM REALITY’: LAWYERS FOR TRUMP, OREGON, SPAR OVER NATIONAL GUARD DEPLOYMENT IN COURT CLASH

The extension comes as lawyers for the state of Oregon and for the Trump administration both await a ruling from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which heard oral arguments on appeal from the Trump administration last week.

Judges on the three-member appeals court seemed largely sympathetic to the Trump administration, especially the two Trump appointees, who noted in court that presidents do enjoy broad latitude to deploy the National Guard.

They ended arguments by telling both parties they would rule as soon as possible on the issue, though the judges did not provide a more formal timeline.

PORTLAND POLICE CHIEF TOUTS ‘CROWD SUPPORT’ APPROACH AS ICE FACILITY FACES ONGOING VIOLENCE

The extension from the lower court judge comes as Trump has sought to deploy hundreds of National Guard troops to Democratic-led cities despite stated opposition from local and state leaders. 

Senior administration officials have argued that the deployment is a necessary step to crack down on what they say is an uptick in violent crime and protect against threats from protesters, including anti-ICE demonstrations in many downtown areas.

The panel’s majority otherwise did little to disguise their skepticism of arguments presented by Oregon Attorney General Stacy Chaffin — including that Trump’s assessment of violence in the city did not justify federalizing the National Guard.

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Democrats have countered that Trump’s descriptions are hyperbolic and inaccurate, and are merely a legal pretext for Trump to try to “federalize” Democratic-led cities. 

The issue is one of several similar cases centered on Trump’s troop deployment, a matter widely expected to be eventually punted to the Supreme Court.

Former Virginia state Del. Jay Jones’ escalating scandal — over messages envisioning the murder of a Republican lawmaker and his young “fascist” children — is expected to dominate Thursday’s attorney general debate at the University of Richmond.

The tentacles of the scandal have already reached far beyond the home of the Spiders, as President Donald Trump and Republican leaders across the country have latched onto the messaging from Jones, D-Norfolk, and the muted response from fellow Democrats.

The most recent Fox News-approved poll, conducted by Christopher Newport University on Oct. 3 before the scandal broke, showed Jones leading Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares by six points, with other Democrats on the statewide ticket enjoying similar margins.

But anecdotal evidence points to a tightening race, as Miyares has largely put the three-seat Republican ticket on his shoulders while Jones’ campaign falters.

JOE SCARBOROUGH TELLS DEM CANDIDATE JAY JONES TO LEAVE RACE OVER VIOLENT COMMENTS AGAINST GOP LAWMAKER

Republican gubernatorial candidate Winsome Earle-Sears hammered Democratic nominee Abigail Spanberger on the issue at their own debate last week in Norfolk, repeatedly asking whether Jones should withdraw from the race.

Spanberger declined to call for his resignation, saying voters should decide, but several voters in the Shenandoah Valley told Fox News Digital they were disappointed she didn’t take a stronger stand.

Jones’ fellow Democrats have either been silent or vaguely supportive of the embattled former Biden administration Justice Department staffer continuing his bid, even as polling and public sentiment suggest his troubles could bring down the rest of the Democratic ticket.

Top Democrats back Jones despite backlash

Current Virginia House Speaker Don Scott Jr., D-Portsmouth, was defiant when he addressed the media following the gubernatorial debate, comparing and contrasting the situation with Trump’s own words about Wyoming Republican Liz Cheney facing gun barrels in one of the war zones her neoconservative stances advocated for.

Senate President L. Louise Lucas, D-Norfolk, and caucus campaign chief Sen. Mamie Locke, D-Hampton, later issued a joint statement backing Jones and warning that keeping Miyares in office would be worse.

Meanwhile, Earle-Sears has a similar grip on the Republican base as Youngkin did, but continues to trail Spanberger in recent polling. Miyares, however, has now either closed the gap or slightly surpassed Jones – which pundits have said may help blunt Democratic turnout for the entire ticket.

LIBERAL MEDIA DOWNPLAYS SCANDAL OF DEM VIRGINIA AG HOPEFUL JAY JONES’ TEXTS FANTASIZING MURDER OF GOP LAWMAKER

Republican lieutenant gubernatorial candidate John Reid recently posted on social media that he has reportedly pulled to within a point or two of challenger Sen. Ghazala Hashmi, D-Chesterfield, although the rubric of the surveys he was referring to were not immediately verifiable.

Together, these signs suggest a tightening statewide contest in an increasingly blue-leaning commonwealth.

Virginia’s political upset shifting again 

In 2021, Republican Glenn Youngkin rode an upset victory on parental-rights outrage over transgender athletes in school sports. Earle-Sears has since championed that same issue while also hammering Democrats for their silence or ambivalence over Jones remaining in the race.

Youngkin’s upset over Terry McAuliffe was an outlier versus other recent Virginia races – notably Republican military veteran Hung Cao’s 20-point defeat to Sen. Tim Kaine in the intervening 2024 election. Kamala Harris also defeated Trump that year.

A decade ago, Republicans still had somewhat of a presence in heavily-populated northern Virginia. Then-Prince William County chairman Corey Stewart, seen as a staunch conservative, unsuccessfully sought statewide office but remained in the suburban county’s leadership for many years.

While currently opposed to Trump’s brand of Republicanism, then-Rep. Barbara Comstock, was a popular officeholder in the now-progressive Loudoun County area. Del. Geary Higgins, R-Lovettsville, remains the only Republican delegate in the once-red county west of Washington. Though he, too, faces a tough road against Warrenton innkeeper John McAuliff in November’s contest.

