NationalWatch

A Canadian free speech advocate who was fined by Australian authorities spoke out after the U.S. State Department appeared to come to his defense.

“It’s phenomenal. The Trump administration has been tremendous on this issue,” Chris Elston, popularly known as “Billboard Chris” for his custom of wearing sandwich boards with slogans on them, said.

In the Australian case, Elston had been fined $806 for “obstructing public movement” in response to displaying his billboard reading “children cannot consent to puberty blockers.”

Elston said he was peacefully conversing with members of the public and was issued a police “move on” order before being sent away.

MUSK, CANADIAN MAN SUE AUSTRALIAN AUTHORITIES FOR CENSORING X POST

‘Billboard Chris’ Elston (Getty)

That incident was separate from a legal challenge Elston launched in April against the country’s eSafety commission after the government had his tweet of a Daily Mail article about a transgender activist seated on an Australian board.

“It’s such a zealous overuse of authority,” Elston said. “We don’t elect [officials] to decide what we can say.”

After he was censored, the case was included in a tweet from a State Department bureau decrying government censorship and their coercion of tech companies into targeting individuals.

BILLBOARD CHRIS REFLECTS ON VIOLENCE HE’S MET WITH PROTESTING GENDER SURGERIES FOR CHILDREN

“Freedom of expression must be protected – online and offline,” it tweeted.

“Examples of this conduct are troublingly numerous. EU Commissioner Thierry Breton threatened X for hosting political speech; Türkiye fined Meta for refusing to restrict content about protests; and Australia required X to remove a post criticizing an individual for promoting gender ideology.”

“The United States opposes efforts to undermine freedom of expression.”

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Lois McLatchie Miller of Alliance Defending Freedom International, which has been defending Elston, said the group believes “everybody has the right to live and speak their truth, and Chris is a great example of that.”

“[W]e stood up with Chris alongside the Human Rights Law Alliance in Australia to defend free speech there, but we also see in my own country in the U.K., where people are having censorship thrust upon them, even being arrested for expressing their views.”

A trio of Democratic lawmakers say they were justified in “storming” an ICE facility in Newark, New Jersey, last week, arguing that President Donald Trump’s administration is “weaponizing law enforcement.”

Reps. LaMonica McIver, Bonnie Watson Coleman and Rob Menendez, all Democrats from New Jersey, made the comments during a joint appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday. 

“Chaos ensued when someone on the phone above the leaders of ICE who were with us at that facility instructed them to go out of the facility, go to the private property and lock the mayor of the largest city in the state of New Jersey up,” Coleman said.

WHITE HOUSE BLASTS DEMS ‘CROSSING THE LINE’ BY STORMING ICE FACILITY

“That’s absurd. That’s un-American. That’s scary. That’s determination to intimidate people in this country,” she added, claiming the administration is “lying at all levels.

The three lawmakers stormed Delaney Hall Detention Center in Newark last week in an incident that was caught on video. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was also present and was arrested and charged with trespassing. Authorities claim an ICE agent was assaulted in the confrontation, which was caught on camera.

McIver also responded to accusations from the Department of Homeland Security that she “body slammed” law enforcement officers during the incident.

“I honestly do not know how to body slam anyone. There’s no video that supports me body slamming anyone,” she told CNN’s Dana Bash.

ICE FACILITY DEMOCRATS ‘STORMED’ HOLDS CHILD RAPISTS, MURDERERS: OFFICIALS

Mendez argued that it was the responsibility of the ICE officers and other law enforcement to ensure the situation didn’t get out of hand.

Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-N.J., accused an ICE agent of shoving her during the incident on Friday. (Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Take Back the Court Action Fund)

“There were a lot of opportunities for DHS, for ICE to de-escalate the situation. They chose not to,” Menendez said. “It’s something that should really shock all Americans.”

NEWARK MAYOR ARRESTED AS DEM CONGRESS MEMBERS STORM NEW JERSEY ICE PRISON TO CONDUCT ‘OVERSIGHT VISIT’

Rep. LaMonica McIver can be seen wearing red in this screenshot from the body camera footage DHS provided to Fox News. (Department of Homeland Security)

While the lawmakers objected to ICE detentions, they also admitted that they saw evidence that the inmates were well-treated and living in good conditions inside the facility.

During a press conference after the incident, McIver claimed she was “assaulted by multiple ICE officers while regional directors of ICE watched it happen.”

DHS footage posted to X Saturday appears to show McIver barreling unprovoked through law enforcement near the gate.

“WATCH: US Congresswoman LaMonica McIver (wearing a red blazer), storms the gate of Delaney Hall Detention Center ASSAULTING an ICE agent,” DHS captioned the video.

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DHS officials have not yet confirmed any pending charges against those accused of storming the center.

Fox News’ Alexandra Koch contributed to this report.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Sunday that the Trump administration has made progress in its trade negotiations with China. 

“We will be giving details tomorrow. “But I can tell you that the talks were productive,” Bessent told members of the media on Sunday from Switzerland. “We had the vice premier, two vice ministers who were integrally involved, Ambassador Jamieson [Greer] and myself. And I spoke to President Trump, as did Ambassador Jamieson last night, and he is fully informed of what is going on.”

The Trump administration has leveled tariffs as high as 145% on Chinese goods as the president looks to bring parity to the nation’s chronic trade deficit with foreign countries. Trump paused his April 2 reciprocal tariff plan on dozens of nations as countries called on the administration to make trade deals, but he upped the ante on China after Beijing rebuked Trump’s trade policies with tariffs of its own, including 125% duty taxes on U.S. goods. 

Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer met with their Chinese counterparts this weekend in Switzerland to discuss the countries’ economic futures, which Trump addressed in a Truth Social post on Saturday evening. 

TRUMP SAYS ‘TOTAL RESET NEGOTIATED’ WITH CHINA DURING TARIFF TALKS IN GENEVA

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was allegedly one of English’s targets. (Tierney L. Cross/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“Many things discussed, much agreed to. A total reset negotiated in a friendly, but constructive, manner. We want to see, for the good of both China and the U.S., an opening up of China to American business. GREAT PROGRESS MADE!!!” he posted on Truth Social. 

China’s Ministry of Commerce said earlier this month that officials were “evaluating” an offer from the Trump administration to hold trade talks on the 145% U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods.

PIVOTAL TRADE TALKS WITH BEIJING LOOM AS TRUMP SWEARS IN NEW US AMBASSADOR TO CHINA: ‘WHAT TIMING’

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump smiles during Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest at the Phoenix Convention Center on December 22, 2024 in Phoenix, Arizona (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images)

“The U.S. has recently taken the initiative on many occasions to convey information to China through relevant parties, saying it hopes to talk with China,” the statement said, according to Reuters. 

Trump and the administration have previously said they were willing to hold trade negotiations with China, including the president saying on April 8, “We are waiting for their call. It will happen.”

TRUMP SAYS 80% TARIFF ON CHINA ‘SEEMS RIGHT’ AHEAD OF WEEKEND TALKS WITH BEIJING

The update on China comes after the Trump administration inked a separate trade deal with the UK last week – the first trade deal signed since Trump’s “Liberation Day” announcement on April 2 that leveled tariffs on nations worldwide as the administration looked to end trade barriers on U.S. goods and even the playing field for U.S. exports. 

President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping

“With this deal, the U.K. joins the United States in affirming that reciprocity and fairness is an essential and vital principle of international trade,” Trump said Thursday of the deal. “The deal includes billions of dollars of increased market access for American exports, especially in agriculture, dramatically increasing access for American beef, ethanol and virtually all of the products produced by our great farmers.” 

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The UK deal keeps an existing 10% tariff in place against U.K. goods, while removing some import taxes on items like steel and cars. 

The U.S. and Mexico are one step closer to permanently ending a sewage crisis spewing from across the border into waters off the coast of San Diego, Environmental Protection Agency chief Lee Zeldin announced. 

“This week, EPA transmitted to Mexico a proposed ‘100% solution’ that would PERMANENTLY END the decades-old crisis of raw sewage flowing in to the U.S. from Mexico. Next, technical groups from both nations will be meeting to work through the details necessary to hopefully reach an urgent agreement,” Zeldin posted to X on Friday. 

Zeldin visited San Diego last month, where he announced talks with his government counterparts in Mexico to end the decades-long issue. The problem, blamed on outdated wastewater infrastructure, has persisted for decades, but has spiraled in recent years as Tijuana’s population skyrocketed. 

The sewage water has not only threatened San Diego’s massive tourism industry and local residents, but also poses a national security risk as it pollutes the waters where U.S. Navy SEAL members and candidates train, Fox Digital previously reported. 

EPA CHIEF ZELDIN LAUNCHES TALKS WITH MEXICO TO END SEWAGE HITTING SAN DIEGO, NAVY SEALS: ‘OUT OF PATIENCE’

The U.S. Naval Special Warfare Command is headquartered in San Diego and is where Navy SEAL candidates complete their arduous six-month Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) training at the Naval Amphibious Base Coronado. 

In February, the Department of Defense’s inspector general released a report finding that the Naval Special Warfare Center reported 1,168 cases of acute gastrointestinal illnesses among SEAL candidates between January 2019 and May 2023 that were attributed to the contaminated water. 

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin attends a meeting with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House on March 13, 2025. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Veterans who spoke to Fox News Digital in April described the contaminated water as a national security crisis. 

“This is a huge national crisis,” Navy SEAL vet Jeff Gum, who was sickened by the water when he was working through SEAL training in 2008, told Fox Digital in a Zoom interview last month. “Like half the SEAL teams are located in San Diego; the other half are in Virginia Beach. So when you’ve got half the SEAL teams who are getting exposed to this, then it’s a major issue.” 

EPA CHIEF TAKES ON MEXICAN ‘SEWAGE CRISIS’ FLOWING INTO US WATERS WHERE NAVY SEALS TRAIN 

Zeldin said last month that he and his counterparts in Mexico had launched good-faith talks to update infrastructure and water management facilities, adding that he zeroed in on the “specifics,” including drafting a “comprehensive list of everything that we believe with full confidence is going to end the crisis” on both the U.S. side of the border and Mexico’s. 

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum speaks during a briefing. (Luis Barron/Eyepix Group/LightRocket)

“Now, if you don’t do all of the other projects and all you do is clean up the current contamination, that feel-good moment will last about a day,” Zeldin said during a press conference in San Diego last month. “We have to stop the flow in. Mexico needs to fulfill its part in cleaning up the contamination that they caused.” 

MEXICO IS POISONING SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA IN A BORDER CRISIS ALMOST NO ONE KNOWS ABOUT

“We need Mexico to not just commit to all the projects that will stop the flow, but in order to actually finish this project, they’re going to need to commit to that final cleanup,” he added. 

Aerial view of sewage water spilling into Playa Blanca beach in the coast of Tijuana, Mexico on March 21, 2024. (Getty Images)

Zeldin first addressed the sewage problem in March before previewing the trip to take on the issue. 

“I was just briefed that Mexico is dumping large amounts of raw sewage into the Tijuana River, and it’s now seeping into the U.S.,” he posted to X on March 8. “This is unacceptable. Mexico MUST honor its commitments to control this pollution and sewage!” 

Local leaders have been sounding the alarm on the sewage problem. Imperial Beach’s Mayor Paloma Aguirre sent a letter to Zeldin in March describing how the raw sewage has sparked one of “America’s most horrendous environmental and public health disasters,” as billions of gallons have polluted the Pacific Ocean since 2023 alone.

MEXICAN SEWAGE GUSHING INTO NAVY SEAL TRAINING WATERS IS US’ ‘NEXT CAMP LEJEUNE,’ VETS WARN

Aerial view of Tijuana, Mexico, top, and San Diego, California (Getty Images)

“The toxic sewage coming across the border from Mexico into South San Diego County is among America’s most horrendous environmental and public health disasters,” Aguirre’s March 3 letter to Zeldin, published online, reads. “Since 2023, over 31 billion gallons of raw sewage, polluted stormwater and trash have flowed across the Mexican border, down the Tijuana River, through the cities of San Diego and Imperial Beach and into the Pacific Ocean.” 

“Our residents, are getting ill due to polluted air,” the letter continued. “Workers, including Navy Seals training in the area, have been sickened on the job by waterborne and aerosolized diseases. Many homeowners have been forced to place air quality monitors on their property so they know whether or not it’s safe to go outside. And the economic impact is profound, with the sewage crisis hurting area tourism, maritime industry jobs and local property values.” 

San Diego is one of the nation’s top cities for tourism – behind other national treasures such as New York City, New Orleans and Washington, D.C. – attracting roughly 32 million tourists to the city in 2024, the San Diego Tourism Authority previously reported. 

SAN DIEGO SUBURB FACES ‘SEWAGE CRISIS’ FROM LOCAL BEACH

During his visit to San Diego last month, Zeldin vowed to bring an end to the issue as Californians run out of patience with the crisis. 

A SEAL class participates in a surf passage training exercise at Naval Amphibious Base Coronado in Coronado, California. (Getty Images)

“The Americans on our side of the border who have been dealing with this… for decades, are out of patience,” Zeldin said at a Tuesday press conference in San Diego. “There’s no way that we are going to stand before the people of California and ask them to have more patience and just bear with all of us as we go through the next 10 or 20 or 30 years of being stuck in 12 feet of raw sewage and not getting anywhere.”

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“So we are all out of patience,” he continued. “There’s a very limited opportunity. We’re in good faith, both on the American side and also on the Mexican side, what’s being communicated by the new Mexican president is an intense desire to fully resolve this situation.” 

Under the floorboards of the U.S. Capitol lie hidden staircases and passageways left over from the iconic building’s original construction in the 18th century, a viral video posted by Republican North Carolina Rep. Tim Moore shows. 

“Construction started in the 1700s and there are all sorts of little hidden passageways. As you saw, I just pulled this cover up, and you can see,” Moore said in a video posted to his official congressional X account on Friday, showing a secret door in the floor of the Capitol. 

The U.S. Capitol’s construction was commissioned in 1793, with President George Washington laying the cornerstone that same year. The original building was completed in 1826, with various expansions made across the decades, such as a visitor center that opened in 2008. 

SECRETS OF THE CAPITOL ROTUNDA

Congressman Tim Moore opens a passageway in the U.S. Capitol. (Rep. Tim Moore/X)

Moore took viewers inside the Capitol’s Lincoln Room, which he said is one of his favorites to show visitors to Washington, D.C., noting it’s where Abraham Lincoln would sit by a fire and read letters when he served as a congressman representing Illinois from 1847-1849. 

TRUMP TO BUILD NATIONAL CENTER FOR HOMELESS VETERANS WITH FUNDS PREVIOUSLY SPENT ON HOUSING FOR ILLEGAL ALIENS

“But the most interesting part of the room is underneath the floorboards,” Moore posted to X. 

The North Carolina Republican opened a hidden door on the floor, revealing a dusty and historic staircase leading to what appeared to be another room below. 

TRUMP TO CREATE TASK FORCE TO PLAN ‘EXTRAORDINARY CELEBRATION’ FOR 250TH ANNIVERSARY OF AMERICA’S INDEPENDENCE

“We’re just off of what’s called Statuary Hall, which at one time was the actual House chamber.… But this is just an example of some of the little hidden secrets in the Capitol,” Moore said. 

North Carolina Republican Rep. Tim Moore filmed a video showing the hidden secrets of the U.S. Capitol. (Rep. Tim Moore/X)

The lawmaker added that he heard through Capitol building lore that the staircase under the Lincoln Room was used by British soldiers in the War of 1812 to set fire to the historic building. Known as the “Burning of Washington,” British soldiers in August 1814 set fire to the U.S. Capitol, the Washington Navy Yard and the White House – which was then known as the Presidential Mansion – before storms put out the fires and military personnel were called to D.C. to defend it from British forces. The War of 1812 ended in 1815. 

TRUMP TO CREATE TASK FORCE TO PLAN ‘EXTRAORDINARY CELEBRATION’ FOR 250TH ANNIVERSARY OF AMERICA’S INDEPENDENCE

President Donald Trump is preparing for massive celebrations in 2026 in honor of the nation’s founding 250 years ago. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Moore’s tour of the secret staircase comes as President Donald Trump prepares to kick off America’s 250th anniversary of its founding on July 4, 2026. Trump signed an executive order just days after his inauguration this year detailing how his administration will prepare for the massive celebration, including launching a White House task force, building monuments celebrating the nation’s founding and historical leaders, and protecting monuments from vandalism following such attacks during the riots and protests that swept the nation in 2020. 

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The Army will hold a 250th anniversary of its founding next month with a planned parade that will stretch from Arlington, Virginia, to the National Mall.

President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social Saturday night that “great progress” had been made during weekend trade negotiations with China.

During the meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, between U.S. officials, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and a Chinese delegation, “many things” were discussed and “much [was] agreed to,” Trump said.

No major breakthrough was announced in discussions that lasted over 10 hours, The Associated Press reported, and negotiations are scheduled to continue Sunday. 

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent leaves to meet with Chinese officials on tariffs in Geneva, Switzerland, Saturday. (Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images)

PIVOTAL TRADE TALKS WITH BEIJING LOOM AS TRUMP SWEARS IN NEW US AMBASSADOR TO CHINA: ‘WHAT TIMING’

The administration announced a round of tariffs April 2 and later imposed a 145% tariff on Chinese goods.