YOUNGKIN SAYS DEMOCRAT AG CANDIDATE JAY JONES MUST ‘STEP AWAY IN DISGRACE’ OVER TEXTS ABOUT FORMER GOP LEADER

During his campaign, Youngkin made repeated trips to southwest Virginia to run up margins in Republican strongholds and boost turnout — a strategy that, combined with support from concerned parents across northern Virginia’s Democratic-leaning suburbs, helped secure his victory.

Jones’ texts revealed

In messages first reported earlier this month, Jones texted Del. Carrie Coyner, R-Hopewell, in 2022, imagining a scenario where he would choose to “fire two bullets” into then-House Speaker Todd Gilbert’s head, describing Gilbert as worse than dictators Pol Pot or Adolf Hitler.

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Jones also referred to Gilbert’s young children as “fascists” in the exchange.

The revelations have prompted bipartisan condemnation, though Democratic leaders have so far resisted calls — including from Youngkin — for Jones to bow out of the race. 

New York City Democratic Socialist mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani said the city should honor the International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he were to visit the city.

“I’ve said that this is a city that believes international law, and this is a city that wants to uplift and uphold those beliefs,” Mamdani told Fox News’ Martha MacCallum on “The Story” on Wednesday.

MacCallum then challenged Mamdani, saying, “The United States doesn’t stand by the International Criminal Court.”

Mamdani acknowledged that the U.S. has not signed the treaty for the International Criminal Court.

MAMDANI STANDS BY PROMISE TO ARREST NETANYAHU IF HE COMES TO NEW YORK CITY

“The Criminal Court, however, has issued a warrant for the arrest of Benjamin Netanyahu, as it has for Vladimir Putin,” he continued. “I’ve said that I believe that we should uphold arrest warrants by the International Criminal Court and that we would… do so only in abiding with all of the laws in front of us.”

Mamdani said he would not make a new law to ensure Netanyahu could be arrested.

MacCallum then asked Mamdani if he thinks NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch would allow him to arrest Netanyahu in the city.

Mamdani refused to answer the question, and when asked again, said: “I can tell you that I’m going to exhaust every legal option in front of me, not to make new laws to do so.”

Netanyahu faces an ICC warrant tied to alleged war crimes in Gaza. The United States does not recognize the ICC.

The mayoral hopeful also notably refused to give President Donald Trump any credit during the interview concerning the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas secured last week.

“To any extent, credit or not, I think it’s too early to do so, too early to say,” said Mamdani. “But if it but if it proves to be something that is lasting, something that is durable, then I think that that’s where you give credit.”

ACTIVISTS SOUND ALARM ON ‘DEEPLY TROUBLING’ POLL SHOWING SUPPORT FOR MAMDANI’S ANTI-ISRAEL MESSAGING

Additionally, Mamdani did not respond to MacCallum’s direct questioning on Hamas “lay[ing] down their arms” in Gaza.

“I don’t really have opinions about the future of Hamas and Israel beyond the question of justice and safety and the fact that anything has to abide by international law, and that applies to Hamas, that applies to Israeli military, applies to anyone you could ask me about,” Mamdani said.

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Mamdani will debate Democrat Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa on Thursday night in the first head-to-head matchup of the campaign.

Democratic New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy faced backlash and mockery for taking a trip to Europe as a powerful nor’easter barreled toward the Garden State, sparking an emergency declaration, and as the gubernatorial election looms. 

Murphy traveled overseas to Europe Oct. 9 for a wedding and returned to his duties Tuesday, according to his office, with Lt. Gov. Tahesha Way serving as acting governor in his absence. Way declared a state of emergency Saturday as a nor’easter was set to batter the coastal state, and as the gubernatorial campaign cycle hits a fever pitch before Nov. 4.  

“Starting on Sunday, a dangerous coastal storm will begin to move past our state with extreme weather conditions for several counties, especially those on the Shore,” the acting governor said in an emailed statement to the media Saturday. “In preparation for this storm, I am issuing a State of Emergency for all 21 counties out of an abundance of caution, authorizing our state’s emergency services personnel to activate as necessary.

The New York Post reported over the weekend that the former Goldman Sachs executive was MIA as the state braced for the storm, reporting his office said the first couple of the Garden State were in Europe for a wedding. 

CRIME AND IMMIGRATION DIVIDE NEW JERSEY VOTERS AFTER EXPLOSIVE CIATTARELLI-SHERRILL DEBATE

“Governor Murphy and First Lady Tammy Murphy are out of state this weekend to attend a close family friend’s wedding in Europe. The Governor has been in close communication with his team and emergency response officials regarding the nor’easter storm impacting the East Coast,” a Murphy spokesman told the outlet Sunday. 

Murphy’s official X account continued posting messages as usual, including celebrating Indigenous People’s Day — which Democrats and liberals often celebrate instead of Columbus Day — igniting condemnation in the reply section as social media users demanded answers as to why he was not home during a state of emergency. 

“You type this from Italy?” one user responded. 

FINAL FACEOFF: DEMOCRAT, REPUBLICAN NOMINEES IN KEY RACE FOR GOVERNOR BLAST EACH OTHER ON DEBATE STAGE

“Are you honoring them while in NJ? You seem to disappear a lot,” one commenter said. 

“Columbus Day! And are you doing this tweet from Europe?” another person wrote. 

Murphy cannot run for re-election as he is term-limited. The 2025 gubernatorial election pits Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill against Trump-backed Republican Jack Ciattarelli in an election that is heating up as the candidates rally last-minute voter registration by the Tuesday evening deadline. 