After reducing reciprocal tariffs on other countries for 90 days to a baseline of 10%, China raised tariffs on U.S. goods to 125%.

Members of the Chinese delegation leave the site where trade talks between Chinese and U.S. delegations took place in Geneva, Switzerland, Saturday. (Reuters/Denis Balibouse)

TRUMP IS COMMITTED TO 10% BASELINE TARIFF, WHITE HOUSE SAYS, DESPITE UK TRADE DEAL ANNOUNCEMENT

On Thursday, Trump told reporters at the White House China “very much” wanted to make a deal, ending the intense tariff battle.

While the president did not provide many specifics Saturday night, he described the agreement as “a total reset negotiated in a friendly, but constructive, manner.”

“We want to see, for the good of both China and the U.S., an opening up of China to American business,” Trump wrote in the post. “GREAT PROGRESS MADE!!!”

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent heads to trade talks between Chinese and U.S. delegations in Geneva, Switzerland.  (Reuters/Denis Balibouse)

TRUMP SAYS 80% TARIFF ON CHINA ‘SEEMS RIGHT’ AHEAD OF WEEKEND TALKS WITH BEIJING

A longtime supporter of tariffs, Trump argued that “fair” duties could address the nation’s record $1.2 trillion trade deficit from 2024 and encourage the return of U.S. manufacturing jobs.

Bessent said in April the tariffs could cost China up to 10 million jobs, making Chinese tariffs unsustainable.

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“Even if there is a drop in the tariffs, they could lose 5 million jobs,” Bessent told White House reporters. “Remember that we are the deficit country. They sell almost five times more goods to us than we sell to them. So, the onus will be on them to take off these tariffs.”

Fox News Digital’s Diana Stancy and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Arizona Sen. Ruben Gallego defended beleaguered fellow Democrat John Fetterman Saturday, saying “there needs to be space” in the party for the Pennsylvania senator.

Fetterman, who won election to his seat in 2022 despite having a stroke on the campaign trail, has been under fire from Democrats, even former staffers who claim to have witnessed erratic behavior. 

But Fetterman has also clashed with his party’s progressive wing on Israel and other issues, and his supporters say it is his independent streak that is prompting the whispers. 

“There needs to be space for Fetterman and for other senators in our caucus,” Gallego said in an interview in Pennsylvania Saturday, Politico reported. “He still is a senator that fights for working-class people. We may not be 100% in agreement a lot of times in a lot of areas, but we don’t have to be.”

LEAKS TO MEDIA ABOUT FETTERMAN ARE A COORDINATED SMEAR CAMPAIGN, HILL COLLEAGUES SAYS

Gallego was referring to Fetterman’s stance on Israel, his suggestion that Democrats need to work with President Donald Trump, not against him, and occasionally voting for the president’s nominees when other Democrats won’t. 

The senator, who spent more than a month in the neuropsychiatry unit at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in 2023 receiving treatment for depression, has also been the subject of several media stories recently that claim he has exhibited strange behavior that has concerned Democrats. 

Arizona Sen. Ruben Gallego said Saturday “there needs to be space” for Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman  (Getty Inages)

“This is so blatantly coordinated,” media observer and Fox News contributor Joe Concha wrote on social media this week. He shared a link in his post to a Politico report claiming an internal Democratic poll found Fetterman’s popularity faltering in his part of the Keystone State.

The report claimed Fetterman had fallen below 50% in Democratic voter support in Pittsburgh, just a few miles west of Braddock, where he was previously mayor.

Fellow Pennsylvania Sen. Dave McCormick, a Republican, called the reports “vicious, personal attacks.” 

“He is authentic, decent, principled and a fighter,” McCormick said. “These disgraceful smears against him are not the John that I know and respect.”

Republican Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas wrote, “The radical left is smearing him with dishonest, vicious attacks because he’s pro-Israel, and they only want reliable anti-Israel politicians.”

Sen. John Fetterman has been the subject of several media stories recently that claim he has exhibited erratic behavior, concerning Democrats.  (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

SENATOR SAYS DEMS ‘EAT THEIR OWN’ AS FETTERMAN FACES RENEWED SCRUTINY

Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa posted to X, “The media ought to lay off Senator Fetterman.”

Gallego on Saturday warned that the GOP is defending Fetterman with the hope of bringing him further right. 

“In the Marines, we call these f—-f— games,” Gallego said, according to Politico. 

Pennsylvania Sen. Dave McCormick, a Republican, called the reports “vicious, personal attacks,” adding of Fetterman, “He is authentic, decent, principled and a fighter. These disgraceful smears against him are not the John that I know and respect.” (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

When asked by an audience member during the town hall why he did a fundraiser with a pro-Trump businessman, Gallego said the man runs “the largest venture capital firm in Arizona.”

“We got so pure that we started kicking people out of the tent. It ends up there aren’t enough people in the tent to win elections,” he added.

But Gallego also had harsh words for the Trump administration.

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“Be mad, stay mad and we fight,” he told Democrats during the town hall of how to deal with Trump’s presidency. “How do we fight? We fight them in the courts everywhere we can. We fight in the courts because we believe in the Constitution of the United States. You believe in it, and the country believes in it. … We believe in the United States.”

FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino shared a detailed update Saturday about the bureau’s operations, making clear the agency is focused on removing dangerous criminals and protecting children.

In a post on X, Bongino outlined several priorities and took aim at what he called misleading media coverage of the FBI’s work.

“The workforce has been working overtime on task force operations to remove dangerous illegal aliens from the country. The work continues,” Bongino wrote. “If you came here illegally to prey on our citizens, your days here are numbered.”

He said these operations are only getting started and will ramp up in the coming weeks.

RUBIO JUST GOT AN ADDITIONAL JOB IN TRUMP’S ADMINISTRATION — AND HE’S NOT THE ONLY ONE WEARING MULTIPLE HATS

“After his swearing-in ceremony as FBI Deputy Director, Dan Bongino paid his respects at the Wall of Honor, honoring the brave members of the #FBI who made the ultimate sacrifice and reflecting on the legacy of those who paved the way in the pursuit of justice and security,” the FBI said in a post on X. (@FBI on X)

“These removal and incarceration operations will dramatically change the crime landscape in the country when combined with the administration’s laser-focus on sealing the border shut,” he added.

Bongino also pointed to a new initiative focused on protecting children from predators.

“Crimes against children are a priority for the workforce. Operation ‘Restoring Justice,’ where we locked up child predators and 764 subjects, in every part of the country, is just the beginning,” he said. “We are going to take your freedom if you take away a child’s innocence.”

He promised more enforcement efforts to come and warned those targeting children to “think twice.”

205 ARRESTED IN FBI CHILD SEX OPERATION, PATEL AND BONDI ANNOUNCE

Dan Bongino is sworn in to serve as deputy director of the FBI under Director Kash Patel. (@FBIDDBongino on X)

Bongino addressed the FBI’s efforts to respond to Congress and the public about several high-profile cases. These include the attack on Rep. Steve Scalise, the Nashville school shooting, the Crossfire Hurricane investigation and the origins of COVID-19. He also mentioned the ongoing work with the Department of Justice in the Jeffrey Epstein case.

“There are voluminous amounts of downloaded child sexual abuse material that we are dealing with,” he wrote. “There are also victims’ statements that are entitled to specific protections. We need to do this correctly, but I do understand the public’s desire to get the information out there.”

He also responded to what he described as false stories being spread by some in the media and came to the defense of FBI Director Patel. 

“He spends anywhere between 10 to 12 hours in the office attending meetings with everyone from foreign heads of law enforcement to our counter-terror teams,” Bongino wrote. “Any assertion otherwise is a verifiable lie designed to stop our reforms and fracture your trust. I will die on this hill. You are being clearly lied to by people with an agenda, and it’s not your agenda.”

He closed by thanking the public for its attention and encouraged Americans to keep watching the FBI’s progress.

“God bless America, and all those who defend Her,” he wrote.

Dan Bongino began his law enforcement career with the New York Police Department in 1995. He joined the United States Secret Service in 1999 and later served on the elite Presidential Protective Division for presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.

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After leaving government service, Bongino ran for office as a Republican in Maryland and Florida. Bongino also hosted a Saturday night show on Fox News Channel from 2021 to 2023.

He is the author of several books, including “Life Inside the Bubble,” a memoir about his time in the Secret Service.

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

As officials in the White House became increasingly concerned about the escalation in the conflict between Pakistan and India, it was decided Friday morning that Vice President JD Vance would call Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. 

Twenty-four hours before President Donald Trump announced on social media Saturday morning that a ceasefire had been reached, the scramble in the White House began. 

Senior officials began to fear that the situation could spiral out of control with neither side seriously considering options for de-escalation after Pakistan hit back at Indian military sites on Friday following an Indian missile attack on Pakistan. 

The strikes mark the latest escalation between the nuclear-armed rivals, a move triggered by a mass shooting for which India blames Pakistan.

PAKISTAN SAYS IT HAS STRUCK MILITARY TARGETS INSIDE INDIA IN SERIES OF NEW ATTACKS

Twenty-four hours before President Donald Trump announced on social media Saturday morning that a ceasefire had been reached, the scramble in the White House began.  (Francis Chung/Politico/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

In his noon phone call with Modi, Vance made it clear that the U.S. believed that there was a high probability of dramatic escalation as the conflict went into the weekend. 

The vice president encouraged Modi to consider de-escalation options, including a potential off-ramp that U.S. officials knew the Pakistanis would be amenable to. 

Modi listened to the vice president’s message, although he didn’t explicitly indicate openness to any of the options put forth. 

Vance’s call to Modi came less than a month after he met with the Indian leader in New Delhi to discuss trade talks. 

From that point, key U.S. officials continued to work the phones with their counterparts in India and Pakistan into the night to help re-establish communications between the two sides, allowing them to work out terms for a ceasefire in the next 12 to 18 hours. 

PAKISTAN, INDIA SUGGEST POSSIBLE DE-ESCALATION AMID BOTH COUNTRIES’ MISSILE STRIKES

As officials in the White House became increasingly concerned about the escalation in the conflict between Pakistan and India, it was decided on Friday morning that Vice President JD Vance would call Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.  (Jeff Swensen/Getty Images)

“After a long night of talks mediated by the United States, I am pleased to announce that India and Pakistan have agreed to a FULL AND IMMEDIATE CEASEFIRE,” President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social just before 8 a.m. on Saturday. Congratulations to both Countries on using Common Sense and Great Intelligence. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

House Republican Conference Chair Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Mich., reacted to the president’s announcement by referring to him in a post on X as “The Peace President.”

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio noted in a statement that he and Vance had engaged with officials from the two foreign countries.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets Vice President JD Vance and his family at his residence in New Delhi, India on April 21.  (Press Information Bureau/Anadolu via Getty Images)

“Over the past 48 hours, Vice President Vance and I have engaged with senior Indian and Pakistani officials, including Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and Shehbaz Sharif, External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Chief of Army Staff Asim Munir, and National Security Advisors Ajit Doval and Asim Malik,” Rubio said in the statement. 

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“I am pleased to announce the Governments of India and Pakistan have agreed to an immediate ceasefire and to start talks on a broad set of issues at a neutral site,” he continued. “We commend Prime Ministers Modi and Sharif on their wisdom, prudence, and statesmanship in choosing the path of peace.”

Vance wrote in a post on X, “Great work from the President’s team, especially Secretary Rubio. And my gratitude to the leaders of India and Pakistan for their hard work and willingness to engage in this ceasefire.”

A bronze sculpture depicting the attempted assassination attempt on President Donald Trump in Butler, PA, last year was seen displayed in the Oval Office on Friday.

The commanding piece of symbolic art, which appeared to be at least 12 inches tall, was seen next to Trump’s Resolute Desk as he signed a series of executive orders in front of the press. 

It depicts the now-iconic image of then-candidate Trump being hauled off stage by three Secret Service members – including the current director of the agency, Sean Curran – after would-be assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks fired off several bullets from a nearby rooftop at Butler Farm Show Grounds on July 13.

A statue depicting the attempted assassination attempt on President Donald Trump in Butler, PA, last year was displayed in the Oval Office on Friday. (Rebecca Droke/AFP via Getty Images, left and AP Photo/Alex Brandon, bottom left and right. )

LIFE-SIZE SCULPTURE OF ‘FIGHTING’ TRUMP MADE FROM NAILS UNVEILED AT ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT SITE

Trump ducked to the ground as the bullets rang out, and he was then lifted to his feet by the Secret Service agents.

As they tried to move him off stage, Trump stopped and turned to the crowd, holding his clenched fist in the air and famously shouting, “Fight! Fight! Fight!” as blood dripped from his ear after it was grazed by a bullet. 

The image soon went viral and became a defining moment of the 2024 presidential election, portraying powerful symbolism of Trump’s resilience, bravery and fearlessness. The event galvanized Trump’s base and influenced others to get behind his campaign.

The artwork shows then-candidate Trump holding his clenched fist in the air and being hauled off stage by three Secret Service members. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

PHOTOGRAPHER WINS PULITZER FOR ICONIC PHOTO OF BULLET SPEEDING BY TRUMP’S HEAD DURING ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT

The sculpture itself is rendered in dark bronze tones with a muted Old Glory flag draped vertically behind.

The White House did not say why the statue was there on the day or whether it had been presented to the president. 

The work appears to be a maquette of a proposed statue in the works by artist Stan Watts of the Trump Statue Project, who are planning on creating a nine-foot replica to honor the president.

“This powerful image, embodying ‘Confidence, Strength, and Hope,’ will be immortalized in this nine-foot-tall statue,” the group’s website reads. “It symbolizes the divine intervention as well as the man and his message of unity and resilience for which America stands.”

Trump reacts as multiple shots rang out during a campaign rally at the Butler Farm Show in Butler, Pennsylvania on Saturday, July 13, 2024.  (Reuters/Brendan McDermid)

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Watts has also created notable statues of founding fathers John Adams, Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson as well as monuments to Martin Luther King Jr., and 9/11 firefighters raising the American flag at the World Trade Center.

Last year, Butler artist Bill Secunda revealed he had created a life-sized sculpture of Trump made out of nails to mark the failed assassination attempt.

President Donald Trump on Friday signed an executive order establishing the first ever self-deportation program which incentivizes illegal migrants to voluntarily leave the country in a free flight and with a cash bonus.

The new program, titled “Project Homecoming,” authorizes government-funded flights and offers money to illegal migrants willing to self-deport. 

Trump announced the signing of the order in a video post on Truth Social and said that the program will end up saving taxpayers “billions and billions” of dollars. 

President Donald Trump announcing the establishment of the first ever self-deportation program which incentivizes illegal migrants to voluntarily leave the country. (@realDonaldTrump via Truth Social)

DHS UNLEASHES POSSIBLE MONEY-SAVING MEASURE FOR ILLEGAL ALIENS TO SELF-DEPORT: ‘SAFEST OPTION’

“We are making it as easy as possible for illegal aliens to leave America. Any illegal alien can simply show up at an airport and receive a free flight out of our country,” Trump said. 

“Illegals can book a free flight to any foreign country as long as it’s not here. You can go anywhere you want.”

Trump added that illegal migrants will be offered a “very important exit bonus” to leave. 

Homeland Security said earlier this week that migrants would be offered a $1,000 stipend each to leave. The department said this will be 70% cheaper for American taxpayers, as it currently costs DHS, on average, over $17,000 to arrest, detain, and deport someone.

“This deportation bonus will save American taxpayers billions and billions of dollars,” Trump said.

Venezuelan migrants deported from the United States arrive at Simon Bolivar International Airport in Maiquetia, Venezuela, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Cristian Hernandez)

ICE FILES DETAINERS AGAINST 2 ILLEGAL ALIENS, INCLUDING 1 FACING ATTEMPTED MURDER CHARGES FOR SHOOTING SPREE

He advised illegal migrants to use the Homeland Security CBP One app to arrange their deportations. The Biden-era app was previously used to expedite migrants to schedule appointments at official ports of entry before they were paroled into the U.S. That function was ended on the first day of Trump’s second term and the app is now being used to encourage migrants to self-deport and notify some migrants that their legal status has been revoked.

Trump said that there would be stiff consequences for those who do not comply with his order, but added that migrants who have behaved in the U.S. may get a chance to come back in – as long as they follow the rules of the new plan.

“Illegal aliens who stay in America face punishments, including significant jail time, enormous financial penalties, confiscation of all property, garnishment of all wages, imprisonment and incarceration and sudden deportation, in a place, and manner solely of our discretion,” Trump said.

“So to all illegal aliens who book your free flight right now, we want you out of America. But if you’re really good, we’re going to try and help you get back in.”

This split shows the CBP One app and Homrland Security Secretary Kristi Noem ((Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP and Sandy Huffaker/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The White House said the financial incentives will benefit Americans in the long-term, given it estimates that illegal migrants will cost taxpayers $150 billion in FY 2023 alone. 