New Jersey voted to elect former Vice President Kamala Harris as president nearly a year ago in the presidential election. Trump, however, made inroads with Garden State voters, flipping five counties red, improving his 16-point loss in the state during the 2020 election to a six-point loss in 2024, which has teed up a nail-biter gubernatorial election a year later. 

TRUMP NOT ON BALLOT, BUT PRESIDENT FRONT AND CENTER IN 2025 ELECTIONS

During another overseas trip in 2023, Murphy’s lieutenant governor died in office while serving as acting governor in his absence. Lt. Gov. Sheila Oliver suddenly died at the age of 71 on Aug. 1, 2023, when Murphy was vacationing in Italy and forced to make an early trip home. 

He also came under fire in 2021 when he made an eight-day trip to Costa Rica for Christmas when coronavirus cases flared in the Garden State. The governor also was abroad just in April when he took part in a state-funded trip to the Middle East as wildfires raged at home. 

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Murphy’s office reported the governor was back at work as of Tuesday, with his schedule detailing he would attend a local media event at 8 p.m. called “Ask Governor Murphy.”

Murphy’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment Tuesday. 

Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, said she is skeptical that the federal deployment of the National Guard to cities across the country is legal, as President Trump has moved to send troops to respond to crime.

Speaking Wednesday at the Fortune Most Powerful Women conference in Washington, the mayor was asked about not supporting the use of the National Guard to crackdown on crime.

“I don’t think it’s legal, let me start there, for the National Guard to police Americans on American soil,” Bowser said.

The mayor went on to explain how the National Guard in D.C. is under the authority of the president, while a state’s National Guard is typically controlled by the governor.

DEMOCRATS TRY TO FLIP THE SCRIPT ON ‘STATES’ RIGHTS’ TO DEFY, UPEND TRUMP’S NATIONAL GUARD PLAN

“The mission and the way we use the National Guard — unlike most states where a governor can call up the chief of his National Guard or her National Guard — in D.C., our D.C. National Guard reports to the president,” Bowser said.

“While I can request the National Guard, they are completely federally operated. And so D.C. is a little different than in other places for the D.C. National Guard,” she continued.

The mayor added: “We use the Guard to respond to emergencies. We use the Guard for large scale events. We do not use the Guard or to police our local laws.”

In recent months, Trump has boosted the presence of federal law enforcement in Washington, D.C., in an attempt to cut down on crime. Hundreds of federal agents and National Guard troops have been deployed to the streets of D.C. as part of the federal takeover of the district.

Trump has also deployed troops to several other Democratic-led cities, including Chicago. The city, as well as its home of Illinois, took the federal government to court over the deployment.

A federal appeals court partially returned control of the National Guard in Illinois to the federal government, but it blocked Trump from deploying troops to the streets of Chicago or across Illinois.

Trump had also deployed the National Guard to Los Angeles over the summer to respond to anti-ICE protests sparked by federal immigration raids targeting migrant workers at local businesses. California officials sued over the federal deployment.

‘THEY’RE EMBARRASSING US’: NATIONAL GUARD PRESENCE IN DC SPARKS FIERY CAPITOL CLASH

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Bowser said in her remarks on Wednesday that Americans in Washington and across the country should be concerned by what the deployments mean for the nation’s democracy.

“We should all be concerned about the military being used because it’s a slippery slope,” she said.

“You use it for crowd control one day, or presence the next day — it’s not a long jump to using it in other ways that could interfere with the very nature of American democracy,” Bowser said.

A federal judge has temporarily blocked key parts of Texas’ new law limiting expression on campuses after dark, preventing the University of Texas System from enforcing a ban on overnight expression as well as restrictions on inviting outside speakers and using amplified sounds during the last two weeks of a semester.

U.S. District Judge David A. Ezra said on Tuesday that the student groups who brought the lawsuit are likely to succeed in their claims that the law violates their First Amendment rights to free speech.

“The First Amendment does not have a bedtime of 10:00 p.m.,” the court held. “The burden is on the government to prove that its actions are narrowly tailored to achieve a compelling governmental interest. It has not done so.”

The judge wrote that the clause lawmakers added to the bill directing universities to uphold the First Amendment “does not change the fact that the statute then requires universities to adopt policies that violate those very constitutional protections.”

FEDERAL JUDGE LAUNCHES SCATHING BROADSIDE OF TRUMP’S EFFORTS TO DEPORT PRO-PALESTINIAN PROTESTERS

“The Court cannot trust the universities to enforce their policies in a constitutional way while Plaintiffs are left in a state of uncertainty, chilling their speech for fear that their expressive conduct may violate the law or university policies,” Ezra continued.

The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) filed the lawsuit last month against the University of Texas System to block the legislation, which creates rules for campus protests and gives university systems’ governing boards the authority to limit where they can be held.

FIRE attorneys said that the law violates the First and 14th Amendments because it bans protected speech on campuses from 10 p.m. to 8 a.m.

Tuesday’s ruling “is a victory not only for our plaintiffs, but all of those who express themselves on college campuses across Texas,” FIRE senior supervising attorney JT Morris said in a statement. “The First Amendment protects their freedom of speech on campus, every hour of the day, every week of the year.”

University of Texas System spokesperson Ben Wright said in a statement that the system cannot comment on the lawsuit but that it “complies with the law and court orders.”

SB 2972, authored by former GOP state Sen. Brandon Creighton creates new limits on how people can protest on campus and establishes bans on expressive activity during overnight hours.