“Over the last 4 years, the United States has endured a full-scale invasion of aliens entering and remaining in the country illegally, causing a relentless onslaught of crime, vagrancy, violence, and death in countless American communities,” the White House said in a statement.

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“This lawless invasion has also limited the capacity of American schools and hospitals to provide for American citizens and has diverted billions of dollars in Federal, State, and local social services from Americans in need.”

Trump also took a shot at former President Biden, whose administration oversaw record numbers of border crossers.

“What Biden did to this country can never be explained. Will never, ever be accepted. Eventually, when the illegals are gone, it will save us trillions of dollars,” Trump said. 

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, mocked “crazy town” Democrats for defending illegal immigrants like alleged MS-13 gang member and Salvadoran national Kilmar Abrego Garcia over U.S. citizens, saying that many seem to have an incurable case of Trump derangement syndrome.

Cruz’s comments came after several Democratic lawmakers, including Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen, traveled to El Salvador to advocate for Abrego Garcia’s return to the U.S. after he was deported to his home country. The remarks also came just before Newark, N.J., Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested Friday after joining several members of Congress in storming an ICE detention facility.

“It is a very bizarre political decision that the Democrats have made,” Cruz said. “They have decided that they are the party of illegal immigrants and the party of gang members.”

“The vast majority of Americans,” he went on, “don’t want more gang members and violent criminals in this country, and it really is a shame the Democrats have gotten so extreme in their hatred of Donald Trump that the one thing they can stand for is more illegals and more gang members.”

DEM IMMIGRATION TALKING POINTS FIZZLE AS DARK PICTURE OF ABREGO GARCIA EMERGES

Senator Ted Cruz, R-Texas, mocked “crazy town” Democrats for defending Salvadoran illegal immigrants like alleged MS-13 gang member Kilmar Abrego Garcia over U.S. citizens.

Bringing up Van Hollen’s and other Democrats’ trips to El Salvador on behalf of Abrego Garcia, Cruz said: “We’re seeing Democrat senators, Democrat house members flying down to El Salvador and putting all their political capital behind the position that we need more illegal immigrants in America, we need more criminals in America, and we need more MS-13 gang members in America.”

“I think Trump derangement syndrome is a real mental illness,” he went on. “I think they hate Donald Trump so much that it has driven them to crazy town. . . . Why is it that Democrats care so much about supporting violent criminal illegal aliens, they care so much about supporting MS-13 gang members?”

Though many Democrats claim that Abrego Garcia is an innocent man who was wrongly deported, the administration has pointed to considerable evidence that he is a member of the MS-13 gang.

According to police and court records shared with Fox News Digital, Abrego Garcia was arrested in Hyattsville, Maryland, in October 2019, at which point he was identified by the Prince George’s County Police Gang Unit as an MS-13 gang member. 

WHO IS THE DEMOCRATIC GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE ARRESTED FOR TRESPASSING AT AN ICE DETENTION CENTER?

An undated photo of Kilmar Abrego Garcia.  (Murray Osorio PLLC via AP)

A federal immigration court in Baltimore further determined that Abrego Garcia was not eligible for release, because he had “failed to meet his burden of demonstrating that his release from custody would not pose a danger to others, as the evidence shows that he is a verified member of MS-13.”

Several DHS sources have confirmed to Fox News Digital records indicating that Abrego Garcia also had been pulled over by a Tennessee highway patrol trooper while driving an SUV belonging to Jose Ramon Hernandez Reyes, another illegal alien who in 2020 confessed to human smuggling across the U.S.-Mexico border.

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Fox News Digital has also reviewed court documents filed by Abrego Garcia’s wife, Jennifer Vasquez Sura, alleging that he had seriously beaten and verbally abused her multiple times and mentally abused her children.

In April, the Supreme Court upheld a lower court’s decision ordering the Trump administration to arrange Abrego Garcia’s return. 

MS-13, TREN DE ARAGUA TARGETED FOR DEATH BLOW IN NEW GOP BILL AIMED AT MIGRANT CRIME

Jennifer, Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s wife, cries as Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D) speaks during a press conference after returning from El Salvador, where he had met with the man, on April 18, 2025, at Dulles International Airport in Dulles, VA. (Pete Kiehart for The Washington Post via Getty Images)

The court required the “government to ‘facilitate’ Abrego Garcia’s release from custody in El Salvador and to ensure that his case is handled as it would have been had he not been improperly sent to El Salvador.” 

The Trump administration agreed to clear any administrative obstacles keeping Abrego Garcia from returning to the U.S., but Attorney General Pam Bondi has said that returning him is “up to El Salvador if they want to return him. That’s not up to us.” 

After Fox News Digital asked Van Hollen whether he was aware of the domestic violence allegations against Abrego Garcia before he went to visit him in El Salvador, the senator became defensive, saying: “What I said here was these issues need to be litigated in the courts, okay?”

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“What Donald Trump needs to do is put up or shut up in the courts, and he’s just not done that,” he went on.

“My response is, always stick to the Constitution, stick to the due process rights of people who live in America, and if we all do that, then we’ll be doing the right thing for our country.” 

President Donald Trump and his administration inked a major trade deal with the U.K. Thursday, and closed the week gearing up for trade talks with China over the weekend. 

Details of the specific trade plan with the U.K. are sparse, but the deal keeps the existing 10% tariffs in place against U.K. goods while removing some import taxes on items like steel and cars. 

“With this deal, the U.K. joins the United States in affirming that reciprocity and fairness is an essential and vital principle of international trade,” Trump said Thursday. “The deal includes billions of dollars of increased market access for American exports, especially in agriculture, dramatically increasing access for American beef, ethanol and virtually all of the products produced by our great farmers.” 

TRUMP SIGNALS CHINA ‘VERY MUCH’ INTERESTED IN SECURING TRADE DEAL AHEAD OF SWITZERLAND NEGOTIATIONS

President Donald Trump along with Vice President JD Vance and Peter Mandelson, British Ambassador to the United States, third from left, listen as Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain speaks on the speakerphone in the Oval Office at the White House May 8, 2025, following Trump’s U.K. trade deal announcement. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

The deal is the first historic trade negotiation signed following Liberation Day, when Trump announced widespread tariffs for multiple countries April 2 at a range of rates. 

The administration later adjusted its initial proposal and announced April 9 it would immediately impose a 145% tariff on Chinese goods, while reducing reciprocal tariffs on other countries for 90 days to a baseline of 10%. China responded by raising tariffs on U.S. goods to 125%.

Trump also shed some insight into trade negotiations with China, given that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is scheduled to kick off trade negotiations with China in Switzerland Saturday. 

“Scott’s going to be going to Switzerland, meeting with China,” Trump told reporters Thursday at the White House. “And you know, they very much want to make a deal. We can all play games. Who made the first call, who didn’t make them? It doesn’t matter. Only matters what happens in that room. But I will tell you that China very much wants to make a deal. We’ll see how that works out.”

Here’s what also happened this week: 

Meeting with Canada’s prime minister 

Trump also doubled down on his interest in expanding the U.S. during a Tuesday visit with Canada’s prime minister, Mark Carney. 

Trump regularly has said he wants Canada to become a U.S. state, and has discussed acquiring Greenland and the Panama Canal for security purposes. However, the matter of Canada isn’t open to negotiation, Carney said. 

“Having met with the owners of Canada over the course of the campaign the last several months, it’s not for sale,” Carney said at the White House Tuesday. “Won’t be for sale ever, but the opportunity is in the partnership and what we can build together. We have done that in the past, and part of that, as the president just said, is with respect to our security, and my government is committed for a step change in our investment in Canadian security and our partnership.”

CARNEY SAYS CANADA IS NOT FOR SALE, TRUMP REPLIES ‘NEVER SAY NEVER’

President Donald Trump meets with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, May 6, 2025.   (Jim Watson/AFP)

While Trump acknowledged that Canada was stepping up its investment in military security, he said, “Never say never” in response to Canada becoming another state. 

“I’ve had many, many things that were not doable, and they ended up being doable,” Trump said.

TRUMP PULLS HIS NOMINATION FOR DC US ATTORNEY, SAYS HE’LL REVEAL NEW PICK SOON 

Meeting with ballet dancer freed from Russian prison 

Trump also met with Russian-American ballet dancer, Ksenia Karelina, at the White House Monday. Karelina faced a sentence of 12 years in a Russian penal colony for treason in 2024, but the Trump administration negotiated her return to the U.S. during a U.S.-Russian prisoner swap in April. 

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Senior Director for Counterterrorism Sebastian Gorka takes a picture of US-Russian ballet dancer Ksenia Karelina and her boyfriend, South African boxer Chris van Heerden, at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, following Karelina’s release from Russia on April 10, 2025. (Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images)

“Mr. Trump, I’m so, so grateful for you to bring me home and for (the) American government. And I never felt more blessed to be American, and I’m so, so happy to get home,” Karelina said in a video posted by Trump deputy assistant Sebastian Gorka on April 11 upon her return to the U.S.