The law, which took effect Sept. 1, essentially walks back a previous state law passed in 2019 that required all outdoor spaces at state universities be available as open forums for speech.

On top of the overnight speech restrictions, the law bars demonstrators from using microphones or other devices to amplify sound while protesting during class hours or if doing so intimidates others or interferes with campus operations, university employees or peace officers doing their job.

Protesters would also be prohibited from building encampments, removing an institution’s U.S. flag to put up one from another country or organization and wearing coverings to avoid being identified or to intimidate others.

University employees and students participating in a campus protest would also be required to provide proof of their identity and status with the school if a university official inquires.

“Texas’ law is so overbroad that any public university student chatting in the dorms past 10 p.m. would have been in violation,” FIRE senior attorney Adam Steinbaugh said. “We’re thankful that the court stepped in and halted a speech ban that inevitably would’ve been weaponized to censor speech that administrators disagreed with.”

FEDERAL JUDGE BLOCKS TEXAS PUBLIC SCHOOLS FROM DISPLAYING TEN COMMANDMENTS IN CLASSROOMS

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Republican lawmakers pushed for SB 2972 in response to the pro-Palestinian protests held last year on campuses across the country.

Creighton, who resigned from the Texas Senate earlier this month to become Texas Tech University System’s chancellor, claimed that his legislation strengthens free speech protections on college campuses by promoting openness while also protecting students, faculty and campus property from disruption by outside groups.

“The ruling represents only a temporary stay by one judge, and I’m confident the law will ultimately be upheld,” Creighton said in a statement.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

FIRST ON FOX: Parents from Northern Virginia late Wednesday night surpassed the massive $125,000 bond that a judge ordered them to pay to defend their sons, who were suspended and found responsible for sexual harassment after objecting to a transgender classmate using their male-only locker room, in court.

The parents, who are suing the Loudoun County Public Schools district, raised over $125,000 ahead of the Friday deadline and even met the original Wednesday deadline before it was granted an extension. 

They were originally ordered by a federal judge to come up with the funds by the end of the day on Wednesday if they wanted to keep fighting for their sons in court. The $125,000 “bond” was ordered by the judge in the case, Leonie Brinkema, who said the money is meant to ensure that the parents would be able to pay for the school district’s attorney fees if they end up losing.  

“We have serious doubts that such a bond can be legally required, and this requirement that the plaintiffs put up the money to pay the government’s attorneys fees is certainly very unusual and unexpected, especially when the government acknowledged in court that its insurance policy is covering legal costs,” Josh Hetzler, co-counsel for the parents, said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

PARENTS: VIRGINIA BOYS SUSPENDED AFTER QUESTIONING TRANSGENDER LOCKER ROOM POLICY WERE IGNORED BY SCHOOL

Before taking the case to federal court, Hetzler, Wolfe and Smith sought other avenues to ensure the two boys were not suspended or marked as sexual harassers on their permanent record. They sought to appeal the Loudoun County Public Schools Title IX sexual harassment investigation finding, which came after the boys were videotaped by a biological female who identified as transgender inside the boys’ locker room. The video caught them outwardly complaining to each other about the fact that there was a girl using their facilities, which resulted in the boys’ suspension and the district’s harassment finding against them.

However, the appeal was ultimately denied by the district, so the decision was made to take the matter to federal court with the help of Trump-aligned law group America First Legal (AFL). 

Meanwhile, on Friday, Judge Brinkema, for the Eastern District of Virginia, extended a temporary halt to the boys’ suspension so that they could continue attending class as the case is adjudicated. But, simultaneously, Brinkema also expressed “significant weaknesses in aspects of the plaintiffs’ allegations” in another ruling that same day, which ultimately required Wolfe and Smith to drum up $125,000 over the next three business days if they wanted to keep fighting the matter in court.

FEDERAL JUDGE RULES IN FAVOR OF ALLOWING SCOTUS CASE OVER TRANS ATHLETES TO PROCEED AFTER ATTEMPT TO DISMISS   

“Fortunately, we have an extension until Friday,” Ian Prior, AFL’s attorney assisting on the case, said as the Wednesday bond deadline approached, and it appeared they would not have the funds.

According to Prior, it is not entirely “atypical” for the prevailing party in a preliminary injunction to have to put up a bond. However, Prior noted, in public interest cases such as this one, bond requirements are often set very low, sometimes even at $0. Prior also said he was not aware of bonds being required to cover attorneys’ fees.

“In most cases, it is done where a company is enjoined from doing something, like selling a certain kind of widget for example, and the injunction will cost them something,” Prior told Fox News Digital. “The bond helps assure that if the prevailing party does not ultimately succeed, the other party is made whole from the impact the injunction had. We are not aware of bonds being required to cover attorneys’ fees however.”

In Brinkema’s order, she explicitly indicated the bond was to ensure “that if the defendant prevails on dispositive pre-trial motions, it can recover from that bond its attorney’s fees.” 

Wolfe and Smith, following the bond order, set up an online fundraiser to help them raise the funds. As of Wednesday morning, the online fundraiser had collected around $50,000, but before the end of the day, a single donation of $50,000, from Michael Dearing, who appears to be an angel investor, pushed the parents within $25,000 of their $125,000 goal. 

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When asked about what their plans would be if they were unable to raise the full amount, Prior indicated that there were “a multitude of options” that could be taken. 

“The more that the students raise, the easier it will be to post bond, even if they do not get to the full $125k,” Prior told Fox News Digital. “To be clear, the case does not get dismissed without posting the bond – rather, we would lose the preliminary injunction and the suspensions would take place immediately and the findings would be put into the students’ records at a time when they would likely be applying for higher education.”

President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed a directive ordering the Department of War to keep paying U.S. troops despite the ongoing government shutdown, bypassing Congress after lawmakers failed to reach a funding deal for weeks.

The White House said the move is necessary to protect “military readiness” as the budget standoff stretched into its third week. The order, issued as National Security Presidential Memorandum-8 (NSPM-8), directs the department to use available fiscal year 2026 funds to cover military pay and allowances.

“The current appropriations lapse presents a serious and unacceptable threat to military readiness and the ability of our Armed Forces to protect and defend our Nation,” the memo states.

Trump cited his Article II powers as commander-in-chief in issuing the order, which covers active-duty troops and reservists on service orders. The directive instructs officials to use only funds that are legally tied to military pay, in coordination with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

TRUMP MOVE SPARES TROOPS’ PAY, BUT REPUBLICANS WARN SHUTDOWN RISKS REMAIN

More than one million service members were expected to miss paychecks starting this week if Congress didn’t act. Trump’s move marks a break from past administrations, which often waited for bipartisan deals instead of intervening directly.

Rep. Nick LaLota, R-N.Y., told Fox News Digital that “Trump’s mid-month action was welcome news to the military community. But now that same community is anxious about what happens at the end of the month, where mortgages and rents and car payments all become due.”

“Democrats were wrong to try to use troop pay as leverage to accomplish their political goals. And it would be wrong, it would be just as wrong, for a Republican to hope that that lack of pay would be a catalyst to get Democrats to acquiesce,” LaLota said. “[Trump is] protecting the troops when Congress won’t.”

WHITE HOUSE MAY ‘RUN OUT’ OF FUNDS TO PAY MILITARY IF SHUTDOWN CONTINUES, JOHNSON WARNS

The Pentagon has not said which specific accounts will be used. Reports from Roll Call and Reuters indicate the administration has identified roughly $8 billion in unobligated defense funds as potential options.

Critics warn the move could face legal challenges under the Antideficiency Act, which bars spending money not appropriated by Congress. But White House officials argue the law permits spending that has a “reasonable, logical relationship” to the purpose of the original funds: in this case, keeping troops paid.

Fox News has reached out to the White House, OMB and Department of War for further comment. None have responded.

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The directive follows Trump’s Oct. 11 order to keep troop payments flowing during the shutdown. The White House’s latest move Wednesday with Congress still in gridlock could shape government shutdowns for generations to come.

Fox News Digital’s Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.

President Donald Trump confirmed he would be authorizing Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) activity in Venezuela amid his efforts to combat Latin American drug traffickers with force. 

Trump indicated during a press conference alongside FBI Director Kash Patel on Wednesday that his administration was next looking “at land” in Latin America after the U.S. military conducted at least five fatal strikes against alleged drug boats in the Caribbean since last month. The president also confirmed at the Wednesday press conference that he was authorizing intelligence activity by the CIA in Venezuela to help continue the administration’s offensive against Latin American drug traffickers.

Trump told reporters there were “two reasons” why he was authorizing the CIA to conduct such work. 

TRUMP NEXT EYES ‘LAND’ IN DRUG WAR, WARNS CARTEL BOATS ARE ‘NOT FASTER THAN MISSILES’

“Number one, they have emptied their prisons into the United States of America. They came in through the border. They came in because we had an open border policy. And as soon as I heard that, ‘I said a lot of these countries–,’ they’re not the only country, but they’re the worst abuser, and they’ve allowed thousands and thousands of prisoners, people from mental institutions, insane asylums – emptied out into the United States,” Trump told reporters Wednesday after they asked why he took the move to authorize CIA activity in Venezuela. 

“We’re bringing them back … they did it at a level that probably – many, many countries have done it also, but not like Venezuela – they were down and dirty,” Trump continued. “And the other thing is drugs. We have a lot of drugs coming in from Venezuela.”

TRUMP PRAISED AFTER PUTTING ‘NARCO TERRORIST’ MADURO ON NOTICE 

Following Trump’s comments about why he was authorizing CIA activity in Venezuela, the president was pressed by a reporter on whether the intelligence agency would have the authority to take out Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who Trump and his administration have accused of leading a “narco-­dictatorship.”

However, the president didn’t bite on that question, telling reporters he thought it was a “ridiculous question” for him to answer during the press conference. “I don’t want to answer a question like that,” Trump shot back.  

Trump’s comments about authorizing unspecified actions by the CIA in Venezuela came after the New York Times reported earlier in the day that the president had authorized the spy agency to carry out lethal, covert actions in Venezuela.

“I think Venezuela is feeling heat. But I think a lot of other countries are feeling heat too,” Trump said Wednesday.

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“We’re not going to let this country, our country, be ruined because other people want to drop, as you say, ‘their worst’ – they have given us their worst. They’ve loaded up our country with prisoners, with mentally ill people that are seriously ill, criminally ill, and we’re not going to take it,” the president continued. “And I can tell you we’ve taken care of the sea. There’s nobody. And we’re watching, we’re watching. And if we see it, we’ll save it.”

Fox News Digital’s Diana Stancy contributed to this report.

The Trump administration plans to withhold $40 million from California over its refusal to enforce English language requirements for truckers, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Wednesday.