Karelina, a resident of Los Angeles who was born in Russia, was arrested in 2024 during a trip to visit family in Yekaterinburg, Russia. Russia Federal Security Service arrested her after inspecting her phone and finding a donation to a U.S.-based charity that supports Ukraine. 

Fox News’ Emma Colton contributed to this report. 

House Republicans released a portion of President Donald Trump’s tax agenda late on Friday evening, bringing them one step closer to completing the commander-in-chief’s “big, beautiful bill.”

The legislation includes an increased child tax credit (CTC), a higher threshold for estate tax liability – what Republicans have referred to as the “death tax” – and several other measures.

It also lays the groundwork for making Trump’s 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) permanent. Republican leaders had warned that failing to do so would lead to a tax increase of over 20% for millions of Americans, if TCJA were allowed to expire at the end of this year.

There is no information in the bill so far about state and local tax (SALT) deduction caps, which have been a significant point of contention between blue state Republicans critical to keeping the House majority, and GOP lawmakers from deeper red, lower-tax states.

SCOOP: REPUBLICANS DISCUSS DEFUNDING ‘BIG ABORTION’ LIKE PLANNED PARENTHOOD IN TRUMP AGENDA BILL

President Donald Trump is helping to get House Republicans’ budget bill over the line. (Getty Images)

Another notable exclusion is a new millionaires’ tax bracket. Trump had floated the idea of a small tax increase on the ultra-wealthy, and a source familiar with his thinking told Fox News Digital earlier this week that Trump was considering allowing a pre-TCJA 2.6% tax hike on people making $2.5 million per year or more.

Those measures and others are not necessarily excluded from the final bill, however. 

The legislation is also expected to include new Trump tax pledges like eliminating taxes on tips, overtime wages and Social Security checks for retirees.

More elements are expected to be added in the coming days via amendments. The full legislation is expected to advance through the Ways & Means Committee, the House’s tax-writing panel, on Tuesday afternoon.

Release of the legislation is a major sign of progress for House GOP leaders, who had been forced to punt their initial planned deadline of having a bill on Trump’s desk by sometime between Memorial Day and the Fourth of July.

But SALT deduction caps and a millionaire’s tax hike are two of the most volatile discussion points.

House Ways & Means Committee Chair Jason Smith said his panel will advance the bill on Tuesday. (Tom Williams)

House Republicans currently have a razor-thin three-vote margin, meaning they can afford to have little dissent and still pass anything without Democratic support.

They’re hoping to do just that, with virtually no Democrats currently on board with Trump’s massive Republican policy overhaul.

Republican lawmakers are working to pass their legislation via the budget-reconciliation process, which lowers the Senate’s passage threshold from 60 votes to 51, lining up the House’s own simple majority threshold.

Reconciliation allows the party in power to effectively skirt the minority and pass broad pieces of legislation – provided they address taxes, spending or the national debt.

Trump wants Republicans to use the maneuver to tackle his priorities on the border, immigration, taxes, defense, energy, and raising the debt ceiling.

BROWN UNIVERSITY IN GOP CROSSHAIRS AFTER STUDENT’S DOGE-LIKE EMAIL KICKS OFF FRENZY

Both the House and Senate passed frameworks setting the stage for the bill earlier this year.

Now, the relevant committees of jurisdiction on either side must craft policy in line with that framework, before all the parts are fitted into a final bill that must again pass both houses of Congress before being signed into law by Trump.

The most recent portion released by the House Ways & Means Committee would increase the current maximum CTC from $2,000 to $2,500.

It would also boost the maximum deduction for qualified business income, a tax provision known as 199A, from 20% to 22%. That would largely affect small business owners whose entities are taxed under individual income tax rates.

On the estate tax, which is levied on assets after person’s death, it raises the exemption level to $15 million from the current level of roughly $13.9 million.

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Republicans have long criticized the estate tax as a needless financial burden on grieving families, particularly hitting small family-owned businesses. Supporters of the federal estate tax point out that it affects a relatively small number of estates. 

“Seven years ago, the Trump tax cuts sparked an economic boom and provided needed relief to working families. Pro-family, pro-worker tax provisions are the heart of President Trump’s economic agenda that puts working families ahead of Washington and will create jobs, grow wages and investment and help usher in a new golden age of prosperity,” House Ways & Means Chairman Jason Smith, R-Mo., said in a statement on Friday night.

“Ways and Means Republicans have spent two years preparing for this moment, and we will deliver for the American people.”

Florida state Sen. Jason Pizzo, who announced last month that he was switching from Democrat to no party affiliation, has revealed that he plans a Sunshine State gubernatorial bid.

“Yes I am,” Pizzo said after CBS News Miami’s Jim Defede asked the state senator whether he plans to run for governor.

In a written statement to Fox News Digital, Pizzo declared, “Florida is ready for someone to put people before party, and get back to basics in public service. The state is facing significant fiscal and resiliency challenges, and I’m [the] best one to guide us through.”

SUNSHINE STATE DEM ANNOUNCES SWITCH TO NO AFFILIATION: ‘DEMOCRATIC PARTY IN FLORIDA IS DEAD’

Florida State Sen. Jason Pizzo speaks during the Broward Housing Council 2024 Affordable Housing Workshop on Condo Reform at the Anne Kolb Nature Center in Hollywood, Florida, on Oct. 30, 2024.  (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

Current Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican who is currently serving his second term, is not eligible to run for governor again in 2026.

The state constitution stipulates, “No person who has, or but for resignation would have, served as governor or acting governor for more than six years in two consecutive terms shall be elected governor for the succeeding term.”

FLORIDA STATE SENATOR WHO QUIT DEMOCRATIC PARTY SLAMS IT AS ‘RUDDERLESS’ AND ‘WITHOUT DIRECTION’

U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla. announced a bid for the job in February after President Donald Trump publicly urged him to do so.

DESANTIS SIGNS BILL BANNING FLUORIDE ADDITIVES IN FLORIDA PUBLIC WATER: ‘HYDRATE, NOT MEDICATE’ 

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“Byron Donalds would be a truly Great and Powerful Governor for Florida and, should he decide to run, will have my Complete and Total Endorsement. RUN, BYRON, RUN!” Trump declared in a February Truth Social post.

LEWISTON, MAINE – EXCLUSIVE – Former two-term Gov. Paul LePage of Maine says President Donald Trump is a major reason why he’s coming out of political retirement at age 76 – and he’s eyeing a campaign comeback.

“I never, ever had any aspirations to go to Washington until now,” LePage said this week in his first national interview after launching his bid for the House in Maine’s Second Congressional District, which is a top swing seat the GOP aims to flip in the 2026 midterm elections.

The contest will likely be one of the most closely watched House races in the country next year as the Republicans aim to hold their fragile majority in the chamber.

“Donald Trump, I think, is doing what is necessary in addressing the debt this country is facing. And I think that’s a big, big thing for me,” LePage said as he was interviewed in the Maine city where he was born and raised.

HOUSE REPUBLICAN CAMPAIGN CHAIR SPELLS OUT HIS PLAYBOOK TO HOLD THE CONGRESSIONAL MAJORITY

Former Republican Gov. Paul LePage, who is running for the House in 2026 in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District, speaks with Fox News Digital in Lewiston, Maine, on May 7, 2025, in his first interview after announcing his candidacy.  (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)

LePage highlighted, “I have a friend in the White House right now. I know President Trump. I think I can have an audience of President Trump. I know several of his secretaries very well. And so I think this is a good time. It’s a good time for me to go help.”

LePage – the brash and blunt politician who won over blue-collar workers struggling with economic woes, which helped the Republican businessman win election and re-election in the blue-leaning state – was one of the first major GOP elected officials to endorse Trump when the president first ran for the White House nearly a decade ago.

“I was Donald Trump before Donald Trump became popular,” LePage joked at the time, in a line that’s since become famous.

The conservative governor, who grabbed national attention with controversial comments made during his tenure, briefly moved with his wife, Ann, to Florida after finishing his second term in 2019.

“I am done with politics. I have done my eight years. It’s time for somebody else,” he said at the time.

CONGRESSIONAL DEMOCRATS TARGETING THESE HOUSE REPUBLICANS IN 2026 MIDTERM BATTLE

But LePage re-established residency in Maine five years ago and challenged his successor as governor, Democratic Gov. Janet Mills, in the 2022 election.

LePage ended up losing his bid for a third term by 13 points to Mills, but he did carry the 2nd Congressional District in that race.