The move came weeks after an investigation found that an illegal immigrant truck driver, Harjinder Singh, killed three people after making an illegal U-turn on a Florida road in August. California had issued the driver a commercial license, but these English rules predate the crash.

Duffy cited failures by California to enforce English proficiency rules following one of President Donald Trump’s executive orders.

DUFFY RESPONDS WITH ‘CROCODILE TEARS’ COMMENT ON BANNED CALIFORNIA TRUCK DRIVER CASE

“California is the only state in the nation that refuses to ensure big rig drivers can read our road signs and communicate with law enforcement. This is a fundamental safety issue that impacts you and your family on America’s roads,” Duffy said.

“The Golden State thinks it’s OK to ignore @USDOT English language requirements for truckers. You can play all the games you want, but not at the expense of American lives,” Duffy wrote on X.

Duffy said the truck driver in the Florida crash should not have been given a commercial license because of his immigration status.

Diana Crofts-Pelayo, a spokesperson for California Gov. Gavin Newsom, told Fox News Digital that California commercial truck drivers have a lower crash rate than the national average.

“It seems the Secretary of Transportation needs a lesson about the laws of his own roads,” Crofts-Pelayo said. “The reality is simple: Commercial driver’s license holders in California had a fatal accident rate nearly 40% LOWER than the national average. Texas, the only state with more commercial driver’s license holders, has a rate nearly 50% higher than California’s.” 

“The facts don’t lie, although for the Trump Administration, they seem optional,” she added. 

GOP REP TARGETS TRUCKER’S ENGLISH SKILLS AFTER ILLEGAL MIGRANT CHARGED IN DEADLY FLORIDA CRASH

Singh, an Indian citizen, is being held without bond after being charged with three state counts of vehicular homicide and immigration violations.

Investigators said he failed an English proficiency test but was still issued a license to drive trucks. Duffy and Florida officials have blamed California as well as Washington state for issuing him a commercial driver’s license.

However, California officials said Singh had a valid work permit at the time. Authorities said he entered the United States illegally from Mexico in 2018.

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To have the funding reinstated, California must enforce the English rules and ensure that state inspectors test truck drivers’ English skills during roadside inspections and remove anyone from the road who fails.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Los Angeles County GOP chair Roxanne Hoge ripped the county’s Democratic leaders for having “no shame” and declaring a state of emergency over federal immigration enforcement operations, which she called a “slap in the face” to Americans.

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 on Tuesday to declare a local state of emergency in the region. The declaration, which the board stated was in response to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations, provides residents with rent relief and legal aid if they have been affected by the raids.

County departments were also ordered to “take necessary emergency actions to protect and stabilize communities impacted by federal immigration actions.”

In an interview with Fox News Digital, Hoge said that “living in California, especially living in Los Angeles, is like playing a constant game of whack-a-mole” with outlandish policies and declarations.

DEMOCRATS CREATING ‘TWO-TIERED’ LEGAL SYSTEM THAT KEEPS LATINOS DOWN, SAYS LA GOP LEADER

She said the progressive-dominated L.A. County Board of Supervisors “have no shame in how far they will go” to upend citizens’ lives and prioritize illegals over citizens.

“They keep coming up with more and different ways to spend taxpayer money and to not give us the services that a local government should give you, you know, public safety, freedom from crime, clean streets. None of those are available in Los Angeles,” said Hoge.

“You would think that the emergency is having an entire community burned down and not having water in the hydrants. You would think a state of emergency is due to criminal cartels taking over our streets, but no.”

TRUMP FOES MELT DOWN THAT SCOTUS IS UNLEASHING ‘RACIAL TERROR’ ON US WITH ICE RAID RULING

Addressing the county board directly, Hoge said, “I would say to the ladies who run the most powerful county board of supervisors in the country, that it would be really nice if they would pay attention to the needs of Californians living in Los Angeles for just a moment.”

“To turn around and give money to people who, by the way, don’t have to prove that they’re here legally or illegally or even that they are going to use the money for rent is a complete slap in the face to every hardworking person who makes Los Angeles their home,” she went on, adding, “Do your jobs, ladies. Please protect the Americans living in Los Angeles.”

The proclamation notice, dated Oct. 9, said that it will remain in effect until terminated by the board of supervisors.

TRUMP’S WAR ON CARTELS ENTERS NEW PHASE AS EXPERTS PREDICT WHAT’S NEXT

County officials claimed the raids have “created a climate of fear, leading to widespread disruption in daily life and adverse impacts to our regional economy,” including decreased workplace attendance, temporary or permanent business closures, and increased strain on schools, hospitals, and places of worship.

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In response to a Fox News Digital request for comment, a spokesperson for the L.A. County Board of Supervisors clarified that the declaration “currently provides no funding.” 

A spokesperson for board Chair Kathryn Barger, who issued the sole vote against the declaration, shared a statement with Fox News Digital in which she said that “declaring a local emergency is not the right or responsible way to respond” to the federal immigration enforcement operations. 

“I want to be clear: my opposition to this motion is about good governance, not immigration status,” Barger said. “Emergency powers exist for crises that pose life and death consequences like wildfires—not as a shortcut for complex policy issues. Stretching emergency powers for federal immigration actions undermines their purpose, invites legal challenges, and circumvents the public process.”

Barger added that “families across Los Angeles County are afraid, and that fear is real,” but said, “We need real solutions, not symbolic gestures”

Fox News Digital’s Emma Bussey contributed to this report

The White House lauded the State Department for imposing consequences on foreign nationals who posted controversial statements following the death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk in September.