Moderate Democratic Rep. Jared Golden, a U.S. Marine veteran who deployed to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and who often bucks his own party in Congress, has held the seat since first winning it in 2018.

Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, at a news conference in the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, March 6, 2024, has represented Maine’s 2nd Congressional District since first winning the seat in 2018. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc. via Getty Images)

But Golden won re-election by a razor-thin margin last year in the district, which is the second-most rural in the U.S. and the largest east of the Mississippi River.

And Trump, who carried the district in the 2016, 2020 and 2024 presidential elections by nine, seven and 10 points, earned an electoral vote each time, as Maine and Nebraska, are the only two states in the union to allocate their electoral votes partially by congressional district.

MAINE’S GOLDEN TAKES AIM AT FELLOW DEMOCRATS OVER POLICY

Golden, in a statement after LePage announced his candidacy, said, “I thought Paul was doing his best work in retirement.”

But the 42-year-old Golden has yet to announce whether he’ll seek re-election next year or instead run for either the state’s Senate seat or the open governor’s office.

In his Fox News interview, LePage reiterated that the nation’s debt is a top motivation for him to return to politics. As of May 8, the national debt was $36,212,886,111,158.26, according to Fox News’ National Debt Tracker. 

“It’s the spending and the debt that this country has, and I’m worried about my grandchildren, great-grandchildren. And I think we have a president now that’s really willing to tackle it, and I’m willing to help,” he said.

But LePage added that “the other thing that is really big is what’s happening in our country with the woke environment. I think I want to be there to help clean that up if we can. Having boys play in girls’ sports is really sad.”

He also highlighted his Tuesday meeting—part of a three-day swing through the congressional district—with Maine student Cassidy Carlisle, whom he described as “the courageous young woman fighting unfair male competition in girls’ sports.”

Maine’s 2nd Congressional District shares a long border with Canada.

When asked if he’ll be spotlighting border security and immigration as major issues in his campaign, Lepage said, “Big time.”

But the controversial tariffs the president placed on nations across the globe last month has strained relations with Canada.

Former Maine Gov. Paul LePage, who’s running a Republican campaign for Congress in 2026, speaks to a voter at a gun shop and indoor firing range, on May 7, 2025, in Poland, Maine. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)

“I’m all for the tariffs,” LePage said. “The tariffs will fix our international trade and lower taxes.”

LePage acknowledged: “Is it going to hurt in the short term? Yeah, it’s going to hurt a little bit in the short term, but I think it’s necessary.”

And he predicted that “the tariffs are going to be a short-term problem. I think they’re going to settle out.”

LePage spoke with Fox News at Lewiston’s Franco Center, a performing arts center and historic site of Franco-American culture located in a former Gothic church built in 1907 for French Canadian immigrants in Maine, which is located alongside the city’s historical mills and canals. 

Former Maine Gov. Paul LePage, who’s running a 2026 Republican campaign for Congress, tours the Franco Center, a performing arts center and historic site of Franco-American culture located in a former Gothic church in the city of Lewiston, on May 7, 2025. Lepage was baptized as a child in the church. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)

The former governor, who survived a troubling and often brutal upbringing, gave Fox News a tour of the many dwellings within blocks of the Franco Center, where he spent his childhood.

The eldest son of 18 children, LePage grew up speaking French in an impoverished home with an alcoholic and abusive father who was a mill worker.

At age 11, he ran away from home after his father beat him and broke his nose. He lived on the streets of Lewiston and often crashed on friends’ couches for a couple of years before earning a living shining shoes, washing dishes at a restaurant, and haling boxes for a local truck driver. 

“I had a very, very, rough upbringing as a youth. We were in welfare, we were in poverty,” he said.

Former Maine Gov. Paul LePage points in the location of a building where he lived during his childhood, in Lewiston, Maine, on May 7, 2025. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)

LePage, speaking in the church where he was baptized and sought refuge during his family troubles, told Fox News, “It feels good coming in this building. This was a special building. A couple of nuns and priests were really helpful in my upbringing.”

He went on to graduate from high school, and with financial help from friends, attended and graduated from college.

He later enjoyed success as a businessman, including greatly expanding Marden’s Surplus and Salvage, a Maine-based discount store chain.

Years later, he ventured into politics, winning election to the Waterville city council and later serving as the city’s mayor before winning statewide office in 2010.

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The former governor says his rough childhood has influenced his political life in a way that not many other politicians can understand.

And he lamented, “Unfortunately, the mentality in the current society is not to help people get out of poverty, but it’s to keep them in poverty.”

“I want to help get them out of poverty,” he said. “I think there are so many programs that we can institute that will elevate people in poverty, rather than keep them.”

The Trump administration plans to bring white Afrikaners from South Africa to the United States as refugees starting next week after saying they are “victims of unjust racial discrimination.”

The arrival of more than two dozen Afrikaners, likely on Monday, comes as the administration has suspended most refugee resettlement programs. 

“What’s happening in South Africa fits the textbook definition of why the refugee program was created,” Stephen Miller told reporters on Friday. “This is persecution based on a protected characteristic — in this case, race. This is race-based persecution.”

The South African government has approved legislation which, under some circumstances, allows for expropriation of land without compensation.

He said the first wave of refugees would be part of a “much larger-scale relocation effort.”

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION MAKES NEW MOVE TO BRING SOUTH AFRICAN REFUGEES TO US AS PRESIDENT BLASTS NATION’S RULERS AGAIN

The Trump administration plans to bring white Afrikaners from South Africa to the United States as refugees starting next week after saying they are “victims of unjust racial discrimination.” (Reuters//Siphiwe Sibeko)

The Afrikaners are expected to be met by a government delegation, including the deputy Secretary of State and officials from the Department of Health and Human Services, according to documents obtained by the Associated Press. 

Amid his immigration crackdown, Trump said in January the U.S. will only admit refugees who “can fully and appropriately assimilate.”

The State Department said: “The U.S. Embassy in Pretoria has been conducting interviews and processing pursuant to President Trump’s Executive Order on Addressing Egregious Actions of the Republic of South Africa. The Department of State is prioritizing consideration for U.S. refugee resettlement of Afrikaners in South Africa who are victims of unjust racial discrimination.”

Afrikaners are mainly descended from early Dutch settlers in South Africa. 

South Africa’s government has criticized the Trump administration’s effort, saying it doesn’t recognize the country’s history of colonialism and apartheid. 

The refugees will be sent to states like Minnesota, Idaho and Alabama. 

JD VANCE CLASHES WITH CBS ANCHOR OVER UNVETTED REFUGEES: ‘I DON’T WANT THAT PERSON IN MY COUNTRY’

Demonstrators attend a protest in support of U.S. President Donald Trump’s stance against what he calls racist laws, land expropriation, and farm attacks in February.  (Reuters/Siphiwe Sibeko)

In March, Secretary of State Marco Rubio expelled the South African ambassador in the U.S., calling him a “race-baiting” politician who hates America and President Donald Trump after he said the commander-in-chief is leading a global white supremacist movement.

Rubio also boycotted a G20 foreign ministers meeting in Johannesburg in March. 

In March, Secretary of State Marco Rubio expelled the South African ambassador in the U.S., calling him a “race-baiting” politician who hates America and President Donald Trump after he said the commander-in-chief is leading a global white supremacist movement. ((Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images))

South Africa’s foreign ministry has said the accusations of racial discrimination against Afrikaners are “unfounded.” 

“It is most regrettable that it appears that the resettlement of South Africans to the United States under the guise of being ‘refugees’ is entirely politically motivated and designed to question South Africa’s constitutional democracy; a country which has in fact suffered true persecution under apartheid rule and has worked tirelessly to prevent such levels of discrimination from ever occurring again,” the foreign ministry said in a statement.

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The South African government said it wouldn’t block anyone from leaving the country, but questioned their status as refugees. 

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report. 

Nearly two dozen states have banded together, filing an amicus brief to defend the constitutional rights of a Florida family, whose public middle school is accused of secretly “socially transitioning” their 13-year-old daughter without their consent.

The brief, filed on April 30, involves January and Jeffrey Littlejohn, parents in Leon County, Florida, who allege school officials met privately with their child about using a new name and pronouns, and did not inform or involve them as parents. 

School staff allegedly asked the Littlejohns’ daughter which bathroom and locker rooms she wanted to use, which gender she wanted to room with during overnight trips, and if she wanted her parents to be notified.

A three-judge panel from the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta sided 2-1 with the school district in a ruling on March 12, finding school officials “did not act with intent to injure” or “force the child to attend a student support plan meeting,” thus not meeting the “shock the conscience” standard.

The Littlejohns appealed, requesting the court hear the case in full.