The White House said the State Department’s decision to revoke visas for these foreign nationals is safeguarding Americans. 

“President Trump has long called attention to the spread of left-wing political violence, which is driven by Democrats’ vile rhetoric characterizing Republicans as Nazis, fascists, and more,” White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said in a statement Wednesday to Fox News Digital. “The Trump administration is ensuring that so-called ‘guests’ in our country are not echoing this dangerous practice of celebrating and encouraging left-wing political attacks, which poses a national security threat to law-abiding Americans.”

On Tuesday, the State Department announced that it had yanked the visas of six, unidentified people for their comments in the aftermath of Kirk’s assassination. 

CHARLIE KIRK PAINTED AS ‘CONTROVERSIAL,’ ‘PROVOCATIVE’ IN MEDIA’S ASSASSINATION COVERAGE

“The United States has no obligation to host foreigners who wish death on Americans,” the State Department wrote on X Tuesday. “The State Department continues to identify visa holders who celebrated the heinous assassination of Charlie Kirk.”

In particular, the State Department said that those whose visas were pulled included a German national who said that “when fascists die, democrats don’t complain,” and a Paraguayan national who said “Charlie Kirk was a son of a b**** and he died by his own rules.” 

Additionally, the State Department said it revoked the visa of a Mexican national who said Kirk “died being a racist” and that “there are people who deserve to die. There are people who would make the world better off dead.” 

The State Department also said it revoked visas from foreign nationals from Argentina, South Africa and Brazil. 

The agency signaled there would be consequences for visa-holders who mocked Kirk’s death on social media, and said in September that it would take “appropriate action” in response to such posts. 

Critics of the State Department’s move have pointed out that Kirk himself was an advocate for free speech. 

“US revokes visas for 6 foreigners for derisive posthumous comments about Charlie Kirk–who was, ironically, a self-styled champion of free speech!” David Axelrod, who served as an adviser to former President Barack Obama, said in a Tuesday post on X. 

TRUMP DEFENDS LABELING ANTIFA A ‘TERRORIST ORGANIZATION’ AS HE TARGETS LEFT-WING EXTREMISM

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has blasted “far-left radicals” for embodying the “devil’s ideology” amid political violence in the U.S. 

“We’ve watched legions of far-left radicals resort to desperate acts of violence and terror because they know that their ideas and arguments are persuading no one,” Trump said Tuesday at the White House. “They know that they’re failing. They have the devil’s ideology and they’re failing.”

In particular, Trump pointed to recent violence at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilities, and inflammatory text messages recently unearthed from Virginia attorney general candidate Jay Jones describing a hypothetical scenario where he would shoot a Republican lawmaker in the head. 

YEARS OF CAMPUS ATTACKS ON CONSERVATIVE ACTIVISTS RESURFACE AFTER CHARLIE KIRK’S MURDER

Trump’s comments came as he posthumously awarded Kirk, Turning Point USA (TPUSA) co-founder, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. It is the highest award issued to civilians in the U.S.

Kirk, 31, was assassinated during his “American Comeback Tour” at Utah Valley University in September — just over a year after two assassination attempts against Trump.

Tyler Robinson, the shooting suspect involved in Kirk’s assassination, was charged in September with aggravated murder, along with other charges.

BAYONNE, N.J. – With fewer than three weeks until Election Day in New Jersey, Republican gubernatorial nominee Jack Ciattarelli says he’s looking forward to a helping hand from President Donald Trump.

“There’s obviously a whole lot of people across the state of New Jersey that are pleased with the job the president’s doing,” Ciattarelli said Wednesday in an exclusive Fox News Digital interview.

Ciattarelli’s comments came as a new public poll indicated the two-time GOP nominee in the Garden State narrowing the gap with Rep. Mikie Sherrill, his Democratic Party rival for governor in the race to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy.

With the clock ticking towards Election Day, multiple sources confirmed to Fox News that Trump will hold tele-rallies with Ciattarelli ahead of Election Day. 

NATION’S ONLY TWO 2025 RACES FOR GOVERNOR ROCKED WITH THREE WEEKS UNTIL ELECTION DAY

Trump’s teaming up with Ciattarelli will likely help energize the Republican Party’s MAGA base, many of whom are low propensity voters who often skip casting ballots in non-presidential election years.

And in what’s expected to be a low-turnout election, Trump’s help could potentially be crucial to Ciattarelli, who’s making his third bid for governor and who four years ago came close to upsetting Murphy.

New Jersey and Virginia are the only two states to hold gubernatorial showdowns in the year after a presidential election, and the contests traditionally grab outsized attention and are viewed as political barometers ahead of the following year’s midterm elections.

And this year, they’re being viewed to a large degree as ballot box referendums on Trump’s unprecedented second-term agenda.

TRUMP LOOMS LARGE OVER 2025 ELECTIONS

Pointing to the president’s push to temporarily halt wind farms off the Jersey Shore, his vow to kill New York’s congestion pricing, tax cuts, deductions, and credits in the GOP’s massive domestic policy measure, and his efforts to secure the nation’s southern border, Ciattarelli said that people “are very pleased with the President, what he’s done for New Jersey.”

Trump endorsed Ciattarelli earlier this year, in the GOP gubernatorial nomination race. And the president headlined a tele-rally for Ciattarelli ahead of the June primary.

The new survey, from Quinnipiac University, indicated Sherrill, a four-term federal lawmaker, Naval Academy graduate who flew helicopters during her military career, and a former federal prosecutor, at 50% support among likely voters.

Ciattarelli, a former state lawmaker and a certified public accountant who started a medical publishing company before getting into politics and winning election as a state lawmaker, stood at 44% support in the survey, which was conducted Oct. 9-13.

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Sherrill’s 6-point advantage in the new poll was down from an 8-point lead in the Quinnipiac’s September survey.

The poll indicated Ciattarelli with a slight lead in enthusiasm among voters, but that Sherrill was viewed more favorably.

While Trump isn’t on the ballot, he’s loomed large over the New Jersey gubernatorial election.

At last week’s second and final debate, Sherrill charged that her GOP rival had “shown zero signs of standing up to this president. In fact, the president himself called Jack 100% MAGA, and he’s shown every sign of being that.”

FINAL FACEOFF: CIATTARELLI, SHERRILL, CLASH ON DEBATE STAGE

Asked whether he considered himself part of the MAGA movement, Ciattarelli said he was “part of a New Jersey movement.”

When asked to grade the president’s performance so far during his second term, Ciattarelli said, “I’d certainly give the president an A. I think he’s right about everything that he’s doing.”

“I think that tells us all we need to know about who Jack Ciattarelli’s supporting. I give him an F right now,” Sherrill responded, as she pointed to New Jersey’s high cost of living.

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While Democrats have long dominated federal and state legislative elections in blue-leaning New Jersey, Republicans are very competitive in gubernatorial contests, winning five out of the past ten elections.

And Trump made major gains in New Jersey in last year’s presidential election, losing the state by only 6 percentage points, a major improvement over his 16-point deficit four years earlier.

Ciattarelli said in a Fox News Digital interview last month that he was “really pleased that the White House has offered to help us in any way that we see fit,” and that he and his campaign were “in constant communication with the White House about different ways they can help.”

And while there’s no indication, as of now, that Trump will join Ciattarelli in person in New Jersey, campaign strategist Chris Russell told Fox News, “we’re appreciative of all the help we’ve received from the president and his team so far, and grateful for any support they provide down the stretch.”

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But the Democratic National Committee (DNC), in a release after word of the Trump tele-rally was first reported by Axios, claimed that Ciattarelli was “desperate.”

“It’s clear that this election comes down to one major truth: Jack is 100% for Trump, while Mikie Sherrill is 100% for New Jersey,” DNC Deputy Communications Director Abhi Rahman argued in a statement.

Members of the U.S. military were poised to miss their first paychecks of the government shutdown on Wednesday, but active duty troops are at least getting some reprieve thanks to the Trump administration moving to reshuffle some Pentagon funds.

House GOP leaders have signaled that the White House could do the same for federal law enforcement, many of whom have already missed paydays amid the ongoing standoff.

The government shutdown is in its 15th day as Democrats and Republicans remain at an impasse on federal funding. 

Neither side has shown signs of acquiescing to the other’s demands. And the White House’s move to pay troops, while welcome news to veterans in the House GOP, also removes a significant pressure point on both sides to quickly end the shutdown.

“It’s sad that Democrats are using President Trump’s good graces to drag this shutdown on even longer,” a senior House GOP aide told Fox News Digital of military pay.

JOHNSON RAISES STAKES ON SCHUMER AS GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN BARRELS INTO WEEK 3

Even House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., tacitly praised the move, though he did not mention President Donald Trump or the White House.

“I agree with making sure that our men and women in uniform, our active duty troops, are paid,” Jeffries said during a Tuesday news conference.

House GOP lawmakers who served in the Armed Forces told Fox News Digital it was a welcome move, but not one that alleviated all of their concerns. They are still pushing for a quick resolution to the funding fight, warning the military still hangs in the balance.

“I am very thankful that the administration has at least recognized and found a way to make sure that our military families are taken care of,” said Rep. Jen Kiggans, R-Va., who has led a bipartisan bill to ensure active duty and civilian military workers are paid during shutdowns every year she’s been in Congress.

HOUSE PASSES TRUMP-BACKED PLAN TO AVERT GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN

The Virginia Republican said she remained concerned about civilian military employees, who would also have gotten paid under her legislation. Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has ruled out a standalone vote on troop pay, arguing it would not pass the Senate and only serve to give House Democrats political cover after they largely shunned the GOP’s funding bill, which would end the shutdown and get the military and others paid.

“We have a lot of civilians embedded very closely who really help day-to-day operations of the military. So we want to continue to advocate for them. I would still love to have a floor vote for my bill,” Kiggans said.

And Rep. Nick LaLota, R-N.Y., said Trump’s move was “huge news” but said he remained “very concerned” about that funding running out in the event of a longer shutdown.

“Trump’s mid-month actually was welcome news to the military community. But now that same community is anxious about what happens at the end of the month, where mortgages and rents and car payments all become due,” he said.

He also pushed back when Fox News Digital asked about the political ramifications of Trump moving to pay troops.

“Democrats were wrong to try to use troop pay as leverage to accomplish their political goals. And it would be wrong, it would be just as wrong, for a Republican to hope that that lack of pay would be a catalyst to get Democrats to acquiesce,” LaLota said.

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Thousands of federal workers usually get furloughed when funding runs out during a government shutdown. Those who are deemed essential — including active duty military — normally work without getting paid. 

Both furloughed and essential workers, however, are expected to get back pay when shutdowns are over.

House Republicans and one Democrat joined together to pass a short-term bill to keep the government funded through Nov. 21 last month, but the measure has stalled in the Senate, with Democrats demanding significant concessions on healthcare before agreeing to any spending bill.