EXCLUSIVE: MOM’S FIGHT WITH SCHOOL OVER TEEN DAUGHTER’S GENDER TRANSITION GETS BOOST FROM PARENTS GROUP

Parents display signs at a parental rights rally. (Courtesy of Becket)

The “shock the conscience” standard is often used in due process cases and refers to “egregious and unjust actions” that violate principles of fairness and decency, according to the Liberty Justice Center, which, in addition to the brief filed by the states’ attorneys general, joined the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty and Dr. Erica Anderson, Ph.D., in filing a brief in support of the parents’ position.

“The issue of parental notification policy, or, in this case, the lack of notification policies, is something we’re seeing around the country,” Emily Rae, senior counsel at the Liberty Justice Center, told Fox News Digital. “There are dozens of cases at the state level and federal level juggling this issue, trying to determine what parents’ rights are in this situation.”

States’ attorneys general called the court’s decision “disastrous for parents everywhere,” according to the brief that includes Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, South Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia, West Virginia and Arizona.

TRUMP GUEST WHOSE DAUGHTER WAS TRANSITIONED BEHIND HER BACK SPEAKS OUT

The school district allegedly met with the Littlejohns’ daughter without notifying them. (Courtesy of Becket)

“Purposefully withholding from a parent critical information about supposed medical treatment that a school is providing a student not only violates that right, but does so to a disturbing and constitutionally intolerable degree,” the states’ attorneys general added.

“Parents – not the government – know what’s best for their children,” Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr wrote in a statement. “We will always stand for parental rights and Georgia families.”

The Liberty Justice Center, in conjunction with the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty and Anderson, wrote that school officials are not experts and should not aid in students’ transition.

“To summarize, no professional association recommends that teachers and school officials, who have no expertise whatsoever in these issues, should facilitate a social transition while at school, treating minors as if they are really the opposite sex, in secret from their parents,” the Liberty Justice Center wrote. “Usurping the parents in this way is conscience-shocking.”

PARENTS TELL SCOTUS: LGBTQ STORYBOOKS IN CLASSROOMS CLASH WITH OUR FAITH

A parents’ rights supporter holds up a sign after a California judge halted a school district policy requiring parents be notified if their children change their gender identification or pronouns at school.  (Will Lester/MediaNews Group/Inland Valley Daily Bulletin via Getty Images)

In an interview earlier this year, January Littlejohn, who was one of President Donald Trump’s guests at his address to a joint session of Congress, said the school’s actions had a “destructive” effect on her entire family. 

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Ultimately, she said her daughter worked through the gender confusion, but the issue created a family rift that “took many years to repair.”

The Leon County School District and Carr did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment.

While Republicans have celebrated President Donald Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration, Democrats have accused the Trump administration’s deportations of violating due process. 

“We need judges that are not going to be demanding a trial for every single illegal immigrant. We have millions of people who have come in here illegally, and we can’t have a trial for every single person. That would be millions of trials,” Trump recently told reporters on Air Force One.

Fox News Digital asked lawmakers on Capitol Hill to respond to Trump’s argument that illegal immigrants are not entitled to due process. 

“People come here and get a legal process called parole and have a right to due process,” said Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz. “We are a country of laws, and we shouldn’t be kicking people out of the country without having that due process.”

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Senators including, from left, Rick Scott, R-Fla.; James Lankford, D-Okla.; and Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., respond to President Donald Trump’s comments about due process.  (Fox News Digital)

According to the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, all “persons” are entitled to due process. While the extent of due process for deporting illegal immigrants has played out in the courts, Kelly made his position clear when pressed by Fox News Digital. 

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“I’ll also say, throwing out little kids who are U.S. citizens, it’s wrong, it’s dangerous. It is certainly not fair to them or their parents, but it really does affect everybody. I mean, tossing out a 2-year-old who’s a U.S. citizen is crazy,” Kelly said. 

But Republicans who spoke to Fox News Digital weren’t so sympathetic, as they doubled down on their support of the Trump administration deporting illegal immigrants. 

A family of five claiming to be from Guatemala and a man stating he was from Peru walk through the desert after crossing the border wall in the Tucson Sector of the U.S.-Mexico border in Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument near Lukeville, Arizona, on Aug. 29, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt York)

“Nobody should be coming into the country illegally,” Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., said. “[Former President Joe] Biden has ruined all this. He’s ruined the whole immigration process. He has tainted immigration. Now we have [Venezuelan President Nicolás] Maduro’s criminals that are coming in, that he sent here. We have all the drug traffickers here. We have terrorists here. These people need to get out of the country. They’re here illegally. I want this country safe.”

Scott’s comments mimic Trump’s accusations on the 2024 presidential campaign trail of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro intentionally sending criminals to the U.S., and blaming former President Joe Biden for the surge in illegal immigration. 

“The law does not require someone to actually have a jury trial,” Sen. James Lankford, D-Okla., countered to Fox News Digital. “A hearing can be done. It’s not a trial. It’s not a jury trial. That’s not the right of someone that’s not legally present in the country.”

Migrants line up outside a migrant re-ticketing center in Manhattan on Jan. 5, 2024. (Barry Williams/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

Lankford said illegal immigrants are only entitled to a hearing, not a trial before a jury before deportation, which is supported by the due process clause of the Fifth Amendment. 

“No, it’s not necessary,” said Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., agreeing with Trump. “These people are illegal.”

Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., explained to Fox News Digital that while illegal immigrants are entitled to prior notice before deportation under habeas corpus, the judicial system has not clearly defined how long that window is. 

“Basically, the courts have said under a habeas proceeding, there needs to be notice,” said Schmitt. “But the question is, what does that notice mean? Is it an hour, is it a day or is it a week? I think what you’re ultimately going to see, not under the Alien Enemies Act, but under the habeas cases, is that there’s going to be a relatively short window, and [Trump’s] going to be able to proceed with these deportations.”

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White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller told reporters on Friday that the White House is considering suspending habeas corpus, which he said the Trump administration has the authority to do during “a time of invasion.”

“A lot of it depends on whether the courts do the right thing or not,” Miller said. 

A federal judge on Friday issued a temporary pause on the Trump administration’s plans to restructure various government agencies and cut tens of thousands of federal workers because the government overhaul was not authorized by Congress.

U.S. District Judge Susan Illston put a 14-day pause on the mass layoffs, siding with a group of unions, non-profits and local governments after they filed a lawsuit on April 28.

Illston said Trump may broadly restructure federal agencies, but only in “lawful ways” with approval from Congress.

“The President has the authority to seek changes to executive branch agencies, but he must do so in lawful ways and, in the case of large-scale reorganizations, with the cooperation of the legislative branch,” Illston said. “Many presidents have sought this cooperation before; many iterations of Congress have provided it.”

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A federal judge issued a temporary pause on the Trump administration’s plan to restructure various government agencies and carry out mass layoffs. (Reuters/Leah Millis)

“Nothing prevents the President from requesting this cooperation—as he did in his prior term of office,” the judge continued. “Indeed, the Court holds the President likely must request Congressional cooperation to order the changes he seeks, and thus issues a temporary restraining order to pause large-scale reductions in force in the meantime.”

Illston’s ruling was the broadest of its kind against administration efforts to overhaul the federal government, which have been led by Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency, DOGE.

Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House for comment.

In February, Trump directed agencies to work with DOGE to identify targets for mass layoffs as part of the administration’s plans to restructure the government.

FEDERAL JUDGE ORDERS HALT TO TRUMP ADMIN’S CFPB TERMINATIONS

The ruling was the broadest of its kind against administration efforts to overhaul the federal government, which have been led by Elon Musk and DOGE. (AP Images)

The president instructed agencies to eliminate duplicate roles, unnecessary management layers and non-critical jobs, as well as to automate routine tasks, close regional field offices and reduce the use of outside contractors.

The group of plaintiffs said the administration’s “unlawful attempt to reorganize the federal government has thrown agencies into chaos, disrupting critical services provided across our nation.”

“Each of us represents communities deeply invested in the efficiency of the federal government – laying off federal employees and reorganizing government functions haphazardly does not achieve that,” the groups said in a statement.

Illston scheduled a hearing for May 22 for a potential longer preliminary injunction. She said plaintiffs are likely to suffer irreparable harm without the temporary restraining order, which she said preserves the status quo.

Trump had directed agencies to work with DOGE to identify targets for mass layoffs. (Getty Images)

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The judge said the plaintiffs are likely to succeed on the merits of some of their claims. They accuse Trump of exceeding his authority and say that DOGE, the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of Personnel Management exceeded their authority and violated administrative law.

“The Court here is not considering the potential loss of income of one individual employee, but the widespread termination of salaries and benefits for individuals, families, and communities,” Illston wrote.

Reuters contributed to this report.